Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11 EARLY THE NEXT MORNING SHOGAHAMA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Ben lay wrapped in blankets on the floor of a school gym. Nya slept on his stomach. They both shivered. There was no power at the school, and it was dark except for the glow of a few flashlights. Ben made out the shapes of people around him: at least fifty of them, laid out on straw mats or blankets. There were very old people, older than Ojisan, and young people, mothers with babies, men by themselves. People spoke in whispers and murmurs. Some were crying softly.

第二天一早，本裹着毯子躺在学校体育馆的地板上。 妮雅趴着睡。两人都打了个寒颤。 学校里没有电，除了几盏手电筒的亮光外，一片漆黑。 本辨认出了他周围人的形状:至少有50个人，躺在草席或毯子上。 有年纪很大的人，比欧吉桑还大，也有年轻人，带着孩子的母亲，独自一人的男人。 人们轻声细语地交谈。 有些人在轻声哭泣。

This was where Ben and Nya had ended up last night after their endless trudge through the ruins — to this school on a hill. They'd walked for hours. Ben hoped that one day he'd forget the terrible things he'd seen as he walked: the arm sticking out from under a pile of wreckage, the old man carrying a lifeless-looking woman on his back. He passed a young man sitting motionless in front of a ruined house. Ben went up to him, to see if he needed help. But the man just stared straight ahead, barely blinking, like a statue. Ben waited, kneeling in front of him, but the man refused to speak, or even to look at Ben. And so Ben walked on, until he finally reached the end of the wave's path of destruction. He saw the school up on the hill, but getting there was the hardest part of the journey. By then, he was so freezing cold that he was completely numb. His feet were bricks of ice. In Health class last year, he'd learned about what happens to a person when their body gets too cold. Their muscles stop

这就是本和妮娅昨晚在废墟中无休止地跋涉后最终到达的地方——山上的这所学校。 他们走了好几个小时。本希望有一天他能忘记他走路时看到的可怕的事情:手臂从一堆残骸下伸出来，老人背上背着一个看起来毫无生气的女人。 他从一个年轻人身边走过，他一动不动地坐在一幢破房子前。 本走向他，看他是否需要帮助。 但那人只是直直地盯着前方，几乎不眨眼睛，就像一座雕像。 本跪在他面前等着，但那人拒绝说话，甚至不愿看本一眼。 就这样，本继续往前走，直到他终于到达了海啸毁灭之路的尽头。 他看到了山上的学校，但到达那里是旅程中最困难的部分。 到那时，他已经冻得完全麻木了。 他的脚成了冰块。 在去年的健康课上，他学到了当人的身体太冷时会发生什么。 肌肉停止运动

working right. Their mind gets all confused. Their heart slows down so there's not enough blood flowing. That's what must have happened to Ben. By the time he made it to the lobby of the school, he could no longer walk. He'd staggered in, a frozen ghost with a shivering cat around his neck. He collapsed onto the floor. After that, Ben's memories were blurry. There were strong arms that picked him up, soft voices speaking to him, a warm blanket wrapped tight around him. Gentle hands cleaned the mud from his face. Someone put a cup of water to his mouth and Ben drank. He drifted in and out of a kind of shadowy sleep. The next thing he knew he was here, on the floor of the gym. His muddy clothes were gone, and he was wearing a worn sweatshirt and a pair of sweatpants. Nya had been cleaned off, too, the oil wiped from her fur. There was a bandage on

正确的工作。他们的头脑变得混乱。 他们的心跳减慢，所以没有足够的血液流动。 本肯定也是这样。 当他走到学校的大厅时，他已经走不动了。 他踉踉跄跄地走了进来，一个冰冷的幽灵，脖子上围着一只颤抖的猫。 他瘫倒在地板上。 在那之后，本的记忆变得模糊。 有有力的手臂把他抱起来，有温柔的声音在跟他说话，还有一条温暖的毯子紧紧地裹着他。 温柔的手擦去了他脸上的泥。 有人把一杯水放到他嘴里，本喝了下去。 他朦朦胧胧地睡来睡去。 等他回过神来，他就在这里，躺在体育馆的地板上。 他那沾满泥巴的衣服不见了，穿着一件破旧的运动衫和一条运动裤。 妮雅也被洗干净了，毛皮上的油污被擦去了。 身上缠着绷带

Ben's hand, and more on the cuts and gashes that covered his legs. People had taken care of him, but he had no idea who. Without any power, the school was very cold. He shivered under his blankets, glad for the extra bit of heat from Nya's skinny body curled up on his stomach. Lying next to Ben were a little girl and her mother. The mother was asleep, but the girl was awake, staring at Ben with steady, thoughtful eyes. Ben guessed she was around Harry's age. She had a Hello Kitty doll clutched in her arms. The girl sat up. She reached for a bottle of water, and slid it over to Ben. He couldn't remember ever being this thirsty. The bitter metal taste of the wave coated his tongue like glue. He managed to smile a little, but he shook his head, No thank you. He couldn't take any water from the little girl.

本的手，还有他腿上的伤口。 有人照顾过他，但他不知道是谁。 没有电，学校里很冷。 他裹在毯子里瑟瑟发抖，庆幸妮娅蜷缩在他肚子上的瘦骨嶙峋的身体给他带来了额外的热量。 躺在本旁边的是一个小女孩和她的妈妈。 母亲睡着了，但女孩醒着，用坚定而沉思的眼睛盯着本。 本猜她和哈利差不多大。 她怀里抱着一个Hello Kitty娃娃。 女孩坐了起来。她伸手拿了一瓶水，递给本。 他从来没有这么渴过。 波浪的金属苦味像胶水一样粘在他的舌头上。 他勉强笑了笑，但还是摇了摇头:不，谢谢。 他不能从小女孩那里拿水喝。

She woke up her mother, and spoke to her in a high whisper. The woman sat up. Even in the dim light, Ben could see the sadness and worry on her face. Ben wondered where the girl's father was. The woman gave Ben a kind smile. She even spoke a bit of English. "Please," she said. "Take. You need." She pushed the bottle of water to Ben. Then she reached into her bag and took out a bag of chips. "Please," she said again. He still had the feeling he should say no, that the woman hardly had enough for herself and her daughter. But he couldn't resist. At least he knew the Japanese word for thank you. "Arigato," he said. "Arigato." Ben drank half the water and shared some with Nya. He made himself save some for later. Then he closed his eyes and drifted back to sleep, into his dreams.

她叫醒了母亲，用很高的声音对她说。 女人坐了起来。即使在昏暗的灯光下，本也能看到她脸上的悲伤和担忧。 本想知道女孩的父亲在哪里。 那个女人给了本一个亲切的微笑。 她甚至会说一点英语。 “求你了，”她说。”。 你所需要的。”她把那瓶水推给本。 然后她把手伸进包里拿出一袋薯片。 “求你了，”她又说。他仍然觉得他应该说不，因为这个女人几乎没有足够的钱养活自己和女儿。 但他无法抗拒。至少他知道日语中“谢谢”这个词。 “再见，”他说。“谢谢。” 本喝了一半的水，和妮娅分了一部分。 他让自己留了一些以后再用。 然后他闭上眼睛，又睡着了，进入了他的梦中。

He dreamed of Dad, and this time they were together in Shogahama, walking through the pine forest, running along the beach. And somewhere in the dream, a man's voice called out to Ben. But it wasn't Dad's voice, or Ojisan's. Ben opened his eyes. There was a man kneeling next to him. "Hello, old friend," he said. "I was hoping we'd see each other again." It was Dr. Sato.

他梦见了爸爸，这次他们一起在坂滨，穿过松林，沿着海滩奔跑。 在梦里的某个地方，一个男人的声音向本喊道。 但那不是爸爸的声音，也不是欧吉桑的。 本睁开了眼睛。有个男人跪在他旁边。 “你好，老朋友，”他说。 “我希望我们能再见面。” 是佐藤博士。