The Boy and the Battleship

by Christopher Cummings

  She gave him a big smile and began talking to him while she loaded her school bag into her bike’s carrier. “Hi Graham. Glad you waited. I am really looking forward to this,” she said.

  Graham tried to act calm as he chatted to her but to his annoyance he noted Stephen and Peter glancing at him and obviously talking about them. Bugger! he thought. I wanted to keep Joany secret.

  Worse still just talking to her was getting him aroused and he began to feel like he needed to squirm. It was a relief when she had unlocked her bike and begun wheeling it towards the school gate.

  As they went through the gate Peter and then Stephen rode past out onto the footpath. Stephen looked back and smirked. “Don’t forget you are supposed to be going to the wharf,” he called.

  Joany poked her tongue at him and yelled, “Mind your own business Stephen Bell! We will do what we like.”

  “Oooh! Watch out Graham. She’s a hot one,” Stephen called back

  Graham blushed but his mind raced. How does Steve know Joany is hot? he wondered. Then his pulse rate increased. I might be in luck here.

  But, as his dad said, everything in life has a price and in this case the price was being embarrassed. I hope Kylie and Margaret aren’t at home, he thought as he and Joany walked towards his home. They both went to a different school and Kylie often went to Margaret’s after school.

  As he turned into his street Graham studied his house. The front door was open which was good as it meant his mother was home but he could not tell if his sister and Margaret were as well. On reaching the front gate he saw there was no bicycle lying on the front lawn. Good! Margaret isn’t here, he decided.

  Turning to Joany he said, “Wait here while I tell my mum and get my bike.”

  That left him feeling a bit of a heel as he knew he was being both deceitful to his mother and bad mannered. Leaving Joany at the front gate he hurried upstairs and went through to the kitchen at the back. Luckily his mother was there. “Hi mum. I’m just going to the wharf to watch a British warship come in,” he said.

  “What warship? Who with?” his mother asked.

  “Stephen and Peter and… and a few others,” Graham answered.

  “Don’t you be late for tea,” Mrs Kirk said.

  “No mum.” Thankful that the interrogation had not been prolonged Graham scurried down the back stairs and got his bike from under the house. Quickly he wheeled it to the front gate, wanting to be gone before his mother asked more questions or saw Joany.

  Then Graham groaned. As he rounded the front of the house he saw that both Kylie and Margaret had just arrived. They were both eyeing Joany with hostile curiosity. As Graham pushed his bike through the gate Kylie snapped, “Where are you going Graham?”

  “To the wharf to see a ship,” he replied.

  “Can we come?”

  “You’d better ask mum,” Graham replied. He was blushing he knew and the hurt look in Margaret’s eyes seemed to bore into his consciousness. He quickly mounted his bike and began pedalling. Joany followed. Feeling hot and embarrassed Graham pedalled as fast as he could until he was around the next corner and out of sight of his sister and Margaret.

  Joany called, “Hey, slow down!”

  Feeling puffed and upset Graham did. Joany rode up alongside. “What’s the rush?” she asked.

  “Just didn’t want my sister Kylie asking more questions,” Graham answered. He shook his head. Little sister will have gone racing up to mum to tell her I am going somewhere with a girl, he thought. It would mean questions and trouble when he got home but he shrugged again as the delight soared. But I am with a girl, one who wants to be with me.

  Hopeful that more good things would follow, he smiled at Joany and continued pedalling.

  Chapter 6

  “HELLO SAILOR!”

  About 20 minutes later, Graham and Joany were cycling along the Esplanade past the RSL. Out to sea to their left the British warship was visible. It was heading into the Trinity Inlet along the shipping channel and already Graham could identify features on it.

  A Type 23 frigate, he decided. “We will just make it in time,” he told Joany.

  As he pedalled along Graham breathed deeply and felt wonderful. Just looking around made him feel good. He loved living in Cairns and now he drank in the tropical scene of palm trees, the sea, the dark line of mangroves on the far side of the Inlet and the very distinctive line of jungle covered mountains beyond. He knew that those mountains were what sheltered the Inlet and Port of Cairns from the prevailing South East winds.

  And I’m with a pretty girl who likes me, he thought happily as he eyed several attractive young women whom he surmised were European backpackers or tourists.

  They were entering the tourist strip by this time and had to slow down because of the traffic. Impatience made Graham fret. I want to be there when it berths, he thought. Several worries occupied his mind as he dodged cars and pedestrian: Would the demonstrators be there? Would Thelma be there?

  Part of his mind told him he should give up on Thelma and accept that he had a good chance with Joany. Even if she is two years ahead of me at school, he thought.

  At the entrance to the bus station and car park Graham and Joany dismounted and locked their bikes together. They then made their way across to the shops and went through to the main wharf entrance. To Graham’s surprise there were hardly any people there. At the doorway were two policemen but they made no attempt to stop the pair walking out onto the wharf.

  Outside on the wharf Graham looked around, first to check on the frigate and then in the hope of seeing Thelma or his friends. He saw that there were only a dozen people standing at the edge of the wharf or behind a barricade along the wharf. There were a dozen uniformed police officers and a couple of TV cameramen. Stephen and Peter were there but there was no sign of Thelma or of any demonstrators. Maybe they didn’t get word of the ship coming in? he decided.

  The frigate was already at the end of the main shipping channel and a tug was moving to join it opposite the yacht marina. Graham stood and watched, his eyes flicking from the slowly moving warship to the long line of posts that marked the 9 nautical mile long shipping channel that extend right out from Trinity Inlet to the open sea. It was a piece of the ocean Graham knew well from voyages on his father’s ships and from pleasure trips to Green Island.

  His eyes took in the details of the ship and his memory confirmed it was indeed a Type 23 frigate. The ship had a black hull number edged in white but Graham had not memorized such details so he did not know its name until it got closer and he heard a man say: “HMS Cumberland.”

  It was only when the frigate was stopped directly opposite them and staring to turn that Graham realized that Joany was holding his hand. When did she do that? he wondered. But he didn’t mind. It felt very nice. The skin was smooth and warm and sent delicious sensations up his arm and through his body. So did the feel of her hips and shoulders as she bumped against him. This is nice. I might be in luck, he told himself.

  Then he noticed Stephen grinning at him and saying things to Peter. Peter looked around and also grinned. A flush of mixed embarrassment and pride washed through Graham and added to his heightened emotional state. Keeping a firm grip on Joany’s hand he edged across to stand with his friends.

  They began to discuss the ship as the tug nudged it in against the clear section of the wharf beyond the barricade. Joany pointed to the sailors lining the sides and superstructure. “They look nice. How many men are there on a ship like that?”

  To his shame Graham did not know. “Not sure, a hundred or so I guess,” he replied.

  “Oh goody!” Joany muttered, leaving Graham puzzled. He went back to study the fine details of the frigate: its guns, missile launchers, radar scanners and other fittings. It all looked good to him and sparked his imagination. The fact that it was a British warship helped. His own Grandfather, now dead, had served as an officer on British ships way back in World War 2 and Graham was very proud of that. He took p
art in all those really famous naval actions in the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean and South Pacific, he thought. The fact that most of the history books and novels he read were by British authors also helped to make him a loyal supporter of the Royal Navy.

  They were joined by Andrew Collins and his big sister Carmen and two other students Graham knew were Navy Cadets: Blake and Luke Karaku, a Torres Strait Islander. Greetings were exchanged and the ship’s characteristics and role discussed

  Joany letting go of his hand was the action that pulled his thoughts out of his daydreams. She still stood beside him, jiggling from one foot to the other and looking excited but she was focused on the ship. Graham shrugged and watched as the lines were thrown to the men waiting on the wharf and then the frigate was eased in to its berth.

  Peter had learned that the frigate was in Australian waters after anti piracy patrols in the Indian Ocean and South China Sea. “It is here for some R & R and then an exercise off New South Wales,” he explained.

  “What’s R & R?” Joany asked.

  Peter looked at her. “Rest and Recreation,” he explained.

  Stephen sniggered. “The sailors call it rape and ruin,” he added.

  Joany gave him a look of distaste and said, “Don’t be gross Stephen.”

  Graham glanced at Stephen and frowned. He was embarrassed that Stephen had used such words in the presence of a girl and regretted moving over to join his friends. The very notion of a male forcing another person to have sex he found repugnant and disgusting and he was sure Joany felt the same. Certainly Carmen gave him a sour look. To change the subject he began talking about the frigate’s armament.

  The frigate was secured and a gangway placed in position. Blasts of a whistle on the loudspeaker system called attention to a change and Graham was interested to note that the people on the upper deck all stood to attention and the union jack was broken out at the bow staff and the white ensign at the stern. At the same time the white ensign that had been flying from the mast was lowered. This little piece of naval ceremonial kept his attention so that he did not notice that Joany had moved away.

  The sailors on deck were dismissed and an armed sentry moved into the bows and others took up station amidships at the top of the gangway and at the stern. These men were armed with short automatic weapons—SA80s, Peter said—and were dressed not in the white sailor’s uniform but in dark blue trousers, light blue shirts and dark blue berets.

  Stephen pointed at the guards. “Do they have real bullets in those guns do you reckon?” he asked.

  Peter nodded. “You bet! Ever since the War on Terror they have been deadly serious with their security.”

  Stephen looked back and then pointed. “Here come some demonstrators. That might test them.”

  Graham looked and saw a dozen people carrying anti-war and anti-nuclear placards moving onto the wharf through the entrance. Among them were the scruffy youth he had grappled and also the rabble-rouser with the black beard and his busty blonde girlfriend. They were chanting and waving their signs but were not really aggressive. The police allowed them to advance to the barricade and then stopped them.

  No sign of Thelma or Janet, Graham noted. He could not even see Janet’s sister. To his relief there was no sign of Edmonson or Jerry Denham either. By then a stream of British sailors in uniform were hurrying down the gangway, each one saluting the white ensign as they did. Going on leave? he wondered.

  The British sailors walked to the gap in the barricade and began making their way to the entrance past the watching people and demonstrators. They looked to be in a happy mood and just smiled at the slogan chanting group, all except one sailor who had an anti-nuclear sign waved in his face.

  “No nuclear power! No nuclear weapons!” cried the demonstrator.

  The sailor laughed and in a broad English country accent replied, “Nuclear! You’ve come to the wrong ship chum. This one’s still steam driven or clockwork.”

  Graham admired that answer. Nuclear power! he thought with derision. This ship is just a general purpose frigate for hunting submarines and the like. He turned to watch the sailor leaving, and got a shock. Walking out through the entrance beside a sailor was Joany!

  Graham gaped and then felt a flush of embarrassment. I thought Joany came here to be with me! he thought. Hotly aware of possible public humiliation he glanced around at his friends. None appeared to have noticed anything, so Graham decided to follow her. Where is she going? he wondered.

  Making his way quickly through the rapidly growing crowd Graham headed for the exit. To frustrate his attempt to hurry were another group of sightseers, more demonstrators and the group of sailors still waiting to go in through the doorway.

  It took Graham several irritating minutes to get through the doorway and past another group of people. Then he hurried along the arcade past the shops. Where has Joany gone? he wondered, horrible suspicions swirling in his mind.

  And there she was—kissing a British sailor!

  Graham was so astonished and hurt that he just came to a standstill and gaped. Joany and the sailor were just in the entrance to a shop and the man’s mates were chaffing him good naturedly as they walked past. The sailor looked to be young and fit, perhaps nineteen or twenty, with dark hair. He was not only kissing Joany but running his hands over her body. And Joany was obviously not objecting as her arms were around his neck and she was responding. The details of the man’s white square neck top seemed to leap into Graham’s focus.

  Then the sailor glanced at Graham and stooped kissing. Joany frowned and then turned her head. “Graham!” she said.

  “Joany, what are you doing?” Graham asked, blushing with embarrassment and at the knowledge that he was probably making a fool of himself.

  “Just saying hello to this sailor,” Joany replied. “Welcoming him to Cairns.”

  The sailor looked from one to the other then said to Graham, “Is she your girlfriend?”

  Graham did not know what to say. He wanted to say yes but could only shake his head and mumble, “No, she’s just a friend.”

  The sailor looked at Joany and said, “You’re still at school aren’t you?”

  Joany nodded and took her arms from around his neck. The sailor made a wry face. “How old are you?” he asked.

  “Fifteen,” Joany replied. She gave Graham a look that he could not interpret.

  The sailor took his arms from around her waist. “Oh well, that was nice. Thanks, but you’d better run along with your boyfriend before you get into trouble,” he said. With that he turned and hurried on along the arcade after his mates.

  Joany gave Graham an accusing look. “You didn’t have to follow me and spoil my fun!” she said.

  His emotions swirling, Graham swallowed and found the courage to reply, “If you wanted a kiss I could have given you one.”

  At that Joany gave a wry smile. “Yes, but he is more experienced than you. And he will be gone tomorrow.”

  The implications hit Graham like stinging blows to his pride, but also puzzled him. “What do you mean?” he asked.

  “Oh Graham!” Joany cried. “I just wanted a bit of safe experience, to learn what to do; and I didn’t want a relationship.” She must have seen the look that crossed his face because she reached forward and quite tenderly touched his cheek. “Oh you poor boy! I’ve been misleading you. I like you Graham, but I don’t want a boyfriend.”

  By now Graham was so confused, embarrassed and upset he really just wanted to run away but he stood and nodded, tears prickling at his eyes and troubling his male pride.

  Joany shook her head. “It’s OK. You are good looking boy, and you are nice. You won’t have any trouble getting a girlfriend.”

  “Thanks,” Graham mumbled.

  “Sorry Graham. I do like you but I have already been teased by my friends about talking to a boy from a lower year level,” Joany added. “They are saying that you are my Toy Boy.”

  Another fierce pulse of shame swept through Graham at th
e thought of what the Year 9 girls might have said. He had heard the expression ‘Toy Boy’ and vaguely understood it to mean a younger male who was the friend of an older female, but he suspected it had worse connotations and blushed some more.

  Joany put her hand on her arm and smiled. “It will be all right. We can still be friends, but not that way. Now, you go back and join your mates and I will go home,” she said. With that she turned and walked quickly away.

  Not wanting to face more emotional pressure Graham slowly followed her instead of returning to the wharf. He was careful not be seen lest she think he was checking up on her but he did worry that she might try to catch up with the sailor—or meet up with another. To his relief he saw her unlock her bicycle and pedal off in the direction of her home.

  As he went to walk across the car park Graham saw Max and his big sister Cindy arrive. They had obviously been home because they had changed out of school uniform. Not wanting to speak to them at that moment Graham went into a shop and watched. To his surprise he saw Cindy speak to a passing British sailor and then stand talking to him. Max looked at his sister and then shook his head and hurried across the wharf entrance. To avoid him Graham went right into the shop and hid until Max had passed. When he came out there was no sign of either Cindy or the sailor. She is a real flirt, he thought.

  He went to his bike and unlocked it and then rode home, his shame and anxiety growing at every minute. Kylie might have told mum about Joany, he worried.

  She had. As soon as Graham went upstairs to the kitchen, Mrs Kirk raised one eyebrow. “Kylie tells me you were with some girl. Who was she?”

  Graham shrugged. “Just a girl from school. Joany is her name.”

  “Is there anything between you? Should I know about her?” his mother asked, obviously annoyed.

  This time Graham shook his head emphatically, images of Joany kissing the sailor filling his mind. “No mum. She is just a friend. She is in Year 10.”

  “Where is she now?”

  “Gone home I suppose. She left the wharf before I did,” Graham answered. To add to his defence he added: “We weren’t the only ones there. Stephen and Peter were too, and Andrew Collins and his sister.”