B for Beastly Behaviour

Chapter 2

The schoolroom was a small weatherboard building outside the orphanage.  Step walked up the wooden steps and hung his new satchel on a peg on the wall.  The classroom was square, with three rows of desks on one side and four on the other.  There were two blackboards, one on each side of the room and in the middle was the teacher’s desk, where an old, grey haired man sat in a chair, reading his newspaper. 

The classes ranged from Kindergarten to Sixth Class.  Step was told to sit in the second row from the front as he was to be in First Class.  A boy and girl in his row moved over to let him in.  They didn’t look too friendly.  The teacher, whose name was Mr Scott, handed him a book and a pencil and soon he was tracing over letters.  The boy next to him punched him with his elbow.  His pencil skidded across the book, leaving a dark, angry mark.  Mr Scott was cross and the boy in his row smiled with satisfaction.

At recess the other children ignored him. One of the big boys, called Teddy, came onto the verandah with a billy of milk.  He swung it around above his head and Step was amazed that the milk didn’t fall out.  They lined up with their mugs as Teddy poured out the milk.  Of course, Step was last and there were only a few drops left when it was his turn.

Back in the classroom he had to copy sums off the blackboard into his exercise book.  He was good at adding and subtracting and took great care forming his numbers. He also watched the boy next to him for any sudden movement in his direction.  Then they were writing stories.  Mr Scott asked them to imagine they were a King or a Queen for a day and to write what they would do.

Step wrote that he would put all the bad mothers and fathers in gaol.  All the children in orphanages would be given a hundred pounds to spend on anything they wanted.  Then they would go and live with the King in his palace for ever and ever. Mr Scott thought it was a very good composition and read it out to the class. The other children didn’t clap or cheer.  They just looked at him with frowns on their faces.

Lessons were over for the day.  They all lined up for lunch with a tray in their hands.  Cook gave each child a bowl of soup and a piece of bread.  Soon they were sitting at long tables eating and talking, but no one spoke to Step.  He sat at the end of the row, shunned by the others and wondered if it would always be like this.  He looked up as a pretty girl with ringlets tossed her head.

“My Foster Parents are taking me home tomorrow,” she said.  “I will have a bedroom all to myself with lots of toys and they are going to take me to the zoo and the beach and on holidays.  Maybe even to Disneyland.”

She wasn’t talking to Step.  Rather she was addressing the whole group. “And then I’ll be out of this awful place forever.  Good riddance.”

Step realised that tomorrow was Saturday, the day of the Inspection.  Would someone like the look of him and take him home?

First of all he had to complete his job for the afternoon.  Nurse Smiley led him to the kitchen where Cook was delegating tasks to the children.

“Aaaah! Here’s the new boy.  What are you like at peeling potatoes?”

This was a job his stepmother always gave him so he announced he was very good at it.  Cook gave him a huge pile of potatoes and a potato peeler. He would have been happy to do it by himself but another older boy sat near him and grabbed the peeler.

“You can use this knife.  I’m using the peeler!”

Step wasn’t used to peeling potatoes with a big sharp knife and soon he cut himself.  Blood poured over the potatoes.

“Yuk”, cried the other children.  Cook rushed over, but not before the older boy put the peeler down and moved away.

“I told you to use the potato peeler.  What a silly boy, using that great big knife.  Whatever were you thinking?”

She wrapped his hand in a bandage and sent him out of the kitchen.  “Go and find another job.  I don’t want you here.”

By now Step was feeling mightily discouraged so wandered slowly along the hallway towards the front door wondering where he should go next.  To his surprise there was a commotion at the end of the hall.  A small girl about his age was clinging to a woman and crying very loudly.

“I have to leave you here,” said the woman. 

“Don’t go, don’t go,” cried the girl.

“I can’t look after you anymore.  I have to go far away to my new job, and you are not allowed to come with me.”

“But Aunty, you are all I have left.  Don’t leave me.”

Fortunately, Nurse Smiley arrived and spoke to the woman kindly but firmly.

“I’m afraid there is no room here.  Our orphanage is full.  We can only take sixteen children.”

Step wasn’t sure if he should speak but he felt he had to try and help somehow.

“Nurse Smiley, what about the girl with the ringlets?  She said she was going to live with her Foster Parents for good and she is leaving tomorrow.  Then there will be room for this girl.”

Nurse Smiley looked cross at Step’s sudden interruption but then looked at the tearful little girl and considered what she would do.  “Very well”, she said to the woman. “Bring her back tomorrow and if Lottie is taken then your niece can stay.”

END OF CHAPTER 2