In total darkness, Caroline was trying to find the switch of the garlands, resting her hand against the wall. When she found the button and pressed it, the whole truck lit up with multicolored light from the bulbs. Taking off a new pair of berets, glasses, gloves and taking off her overalls, Lina went deep into her house.
Around her were rotating shelves with all sorts of things that Caroline had collected during the directive. It was something like a hobby that somehow diluted the gray days. Moreover, the things were very different: toys, household items, paintings, all sorts of stuffed animals for the garden, parking cones, books, tools, and even a pink inflatable flamingo was lying around somewhere. If you looked further, you could see something like her personal corner, where there was a hammock tied to two metal rods, and on it was a blanket and a pillow. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough room for a bed, but Caroline didn't complain. On the right was a small bedside table with spare parts from the prosthesis, spare glasses and batteries, and on top were batteries that worked from solar panels on the roof of the truck.
Caroline fell into the hammock and closed her eyes. Her whole body ached from the heavy loads. It was extremely tedious to clean up waste every day by building new garbage towers. Literally every inch of her torso was covered in numerous scars and calluses that Caroline had received during her directive. The most noticeable effects of the injuries were the left prosthetic arm, which reached to the elbow, and a pacemaker in the chest. Moreover, they looked completely different from the equipment in the vicinity. They were more advanced and new, as strange as it may sound. They were definitely not created in the two thousand hundredth year, but much later — it felt like they were made on those ships in space. Caroline wondered where and when the pacemaker ended up in her chest, as well as several prosthetic arms for growth. But I didn't remember the answer. Could she? All this happened so long ago, and of the witnesses of the past, Lina had only dentures gathering dust on the shelves.
By the way, she hurt her foot today, it was worth checking it out. Caroline sat down in the hammock and looked at her right leg. The bandana was holding tight, like it wasn't bleeding anymore. Pulling off a kind of bandage, she was convinced of this. My foot still ached, but nothing fatal. It's a pity that now the bandana was covered in dried blood, it won't be possible to wash it in the near future. Unless, of course, it rains, but that's not a fact.
After lying in a hammock for a few minutes, Caroline decided to turn on her favorite movie. Reaching for the toaster on the next shelf and pressing the lever, she picked up a jumped-out cassette on which she could read "Hello Dolly!". Inserting the cassette into the video projector and pulling out a huge Fresnel lens, which was held on an accordion mount, onto an old iPad, Caroline waited impatiently for a picture to appear on the "TV" screen.
A second, two.
But the "TV" started working, and the actors danced on the screen to the joyful song "Put On Your Sunday Clothes". Of course, Caroline couldn't boast of a special sound and picture quality, but there was nothing to be done. Standing up carefully, she went to sort out her finds for the day. Picking up the bag and opening it, Caroline saw the lid of the trash can. Wait, what?
"And why did I bring it?" — Caroline asked herself. Lina didn't even notice how she put it in her bag. With a shrug, she put the trinket aside.
Then there was a hybrid of a spoon and fork. And this thing puzzled Caroline. She had two glasses: one for spoons, the other for forks. And where to put this miracle, she had no idea. Looking from one to the other, Caroline decided to put it in the middle. The next item was the famous Rubik's Cube puzzle. Karolina remembered that when she reached out, the workers who were with her at the time gave her this cube to occupy her with something. But no matter how hard Lina tried, she couldn't connect all the squares of the same color on one side. Caroline lost the last cube somewhere, so she took a new one - maybe this time it will work. Putting the cube on the shelf, Caroline reached for the latest find. And it was a lighter. The girl lit it, checking it. A bright light appeared from a small rectangle. Lina sometimes had to light bonfires when she couldn't get to the truck in time. Caroline pressed the switch without looking at it, and the shelves began to spin until a whole collection of lighters appeared.
Gently stroking a new piece in the collection, she heard out of the corner of her ear how the two main characters of the film began to sing a touching song together. Turning towards the makeshift TV, Caroline saw the actors walking hand in hand through the park lit by streetlights. Lina came closer and, without taking her eyes off the screen, pressed REC on the player.
"And that is all that love's about. And we'll recall when time runs out…"
Caroline was mesmerized by what was happening in the film, unable to look away. There was something completely alien to her in this scene, incomprehensible, but at the same time beautiful. Some of the workers who were in Lina's memory talked about love. She doesn't remember much of that time anymore, as if her brain had wiped the moments on purpose. But one conversation was imprinted in my memory as something vital.
Love is an inspiring feeling that gives you the strength to go against everything. Through blizzards and blizzards, through cold and heat, but still move forward, giving your all, opening the farthest corners of your soul. It sounds beautiful, but Caroline didn't understand everything. But it's probably much better to experience this feeling. Which Lina doubted. There was no one here on Earth, and the affection for Archie was rather something else, similar, but had great differences. In Caroline's memoirs, the worker was talking about a man, not an animal. Or maybe Caroline was wrong. I don't think she'll ever find out. There was no place in her life for thinking about such topics.
"That it only took a moment. To be loved а whole life long…"
Caroline unknowingly laced her fingers into a lock, like the main characters of the film. She would also like to feel this feeling on herself, as when you are loved and appreciated. After all, it was only during that short period when there were workers next to Caroline that she felt something similar to this. Something told her that what was shown on the screen was something else. But what exactly was different, Caroline did not understand. A feeling of coolness pulled Lina out of her thoughts. Looking at her hands, she realized that she had repeated that gesture. And the reason for the unpleasant feeling was the prosthesis. Exhaling sadly, Lina looked at Archie, who was sprawled out on his couch, and went to shake the dirt out of the bag.
Opening the ramp, Caroline began to pour out all the dust and debris, trying to distract herself from annoying thoughts. Every time she thought about it, it always reminded her how lonely she was. There was no one around. Completely. Except for Archie, but he's still no substitute for company with a human. Lina could talk to him about what was painful, but the dog would never answer. The dog felt her pain, but could only rub his muzzle against Caroline. Tears welled up in her eyes, but Lina lightly brushed them away. Looking up in annoyance, as if asking the universe itself to help her, Lina saw a small crack where bright stars could be seen. This happened quite rarely, so Caroline's gaze was fixed on the night sky. Suddenly, something flew down from above. Shooting stars. Her elders told her that with such an event, you need to make a wish, and it will definitely come true.
"I don't want to be alone anymore" — Caroline thought to herself. She wished she could meet someone who could dispel her loneliness. The temperature dropped sharply, which Lina felt quite sharply, standing in only a shirt and jeans. And the wind was getting stronger, dust was flying in my face. But that wasn't the worst part. In the distance, a pile of dirt, debris and God knows what else was rushing at high speed.
A sandstorm.
Caroline quickly shook the bag, and, running into the truck, pulled the lever, closing the ramp. As soon as the storm overtook Caroline's house, the door was closed, and Lina herself was already calm. And sleepy. It was late, it was worth going to bed. Taking the canned food and opening it, she gave the treat to Archie. I didn't eat it myself: Caroline has already eaten today, and supplies need to be saved. So she fell back into the hammock and covered herself with a blanket. Closing her eyes, Caroline almost immediately fell into the arms of Morpheus. The last thing that flashed through my mind was the hope that this night would be without nightmares.