Peacock Feather against Wicker- 適合中高級的英語短篇故事

"Lift the basket here," Kent called. Nina set the wicker frame by his boots, reeds rasping against turf. Above them, leaves whispered and small impacts marked wasps bumping fallen skins. Far beyond the rows, a tractor grumbled, its pitch dipping whenever foliage shifted overhead. Kent eyed a golden pear dangling beyond fingertip reach. The three-rung ladder had been placed earlier, yet its feet now sank with a soft squelch that suppressed the wooden groan. He had repositioned the ladder once already, but the ground near this trunk still swallowed each step. Rungs groaned under his weight. Bark scraped when he leaned in. A robin among the twigs chirred sharply at the shaking branch. If the branch bends farther, it will spill fruit. The rungs had been spaced wide enough for steady footing.

The robin’s burst of wings startled a peacock strolling behind a low flowerbed where marigolds rattled with bees. The tall bird barked, feathers rustling like crisp paper, and lunged into the aisle. Its sweeping tail brushed Kent’s almost-full basket; pears rolled, pattering across grass and knocking the rim. Nina, a travel writer, found the novelty amusing yet acted fast. She swung a canvas liner beneath the runaway fruit. The cloth sagged, absorbing each dull thud and stopping their slide.

She then eased half the load into a spare basket, the weave holding steady while Kent climbed down. A highway beyond the hedgerow droned, a slow bass like an ocean under the orchard’s soft hiss. They leaned the baskets against a trunk, leaving the ladder to creak quietly. Farther down the row, the peacock’s tail quivered among the leaves as it stepped back into the shade.

「把籃子擺這裡。」肯特喊道。妮娜把柳條籃放到他靴子旁，柳枝摩擦草皮發出沙沙聲。頭頂的樹葉細語，幾下輕響提醒著黃蜂撞到落果。遠處的拖拉機低沉隆隆，枝葉一陣搖動就讓音調跟著起伏。肯特盯著一顆在指尖之外的金色梨子。三階木梯先前已經架好，木腳卻又陷進濕軟泥土，吞掉腳步帶來的吱呀。梯子他先前挪過一次，這株樹旁的地面仍不停下沉。梯檔在他腳下呻吟，粗糙樹皮劃過衣袖。枝條被晃動時，一隻藏在枝間的知更鳥尖聲喳喳。如果枝條再往下彎，果子就會掉落。梯檔的間距原本設計得足夠穩固。

知更鳥突然振翅，驚到在低矮花壇後散步的孔雀，花壇裡的金盞菊被蜜蜂撞得沙沙作響。高大的鳥兒發出短促尖叫，羽毛像脆紙般沙沙，衝進行道。牠掃過肯特幾乎裝滿的籃子；梨子在草上跳滾，撞到籃緣。妮娜是個旅遊作家，她覺得這份新鮮體驗有趣，但動作飛快，將帆布襯布伸到散落的果實下方。布面微沉，吸住每一下悶響，阻止果子繼續滑動。

她接著把一半果實移到備用籃中，重量立刻變輕，柳編籃保持穩定，肯特趁機下了梯。樹籬外的公路傳來低頻轟鳴，像遠海的底音，襯在果園輕輕的枝葉摩擦聲下。他們把籃子靠在樹幹，木梯還在輕輕吱呀。行道深處，孔雀的尾羽在樹葉間微微抖動，牠一步步走回陰影裡。