Rolling Jar Tips the Frame in the Workshop - 適合中級的英文短篇故事，含中譯與發音

"This clamp is slipping!"

Cole caught the metal bar before it slid. Thea steadied the half-built frame on the narrow work table, feeling its corners wobble. A ginger cat slept on a low shelf, tail hanging like a small pendulum. Warm light fell through the high window and brightened dust that drifted above the tools. Thin shavings curled down and tapped the floor with a faint click.

Thea reached for a gift basket filled with tiny glass jars of colored wax. She raised it toward an upper shelf, but its woven handle tilted within her grasp. One jar rolled out, struck the table, and began a slow pursuit across the wooden boards. The cat woke, leapt down, and landed right behind the spinning glass. Its landing shook the table; the frame leaned, then toppled toward Thea's elbows. Cole slid his boot under the falling side, turning it into a gentle seesaw. The loose jar met his shoe, paused, and rested against the heel without cracking. An orange lid popped free, and Thea unwrapped the thin paper that kept powder inside.

A sudden aroma of cinnamon drifted up and mixed with the sharper smell of sawdust. A stinging sensation tickled Thea's nostrils while the cat sniffed the sweet cloud and sneezed. Cole nudged the jar upright and returned it to the basket, checking each piece for cracks. Dust settled back onto the bench while thin light stretched farther across the floor. The pendulum tail of the cat slowed, then hung still.

「這個夾子在滑！」

科爾趕緊抓住那根快要滑落的金屬桿。西婭把半成品木框在狹窄的工作桌上穩住，能感到角落微微晃動。一隻姜色貓趴在低層架子上睡覺，尾巴像小鐘擺一樣垂著。高窗透下的暖光照亮工具上方飄動的灰塵。細木屑捲落，輕輕敲打地面發出微響。

西婭伸手去拿一籃裝滿彩色蠟的小玻璃罐。她把籃子抬向上層架子，但編織把手在掌中傾斜。一個罐子滾出，撞到桌面後慢慢沿木板追逐前行。貓醒來跳下，正好落在旋轉玻璃罐後方。牠著地時桌子震動，木框向西婭手肘傾倒。科爾把靴尖伸到下方，讓木框變成輕巧的蹺蹺板。鬆動的罐子撞停在他鞋跟旁，並未破裂。橙色蓋子彈開，西婭拆開包著粉末的薄紙。

一股肉桂香升起，與鋸屑的刺激味混在一起。刺鼻感竄進西婭鼻腔，貓聞到甜味後打了個噴嚏。科爾把玻璃罐立好，再放回籃中，仔細檢查是否有裂紋。灰塵重新落回工作臺，細長的光線在地板上伸展。貓的鐘擺尾減速，最後靜止。