At a quarter past eight, the pool was still empty, and Uriel was alone on the lifeguard chair. He liked this hour. The water lay flat and blue.
八点一刻，游泳池里还空无一人，乌列尔独自坐在救生员高椅上。他喜欢这个时间。水面平整，一片湛蓝。
Then the glass door banged open. A young man in a yellow delivery jacket was pulling a large suitcase across the tiles. He pulled it the way a man pulls a stubborn horse.
这时，玻璃门砰的一声被推开了。一个穿黄色快递夹克的年轻人正拖着一只大行李箱走过瓷砖地面。他拖的样子，就像拉一匹倔强的马。
"Sorry! Sorry, I know the pool is closed," the man said. He was breathing hard. "My name is Karim. Can I leave this here for ten minutes?"
“对不起！对不起，我知道游泳池关着，”那人说。他喘得很厉害。“我叫卡里姆。这个东西能在这儿放十分钟吗？”
"What is in it? A piano?" Uriel asked. He climbed down from the chair.
“里面是什么？一架钢琴吗？”乌列尔问。他从椅子上爬了下来。
"I do not know. I only collect and deliver." Karim wiped his forehead. "I have to find the site manager of the new tower next door and get a signature."
“我不知道。我只负责取件和送件。”卡里姆擦了擦额头。“我得去找隔壁新大楼的工地经理，拿一个签名。”
Uriel took the handle to help. The suitcase did not move, even when he pulled with both hands. It felt as if somebody had bolted it to the floor.
乌列尔抓住拉杆想帮忙。行李箱纹丝不动，即使他用两只手拉。感觉像是有人把它用螺栓固定在了地上。
"Together," said Karim. They lifted one end each and walked it to the foot of the chair. Their arms shook the whole way. When they put it down, a crack ran through a floor tile.
“一起来，”卡里姆说。他们一人抬一头，把它搬到椅子脚下。一路上两人的手臂都在发抖。把它放下时，一块地砖裂开了一条缝。
"That is not a normal suitcase," Uriel said. He bent down to read the paper label. The writing was small and neat. "Keep below ten degrees. Do not open in direct sun. Deliver to the tower by nine."
“这不是普通的行李箱，”乌列尔说。他弯腰去读那张纸标签。字写得又小又工整。“保持在十度以下。不要在阳光直射下打开。九点前送到大楼。”
"I did not see that," Karim said slowly. "The office gave me a form, not a label."
“我没看到这个，”卡里姆慢慢地说，“办公室给我的是一张表格，不是标签。”
Uriel looked up. Through the high windows, the first sunlight was already crossing the roof of the pool hall. It reached the wall, then the floor, then the blue tiles near the chair. A bright stripe of light slid across the suitcase.
乌列尔抬起头。透过高高的窗子，第一缕阳光已经越过游泳馆的屋顶。它照到墙上，然后是地板，再是椅子旁边的蓝色瓷砖。一道明亮的光带滑过了行李箱。
Something inside it creaked.
箱子里有什么东西吱呀响了一声。
"Did you hear that?" Karim whispered.
“你听到了吗？”卡里姆低声说。
"I think the case just yawned," said Uriel.
“我觉得箱子刚才打了个哈欠，”乌列尔说。
The zip opened by itself, one slow tooth at a time. A wooden step slid out of the gap, as smooth as polished oak. It had a brass edge along the front. A second step followed it, and a third, and each one clicked into place beside the last.
拉链自己开了，一颗齿一颗齿慢慢地拉开。一级木台阶从缝里滑了出来，像抛光的橡木一样光滑，前沿镶着黄铜边。第二级跟着出来了，然后是第三级，每一级都咔嗒一声卡在上一级的旁边。
"No, no, no," said Karim. He grabbed the first step and pushed. It slid back into the case. Then it slid out again, a little longer than before.
“不，不，不，”卡里姆说。他抓住第一级台阶往回推。它滑回了箱子里。然后又滑了出来，比之前更长了一点。
Uriel was thinking fast. "The label says cold. The sun is the problem. Look at it."
乌列尔脑子转得飞快。“标签上写着要冷。问题出在太阳。你看。”
Karim looked. Wherever the light touched the steps, they grew. A railing was already rising from the side. The whole staircase was curling across the tiles like a plant.
卡里姆看去。光线碰到的每个地方，台阶都在生长。一根扶手已经从侧面升了起来。整条楼梯像一株植物一样在瓷砖上蜷曲蔓延。
"It is a staircase," Karim said. "It is a whole staircase, packed small for travel. That is why it is so heavy. And it is waking up."
“是楼梯，”卡里姆说，“是一整条楼梯，为了运输被压缩得小小的。所以才这么重。而它正在醒过来。”
"Then we must put it to sleep," Uriel said. "Help me close the case."
“那我们就得让它睡着，”乌列尔说，“帮我把箱子合上。”
They pushed the steps back with all their strength, and Uriel sat on the lid. The zip would not close. Wood pressed against the cloth from the inside. The stripe of sunlight crept further across the floor.
他们使出全身力气把台阶推回去，乌列尔坐到箱盖上。拉链合不上。木头从里面顶着布面。阳光的光带在地板上爬得更远了。
"Ten degrees," Uriel muttered. "Where is it ever that cold?" He stood up. "The first-aid room has a freezer. And the kiosk has an ice machine."
“十度，”乌列尔嘟囔着，“哪儿有这么冷的地方？”他站起来。“急救室有冰柜。小卖部有制冰机。”
"I will take the kiosk," said Karim, and he ran.
“我去小卖部，”卡里姆说着，跑了出去。
Uriel ran the other way. In the first-aid room he found a basket of hard cold packs. He also found a roll of silver blankets. He also grabbed the big wheeled cart they used for kickboards. When he came back, Karim was dragging two buckets of ice across the tiles. His jacket was wet to the elbows.
乌列尔朝另一个方向跑。在急救室里，他找到一篮子硬邦邦的冷敷袋，还有一卷银色的保温毯。他还抓来了他们用来放浮板的那辆带轮子的大推车。他回来时，卡里姆正拖着两桶冰在瓷砖上走。他的夹克湿到了手肘。
"Cold packs first," Uriel said. "Put them between the steps, not on top."
“先放冷敷袋，”乌列尔说，“放在台阶之间，不要放在上面。”
They worked quickly. Each time they pushed one step in and laid a cold pack against it, the wood stayed put. The railing sank back like a tired snake. The ice sat around the edges in a thick, shining layer. At last Uriel pulled the zip shut, and the suitcase stopped moving.
他们动作很快。每次把一级台阶推进去，在它旁边放上一个冷敷袋，木头就老老实实不动了。扶手像一条疲倦的蛇一样缩了回去。冰在边缘围了厚厚一层，闪闪发亮。最后乌列尔把拉链拉上了，行李箱不再动了。
"It is quiet," said Karim. He sat on the floor. "I once delivered a clock that ran backwards. But this is the first time a parcel tried to take over a swimming pool."
“安静了，”卡里姆说。他坐在地上。“我以前送过一只倒着走的钟。但包裹想要占领一座游泳池，这还是头一回。”
"It's eight forty," Uriel said. "How far is the tower?"
“八点四十了，”乌列尔说，“大楼有多远？”
"Two hundred metres. Across the car park, in full sun."
“两百米。穿过停车场，全程在阳光下。”
"Then ice will not be enough." Uriel pointed up at the chair. "I can see the whole car park from there. Wait."
“那光靠冰是不够的。”乌列尔指着椅子上方。“我在那上面能看到整个停车场。等着。”
He climbed up two rungs at a time and looked out of the high window. The car park was shining. But the half-built tower threw a long black shadow across the far side. Shade ran almost the whole way, along the pool wall and under a line of tall hedges.
他一次爬两级横档，从高窗向外看。停车场一片明晃晃。但那座只建了一半的大楼在远处投下一道长长的黑影。阴影几乎一路延伸，沿着游泳馆的墙，穿过一排高高的树篱底下。
"Karim! There is shade nearly all the way," he called down. "We only need to cross the open part, and that is twenty metres. We cover it with the silver blankets."
“卡里姆！几乎一路上都有阴凉，”他向下喊道，“我们只要穿过开阔的那一段，只有二十米。我们用银色毯子盖住它。”
"Good eyes," said Karim.
“眼睛真尖，”卡里姆说。
They lifted the suitcase onto the cart together. The cart groaned, but the wheels turned. Uriel wrapped the silver blankets around the case and tucked a cold pack into every fold. Then he stopped.
他们一起把行李箱抬到推车上。推车呻吟了一声，轮子转了起来。乌列尔把银色毯子裹在箱子上，每条褶缝里都塞了一个冷敷袋。然后他停住了。
"I cannot leave the pool," he said. "The doors must stay locked until the morning team arrives. If I go, who will watch the building?"
“我不能离开游泳池，”他说，“上午班的人来之前，门必须锁着。我要是走了，谁来看着这座楼？”
Karim thought about that. He took a marker from his pocket and wrote on a large piece of card. "Back in fifteen minutes. Please wait outside." He pressed it against the glass door. Then they went out through the side exit and locked it behind them.
卡里姆想了想。他从口袋里拿出一支记号笔，在一块大纸板上写道：“十五分钟后回来。请在外面等候。”他把它按在玻璃门上。然后他们从侧门出去，在身后锁上了门。
The shade lasted for the first hundred metres. Karim steered and Uriel pushed. A drop of water fell from a blanket. A thin curl of wood pushed out through the zip. Uriel slapped another cold pack against it, and it went back inside.
阴凉维持了头一百米。卡里姆掌舵，乌列尔推车。一滴水从毯子上落下来。一缕细细的木条从拉链处挤了出来。乌列尔又把一个冷敷袋拍上去，它就缩回去了。
The open stretch came next. It was bright and hot, and the ground already shone.
接下来就是开阔的一段。又亮又热，地面已经在发光。
"On three," said Uriel. "One, two, three."
“数到三，”乌列尔说，“一，二，三。”
They ran. The cart rattled, the ice crackled, and the silver blankets flashed like a mirror. Halfway across, a railing broke out of the suitcase and started to wave. Karim threw his yellow jacket over it and held it down with his chin. They passed the last row of cars and plunged into the cool shadow of the tower. Both of them fell against the wall, laughing and out of breath.
他们跑了起来。推车哐啷作响，冰块噼啪碎裂，银色毯子像镜子一样闪光。跑到一半，一根扶手从行李箱里冲了出来，开始挥舞。卡里姆把黄夹克扔到上面，用下巴把它压住。他们跑过最后一排汽车，一头扎进大楼凉爽的阴影里。两个人都靠在墙上，笑着，上气不接下气。
A woman in a white helmet was standing at the gate with a clipboard. She looked at the cart, the blankets, and Karim's wet shirt. "You are late," she said. "It is two minutes to nine."
一位戴白色安全帽的女士拿着记事板站在大门口。她看了看推车、毯子和卡里姆湿透的衬衫。“你们迟到了，”她说，“还差两分钟九点。”
"We came as fast as a staircase can travel," said Karim. He handed her the form.
“我们已经是楼梯能走的最快速度了，”卡里姆说。他把表格递给她。
She did not ask any questions. She led them inside the tower, to a tall, cold concrete shaft with no stairs at all. Far above them, a square of sky showed at the top.
她什么都没问。她带他们走进大楼，来到一个高高的、冰冷的混凝土竖井，里面一级楼梯都没有。远远的上方，顶端露出一方天空。
"Open it here," she said.
“就在这里打开，”她说。
Uriel pulled the zip. The steps slid out, one after another, and this time nobody pushed them back. They rose into the shaft with a happy clicking sound, climbing until the staircase reached the top. The brass edges flashed in the dim light.
乌列尔拉开拉链。台阶一级接一级地滑了出来，这一次没人把它们推回去。它们带着欢快的咔嗒声升进竖井，一直爬到楼梯抵达顶端。黄铜边缘在昏暗的光线中闪着光。
The woman signed the form with a firm line. "Thank you both," she said, and she walked up the first twenty steps without once looking down.
那位女士用坚定的一笔在表格上签了名。“谢谢你们两位，”她说，然后一次也没低头看，就走上了头二十级台阶。
Karim looked at Uriel. "I think I owe you a very long morning."
卡里姆看着乌列尔。“我觉得我欠你一个很长很长的早晨。”
Uriel did not answer. He picked up the empty suitcase, which now weighed no more than a folded towel. He tucked it under his arm and walked back across the car park to his pool.
乌列尔没有回答。他拿起空空的行李箱，现在它不比一条叠好的毛巾重。他把它夹在胳膊底下，穿过停车场，走回他的游泳池。
