A sympathetic look crossed Lizzie’s face. ‘That must be hard for you.’
‘My husband’s away fighting as well,’ added Julia.
‘Oh, that must also be difficult,’ Diana added, shaking her head.
And once again, Julia realized how alone she was.
‘I was afraid I’d feel lonely, too,’ said Lizzie. ‘But so far, everyone’s been so friendly down here.’ They finished their tea and made their way out of the tea shop. Lizzie and Diana stood staring up and down the street. ‘Someone told me we could get a bus back out to the train station, a number thirty-two. Have you any idea where it might stop?’ she asked Julia.
Julia shook her head.
‘Look, mine is just coming,’ she said, pointing to the bus that was trundling down the road. ‘Why don’t we ask on there? Maybe he will know.’ Racing to intercept the bus as it ground to a halt, Julia asked the conductor who hung off the back.
‘Thirty-two?’ he exclaimed with disbelief, pushing his cap to the back of his head so he could scratch his bald head underneath it. ‘Thirty-two – you just missed it, won’t be another one for an hour.’
Both Lizzie and Diana looked ashen. ‘But our last train leaves in thirty minutes. Why such a long wait?’ Lizzie enquired incredulously. ‘Isn’t this the big city?’
‘It might be, but there’s a war on, love. You two haven’t got a chance of getting back there tonight, and I just heard from another passenger the tube is down, in that direction. You’ll have to hitch a ride.’
Diana looked mortified. ‘We’ve got to be back on the parade ground at nine a.m. tomorrow. And we don’t have any money to stay in a hotel. How do you suggest we get back?’
‘Don’t ask me, darling,’ he said. ‘I’m not a tour guide. I just take money. So, are you and your friend getting on or what?’
Julia turned to them. ‘Look, you may as well come home with me. I only live twenty minutes away. And with my kids and husband gone, I’ve got two big empty rooms. You could stay the night and travel back with me in the morning.’
‘Are you sure?’ asked Diana.
Julia nodded.
‘What time do the buses start in the morning?’ Lizzie asked the conductor.
‘Early enough,’ he said. ‘About seven.’
Lizzie did the calculations in her head. ‘That means we could still get back to the station in time,’ she said to Diana, who had paled by her side.
He pointed a finger further down the road and continued, ‘Just down the road there past that phone box is where you’ll pick it up at seven in the morning.’
‘As long as we’re back in time for duty, maybe no one will say anything and we won’t be put on a charge, and end up on jankers,’ Lizzie said.
Julia looked puzzled.
‘It’s a slang word for special duties, that aren’t very pleasant,’ elaborated Lizzie, screwing up her nose. ‘Are you sure you don’t mind?’
Julia shook her head. ‘It will be fun,’ she said. ‘Come on, let’s go.’
They all paid their fare and clambered up the stairs to the top deck of the bus.
‘Always pushing me into trouble,’ complained Diana, shaking her head. ‘It’ll be an adventure, Diana,’ she said, in a sarcastic Scottish accent. ‘We’ll see the big city, she said!’ continuing her impression of Lizzie. ‘Some adventure, we nearly ended up sleeping homeless on the street.’
Lizzie blushed red. ‘I do seem to always be getting you into trouble, don’t I, Diana? Maybe you shouldn’t stick around with me.’
‘I don’t have a lot of choice, we live in the same room.’ Diana smirked. They all started to laugh.
Julia enjoyed their lively banter. It had been years since she’d hung out with friends like this, before she’d had her children. And when she’d started working for the war department a year ago, the work had been intense, and though she was starting to get to know the girls in the bunker, it was really hard for them to all get time off together, as the pool always needed to be covered. So, there was no one she could really laugh with or have fun with after work since John had left.
The girls regaled her along the way with all the adventures they’d had during their training and how Diana had had to carry Lizzie for a whole mile when she had twisted her ankle on a run.
Getting off the bus, they made their way down the street. But as Julia approached the house, she quietened as she noticed