The Rabbit on the Cage List

Amit came to the animal shelter at eight. It was adoption day. The big hall was full of cages and noise.

Amit datang ke tempat penampungan hewan pukul delapan. Hari itu hari adopsi. Aula besar penuh dengan sangkar dan keributan.

Wilf stood at the front desk with a long list. He looked at Amit and smiled.

Wilf berdiri di meja depan dengan daftar panjang. Dia melihat Amit dan tersenyum.

"You are the new volunteer," he said. "I am Wilf. Today we find homes for ten animals."

"Kamu relawan baru," katanya. "Aku Wilf. Hari ini kita mencarikan rumah untuk sepuluh hewan."

"I am Amit. What do I do?" Amit asked.

"Aku Amit. Apa yang harus kulakukan?" tanya Amit.

"You put a name card on each cage. Use this list."

"Kamu memasang kartu nama di setiap kandang. Pakai daftar ini."

Amit took the list and read it. Cage one held a black cat. Cage two held a small brown dog. Cage three held a white rabbit named Ciro.

Amit mengambil daftar itu dan membacanya. Kandang satu berisi kucing hitam. Kandang dua berisi anjing cokelat kecil. Kandang tiga berisi kelinci putih bernama Ciro.

He put the cards on the cages. Then he stopped. Cage three had a dog inside. Cage two had a rabbit.

Dia memasang kartu-kartu itu di kandang. Lalu dia berhenti. Kandang tiga berisi anjing. Kandang dua berisi kelinci.

"Wilf, I think the list is wrong," he said.

"Wilf, kurasa daftarnya salah," katanya.

Wilf came over and looked. His face went very serious. "I wrote this list at midnight," he said. "I was sleepy."

Wilf datang dan melihat. Wajahnya menjadi sangat serius. "Aku menulis daftar ini tengah malam," katanya. "Aku mengantuk."

"So the rabbit is in the dog's cage?" Amit asked.

"Jadi kelincinya ada di kandang anjing?" tanya Amit.

"Yes. And the dog sits in the rabbit's cage. Quick, we must change them."

"Ya. Dan anjingnya di kandang kelinci. Cepat, kita harus menukar mereka."

Amit opened cage two. He reached for the rabbit. The rabbit looked at him. Then it jumped and ran away.

Amit membuka kandang dua. Dia meraih kelinci itu. Kelinci itu menatapnya. Lalu melompat dan lari.

"Ciro!" Wilf shouted. "Stop that rabbit!"

"Ciro!" teriak Wilf. "Tangkap kelinci itu!"

The doors opened at nine. People came in. A little girl screamed and pointed. The rabbit ran past her and under a table.

Pintu dibuka pukul sembilan. Orang-orang masuk. Seorang gadis kecil menjerit dan menunjuk. Kelinci itu berlari melewatinya dan masuk ke bawah meja.

Amit ran after it. Wilf ran from the other side. They met in the middle, and they hit each other.

Amit mengejarnya. Wilf berlari dari sisi lain. Mereka bertemu di tengah, lalu bertabrakan.

"Sorry," Amit said. He sat on the floor.

"Maaf," kata Amit. Dia terduduk di lantai.

"My fault," Wilf said. He sat on the floor too. "I like your plan. We both fall down, and the rabbit laughs."

"Salahku," kata Wilf. Dia juga duduk di lantai. "Aku suka rencanamu. Kita berdua jatuh, dan kelincinya menertawakan kita."

Amit laughed. Wilf laughed too. A man with a cat in a box walked past. He looked at them.

Amit tertawa. Wilf juga tertawa. Seorang pria yang membawa kucing dalam kotak lewat. Dia memandang mereka.

"We work here," Wilf told the man. "It is a very good job."

"Kami bekerja di sini," kata Wilf kepada pria itu. "Pekerjaan yang sangat bagus."

Then Amit saw a long white ear. The rabbit sat under a chair near the door. It ate a leaf from a plant.

Lalu Amit melihat sebuah telinga putih yang panjang. Kelinci itu duduk di bawah kursi dekat pintu. Dia sedang memakan daun dari sebuah tanaman.

"I have an idea," Amit said. "Rabbits love lettuce."

"Aku punya ide," kata Amit. "Kelinci suka selada."

"I have a sandwich," Wilf said. "It has lettuce inside."

"Aku punya roti lapis," kata Wilf. "Isinya selada."

"Give it to me."

"Berikan kepadaku."

Wilf took the sandwich from his bag. He opened it and gave Amit a green leaf. Amit sat on the floor again. He held the leaf in his hand and waited.

Wilf mengambil roti lapis dari tasnya. Dia membukanya dan memberi Amit sehelai daun hijau. Amit duduk lagi di lantai. Dia memegang daun itu di tangannya dan menunggu.

The rabbit looked at the leaf. It came closer, one small jump at a time. Wilf sat very still next to Amit. His shoulder touched Amit's shoulder.

Kelinci itu melihat daun tersebut. Dia mendekat, satu lompatan kecil demi satu lompatan kecil. Wilf duduk diam di samping Amit. Bahunya menyentuh bahu Amit.

"Easy," Wilf said softly. "Easy, Ciro."

"Pelan-pelan," kata Wilf lembut. "Pelan-pelan, Ciro."

The rabbit took the leaf. Amit picked it up with both hands. Everyone in the hall clapped.

Kelinci itu mengambil daunnya. Amit mengangkatnya dengan kedua tangan. Semua orang di aula bertepuk tangan.

"You are a hero," Wilf said. "I will tell the boss."

"Kamu pahlawan," kata Wilf. "Aku akan melapor ke bos."

"You made the list," Amit said. "I think the boss will remember that."

"Kamu yang membuat daftarnya," kata Amit. "Kurasa bos akan ingat itu."

Wilf made a sad face. "Please do not tell her about the list."

Wilf memasang wajah sedih. "Tolong jangan bilang ke dia soal daftarnya."

They walked back to the cages. Amit put the rabbit in cage three. The dog went to cage two. Then he put the right cards on the right cages.

Mereka berjalan kembali ke kandang-kandang. Amit memasukkan kelinci ke kandang tiga. Anjing dipindahkan ke kandang dua. Lalu dia memasang kartu yang benar di kandang yang benar.

The little girl came back with her father. She looked at Ciro for a long time.

Gadis kecil itu kembali bersama ayahnya. Dia memandang Ciro lama sekali.

"I want this rabbit," she said. "He is funny."

"Aku mau kelinci ini," katanya. "Dia lucu."

"He is," Wilf said. "He is also very fast."

"Memang," kata Wilf. "Dia juga cepat sekali."

The father signed a paper. The girl carried the rabbit out in a small box. Ciro looked back at Amit once.

Sang ayah menandatangani sebuah surat. Gadis itu membawa kelinci keluar dalam kotak kecil. Ciro menoleh ke arah Amit satu kali.

At noon the hall was quiet. Seven animals had new homes. Wilf gave Amit a cup of water. He gave him half a sandwich too.

Pada tengah hari, aula sudah sepi. Tujuh hewan sudah mendapat rumah baru. Wilf memberi Amit secangkir air. Dia juga memberinya setengah roti lapis.

"There is no lettuce left," he said.

"Seladanya sudah habis," katanya.

"The rabbit ate it," Amit said.

"Kelincinya yang makan," kata Amit.

"Then he works here too." Wilf took a pen and wrote on the list. He turned it around.

"Kalau begitu dia juga bekerja di sini." Wilf mengambil pulpen dan menulis di daftar. Dia membaliknya.

Under the cage numbers, it said: "Best volunteer today: Amit. Worst list writer: Wilf."

Di bawah nomor-nomor kandang, tertulis: "Relawan terbaik hari ini: Amit. Penulis daftar terburuk: Wilf."

Amit took the pen. He wrote one more line. "Next Saturday, Wilf checks the list. Amit brings the lettuce."

Amit mengambil pulpen itu. Dia menulis satu baris lagi. "Sabtu depan, Wilf memeriksa daftarnya. Amit membawa seladanya."