The Key Under the Wrong Mat

Paolo came home late one night. He was tired after a long day at work.

Paolo pulang larut malam pada suatu hari. Ia lelah setelah seharian bekerja.

He looked under his doormat for the spare key. It always stayed there for emergencies.

Ia mencari kunci cadangan di bawah keset pintunya. Kunci itu selalu disimpan di sana untuk keadaan darurat.

The key was there, but it did not fit the lock. Paolo tried again and again.

Kuncinya ada, tetapi tidak cocok dengan kunci pintunya. Paolo mencoba lagi dan lagi.

He knocked on the door, but no one answered. He lived alone, so that made sense.

Ia mengetuk pintu, tetapi tidak ada yang menjawab. Ia tinggal sendirian, jadi itu masuk akal.

Paolo stepped back and looked at the door number. It said twelve, not fourteen.

Paolo mundur selangkah dan melihat nomor pintu. Tertulis dua belas, bukan empat belas.

He stood at the wrong apartment! The building had two floors with the same layout.

Ia berdiri di depan apartemen yang salah! Gedung itu punya dua lantai dengan denah yang sama.

Paolo walked up one more flight of stairs. He found his own door, number fourteen.

Paolo naik satu tangga lagi. Ia menemukan pintunya sendiri, nomor empat belas.

His neighbor Greta opened her door and looked out. "Are you okay?" she asked. "I heard noise downstairs."

Tetangganya, Greta, membuka pintu dan melongok keluar. "Kamu baik-baik saja?" tanyanya. "Aku mendengar keributan di bawah."

"Sorry, Greta," Paolo said. "I tried to open the wrong door with the wrong key."

"Maaf, Greta," kata Paolo. "Tadi aku mencoba membuka pintu yang salah dengan kunci yang salah."

Greta laughed. "That happens a lot here. The two floors look exactly the same."

Greta tertawa. "Itu sering terjadi di sini. Kedua lantai ini persis sama."

Paolo found his real spare key in his bag. He opened his own door and smiled.

Paolo menemukan kunci cadangannya yang asli di dalam tasnya. Ia membuka pintunya sendiri dan tersenyum.

"Good night, Greta," he said. "Next time, I will count the floors first."

"Selamat malam, Greta," katanya. "Lain kali, aku akan menghitung lantainya dulu."