One Dress, Two Sisters

Irene was sitting on the floor of her mother's old bedroom when her sister came in. On the bed between them lay the dress, in a worn cardboard box. It was ivory silk with a long lace hem, and it smelled faintly of cedar.

Irene sedang duduk di lantai bekas kamar tidur ibunya ketika adiknya masuk. Di atas tempat tidur di antara mereka, gaun itu tergeletak dalam kotak kardus yang sudah usang. Gaun itu berbahan sutra gading dengan ujung renda yang panjang, dan baunya samar-samar seperti kayu cedar.

"I know why you asked me here," Vilma said. "We are both going to say it's ours."

"Aku tahu kenapa kamu memintaku ke sini," kata Vilma. "Kita berdua akan bilang gaun ini milik kita."

"We are," Irene said. "I wore it in my head when I was twelve. I think you did too."

"Memang," kata Irene. "Aku sudah memakainya dalam anganku waktu umur dua belas tahun. Kurasa kamu juga."

Vilma smiled, but her eyes were serious. "I'm getting married in May, and you're getting married in October. If we go by the calendar, I win."

Vilma tersenyum, tetapi matanya serius. "Aku menikah bulan Mei, dan kamu menikah bulan Oktober. Kalau berdasarkan kalender, aku yang menang."

"If we go by who wants it more, nobody wins," Irene said. "That's the problem."

"Kalau berdasarkan siapa yang lebih menginginkannya, tidak ada yang menang," kata Irene. "Itu masalahnya."

For a while, neither of them spoke. Irene looked at the old photo on the wall. In it, their mother stood in this dress, laughing, with her hair blowing across her face. Irene was the oldest, and she had always imagined that the dress would pass to her first. She was not sure whether she wanted the dress or only wanted to be chosen.

Untuk beberapa saat, keduanya tidak berbicara. Irene memandang foto lama di dinding. Di foto itu, ibu mereka berdiri mengenakan gaun ini, tertawa, dengan rambut tertiup menutupi wajahnya. Irene adalah anak sulung, dan ia selalu membayangkan gaun itu akan diwariskan kepadanya lebih dulu. Ia tidak yakin apakah ia menginginkan gaun itu atau hanya ingin dipilih.

"Can I tell you something?" Vilma said at last. "I live so far away now. I see Mom twice a year. When I wear this dress, I think I will feel as if she is standing next to me."

"Boleh aku bilang sesuatu?" kata Vilma akhirnya. "Sekarang aku tinggal begitu jauh. Aku hanya bertemu Ibu dua kali setahun. Kalau aku memakai gaun ini, kurasa aku akan merasa seolah Ibu berdiri di sampingku."

Irene felt her own wish loosen a little. She did not want to give it up, but she saw what the dress meant to her sister. "Then you should wear it," she said slowly. "But I would like a piece of it too."

Irene merasakan keinginannya sendiri sedikit melonggar. Ia tidak mau melepaskannya, tetapi ia melihat apa arti gaun itu bagi adiknya. "Kalau begitu kamu yang harus memakainya," katanya pelan. "Tapi aku juga ingin sebagian darinya."

"What do you mean?"

"Maksudmu?"

"The hem is almost two meters of lace. If a seamstress shortens it for you, she could use what's left to make a veil. I could walk down the aisle in the same lace, and you would still have the dress."

"Ujung rendanya hampir dua meter panjangnya. Kalau seorang penjahit memendekkannya untukmu, ia bisa memakai sisanya untuk membuat kerudung pengantin. Aku bisa berjalan menuju altar dengan renda yang sama, dan kamu tetap punya gaunnya."

Vilma stared at her. "You would really do that?"

Vilma menatapnya. "Kamu benar-benar mau melakukan itu?"

"I have already started to like the idea," Irene said. "It might even be better. We would both be wearing her."

"Aku sudah mulai menyukai idenya," kata Irene. "Mungkin malah lebih bagus. Kita berdua akan sama-sama mengenakan Ibu."

Vilma picked up the box lid and set it gently on the bed. "Let's call the seamstress tomorrow," she said. "Before one of us changes her mind."

Vilma mengambil tutup kotak itu dan meletakkannya dengan lembut di atas tempat tidur. "Ayo kita telepon penjahitnya besok," katanya. "Sebelum salah satu dari kita berubah pikiran."