Asc Timetables: 2018

It was terrifying. But it was also a timetable. And timetables, he had learned, always tell you when the next safe harbour arrives.

The timetable was pinned to the corkboard with three slightly rusted pushpins—a fragile monarchy ruling over twenty-eight desks, forty-two pencils, and one boy who couldn’t stop counting the ceiling tiles. asc timetables 2018

Every box was a promise. A narrow, colour-coded promise that the day would not spiral into noise, unexpected fire drills, or the sudden, terrifying collapse of routine. It was terrifying

“I don’t like it,” he whispered.

The pushpins suddenly seemed very sharp. he had learned

“Leo,” Mrs. Dhillon said one grey November afternoon, kneeling beside his desk. “The timetable is changing next term. New groups. New room.”