At noon on his third day at the shipyard, Darius opens his thermos. A cloud of steam hits him in the face. His mum filled it with lentil soup at six o'clock this morning. Six hours later, the soup is still bubbling.
在造船厂的第三天中午，达留斯打开了他的保温杯。一团蒸汽扑到他脸上。他妈妈早上六点给他装了扁豆汤。六个小时后，汤还在咕嘟咕嘟地冒泡。
"Is it supposed to do that?" Hiba asks. She sits on an upturned bucket beside him and eats a cold sandwich.
“它应该这样吗？”希芭问。她坐在他旁边一只倒扣的桶上，吃着一块凉三明治。
"No," Darius says. "It's supposed to stay warm. This one stays angry."
“不应该，”达留斯说，“它应该只是保温。这一个是保‘火’。”
The shipyard is small, with one slipway, two sheds and a crane that creaks in every direction. Darius and Hiba are fifteen, and their school has sent them here for a week of work experience. So far they have swept floors, carried planks and learned nine different knots. Nobody has let them touch a real boat.
这家造船厂不大，只有一条下水滑道、两间棚屋，和一台朝哪个方向转都吱呀作响的起重机。达留斯和希芭都是十五岁，学校派他们来这里做一个星期的职业体验。到目前为止，他们扫过地，搬过木板，学会了九种不同的绳结。还没有人让他们碰过一条真正的船。
The thermos is new. Darius's dad bought it online because the sticker promised hot drinks for twenty-four hours. Nobody told him that the sticker was serious.
这个保温杯是新的。达留斯的爸爸在网上买的，因为贴纸上承诺热饮能保温二十四小时。没人告诉他，那张贴纸是认真的。
"Just wait ten minutes," Hiba says. "It'll cool down."
“再等十分钟，”希芭说，“会凉下来的。”
They wait ten minutes. Darius blows on a spoonful until he feels dizzy. Then he tastes it, and he jumps up as if the bucket has bitten him.
他们等了十分钟。达留斯对着一勺汤吹得头都晕了。然后他尝了一口，一下子跳了起来，好像那只桶咬了他一口。
"Still lava," he says, holding out his tongue.
“还是岩浆，”他伸着舌头说。
"Fan it," Hiba says. "Use a clipboard."
“扇一扇，”希芭说，“用写字板。”
Darius fans the thermos with a clipboard for five more minutes. The steam only dances faster. Hiba laughs so hard that she nearly drops her sandwich.
达留斯拿写字板对着保温杯又扇了五分钟。蒸汽只是跳得更欢了。希芭笑得太厉害，三明治差点掉了。
Their lunch break is thirty minutes long, and Darius is hungry. He looks around the yard for help. His eyes land on the foreman. He is walking past with a heavy coil of rope.
他们的午休只有三十分钟，而达留斯饿了。他在船厂里四下张望，想找人帮忙。他的目光落在工头身上。工头正扛着一大卷绳子走过。
"Excuse me," Darius says. "Would you like some soup? My mum made too much."
“打扰一下，”达留斯说，“您想喝点汤吗？我妈妈做多了。”
The foreman stops. He is a broad man with a deep voice, and he has ten minutes before his next job. "Soup is always welcome," he says. He takes the lid from Darius and sips.
工头停下了脚步。他是个身材魁梧、嗓音低沉的人，离下一件活儿还有十分钟。“汤总是受欢迎的，”他说。他从达留斯手里接过杯盖，抿了一口。
His eyes widen. He makes a noise like a whistling pipe.
他的眼睛睁大了。他发出一种像哨子管一样的声音。
"Is it hot?" Darius asks, although the answer is obvious.
“烫吗？”达留斯问，尽管答案显而易见。
"It is not hot," the foreman says, fanning his mouth. "It is a lesson. I have ten minutes, and this soup needs an hour. Give it to somebody with more time."
“不是烫，”工头一边用手扇着嘴一边说，“这是一堂课。我只有十分钟，而这汤得凉一个钟头。给个时间多一点的人吧。”
He hands the thermos back and picks up his rope. His eyes are still watering. Darius feels terrible.
他把保温杯递还回来，扛起绳子走了。他的眼睛还在流泪。达留斯觉得糟糕透了。
"Don't take it personally," Hiba says. "Look, there's the welder. She works fast and never stops to eat. Maybe she likes her food hot."
“别往心里去，”希芭说，“看，那边有个焊工。她干活快，从来不停下来吃饭。也许她喜欢吃热的。”
The welder is crouching beside the hull of a fishing boat. Her mask is pushed up on her head. Orange sparks jump around her feet. Darius walks over carefully and holds out the thermos.
焊工正蹲在一条渔船的船体旁。她的面罩推到了头顶上。橙色的火花在她脚边跳动。达留斯小心翼翼地走过去，把保温杯递上前。
"My mum's soup," he says. "It's a little warm."
“我妈妈做的汤，”他说，“有一点温。”
The welder looks at the steam, and then she looks at him. "A little warm," she says. "I see." She does not taste it. She tips a tiny drop onto a rusty bolt next to her boot. The drop hisses and curls into a cloud.
焊工看了看蒸汽，又看了看他。“有一点温，”她说，“我明白了。”她没有尝。她把一小滴汤滴在靴子旁边一颗生锈的螺栓上。那一滴嘶地一声蜷成了一团云雾。
"Interesting," she says. "It has done more than my cleaning spray did all morning. But I can't drink it. If I stop for an hour, the boat doesn't get finished."
“有意思，”她说，“它比我一上午用的清洁喷雾干得还多。可我喝不了。要是我停下来一个钟头，船就造不完了。”
"Everybody has the same problem," Darius says.
“每个人都有同样的难题，”达留斯说。
"Not everybody," the welder says. She points one thick glove at the sky. "Ask the crane operator. He sits alone in that cabin for eight hours, and he can't leave. By the time he opens his lunch, it is always cold."
“不是每个人，”焊工说。她用一只厚手套指向天空。“去问问起重机司机。他一个人坐在那间驾驶室里，八个钟头，不能离开。等他打开午饭的时候，总是凉的。”
Darius looks up. The crane is very tall, and the cabin at the top looks as small as a matchbox. A man's shape moves behind the glass.
达留斯抬头看去。起重机很高，顶上的驾驶室小得像一只火柴盒。玻璃后面有个人影在动。
"How do we get it up there?" Darius asks.
“我们怎么把它送上去呢？”达留斯问。
"Wave at him," the welder says. "He sees everything."
“朝他挥手，”焊工说，“他什么都看得见。”
Hiba is already waving both arms over her head. After a few seconds, the crane groans and turns. The long arm swings over the yard. The hook comes down on a steel cable, like a fishing line. A big plastic bucket hangs from it.
希芭已经在头顶上高高挥舞双臂了。几秒钟后，起重机吱呀一声转了过来。长长的吊臂扫过船厂。吊钩沿着一根钢缆降下来，像一根钓鱼线。钩上挂着一只大塑料桶。
The crane operator's voice crackles from a speaker on the pole. "Something for me?" he asks.
起重机司机的声音从杆子上的扩音器里噼啪传出来。“有什么东西给我吗？”他问。
"Soup!" Hiba shouts. "It's very, very hot!"
“汤！”希芭喊道，“特别特别烫！”
"Then it's the right soup," the voice says. "Send it up."
“那就是对的汤，”那个声音说，“送上来吧。”
Darius puts the thermos carefully into the bucket. Hiba closes the lid and ties a rope around the handle, as they learned on Monday. The bucket rises, spinning gently. It climbs past the roof of the shed and all the way up to the cabin.
达留斯小心地把保温杯放进桶里。希芭盖上盖子，把一根绳子系在提手上，就像他们星期一学的那样。桶升了起来，轻轻地打着转。它越过棚屋的屋顶，一路升到驾驶室。
For a long minute, nothing happens. The two teenagers stand with their heads tipped back, shading their eyes. Darius suddenly worries that the soup has exploded.
整整一分钟，什么也没有发生。两个少年仰着头站在那里，用手遮着眼睛。达留斯忽然担心汤会不会爆炸了。
Then the speaker crackles again. "Oh," the crane operator says. "Oh, that is good."
接着，扩音器又噼啪响了。“哦，”起重机司机说，“哦，这太好了。”
"Is it too hot?" Darius shouts.
“太烫了吗？”达留斯喊道。
"Too hot?" the man says. "Young man, you don't understand. I have waited five years for a lunch that stays warm. Every day, I climb up here at seven. By noon my food is as cold as a stone. This is the first hot meal I have had in this cabin."
“太烫？”那人说，“年轻人，你不明白。我等一顿能保温的午饭，等了五年了。我每天七点爬上来。到了中午，我的饭就凉得像石头一样。这是我在这间驾驶室里吃到的第一顿热饭。”
"There's more soup if you want it," Darius shouts, although there is not much left in the thermos.
“您要是还想喝，还有汤，”达留斯喊道，尽管保温杯里已经没剩多少了。
"I will drink it slowly," the voice says. "All afternoon. It will still be hot at five."
“我会慢慢喝，”那个声音说，“喝一整个下午。到五点它还会是热的。”
"It will still be hot tomorrow," Hiba mutters.
“到明天它都还是热的，”希芭小声嘀咕。
Darius sits down on his bucket. He realises that he is hungry, and that he has no lunch. Hiba sighs, tears her sandwich in half and gives him the bigger piece. He thanks her twice.
达留斯在他的桶上坐下来。他意识到自己饿了，而且他没有午饭。希芭叹了口气，把三明治撕成两半，把大的那一块给了他。他谢了她两遍。
"Three people," Hiba says, counting on her fingers. "The foreman burned his tongue. The welder tested it on a bolt. The crane operator wants to marry it."
“三个人，”希芭掰着手指数，“工头烫了舌头。焊工拿螺栓做了试验。起重机司机想娶它。”
"Don't tell my dad," Darius says with his mouth full. "He thinks he bought a great thermos."
“别告诉我爸，”达留斯嘴里塞满了东西说，“他还以为自己买了个很棒的保温杯呢。”
"He did," Hiba says. "He only bought it for the wrong person."
“他确实买了，”希芭说，“他只是买给了错的人。”
The afternoon goes quickly. The foreman gives them a small job at the slipway, painting a number on a boat. He walks past twice and winks at Darius each time. At four o'clock, the bucket comes back down with the empty thermos and a folded note inside.
下午过得很快。工头给了他们一个小活儿，在下水滑道边给一条船漆上编号。他走过两次，每次都冲达留斯眨眨眼。四点钟，桶带着空保温杯降了下来，里面还有一张折起来的字条。
Darius reads it aloud. "Thank you. Soup still hot at four. Please tell your mother that I am her biggest fan."
达留斯大声念出来。“谢谢。汤到四点还是热的。请告诉你妈妈，我是她最大的粉丝。”
"You know what this means," Hiba says. "You're the soup supplier of the sky."
“你知道这意味着什么吧，”希芭说，“你是天空的汤供应商。”
"Please don't say that near my mum," Darius says. "She has already bought a second thermos."
“请别在我妈妈旁边说这话，”达留斯说，“她已经买了第二个保温杯了。”
