The Car That Wouldn't Start

Derek wakes up early and gets ready for work. He grabs his coffee and walks out to his car. He turns the key, but nothing happens.

Derek bangun pagi-pagi dan bersiap untuk berangkat kerja. Ia mengambil kopinya dan berjalan ke mobilnya. Ia memutar kunci, tetapi tidak terjadi apa-apa.

He tries again. The engine makes a strange clicking sound, but it does not start. Derek looks at his watch. He has thirty minutes before his meeting.

Ia mencoba lagi. Mesinnya mengeluarkan bunyi klik yang aneh, tetapi tidak menyala. Derek melihat jam tangannya. Ia punya tiga puluh menit sebelum rapat.

"Not today," he says to himself. He gets out of the car and closes the door.

"Jangan hari ini," katanya pada dirinya sendiri. Ia keluar dari mobil dan menutup pintunya.

Derek checks the bus schedule on his phone. A bus stops near his house every fifteen minutes. He grabs his bag and walks quickly to the bus stop.

Derek memeriksa jadwal bus di ponselnya. Sebuah bus berhenti di dekat rumahnya setiap lima belas menit. Ia mengambil tasnya dan berjalan cepat ke halte.

At the stop, a few other people wait too. A woman with a big umbrella smiles at him. "Car trouble?" she asks.

Di halte, beberapa orang lain juga menunggu. Seorang wanita dengan payung besar tersenyum padanya. "Mobilnya bermasalah?" tanyanya.

"Yes," Derek says. "It just will not start."

"Ya," kata Derek. "Mobilnya tidak mau menyala."

"That happened to me last winter," she says. "It's always at the worst time."

"Itu pernah terjadi pada saya musim dingin lalu," katanya. "Selalu di saat yang paling buruk."

The bus arrives, and Derek gets on. He finds a seat by the window. He watches the city go by. He checks the time again. He still has twenty minutes.

Bus itu tiba, dan Derek naik. Ia mendapat tempat duduk di dekat jendela. Ia memandangi kota yang berlalu. Ia memeriksa waktu lagi. Ia masih punya dua puluh menit.

The bus stops two blocks from his office. Derek steps off and walks fast down the street. He reaches the building five minutes early.

Bus berhenti dua blok dari kantornya. Derek turun dan berjalan cepat menyusuri jalan. Ia sampai di gedung itu lima menit lebih awal.

His coworker looks up. "You're here early today," she says.

Rekan kerjanya menoleh. "Kamu datang lebih awal hari ini," katanya.

"Not exactly," Derek says with a small smile. "My car did not want to start today."

"Tidak juga," kata Derek sambil tersenyum kecil. "Mobilku tidak mau menyala hari ini."

He sits down at his desk and turns on his computer. The meeting is about to begin. He arrived right on time.

Ia duduk di mejanya dan menyalakan komputernya. Rapat akan segera dimulai. Ia tiba tepat waktu.