The Dots in the Library Book

Alba worked at the school library on Thursdays. She was sixteen. Her job was easy. She stamped books and put them on the shelves.

Alba bekerja di perpustakaan sekolah pada hari Kamis. Dia berusia enam belas tahun. Pekerjaannya mudah. Dia mencap buku dan menaruhnya di rak.

One Thursday, she opened a book about the sea. It was a returned book. A tiny dot sat under a letter on page ten. The letter was Y.

Pada suatu hari Kamis, dia membuka sebuah buku tentang laut. Buku itu baru dikembalikan. Sebuah titik kecil berada di bawah sebuah huruf di halaman sepuluh. Hurufnya Y.

Alba smiled. Some readers made marks in books. She turned the page. Another dot sat under a letter on page eleven. The letter was O.

Alba tersenyum. Beberapa pembaca memang membuat tanda di buku. Dia membalik halaman. Titik lain berada di bawah sebuah huruf di halaman sebelas. Hurufnya O.

She looked at page twelve. A dot sat under the letter U. Alba stopped smiling. This was not a mistake. Someone made these dots on purpose.

Dia melihat halaman dua belas. Sebuah titik berada di bawah huruf U. Alba berhenti tersenyum. Ini bukan kesalahan. Seseorang membuat titik-titik ini dengan sengaja.

She took a piece of paper and a pencil. She went through the book, page by page. She wrote each letter in a line.

Dia mengambil selembar kertas dan sebuah pensil. Dia memeriksa buku itu halaman demi halaman. Dia menulis setiap huruf berderet.

Y. O. U. C. A. N. D. O. I. T.

Y. O. U. C. A. N. D. O. I. T.

Alba read the line three times. "You can do it," she said in a small voice.

Alba membaca deretan itu tiga kali. "Kamu bisa melakukannya," katanya dengan suara kecil.

On the last page, there was one more dot. It sat under the word "friend."

Di halaman terakhir, ada satu titik lagi. Titik itu berada di bawah kata "friend."

Alba felt a little shiver. Who wrote this? And why?

Alba merasa sedikit merinding. Siapa yang menulis ini? Dan untuk apa?

She carried the book to the desk. The librarian was there, with her glasses on her head.

Dia membawa buku itu ke meja. Pustakawan ada di sana, dengan kacamata di atas kepalanya.

"Look at this," Alba said. She showed the paper.

"Lihat ini," kata Alba. Dia menunjukkan kertasnya.

The librarian read the letters. Her eyes grew wide. "How lovely," she said. "I have never seen it before."

Pustakawan membaca huruf-huruf itu. Matanya melebar. "Indah sekali," katanya. "Saya belum pernah melihatnya."

"Who had the book last?" Alba asked.

"Siapa yang terakhir meminjam buku ini?" tanya Alba.

"Let us look at the card," said the librarian.

"Mari kita lihat kartunya," kata pustakawan.

Inside the back cover, there was a paper card. It had names and dates. Alba counted five names. She read the oldest name. It said "Nia." The date was three years ago.

Di bagian dalam sampul belakang, ada sebuah kartu kertas. Kartu itu berisi nama-nama dan tanggal. Alba menghitung lima nama. Dia membaca nama yang paling lama. Tertulis "Nia." Tanggalnya tiga tahun lalu.

"Nia," said the librarian. "I remember her. She was a quiet girl. She always read about the sea."

"Nia," kata pustakawan. "Saya ingat dia. Dia anak yang pendiam. Dia selalu membaca tentang laut."

"Is she still at this school?" Alba asked.

"Apakah dia masih di sekolah ini?" tanya Alba.

"No. She finished last year. She works at a school far away now. But her brother is in class eight."

"Tidak. Dia lulus tahun lalu. Sekarang dia bekerja di sebuah sekolah yang jauh. Tapi adik laki-lakinya ada di kelas delapan."

Alba found him at lunch. He sat alone at a long table. He ate an apple.

Alba menemukannya saat makan siang. Dia duduk sendirian di meja panjang. Dia sedang makan sebuah apel.

"Excuse me," she said. "Is your sister Nia?"

"Permisi," katanya. "Apakah kakakmu bernama Nia?"

The boy nodded. "Yes. Why?"

Anak laki-laki itu mengangguk. "Ya. Kenapa?"

Alba showed him the paper. The boy read it. Then he laughed out loud.

Alba menunjukkan kertasnya. Anak laki-laki itu membacanya. Lalu dia tertawa keras.

"This is Nia," he said. "She did this every time she felt afraid. Before a test, before a race, before a big day. She put dots in a book. Then she gave the book to the next reader."

"Ini Kak Nia," katanya. "Dia melakukan ini setiap kali merasa takut. Sebelum ujian, sebelum lomba, sebelum hari yang besar. Dia membuat titik-titik di sebuah buku. Lalu dia memberikan buku itu kepada pembaca berikutnya."

"Why?" Alba asked.

"Kenapa?" tanya Alba.

"A book can talk to a stranger," he said.

"Sebuah buku bisa berbicara kepada orang asing," katanya.

"That is what she said."

"Begitu katanya."

"She wanted that stranger to feel brave."

"Dia ingin orang asing itu merasa berani."

Alba thought about the message. She had a hard math test on Monday. She felt afraid of it. Now the words were a warm stone in her bag.

Alba memikirkan pesan itu. Hari Senin dia punya ujian matematika yang sulit. Dia merasa takut. Sekarang kata-kata itu seperti batu hangat di dalam tasnya.

That afternoon, the library was quiet. Alba sat at the big table with the sea book. She took her pencil and opened to page twenty. She made a small dot under the letter S.

Sore itu, perpustakaan sepi. Alba duduk di meja besar dengan buku tentang laut itu. Dia mengambil pensilnya dan membuka halaman dua puluh. Dia membuat sebuah titik kecil di bawah huruf S.

She found an O on the next page. Then C, A, N, Y, O, and U.

Dia menemukan huruf O di halaman berikutnya. Lalu C, A, N, Y, O, dan U.

"So can you," she said to nobody.

"Kamu juga bisa," katanya kepada siapa pun.

She closed the book. She stamped it and walked to the shelf. She put it back, ready for the next reader.

Dia menutup buku itu. Dia mencapnya dan berjalan ke rak. Dia menaruhnya kembali, siap untuk pembaca berikutnya.