The Lid That Came from a Wheel

Ozan sits in his taxi at the town taxi stop. He watches the empty road. There are no customers today. There are five taxis in a row and five bored drivers. Nobody wants a ride.

Ozan duduk di dalam taksinya di pangkalan taksi kota kecil itu. Ia memandangi jalan yang kosong. Hari ini tidak ada penumpang. Ada lima taksi berderet dan lima sopir yang bosan. Tak seorang pun mau naik taksi.

It is a small town. Everything is close. People walk to the shop, to the school, to the market. A taxi is for sick people, late people and lost people. Today, nobody is any of those.

Kota itu kecil. Semuanya dekat. Orang berjalan kaki ke toko, ke sekolah, ke pasar. Taksi untuk orang sakit, orang yang terlambat, dan orang yang tersesat. Hari ini, tak ada yang seperti itu.

"I want one long ride," Ozan says to the dashboard. "Just one. Is that too much?"

"Aku ingin satu perjalanan panjang," kata Ozan kepada dasbor. "Cuma satu. Apa itu terlalu banyak?"

The dashboard does not answer. He opens the window and looks at the road.

Dasbor tidak menjawab. Ia membuka jendela dan memandangi jalan.

A woman comes around the corner. She walks fast, with both arms around a big steel pot. Soup drips from the side and leaves a line on the ground. She stops at the first taxi, then the second. Both drivers are asleep. Then she reaches Ozan's.

Seorang perempuan muncul dari tikungan. Ia berjalan cepat, dengan kedua lengan memeluk panci baja besar. Sup menetes dari sisinya dan meninggalkan garis di tanah. Ia berhenti di taksi pertama, lalu yang kedua. Kedua sopirnya tertidur. Lalu ia sampai di taksi Ozan.

"Please," she says. "I need to go to the farm road. It is forty minutes away."

"Tolong," katanya. "Saya perlu ke jalan peternakan. Jaraknya empat puluh menit."

"Get in," says Ozan. He smiles for the first time all week.

"Silakan naik," kata Ozan. Ia tersenyum untuk pertama kalinya minggu ini.

She sits in the back. The pot is hot, and she holds it on her knees. The lid is on top, but it is too small. It sits to one side, like a hat on a child.

Perempuan itu duduk di belakang. Pancinya panas, dan ia memangkunya. Tutupnya terpasang di atas, tetapi terlalu kecil. Tutup itu miring ke satu sisi, seperti topi di kepala anak kecil.

"Is that soup?" Ozan asks.

"Itu sup?" tanya Ozan.

"Yes. My name is Inge. My sister has a new baby. She has no time to cook." Inge looks at the pot. "I made enough for ten days. But the lid is wrong."

"Ya. Nama saya Inge. Adik saya baru punya bayi. Ia tidak sempat memasak." Inge memandangi panci itu. "Saya membuat cukup untuk sepuluh hari. Tapi tutupnya salah."

"It looks wrong."

"Kelihatannya memang salah."

"I bought the pot in a market last year. The lid did not come with it. I took one from a different pot." She sighs. "On the road, the soup will go everywhere."

"Saya membeli panci ini di pasar tahun lalu. Tutupnya tidak ikut. Saya mengambil satu dari panci lain." Ia menghela napas. "Di jalan, supnya akan tumpah ke mana-mana."

Ozan looks at the pot in the mirror. A small wave of soup moves to the edge. He starts the engine, then turns it off again.

Ozan melihat panci itu di kaca spion. Sebuah gelombang kecil sup bergerak ke tepi. Ia menyalakan mesin, lalu mematikannya lagi.

"One minute," he says. "Do not move."

"Sebentar," katanya. "Jangan bergerak."

He gets out and walks to the taxi behind his. The driver is an older man with a grey cap. He puts down his newspaper.

Ia turun dan berjalan ke taksi di belakangnya. Sopirnya seorang pria yang lebih tua dengan topi kelabu. Pria itu meletakkan korannya.

"Do you have a lid?" Ozan asks. "A big one. Round."

"Anda punya tutup?" tanya Ozan. "Yang besar. Bulat."

"What kind of lid?"

"Tutup apa?"

"For a very big pot of soup."

"Untuk panci sup yang sangat besar."

The man thinks about it. Then he opens his trunk and takes out a frying pan. "This?"

Pria itu memikirkannya. Lalu ia membuka bagasi dan mengeluarkan sebuah wajan. "Ini?"

Ozan carries it back. He puts it on top of the pot. It is far too small. It falls inside the soup with a loud splash.

Ozan membawanya kembali. Ia meletakkannya di atas panci. Wajan itu jauh terlalu kecil. Ia jatuh ke dalam sup dengan cipratan keras.

"That is not a lid," says Inge. She pulls it out. "That is a swimming pan."

"Itu bukan tutup," kata Inge. Ia menariknya keluar. "Itu wajan berenang."

Ozan laughs. He goes to the next taxi. The woman who drives it opens a plastic box.

Ozan tertawa. Ia pergi ke taksi berikutnya. Perempuan yang mengemudikannya membuka kotak plastik.

"I have a big plate," she says. "Will that work?"

"Saya punya piring besar," katanya. "Apa itu cukup?"

It does not. The plate is flat and slides off. The soup runs over the edge, and Inge cries out. Ozan tries a basket from the third driver. The soup comes right through. The fourth driver offers a wooden board. It is too heavy and does not fit the edge.

Tidak cukup. Piringnya datar dan merosot. Sup mengalir melewati tepi, dan Inge berseru. Ozan mencoba keranjang dari sopir ketiga. Supnya langsung tembus. Sopir keempat menawarkan papan kayu. Terlalu berat dan tidak pas dengan tepinya.

Soon, all five drivers stand around Ozan's taxi. They all look at the pot like doctors.

Segera, kelima sopir berdiri mengelilingi taksi Ozan. Mereka semua menatap panci itu seperti dokter.

"Maybe a cloth," says one.

"Mungkin kain," kata seseorang.

"Maybe tape," says another.

"Mungkin lakban," kata yang lain.

"Tape on soup?" Inge asks. "I do not think so."

"Lakban di atas sup?" tanya Inge. "Saya rasa tidak."

The oldest driver looks at his watch. "It is almost noon. The shops close for lunch. You will find no lid in this town for two hours."

Sopir tertua melihat jam tangannya. "Hampir tengah hari. Toko-toko tutup untuk makan siang. Anda tidak akan menemukan tutup di kota ini selama dua jam."

Inge lowers her face. "My sister will wait," she says. "She is very hungry."

Inge menundukkan wajahnya. "Adik saya akan menunggu," katanya. "Ia sangat lapar."

Ozan feels bad. He asked for a long ride. Now he has one, and it cannot start. He looks around the stop. His eyes move over the cars, the road, the empty benches. Then they land on the back of his own taxi.

Ozan merasa tidak enak. Ia meminta perjalanan panjang. Sekarang ia mendapatkannya, dan perjalanan itu tak bisa dimulai. Ia memandang ke sekeliling pangkalan. Matanya bergerak melewati mobil-mobil, jalan, bangku-bangku kosong. Lalu mendarat di bagian belakang taksinya sendiri.

His left rear wheel has no cover. A round steel hubcap fell off last month. He keeps a spare cover in his trunk. It lies next to the jack. He never put it on.

Roda belakang kirinya tidak punya penutup. Sebuah tutup roda baja bundar jatuh bulan lalu. Ia menyimpan penutup cadangan di bagasinya. Benda itu tergeletak di samping dongkrak. Ia tidak pernah memasangnya.

"Wait," he says.

"Tunggu," katanya.

He runs to the back and opens the trunk. He lifts out the spare hubcap. It is wide and shiny, with a tiny dent at the edge. He pours water over it from his bottle. He dries it with a clean cloth.

Ia berlari ke belakang dan membuka bagasi. Ia mengangkat tutup roda cadangan itu. Lebar dan mengilap, dengan penyok kecil di tepinya. Ia menyiramnya dengan air dari botolnya. Ia mengeringkannya dengan kain bersih.

"It is a wheel cover," says the grey-cap driver. "You cannot be serious."

"Itu penutup roda," kata sopir bertopi kelabu. "Kamu pasti bercanda."

"It is round," Ozan says. "It is steel. It is clean."

"Bundar," kata Ozan. "Baja. Bersih."

He holds it over the pot. He lowers it slowly. It touches the edge of the metal. Then it sinks down with a soft click, and sits tight.

Ia memegangnya di atas panci. Ia menurunkannya perlahan. Benda itu menyentuh tepi logam. Lalu ia tenggelam dengan bunyi klik lembut, dan terpasang rapat.

Nobody speaks. The pot is closed. The soup is still.

Tak seorang pun bicara. Panci itu tertutup. Supnya tenang.

"It fits," Inge whispers. "It fits better than the real lid."

"Pas," bisik Inge. "Lebih pas daripada tutup aslinya."

"Better than any lid," says the woman with the plate.

"Lebih baik daripada tutup mana pun," kata perempuan dengan piring itu.

Inge tilts the pot. Nothing comes out. She shakes it a little, and still nothing. She looks at Ozan, and her eyes are bright.

Inge memiringkan panci. Tak ada yang keluar. Ia mengguncangnya sedikit, tetap tak ada. Ia menatap Ozan, dan matanya berbinar.

"Please, let me pay you for it," she says.

"Tolong, biarkan saya membayarnya," katanya.

"No." Ozan shakes his head. "I am happy to give it. My wheel looked bad without it anyway."

"Tidak." Ozan menggelengkan kepala. "Saya senang memberikannya. Lagi pula roda saya jelek tanpa penutup itu."

"But it is yours."

"Tapi itu milik Anda."

"Today, it is yours." He picks up his keys. "Besides, I asked for a long ride. You asked for a lid. Maybe the town just did us both a favor."

"Hari ini, itu milik Anda." Ia mengambil kuncinya. "Lagi pula, saya minta perjalanan panjang. Anda minta tutup. Mungkin kota ini baru saja menolong kita berdua."

The other drivers laugh and return to their cars. They wave as Ozan pulls out of the stop. The pot stays steady on Inge's knees. The smell of the soup fills the taxi. It smells like onions and warm butter.

Para sopir lain tertawa dan kembali ke mobil mereka. Mereka melambai saat Ozan keluar dari pangkalan. Panci itu tetap mantap di pangkuan Inge. Aroma sup memenuhi taksi. Baunya seperti bawang bombai dan mentega hangat.

The road goes out of town and into the fields. Ozan drives slowly. At each corner, he looks in the mirror. The lid does not move once.

Jalan itu keluar dari kota dan masuk ke ladang-ladang. Ozan mengemudi pelan. Di setiap tikungan, ia melihat ke spion. Tutup itu tidak bergerak sekali pun.

After twenty minutes, his stomach makes a loud noise. He tries to cover it with a cough. Inge hears it anyway.

Setelah dua puluh menit, perutnya mengeluarkan bunyi keras. Ia mencoba menutupinya dengan batuk. Inge tetap mendengarnya.

She smiles at the mirror. "Is somebody hungry?"

Ia tersenyum ke arah spion. "Ada yang lapar?"

"A little," Ozan says. He keeps his eyes on the road. He taps the wheel. Then he asks, very softly, "Does your sister have a spoon?"

"Sedikit," kata Ozan. Ia menjaga matanya pada jalan. Ia mengetuk-ngetuk setir. Lalu ia bertanya, sangat pelan, "Apa adik Anda punya sendok?"