The Strange Notes Under My Door

Three weeks after I moved into my new flat, the first note appeared.

我搬进新公寓三周后，第一张纸条出现了。

It was folded neatly and slipped under my door.

它被叠得整整齐齐，从我的门缝下塞了进来。

It just said, your plants need more light.

上面只写着：你的植物需要更多阳光。

Wait, my plants? Nobody had even been inside!

等等，我的植物？根本没人进过我家啊！

Ha, honestly, I laughed it off at first.

哈，说实话，一开始我只是一笑置之。

But the next Monday, there was another one.

可是下个星期一，又来了一张。

This time it said, you're working too late again.

这次写的是：你又工作到太晚了。

Okay, now that was genuinely creepy.

好吧，这下真的有点吓人了。

So, I decided to play detective!

于是，我决定当一回侦探！

I stayed up on Sunday night, listening by the door.

星期天晚上，我熬夜守在门边听动静。

Then, around midnight, I heard slow footsteps on the stairs,

然后，大概午夜的时候，我听到楼梯上传来缓慢的脚步声，

and a soft scratching sound at the bottom of the door.

还有门底下轻轻的沙沙声。

I threw the door open, ready to catch a stranger.

我猛地把门拉开，准备当场抓住一个陌生人。

And there she was, the tiny old lady from downstairs!

站在那儿的，竟然是楼下那位瘦小的老太太！

She was about eighty, holding a pencil and looking terrified.

她大概八十岁，手里拿着一支铅笔，看起来吓坏了。

Oh dear, I'm so sorry, she whispered. I didn't mean to frighten you.

哎呀，真对不起，她小声说，我不是故意吓你的。

Well... it turned out she'd lived in my flat for forty years.

原来……她在我这套公寓里住了四十年。

Her husband used to grow tomatoes on that very windowsill.

她丈夫以前就在那个窗台上种番茄。

Since he passed away, she'd barely spoken to anyone.

自从他去世后，她几乎没和任何人说过话。

Writing to me, she said, made the building feel less empty.

她说，给我写纸条，让这栋楼感觉没那么空了。

I didn't know what to say, so I invited her in for tea.

我不知道该说什么，就请她进来喝杯茶。

She looked at my poor plants and shook her head.

她看了看我那些可怜的植物，摇了摇头。

Ha, you're drowning them, dear, she told me.

哈，你这是要把它们淹死啊，孩子，她对我说。

That was six months ago, and now we have tea every Sunday.

那是六个月前的事了，现在我们每个星期天都一起喝茶。

My tomatoes are finally growing, thanks to her.

多亏了她，我的番茄终于长起来了。

And yes, she still leaves me notes under the door.

没错，她现在还会往我门缝下塞纸条。

But these days, I write back!

不过现在，我也会回信了！