The Tap on the Window

Gia lives on the second floor. Her bedroom window faces a big tree.

Gia tinggal di lantai dua. Jendela kamar tidurnya menghadap sebuah pohon besar.

Every morning at six o'clock, something goes tap, tap, tap. The sound is loud. Gia wakes up. She is tired and she is cross.

Setiap pagi pukul enam, ada sesuatu yang berbunyi tok, tok, tok. Bunyinya keras. Gia terbangun. Ia lelah dan kesal.

"Who is there?" she says. Nobody answers. She opens the curtain. She looks at the tree. It is empty.

"Siapa di sana?" katanya. Tidak ada yang menjawab. Ia membuka tirai. Ia menatap pohon itu. Pohon itu kosong.

The next morning, the sound comes again. Tap, tap, tap. It is six o'clock. Gia jumps out of bed. She looks left and right. She sees nothing.

Keesokan paginya, bunyi itu datang lagi. Tok, tok, tok. Pukul enam. Gia melompat dari tempat tidur. Ia menoleh ke kiri dan ke kanan. Ia tidak melihat apa-apa.

She tries to sleep again. She puts a pillow on her head. It does not help. The tapping is too loud. She goes to work with sleepy eyes.

Ia mencoba tidur lagi. Ia menaruh bantal di atas kepalanya. Tidak membantu. Ketukannya terlalu keras. Ia berangkat kerja dengan mata mengantuk.

At the office she tells her friend. Her friend says, "Maybe a ghost lives in your tree." Gia does not laugh. She wants to know the answer.

Di kantor ia menceritakannya pada temannya. Temannya berkata, "Mungkin ada hantu di pohonmu." Gia tidak tertawa. Ia ingin tahu jawabannya.

"Maybe it is the wind," she thinks. But the leaves do not move. The air is still.

"Mungkin angin," pikirnya. Tetapi dedaunan tidak bergerak. Udaranya tenang.

At lunch she calls her brother. "Something taps on my window every morning," she says.

Saat makan siang, ia menelepon kakaknya. "Ada sesuatu yang mengetuk jendelaku setiap pagi," katanya.

"Is it a ghost?" he asks.

"Hantu?" tanya kakaknya.

"I do not think so," says Gia.

"Kurasa bukan," kata Gia.

"Is it a branch?"

"Ranting?"

"No. The branches are far from the glass."

"Bukan. Ranting-rantingnya jauh dari kaca."

"Then make a video," says her brother. "Use your phone."

"Kalau begitu, rekam saja video," kata kakaknya. "Pakai ponselmu."

That night Gia puts her phone on the shelf. The camera looks at the window. She starts the video. Then she goes to sleep.

Malam itu Gia menaruh ponselnya di rak. Kameranya menghadap jendela. Ia mulai merekam. Lalu ia pergi tidur.

At six o'clock, tap, tap, tap. Gia does not open her eyes. She is too sleepy. She wants to sleep a little more.

Pukul enam, tok, tok, tok. Gia tidak membuka matanya. Ia terlalu mengantuk. Ia ingin tidur sedikit lagi.

At breakfast she watches the video. At first she sees only the grey window. Then a small bird lands on the tree. It has a red chest and a black head. It looks at the glass.

Saat sarapan, ia menonton videonya. Mula-mula ia hanya melihat jendela yang kelabu. Lalu seekor burung kecil hinggap di pohon. Dadanya merah dan kepalanya hitam. Burung itu menatap kaca.

Then the bird flies at the window. Tap! It hits the glass with its beak. It flies back to the tree. Then it comes again. Tap! Tap! Tap!

Lalu burung itu terbang menuju jendela. Tok! Paruhnya mengenai kaca. Ia terbang kembali ke pohon. Lalu datang lagi. Tok! Tok! Tok!

"A bird!" says Gia. She laughs. "You are my ghost!"

"Seekor burung!" kata Gia. Ia tertawa. "Kamu hantuku!"

But why does the bird do this? She looks on her phone. She reads a short page.

Tetapi mengapa burung itu melakukannya? Ia mencari di ponselnya. Ia membaca sebuah halaman singkat.

The page says, "Glass can look like a mirror. The bird sees another bird. It thinks the other bird is an enemy. So it fights."

Halaman itu berbunyi, "Kaca bisa tampak seperti cermin. Burung melihat burung lain. Ia mengira burung itu musuh. Jadi ia berkelahi."

"It fights itself," says Gia. "Poor little bird."

"Dia berkelahi dengan dirinya sendiri," kata Gia. "Kasihan burung kecil."

She wants to help. She takes a big sheet of white paper. She cuts it into long pieces. She opens the window. She sticks the paper on the outside of the glass. Now the window does not look like a mirror.

Ia ingin menolong. Ia mengambil selembar kertas putih besar. Ia memotongnya jadi potongan-potongan panjang. Ia membuka jendela. Ia menempelkan kertas itu di sisi luar kaca. Sekarang jendela itu tidak tampak seperti cermin.

That night she goes to bed early. She wakes up at six o'clock. It is quiet. There is no tap. She smiles and turns over.

Malam itu ia tidur lebih awal. Ia bangun pukul enam. Suasana sunyi. Tidak ada ketukan. Ia tersenyum dan berbalik.

At seven o'clock she opens the window. The bird sits on the tree. It looks at the paper. Then it looks at her. It does not fly at the glass.

Pukul tujuh ia membuka jendela. Burung itu bertengger di pohon. Ia menatap kertas itu. Lalu ia menatap Gia. Ia tidak terbang ke arah kaca.

"Hello," says Gia. "I am sorry about your enemy."

"Halo," kata Gia. "Maaf soal musuhmu."

She finds a small bowl in the kitchen. She puts some seeds in it. She hangs the bowl on the tree.

Ia menemukan mangkuk kecil di dapur. Ia mengisinya dengan biji-bijian. Ia menggantung mangkuk itu di pohon.

The bird jumps down and eats. Gia sits at the window with her tea.

Burung itu melompat turun dan makan. Gia duduk di dekat jendela dengan tehnya.

"Good morning, little fighter," she says.

"Selamat pagi, petarung kecil," katanya.