#3 Retrospect

The family of five lived in a flat, that is not what one could call an uptown apartment, like one you may find in London as houses are expensive, so flats are poshly decorated, costing the same price as some houses elsewhere. No. Chandler Square wasn't anything like that. Chandler Square didn't belong in the same area of those flats, never mind the same street. Chandler Square was the sort of place a person would feel bad top say they raised kids in. The flat wasn't enough to call the council to get repairs, but it was enough to show that whoever lived here previously, didn't care about the place.

The mother wasn't renting a flat off the council, she was given it temporarily by a charity, and the charity could only make do with what it could afford. The condition of the flat was worse than the house that she previously lived in with her husband and three kids. Looking around the house, the house didn't feel lived in.

The house had white walls that weren't white any more. The white had lost its brilliance. Sometimes there would be dark patches on the walls that came from dirt. The light switches were darkening and above the cooker in the kitchen, the white ceiling was a bit orange as smoke and oil rose. The wall by the cooker also had oil splashes on it.

In every room, there was a feint smell of tobacco that one could get used to. The flat also had less room, so the living room was filled with stuff, a third of the way through. Also the walls of the bedrooms were hijacked with posters.

The flat was kept in bad condition. The mother's bedroom door had a huge gaping hole in it that was the size of an A3 piece of paper landscape, long ways. Someone obviously made this hole to dip their head under, and then climb through the hole and gain access to the room. On the passageway in the corridor entrance, it said Sophina woz here 1998, carved with a carving knife into the carpet.

It was now half ten in the morning, and the mother was now waking Esha up.
"Esha, it's time to get up."
"Mmm, five more minutes."
"It's ten thirty, time to get up."
"Hnnn, wadda dun yah, gimmie a dishcloth."
Esha's eyes flickered, and the bright morning light shone through the window, and onto her eyes.
"Esha."
Esha could sleep no more, so she got up in her teddy bear Forever Friends pjyamas, and walked her way towards the bathroom to go in it.
"Wake up Hayley for me Esha."
"Okay Mum", said Esha sounding tired, though she visibly wasn't tired.
The mother went to the other bedroom to wake up Eashan.

Esha noticed no school uniform coming out of the bathroom, on the banister that kept people on the landing from falling onto the stairs, just normal clothes. She went to wake Hayley.
"Hayley, Hayley, it's time to get up." There was no response.
"Hayley, it's time to get up." Esha shook her, then she got up.
"Is there school today?" asked Hayley.
"No" replied Esha.
Hayley got out of her bed, then tore a poster off the wall, and tried to jam it into a hole in the wall. When that failed, she made the hole bigger by flaking the top layer of plaster off onto the floor, uncovering a layer of pink plaster, under the white coating.

* * *

After the mother had got the kids ready, they were now in the kitchen to eat breakfast. The kids were standing by the radiator for warmth.
"I know you kids hate to be home schooled" said the mother, "so I got you some Pop Tarts."
"Home school? When are we going to go back to real school?" moaned Hayley.
"I don't know. I'm waiting for the charity to sort things out. Give it to weeks, perhaps."
Hayley started to strop. "Two weeks, I can't wait two weeks."
"I know. The charity said they're looking for a suitable school to go where you're safe. So for now, they've given you a home school while you wait."
"But there's a school up the road."
The mother looked at Hayley frustrated now, which Hayley picked up on. "School's a public place. Don't you remember-"
She never bothered to finish her sentence, but still managed to Hayley kicked off regardless. "The charity! The charity! What about your kids!" She kicked a bin in front of her, and it landed on the floor. The conversation then ended, and the mother's cleaning had begun.

In the UK, the minimum years in education required for a person, until a degree is finally possessed, is 17. In the future, young children will be at the crossroads, making the biggest decisions of their life. But try telling a child that. What's education to Hayley, if the Year 6 SATS tests are far away, and the end is never in sight?

* * *

Without sufficient social interaction, the four hours really dragged on. After being schooled, all the kids wanted to do is go to school. So they used the key, and went through Hayley's magical door, and school is where they were. They had a good time getting used to their surroundings. Hayley played with the skipping ropes at lunchtime. Esha watched a VHS in her English lesson, and Eashan put a scrunched up ball of paper down someone's school jumper laughing, when told to do so by someone in his class. The children couldn't have hoped for a better day.

That was Monday, a day of retrospect.

Author's Note

Is it just me? Why is it only me who writes stories like these. It's like I'm one of those timeless unique people who are far removed from society, like Russell Brand or Michael Jackson. Did I just compare myself to Michael Jackson?

looooooooool
I'm hilarious!

Reviews

[Marie Harrison]

You are hysterical! I loved this chapter. I want a key like that key! Where do I get one? I'd go to the ballet and all kinds of rock concerts and then wind the day up with a neck massage! Cool chapter!

[tynamite]

I don't see anything funny in this chapter.