A Day at the Races
Acepilot

AN – Wow! I got seven reviews in one day for a 900 word chapter! This is…different…thank you all for reviewing! Very, very much! In response to Hopeless' questions – Matt is also the name of the friend from Deciduous, yes. Whoops. Actually, Races and the Road series have no relation to each other, but yeah, I probably could have been a bit more creative. And as for Pacific House – at all the Schools I've been to, the houses have been named after something specific – explorers, lakes in the region, birds, or streets in the immediate vicinity. I've chosen to be nicely vague and go with Oceans. So…

Phil, Dil, and Chuckie are a part of Pacific House (green).

Tommy and Lil are from Atlantic House (red).

Kimi is from Southern House (blue).

And there is also an Arctic House (yellow) but no-one important is in it.

Disclaimer – see act 1.

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Act 2

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"Alright, everyone!" Pangborn's voice wailed over the bullhorn, "let's see you in your houses. Now!"

With their typical disdain, everyone ignored him.

Seeing little other option, he just growled into the bullhorn and stormed over to the scoring table.

"Think he'll ever stop trying?" Kimi asked Lil, not bothering to turn to look at the other girl. They both lay, quite appropriately lounging in their banana lounges, not a care in the world, and certainly no sport on the agenda.

"Probably not," Lil told her, reaching for a can of lemonade. "Drink?"

"Nah, I'll be right," Kimi told her.

This time, it was O'Keat's voice that came over the speakers, not Pangborn's. Whether the vice-principal had gone on to host some event or had just given up on working with the students, no-one was certain. "As usual, the opening events will be the sprints. Everyone is to assemble in their age groups and genders across the north side of the oval. You will be given further instruction from there."

Phil looked up at the speaker. "Well, I guess that's our cue," he said, looking around. "Has Matt shown up yet?"

"No," Dil said, starting to look unusually pale.

Phil shrugged. "It's alright. We don't need him for the individual stuff. Everyone knows he's our best runner, he can come in on the relay this afternoon."

"Alright," Dil said. The younger boy dug around in his bag and withdrew a ludicrously tall top hat which had been dyed in shades of green. He put it on, tugged it down a bit to secure it, and turned to Phil. "What do you think?"

Phil raised an eyebrow. "For lack of a better word…"

"Alright! Where are all you slackers. The lady said to get to your age groups now, so move it!"

Tommy groaned. "But I don't want to sprint! It'll ruin my legs for the long jump."

"It won't be that bad," Chuckie assured him.

"Won't be that bad? Chuckie, I have to win the long jump. I have to!"

"Why?" Chuckie asked, genuinely puzzled. "Why the long jump? Why anything at all?"

"Because I never have, and I know I can!" Tommy told him. "I know I can do it. Every year, I come second. And now, I've only got two more chances. And if I don't win this year, then I probably won't win next year, either, and then we're on to high school, where it gets even more competitive, and I'll have to –"

"Breathe."

"Yeah, breathe and run and –"

"No, seriously, Tommy, you've got to breathe or your going to pass out," Chuckie told him. "Look, Tommy, if you're really determined, if you really want to win, then nothing's going to stop you. Certainly not the fact that you've sprinted at the start of the day. And all your competitors will have had the same problem."

The purple-haired Pickles sighed. "I know, I know. I just…I've got to do it, Chuckie."

"And you will," Chuckie told him. "Now, come on, before Pangborn comes looking."

Tommy left Chuckie at the red-head's older age group with a sigh, approaching the line in which he could see Phil and – just beyond – Dil, chatting about something or other.

"Is it against the rules to conspire with the enemy?" Tommy asked miserably, stepping up to stand next to the DeVille boy.

Phil appraised him coolly. "Well, normally us Pacifics wouldn't be caught dead socialising with you Atlantic scum, but we'll make an exception."

Tommy grinned at him. "Ah yes, the Pacific elitism runs deep." He indicated his own red athletics outfit. "But it doesn't run fast."

"You won't even see me on the track, Pickles," Phil declared, putting something of a western swagger into his voice. "Just a blurry afterimage of something that might have been me."

"But then, it might have been a blowfly," Tommy bantered. This was what he needed, to take his mind of – certain things that he needed to be taking his mind off. It wouldn't do him any good to get caught up in thinking about –

Thankfully for Tommy Pickles, he was provided with an ideal distraction in the form of Lil DeVille and Kimi Finster storming past, arguing at the top of their lungs, easily audible over the dull roar of conversation from the assembled masses.

Lil, her face as red as her clothes, was charging after a blue-clad Kimi. "You get back here!"

"I didn't mean it," Kimi tossed over her shoulder.

"Yes you did!" Lil insisted. "Do you deny calling me an inferior athlete?"

"I didn't say that, Lil," Kimi said, finally turning to face her counterpart. "I just said that it was a good thing for everyone that I wasn't competing, because I would wipe the floor with them – "

"And you implied that I wouldn't!" Lil roared.

The conversations happening throughout the front edges of the crowd had died down as everyone turned to face this new, far more entertaining element of athletics day. The perennial favourite – the personal rivalry.

"I never said that –"

"That doesn't mean you didn't mean it!"

"Alright! So yes, I think I would beat you!" There was a collective gasp from the surrounds, to which Kimi merely replied, "Oh, shut up."

"Alright, girly, you're on!" Lil announced, stepping up to be nose-to-nose with her new-found nemesis. "You won't know what hit you by the end of the day!"

"Bring it on," Kimi hissed.

Phil stepped forward. "Uh, girls, maybe –"

"Back off!"

Phil backed away from the stereophonic effect of both voices hitting him at once. "As ordered," he quipped, tossing a quick salute before hiding behind Tommy.

Dil came up behind Phil. "You taking bets on this?"

Phil considered for a moment, but then shook his head. "No, I don't think I'd get away with my life if they found out."

Dil sighed disappointedly. "Pity. I was hoping for short odds on Kimi."

Beaker's voice came out in it's permanent monotone over the PA. "Alright, the first races are about to begin. Please take your marks for the younger age groups. Older students, no pushing, you'll all get a turn."

This last part seemed directed at Kimi and Lil, who were all but screaming to be allowed to race.

Chuckie observed this all from a distance and was struggling to refrain from biting his nails.

Oh well. At least this would be a close one. And he wouldn't have to be involved at all.

A few minutes later, the crowd roared around him as the scoreboard lit up with the first results of the day were put up – the junior sprints were over, with Pacific House earning a narrow lead to begin the day.

Yep, Chuckie decided, it feels pretty good to just be able to sit back and watch.

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