Читать книгу Chasing the Arrow - Charles Reid - Страница 11

As soon as Robbie got to school the following Monday, Billy trotted up to him. “Have you heard about the big change?”

“What change?”

“This fall we’ll be going to another school. Seems they’re moving grade nine into one of the new high schools they’ve built.”

“You’ve got to be kidding, Billy. I like it here. I don’t want to go anywhere else.”

“Me, neither, but it seems we don’t have a choice. I also heard letters about this are going out to all the parents.”

“That means we’ve only got another month here then. What high school are we going to?”

“I don’t know, Robbie. All I know is that after this summer we go straight to the new school.”

“Maybe we’ll find out the name of the high school in those letters. I sure hope it’s not too far away.”

Robbie didn’t like this sudden change and was worried about what it meant. When he got home, he immediately glanced at the hall table where Mrs. Brady always put the day’s mail. The letter from the school board, addressed to his mother, was easy to spot thanks to the official address in the top right-hand corner. However, because his mother had to work late, he had to wait several agonizing hours to learn what the letter contained.

That night, over supper, Emily read the letter from the school board. Robbie’s anxious face told her that he already knew something. “I get the feeling you know about the new school.”

“Billy told me this morning, but we don’t know what high school we’re going to.”

“Well, it seems everyone living east of the park—that’s us—will be going to High Park Collegiate, which isn’t far away.”

It took a few seconds for the implication of his mother’s words to sink in. “But Billy lives north of the park. Does that mean he’ll be going to a different school?”

“Looks like it, Robbie. It says here that anyone north of the park will be going to Lieutenant Governor John Graves Simcoe High School. But that won’t be too bad. You’ll still see Billy every day after school, right?” Emily knew how important Billy Hrdina was in her son’s life. She also understood, judging by the glum expression on Robbie’s face, that no matter what she said, he would only see this development as a disaster.

Robbie listlessly shoved the remnants of his meal around his plate. “Can I go over to Billy’s house, Mom?”

Normally Emily would have insisted that Robbie eat every morsel of his supper, but this time she tried hard to think of something soothing to say. Nothing sprang to mind, so she said, “Of course, but make sure you’re back here before dark.” Nervously she reached over to slick back her son’s wayward cowlick.

Robbie usually squirmed when his mother fidgeted with his hair, but he was so depressed this time he didn’t even flinch. Instead he left the table, shrugged on his jacket, and shuffled morosely out the back door.

As soon as Robbie saw Billy, it was obvious his friend knew everything, and the news wasn’t sitting well with him, either.

“This is terrible, Robbie. It isn’t fair. We can’t be split up like this.”

“It doesn’t look like we can do anything about it, so let’s make the most of the summer and worry about this in September.”