The Girls from See Saw Lane Read Free

eyes again, Mary seemed to be having some sort of fit in the next-door booth. She was waving her arms about and jumping up and down and she was all bright-eyed and red in the face. She must be really enjoying the record. I waved back at her and carried on listening to Paul. Next thing I knew Mary was banging on the glass and waving urgently.
    â€˜What?’ I mouthed. She mouthed something back but I couldn’t understand what she was saying, so I took off my headphones and put my head into her booth.
    â€˜What?’ 
    â€˜Look there! In the shop!’ she squeaked, bouncing up and down on the soles of her feet.
    I looked at where she was pointing, and standing at the counter was a skinny boy. He seemed much taller than last time we’d seen him. I suppose he was good-looking, that is if you like boys with long necks and tight trousers. He kept flicking back his hair and gazing at everyone in a slightly superior way. Yes, it was Elton Briggs, the boy whom Mary had always adored when we were at school, and standing next to him was Ralph Bennett. My heart gave a little flip and I could feel my face going red. Mary was now out of the booth, brushing down her skirt and tossing her ponytail. I grabbed my bag and followed her. She hung onto my arm and whispered: ‘Doesn’t he look amazing?’
    But I wasn’t looking at Elton. I was looking at Ralph.
    â€˜Go over and say hello,’ said Mary, giving me a little push.
    â€˜ You go over and say hello,’ I said.
    â€˜Don’t be mean,’ said Mary. ‘You know what Elton means to me!’
    â€˜Meant,’ I said. ‘The last time you saw him he had his tongue halfway down Beverly Johnson’s throat.’
    â€˜It wasn’t our time then, but it is now, Dottie, I just know it is.’
    Sometimes I thought Mary would have done quite well on the stage. She sounded like some kind of film star, all desperate and tragic.
    â€˜Please, Dottie,’ she wheedled and her little face looked all screwed up and sad, so I did what I always did when Mary was sad: I gave in.
    â€˜Okay,’ I said. ‘But what’s the betting they won’t even remember us?’
    â€˜Thanks,’ said Mary, miraculously cheering up and immediately fishing in her bag for her compact so she could check her face.
    I went up to the counter and stood next to Elton. I looked at the hairs on the back of his neck and cleared my throat. He completely ignored me.
    â€˜Have you got Telstar by The Tornados?’ he asked the boy behind the counter.
    â€˜Now that,’ said the hip boy taking a swig of his coffee, ‘is a very good choice. They recorded that track in their agent’s front room,’ and Elton got all puffed up with importance like it was him that had recorded Telstar in his front room. 
    â€˜Hello,’ I said.
    Elton turned slowly and frowned at me as if I’d just crawled out from under a log. I smiled at him hopefully. He was wearing aftershave that made him smell like a car smells, of leather and petrol. He looked me up and down very slowly but didn’t speak.
    â€˜Hello Dottie,’ said Ralph, smiling around Elton.
    I smiled gratefully at Ralph. He smiled back at me. I smiled some more. Elton made a bit of a sneery face and I remembered what I was supposed to be doing.
    â€˜I’m with Mary,’ I said. ‘Mary Pickles.’ I glanced over my shoulder. Mary was hiding behind one of the record racks out of Elton’s sight. She had crossed the first two fingers on each hand and was holding them up to me, nodding her head in encouragement.
    â€˜You two were always together at school,’ said Ralph. His voice was soft and
    deep, more like a man than the boy I remembered.
    â€˜So were you two,’ I said.
    â€˜Blast from the past,’ said Ralph, smiling.
    â€˜Yeah,’ I said, smiling back. We couldn’t stop smiling at one another.
    Elton rolled his eyes, turned