Dolbin School for the Extraordinary-Chapter 5- Craven Hall

I am continuing my experiment of posting chapter from my middle grade novel Dolbin School for the Extraordinary.  You can download the book here on Amazon.

Click here to read the previous chapter.

Chapter 5 Craven Hall

Mr. Glover approached the group from behind.

“Mrs. Kasden I am going to take our newest student out see the school, and his dormitory,” he said. “This is Jake Cooper.”

“How do you do?” she said. “I know you’re going to like it here, dear.” 

Mrs. Kasden nodded her head and sat back down at her desk. Mr. Glover kept the family moving.

“Now, Jake, first things first,” he said. “Dolbin School is named after Jedidiah Dolbin, the man who first described and wrote about the first Extra in recorded history. In other words, Dr. Dolbin discovered the superheroes among us. So this school bears his name.”

Mr. Glover led the family out of the main office and Jake found himself back in the large foyer with the large tapestry. Mr. Glover turned left and quickened his pace. “This hallway leads to the main education wing of the school. Here are the classrooms, libraries and gymnasiums,” he said.

Mr. Glover gestured toward a window. Jake saw a group of students inside doing various exercises. It didn’t look that different from his old elementary school. Then he saw a girl jump onto a platform that was 100 feet above the ground. That was different.

Jake continued to watch, mesmerized.  The girl jumped and landed again.  Then a boy caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. The boy was climbing the wall without rope, gloves or any help. Jake’s mouth fell open. An adult, who seemed to be the gym teacher, turned and waved. 

Jake closed his mouth and turned to keep up with Mr. Glover.

“Jake, as we go through these doors, you will see the student center. This is where students of all grades come together to hang out, play video games, and watch movies.”

Jake looked around and saw an enormous room with couches, tables, bookshelves and a café. Students were milling around chatting, reading and eating. Jake suddenly felt happy. He could easily see himself hanging out here. He paused to look around.

Mr. Glover just kept walking. “Jake, there will be time to hang out here later,” he said. “We need to get to Craven Hall, where you will be living during the school year.”  

Mr. Glover plowed through the great room and they passed into an entrance way.

“This is Craven Hall, where you will be staying.”

Mr. Glover opened double doors and stood to the side.  Jake looked in and saw what seemed to be a large living room, with a TV, several sofas, some tables and chairs, and walls that were adorned with photographs and awards.

A door opened on the other side of the room. In walked a short, thin, gray-haired woman.

“Jake, you need to meet this woman,” Mr. Glover said, gesturing toward her.

“Oh, this must be our new resident,” she said with a British accent. “Mr. Cooper, my name is Mrs. Brisby. I am headmistress of the dormitory here. I keep this place running and in tip-top shape. I will wake you up in the morning, make sure you are eating correctly and make sure that you are attending to your studies. I will make sure you go to bed on time so that you will be in prime shape for the upcoming day. In short, I will make sure you are Dolbin ready.”

Jake paused. He wasn’t sure if it was his turn to talk. 

“Say hi, Jake,” his mother said, growing embarrassed.

“Hi, I am Jake Cooper. Nice to meet you.”  

Jake stuck out his hand. She accepted it and gently shook it.

Mr. Glover piped in. “Okay, Mrs. Brisby, we would like to show Jake to his room so he can get settled.”

“Of course, Mr. Glover,” the headmistress said. “The room is ready. His clothes have been unpacked and sorted.”

“But I didn’t bring any clothes. I came here straight from school,” Jake said.

“That’s part of the protocol, Jake, when a family needs to move quickly,” Mr. Glover said calmly.   “We move them quickly. We can’t wait for families to do it on their own. All the stuff you need from home is sitting in your room. Let’s go see it.”  

Mr. Glover stuck out his hand to guide the family through the mainroom to the hallway.

Jake and his family followed Mr. Glover past a set of giant wooden doors. Mahogany covered the hallway. Jake was impressed. It looked like an Ivy League school he’d seen on television.

“Jake, your room is the third door on the right, Number 138.”

Mr. Glover stood to the side and said, “Go ahead and open it.”

Jake turned the doorknob and slowly opened the door.  

Jake was stunned.  

He saw his computer on a desk. His favorite toys were sitting on a dresser and his two football posters from his room at home were hanging on the walls. “You brought everything!” he said.  

Opening the drawers he saw his clothes neatly folded and placed in the same order as they had been at home.  He shut the drawer and walked over to the frame of an empty bed.

“You currently do not have a roommate. That’s one of the benefits of coming in March, toward the end of the school year. But you never know when someone else will discover their abilities and need to be moved here. But, for now, you have your own room.”

Jake’s mom and dad sat down next to Jake on the empty bed.

‘Well, what do you think, Jake?” his dad said. “You have your own room at home. You don’t share a room with your sister. So it shouldn’t be much different.”

Jake didn’t say anything. He sat there and looked around. It wasn’t his room. It was a just a room with his stuff in it.

His mom leaned over and hugged him. “We will visit regularly. We wish you could go with us, but this really is the best place for you. You wouldn’t be able to learn what you need to learn if you went with us.”

He let his mom tear up a little. But he was eager to see the rest of the school and to start meeting other kids, so he stood up before she really started crying.

“I am ready to see the rest of the school,” Jake announced.

“Let’s go meet some teachers,” said Mr. Glover.