Outside the classroom window, Bella could see the sea glinting behind the playground. She rested her chin on her hand and stared dreamily at the view. There were just two weeks of term until the summer holidays. Soon, she and her mum, Suzi, her little brother, Louie, and their dog, Pepper, would all be on Sandmouth beach, having picnics and ice creams and staying out late every evening. Bella hoped it would be a hot summer. It would be typical if the sun stopped shining in exactly two weeksâ time.
âBella?â said Mrs Frost.
Bella looked around in surprise. âMe?â she said.
Mrs Frost, the head teacher at Cliffside Primary, made a tutting noise. Mrs Frost had white hair and an icy gaze. The children called her Frosty.
âYes, Bella,â Mrs Frost said, raising her white eyebrows. âYou. What ideas have you brought to the Summer Fair Committee?â
Bella tried to concentrate. She stared at the piece of paper in front of her. Sheâd drawn a picture of her dog, Pepper. It was a lovely picture. She was pleased at how sheâd drawn Pepperâs rough brown head and big dark eyes. But it wasnât very helpful right now. What had her class asked Bella to say?
âWell,â Bella said nervously. âItâs Cliffside Primaryâs fiftieth anniversary this year, andâ¦umâ¦â
The other children at the meeting giggled.
Mrs Frost sighed. âYes,â she said. âWe know that. We have lots of things in place for the anniversary. But what ideas have your class had?â
It was no good. Bella couldnât remember. She was going to have to make it up.
âA dog show,â she blurted out. âWithâ¦prizes for the waggiest tail, andâ¦umâ¦the smiliest face andâ¦the wettest tongueâ¦â
Bella knew she was rambling. But to her amazement, Mrs Frost started nodding.
âA lovely idea,â said Mrs Frost. âWe could charge a pound for people to enter. I shall bring my dog along.â
Bella blinked. Mrs Frost had a dog? Sheâd never seen Mrs Frost out walking a dog. It was a weird thought.
âWhat kind of dog have you got, miss?â asked Bellaâs best friend, Amber.
âA Labradoodle called Charlie,â said Mrs Frost.
Bella frowned. She assumed Mrs Frost must have said âLabradorâ and sheâd just misheard her. She was about to put her hand up to ask, but someone called out, âA labrabooble! Whatâs that?â
Before Mrs Frost could answer, Amber cried, âNo, silly, she said âdabydoodleâ!â and the whole class started laughing.
âOK, children, settle down,â Mrs Frost said, raising her hand to get the class to be quiet. âCharlie is a Labradoodle, which is a cross between a Labrador and a poodle. Itâs quite a rare breed so itâs no wonder that you havenât heard of it before.â
Bellaâs mouth opened with surprise â she had never heard of such a funny-sounding name for a dog!
âYou should bring Charlie to Dream Dogs one day, miss!â Bella said impulsively.
Mrs Frost looked puzzled.
âDream Dogs is my mumâs dog parlour,â Bella explained. âWe do washing and trimming and nail clipping and things like that. Iâm sure Mum wouldââ
âThank you, Bella,â Mrs Frost interrupted, looking up at the clock above the board. âCan we get back to this meeting, please? The end of lunch bell is about to ring and I donât want you late for your classes. Any more ideas for the Summer Fair?â
Bella scribbled Dog Show on her piece of paper, underneath her drawing of Pepper. She felt excited. Imagine the school playing field covered in dogs, including Charlie the Labradoodle! They could use a loudspeaker to announce the results and have rosettes for the winners. Maybe Charlie would get one for being the most unusual breed! Bella couldnât wait to go on the computer at home and look up all about Labradoodles on the Internet.
The school bell started ringing.
âBack to class, everyone,â said Mrs Frost.
Everyone headed for the classroom door, chattering about the Summer Fair. Bella glanced out of the window. She could see her friend Sophie, and her little brother, Louie, lining up to go back inside. It was a shame playtime was over. Apart from the grey cloud over the school hall, it was a perfect summerâs day. Now Bella wouldnât be able to go outside until much later.
Bella looked at the grey cloud over the school hall again. And she realised it wasnât a cloud at all.
âFire!â Bella shouted. She pointed. âThe school hallâs on fire!â
Everyone rushed to look. They could see flames shooting out of the hall roof. The smell of burning swept through the open window of the classroom. It made Bella cough.