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Tom and the Green Mark

It was the end of the Summer holidays, and Tom was going back to school. He had really enjoyed this summer. His holiday at the seaside had been great and he kept thinking about his adventure to Robot Island. He wanted to tell his Mum and Dad and all his friends about Robot Island but had made a promise to the Robots that he would keep it a secret. Sometimes he wondered if it had really happened at all and whether he might have dreamt it, but on his ankle he could still see a green mark from the mixture that had spilt over his feet and hands when Patch had knocked over the bottles in the Professor’s cave.

Just then his Mum called “Come on Tom, it’s time for school”. Tom got into the car. He had all his new books and pens ready for the new class he was going in. His Mum had bought him a new school uniform this year because he had outgrown the old one. The new trousers seemed rather big but his Mum had said it was better they were a bit bigger because he would grow into them. His blazer fitted all right but his new shoes felt a bit tight. He didn’t feel very comfortable in this uniform. “Stop complaining” said his Mum “you’ll get used to it. Now don’t forget I’ll pick you up at tea-time by the gate, bye, have a nice day”. Tom got out of the car and his Mum drove off. Tom could see his friends over in the playground exchanging cards. He wished he had brought his. He would remember them tomorrow though.

The first day back didn’t seem too bad and Tom met his Mum by the gate at tea-time. When they got back home Tom went upstairs to change into his jeans and tea-shirt so he could go and play outside with Patch before he had his tea. He pulled off his new trousers and was just about to put on his jeans when he noticed that the green mark on his ankle had got bigger. He went into the bathroom and tried to rub it off, but it didn’t matter how hard he rubbed it just wouldn’t come off. “Oh well” thought Tom “I suppose it will come off eventually” and ran outside to play with Patch who was already waiting for him. He picked up the ball and threw it down the garden for him to fetch, but the ball seemed to go higher than Tom intended and it went over the hedge into the road. Tom ran outside the garden to fetch it back but as he did so he heard a loud noise of breaking glass, and the next moment he could hear very angry voices. “What little hooligan has thrown this ball at my greenhouse” he could hear someone shouting ,so he ran back into his garden quickly before anyone could see him. He hadn’t done it on purpose. He had only thrown the ball down the garden like he always did. How had it managed to go so far. He looked down at Patch who was still waiting. “Looks like we need a new ball” said Tom and went back inside to look for another. A few minutes later he came back outside and this time he was very careful. He only rolled the ball down the garden and even then it went very fast, Patch only just managed to catch it before it rolled through the hedge.

Next day Tom got ready for school again. He remembered his cards this time and put them into his rucksack. When he got to school he could see his friends swopping cards and went over to join them. Tom knew that some of his friends had better cards than his and was hoping maybe to trade in lots of poor ones to get a good one. Tom took his cards out of the packet but as he handed them around he noticed all the print was rubbing off them. He picked up his friend Joe’s favourite card that Joe was really proud of. He looked at it and gave it back, but as he did so the print came off the card and the card was just blank. “What have you done to my card” said Joe “Nothing, I only looked at it “ said Tom “You’ve rubbed all the print off it” said Joe angrily “Give me all your cards now, that was my very best card that nobody else had got and now you’ve gone and spoilt it”. Tom didn’t know what was happening. He handed Joe all his cards but they were just the same, just blank cards with nothing on. It was a though every time Tom handled the cards the print was rubbed off. “I don’t want those” said Joe and threw them on the floor. Just then the bell rang and it was time to go in for lessons. Tom felt very miserable. Now Joe wouldn’t be his friend and nobody wanted to play with him.

“Are you listening” he looked up, Miss Morris was standing beside him and he hadn’t heard anything she had been saying, he had been too busy thinking about his friend Joe. He was just about to tell Miss Morris that he didn’t know what she had said, when he suddenly realised that he did know what she had been saying, in fact he could remember everything word for word. He didn’t know how that could be possible, he hadn’t even realised she was talking. “Yes, I have been listening” said Tom. “Then you had better come to the front of the class and write down what I have said” said Miss Morris who clearly didn’t belief him. Tom got out of his seat and walked over to the blackboard. He picked up a chalk and in a flash he wrote on the blackboard every single word that Miss Morris had spoken. When he had finished he stood back from the blackboard. The blackboard was full, from top to bottom. He was suddenly aware of how quiet everyone had gone. Miss Morris was just standing with her eyes bulging and her mouth wide open. She couldn’t belief that Tom had been able to remember every single word she had spoken since coming into the classroom. Tom went back to his desk. Everyone was staring at him. He felt very pleased with himself. He didn’t know how he could have remembered so much, but he was going to see if he could do it again.

He had forgotten all about Joe and his cards and when he went outside into the playground all his friends came running towards him. “How did you do that Tom” they were all very curious. But Tom couldn’t tell them how he had done it, he didn’t even know himself. Tom decided he would try it again when they went in for the next lesson. He hung behind and didn’t go in until the class had started. He sat down at his desk and looked at Miss Morris who was reading a story.

Then an amazing thing happened. He heard a noise from the other side of the classroom and when he turned his head to see what it was he could see Joe and could hear what he was thinking. “What am I going to do now my best card has no print on it, it’s all Tom’s fault, I’ll never be his friend again”. Joe’s thoughts were being transmitted into Tom’s head. Tom looked round the class. He could see that they were all looking at Miss Morris but not everyone was listening. Tom knew that because he was listening in to what they were thinking.

He looked at Miss Morris, who had now stopped reading and was going to ask the class some questions about the story. She was just about to ask a question when Tom shouted the answer out, before she had even spoken a word. Every time she was thinking of a question, Tom shouted out the answer. He was reading her thoughts. Miss Morris put down the book and called Tom over to her. “I want you to sit here very quietly for the rest of the lesson. I can see you are far too clever to be in this class and tomorrow you will be moved up to a higher class with older children.

When it was time to go home Tom waited for his Mum by the gate. He could see Joe playing with some other boys, but didn’t go over to them. He had been able to read Joe’s thoughts and knew he didn’t want to be his friend. He thought about what Miss Morris had said about moving to a different class the next day and didn’t really want to be in a class with older boys. He couldn’t understand how he had suddenly been able to do all these special things but thought it was really good fun. His Mum came to pick him up and Tom told her all about what had happened that day. His Mum didn’t really believe him but just smiled and said she hoped he would be as clever the next day.

When he got home he went to put on his jeans and tee shirt and noticed that the green mark on his ankle was now even bigger and was beginning to move up his leg. He tried again to wash it off but it was no good it just wouldn’t come off. Patch was waiting for him outside and he picked up the ball to throw down the garden. He remembered what had happened the day before so didn’t dare throw it too hard. “Here Patch, go and get it”. Tom threw the ball but this time it didn’t just go over the fence it went high up into the air and over the roof tops until all Tom could see was a tiny speck in the air that looked like a bird. Patch was looking everywhere for it, he couldn’t even sniff it out and came back to Tom barking at him to throw the ball.

After Tom had eaten his tea he went up to his bedroom. He pulled up his trousers and looked at the green mark on his leg. It hadn’t got any bigger but Tom was beginning to feel a very cold tingling sensation in his leg. He remembered that he had felt this tingling sensation before when the green mixture had spilt on to him on Robot Island. He heard his Mum coming up the stairs and tried to cover his leg up but his Mum had seen the green mark and was very cross with him. “Tom, whatever have you been doing. How have you got all that paint on you. I hope it’s not on your new trousers. Go to the bathroom and wash it off before you go to bed. Tom rubbed and rubbed but it didn’t matter how hard he rubbed it still wouldn’t come off. He got into bed and but found it hard to get to sleep. He had so many thoughts going round in his head. He thought about how high he had thrown the ball. How could he have thrown it over all the roof tops. He was only a little boy he didn’t know how he had done it. Then he thought about how he could read other peoples minds and what had happened at school that day. He could feel his leg tingling and knew his Mum would be really cross the next day with him because the green mark was still on his leg.

When Tom woke up the next morning the first thing he did was look at his leg. It was feeling very cold and tingly, but he was in for quite a shock. The green mark had now completely gone, but his leg was hard and shiny and his foot felt heavy. He tried to walk but he felt weighted down. He looked at his other leg, that was alright but he noticed a green mark was starting to form on the ankle. He quickly put on his uniform and went downstairs and had his breakfast. He hoped his Mum wouldn’t ask to see his leg to make sure he had rubbed the paint off but she was busy talking to the neighbour and had forgotten all about it.

When he got to school Miss Morris was waiting by the classroom door for him. “Tom you are going to be moved to another class. You are too clever to be in my class. I’ll take you to see Mr Walker”. Tom didn’t like the idea of going into a class with older boys than himself but Miss Morris had made up her mind. They went up the stairs and into the first classroom. Tom walked behind Miss Morris. “This is the boy I was telling you about” he heard Miss Morris say to Mr Walker. Mt Walker looked at Tom. “Are you sure he’ll be able to keep up with the older boys, he’s only little” he said. “Well just you wait and see” Miss Morris replied and turned and walked out of the classroom. Mr Walker told Tom to go and sit down. The other boys were so much bigger than Tom and he could hear everything they were thinking. Nasty things like “Whats he doing in this class he should be with the babies” and “he’d better not be a show off and be better than us”.

“Now everyone” Mr Walker was opening a big book that he had on his desk. “We have a new boy in the class today called Tom. He’s a lot younger than everyone else here and I want you all to be nice to him”. Then he called to Tom “I want you to come over here and read as much as you can from this book. It may be difficult for you but just do your best”. Tom went over to the desk. The other boys in the class started laughing because they knew it was very hard to read from this big book and not many of them had got past the first page. Tom started to read, page after page without stopping. He read so quickly that he had no sooner started at the top of one page than he was onto the next. There was no stopping him. He carried on reading until he had finished the book. Everyone looked on in amazement. How could a little boy like Tom be able to read such a difficult book without even stopping once. Mr Walker had never ever had a pupil in his class that had finished the book. Tom went to sit back down. Mr Walker called one or two of the other boys up to read but they could only read a few lines from the book. Mr Walker was so shocked by Tom reading the big book he said he would have to go and see if he could find a much harder book for Tom to read.

After Mr Walker had left the classroom, one of the older boys, who was a big bully and everyone was scared of, went over to Tom “Don’t you dare read the next book or I’ll thump you so hard you’ll never read anything else again”. But Tom wasn’t scared of him. He was feeling strong. He knew that the green mixture that had spilt over him on Robot Island must have given him the special powers that Robots have. Mr Walker came back into the classroom. “Now Tom, this is the hardest book to read in all the school. Come over here and see if you can read it”.Tom got up, he looked over towards where the big bully boy was sitting and said “watch this, you don’t scare me”. Tom opened up the book. It was so complicated even Mr Walker would have found it hard to read. But not Tom, in a few minutes he had read the book from start to finish without even batting an eyelid. “My goodness, I have never seen anything like it” said Mr Walker “I think you should all go outside for some fresh air while I decide what to do next”.

Outside in the playground Tom could see all the older boys in a circle talking about him. Then he saw the big bully boy coming towards him. As he got closer he kicked out at Tom but Tom’s leg was now so hard that the bully cried out in pain. All his toes were bleeding. Tom started to laugh and so did the other boys. It was good to see the big bully coming off worse for a change. The big bully was so angry that he tried to grab hold of Tom and get him down on the floor, but Tom just gave the bully a little push and the next moment he was flying through the air and went straight through the wall at the other side of the playground. Everyone started to laugh at him. The big bully boy was no match for Tom and Tom was only half his size. Word soon got round the school about Tom and all the great things that he could do Everyone wanted to be his friend. All except Joe. He was still angry that Tom had spoilt his best card.

His Mum came to pick Tom up as usual at tea time but before she could drive away Mr Walker called to her. “I would like to have a word with you about Tom before you go”. Tom’s Mum looked at Tom “I hope you haven’t been misbehaving” she said and followed Mr Walker into the school. Tom looked round the playground while he was waiting. He could see Joe standing by the wall looking at his cards. He felt sorry he wasn’t friends with Joe anymore and knew that the print must have rubbed off the cards because his hands were too strong as he had handled them. Suddenly he saw the big bully boy go up to Joe and take his cards from him. Joe tried to get them back but the bully was much bigger than Joe and just pushed him down. Tom went over to the bully. “Give Joe his cards back” he said. The bully was so scared of Tom that he gave them back to Joe at once. “Now say you’re sorry”. The bully shook his head “No way”. Tom just got hold of his hand and began to squeeze it. “Now say you’re sorry to Joe”. The bully felt as if his hand was going to break and screamed out in pain. Tom’s hands were very strong. “Sorry Joe” he said. Tom let go of the bully and he ran off. Joe looked at Tom and smiled and together they linked arms. They were best friends again.

When Tom’s Mum came back she looked very worried. “What did Mr Walker say” asked Tom. “Get into the car and I’ll tell you on the way back home” she said. As they went home Tom’s Mum told him that Mr Walker thought he was far too talented to be going to just an ordinary school and she should really try and find him a place at a much better school where only gifted and clever children go. “No” said Tom, “I don’t want to go to another school. All my friends are at that school and I wouldn’t know anybody at a different school”. “Well, don’t worry about it” said his Mum “it will be a long time before we can find the right school for you but you must go and you will make other friends”. Tom went very quiet. He didn’t want to go to another school. He was happy where he was. He was beginning to wish he hadn’t got special powers. He just wanted to be an ordinary little boy like he used to be.

When he got back home he went to get changed. He looked at his legs. One of his legs was now just hard and shiny and the other had a green mark on which was now getting bigger and moving up his leg. He put on his jeans and went to play with Patch. He didn’t dare throw the ball for Patch anymore in case it caused more damage. After tea he went upstairs and sat quietly thinking things over about what had happened to him. He knew that he had got the special powers because of the green mixture that had spilt on him on Robot Island. He was worried that soon his other leg would go hard and shiny, but was glad now that his Mum had bought him bigger trousers for his school uniform. At least nobody could see his legs.

Next day when Tom got out of bed and looked at his legs they were both the same. The green mark had gone and he now had hard tin legs that looked like a Robots. Whatever was he going to do. His feet had grown bigger and felt heavy. He couldn’t get his shoes on. Try as he might his feet just wouldn’t fit into the shoes. He would have to see if he could find a pair of his Dad’s and hope no-one would notice. While his Mum was busy downstairs Tom looked into his Dad’s wardrobe. Yes, that pair of black shoes would fit him and he hurriedly put them on. “Tom are you ready for school” He could hear his Mum shouting. He walked slowly down the stairs. His feet and legs felt so big and heavy that he could hardly lift them up. He didn’t like it. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to play football that day. He would have to pretend that he had forgotten his football kit. “You’re quiet today Tom” said his Mum “are you feeling ill”. No I’m alright” said Tom “it’s just that I don’t want to play football today” Why ever not” said his Mum very surprised, she knew Tom usually liked playing football. “Because my legs feel tired”said Tom. He didn’t want to say the real reason. He was hoping that maybe his legs would just go back to being normal. “You’ll be alright” said his Mum “it’s probably cramp you’ve got in them, the exercise will do you good”.

Tom waved goodbye to his Mum at the school gates and went to his classroom. He saw Joe going in the other class and wished he could go with him. Joe waved to him and Tom felt happy that they were friends again. He decided that the next time he saw Joe he would tell him his secret. Mr Walker went over to where Tom was sitting. “Tom” he said, “I know you would rather be with boys your own age, so even though you do your schoolwork in this class you can still go outside at break with the boys you know of your own age”. Tom was pleased when Mr Walker said this and couldn’t wait to tell Joe all about what was happening to him.

When it was time for him to go outside he looked round for Joe. Joe was with some boys at the side of the wall. Tom went over “Joe, Joe, come here, I want to tell you something” “Just a minute, let me finish this game” said Joe. He finished what he was doing and went across to Tom. “What’s the matter” he said. Tom whispered “Come with me, I’ve something to show you but don’t let anybody else see”. They went round the back of the bicycle sheds. “Stand there, make sure no-one is coming” said Tom. O.K said Joe. Tom rolled up his trouser legs and Joe looked in disbelief. “Whatever have you done” he said “Ssh, don’t let anybody hear, it’s a secret” said Tom and he told Joe all about how he had got special powers and that his legs had changed into Robot legs. “You must not tell anybody else, it’s just a secret between us” Tom told him. Joe was amazed. He wished he had got the special powers that Tom had got and thought that Tom’s robot legs were absolutely brilliant. Tom felt really proud now especially when Joe wanted to look at his tin legs again and told him he would give him all his very best cards if he could , just to be able to swap legs with him. Joe promised Tom that whatever happened his secret was safe. He wouldn’t tell anybody.

Tom went back into school. He was glad he had told Joe, and knew he could trust him to keep his secret. They would be friends forever whatever happened. He heard Mr Walker shouting at him. “Hurry up Tom, it’s time for football, go and get changed”. The other boys had all gone and he had been so deep in thought he hadn’t noticed. “I have forgotten my football kit” Tom lied. “Well you will have to borrow someone elses then” said Mr Walker. “Hurry up, everyone is waiting”. Tom could feel a cold tingling sensation beginning to creep further up his body. He got up and started to walk out of the class room. “Join us outside on the field when you’ve got changed” said Mr Walker “and get a move on.

Tom was walking very slowly. He could hardly lift his feet up. He went into the changing room and pretended to be looking for some football clothes. He would have to hide away until the football was over. The tingly feeling was moving further and further up his body. His shirt was beginning to get tight and it pulled open as the buttons popped off. All his body was turning into tin. “I’m changing into a Robot” Tom screamed. He ran over to the mirror and there looking back at him was the face of a Robot. He had flashing eyes and steam was coming from out of his ears. As he tried to walk, sparks came out of his feet. He didn’t want to be a Robot. “No, no don’t make me a Robot” he cried. But there was nothing he could do. He was a little boy in a Robots body.

Suddenly the door to the changing room opened and Joe walked in. He screamed when he saw the Robot and ran back out. “Joe, Joe, it’s me” shouted Tom, but Joe had gone. He had never been so frightened in his life. He ran outside, quaking with fear. Tom was scared as well, there was nowhere he could hide and he could hear Joe screaming outside. He must try and catch him and tell him it was really him, Tom, not a real Robot. He tried to hurry up but he was weighted down and he made a thudding noise as he walked. “Joe, Joe, come back, it’s me, Tom”. Joe screamed again and ran as fast as he could. Tom could see the other boys now over on the football field. Joe was running towards them screaming and shouting. They all turned round as they heard Joe’s screams and as they did they saw a Robot walking behind Joe. Within seconds the football field had cleared. The boys didn’t know where to run, everyone was terrified and shouting “It’s a Robot, quick get out of here”. Poor Tom, he tried to stop them “ Please, don’t run away, it’s me, Tom, I won’t hurt you, stop it’s me Tom”, but nobody could hear him. Everyone was so frightened they just kept on running.

Mr Walker had just been back in to the school to look for Tom. He was very angry that it was taking Tom so long to find another football kit and everyone was waiting to start the game. Of course he hadn’t been able to find Tom and was making his way back up to the field. As he approached he could hear everyone shouting and didn’t know what was happening. The boys were all running back towards the school. “It’s a Robot, quick get back, there’s a Robot on the field”. “Don’t be silly” said Mr Walker “Get back up to the field”. But nobody was taking any notice. They had all run back into the school. All except one little boy, Joe. He was standing at the side of what was now a Robot but he knew it was really Tom. “Tell them it’s me” said Tom, but he knew that nobody was going to believe him. Joe felt sorry for Tom but he didn’t know what to do. “I’ll tell Mr Walker that it’s you” he said “but you stay here till I come back because everyone is frightened”. Joe went down the field to try and find Mr Walker and tell him that it was really Tom but Mr Walker had seen the Robot and had gone back into the school to ring for the police. Inside the school everybody was running round screaming “there’s a Robot outside”.

Tom waited up on the field. Maybe if he walked further down Mr Walker would know it was him. He thought Joe would have told him by now and he would be able to help him. He decided to go back down to the school yard. As he walked into the school yard he could see all the childrens faces pressed against the windows. “It’s there, the Robot it’s there”. They were all climbing on chairs and desks so they could see the Robot and were shouting and pointing at him. Tom’s feet had sparks coming from them and steam was coming out of his mouth and ears. But inside the Robots body was just Tom, an ordinary little boy, but nobody was ever going to see Tom again. In the distance he could hear the police sirens. Nearer and nearer they came. He tried to run but couldn’t his feet and legs were too heavy. He looked at all the children watching him through the windows and knew that no one would ever believe Joe that the Robot was really Tom.

The police cars raced into the school grounds. They were pointing guns at him. “No, don’t shoot, it’s me Tom” but they couldn’t hear him. The police surrounded him and took aim. Fire. A crack of gunshots all aimed at Tom, but nothing happened. The bullets were just bouncing back off his body. “Take aim, fire”. The police tried again but the same thing happened again. The bullets were bouncing back. Tom suddenly realised that they couldn’t shoot him. It didn’t matter how many shots were fired at him, he had the body of a Robot and nothing could hurt him. Tom started hitting the bullets back at the police with his hands as if he had 2 tennis rackets. Then he started waving to the children who were all in the windows. He decided it was time to have some fun and started to walk towards the police with his arms wide open. He was blowing fire from out of his nostrils and sparks were coming from out of his ears. His head had steam coming from it and his eyes were changing colour. The children thought it was really funny, they weren’t scared anymore and when the police all ran out of the school gates they all clapped and cheered.

Tom stood in the middle of the playground putting on such a show with all the sparks and fire coming from him it was better than a firework display. The children loved it and shouted to him to do it again. Tom was feeling very pleased with himself now. It wasn’t too bad being a Robot after all. But his happiness didn’t last for long. Tom could hear something in the distance getting near to the school gates. He looked into the air and could see helicopters above him. Then the school gates crashed open and the biggest digger Tom had ever seen came rumbling into the school grounds. What was happening. What were they going to do to him.

Tom could see the mighty shovel at the front of the digger getting nearer and nearer and suddenly he had been lifted into the air. He tried to climb out but his metal body slid down the inside of the shovel. He was trapped. There was no way out. The digger turned and moved out onto the street. Tom was held in the shovel high above everything. He tried and tried to climb out but everytime he reached the top of the shovel he fell back down. He wished he had a raygun and tools up his arms like all the Robots he had met on Robot Island, then he could easily have escaped, but he was only a boy Robot so he hadn’t got the same tools as the fully grown Robots.

In front of the digger and behind it Tom could hear the police sirens. He knew the police were clearing the street to get the digger through. Where was he going. Where were they taking him. The digger suddenly came to a stop. “Drop him over there” he heard somebody say. The next minute the shovel was lowered and he was thrown out. With a mighty crash he fell to the ground. He looked around. He was surrounded by all old cars. He tried to move but couldn’t, he could feel something pressing on top of him. The digger had dropped him in the scrap metal yard where the old cars went under the crusher until they were flattened. He could feel something really heavy on top of him. He was going to be flattened into little pieces and he would die. He shut his eyes, he couldn’t bear all the weight on top of him. It was squashing him, flatter and flatter.

“Tom, Tom wake up, we’re home”. He could feel someone shaking him. “Wake up, wake up, what are you doing with all these suitcases on top of you?” Tom opened his eyes. It was his Mum trying to wake him up. “Where am I?” Tom asked. “We’re home, you’ve been asleep ever since we set off back from the seaside” his Mum told him. “Goodness only knows how you’ve managed to sleep under all these suitcases”. Tom sat up, he was in the car, and somehow all the suitcases had fallen down on him from the other seat. He wasn’t a Robot at all, he was just ordinary little Tom. It had all been just a dream and he wasn’t going to die under the crusher at the scrap yard. He jumped out of the car, ran into the garden and threw the ball for Patch as hard as he could, but this time it only went to the bottom of the garden. He felt so happy that he was just Tom again with no special powers, he was just the same as he had always been. The next minute he ran off to call for Joe his friend. He couldn’t wait to tell him all about his awful dream.

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