The Piano Next Door

Samir has lived in his apartment for six months. He knows the unit next door has been empty the entire time. Its "For Rent" sign is still taped crookedly to the window facing the street. He has never once heard a sound through that wall.

Samir sudah enam bulan tinggal di apartemennya. Ia tahu unit di sebelahnya kosong selama itu. Papan "Disewakan" masih menempel miring di jendela yang menghadap ke jalan. Belum pernah sekali pun ia mendengar suara dari balik dinding itu.

Then, one Tuesday night around eleven, soft piano music starts drifting through the wall. He is reading in bed at the time. It's careful, a little hesitant in places. It's the same short piece, played over and over with small improvements each time.

Lalu, pada suatu Selasa malam sekitar pukul sebelas, alunan piano yang lembut mulai merembes lewat dinding. Saat itu ia sedang membaca di tempat tidur. Permainannya hati-hati, sedikit ragu di beberapa bagian. Itu karya pendek yang sama, dimainkan berulang-ulang dengan sedikit perbaikan setiap kali.

He assumes at first that someone has finally moved in. He never sees a moving truck or any new furniture arrive, though. The music continues most nights that week, always around the same time. It is always the same handful of pieces, always stopping abruptly around midnight.

Awalnya ia mengira akhirnya ada yang pindah. Namun ia tak pernah melihat truk pindahan atau perabot baru yang datang. Musik itu terus terdengar hampir setiap malam minggu itu, selalu sekitar jam yang sama. Selalu beberapa lagu yang sama, selalu berhenti mendadak menjelang tengah malam.

Curious, Samir knocks on the building superintendent's door the following Saturday. He half expects to learn a new tenant has just moved in quietly. Instead, the superintendent looks a little sheepish.

Penasaran, Samir mengetuk pintu pengelola gedung pada Sabtu berikutnya. Ia setengah berharap mendengar bahwa ada penyewa baru yang pindah diam-diam. Sebaliknya, si pengelola tampak sedikit malu.

"That's Milena," he admits. "She's a music student a few buildings over. Her own apartment's walls are paper-thin, so her neighbors complained about late practicing. I let her use the empty unit's piano after hours, before her audition next month. I probably should have mentioned it to you."

"Itu Milena," akunya. "Dia mahasiswa musik yang tinggal beberapa gedung dari sini. Dinding apartemennya setipis kertas, jadi tetangganya mengeluh soal latihan larut malam. Saya mengizinkannya memakai piano di unit kosong itu setelah jam kerja, sebelum audisinya bulan depan. Seharusnya saya memberi tahu Anda."

Samir isn't upset, just relieved to finally understand what he'd been hearing. He mentions that the piece she keeps repeating sounds better each night. This makes the superintendent laugh, and he admits Milena would probably appreciate hearing that directly.

Samir tidak marah, hanya lega akhirnya memahami apa yang selama ini ia dengar. Ia berkata bahwa lagu yang terus diulang itu terdengar makin bagus setiap malam. Hal ini membuat si pengelola tertawa, dan ia mengakui Milena mungkin akan senang mendengarnya langsung.

The next evening, Samir leaves a short note under the empty apartment's door. It reads: "Whoever is practicing next door, it's genuinely lovely. Good luck with your audition." A reply appears under his own door two days later. It is just a few words, thanking him for not complaining like the last building had.

Keesokan malamnya, Samir menyelipkan catatan singkat di bawah pintu apartemen kosong itu. Isinya: "Siapa pun yang berlatih di sebelah, permainannya benar-benar indah. Semoga sukses dengan audisinya." Dua hari kemudian, sebuah balasan muncul di bawah pintunya sendiri. Hanya beberapa kata, berterima kasih karena ia tidak mengeluh seperti penghuni gedung sebelumnya.