A special thank you goes out to SF64Rules91, who without their help, would have resulted in a longer delay to Sodor High School. More thank you goes out to Sodormatchmaker and DaveMan1000, our newest writers for this series, who along with SF64Rules91 wrote this special episode, the fiftieth edition in this series. Also, special thank you goes out to all of you for commenting and encouraging this series for the years it's been up. Here's the next 50, but hopefully be a little faster than the time it took to make these fifty episodes.
Sodor High School: Thomas & Friends Tales
Written by: ThomasZoey3000 / SF64Rules91 / DaveMan1000 / sodormatchmaker
Based on the Railway Series by: The Rev. W. and Christopher Awdry
Based on the Television Series by: Britt AllCroft, David Mitton, Lionsgate, and Universal Pictures
OC(s) owned by: SF64Rules91
Episode 50: Ray of Sunshine
After a bus ride through town, James and Molly arrived outside the local police station. James was nervous about going inside to tell the police of the abuse from Mr. Hughes, but Molly reminded him that she's with him, so he took a deep breath and followed his (and only) friend inside the building.
(inside…)
Inside the police station, James and Molly both walked up to the main desk to speak to the officer on duty.
"May I help you, kids?" The officer grunted.
"Err, well…" stuttered James, before feeling Molly nudging him to go on, "We'd like to report a case of abuse."
"Abuse?"
"You see, my friend here has been abused by his own Step-Father," explained Molly, "This morning at school, I noticed his face was heavily bruised. See here?" As James turned his head, she pointed at the mark on his cheek, "This was from the recent incident."
The officer said nothing, which made James all the more nervous. After some silence, the officer spoke up again.
"May I have your names, please?" he pressed professionally.
"James Hughes," replied James.
"Molly Russell," put in Molly.
"Very good," The officer nodded, writing a few notes down before two additional police officers were called upon, "We're gonna look into this."
"Eh?" blinked James.
"It means they're going to your house to have a talk with your Mother and Step-Father and get this straightened out," Molly pointed out.
James got it, "Oh!"
(elsewhere…)
Ten minutes later, the police car pulled up in the driveway of the Hughes residence, with both police officers, James, and Molly all getting out of the car. The police officers marched up to the front door and rang the bell. Seconds later, Mrs. Hughes answered the door, most surprised to see the police of all people.
"T-The police-!" cried Mrs. Hughes, before noticing James and Molly nearby, "James-!"
"May we please come in, Marlene Hughes?" The first police officer asked politely.
"There are a couple of things we'd like to talk about," The second police officer added.
Mrs. Hughes uneasily allowed the police inside the house, while James and Molly followed suit.
(inside…)
In the living room, the two police officers sat down on the couch, while Mrs. Hughes sat down on the nearby chair. James and Molly both just stood.
"Ma'am, we received a report from these two youngsters about some abuse coming from this household," began the first police officer.
"If it's alright, we'd like some answers," said the second police officer, "Are physical altercations prolific in this household?"
"No, I don't believe so," answered Mrs. Hughes truthfully, but then remembered earlier on, "But…my new husband, Simon, did get a little rocky with James not long ago…" She then looked unhappy, "They both don't exactly have a very good relationship."
"That's for sure," thought James.
"Who doesn't have a good relationship with whom?" The voice of Mr. Hughes echoed, as he entered the living room and saw the police, "What the-?! What in heaven's name are the police doing here?" He noticed James nearby and lost his temper, "You-! Did you get yourself in trouble with the law again, boy?!"
"Sir, please take a seat," interrupted the first police officer, "We need to have a long talk."
Mr. Hughes was far from being pleased, but had enough sense to listen to the police and sat down on the chair as requested. For the next hour, the police listened to each family member's side of the story, and Molly even added in her own testimony. When they were finally done, the police wrote in their notebooks and spoke to Mr. and Mrs. Hughes…
"Based on what we heard, I think we know what to make of this," The second police officer informed, first looking at Mrs. Hughes with a disapproving look on his face, "From what we can gather, the reason for James' acts of unorthodox behavior stems from you being an occasional overbearing Mother, demanding that he be better than everyone else around him, and berating him for not living up to your expectations. Yet you have the 'audacity' to wonder why James gets himself into so much trouble?" She looked a little solemn over what she was being told, "If you want your son to be more well behaved, then I suggest you tone things down, and show that you appreciate him no matter what he can or 'can't' do."
Mrs. Hughes nodded, understanding and promising to be a better Mother for her son, while also promising to reign her husband in better. The police weren't done; they also turned to face Mr. Hughes next.
"Sir, you are not being arrested, but given the circumstances, we will be conducting an 'investigation'," warned the first police officer firmly, as Mr. Hughes listened, "However, for the safety of James here, you will be relocated from the premises until our investigation has concluded. Do you understand?"
Mr. Hughes, as irate as he was about having to be temporarily relocated to a different home, nodded in silence. Mrs. Hughes also accepted the conditions. Nearby, James sighed with relief, while Molly kindly placed a hand on his upper arm and smiled.
"See?" The shy blonde-haired girl acknowledged, "It's all worked out in the end. You just need to learn to have a little more faith."
Nevertheless, James Hughes felt happier than ever thanks to his own personal 'Ray of Sunshine' in Molly Russell.
(elsewhere…)
Inside the basement of the Brighton residence during the night, Thomas, Percy, Edward, Toby, and Gordon were in the basement having a game night of playing D&D. James usually played with them, but given the circumstances, Gordon offered to take his place. Rather than play, the little group spent most of their time talking about James and Molly hanging out.
"You all noticed that James and Molly have been spending a ton of time together?" asked Toby.
"Yes, but I can't imagine why," complained Gordon, "Why would Molly show any compassion towards James over what he tried to do to Percy here?"
"She probably feels sorry for him," guessed Edward, "Right now, he has no friends, and, if what we saw this morning was anything to go by, things at home aren't looking so well."
Gordon grouched, "She feels sorry for him?" he scoffed, "I hardly believe that!"
"Still, she must've seen 'something' to want to approach him in the first place," Thomas pondered, "Edward, you've hung around with Molly more than the rest of us; what do you think would make her take action like that?"
"Well, I know she really doesn't like seeing others down, but never usually takes matters into her own hands without someone else there to back her up, given her more introverted personality," explained Edward, remembering what he knew about Molly and her persona, "My best guess for why she went to James alone was because he's been shunned for so long with no end in sight, she eventually decided enough was enough?"
"Hmph! If you ask me, she's wasting her time," declared Gordon harshly, "People like James 'never' change. How many times has he promised to do better and always fell back to his old tendencies?"
"I'm not sure 'you' have a leg to stand on when it comes to relapsing, Gordon," Toby pointed out, "You have a history of being just as guilty of not learning your lesson as him."
"Hey, at least I don't have attempted murder on my record," Gordon said dismissively.
Toby sighed with frustration over the older boy's stubbornness, while Percy just said nothing. Like Molly, he also felt sorry for James, and really wanted to talk to him and straighten this all out. Then he had an idea.
"Well, rather than just 'guess', why don't we just go and ask Molly directly?" suggested Percy.
"That could work," agreed Thomas, "Since she usually helps out at her Dad's comic shop on weekends, we can go there tomorrow."
And it was agreed to—except for Gordon.
(elsewhere…)
The next day, a Saturday, Molly was busy helping her Father at the comic shop when Thomas, Emily, and Percy each arrived.
"Ah, my favorite customers!" greeted Mr. Russell.
"Hi, Mr. Russell," Emily greeted back, before noticing Molly at the counter, "And hello to you, too, Molly."
Molly gave her friends a friendly wave. When Thomas and Percy finished browsing the shelves for any new comics and brought what they wanted to the counter, they started talking to Molly.
"Molly, we have a question for you," began Thomas, causing Molly to look up, "Please don't take this the wrong way, but why?" she raised an eyebrow, "Why did you start spending time with James?"
Molly's expression soured a bit; having anticipated them asking her about that for some time.
"Because nobody else was going to," replied Molly in the softest way she could, "I believe he's been treated poorly by everyone long enough. Social isolation like that will not be good for him in the future."
Percy frowned slightly, feeling the shy blonde-haired girl made a good point. As he opened his mouth to speak, Thomas quickly cut him off with more he wanted to say.
"Molly, you do remember the incident at the site, don't you?" The voice of Thomas protested, while also looking a little cross, "Percy almost got killed thanks to James' little stunt!"
"Thomas, I'm well aware of that," said Molly calmly, "And I'm not excusing his actions; nor is he. But how can you expect him to show how he's changed if you ostracize him all the time? Plus, you speak as though 'you' all haven't committed any immoral actions yourselves."
"Huh?" flinched Emily.
"For example, let's start with Rosie," offered Molly, "She helped a criminal and the Smelter classroom nearly take over our school, which got you kidnapped and almost killed. And not only was she, Diesel, or his friends not punished in any way, but the Smelters actually got rewarded with a fully repaired classroom."
"Well, there's-" peeped Thomas.
"And Thomas…" cut in Molly, "Everyone's heard about the incident at Great Waterton; how you were so jealous of Stanley getting all the attention that you tried to sabotage him out of petty revenge."
Thomas cringed.
"Diesel even stole our school's Football trophy out of pure pettiness and selfishness," Molly, not letting up, recalled, "That resulted in a chase that nearly put you and Emily both in danger!" She turned her head and faced Emily, "And Emily, there was also that time during the summer where you acted like a self-absorbed diva out of nowhere; treating everybody like they were beneath you, including me."
Emily didn't like being reminded of that bit; she was still ashamed of behaving in that sort of manner and hurting her friends just to try and show up Daisy.
"And we can't forget that 'Arry and Bert both harassed me and tried to frame James for attacking them," reminded Molly, before looking up slightly, "And before school ended last year, I overheard what Mavis did to Toby when she was younger; she naively sicked the Troublesome Trucks gang on him just because he seemingly made her look foolish at a street corner," When neither Thomas, Percy, or Emily said anything back, she continued, "The instigators in all of those examples were given second or even third chances, and some like Diesel still continue to prove time and time again they haven't learned a thing. Granted James' actions were some of the most severe out of everyone, and perhaps some harsh treatment was warranted to sink the message through, but does he deserve to be alone for the rest of his life because of it?"
Thomas and Emily said nothing, with the former thinking about if he and the others had been going too far with rejecting James. After paying for their purchases, they both left the comic store, but Percy remained behind to speak to Molly about something very important.
"Molly, can I tell you something?" The green-haired boy pressed.
"Sure, Percy," accepted Molly, "What's on your mind?"
"It's about what you said about James," replied Percy, "I want to voice my agreement with you."
Molly was surprised, "Really?"
"Yes. Since the incident, I've been trying to talk with James about it; see if we could smooth things over," explained Percy, "But every time I try, he leaves before I can even get a word in. It's like he's deliberately going out of his way to avoid me."
When the explanation ended, Molly put a thoughtful look on her face as did some thinking. Percy patiently waited for a response, and a response he got.
"You know what, Percy?" said Molly wisely, getting an idea, "I think I can help you with that."
"Really?!" asked Percy hopefully.
"Maybe I can speak with James about it, and perhaps get him to start building bridges with everyone else again," Molly went on, before giggling lightly, "He's coming over to my house for a study session today, so I can ask him then."
"Oh man, thanks Molly, that'd be brilliant," smiled Percy
Molly nodded, hoping she could help James and Percy patch things up—which might help in getting everyone else to start talking to James again.
(elsewhere…)
Later in the day, Molly and James were inside the former's living room studying for their upcoming test; reading through their papers over and asked the other questions about what they're studying for. Eventually, Molly closed her book and turned towards James.
"James, could we stop for a second?" she asked, "There's something I want to ask you."
"Sure, okay," answered James, "What is it you want to ask me?"
"Well…" sighed Molly, trying to find the right words, "You see… earlier today, I met up with Percy."
"Huh?"
"He was visiting my Dad's comic store," The shy blonde-haired girl recalled, "He told me that he's been trying to talk with you since the incident, but you've been avoiding him."
James sighed, "I figured he'd eventually tell you…" he said in a somber tone, as Molly listened with curiosity, "Look, I almost killed him at the site," He balled his hands into fists, "I've done some stupid things to him before, but 'never' like that. I know he wants to talk, but I just can't bring myself to face him after everything that's happened."
"I see," frowned Molly, but then smiled slightly, "Well, that's too bad, because I invited him over to study with us," James gawked over that confession, but he looked around as the door bell rang, "Oh, that must be him, now."
"W-What?!" cried James, getting up, "I gotta hide! I can't let him see me!"
"No, you don't," scolded Molly, stopping her friend from trying to escape, "You're going to talk to Percy, and that's final."
Despite his objections, there was nothing James could do to convince Molly otherwise. Soon, Percy was being led into the living room by Mr. Russell.
"You kids hit those books hard, you hear?" advised Mr. Russell.
"Thanks," nodded Percy, before noticing James nearby, "Hey! You're-!"
Time stood still for a few moments. James looked at Percy, Percy looked at James, and Molly glanced between the two, hoping for one of them to break the tension. James stood still as a statue; facing his former friend after so long. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. Feeling a hand on his shoulder, he looked to see Molly giving a gentle smile and a nod, as if to silently say, 'Don't worry, I'm here'. James closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then he faced Percy and smiled weakly.
"Hey, Percy," began James.
"James…" whispered Percy, before smiling back, "It's good to see you."
There was a long, awkward silence between the two, with neither side knowing how to expand on their conversation. But Molly was able to convince James to speak up by carefully nudging him on the side.
"So, err… Percy," stammered James, "I guess you know what I told Molly about, right?"
"Sorta," mused Percy.
"Well… I'm not sure how much this will mean after everything… but I want you to know that I am truly sorry," James apologized sincerely, while Percy listened to what else he had to say, "I screwed up royally, and I almost cost you your life."
"James…"
"Percy, I know I'm not the nicest guy around; I can be extremely vain and obnoxious, along with forgetting important life lessons, and probably the worst excuse for a friend ever, but I mean what I just said," The red-haired boy went on, quickly wiping his eyes, "I'm truly sorry for almost getting you killed, and I really want us to become friends again."
Percy listened intently to James' words, slightly taken aback at what he was seeing. James rarely, if ever, cried. Smiling slightly, Percy put a hand on James' shoulder.
"James, I accept your apology," reassured Percy, "And you don't need to wish us to be friends again," He held his right hand out, much to the surprise of James, "After all, we 'are' still friends."
James gasped with hope and looked into Percy's eyes, finding nothing but kindness and the truth within them. After another long silence, James smiled back and accepted the handshake, and brought each other into a light pound hug, officially completing the reconciliation of him and Percy. Molly also felt proud that she managed to help two of her friends make up.
(elsewhere…)
"Say what?!" shouted Gordon.
Inside their homeroom classroom the next day, Percy was talking to most of his friends about what he just did; he spoke to James and made up with him. Needless to say, Gordon was not pleased about that.
"Little Percy, don't you remember?!" reminded Gordon, "James came 'this' close to getting you killed! It's inexcusable!"
"Chill out, Gordon," scolded Thomas, "I mean, yes it's true that James did almost get Percy killed that time, but James has shown clear and genuine remorse and has been kicked while he's down long enough."
"Thomas, you too?!" gawked Gordon.
"I think so, too," agreed Emily, being the first to also speak up in James' defense. She then elaborated to everyone staring at her, "Molly made some good points when Thomas, Percy, and I were visiting her family's comic shop," She closed her eyes for a few second before opening them with a more firm expression on her face, "She mentioned how I acted like a self-absorbed diva at one point during the summer and alienated my friends, yet I was easily forgiven for my mistake."
"Emily…" uttered Rosie, who remembered that event. Even she spoke up about a mistake she made, "And don't forget that I naively helped Diesel 10 almost take over our school, yet I was forgiven just as easily along with Diesel and the other students of the Smelter classroom."
"Hearing this…" said Henry, feeling bad himself, "…makes me think we might have been too hard on James."
"Me too," admitted Edward, "And I'm not the kind of person who would hold a grudge."
"Why don't we go and find him before the bell rings?" suggested Toby, "We need to talk to him and straighten things out."
Thomas, Emily, Percy, and Rosie nod in agreement. Just as the small group started to leave, Gordon spoke up and stopped them.
"Fine! Go ahead! 'You' all can go crawling back to a criminal," he argued stubbornly, "But it'll be a hot day in January before I forgive him!"
"He has nothing to apologize to 'you' for," Percy retorted crossly.
With that said, he and the others left, leaving Gordon behind to sulk over no one listening to him.
(elsewhere…)
In the hallway, James was at his locker getting a few things.
"James!" The voice of Percy called out.
That was what got James' attention; he turned and saw Percy running up to him with Thomas, Emily, Henry, Toby, Edward, and Rosie following from behind. James was glad to see Percy, but his expression soured when he saw Thomas and the others. Everyone finally got a good look at James and were quick to take notice of his slight change in appearance; his once bright red hair was looking less well kept and had lost a lot of it's vibrance, giving way to a black color beneath, and his choice of clothing was more bland and sought to make him blend in amongst the crowds. Very quickly, Thomas managed to shake off the initial surprise of James' appearance to speak up to him.
"I'm glad we found you, James!" began Thomas, "There's a couple of things we all need to talk about!"
But James folded his arms and said nothing back.
"Percy told us he spoke to you," added Toby, "He mentioned you and he spoke and made up, and we've been thinking over everything that's happened these past few weeks."
"You see, we were too hard on you," acknowledged Henry, "I mean, yes, we were very angry over what almost happened to Percy thanks to you," He paused for a second to look at Percy, who nodded and allowed him to proceed, "But we never should have gone 'that' far and practically disowned you."
"After all, all of us have done something stupid in the past and we forgave each other," recalled Edward.
"What we're trying to say is…we're sorry," finished Emily.
After a few beats…
"You're sorry?" The voice of James uttered, causing Rosie and Edward both to look surprised, "That's all you guys can say, after everything that I've been through? You're sorry?" He laughed coldly at the small group, "How can you expect me to believe that so easily?"
"James?" peeped Percy.
"What…are you talking about?" added Henry fearfully.
Sighing deeply, James, despite the memories not being the most pleasant to have, carried on with his explanation.
"These past few weeks have been the absolute worst for me," he recalled impassively, "I was at the lowest I'd ever been. I didn't see an end, and I seriously contemplated just shutting myself away, forever."
Everyone was slightly unsettled by James' tone of voice as he spoke. They were somewhat predicting an angry tirade or passive-aggressive retort, but James' words were filled with nothing but tiredness and apathy, which was something they had never heard from him before. They remained silent as he continued.
"Molly helped me when nobody else would; she listened to me. I will always be grateful for that. So when she asked me to try and make peace with all of you, I said I would," remembered James, as he then faced Thomas, Henry, Edward, Toby, Rosie, and Emily, one-by-one, his expression remaining stoic, "But I can't so easily forget everything you've all done to me over the years—and not just recently."
Feeling a little drained, James closed his eyes, exhaled deeply and placed a hand on his temple. Once again, everyone else stayed quiet, allowing him to gather his thoughts.
"Look, I'm not trying to excuse any of my actions; they were my own, and I will always live with them," accepted James, "Yet, whenever I've messed up in general, you've all always either mocked or constantly belittled me for it, whereas with anyone else it always seems to be 'forgive and forget'," He just kept going, "The time I've spent alone since the incident really gave me a chance to reflect on all that."
"Oh, James…" Emily thought to herself.
"But, James, not all of us are like that!" objected Edward, "Even you should know that by now!"
"I'm sorry, Edward, but the past few weeks have shown me otherwise," disagreed James, shaking his head, "I don't blame you all for shunning me, I deserved it—but it's not something I can so easily brush off after everything I've been through."
Toby chimed in, "Look, James, I know you're mad at us, but-"
"I'm not mad at you," interrupted James, "I'm just done."
"Huh?"
"I'm willing to be on peaceful terms with all of you," The red-haired boy explained, "But, at the moment, we're not friends," Without another word, he turned around, got what he needed from his locker, closed it up, and started to leave, "Now, if you'll excuse me…"
"James, wait!" cried Emily sadly, but was ignored, "James…"
"Boy, I really don't feel so good, right now," groaned Toby.
"Same," sighed Rosie.
Thomas, Edward, and Henry didn't feel good either, and that was all thanks to the overwhelming guilt they felt.
MONTAGE
Thanks to continued support from Molly, James started to get some of his old energy back; dressing more boldly again, performing better at school (something he shows off to the likes of Gordon), and overall being much happier. Such as during History class…
"Henry VIII," declared James, raising a hand to answer.
"Correct!" confirmed Billy Twofeathers, a History teacher.
James grinned with pride. Nearby, Diesel and Dennis silently looked at each other with curiosity, wondering if they heard that right.
(elsewhere…)
During Science class…
"Fourteen point zero, zero, six, nine!" announced James.
"That is correct!" praised Mr. Moraghan.
(later…)
"'CI' and 'seventeen'!" finished James
"Right again!" Mr. Moraghan accepted, "Well done, James!"
Some of the students (Michelangelo, Duck, Oliver, etc.) looked at each other, wondering how James was doing so well when he was so gloomy the last little while. Henry was the only one aware of the reason why James was feeling so much better.
(outside…)
Later in the hallway, as the students left the classroom with their Math test results, James strutted past Gordon, proudly displaying his 'A-' grade. Gordon grumbled under his breath as he looked down at his paper, showing a 'C'. Nearby, Thomas and Rosie both looked at Mike and Rex and shrugged it off, believing James was getting back to his normal self.
(new scene…)
During Gym class, Gordon had gotten into some trouble…
"Gordon!" Mr. Baldwin, the P.E. (Physical Education) teacher said angrily, giving Gordon a quick lecture, "You were supposed to have the equipment back from the field thirty minutes ago!"
"I'm sorry, sir, I would've been back earlier if 'James' had remembered to refuel the flatbed!" complained Gordon, before glaring nearby at James.
"I didn't forget, I just chose not to do it," James answered bluntly, while Gordon listened in annoyance, "Managing that thing is 'your' responsibility, Gordon. I shouldn't be the one making sure you pull your own weight."
Gordon said nothing back, except for gritting his teeth crossly.
END MONTAGE
Inside the school library, James was hanging out with Molly when she found something that appeared to be worth reading.
"James, come here and take a look at this," Molly called out (quietly), causing James to walk over as she held up the book, "This is one of my favorite stories."
The book in-question had a ruby on the cover shaped into a heart with a crack down the middle of it.
"Hmm, I've never seen that book before. What's it about?" pondered James.
"It's a romance story about this couple who came together under difficult circumstances," explained Molly, "Years ago, they were childhood friends. However, when the boy did something terrible and she learned about it, the girl turned her back on him. And, for years later afterward, refused to ever forgive him."
"Hold up, why wouldn't she forgive him?" asked James, "Didn't he say he was sorry?"
"Well, actually, he did apologize for his actions," Molly pointed out, "But I'm sorry to say the girl wouldn't believe him. You see, she was too sensitive to trust him in changing for the better. It wasn't until the boy saves her life from an accident that she finally realizes she was wrong, and lets go of her sensitivity to forgive him. And they have been together ever since."
James grew intrigued, "Wow… Think you can read it to me?"
"Of course," giggled Molly, before leading her friend to the comfy chairs section, "Right this way."
For the next hour, she read the story to James, who seemed to like the storybook. As he listened on, he began to think about his budding friendship with Molly. He felt something wonderful in his heart that he hadn't felt since his brief crush on Emily; could it be he was beginning to get feelings for Molly? He wanted to tell her right away, but decided against it.
"No, it's too soon," thought James, "I need to give it a little more time."
"James?" The voice of Molly echoed softly.
James comically cringed and found Molly giving him a funny look, which was translated into a question if he was even listening to her. James chuckled sheepishly and waved his hands as though he was fine and listening. Molly eventually smiled and giggled before she resumed reading the story to James. As he listened, James sighed with happiness, wanting the feeling to last forever.
(elsewhere…)
Near the end of November, during Gym class, there was a basketball game going on within the school's basketball court. Some students were playing, and a few others just sat around the bleachers and watched. Jumping up, Gordon smacked the ball out of Duck's hand towards the end of the court.
"Not today, Duck!" jeered Gordon.
Nearby, Daisy was practicing one of her cheerleading routines when the stray ball hit her in the chest, causing her to lose balance and stumble over. Angrily, she looked over at Gordon and shook her fist at him.
"Hey! You did that on purpose, Gordon!" she accused.
"Well 'soooorry'!" Gordon retorted indignantly, already still very unhappy with James, "You're the one practicing your silly cheerleading on the court during a game, you know!"
Daisy, feeling insulted, got back up and stormed off. Nearby, Molly merely shook her head at what just happened, but perked up when she saw James coming towards her. Still irritated by Daisy's comment, Gordon went in for another steal—this time from Raphael—and smacked the ball yet again off to the side, accidentally sending it towards the bleachers.
"Uh-oh…" Gordon gulped over his mistake, before shouting a warning, "Emily, watch out!"
At the bleachers, Emily, who was sitting next to Thomas, looked over and gasped when she saw the ball coming right at her, but, to her surprise, it wasn't Thomas who tried saving her—it was James, who just reached over, grabbed the ball, and smirked at her.
"James-!" gasped Thomas, "You just saved…!"
"Oh, it was nothing really," shrugged James coolly.
Watching from the other side of the court were several other students, including Percy, Toby, Donatello, and the likes; they were both surprised and impressed at the same time that James prevented the ball from colliding with Emily's face. Gordon, meanwhile, grew impatient and jealous.
"Just give it up, James!" called Gordon harshly, "Gimme back the ball!"
James turned and glared with a cocky look on his face. Nervously, Thomas and Emily knew that look all too well; it meant that James was going to try and show Gordon up or something. A few other students in the area like Hank, Leonardo, and Michelangelo stayed silent as they watched what would happen, not sure if it would be bad or not—and were also unsure if someone should intervene immediately. James slowly approached the hoop Gordon was waiting by. Once close enough, James held the basketball out, almost like he was taunting Gordon.
"Why don't you take it from me?" challenged James.
Feeling like his pride was on the line, Gordon recklessly accepted the challenge and tried taking the ball back, but then, quick as lightning, James moved the ball to his other hand.
"What?!" snapped Gordon.
James grinned, "Go on," he dared, "Take it."
"Oh, I will!" Gordon hissed back, reaching out a second time, "Graagh!"
Once again, James moved the ball from his left hand to his right hand. Frustrated, Gordon made several attempts to get the ball back, but James, being equally as good at basketball, managed to prevent the taller, stronger Gordon Gresley from getting it back; even managing to land a few cheap shots on him. It got to the point where some of the students started laughing at how James was making a complete fool out of Gordon. Of course, there were a few students who were not laughing at the scene, and one of them included Molly, who believed James was taking it too far and ran over from the other side of the court to try and get her red-haired friend to settle down.
"James! James, stop it, please!" cried Molly.
James immediately stopped when he heard Molly's voice, then turned and saw her approaching before she touched his right arm with a pleading look on her face. Calming down slightly, James closed his eyes and let out a heavy sigh before opening them and smiling more gently at her.
"Sorry about that, I guess old habits do die hard," remarked James, relaxing his posture as he started to lead Molly away, "Come on, let's get out of here."
Taking the ball in one hand, and, without even looking, James threw it backwards over his head. Everyone else followed its arc and witnessed it land perfectly through the hoop. Everyone in the court was silently shocked and amazed at what James just did and, beginning with Raphael, started applauding. Even Thomas and Emily were impressed by what James just did. The only one not applauding nor was impressed was an aghast Gordon, who just stood with his mouth wide open before closing it, turning, and marched out of the court.
(outside…)
In the hallway, Gordon stormed towards the men's locker room in a bad temper; he was already cross with James over getting in-trouble with Mr. Baldwin about the equipment days ago, but was now even angrier over what happened during gym class.
"Ugh! What cheek!" fumed Gordon, stopping to bang his fist on the wall without feeling any pain, "How dare James humiliate me in front of our classmates! I swear…I'll pay James out for this! See that I do!"
From there, he walked past Daisy, who was initially wondering what got Gordon in such a foul mood. Seconds later, however, she merely snorted with disinterest and returned to Gym class, not about to get into the business of Gordon Gresley.
(elsewhere…)
During lunch hour, James had arrived at an indoor diner; he and Molly were going to have lunch there, and also because she had some interesting news to tell him before she told anyone else. Either way, James looked around a few times before finding Molly seated at one of the tables. Smiling, he approached and spread both arms out as he made a little announcement.
"Heeeeere's James!" greeted James, before sitting down.
"Obviously," joked Molly, as she and her friend shared a laugh together, "Now, I mentioned I have some big news, so I'll tell you now if that's okay."
"Sure! If it's news as good as you claim it is, then I want to hear it as soon as possible!"
"Tee hee! Alright, I'll tell you," The shy blonde-haired girl giggled, "I could soon be enrolling in a special Veterinarian Course."
"What?!" cried James, shocked and impressed, "A special Veterinarian course?"
"Yup," nodded Molly, "In fact, if all continues to go well, my family and I might be moving from the Island of Sodor all the way to England."
"England?!" James exclaimed again, "Oh man, that's absolutely amazing, Molly," He then felt very discouraged, "But… but if you are accepted and have to move, then you and I will never see each other again…"
"Oh, James, don't be silly," scolded Molly playfully, which caused James to ease up slightly, "Even if I do leave, my family and I can still visit Sodor during the holidays," She winked, "You can't get rid of me that easily, you know."
James felt at ease knowing that even though Molly was likely going to move away real soon, she wasn't going to be completely cut out of his life. He then, without thinking, reached over and took hold of Molly's hands, holding onto them as he stared into her eyes. Molly was very surprised by the gesture, but silently allowed herself to listen to what James wanted to tell her.
"Molly, you've been the best thing that's ever happened to me," James said sincerely, "When I was alone, I wasn't sure what to do until you came along," Molly listened on bashfully, "You've been such a great friend, and I want you to know that no matter what happens next in your life," He smiled more genuinely, "I'll continue to support you. I swear it."
Molly blushed, "James…" she uttered, feeling very touched by the dedication, "Thank you."
"So, when can you and your parents expect to leave the Island of Sodor?" continued James.
"Well, my application still needs to be accepted, and I'll be submitting it in about a week," answered Molly, "My Mom and I just need to polish it up a little bit, and then, once it's submitted, we need to wait."
Before long, a waiter came up to the table, while James and Molly both started looking over their menus. But what they didn't know was that someone had been listening in on their discussion—that someone was Gordon. Because the table Molly and James were sitting at was a cubicle, there was another table next door, allowing Gordon to listen to the news Molly was telling James. Deviously grinning over what he heard, he carefully got up without being seen and started to leave while formulating the perfect plan to get back at James for making a fool out of him.