Maddox Academy: Grievous Beginnings - Wattys 2022 Shortlister

Chapter Twenty-Eight - Not A Very Practical Superpower

The concert started at eleven.

In the time before Jo and the other members of the choir took to the small wooden stage that had been built, Katie played most of the games at the fair. She managed to win me the teddy bear she promised along with several other small toys and a plant. I had spent the change from my dress on a handmade beaded necklace that I planned to give Mum when I next saw her. Once again, Katie had far too much for her school bag and ended up sharing mine. The one thing she didn't hide, however, was the coconut.

For whatever reason, she decided to carry it around the fair and smile at anyone who pulled a face or looked at her funny. She seemed to be enjoying the attention that came with walking around holding a coconut. Not many people appeared all that successful at winning on the coconut shy, so it was almost a way for Katie to brag about her throwing skills. I didn't blame her, if I could win a coconut on my first try, I'd probably brag too.

When the clock struck eleven, Katie and I joined the crowd of people to watch the choir perform. A few students were scattered among the adults and I even spotted Mrs Maddox and Miss Jones lurking nearby. Jo took to the stage with the rest of the choir and Katie and I clapped extra loudly so she knew we were nearby.

"Today, we welcome the choir of Maddox Academy School for Girls who will be performing in order to raise money for a Veteran charity! Dig deep, people!" The man on stage spread his arms out and it looked as though his blazer was about to rip.

"One of these days, the Mayor's jacket is going to rip and I'm going to have my camera," Katie muttered. She dropped a few coins into a bucket that was going around.

"What if you don't have your camera?"

"Then I'll cry."

"Without further ago, the Maddox Academy School for Girls choir!"

The Mayor stepped to the side and the soft tune of a Vera Lynn song filed the silence. An orchestra consisting of members of both Maddox and the Reed Boy's school sat off to the side of the stage and three microphones had been placed in front of the choir. After a few opening notes, the choir started to sing to one of the most famous songs during the war. We'll Meet Again.

A thousand different memories came flooding back, none of them good.

One of my earliest memories was Mum playing that song every morning on the record player at her cousin's house. She would walk around the kitchen humming it to herself and gazing out of the window as though expecting Dad to come over the crest of the hill. The song had been playing when the telegram from the War Office arrived about Dad's injuries. Since then, the song had never been played in the house it Mum could help it. She would turn the radio off when it came on.

Jo stood at the back of the choir, her eyes scanning the crowd until they found Katie and I standing between two older couples. Both couples were swaying to the music with their eyes partially closed as though reminiscing about old times. Katie offered Jo a little wave and Jo's confidence seemed to explode ten-fold, she put a lot more passion into her singing. Even from the back row, she seemed to shine.

They moved from Vera Lynn to Doris Day's Bewitched and through a reel of other popular songs before the concert came to an end. We broke out into applause and the Mayor once again took to the stage, his blazer ever tighter against his shoulders. Beside me, Katie collapsed in a fit of silent giggles.

"A big round of applause to the Maddox Academy choir. There will be fundraising buckets around the square so give what you can. We have plenty of stalls around the village so make sure you try your luck at hook a duck or guess the lollies in the jar!"