The Humming Noise

Elena had lived in her apartment for three years without any trouble. Then, one night in early spring, she woke up to a low humming sound. It seemed to come from somewhere behind the kitchen wall. She lay still and listened for almost ten minutes, but the noise never stopped.

Elena sudah tiga tahun tinggal di apartemennya tanpa masalah apa pun. Lalu, pada suatu malam di awal musim semi, ia terbangun oleh suara dengungan yang rendah. Suara itu seperti berasal dari suatu tempat di balik dinding dapur. Ia berbaring diam dan mendengarkan selama hampir sepuluh menit, tetapi suara itu tak kunjung berhenti.

The next morning, she mentioned it to her neighbor Marcus, who lived in the apartment below hers. "I haven't heard anything unusual," he said, "but I sleep with earplugs, so that doesn't mean much."

Keesokan paginya, ia menyebutkannya kepada tetangganya, Marcus, yang tinggal di apartemen di bawahnya. "Aku tidak mendengar apa pun yang janggal," katanya, "tapi aku tidur pakai penyumbat telinga, jadi itu tidak berarti banyak."

For the next few nights, the humming kept returning, always around midnight. Elena started to wonder if it might be something wrong with the building's wiring. She called the building manager, who promised to send someone to check the electrical panel.

Selama beberapa malam berikutnya, dengungan itu terus kembali, selalu sekitar tengah malam. Elena mulai bertanya-tanya apakah ada yang salah dengan instalasi listrik gedung itu. Ia menelepon pengelola gedung, yang berjanji akan mengirim seseorang untuk memeriksa panel listrik.

An electrician came the following week and tested every wire in her apartment. He found nothing unusual and left, telling her the sound probably wasn't dangerous. Still, Elena couldn't relax, since the humming continued every single night.

Seorang teknisi listrik datang minggu berikutnya dan menguji setiap kabel di apartemennya. Ia tidak menemukan apa pun yang janggal dan pergi, mengatakan bahwa suara itu mungkin tidak berbahaya. Namun Elena tetap tidak bisa tenang, sebab dengungan itu berlanjut setiap malam.

One evening, she decided to investigate herself. She stood in the kitchen with her ear close to the wall. Slowly, she moved along it until the sound grew louder. It was strongest near the shared wall with the apartment next door. That apartment had been empty for months.

Suatu malam, ia memutuskan menyelidikinya sendiri. Ia berdiri di dapur dengan telinga dekat ke dinding. Pelan-pelan, ia bergerak menyusurinya sampai suara itu terdengar makin keras. Suara itu paling kuat di dekat dinding bersama dengan apartemen sebelah. Apartemen itu sudah kosong selama berbulan-bulan.

Curious, she knocked on Marcus's door again. She asked if he knew who had just moved in next to her. "Actually, yes," he said. "A woman moved in last week. She runs a small pottery business from home."

Penasaran, ia mengetuk pintu Marcus lagi. Ia bertanya apakah Marcus tahu siapa yang baru pindah ke sebelahnya. "Sebenarnya, ya," katanya. "Seorang perempuan pindah minggu lalu. Dia menjalankan usaha tembikar kecil dari rumah."

That explained everything. The humming was the sound of her pottery wheel. She used it late at night, after her day job ended. Once Elena introduced herself, the woman apologized and agreed to stop working after ten o'clock. The mystery, it turned out, had a surprisingly creative explanation.

Itu menjelaskan segalanya. Dengungan itu adalah suara roda tembikarnya. Ia memakainya larut malam, setelah pekerjaan sehari-harinya selesai. Begitu Elena memperkenalkan diri, perempuan itu meminta maaf dan setuju berhenti bekerja setelah pukul sepuluh. Misteri itu ternyata punya penjelasan yang mengejutkan dan kreatif.