Wind Across the Playground

by Ross Richdale

  Wendy stared. This was not the man she knew, the kind happy guy who was great to be with. This was a narrow-minded bigot.

  "Rubbish!" she retorted. "My body is my business, Max. What I did was legal and I have not regretted my decision for one moment."

  Max stared at her, silent for a moment. "You must have been overwrought and under considerable stress, Wendy. You were persuaded by the devil to commit this sin..."

  "Oh shit!" Wendy retorted. She was angry now. "What a load of old codswallop! For your information, Mr. Whitten I was brought up in a strict Presbyterian home and I know as much about religious theology as you do."

  Max looked taken back but persisted. "To abort a living child within you is immoral, Wendy. However, forgiveness is also something fundamental in our teachings. You have done a grave act but because I love you, I can forgive you..."

  "Forgive me!" Wendy retorted. She slapped her knife and fork down and stood up. "There is nothing to forgive. What I did was my business you sacrilegious little bastard and if you don't like it. Go ... Oh, go get fucked!" Her voice dropped to a whisper. "If you know how."

  "Wendy!" Max reached out for her hand but she flung it aside.

  "I mean it, Max. I had one hell of a time. Everyone around me was supportive and helped me. Everyone, Max! They were friends; real friends I loved and respected." She stared into his eyes. "I thought I loved you, too, Max but I was wrong." She stopped and wiped spittle from the edge of her mouth with a small handkerchief. "I don't even think you can even be a friend now, Max. Our attitudes are too different."

  "Wendy, I..." the man looked desperate as he stood up and attempted, unsuccessfully, to grab her arm.

  "Don't bother to call, Max. I won't be home. Go find a nice girl down at your Sunday school, get married and breed children. " Her eyes were like poison as she fixed him with a final glare, grabbed her handbag and stalked out of the room.

  WENDY TOOK A TAXI BACK to school, the one secure place in her life but when she arrived, the whole argument with Max bubbled into her mind.. Tears welled in her eyes and she knew she had to get away and hide somewhere before the tears really flowed.

  She walked into the administration block but the tearful shudders had already begun. With her head low and handkerchief across her nose, she headed up beyond the main office and into the small medical room beyond Noel's office. Luckily, it was empty. Wendy slammed the door behind her, broke down into long emotional sobs and never noticed Sarah walk in.

  The older woman tucked her arm around Wendy and held her. "Max?" she asked in a quiet voice.

  Wendy sobbed for a moment before she blew her nose and glanced at her friend. "How did you know?"

  "Just a guess," Sarah replied and guided Wendy to a chair.

  "He picked me up outside the courthouse and proceeded to denounce me as some terrible person who murdered my baby." Tears came again. "All I ever wanted to be was a good person, Sarah. I never wanted to hurt anyone. I've always tried to think of others and help them." She glanced up. "Am I that evil person Max says?"

  "No," Sarah replied. "You are not. You are loved and respected by us all, Wendy. "

  "Am I?" the girl replied, "Or have you just tolerated me because I ended up on your doorstep. Noel must think I'm a stupid little girl who hasn't matured since that day he hauled me out of the swamp, a desperate child who has to find someone to lean on all the time, some idiot who...."

  "He doesn't," Sarah snapped. "None of us do and I can prove it."

  "How?" Wendy sniffed.

  "Wait one moment and I'll show you." Sarah squeezed her arm and slipped back to the office. She returned a moment later with a letter in her a hand.

  " Read this," she said. "It's to the Auckland Education Board."

  Wendy nodded and glanced down at the paper.

  Dear Sir,

  In relation to my wife's maternity leave as from this Easter, I recommend that Miss Wendy McEwen be appointed as Acting Senior Teacher in charge of the senior pupils at Kent Drive School...

  "Me!" Wendy gasped. "I'm one of the youngest teachers on the staff."

  "But most suitable for the position, Wendy." Sarah replied. "Look at the letter's date."

  Wendy did and saw it was two weeks old.

  "We received a letter back approving your appointment. Noel was going to show you but with the court trial he never found the chance. You'll receive quite a hefty pay rise while you're Acting Senior Teacher."

  "But the others?"

  "Well, George steps up to DP again and Glenda becomes AP. It's just how the hierarchy works when a senior staff member goes on leave." Sarah stared at Wendy. "Noel is a good friend but he is also this school's principal. If he not think you were capable he would not have recommended you, Wendy. He did it because you have proved you are a strong, conscious teacher."

  "I've tried so hard," Wendy said. "With my private life, too but every time I come crashing down. Am I just a teacher and nothing else, someone destined to be an old maid like half the teachers at Southland Girls' High when I was there? You know, forty years old and still alone?"

  "I doubt it," Sarah replied. "Look in the mirror and you can see why."

  "But what about Max?"

  "No doubt he is a nice man but he obviously has firm opinions about abortion that are the opposite of ours. You won't change him, Wendy so don't even try. People with conservative views are convinced they are right. Only more liberal people are prepared to compromise. Understand?"

  "I think so," Wendy replied.

  "Look," Sandra added. "There's only an hour of school left and I've finished most of my work. What say we head down to the shopping mall and have a cup of coffee together? I feel like a break, too."

  "Okay," Wendy said. "It's been one long hard week."

  Sarah laughed "Yes but we survived, didn't we?"

  "Almost," the young woman replied. She smiled and walked out with a new confidence reflected in her eyes. In just a few days she had matured in many ways and was now ready to move on in her life.

  CHAPTER 23

  What Wendy needed was a new boyfriend and Sarah decided she would do her best to get her one. One young man she had noticed her friend seem quite friendly with in the previous year could be just the person she needed. Perhaps a few discrete inquiries would help. The scheming woman reached for the office telephone and dialled the number she'd just found in the directory.

  "Hello North Shore Bus Company," she said. "I'm trying to contact a young man who drove for you at the end of last year. His first name is Leroy."

  "Leroy Gibbs, a tall guy with fair hair?" the woman at the other end of the line asked.

  "Yes. Could I speak to him, please."

  "I'm sorry," the woman replied. "Leroy only had a summer job with us. He went back to university at the end of February."

  Sarah sighed. "You have no forwarding address?" she asked.

  "Wait a moment," the woman replied. "I think he left us a number to phone. Can you hold the line?"

  "Sure," Sarah replied. Well, she had his last name so that was a start.

  "The woman's voice came back and told Sarah a number. "Of course that was a few weeks back but is all the info I have." she concluded.

  "You've been a great help," Sarah replied. "Thanks,"

  She rung off and dialled the new number.

  "Yeah, gidday," replied a male voice after the sixth ring.

  "Can I speak to Leroy Gibson, please," Sarah said sweetly.

  "Yeah, okay."

  The phone went quiet but the same voice could be heard in the background. "Leroy. Some old girl wants to speak to yah. Could be your mum chasin' you up."

  There was more silence before another male answered. "Leroy speaking." he said.

  After she ascertained she was speaking to their bus driver Sarah decided to be blunt. "Do you remember Wendy McEwen?" she asked. "She's the teacher whose class travelled across from Kent Drive School to Summerhill Heights School."

  "Sure," Leroy's voice picked
up. "How is she? "

  "Not too bad," Sarah said cautiously. "It's been a bit hectic after that arson trial. I guess you read about it."

  "Yes," the man answered. "I followed it closely. It's not every day there's a big trial on involving some one you know. I was there on the day Wendy gave evidence. I thought she did so well I was going to come up but I knew she was going out with that teacher guy. "

  Sarah smiled to herself. It was sounding better all the time. "Oh him," she said casually. "They had a big bust up. He didn't like some of the things she said at the trial."

  "Oh," Leroy sounded even more interested. "What part?"

  Sarah gulped. "That bit when she said she'd had an abortion."

  "I thought it might be," the man replied. "I reckon it took a bit of guts confessing that. I was going to tell her but as I said..." His voice trailed off.

  "I wish you had," Sarah said. "That's really why I'm calling."

  "Did Wendy ask you to?" Leroy sounded a little suspicious.

  "No," Sarah replied," She'd skin me alive if she knew I contacted you but the truth is, she's feels a bit let down and could do with a friend. She spoke of you and I thought..."

  "Say no more," Leroy interrupted.

  "I have her address," Sarah added. "I know she'll be home on Saturday night. Now if you just happened to drop in I'm sure she'd appreciate it."

  Leroy laughed. "Okay, Sarah, I get the drift."

  "Good," Sarah said and chatted away for a few moments about the school but mainly about what Wendy was doing before she rang off with a satisfied smirk on her face. After all, she had met Leroy and had been impressed by him. It wasn't as if she had talked to stranger.

  WENDY SAT ON THE FLOOR of her flat with several large charts spread around. Since Yvonne had left the year before she had the flat to herself. It cost more of course, but she quite liked being alone. She held a picture of a futuristic flying craft out and grinned. Her science fiction and fantasy unit was going well. The boys were all into flying saucers and space ships but the girls tended to like fantasy stories of magical creatures and so on. Once motivated, her ten to twelve year-olds wrote huge stories, produced covers and drawings to create quite sophisticated work in booklet form. The trouble was, the projects took ages to mark, not that she minded. Teaching older children was just different, rather than being harder.

  The polite tap on the door made her glance up. She wasn't expecting anyone but it could be Kate and Alexia. They often just dropped in. She stood, grabbed a jersey to slip on and walked out through the darkened kitchen and over to a small window. From here she could easily see anyone on the back porch as a streetlight lit the area up. It was a precaution she had slipped into a habit of doing. The sight tonight, though, made her smile. Leroy was standing outside holding a massive bunch of roses.

  She slipped off the security chain and almost flung the door open in her enthusiasm.

  "Leroy," she cried. "How are you?"

  He grinned and held out the roses. "I heard you had a big bust up and might want a little company," he said.

  "How did you?" Wendy frowned then shrugged. What the hell! "Yes, you could say that. Come on in. I haven't seen you for ages. I heard you weren't driving buses any more?"

  "I'm back a varsity," Leroy said as he followed Wendy in. "That was just a job to earn a bit of money."

  "Are you? What are you studying?"

  "Engineering..." Their eyes met and they both smiled.

  "Go through to the other room while I put these gorgeous roses in a vase. The heater's on there." She shivered. "It's quite cold out, isn't it?"

  AN HOUR LATER LEROY was engrossed in painting a chart for Wendy. He was quite talented at drawing and seemed to reflect her boys' enthusiasm for spacecraft. He'd sketched a gigantic machine on six legs beneath an exaggerated volcano spurting out orange and green smoke.

  Wendy laughed "That's great but you didn't come here to work all night. What say we have some supper."

  Leroy glanced up and grinned. "I enjoy it," he said. "We never did anything like this when I was at primary school. It was all 'Read the story in your journal and describe what you would have done if you were Fred.' Usually Fred was a complete nerd who found an ant's nest under the back veranda. "

  Wendy laughed. "Tea, coffee or something stronger?"

  THE STAFF MEETING ON the afternoon of Tuesday the third of May 1988 was of special significance as Noel began to tell the staff of the latest government changes to the education service.

  "So basically that's it," Noel said to the hushed staff as he held up the purple book with Tomorrow's Schools embossed on the cover. "As from October next year, every school in this country will be self-managed. We'll all have a Board of Trustees and the education boards, inspectorate and Department of Education will all be disestablished. The teacher grading system and regulations about promotion also go."

  "Replaced by what?" George grumbled.

  "Every Board of Trustees will appoint their own staff. Of course, teachers will have to be registered but beyond that, it is at the discretion of the school. Each school will set up an appointments committee."

  "And what about gradings, length of service and your rights of transfer if your position is downgraded?" asked a worried Glenda.

  "They all go," said Noel. "There will be a new Review Office to replace the inspectorate but they will only check schools, not individual teachers. Every school will be an individual identity, allocated public money according to their size and left to run themselves. There are mountains of conditions, of course. A school charter is the first one where we have to set out what we are and where we're going to go."

  "I don't like it," George muttered again. "They're going crazy. Throwing the baby out with the bath water, it seems to me."

  "I guess," Noel replied, "However, it's official and comes in next year." He glanced up to see Alexia standing in front of him.

  "Dad," she said in an excited voice. "You're wanted on the phone."

  "Alexia," Noel retorted. "You know you shouldn't interrupt a staff meeting."

  "Dad!" the girl said. "I wouldn't but it's important."

  "Okay," Noel said and turned to his staff, "Excuse us a moment," he said with a shrug and a chuckle rumbled through the room.

  Noel walked across to the wall mounted staffroom phone and picked up the receiver. "Noel Overworth speaking," he said.

  The line sounded dead.

  "Hello!" Noel said in a louder voice. "Is anybody there?"

  All he could hear was breathing and a tiny whimpering sound. He frowned, shrugged but saw Alexia's expectant face and decided to wait before hanging up.

  "Hi, Sweetheart," Kate's voice burst into his ear. "Did you get the message?" She too sounded excited and puffed as if she'd been walking out in the rain.

  "What message?" Noel replied with a worried frown. "Is something wrong, Kate."

  "No. Everything is perfect. Listen again."

  A faint crying sound came back and Noel began to realize...

  "Damn," he gasped. "You aren't..."

  "Your son just said, 'Hi Daddy. I arrived two weeks early.' They plugged a phone in beside my bed."

  "Damn," Noel gasped. "The baby's arrived?"

  "Yes and has reached the grand old age of about twenty minutes." Kate giggled. "We both love you, Sweetheart but don't you think you should come and visit. He weighed in at three thousand, one hundred grams, has your chin and my chubby cheeks. There's no hair though. He must get that from his maternal grandfather."

  "Why didn't you contact me?" Noel said his mind all in a fluster.

  "You would have only worried, Sweetheart and I knew you were busy. "

  "Damn," Noel said. "I'll be right over."

  He hung up and turned to find the room deadly quiet... "Kate's just given birth to a little baby boy," he said.

  Suddenly everyone broke into applause and Noel turned and placed his arms around his daughter. "Did you hear that Sweetheart," he said and kissed her cheek. "You
have a little brother."

  "I know, Dad," Alexia chuckled. "Mum told me five minutes ago but said I wasn't to tell you."

  "The rat bag," Noel replied and smiled broadly as the staff gathering around to shake his hand.

  "Go to her, Noel," George said. "I can take over the meeting."

  "Do you mind?" Noel gasped.

  "Go!" everyone yelled.

  "Grandma's waiting with the car," Alexia yelled above the uproar. She took her father's hand and led him out to the waiting vehicle.

  FLANKED BY ALEXIA AND Sandra, Noel walked into the ward and saw Kate sitting up in bed. God she looked so beautiful in a frilly white nightie and light blue brunch coat. She had her arm around a small bundle poking from a tiny blue blanket and smiled as the three walked in.

  "Hi everyone!" she said. "You took longer than junior to get here."

  "Oh Kate," Noel said and reached down to kiss his wife. Tears appeared in his eyes and, again without warning, his mind flashed back to another event.

  "Have you seen your daughter, Noel?" the nurse said all those years ago.

  Noel's tears burst into a flood that put the room out of focus. He turned and there beside him was his daughter, now as tall as his shoulders with long blonde hair tied in a ponytail and the maturing young body of oncoming puberty. Without a sound, he flung an arm around her and held her so close she could barely move.

  "Dad," she said and looked up at his tear filled eyes. "What's wrong?"

  "Nothing," he sniffed. "I'm just so thrilled to have a beautiful daughter, wonderful wife and now a son. That's all."

  He caught Sarah's also damp eyes and she smiled as if she could read this thoughts. "You're a fortunate man, Noel," she said softly.

  Noel felt a hand grip his, a warm hand that squeezed so tightly... Kate's hand. He turned, hugged his wife again and kissed the responsive lips. "I love you Kate," he whispered.

  "I know," she replied in a serious voice. "I love you too, Noel with all my heart. Now, how would you like to hold him?"