The Valley of Plastic

The Valley of Plastic Part 7

The baby woke up after about an hour and a half on the bus, she was screaming, the entire bus remained silent as the loud footsteps of the same soldier stamped his way up the bus towards us.

"Shut that thing up! NOW!" He barked, only making baby Olivia cry more.

"I'm trying!" Andrea snapped just as aggressively back. She rubbed her hand over the babys face gently, and tried to put her dummy in her mouth. It pacified her for a moment, and then she spat it out and started crying again, her arms wriggling and her feet high in the air. 

"She's hungry I think, my mam put a bottle in the bag for her, theres a few in there I think." Max said loudly, to be heard over his sisters screams. Andrea nodded and unfastened her seatbelt before standing up. She was face to face with the soldier now, his eyes widened and his jaw fell slightly open as my sisters eyes met his, she stared at him. "So, if you could move I will get the bag and shut it  up." My sisters voice hadn't changed, the soldier closed his mouth and cleared his throat before stepping to the side to let Andrea into the isle, she grabbed the black polka dotted baby bag and pulled it down. There was three bottles with water in, and three small pots of formula. Andrea grabbed a pot and a bottle and shoved the bag back into the cubby above. She added to formula to the water and mixed it - Olivia still screaming. She shook the bottle aggressively. After maybe a minute of shaking the bottle, she took of the cap, and put it in Olivias mouth, leaving her securely in the carseat while she held the bottle. The bus fell back to its previous silence. The soldier still stood staring at my sister feeding the infant. 

"It's quiet now, you can go," she dismissed and the soldier cleared his throat again, and opened his mouth as though about to speak, "look you said you wanted her quiet, she is. Bye!" Andrea couldn't hide her utter distate at the man lurking over her shoulder. He turned around and went back to his seat, but didn't sit down before looking back to try to catch Andrea's eye - it didn't work. 

"Sorry she's so loud." Max whispered.

"Hey, it's not your fault, that's what babies do - we were all one once," I joked, prodding him in the side, "even the grumpy soldiers will have been babies once, and I bet they cried even louder than Olivia."

He chuckled quietly and we resumed our hugging position, both of us feeling the comfort off of Mr Cuddles. 

I stared out the windows, I was able to keep track of where we were up until about an hour ago, but this road I have never seen. It was long and winding and there were tall trees on either side, almost looking like we were on a road travelling through a forest. The sun was still mocking us, blaring its hot beams down through the windows, creating a greenhouse effect. The road never seemed to end.

After around another hour and a half - I think; I forgot my watch and my battery was dead on my phone- there was a break in the trees and I could see miles upon miles of open fields out of both sides of the buses windows. Even under the circumstance, it was beautiful, breathtaking even. The trees in the distance swayed in the light breeze and birds could be heard singing from their nests tucked away. The bus grinded to a stop and a different soldier stood up, "Everyone stay seated untill told otherwise." He got off the bus, I could see him talking to another man, dressed in the same attire as him; another soldier. 

After a short conversation he got back on the bus, "Right, if I call your name you will get off the bus, take your bags and stand outside. You will be given further instructions there." The names he read seemed to be a blur to me, I couldn't make any of them out, it was weird - almost like my ears had completely given up on me. "Max Appleby!" Max looked at me in terror, "Amia Laurence!" 

"It's OK, I'm coming with you," I whispered and we undone our seatbelts and stood up, I grabbed both of our bags. I held his hand and walked down the bus, squeezing Andrea's shoulder as I passed. We got off the bus, and Max looked panicked, inside I was too, but I had to be strong for him now. We were hearded into a line, next to a bunch of other scared looking people who came off the bus. More people followed. I watch the door egarly waiting for Andrea and Olivia. 

"Right," the soldier stood infront of us started, I felt myself filling up with terror, they're seperating us I tried to hold my panic inside, staring directly into the face of the soldier, willing him not to take my sister from me. "Oh, hang on, wait for these two." To my utter relief, Andrea got off the bus carrying the baby - still suckling on the remains of her bottle, drifting in and out of sleep again- and their two bags on her back. "Right, you lot are to follow me. I will be taking you to where you will be sleeping." With that, he turned and began walking, and slowly the line followed him. 

I looked around taking in my surroundings, it was really beautiful. Greenary, fresh air, natural wildlife and birds singing their sweet song. Such a contrast to what was happening to us. I'm not sure how long we were walking, but we approached a number of metal shed-like buildings. The soldier stood still and waited for the back end of the line to catch up. 

"Right, these are your new homes. They sleep four people to a cabin, and they have been assigned to you, I will shout the number of the cabin and then list the four people sleeping in each. OK?" He looked around at all of the shell-shocked faces, and rolled his eyes. "OK so, Andrea Laurence, Amia Laurence, Max Appleby and Olivia Appleby, you four will be sleeping in cabin one." Andrea walked over to him first, still carrying Olivia and Max and I followed. She snatched the piece of paper he was waving for her to take, and made her way to the tin-shed with a large black number 1 painted on the door. Inside there were two sets of bunkbeds and a single set of drawers. The bunk-beds were not full-size, and looked as though they had been designed with the smallest of children in mind. The single set of drawers were pine and the handles were round knobs that pulled the drawers out. There was single sheets - navy blue - on each of the beds, and a thin floppy pillow planked at the top of the beds. Andrea put Olivia on the floor in her carseat and turned to me and Max, she leaned down, balancing herself with her hands on her knees "So, Max, top bunk or bottom?" Max smiled - a full smile, for the first time since we got on the bus- and raced to the bunk on the left hand side before climbing the ladders and sitting on the top. "This one, please." He actually looked happy, a kind of joy that you only remember experiencing as a child. Andrea nodded, "Well, Amia, what about you?" She had stood straight again and offered me to choose. I chose the bed under max, and flung my bag onto it. I sat on the mattress, and bounced a little to check how comfortable it was going to bee - it was probably as thick as a toddler mattress, so not very. 

"And you little missy," Andrea said, unfastening Olivia's carseat, "well you certainly can't have the top bunk, now can you?" she held the infant infront of her face, "No, no you can't," putting on the voice people do when they are talking to babies; or puppies. "No, you can sleep in this bed, with me I think. What'dya think? Does that sound good?" Olivia was awake now and gurgling and Andrea, her hands reaching out infront of her to touch Andrea's face. 

"I think she likes you," Max said from the top bunk,

"Yeah, I think so too," I agreed. Andrea took Olivia and laid her out on the bottom bunk on the otherside of the room. Her arms and legs pinged wide as she stretched after being stuck in that carseat for hours. Andrea's nose turned up as she realised; Olivia needed her nappy changed. She asked me to grab the nappy bag, which I did and I watched as my sister changed the nappy like a pro. She snapped the press-studs on Olivias baby-grow closed and picked her back up talking to her in the same voice as earlier. 

I couldn't see Max, but I imagined, like me he was watching my sister somehow turn into a baby expert, and it filled us - well definitely me- with a type of homely warmth. 

The feeling was wiped away when there was two knocks at the door, and it swung open without waiting to be invited in.