The Wonderground

2 - The First Day of School

If it were not for the hand carved sign nestled subtly within the sweeping dry stone wall entrance that displayed:

BLANKROOK SCHOOL - EST. 1606

you would be forgiven for thinking that the estate was a stately home under the stewardship of the National Trust or English Heritage. The engraved letters were accompanied by a brushed steel plaque displaying the school coat of arms: a shield containing a blossoming rooted tree sprouting from a medieval tower. Beneath the coat of arms was the school's Latin motto 'scientiae ianuam': 'the doorway to knowledge'. A crudely painted banner had been cable-tied to the fence by the locked entrance gates:

WELCOME NEW STARTERS

A solitary figure stood in the pouring rain by the sign. He was coatless and soaking wet, but the weather did not bother him. He lowered a pair of goggles over his eyes as the rain lashed harder against his face. It was the wettest September on record. His face was illuminated momentarily by the headlights of an approaching minibus. The school logo was visible on the bonnet. Its roof was piled high with bags and suitcases. A turquoise tarpaulin had been spread across most of the items, but it was flapping wildly in the wind and doing little to protect the luggage from the elements. The figure retrieved a small key from his waistcoat pocket and unlocked the large rusting silver padlock on the left-hand entrance gate before pressing the Suffolk thumb latch and pushing the gate open. It trundled on a single wheel through a well-worn groove in the Tarmac and clattered against the far curb.

The minibus drove carefully through the opening and began the final part of its journey up the winding road towards a grand Gothic building. The driver gave the figure a cursory wave of thanks. The man nodded in response as the vehicle rolled by. The side windows were steamed up, blocking his view. He knew there were fourteen children on board; their entire, soggy lives strapped to the roof above their heads. He watched the taillights disappear amongst the trees before closing and padlocking the gate. He grabbed a penknife from his trousers and cut the bedraggled banner from the fence. The lettering had started to run. He crumpled the sign in his fists until it was the size of a football. Satisfied, he tucked it under his arm and followed the minibus up the hill.

***

Rose Song missed Washington DC and her friends terribly. England sucked. And blew. At the same time. She missed Marble Slab ice cream. She missed Kurt. Why did Dad have to take that stupid job? Man, it was cold here. Did the sun ever shine?

Her father had taken the role of Hong Kong ambassador to the UK, based in London. She would have much preferred if he had stayed as assistant to the Hong Kong ambassador to the US. At least she got to live at home in Washington. But Mom and Dad decided it would be character building for her to go to boarding school in the UK. Her parents only lived three miles away, but she would not see them until Thanksgiving!

Rose adjusted her New York Mets baseball cap, flicked her shocking pink hair from her eyes and looked around at the other kids sitting, some more patiently than others, among the stacked plastic chairs in the middle of the main assembly hall. They had been given handwritten stickers displaying their names to wear on their clothing. Their various suitcases, holdalls and rucksacks sat beside them, with water dripping and pooling on the worn parquet flooring. One kid called Elliot had matching monogrammed luggage. Rose noticed a girl sitting separately from the others. She did not recognise her from the bus journey. Nobody spoke. Rose blew a large bubble until the gum burst on her lips with a loud splat.

A spotlight shone on the stage at the opposite end of the hall. Wrestling their way between the drawn pair of velvet curtains were two figures dressed in green tartan school uniforms. The girl was a pretty blonde, with a welcoming smile. Following her on-stage was a good-looking boy, holding a microphone. He blew into the head and tapped to confirm it was switched on.