Category: Cockaigne Chronicles

Max has lost all his confidence. He spends the day at school alone, but at lunchtime he’s approached by a boy. He’s shy and awkward but they form an unusual friendship. Max accidentally leaves his phone on and he narrowly escapes another punishment. At home, in bed, he confesses to Finn that Neil is bullying him.

Lily spoke to the school about what happened to Max and his panic attack. The school arranged for Max to see Mitch Masters, the school counsellor. They talk all morning, and Mitch shows Max some coping techniques and some valuable advice.

When Max leaves for school the day after being punished unjustly, in his opinion, he starts to feel strange. His pulse quickens, his palms sweat, and his breathing falters. On the outside, he displays the signs of having a heart attack.

Children today face unimaginable pressures, more than I did when I was at school. I was that awkward gay boy trying desperately to hide who he was from a homophobic society. If I had social media to deal with on top of that, I don’t know if I could have coped. I suffered panic attacks. I thought I was dying at times. Anxiety seems to be normal in today’s kids. The amount of teens I’ve met that suffer from anxiety is overwhelming.

Max’s anxiety stems from being punished unjustly. Many children go to school coping with similar anxieties; a fear of bullying, a fear of being found out, a fear of being different. We are all different; no two people are the same, not even identical twins. We need to educate and empower our children to be the best they can be. The UK curriculum needs a major kick up the arse to educate children about modern life. Technology moves faster than politics.

 

When Max gets to school, he discovers that Neil is bored with babysitting him and leaves him alone to fend for himself. But Max is still unsure where all his classes are and soon finds himself lost and alone. The headmaster, Mr Price, finds him in the corridors when he should be in class. Unfortunately, this leads to Max facing his first punishment. An unjust punishment.

Finn comes home on a high from swim club. He’s proud of how he taught the youngsters and how Coach Anderson wants him to get qualified as a swim teacher. But when in bed and talking to Max, Finn admits that Eddie has been on his mind. Max tells him what he knows of love and how it can surprise you who you fall in love with. Also, despite ejaculating before he went to sleep, Finn has another wet dream, and it is up to Max to clean up after him.

Coach Anderson ambushes Finn while he’s having lunch with his friends, Adam and Scott. Coach praises Finn with teaching Eddie to swim. He tells Finn about Cockaigne Swin Club. They are meeting this evening and he asks Finn to come along. Not to start training, but to help coach some of the younger kids.

Finn’s wet dreams are beginning to cause some concern. When Lily enters the boys’ bedroom, she finds that Finn has had a wet dream in both beds. She is annoyed that she now has double the washing. Lily tells Finn that he needs to masturbate more, hoping it will prevent the frequency of his nocturnal emissions.

Finn gets in trouble with Coach Anderson, he doesn’t understand the level of discipline that’s expected of him. But he gets back in Coach’s good books by helping a fellow student learn to swim. All his time going to swim clubs has paid dividends and he is given an opportunity he never expected.

Finn and Adam stay together after school for further tuition. Finn strips off and encourages Adam to do the same, but he is reluctant; Adam isn’t a nudist. He talks about Cockaigne, the punishments and how his father and step-brother were punished.

Later, in bed, Max and Finn talk about their first day at school. Finn tells how he asked Adam to be his boyfriend the first time he asked another boy out.

The day has arrived. Max and Finn go to Cockaigne Academy and meet Mr Johnson. Changing schools will not be as easy as they first thought. They have a new syllabus, and the boys will need extra tuition. Finn is introduced to Adam, a student in his class, to help him settle in.