will be tucked under the inside rim, thatâs what they were discussing in the loos.â
âThatâs bloody typical of Higgins. I for one definitely wonât be buying any tickets from them,â Sooty retorted. Further conversation was cut short by the lights in the room being extinguished, to the groans of Derek, who would now have to get changed in the dark.
It was a long time before Geoff Larkin eventually fell asleep, the conversation before lights out buzzing around in his brain, he was thinking how he could turn what he had learned to his little groupâs advantage.
But when he did eventually fall asleep, he had a large smile on his face!
The following morning Geoff outlined his plan to the rest of the group. It was decided that Sooty would purchase one of the raffle tickets for the large box of chocolates that were being sported around the school by Higgins and his gang.
*
The draw for the chocolates was not scheduled until the following lunchtime which gave Geoff time to slip out of the school and purchase the same coloured book of raffle tickets as the one Sooty had purchased from Higgins. It was then relatively easy to replace the ticket tucked in the inside rim of Nortonâs hat while it was in the cloakroom during the last lesson of the morning.
During the lunchtime break all the pupils who had purchased tickets, which amounted to nearly everyone in the school, were gathered at the far end of the school playing field. Dave Higgins made a big speech about honesty and fair play whilst allowing several different lads to help in folding and placing late purchases of raffle tickets in his cousinâs hat.
Giving the hat a good shaking then holding it aloft, he offered it to one of his cronies to take the winning ticket. The lad, who was much shorter than Higgins, struggled to reach into the hat, which all helped to enforce the impression of fairness, he then unfolded and shouted out the number of the winning ticket drawn from the hat. âNumber twenty-four green.â There was a bustle in the crowd of lads as those who had purchased raffle tickets checked their colour and number and curses as those with the same colour and numbers close to the one shouted out, expressing their disappointment.
Another member of Higgins gang pushed past Geoff and the Bolton brothers sneering, âLosers!â as he did so.
âIâve got the winning ticket here!â he shouted loudly, elbowing his way to the front. A big hand grabbed his collar, stopping his forward movement, then it proceeded to drag him backwards, partially choking him in the process.
âNo heâs wrong! Iâve got the winning ticket here,â said the owner of the big hand. âNumber twenty-four, green!â showing the ticket to the nearest of the crowd before giving a startled and confused Higgins the winning ticket with one hand and taking the box of chocolates with the other. Higgins looked around him for support, his cousin Wilf was there, but the rest of his gang had quickly faded away.
Sooty on his own was deterrent enough and, in this case, he would have been supported by most of the lads in the school. Geoff and the Bolton brothers quickly ushered Sooty away through the envious crowd, laughing to themselves at the thought of their feast to come, and the tables they had turned on a disgruntled Dave Higgins and co. âHiggins isnât going to forget this in a hurry Geoff,â voiced a nervous Derek as he looked around at Higgins and his cronies, standing in a group, watching the raffle prize winners hurriedly departing.
âHe wonât like his nose being rubbed in the shit as often as we keep doing it,â he voiced, at the same time increasing his pace to keep up with his mates and get closer to Sooty.
*
As the date approached for pupils to leave the school, arrangements were made by social services for them to go for interviews, these were very few and far between as employers
âThatâs bloody typical of Higgins. I for one definitely wonât be buying any tickets from them,â Sooty retorted. Further conversation was cut short by the lights in the room being extinguished, to the groans of Derek, who would now have to get changed in the dark.
It was a long time before Geoff Larkin eventually fell asleep, the conversation before lights out buzzing around in his brain, he was thinking how he could turn what he had learned to his little groupâs advantage.
But when he did eventually fall asleep, he had a large smile on his face!
The following morning Geoff outlined his plan to the rest of the group. It was decided that Sooty would purchase one of the raffle tickets for the large box of chocolates that were being sported around the school by Higgins and his gang.
*
The draw for the chocolates was not scheduled until the following lunchtime which gave Geoff time to slip out of the school and purchase the same coloured book of raffle tickets as the one Sooty had purchased from Higgins. It was then relatively easy to replace the ticket tucked in the inside rim of Nortonâs hat while it was in the cloakroom during the last lesson of the morning.
During the lunchtime break all the pupils who had purchased tickets, which amounted to nearly everyone in the school, were gathered at the far end of the school playing field. Dave Higgins made a big speech about honesty and fair play whilst allowing several different lads to help in folding and placing late purchases of raffle tickets in his cousinâs hat.
Giving the hat a good shaking then holding it aloft, he offered it to one of his cronies to take the winning ticket. The lad, who was much shorter than Higgins, struggled to reach into the hat, which all helped to enforce the impression of fairness, he then unfolded and shouted out the number of the winning ticket drawn from the hat. âNumber twenty-four green.â There was a bustle in the crowd of lads as those who had purchased raffle tickets checked their colour and number and curses as those with the same colour and numbers close to the one shouted out, expressing their disappointment.
Another member of Higgins gang pushed past Geoff and the Bolton brothers sneering, âLosers!â as he did so.
âIâve got the winning ticket here!â he shouted loudly, elbowing his way to the front. A big hand grabbed his collar, stopping his forward movement, then it proceeded to drag him backwards, partially choking him in the process.
âNo heâs wrong! Iâve got the winning ticket here,â said the owner of the big hand. âNumber twenty-four, green!â showing the ticket to the nearest of the crowd before giving a startled and confused Higgins the winning ticket with one hand and taking the box of chocolates with the other. Higgins looked around him for support, his cousin Wilf was there, but the rest of his gang had quickly faded away.
Sooty on his own was deterrent enough and, in this case, he would have been supported by most of the lads in the school. Geoff and the Bolton brothers quickly ushered Sooty away through the envious crowd, laughing to themselves at the thought of their feast to come, and the tables they had turned on a disgruntled Dave Higgins and co. âHiggins isnât going to forget this in a hurry Geoff,â voiced a nervous Derek as he looked around at Higgins and his cronies, standing in a group, watching the raffle prize winners hurriedly departing.
âHe wonât like his nose being rubbed in the shit as often as we keep doing it,â he voiced, at the same time increasing his pace to keep up with his mates and get closer to Sooty.
*
As the date approached for pupils to leave the school, arrangements were made by social services for them to go for interviews, these were very few and far between as employers
Similar Books
