Aaron Connor

by Nathan Davey

  “I’m going to make sure” she said, “that Joe gives you both the full amount of cash he was going to give you at the end of this tour”

  “Oh no, you don’t have to do that” I said, “don’t worry about me”

  “No, no Mr Connor!” insisted Laura, “If you weren’t there today, I don’t believe that those kids would have gotten back here safe. I don’t even want to think about what could have happened. You two were incredible toady. You deserve every penny. I promise you, that before we leave for the Train Station tomorrow, you will have that money. No excuses”

  “Thank you” I said,

  “No” she replied, “Thank you”

  She patted both of our shoulders, before walking out into the cold morning and across the courtyard. After saying thank you again to the cooks, I and Lizzie headed outside as well. We saw David walking by himself in the middle of the courtyard. We jogged a little bit faster to catch up with him. He was happy to see us. The two of us walked with him back down the stairs into the tunnel, up the other end and towards the Dormitory House.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  David hung out with me and Lizzie for the remainder of the day. We didn’t really do much. All we did was hang around the activities room with some of the others. Some were playing a game of pool by pushing with balls with their hands, still enjoying the game even though there was a lack of cues. Some girls by the windows were playing a game of Truth or Dare. The rest of the people in the room, kids and adults alike, were watching some light hearted daytime television.

  David, me and Lizzie were among those who were just watching the television. We no longer felt all uptight and wound up as we were before. Our bodies were relaxed, our minds were free from panic and fear, and we breathed in a natural rhythm. We no longer felt threatened by horrid circumstances.

  It wasn’t too long before we saw the flashing lights of several police cars, project across the walls of the room through a window. We all gathered around the window to see what was going on. Joe, the man with the monk haircut and all the others got out of the police cars and headed towards the building. Their Nazi uniforms had been taken away and they were all in their usual clothes again. They entered the building escorted by two policemen, while the others stayed in their cars.

  The boys, the man with the monk haircut and Joe all went into their rooms in silence. None of them wanted to talk after the event that day. I don’t think I ever found out what that guy’s name was, the man with the monk haircut, no one ever got round to telling me. Oh well, he wasn’t in this book for too long anyway, was he? Thankfully I won’t be seeing him or that messed up sod Joe again.

  A policewoman came into the activities room to hand me and Lizzie an envelope from Joe. Inside was £50, as he was planning to pay us £5 each for the five nights the show as doing to run for. All together with the money we earned from Purple Skull, we now had £70. That money was going to come in handy, we both knew that we could make that last a fair while. We thanked the policewoman, who tipped her hat to us and left the room. The police went back to their cars and drove off out through the archway.

  Everyone was now accounted for. Finally we knew where everyone was and were able to relax completely. Joe didn’t talk to us again. He didn’t talk to anybody from the theatre troupe after that event. He kept himself to his room for the duration of the day. I think he finally understood his mistake and felt ashamed. I don’t know what they said to him at that police station, but it sure worked.

  “Do you guys wanna come up to my room?” asked David sweetly, “I wanna show you something”

  “Sure” we replied.

  We got up and followed the now excited David out the room. I resealed the envelope and put it in my jogger’s pocket. We following him down the hallway, through the foyer, through the next set of doors, up three flights of stairs and up onto the top level. We kept on following him down another corridor lined with doors, all leading to separate rooms. David had the room at the end. He opened the door, went inside and we followed him in.

  The room was just a tad bit smaller then the one we were in. On the bed was a pair of Marvel pyjama bottoms, an MP3 player and a very small guitar case. That is, I thought it was a guitar case. I read the words that there printed on it, which said: Gelderbloom Ukuleles. David was taking the little ukulele from his case, when Lizzie noticed that there was a small photograph of Tulisa from N-Dubs on the wall.

  “Is that yours?” asked Lizzie,

  “Yeah” replied David, his cheeks turned a rosy red, “I don’t like going anywhere without it”

  “That’s cute” said Lizzie, “do you like her?”

  “Yeah” he replied, “she’s really pretty”

  “Gonna give us a tune then, mate?” I asked,

  “Sure!” replied David, “that’s what I brought you up here for”

  David began to play the little instrument with a surprising amount of skill. If you’ve never come across a ukulele before, it’s basically a small guitar with four strings on which you can play pretty much any song you can think of. It’s a perfect sing-along and travel instrument, easier to carry then a big ol’ guitar. I’ve got mine here by my desk. After seeing David’s it inspired me to buy my own. Lovely thing it is. Has a great sound to it.

  David was playing a song I knew very well. It was Hey, Soul Sister by Train. He had a very nice singing voice, which is probably why he got into the theatre company in the first place. His voice had that Indie sound to it. Not the lousy imitation that the band back at St.Ians were doing, but a more genuine and natural sounding voice. It was really nice listening to him. In fact, it was so nice that it gave Lizzie an idea. She waited for him to finish playing first, when he did we gave him a round of applause.

  “Very good, mate!” I said, “Your pretty nifty on that, aren’t yah!”

  “Thanks” he replied,

  “Yeah, you were fantastic!” added Lizzie, “can I ask you something?”

  “Yeah, sure” replied David,

  “Do you know, which room Amber is in?” asked Lizzie,

  “Yeah, room thirteen, on the floor below” answered David, “Why?”

  “Come with me” she said, getting herself all excited, “and bring the Ukulele with you. I have the best idea, ever!”

  Before we could ask her what she was going on about, she had already gotten up and darted from the room. It seemed that we had no choice in the matter, so we followed her out of the room. When we came out into the hallway, all we saw was a flash at the end of the hall, which was Lizzie zooming down the flight of stairs. David and I also went down the stairs, but not at the dangerously fast speed that Lizzie did it in.

  We arrived at the floor below, where we found Lizzie standing in front of the door with a number “13” on it. There was an eager grin spread across her face, she was practically hopping on the spot with excitement. When she saw David, she grabbed his wrist and pulled him in front of the door. Lizzie went to the side where I was standing. She left David standing in front of the door holding his ukulele in his hand.

  There was a quiet pause. David just stood there and no idea what to do. He slowly turned on the spot and stared at Lizzie in confusion. She just smiled back at him.

  “Knock on the door” she explained, “and when she answers it, you play that song, just like how you did for us”

  “Are you off your rocker?” he asked, “I can’t do that!”

  “Why not?” she asked,

  “Because . . .” he replied, he was trying to think of something that would a good argument, “because . . .”

  “Exactly” said Lizzie, “Just do it. If it doesn’t turn out good, then you won’t be any less of a man then you were before. But, it might go really well, it’s worth a shot!”

  “I’m with Lizzie on this one” I added, “couldn’t hurt to try”

  “I guess not” said David, he finally gave in,

  “Then, go on!” insisted Lizzie, “do it, do it!”

  David nod
ded nervously to Lizzie. He turned his head and stared at the door. The time he was staring at that door felt like a century. The air felt still. Not a sound could be heard. No one moved. David took a very deep breath and knocked on the door. The sound rang through silence loudly. It was like he was knocking on an old wooden door, in a cathedral.

  We only had to wait for a few minutes for Amber to answer the door. She opened the door wearing a white blouse and had a red bow in her long black hair. She smiled at David who smiled back. There was an awkward silence for a few moments, with David still clutching at his ukulele.

  “Come on” Lizzie whispered, “Come on, come on!”

  Finally, to our great relief, David began to strum on that ukulele. We both sighed loudly and giggled among ourselves. For a few moments, we thought that he wouldn’t do it and blow this opportunity. We thought that Amber would just close the door on him, and then he’d go back to his room defeated. He didn’t though. He played that little ukulele and sung the same song that he sung to us.

  Amber’s face lit up. Her hand went up to her mouth. When we looked closer, we saw that her hand was shaking. The young girl’s other hand was rested on her chest. Her smile was wide and bashful. David kept on singing and playing. Then we saw the exact thing that Lizzie was hoping to see, she saw adoration in Amber’s eyes. The plan had worked. David had successfully pulled at Amber’s heart strings.

  David finished the song and stood there, waiting for a final outcome. Amber wasn’t sure what to do at first. She swallowed and bit her lip. A smile spread across her face again, while she looked at David. Her right hand was playing with strand of hair, nervously.

  “Do you want to come in?” she asked, “I’ve got some games on my phone”

  Bless her heart, she literally had no idea what else to suggest. David’s song had really made an impression on Amber, but she wasn’t sure what to do about it. It was really sweet to watch. It was so innocent. Even David was quite shy and wasn’t sure what to do with himself.

  “Sure” he replied simply,

  “Cool” Amber said.

  She took David’s wrist and led him into her room. Me and Lizzie mimed “yes!”, and then high fived each other. I know, it’s really corny but we were honestly that happy. David won the heart of the girl he’d always fancied, other than Tulisa of course. After such a nasty day, it was nice to do a good deed like that. It would become something else to add to our list of good deeds. Out of all the things we’d done on that trip, getting David and Amber together was one of my favourites.

  Aaron Connor and Lizzie Penny: the matchmakers. It was a nice feeling, the feel that you’ve really ignited a spark between two people. I can see why people get such a buzz out of it, it really can be a wonderful experience.

  The two of us went back down to our own room, feeling all light and bubbly. We didn’t do much. I put the money that the policewoman gave me, into my safe with the Moped key and the other money. I and Lizzie just sat on the bed, played Angry Birds on her phone and had a bit of a chat. It was the kind of chat we have almost everyday, the chat in which you talk about nothing of any real importance. You chat about films, music, celebrities, funny videos we’ve seen online, gossip and so on. We also had a little kiss and a cuddle, there on the bed. It was nice to have some time just to ourselves.

  The cooks prepared a few more meals during the day. There were some games played across the site, using items which were “borrowed” from the school’s sports cupboard. These games included: cricket, rugby, football, basketball, hockey, rounders and ultimate Frisbee. Those who weren’t playing were at the sides and enjoying being the game’s audience. There were some fantastic football chants, some were very funny and some were filthy for kids of that age.

  Lizzie and I played a game of football. At first the boys didn’t want a girl to play, but eventually gave in. You should have seen the look on their faces, when they found out just how good she actually was. Lizzie scored five goals for her team in a row. I’ve heard about Lizzie’s football skills, but it was only then that I actually saw her play.

  This has sparked a theory in my mind, which has caused some controversy, among blokes I’ve mentioned this to. The theory is this: girls are actually better at football then boys. Girls are put on their own leagues and teams, whereas the lads on the English teams do rubbish whenever they qualify for the World Cup. I say, let’s stop the sexism and let some girls who know the game inside out, to join the country’s main teams. It’s just a thought, just an idea, that’s all.

  After the game of Footy, some more late night comedy shows were on the television. All of us gathered in front of the television and laughed until we could no longer breathe. During the breaks the banter was flying, jokes from coming from all directions and each one was funnier then the last. It was a quality night. Who would have thought, that such a horrible day could end on such a high?

  Once all the good shows were over, we went back to our rooms. I and Lizzie went down the corridor towards our room. Before we went inside, we saw a brief glimpse of Amber and David going up the stairs holding hands. The two of us smiled as we saw them go up the stairs together. We went into our room, got changed and snuggled up again in the same bed. Sleep overcame us almost instantly. It always does after you’d had a really nice day.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  “Have we got everything? Lizzie asked,

  “I think so” I replied,

  “Are you sure?” she asked,

  “Yes” I answered, “I have the keys and the money which I’ve counted, all £80 is there.”

  “Cool” she replied.

  It was the following morning. We were standing outside by the Moped. We sat down on the stairs in front of the Boy’s Dormitories, holding our helmets in our hands. This was the only morning in Scotland so far, in which the sun was shining brightly. It was a nice change for our last few hours in the country. Very soon we’d be on the train back to Epping, Essex. I don’t think I was in Scotland long enough to truly appreciate it. I need to go back. Someday I might go back. I’ll go to the festival with Lizzie again, maybe then we’d be able to enjoy it properly. Maybe, I’ll think about it. I’ll see if I can find some time for a holiday.

  Anyway, I’m getting a little bit off topic, back to the story. We had only been sitting there a couple of minutes when the young actors began to file out of the building. The adults came out as well. Both the kids and the adults were carrying out their cases. The man with the monk haircut came out after them, also carrying his large travelling case.

  I don’t know about you, but I’m getting fed up of putting “the man with the monk haircut” every time I want to reference him. From now on his name is Dave. I don’t know if his name was Dave but, in way of storytelling and the flow of reading text, it’ll be easier for both of us if we just named him Dave.

  Dave came out and stood with the others who had gathered just in front of the building. The younger ones were on their phones or talking among themselves. The adults were talking as well, most of them were still bitching about Joe while others just discussed their dreams.

  Dreams are always the conversation that crops up early in the morning, only when they’re nothing else to talk about. In the morning, dreams are the last resort when it comes to topics of chit chat. The conversation is usually very vague, symbolic and explaining someone your dream is like trying to explain the theory of relativity.

  “I had a really weird dream” said Lizzie,

  “Really?” I replied,

  “Yeah, you and me were getting married” she said,

  “Really?” I replied, “Where were we getting married?”

  “Disneyland” she answered, “It was all going pretty good, until you decided to turn into a donkey!”

  “Erm . . . I’m sorry?” I said,

  “It’s alright” she said, “It was only a dream. As long as you don’t do it at the real thing . . .”

  “The real thing?” I asked,

  “Yeah” s
aid Lizzie, her face went bright red as she realised what she just said, “But like, years from now”

  “Do you think about us getting married?” I asked,

  There was a pause. Lizzie wasn’t really sure what to say. Her head hung and she stared at the ground. When she finally replied, she daren’t look up from the floor.

  “Maybe” she replied quietly,

  “That’s cute” I said, “your cute”

  “You’re not mad?” she asked,

  “Why the bloody hell would I be mad?” I asked,

  “Because” she began, “boys always get mad, when their girlfriends talk about marriage and that.”

  “You’re forgetting something” I told her,

  “What?” she asked, she looked up at me with those beautiful eyes,

  “I’m not like other boys” I said, “I’m Aaron Connor!”

  She giggled at that and allowed me to give her a hug. She really was adorable. She was strong, cool, independent, clever, sweet and kind. She was so unlike all of those empty-headed Barbie wannabes, you see so much on the street these days. Lizzie wasn’t just some girl. Lizzie, even though she was only sixteen, was real woman. She had her personality fully developed and was a woman of a modern age. As well as being feminine she can play football and get down and dirty with the lads. She’s the girl of everyone’s dreams. Well, of my dreams anyway. You might have different tastes then me. I really did love her though, blimey I adored her.

  Joe came out of the building last. His face was grey and his eyes were lined with red from crying. He was no longer the man he once was. He was no longer the pompous, arrogant, insensitive lout he used to be. He was now a very sad man. A man who was sorry for what he’d done. He looked like a man who’s been in prison for several years, finally released, determined to change and be a better man. I have not seen or heard from him since that trip to Edinburgh, I just hope that he made the right decision and became a better man by learning from his tremendous mistake.