The arcade by the sea opened at ten each morning. By eleven, it was loud. Beeps, music and clicking coins filled the room.
海边的游戏厅每天早上十点开门。到十一点，里面就吵翻了天。哔哔声、音乐声和硬币的叮当声充满了房间。
Rafe heard none of it. He lay on his back under the old strength game. He held a small lamp in his teeth. It was his third week as the arcade's mechanic. He liked to work alone.
雷夫一点也没听见。他仰面躺在那台老旧的力量游戏机下面，嘴里咬着一盏小灯。这是他当游戏厅机修工的第三个星期。他喜欢一个人干活。
"Are you alive down there?" a voice asked.
“你在下面还活着吗？”一个声音问。
Rafe slid out and looked up. Abena stood over him with two paper cups. She ran the prize counter. She knew every machine by its sound. She also laughed at him a lot.
雷夫滑出来，抬头看。阿贝娜站在他上方，端着两个纸杯。她负责奖品柜台。她只听声音就能认出每一台机器。她也经常笑话他。
"I am alive," he said. "I will fix the spring."
“我活着，”他说，“我会把弹簧修好的。”
"You said that on Monday."
“你星期一就这么说过了。”
"It is a very tired spring." He took the cup and sat up. "Thank you."
“这是一根非常疲惫的弹簧。”他接过杯子，坐起身来，“谢谢你。”
Abena looked at the game. It was a tall wooden tower with a big rubber hammer. A player hit a pad. A metal puck flew up and hit a stop under the bell. The bell jumped, and a clapper inside should hit its side. At the top hung a brass bell. It was round, heavy and as shiny as a coin.
阿贝娜看着那台游戏机。那是一座高高的木塔，带着一把大橡胶锤。玩家敲击一块垫板。一枚金属圆片就会飞上去，撞到铃下面的挡块。铃会跳一下，里面的铃舌就该撞到铃的内壁。塔顶挂着一只黄铜铃。它又圆又重，像硬币一样闪亮。
"That bell is the problem," she said. "Look at it."
“问题就出在那只铃上，”她说，“你看看它。”
Rafe looked. The bell was beautiful. Someone polished it that morning. But when he leaned close, he saw the problem. The inside was empty. There was no clapper.
雷夫看了看。铃很漂亮。那天早上有人把它擦亮了。但当他凑近时，他看出了问题。里面是空的。没有铃舌。
"It never rings," Abena said. "Not once in nine years. My boss lost the clapper before I came. People hit the pad. The puck hits the stop. The bell jumps. Nothing happens. It makes them feel silly."
“它从来不响，”阿贝娜说，“九年了，一次也没响过。我来之前，老板就把铃舌弄丢了。人们敲垫板。圆片撞到挡块。铃跳一下。什么也没发生。这让他们觉得自己很傻。”
"Why did nobody fix it?"
“怎么没人修呢？”
"Nobody asked." She smiled. "Until I asked you. Just kidding. I am not asking."
“没人要求过。”她笑了，“直到我向你提出要求。开玩笑的。我没有在要求你。”
But Rafe was already thinking about it. He liked her laugh. He liked how she said his name. And he wanted, very much, to give her one small good thing.
但雷夫已经在琢磨这件事了。他喜欢她的笑声。他喜欢她叫他名字的方式。而且他非常想给她一件小小的好东西。
"I will make a clapper," he said. "It will ring by Saturday."
“我来做一个铃舌，”他说，“星期六之前它会响的。”
"You do not have to."
“你不用这样的。”
"I want to."
“我想做。”
That night, Rafe worked in his small flat. He found a brass bolt and a short piece of wire. He tied the bolt to the wire. He hung it from a hook. He shook it, and it rang with a clear, sweet note. He smiled for a long time.
那天晚上，雷夫在他的小公寓里忙活。他找到一根黄铜螺栓和一小段铁丝。他把螺栓系在铁丝上。把它挂在一个钩子上。他摇了摇，它发出清亮甜美的声音。他笑了很久。
On Saturday morning, he arrived early. He climbed the ladder and fixed the new clapper inside the bell. Then he stood back to look at his work.
星期六早上，他来得很早。他爬上梯子，把新铃舌装进铃里。然后他退后一步，欣赏自己的作品。
It looked perfect. He felt very proud.
它看上去完美无缺。他感到非常自豪。
The arcade filled up by noon. A line of people waited at the strength game. Abena watched from the prize counter. Rafe stood close by, hands in his pockets.
到中午，游戏厅里人满为患。力量游戏机前排起了长队。阿贝娜在奖品柜台那边看着。雷夫站在附近，双手插在口袋里。
A tall man stepped up first. He lifted the hammer, and the crowd went quiet.
一个高个子男人第一个走上前。他举起锤子，人群安静下来。
Crack! The puck flew up the tower. It hit the stop with a heavy knock. The bell jumped.
啪！圆片飞上了塔。它重重地撞在挡块上。铃跳了起来。
Nothing rang.
什么声音也没有。
The man frowned. The crowd waited. Somebody coughed. A child said, loudly, "Is it broken?"
男人皱起了眉。人群在等待。有人咳嗽了一声。一个孩子大声说：“是坏了吗？”
Rafe's stomach dropped. He looked at the bell and saw the problem at once. The wire was too short. The bolt hung in the middle of the bell. It was far from the wall. It swung and swung, and it touched nothing.
雷夫的心一沉。他看着铃，立刻看出了问题。铁丝太短了。螺栓悬在铃的中央。离内壁很远。它摇啊摇啊，什么也碰不到。
He tested the clapper in his flat. But he never tested it inside the bell.
他在自己的公寓里试过铃舌。但他从没把它放进铃里试过。
"Sorry!" Rafe shouted. "One moment, please. The game is closed for ten minutes."
“对不起！”雷夫喊道，“请稍等。这台游戏要关闭十分钟。”
He climbed the ladder. He tied a string across the front of the game. The line groaned and walked away. Rafe stood alone under the quiet bell. He felt very small.
他爬下梯子。他在游戏机前面拉了一根绳子。队伍发出一片哀叹，散开了。雷夫独自站在那只沉默的铃下面。他觉得自己非常渺小。
Abena came over. She did not laugh. She only looked at the tower and then at him.
阿贝娜走了过来。她没有笑。她只是看了看那座塔，又看了看他。
"It was my mistake," he said. "I made the wire too short. I am sorry."
“是我的错，”他说，“我把铁丝做得太短了。对不起。”
"You tried," she said.
“你尝试过了。”她说。
"I tried the wrong way." He rubbed his neck. "I wanted it to work for you."
“我用错了方法。”他揉了揉脖子，“我想让它对你起作用。”
"For me?" she asked softly.
“对我？”她轻声问。
Rafe looked at the floor. "For you. And for the people who win."
雷夫看着地面。“对你。还有那些赢了的人。”
Abena was quiet for a moment. Then she took a ball of thin wire from her apron. "I keep this for the prize bags," she said. "There is a lot of it. Can you use it?"
阿贝娜沉默了片刻。然后她从围裙里掏出一团细铁丝。“我留着它是用来扎奖品袋的，”她说，“很多呢。你用得上吗？”
"Yes," said Rafe. "I can."
“用得上，”雷夫说，“我能用。”
They did not open the game again that day. After the last visitor left, Abena turned off the music. The arcade became very still. Only the sea sounded outside, with its slow breathing.
那天他们没有再开放这台游戏。最后一位客人离开后，阿贝娜关掉了音乐。游戏厅变得非常安静。外面只有大海的声音，像缓慢的呼吸。
Rafe climbed the ladder, and Abena held it steady. He took the old wire out of the bell. He measured a new piece against the inside wall. Then he cut it longer. This time he checked it twice.
雷夫爬上梯子，阿贝娜扶稳梯子。他把旧铁丝从铃里取了出来。他拿一段新的在铃的内壁上比了比。然后他把它剪得更长。这一次他检查了两遍。
"Longer," Abena said from below. "Longer than that. The bolt has to touch the side."
“再长一点，”阿贝娜在下面说，“比那还要长。螺栓得碰到侧壁。”
"I know," said Rafe. "I can do it."
“我知道，”雷夫说，“我能行。”
"You do it slowly."
“你慢慢来。”
"A tired spring teaches me to wait."
“一根疲惫的弹簧教会了我等待。”
She laughed then, and he felt the whole room grow lighter. He tied the knot and pulled it tight. Then he came down and stood next to her.
这时她笑了，他觉得整个房间都变亮了。他打好结，拉紧。然后他爬下来，站在她身边。
"You hit it," he said. "Not me. It should be you."
“你来敲，”他说，“不是我。应该是你。”
Abena took the big rubber hammer. She was not very strong, but she swung it with both arms. The puck flew up the tower and hit the stop. The bell jumped.
阿贝娜拿起大橡胶锤。她力气不大，但她双臂一起挥了下去。圆片飞上塔，撞到挡块。铃跳了起来。
Ding.
叮。
The sound was clear and sweet, and it filled the empty arcade. It went on and on, a bright circle in the dark. Abena put her hand over her mouth.
声音清澈甜美，充满了空荡荡的游戏厅。它一直延续着，像黑暗中一个明亮的圆圈。阿贝娜用手捂住了嘴。
"Nine years," she whispered.
“九年了。”她低声说。
Rafe said nothing. He watched her face.
雷夫什么也没说。他注视着她的脸。
They stood there until the sound faded. The bell kept swinging for a long time after it stopped. Outside, a light from the sea moved across the glass doors. Abena's hand found Rafe's hand. The little bell swung quietly over their heads.
他们站在那里，直到声音渐渐消失。铃在声音停止后，又摆动了很久。外面，海面上的一道光掠过玻璃门。阿贝娜的手找到了雷夫的手。小小的铃在他们头顶静静地摆动。
