The Lamp That Counted to Three

Mei works at the pet shop three evenings a week. Today she cleans all the small-animal cages alone for the first time. She feels proud. She moves each animal to a travel box. She cleans the cage, and the animal goes back.

Mei bekerja di toko hewan peliharaan tiga malam seminggu. Hari ini untuk pertama kalinya ia membersihkan semua kandang hewan kecil sendirian. Ia merasa bangga. Ia memindahkan setiap hewan ke kotak pengangkut. Ia membersihkan kandangnya, lalu hewan itu dikembalikan.

At closing time the shop is quiet. Only the fish tanks glow. Hugh sweeps the floor and counts the bird seed. Now he waits for her at the back room door.

Saat toko tutup, suasananya sepi. Hanya akuarium yang bersinar. Hugh menyapu lantai dan menghitung pakan burung. Sekarang ia menunggu Mei di pintu ruang belakang.

"You look worried," says Mei.

"Kamu kelihatan khawatir," kata Mei.

"The lamp does it every few minutes," says Hugh.

"Lampunya melakukannya setiap beberapa menit," kata Hugh.

They go into the back room. It is long and narrow. It holds boxes, bags of sand and empty cages. In the corner, a small desk lamp stands on a shelf. It flickers. Two short blinks, one long one. Then it stays dark for a moment. Then it starts again.

Mereka masuk ke ruang belakang. Ruangan itu panjang dan sempit. Isinya kardus, karung pasir, dan kandang-kandang kosong. Di sudut, sebuah lampu meja kecil berdiri di atas rak. Lampu itu berkedip. Dua kedipan pendek, satu kedipan panjang. Lalu ia mati sebentar. Lalu mulai lagi.

"Two short, one long," says Hugh. "It is always the same."

"Dua pendek, satu panjang," kata Hugh. "Selalu sama."

"It's a bad bulb," says Mei.

"Bohlamnya rusak," kata Mei.

"A bad bulb doesn't count to three."

"Bohlam rusak tidak bisa menghitung sampai tiga."

Mei laughs, but she watches the lamp for a long time. Two short, one long. Then the same again. The pattern is perfect. It is a little scary.

Mei tertawa, tetapi ia memandangi lampu itu lama sekali. Dua pendek, satu panjang. Lalu sama lagi. Polanya sempurna. Rasanya agak menyeramkan.

"Maybe the wire is loose," she says. "I'll check the plug."

"Mungkin kabelnya longgar," katanya. "Aku periksa colokannya."

She pulls the plug. The lamp goes dark. The room is quiet. Then, from somewhere behind the boxes, comes a tiny scratching sound.

Ia mencabut colokan. Lampu itu padam. Ruangan menjadi sunyi. Lalu, dari suatu tempat di balik kardus-kardus, terdengar suara garukan yang kecil sekali.

Hugh freezes. "Did you hear that?"

Hugh membeku. "Kamu dengar itu?"

"Yes."

"Ya."

"Is it a mouse?"

"Itu tikus?"

"We sell mice," says Mei. "We don't have wild ones. At least, I hope not."

"Kita menjual tikus," kata Mei. "Kita tidak punya yang liar. Setidaknya, semoga tidak."

She follows the cord of the lamp with her eyes. It runs along the shelf and down behind some boxes. Near the floor, the plastic cover of the cord is gone. Small teeth marks show on the wire.

Ia menelusuri kabel lampu dengan matanya. Kabel itu membentang di sepanjang rak lalu turun ke balik beberapa kardus. Di dekat lantai, selubung plastik kabelnya hilang. Ada bekas gigi kecil di kawatnya.

"Something chews the cord," says Mei. "Every time it bites, the lamp blinks."

"Ada sesuatu yang menggigit kabelnya," kata Mei. "Setiap kali menggigit, lampunya berkedip."

"Two bites, then a rest, then one long bite," says Hugh. "That's the pattern."

"Dua gigitan, lalu istirahat, lalu satu gigitan panjang," kata Hugh. "Itu polanya."

"Teeth marks," says Mei. Her stomach turns cold. "Hugh, where is the ferret?"

"Bekas gigi," kata Mei. Perutnya terasa dingin. "Hugh, di mana musangnya?"

She runs to the wall of cages. Her heart is loud in her ears. The door of the big cage at the end is not shut. The small metal latch hangs open. The cage is empty.

Ia berlari ke dinding kandang. Jantungnya berdebar keras di telinganya. Pintu kandang besar di ujung tidak tertutup. Selot logam kecilnya menggantung terbuka. Kandang itu kosong.

"Oh, no," she says. "I cleaned this cage this evening. I forgot to close the latch."

"Aduh, tidak," katanya. "Aku membersihkan kandang ini tadi sore. Aku lupa menutup selotnya."

"So the ferret is loose," says Hugh.

"Jadi musangnya lepas," kata Hugh.

"And it chews electric cords!" says Mei. "That's very dangerous for it. We have to find it. Fast."

"Dan dia menggigit kabel listrik!" kata Mei. "Itu sangat berbahaya buat dia. Kita harus menemukannya. Cepat."

Hugh takes his phone and turns on the torch. Mei takes a small bag of dried fish from the shelf. They walk slowly between the boxes.

Hugh mengambil ponselnya dan menyalakan senter. Mei mengambil sekantong kecil ikan kering dari rak. Mereka berjalan pelan di antara kardus-kardus.

The scratching sound comes again. It is on the left. Then it is on the right. The ferret is quick. Every time they come close, it moves away.

Suara garukan itu terdengar lagi. Sekarang di sebelah kiri. Lalu di sebelah kanan. Si musang gesit. Setiap kali mereka mendekat, ia menjauh.

"Wait," Hugh whispers. "If it hears us, it runs."

"Tunggu," bisik Hugh. "Kalau dia mendengar kita, dia lari."

"Then we stop walking," says Mei. "Let it come to us."

"Kalau begitu kita berhenti berjalan," kata Mei. "Biar dia yang datang ke kita."

They stand still and wait for the sound. It begins again, soft and near. Hugh points his light at a gap between two boxes. Two small black eyes shine in the dark. A long brown body slides back and disappears.

Mereka berdiri diam dan menunggu suara itu. Suara itu mulai lagi, pelan dan dekat. Hugh mengarahkan cahayanya ke celah di antara dua kardus. Dua mata hitam kecil berkilau dalam gelap. Tubuh cokelat yang panjang menyelinap mundur dan menghilang.

"There!" he says.

"Di situ!" katanya.

Mei opens the bag of fish and holds it out. The smell fills the air. She puts a few pieces on the floor in a line. The line runs from the gap to an open travel box.

Mei membuka kantong ikan dan mengulurkannya. Baunya memenuhi udara. Ia meletakkan beberapa potong di lantai membentuk satu garis. Garis itu memanjang dari celah sampai ke sebuah kotak pengangkut yang terbuka.

"You're making a road," says Hugh.

"Kamu membuat jalan," kata Hugh.

"A road to dinner."

"Jalan menuju makan malam."

The ferret comes out slowly. It sniffs the first piece. It eats it. It sniffs the second piece. Its tail moves. Then it runs along the line and goes into the box.

Si musang keluar perlahan. Ia mengendus potongan pertama. Ia memakannya. Ia mengendus potongan kedua. Ekornya bergerak. Lalu ia berlari menyusuri garis itu dan masuk ke dalam kotak.

"Now," says Mei.

"Sekarang," kata Mei.

Hugh closes the lid, very gently. The ferret looks at them and finishes its fish.

Hugh menutup tutupnya, dengan sangat pelan. Si musang menatap mereka dan menghabiskan ikannya.

"Got you," says Hugh. He sits down on the floor. His hands shake.

"Tertangkap kau," kata Hugh. Ia duduk di lantai. Tangannya gemetar.

Mei sits next to him. "I almost lost an animal on my first night alone," she says. "I should tell the boss."

Mei duduk di sebelahnya. "Aku hampir kehilangan seekor hewan di malam pertamaku sendirian," katanya. "Aku harus memberi tahu bos."

"First we fix everything," says Hugh. "Then we tell."

"Perbaiki dulu semuanya," kata Hugh. "Baru kita bilang."

They fix it together. They put the ferret in its own cage and close the latch. Then they push the latch down one more time, to be sure. Hugh finds a big clip in the drawer. He puts it on the door. Hugh puts the old lamp in the bin. "It is not safe now," he says. He brings a new lamp from the shelf in the shop. Mei tapes its cord high on the wall, far from the floor.

Mereka memperbaikinya bersama-sama. Mereka memasukkan si musang ke kandangnya sendiri dan menutup selotnya. Lalu mereka menekan selot itu sekali lagi, untuk memastikan. Hugh menemukan jepit besar di laci. Ia memasangnya di pintu. Hugh membuang lampu tua itu ke tempat sampah. "Sekarang sudah tidak aman," katanya. Ia mengambil lampu baru dari rak di toko. Mei menempelkan kabelnya dengan selotip tinggi di dinding, jauh dari lantai.

"It looks a little silly," she says.

"Kelihatannya agak konyol," katanya.

"It looks safe," says Hugh.

"Kelihatannya aman," kata Hugh.

She plugs the new lamp into the wall. It lights up and stays bright. There is no blinking now. The pattern is gone.

Ia mencolokkan lampu baru itu ke dinding. Lampu itu menyala dan tetap terang. Tidak ada kedipan lagi. Polanya sudah hilang.

Mei counts the cages one by one, and Hugh counts them again. Every door is shut. Every animal is in its place. The small shop is calm.

Mei menghitung kandang satu per satu, dan Hugh menghitungnya lagi. Setiap pintu tertutup. Setiap hewan ada di tempatnya. Toko kecil itu tenang.

She looks at the clip, the tape and the clean cage. Then she looks at Hugh and smiles.

Ia memandang jepit, selotip, dan kandang yang bersih itu. Lalu ia menatap Hugh dan tersenyum.

Hugh looks at the lamp, the tape and the fish bag. "Mei," he says, "who will tell the boss?"

Hugh memandang lampu, selotip, dan kantong ikan. "Mei," katanya, "siapa yang akan memberi tahu bos?"