Benworden (25 page)

I
had mixed feelings the night of the valedictory dinner. I knew that my time as a Bull Ant had ended and I thought about those who had gone before me and those who were to follow and how the dream of a handful of students had affected the lives and futures of others.

The club had helped me adapt socially and lifted the confidence of all who had been chosen. It had taught us trust, honour and empathy, and given us strength and composure when we had most needed it. But above all, it had created a bond between some young people who were once strangers, and that bond would never be broken.

My date for the dinner was, of course, Gerry and my parents had hired a limo for the big occasion. I was amazed at how beautiful she looked as normally I would only see her in a school uniform or casual wear. So when I knocked on the door and she answered wearing a flowing gown and with her hair pumped up like some fancy dessert, I stood there with my mouth wide open, holding her corsage in the same way a robber would when pointing a pistol at someone.

Gerry smiled and said what sounded like, “Dawdcue mikalbin.”

I just stood there with my mouth gaping, then replied with my debonair response which was, “Huh?”

Gerry took the corsage from my hand and repeated what
she had said which was much clearer to me this time. “Would you like to come in?”

I began to regain my senses at this stage and replied, “Just for a quick hello, if that's all right. I've got the limo waiting out the front.”

Gerry let out a scream like a banshee as she had no idea that this was how we would be getting there. Her mother and father must have thought that she was being murdered because they appeared at the door in seconds, with Gerry's dad, who was first on the scene, saying, “What? What is it? Are you ok?”

She even had me thinking there was something wrong for a moment. I hadn't seen her like this before either. She had always been so calm, cool and collected. Gerry started jumping up and down and grabbed her father's shirt, pulling him in front of her so he could see the limo.

Her father kissed her on the forehead and when her mother appeared quickly after, she was almost as excited as Gerry. She said, “Wow! Going in style tonight and what a lovely corsage. I must say, you look very handsome as well, Dylan. Now you two run along so we can get ready and meet up with the both of you later.”

Our parents would be sitting at the table with us later in the evening but for now we had each other. During the drive to Benworden's hall I felt as though I was caught in a time warp and Gerry's perfume and beauty were holding me captive.

All of a sudden I was broken free from my lovely enclosure by Gerry's voice. “Stop staring like that. You're creeping me out!”

It wasn't hard to remain alert to feelings after that comment. Every year the school would go all out for the valedictory
dinner and all the way up the path from the school to the hall were arched canvas shelters which were erected in case of rain. These shelters were lit with fairy lights that lined the roof and they also decorated the hedges and trees along the way.

On arrival, year 10 and 11 students were there to greet us at the hall dressed in red velvet jackets and black bow ties. Although it may seem to some to be a waste of money it was worth every cent for the memories that would last forever in the minds of those who attended.

Even the year 7s and 8s participated by waiting on tables or guiding guests to their seats.

It wasn't hard to work out where Bungles was at any stage of the night either; it was just a matter of listening for those tell-tale signs like, “Oops!” or “Sorry,” and then the sound of smashing glass or of someone hitting the floor (and most times that person falling would be Bungles). You know, if it was anyone else it would be annoying but in all honesty I knew I was going to deeply miss his antics.

The evening finally came to an end with Gerry and me both receiving academic awards.

Mr Neals handed me one of my certificates and as he shook my hand he said to me something I will never forget. “Congratulations, Dylan. I'm proud of you and this certificate proves to me you are a man of your word.”

A lot of people came up to me later that evening and asked what Mr Neals meant by his comment, but I simply replied, “I made a deal with a man who believed in me and I wasn't going to let him down.”

What else could I say?

After the valedictory most of the year 12s took cabs to the
local pub as was the tradition and our parents thought Gerry and I would do the same. Most of the families who lived out of town, including ours, had booked motel rooms for that night knowing it would finish late, but also to ensure their sons and daughters knew where they were and that they weren't too far away should they need them.

Gerry and I brought a change of clothes and our parents gave us warnings against excessive drinking and then told us to have a great time. Excessive drinking wasn't on the agenda for Gerry and me as we had already planned how we were going to spend the last part of the evening.

We walked hand in hand up the path towards the boarding house and then entered the gates to the smithy's shop. We knew we couldn't go to the club rooms through the boarding house as everyone thought we were going out to the pubs with the others so this was our only option. I broke one of the club's golden rules by taking a bottle of champagne in with me, but this was our last time and Gerry and I wanted to say goodbye to the club in our own way.

We turned on the stereo and listened to our favourite music while sipping on the champagne and reminiscing about our stay at Benworden. I think I learnt more about Gerry in that one evening than I did in the six years we had known each other; we had never really sat down and discussed personal likes and dislikes before.

As the evening drew to a close I called a cab and it took us back to our motel. Gerry thanked me for a wonderful evening and we kissed for the first time but it wasn't long before Gerry's voice was ringing in my ears. “You're freaking me out again!” she cried, and I found myself standing there with my lips puckered out like a dead fish in a seafood market.

I have this feeling that she is some sort of lovely alien because every time I'm near her, time seems to stand still for me. Just as she was about to go inside she put her hand on my cheek and said, “That's what I love about you, Dylan, that loving side that no one else sees. I feel privileged that you save it for me.”

She kissed me again and shut the door. Once again I went numb and then I headed along to my room.

I woke up this morning to the sun shining through the motel window with a day that wasn't unlike the one I had experienced on my first day at Benworden. After I had showered and dressed I knocked on my parent's door. They were in the room next to mine and I should have known they would be up and ready to go because they're farming people and their body clocks won't allow them the luxury of a sleep in.

As we approached the car Mum asked if I wanted to sit in the front with Dad and I told her I would rather sit in the back.

Dad looked over his shoulder at me and jokingly said, “Getting used to being chauffer-driven, are we? Maybe you'd prefer I wore one of those fancy hats.”

Mum told Dad not to tease me as she thought I may be a little sensitive today but I knew Dad was only trying to take my mind off things so I replied, “Well, if you are going to wear one of them, can you get a grey suit to match? And by the way, I may need you on the weekend.”

Everyone began to laugh, especially Dad, and he replied, “No problems, son, but uni may be out of the question once you put me on your payroll.”

I sank back in the seat at the mention of uni, knowing this really was goodbye.

On arrival at the entrance to the boarding house I had the
same weird feeling as I did when I first arrived all those years ago, only this time we would park out the front and I would walk up that grand old winding staircase for the very last time.

Just as I was about to head for the stairs Mum asked me if I would like a hand packing but Dad touched her on the shoulder and said, “I think this is something he might want to do alone.”

I looked at Mum and smiled and said, “Dad's right, Mum. I won't be long.”

They both headed for the kitchen; it was traditional to have cakes, tea and coffee for the parents on the day year 12 students picked up their belongings. I opened the door to my room and couldn't believe what I was seeing. My things were all neatly packed up and on my bed was a large gift-wrapped box with a note attached to it that read, “Thank you for your leadership and we hope you will think of us whenever you look at our gift.”

I unwrapped it and opened the box and found a bronze statue. It was two bull ants facing each other with a chain hanging between both their nippers, and on it was engraved, “A bond that can't be broken”. I packed it carefully in my suitcase and headed downstairs.

At the base of the stairs were all the club members including Gerry with her luggage as well. It was hard to hold back the emotion as I thanked them all for the gift. We also made a pact to meet up the following year in Melbourne and go out for dinner, but for now I was having trouble letting go and needed to get my parents and head home.

We packed the car and headed up the driveway toward the black cast iron gates.