TAC Boot Camp

Wal sat in the dining room the following morning, pushing down a plateful of breakfast cereal. As usual, the kitchen was a mess, with nobody bothering to clean up after breakfast. Both his mother and father had left in a hurry and now his older brother, Mark was preparing to do the same. He left his plate and empty coffee cup on the table and jingled his car keys in his hands as he arose from the table.

  Wal stared at the keys and the horrible realisation dawned on him that his brother was going to take his car with him. ‘You’re driving to work?’ Wal did his best to hide his mortification, but it was difficult.

  ‘Yeah,’ Mark said. ‘Can’t be stuffed walking today.’

  Wal had to think of something quickly, otherwise all his plans of going to the rugby match that day were screwed. ‘What a wuss,’ Wal said. ‘Can’t handle a fifteen-minute walk to work? Takes me twenty minutes to get to school.’

  ‘Yeah, but you’re a slow walker.’

  ‘Bullshit! Face, it Mark, you’re losing it. Soon I’m going to be ten times fitter and more athletic than you. Even now, I’m more muscular.’

  ‘Crap! The day you end up more muscular than me, is the day God magically transforms you into a super human.’

  ‘He already has. You don’t see me having to drive to school, do you?’

  ‘That’s because you don’t have a car.’

  ‘Face it, Mark, you’re getting soft. I’m beginning to think you’re not really a true Ullman at all.’

  Mark peered at him, his eyes narrowing.

  ‘Ya big wuss. You’re becoming a bit of a girl, Mark.’

  ‘Watch it Will!’

  ‘Boo hoo, what ya gonna do, tell Mommy?’

  Mark smirked. ‘You’re getting too snarky for your own good, you are.’ He hurled his keys onto the bench. ‘I wasn’t actually going by car anyway. I just needed to get something out of it. Which I did.’

  ‘Yeah, whatever.’ Wal knew full well Mark’s true intentions and that he was simply trying to save face. He didn’t want to admit that Wal was right about him being a wuss. His brother left the house and Wal relaxed. His taunting had paid off and the car keys were there on the bench ready for the taking. He smiled and continued to eat his breakfast.

  Getting the car from the backyard was an easy task. All Wal had to worry about was getting the car back before his brother returned from work at around 5.30pm.

  He parked the car 50 metres down the road from the school and advanced the rest of the way on foot. He made his way towards the east gates and was surprised to see a couple of year-thirteen students standing like sentries at the gates. They even had a sash over them with the words “School Guard” on them.

  ‘Who do you think you two are?’ Wal asked.

  ‘Can’t you read?’ replied Sandra Callahan, the female sentry.

  ‘Ah hell, I guess maybe it’s because all I ever do at school is socialise. Of course, I can read! But what’s the big idea?’

  ‘Mr Harris’s instructions,’ the male sentry, Frank Wester replied. ‘There are to be guards at the main gates and patrolling the school during all breaks plus before and after school. You’ll need passes to come and go from school between school hours. But you’ll find out all about that at assembly this morning.

  Wal did not like the sounds of that at all. ‘Ah geez, you’ve got to be kidding me. Passes?’

  ‘Yup.’

  ‘Sorry Wal. No more skipping school to go to the shop to buy fish and chips or to get out of Mr Ramden’s math’s classes.’

  ‘Yeah.’ Frank smirked. ‘No potato fritters for you for lunch anymore. At least while Mr Harris is in charge. You’ll have to stick to the school canteen.

  Wal marched up the path, seething. After all the trouble he had gone to, to organise his excursion, yet another obstacle had come up. ‘Damn that Mr Harris. Today of all days!’ Wal growled as he met up with his friends at their usual gathering point under the trees outside E Block.

  ‘What’s wrong?’ asked Pete.

  ‘Haven’t you seen them? Mr Harris has put guards on the gates. You have to have passes to come and go during the day.’

  ‘I never saw any guards.’

  ‘They just got put on.’

  ‘I bet Mr Harris found out that people were planning on skipping school to go to the rugby game in New Plymouth,’ suggested Mav. ‘I figure he would have waited until next week to start, but the possibility of people skipping school today was quite high.’

  ‘Is this supposed to be Boot Camp or a prison?’ Wal snarled.

  Pete chuckled. ‘It was always a prison. Just a low security one.’

  Wal rubbed his chin, wracking his brain for a solution. ‘So how do we get out of here without having to go by the guards?’

  ‘Looks like we won’t be able to,’ Mav said.

  ‘Oh, no, you’re not getting out of it that easy, Maverick. There’s plenty of ways out of this school without having to go via the guards. We’ll just have to be a little stealthier.’

  A few of the girls arrived on the scene, one of them being Vanessa. Immediately all Wal’s angry thoughts evaporated and the world became good again, as it always did when she was around. Even Mav and Pete lit up at her arrival. Wal couldn’t help but marvel at how she could light up a place just by her sheer presence.

  Vanessa radiated a smile and greeted them cheerfully. ‘Hi guys. I see Mr Harris has called in the troops to stand watch over Te Arawa College. Looks like you might have to postpone your trip to the rugby.’

  ‘Not likely,’ said Wal, making out that the guards no longer bothered him. ‘No guards are gonna stop Will Ullman from doing what he has to do.’

  ‘Oh Wal, you are so brave, so full of determination. You are truly my hero.’

  ‘I am?’ Wal stood straight, feeling his head balloon out from the complement. For a moment, he thought she might actually be serious.

  ‘Nuh uh, I lie,’ Vanessa said, in the same cheerful tone. ‘You should know by now that heroines are more my style.’

  Wal’s heart sank. Ok, so he wasn’t her hero. At least he knew how much she really thought of him by the note. He wanted to mention it to her and tell her how much he appreciated it, but he decided that then was not the time. It may be that Vanessa’s feelings for him were something she didn’t want known amongst her friends.

  ‘You better watch it, Nessa,’ Mav said. ‘Wal’s ego can’t take too much of a hammering. You’ll be giving the guy a complex. At least he might end up in one. One with padded walls.’

  ‘Well I’ll say this for him,’ she said. ‘That time he got up on stage and serenaded Chelsea sure showed some courage. A guy needs to stand out if he wants to be noticed.’ She winked and moved aside to talk to the other girls.

  Wal’s ego started to rise again. So, Vanessa had admired his act of self-humiliation that time? That was certainly something, and he couldn’t help but feel that Vanessa was trying to make a point. Perhaps he needed to do something special for her too? Something that would show her how much he liked her.

  The bell rang before he could give it any further thought.

  Once seated in the hall, Rex arrived and sat down beside Wal. ‘Hey Wal, how’s things?’

  ‘Not bad, not bad. Pretty good actually.’

  ‘Glad to hear it. Hey, Wal, I have a question for you. Your grandfather, the one who died of colon cancer last year...’

  ‘Yeah?’

  ‘During the later stages of it, did he ever undergo chemotherapy?’

  ‘Yes. He did. He lost a lot of hair and all that.’

  ‘Ahha. Thanks Wal.’ Rex turned and faced the hall and said nothing more. A frown appeared in his face as if something was bothering him, but Wal was not the type of guy to probe.

  Assembly began and all the teachers marched up to the stage as if on parade, with Mr Harris leading the way. ‘left... right... left... right... left... right, HALT!’ He then held his hand up and spread his fingers in the air. The teachers went to their allotted seats and stood in fron
t of them. Most of them had narrowed eyes and frowns on their faces as if they objected to the regimented way they had to come up onto the stage. Wal didn’t blame them.

  Harris issued an order, ‘Everybody rise for the singing of the national anthem. Everyone will stand to attention. Anyone who does not will be brought up onto stage to sing the entire thing again.’

  Only a handful of students were stupid enough or brave enough to disobey Mr Harris. Even Rex went along with the whole charade and true to his word, their new principal pointed out those who had not followed his instruction and made them all sing the anthem again on stage.

  ‘That was bloody appalling!’ Mr Harris said afterwards. ‘You lot can all return at lunch time for a practise session on the New Zealand national anthem! Now get back down to your seats. Move it, move it, move it!’

  There was stoned silence in the auditorium. It seemed that finally everyone had got the message that Mr Harris was not one to take lightly. Of course, Wal, along with his male classmates, already knew that.

  ‘As some of you may be aware there are now guards being placed on all main exits and entrances to this site. Nobody shall be allowed to come and go during school hours without a pass, which must be issued by a teacher or office staff. There will be no exceptions and anyone violating this rule will be court marshal... I mean punished!’ He paused to allow his words to sink into the audience. ‘Guards will be year 13s and they will be wearing the appropriate sash to identify them. These guards will be given your upmost respect and cooperation. If not, you will be in serious trouble, Gordon Bennett, you will! There has been far too much cutting class and people leaving the school grounds without permission. There will be no more skiving off, no more heading down to the shops. Yes, Will Ullman, there will be no more going to the fish and chip shop to buy feeds of potato fritters.’

  Wal flinched. It seemed as long as Mr Harris was in charge he would not get to enjoy his favourite lunch.

  ‘You will buy your lunch from here from now on if you so wish. Furthermore, the menu will be changed. Only healthy food. That’s right. No pies, donuts and crap like that. As long as this is my school, none of that rubbish will touch your lips. It will be fruit, vegetables, full grained breads and other such nutritional fare.’

  Any other day and there would have been groans from the student, but with Mr Harris in charge, nobody dared.

  ‘No soldier ever became a mean lean fighting machine by eating crap!’

  Wal really had the urge to call out and say that they were not at school to learn to be mean lean fighting machines, but refrained.

  Mr Harris seemed to read his thoughts though. ‘And no one ever did well at school without a good diet. So just like in the army, the same is going to happen here, at least while I run the place.’

  With the interesting and controversial stuff out of the way, Mr Harris then proceeded to talk about the usual business, the type of thing that put the average student to sleep. Wal’s mind drifted back to thoughts of Vanessa and he gazed down the row to see her sitting with Maggie and Mandy. It seemed hard to believe that someone as amazing as Vanessa had a secret thing for him. Their eyes met and she smiled.

  Was that a twinkle in her eye? Yes, he was sure it was. He now knew that he had to do something to really get her attention. He would think of something. Of that, he was adamant.

  Interval arrived and it was time for Wal and his friends to escape the confines of Te Arawa Prison.

  ‘I figure the best way to get past the guards unnoticed is out back,’ said Wal.

  ‘What?’ Pete asked. ‘No way, they’re bound to have a guard or two out there just in case anyone goes that way.

  ‘I’m not talking about leaving via the back fences into the bush. I’m talking about climbing over the side fence into one of the private properties.’

  ‘Just as long as nobody’s home.’

  ‘We’ll be very quiet.’

  Mav sighed. ‘I hope you know what you’re doing.’

  ‘Hey, just follow your Uncle Wal and you’ll be fine.’

  ‘Why do I feel like you’re leading us to our deaths? I’m getting pictures in my mind of Steve McQueen and the Great Escape. Tunnelling underground to get to the outside.’

  ‘No tunnelling necessary.’

  ‘Have you got a baseball? I figure I’ll need one to bounce against the wall, when we’re caught and confined to detention for the rest of the week.’

  ‘Will you just shut up, Maverick?’

  Arriving out the back, they discovered that it wasn’t going to be quite so easy to pull off the plan. A guard was marching up and down the fence line, making it impossible to climb over one of the fences without being noticed. Even when he turned and walked back the other way, he turned around at regular intervals to glance down the fence line.

  ‘Ah, shit,’ Wal growled as they leant against the sports shed, making it look as though they were just chilling out.

  ‘So much for that plan,’ Mav said. ‘Looks like we’re stuffed tighter than Tucker’s belly after an all-you-can-eat buffet.’

  ‘And that’s saying something,’ said Pete.

  ‘Nah, bugger it,’ Wal said. ‘I’m not gonna give up.’

  ‘I guess we start tunnelling then?’ Mav said.

  Wal clicked his fingers. ‘I got it. Mav, you get him to come over here and I’ll whack him over the head and knock him out.’

  ‘How about we just go up to him and tell him that Mr Harris wants him around at the side exits urgently.’

  Wal nodded. ‘Yeah, I guess that might work.’

  ‘Fine. Then you do it. Pete and I will wait here.’

  ‘Why me?’

  ‘Because this is your plan and it was you who was willing to smash the guy over the head and knock him out. Anyone who would come up with a ludicrous plan like that deserves to be the one who takes the risks.’

  ‘OK,’ groaned Wal, ignoring the insulting manner of his tone. Not wanting to waste any more time, he strode over to the guard while Pete and Mav disappeared from sight. ‘Hey Matthew. Mr Harris is looking for you. He wants you round at the east entrance immediately.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘How the hell should I know?’

  ‘But he told me to stay on guard here.’

  ‘Well he wants you around there now and he’s in a real bad mood. What did you do?’

  ‘Nothing!’

  ‘Well you better get around there now.’

  Matthew groaned and took off at a jog. In seconds, he disappeared round the sports shed. Mav and Pete immediately appeared from their hiding place on the other side of the shed and met Wal at the fence. From there they were easily able to climb over the fence into the adjacent property.

  All was quiet there, so they hurried through the yard and out onto the street beyond.

  ‘We did it!’ Pete gasped.

  ‘Of course we did,’ Wal said, trying to sound staunch. ‘My plan worked.’

  ‘Your plan?’ Mav smirked. ‘OK, sure, but we aren’t at the game yet and about now Matthew’s gonna know that you were only trying to distract him so you could leave the grounds. When you get back at school on Monday it’s gonna be you that has to do some explaining, my short-sighted friend.’

  ‘Who cares? Come on, the car’s not far from here.’

  CHAPTER 11:

  Skipping School