Chapter 3: an unusual working day
November 15, 2023 at 11:09 PM
A squeaking was heard in the truck, waking up its residents. Grumbling something under her breath, Caroline tries to find the strength to get up from the hammock. But then I felt Archie's muzzle rubbing against my hand. Automatically stroking him and realizing that the dog will not give her rest, Lina still has to overcome her hellish desire to lie down a little more and sit down. Along the way, I noticed that I forgot to turn off the garlands yesterday.
This beeping sound tells you that it's time to recharge the pacemaker. Getting to her feet, Caroline, half asleep, wanders to her things, banging her head on the shelf on the way. It's a good thing nothing fell off her. Lina clearly does not want a new bump on the back of her head. Pulling on a jumpsuit and tying the laces on a new pair of boots, Caroline opens the ramp. Bright sunlight blinds her unaccustomed eyes for a moment, forcing her to squint. Karolina goes to the truck's control panel and, squatting down, takes a long cable, connecting it to the device in her chest. A signal was heard notifying that the energy had gone, and the charge divisions on the pacemaker itself began to be slowly replenished. The charge was enough for about three to four days without recharging, which greatly helped Lina in some situations. But still, she keeps a charger with her, in case of an emergency. He was charging here too. Finally, a sound was heard indicating that the charging was finished. Disconnecting from the cable and taking the charger, Caroline buttons up her shirt and the top of her uniform. She goes back to the truck to get her glasses and a shovel, but accidentally steps on Archie's tail.
— Oh, I'm sorry, Archie! — said Caroline, scratching the dog behind the ear as an apology. Having collected everything necessary in a bag and wearing glasses, the scavenger called Archie and went to fulfill her directive.
Let's not wonder how this car still works.
But that's not all. Caroline found a racket with a ball tied to it on a string and accidentally hit herself in the eye. Archie was so scared of her screeching that he even took this racket away from sin. And then some strange red cylinder with a foam supply knocked Caroline off her feet! This time Archie couldn't lift the fire extinguisher, but Lina herself sent him flying behind a nearby pile of garbage. And so the day went on, cube by cube, piece by piece.
Until Caroline stumbled upon the refrigerator. Lina couldn't open it, apparently the hinges jammed. But he interfered with the work, it was necessary to remove. Lifting a whole refrigerator is not so easy, so Caroline decided to cut it into pieces. Pulling her glasses over her eyes, she turned on the laser in the prosthetic index finger. The red beam easily cut through the hinges of the refrigerator, and the door fell off. Then Caroline saw something unusual.
She crouched down to get a better look. Green, small, alive. It seemed so fragile, like porcelain or glass, that it could break in half from a puff of wind, but so painfully important. Something to look after. Something that also needed care and attention.
— "Plant?" — Curiosity lit up even more. Previously, she had only seen such things in children's books. But I never thought that I would be able to see it live. Caroline stared at the sprout for a few more seconds until she decided to take it with her, carefully transplanting the plant into an old shoe. It's better to go home to put a shoe with a plant somewhere.
***
Scoop, rake, squeeze. Scoop, rake, squeeze. Scoop, rake, squeeze!
It was something like the motto of the workers, which Caroline had repeatedly heard from adults. And I tried to stick to it myself, not giving myself days off. The directive is literally Lina's whole life, not counting collecting all sorts of trinkets. But when Caroline doesn't find them, this very life becomes unimaginably boring. Only games with Archie distract the girl for a while. Now, in a new area of the city, Carolina was raking one pile of garbage after another into a compactor, building a new tower. In the background listening to a song playing from the player. The work progressed briskly, at a rate of eight cubes per minute. But then Caroline came across an item of clothing that she had not seen before. It consisted of a thin strip of fabric with attached spherical cups. As far as Lina knows, it is called… A bra, sort of. But why to wear it, Caroline did not quite understand, but she put it in her bag, it might come in handy. And then Lina decided to take a short break for a snack and a game with Archie. — Archie, aport! — Caroline commanded, throwing the stick into the distance. And Archie raced after her, bringing the stick back a few seconds later. — Well done, Archie. — She said, giving the treat to the pet and stroking his head. Then there were more familiar things for Caroline — a rubber duck, a dog figurine, a small box with an incomprehensible shiny thing inside, an old shoe, a miniature cup with the Bnl logo. Even the keys to the car were found, which beeped when the button was pressed. Caroline was already a little scared.
