The Crocodile Under Larch Bridge

Xavi plays the guitar under Larch Bridge every afternoon at four. He chooses the spot for one reason. The curved stone roof makes every note sound twice as big. Even a bad chord sounds like a church organ down there.

Xavi bermain gitar di bawah Jembatan Larch setiap sore pukul empat. Ia memilih tempat itu karena satu alasan. Atap batu yang melengkung membuat setiap nada terdengar dua kali lebih besar. Bahkan kunci yang sumbang pun terdengar seperti organ gereja di bawah sana.

Today he arrives with his guitar case and finds a girl in his place. She sits on an upturned bucket with a milk crate in front of her. On the crate lie two big oven gloves, one green and one yellow. She is humming to them.

Hari ini ia datang membawa kotak gitarnya dan mendapati seorang gadis di tempatnya. Gadis itu duduk di atas ember terbalik dengan sebuah peti susu di depannya. Di atas peti tergeletak dua sarung tangan oven yang besar, satu hijau dan satu kuning. Ia sedang bersenandung kepada keduanya.

"Excuse me," says Xavi. "That is my pitch."

"Permisi," kata Xavi. "Itu lapakku."

"I don't see your name on it," the girl says. She does not look up.

"Aku tidak melihat namamu di situ," kata gadis itu. Ia tidak mendongak.

"I have played here for two years."

"Aku sudah bermain di sini selama dua tahun."

"And I have wanted to play here for two years. Today I am here first."

"Dan aku sudah ingin bermain di sini selama dua tahun. Hari ini aku yang datang duluan."

Xavi opens his mouth to argue. But a man in a long coat stops to hear the girl hum. Then he drops a coin on the crate. Xavi stares at the coin as if it is a personal insult.

Xavi membuka mulut untuk berdebat. Tetapi seorang pria berjas panjang berhenti untuk mendengarkan senandung gadis itu. Lalu ia menjatuhkan sekeping koin di peti. Xavi menatap koin itu seakan-akan itu penghinaan pribadi.

"Fine," he says. "I will stand at the other end."

"Baiklah," katanya. "Aku akan berdiri di ujung yang lain."

The other end of the bridge is a bad spot. The echo is weak, and a noisy road runs next to it. Xavi plays his best song twice, and nobody stops. He hears the girl at the far end, and she is laughing. A small crowd has formed around her.

Ujung lain jembatan itu tempat yang buruk. Gemanya lemah, dan sebuah jalan raya yang bising berada di sebelahnya. Xavi memainkan lagu terbaiknya dua kali, dan tak seorang pun berhenti. Ia mendengar gadis itu di ujung seberang, dan gadis itu sedang tertawa. Kerumunan kecil sudah terbentuk di sekelilingnya.

He walks back to look. The girl, whose name is Sigrid, has pushed her hands into the oven gloves. The green glove is a crocodile with a huge mouth. The yellow glove is a very nervous duck. The crocodile tries to eat the duck, and the duck makes a speech to stop it. The children scream with joy.

Ia berjalan kembali untuk melihat. Gadis itu, yang bernama Sigrid, sudah memasukkan tangannya ke dalam sarung tangan oven. Sarung tangan hijau itu seekor buaya dengan mulut raksasa. Sarung tangan kuning itu seekor bebek yang sangat gugup. Si buaya mencoba memakan si bebek, dan si bebek berpidato untuk menghentikannya. Anak-anak menjerit kegirangan.

Xavi hates how good it is. He also notices that the stone roof makes the duck sound brave.

Xavi benci betapa bagusnya pertunjukan itu. Ia juga menyadari bahwa atap batu itu membuat suara si bebek terdengar berani.

The next day he arrives at three, one hour early, with a folding chair. Sigrid is already there, sitting on her bucket, and she smiles like a cat.

Keesokan harinya ia datang pukul tiga, satu jam lebih awal, dengan membawa kursi lipat. Sigrid sudah ada di sana, duduk di embernya, dan ia tersenyum seperti kucing.

"You are early," she says.

"Kamu datang awal," katanya.

"So are you."

"Kamu juga."

"I live next to the bridge. I win."

"Aku tinggal di sebelah jembatan ini. Aku menang."

For a week they fight over the pitch without saying much. One day he plays so loudly that the duck cannot be heard. The next day she turns the crocodile into a monster that chases his guitar. Nobody enjoys the contest more than the crowd. On Friday a woman gives Xavi a coin and whispers, "Please don't stop arguing."

Selama seminggu mereka memperebutkan lapak itu tanpa banyak bicara. Suatu hari ia bermain begitu keras sampai suara si bebek tak terdengar. Hari berikutnya gadis itu mengubah si buaya menjadi monster yang mengejar gitarnya. Tak seorang pun lebih menikmati pertandingan itu daripada para penonton. Pada hari Jumat seorang perempuan memberi Xavi sekeping koin dan berbisik, "Tolong jangan berhenti bertengkar."

Then a man in a green jacket arrives with a clipboard. He is from the city office, and he does not smile at anyone.

Lalu seorang pria berjaket hijau datang membawa papan jepit. Ia dari kantor kota, dan ia tidak tersenyum kepada siapa pun.

"I have a complaint," he says. "Two street acts in one pitch is against the rules. Under this bridge, only one act is allowed."

"Saya punya keluhan," katanya. "Dua pertunjukan jalanan di satu lapak melanggar aturan. Di bawah jembatan ini, hanya satu pertunjukan yang diizinkan."

"Which one?" asks Sigrid.

"Yang mana?" tanya Sigrid.

"That is for me to decide. Come to my office on Monday with your act, and I will choose."

"Itu saya yang menentukan. Datanglah ke kantor saya hari Senin dengan pertunjukan kalian, dan saya akan memilih."

Xavi and Sigrid look at each other. Each of them thinks the other act is a danger to the pitch. Neither of them speaks until the man has gone.

Xavi dan Sigrid saling memandang. Masing-masing mengira pertunjukan yang lain adalah ancaman bagi lapak itu. Tak satu pun dari mereka berbicara sampai pria itu pergi.

"If I lose this spot," Xavi says finally, "I lose my best echo."

"Kalau aku kehilangan tempat ini," kata Xavi akhirnya, "aku kehilangan gema terbaikku."

"If I lose it, I lose my best audience," Sigrid says. "Nobody stops on the other side of the road."

"Kalau aku yang kehilangan, aku kehilangan penonton terbaikku," kata Sigrid. "Tidak ada yang berhenti di seberang jalan."

"We could play for him at the same time. As one act."

"Kita bisa tampil untuknya bersama-sama. Sebagai satu pertunjukan."

"A guitar and a crocodile?" She laughs, but she does not say no.

"Gitar dan buaya?" Ia tertawa, tetapi ia tidak mengatakan tidak.

They have three days. They spend the first one in Xavi's garage. His father keeps old paint tins there, and a broken lawn mower. Sigrid brings the gloves in a shopping bag. Xavi brings his guitar and a big pot of glue.

Mereka punya tiga hari. Hari pertama mereka habiskan di garasi Xavi. Ayahnya menyimpan kaleng-kaleng cat tua di sana, dan sebuah mesin pemotong rumput yang rusak. Sigrid membawa sarung tangan itu dalam tas belanja. Xavi membawa gitarnya dan sepanci besar lem.

"The gloves need eyes," he says. "At the moment the crocodile looks like a kitchen accident."

"Sarung tangan ini butuh mata," katanya. "Saat ini buayanya kelihatan seperti kecelakaan dapur."

"You can't glue eyes on. They must move."

"Kamu tidak bisa menempelkan mata. Matanya harus bisa bergerak."

"Then I will sew buttons."

"Kalau begitu aku akan menjahit kancing."

"You can't sew," she says.

"Kamu tidak bisa menjahit," katanya.

"I can learn."

"Aku bisa belajar."

By the end of the afternoon he has sewn two big white buttons on the green glove. One of them hangs by a thread, and the crocodile looks dizzy. Sigrid claps her hands over her mouth and laughs until she cries. Xavi pretends to be angry, but he is laughing too.

Pada akhir sore ia sudah menjahit dua kancing putih besar di sarung tangan hijau itu. Salah satunya menggantung pada seutas benang, dan si buaya tampak pusing. Sigrid menutup mulutnya dengan kedua tangan dan tertawa sampai menangis. Xavi pura-pura marah, tetapi ia juga tertawa.

On the second day the real work begins, and it is harder. Xavi plays a quiet song, and Sigrid says it is too sad for a crocodile. She hums a new tune, and Xavi says it has no rhythm. They both lose their patience. For an hour they sit at opposite ends of the garage. The only sound is a dripping tap.

Pada hari kedua pekerjaan yang sebenarnya dimulai, dan itu lebih sulit. Xavi memainkan lagu pelan, dan Sigrid bilang itu terlalu sedih untuk seekor buaya. Ia bersenandung dengan nada baru, dan Xavi bilang nada itu tidak punya ritme. Keduanya kehilangan kesabaran. Selama satu jam mereka duduk di ujung garasi yang berseberangan. Satu-satunya bunyi hanyalah keran yang menetes.

"I have an idea," Sigrid says at last. "You always play the same chords. What happens if the crocodile hates them?"

"Aku punya ide," kata Sigrid akhirnya. "Kamu selalu memainkan kunci yang sama. Bagaimana kalau buayanya membencinya?"

"Why would he hate my chords?"

"Kenapa dia membenci kunci-kunciku?"

"Because they sleep. He wants them to wake up."

"Karena kunci-kunci itu tidur. Dia ingin mereka bangun."

Xavi thinks about that. Then he plays the chords fast, with a funny jump at the end. The green glove snaps its mouth on the last note. The sound is perfect. The crocodile looks at the guitar, then at Xavi, and then it bites his sleeve.

Xavi memikirkannya. Lalu ia memainkan kunci-kunci itu dengan cepat, dengan lompatan lucu di akhir. Sarung tangan hijau itu mengatupkan mulutnya pada nada terakhir. Bunyinya sempurna. Si buaya memandang gitar itu, lalu Xavi, lalu menggigit lengan bajunya.

"Again," Xavi says. "But slower."

"Sekali lagi," kata Xavi. "Tapi lebih pelan."

On the third day they practise until the sun goes down. Sigrid learns that Xavi taps his foot when he is nervous. Xavi learns that she says "hmm" before every joke, so that the audience feels it coming. Each of them hides a small smile every time the other does something clever.

Pada hari ketiga mereka berlatih sampai matahari terbenam. Sigrid mengetahui bahwa Xavi mengetuk-ngetukkan kakinya saat gugup. Xavi mengetahui bahwa Sigrid berkata "hmm" sebelum setiap lelucon, supaya penonton merasakan leluconnya akan datang. Masing-masing menyembunyikan senyum kecil setiap kali yang lain melakukan sesuatu yang cerdik.

On Monday they walk into the city office with their instruments, the gloves and a plan. The man in the green jacket sits at a desk with a cup of coffee. He does not look pleased to see them. Sigrid puts the crocodile on her right hand, and Xavi sits on a chair and starts to play.

Pada hari Senin mereka melangkah masuk ke kantor kota dengan membawa alat-alat mereka, sarung tangan, dan sebuah rencana. Pria berjaket hijau itu duduk di meja dengan secangkir kopi. Ia tidak tampak senang melihat mereka. Sigrid memasang si buaya di tangan kanannya, dan Xavi duduk di kursi lalu mulai bermain.

The show lasts four minutes. The duck gets lost in the office. The crocodile finds the duck and wants to eat it, but the duck sings a sad song instead. The crocodile stops, because it has never heard a duck sing. In the end the two gloves dance on the man's desk. The guitar plays so fast that the coffee shakes.

Pertunjukan itu berlangsung empat menit. Si bebek tersesat di kantor itu. Si buaya menemukan si bebek dan ingin memakannya, tetapi si bebek malah menyanyikan lagu sedih. Si buaya berhenti, karena ia belum pernah mendengar bebek bernyanyi. Pada akhirnya kedua sarung tangan itu menari di atas meja pria itu. Gitar itu dimainkan begitu cepat sampai kopinya bergetar.

The man does not smile. He writes something on his clipboard and tears off the page.

Pria itu tidak tersenyum. Ia menulis sesuatu di papan jepitnya dan merobek halamannya.

"One permit," he says. "Both of you on it. One act, one pitch."

"Satu izin," katanya. "Kalian berdua tercantum di dalamnya. Satu pertunjukan, satu lapak."

"Is that a yes?" asks Xavi.

"Itu artinya ya?" tanya Xavi.

"It is a yes. And please, no more arguing under the bridge." He turns his face away, but his shoulders are shaking.

"Itu ya. Dan tolong, jangan bertengkar lagi di bawah jembatan." Ia memalingkan wajah, tetapi bahunya berguncang.

They walk back to Larch Bridge in the late light. The stone roof glows gold. For the first time that week the place feels like it belongs to both of them. A small crowd is already waiting. A boy holds up a sign that says CROCODILE.

Mereka berjalan kembali ke Jembatan Larch dalam cahaya senja. Atap batu itu berpendar keemasan. Untuk pertama kalinya minggu itu tempat itu terasa milik mereka berdua. Kerumunan kecil sudah menunggu. Seorang anak laki-laki mengangkat papan bertuliskan BUAYA.

After the show, the hat is so full of coins that Xavi needs both hands to hold it. Sigrid sits on her bucket with the green glove still on her hand. She is out of breath. The crocodile turns slowly towards Xavi and opens its mouth.

Setelah pertunjukan, topi itu begitu penuh koin sampai Xavi harus memegangnya dengan kedua tangan. Sigrid duduk di embernya dengan sarung tangan hijau masih di tangannya. Napasnya terengah. Si buaya perlahan menoleh ke arah Xavi dan membuka mulutnya.

"Excuse me," it says in a squeaky voice. "Does the guitar player want to hold my hand?"

"Permisi," katanya dengan suara melengking. "Apakah si pemain gitar mau menggandeng tanganku?"