13
THE COFFEE HOUSE
November 1944Mum turned sullen after the episode at the Castle Ballroom. She said the worst thing was she was now going to have to make Mrs Perks a bosom friend. I was also going to have to make a bosom friend of Joyce. Bosom friends were heavy going. The next dancing lessons left me having to stand next her and flash her a smile at regular intervals, like a Belisha beacon.
About three weeks after the laughing session, Mum and I were skipping and hopping down Steep Hill on our way to the bus stop.
“Watch your stockings, Jane. Your stockings. We can’t get any more this month with our Ration Books. We’ve no coupons left. I’ll have to darn them again. You always fall down sooner or later.” In an effort to brake my strides, as I approached the steepest decline, she shou
