by Sarah Asuquo
Bella dashed through the door, leaving a suspicious Ms Browne seated at her desk. “These teenagers,” she said.
At the pond, Breeze had changed into her trainers. With a glance over both of her shoulders to check that the coast was clear, one click of her heels and a powerful stride, she was off. She arrived at St George’s Leisure Centre in under three minutes.
“Hi there, my name’s Sally. Can I help you?” said the assistant.
“Hi, Sally, um, yeah I need a locker — please. Can I have a locker, please?”
“A locker for which facility?”
Breeze looked at Sally vacantly. “Huh?”
“Are you using our gym today or our studio or the swimming pool, or–”
“Swimming!” Breeze cried. “I’m going swimming.”
“Ok, so our swimming pool is on the first floor and the lockers are located outside the changing rooms. You need a pound coin to open them and you can choose any vacant locker that you want. Except one.”
“Except one?”
“Yes, one locker is jammed shut. It’s been jammed for years and that’s the only locker that needs a combination to open it, but no one knows what it is!” Sally chuckled and Breeze pretended to find it funny too.
“That’s strange!” Breeze performed, before abruptly adopting her serious tone of voice. “Where’s that locker?”
“I don’t know, but it won’t be there for much longer. My manager’s getting it cut out and replaced today. Should be happening any minute now.”
“Of course, that would be happening today,” Breeze muttered under her breath. She glanced at her watch and realised she had lost ten minutes of her time. “Really? Ok, well thanks for all the information, see you later.”
“Wait, excuse me, you need to pay for–” As Breeze walked away from the counter, Sally noticed that Breeze was wearing a school skirt. “Excuse me!” she yelled sharply.
Breeze detected her change of tone and returned to the desk. “Sorry, I didn’t hear you,” she replied.
“Shouldn’t you be in school? It is forbidden for children use our facilities during school hours unless they are here with their school.”
Breeze’s felt her heartbeat rapidly increase and the palms of her hands become moist. She heard a group of students standing on the staircase. One pupil from this school approached the counter.
“Can I buy a pair of goggles, please?” he said.
“One moment, darling, I’m just dealing with something.”
“I’m with this school!” said Breeze.
“Really? They arrived ten minutes ago.”
“Yeah, I know. Uh, I had a dentist appointment, so I was late. My mum just dropped me off.”
“Hmm, really? So what school are you from?”
“Huh?”
“What’s the name of your school?”
Breeze noticed the badge on the student’s blazer and recognised it instantly. “St Charles Academy.”
“Young man, do you know this student?”
He looked at Breeze and she pleaded him with her eyes.
“Um… yeah, yeah.”
“What’s her name?”
“Huh?”
“I feel like a parrot today. It’s a simple question. What – is – her – name?”
“Um, Shakeisha.”
Breeze’s eyes widened as she looked down at her trainers to avoid making eye contact with Sally.
“Hmm. Well hurry up, Shakeisha, and get changed, your school’s lesson starts in five minutes. Here are the goggles, young man. That will be ten pounds, please.”
“Ten pounds, you know! Teef,” he grumbled as he handed Sally the money and selected the silver pair. “Come on, Shakeisha, let’s go!” he said, bending his arm for Breeze to link hers with it.
Breeze could feel Sally’s eyes burning a hole in her back as she watched them walk away. “Don’t look back,” she said, “just keep walking.” When they reached the first floor, Breeze let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you so much!”
“No problem. James. My name’s James.”
“Thank you, James… But really, Shakeisha!”
“It was the first name I could think of, it’s my grandma’s name.”
Breeze began to laugh, but James failed to see the joke. “Oh, her name is Shakeisha, for true… she sounds like a G.”
“She is.”
Breeze looked at her watch. “Ten minutes left! I’ve got to go! Nice to meet you!” she said, running to the changing rooms.
“Wait! I didn’t catch your name.”
“Breeze!” she yelled as she ran.
“Breeze, yeah. Ok. Bye, Breeze,” said James, grinning as he watched her go.
At the end of the corridor, Breeze was met by a tower of lockers that stretched further than she could see, and she immediately felt defeated. “How the hell am I supposed to find the right one in time?” She crouched down to the ground opposite the lockers and stared at them hopelessly. Suddenly, a locker in the corner began to glow, but Breeze wasn’t paying attention.
“I need three minutes to get back to school, which gives me five minutes to find the medal. There’s no way I can look through all these lockers in five minutes! They’re so weird. Who builds lockers like this anyway? How can anyone reach the top ones? Why are they so narrow? Why’s that one glowing? Why are they in–” Her rant was interrupted by her realisation. “Follow the glow,” she whispered. She swiftly jumped to her feet and approached the locker. Breeze meticulously turned the dial to the combination: 22-2-04, but it didn’t open. “Come on,” she said as she tried again. After three failed attempts, Breeze was disrupted by two women walking out of the changing room. One was holding a baby.
“He’s adorable! How old is he?”
“Five months,” replied the baby’s mother in an American accent. “He was born January 1st.”
Breeze had an eureka moment. “She said January 1st, not 1st January. Benjamin Bailey was born in America… their dates are backwards!” She turned the dial to the combination: 2-22-04 and the locker quickly opened. The top of the locker was illuminating and as Breeze pushed it, a medal dropped into her hands. She let out a scream of excitement and quickly composed herself, tightly covering her mouth. “Four minutes, time to get out of here.”
As Breeze walked to the staircase, she noticed two men walking towards her.
“Just down at the end of this corridor, I’ll show you which locker needs to be removed,” the manager explained.
Breeze smirked as their paths crossed and once she was sure that she was out of sight, she clicked her feet and soared back to school.
“Thirty seconds to spare,” said Bella. “You cut it close!”
“Bell, that was harder than we planned. The date was in the American order. February 22nd. Not 22ndFebruary.”
“Oh course, he was born in the States. We didn’t think of that. So, the month came before the day.”
“Exactly.”
“Why do they record the date like that anyway? It’s so backwards.”
“That’s what I said.”
“Did you get the medal?”
“Yeah, look.”
“Wow. That’s so sick! Put it in your bag somewhere safe. Good work, Breezy!”
“One down, two to go.”
“Yep! That’s the bell, let’s go!”
“One second, I need to change into my school shoes.”
“We’ve got P.E. now, Breeze. It don’t matter. Come on.”
The girls ran to their lesson and Chanel watched them from upstairs, through the common room window. “What are they doing?” she whispered.
“Why are you arriving to my lesson in trainers, Breeze?” said Mr Peters.
“Sorry, Sir, I just thought I’d save time by changing into them before the lesson.”
“A logical explanation if this was a practical lesson. This period is a theory lesson and next period is your practical. But you know this already, Breeze, don’t you? So, I’ll ask again. Wh
y are you wearing your trainers?”
“It’s my fault, Sir,” said Bella. “I got confused and thought we had our practical first, so I told Breeze to keep her trainers on.”
“If it happens again, you’ll have a detention, Breeze. Put your shoes on and take a seat.”
“Yes, Sir.”
Breeze quickly changed into her wallabees and threw her trainers into her bag.
“Right, settle down, Year 10,” said Mr Peters. “In a moment, I am going to ask you to get into your teams and create a health and fitness plan for your client. Each group has a different client with specific health and dietary requirements. Using all we have learned this term, create a health and fitness plan for your client that’s most suited to their needs. Each group will present their ideas to the class. You have twenty minutes. Off you go!”
The class left their seats and dispersed into groups. Chanel noticed that Breeze left her duffle bag under her chair and cunningly walked towards it. Subtly, as the class worked in their teams, creating mind-maps of their plans on A2 sugar paper, she switched Breeze’s bag with Ade’s and rushed to the door with the bag on her shoulder.
“And where are you going, Chanel?” said Mr Peters.
“Um – I need to go to the toilet,” she replied, crossing her legs.
“You just had your break time. Stop avoiding doing work in my lessons.”
Chanel did that frequently. She only chose P.E. as a GCSE option because Jayden was doing it.
“I’m not trying to get out of class, Sir, honestly,” she insisted. “It’s women’s problems,” she murmured. She knew this would work like a charm and it did.
“Hmm… You have five minutes,” Mr Peter replied reluctantly.
Chanel locked herself in the female changing room and searched through the duffle bag. She pulled out Breeze’s trainers and P.E. kit, throwing them to the ground.
“Useless!”
Followed by her deodorant.
“Nonsense.”
Then her pencil case.
“Rubbish.”
And finally, her textbooks.
“Argh! Waste of time! I know you’re hiding something, Track Girl, and I will find out what it is.”
She gathered Breeze’s belongings, placed them back into the bag and hid it on top of the vent in the corner of the changing room.
“That was seven minutes,” said Mr Peters as Chanel sauntered back into the lesson.
“Oh, was it? Sorry, Sir.”
Each group presented their health and fitness plan whilst Mr Peters made notes on each presentation.
“It was very close,” explained Mr Peters, “however, this group used scientific terminology fantastically. They also considered a range of exercises that their client could do, irrespective of his disability. So! The winners are… Team Bolt!”
Breeze’s team jumped up and cheered as Mr Peters handed them a box of Celebrations.
“We did it, Breeze! We make a good team,” said Jayden.
“I guess so,” Breeze replied indifferently.
Chanel rolled her eyes at them. “Calm down, guys, it’s only a box of chocolates!”
“Hater,” said Jayden.
“Ok, ladies and gents, return to your seats and write the homework in your planners. Once you’ve got it down, you can head to the changing rooms and get ready for your practical.”
As Breeze approached her desk, she could immediately tell that someone else’s bag was under her chair. Her bag had a key chain of a heart on the zip, given to her by her grandmother.
“My bag,” she uttered. “WHERE’S MY BAG?” she screamed.
“Breezy, what’s wrong?” said Bella.
“This isn’t my bag! My bag’s gone!”
“Calm down, Breeze. I’m sure it’s just been misplaced. Listen up, Year 10. Everyone check and make sure that you have the right bag,” said Mr Peters. He checked the planner inside the bag under Breeze’s chair. “Ade, this is yours,” he said.
“So, who has mine?”
“Don’t look at me. I ain’t no teef,” Ade replied.
Bella began to panic. “No, no, no! We have to find it, Breeze.”
“My trainers… the medal,” she whispered.
“Don’t fret, girls, I’ll email the reception and report it missing. If anyone hands it in, they’ll bring it straight to you. Now off to the arena.”
“But Sir, I need to go and look for it.”
“Look for it? Where would you go? You had it last in this room. I’m sure someone’s just picked it up by mistake. It will reappear. Let’s go.”
In the changing room, as Bella changed into her P.E. kit, Breeze retraced her steps.
“We’ll find it, Breeze,” said Bella.
“I had it in the lesson. I changed into my shoes and then we split into groups. No one left the lesson… did they?”
“I didn’t see anyone leave the lesson, Breeze. It just doesn’t make sense.”
Breeze sat by the side of the track as her class completed a beep test. Chanel was on water duty. A duty she created herself because ‘sweating was disgusting’ and she refused to participate in any physical activities. Strangely, it was only Jayden and Ade who Chanel felt needed water. As she flirted with both boys, Breeze remembered overhearing Mr Peters’ frustration with Chanel last period.
“YOU!” she yelled. She ran towards Chanel and rugby-tackled her to the ground. “Where did you put my bag!”
“Get off me! You’re getting mud on my designer handbag! Someone help me! She’s crazy!”
“You took my bag!” Breeze exclaimed as Bella pulled her away.
“Did I? I don’t remember,” she sneered.
“Enough!” Mr Peters shouted. “Breeze, go to the changing room and cool off!”
“But–”
“NOW!”
Breeze ran to the changing room and Bella followed her.
“Did you take her bag, Chanel?” Jayden asked.
“Maybe.”
“That ain’t cool, man. You’re wrong for that,” said Jayden, walking away.
“Gosh! Can’t anyone take a joke anymore!”
Breeze paced up and down the changing room. “It was her, Bell! She took it!”
“Are you sure, Breeze?”
“Yes, she was the only person to leave the lesson. I overheard her saying something about women’s problems to Sir.” Bella began to march towards the door. “Where are you going, Bella?”
“I’m going to get your bag back and if she doesn’t give it to me, I’m gonna ram her stupid Chanel handbag down her throat!” Breeze ran in front of Bella and slammed the door shut.
“No, she won’t give it to us if we’re forceful. Maybe we should tell her about the medals and saving the arena. Then she might help us.”
“Breeze! Yeah, you’ve lost your damn mind.”
Suddenly, Breeze noticed something glowing opposite her in the corner of the changing room. “Look – up there.”
“It’s glowing.” Bella climbed on a bench and grabbed the bag. “Is this it, Breeze?”
“Yes! It is!” she replied, searching inside of it.
“Is everything in there? Your trainers? The medal?”
“Yeah. They’re here. I put the medal in this little pocket here. Chanel would never have been able to find it.”
“Oh my days! Yes!”
“Why would she do that to me, Bell? I thought we were cool now, she invited me to her party and everything.”
“You never know how people really feel about you, Breeze. You need to be careful. Don’t let that bag out of your sight again.”
“I won’t.”
“It’s almost lunchtime. Change into your trainers. You still got the timeline?”
“Yeah, it’s in my pocket.”
“Ok. So, Crystal Palace, historic wall. Behind the brick.”
“Yeah. I remember.”
The school bell rang. Bella held open the door to see if anyone was watching and as soon as she gave Breeze t
he all clear, off Breeze went. Crystal Palace Sports Centre was unusually busy as a primary school were on a trip visiting the grounds. Breeze checked the time and it had taken her ten minutes to run to the centre from her school.
“Ok, so that’s twenty minutes, max, to find the medal and ten minutes to get back. Gosh, I sound like Bella.”
Breeze walked into the sports centre and could not believe her eyes. The grounds were filled with tourists, athletes, children, teachers, and it was colossal! She noticed a man wearing a uniform and quickly approached him.
“Excuse me,” she said, “do you work here?”
“Yes, love,” replied an elderly man, “I’ve worked here for fifty years. It’s the best job in the world! I’ve seen all sorts.”
“Ahh, that’s nice. Could you tell me–”
“Famous athletes, performances, riots, fights,” he continued. “Did you know that there was once a robbery here? I mean, they only stole from the laundrette, but even still. They took off with over a hundred quid’s worth of merchandise! The buggers. Anyway, I do love it here. I could’ve retired years ago but I can’t think of anything else I would rather do. Crystal Palace has my heart!”
“Wow! That’s amazing. You should be able to help me, then,” replied Breeze impatiently.
“Of course, my dear, I know this place like the back of my hand.”
“Great! I’m looking for the historic wall that honours famous athletes.”
“Ah yes! That wall is remarkable. So much talent is recognised on that wall. It’s a bit tricky to find, though. It’s right at the end of the centre. If you ask me, I think they put it there on purpose so that people have to walk through the whole stadium and explore the place properly. Otherwise, people would just go straight to the wall and then bugger off!” he chuckled.
“That’s what I’m trying to do,” Breeze mumbled through a forced smile.
“Sorry, love, what did you say? My hearing’s not great in my right ear.”
“Oh, nothing. Could you tell me how to get to that wall, please?”
