then stopped dead. The stairs were lined on either side with young men, some of them wearing ghoulish false faces making spooky noises, laughing, calling to them to come up the narrow space they had left through the middle. At that moment, Irene would gladly have fled, but Myrtle grabbed her by the arm and pulled her up through the loud jostling youths and into the sanctuary of the ladies’ toilets. Inside was already packed, noise levels were high and the smell of disinfectant was slowly being replaced by Midnight in Paris and 4711 cologne. Myrtle found a spot in one corner with a chance of seeing the edge of a mirror and carefully re-shaped the waves in her hair. Irene reapplied the carnation lipstick and offered it to Myrtle who slicked on an extra layer.
‘Here, let’s get into the Halloween spirit. Look what I’ve got.’ Myrtle pulled out two cardboard eye masks, one black with white lace the other pink with black lace. ‘Choose,’ she said, offering them.
‘I don’t know, you pick.’
‘You have the pink, then. I’ll be more daring in the black.’ She slipped the shirring elastic over her head and grinned as Irene did the same.
‘Now we can say an’ do whatever we like and no one will know it’s us!’ Myrtle’s laugh was infectious and soon both of them were giggling away in the corner.
‘God, Myrtle,’ said a thin girl with long black hair, holding a bottle of sweet sherry. ‘How much have you had?’
‘Nothin’ at all, we don’t need drink in us te have a good time.’ She took Irene’s arm and led her back into the corridor. Out of earshot she whispered, ‘She’ll be paralytic in an hour and outside throwin’ up in two.’
The dance hall was bathed in yellow light. At the far end there was a six piece band playing ‘Red Sails in the Sunset’. Several couples were waltzing around the floor, some of them girls dancing together. Round the outside of the room were wooden tables and chairs. Soft drinks were being sold from a hatch. Young men were standing about in groups at the edge of the dance floor chatting and laughing as they weighed up the girls. Several of them were wearing Halloween false faces which, combined with the yellow light, gave them a sinister look.
‘Don’t they dance?’ asked Irene after they’d bought themselves bottles of Ross’s orange with paper straws and found an empty table.
‘Some of them don’t bother. They try an’ get ye to talk te them, then the next thing ye know, they want ye te go outside with them.’
‘So you don’t get many dances with a boy then?’ Irene couldn’t keep the disappointment out of her voice.
‘Ah, there’s some of them can dance, some very good.’ Irene wasn’t convinced she’d be doing much dancing and sighed. ‘Look,’ said Myrtle, ‘we’ll have some of our drink an’ then we’ll have a couple of dances together. It’s never very long before one of them lifts ye.’
‘Lifts you?’
‘Aye lifts ye. Comes up te ye while you’re dancin’, taps ye on the shoulder, an’ when ye turn round, they start dancin’ with ye.’
There was an interval while the band took a break, during which some of the boys Myrtle knew from Shorts came over to say hello then the band returned with a singer.
‘This is more like it,’ said Myrtle. ‘Some of those fellas will ask us te dance now, just you wait an’ see.’ Sure enough, they were just getting into the swing of a quickstep when they simultaneously felt a tap on their shoulder and turned round to the shock of green cardboard Frankenstein masks. Irene gasped, but before she could say anything, she felt a vice-like grip around her waist and was whisked away at great speed. When the song ended Irene faced her partner and clapped. ‘Thank you,’ she said and turned to walk away. Just then the music started up again and her partner reached after her and took her hand, swinging her around in a circle, back into his arms; a waltz this time and a chance for her to catch her breath
‘Here, let’s get into the Halloween spirit. Look what I’ve got.’ Myrtle pulled out two cardboard eye masks, one black with white lace the other pink with black lace. ‘Choose,’ she said, offering them.
‘I don’t know, you pick.’
‘You have the pink, then. I’ll be more daring in the black.’ She slipped the shirring elastic over her head and grinned as Irene did the same.
‘Now we can say an’ do whatever we like and no one will know it’s us!’ Myrtle’s laugh was infectious and soon both of them were giggling away in the corner.
‘God, Myrtle,’ said a thin girl with long black hair, holding a bottle of sweet sherry. ‘How much have you had?’
‘Nothin’ at all, we don’t need drink in us te have a good time.’ She took Irene’s arm and led her back into the corridor. Out of earshot she whispered, ‘She’ll be paralytic in an hour and outside throwin’ up in two.’
The dance hall was bathed in yellow light. At the far end there was a six piece band playing ‘Red Sails in the Sunset’. Several couples were waltzing around the floor, some of them girls dancing together. Round the outside of the room were wooden tables and chairs. Soft drinks were being sold from a hatch. Young men were standing about in groups at the edge of the dance floor chatting and laughing as they weighed up the girls. Several of them were wearing Halloween false faces which, combined with the yellow light, gave them a sinister look.
‘Don’t they dance?’ asked Irene after they’d bought themselves bottles of Ross’s orange with paper straws and found an empty table.
‘Some of them don’t bother. They try an’ get ye to talk te them, then the next thing ye know, they want ye te go outside with them.’
‘So you don’t get many dances with a boy then?’ Irene couldn’t keep the disappointment out of her voice.
‘Ah, there’s some of them can dance, some very good.’ Irene wasn’t convinced she’d be doing much dancing and sighed. ‘Look,’ said Myrtle, ‘we’ll have some of our drink an’ then we’ll have a couple of dances together. It’s never very long before one of them lifts ye.’
‘Lifts you?’
‘Aye lifts ye. Comes up te ye while you’re dancin’, taps ye on the shoulder, an’ when ye turn round, they start dancin’ with ye.’
There was an interval while the band took a break, during which some of the boys Myrtle knew from Shorts came over to say hello then the band returned with a singer.
‘This is more like it,’ said Myrtle. ‘Some of those fellas will ask us te dance now, just you wait an’ see.’ Sure enough, they were just getting into the swing of a quickstep when they simultaneously felt a tap on their shoulder and turned round to the shock of green cardboard Frankenstein masks. Irene gasped, but before she could say anything, she felt a vice-like grip around her waist and was whisked away at great speed. When the song ended Irene faced her partner and clapped. ‘Thank you,’ she said and turned to walk away. Just then the music started up again and her partner reached after her and took her hand, swinging her around in a circle, back into his arms; a waltz this time and a chance for her to catch her breath
Similar Books
