It was cold... outside, but most of all inside the house... the fire was about to go out and Ionică's parents had no more firewood... Where could you go? What could you do?
Mummy, I can't do my homework, my hands are frozen!
Give them to mummy so I can warm them up.
The mother took the child's cold little hands in her own and rubbed them briskly. Her face had sketched a smile, but Ionică, of all people, knew how hard it was for her to smile.
I'm going over to Maria's, she can help me send my homework to the teacher...
Dress up warm, sweetheart, and don't be late for the meal, the mother told him
The boy took his bicycle and set off towards his classmate Maria, who could photograph his homework so it could be sent to the teacher...
Mariiiia! Mariiiia!
Yeeees! Ionică, hello! the girl said
Hello, please help me with my homework again, I've done it, but I have no way to send it...
Of course, come on, come in...
The curtains were white and long, reaching down to the parquet floor... underfoot a pleasant warmth rose to your feet, and that made Ionică walk on tiptoe, ever so carefully, for fear of losing this feeling of warmth he had never felt before. In the hallway a floral scent drifted from large glass vases full of colourful flowers, the girl's room was done in white and pink, with heavy, glossy furniture; he had once seen something like it in a film on television, but he hadn't believed such things were made in real life... on the desk he spotted a rectangular device, golden in colour, with many keys, and it reminded him of his father's telephone, because that one too had letters and numbers on it; he didn't dare ask what it was. The little girl took Ionică's homework and slid it into a sort of white cabinet, that one too with buttons and a light that glided along beneath the notebook, opened to the page where he had worked out his maths problems... once again he was ashamed to ask what it was... he said nothing, gave his thanks, and made to leave...
Stay for the meal!
Nooo, my mother's waiting for me.
All right, if that's how it is, then at least a cup of tea.
Yes, a cup of tea, yes. It's so very cold.
Is it cold outside? the girl asks.
Brrr, terribly cold!
How is school going?
Hm... I don't really know, I'd rather ask you...
I do hope the very clever people in this country will solve the problem so we can go back to school again...
Oh, how I would love that, the boy added sadly.
Maria then excused herself and ran off to her mother's room...
Wait for me a moment, she said.
Of course...
And the boy went straight back to walking with his feet on the floor, to feel that warmth once more...
Maria came back from her mother's room, out of breath...
Sorry to keep you waiting, I couldn't find this! And she held out a tablet to the boy.
But, Maria, I...
I won't take no for an answer, please, I'm lending it to you until school starts again, I have a laptop and I only used the tablet to play games, but you need it far more than I do!
With tears of happiness in his eyes, the child grasped it firmly and held it to his chest, alongside his notebook.
Thank you! I can't put it into words, though I wish I could!
You don't have to, I only want you to promise me that you'll stay just as devoted to your learning.
I'll take good care of it...
See you tomorrow at online school, Ionică!
I can't wait to see you all, the child said, full of excitement, and off he went.
That night Ionică couldn't even sleep for the excitement; he kept dreaming that the meeting link wouldn't work, and that he hadn't set up his microphone properly... he woke at the crack of dawn, put on the green personalized school shirt he kept clean in the wardrobe, and joyfully opened the platform, clicked on the link, and pooof:
Good morning, everyone, the teacher said in her warm voice.
All the children answered in chorus.
Today I noticed, to my amazement, that we are all online...
Ionică's eyes had gone wide; a kind of shame, a feeling of guilt, had struck him dumb!
I wanted, Ionică, the teacher went on, to congratulate you for the flawless homework you sent me; your score was top marks on every single one, you'll find them attached to your account, grades and all. You are a model pupil, and I ask each of you, dear children, to read his work in our Personal Development lesson. Ionică wrote a flawless essay about how a classmate helped him to call out „present” in class once again.
Ashamed and happy, the child thanked the teacher for her praise.
You deserve it, Ionică, and now, open your notebooks to page 34!