The Metal Tray That Would Not Stay Quiet - 適合中級的英文短篇故事，含中譯與發音

Cotton dust stuck to the rough pads of Oswin's front paw. When the cat stepped forward, the grit rasped against the concrete floor and joined the low hum of a ceiling bulb.

Narrow shelves rose on both sides. A thin radio rested above a crate, its silent voice locked inside a cracked speaker. Farther back, a tin lay tipped on its rim; a bright clown sticker on the lid looked like a forgotten joke from an old worker. Oswin nudged the tin. It rolled once, struck a wooden brace, and spilled a handful of metal nuts. Each nut drummed across a metal tray, the vibration sending a quick ring through the aisle. The ring bounced, turned into a faint echo under the roof, and stirred more dust from the beams. Oswin’s ears flattened; the cat darted after the nearest nut and pinned it with a paw. The tray still rattled, so the cat flicked a strip of canvas drop cloth over the tray to muffle the sound.

Footsteps paused at the open doorway. “Easy there, little explorer,” Nessa said, her voice soft and amused. Oswin froze; the trapped nut slipped free, tapped the tray again, and rolled behind a box. Nessa waited, but made no move inside the aisle. The bulb kept its steady hum. Oswin crouched, tail low, and tugged at the cloth once more, yet a corner slid away. The metal tray answered with a sharp creak, then settled. Scratches now crossed the tin, the nuts lay scattered, and the tray rested half-covered. Oswin stayed crouched beside the cloth, whiskers still quivering, while the faint echo of the last rattle hung above the shelves.

棉絮般的微塵黏在奧斯溫前爪粗糙的肉墊上。當牠向前踏出時，砂礫在混凝土地面上摩擦，與天花板燈泡低沉的嗡鳴交織。

狹窄的層架在兩側升起。一台薄薄的收音機放在木箱上，破裂的喇叭裡鎖住了它無聲的嗓音。更裡面，一只鐵罐斜靠邊緣；蓋子上的小丑貼紙像是前工人留下的玩笑。奧斯溫推了一下鐵罐。鐵罐滾動一下，撞到木架，灑出一把金屬螺帽。每顆螺帽在金屬盤上敲擊，震動帶來短促的叮響，聲波在走道裡反彈，形成微弱回聲，並把更多灰塵從梁間抖落。奧斯溫的耳朵貼平；牠衝向最近的螺帽，用爪子壓住。托盤仍在顫響，所以牠把一條帆布覆在托盤上，想壓低聲音。

門口的腳步聲停下。「嘿，小探險家。」內莎輕柔地說。奧斯溫僵住，被困的螺帽滑脫，再度敲到托盤，滾到箱子後。內莎等著，但沒有進入走道。燈泡繼續發出均勻的嗡鳴。奧斯溫蹲低，尾巴垂下，再次扯動帆布，卻有一角又滑開。金屬盤回以尖銳的吱聲，然後歸於靜止。鐵罐表面留下刮痕，螺帽散在地上，托盤半被覆蓋。奧斯溫仍蹲在帆布旁，鬍鬚微顫，最後一聲金屬顫響的淡淡回音懸在層架上方。