Sorry for the delay. The tribulations of having little ones means that any writing is a bit tricky. Hope you like. Do say if you do, then I might post another. Thanks to my beta, BK, for the cheerleading and the handy teachery advice.
IN CAMERA, Part 2 of ?
Kate was trying hard to remain focused on the discussion at hand as Glenda Aspinall droned on at her staff members regarding the changing marking criteria for the examining board. Glenda's delivery was as uninspired as the clothes she wore. For the sake of utility and parsimony, she tended to revolve a limited wardrobe on a fortnightly basis. Today, was a 1970's paisley patterned dress of indeterminate colour and shape she had probably acquired in her first days of teaching.
From the corner of her eye, Kate could see Michael scribbling notes into his pad. He smirked at her and underlined a sentence of his florid cursive script.
"Sperm frock: must be Tuesday."
Stifling a laugh, she looked straight ahead.
"Any new proposals?" murmured Glenda Armitage in her unremitting monotone.
At that point, Michael shifted in his seat and coughed lightly.
"Thank you, Glenda. I have been working on something."
Michael then began a lively pitch of his Hands across Europe scheme. Since he and Kate had joined the school a couple of years previously, they had spent many evenings in the language labs, taking down ancient posters of the Eiffel Tower and maps showing La Rochelle, and righting the wrongs of the stultifying modern language department. Michael was forthright and sharply dressed in contrast to his woolly colleagues. His boyishly charming if slightly gossipy demeanour was alloyed with an obvious ambition for early promotion. Promotion as though by birthright, Caroline had thought after her first private meeting with him.
Within a few weeks of his first term, he had a coterie of adolescent girls, rather keener on French since his arrival. A popularity that was mirrored in the girls'own mothers, who were quick to look him out on his first parents' evening. He had, there was no more apposite term, "worked the hall", chatting over the tea urn and offering the tin of chocolate biscuits, usually reserved for the governors, to all comers. Even Gavin, the Chair of the board of governors had commented to Caroline that he was a "Young Turk", with more than a hint of tacit approval.
Caroline barely listened to his presentation as she pondered the day's workload, rejigging meetings and mentally redrafting her introduction to the latest version of the school's prospectus. But her lack of attentiveness did not extend to Kate.
It had been a three weeks since the incident in the chapel. She had been overwhelmed with work since then, not admitting to herself that her requests to her secretary to fill up her diary and field her calls was also an effective strategy in avoiding Kate. But her absence at the Modern Language's departmental termly planning meeting would have been noted by more than her friend. She couldn't be seen to be losing her grip, especially not in front of Michael Dobson.
She had been watching Kate and Michael's exchange from the end of the board table, where she sat. Caroline remembered how earlier he had opened the door for Kate, and Caroline had noticed how he had clasped Kate's shoulder protectively, as though to reassure her. The chivalrous attention had struck Caroline as one that assumed ownership.
An unnamed sensation rose in her throat and she put her elegant fingers over the meeting papers, her right hand covering her wedding band and engagement ring on her left as though to ward off any ministrations from Kate, John, or Michael even.
Caroline rationalised her feelings into a professional concern for a close friend. Kate and Michael's rapport and amiable chatter was as easy as her encounters with Kate were fraught. She had initially approved of it, assuming that new teachers needed to work well together. But of late she had noted that it was Michael who slid to the front, taking extensive credit with Glenda Aspinall for their joint initiatives in the classroom.
As Michael wrapped up his presentation for the A level students' Maastricht project, he waited for the fulsome praise he had come to expect. All the staff looked towards Caroline for an initial comment. She gathered her thoughts into what she hoped would be taken as an astutely considered appraisal.
"It is a commendable idea, Michael, but since it is untested, I don't think it would be wise to roll it out widely as yet."
Michael went on undeterred, confident that she could be convinced of his scheme's merit. "Caroline, I wouldn't be quite so precipitous as to dismiss it out of hand, since we will be exposing our most talented pupils to opportunities beyond the usual Oxbridge college milk round" he began.
Caroline prickled with animosity, "Michael, when you can sit down with Glenda and demonstrate how you are going to fund this project with its transport and accommodation costs from the department's current budget, I will give it further consideration. At the moment, with the number of students you propose to take to Belgium, I cannot see this as much more than pointless gallivanting for a bunch of Eurovision politico wannabes playing pretendy parliament."
When Michael silently gobbled in astonishment, Kate felt compelled to speak up, irked by Caroline's curt dismissal. "Michael has put a lot of work in. This is worth rather more of your time, Caroline."
"I beg your pardon?" Caroline looked with opprobrium at Kate, who untypically for her, held her gaze.
As the bell for the end of the day rang, the other teachers fidgeted, so that Glenda called a close to the meeting. "Perhaps, we could follow this up later, Caroline, in a smaller session?" Caroline nodded her assent and stood up to leave.
Michael looked at Kate expectantly. "Let's regroup-Judge's Inn, 7:30, are you coming?"
"Is later still on?" Kate called after Caroline. "The rehearsal?" Caroline berated herself. She had forgotten that there was a long-standing tradition that the choir's first rehearsal that Kate led, was attended by the headmistress. Under Kate's enquiring gaze, Caroline vacillated between longing and confusion. Unsettled, she retreated into her habitual diffidence.
"It's not vital, is it? We can rearrange". Caroline spoke lightly over her shoulder, as she retreated from the room. Kate smiled over-brightly at Michael. "Just give me one second", and slipped out of the door.
She saw Caroline disappear into the massed student throng, pouring out of their final lessons. Hurrying past the hubbub of jostling children, she caught up to her. Walking beside her, she spoke a little resentfully, "I didn't get a proper answer."
"You did. Go to your rehearsal and then to the pub, Kate." Kate stole a sidelong glance at her friend. Caroline's face was unreadable. At once, her bewilderment at Caroline's aberrant behaviour coaleased into frustration. Frustration she did little to hide.
"Why are avoiding me? Why are you complicating matters?" Kate snapped.
Caroline sped up so that Kate, despite being taller, had to skip a couple of steps to keep up. Caroline's low voice was edged with a brittle sharpness,
"Because that is precisely what this is; complicated. Let me state the blindingly obvious. One, I am still married. Two, I have two teenage sons at this school. Three, I haven't a clue what I think about you, about us, or anything of any substance at the moment. Aptly demonstrated by that farce of a meeting just now. Which, I could add, you didn't assist in."
Kate was bewildered. "What, what? Are you calling me unprofessional", indignation drawing out a dusk flush on her reddening cheeks.
"Four," ran on Caroline, "it is not as though you are short of other more attractive offers. Look, if you don't want to do this anymore, I get it. I mean, who needs this much of a headache."
"If I what?..Whoa, back up, where the hell has this come from?" thinking Kate furiously.
"You think.." she spoke deliberately as a latent suspicion dawned on her. Stopping in the middle of the steps, Kate said,
"He's a mate. You are kidding me?"
She looked down at Caroline's stricken face, who was standing a few steps further down the staircase. Realising she was serious, Kate lightly touched her elbow and marched down a further narrower flight of stairs, and off along a corridor that telescoped into a door marked Staff Only. Caroline step slowed, excusing herself,
"I've got to go. I have a meeting with the bursar in fifteen minutes."
Steering her into the bookroom, and shutting the door behind them, Kate said firmly, "Simon, will wait."
The bookroom was no more than a glorified stationery cupboard and unofficial common room. It was primarily where the language department stored its textbooks, recording equipment for the examinations and other teaching detritus. Crammed into the room were a couple of old chesterfield armchairs and a battered sofa, recycled from the former headteacher's office. Someone, in former days, had attempted to brighten the place with a couple of Toulouse Latrec prints, but their dog-eared corners and the sun-faded grey billowing skirts of can can dancers gave the teachers' refuge an even more forlorn and grubby aspect.
Caroline's phone began its incessant chirping, but before she bring it to her ear, Kate swiped it out of her grasp.
"Hi Simon. It's Kate..." She paused, "Oh yes, Caroline is about. Look, can I ask you a favour? It would be so kind of you if you might give me a little while."
She covered the speaker and mimed at Caroline to shush. "Oh yes...just nipped away." She let out a laugh.
"I'll be sure to tell her."
"What is he saying?" mouthed Caroline agitatedly.
"OK. bye, bye".
Kate cut the call. She indicated to Caroline to sit down. She had had enough of Caroline's prevaricating, "You are jealous of Michael."
"Not likely. That jumped up little twerp. He's after my job. He and Gavin play squash together. Did you know that?"
"You were being imperious and unreasonable. He was visibly hurt by what you said."
"Well he can take a ticket and join the queue," scoffed Caroline. She was used to making unpopular decisions. She had become headmistress due to her incisive leadership rather than on her approval ratings amongst staff members.
"It was unnecessary. And worst of all, it was unkind." Kate's quietly delivered statement with gently reproachful eyes made Caroline's temporary rancour towards Michael evaporate.
"I... I..." Caroline paused to consider her feelings, for the first time in longer than she cared to remember. She paused for breath and at last she spoke truthfully,"I envy him. I envy his freedom. I have obligations. I haven't even begun to consider the boys' needs properly."
"You don't have to do this alone, you know." Kate waited for the offer to sink in. She sat down on the sofa next to Caroline. "I am here for you. I can be your friend, if that is what you need." Kate knew she was making a reckless proposal where she would, in all likelihood, lose out. But she spoke out in spite of herself.
"Take a month. If I hear more from you about us, then good. If I don't, I'll assume you have unfinished business."
"But I can't offer you what you want."
"What I want..." Kate sighed and trailed her hand in the air, placing her fingers to Caroline's lips for the lightest benediction. She ran her thumb against Caroline's cheek to clear stray blonde hairs that had fallen in front of her face. It was a simple tender gesture that had Caroline both enthralled and unfairly vulnerable. Kate saw in that moment a chance to steal something for herself.
Afterwards, Kate teased Caroline. "Really? Michael Dobson? What were you thinking?" straining to keep the incredulity out of her voice.