“Who the heck is Jim? - Day One - When Jeeves met Keith”

All stories have a beginning, a great moment when things start. Jeeves and Keith are no exception to this, just not so epic as many great partnerships before them. Whilst it wasn’t such a Big Bang or even Biblical moment, it was certainly a natural pairing nonetheless.

 

They met at their upper school, aged just 13. Thrown together by a long-since retired three-tier education system, it’s a time everyone was nervously looking around for friends. It’s September, 1996. The first day of a new term, bringing with it the inevitable opportunity to reinvent yourself in a small way; a chance to wipe the slate clean and have yet another go at trying to be cool. Perhaps this time, it’ll work?

 

Keith is just a normal kid, brought up by relatively normal parents on a council estate in Reading. It wasn’t a rough estate and it didn’t fill you with dread at its mere thought, or nervously look around you when mentioning its name; it certainly didn’t have any reputation to be concerned about. True, he didn’t have much growing up – there wasn’t ever a flash games console like his friends had and his bike was second-hand, but he didn’t mind too much. He was a good kid that worked hard at school and kept his head down, rarely ever getting into trouble. He certainly had that common touch and could quite happily get along with most people.

 

Jeeves on the other hand came from an entirely different background – coming from wealthy, successful parents he was privately educated and luxuriated in a life of getting what he wanted. It was a life of holidays in hot, tropical places with strange names that even most adults couldn’t point to on a map. He would have a freshly ironed shirt everyday for school and mayonnaise instead of salad cream in his packed lunch box. Yes, it was a nice life for Jeeves and a world away from Keith’s. Yet without realising, the bubble was about to burst. His parent’s had long since become tired of his stinking attitude, his brattish qualities that they had instilled in him through this cushy environment, albeit quite innocently. After all, every parent just wants to provide well enough for their kids. This all was going to change. It had been decided he was to leave his private education at the end of the year and attend a regular, state-run school. It really didn’t matter so much about his schooling; his parents had enough money to pick up the pieces later on and they wouldn’t see him go without. But they needed to be at arms-reach, a slight distance away so that he would appreciate what he had been given. This was about teaching him a lesson in life.

 

So Jeeves, posh voice and all, began the year with many other kids at their local upper-school. The children waited outside the gates, anxiously waiting to be let in for Day One. It was almost tribal; groups quickly formed along the familiar faces of old middle school loyalties, each group eye-balling the other.  The same team, but not.  Amongst all of this was a lonely outsider, Jeeves, who already had gained unwanted attention for his arrival in his Dad’s Jaguar. Regular kids arrive by bike or on foot, at very least in regular cars. The bell rang and the kids slowly filed into the school grounds, being ushered over to the playground by strange looking teachers for their first registration, where they would be sorted into classes. Here, Jeeves would learn his first lesson: Regular kids, have regular names. Names like Paul or Jeff; Lucy or Laura. Not like ‘Jeeves’. And certainly not like ‘Jeeves Sheridan Walton-Browning.’

 

He quickly found that most of these kids didn’t share the same level of confidence as him, that irritating hallmark of private schooling, which appeared as alien to the rest of the kids as his name, voice and means of transport did.  Even so, his steely confidence soon took a dent when he answered the register with a plumy Queen’s English. It prompted the response of everyone laughing and staring at the posh-boy-weirdo. It also looked like it was going to be difficult settling in.

 

Naturally his prior education had set him in good stead and placed him firmly in the top set of all of his subjects. In fact, it was all far too easy for him. It either didn’t challenge him enough or had been covered before in greater detail at his last school. Time passed. Soon his confidence turned into cockiness and growing ever complacent, he became seen an obnoxious snob that alienated himself from his peers.  It was then he found the single biggest difference between the two education systems, and important lesson number two. 

 

His careless, snide remarks this time had landed on the wrong ears – it was one of those moments that had caused a deathly hush across the room. He had pissed off the wrong guy, one known for being a total bastard, and it had resulted in a sound after-school kicking that he’d never forget. In all of his harsh words to people, he had not anticipated it coming to physical blows. Surely, that just didn’t happen. In the real world, of course it does.

 

After school it came. The anger that had simmered all afternoon boiled over. From nowhere, a solid right-hook catches him squarely on the jaw, knocking Jeeves to the ground. It wasn’t over. Not finished yet, he waded in further with a torrent of kicks to his abdomen. As his attacker grew bored with not having any competition, clearly having enough, he leaves him a bloody-nosed mess, crying on the floor. Only after a few moments did he dare pick himself back up again. In the carnage, his belongings had spilt out of his back-pack and become scattered around him. Clearly shaking, he starts to scoop it all back up.

 

At that moment, a kid that Jeeves had barely spoken too was walking by. He probably didn’t even know his name. It was Keith, not the chattiest of people, had seen the attack and had taken pity on him. In truth, he felt that he had deserved it for being such a prick over the last few weeks but had seen this more as a penance than anything malicious. He walked over to Jeeves and picked up his keys for him – a shiny bunch that had a good selection of music-related key rings on it. He collected them, one from each gig he had been to. Keith had never been to a gig, and rarely buys CDs but loved his music all the same; he just got it free from the radio. And occasionally, when nobody was looking, from the internet. One of Jeeves’ key-rings was emblazoned with the Metallica logo, one of Keith’s favourite bands.

 

“You dropped these, mate” Keith said. With a friendly smile he handed the keys back to him, agreeing with the key-ring that Metallica does indeed rule. Jeeves was grateful for the help and the comment. Jeeves also loved the band and found it difficult to find anyone who shared his tastes. It was only really his dad that liked them, and not so much these days.

 

Jeeves dusted himself down, pulling straight his jacket and tie. Keith had already started walking away from him, keen to get home after another hard day at school. He ran and caught him up.

“What kind of school is this?” ask Jeeves. Keith looked back at him blankly. “A normal one, you’ll get used to it.” He smirked at Jeeves. “Just stop being a dickhead to everyone and it’ll be alright.” Jeeves looked confused; Keith spotting this felt sorry for him.

“You a big Metallica fan then?” he asked. Jeeves perked up a little, he clearly was.

“Absolutely love them, been to see them live 3 times.” Just thinking about it made his smile, as if the memory was as good as some much-needed pain-killers.  Keith was impressed, but not surprised – he was a rich kid after all. He thought for a while as they walked.

“It would probably help if you had a nick-name or something” said Keith. Jeeves looked back. “Well my dad used to call me Jim when I was younger” Jeeves replied.

Keith shrugged his shoulders; “Sounds alright to me, Jim” He laughing as he continued “It stops you from sounding like a bit of a wanker really.” Jim manages to crack a smile briefly before the pain from a swollen nose takes it away again. For the first time at the school, he felt slightly accepted. “I guess so” said Jim.

 

And that was it. From that day forward Jim hung out with Keith. It was a little awkward at first, but in time as Jim became slowly accepted amongst his peers, things did get easier.  Over the years, there would be many more times when Keith would help Jim out, and not always as a “social compass.” There’d also be lots of times when Jim would help out Keith, and not just financially. But no matter what their differences were, they both shared a huge passion for music. This resulted in a great friendship, where from this, the world would one day see something amazing.