Rain by the Overpass- 適合中級的英語短篇故事

Sam balanced a small wooden box under his raincoat and hurried along Riverside Lane. Inside the box rested a door handle that he had polished since dawn; it had to reach the town workshop before the midday bell. A moderate drizzle ticked on his hood, yet the road beside the river stayed quiet, so Sam chose the covered underpass beneath the railway, the usual shortcut he has used every weekend. As he approached, yellow tape had been stretched across the entrance. A burst pipe had filled the tunnel, and brown water lapped at the first step. The shortcut vanished, and the clock tower beyond the rails still counted the minutes.

Sam scanned the street and spotted the high concrete overpass farther uphill. He tightened the box inside his coat, then ran toward the long stairway beside a stone lion that guarded the first landing. Rain slid over the lion’s mane, making the old guardian glow. Halfway up, the wet box slipped; Sam caught it just before it hit the ground. The scare pushed him to adjust: he wrapped his scarf around the box, forming a new sling across his shoulder. At the top rail, traffic sprayed water below, but a gap between trucks opened. Sam dashed across, boots splashing, and reached the workshop door as the bell struck twelve. He placed the dry handle on the counter and exhaled.

山姆把一個小木盒夾在雨衣下，快速走過河濱巷。盒中躺著一個他黎明時就拋光好的門把，必須在午鐘前送到城鎮工坊。細雨適中地敲打著他的帽子，河邊的道路依舊安靜，因此山姆選擇了鐵道下方常用的有頂地下通道當捷徑。他走近時，黃色膠帶已被拉在入口前，爆裂的水管讓隧道積滿褐水，水面拍打第一階台階。捷徑消失了，軌道另一邊的鐘樓仍在計算分秒。

山姆掃視街道，看見上坡處的高架天橋。他把盒子收緊在外套裡，衝向石獅守著的長階梯第一平台。雨水滑過獅鬃，讓這位年老守護者發亮。爬到一半，濕盒子滑落；山姆在落地前接住它。這驚險讓他改變方法：他用圍巾纏住盒子，在肩上織出新吊帶。到達欄杆頂端時，車流在下方濺起水花，但卡車間出現縫隙。山姆踏水衝過，鐘聲敲十二下時進入工坊。他把乾燥的門把放到櫃台上，吐出一口氣。