Lockie Leonard

- You don't have to agree with this.

It's your call.

The white sand, blue sky, and big surf.

Where else would you wanna be?

Yup, after one whole year at Angelus, it was still official.

This tiny little town in the middle of nowhere

had the best waves you could find,

anywhere.

Unfortunately, same couldn't be said about the school.

And after this weekend, Lockie Leonard was due to head back

to the dangerous, untamed wilderness of Angelus High,

for day one of the new school year.

If last year was anything to go by,

there will be predators to avoid, like feral bogans,

always at the ready to flush your head down the toilet.

And worse, teachers, whose life ambition

is to make your life even more miserable than their own.

And so now, for the weird thing.

For the first time in my life,

I was actually looking forward to going back to school.

I know what you're thinking.

Has Lockie finally lost his mind?

Well, yes and no.

Let me walk you through the details.

Okay, deep breath.

Vicki Streeton.

The girl who makes me forget basic words,

and makes my toenails ache.

The girl, who after a year of seemingly endless disasters,

has somehow miraculously become my girlfriend.

The last time I spoke to Vicki was moments before she left

on some family holiday to the States, for the whole summer.

There had never been a better time

to tell her exactly how I felt.

Something memorable she could take with her

for the six weeks.

Don't forget to get me a t-shirt.

- What I really meant to say was,

I'm going to miss you so much.

But I didn't.

That's why I'm hanging out for school to start.

So I can see Vicki and tell her

all the things I meant to say.

However, Mom wasn't as keen

for the new school year to begin.

Poo.

What's that, Joy?

Hate it.

Hate it, hate it, hate it.

The end of summer, the beginning of a new school year.

All the.

- All good things must come to an end.

- School lunches to make, school uniforms to iron

and all that homework night after night after night.

- Joy, nobody does Lockie's homework better than you.

But I really let myself down last year.

You saw his school report.

- Sarge could see Mom's spirits needed a lift.

Which meant, it was time for a Leonard family

inspirational address.

Team, I feel something.

There is definitely something in the air, all right.

Why else this feeling of excitement,

this gnawing in my belly,

this sense that opportunity is knocking at the door.

Hang on.

Could it be that just around the corner,

is the thrill of the future.

All of our astounding achievements as yet undreamt,

will be ours this year, our second year in Angelus,

when things can only be but new, and improved.

Of course there will be challenges faced for some.

But remember,

we are Leonards.

And so I give you the Leonard family toast.

But we've already put away the cups.

To adventure.

To adventure.

For Phillip,

the adventures were just beginning.

He was about to start high school, a year early.

- Soon I'll be saying goodbye to childhood things

and hello to secondary education.

Can you just imagine it, Cyril?

The Science block, the lab coats,

and Phillip Leonard, sitting down with the finest minds

of our generation.

Can you imagine?

- I didn't want to rain on Phillip's parade

but pretty soon, I'd have to break the news

it was Angelus High he was going to, not NASA.

Here it was, it had finally arrived.

Proof I had nothing to worry about.

Hard evidence all was well between Vicki and me.

A postcard.

- Hi Lockie, Here is a view of the Grand Canyon.

We were here today.

It's very spectacular.

Bye, now.

Love, Vicki.

So it was a bit brief.

But I'm sure Vicki would have said more if there was room.

I mean it's hard to fit "I miss you" and

"I've been thinking about you all summer"

on a tiny little postcard, right?

What?

In the meantime,

I must have read that postcard a thousand times,

trying to figure out what Vicki meant to say but didn't.

Hi Lockie.

Hi Lockie.

Hi Lockie.

Hi Lockie.

Hi Lockie.

Bye now. Bye now.

Love, Vicki.

Love, Vicki.

Bye, now. Love, Vicki.

- Or maybe her dad was checking on her mail

before she posted it.

And she had been forced to send me a message in code.

- You need to wear spectacles.

Hide all your green crayons.

Hey hot boy. Can't wait.

Let's do the math.

How long as Vicki been away?

Six weeks.

And how many postcards have you got?

One.

Have you ever thought that that's Vicki's way

of letting you know,

you're dropped?

No, never thought that. Ever.

Thought so.

At least I knew I could rely

on my supportive parents for reassurance.

No, I wouldn't think that's the case.

Not for a minute.

I mean, put yourself in Vicki's shoes.

She's out and about all day, sightseeing.

First you've got to find a postcard, and a pen, and a stamp.

I mean, how often do you find yourself looking for a pen?

I can't count the number of times I've found myself

looking for a pen.

- If Vicki were heartless enough to put you through

the gut-wrenching agonies of separation, the minx.

Well then, know that your family is here for you

with all the support and unconditional love

that you will need to survive such a crippling,

devastating...

Not that she's going to do that.

Why, yes. Looking good.

- Lockie was a lot bigger than you, Phillip

when he started high school.

But there's plenty of room to grow.

Sarge?

Plenty of room to grow.

- You're not sending him to school like that, are you?

He'll get.

What's not to like?

- You don't think it makes you look a little...

Distinguished? Commanding.

Commanding. Yes, yes exactly.

I'll bet Angelus High hasn't seen

anything like this before.

And for good reason.

School was starting tomorrow,

and Phillip would be crushed like a bug.

And the even more devastating thought hit me.

I still hadn't heard from Vicki.

I couldn't take the uncertainty any longer.

I had to know where I stood with Vicki.

What do you know Cyril.

We seem to have ended up at Vicki's house.

Maybe we should just pop in and check if she's home?

Maybe this was a good sign.

Maybe Cyril's luck with the ladies would rub off on me too.

But the truth was, with Vicki and me,

I had no idea what reception I was going to get.

Lockie! I missed you!

Like this?

Or like this?

It's you.

Yeah.

I'll see you later.

Or like this?

Hey! Yeah, the States were great.

Great, I mean, what can I say?

I wish I could go back tomorrow.

Yeah, 'cause I just met so many really, really great people.

Like really, really interesting kinda,

hot guys.

Anybody home?

- After ringing the front doorbell 11 times,

I finally gave up.

Sadly this could only mean one thing.

Before their holiday, Vicki's parents had been all fired up

about packing her off to an exclusive boarding school

in the city.

For over 50 years,