The Birth on the Video Call

Ferdinand had been looking forward to the end of the trip for nine days. The contract was signed, the hotel bill was paid, and his flight home was due to board at six. The baby was not supposed to arrive for another five weeks.

Ferdinand sudah menantikan akhir perjalanan ini selama sembilan hari. Kontrak sudah ditandatangani, tagihan hotel sudah dibayar, dan penerbangan pulangnya dijadwalkan naik pesawat pukul enam. Bayinya seharusnya baru lahir lima minggu lagi.

At half past four, his phone buzzed in the departure hall. It was a message from Leonie's mother: "Her water broke. We are at the hospital. Don't panic."

Pukul empat lewat tiga puluh, ponselnya bergetar di ruang keberangkatan. Itu pesan dari ibu Leonie: "Air ketubannya pecah. Kami di rumah sakit. Jangan panik."

Ferdinand read it three times. Then he looked up at the board, where the word DELAYED glowed beside his flight in amber. A storm over the mountains had closed the airspace, and nobody could say for how long.

Ferdinand membacanya tiga kali. Lalu ia menengadah ke papan informasi, tempat kata TERTUNDA menyala dengan warna kuning di samping penerbangannya. Badai di atas pegunungan telah menutup ruang udara, dan tidak ada yang bisa mengatakan sampai kapan.

He ran to the desk and was told, kindly and firmly, that no seats were available on any other flight before morning. He would have walked home if walking had been possible.

Ia berlari ke meja layanan dan diberi tahu, dengan ramah tetapi tegas, bahwa tidak ada kursi tersedia di penerbangan lain sebelum pagi. Ia akan berjalan kaki pulang kalau berjalan kaki memungkinkan.

At six, Leonie's phone called him. First came the midwife's voice, then a shaky picture: a ceiling, a lamp, a hand holding the phone too close. "Leonie wants you here, so here you are," the midwife said. "I'll hold you up. You can be our guest."

Pukul enam, ponsel Leonie memanggilnya. Pertama terdengar suara bidan, lalu gambar yang goyah: langit-langit, sebuah lampu, tangan yang memegang ponsel terlalu dekat. "Leonie ingin Anda ada di sini, jadi inilah Anda," kata sang bidan. "Saya akan memegang Anda tinggi-tinggi. Anda adalah tamu kami."

Ferdinand sat on the floor of the gate area with his back against a pillar, because his battery showed nine percent. A cleaner passing with her cart said nothing. She simply pulled a long cable from a box on the cart and plugged it in beside him.

Ferdinand duduk di lantai area gerbang dengan punggung bersandar pada sebuah tiang, karena baterainya menunjukkan sembilan persen. Seorang petugas kebersihan yang lewat dengan keretanya tidak berkata apa-apa. Ia hanya menarik kabel panjang dari sebuah kotak di kereta itu dan mencolokkannya di sampingnya.

The video was unsteady, and the sound kept cutting out. He saw pieces of the room: a curtain, a blue sleeve, Leonie's hair stuck to her forehead. He heard her breathing, slow and deliberate, and he found himself breathing along with her. Around him, strangers stepped politely over his legs.

Videonya tidak stabil, dan suaranya terus terputus. Ia melihat potongan-potongan ruangan itu: sebuah tirai, lengan baju biru, rambut Leonie yang menempel di dahinya. Ia mendengar napasnya, pelan dan terukur, dan ia mendapati dirinya bernapas bersamanya. Di sekelilingnya, orang-orang asing melangkahi kakinya dengan sopan.

The midwife told him to talk to her, because she had been asking for his voice. "I'm here," he said, feeling ridiculous. "Leonie, I'm here. You're doing it. I should have been there. I'm sorry."

Sang bidan menyuruhnya berbicara kepadanya, karena Leonie terus menanyakan suaranya. "Aku di sini," katanya, merasa konyol. "Leonie, aku di sini. Kamu bisa melakukannya. Seharusnya aku ada di sana. Maafkan aku."

"Stop apologizing," Leonie managed, "and count with me."

"Berhenti minta maaf," Leonie berhasil berkata, "dan hitung bersamaku."

So he counted. It felt like hours and was in fact forty minutes. His coffee went cold on the floor. An announcement in four languages said that another flight had been delayed, and he did not hear a word of it.

Jadi ia menghitung. Rasanya seperti berjam-jam, padahal sebenarnya empat puluh menit. Kopinya mendingin di lantai. Sebuah pengumuman dalam empat bahasa mengatakan bahwa penerbangan lain tertunda, dan ia tidak mendengar sepatah kata pun.

Then the screen swung toward the ceiling, and the room filled with voices. Someone laughed. Someone said, "Almost." Ferdinand pressed his palm flat against the glass, as though he could reach through it.

Lalu layar berayun ke arah langit-langit, dan ruangan itu dipenuhi suara-suara. Seseorang tertawa. Seseorang berkata, "Sedikit lagi." Ferdinand menekan telapak tangannya rata ke kaca, seolah ia bisa menjangkau menembusnya.

And then he heard it: thin, furious and unmistakably alive. A single cry, then another.

Dan kemudian ia mendengarnya: tipis, garang, dan jelas-jelas hidup. Satu tangisan, lalu satu lagi.

He realized that he was crying too. A few steps away, the cleaner stood with a hand on her cart, looking tactfully at the floor.

Ia sadar bahwa ia pun menangis. Beberapa langkah darinya, petugas kebersihan itu berdiri dengan satu tangan di keretanya, menatap lantai dengan penuh tenggang rasa.

The midwife turned the screen. A small red face, a clenched fist, a striped blanket. "Say hello," she said.

Sang bidan memutar layar. Wajah kecil yang merah, sebuah kepalan tangan, selimut bergaris. "Ucapkan halo," katanya.

Ferdinand wiped his eyes with his sleeve. "Hello," he said. "It's your father. I'm the one who's late."

Ferdinand menyeka matanya dengan lengan bajunya. "Halo," katanya. "Ini ayahmu. Akulah yang terlambat."