Love Changes Everything

by Love Changes Everything (retail) (epub)

  ‘Or else you’d have put it on a three-legged horse,’ another woman chortled.

  It was finally agreed that as Christmas Day would be on a Monday then they ought to have their pay out on the Friday or Saturday before in order to have an opportunity to do their shopping in time for Christmas.

  ‘If you go to the bank on the Friday then you can give it to us on Saturday morning,’ Dora Porter told her.

  ‘I can’t do that,’ Trixie said quickly. ‘The bank closes before we finish work at night. In fact, I can’t get to the bank till after we finish here on Saturday morning so you’ll all have to hang around till I collect it and come back with it.’

  There was an immediate chorus of disapproval.

  ‘That’s no bloody good!’

  ‘We need our money to do our shopping as soon as we finish work!’

  ‘I can’t hang around here waiting while you traipse off to the bank on Saturday.’

  ‘By the time you get back and share it out half the day will be gone.’

  The women were getting more and more heated and annoyed, so Dora suggested that, if they were all in agreement, she’d ask Fred if Trixie could be allowed time off to go along to the bank and collect the money sometime during the morning on Saturday.

  ‘That sounds all right, but how do we know they’ll have that much there in the bank to pay her out?’

  ‘Don’t talk so daft,’ Dora told her contemptuously. ‘The amount of money you lot have saved up is chicken feed to what they keep in the bank.’

  ‘Dora’s right,’ Trixie confirmed. ‘Anyway, I’ll let them know that I’ll be going in Saturday morning to collect it so the teller will have it all ready for me.’

  ‘Then make sure you tell him you want it all to be in shillings and sixpences and not in bloody great notes, so that you can share it out properly.’ one of the women shouted.

  ‘Leave it with me, It will all be fine,’ Trixie promised.

  When she next took their money in to the bank she explained all of this to Andrew and asked if he could have it ready for her when she came in the Saturday before Christmas because she would only be given a few minutes’ time off to collect it.

  ‘Would you like me to put it all up in separate envelopes and write the women’s names on each one so that all you have to do is hand it out?’ he asked.

  ‘That would be wonderful,’ Trixie smiled gratefully, ‘but won’t that be an awful lot of trouble for you?’

  ‘Well, let’s say I wouldn’t do it for everybody,’ he joked, ‘but for a special customer like you it will be a pleasure.’

  ‘I’d be really grateful if you could do that,’ she admitted, blushing furiously. Secretly she’d been worrying about collecting it and making sure that each woman received the right amount. If she was flustered, as she knew she would be, then it would be easy to make a mistake.

  ‘You have kept a list showing how much money each person has been giving you every week?’

  ‘Yes, of course I have.’

  ‘Then, if you let me have it,’ Andrew went on, ‘I’ll put the exact money in each envelope. All you’ll have to do is to come into the bank, collect the envelopes, and then hand them out.’

  ‘I haven’t got the list on me but I could let you have it later in the week.’

  ‘Right, well, if you give it to Ivy and tell her to ask Jake to give it to me, that will be fine,’ he told her smiling.

  ‘Yes, that sounds a very sensible idea,’ she said quickly, hoping he didn’t think she was suggesting that they should meet up one evening.

  Andrew nodded gravely. ‘If you can do that I’ll see you in here next Saturday morning. That will be the twenty-third of December,’ he added, jotting it all down on a notepad. ‘Can you come over about eleven o’clock?’

  She nodded. ‘Of course!’

  As she walked out into the street Trixie felt as if a load had been lifted from her shoulders. If she was collecting the money straight from the bank and taking it back to work, then her dad couldn’t get his hands on it. What was more, she wouldn’t have to sort it all out herself. She had been dreading doing that, knowing that if she made a mistake Fred would start taunting her.

  Soon, very soon, she thought with relief, the onus of looking after other people’s money would be over. She would make sure she never took on anything like that again.

  The only part of the arrangements she didn’t like was that she’d have no excuse to go into the bank again after Saturday, which meant she might never have the chance to really get to know Andrew Bacon and, she had to admit, she really did like him.

  Chapter Nine

  Trixie felt a warm glow of happiness as she dashed home with her pay packet and her envelope containing her Christmas savings. Andrew had kept his word and had the savings divided up into the right amounts and all in twenty neat little brown envelopes with the name on the outside.

  The women had all been delighted and even Fred Linacre had been impressed by the businesslike way she’d handled things.

  ‘Perhaps your old man was right after all and you really were the brightest girl in your class,’ he commented.

  He had said it so many times that Trixie usually turned a deaf ear to it but this time there was genuine admiration in his voice, not the usual taunting sneer.

  She’d rushed home to tell her mum how well everything had gone and also to share with her the money she’d saved.

  As she ripped open the brown envelope and shook the money out on to the table she felt a massive hand clamp round the back of her neck, forcing her head down so that she banged her nose on the table with such force that it brought tears to her eyes.

  ‘What have I told you about opening your bloody pay packet! You hand it over to me and I’ll dole out what’s inside it.’

  ‘Hold on, Sam, she hasn’t touched her wages, this is the Christmas money.’

  ‘That’s mine, too!’ Sam Jackson released his hold on his daughter’s neck and his hand shot out and grabbed at the seven shillings on the table.

  ‘No, it’s not!’ Furiously, her eyes full of tears, Trixie tried to snatch it back. The answering blow sent her sprawling on to the floor.

  ‘It’s mine by rights,’ her father snarled. ‘If it hadn’t been docked out of your pay packet each week then I’d have received it each week. As it is it’s now in a lump sum,’ he added as he shovelled it into his trouser pocket.

  ‘It’s mine and I want it so that I can buy a present for Cilla and then share the rest with Mum so that we can have some extras for Christmas,’ Trixie defended as she pulled herself up from the floor and held on to the edge of the table to support herself.

  ‘One more word from you and you won’t even be here to see Christmas.’

  ‘Chuck me out into the street would you?’ she snuffled defiantly, ignoring her mother’s warning gestures. ‘That’ll give the neighbours something to gossip about.’

  Sam’s eyes narrowed. ‘No, but I’ve something else planned for you my girl, just wait till after Christmas,’ he added ominously.

  Although she tried not to let her father’s veiled threats spoil things over Christmas, it did put a dampener on things. She questioned her mother about it so often that in the end even Maggie became worried and told her rather sharply not to mention it again.

  ‘Enjoy what we’ve got and stop fretting about the future,’ she admonished. ‘Your dad probably only said that to scare you because he was so angry with you.’

  To please her mother Trixie did try to forget his threat but it wasn’t easy. He kept giving her strange glances. She was glad when she could escape from Virgil Street to go shopping with Ivy.

  It was something they’d both been looking forward to doing that Saturday afternoon; Maggie had promised to look after Cilla and they planned to buy presents for their families and make sure they didn’t spend their money on anything else.

  Scotland Road was packed with people all looking for bargains and they had so little money to spend, that
it was very frustrating as well as exciting.

  ‘What are you looking for, Ivy?’ Trixie asked as they paused in front of the different windows, most of which were brightly decorated as well as packed with all sorts of tempting items.

  ‘Presents for my mum and Jake. They will probably both be something they can wear. Not too practical, though, but the sort of thing they’d like to buy for themselves if they could spare the money. Mum hardly ever spends anything on herself yet she loves pretty things. I’m hoping to get her a really nice warm scarf; one that’s as big as a shawl, almost, so that she can pop it on around her shoulders when she nips to the corner shop. The one she uses now is so old that even the darns in it have been darned again.’

  ‘And your brother?’

  ‘I’ll probably buy him a new tie. He likes to look smart when he gets dressed up to go out in the evening. His friend Andrew – you know, the chap you met in the bank – is always dressed up to the nines and I know Jake tries to keep up with him.’

  Trixie felt the colour flooding into her face at the mention of Andrew’s name. She wished she knew him well enough to buy him a present to thank him for all the help he’d given her with the Christmas money, but it was completely out of the question since she didn’t have the money to spare.

  Trixie wanted to get something special for Cilla and, knowing how much she enjoyed playing with the dolls that had been Nelly’s when she went to the O’Malleys’, that was what she intended to buy for her.

  ‘Why buy that when she can play with them round at my place?’ Ivy asked her. ‘Why not get her something different?’

  ‘I want to get her a doll that she could cuddle in bed when she goes to sleep at night.’

  ‘Most dolls aren’t very cuddly, not unless you buy her a rag doll, and I don’t think she will like that after playing with Nelly’s because they have real porcelain faces and eyes that open and shut.’

  ‘Yes, you’re right,’ Trixie admitted as they looked at the ones on display, ‘so what do you suggest instead?’

  ‘Why not get her a teddy bear?’

  ‘I think she’s too old for one of those,’ Trixie argued.

  ‘Then what about a furry animal, like a dog or something?’

  Trixie stopped in her tracks and clapped her hands excitedly. ‘I know, I’ll get her a Bonzo; you know, that little dog that’s got those big ears, one black and one white.’

  ‘And spots and big blue eyes,’ Ivy added. ‘She’d love one of those and they’re quite cuddly.’

  ‘I might have a job finding one,’ Trixie sighed.

  ‘That’s rubbish! Bonzo is ever so popular, there’s even a Bonzo comic.’

  ‘Well, we can look. Where shall we start, then? Shall we go to Paddy’s Market?’

  ‘That’s probably the best place,’ Ivy agreed as they hurried up Great Homer Street. ‘How much do you want to spend?’

  ‘I’ve only got three shillings and sixpence and I want to buy something for Mum out of that as well.’

  ‘What about your dad?’

  ‘Trixie made a face. ‘I wouldn’t even buy him a wet Echo, the miserable old devil. Do you know, he nearly gave me a hiding because I’d dared to open the envelope with my savings money in it instead of handing it over to him. He tried to grab at it and said it was his by right because it was part of my wages, only my mum stood up to him and insisted that it was mine to do as I liked with.’

  ‘Come on, then, let’s start looking,’ Ivy told her. ‘We’ll see if we can find a Bonzo first and then you’ll know how much you’ve got left to spend on your mum’s present.’

  ‘As we go round I can still keep an eye open to see if there is anything I think she’d like.’

  ‘You haven’t said what you’re looking for, would it be something to wear?’

  ‘I don’t think I can afford anything like that. I thought perhaps a pretty cup and saucer that she can drink her tea out of when she’s there on her own.’

  ‘Mm! She’ll probably put it on a shelf or on the mantelpiece where she can look at it and admire it, but she’ll be afraid to use it in case it gets broken.’

  ‘Or in case my dad smashes it up when he’s in one of his tempers and looking for some way of upsetting her.’

  ‘Your dad sounds pretty horrible,’ Ivy shuddered. ‘No wonder you don’t want to buy him a present.’ She paused and looked thoughtful. ‘You know, perhaps that’s where you’re wrong, perhaps you should buy him one. It might please him so much that he won’t make trouble over Christmas.’

  The two girls looked at each other and giggled. It was a joke that kept them laughing for the rest of their shopping spree, especially when Ivy picked out the most audacious items and suggested they might be suitable for Sam Jackson. In the end Trixie bought him a tin cigarette case with a picture of a boat painted on the front. ‘He’s always complaining that his ciggies get crushed when he has the packet in his pocket so this might please him,’ she explained.

  They were feeling tired by the time they’d finished their shopping, but they were both delighted with their purchases.

  ‘We should have bought some fancy paper to wrap them up in, but I’ve only got three halfpence left and they are asking two pennies a sheet for it,’ Trixie sighed.

  ‘You can buy a whole roll for threepence,’ Ivy pointed out, ‘so why don’t we buy one of those between us? We’ve got to go back to my place so that you can collect Cilla, so we can take all the presents up to my bedroom and wrap them up while you’re there without anybody knowing what we’ve bought.’

  ‘I hope Cilla has behaved and been a good girl for your mum,’ Trixie said worriedly.

  ‘Of course she will have been. It’s not the first time she’s stayed with her and anyway, Mum knows how to keep her amused. There’re the dolls for her to play with and when she gets tired of them there’s always the jigsaw.’

  Their plan worked well, and before Trixie took Cilla home she’d wrapped up the presents she’d bought, but agreed with Ivy that it was better to leave them there till the next day.

  ‘Didn’t you buy anything at all?’ Maggie asked in surprise when Trixie arrived home very late in the afternoon.

  ‘I’ve spent all my money and I’ve left the presents at Ivy’s place till tomorrow,’ she explained as she undressed Cilla and got her ready for bed. ‘I thought they’d be safer there.’

  After that Christmas Day couldn’t come soon enough. Waiting was a mixture of frustration and torture as she went over in her mind what she’d bought and kept wondering if she’d chosen the right presents for everybody.

  ‘That’s the trouble with Christmas presents,’ her mother smiled when she mentioned it to her. ‘They look lovely in the shop or on the stall and then afterwards you wonder if you’ve done the right thing or not. It’s even worse when people start opening them because you feel so anxious about whether or not they are going to like them. What have you bought for Cilla?’

  Trixie hesitated. ‘It’s too late to take it back and change it so I think I’ll just wait and see if she likes it.’

  ‘You haven’t told me what it is yet?’ her mother persisted.

  ‘I’d sooner wait till Christmas Day. You may think it’s a daft waste of money.’

  ‘Why would I do that? I’m sure that whatever it is you’ve picked it will be something she’ll love. Have you bought anything for Ivy and Mrs O’Malley?’

  The colour drained from Trixie’s cheeks. ‘Oh, Mam, I never gave it a thought. Mrs O’Malley has been so good to our little Cilla, I should have bought her something.’

  ‘Well, it’s not too late to do so. The shops will be open till midnight tonight.’

  ‘But I haven’t any money left!’

  ‘Oh dear! Well, you tell me the sort of present you’d like to get for them and I’ll see if I can jiggle the housekeeping and we can buy them something out of that. What about a box of nice chocolates or a big tin of biscuits that they can all enjoy?’

  ‘If you do that the
n it’s going to leave you short,’ Trixie sighed. ‘Why do we always have to scrimp and scrape like this, Mum? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we had enough money to buy whatever we needed and still have a few coppers left in our purse at the end of the week.’

  ‘Perhaps I should try and get a full-time job,’ Maggie sighed. ‘I know your dad thinks I ought to, but who’s going to look after Cilla if I do? I can’t leave her here on her own all day; heaven knows what mischief she’d get into if I did that.’

  ‘She is getting a lot better at entertaining herself when she’s left for a short time in the mornings and evenings. In fact, she’s getting brighter all the time,’ Trixie mused. ‘Do you think that perhaps she will be able to go to school one day?’

  ‘She’s still terribly backward, luv,’ Maggie sighed. ‘If she went to school she’d have to start in the infant’s class and they’d probably tease her and make her life miserable.’

  ‘Perhaps we ought to start teaching her at home. Look how quickly she picked up those rhymes that Ella and Jake taught her. If we helped Cilla to learn her letters, and perhaps her tables, then she might be able to go into a class where the other children were only a couple of years younger than her and it wouldn’t matter so much.’

  ‘I’m not too sure that I’m up to teaching her but perhaps between the pair of us we might manage something,’ her mother agreed.

  ‘I’ll mention it to Mrs O’Malley as well. She’s probably got some books that her little Nelly used when she was starting to read and I’m sure that she’d help teach her as well.’

  ‘Is this going to be your New Year’s resolution, getting little Cilla to be able to read and write?’ Her mother smiled indulgently.

  ‘It would be good for her if she could, and for all of us too.’

  ‘That’s true, but don’t go saying anything about it in front of your dad. He’ll only scoff, or else he’ll start badgering and bullying Cilla and making her a nervous wreck.’

  ‘Will he? He never speaks to her or has anything to do with her if he can help it,’ Trixie said scornfully.