Zack kept his promise to Ava and offered to meet Alaska outside her school to help pick her up. Alaska expected only Zack to be there, not Zack and the rest of the guys.

As she approached the school she couldn’t help but think that the boys should have been on the other side of the gate, Jack playing hop-scotch with Alex on a grid that didn’t even exist making the pair look like they should be on the other side of the steel fence.

“HEY!” Alex shrieked causing Jack to turn around and push the boy over as he bounded towards the brunette girl, trying to pounce on her into a hug but missing by at least a foot. Rian scoffed, rolling his eyes good naturedly as he offered Jack a hand to help him to his feet.

“What you all doing here?” Alaska asked her face portraying confusion as she surveyed the scene in front of her, unsure if she should laugh or turn around and run for this hills. She glanced over her shoulder as she straightened her hair from the gust of wind that blew around her face, catching the disapproving looks that the other mother’s were giving her.

“We’re here to hang out with you and Ava, duh!” Jack told Alaska, looking over her shoulder towards the other group as if he couldn’t believe the fact that Alaska had even had to ask the question in the first place.

“Oh, I didn’t realise there would be a fan-fair!” Alaksa muttered sarcastically moving the last few steps towards the group as the children began to pour out the doors, the piercing screams were so loud that they caused Alaska to flinch as she surveyed the down pour, trying to spot her daughters face.

“Please, don’t act like you’re not over the moon about seeing my sexy bod-ay” Jack practically shouted, rotating his hips in a sexual manner causing the other parents to look at the group in disgust, practically dragging the children away from the scene as they gave a red face Alaska disgusted looks.

Alaska averted his gaze to her shoes, practically wanting to murder Jack for being such an idiot, did he not realise that this was a school! She looked up slightly, catching the eye of Zack who was chuckling to himself at the antics of his best friend.

“Seriously Jack you’re going to get me lynched at the next PTA meeting” Alaska mumbled, stepping away from the group and trying to make it look like she didn’t know the boys. It was mean but they didn’t have to put up with the snooty mother’s every day.

The boy in question merely rolled his eyes, not taking the girl at all seriously as he continued to shuffle from foot to foot as he talked animatedly to Alex, waving his arms around wildly with the words that fell out of his hands.

“MAMA!” Ava shouted, running out of the doors and towards her mother, dark hair streaking behind her as she wrapped her arms tightly around her neck. Lunch bag banging hard against Alaska’s back as she released her daughter before turning to look at the small boy that was stood beside her.

“Hey Spence” Alaska smiled, kneeling down to the child’s level as Ava was wrapping herself around Zack’s and Rian’s legs, talking nine to the dozen with the rest of the boys, filling them all in on what had been happening that day, eagerly showing them the slightly wonky sculpture she made.

“Hello Miss Darling” Spencer beamed toothily at Adelaide who just chuckled slightly looking around the playground to see if she could spot the boy’s mother who didn’t seem to be anywhere in sight.

“What’ve I told you Spence, you can call me Ad” Adelaide told him, watching as the boys face turned red with embrassment as he shuffled awkawardly from foot to foot, Ava to busy talking to her ‘new friends’ to realise she had left her best friend alone.

“Ah, excuse me” A voice sounded causing Alaska to whip round, coming face to face with both Ava’s and Spencer’s teacher, who motioned with the slight tilt of her head for Alaska to follow her, with a quick glance behind her to see that Ava was still busy with the guy’s and Spencer was milling around Alaska half-heartedly followed the older lady.

“Has something happened?” Alaska asked, eyebrows knitting together with confusion, never before had she been pulled to one side by the teacher and now she was worried what Ava had done to get herself into trouble.

“Well yes, but no, Ava has been perfect as usual it’s just Spencer I need to talk to you about...” the teacher trailed off causing Alaska’s eyebrows to knit tighter, wondering why she was getting pulled aside to discuss the boy in question instead of his parents.

“His mother has gone into labour and has been rushed into hospital and has phoned in to say that she had arranged with you to look after Spencer for a couple of hours until a family member is able to collect him?” The teacher asked, anxiety pulling at her face as she waited for Alaska’s answer, worried that she was going to say no and have to figure out something to do for the stranded boy.

“Yeah that’s fine! I’m sure Ava would love to have the company and Spencer is always welcome to spend the night and I can bring him back to school tomorrow” Alaska replied with a shrug, the boy was definitely no problem and had been to the house many times before and was a parent’s dream, nice, quiet and tidy. What more could you want?

“Well Molly said she had your telephone number and would call you later with more details. She had left some pyjamas at school these last few days just incase. But thank you so much for being able to help, I’ll let you get back to your friends” The teacher smiled gratefully before backing off into the school, leaving Ava to slowly walk back to her friends. This was going to be a long night.