May Queen Book 1 by Maddy Bell Copyright© 2024 Madeline Bell One day your life is just, well life, the next has Daisy in it!

 
I still felt a right twit in my aerobics kit, I might be fairly comfortable being Daisy at school, even wearing a skirt and stuff every day but the fit and brevity of this stuff takes things to another level. You remember last week’s pink theme? Well apparently its bad form to wear the same stuff two weeks on the trot, so this week my top was baby blue, teamed with navy blue bike shorts which I think was an improvement over exercise Barbie®.

On the plus side, I didn’t find it quite as bad as last week. That doesn’t mean it was any easier but I did at least have some idea of what I was supposed to be doing.

"You okay Dais?” Aunt Claire asked as I made short work of my second smoothie of the day, "School okay?”
"Could be worse I suppose.”

Yeah, if the uniform skirts were short and pink and everyone had to have pigtails.

"It must be better than sat in your room on your own?”

I shrugged, no argument there.

"I guess so, so um, tomorrow is it alright if I hang with Jess after school?”
"Who is Jess?”
"Er Jessica De Vere, she’s in my form?”
"And what will you and Miss De Vere be doing after school?”
"She’s in this film club thing, she invited me to go along? It’s at the school.”
"I think we can cope without you for one evening, will you need Dad’s taxi?”
"Dunno to be honest.”
"What about food?”
"I can probably survive,” I pointed out.
"Just don’t make it too late, remember it’s the funeral on Wednesday, I’ll need some help beforehand getting ready for the wake.”

Great, more slave labour.

"I’m sure it won’t go on that long and in any case, they have a ten o’clock curfew.”
 

Becca had been as good as her word, dropping the cortisone cream off on Monday with instructions to use it before bed and when I got up. I was still feeling a bit sore so I added a dollop of E forty five before I set off for another day at Wellow House. On Mum, Aunt Claire’s advice, my bag was bolstered with a packet of crisps and an apple, to tide me over until supper.

"Great!” Jess beamed when I confirmed my evening presence as we waited for ‘Pinky’ to arrive for our first class of the day, "The others were pretty stoked that you’re onboard.”
"If I can help whilst I’m here.”
"Save the day more like Dais,” she enthused.

Yep, Daisy Miller saves the day – again.
 

After school activities for Johnny had never really been a practical option. Not because he didn’t want to join the railway club or the chess club or the history club, but when you live a couple of miles away and your parents run a pub, well its difficult. He had actually joined the history club but he’d missed far more meetings than he’d attended purely on logistics.

Of course, if you are a boarder at a Prep School there are no such issues, if you are a day girl living ten minutes walk away there are no issues either. But there were still logistics.

"So erm, how does it work this evening, do we go straight from Maths to the meeting?” I enquired as we chilled after lunch, quiche, chips and salad – sort of healthyish.
"Why ever would we do that, we’d miss dinner,” Jess advised.
"I’ve brought a bag of crisps.”
"Whatever for?”
"Tea, dinner, whatever you want to call it?”
"Dur, you on a diet or something, it’s pork chops tonight.”
"I’m not a boarder remember.”
"So? You’re still a pupil and you’re gonna be here for school activity and anyway, there’s always enough for visitors.”

I couldn’t help feeling that Jess’s take on the school catering was a bit rose tinted, I’m sure things are controlled just as tightly as at The Red Lion.

"Anyway,” Jess went on, "After dinner we get changed, then we go to the club room.”
"Changed?”
"Well you don’t think we live in uniform all the time do you?”

I’d never given it any thought.

"Course not, I just didn’t think to bring anything.”
"Next time!”
 

"Still here Daisy?” Miss Pinckney queried when she spotted me waiting for Jess to finish washing up for dinner.
"Um yes Miss, Film club?”
She raised a brow, "Really?”
"I’ve been sort of railroaded by Jessica,” I admitted.
"Okay.”
"It’s alright isn’t it? And Jess said I can eat dinner here too, I know that wasn’t part of the arrangement and I’ll understand if its not,” I rushed out.
"It’s fine Daisy, its counted as a school activity, I, we just hadn’t expected you to get involved with extra curricular activities that’s all.”
"Neither had I, I didn’t mean to.”
"You’re not going to be here very long, I think its great that you are embracing the whole experience. How are your studies coming along?”
"Er okay I think Miss, its certainly better than ‘home schooling’. Erm thanks for arranging this.”
"My pleasure, can’t have our May Queen missing out on her education can we?”
"Er no Miss.”
"Looks like your friends are just coming, I’ll leave you to it, enjoy the film club Daisy.”
"Thanks Miss.”

"What did Pinky want?” Jess asked, looping her arm through mine and steering me towards the refectory.
"Just checking on how I’m settling in, she arranged for me to come here.”
"Teachers pet eh?”
"Hardly, she’s a friend of my Aunt’s.”
"Friends in high places, come on or we’ll end up sat with the lower school!”
 

It felt a bit weird joining my classmates to eat for a second time on the same day, its not often I even do that at home! Not only that but unlike lunchtime when there were several options to choose from, the evening meal was, as the French would put it, ‘Menu Fix’. Not that I’m complaining, it was still better than left over whatever at the Lion, the usual Baker family evening repast.

What was even weirder, well for me at least, was seeing Jess and the others in ‘civvies’ after over a week of strict adherence to the school uniform code. Whilst what I was wearing wasn’t strictly The Wellow House uniform, when Jess let us into the film club’s headquarters, a small room in the attic of the old stables, I was the only 'girl’ wearing a skirt.

"Hey everyone,” Jess greeted the occupants, "This is Daisy, saviour of Repton!”
"Hi again Dais,” James of the nice arse greeted, leading a round of hi’s, waves and other greetings.
"Erm hi,” I allowed in return.

Beyond the aforementioned Mr Barclay, the other occupants, eight in all, were mostly members of the sixth form, I didn’t know names but I did recognise them from Friday’s shared PE session. The other two were a spotty fourth year lad and, of all people, Morton McLachlan.

"So,” one of the sixth form girls started, "Jess says you’ll step in for Cindy so we can finish filming before James leaves?”

Talk about on the spot.

"I um, guess so.” I replied, "What is it Cindy was doing?”
"Je-ess,” someone else started, "Didn’t you explain?”
It was my ‘friend’s’ turn to be on the spot, "Er not as such.”
"Honestly,” the first girl sighed, "Cindy was our leading lady Dais, you still up for it? You certainly look the part.”
"We’ll have to reshoot a few scenes,” Morton opined.
"Not that many,” James suggested, "Most of what’s in the can is first person.”
"And we barely got started on the voice overs,” spotty put in.
"So you want me to act?” I squeezed out.
"Thought I said,” the girl apparently in charge confirmed.
"I’ve erm, never done any.”

Well unless you count the last week or so.

"We don’t need Julia Roberts, its supposed to be quite rustic. So?”

All eyes were on me, do I want to do this? Can I do this? Should I do this? I cast about the small assemblage, a dozen eager faces awaiting my answer. Oh what the hell, it can’t be worse than ‘volunteering’ to be May Queen – look where that’s got me.

"Okay, count me in.”
"Yes!” Jess screeched before pulling me into a bone crushing hug and planting a kiss in the general vicinity of my face.
"Now that’s settled, ‘our’ leader started, "Let’s sort out what we need to do filming wise, Daisy and James don’t have that many scenes together so lets concentrate on those, can you get a copy of the script for Daisy Chris.”

And so I was now not just recruited to the film club but I’m also the leading actress in Repton, a noir thriller set a few miles up the road in the village of the same name.

 
Rather than Dad’s taxi, it was actually Josh who covered the Daisy shuttle, the enthusiastic film company only finishing up when Miss Simmonds poked her head around the door at nine thirty.

"You okay mate?”
"I guess.”
"Mum said you were going to some film club, what did you watch?”
"Its not that sort of club,” I advised, "They’re actually making a film.”
"Okay, so what do they need you for, bit late in the year for a recruitment drive.”
"One of their actors sort of left them in the lurch, they needed a sub.”
"Really? You couldn’t remember your lines for the church nativity,” my brother scoffed.
"At least I had lines,” I shot back.
"So go on then, what are you, second onlooker in scene five?”
"Hmmph! I’m Martha Jones, the main character.”
"You are the leading lady?” he scoffed.
"What’s so funny about that?”
"Don’t get me wrong but you’ve only been Daisy a week, haven’t they got a real girl that could do it?”
"They think me, Daisy Miller, is a real girl.”
"So I’m guessing there’s a leading man or is it all girls?”
"There is, James Barclay from the upper sixth.”
He snorted again, "Best not tell Mum & Dad that bit, they’ll have you confined to the house.”
"You think?”
"Just kidding Dais, just kidding.”

 
© Maddy Bell 04.08.2025