A Gift for Omar——A story from Oman
给奥马尔的礼物——阿曼故事
All over the world there are stories about meeting strange travellers in lonely places.
世界各地都有在偏僻之地偶遇奇怪旅人的故事。
Who are they?
他们是谁？
Where have they come from?
他们从何而来？
Where are they going?
他们要去往何方？
This is one of those stories.
这就是其中一个故事。
It happens in Oman, on Route 21, the long road that runs across the lonely hills behind the great Al Hajar mountains.
故事发生在阿曼，发生在21号公路上，那是一条穿越哈杰尔大山脉后荒凉山丘的漫长道路。
Oman is a big country, and the roads in Oman are very long.
阿曼是个幅员辽阔的国家，那里的公路都非常漫长。
‘Long and empty,’ thought Abdul.
“漫长而空旷，”阿卜杜勒想。
He was standing next to his car, by the side of Route 21, the long road that runs from Buraimi to Nizwa.
他正站在他的车旁，在21号公路边，那条从布赖米延伸到尼兹瓦的漫长公路上。
He was waiting for a car to pass by, but the road was empty.
他在等待有车经过，但公路上空空如也。
There were no houses and no traffic.
既没有房屋，也没有车流。
Abdul was angry with his car, because it did not go any more.
阿卜杜勒生车子的气，因为它再也动不了了。
He was angry with himself, because he did not check the car before he left Buraimi.
他也生自己的气，因为他离开布赖米前没有检查车子。
And he was angry with his mobile phone too, because there was no signal.
他甚至生手机的气，因为那里没有信号。
He couldn’t use it to phone for help.
他无法用它打电话求救。
Every Wednesday evening, Abdul drove from his office in Buraimi to his family home in Nizwa.
每个星期三晚上，阿卜杜勒都会从他在布赖米的办公室开车回他在尼兹瓦的家。
He liked to spend the weekend, which in Oman is Thursday and Friday, at home with his family.
他喜欢在周末（在阿曼，周末是周四和周五）与家人待在家里。
He put his hand in his pocket and touched a hard, flat box.
他把手伸进口袋，碰到了一个坚硬扁平的盒子。
It was a computer game – a gift, a present for his youngest brother, Omar.
那是一款电脑游戏——一份礼物，送给他的小弟弟奥马尔的礼物。
Omar was eight years old and loved computer games.
奥马尔八岁了，非常喜欢电脑游戏。
This was a new game, the very newest game.
这是一款新游戏，非常新的游戏。
Only one of the computer shops in Buraimi had it, and Abdul was the first person to buy it.
布赖米只有一家电脑商店有货，而阿卜杜勒是第一个买到它的人。
‘Omar will be so excited!’ he thought.
“奥马尔会兴奋极了！”他想。
‘He’ll have this game before any of his friends have it.’
“他会比他所有的朋友都先玩到这款游戏。”
He bought the game, left Buraimi, and started driving to Nizwa.
他买下游戏，离开布赖米，开始驱车前往尼兹瓦。
He wanted to get home before Omar was asleep.
他想在奥马尔睡着之前赶回家。
So he did not wait to check his car before he left Buraimi, which was a mistake.
所以他没有等检查车子就离开了布赖米，这是一个错误。
A big mistake.
一个大错误。
Now he was standing by the side of the road, with a dead car, in the middle of nowhere.
现在，他站在路边，车子抛锚了，身处荒郊野岭。
‘How long will I have to wait before another car comes along?’ he thought.
“我还得等多久才会有另一辆车经过？”他想。
‘It’s getting dark.’
“天快黑了。”
He looked up at the sky.
他抬头望向天空。
The sun was down behind the mountains, and the stars were beginning to come out.
太阳已落在山后，星星开始出现。
A hot dry wind was blowing.
热风干燥地吹着。
There was no moon.
没有月亮。
At that moment he saw car lights.
就在这时，他看到了车灯。
It’s my lucky night after all,’ he thought.
“这终究是我的幸运之夜，”他想。
The car was coming very fast over the hills.
那辆车正飞快地越过山丘驶来。
Its lights looked unusual – very yellow, like the eyes of a cat … or a tiger.
车灯看起来很不寻常——非常黄，像猫的眼睛……或老虎的眼睛。
That’s strange,’ thought Abdul.
“真奇怪，”阿卜杜勒想。
Then he saw that the car would be past him in a second.
接着他发现那辆车一秒钟就会开过去。
He moved into the road, put both his arms above his head, and waved.
他冲到路中间，双臂举过头顶挥手。
The car made a noise like a scream and stopped right in front of him.
那辆车发出一声像尖叫一样的噪音，停在了他面前。
It was a long, black car.
那是一辆长长的黑色轿车。
Abdul did not know what kind of car it was, but it looked fast.
阿卜杜勒不知道那是哪种车，但它看起来很快。
The door opened and the driver looked out at Abdul.
车门开了，司机看着阿卜杜勒。
He was wearing dark glasses and had a big smile – a very big smile.
他戴着墨镜，笑容很大——非常大的笑容。
Abdul started to say something about his car, about going to Nizwa.
阿卜杜勒开始说起他的车，说起要去尼兹瓦。
The driver did not say anything, but he waved his hand at the seat next to him.
司机什么也没说，只是挥手示意旁边的座位。
Abdul got in and closed the door.
阿卜杜勒上了车，关上了门。
The car screamed again and drove quickly away.
车子又发出一声尖叫，迅速开走了。
The driver was wearing dark glasses and had a big smile.
司机戴着墨镜，面带笑容。
Inside the car it was dark and quiet.
车里黑暗而安静。
The only light was a kind of red or orange.
唯一的光是一种红色或橙色。
Where’s that light coming from?’ thought Abdul.
“那光是从哪里来的？”阿卜杜勒想。
He spoke to the driver, telling him again that he was going to Nizwa.
他跟司机说话，再次告诉他要去尼兹瓦。
The driver did not answer.
司机没有回答。
He just smiled his big smile and looked at the road.
他只是咧着大嘴笑，看着前方的路。
His glasses were very dark.
他的眼镜非常黑。
I can’t see his eyes behind those glasses, but I think he’s looking at the road,’ thought Abdul.
“我看不见那副眼镜后面的双眼，但我认为他在看路，”阿卜杜勒想。
‘I hope he is. He’s driving so fast!’
“我希望如此。他开得这么快！”
The driver was wearing a traditional long robe, which hid his legs and feet.
司机穿着一件传统的长袍，遮住了他的腿和脚。
Abdul looked out of the window.
阿卜杜勒看向窗外。
The car was moving very fast.
车子开得飞快。
That’s good,’ Abdul told himself.
“那很好，”阿卜杜勒告诉自己。
‘Fast is good. I’ll get home to Nizwa quickly, driving like this.’
“快点好。这样开，我能很快回尼兹瓦的家。”
‘I’ll see my family and give Omar his gift, his computer game.’
“我会见到我的家人，把礼物——那款电脑游戏送给奥马尔。”
This driver’s a bit strange – I really don’t like that smile! – but it doesn’t matter.
这位司机有点奇怪——我真的不喜欢那个笑容！——但这没关系。
The important thing is to get home.’
重要的是要回家。”
It was night now.
现在是晚上了。
The dark road, passing quickly, looked different from usual.
黑暗的道路飞速后退，看起来和平常不一样。
Where are we?’ thought Abdul, looking out of the window again.
“我们在哪？”阿卜杜勒看着窗外想。
‘I know this road very well – I drive along it twice a week.’
“我对这条路非常熟悉——我每周开两次。”
‘Why does it look different tonight?’
“为什么今晚看起来不一样？”
Inside the car, the red and orange light looked a little brighter.
车里，红橙色的光看起来更亮了一些。
Where’s that light coming from?’ thought Abdul.
“那光是从哪里来的？”阿卜杜勒想。
‘What is it? It’s moving all the time.’
“那是什么？它一直在动。”
‘It looks like… it looks like fire.’
“它看起来像……看起来像火。”
‘But it can’t be.’
“但它不可能是。”
‘There can’t be a fire in here, inside this car.’
“这辆车里不可能有火。”
He looked at the driver and quickly looked away again.
他看了看司机，然后迅速移开视线。
The smile was even bigger than before.
笑容比以前更大了。
That smile is horrible,’ he thought.
“那个笑容真可怕，”他想。
‘I don’t want to look at it.’
“我不想看它。”
‘I’m sure he knows I’m looking at him.’
“我肯定他知道我在看他。”
‘But how can he see through those dark glasses?’
“但他怎么能透过那副墨镜看见呢？”
‘Don’t think about it! The important thing is to get home.’
“别想了！重要的是要回家。”
Abdul thought about the big family house in Nizwa, with its big wooden front door.
阿卜杜勒想起了尼兹瓦那栋大家庭的房子，那扇巨大的木头前门。
It was safe there.
那里很安全。
The thought of home made him feel better.
对家的思念让他感觉好了一些。
‘Everything will be fine when I get home.’
“我到家后一切都会好的。”
‘I’ll open the door and walk in.’
“我会打开门走进去。”
‘It will be late, and everyone will be asleep, but I’ll see them all in the morning, and I’ll give Omar his gift then.’
“那时会很晚，大家都睡着了，但早上我会见到所有人，然后把礼物送给奥马尔。”
He put his hand into his pocket and touched the hard flat box of the computer game, the gift for his little brother.
他把手伸进口袋，碰到了那个坚硬扁平的电脑游戏盒子，那是给弟弟的礼物。
‘There it is,’ he thought.
“它在那，”他想。
‘Omar’s gift.’
“奥马尔的礼物。”
‘I hope he likes it.’
“希望他会喜欢。”
‘Yes,’ said the driver. ‘He will enjoy your gift.’
“是的，”司机说。“他会喜欢你的礼物的。”
Abdul was very surprised – and afraid.
阿卜杜勒非常惊讶——也很害怕。
‘What’s happening?’ he thought.
“发生了什么？”他想。
‘I didn’t speak! I was thinking, not speaking, but the driver answered my thought.’
“我没说话！我在想，不是在说，但司机回答了我的想法。”
‘He knows what I’m thinking! He can hear my thoughts.’
“他知道我在想什么！他能听到我的思想。”
He looked at the driver.
他看着司机。
The driver was looking at the road in front of him, and he was still smiling that big, horrible smile.
司机正看着前方的路，他依然挂着那个巨大、可怕的笑容。
The light in the car was brighter, more red and orange.
车里的光更亮了，更红更橙。
And then Abdul understood.
然后阿卜杜勒明白了。
The strange light was coming from the driver – from behind his dark glasses.
那奇怪的光来自司机——来自他墨镜的后面。
‘His eyes!’ Abdul thought.
“他的眼睛！”阿卜杜勒想。
‘His eyes are made of fire!’
“他的眼睛是火做的！”
It was only a thought.
这只是个想法。
But Abdul knew now that the driver could hear him.
但阿卜杜勒现在知道司机能听到他。
He felt cold with fear.
他感到恐惧透骨。
He tried to stop thinking about eyes of fire, about the road which looked different, and about the car which screamed like an animal.
他试图停止想火的眼睛、看起来不一样的路，以及像动物一样尖叫的车。
He thought about his family, about rain falling on the trees in Nizwa, about playing football with Omar.
他想起了他的家人，想起了落在尼兹瓦树木上的雨，想起了和奥马尔一起踢足球。
The driver’s smile got bigger.
司机的笑容变大了。
He turned to look at Abdul, and put his hand up to his dark glasses.
他转头看着阿卜杜勒，把手举向墨镜。
‘Oh no!’ thought Abdul.
“哦不！”阿卜杜勒想。
‘He’s going to take his dark glasses off!’
“他要摘下墨镜了！”
Abdul forgot about getting home.
阿卜杜勒忘了回家。
He forgot about seeing his family.
他忘了见他的家人。
He even forgot about his little brother Omar, and the gift for him in his pocket.
他甚至忘了小弟弟奥马尔，以及口袋里给他的礼物。
He thought about only one thing.
他只想着一件事。
He did not want to see the driver’s eyes!
他不想看到司机的眼睛！
Abdul put his hand on the car door next to him.
阿卜杜勒把手放在旁边的车门上。
The driver took off his dark glasses.
司机摘下了墨镜。
Abdul looked down, away from the driver’s face.
阿卜杜勒低下头，避开司机的脸。
The light inside the car suddenly got brighter.
车里的光突然变得更亮了。
It was a moving light, red and orange, like fire.
那是一种移动的光，红橙色，像火一样。
By the strange light, Abdul saw the driver’s foot under his long robe.
借着那奇怪的光，阿卜杜勒看到了司机长袍下的脚。
By the strange light, Abdul saw the driver’s foot under his long robe.
借着那奇怪的光，阿卜杜勒看到了司机长袍下的脚。
It was the foot of an animal.
那是一只动物的脚。
The car door opened suddenly.
车门突然打开了。
Abdul fell out.
阿卜杜勒摔了出去。
When Abdul opened his eyes, he was lying on stones.
当阿卜杜勒睁开眼睛时，他正躺在石头上。
He got up carefully.
他小心翼翼地站起来。
Nothing was broken, but he hurt all over.
没有骨头断掉，但他浑身疼痛。
His face felt dirty and there were little stones in his hair.
他的脸感觉脏兮兮的，头发里有小石子。
He looked around quickly.
他迅速环顾四周。
He could not see the long black car, but he still felt afraid.
他看不见那辆黑色长轿车，但他仍然感到害怕。
‘Perhaps the driver will come back and find me,’ he thought.
“也许司机会回来找我，”他想。
‘If he comes back… What do I do then?’
“如果他回来……我该怎么办？”
He looked around again, and for the first time that night, he knew the road.
他又看了一遍四周，这是那天晚上第一次，他认出了这条路。
He was near a place called Tanuf, which was not far from Nizwa.
他在一个叫塔努夫的地方附近，离尼兹瓦不远。
He could call a taxi out from Nizwa to take him home.
他可以从尼兹瓦叫一辆出租车送他回家。
Home! Abdul stopped feeling afraid.
回家！阿卜杜勒不再感到害怕。
He would soon be home.
他很快就要到家了。
He put his hand into his pocket and found his mobile phone.
他把手伸进口袋，找到了他的手机。
There was a good signal, and he called a number in Nizwa and asked for a taxi to take him home.
信号很好，他拨通了尼兹瓦的一个号码，叫了一辆出租车送他回家。
It was late, after midnight.
很晚了，过了午夜。
They’ll all be asleep now,’ he thought.
“他们现在都睡着了，”他想。
‘I won’t wake them up.’
“我不会吵醒他们。”
‘I’ll just go in quietly, and see them all in the morning.’
“我会悄悄进去，早上再见到他们。”
Abdul put his hand in his pocket again.
阿卜杜勒再次把手伸进口袋。
It was empty.
口袋是空的。
The computer game, his gift for Omar, was not there.
电脑游戏，他给奥马尔的礼物，不见了。
Abdul looked for the computer game, walking up and down the road.
阿卜杜勒在路边走来走去寻找电脑游戏。
He moved stones and looked underneath them, but he could not find it anywhere.
他搬动石头，看石头下面，但哪里都找不到。
He was still looking for Omar’s gift when the taxi arrived.
出租车到达时，他还在寻找奥马尔的礼物。
In the taxi, Abdul started to feel better.
在出租车里，阿卜杜勒开始感觉好些了。
He did not want to think about the driver, with his horrible smile and his eyes of fire.
他不想想起那个有着可怕笑容和火眼的司机。
He thought about being safe.
他想着自己安全了。
The good thing,’ he thought, ‘is that he… it… that driver, did not take me all the way home.’
“好事是，”他想，“他……它……那个司机，没有把我一直送回家。”
‘He knows that I live in Nizwa, but that’s all.’
“他知道我住在尼兹瓦，但仅此而已。”
‘He doesn’t know which street, and he doesn’t know my name.’
“他不知道是哪条街，也不知道我的名字。”
‘He can’t find me, or my family.’
“他找不到我，也找不到我的家人。”
‘So I don’t need to worry.’
“所以我不需要担心。”
Abdul felt sorry about his brother’s present.
阿卜杜勒为弟弟的礼物感到难过。
But Omar was safe. His family was safe.
但奥马尔是安全的。他的家人是安全的。
He didn’t have a gift for Omar now, but it was not important.
他现在没有礼物送给奥马尔，但这并不重要。
‘I can buy another computer game next week,’ he thought.
“我可以下周再买一款电脑游戏，”他想。
‘This weekend I haven’t got a gift for him, but it doesn’t matter.’
“这个周末我没有礼物送给他，但这没关系。”
‘We’ll have a good time.’
“我们会玩得很开心。”
‘Maybe we’ll play football tomorrow.’
“也许我们明天会踢足球。”
‘And that thing… that creature, with those eyes… he can’t hurt us.’
“而那个东西……那个生物，有着那样的眼睛……他伤害不了我们。”
‘He can’t find us.’
“他找不到我们。”
It was a long time after midnight when the taxi stopped outside Abdul’s home in Nizwa.
午夜过后很久，出租车停在了阿卜杜勒位于尼兹瓦的家外面。
Abdul paid the driver and walked to the door of his house.
阿卜杜勒付了钱，走到他家门前。
Then he stopped.
然后他停住了。
Outside the door lay a flat, thin box.
门外躺着一个扁平的薄盒子。
Abdul knew what it was.
阿卜杜勒知道那是什么。
It was the computer game, his gift for Omar.
那是电脑游戏，他给奥马尔的礼物
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