The Ribbon Pulled From the Maze- 適合中高級的英語短篇故事

A neat row of pale stones already pointed right where Glen stepped onto the entry corridor, and he remembered the gravel bending left at that very spot last spring. The unexpected arrow told him that someone else was charting the maze today, yet he still trusted his plan: mark a clear route so Kane could find the central clearing for their picnic. Glen slipped a bright ribbon from his pocket, stretched on tiptoe, and knotted it to a twig above head height. The cloth swung against his wrist, light but definite, and the hedge scratched his elbow as he dropped back onto both soles. A quiet crunch answered each measured step, the cadence steady while he waited for the idea to reach fruition along the coming turns.

He advanced to the first junction crossing and gathered two more ribbons, red and yellow, fixing them on opposite walls. Still unsure, he launched a flat pebble down the left corridor; the click against the dead-end hedge told him that path failed. Wanting extra certainty, he added a third signal—another ribbon braided through lavender stems near the ground. Soon the path glittered with colour, but Glen’s shoulders brushed fabric almost every ten paces, and the overlapping markers began to blur. One ribbon had been pressed so deep into the hedge that sap stained the cloth, and his boot toes slid on loose stones as he turned in circles, trying to read his own instructions.

Breath short, Glen halted beside a narrow passage and pinched the middle ribbon he had placed first. With one sharp tug he stripped it free and stuffed it into his pocket. The remaining red and yellow pieces now stood apart like clear gateposts, and his legs moved with smoother rhythm along the gravel. A final bend opened into the sun-warmed clearing where Kane already waited, lunch box balanced on the stone bench. “Took the scenic way,” Glen said, easing onto the bench while the rose petals drifted across his knees. At the same hour, beyond a thin hedge on the maze’s east side, Gareth stooped to replace the pale stones he had shifted earlier; the new arrow settled into the dust and stayed still.

格倫踏進迷宮入口的石子小徑時，細看見一排淺色小石頭已經排成向右的箭頭，而他記得去年春天這裡的指引是向左。這意外的標記說明今天有人也在繪出路線，但他仍相信自己的計畫：留下明顯的記號，好讓凱恩能找到中央空地一起野餐。格倫從口袋抽出一條亮色絲帶，踮起腳尖，將它繫在頭頂高的細枝上。布料在手腕邊輕晃，樹籬擦過他的手肘，他再度雙腳踩回地面。每一步都伴隨低沉的碎石聲，節奏穩定，他等待這些點子在接下來的轉彎中開花結果。

走到第一個岔路口，他又收集了兩條絲帶，一紅一黃，分別綁在對面牆上。仍然不確定時，他把一塊扁石頭彈向左側通道；石頭撞上死路樹籬的聲響證實那條路行不通。想更保險，他再加第三個訊號—將另一條絲帶編進腳邊的薰衣草莖間。不久小徑因多彩布條閃閃發亮，但格倫的肩膀幾乎每十步就掃到布料，重疊的標記反而混淆視線。有一條絲帶被深深壓進樹籬，滲出的汁液染上布面，他踩到鬆動石子時轉著圈，努力辨認自己的指示。

呼吸變急，格倫在狹窄通道旁站定，捏住最先掛上的那條中間絲帶。猛地一扯，他將它收入口袋。剩下的紅、黃布條像兩根清晰的門柱分立，雙腿在碎石上行進的動作因此流暢許多。最後一個彎打開，陽光照熱的空地出現在眼前，凱恩已坐在石椅上，飯盒平穩放在膝上。「風景不錯吧。」格倫坐下時，玫瑰花瓣飄落到他膝頭。同一時間，在迷宮東側的另一道薄樹籬後，加雷斯彎腰把稍早移動過的淺石重新擺好；新的箭頭安靜地陷進灰塵裡，沒有再動。