When Andina woke up in the morning, she didn't see Galina. She guessed that she must have gone to the only rail station near the block to wait.
The woman came here with her mother half a year ago and told Hayes' name. At that time, Andina was shocked. She had shed tears when her "brother" whom she had depended on since childhood was arrested and sent to the army. For several days, she kept going to the church, which she rarely visited, to pray that nothing would happen to him. Unexpectedly, a few years later, a woman claiming to be his wife appeared.
But accidents were accidents. When she found out that Hayes was still alive and kicking, at least Andina's hanging heart finally settled.
Since the other party could tell Hayes's physical characteristics, it was basically not fake, so Andina let the other party live at home - it was said to be a home, but in fact it was just a metal shack for the next nest, just to clean up. It's pretty clean.
Andina earned a meager ration money by cleaning nearby warehouses and factories. Although Jialina came here with a large amount of "money", it belonged to someone else after all, even though the other party kept letting her She used it, but she was too embarrassed to use it. She continued to do her job every day, but occasionally she would complain in her heart that Hayes suddenly found a wife for no reason.
Didn't I take good care of him?
Andina herself couldn't explain the reason for the uncomfortable feeling in her heart.
During this time, Jalina was focusing on taking care of her mother. However, the poor woman passed away a month ago due to her physical weakness and incurable illness. Andina still remembers those bullshit doctors treating Jalina’s mother. She even secretly heard someone calling the poor woman a slut and a whore, and she was so angry that she almost beat those human-looking things.
Jialina just held her silently, and then told her the truth about her mother's illness and her past experience.
In fact, these diseases are not incurable, but they require very expensive medicines. Regardless of whether they can be purchased, the total money they have on hand may not be enough.
However, Jialina's mother was not in pain when she left. They took her to a garden in Zhongchao. It happened to be a once-in-a-century dome maintenance day, and a patio leading to the sky was opened in that area for her to enjoy for the last time. A rare moment of sunshine.
At least, she left with a smile.
After burying her mother, what Jalina did every day was to wait at the rail station.
Three months ago, the news of the end of the expedition had spread throughout the streets. As one of the original recruitment sites for the expeditionary force, this nest city began to see soldiers retire and return to their hometowns one after another, whether they were in the upper nest, middle nest or lower nest, or even It is the bottom nest. Every day, at least two trains carrying soldiers returning from the front line leave the airport and drop off a group of soldiers at various stations.
Just a month ago, it became one flight a day, and two weeks ago, it became one flight a week.
Some people say that it may be the last one recently.
If the person waiting cannot get off the train on this bus, he will never come back.
In fact, Andina was already a little desperate, because she heard from the returning veterans in nearby neighborhoods that the cruelty of this war was beyond everyone's imagination. She even saw with her own eyes that many returning veterans were a little nervous or even insane. In extreme cases, there are cases where someone accidentally kills a family member after overreacting after hearing a noise while sleeping.
Although many of them received a kind of pension called military stamps, which were very valuable at first, but for some reason, these days it suddenly seems to have become like waste paper. Many veterans go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Internal Affairs every day. The Ministry of Military Affairs station went to protest, but they received nothing but the shock sticks of the marshals.
Many are forced to use their fighting skills to join gangs and criminal organizations.
Gang wars have become more frequent recently. Andina has been worried about Jialina going out alone, and she is always confused.
But in a sense, Jalina's waiting was not without reason, because it was said that soldiers who died in battle would be notified and paid pensions, but Hayes had never received death notices and pensions. In a sense, he might still be alive.
However, Andina, who is well-informed, knows that many people are not dead, but are considered "missing".
This is a very cunning statement, but this is how the officials of the Ministry of Military Affairs explained it. They could not determine whether they were killed in action, they could only judge it as missing, and the missing people did not receive pensions——
But no matter what, Andina goes to see Galina every day.
In fact, I was waiting with her.
The last hope.
The last bus——
Every day, she would pass by the platform, and every day, she would stare at the busy people on the platform and the trains that looked like mechanical behemoths.
Those twelve or thirteen-year-old boys and girls push carts and sell various foods, tobacco and water, running around every day.
Was this the same thing when Hayes was a kid?
After half a year, the war finally showed signs of ending. She even remembered the appearance of those trains and the number of each car.
Time passed, and just like her, it seemed the train was changing.
She is whiter and thinner, while the train is shorter and thicker.
When she saw this kind of machinery for the first time, to her, who had little exposure to new things, the train seemed like a work of God.
As brave as a beast, yet as precise as a clock.
But as the war continued and time continued to pass, she had become accustomed to it, even numb.
Life day after day can make people gradually numb. She learned a lot about Hayes' past from Andina. Other people's lives and other people's lives originally had nothing to do with her and were far away from her.
It should be another world.
But Hayes saved her from hell and allowed her mother to see the light of day one last time.
She came to the station almost every day, so that many staff at the station knew her. They were actually very friendly people, and they all knew that she might be waiting for someone.
One that may never make another pit stop.
When it was announced that the war was finally over, everyone threw up their hats, cheered, hugged, and shed tears.
She just stood there, feeling scared, the human voice was so far away, she wanted to escape, but couldn't move.
Even though others gathered around her to hug, cheer, and toast, she remained still.
The station was dimly lit, people were laughing and celebrating, and it was very lively.
Every day, the train arrives on time, just like the sun rises on time.
The crowd poured in and mingled with each other. Some hugged and kissed fiercely, some shouted loudly and laughed, some cried softly, and most of them looked at each other speechlessly.
Then, get back to your daily routine and continue working.
People are used to war, and are used to gains and losses.
What stings and numbs is fear.
Fear is like a deadly poison that injects into the skin, paralyzing the muscles and making it impossible to move.
Its essence is to make people scared, afraid and hope that it will be just a nightmare in the end. People can't help but want to turn around and run away, but their legs seem to have been lost, stiff, numb, and motionless.
The trains kept coming, taking people back from the front line one after another.
Being in a world of laughter and laughter often makes her feel a little overwhelmed.
(End of chapter)
