Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
I t was quarter to five in the morning, and the coach was ready to go. Dan had arrived with croissants and coffee and tea for everyone from the petrol station on the High Street. They sat in a row of five on the front wall of the school, their legs dangling side by side – Chrissie, Dan, Nisha, Philippa and Dottie.
“I think we can definitely call this the calm before the storm,” said Nisha, bundled up against the November weather in a green hoodie.
“Without a doubt,” agreed Dan.
Dottie piped up. “When are the others getting here?”
“In fifteen minutes,” said her mum, patting her arm. “It won’t be long. Eat your pain au chocolat.”
Dottie dutifully shoved half the pastry into her mouth. Chrissie covered a smile with her hands before rubbing her sleepy eyes.
“Have we made a terrible mistake?” she asked out loud.
“Twenty-five children, one coach, four adults and a trip to Paris?” said Nisha. “What could possibly go wrong?”
“Shall I give you a list?” said Dan, stifling a yawn.
“Definitely not,” replied Nisha. “I’d rather live in blissful ignorance.” She took a sip of her hot drink. “And you know what, Chris, for what it’s worth, you made this happen through sheer optimism. It’s going to be awesome.”
Chrissie raised her eyebrows in surprise. It was the first time Nisha had said anything to her that wasn’t directly about the Key Stage 2 Curriculum or which children needed extra help with their maths that week. “Well, I think really Philippa is the one we need to thank,” she said.
“Nonsense,” said Philippa, brushing off the praise. “I was just in the right place at the right time. And to get to come along and support you brilliant people is an absolute pleasure.”
The five of them fell quiet, sleepy smiles on their faces as they finished their breakfast.
Within half an hour, all was chaos. There were suitcases everywhere, children carrying an assortment of bags and rucksacks and tearful parents waving their little people off.
“Dottie,” said Philippa, a pained expression on her face, “for goodness sake, get back on the coach. You’ve already got on and off three times now.”
Nisha and Chrissie exchanged a wordless glance. At least it wasn’t just her teachers that Dottie drove to distraction.
“Hiya, Francis,” said Dan, saving his warmest smile for the shy boy who’d just presented himself, hanging onto a yellow toy car, his father a step behind him.
“Hello, Mr Harvey,” replied Francis solemnly.
“You’ve arrived at just the right time. There’s a seat on the coach right near the front, so you can see what the driver’s doing at all times, and you get to see through the front window,” said Dan, knowing a car-obsessed child when he saw one.
Francis’ face brightened, and he turned to hug his father goodbye, before getting onto the coach.
“Nice save,” said Nisha. “I thought he was going to cry, poor little thing.”
“I’ll keep a close eye on him,” said Dan. “I don’t think he’s been away from home overnight before.”
“I don’t think many of them have,” Chrissie chimed in, as she slid the last of the bags into the storage area at the bottom of the coach.
“I hope we’re all ready for an onslaught of homesickness, then,” said Nisha.
“Yeah,” agreed Dan. “Mostly from me. I’m missing darts night at the pub for this.”
Nisha laughed. “And I’m missing football.”
“Oh, shush, you two,” said Chrissie. “You’ll be eating baguettes and snails before you know it.”
“Ugh,” said Dan, going slightly pale.
“Don’t knock it ’til you’ve tried it,” said Philippa, appearing beside them. “They’re all on. I’ve done a head count and I think we’re complete, but one of you should probably do the same.”
Nisha looked again at Chrissie. They climbed onto the coach and Nisha whispered to her. “Why do I feel like she’s in charge?”
Chrissie giggled. “I think she is. Let’s get counting.” She was relieved that some of the ice between them had started to thaw. She wasn’t sure what the future held, but these last few weeks had been really difficult. She’d even started to wonder if she ought to get a job in a different school.
But now, looking down the length of the coach, into the excited faces of all the children she’d spent the last few weeks getting to know, she knew she couldn’t leave them. She owed it to them to hang on in there, even if it was a bit tricky. It was, after all, part of her mission to give back.