Help me with this Translation

Question

I'm a beginner in Japanese so I'm trying to read and translate a light novel to improve my vocabulary so I came across this sentence:

他{ほか}の生徒｛せいと｝たちが部活｛ぶかつ｝に帰宅｛きたく｝にと平和｛へいわ｝な放課後｛ほうかご｝を過｛す｝ごす中｛なか｝、保健室｛ほけんしつ｝には、少女｛しょうじょ｝の悲鳴｛ひめい｝が響｛ひび｝き渡｛わた｝っていた.

As a translation I came up with:

"The other students were heading home after their club activities after spending a peaceful afterschool time when a girl’s scream echoed from the infirmary."

But I'm unsure about this so I have those questions:

1. Did the other students already leave the school after their club activities or are they still doing them?

2. What's the function of にと before 平和な放課後を過ごす中?

3. Is the translation I provided satisfactory?

Thank you in advance.

Answer 1

1. The students are either going home or going to their club activities. 部活に帰宅に 'To club, to home'.

2. 部活に (to club) 帰宅に (to home). にと is not a pair to be read together in that way. Rather than にと, the　と is describing the atmosphere or situation in which the school was at the time of the occurrence. --という雰囲気　　と is encapsulating everything coming before it as the setting.

3. The other students were either headed to their club activities or going home, enjoying a moment of peace after the long (sic) school day. Meanwhile, from the nurse's office, a girl's shriek resounded and pierced the calm. (Artistic license taken)