It wasn't good at all.
No it wasn't.
The moment that Gill had pulled the letter out of his mailbox and the five of them saw the shiny golden emblem on the front of the envelope-everybody was deathly silent. Akari had stopped laughing and was slowly climbing off of Luke's back. Angela had released Chase's head from her grip and they'd all looked at Gill as though he were on fire.
One unspoken question was echoing through all their minds. Simply, 'Why?' Why now and not earlier? Why ever?
They all knew this meant Gill had gotten the scholarship his father had applied him for, to a larger private school on the mainland. All and all, Mayor Hamilton had thought that Gill would be happy that he had a chance to get a better education than what was offered on the island. In truth, when Gill found out he was speechless. Yes the education available on the island was shitty on a good day, but god damn it, Waffle Island was his home, his friends were there, his neighbors…they were all an important part of his life. Especially Akari.
He looked at her. Her beautiful shining eyes, her perfect brown hair. He looked at Angela, Akari's twin sister who was always so fun loving and understood Gill's love of knowledge. Luke who was daring, stupid but brave, and would give up a leg for his friends. Chase was stubborn and misunderstood, but he had a heart of gold when he cared enough to show it. How could Gill ever leave these people behind? Without hesitation Gill crippled the envelope without even taking a look inside, threw it to the ground and smashed it into the mud.
"Care to come inside guys? I'm sure my dad won't mind if I get us something nutritious to snack on too."
The smile was unanimous.