84. Àm-bong-bong lim, chiú bē phang | 暗摸摸啉, 酒袂芳

84. Àm-bong-bong lim, chiú bē phang

Tiān-hóe téng ū chi̍t-tiâu soh-á sûi kàu chím-thâu piⁿ.

"Tha̍k-chhek boeh khùn ê sî, che kā khiú chi̍t-ē tō koaiⁿ-teng." Komako ná lāng hit-tiâu soh-á, koh ná ka-têng chú-hū án-ne pháiⁿ-sè pháiⁿ-sè chē leh.

"Ká-ná hô͘-lî boeh chhut-kè neh."

"Tō-sī án-ne kóng meh."

"Boeh tī chia tòa sì-nî hioh?"

"Iah, mā í-keng tòa pòaⁿ-nî ah, chiâⁿ kín neh."

Thiaⁿ ē-tio̍h lâu-kha ê khùn-siaⁿ, iū bô sáⁿ ōe hó koh kóng, Shimamura tō khiā khí-lâi.

Komako cháu khì khui-mûi, kā thâu thàm chhut-khì, gia̍h thâu khòaⁿ thiⁿ:

"Tit-boeh lo̍h-seh ah. Âng-hio̍h kùi-cheh mā tit-boeh soah ah." Yi ná kóng ná kiâⁿ kàu mûi gōa:

"Chia sī soaⁿ-khu, âng-hio̍h bōe soah tō lo̍h-seh."

"Án-ne, góa lâi-khì ah. Lí hó-hó heⁿh-khùn."

"Góa sàng lí túiⁿ, sàng kàu kheh-chàn mûi-kháu."

Put-jî-kò, yi iū hām Shimamura tâng-chê kiâⁿ-ji̍p kheh-chàn, kóng:

"Lí hó-hó heⁿh-khùn." tō bô khòaⁿ-e lâng-iáⁿ. Kòe chi̍t-ē-á, yi phâng nn̄g-poe móa-móa ê léng chiú, ji̍p-lâi i ê pâng-keng, hoah kóng:

"Lâi, lim lah! Kā lim lo̍h."

"Lâng lóng khùn ah, lí tá chhōe lâi ê chiú?"

"Hmh, góa chai tá-ūi ū chiú."

Khòaⁿ lâi, Komako tih tah-chiú ê sî í-keng ū lim kòe,  tú-chiah hit-lō chùi khoán koh chhut-lâi ah. Yi ba̍k-chiu bui-bui, khòaⁿ chiú chhoat chhut-lâi.

"M̄-koh, àm-bong-bong lim, chiú bē phang."

Shimamura asálih kā tu kòe-lâi ê chiú chi̍t-chhùi lim loeh.

Chit-sut-á chiú, pún-chiâⁿ sī bē chùi, hoān-sè tī gōa-kháu kiâⁿ ê sî léng tio̍h, chek-sî heng-khám ut-ut, chiú chhèng kàu thâu-khak. I chai ka-tī ká-ná bīn-sek hoán-pe̍h, tō ba̍k-chiu kheh-kheh tó lo̍h-lâi, Komako sûi kòe-lâi kā ho̍k-sāi. Kòe chi̍t-khùn, Shimamura kám-kak tio̍h cha-bó͘ sio-thǹg-thǹg ê hûn-su, tō ná gín-á án-ne, an-sim bô kò͘-lī ah.

Komako kiàn-siàu tak-tak, yi he tōng-chok, ná-chhiūⁿ bōe seⁿ-kiáⁿ ê ko͘-niû phō pa̍t-lâng ê gín-á, gia̍h-thâu khòaⁿ gín-á khùn ê khoán.

--

84. 暗摸摸啉, 酒袂芳

電火頂有一條索仔垂到枕頭邊.

"讀冊欲睏 ê 時, 這 kā 搝一下 tō 關燈." Komako ná 弄彼條索仔, koh ná 家庭主婦 án-ne 歹勢歹勢坐 leh.

"Ká-ná 狐狸欲出嫁 neh."

"Tō 是 án-ne 講 meh."

"欲 tī 遮蹛四年 hioh?"

"Iah, mā 已經蹛半年 ah, 誠緊 neh."

聽會著樓跤 ê 睏聲, 又無啥話好 koh 講, Shimamura tō 徛起來.

Komako 走去開 mûi, kā 頭探出去, 攑頭看天:

"得欲落雪 ah. 紅葉季節 mā 得欲煞 ah." 她 ná 講 ná 行到 mûi 外:

"遮是山區, 紅葉未煞 tō 落雪."

"Án-ne, 我來去 ah. 你好好 heⁿh 睏."

"我送你 túiⁿ, 送到客棧 mûi 口."

不而過, 她又和 Shimamura 同齊行入客棧, 講:

"你好好 heⁿh 睏." tō 無看 e 人影. 過一下仔, 她捀兩杯滿滿 ê 冷酒, 入來伊 ê 房間, 喝講:

"來, 啉 lah! Kā 啉落."

"人攏睏 ah, 你 tá 揣來 ê 酒?"

"Hmh, 我知 tá 位有酒."

看來, Komako tih 搭酒 ê 時已經有啉過,  拄才 hit-lō 醉款 koh 出來 ah. 她目睭 bui-bui, 看酒 chhoat 出來.

"毋過, 暗摸摸啉, 酒袂芳."

Shimamura asálih kā tu 過來 ê 酒一喙啉 loeh.

這屑仔酒, 本成是袂醉, 凡勢 tī 外口行 ê 時冷著, 即時胸坎鬱鬱, 酒衝到頭殼. 伊知家治 ká-ná 面色反白, tō 目睭瞌瞌倒落來, Komako 隨過來 kā 服侍. 過一睏, Shimamura 感覺著查某燒燙燙 ê 魂軀, tō ná 囡仔 án-ne, 安心無顧慮 ah.

Komako 見笑 tak-tak, 她 he 動作, ná 像未生囝 ê 姑娘抱別人 ê 囡仔, 攑頭看囡仔睏 ê 款.

--

84.

A thin string ran from Komako's pillow to the ceiling.

"I turn the light out with this when I'm reading." She tugged at the string. Gentle and subdued, the proper housewife again, she was not quite able even so to hide her discomposure.

"Lonely as the fox's lady out at night, aren't you."

"I really am."

"And do you mean to live here four years?" 

"But it's going on a year already. It won't be long."

Shimamura was nervous. He thought he could hear the breathing of the family below, and he had run out of things to talk about. He stood up to leave.

Komako slid the door half shut behind him. She glanced up at the sky. "It's beginning to look like snow. The end of the maple leaves." She recited a line of poetry* as she stepped outside: "Here in our mountains, the snow falls even on the maple leaves." [* The line is from a Kabuki play.]

"Well, good night."

"Wait. I'll see you back to the hotel. As far as the door, no farther."

But she followed him inside.

"Go on to bed." She slipped away, and a few minutes later she was back with two glasses filled to the brim with sake.

"Drink," she ordered as she stepped into the room. "We're going to have a drink."

"But aren't they asleep? Where did you find it?"

"I know where they keep it." She had quite obviously had herself a drink as she poured from the vat. The earlier drunkenness had come back. With narrowed eyes, she watched the sake spill over on her hand. "It's no fun, though, swallowing the stuff down in the dark."

Shimamura drank meekly from the cup that was thrust at him.

It was not usual for him to get drunk on so little; but perhaps he was chilled from the walk. He began to feel sick. His head was whirling, and he could almost see himself going pale. He closed his eyes and fell back on the quilt. Komako put her arms around him in alarm. A childlike feeling of security came to him from the warmth of her body.

She seemed ill at ease, like a young woman, still childless, who takes a baby up in her arms. She raised her head and looked down, as at the sleeping child.

--