The Boy at the Back of the Class

Alexa wakes up early the next day. At the bus stop, she and Tom remind Michael and Josie to tell Mrs. Khan that they’re sick. Then they take the train into the city, bringing gifts for the Queen with them. On the way, Alexa is amazed by everything she sees. When they get off the train, they get a taxi to the palace. The taxi driver is so nice that he doesn’t make them pay. He reminds Alexa of Uncle Lenny.

Alexa and Tom make their way to Buckingham Palace. When they arrive, they run into a huge crowd of people. They see the royal soldiers, too. Alexa and Tom realize that they’re about to do the changing of the guard. Worried that they won’t see the Queen, Alexa and Tom push through the crowd and race toward the soldiers before they close the gates. They head toward one soldier in a special hat; they think he might be able to get their letter to the Queen. When Alexa races toward the barriers, horses, and soldiers, everything starts swirling, and she falls down. Then everything goes black.

Alexa wakes up surrounded by paramedics, guards, and police. She realizes that she’s still holding the letter and panics. She begs the guards to listen to her because she needs to give the Queen her message. The guards take the note but laugh when they read it. Alexa feels upset, insisting that she doesn’t want to go to the hospital and needs to complete her mission.

One guard promises to get her note to the Queen. The other guards say that they’ve informed her and Tom’s parents where they are and will give them a ride home. They also remind Alexa and Tom never to race toward the soldiers again, because it’s too dangerous.

On the way home, Alexa and Tom eat the treats they brought for the Queen and think about their adventure. Alexa is hopeful that the guards will deliver their letter, but worries that Mum, Mrs. Khan, and Mrs. Sanders will be upset. However, she also knows that this was the only way to help Ahmet.

Back at home, Mum gets upset with Alexa for running away and making her worry. However, her mood changes when all of the neighbors in the building come to see them and congratulate Alexa. They heard on the news what Alexa tried to do for her friend, and are glad that she’s trying to help refugees coming to the UK. Mr. and Mrs. Rashid are especially friendly to Alexa and Mum.

However, one neighbor named Mr. Greggs yells at Mum for letting Alexa get involved with refugees. When he says cruel things about refugees coming to the UK, Mum demands that he leave. Afterwards, she explains that some people like Mr. Greggs don’t like people who don’t look, act, talk, or dress like them. Alexa doesn’t understand and guesses that Mr. Greggs has “never met someone like Ahmet before” (207).

After the neighbors’ visits, Alexa and Mum watch the news. They see reports about Alexa and Tom’s visit to the palace. Alexa feels strange seeing herself on television. She looks more scared than she felt and wonders how she got up the nerve to do what she did. Some of the reporters are saying positive things about Alexa, but other reporters are suggesting that she is a dangerous terrorist.

Mum explains more about what they’re saying and why some people don’t like people who are different from them. Alexa thinks about what Mum tells her; she doesn’t fully understand because her friends and classmates are all different from each other but still love each other. Then the taxi driver appears on the news. He tells the interviewer that Alexa and Tom were harmless and that he doesn’t think they were “planning any sort of protest or attack” (211).

In bed, Alexa lies awake thinking about her adventure, her note to the Queen, and Ahmet. She hopes there’s still time to find his parents before the borders close.