The Valley of Plastic

The Valley Of Plastic Part 17

I lie in my bed awake, the words replaying in my head. "It's not pointless." The words made my blood boil. Not pointless. My family was torn apart and butchered. Not pointless. We have gained a child and an infant after they've been forced away from their parent. Not pointless. We've lost everything. Not pointless.

I wake up the next morning, to no siren - but no birds chirping either. It's Sunday. Day off. The annoying thing is, Andrea and Max work today so I'm alone. Andrea helps out in the kitchens today - teaching the infants some basic skills and letting them take part in messy play. She and Olivia usually come back covered in all sorts of different food.

I swing my legs off the bed, and rest my head in my hands. What to do today? In an ideal world, I'd lay in bed and rest my weary body watching Netflix gorging ice cream. Ah the new world, ey? As much as I will deny it if anyone ever asked, but there is only so many times I can reread Harry Potter. I will myself to stand up and get dressed. It feels weird wearing normal clothes, I'm so used to the scratchy feel of my rotten suit. Jeans, a baggy t-shirt and converse. Standard. I drag my hair back with a hairbrush and tie it in a ponytail. I half smile at my reflection; for the first time in a while I look and feel like me.

Luckily, on Sundays they don't do set times for food and have a buffet themed day. Obviously closely monitored to minimise waste. I head to the mess Hall. The weather is warm, I can feel the rays lick my skin.

The hall is almost completely empty, apart from infants running round covered in mud and beans. I walk to the table and can't hold back a scoff of disbelief. Plastic plates. Single use, plastic plates. I roll my eyes and think about the joy I'll have when I have to sort out all of this into ridiculous piles tomorrow. Minimise waste. Save the planet. Yeah, whatever you say.

I grab some of the food; there is no meat left. They are severely rationing meat, trying to save the animals to graze and replenish the land. I sit at a table and eat my toast, alone.

My mind is spinning at the thought of eating off a plastic plate, that will then be dumped in the piles of waste clogging up a beautiful view.

As I make my way back to the hill, I avoid conversation or even eye contact with everyone. I'm not in a people mood today - any day really, but especially not today.

Soon enough I have navigated the tin shacks, the people and the soldiers and I'm sat comfortably on the top of the familiar rounded peak. I roll the sleeves of my t-shirt up to my shoulders and lay back onto the grass, trying to absorb as much sun as possible.

"So, this is kinda your spot, huh?" I try to open my eyes, only to be blinded by the sun. I sit up and give my eyes a second to readjust to the brightness.

"Something like that, yeah." I smile as Niall sits on the grass next to me.

"So, Amia. I've been thinking." my heart stops, "have you noticed anything odd about this place?" Not what I was hoping for. I shook my head in answer. "Every single person here, literally every single one, is from working class or lower." I didn't really understand what he was getting at. "Every single person I've spoken to was either employed, in a typical job grocery market manager, shop keeper, bin man and that, but not one person has said, oh I'm a lord, or I work for some really big company or whatever." I rack my brain trying to think of every job everyone has said to me. He is right. I feel embarrassed, I've missed this for over two years. He picked up on it in two days.

" OK, so?" I don't really know what he is getting at.
" Where are all of the upper class people? Where are the rich people, or their kids?" My stomach flips,
"maybe, because the people with so much money likely caused the most waste they were all sent to the other place" I gulped, "where all of the parents went."

He tutted, "Don't be silly, Amia. They wouldn't send the most powerful people in the world and their kids to get killed." he looks off into the distance, "no, they're out there. I'd bet my life that they're not cleaning up the worlds shit as well."

I don't know what to respond, so I stare to the distance as well. He has a point, but the website said it was everyone. Everyone would be helping out. That's what it said, surely they wouldn't lie about it. Would they?