The Last Week of the Bookshop

Marcel has owned the Green Lantern bookshop for twenty-two years. He knows exactly what a Monday looks like. He turns the sign at nine, makes coffee, and waits for the first customer. This Monday is different. A sign in the window says "Closing on Saturday". The landlord's letter is still lying on his desk.

Marcel sudah dua puluh dua tahun memiliki toko buku Green Lantern. Ia tahu persis seperti apa hari Senin itu. Ia membalik papan tanda pukul sembilan, membuat kopi, dan menunggu pelanggan pertama. Senin ini berbeda. Sebuah tulisan di jendela berbunyi "Tutup pada hari Sabtu". Surat dari pemilik gedung masih tergeletak di mejanya.

The rent has doubled. Marcel has tried every number he knows, and none of them works.

Uang sewanya berlipat dua. Marcel sudah mencoba setiap hitungan yang ia tahu, dan tidak ada yang berhasil.

He expected a quiet last week. Instead, people keep arriving. On Monday, a retired bus driver says he read his first novel in the armchair by the stairs. On Tuesday, a young father shows him a photo of his daughter asleep on picture books. On Wednesday, a woman called Yasmin comes in with a worn paperback she bought there at nineteen.

Ia mengharapkan minggu terakhir yang tenang. Sebaliknya, orang-orang terus berdatangan. Pada hari Senin, seorang sopir bus pensiunan bercerita bahwa ia membaca novel pertamanya di kursi malas dekat tangga. Pada hari Selasa, seorang ayah muda menunjukkan foto putrinya tertidur di atas buku-buku bergambar. Pada hari Rabu, seorang perempuan bernama Yasmin datang membawa buku saku lusuh yang ia beli di sana saat berumur sembilan belas tahun.

"I met my husband in the poetry section," she says. "He was reading the book I wanted."

"Saya bertemu suami saya di bagian puisi," katanya. "Dia sedang membaca buku yang saya inginkan."

Marcel listens to every story. He is too busy being polite to say what he really feels. By Friday evening, he is packing boxes in the back room. He isn't sure the shop was ever worth saving.

Marcel mendengarkan setiap cerita. Ia terlalu sibuk bersikap sopan untuk mengatakan apa yang sebenarnya ia rasakan. Pada Jumat malam, ia sedang mengemas kardus di ruang belakang. Ia tidak yakin toko ini pernah layak diselamatkan.

On Saturday, the shop is full all day. People buy more books than in the whole month before. Near five o'clock, Yasmin raises her hand, and the room goes quiet.

Pada hari Sabtu, toko itu penuh sepanjang hari. Orang-orang membeli lebih banyak buku daripada sepanjang bulan sebelumnya. Menjelang pukul lima, Yasmin mengangkat tangan, dan ruangan menjadi sunyi.

"Marcel, could you give us a minute?"

"Marcel, bisakah kami minta waktu sebentar?"

A small group stands by the counter. The bus driver is there, and so is the young father, with his daughter on his shoulders. Yasmin is holding a thick folder.

Sekelompok kecil orang berdiri di dekat konter. Sang sopir bus ada di sana, begitu juga si ayah muda, dengan putrinya di atas pundaknya. Yasmin memegang sebuah map tebal.

"We have been talking all week," she says. "The shop is too big for books alone, and the rent is too high for one person. But if we shared the space, it might work. A café at the front, the books at the back. We have a rough plan. We don't have everything yet."

"Kami sudah berbincang sepanjang minggu ini," katanya. "Toko ini terlalu besar kalau hanya untuk buku, dan sewanya terlalu mahal untuk satu orang. Tapi kalau kita berbagi ruang, mungkin bisa berhasil. Sebuah kafe di bagian depan, buku-buku di belakang. Kami punya rencana kasar. Kami belum punya semuanya."

Marcel looks at the folder, and then at the half-empty shelves behind him. "I don't know," he says. "I'm a bookseller, not a baker."

Marcel memandang map itu, lalu rak-rak yang setengah kosong di belakangnya. "Entahlah," katanya. "Saya penjual buku, bukan pembuat roti."

"You wouldn't have to bake," the bus driver says. "I make a very good soup."

"Anda tidak perlu membuat roti," kata sang sopir bus. "Saya membuat sup yang sangat enak."

Marcel laughs for the first time in days. He doesn't say yes, and he doesn't say no. He picks up the "Closing" sign from the window and puts it face down on the counter.

Marcel tertawa untuk pertama kalinya dalam beberapa hari. Ia tidak berkata ya, dan tidak berkata tidak. Ia mengambil papan "Tutup" dari jendela dan meletakkannya menghadap ke bawah di atas konter.