The Boy and the Battleship

by Christopher Cummings

  Max made a face. “I know it is terrible, but what is its name?”

  That hurt. Graham resented it and went red. He stubbornly repeated: “That is her name: HMS Terrible.”

  Max laughed and nodded. “Yeah OK. What about that grubby old French Ironclad? Is that in the game today?”

  “Yes. She is my troop transport,” Graham replied.

  “What is her name then?”

  Graham had at least remembered that. “Gloire. It means Glory.”

  Max laughed. “Won’t be much of that today for you,” he said. “Where is my destroyer?”

  “Here. What are you going to call her?” Graham asked, hoping to catch Max out in the same way.

  “Devastator,” Max replied instantly.

  It was such a good name Graham could only agree. “That is good. Now, what game will we play today?” he asked.

  “You try to transport your troops across the room and I will try to stop them,” Max suggested.

  “What troops?”

  “All those HO Scale ones you have,” Max replied. Graham and Alex between them had hundreds of HO Scale plastic soldiers of various armies.

  “They are the wrong scale,” Graham objected.

  “Doesn’t matter! They will do for today,” Max replied.

  Graham moved to where his toys were stored in boxes. Cindy walked over and stood next to him so that her legs were right in front of his face. “Can I help?” she asked.

  “Y… Yes. I suppose so,” Graham answered, his eyes taking in the shape of her body, clearly outlined in the tight shorts. Gosh she’s got nice legs, he thought. With an effort he tore his eyes away and hoped nobody had noticed. As he sorted HO soldiers and loaded them onto his ships with Cindy’s help he cast a guilty glance at Margaret. She was sitting talking to Kylie and did not look happy.

  Max was given an army of about fifty Australians. Graham loaded a similar number of Germans onto his two ships. All the while Cindy kept crouching near him, chattering away and asking questions. Graham was granted a wonderful opportunity to study her legs close up.

  The game was played with the same rules as the previous day. Graham tried to claim that his gunboat had such a shallow draught that it could not be torpedoed, but Max refused to allow this. Dice were thrown, guns fired, torpedoes launched. The Gloire was quickly sunk and Graham was only able to rescue about twenty of the soldiers. But with his new gunboat he battled gamely on. She managed to hit the destroyer three times and damaged her guns and engines before she too was torpedoed.

  A halt was called for afternoon tea. The children all trooped through to the kitchen and seated themselves on stools. Cindy contrived to sit beside Graham and several times her knee bumped his, making him look down at her thighs. He found himself marvelling at the smooth perfection of her skin.

  Is she doing that deliberately? he wondered. Margaret obviously thought so, as she made a sour face when next it happened. Graham felt embarrassed, aroused and guilty all at once and was glad when they returned to the front veranda to continue playing.

  Another game was played. This time Kylie and Margaret went off to Kylie’s room, Margaret somewhat unwillingly. Cindy again helped Graham. Several times she bent over right in front of him and she crawled around in front of him so that her backside was very obvious. Graham could not help looking. She’s got a nice bum, he thought, and became embarrassed again.

  In the second game Graham again had his troop transport sunk by torpedo but managed to save 35 soldiers. Then his gunboat landed a hit on the destroyer’s torpedo tubes and Max had to grudgingly admit she had been blown in half. Graham was jubilant. He was able to land what was left of his army and start the land battle. Here the gunboats main gun and the rapid fire Bofors both caused enemy casualties. In the excitement of the battle he lost all interest in Cindy.

  In the end Graham was unable to win the land battle so both boys were happy. They sat back and contemplated the play area with satisfaction. Graham picked up the Terrible and admired her. He now thought she was his favourite ship.

  Max was happy too. “That was good fun,” Max said. “What about another game next weekend?”

  “You bet! I will make another ship by then,” Graham said.

  “OK. See you then. Come on Cindy. Time we went home,” Max said. After they had gone Graham sat for quite a while and admired the model ships. He felt very happy.

  Chapter 9

  MONDAY

  As he walked to school on Monday morning Graham experienced a mixture of emotions. High among them was concern about how Thelma might view him. She knows I exist now and that I like her, he thought. But would she go out with him? He could only hope.

  Another strong concern was worry about Edmonson and his cronies. I will try to avoid him, Graham decided.

  And then there was the sheer pleasure of thinking about making ship models and having battles with Max. By focusing on them he was able to push the other worries to the back of his consciousness so that he arrived at school in a positive frame of mind.

  As usual Graham was suitably cautious. At each doorway and corner he paused and took a cautious peek before proceeding. To his relief he saw no sign of Edmonson.

  Graham was able to reach his classroom without nay trouble. There he met Stephen who was chatting to Lorna. Seeing that stirred jealousy in Graham. Why can’t I get a girlfriend? he wondered. How does Steve just pick them up so easily?

  While they chatted on the veranda Thelma and Janet arrived. Janet gave Graham a sharp glance and Thelma appeared to completely ignore him but he felt sure she was aware of his presence. Then he looked out across the school yard and got two shocks in quick succession. First Edmonson walked across from ‘B’ Block to ‘C’ Block and then Cindy strolled by with a group of her friends. Luckily, Edmonson did not look in his direction and walked on.

  Then Cindy reappeared and the sight of her gave Graham a lift. She is very horny, he thought. With difficulty he tried to follow the conversation with Stephen and Lorna while eyeing Cindy till she went into a classroom. Only then did he realize he was being disloyal to Thelma. God I’m weak! I fall for every pretty girl I see, he berated himself. He shook his head and thought, There is no point in wasting time on girls who are older than me. I should concentrate on girls my own age—like Thelma. But at the moment he thought this into view walked one of the Year 11 girls; the stunningly beautiful Anastasia. Oh yes! Now she is nice to dream about, he told himself. She really sets the blood on fire! If only… Then he grinned at his own hypocrisy.

  Soon after that the bell for classes went and the friends moved to their classrooms. For the next hour Graham sat at his desk and gazed with hopeful adoration at Thelma. She is so pretty! he thought.

  And then he was in trouble with the teacher for not focusing on his school work. Graham tried to make himself work, but the maths eluded his wandering mind. His attention wandered again after 10 minutes and he started to sketch on his notebook. While Old Wily gave a detailed explanation of how to solve that particular problem Graham quietly drew. His new gunboat took shape on the page.

  During the breaks Graham stayed with his friends. He did not feel brave enough to try approaching Thelma and he still feared encountering Edmonson and his gang. So the day dragged, only lightened by the planning of model ships.

  That afternoon Graham went home and started work on a second gunboat. For the hull he went and rummaged in the off-cuts box but could not find another piece of wood the same size. The nearest he could find was one 15cm long, 6cm wide and 3cm high—significantly broader in the beam (“Shorter and fatter,” was how Kylie described it later).

  Graham decided this would do and he set to work shaping the hull. That was all he got done that evening as he had homework and was busy reading a novel. He sanded the hull and placed it beside the Terrible on his desk before he went to bed. From his bed he could look at the models and fantasize. In his imagination he went back to rescuing Thelma but fell asleep before she could do more than give
him a grateful kiss.

  Next day at school Graham continued drawing ships. Once again he attracted unwelcome attention from Old Wily who came walking around the class to check on people’s work. Old Wily picked up Graham’s book and leafed through it.

  “Hmm. Interested in ships then Graham?”

  “Yes sir. I’m going to join the navy.”

  “The navy! You might find that a bit of a shock. You have to do what you are told there. Do you have any idea what it might be like?” Old Wily asked.

  Graham nodded. “Yes sir. My dad’s a ship’s captain and I’ve been to sea lots of times,” he replied.

  “I know what your father does,” Old Wily replied. “I have known him since we went to school together forty years ago. But going to sea with your dad might be a bit different to being under naval discipline.”

  “Oh, I dunno sir. My old man’s pretty strict,” Graham replied.

  Old Wily smiled. “Captain Bligh you call him behind his back, so he tells me.”

  Graham blushed and was aghast. He did not know his father knew the children’s nickname for him. “Yes sir,” he replied, thinking, I’d better watch what I say or Old Wily will tell dad—and then it’ll be a dozen lashes at the gangway Mr Mate!

  Old Wily went on: “If you think the navy is what you want then you should get a taste of it by joining the Navy Cadets. That way you have more information on which to base your decision.”

  “Oh, I’m going to do that sir, as soon as I turn thirteen,” Graham replied enthusiastically.

  “When is that?”

  “In a month’s time sir, in August,” Graham replied.

  “Good. Now stop drawing and start doing maths. If you have any ambition to be an officer like your dad you will need to be good at that,” Old Wily replied.

  “Yes sir,” Graham replied. He took his book back and settled to work. But not for long. Within 15 minutes his attention had wandered and was focused on his upcoming birthday. I will have a big birthday party and invite Thelma, he decided. That seemed like a brilliant idea so he fell to planning the party and quickly pencilled down a list of who he might invite.

  Then another thought struck him, bringing the planning to a halt. I suppose I’d better ask mum first.

  During German Graham managed to keep out of trouble and Geography he enjoyed so when morning break came he was free. In hopes of striking up a conversation with Thelma he quickly left the room and made a point of avoiding Stephen. But then he lost sight of Thelma in the milling crowd of students. Despite walking quickly around to all the usual places she frequented he could not find her. Feeling quite despondent he went to the toilet and then went looking again.

  But it was not Thelma he met but Cindy. She smiled and waved and left her friends to join him. “How are you today?” she asked.

  Graham could only nod and grin. To his own surprise he found he wanted to talk to her. As they talked his gaze drank in her beauty and he was almost mesmerized by her physical closeness. Suddenly he was filled with desire. To his delighted consternation he became quickly aroused. As they were both standing in a passageway under the school where many other students could see them he became anxious lest his condition be obvious. The surge of lust became so strong that he felt an urgent physical need to squirm.

  Then his anxiety level shot up another notch when he saw Thelma and Janet approaching. To his relief they did not seem to notice him and walked past a few paces away. I hope they don’t think I like Cindy, he thought. But then another thought came to him. But I do like Cindy—and she seems to like me. Maybe I should stop trying to win on with Thelma and try her instead?

  At that moment the bell for classes went and Graham was left standing as Cindy gave him a cheery “See you later!” and walked off. Then he had the embarrassing problem of walking to class while hiding his arousal. This was so stressful that he quickly lost any desire and it was with relief he slumped into his desk ready for history. His arousal returned several times during the next lesson as he thought about Cindy. Then he became guilty because Thelma was in front of him and he felt he was being disloyal. I am a real weakling, he castigated himself. Once again he tried to think of a plan to attract Thelma’s attention. I will try asking her out again, he told himself. But only when the moment is right.

  Having decided this Graham sat and fretted, plotting and hoping for an opportunity. When lunch time came he set out to try to implement his plan. But once again he could not find Thelma anywhere and he ended up sitting with his friends.

  Peter, Stephen, Max and Graham usually sat in the same place each day and there was nearly always something interesting to talk about. When Graham joined them they were deep in discussion about model railways. They were discussing types of railways. This degenerated into an argument about which was best: old-fashioned, with steam locomotives; or modern, with diesel-electrics or electrics.

  Graham favoured the steam engines. “They are real engines,” he said. “They have a soul and seem to be a living thing, not just a smelly box on wheels.”

  The bell to go into classes ended the argument but they agreed to meet at Roger’s after school. Graham and Stephen headed off. On the way Graham got another shock. Heading for the same room were Thelma and Janet but with them were Edmonson and Denham from Year 12. The group stopped, deep in animated discussion so Graham and Stephen continued on to the classroom. There was no way Graham would try to talk to her in those circumstances. I don’t want the embarrassment and the possible humiliation if she turns me down, he thought.

  Despite the setback Graham kept his attention on Thelma all afternoon, but she seemed unaware of him and he made no attempt to speak to her at the end of classes. After school Graham walked with Stephen and Peter over to Roger’s house, which was only a block from the school.

  Roger’s mum welcomed them and gave them a large afternoon tea. Graham had known her all his life and was aware that she was glad that Roger had such good friends, because she often talked about kids getting involved with the wrong crowd and ending up in trouble.

  Roger smiled. “My dad says we can build a big railway in the storeroom,” he said enthusiastically. “He says he will help with the building and wiring and stuff but wants us to draw the plans.”

  “Can we help?” Stephen asked.

  “If you like,” Roger agreed.

  Stephen nodded. “Will you let us run our trains on the layout?”

  “Of course. That will really make it good,” Roger agreed.

  “What sort of railway is it to be?” Graham asked.

  Roger wasn’t so sure. The lunchtime discussion was re-kindled. It soon degenerated into an argument, about which type of model railway was best: steam engines; or modern, with diesel-electrics. Graham stuck to his defence of the steam engines, partly because his great grandad had driven steam engines on the Kuranda Railway, but also because he was a romantic at heart and they had more appeal. The debate fizzled out after a while with three against one in favour of steam.

  The boys then went down to the storeroom, now to be the ‘Train Room’. For a time they just looked around and considered the room’s potential. Peter then asked: “How large is the room Roger? If you are going to plan this railway you need to know the dimensions.”

  “Don’t know,” Roger replied. “But we can soon find out.”

  A tape measure and ruler were produced. Peter said, “OK Graham, you and Roger measure the end wall. Steve and I will measure this wall.”

  The task was soon done and the dimensions noted: 9 metres long and 3 metres wide. The ceiling was not quite 3 metres up, and uneven, being the beams supporting the timber floor of the main living area.

  Peter looked around with satisfaction. “You will be able to make a really good layout here Roger,” he said.

  “You blokes can help me,” Roger said. “I would like us to do it as a team effort.”

  The others were a bit embarrassed by this statement and gruffly agreed, to hide their feelings. There was a
short pause before Peter said, “Thanks Roger. That is a good idea. But what sort of railway is it to be?”

  “Not diesels,” Graham said.

  “I know. We have agreed on that,” Peter answered. “I meant what type of physical location will we try to create? Is it to be rural or city and so on?”

  “English countryside would be nice,” Roger said. “There are plenty of books available, and the engines and rolling stock are easy to get.”

  Stephen shook his head. “So are American stuff,” he said. “We could build a Rocky Mountains layout with lots of tunnels and high trestle bridges.”

  Peter frowned. “I would like a big city layout,” he said. “One with lots of sidings at a big marshalling yards, and spur lines running off into factories with lots of lights and machines in them.”

  “We need a port too,” Graham added.

  The others laughed. Peter grinned and said, “You just want to make another model ship.”

  “Yes I do,” Graham replied. “But it would be easy to have a spur line to a wharf on the side of the layout.”

  They argued around in circles for a while; Roger wanting a castle and sleepy little village with cottages and a church and dairy cows in fields lined by hedges.

  Stephen snorted scornfully. “You’ve been watching Thomas the Tank Engine too much,” he said. He held out for an American Pike. Peter stuck to his idea of an industrial layout with a big steelworks and oil refinery. For a while it looked as though the idea would fall down for lack of agreement till Graham made another suggestion.

  “I reckon we should build a North Queensland layout. We could have a small port, a coastal plain with cane farms and a sugar mill for industry then a mountain range all covered with jungle. The railway could go up it through lots of tunnels like the Kuranda Railway. On top we could make the Tablelands with farms—that would give us the dairy cattle—and even a sawmill; and possibly a branch line out into the dry country to the west to have beef cattle on a cattle station.”