Stargirl of the Edge

Ch 37 - Jubilee weekend

After spending time revising for her exams during the heatwave of April 2012, waiting for her father to return, Olivia is relieved when the Jubilee weekend arrives. But her life is about to change.

And so it was the Jubilee weekend, the weekend the whole of Britain had been waiting for.  And just as the weekend started, the hot weather ended, and it started to drizzle.

By Sunday the drizzle had turned into steady rain, pouring down on all the boats, small and large, that were gathering on the river Thames in the west of London.

Olivia and Liz had the TV on whilst eating stir fried noodles and prawns.

“It’s amazing how much energy the Queen has! 86 years old! Doing all those official engagements. I hope I have as much energy as she has when I’m her age.”

Olivia nodded, watching the spectacle on the screen.

“And look at the ladies curtseying before the Queen. Do you see the way they bend their knees, drop down and put one foot behind the other. I think the Queen is a fantastic lady but I don’t think I would curtsey if I met her!”

Liz quickly finished the noodles and got up. 

“There are more noodles in the pot, just help yourself. I have to go over to Angela’s she’s moving house this weekend. I said I’d help her out. Then I need to call in to the community centre to help with the preparations for the street party.”

Olivia waved and stretched out on the couch, watching the TV.

On Monday the street party was held in Alderley Edge village. Liz was there with all the other ladies, helping to set up chairs and tables.

Olivia came with Jessie in the jeep to take a look at what was happening. She stayed for a while but drove up to the Edge to take her for a walk.

As Olivia walked along the familiar footpaths, she felt struck by how unchanging the Edge was. While all these events were going on in the outside world, the Edge just stayed the same. Only the coming and going of the seasons altered how it looked. She always loved go to there, and so did Jessie.

That evening Olivia felt a sense of relief that the countdown to Dad’s return was nearly up. She’d received a text message from him to say that the project had been successfully concluded and that he was preparing to make his way to the airport and fly home. 

On Monday evening, Olivia switched on the Jubilee concert on TV. She was planning to do some revision but as soon as she started to watch, she was hooked.

One star after another came on, from England, the US and beyond. One group performed on the top of Buckingham Palace. There were amazing projections on the front of the building.

At the end of the concert, Prince Charles and the Queen walked out onto the stage, and stood in front of all the stars, young and old. He gave an emotional tribute to the small woman in the brightly coloured suit and hat. He called her ‘Mummy’ and there were massive cheers.

The area around Buckingham Palace was a mass of British flags. It was unlikely that there was ever a time when people felt more proud to be British than now. 

Around the world, Britain was sending out a message of happiness, fun, togetherness and celebration. The whole country was in a festive mood, and the wet weather wasn’t going to dampen that spirit.

Tuesday came. In the news there were many reports of the Transit of Venus. It had not been visible over many parts of the UK due to cloud, but in India and above the Arctic Circle people had taken many spectacular photographs that were appearing on websites and news pages.

Liz spent a second day in the village for the festivities on Tuesday the fifth, the final day of the extended weekend.

But then she unexpectedly left to go back to the house without giving any reason.

Olivia was in another part of the village with a couple of her classmates.

And then she felt a vibrating tone in her pocket. There was a voicemail message from Mum. Olivia was shocked by her voice. She spoke in low sobs and could hardly put the words together. 

“Livvy… It’s Dad… there’s some news. I’m sorry darling, I’m so sorry. Something has happened. Go to the station car park now. I’ll pick you up in ten minutes. ”

It was as if Olivia had been struck by lightning. Her whole body felt weak. Her heart began to race, she started to breathe in and out quickly. She was at the bottom of the village and she needed to walk up to the top. It was crowded with people and there were tables in the middle of the street. Everywhere people were celebrating. Her legs carried her as quickly as she could but it seemed like the longest walk in her life. What could it be? Had there been an accident? Was there a problem with the internal flight in China? Her thoughts racing, she moved through the crowds, past the library, the estate agents, the flower shop, the two supermarkets, up to the bridge and then into the station car park. 

Liz was already waiting and Olivia jumped in. She could see from her mum’s expression that something was wrong, seriously wrong, but she seemed to have regained her composure since leaving the voicemail message.

This is the end of 'normality' for Olivia and her family, stress, uncertainty, sadness are about to begin. I chose the fifth of June for her father's date of return because that's the date I returned from my first assignment in the Middle East. I arrived back home safely but twenty years later, in my fictional story, something happened...