Scotch College Students (original) (raw)

"Boarders Beach Party" by Charles Nicholas Telford Bonython.

Summer was here. I searched my dorm for the Gucci sun glasses I'd packed only the evening before after Rev Dr Gilliland's end of year sermon. You see, we boarders were heading home for summer. My roomies, Arthur and William Barr-Smith, had already left for the country, but I had time to kill, as I was meeting Mum and Emily in Phuket for Christmas.

I was quite excited, as I hadn't seen Emily since the Christmas before. She was boarding at Seymour even though Scotch was co-ed, because Father believed Scotch had started a boys school, and should have remained a boys school, like when he was here. Mum I hadn't seen since August, when I'd had a dreadful cold and she'd had to cut short her "me time" at the Versace resort and bring me down a Harrods hamper. And Father, well, he wasn't expected in Phuket. Some Mexicans had been complaining about pay rates and Father had had to stay in America to try to explain to them that unskilled labour always out-supplied demand. Still, I was looking forward to getting to Phuket. It's lovely this time of year.

Having found my sunnies I checked that my things were packed. While waiting for the taxi there was a knock at my door. I was immediately irked. That blasted housekeeper couldn't wait to get in and look through our things for loose change, like last year. If it had been anything over $50 I would have complained. Anyway, I answered the door to see Arthur and William standing in the hallway.

"Surprise!", they shouted.

"What's going on, chums?" I asked, bewildered.

"We're going with you to Phuket!", William exclaimed.

"I thought you were off home for Christmas!?"

"Well we were", said Arthur, "but you see Mum and Dad have been called back to Edinburgh. Something about clearing out an estate. Family, you know. Mum says it's very important to live up to your familial obligations, and anyway, she remembered Great Aunt Esther having some important examples of late 16th century French ormolu clockwork, so she was naturally eager to get back to Scotland as quickly as possible".

"So we asked if we might join the Bonythons over Christmas", said William. "And since Mum has an eye on Emily for me, you know, for after Uni, when it's time to settle down, she agreed, and arranged things with your parents, and so here we are".

"This is going to be the best summer ever", I cried, as we turned up the collars on our pink Lacoste polo shirts and headed out to the hockey grounds to wait for the taxi.

FIN.