13. Nearly discovered 差点被发现 (1977)

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Sometimes our secret meetings nearly went wrong. There are two distinct moments I remember very well.
In the spring there was a country fair in Histon. Barbara was sure she was allowed to go, so we agreed to meet each other there. When Barbara was about to leave, Barbara's mom decided that she wanted to go to the fair as well. By that time Barbara didn't have time to warn me. At the moment they entered the fair I was there already parking my motorcycle. Luckily I saw them and I was still wearing my helmet. Barbara of course recognize me but she was smart enough to distract her mothers attention and gave me signals with her eyes that I should leave immediately. I could have stepped on my bike and leave. But I didn't want to, not when I was so close to Barbara now. Therefore I followed them into the fair. At first Barbara was really annoyed that I did this. She tried every time she had a chance, to signal me to clear off. Soon she realized that I wasn't going and she had to put up with me and her mother that afternoon ("You and my mother is like taking care of two big kids", she said later). We played that afternoon a sort of hide and seek game. At a distance I followed them and every time her mother was being occupied with some kind of entertainment activity, I tried to get Barbara's attention. It was great fun (at least I thought so).

In Cambridge it was custom for the local Chinese to come together at Monday night to play Mahjong. Often Barbara had to go too. But sometimes she managed to find an excuse to stay at home. Then she would phone me and ask me to come to her home to join her. I get on my motorbike then and drive to Histon. At the beginning of Station road I switch off the engine, just in case someone could hear me and I hide the bike at place far before and out of sight of the fish and chip shop. We then stay the whole evening in Barbara's room so that nobody could see us.

Normally I left long before her family came home. But one time we fell asleep and we woke up the moment we heard the car of Barbara's uncle being parked on the drive way of the shop. The only exit of the apartment was by the stairs that ended in the drive way. In other words there was no way I could get out of the apartment without being seen. Panic! There I was laying in Barbara's bed, while I could hear thru the thin walls her mother and uncle coming up the stairs only meters away from where I was. To make things worse, Barbara told me that her mother had the habit to come into Barbara's room to chat before she went to bed.

I didn't know what to do. Good thing Barbara was more in a control than me. She pushed me out of bed, threw blankets over me so that I couldn't be seen and told me not to move. This wasn't very pleasant, laying on the cold floor covered with blankets. I hardly dared to breath, afraid to be discovered. To avoid her mother coming in her room, Barbara got up and tried to act normal, hoping that I wouldn't make any noise. Barbara must have been very cool headed and an good actress in able to chat with her uncle and mother as everything was as normal.

When her mother and uncle finally went to bed, Barbara came back to her bedroom. She whispered to me that I was not to move till she told me and I had to stay quiet. There was no need to say that, I was so scared just by the thought of meeting her mother in the early hours of the morning in Barbara's bedroom. Just imagine what their reaction would have been, it still gives me goose pimples. I must have been laying there for hours. Finally Barbara whispered that the I could go. It was a challenge going down the stairs without being heard. Barbara waited on the top of the stairs just in case someone would wake up. I went down the stairs trying not to make a cracking noise and hoping that the dogs wouldn't start barking. Finally we reached the gate,. Barbara opened the gate and while she let me out she said "well this was exciting". This was certainly a close escape.

差点被发现

有时，我们的秘密会面差点出错。有两件事，我印象很深刻。
在春天，有一个在希斯顿的乡村集市。翁美玲很确定自己能去那，所以他同意我们在那里见面。当翁美玲决定要离开去那时，翁美玲的母亲决定她也要去那里。那时，翁美玲没时间警告我。当他们进入集市时，我已经在那里停我的摩托车了。幸运的是，我见他们时依然头上戴着摩托头盔。翁美玲当然认出了我，但是她很聪明的引开了她母亲的注意力，然后用眼神告诉我，我必须马上离开的信号。我本应该踏上摩托车后离开。但是，我不想，特别是我离翁美玲这么近的时候。因此我尾随她们进入了集市。开始，翁美玲对我这做法很恼火。她一有机会就叫我马上离开。很快，她意识到我不会离开，她就必须在那天下午同时忍耐我和她母亲两个人。（"你和我母亲就像我在带两个大孩子"，她之后这样对我说）我们那天下午就像在玩躲猫猫的游戏。在远处，我跟着他们，每次她母亲置身于娱乐项目时，我试图得到翁美玲的注意力。那真的很有意思（至少我这么认为）。

在剑桥，中国学生周一晚上打麻将是个传统。通常，翁美玲也要去那。但是，她有时也找机会待在家里。然后她打电话给我，叫我过来陪她。我骑上了我的摩托，然后到达希斯顿。在车站路的入口时，我就关掉引擎，以防有人听见我，然后我把摩托车藏在鱼肉薯片店看不见的地方。然后，我们一晚上都待在翁美玲房间里，没人能看见我们。
通常，我在她家人回来很久之前就离开了。但是有一次，我们睡过头了。当我们醒来那一瞬间，我们听见了翁美玲叔叔停车的声音。唯一的出口就是走廊末那。换句话说，没有地方我能在他们看不见的情况下离开。惊恐！那时我躺在翁美玲床上，我几乎能透过薄薄的墙听见她妈妈和舅舅上楼的声音，和我的位置几米之隔。更糟的是，翁美玲的母亲有进翁美玲卧室聊天后再去入睡的习惯。

我不知道这是该干什么。好的是，翁美玲相对于我，更有控制力。她将我推下床，然后用毯子盖上了我，于是我就不易被发现了，然后我被告知不能动。躺在冰冷的地上并且不能动很不舒适。我吓得几乎不敢呼吸，害怕被发现。为了让她母亲不进屋，翁美玲起床并表现的很正常，并且希望我不会发出声响。翁美玲一定有冷静的头脑，并且是个好演员，与她母亲舅舅聊天就像什么事情都没发生一样。

当她的母亲和舅舅最终去睡觉后，翁美玲回到了她的卧室。她朝我小声的说，我在没有她的允许下，是不能动的，并且要保持安静。这其实没必要说这些，我很害怕在早上，翁美玲床上见到她母亲。想想，她们会有什么反应，这现在能让我身上起鸡皮疙瘩。我在那里躺了有几个小时。最终，翁美玲小声的说，我可以走了。走下楼梯不被发现这也是种挑战。翁美玲在楼梯上等待，以防有人醒来。我小心下楼，以防弄出声响，并且希望楼下的狗不要叫。最终我们到达了门口，翁美玲打开了门，在她让我离去那刻，她说"嗯，这个真刺激"。这的确很接近逃亡一般。
(translated by Zhi)