Weight in the Water Gap- 適合中高級的英語短篇故事

A fist-sized hollow stood in the dam wall where a shale slab had rested minutes earlier. Rafe leaned closer; the creek’s hiss slid between the two guard rocks and drummed inside the empty space. A sandpiper at the waterline sent rapid taps across the surface, each peck a tiny percussion. Rafe cupped clay from the bank, its fibers rasping, but a rolling stone already blocked the cavity. He had tried to shift the smooth stone twice; both attempts ended with a dull clatter as it escaped his hands and knocked against the upstream boulder. The gap had been widened by the speeding current, and every splash from it echoed like a question.

A thicker branch lay within the driftwood pile, bark still damp but firm. Rafe wedged it under the stubborn stone and pressed; a groan rose from wood and rock, yet the branch bowed instead of lifting the weight. If the branch had been drier, it would have splintered. Meanwhile the current scoured sand from beneath the dam base; pebbles rattled and slid away, creating a second leak that gurgled with a peculiar high pitch. Rafe paused as the sandpiper cocked its head in a quizzical tilt, then the bird flitted upstream. Its movement sprayed droplets that rang on the broad leaves of nearby plants, whose tips began to wilt under the slanted afternoon sun.

As Rafe straightened, the rounded stone thumped back into place and stayed, its weight sealing most of the first opening. The very heaviness that had blocked his work offered a new idea. He slid the branch crosswise against the stone, using the curved surface as a pivot; the branch’s far end pinned loose shale like a lid on a receptacle. Water hammered once, then thinned to a whisper. Just as he admired the quieter wall, the sandpiper hopped onto the branch, and its light tap sent a pebble plopping into the pool beyond. A faint, unbroken hum lingered over the gathered stones.

水壩牆面上原本放著片板岩，現在只剩拳頭大的空洞。Rafe 俯身檢查，溪水在兩塊護石間發出嘶嘶聲，鑽進那個空隙。水邊一隻鷸鳥啄擊水面，每一下都像小鼓點。Rafe 從岸邊捧起含有纖維的黏土，但一塊光滑的圓石已堵在凹處。他已經嘗試搬動那石頭兩次；石頭最終都碰撞護石，發出沉悶的咚聲。被加速水流沖刷後，缺口更寬了，每次潑濺都像個問題在回響。

漂木堆中有根較粗的樹枝，樹皮濕滑卻結實。Rafe 把它塞到固執的石下，用力下壓；木石同發沉吟，但樹枝彎曲，並未提起石頭。如果樹枝更乾，早就碎了。這時水流又沖走壩底沙粒；卵石碰撞滑落，產生第二處漏水，發出奇特高音。Rafe 停下，鷸鳥側頭作出疑惑姿勢後飛向上游，濺出的水滴敲在附近植物寬葉上，葉尖在午後斜陽下開始下垂。

Rafe 起身時，那圓石重重回到原位，靠著重量封住大部分缺口。它的沉重帶來新靈感。他將樹枝橫抵石頭，用圓面當支點；樹枝另一端像蓋子般壓住鬆散的板岩。水流砰然一震後變為細語。就在他欣賞較安靜的壩體時，鷸鳥跳上樹枝，輕點讓一顆卵石撲通落向下方水池。石壩上空持續迴盪著柔和的嗡鳴聲。