Abilities

Chapter 1: Margo meeting

The evening was damp as I stepped outside the front door, accidentally stepping in a mud puddle. It made me groan, but I pressed on in the fierce breeze. I pulled my woollen cardigan closer to my cold body as I made my way over to the old, rusty college.

I was lagging behind at school and this was the best option because it was a year's commitment so I couldn't be removed from my position unless I did something majorly wrong or forbidden, which I obviously was not planning on doing. I wasn't exactly sure what my position was, anyway. All I knew was that I was here to support someone like me who was a little less fortunate than I was.

For the past two weeks, I had been training with the organisation to learn to help out girls and boys around my age who might have been suffering from disabilities. Mental or physical – any. The trainees were taught how to handle different situations where our assigned partner might be troubled or needed help and we had to find the best way of solving the problem. At the end of the second week, each of the trainee was given a folder and handbook with a few details of the partners we were going to be paired with.

'.... So ready, steady, stand is a great method to help your partner stand if they need the help.'

'Why is it called 'ready, steady, stand?' One of the volunteers had asked.

'Well, just to make sure that there is no confusion. Some people call it 'one, two, stand'. Now, you can guess yourself what would happen if it was 'one, two, three, stand.' Complete chaos,' the trainer said, answering her own question. 'Your partner wouldn't remember if they are meant to stand on three or after three, so, just to make it easier, we call it 'ready, steady stand.'

'And now that you have practiced it a few times, let's move on to your bond with them. It is important to remember that you all are volunteering to help them carry on the mainstream activities they might not be able to do without help. You need to remember that his isn't a personal relationship – you must not let them get too attached to you, physically or mentally. Side hugs is probably as far as it should go and if you are uncomfortable with that then you can let them know and they will understand. After all, you are going as their mentor, their guider and perhaps a temporary friend. '

'Of course, you will need to exchange numbers with your partners as there may be a time when you might have to change the meeting timings or you might be sick and not be able to come at all which is important for them to know as this might be the only activity they look forward to all week, However, social media contact must be avoided at all costs and it's okay to tell them that politely if they insist. Anymore questions?'

Someone rose their hand and had asked about periods and erections.

'Right,' the trainer said, clapping her hands together. 'Yes, that is an important question. Now, don't worry too much, it's pretty simple. For young girls going through periods and body changes, you are not expected to help them change. We, as the coordinators look after that. As for erections, a lot of times, young teenagers don't understand what is happening to them, so, all you have to do is to give them a bit of private time – a short break to sort themselves out.'

I had read over the folder and the terms and conditions too. According to the terms and conditions, we had to meet up with our partner twice a week at the very least, anywhere around town. Today we were going to be introduced to our partners for the first time in the local college.

Many of the details which I would have wanted to know about my partner beforehand were missing, but we had been told during training that we were matched with our partners very carefully, so there wasn't anything to worry about. So, the only information I was equipped was that my partner was a seventeen year old who enjoyed playing the piano, lived near the beach and went to school on the opposite side of town from where the local college was.

Other than that, the hand book contained a few forms, for example a form for if our partner got hurt or got into an accident and we witnessed it. It also contained what the volunteers were expected of, and what we could expect of the Margo club.

The club was named after the daughter of the founder of the club who suffer from AHAD. After being frustrated for years because of the non-existence of activities for Margo, her parents finally started the club with the help of six other parents. And so the club began with four children. Today, the club consisted of ninety-eight young adults who were matched with volunteers.

Finally, I managed to reach the college door, rasping for air, because I had jogged the last few feet because I was running late. I entered to an almost empty reception. It was a semi-circle room with a corridor leading from it. Green plants stood next on each side of the double doors and I could see myself crystal clear in the polished floor. The college looked nothing even close to old and rusty from the inside which made me feel a little better. Two men stood at the reception, talking to each other, one of them working on the computer at the same time.

'Hello, can you please direct me to the Margo meeting?' I asked, none of them in particular.

The man who wasn't on the computer was old and short with a square chin, lined by a small squared white beard. He wore spectacles and his badge read 'Mr Sharma'. 'If you go straight down the front corridor, it is the third door on the right.'

'Thank you,' I replied, as I continued to walk on until I slammed into a glass door which separated the reception from the corridor which I hadn't noticed previously. I flustered as I realised how stupid I must have looked as I turned around to face the two men, again. They both wore similar embarrassed smiles themselves.

'You have to sign in first, in the visitor register,' the man from behind the computer informed.

'Oh! Of course,' I said, shuffling forward to sign. Once I had signed, the glass door came to life, opening automatically. I walked through, quickly before I could embarrass myself further.

The corridor had light grey wall and was lined with bright pink doors on both the sides. I reached the third door which had huge glass windows on both the sides. When I looked inside, it was confirmed that I was late at least by a good half an hour. The room was already filled with people and most of them looked as if they were paired up already. I slipped through the door and a girl a few years older than me was walking towards me. I recognized her instantly. She had flowing ginger locks, a heart shaped face and pale blue eyes. Her name was Lilly – one of my trainers from last week.

'Traffic?' She asked, with a small grin on her face.

I nodded, even though it was a lie. I had walked to the college. The only reason I was late was because I mismanaged my time, thinking that it would probably take me a few minutes to walk to the college because that's how far it seemed to be every time I drove past it until I remembered that I was walking today.

'Don't worry. Although your partner has been waiting, and to be honest, I had started to wonder what we would tell him if you didn't show. But you're here, so I'm sure you can tell him yourself and have a little bonding time,' she explained, smiling still.

I nodded again. At least now I knew he was a boy. I followed Lilly to the back of the room and as I did, I noticed the other trainees who had been paired up already and were spending time with their partners. Some of their partners had disabilities which were visible at a single glance, while others I couldn't even tell. Some of them smiled at me and I smiled back. Then, Lilly came to a halt and so did I, right behind her.

'This is Adam,' she said, looking back at me. 'Adam, this is Isla. And I am going to leave you two to it.'