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May. 2nd, 2016 06:34 pmBank Holiday Monday. Final round of the competition. Fry feels like he's been leading up to this forever.
---------------
At the end of last week in school, George came up to him and presented him with a box of pencils - the same kind with his name on as the one she broke, and a hand written apology. She dumped both on his desk and walked off without a word.
"Fry?" Kasha said, watching his delighted face as he opened the pencils. "You know she isn't really sorry, don't you?"
Fry shrugged. "I have the right pencils again."
At break, he didn't see Kasha go to confront George, as he was working out the volume of the music block to pass the time. But he did hear the commotion, and when he looked around, Kasha and George were yelling at one another.
"You know what?" Kasha said. "I don't want you in my group any more."
"Oh yeah? Who said it's your group?" George demanded. "I don't want you in our group. Who's with me?"
Krishna and Lucy and Amy looked taken aback. Amy spoke first.
"Sorry Kash, but after all that stuff you said about me, I'm staying with George."
"What stuff?" Kasha asked, bewildered.
"You know what." Amy glared. George put her arm around Amy.
"And you snitched on George the other day." Krishna said, reluctantly. "So you're not that nice either, why don't you call it quits?"
Kasha glared at George. George glared back. Kasha held her ground, and George turned, the group following her.
Fry watched his friend stand defiantly, her head held high, refusing to cry. He wasn't quite sure what just went down, but he knew whose side he was on, so he came and stood next to her, not really knowing what to say. Eventually, Kasha looked over at him.
"It's going to be okay. Don't trust her, Fry." she said. "Make sure you beat her on Monday."
--------------
With Mum and Dad busy with the other three kids, Fry takes himself off to the bathroom before the competition. He can see George with her parents near the door, and waits until they are looking the other way before he sneaks past.
He almost bumps into a taller girl just around the corner, who's crying. A couple of other girls in the same school uniform are laughing at her and making pig noises. Reminded of the scene yesterday, Fry suddenly explodes, and marches up to the kids half a foot taller than him, bringing on his best Gene Hunt impression.
"Why are kids always being mean? Leave her alone, go on, bugger off!"
The kids snigger at him, but do bugger off. Fry shakes his head and carries on looking for the toilet.
"Wait!" the crying girl wipes her eyes on her jumper. "Th-thanks."
Fry looks around. There's something familiar about her now he can see her face, but he's not sure what.
'"Because my name reads 'G Runt', they made pig noises every time they saw me. Every day, every lesson."'
"Are you Gemma?" he asks, suddenly. "Are you George's big sister, the one who won all those trophies she pretended were hers?"
Gemma nods.
"I g-get so nervous at th-these contests." she says. Spotting his own school uniform she adds. "You don't look like a Xiao so you must be Fry. But how did you know who I was?"
"George told me about her old school where they made pig noises at her." Fry says. "And you've got the same initials. Do you still have to go there?"
"Yes. G-George g-got a scholarship to your school." Gemma says. "But I'm in year six so th-there was no point in me moving. You're th-the one who caught her cheating, aren't you? She was really scared."
Fry processes this. No wonder she was so cross at him for bringing it up again.
"I said sorry to her." he says. "For accusing her again. But she won't forgive me."
But Gemma shakes her head.
"She's not mad at you any more. You scared her. She needs to get strong again."
"What are you talking to him for?" George appears round the corner and glares at her sister.
"He helped me." Gemma says. "With Sara and Th-thea. He's okay, G-George."
Fry decides now is the time to disappear off to the toilet and leave the two sisters to argue it out. Somehow George's big sister, her ultimate rival, is so much shyer than he expected, and he wonders how she fits in to the picture.
When he goes into the test, he's relieved that they aren't at adjacent seats, and is able to absorb himself into the competition. The first few pages seem very easy indeed compared with all the age 11-12 stuff he was doing, but it gets harder, and it's longer, and he can feel the rustling around him of some of the kids starting to lose concentration.
He has time to check his answers before the time runs out. Like the second round, the test sheets are computer read, and they'll have the results by four this afternoon.
He re-joins his siblings and they go out to lunch, then to a playground, before they go back to check the scores.
"Don't be disappointed if you're not in the top hundred." Mum says, as they go to check the electronic boards. "Remember, you're up against the best mathematicians your age in the whole country."
Fry is about to say he doesn't mind so long as he beats George and his other rivals, but suddenly that doesn't seem as important. They look through the bronzes, then the silvers. No names. They look up to the golds.
"There's George, 88th." Dad says, pointing. "And Patrick Witherspoon, 92nd."
They keep looking up. Fry holds his breath, wondering whether they missed his name earlier, but then Dad points again.
"15. Good job, Fry!"
Fry grins. Then out of habit, checks the remaining names. Xiao is there at 12th. He's happy for her.
He sees George's family squealing and jumping down in excitement, before her mum and dad throw their arms around Gemma.
"Third in the country! Oh Gemma, we're so proud." George's mum says.
"Come on, let's collect your prize and go." Dad says, giving Fry a nod.
Fry nods back, but goes up to George anyway, who is now sitting so dejectedly that even he can pick up on the body language.
"Well done." he says. "You got gold too, and you beat Patrick, and he's ever so clever."
George's parents, hearing him, release Gemma and hug George in agreement.
"Yes, 88th in the country is very very good indeed. We are very proud of both our little prodigies." George's mum says, squeezing her and kissing her on the head. "Next up, Child Genius!"
Fry leaves them to it to collect his prize.
---------------
At the end of last week in school, George came up to him and presented him with a box of pencils - the same kind with his name on as the one she broke, and a hand written apology. She dumped both on his desk and walked off without a word.
"Fry?" Kasha said, watching his delighted face as he opened the pencils. "You know she isn't really sorry, don't you?"
Fry shrugged. "I have the right pencils again."
At break, he didn't see Kasha go to confront George, as he was working out the volume of the music block to pass the time. But he did hear the commotion, and when he looked around, Kasha and George were yelling at one another.
"You know what?" Kasha said. "I don't want you in my group any more."
"Oh yeah? Who said it's your group?" George demanded. "I don't want you in our group. Who's with me?"
Krishna and Lucy and Amy looked taken aback. Amy spoke first.
"Sorry Kash, but after all that stuff you said about me, I'm staying with George."
"What stuff?" Kasha asked, bewildered.
"You know what." Amy glared. George put her arm around Amy.
"And you snitched on George the other day." Krishna said, reluctantly. "So you're not that nice either, why don't you call it quits?"
Kasha glared at George. George glared back. Kasha held her ground, and George turned, the group following her.
Fry watched his friend stand defiantly, her head held high, refusing to cry. He wasn't quite sure what just went down, but he knew whose side he was on, so he came and stood next to her, not really knowing what to say. Eventually, Kasha looked over at him.
"It's going to be okay. Don't trust her, Fry." she said. "Make sure you beat her on Monday."
--------------
With Mum and Dad busy with the other three kids, Fry takes himself off to the bathroom before the competition. He can see George with her parents near the door, and waits until they are looking the other way before he sneaks past.
He almost bumps into a taller girl just around the corner, who's crying. A couple of other girls in the same school uniform are laughing at her and making pig noises. Reminded of the scene yesterday, Fry suddenly explodes, and marches up to the kids half a foot taller than him, bringing on his best Gene Hunt impression.
"Why are kids always being mean? Leave her alone, go on, bugger off!"
The kids snigger at him, but do bugger off. Fry shakes his head and carries on looking for the toilet.
"Wait!" the crying girl wipes her eyes on her jumper. "Th-thanks."
Fry looks around. There's something familiar about her now he can see her face, but he's not sure what.
'"Because my name reads 'G Runt', they made pig noises every time they saw me. Every day, every lesson."'
"Are you Gemma?" he asks, suddenly. "Are you George's big sister, the one who won all those trophies she pretended were hers?"
Gemma nods.
"I g-get so nervous at th-these contests." she says. Spotting his own school uniform she adds. "You don't look like a Xiao so you must be Fry. But how did you know who I was?"
"George told me about her old school where they made pig noises at her." Fry says. "And you've got the same initials. Do you still have to go there?"
"Yes. G-George g-got a scholarship to your school." Gemma says. "But I'm in year six so th-there was no point in me moving. You're th-the one who caught her cheating, aren't you? She was really scared."
Fry processes this. No wonder she was so cross at him for bringing it up again.
"I said sorry to her." he says. "For accusing her again. But she won't forgive me."
But Gemma shakes her head.
"She's not mad at you any more. You scared her. She needs to get strong again."
"What are you talking to him for?" George appears round the corner and glares at her sister.
"He helped me." Gemma says. "With Sara and Th-thea. He's okay, G-George."
Fry decides now is the time to disappear off to the toilet and leave the two sisters to argue it out. Somehow George's big sister, her ultimate rival, is so much shyer than he expected, and he wonders how she fits in to the picture.
When he goes into the test, he's relieved that they aren't at adjacent seats, and is able to absorb himself into the competition. The first few pages seem very easy indeed compared with all the age 11-12 stuff he was doing, but it gets harder, and it's longer, and he can feel the rustling around him of some of the kids starting to lose concentration.
He has time to check his answers before the time runs out. Like the second round, the test sheets are computer read, and they'll have the results by four this afternoon.
He re-joins his siblings and they go out to lunch, then to a playground, before they go back to check the scores.
"Don't be disappointed if you're not in the top hundred." Mum says, as they go to check the electronic boards. "Remember, you're up against the best mathematicians your age in the whole country."
Fry is about to say he doesn't mind so long as he beats George and his other rivals, but suddenly that doesn't seem as important. They look through the bronzes, then the silvers. No names. They look up to the golds.
"There's George, 88th." Dad says, pointing. "And Patrick Witherspoon, 92nd."
They keep looking up. Fry holds his breath, wondering whether they missed his name earlier, but then Dad points again.
"15. Good job, Fry!"
Fry grins. Then out of habit, checks the remaining names. Xiao is there at 12th. He's happy for her.
He sees George's family squealing and jumping down in excitement, before her mum and dad throw their arms around Gemma.
"Third in the country! Oh Gemma, we're so proud." George's mum says.
"Come on, let's collect your prize and go." Dad says, giving Fry a nod.
Fry nods back, but goes up to George anyway, who is now sitting so dejectedly that even he can pick up on the body language.
"Well done." he says. "You got gold too, and you beat Patrick, and he's ever so clever."
George's parents, hearing him, release Gemma and hug George in agreement.
"Yes, 88th in the country is very very good indeed. We are very proud of both our little prodigies." George's mum says, squeezing her and kissing her on the head. "Next up, Child Genius!"
Fry leaves them to it to collect his prize.
