Plan B

Chapter Seven

After the door had swung shut behind him, Fran sat up and surveyed the mess.  Three scrumpled t-shirts lay in an orange, white and green version of Rico’s smile, with two odd trainers filling in as the eyes.

Fran shook herself.  If I start seeing smiles in clothes, I’ll start seeing creepy stalkers in Vampire Bruno.  She decided that the games department could wait until the next day and began to tidy up, promising herself a reward of half an hour on Brookie’s bike machine if she got her side of the room clear in half that time.

It was only then that she spotted the pink, heart-shaped post-it note that had been stuck to the desk, and her plans flew out of the window.

Hi, cupcake.  Don’t even think about getting the U6th involved in your life again, or we will f***ing kill you.  They shouldn’t have to waste their time on you.  Maybe you should migrate to the other side of the school.  You suit a skirt more than trousers.

Fran flung the armful of clothes she was holding onto her bed and bolted from the room, racing along the corridor and down the stairs at the other end so that she could find the dorm map taped to Mr Carson’s office door.

She was in absolutely no doubt as to who had devastated her room, and there was no way she was going to leave it be without getting revenge.

For some reason, a crowd had gathered outside the boys’ boarding house by the time the sixth formers were released from rugby training.  Worn out and in need of a shower, Arthur, Rico and the twins trudged past the whispering boys and girls and headed inside.  Arthur was the only one who had the presence of mind to remove his rugby boots before they entered the foyer, and as they clattered across to the lift, Mr Carson’s irritable voice drifted out through the open office door.

“Boots off, boys.  We have a boot room for a reason.”

Rico shook his sweat-filled hair and spat out his gumshield as Aaron called the lift and Isaac detoured for the toastie machine in the kitchen.

“Sorry, sir!” Rico called.

“Clean the mud up,” Mr Carson replied.  “And why is everybody standing around outside the house as if they’re waiting for shooting stars during daytime?”

The boys exchanged glances.

“Conspiracy theory?” Aaron joked feebly.  The look that Arthur threw him told him that it wasn’t even worth rolling his eyes.

The lift pinged open and they bundled inside.

“Isaac!” Rico yelled as the doors began to close.  “Do us a favour and clean the floor!”

“You owe me toasties!” came the predictable reply.  Rico grimaced and turned to Aaron as the lift ascended.

“Have you thought about sending your brother Toastie-holics Anonymous?” he asked.

Aaron chuckled around his gum guard.  The lift doors sprang open and they headed out into the corridor.  Rico immediately vanished into his room, which was the first door, and Aaron into the one adjacent, but Arthur continued to the common room because he wanted to make himself a cup of tea.

The instant he pushed the common room door open, there was a scrambling commotion from the big red sofa in front of the TV.

“I’m Luigi this time!”

“I am until you agree to play something different!”

Arthur paused and raised an eyebrow.  “Shish kebabs.  Piers playing Mario Kart?  I thought you hated gaming.”