Chapter 25
Lily adjusted her black jacket and made sure her shirt was smoothed down as she walked into the school office and up to the reception desk.
A woman behind the desk was on the phone and she gestured to Lily that she needed to wait a moment.
Lily looked around the private school’s reception area, which was rather tiny but well organised.
There was a combination of student artwork and framed awards that highlighted the accomplishments of the students at the school that were displayed on the walls.
She liked that it was more about the students than the school patting themselves on the back for their success.
Near the entryway, there was a large bulletin board that was covered in colourful posters that advertised forthcoming events, club meetings, and extracurricular activities, and Lily was pleased to see there was a selection of music groups, choirs and shows for the children to participate in.
There was a row of seats that lined the wall to her left, and the cushions on those chairs were clean but slightly worn.
There was a modest table in front of the chairs that contained a carefully arranged stack of prospectuses as well as a few copies of the school magazine.
The bell rang and through the large windows Lily could see the children in their red and blue uniforms rushing outside to play.
The other side of the window looked out into a courtyard that had been meticulously maintained with spring flowers and a small bird stand.
Next to the window there was a trophy cabinet that proudly displayed a variety of gleaming cups and plaques that were awarded to winners of various music, academic and athletic events.
Lily looked at the old-fashioned clock displayed over the reception desk, and she saw that its face had the crest of the institution.
It ticked slowly every minute. It was past her interview time now at eleven o’clock with the head of music and she wondered if the receptionist would ever finish her call.
As though she heard Lily’s thoughts, she put down the phone. ‘How can I help you?’
‘I’m Lily Baxter. I’m here for an interview with John McBride,’ she said, suddenly feeling nervous.
‘Of course, come through and John will be here in a moment,’ said the woman with a smile and led the way to a room with a lounge and two armchairs.
‘Can I get you tea or coffee or water?’ she asked Lily.
‘Water would be great, thank you.’
After the water had been delivered in a lovely jug with two glasses, Lily relaxed for a moment and then the door opened and a large man in his fifties beamed at her. ‘You must be Lily Baxter?’
She nodded, instantly buoyed by his energy.
‘I’m John McBride, head of music, father, new grandfather and mad jazz fan. Now tell me why you want to teach at this lovely little school.’
*
Lily sat in the car outside the school and breathed a sigh of relief. She could have twenty hours teaching a week for the rest of the year in a part-time position and if she liked it and they liked her, then they would look at making her permanent.
She couldn’t believe how well the interview had gone. John was so lovely and funny and encouraging and told her there was a lack of good teachers in the area and that there were lots of children on the waiting list.
Lily drove back to Appleton Green singing along to the soundtrack of Into the Woods , relishing the feeling of relief from the sadness that had been ailing her since she had left the show and Nick.
But she was wise enough to know this was a fleeting reprise, because she was thinking about Nick every other moment of the day, still unsure what to believe.
Lily arrived back at Pippin Cottage and walked through the door. ‘Good news, Gran,’ she said and saw Gran sitting at the table instead of her armchair and next to her was Jasper, with a mug of tea in hand and Bernadette on his lap.
Mr Mistoffelees was sitting on the windowsill, staring at the dog with disdain, and the dog was snarling in return.
‘Jasper,’ Lily said, feeling the joy vanish at the sight of him in the cottage.
‘Lily,’ he said with an elaborate nod and half rising from his seat as though he was a character in a historical novel.
‘Why are you here?’ she asked putting down her handbag on the sofa.
‘We need you in the show,’ he said.
‘No. You know why,’ she said crossing her arms.
‘Listen to him, Lily,’ Gran said in a tone that meant no nonsense and one which Lily never disobeyed.
She sat down at the table, her hands clasped in her lap.
‘Jessica has left,’ Jasper said.
‘What? Why?’
‘Two things: the cast decided they wouldn’t do the show with her. Sheila was actually the start of the movement and Nick, of course.’
Lily looked at Gran in shock.
‘They said they wouldn’t do the show with her and only you.’
‘How did Jessica cope with that news?’ asked Lily.
Jasper shook his head. ‘She claims she had a role on EastEnders now, and was going to leave anyway. A sexy villain, she claims,’ Jasper said with a wry tone and a raised eyebrow.
‘Apt casting it seems,’ said Gran.
‘Has she?’ asked Lily.
Jasper shrugged. ‘I have no idea. I doubt it. She’s a wild storyteller.
She says whatever she needs in the moment to seem superior.
It’s because she’s so beautiful that people forgive her, but I have had her number for years.
I didn’t even want her in the show, but Sheila insisted.
Except now Sheila seems to have come to her senses. ’
Lily swallowed, listening to his news. How different today had been from what she had expected when she woke up.
Sometimes the best news comes on what seems to be an ordinary day.
Perhaps that’s why it seems so special, because it was such an ordinary day.
First she had the job offer and now this news.
Jasper was patting Bernadette, who had stopped snarling and who was now closing her eyes, looking Zen in the warmth of the cottage.
‘And we need to do this show, because we have to earn our money back. We were given some money by the council to do the show – an arts grant – and we have to put it on. It’s part of the rules, and if we don’t we have to pay it back and that would mean we, as individuals, would have to pay.’
He took a deep breath and Lily could see the anxiety on his face. ‘And it’s rather a lot of money, you see. Because we have fabulous costumes and sets. Some of Eliza’s costumes and hats have been hired from the National Theatre,’ he said, in a reverent manner.
Lily was silent.
‘I know it’s all been terrible,’ Jasper said.
‘And Jessica broke your trust and Nick might have seemed to have broken your trust, but for the record, I don’t think they were engaged.
I’ve known them both, having done many shows with them.
Jessica likes drama and she likes Nick and she didn’t want anyone to have him, even if she didn’t want him. ’
‘I thought as much,’ sniffed Gran. ‘She reminded me of Beatrice Hawthorne. Similar types, the pair of them.’
Jasper looked confused for a moment and then kept going.
‘I am begging you to please consider coming back for the show. We can’t afford to repay the grant and we can’t put it on without an Eliza. Please,’ he said and for a brief moment, Lily saw tears in his eyes.
‘Okay, I’ll do it,’ she said. ‘For the society and the grant but not for any other reason.’
But deep down, she knew she was lying to herself. She wanted to see Nick and understand what the truth was.