Chapter 27

Inside the office building, Andrew smelled a mixture of freshly percolated coffee and photocopied paper. They were standing in what seemed to be a small waiting room with three bamboo chairs against one wall and a plastic plant in the corner which made sense for the school holidays. Who would want to come back during holidays to water a plant, anyway? To their left, they noticed a glass window with a counter and a small gap at the bottom. Andrew thought the reception lady was most probably sitting behind the glass window. A hall was running down past a kitchen on the right and two offices on either side at the end.

'Can I help you kids?' a voice came from behind Andrew. He swung around and noticed a lady in her late forties. She wore lots of make-up to hide the endless battle against time. She wore large golden earrings which suited her glasses. Her perfume was strong and overwhelming.

'Good morning ma'am. Yes, we are new here and we're told to report to the principal's office,' Andrew said.

'Are you the Edisons?' she asked.

'Yes, ma'am,' Andrew responded.

'Come with me,' she said and started walking down the hall until they reached the last office to the left. She paused for a moment and knocked softly on the door. 'Sir, the Edisons are here to see you.'

'Send them in,' Andrew heard a voice coming from the office. The lady stepped aside and gestured for them to enter.

'Thank you ma'am,' Andrew said. He moved past the lady and entered the office. He was surprised by the large space inside. It had a stylish oak desk with four matching leather seats opposite it. To the left, the office had a bookshelf filled with various colourful books. On the far corner a cabinet which probably kept confidential information locked away. Next to it a filing cabinet with sliding drawers. Behind the desk, a man was sitting. He was in his early fifties with grey hair and large ears. He was busy scribbling something on a piece of white paper. He had a blue collared shirt with an orange tie which struck Emily as a weird combination.

'Good morning sir,' Andrew said.

The man looked up for a moment regarding them in silence. He placed his pen down and got up from his chair. He walked around his desk and extended his arm.

'Good morning young man. I am Mr Lenard McCoy, the school principal.' Andrew noticed his soft blue eyes matched his shirt.

'Good morning sir,' Andrew said. 'This is my brother Patrick and sister Emily.'

'Welcome to E.D.S High. I'm sure you will feel right at home here,' Lenard said shaking hands with Patrick and Emily. 'Sit down.' Lenard pointed towards the leather seats and walked back around the desk. He got a file from his left drawer and placed it on the desk in front of him.

'Thank you, sir,' Andrew said and seated himself. Emily sat down next to him with Patrick on the far right.

'So I heard you are from Johannesburg. Is that right?' Lenard asked opening the file. He looked at the content for a brief moment.

'Yes sir, my parents moved down here recently,' Patrick replied.

Lenard nodded, 'Where are you staying at the moment?'

'Saldanha sir,' Andrew said.

Lenard nodded. He focused his attention on scanning the file for a moment. He looked up and asked, 'You take the school bus?'

'Yes sir, we do,' Andrew answered.

Again Lenard scanned the file content. 'I see the two of you are almost done with school except for you Emily,' Lenard looked up from the papers and focused on Emily.

'Yes sir, I'm in grade ten this year.'

'Okay, good,' Lenard said, finally closing the file and shifting it to the side. 'We have a few rules around here and we are pretty serious about them. We work on a point system. You get penalty points for each negative thing you do. Enough penalty points will make you sit in detention. Understand?'

'Yes sir,' Andrew nodded.

'Here we don't smoke, we don't curse and we don't get angry. We are here to study and to help each other. If you can't do that...well, then E.D.S High is not the school for you. I will introduce you to your parent-teachers who will fill you in on the rest. I don't want trouble and I don't want to see you here in my office again unless it is for a valid reason.'

'Yes sir,' Patrick said. He wondered about the group of scholars smoking when they entered the school ground earlier. Patrick wondered if Mr Lenard really knew what was going on under his own nose.

'By the look of things, it will not be necessary for any of you to sit in detention or visit me for bad behaviour,' Lenard said with a smile. He got up from his seat, 'once again, welcome to E.D.S High. If you need anything, please let me know. Remember, we are here to help one another. We have good teachers and they are pretty serious about education and good student passing rates.'

'Thank you, sir,' Emily said nodding. She got up from her seat and noticed Andrew and Patrick doing the same.

'It's time to introduce you to your teachers,' Lenard said walking towards the door. 'Follow me.'