Another Day

When I woke up I never expected to be on a train. Filled with women, young and old. I tried to get off the grimey green seat to evaluate and help with anyone who was hurt. I struggled standing and given how I had bruises from my ankle to my knee. I was distraught and wincing in pain. I took a deep breath and continued to examine my leg. There was a big multicolor bruise on my knee. I touched it to see if it was swollen. And I jerked my leg while in pain but also relieved to see I can still move my leg. I didn’t even have a chance to gain my emotions before moving to a woman with a baby. She had curly auburn hair. It reminded me of the flames, the warmth. I took out my purse and threw everything on the floor. Trying to find something to help her. And that's when I found them…

My sister's cancer pill. She has to have them every hour for pain. I would have run off to find her but she would want me to help this woman. So I struggled with the bottle and eventually got out two pills.  I handed them to the woman who was too hysterical to even ask what they were. I then took some of my own. I needed relief. I then made my way to the train cart door to gain access to the rest of the train. Then I stopped. 

A little girl, maybe about six was sitting in the corner. She had a bright pink dress with blue ruffles. She had dark brown hair with disordered pigtails with one missing a bow. My eyes followed up to the teary eyed girl. She had fair delicate skin like a porcelain doll. Her face covered in freckles. She rubbed her eyes and looked up at me. There was too much ringing in my ears to understand what she said. So I took a leap of faith and holded out my hand. She took it with no questions. I proceeded to pick her up and run to the door. And it opened. There was about a ten foot gap between our train car and the next. I heard it, the scream. Our cart was compromised. I know the signs, I'm a co teacher at the university of NYU. I was brilliant for my age. And look at me now, covered in blood in my nice dress clothes about to throw a little girl across a train. That's what I did, she landed and got ready to catch my purse. 

I was about to jump when the auburn haired girl walked up to me and handed me her child. A little boy, she pointed to her arm which had been affected by the virus. So I took the baby and got ready to jump. And I did. I barely made it but I did. Soon after the women collapsed. I wish I could help her but there was no cure. Then more came into our previous cart. The infected people were outnumbered. Unarmed. I have to separate our parts of the train. So I opened the new cart door and set the little girl inside it. Then handing her the baby. I went to go pull the pin. And it is anything but strong but I managed to pull the pin. And I was relieved to see that we were still part of the engen. I made my way in the cart to look at the kids and make sure they were okay. 

Anyone under the age of twenty got this experimental drug and it turned out to be the vaxeen. One day they lost the research but anyone who went could continue the vaxeen through blood. So the children and I are lucky. I had no idea where we were going, only that there was an announcement. Something about remaining passengers in other crts must bath and get dressed into the clothes provided. After we retrieved the box from outside our door the doors will be locked until arrival. So I took the kids into the tiny bathroom and started to clean us up. I was thinking about what I would do with them. Then after the baby it was the little girls turn. She showed me the babies bad and pulled out a note and it had been a note from the mother and on the back written in crayon it said Edeth. The little girl’s name was Edeth. I read the note carefully but no name. So i tried to come up with one. I decided I should keep the children with me. They had this trust with me. And so I wrote on the note card, Emma and William. I named the boy William after my brother. She then hugged me. 

I settled the kids on a bench so I could get them to sleep. It had been hours since my gallivanting through the train with children that aren't mine. So I wait for them to fall asleep. I watch the sun go down and the clouds turn orange. And it reminded me of hope. The children and their bright eyes and the end of a bad day with a beautiful night. Tomorrow I will be at peace. 

Peace. I once wrote a paper on peace and I had never felt this kind of peace before. the one where you can sleep and don't have to think. This was the peace that made you so happy you would cry. The kids are asleep, clean, and innocent. They are just kids, they haven't lived yet and haven't seen the world. It's not fair. Life is never fair to the innocent. They call it weak but i find having hope and innocents is the biggest weapon you could ever have. My weapon of choice is hope. The world thrives on the hope of others. Some do the hoping others make the hope happen. You always provide hope or the world would be in flames.