43. Lán lăi chhia-thâu khòaⁿ-khòaⁿ leh | 咱 lăi 車頭看看 leh

43. Lán lăi chhia-thâu khòaⁿ-khòaⁿ leh

Hit-àm bô lo̍h seh, lo̍h chi̍t-chūn sng-á-kak liáu, koh lo̍h hō͘.

Boeh túiⁿ chêng-àm, goe̍h-sek chin chheng, khong-khì léng ki-ki, Shimamura koh chi̍t-pái kiò Komako lâi. Sui-jiân tit-boeh cha̍p-it tiám ah, Komako iáu kóng boeh chhut-khì sàn-pō͘, kóng mā m̄-thiaⁿ, kiâng-kiâng ùi phōe-lô͘ kā i giú khí-lâi, thoa i tâng-chê chhut-mûi.

Tō-lō͘ í-keng kiat-peng. Kui-chng-thâu tī hân-léng lih khùn kah tiām chiuh-chiuh. Komako kā saⁿ-á-ki giú khí-lâi seh tī io-tòa. Goe̍h ná-chhiūⁿ chi̍t-ki lāi-to khòe tī chheⁿ-lin-lin ê peng-kak téng-bīn. 

"Kiâⁿ lăi chhia-thâu."

"Khí-siáu. Óng-hôe chhiau-kòe chi̍t-lí-lō͘."

"Lí boeh túiⁿ Tokyo ah. Lán lăi chhia-thâu khòaⁿ-khòaⁿ leh."

Shimamura ùi keng-thâu kàu tōa-thúi lóng kôaⁿ kah bâ-pì ah.

Tún-lâi kàu pâng-keng, Komako sim-thâu tāng-hoâiⁿ-hoâiⁿ, siang-chhiú tn̂g-tn̂g kín chhun-ji̍p hóe-lô͘, hām pêng-sî bô kāng, mā m̄-ài sé un-chôaⁿ ah.

Phōe-lô͘ ê phōe tī goân-ūi bô tín-tāng, iā-tō-sī koh kā lēng-gōa hit-niá phōe tà tī téng-bīn, chhu-phōe pho͘ kàu phōe-lô͘ khut-á piⁿ. Kan-ta pho͘ chi̍t-lâng khùn ê ūi. Komako chē tī phōe-lô͘ piⁿ hang-hóe, thâu lê-lê, bô siaⁿ bô soeh.

"Án nóa hioh?"

"Góa boeh lâi túiⁿ."

"Sam-pat!"

"Hó lah. Lí khì khùn. Góa chiū án-ne."

"Sī án nóa boeh túiⁿ?"

"M̄ túiⁿ ah. Tī chia tán kàu thiⁿ-kuiⁿ."

"Chiâⁿ hāi. Mài khiau-khi lah."

"M̄-sī khiau-khi. Góa tih kan-khó͘ lah."

"Nā án-ne..."

"Aih, sī góa lâng bô sóng-khoài lah."

--

43. 咱 lăi 車頭看看 leh

彼暗無落雪, 落一陣霜仔角了, koh 落雨.

欲 túiⁿ 前暗, 月色真清, 空氣冷 ki-ki, Shimamura koh 一擺叫 Komako 來. 雖然得欲十一點 ah, Komako 猶講欲出去散步, 講 mā 毋聽, kiâng-kiâng ùi 被爐 kā 伊 giú 起來, 拖伊同齊出 mûi.

道路已經結冰. 規庄頭 tī 寒冷 lih 睏 kah 恬 chiuh-chiuh. Komako kā 衫仔裾搝起來 seh tī 腰帶. 月 ná 像一支利刀 khòe tī 青 lin-lin ê 冰角頂面. 

"行 lăi 車頭."

"起痟. 往回超過一里路."

"你欲 túiⁿ Tokyo ah. 咱 lăi 車頭看看 leh."

Shimamura ùi 肩頭到大腿攏寒 kah 麻痺 ah.

Tún 來到房間, Komako 心頭重橫橫, 雙手長長緊伸入火爐, hām 平時無仝, mā 毋愛洗溫泉 ah.

被爐 ê 被 tī 原位無振動, 也 tō 是 koh kā 另外彼領被罩 tī 頂面, 舒被鋪到被爐窟仔邊. Komako 坐 tī 被爐邊烘火, 頭 lê-lê, 無聲無說.

"Án nóa hioh?"

"我欲來 túiⁿ."

"三八!"

"好 lah. 你去睏. 我就 án-ne."

"是 án nóa 欲 túiⁿ?"

"毋 túiⁿ ah. Tī 遮等到天 kuiⁿ."

"誠害. 莫蹺蹊 lah."

"毋是蹺蹊. 我 tih 艱苦 lah."

"若 án-ne..."

"Aih, 是我人無爽快 lah."

--

43.

It did not snow that evemng. A hailstorm turned to rain.

Shimamura called Komako again the night before he was to leave. It was a clear, moonlit night. At eleven o'clock the air was bitterly cold, but Komako insisted on going for a walk. She pulled him roughly from the kotatsu.

The road was frozen. The village lay quiet under the cold sky. Komako hitched up the skirt of her kimono and tucked it into her obi. The moon shone like a blade frozen in blue ice.

"We'll go to the station," said Komako.

"You're insane. It's more than a mile each way." 

"You'll be going back to Tokyo soon. We'll go look at the station."

Shimamura was numb from his shoulders to his thighs.

Back in his room, Komako sank disconsolately to the floor. Her head was bowed and her arms were deep in the kotatsu. Strangely, she refused to go with him to the bath.

Bedding had been laid out with the foot of the mattress inside the kotatsu. Komako was sitting forlornly beside it when Shimamura came back from the bath. She said nothing.

"What's the matter?" "I'm going home." 

"Don't be foolish."

"Go on to bed. Just let me sit here for a little while."

"Why do you want to go home?"

"I'm not going home. I'll sit here till morning." 

"Don't be difficult."

"I'm not being difficult. I'm not being difficult." 

"Then . . . ?"

"I . . . don't feel well."

--