Chapter 3. At the school

Next morning I met Liz, Sunny and Elmo at the school gates.

'Oh, wow,' I grinned, looking at Elmo's black eye, which was awfully swollen, 'You're so good-looking today.'

'Very funny,' Elmo pouted.

'Tom,' Liz put in, 'I was just telling Elmo and Sunny that I've had a call from Matron from Craigend this morning. Miss Plummer and a friend of her want to go to the graveyard to visit their friends' graves. Matron asked if we could escort them there. They're too old to go alone, and Matron is very busy these days and can't drive them to there. I said that we agreed. I hoped you wouldn't mind. So what do you think?'

'Sure,' I shrugged.

'I'm also in,' Sunny nodded. 'I need some cash.'

'Hi!' I heard a playful voice from behind and felt the scent of expensive perfume. I turned round. Mary Horsety, our classmate, was standing next to me and smiling friendly.

What's wrong with her? I thought suspiciously. Horsety, or just Horse, as we called her behind her back, never took Liz, Elmo and me seriously. She spoke to us only when she needed something. Although, she got on with Nick. And with Richelle recently.

At this time Zane Quistok and his sister Zeny came up to us.

'Mary-y! Hi!' Zane's mouth twisted into an admiring grin from ear to ear.

'Hi,' Mary didn't even deign to glance at him. 'Liz,' she turned to Liz. 'You promised to help me with the essay. Remember?'

'Of course,' Liz nodded.

'Liz, I really need your help,' Mary went on in a very serious voice. 'My parents says that if I don't receive a good mark for this essay, they will cancel my birthday party on Saturday.'

Oh, this is it, I thought. That's why she's so friendly with us. As soon as she receives her good mark, and I'm sure that she'll receive it, because Liz writes really good essays, she'll forget about Liz's help. And I don't think that she'll even invite Liz, and the rest of us to her party. Not that I wanted to go to her party, quite the opposite. But I think that it's unfair.

'I can't let them cancel my party,' Mary went on. 'You know, I want to invite Mr Craven.'

Mr Craven is our history teacher. Horse has been in love with him since he came to work at Raven Hill High, and she did her best, trying to make him pay attention to her. Mr Craven, quite the opposite, tried to keep as far as possible from her. So when I heard that she was going to invite him to her birthday party, I couldn't help snorting with laughter.

'He'll flip you off,' I said.

'Oogh, you wretch!' plump Horsety swung her big fists wildly at me.

I ducked to the side. Horsety's fist swept past me and hit Elmo's shoulder. He howled with pain.

'You move over, pipsqueak,' furious Horse snapped. 'Otherwise I'll bash you by accident. Though,' she snorted, noticing his black eye, 'I see that someone has already done that.'

Elmo blushed and muttered something, but stepped aside. Horse was a quite big and strong girl, and in such a furious state she could seriously injure someone.

'Mary, you look great today,' Zane broke in. I don't know why, but he always liked Mary.

'I know,' Horse reacted quite indifferently to his raptures. She didn't feel the same to Zane. Well, she didn't feel anything to him at all. There was only one man in the whole world for her - Mr Craven. Poor Zane. I perfectly understood how he felt.

Zane still kept staring at her in fascination. I nudged him in the ribs. 'Invite her,' I whispered in his ear. He made a face at me, then nodded.

'Mary, listen,' he said. 'I've made a cool thing for your party. What about…'

'Sorry, Zane, I don't think there will be enough place for you,' Horse waved him off like shooing away a bothersome fly. Zane's face fell in disappointment. At that moment Nick went through the school gates.

'Nickie, hi!' intensely spreading spicy perfume fragrances, Horsety moved towards him. 'Will you come to my birthday party alone or with Richelle?' we heard her coquettish exclaim.

I glanced at Zane. He was standing with his jaw dropped. He looked really sad. Elmo clapped him on the shoulder.

'There's no need to be so sad,' he said reassuringly. 'She isn't worthy of this honour.'

'I'm sick of this Kontellis and his rich daddy,' Zane replied grimly.

Mr Brinkley's car drew up beside the school gates. Richelle clambered out of the passenger seat, kissed her dad on the cheek and leisurely came over to us. She looked as glamorous as ever.

'Hi,' she said. 'What does she want from him?' she looked discontentedly to where Nick and Horse were talking.

'Ask your boyfriend,' Zane grumbled.

'Cheer up, Zane,' Sunny grinned. 'Look over there,' she jerked her head towards the school gates. Mr Craven was coming through them.

'Mr Craven!' Horse immediately rushed to him. Nick was left standing there alone just in the same state of heavy bewilderment, as Zane had been a few minutes ago.

Zane grinned with pleasure and saying, 'see you later,' ran towards the school building. Nick came up to us.

'What did she want?' Richelle asked jealously.

'Nothing,' Nick shrugged. 'She just asked if we'd go to her birthday party. I said we'd come together.'

'Hang on with your party,' Liz chipped in. 'We have a job for today.'

She quickly told Nick and Richelle about Matron's offer. 'It will only take one or two hours,' she said hurriedly, noticing how Nick and Richelle's faces changed when they heard the news.

'To escort two old women to the graveyard,' Richelle groaned. 'Liz, are you crazy?

'There's nothing wrong in it,' Sunny said reasonably. 'We ought to help old people. One day you'll also be old and weak and will need help.'

Richelle stuck her bottom lip out sulkily, but she didn't start to argue. Nick also agreed. He wasn't over the moon about this job, but he had spent all his money in Melbourne, and we still didn't have other offers. It looked as if all people in Raven Hill, who needed our help, had died.

During the conversation we came into the school and went up to the second floor, where we all had a math lesson. There we came across Zane again.

'Listen,' he rushed towards us, 'I've thought of something. It's going to be great!

'What have you thought?' I asked with interest. 'How to jig maths?'

I never mind skipping lessons, especially maths and other lessons like that. But today I really wanted to skip maths, because of all these worries and the guys' journey, I completely forgot to do my maths assignment.

'No,' Zane replied. 'I'm speaking about Mary's party.'

'Ooh,' his words disappointed me very much. 'I thought that you, Zane, wanted to make another surprise for the maths teacher.'

'No way,' Zane shook his head firmly. 'She won't endure one more surprise from me.'

'Think about me, not about the teacher,' I said with reproach. 'I didn't do my assignment again. Do you want me to have more troubles with Brian?'

'It's not my problem,' Quistok obviously didn't feel like playing risky tricks with teachers today.

'You are getting old and boring, dude,' I clapped him on the shoulder. 'Old! Old!'

'Yeah. Unlike him, you Tom will never grow up,' Nick drawled. 'Even old and with grey hair and long beard, you'll ever be a little kid.

Liz and Richelle, who were standing next to him, sniggered.

'Oh, come on!' I waved both my hands at them. 'You never sympathize with me. I've got a chronic mathematic decease.'

'Listen, chronic mathematic decease,' Sunny grinned. 'Let's go in. The bell is ringing.'

We came up to the classroom and went through the open door. Brent Howe was standing in the middle of the class and loudly spoke.

'She tells, "Mr Craven, come to my birthday party on Saturday",' he squeaked, obviously imitating Horse's voice. 'And he replies "Sorry, I can't. I have better things to do than to go to a student's birthday party."'

'He replied like that!?' Jenny gasped. 'I can't believe it!'

'Exactly,' Brent went on willingly. 'He said: "invite your sniveling boys. I need a serious and grown up girlfriend.'

'Hey, hey! Hang on!' several girls protested. 'We didn't get it! What girlfriend? Does Mr Craven have a girlfriend?'

'Of course he has,' Brent basked in everyone's attention. 'His girlfriend is Mary's sister. She graduated the university last year and they say that she dates with our Mr Craven. As far as I heard they have a serious relationship!'

'Does Mary know about it?' asked some girls. No one noticed Horsety, who had been standing in the doorway next to me for quite a long time.

'Of course she knows,' Brent nodded. 'Oh, Mary and her sister had such a fight! You should have seen it! Mary almost tore all hair from her poor sister's head.'

'Wow!' 'Great!' 'Awesome!' boys and girls gasped and clapped their hands to their mouths.

'He's lying!' Horsety squealed. 'There's nothing between my sister and Mr Craven! She doesn't even know him! You dirty bastard!' she grabbed a chair and rushed towards Brent.

'Hey, Mary, calm down!' Brent dashed to the door in a panic. 'It was just a joke!'

'I don't care!' Mary was yelling. 'Don't dare to laugh at me and my sister!' she stopped abruptly and threw the chair at Brent.

Brent ducked to the side. The chair, thrown by Horse's powerful hand, flew towards the door. Right at that time Mrs Fenelli, our teacher, came in. 'The maths teacher fell ill,' she began, 'so you'll have science class instead…' at that moment the chair flew past her and crashed into the wall. Her face paled.

'Murders!' she gasped, her eyes rolled and she fainted.

'Mrs Fenelli?' Brent bent over the teacher, who was lying still half in the classroom and half in the hallway. 'Mrs Fenelli? Are you all right?'

She didn't answer. We all crowded around her and stared at each other in dismay.

'Maybe we'd better call the ambulance?' Simon Luper said doubtfully.

'She's breathing,' Liz knelt down, looking close at Mrs Fenelli's face. Liz herself was very pale. As well as most of us. Horse's little joke had backfired well and truly.

'She's so pale,' Jenny whispered anxiously. 'Are you sure that it's just a faint?'

Sunny took the teacher's wrist and felt her pulse. 'Her pulse is quite weak,' she said.'

'We should call the ambulance,' Elmo said firmly. 'Anyone, call the ambulance!'

'No, wait,' Quistok held up his hand. 'Let's drag her into the room and close the door first. Then we'll decide how to revive her. Otherwise someone will see us and we'll be deep in trouble.'

'We are in trouble already,' Nick grumbled.

Everyone uneasily shuffled their feet near the lying teacher, not daring to touch her.

'Come on,' Zane pushed Brent towards Mrs Fenelli. 'Take her!'

'Why me?' Brent protested.

'Oh, come on!' Liz stamped her foot. 'You should do something! She needs medical aid!'

'Keep your shirts on, guys! I know what to do!' Zane ran up to the window, grabbed a watering pot and lavishly poured some water on Mrs Fenelli's pale face. The result was instantaneous. Mrs Fenelli sat upright as if she had been stung.

'Where am I?' she looked at us in bewilderment. 'What happened?'

We all exchanged glances. What could we say to the teacher in this situation?

While we stood there, confused, clustering around her and not knowing what to say, Mrs Fenelli ran her hand over her face and hair.

'Water?' she stared at her wet hand. 'Water? Oh, the pipe burst!' she screamed so suddenly that we all jumped with fear. 'The pipe burst again!' She jumped to her feet and stormed out of the class.

'Do you think she's okay?' Sunny looked doubtfully after her.

'It's difficult to say,' Nick drawled.

'Well, it doesn't matter, does it?' Quistok spread his hands. 'She'll come to herself and run straight to the principal and tell him about us.'

'It's all your fault,' Nick glanced at Zane unfriendly.

'It's not my fault!' Zane had to defend himself. 'It's Mary! It was her who threw that chair at Brent.'

'By the way, I noticed one thing,' I said in a wise tone, 'when you throw chairs, you always hit a wrong target.'

'Oh, never mind! This time I'll hit the right target,' Horse grabbed the chair again.

'Hey, Mary, stop that! Calm down! We've got enough troubles for today!' Liz and Sunny tried to stop her.

'Tell him to apologize for talking rot about me and my sister,' Horsety growled, moving towards Brent with the chair.

'It was just a joke,' Brent laughed loudly.

'You wretch! You beast!' Horsety threw the chair at him.

Athletic and adroit Brent managed to duck from the chair again. The chair crashed to the floor near the door and fell apart.

At that moment the door threw open and Mr Frangelli, the principal, came in. We all dashed to our desks, sat down and stared at him with innocent eyes. The principal looked around us severely, then noticed the broken chair, that was lying on the floor.

'Why broken furniture is lying on the floor?' he asked gravely.

'Horsety sat down on this chair and broke it,' I grinned.

'You're dead, Moysten!' Horse jumped to her feet and rushed towards me.

'Horsety! Take your seat!' Mr Frangelli shouted. Horse reluctantly sat down on her chair.

The rest of us were quiet. I think everyone expected a serious punishment. After all we scared Mrs Fenelli so much that she had fainted, and then Zane poured water on her face.

'I've got a message for you,' Mr Frangelli said. 'We have some difficulties with the timetable. Your first lesson was mathematics, but the teacher fell ill, so we replaced it by science. But Mrs Fenelli had problems at home and had to go home. She said that a pipe burst, or something… Anyway, now you have a free lesson…'

We all began grinning and nudging each other. It seemed that this time we escaped troubles.

'It's not funny,' Mr Frangelli scowled. 'You might sympathize with your teachers.'

'We're very sorry for them, Mr Frangelli,' I grinned widely.

'Looking at you I can't say that you're sorry,' the principal frowned at me.

'Moysten is like a clown,' Nick put in. 'You know, clowns are smiling all the time, even if they're sad.'

'If that so,' Mr Frangelli muttered, 'you all are like clowns then. Okay. You can be free now. But please, be quiet. Other kids are studying, don't bother them. I don't want to receive teachers' complaints about you. And take away the broken chair.'