ＷＥＢ絵本『ビルディング』

This is a huge square building.
All of its windows have tightly shut.
And all of the rooms have absolutely sealed the darkness.
巨大な四角いビルディングである．
窓という窓が残らずピッタリと閉め切ってあって、部屋という部屋が全然、暗黒を封じている．

A yellow crescent moon is catching on a corner of the black huge square darkness and is setting bit by bit.
It is such a time.
その黒い、巨大な、四角い暗黒の一角に、黄色い、細い弦月が引っかかって、ジリ、ジリ、と沈みかかっている時刻である．

I am lying on the bed of the night-duty room, which is in the center of the darkness.
Directing my head toward the wall for the next room, I am calmly getting to sleep alone.
私はその暗黒の中心に在る宿直室のベッドの上に長くなって、隣室と境目の壁に頭を向けたまま、タッタ一人でスヤスヤと眠りかけている．

I am tired.
I am so sleepy that I cannot consider anything.
My consciousness is rapidly moving toward nothing.
Drawing an endless parabola, it is falling into infinite time and space.
私は疲れている．考える力もないくらい眠たがっている．私の意識はグングンと零の方向に近づきつつある．無限の時空の中に無窮の放物線を描いて落下しつつある．

At that time, I can hear the calm breathing of a sleeping person from the room beyond the wall.
His breathing is perfectly in tune with mine.
Its sound is just like mine ... calmly ... calmly ...
その時に、壁一重向うの部屋からスヤスヤという寝息が聞こえてきた．
私の寝息にピッタリと調子を合わせた、私ソックリの寝息の音が・・・静かに・・・しずかに・・・

... Another me is sleeping in the room beyond the wall.
He is directing his head toward my head.
He is stretching his legs in the opposite diretion as if a mirror reflects my sleeping posture.
And he is calmly getting to sleep.
・・・壁一重向うの部屋にモウ一人の私が寝ているのだ．
私の頭の方に頭を向けて、私の寝姿を鏡に映したように正反対の方向に足を伸ばしつつ、スヤスヤと眠りかけているのだ．

... Another me beyond the wall is also tired.
He is so sleepy that he cannot consider anything.
And his consciousness is rapidly moving toward nothing.
Drawing an endless parabola in infinite time and space ... rapidly ...
・・・その壁の向うの私も疲れている．
考える力もないくらい眠たがっている．
そうしてその意識がグングンと零の方向に近づきつつある．
無限の時空の中に、無窮の放物線を描いて・・・グングンと・・・

I sprang up from bed.
I awoke completely.
I think of looking into the next room.
私はガバと跳ね起きた．
眼がパッチリと醒めた．
隣の部屋が覗いてみたくなった．

But, raising the upper half of my body in the darkness, I have hesitated about doing that.
If the calmly sleeping person is me when I look into the next room, that will be very fearful ...
But, if there is nobody in the room, the fear will increase several times ... as such ...
Thinking such a thing, I have stared at the heart of the darkness in front of me, for seconds ... or minutes.
I have stared at ...
しかし私は暗闇の中で半身を起したまま躊躇した．
もし隣の部屋を覗いた時に、私と同じ私がスヤスヤと寝ていたとしたら、それはドンナに恐ろしい事だろう・・・
とはいえ又、万に一つ隣の部屋に誰もいなかったとしたら、その恐ろしさが何層倍するだろう・・・と・・・
私はそう思い思い何秒か・・・もしくは何分間か、目の前の暗闇の核心をジーッと凝視していた．
凝視していた・・・

... And ... soon, an idea suddenly came to me.
I jumped out of the bed in bare feet as if I had been kicked out by the idea.
I rushed out of the night-duty room.
And I have dashed on the dark corridor leading to the next room.
・・・と・・・そのうちに或る突然な決心が私に襲いかかった．
その決心に蹴飛ばされたように私は、素裸足のまま寝台を飛び降りた．
宿直室を飛び出して、隣の部屋に通ずる、暗黒の廊下を突進した．