Kitty and Ada- Short Stories.

4. Sorrow of a Schoolboy

The winter and spring passed by so rapidly that year that it felt so long since that January day when my new journey with Ada began. It was such a joy to see summer approaching at last and I loved the warm months whereas Ada was fond of the cooler ones. She adored the autumn when the red and orange leaves blew from the trees and the ground looked like an autumnal fairy-tale. Of course autumn could be wonderful but when I reminded her that it was the season of summer which brought Robbie home to us, she suddenly agreed that despite her aversion to the heat, the summer months were always favourable in the sense that she could spend time with her son.

It was the end of term at Robbie's school that had us travelling up north to collect him. There was to be a prize-giving event and Robbie was doing well in his subjects- particularly biology and chemistry- so we suspected he would receive great honours in the sciences. The journey there by train was a long one but it was well worth it to see Robbie's face and how much he'd grown.

At about eleven-thirty in the morning our brougham pulled up at large formidable looking building with many windows along the length of it. The school was dark and gloomy and regimented to the highest degree. For a moment as I gazed up at the stone, I imagined all the boys who would become men there- what they would go on to do; and I imagined the families they would create. I wondered how many loved it there and how many wanted to leave. I was lost in the daydream when I caught sight of Robbie approaching us at the tall iron gates. It was wonderful to see him and he'd definitely grown! I told him so and his smile broadened.

"I'll be much bigger than you one day, Kitty!"

"I never doubted that. You'll be tall like your father."

Ada resisted the urge to embrace Robbie in the middle of the school grounds and I sensed that if she could have then we would have left for home immediately without being subjected to the formalities of a tedious prize-giving event. I'd been to many in my youth whenever Alec's school had one and I can safely say the experience was one I cared not to repeat.

"Mama, come see my new rooms," Robbie said, leading her away for a tour of the school before luncheon.

I could feel my stomach rumbling already. We'd only had a slice of toast at the hotel.

As Robbie showed Ada around, I stood alone, unsure what to do, staring up at the school entrance and wondering what it might have been like to attend it. From Robbie's letters, I suspected one week of its harsh rules and I'd have tried to escape through one of those many windows! But then again, all that knowledge, all those books!

Realising I was being gawped at by a hoard of young boys, I quickly made my way inside and caught up with Ada and Robbie in the first hallway. As I approached them, I immediately noticed a sparkle in Ada- the glow of a mother reunited with the son she barely saw for much of the year. Robbie stood up straight in front of her and I could tell his posture had changed from the slouchy young boy at home. He began the tour of the school like a professional guide which I think was mainly for my benefit as Ada had already seen the place and I'd never set foot there. He grabbed my hand and led me to a trophy cabinet where various awards and shields rested inside.

"The school's achievements," he said, pointing at a trophy for cricketing excellence. He seemed rather proud.

"And here was me thinking you hated this place," I replied.

He shrugged. "It's not so bad. It's not wonderful either but I always find it best to make the most if it."

Ada beamed from ear to ear. Robbie had grown in attitude in the past few months and I suspect his father's death and being away from home had quite changed his outlook. Ada had been unsure what to do for Robbie's future at the school but this declaration of independence cemented the boy's determination to succeed and is what most definitely kept him there quite happily for the remainder of his school-years. Like a chameleon, Robbie had adapted marvellously to his surroundings.