12. BALANCING
第十二章 平衡
"Billy!" Charlie called as soon as he got out of the car.
“比利！”查理一下车就喊道。
I turned toward the house, beckoning to Jacob as I ducked under the porch. I heard Charlie greeting them loudly behind me.
我转身向屋子走去，躲到门廊底下的时候，我才向雅克布招手示意。我听到查理在我身后招呼着他们。
"I'm going to pretend I didn't see you behind the wheel, Jake," he said disapprovingly.
“我会假装没有看到你坐在方向盘后的，杰克。”他不以为然地说道。
"We get permits early on the rez," Jacob said while I unlocked the door and flicked on the porch light.
“在保留区我们会更早地拿到驾照。”雅克布说道。这时我打开门，在门廊里轻拂着头发。
"Sure you do," Charlie laughed.
“你当然会。”查理大笑着说。
"I have to get around somehow." I recognized Billy's resonant voice easily, despite the years. The sound of it made me feel suddenly younger, a child.
“无论如何我都得到处转转。”不管过了多少年，我依然能轻而易举地认出比利洪亮的声音。这声音让我忽然觉得自己小了几岁，还是个孩子。
I went inside, leaving the door open behind me and turning on lights before I hung up my jacket. Then I stood in the door, watching anxiously as Charlie and Jacob helped Billy out of the car and into his wheelchair.
我走进屋，把门敞开着，在挂起我的夹克以前先把灯打开。然后我站在门里，焦急地看着查理和雅克布帮助比利从车里出来，坐到轮椅上。
I backed out of the way as the three of them hurried in, shaking off the rain.
当他们三个冲进来，甩着身上的雨水时，我让开了路。
"This is a surprise," Charlie was saying.
“这实在是个惊喜。”查理说着。
"It's been too long," Billy answered. "I hope it's not a bad time." His dark eyes flashed up to me again, their expression unreadable.
“已经过了很久了。”比利回答道。“我希望那段时间不算太糟糕。”他黑色的眼睛又一次掠过我，眼里的神情让人难以读懂。
"No, it's great. I hope you can stay for the game."
“不，那好极了。我希望你能留下来看比赛。”
Jacob grinned. "I think that's the plan — our TV broke last week."
雅克布咧嘴一笑。“我想计划是这样的——我们的电视机上个礼拜坏掉了。”
Billy made a face at his son. "And, of course, Jacob was anxious to see Bella again," he added. Jacob scowled and ducked his head while I fought back a surge of remorse. Maybe I'd been too convincing on the beach.
比利对自己的儿子作了个鬼脸。“还有，当然，雅克布也渴望着再次见到贝拉。”他补充道。雅克布皱起眉，迅速低下了头。我按捺住了一阵汹涌而至的自责。也许在沙滩上我表现得太令人信服了。
《暮光之城》与图书题目相得益彰的是，“暮光之城”系列别具匠心的封面设计则很好地传达出了每本书内在的深远寓意。斯蒂芬妮·梅尔指出《暮色》封面上的苹果代表“创世纪” 内善恶树上的禁果。象征贝拉和爱德华之间人类与吸血鬼禁忌的爱恋。在书的开头引用了“创世纪”217页的内容：“只是分别善恶树上的果子，你不可吃，因为你吃的日子必定死。”这同时也代表了贝拉如何分辨善恶——选择是否吃下那颗禁忌的果实，这比喻了选择跟爱德华在一起或远离他。
