You Haven't CHANGED A BIT!

A school reunion – could Pippa really face an encounter with the class bullies again?

- Christabel Smith

Pippa had only picked up her mobile to send her niece a birthday message, but half an hour later, she found herself taking a quiz to see what kind of cheese she would be.

Cheddar was the verdict because, apparently, she was 'classic, sharp when needed and universally loved'.

'What a time-waster you are,' she tutted at the screen, but just as she was about to put down the phone, a beep signalled the arrival of a message. It was from Caroline, her lifelong chum, which meant it had to be attended to at once.

'Guess what?' read her text. 'There's a reunion at St Cuthbert's for everyone that was in our year! No ifs or buts, we are going!'

Once Caroline had set her heart on something, it was pointless trying to argue, and Pippa felt her stomach constrict with a mix of excitement and terror.

She was amazed by the strength of this reaction. Here she was, a happily married mum of two grownup daughters, with a successful and fulfilling career as a senior midwife. Yet the mention of St Cuthbert's had her wobbling like the disgusting orange jelly the school used to serve up at lunchtime.

The thought of that opened up a floodgate for memories to pour in. Suddenly, she was 11 years old again, wide-eyed in her mum's battered Mini as it approached the school down its long, imposing drive.

'Here we are,' her mother had said, in the over-cheerful voice she used to cover up what she was really feeling. 'Isn't it a lovely building?'

'Nope,' Pippa had thought. It was huge, unfamiliar and scary. Home was the only 'lovely building', with its cosy beams, wild garden and Shadow, her dog, sleeping on her bed. The thought of him going into kennels made the lump in her throat grow even bigger, but she had promised herself she wouldn't cry because she didn't want to upset her mum.