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It hadn’t been a hard decision to postpone the enrolment date but now that it was here both Nick and Charlie were full of nerves. They had spoken to the staff and had been supported in their plan at the time and had stayed in touch since the new school year had started last September, ensuring that Sam wouldn’t start behind the rest of his class. They had even managed to connect with some other families during the summer break so Sam wouldn’t be walking into a room of completely unfamiliar faces.
When the chance to live in Canada for 3 months had come up with Charlie’s work they had had to make the decision quite quickly. The main sticking point was that it fell right at the start of the academic year, Sam’s first year of school and Nick taking on year 3 again in his classroom. They very quickly discarded the idea of Charlie going on his own while Sam and Nick stayed behind. Nick had quickly spoken to his boss and had been given leave for the first term and then he would return to his class from January, team teaching with the teacher his class started with. It freed up some time for Nick during the week to focus on some students who needed additional learning support as the year went on as well. So it all came down to whether they could delay Sam’s start or not. When they spoke with the new teacher they had all discussed the positives of travelling for Sam, the extra education he would have. Especially given that Nick was a teacher and they would continue to read while they were away. They were all in agreeance that education was much more than what was taught in a classroom.
It had been an amazing 3 months,
Charlie had been asked to oversee a collaboration of authors who were writing a series of books together. As four out of the five of them lived in Canada it seemed a good place to get together and make the magic happen. Nick and Sam had been able to enjoy the local area while Charlie worked and on weekends the three of them had ventured a bit further away, wanting to explore as much of the country as possible. They had been welcomed by each of the author’s families, even being able to leave Sam with one of the families for a weekend towards the end of the second month so that Nick and Charlie could have a weekend away together. Sam already knew about the term “found family” and he loved that his had grown so much more during this time.
Charlie had finished up his role a week before Christmas and they had met up with Sarah in New York for a few days before they all returned home in time to celebrate with their families. It had been lovely to reconnect in person with everyone and to spend some time together getting ready for the new school year. Charlie was unsure who hated the uniform shopping more, Sam or Nick, thankfully both were more than happy with the burgers and shakes at the end of the shopping trip.
They had had 11 days between returning to the UK and the school year starting, it had had flown by with unpacking, catch ups with everyone and lots of stories about what Sam could expect at school. Sam spent a few hours in the park with one of his school friends he had met the previous summer, and he was very keen to cross off each day on the calendar.
And now they were here, at the school gates, Sam in his uniform, Nick already wiping tears (his own, not Sam’s) and Charlie beaming proudly at the both of them.
“Nick, he’ll be fine. He has his friends already, he loves learning and he is going to have a great time”
“I know, Charlie, but how is he old enough to be at school already? Can’t we keep him home another year?”
“Nick.” Charlie sighed in a way that expressed rolled eyes and love all at once.
Sam looked at both of them and gave them a smile, he was confident and excited to get started. He gave them both a hug and turned to walk into school as he saw his friend from the park waving to him and calling him over. One of the other parents looked at Charlie and Nick and smiled at them. “It does get easier, it really does”.
As Nick and Charlie stood at the gates and watched Sam walked into school they leant into each other, both lost in their own thoughts about the last few years and how much love they had for their little sidekick. Just as they were about to leave Nick tightened his grip on Charlie’s hand, “Char, look!”
Charlie looked at Nick in confusion and then back at Sam, he wasn’t sure what Nick was talking about.
Then he saw it and he couldn’t hold back the smile on his face.
“Oh, Nick!”
Right there in front of them fell the first few flakes of a light January snowfall. Both looked at each other remembering how much good had come from their own first day in the snow together, knowing that Sam would be okay. They would be okay. They turned and walked away, hand in hand to enjoy one last day together before Nick returned to his classroom and Charlie returned to the office.
There really was something magic about the snow, especially when you were full of love for those around you.