by Joan Jonker
Cissie stepped forward and to everyone’s amazement gave Eileen a big hug. ‘I ’aven’t ’alf missed yer, Eileen Gillmoss. It’s been like a graveyard without that fog-horn voice of yours bawlin’ loud enough to wake the dead.’
‘Got no one to fight with, eh, Cissie?’ Eileen was overwhelmed by the reception and tears were not far away.
‘It has been quiet without you, Eileen,’ Ada Wilson said. ‘Tommy was only saying that this morning.’
‘Come an’ ’ave a cuppa.’ Cissie linked arms with Eileen. ‘You can tell me all yer news.’ As they neared her house she glanced sideways. ‘Good, but yer not half a size! Yer seem to ’ave sprouted in the last few weeks.’ Eileen waved goodbye to the other neighbours, saying she’d see them again soon, then turned to Cissie with a grin on her face. ‘Yer not kiddin’! Look at me coat, fits where it touches! When I bought it, it was a loose swagger . . . now it’s edge-to-edge.’
Eileen left Cissie’s half an hour later feeling more cheerful than she’d done for months. She crossed the road to have a word with Tommy Wilson so she wouldn’t have to pass her old house, thinking it was no good upsetting herself. It was over and done with now and she’d just have to make the best of it.
Eileen leaned on the counter of the corner shop and gave Milly Knight a beaming smile. ‘Like old times, eh, Milly? Am I still good for a bit of stuff on tick?’
‘Oh, it’s lovely to see you.’ Milly’s smile lit up her face. ‘D’you know, I haven’t had a good laugh since you moved.’
‘Well, I ’aven’t done much laughin’ meself, Milly. Between you and me and the gate post, me new neighbours are a miserable lot. Yer seldom see them, and when yer do they just nod their ’eads. I was beginnin’ to think they were all deaf an’ dumb until I ’eard them at the shops.’ Eileen straightened up. ‘D’yer want a little impersonation?’
‘Oh, yes, please.’ Milly’s eyes gleamed in anticipation. ‘Make it a good one so I can remember it, ’cos from the looks of you, I won’t be seeing you round here until after the happy event.’
‘Yer’ll ’ave to use yer imagination for this one.’ Eileen waved her arm around the shop. ‘Pretend this is a butcher’s shop and you’re the butcher. I’m one of me neighbours, a Mrs Elmsley. She’s only ’alf my size an’ she speaks very posh.’ Eileen coughed and walked to look in the window. ‘I’ll have ha lamb chop, Mr Jones. No, not that one, it’s far too fatty. My husband is very fussy, you know. Now let me see,’ Eileen tapped a finger on her teeth. ‘Could I see the third one along hon the front of the tray? Yes, that’s the one.’ Eileen’s eyes moved from the window to where Milly was standing and pretended to inspect the imaginary chop. ‘Mmmm, I don’t know. Could you cut that piece of fat off? That’s fine, now would you weigh hit for me?’
Eileen lowered her voice, ‘I’ll do your bit.’ In a deep growl she asked, ‘D’yer only want the one chop, Mrs Elmsley?’
‘Yes, thank you, Mr Jones. I’m having some nice boiled ham for my tea with bread hand Anchor butter.’
Eileen grabbed a piece of paper off the counter and folded it before handing it to Milly. ‘That’ll be sixpence, Mrs Elmsley. I ’ope yer ’usband ch . . . enjoys it.’
Eileen looked towards the door. ‘This is me an’ Bob Jones watching Mrs Fussy bloody Elmsley walk through the door. As soon as she’s out of sight we burst out laughin’ and Bob says he almost said what he was thinking, that he hoped Mr Elmsley choked on the fiddlin’ bloody chop.’
‘Oh, Eileen, you’re priceless.’ Milly wiped her eyes. ‘It’ll never be the same again around here without you. Still, you’ve moved to a nice place and I hope you’ll be very happy there.’
Eileen leaned her elbows on the counter. ‘Milly, I ’aven’t said it to anyone else, but I’d give every penny I ’ad right now to be back in me own little ’ouse.’
Milly saw the sadness in Eileen’s eyes but decided that sympathy now wouldn’t help. So she kept her tone light. ‘Oh, aye, and how much have you got right now?’
This brought a smile to Eileen’s face. ‘A tanner! We bought wallpaper for the whole ’ouse an’ it’s left us boracic lint . . . skint.’
‘I can let you have some things to tide you over.’
‘Nah! I’ve got all me shoppin’ in, an’ if we run short we’ll ’ave to live on fresh-air butties.’
Bill opened the door to Eileen. ‘You look tired, chick.’
‘I’m absolutely whacked! I ’ad to tell our Edna to go on, I couldn’t keep up with ’er.’ Eileen puffed her way down the hall. ‘How’s it goin’?’
Bill pulled on the back of her coat as he pushed open the parlour door. ‘Have a look.’
Eileen’s jaw dropped. ‘I don’t believe it! Oh, it’s lovely!’
Maggie was sitting in an armchair, her arms folded, a smug smile of satisfaction on her face. ‘Well, what d’you think of it?’
The wallpaper, beige with sprigs of pink flowers, made the room look bright, warm and comfortable. ‘Oh, Mam, it looks beautiful! Yer wouldn’t think it was the same room.’
‘Our Rene’s worked like a Trojan, honestly she deserves a medal. Young Billy did the pasting and she had the strips up in no time. When Edna came home and said you were on your way, she was determined to get the last two strips up, and she moved like those blue flies you’re always talking about.’
Eileen was still taking it all in when Bill took her arm. ‘Come on, there’s more to see.’
When Eileen saw the living room it was too much for her and she pulled out a chair to sit down. They’d chosen a pink paper for this room, patterned in diamonds in a darker shade. ‘I never thought yer’d get this far,’ she said quietly. ‘I expected to come ’ome to a right mess.’
‘I’m glad Harry gave me a hand with the ceilings last night,’ Bill said. ‘Having them done was half the battle.’
‘Where is Harry? And our Rene, where’s she got to?’
‘She went upstairs to give Harry a hand. He’s started on our bedroom, but I think I’ll call a halt. We’ve done enough for one day.’ Bill cupped Eileen’s face in his hands. ‘I’d have been lost without Harry and your Rene, they’ve been great. And our Billy’s been a real cracker.’
‘Where is Billy?’
Bill grinned. ‘Getting ready to go out. If I tell you something, will you promise not to say anything to him?’
‘Yeah, go ’ed.’
‘I overheard him talking to Harry. He’s got a date tonight with Mavis Radford.’
‘Mavis Radford from Bray Street?’ Eileen didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Her lovely son with a girl . . . she didn’t think she liked the idea of another woman in his life.
Bill nodded. ‘He met her at the Holy Name dance and made a date to take her to the pictures tonight.’ Bill saw the look in Eileen’s eyes and wagged a finger under her nose. ‘Remember, you promised. He doesn’t know I overheard him telling Harry.’
Eileen rested her chin on her hands when Bill ran upstairs to tell the workers to knock off. It had been a long day and the extra weight she was carrying around with her had drained her energy.
When Arthur called with his two sons, Eileen was sitting on a straight chair with her bare feet resting on two cushions. ‘Yer’ll ’ave to excuse me, Arthur, but I couldn’t move if I tried.’ She smiled at the two boys. ‘Come an’ give Auntie Eileen a hug.’
If anybody else had asked for a hug, the two boys would have said they were too old for soppy things like that. But they were drawn to this big, cuddly woman, and they didn’t hesitate to fling their arms around her.
‘Been to see yer mam, ’ave yez?’
‘Er, no.’ Arthur’s eyes sent a warning. ‘They don’t allow children in the ward Sylvia’s in.’
‘Oh, did yez ’ave to wait outside?’
Again Arthur answered for the boys. ‘I’d been told they couldn’t go in, so I left them with Vera for a few hours.’ Looking decidedly uncomfortable, Arthur went on quickly, ‘I would have brought them here, but
I knew you’d be up to your necks.’ He turned to Bill. ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t give you a hand, like I promised, but under the circumstances I know you’ll understand.’
‘That’s the least of your worries,’ Bill said. ‘You’ve more than enough on your plate.’
Arthur gazed around the room. ‘This looks very nice.’
‘Yer should see me mam’s room,’ Eileen said. ‘She’s sittin’ there lookin’ like Lady Muck.’
‘Come on, I’ll show you.’ Bill led Arthur and his sons out, saying, ‘I can’t take any credit for this, Rene did it with the help of our Billy.’ While they were out of the room, Eileen tried to pull her dress down to make herself more respectable, but as soon as she let go of the material it wrinkled up again over her knees. ‘Blast it,’ she muttered, ‘I’m like a flippin’ elephant!’
A few moments later Arthur returned. ‘They must have worked hard to have done all this.’ There was a faint smile on his drawn face. ‘You’re a real slave driver, Eileen Gillmoss.’
‘Oh, I’ve been out,’ Eileen tried again to cover her knees but the dress wasn’t having any. In the end she gave it up as a bad job. ‘I’m not soft, yer know, Arthur, I don’t stay around when there’s work to be done. I’ve been visitin’ me old neighbours.’ Her eyes kept straying towards the door. ‘Where’s David and Gordon?’
‘Maggie’s showing them some photographs. She must be a mind reader, your mother, ’cos I wanted a word with you on your own.’ Arthur sat down and stared at his clasped hands before meeting Eileen’s eyes. ‘Sylvia is very sick. The boys don’t know and I’m not going to tell them, yet, anyway. I’ve got to take them to Walton Hospital one day next week, the three of us have to be tested to make sure we haven’t contracted the disease.’
Eileen gasped, ‘Oh, no!’
‘It’s all right, Eileen, there’s not much chance of any of us having it. The boys didn’t see enough of Sylvia, and she wasn’t affectionate with them when she did see them. So they should be clear. And as for me,’ Arthur said bitterly, ‘I haven’t slept with her, or had any physical contact with her for two years. Except for two nights, when I first came back from the army, I’ve slept in the boys’ room.’
‘Thank God for that!’
‘I suppose I should say the same thing, but all I feel is sadness. It could have been so different if only she’d given it a chance. But as it is, it’s David and Gordon who’ll suffer the most and I can’t find it in my heart to forgive her for that.’
Chapter Nine
Joan stood on tip-toe as she leaned towards the mirror over the fireplace. With one hand on top of the tiled grate to steady herself, and her Tangee lipstick in the other, she peered at her reflection. This was the first tube of lipstick she’d ever had in her hand and she didn’t know where to start. To make matters worse, her mother and sister were watching. She brought the lipstick towards her mouth and puckered her lips. No, that wasn’t how the girls in work did it, they stretched their lips.
Behind her, Edna mimicked every action, winking at her mother as she did so. Although she was two years younger than Joan, there wasn’t much difference between them in height. In fact, they could be taken for twins. Through the mirror, Joan caught sight of her sister’s antics and spun round, her face red with embarrassment and anger. ‘If you don’t move, I’ll clock yer one.’
Edna stuck her tongue out. ‘You an’ whose army?’
‘Mam, will yer tell this one off?’ Joan gave her sister one more dirty look before turning to Eileen who was sitting on one of the dining chairs, her elbows resting on the table, watching the performance. ‘She’s nothing but a blinking . . .’ Joan’s words trailed off when she saw the look on her mother’s face. ‘What’s up?’
Eileen’s jaw dropped with horror as she gazed at the vivid orange slash that covered her daughter’s mouth. ‘In the name of God, are yer lips under that lot?’
‘I might have known you’d say somethin’ like that,’ Joan said angrily. ‘I never do anythin’ right, do I? Not like this one ’ere,’ Joan glared at Edna, ‘she’s mammy’s girl, can’t do no wrong.’
Edna put her two thumbs to her temples, wiggled her fingers and stuck out her tongue. ‘Cry baby, cry baby . . .’
‘Hey, knock that off,’ Eileen warned. ‘Get out of ’ere before I get me hands on yer an’ give yer a thick ear.’
When Edna had left, Eileen turned sympathetic eyes on Joan. ‘Take a good look in the mirror, sunshine, an’ yer’ll see what I’m on about. Yer must ’ave half the tube of lipstick on, an’ it’s all over the place, no shape to yer lips at all. If yer Dad comes down an’ sees yer like that there’ll be ructions. Tell yer what, why don’t yer ’ave a swill, then nip up to Auntie Mary’s an’ ask ’er to show yer how to make yer face up properly?’
‘Where’s our Joan off to?’ Bill asked. ‘She’s just flown out of the door as though the devil was on her tail.’
Eileen rolled her eyes. ‘I don’t think I’m our Joan’s favourite person at the moment.’ Eileen went on to tell him what had happened.
‘She’s too young to be wearing lipstick,’ Bill said. ‘She’s only fourteen, for heaven’s sake.’
‘Yeah, but I remember when I was that age, I kept wishin’ I was older so I could do the things the girls in work did. Joan’s just the same, wishin’ ’er life away. When she gets older she’ll be wishin’ she could lose a few years.’
Eileen leaned back, causing the chair to creak in protest. She ran a hand across her forehead before resting it on her swollen tummy. ‘I’ll be glad when the next month’s over.’
‘Not long to wait now, chick, only two more weeks.’
‘Can’t come soon enough for me.’ Every part of Eileen’s body felt drained and weary. She hadn’t had a proper night’s sleep for weeks because she couldn’t get comfortable in bed. And every night, lying awake listening to Bill’s even breathing, seemed like an eternity. ‘I’ll be glad when it’s all over.’
Bill stood behind her, his arms wrapped around her neck. ‘Shall I bring some pillows down and you can try and get comfortable on the couch?’
Eileen shook her head. ‘No, yer never know who’ll come.’
‘Eileen, you can’t spend all the time sitting on a hard chair. I’ll get a couple of pillows, you can sit in my chair and I’ll ask Ma if we can borrow one of hers so you can put your feet up.’ Bill made for the door. ‘And Ma said you haven’t had your bottle of Stout today, so I’ll get you settled then nip up to the Walnut and get a couple of bottles.’
On his way to the pub, Bill called in to the Sedge-moors’. Eileen was really down in the dumps and needed someone to have a good natter to, someone to cheer her up and get a smile on her face.
When Joan came back, Mary was with her. ‘Well, the state of you and the price of fish!’ Mary laughed when she saw Eileen, a pile of pillows at her back, stretched between two chairs with a glass of Stout in her hand. ‘There’s nothing like comfort.’
‘You’re tellin’ me!’ Eileen tried to sit forward but the effort was too much. ‘I just wish I ’ad it!’
‘Look at me face, Mam.’ Joan leaned towards her mother. ‘Auntie Mary did it up for me. Cream, powder, rouge, the lot.’
Eileen gazed at the thin face and saw, for the first time, the attractive woman her daughter was going to be. ‘Now that’s more like it. Yer look a real treat, sunshine.’
‘Can I go over to Hanford Avenue to show Marjorie?’ Joan was so excited she hopped from one foot to the other. ‘I won’t stay long, I promise. I’ll be back before it gets dark.’
‘Who’s Marjorie?’ Mary asked when Joan had gone.
‘Someone she works with. They travel to work together.’ Eileen winced when she tried to move to a more comfortable position. ‘Yer know, kid, I wouldn’t go through this again for a big clock.’
Mary pulled a chair forward and sat near her friend. When she smiled, her set of perfect white teeth gleamed. ‘We all say that.’
‘Yeah, wel
l I mean it. Bill was right when ’e said we were too old for this lark.’
‘When you’ve got the baby in your arms, you’ll forget all about the trouble and discomfort.’ Mary tossed her head and her long hair fanned out before resting on her shoulders. ‘Me and Harry have been talking about sending Emma to learn how to play the piano. There’s a woman in Wembley Gardens who gives lessons.’
‘But yer ’aven’t got a piano!’ A smile seldom seen these days lit up Eileen’s face. ‘I was goin’ to say we ’ad one but the leg fell off, but it’s a stale joke, isn’t it, kid?’
‘Not up to your usual standard, Eileen Gillmoss, but under the circumstances it’ll do,’ Mary told her. ‘Anyway, I told Harry we could get a piano cheap at Hartley’s.’
‘Aye, it’d be nice for a party. Yer can’t beat an old joanna for a proper knees-up. Me mam used to ’ave one, before me Dad died, and we used to ’ave some parties at ’er ’ouse, believe me.’
‘Who played the piano, your dad?’
‘No, me mam! She never ’ad lessons like, but she only ’ad to hear a tune once and she could belt it out on that old joanna of theirs like no one’s business.’
‘Well, fancy that! I’d never have thought.’
‘Oh, there’s lots yer don’t know about me mam. She was a nice-lookin’ woman, always dressed up to the nines, an’ the life an’ soul of any party.’ Eileen pulled a face. ‘Then me dad died, she gave the joanna away when she came to live with us, an’ she’s never played since.’
Bill came back to see his wife more lively and talkative than she’d been for weeks, and he was glad he’d asked Mary to come and sit with her for a while. It had done her more good than all the Stout in the world.
‘Where is your mam?’ Mary asked as she set the chair back by the table.
‘Need yer ask? Gone to the first ’ouse at the Rio, to see James Cagney an’ Pat O’Brien in somethin’ or other. When she comes in I’ll get the whole story, actions an’ everythin’. An’ if it’s a sad story, we’ll both end up cryin’ our eyes out.’ Eileen handed Bill the empty glass. ‘I’d ’ave another one, but it might make me laddo, here,’ she patted her tummy, ’drunk.’