“Okay,” I said. “Let’s give him a sabagh, teach him a lesson, nay¹?” I glanced over at him. The glassy, vacant look in his eyes was gone. His gaze flitted between our kite and the green one. His face was a little flushed, his eyes suddenly alert. Awake. Alive. I wondered when I had forgotten that, despite everything, he was still just a child.

“好的。”我说，“让我们给他一点颜色瞧瞧，教训他一下，好吧？”我俯视着他，他眼里那种模糊空洞的神色已经不见了。他的眼光在我们的风筝和那只绿色风筝之间来回转动，脸色有一点点发红，眼睛骤然机警起来。苏醒了。复活了。我在寻思，我什么时候忘了？不管怎么说，他仍只是一个孩子。

The green kite was making its move. “Let’s wait,” I said. “We’ll let him get a little closer.” It dipped twice and crept toward us. “Come on. Come to me,” I said.

绿色风筝采取行动了。 “我们等等，”我说，“我们会让它再靠近一些。”它下探了两次，慢慢朝我们挪过来。 “来啊，过来啊。”我说。

The green kite drew closer yet, now rising a little above us, unaware² of the trap I’d set for it. “Watch, Sohrab. I’m going to show you one of your father’s favorite tricks, the old lift-and-dive.”

绿风筝已经更近了，在我们稍高的地方拉升，对我为它布下的陷阱毫不知情。“看，索拉博，我会让你看看你爸爸最喜欢的招数，那招古老的猛升急降。”

Next to me, Sohrab was breathing rapidly through his nose. The spool³ rolled in his palms, the tendons in his scarred wrists like rubab strings⁴. Then I blinked and, for just a moment, the hands holding the spool were the chipped-nailed, calloused⁵ hands of a harelipped boy. I heard a crow cawing somewhere and I looked up. The park shimmered⁶ with snow so fresh, so dazzling white, it burned my eyes. It sprinkled soundlessly from the branches of white-clad trees. I smelled turnip⁷ qurina now. Dried mulberries. Sour oranges. Sawdust and walnuts⁸. The muffled⁹ quiet, snow-quiet, was deafening¹⁰. Then far away, across the stillness, a voice calling us home, the voice of a man who dragged his right leg. 索拉博挨着我，用鼻子急促地呼吸着。卷轴在他手中滚动，他伤痕累累的手腕上的筋腱很像雷巴布琴的琴弦。我眨眨眼，瞬间，拿着卷轴的是一个兔唇男孩指甲破裂、长满老茧的手。 我听见某个地方传来牛的哞哞叫，而我抬头，公园闪闪发光，铺满的雪多么新鲜，白得多么耀眼，令我目眩神迷。雪花无声地洒落在白色的枝头上，现在我闻到了芜青拌饭的香味，还有桑椹干、酸橙子、锯屑和胡桃的气味。一阵雪花飞舞的寂静盖住了所有声音。然后，远远地，有个声音穿透这片死寂，呼喊我们回家，是那个拖着右腿的男人的声音。

The green kite hovered¹¹ directly above us now. “He’s going for it. Anytime now,” I said, my eyes flicking¹² from Sohrab to our kite.

绿风筝现在就在我们正上方翱翔。“我们现在随时可以把它干掉了。”我说，眼睛在索拉博和我们的风筝间飞快地转着。

The green kite hesitated. Held position. Then shot down. “Here he comes!” I said.

绿风筝摇摇晃晃，定住位，接着向下冲。 “他玩完了！”我说。

I did it perfectly¹³. After all these years. The old lift-and-dive trap. I loosened my grip and tugged¹⁴ on the string, dipping and dodging¹⁵ the green kite. A series of quick sidearm jerks and our kite shot up counterclockwise, in a half circle. Suddenly I was on top. The green kite was scrambling¹⁶ now, panic-stricken. But it was too late. I’d already slipped him Hassan’s trick. I pulled hard and our kite plummeted¹⁷. I could almost feel our string sawing his. Almost heard the snap.

这么多年之后，我无懈可击地再次使出那招古老的猛升急降。我松开手，猛拉着线，往下避开那只绿风筝。我侧过手臂，一阵急遽的抖动之后，我们的风筝逆时针划出一个半圆。我突然占据了上面的位置。绿色风筝现在惊惶失措，慌乱地向上攀升。但它已经太迟了，我已经使出哈桑的绝技。我猛拉着线，我们的风筝直坠而下。我几乎能听见我们的线割断他的线，几乎能听见那一声断裂。

Then, just like that, the green kite was spinning and wheeling out of control.Behind us, people cheered. Whistles and applause broke out. I was panting. The last time I had felt a rush like this was that day in the winter of 1975, just after I had cut the last kite, when I spotted¹⁸ Baba on our rooftop, clapping, beaming. 然后，就那样，绿风筝失去控制，摇摇晃晃地摔下来。我们身后的人们欢呼叫好，爆发出阵阵口哨声和掌声。我喘着气。上一次感到这么激动，是在1975年那个冬日，就在我刚刚割断最后一只风筝之后，当时我看见爸爸在我们的屋顶上，鼓着掌，容光焕发。

I looked down at Sohrab. One corner of his mouth had curled up just so.

我俯视索拉博，他嘴角的一边微微翘起。