There is a beehive on the roof of Orchard Court. There is a table too. The hive is white and made of wood. The table holds a jigsaw puzzle under a sheet of plastic. Both of them belong to Anand and Nami now.
果园苑的屋顶上有一个蜂箱，还有一张桌子。蜂箱是白色的，木头做的。桌子上盖着一层塑料布，下面是一幅拼图。它们现在都归阿南德和娜米照管了。
Anand climbs the roof stairs every morning in the summer holidays. He puts on his gloves and lifts the lid of the hive. The bees hum like a small, busy city. The last keeper left town in March. She gave him the roof key.
暑假里，阿南德每天早晨爬上屋顶的楼梯，戴上手套，揭开蜂箱的盖子。蜜蜂嗡嗡作响，像一座忙碌的小城。上一任养蜂人三月份离开了这座城市，把屋顶的钥匙交给了他。
Nami lives on the third floor. She came last winter and knew no one. One day she follows the sound of the bees up the stairs. Now she comes to the roof every evening. She brings two glasses of juice.
娜米住在三楼。她去年冬天搬来，一个人也不认识。有一天，她循着蜜蜂的嗡嗡声爬上楼梯。现在她每天傍晚都来屋顶，带着两杯果汁。
The puzzle is her idea. A neighbor left it behind in a cardboard box. It shows a green meadow full of flowers. It has two thousand pieces. The sky is finished. The grass is nearly done. The flowers are the hard part. Every piece looks like every other piece.
拼图是她的主意。一位邻居把它连同一个纸箱留了下来。画面是一片开满鲜花的绿色草地，共有两千块。天空已经拼好，草地也快拼完了，花是最难的部分，每一块看起来都和别的一模一样。
"Yellow, yellow, yellow," says Nami. She holds up a piece and frowns at it. "Who needs this much yellow?"
“黄的，黄的，黄的，”娜米说。她举起一块拼图，皱着眉看。“谁需要这么多黄色？”
"The bees do," says Anand.
“蜜蜂需要，”阿南德说。
This week, Anand has a problem. It is a good problem, but it is still a problem. He has two invitations, and both of them are for Saturday.
这个星期，阿南德有个难题。这是个好难题，但终究是个难题。他收到了两份邀请，都在星期六。
The first is from his cousin Dev. Dev goes to a lake camp for a week. There is swimming and boats. A long wooden raft floats in the lake. Three of Anand's school friends go too. Dev saves him a bed in the cabin. He sends a photo of the raft.
第一份来自他的表哥德夫。德夫要去湖边露营一个星期，有游泳，有划船。湖上漂着一只长长的木筏。阿南德的三个同学也去。德夫给他留了小木屋里的一张床，还发来一张木筏的照片。
The second invitation comes from the leader of the beekeepers' club. She sends a short message. The honey is ready on Saturday. Anand can run the harvest himself, for the first time. Nami can help him. The work takes the whole week. The honey must rest in buckets before the jars.
第二份邀请来自养蜂俱乐部的负责人。她发来一条简短的消息：星期六蜂蜜就成熟了。阿南德可以第一次自己主持采蜜，娜米可以帮他。这项工作要做整整一个星期，蜂蜜得先在桶里静置，才能装罐。
Anand reads both messages three times. He reads them again at lunch. He puts his phone face down on the table. Then he picks it up again.
阿南德把两条消息读了三遍，午饭时又读了一遍。他把手机屏幕朝下放在桌上，然后又拿起来。
"What do I do?" he asks Nami that evening.
“我该怎么办？”那天傍晚他问娜米。
Nami fits a flower piece into the meadow. It snaps into place with a tiny click. "Both are good," she says. "You will have fun at camp. And you will learn something here."
娜米把一块花朵形状的拼图嵌进草地，啪的一声轻响，严丝合缝。“两个都不错，”她说，“去露营你会玩得开心，在这儿你会学到东西。”
"That is not helpful."
“这没什么帮助。”
"I know." She grins. "Go or stay, I'm fine. Really. I can find another helper without you."
“我知道。”她咧嘴一笑。“去也好，留也好，我都没问题，真的。没有你，我也能找别的帮手。”
"You can't lift the frames alone."
“你一个人抬不动巢框。”
"Then I will find a strong person." She keeps her eyes on the puzzle, and her voice stays light.
“那我就找个力气大的人。”她的目光一直落在拼图上，声音依然轻快。
Anand does not answer. He picks up a piece and turns it over in his fingers. He cannot see where it goes. He puts it down and picks up another one.
阿南德没有回答。他拿起一块拼图，在手指间翻来翻去，看不出它该放在哪里。他放下它，又拿起另一块。
On Friday morning, Anand has to decide by noon. He goes up to the roof early. The sun is already warm on the tar. The hive is loud. He puffs gentle smoke at the door. Then he lifts the lid.
星期五早晨，阿南德必须在中午前做出决定。他一早就上了屋顶。太阳已经晒暖了柏油，蜂箱里嗡嗡声很大。他朝巢门轻轻喷了些烟，然后揭开盖子。
He pulls out the first frame. It is heavy and sticky. The honeycomb is gold from edge to edge. He pulls out a second frame. It is the same. Then a third.
他抽出第一块巢框。它又重又黏，蜂巢从这头到那头都是金黄色。他抽出第二块，一样。再抽出第三块。
A bee walks across his glove. It stops at his thumb and cleans its wings. Anand stays very still. He knows this bee, or one just like her. She does not know what Saturday means. She only knows the work is done. The honey is ready.
一只蜜蜂爬过他的手套，在他的拇指边停下来梳理翅膀。阿南德一动不动。他认得这只蜜蜂，或者一只和她一模一样的蜜蜂。她不知道星期六意味着什么，只知道活儿干完了，蜂蜜成熟了。
He thinks about the lake. He thinks about the raft and the cabin. He thinks about the loud laughter at night. It all sounds wonderful. At camp, he will be one of fifty kids. Nobody will need him. Nobody will ask him anything.
他想到了湖。想到了木筏和小木屋，想到了夜里响亮的笑声。听起来都很棒。在营地里，他只是五十个孩子中的一个，没有人需要他，没有人会问他任何事。
Then he thinks about this hive. He knows the sound of happy bees. He knows the sound of worried ones. He knows which frames to take. He knows which to leave for the winter. A stranger will open this lid. That person will not know these bees.
然后他想到了这个蜂箱。他知道蜜蜂开心时的声音，也知道它们担心时的声音。他知道该取哪些巢框，该为冬天留下哪些。要是换一个陌生人来揭这个盖子，那个人不会了解这些蜜蜂。
Anand puts the frame back, gently, and closes the lid. He takes out his phone. His thumbs move fast.
阿南德轻轻放回巢框，合上盖子。他拿出手机，拇指飞快地敲着。
"Sorry, Dev. I can't come. Bee work. Say hello to the raft for me."
“对不起，德夫。我去不了。要照顾蜜蜂。替我跟木筏问个好。”
He sends it before he can change his mind. His chest feels light and a little sad at the same time.
他赶在改变主意之前发了出去。他的心里既轻松，又有一点难过。
When he turns around, Nami stands at the top of the stairs. She holds two glasses of juice and a flat black bag.
他转过身，娜米站在楼梯口，拿着两杯果汁和一只扁扁的黑包。
"You are here early," she says. "The club leader sent this. It has the honey knife."
“你来得真早，”她说，“俱乐部负责人送来了这个。里面有割蜜刀。”
"I stay," he says. "For the harvest."
“我留下，”他说，“为了采蜜。”
Nami puts the glasses on the table. Her smile starts small and gets wide. "You did not have to."
娜米把杯子放在桌上，笑容从小小的一点慢慢绽开。“你本来不必这样的。”
"I know. I want to." He looks at the hive and then at her. "At camp, I swim. Here, I make something. I like to make things."
“我知道。我愿意。”他看看蜂箱，又看看她。“在营地里，我游泳；在这儿，我创造点什么。我喜欢创造东西。”
"Good," says Nami. "Because the knife is very sharp. I'm afraid of it."
“好，”娜米说，“因为那把刀非常锋利。我怕它。”
"You said you were fine alone."
“你说过你一个人也没问题。”
"I am fine. I just like it better this way."
“我是没问题。只是这样我更喜欢。”
They sit down at the table. They peel the plastic from the meadow. Nami finds a corner piece. Anand finds three flowers that fit together. They work in the warm sun until the puzzle is almost full. Only one gap remains, near the middle. It sits between a blue flower and tall grass.
他们在桌边坐下，揭开草地拼图上的塑料布。娜米找到一块边角，阿南德找到三朵拼在一起的花。他们在暖暖的阳光下忙活，直到拼图快要满了，只剩下中间附近的一个缺口，在一朵蓝花和高高的草之间。
Nami checks the box. It is empty. She turns it upside down and shakes it. Nothing falls out. She looks under the table and inside her shoes.
娜米检查了盒子，里面是空的。她把盒子倒过来抖了抖，什么也没掉出来。她又看了桌子底下，还翻了翻自己的鞋。
"It was here yesterday," she says.
“昨天它还在这儿的，”她说。
Anand leans over the gap. It is small, but the whole picture needs it. A bee comes in from the sky. She lands on the empty place. She walks across it in a slow circle. She cleans her wings, in no hurry at all.
阿南德俯身看着那个缺口。它虽小，整幅画却少不了它。一只蜜蜂从天空飞来，落在那个空位上，慢悠悠地绕着它走了一圈，梳理着翅膀，一点也不着急。
