Now the War Is Over (13 page)

‘Where’ve
you
been?’ Danny asked, as she tried to suppress the grin that would not stop spreading itself all over her face.

‘I
told
you, she went on Wally’s motorbike,’ Kev said, frowning furiously. ‘He dain’t let
me
go.’ Even though Kev was only six, he had
already decided that an experience like that would be wasted on a mere girl.

Danny looked at Melly with apparent surprise. ‘Did yer – really? You wanna be careful. Dangerous, them bikes.’ He seemed to see her with new eyes suddenly. ‘You’re
not knocking about with them lads? They’re too old for yer.’

‘No,’ Melly said huffily. She turned away. ‘They just gave me a ride, that’s all.’

All through the meal she could sense that Cissy was bursting to ask her about it but instead she acted as if she didn’t care. Cissy burbled about Fred and about working in
Woollie’s.

Melly couldn’t get away from Cissy because they had to share a bed. The boys all shared the biggest bed. Dad would help Tommy up the stairs, and Ricky was tucked at the bottom by
Tommy’s and Kev’s feet. And tonight Melly would have Cissy’s fulsome, creamy body tucked in with her. At least they kept each other warm.

Melly got in, turned on her side to face the wall and pretended to fall asleep straight away, despite Kev and Ricky talking and giggling. But Cissy was not having that.

‘Come on!’ Her fingers poked at Melly’s ribs, making her squirm. ‘You gotta tell me about it. Which one d’you fancy most, Reggie or Wal? Did either of them kiss
you?’

‘
No.
’ Melly turned towards her and spoke in a cross whisper. ‘Don’t be
stupid
. They’re years older than me. And I don’t fancy either of
them.’

‘Come off it,’ Cissy said. ‘That Reggie looks right handsome now he’s been in the army. You must fancy him a bit. He’s more like Freddie now – only not as
good looking as that, nothing like. Freddie’s dreamy, isn’t he?’

‘He’s all right,’ Melly said, biting back a retort that of course Reggie was better looking than Freddie. Freddie was a mere child in comparison. None of them were as nice as
Reggie even if everyone did say Wally was like a film star.

After a pause, Cissy persisted, ‘So nothing happened?’

‘
No
. We just went for a ride, that’s all. Now shurrup and let me go to sleep.’ She lifted her head and addressed her brothers. ‘And you lot can shut it an’
all.’

She was still awake even after the restless noises had stopped in the boys’ bed and Cissy was breathing quietly beside her. She lay hugging herself, thinking back on all the memories she
had of Reggie, which at the time she had not taken much notice of. Little freckle-faced Reggie when he got his first bike, handed down from Wally, and fell off it in the yard. Going with Reggie to
feed the hens which Mo, for a very short time, kept in the brew house, and tittering over them together. His face when they lost the rabbit . . . Reggie and the others giving Tommy rides round the
yard in his chair and Tommy squealing with laughter. That morning when he’d come to Tommy’s rescue . . . And tonight – ‘
Fancy a ride?
’ Reggie . . . Reggie . .
.

She drifted into sleep with a big smile on her face.

Standing in the crush of passengers on the navy-and-cream bus, Melly could just about see out between Kev, Dad and a burly man. It didn’t feel very nice standing pressed
close up to strangers who stank of stale fags and sweat and oily chip pans. She shifted closer to her father.

Fog veiled the drab streets. Through the murk she caught sight of a few bare-legged kids running about on the open spaces of bomb pecks before another bus got in the way. It still felt peculiar
not seeing trams, even though the last one had been taken off the roads over a year ago.

Kev was on to Dad about football as usual. Mom, looking smart in her black coat, had a seat, in front of them next to Auntie Gladys, who was holding a bundle on her knee. It was strange seeing
Mom and Dad out and about together. She saw that they were younger than a lot of people on the bus and both good looking. It made her feel happy.

It was a rare treat, going to town, not just to work on the market. Any time Mom and Dad thought about an outing – to town, to the seaside (where they’d still never been) or to the
September Onion Fair up the road, on the Serpentine ground – it never usually happened because they couldn’t take Tommy. Recently Dad had been talking about buying a car, but as yet
there was no sign of it.

‘You go,’ Tommy would say, his little face earnest, trying to make things better.

Melly always said she wouldn’t go if he wasn’t going and so they’d all end up not going anywhere. Occasionally, Dad would take Kev and Ricky to the fair and they’d come
back with some chipped plaster-of-Paris ornament they’d won or a coconut. Dad said it was only right as he couldn’t take Kev to the football at the Villa, with him being always on the
market on a Saturday. Until now, Melly hadn’t been able to bear to go out and see Tommy trying to look brave if they all left without him.

Now though, since Tommy obviously didn’t need her any more, she’d decided she’d damn well do what she liked. Why should she stay in with him when he wouldn’t miss her
anyway? So Tommy and Ricky were going to stay with Dolly and little Donna while the rest of them went to see the Christmas lights and look round the shops before Dad and Gladys had to start work on
the Rag Market.

She felt in the pocket of her navy wool coat for her secret, precious savings. There were halfpennies, farthings and the odd penny. She felt they must glow in there so bright that surely
everyone could see them.

Ever since Reggie came home she had been saving, doing some extra jobs for a halfpenny or a farthing from Mom and Dad and not spending her coppers on sweets, despite the gorgeous array of
chocolate, sherbet and gobstoppers you could buy now and eat as much as you wanted! To a child who had only known rationing, it seemed like a miracle. But she had resisted – though it was so
hard
! After all this scrimping she had one and eightpence and with that she was going to buy a Christmas present for Reggie. The very thought made her heart thump with nervous excitement.
If he saw that she had saved all her money for him, surely then he’d know how much she felt for him? She kept imagining finding something nice, wrapping it up . . . She lay in bed at night,
dreaming of Reggie’s look of pleasure, of what he might say.

‘Oh, Melly – that’s just what I’ve always wanted. Oh, and I’ve bought you something too . . .’

Well, maybe not that last bit. That was pushing it too far. But perhaps it would dawn on him how nice she was.

She couldn’t help herself these days. Where Reggie was, she wanted to be. When the lads were out tinkering with the bike, which seemed to need as much attention as a sick relative, she
would be out there too, hoping they would offer her another ride. So far they hadn’t. She asked questions sometimes – What’s that? What does that bit do? – trying to care
about the answer.

Wal and Jonny had started to tease Reggie. ‘I see yer girlfriend’s here again, Reg!’

The first time Jonny came out with that, Reggie was bent over the back tyre of the Norton. He gave a grunt in reply while her cheeks burned so much she had to go inside, agonized with
embarrassment.

But he hadn’t denied it, she told herself. Hadn’t told Jonny to shut up. One day, oh, one day maybe it would be true! They might be engaged, the way Wally was now – to a girl
called Susan who he had met at GEC.

As they drove into the centre of Birmingham she caught a glimpse of bright-coloured lights strung across the streets. It was so colourful and exciting! Surely, somewhere, she could find
something really nice for Reggie?

They climbed down from the bus in Colmore Row, among all the Christmas bustle. Rachel felt a swell of excitement in the midst of her weariness. For a moment she had a pang of
guilt that they had left Tommy behind. But he was doing well now at the school and she was there with him for a day, most weeks. She owed it to her other kids to do something for them.

‘I’ll go off,’ Gladys said, handing Danny the bundle to carry. ‘I’ll get on quicker on my own. Ta-ra-a-bit – see yer later.’ Her strong, matronly figure
disappeared into the crowd, limping on her bunions.

‘Keep together, all of you!’ Rachel said. For a moment she went to reach for Melly’s hand, before realizing that at thirteen she was too old for all that. And she was turning
into a mardy little bit these days. She’d always been a good kid, there was no doubt, but these days she seemed lost in a dream world most of the time. Instead of being helpful she would
shrug and look fed up if asked to do something. It got on Rachel’s nerves when she had so much to do. Melly was a girl – she ought to help in the house.

Although Kev was only six he was a proper little lad, on his dignity and very much his father’s son. He reminded her a lot of Danny at the same age with his bright energy. He
wouldn’t be holding her hand either, she thought, with a pang of loss.

They set off along the road in the press of shoppers.

‘’Ere – look.’ Danny elbowed her. They were standing beside one of the furriers’ shops in the city. ‘That’s the stuff you want to be selling.
People’ll pay the earth for one of them coats. D’you know, them rich people, they keep ’em in cold storage all the summer!’

‘Do they?’ Rachel smiled faintly. She wanted to think about Christmas, not about trading. Danny was doing well on the market but he was always restless, looking round for the next
thing. He’d brought up this ridiculous idea of going to Australia again. Why on earth would they want to go right to the other side of the world, away from everyone they knew? And how the
hell did he think they’d manage with Tommy? What a flaming ridiculous idea – it made her so cross. Still, she told herself, it was just Danny having one of his daydreams.

‘What if we had a shop?’ he said, half to himself.

‘All that rent though, Danny,’ she said. ‘Come on –’ She pressed his arm, felt it strong and thin inside his sleeve. ‘Give it a rest – let’s treat
the kids.’

Danny turned to them, pretend serious. ‘You two don’t want to see Santa then, do yer?’

‘Yes!’ Kev yelled, so loudly that his face went red.

‘Hey, shut it,’ Rachel laughed. ‘What about you, Melly? You’re too old for all that, aren’t you?’

Melly nodded. She would quite like to have gone to the Christmas grotto in Lewis’s department store, but she knew she was too old really and, besides, she had much more important shopping
to do.

‘You take him, Danny, will you?’ Rachel said. ‘There’s bound to be a hell of a queue.’

‘All right then,’ Danny said, reaching down for Kev’s hand. ‘C’mon, son.’

‘I’m not holding hands,’ Kev said, his arched brows pulling into a frown. ‘I’m not a babby.’

‘Meet you in the Bull Ring,’ Rachel called after them. ‘Eleven o’clock – outside Woollie’s.’ She looked down at Melly. ‘We can pop in and see
Ciss, when we get over there. Oooh – hark at that. The Sally Army!’

For the next hour, they wandered amid the chattering crowds, smelling the whiffs of cigarette smoke, of orange peel, of cooking meat, making their mouths water. From amid the vendors shouting to
advertise their holly and mistletoe and Christmas wreaths and the flower lady and her daughter selling bouquets, floated the mellow sound of carols from the Salvation Army brass band.

Rachel bought a sprig of mistletoe from a man with one arm missing, the empty sleeve of his coat hanging limp. ‘God bless yer, lady,’ he said. She tucked the mistletoe carefully into
her bag. They moved through the market, down into New Street, and she bought a pair of stockings for Gladys and some drawing paper for Danny. They stopped, by the Big Top site at the end of High
Street, where New Street began. The buildings that once stood on that corner were lost in the bombing. The space had been cleared and there were rows of cars parked on it.

‘What d’you want to do then?’ Rachel said.

Melly shrugged. Rachel started to feel annoyed. Her grown-up little daughter was a mystery to her sometimes. Ever since she had had Tommy, when Melly was two, nearly all of her energy had gone
on him. She wanted to give her daughter time now, but Melly, instead of blossoming under the attention, seemed preoccupied and distant. This was their chance of an outing and she might as well not
be there!

‘Look, what’s up with you?’ Rachel started to lose her temper. ‘This was s’posed to be a nice morning out. What’s the long face about? If you wanted to go to
Lewis’s with yer dad you should have opened your mouth and said so when you had the chance.’

Melly’s eyes filled with tears. ‘No – I dain’t want to go . . .’

Rachel led her closer to the railings edging the site. A light drizzle was beginning to fall. She wanted them to have a nice morning but found her voice turning harsh. ‘Come on, out with
it – what’s up with you?’

‘I just . . .’ Tears started to run down Melly’s cheeks. Her voice went high and childish. ‘I wanted to buy a present and I’ve . . . I’ve . . . You
can’t buy anything nice for one and eight.’

‘One and eight?’ Rachel quizzed her. ‘Where did you get one and eight from?’

‘I saved it – I dain’t buy any rocks,’ Melly sniffed, wiping her eyes. ‘Not for ages.’

Rachel looked at her, astonished. Not buying sweets when every child in the neighbourhood was filling their face at every possible opportunity!

‘But – why? What d’you mean a present – who for?’

Melly hung her head. Her coat was too short, making her legs look long and gawky. How had she suddenly grown so tall? Rachel wondered. Melly would be starting her monthly soon, she realized, her
heart softening at the thought.

‘F-for Reggie,’ Melly admitted.

‘Reggie. Reggie who?’ Rachel said, bewildered. ‘What – you mean Mo and Dolly’s Reggie?’ Her mind struggled to put these things together. ‘You mean . . .
?’

But Melly could not say what she meant. She was too covered in blushes.

‘What’re you on about, Melly?’ Rachel said. Without thinking, she burst out laughing. ‘Reggie Morrison?’ Reggie was nice enough, but he was a grown-up man now.
He’d even been in the army. ‘You haven’t got a flame lit for Reggie? Oh, bab – he’s almost old enough to be your father. I don’t s’pose he’s got eyes
for you – in fact, I saw him with a girl the other day. You’re going to have to get over that one, kid.’