Raising hope

London, 1939

Sunny days of summer were gone.

The second day of autumn resembled the beginning of a downfall and was oddly quiet. Too quiet for children and too quiet for the London.

The silence brought fear and Lillian knew that chaos will soon be spread among them.

Every duffel bag placed in front of them was not assigned to serve in an adventure to strawberry fields. Miss Templeton was lying but Lillian felt that her teary-eyed fellows already knew that. Their hanged heads and clenched fists were showing the truth.

Who needs gas masks on an ordinary day out anyway?

Lillian knew nothing about how to use them and the man that stood in front of them with another mask in his hands, was struggling to find easy and understandable approach to tell the instructions. All the pupils could hear is his faint voice and see the glare he was giving to Miss Templeton.

Lillian felt as the mask was getting heavier within each second spared. She finally dropped it on the floor next to the bag and sighed heavily. Oh, she wanted to taste the sweet, sweet candy her mother sneakily placed in her pocket while reaching to touch her shoulders goodbye.

The man finished his disastrous speech, eyed every one of them silently and took a step back to talk with Miss Templeton. They were getting angrier and angrier with each other, spitting words so quickly there was no pause in between. Something had happened.

Lillian could swear she heard the rustle of the paper next to her. There was no movement, nothing that could explain the noise. She looked at the girl that was sat on the ground next to her. All of her arm was shoved in the duffel bag and the rustling that Lillian has heard before was coming out of it. The girl had found some candies as well.

Lillian could feel her limbs relaxing and her heartbeat slowing down. She sighed heavily again then, she withdrew the candy from her pocket. Hurriedly throwing the paper away she could finally pop it into her mouth.

There was nothing, just a candy. Sweet, sweet taste of the candy that will remind her of the home that is lost.

Miss Templeton angrily stomped away from the man and stopping just a few feet away from the gates looked for any sign that the trip has not been cancelled. The sweat was pouring down her reddened cheeks and her soaked handkerchief was absorbing it, preventing it from falling down even further.

Stormy clouds were covering the London sky and the panic was getting into everyone’s minds. The air was thick with it. The intimidating change of the weather was sucking out last drops of courage.

The rattling sound made Lillian jump. The girl next to her gasped dropping half the candy on the ground.

What a waste.

When the puff of air full of grit covered Lillian’s eyes and the sneeze broke out of her, she saw the red bus standing in front of the gates signalling restored hope.