by Joan Jonker
Sadie doubled up with laughter when there was a loud knock on the door. ‘Blimey, Grandad, news doesn’t half travel fast, doesn’t it?’ She was chuckling happily until she opened the door to see Jimmy standing on the step. Right away she thought there’d been trouble at home. ‘What’s happened? Are yer all right?’
‘Yeah, I’m fine. I came out early to get away from me dad’s moaning.’ The boy’s grin stretched from ear to ear. ‘Yer should see his face, Sadie, it’s in a right mess.’
‘Have yer seen yer own face?’ Sadie held the door wide to let him pass. ‘It looks worse than it did yesterday.’
‘Oh, my God!’ Sarah put a hand to her mouth when Jimmy entered the room. ‘I never thought it was that bad. You poor thing, yer must be in agony.’
‘Nah, I’m all right.’ The lad’s eyes lighted suddenly on his sister and he gaped before puckering his lips and letting out a shrill whistle. ‘Ay, our Ellen, what’s happened to you? Yer look all grown-up and posh.’
‘Don’t be daft.’ Ellen ran and put her arms around him. ‘Yer face looks awful sore, Jimmy, is it very painful?’
‘Yer could do with holding a wet cloth to yer eye, son,’ Joe said. ‘It would take some of the swelling down and ease the pain.’
‘Did any of the neighbours see yer like that?’ Sadie asked.
‘Only Harry, the bloke from next door. He asked me what had happened an’ I told him I’d been in a fight.’
‘Oh.’ Sadie turned to straighten the runner on the sideboard. ‘How is he?’
‘I dunno, I didn’t ask. He asked me if I’d seen you and if I knew where yer were living. But I didn’t tell him nothing, Sadie, honest. I said I didn’t know where yer lived. Yer didn’t want me to tell him, did yer?’
‘No, sunshine, yer did right.’
Sarah sighed inwardly. Sadie had told her she wasn’t good enough for Harry, and his family certainly wouldn’t touch her with a barge-pole. But the least she could do was see the boy and let him decide for himself what he wanted.
Sadie pulled a chair from the table. ‘I’ll make yer a cup of tea in a minute, Jimmy, but sit down first and tell us how yer got on with me dad after we’d left.’
‘He didn’t say a dickie-bird to me, too busy moanin’ about his pains. So I made meself scarce and went to bed. I heard him and me mam shouting downstairs but I stayed out of it. Me mam told him he could say he’d picked up a stray cat and it went for him, clawing his face. But me dad got real sarcastic with ’er over that, asking if he should say the cat had given him the black eye as well. There was ructions then, with me mam tellin’ him he’d got himself into the mess so he could get himself out.’
‘What was he like with yer this morning? Did he have anythin’ to say?’
‘Not a word. He sent our Les out to get a paper an’ he just sat reading. He’s touchin’ his face all the time and making funny gruntin’ noises. But he wasn’t shoutin’ like he usually is, and he kept his hands an’ his feet to himself.’
‘Well, now, that’s a blessing,’ Sarah said. ‘Let’s hope he’s been taught a lesson.’
‘Tommy’s knuckles were terrible sore last night,’ Sadie told them. ‘So he must have given me dad a real good thump.’
Jimmy’s tummy was rumbling. ‘Can I have a cup of tea, Sadie, please? I haven’t had nothin’ since those chips yer bought me last night.’
‘Oh, yer poor thing!’ Sarah was already on her way to the kitchen. ‘I’ll make yer a buttie to keep yer going until the dinner’s ready.’
‘I’ll give yer a hand.’ Sadie followed her out. ‘I’m sorry about this, Grandma, but Jimmy can have half of my dinner.’
‘We’ll manage, sweetheart, so don’t fret yerself. It’ll mean one less roast potato each, but we won’t starve.’
Joe got more pleasure from watching Jimmy eating than he got from his own dinner. The bruises on the young lad’s face looked raw and angry, but they didn’t seem to be bothering him as he tucked in with gusto. He was the first to clear his plate, rub his tummy and lick his lips. ‘I didn’t half enjoy that, Grandma, it was lovely.’ He sat back in his chair, happy and replete. ‘I’d lick me plate but I know our Sadie would give me a go-along.’
‘I would too! We’ll have some manners at the table if yer don’t mind.’ Sadie laid down her knife and fork. She too was feeling happy and replete, but it wasn’t from the food – it was because she had two of her family near her. ‘Yer can help Ellen clear the table while I wash up. And make it snappy because Peter will be here soon.’
Sadie was standing on the kitchen step shaking crumbs from the tablecloth into the yard when she heard the front knocker. ‘One of yer open the door, please.’
‘I’ll go!’ Ellen was down the hall like a shot and giggled when Peter stared at her in amazement.
‘I’m sorry, but I must have come to the wrong house,’ he said. ‘I’ve never seen this pretty maiden before.’
‘Don’t be daft – it’s only me.’ Ellen closed the door after him. ‘Our Sadie did me hair for me an’ lent me one of her dresses. Do I look nice, Peter?’
‘I’ll say! A sight for sore eyes, that’s what yer are.’
Ellen ran ahead of him, too young to realise that not only had her looks been changed in the last few hours, but also her feelings towards boys. ‘Peter said I look nice, Sadie, an’ I’m a sight for sore eyes.’
‘Holy sufferin’ ducks!’ Peter looked stunned by the injury inflicted on Jimmy. ‘I hope Tommy gave your dad a real belter, ’cos that’s what he deserves.’
‘Oh, he did! If yer think I look a sight, yer should see him – he looks ten times worse.’
For the rest of the afternoon Peter went out of his way to include Jimmy in all the conversations. He felt sorry for him and wanted to show that he was welcome and they were all his friends. ‘D’yer know how to play cards, Jimmy?’
‘Dunno, I’ve never tried.’
‘Shall we have a game of rummy, Sadie?’ Peter cocked an eyebrow. ‘It’s an easy game to learn.’
‘Yeah, that’s a good idea.’ Sadie was sitting next to her brother, facing Peter and Ellen. ‘I’ll teach Jimmy, you see to Ellen.’ She went to the sideboard drawer and brought out a pack of playing cards. ‘You shuffle and cut them, Peter, then I’ll deal.’
She dealt out seven cards each then turned over the one at the top of the remaing cards. ‘Before yer pick them up, I’ll tell yer briefly how to play. Yer’ve got to get either three cards alike, say three fours, and they don’t have to be the same suit. Or yer can get a run, that means numbers that follow on, say two, three and four. But they’ve got to be the same suit. As soon as yer get any three, lay them down in front of yer.’
‘Ooh, er,’ Ellen said, pulling a face. ‘I’ll never learn all that.’
‘Of course yer will, Peter will help yer.’ Sadie leaned forward and said in a loud whisper, ‘But watch him, he’s the biggest cheat going.’
‘I am not!’ Peter looked suitably shocked. ‘Fancy saying that about the man yer going to the pictures with on his birthday. Which, incidentally, is in ten days’ time.’
‘Ooh, is it yer birthday, Peter?’ Ellen turned wide eyes on him. ‘Can I come with yez to the pictures?’
This time the look of shock on Peter’s face was genuine. ‘Yer most certainly can not!’
‘Ah, go on,’ Ellen pleaded, ‘don’t be mean.’
‘I am mean! I’m the meanest man on earth, didn’t yer know? I don’t want anyone looking on when I get me birthday present off yer sister.’
Jimmy had picked up his hand of cards and was sorting them in order when he asked, ‘What are yer buyin’ him, Sadie?’
‘I’m not buying him anything, Jimmy, so take no notice of him.’
‘Yeah, she’s right there.’ Peter nodded his head in agreement. ‘What she’s givin’ me won’t cost her a penny.’
‘Oh, aye?’ Jimmy laid his cards face down on the table. If you could get something for nothing he wanted to know what
it was. ‘What’s she givin’ yer, then?’
‘She’s lettin’ me kiss her chin.’
‘Yer what?’ Jimmy looked disgusted. ‘Is that all? A kiss on her flippin’ chin?’
‘Never mind “is that all”. I’ll have you know it’s taken me six months to work me way up to that. Yer see, yer sister has a points system—’
Four young heads turned at the loud burst of laughter. Sarah and Joe were doubled up, tears of merriment streaming down their cheeks. ‘Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear.’ Sarah ran the back of her hand across her eyes. ‘I couldn’t keep it in any longer.’
‘Bloody hysterical, it was.’ Joe held a hankie to his face. ‘Peter’s expression at the thought of being deprived of his kiss was a picture no artist could paint.’
‘Oh, aye,’ Peter’s serious face belied the laughter going on in his head. ‘I suppose you didn’t mind having an audience when yer kissed me Auntie Sarah?’
‘Yer Auntie Sarah didn’t have a points system, son, so I was lucky, I got to go straight to the bull’s-eye. I agree that Sadie’s way of working could be a handicap to a young man.’
All this talk of systems and handicaps was way over Ellen’s head. All she understood was that Peter was taking Sadie to the pictures just so he could kiss her chin. She looked around at the happy smiling faces and, in all innocence, said, ‘If yer take me to the pictures, Peter, I’ll let yer kiss my chin as well.’
This was met with hoots of laughter and it continued throughout the afternoon. They did eventually get down to playing a few hands of rummy, and Jimmy, quick on the up-take, won most of them. Mind you, he had help from Peter. There were quite a few cards exchanged under the screen of the chenille cloth. Sadie saw what was going on but was so grateful to Peter for putting a satisfied smile on her brother’s face, she kept quiet. Ellen didn’t see what was going on and thought her brother must be the cleverest boy in Liverpool to have learned the game so quickly.
On the Monday morning Mary Ann was waiting for Sadie. ‘I’ve been worrying meself sick all over the weekend, girl. I couldn’t get the young lad’s face out of me mind. Hurry up and tell me how he got on.’
Sadie lifted a bundle of clothes onto the table, and as she sorted through them she told her friend everything that had gone on. ‘Our Jimmy seemed all right yesterday, except for his face of course, and that doesn’t seem to be bothering him much. As long as me dad keeps his hands to himself, Jimmy can put up with the rest.’ She folded the sheet and laid it on the table before reaching for another bundle. ‘I don’t know what I’d have done without Tommy and Spike, though, Auntie Mary. I wouldn’t have known where to turn. They were marvellous and I’ll never be able to repay them.’
‘I bet they were glad to help yer out, girl – they think the world of yer. And it was a bit of excitement for them.’
‘Excitement!’ Sadie let out a long, deep sigh. ‘It’s the kind of excitement I can do without, Auntie Mary. I wouldn’t like another day like Saturday, I can tell yer. Me nerves wouldn’t stand the strain.’
‘And what about Ellen? Is she settling in all right?’
‘Settling in? She doesn’t know she’s born! She’s wallowing in all the affection she’s getting, and the decent food and the clean house. She’s never got a smile off her face, even when she’s asleep.’ Sadie put her arms around the stall-holder and hugged her tight. ‘To think it’s all through you that so much happiness has come into my life.’
Mary Ann smiled. ‘I often think of the first day I saw yer. Yer were that shy, yer face the colour of beetroot when yer asked me if I had a brassière. I took to yer right away, girl, an’ I’ll always look back on that day as bein’ one of the luckiest in me life.’
After a quick hug, the women began to fill the stalls out. ‘I don’t suppose we’ll do much, it being a Monday and hard-up day. Still, we’ve got to make the effort, girl, and show we’re willing. Yer never know, someone’s husband may have come up on the gee-gees.’
‘Our Ellen’s hoping to go after a job at Irwin’s. I hope she does, and I hope she gets it. If looks were anything to go by, she’d walk it. I got her ready this morning and she really looked nice. So keep yer fingers crossed for her, Auntie Mary, and say a little prayer. She’s coming in to let us know how she got on.’
It was eleven o’clock and Sadie was serving one of her regular customers when Mary Ann called, ‘Here they come, girl, Sarah and Ellen.’
Ellen’s face was beaming. ‘I got the job, Sadie! Ooh, me head’s spinning and me tummy’s turnin’ over and over. I can’t believe it, I can’t!’
‘Calm down, sunshine, calm down.’ Sadie cupped her sister’s face and planted a kiss on her lips. ‘I’m proud of yer.’ She turned to Sarah. ‘Thanks, Grandma, I know you had a hand in her good fortune.’
‘Nonsense! Ellen did very well for herself without my help, both at the Labour Exchange and Irwin’s. She was a bit nervous, that’s only natural, and I think it worked in her favour. They could see she wasn’t the pushy type. She was very polite and answered their questions with her head held high and a smile on her face.’
‘Now, Grandma, yer telling fibs.’ Ellen wagged her finger under the old lady’s nose. ‘Yer didn’t tell us yer knew the manager at Irwin’s, did yer?’
‘I’m bound to know him with doin’ me shopping there for so long. There’s been about five managers in that shop in my time. But I couldn’t have got the job for yer if he hadn’t thought yer were right for it.’ Sarah smiled at Sadie. ‘He gave her some sums to do, to make sure she could add up, and she had them finished in a flash. Mr Keene, that’s the manager’s name, said all the girls who’d applied before couldn’t add two and two together.’
‘Grandma, yer not half a big fibber,’ Ellen said. ‘I heard him saying that if you recommended me then I must be all right.’
Mary Ann rejoined them after finishing serving the customer Sadie had been attending to. ‘Nice goin’ that, girl, getting the first job yer go after. There’ll be no stoppin’ yer next week when yer start work and are earning a few bob. I hope yer buy yer clothes from yer sister’s superior-quality clothes stall an’ keep the money in the family.’
‘Not next week, Auntie Mary,’ Ellen said, a gleam of excitement in her eyes. ‘I start work in the morning.’
Sadie gasped. ‘Tomorrow!’
‘Mr Keene asked me to ’cos they’re a junior short, an’ I said I would.’ Ellen wiggled her hips and shouted, ‘Yippee! Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy! I feel like jumpin’ up in the air and singing, I’m that happy.’
‘And I’m happy for yer, sunshine,’ Sadie said. ‘Yer see, the prayers worked. God was listening.’
‘Come on, sweetheart.’ Sarah took the girl’s arm. ‘Let’s go and tell Joe the good news. He’ll be on tenterhooks waitin’ to see how yer got on.’
Sadie and Mary Ann looked on as Ellen put her arms around the frail shoulders and kissed the old lady. ‘Grandma, our Sadie said I would love yer, and she was right. I love you and Grandad to bits.’
‘Oh, here we go.’ Mary Ann rolled her eyes. ‘I thought Sadie was the only one who could reduce me to tears, but now her sister’s gettin’ in on the act. Take her home, Sarah, before she has me bawlin’ me eyes out. It’s a bleedin’ good job she’s not comin’ to work in the market, I’ve only got three hankies to me name and they’d be soppin’ wet in half an hour with these two. Soft as butter, the pair of them are,’ she winked at Sarah, ‘thank God.’
As Ellen took hold of Sarah’s elbow and they began to walk away, the two watching women heard her say, ‘Wait until I tell Peter I’ve got a job, I bet he’ll be pleased.’
Sadie chuckled. ‘She’s got her eyes on Peter, all right. She thinks he’s marvellous.’
Mary Ann tilted her head and asked, ‘Wouldn’t she be steppin’ on your toes?’
‘No, of course not. Me and Peter are just mates, that’s all.’
‘Like Tommy’s just yer mate, and Spike’s just yer mate? I’ve never known a girl hav
e so many boys as mates. I’m surprised they’ve stuck around so long when yer don’t give them any encouragement.’
‘I’m very fond of each one of them, Auntie Mary, but that’s all. I can’t pretend to feelings I don’t have, it wouldn’t be fair on anybody. And they don’t have to stay around if they don’t want to. I’d be made up for them if they found themselves nice girls.’
‘I’ve got some spare wool at home,’ Mary Ann said, jerking her head back. ‘I’ll knit yer one if yer tell me what sort of feller yer after. Or don’t yer know yerself what yer want?’
‘Oh, I know what I want, all right. But we can’t always have what we want, Auntie Mary, can we?’ Sadie looked away. ‘So you go ahead and knit me one, but could he have dimples in his cheeks, please?’
‘Put that curtain back, sweetheart, there’s a good girl. Sadie would go mad if she thought yer were spying on ’er.’
‘I only want to know if she enjoyed the picture.’ But Ellen did as she was told and let the curtain fall back into place. ‘And I want to ask Peter if he’s had a nice birthday.’
‘Now we’re getting to the truth.’ Sarah raised her brows at Joe before saying, ‘It’s Peter yer interested in seeing, not yer sister.’
‘No, it’s not!’ Ellen blushed. ‘I only want to know what the picture was like.’ She’d had to work a week in hand at Irwin’s, so this Saturday would see her with her first wage-packet. She had settled in happily at the shop and loved the work. ‘I might want to go an’ see it meself when I get some money.’
‘Own up, queen,’ Joe said, smiling at her. ‘Yer’ve got yer eye on Peter, haven’t yer?’
‘He’s all right.’ She tossed her head, sending her long hair swinging about her shoulders. ‘Anyway, our Sadie’s not really his girlfriend, she told me so.’