Disclaimer: All recognisable characters belong to HiT Entertainment. All OCs belong to me.

Chapter 20

A few weeks later, I graduated from school with an A level and several awards in science. I also did receive dux of my class, which came with a scholarship to Cardiff University. The scholarship would cover the full tuition costs for any degree I chose. Basically, the doors were wide open for me. I could do whatever I wanted as far as my further education was concerned.

…

One Month Later

"Are you sure you have everything you need?" mum asked as I closed my suitcase. "You don't seem to be taking much."

"I don't have much, mum, and besides, they do have shops in Cardiff, you know."

"There's no need to be cheeky, Sam, just because you're going away."

I looked sadly around my bedroom for the last time. So, this is it, then. I'm actually leaving home.

Charlie poked his head inside my bedroom. "Granddad's ready to go, Sam. He said you'd better get a move on if you're to get to Cardiff before nightfall."

I picked up my suitcase and followed Charlie downstairs. Granddad took my suitcase from me, and he carried it outside to his car without saying a word. Dad pulled me into his arms.

"Now, you be good, and do everything your grandfather tells you to do, okay?"

"Sure, dad."

I felt mum join in our hug from behind me. "I can't believe you're the first of my sons to leave Pontypandy!"

"Neither can I," Charlie muttered.

We ended the embrace, and I turned to hug Charlie and Bronwyn.

"We'll really miss you," Bronwyn told me. A tear fell from her eye.

"I'll miss you too. And I'm going to miss seeing Sarah and James grow up."

"You'll be back for Christmas," Charlie reminded me.

"Yes."

A sniffle caught my attention. It was Gwen. "Do you have to go, Sam? I don't know what I'll do without you."

"You'll be fine. And, yes, I do have to go. There aren't any universities in Pontypandy or Newtown."

"I wish I wasn't still at school, so I could go with you."

I blushed profusely. Seeing my embarrassment, Granddad decided to save me, so he coughed from the doorway. "Come on, Sam. We need to go now."

I followed granddad outside, and I climbed into his car. My family gathered on the front doorstep to wave goodbye.

"Make sure he studies hard and stays healthy," mum told granddad.

"I will," granddad promised. He climbed into the driver's seat. "Fancy an ice cream on our trip?"

"Yes, please!" I grinned, knowing that granddad was prepared to spoil me, despite his promise to mum.

Granddad started up his car, and he started to drive down the street. I leaned out of the window, waving to my family until I could no longer see them.

Although this wasn't the first time I'd ever travelled to Cardiff, this was the first time I was old enough to remember the trip. The countryside changed from coastal and mountainous to industrial and suburban the closer we got to Cardiff. After about an hour of driving, granddad pulled into a petrol station to refill the car. He returned from paying with two ice creams, one of which he gave to me.

"Here you go, Sam. You like peppermint, don't you?"

"I love it! Thanks!"

Granddad turned back onto the main road. We ate our ice creams as he drove.

"So, what kind of house do you live in, granddad?"

"Oh, just a townhouse. It's not that different to the ones in Pontypandy, actually. It's down near the harbour, so it's a bit of a distance from the city centre. I can drive you to and from university, until you become familiar with the bus routes."

"Thanks. I appreciate that. And, what about my Fire Cadet training?"

"That'll happen once a week on Wednesday evenings at the Cardiff Central Fire Station. It's the biggest fire station in Cardiff, and the headquarters of the Cardiff Fire Brigade. I'd prefer to drive you to and from the fire station as well, since you're too young to be on the streets at night."

"But it's not far from the university. I could easily walk there in less than ten minutes."

"We can discuss it more once you know your schedule. I know you want independence, Sam, but you've only just turned fifteen."

"I know…"

"Don't sound so disappointed. You're lucky the university accepted you."

"They only did that because I won their scholarship."

"But they know how smart you are. They wouldn't have accepted you this year if they didn't think you could handle it."

I pointed to a city off in the distance. "Is that Cardiff?"

"It is indeed. We should be home in about fifteen minutes."

A few minutes later, we turned off the M4, and we entered the city. It was hard to describe Cardiff as a city though. It wasn't like London or other big cities. I couldn't see many buildings that were over four stories tall, and it wasn't crowded like I'd expected it to be.

After we'd wound our way through the narrow streets, granddad turned into an alleyway, and he parked in front of a garage that was behind a Victorian townhouse.

"Welcome to your new home, Sam," granddad said as he got out.

I climbed out too, and I looked around. The house really was just like the ones in Pontypandy, only this one was a little bigger and fancier.

Granddad removed my suitcase from the car's boot, and he lead the way inside through the back door. Although the exterior of the house was Victorian, the interior was modern and minimalist.

"Now then, Sam. Follow me upstairs, and we'll get you settled."

Granddad showed me upstairs. I followed him into one of the front bedrooms.

"I hope this will be comfortable for you," granddad said as he placed my suitcase down on the bed. "It might be a bit noisy with all the traffic going past, but there's only one bedroom at the back, and that's mine."

"Thank you, granddad. I'm sure it'll be fine."

"Right, well, I'll leave you to get unpacked."

After granddad had gone downstairs, I went over to the bay window, and I sat down on the window seat, so I could look out at the street below. Granddad had decorated the bedroom in a light grey and white colour scheme. There was a double bed, a desk, a bookshelf and a cupboard in the room. I knew I'd be comfortable, but I was already starting to feel a bit homesick.

Hopefully, it won't take me long to make some new friends, I thought as I watched the traffic going by. I'm sure that'll help me get settled. I just hope I can become a good fireman. Otherwise, I don't know what I'll do with myself.

…

Three days later, granddad drove me to the Cardiff Central Fire Station for my first evening of Fire Cadet training. I stared up at the building as I got out of the car. There were three fire engine bays, and the building was five stories tall. One of the firemen saw us arrive, and he came over to us.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"My grandson, Sam, is here to begin as a Fire Cadet," granddad explained.

"You'd better follow me. I'll take you to see the Station Officer." We headed inside the fire station, and we ascended the stairs. "By the way, I'm Leading Fireman McArthur. Have you always wanted to become a fireman, Sam?"

"No," I replied, perhaps a little too bluntly.

"Oh? What made you change your mind?"

"A number of things. I think it's an honourable career path to follow."

"You're not a reforming firebug, are you?"

"Why do you think I am?"

Fireman McArthur smiled. "Because most firemen are."

I quickly bit my bottom lip. I still felt guilty whenever I thought about the house fire. We reached the top of the second flight of stairs, and Leading Fireman McArthur escorted us down the hallway to an office. He knocked on the door.

"Come in."

We entered the office. The Station Officer looked up from his desk. He must've been in his late forties at least, with slightly greying brunette hair and a stocky build.

"Sorry to disturb you, sir," Fireman McArthur said. "Our new recruit for the Fire Cadets has arrived."

"Thank you, Patrick. You may return to your duties now."

Fireman McArthur left us, closing the door behind him. The Station Officer gestured for us to sit down, so we did.

"I'm Station Officer Darren Michaels, and I presume that you are Mr Jones?"

"Yes," granddad answered. "And this is my grandson, Sam. He's very keen to join the Fire Cadets."

I saw Station Officer Michaels take out my application form from a folder on his desk. "I'm sure he is. But, I couldn't help noticing that you signed his application form. Are you his legal guardian?"

"I am now that he's living with me," granddad replied. "His parents aren't as supportive of his wish to become a fireman."

"I see…"

"I've been doing some volunteer work at the Pontypandy Fire Station," I supplied. I was worried that he might refuse to accept me into the Fire Cadets because of my parents. "Station Officer Boyce recommended that I join the Fire Cadets until I'm old enough to join the Fire Academy."

"I know Boyce. He's a good fireman, and an old friend of mine. All right, Sam. We'll give you a trial." Station Officer Michaels looked at granddad. "You can come back here to collect him at nine o'clock. Don't worry about his dinner. We'll provide it for him each week."

"Thank you." Granddad smiled proudly at me. "Stay out of mischief, you hear?"

I smiled sweetly. "Hwyl tad-cu."

Station Officer Michaels opened his office door. "Fireman Silverton? Could you please show Mr Jones downstairs to his car?"

"Yes, sir."

After granddad had gone, Station Officer Michaels took me upstairs to the third floor. We entered a room that was like a huge walk-in-wardrobe. Uniforms of all sizes hung from coatracks, and helmets were stacked up on top of each other.

"Right, Sam. Let's find you a uniform that fits."

"I wasn't expecting to get a uniform!" I said excitedly.

"Everyone gets a uniform, even our Cadets. It'll help protect you while you're learning how to fight fires. Here. Try this jacket on."

Before long, I was fully kitted out in my new uniform. It consisted of yellow patent leather pants, a black woollen jacket with silver buttons, and of course, a yellow firefighting helmet with the station's logo on it. My helmet also had a large black dot on each side.

"That's to let everyone know that you're a Cadet," Station Officer Michaels explained before I could even ask. "When you get older and more experienced, you might be allowed out on callouts with us. Now, let's assign you to a locker, and then we'll go have dinner. Your uniform is not to leave the station, understood?"

"Yes, sir."

About fifteen minutes later, after I'd placed my helmet and jacket inside my assigned locker, I followed Station Officer Michaels into the mess hall. There were about twenty other firemen inside the room, all tucking into their dinner.

"Can I have your attention please, everyone?" Station Officer Michaels shouted. The chatter immediately ceased. "Thank you. Now, I'd like to introduce our newest Cadet to you." He placed his hands on my shoulders. "This is Fire Cadet Sam Jones. I hope you'll all help him feel welcome and assist him if he needs it."

There was a spattering of applause from the firemen. Station Officer Michaels handed me a plate, and I went over to the kitchen servery to get my dinner. Once I had what I wanted for dinner, I sat down at the table between a boy about my age, and Leading Fireman McArthur.

"I'm Simon Jules," the boy said. "It'll be great having another Cadet around. I've been lonely ever since the last boy left. Where are you from?"

"Pontypandy."

"Never heard of it."

"It's near Newtown."

Simon shook his head. "I don't know that place either. I've never left Cardiff."

"Ydych chi'n siarad Cymraeg?"

"What?"

I sighed sadly. "Never mind." I hope I can find someone who can speak Welsh.

"Did you just speak in Welsh?" Simon asked.

I nodded slightly. Simon stood up.

"Hey, everyone! We've got a Welshie here!"

"Sit down, Cadet Jules!" Fireman McArthur snapped. "Just because Cadet Jones can speak his native language, there's no need for you to make a song and dance about it."

Simon sat down. "At least we now have a nickname for him."

"How many times do I have to tell you, Cadet Jules?" Station Officer Michaels said as he sat down at the head of the long table. "This is not the London Fire Brigade. We do not have nicknames in the Cardiff Fire Brigade. You will address each other formally and respect each other's differences. Hands up those of you who can speak Welsh."

I, and four other firemen put up our hands. Station Officer Michaels nodded in my direction.

"There you go, Cadet Jones. You may talk to these fellows if you want to speak in Welsh. I don't mind conversations in Welsh, just as long as you change to English if a non-Welsh speaker joins in."

"Understood, sir," I said shyly.

At that moment, the station's alarms went off. With a collective groan of annoyance, the firemen leap up, grabbing at the marker pens scattered all over the table. I watched as each fireman quickly wrote his initials on the edge of their plate before racing out of the room. In less than a minute, only Station Officer Michaels, Simon and myself were left at the table. Station Officer Michaels gestured with his head towards the windows behind us.

"Have a look, Sam."

I went over to the windows, and I opened one of them in time to see two fire appliances exit the station directly below me, with their lights and sirens going. I smiled as I stared out at the night time city skyline.

Maybe I will get used to this. I hope I do, because this is exactly what I want to do. I can't wait until I'm allowed out on a callout.

"Sam?" Station Officer Michaels called kindly. "Shut the window. Your dinner's getting cold."

I immediately obeyed.