Thalia has babysat her younger cousins before, but tonight is her first real paid job. The Alvarez family lives just two houses down, and their son Jori is five years old. Thalia has promised herself she won't panic, no matter what happens. Mrs. Alvarez leaves a long list of instructions taped to the fridge before rushing out the door.
塔莉娅以前照看过她的小表弟表妹们，可是今晚是她第一份真正有报酬的工作。阿尔瓦雷斯一家就住在隔两户的地方，他们的儿子乔里五岁。塔莉娅对自己保证过，无论发生什么都不慌张。阿尔瓦雷斯太太匆匆出门前，在冰箱上贴了一张长长的注意事项。
Everything goes smoothly until bedtime arrives and Jori flatly refuses to sleep. He wants three more stories, then a glass of water. Then he wants the hallway light left on a specific way. Thalia has read the same book twice already, and her voice is getting hoarse.
一切都很顺利，直到睡觉时间到了，乔里干脆地拒绝睡觉。他要再听三个故事，然后要一杯水。接着，他又要求走廊的灯必须按某种特定的方式开着。塔莉娅已经把同一本书读了两遍，嗓子越来越哑了。
She remembers something her own babysitter used to do years ago. If Jori helps her build a blanket fort first, he might finally feel tired enough to sleep. It's a small risk, since fort-building usually makes kids more awake, not less.
她想起了自己小时候的保姆常做的一件事。如果乔里先帮她搭一个毯子堡垒，他也许最后就会困得想睡了。这是个小小的冒险，因为搭堡垒通常会让孩子更精神，而不是更困。
Surprisingly, it works. Jori arranges the pillows with total concentration, discussing exactly where each cushion should go. He insists the biggest pillow must go at the very top, like a roof. By the time the fort is finished, he's yawning between sentences without even noticing.
出人意料的是，这招奏效了。乔里全神贯注地摆放着枕头，还认真讨论每个靠垫该放在哪儿。他坚持说最大的枕头必须放在最顶上，当作屋顶。等堡垒搭好，他说着话就开始打哈欠，自己还没发觉。
Thalia tucks him inside the small fort instead of his usual bed, and he's asleep within minutes. She checks on him twice before his parents return, just to be sure. When Mrs. Alvarez gets home, she finds Thalia quietly reading on the couch. The house is completely, wonderfully quiet.
塔莉娅把他安顿在小小的堡垒里，而不是他平常睡的床上，没几分钟他就睡着了。他父母回来之前，她又去看了他两次，只为确认安好。阿尔瓦雷斯太太到家时，发现塔莉娅正安安静静地坐在沙发上看书。整座房子一片寂静，美好得很。
"How did you manage that?" Mrs. Alvarez whispers, peeking into Jori's room. Thalia just smiles and says some things are better explained tomorrow.
“你是怎么做到的？”阿尔瓦雷斯太太一边小声问，一边往乔里的房间里看。塔莉娅只是笑了笑，说有些事还是明天再解释更好。
