Foam Prints on the Cool Tile- 適合中高級的英語短篇故事

Cold tile pressed against Glen’s palm as he steadied himself beside the waiting chairs. Across one frost-white square, a faint paw-shaped damp mark interrupted the mirror-bright surface.

Both washing basins were still occupied, so Glen lingered near the magazine rack while a ceiling speaker let a gentle song called “Overjoyed” float through the air. A grey cat—probably a stray that liked the warm dryer drafts—watched from the reception counter, tail flicking like a metronome. Glen slid one glossy hairstyle booklet into the leaning pile on the rack. The first addition created a neat line, so he reached for a weathered fashion issue and slid that on top. The stack sagged, yet he compromised by tucking in a thick style catalogue as a spacer. More clients began to turn up, and their coats brushed the rack; the third magazine had been pressed too tightly, and glossy pages fanned outward like silver blades. If he had stopped there, the pile might have stayed upright, but his relative Luna whispered a warning glance as covers started to slide.

Paper shifted; a thin clap echoed against the dispenser. Glen pinched the middle catalogue’s spine and yanked it free. The wobble ceased at once, and the remaining issues settled into a straight steel-grey column. As he set the bulky catalogue aside, the chrome reflection on its cover caught the floor at a new angle, throwing cool light over the damp mark. The bright flare revealed bubbly residue around each tiny paw pad. The trace was not spilled water after all; shampoo foam must have clung to the cat’s paws when it prowled the alcove earlier. Glen tipped his head, watching the animal blink at its own mirror image. He crouched, fingers hovering above the newly gleaming print while the cat kept tracking the shifting reflection.

冰涼的地磚貼在葛倫的手掌，他在候位椅旁穩住身體。潔白的方形磚上，一個淡淡的濕貓掌印破壞了鏡面般的光滑。

兩個洗髮槽都還有人使用，葛倫於是留在雜誌架旁，天花板喇叭正播放著名為〈Overjoyed〉的輕柔歌曲。一隻灰貓——大概愛吹風機的暖氣——在接待櫃檯上看著四周，尾巴像節拍器一樣擺動。葛倫先把一本光滑的髮型手冊插進傾斜的雜誌堆，第一本讓排面看起來整齊，他接著拿起一本已經翻舊的時裝雜誌放上去。書堆開始下陷，他妥協地再塞進一本厚重的造型型錄當墊高。越來越多顧客陸續出現，他們的外套擦到書架；第三本雜誌被壓得太緊，亮面頁像銀刃般散開。要是他那時就停手，書堆或許就能站穩，但他的親戚露娜投來提醒的眼神，封面已經開始滑落。

紙頁移動，一聲輕拍撞上飲水機。葛倫捏住中間那本型錄的書脊猛地抽出，搖晃立刻停止，剩下的雜誌排成筆直的鋼灰色柱子。他把那本厚冊放到一旁，封面像鏡子般的反射把地面打亮，濕掌印立刻在冷光中清晰起來。亮斑顯示每個小肉墊周圍都有氣泡殘留，那印記根本不是潑灑的水跡，而是貓咪早先在洗髮區踩到泡沫後留下的。葛倫歪頭看著那隻動物對著鏡牆眨眼，他半蹲下來，手指懸在新閃亮的掌印上方，貓還在追逐那片移動的倒影。