Rain Gauge Reading Changes on the Slippery Garden Path - 適合中高級的英文短篇故事，含中譯與發音

The smooth slate under Kellan's boot slid a finger's width, cool and thin like wet glass. The next stone, a rough square of sandstone, held his step where pale moss had worn to a flat strip. A knockabout soccer ball waited by the doormat, and a small stone antelope stood guard near the first bed. His grandparent turned a page on the covered chair and said, "It is letting up a bit." Kellan wore a raincoat and sturdy shoes; the open logbook waited inside, pencil tucked into its spine. Window glass fogged at the edges, softening the view of the gauge and the pale curve at its surface. He caught up a dry cloth with the kitchen tongs and wiped a wide arc, the pane clearing to a dull shine. From that high angle, the level looked low, a thin line under a millimetre mark he knew by sight.

He stepped onto the path during the bright pause, slate darkened and glossy, sandstone pale and gritty between beds. Heavy drops fell from the big tree in uneven beats and plopped on his hood, making his shoulders twitch. At the gauge, he crouched until his eyes met the etched band, and the curved surface touched a line. A drip struck his hair; he blinked and saw the number jump, then settle higher than the window view. He edged around on the stones, circling, uphill to downhill, testing each stance like a skater finding balance. From the opposite side, the surface reached a taller mark, and the wooden post under the cylinder leaned slightly. He set his eyes level, knees on rough stone, and counted the millimetres without flinching between the canopy beats. Back on the porch, he used his fingers to unscrew a metal canister, chose a dry pencil, and wrote the time. The wall clock ticked through the short pause as he set down the digits beside that minute.

By evening, the porch dried to a pale film, and the knockabout ball rested dull beside the stiff doormat. The tongs leaned by the rail, and faint graphite on the open page dulled while the paper edges curled slightly. On the garden post, a thin ring inside the glass held below the millimetre band, steady against the blue-grey evening.

凱蘭的靴底在光滑的板岩上滑了一指寬，冰涼而薄，像濕玻璃。下一塊踏石是粗糙的砂岩方塊，淡色的苔蘚被踩成一條平帶，穩住了他的腳步。門墊旁放著一顆經常被踢的足球，第一片花圃邊立著一座小小的石羚羊。祖父母在有頂的椅子上翻了一頁，說：「雨勢稍微停了。」凱蘭穿著雨衣和結實的鞋；室內窗邊攤著打開的記錄本，鉛筆卡在書脊。窗玻璃邊緣起霧，讓雨量筒和水面那道淡弧看起來模糊。他用廚房夾子夾起乾布，抹出一大片弧面，玻璃板變得暗亮。從那麼高的角度看，水位偏低，像一條在毫米刻度下方的細線。

他在亮起的雨歇裡踏上小徑，板岩發黑發亮，砂岩則顯得淡而帶砂感，夾在花圃之間。大樹落下沉重的延遲水滴，節奏不齊，啪地打在他的帽兜上，讓他的肩膀一顫。在雨量筒前，他蹲下，讓眼睛與刻度帶齊平，彎曲的水面正碰上一條線。一滴水打在頭髮上；他眨眼，看到數字一跳，再落到比窗邊所見更高的位置。他沿著踏石慢慢繞行，上坡到下坡，像溜冰者找平衡那樣試每個站位。從對面看，水面碰到更高的刻度，而筒下的木樁微微傾著。他讓視線與刻度同高，膝蓋抵著粗石，在樹冠的滴答間毫不閃避地數著毫米。回到門廊上，他用手指去旋開一個金屬收納罐，挑了一支乾的鉛筆，寫下時間。掛鐘在短暫的雨歇裡滴答作響，他把數字落在那一分鐘旁邊。

到了傍晚，門廊乾成一層淡淡的膜，那顆常踢的球安靜地靠著硬門墊。夾子靠在欄杆邊，打開頁上的淡石墨色變得暗啞，紙邊微微起波。花園木樁上的玻璃裡，細細一圈水痕停在毫米帶下方，穩定地對著藍灰色的晚色。