Memories Are Made of This by June Francis Page B

strains of ‘Three Coins in the Fountain’ sung by Frank Sinatra came flooding out. Earlier she had thought the young man looked vaguely familiar.
    â€˜I love this, don’t you?’ said a girl seated at a table near the window. She and the young man had entered the milk bar about a quarter of an hour ago and ordered milk shakes and sticky buns. Jeanette had heard him call her Irene.
    â€˜I’ve seen the film,’ said Mrs Cross. ‘You should go and see it, Jeanette. It’s almost as good as a holiday, and much cheaper. You can imagine yourself in Rome. Louis Jourdan who plays a prince is so handsome, you wouldn’t believe it.’
    â€˜He’s a bit of a playboy in it, though,’ said Irene. ‘I preferred Rossano Brazzi myself. I’ve never seen him in anything else before but he’s a real dish.’
    â€˜I’d like to go to Italy,’ said Jeanette. ‘My brother’s saving up for a car and he was talking about going abroad.’
    â€˜I’ve an older friend at the art school who’s hoping to go to Italy to study next year,’ said Irene.
    â€˜Lucky her!’ said Jeanette. But before she could continue the conversation another girl entered.
    She was pretty with pale ginger hair, a slender figure, and was wearing a swagger jacket and a straight skirt in dark green gaberdine. Accompanying her were two young men who were good looking and so alike that they had to be twins. One of them had a limp. ‘So you and Jimmy made it then,’ said the girl, walking over to the table where Irene sat.
    â€˜We’re here, aren’t we, Maggie?’ said Irene in a tone of voice that told Jeanette that the other girl was not one of her favourite people. ‘
Ciao
, you two! I haven’t seen you for a while,’ she nodded to the twins. ‘How’s tricks?’
    Jeanette stood over by the counter whilst the three newcomers sat at the table with Irene. She waited a few moments whilst they scrutinized the menu, interested in how they knew each other. Jimmy was still standing next to the jukebox, looking at the list of records. One of the twins beckoned Jeanette and she went over to the table and took their order as ‘Three Coins in the Fountain’ came to an end. Maggie did not seem able to make up her mind. As Jeanette stood waiting, she heard the click of a record dropping and the seductive tones of Alma Cogan singing ‘I Can’t Tell a Waltz from a Tango’ almost had her dancing back to the counter.
    â€˜They’re all so fattening!’ complained Maggie, tossing the menu aside.
    â€˜Stop worrying about your figure, Maggie,’ said Irene. ‘You know you never put a pound on.’
    â€˜That’s because I watch what I eat and care what I look like, unlike my dear cousin.’
    Irene frowned. ‘Why bring Betty into this? She’s not fat!’
    â€˜You would say that because you’re not exactly slim either,’ said Maggie bluntly.
    â€˜Don’t you two start,’ said one of the twins. ‘It’s only puppy fat with Irene, and you are too skinny, Maggie.’
    She pouted. ‘I have the perfect figure for a model, and when I leave school that’s what I’m going to train to be. Betty’s trouble is that she gobbles down what’s nearest to hand because she can’t be bothered cooking a proper meal when she’s painting.’
    â€˜You could cook her a proper meal,’ said Jimmy, pulling up a chair and sitting next to her.
    Maggie shrugged. ‘She won’t eat what I eat.’
    â€˜You can’t blame her for that,’ murmured Irene. ‘And our Jimmy has obviously never tasted your cooking. You can’t cook for toffee, so that’s why you make do with rabbit food and tinned soup.’
    Jeanette cleared her throat. ‘Is that it, then?’ she asked.
    â€˜No, I do want something to eat,’ said Maggie hastily.