Innocent on the run. Part 22.

'Come, on. Wakey wakey.' Doc's voice filtered through to Ricky's sleep fogged brain. 'God is it morning already,' he asked sleepily.' 'Saturday morning. Up and at 'em compadre.' Doc left the cabin and Ricky reluctantly got out of his bunk. He thought, only six hours sleep. I used to get nine or ten at home. I wonder what they're doing at home. He didn't feel at all homesick as he had thought he would. He washed and got ready for the routine of preparing breakfast and clearing up before starting work on deck. Nigel came in to the galley and turned away in a huff when Doc gave a wolf howl. He prepared his dumb waiter and hauled it up to his pantry before turning with his nose in the air and stalking off. Doc put his head out into the alleyway after him and yapped like a dog. 'You should have heard him yesterday,' Doc laughed as he told Ricky. ' He called me a despicable beast, among other things.' Doc had told everyone on board how he had scared Nigel out of his wits. He was calling Nigel, El Lupo, The Wolf ! Ricky spent the morning painting the Bosun's stores out. It was terrifically hot in there and he was glad when the job was finished. It didn't take long as it was not a very large compartment, and most of it was done with a roller on a long handle. Just before he knocked off for lunch, the American lads arrived, and he showed them in to the mess. 'Hello, boys,' Doc greeted them. 'I've put the four of you on this table.' He indicated the other crew members who were eating lunch. 'Ignore this lot, they're peasants.' 'Hey,' a sailor shouted to Doc. 'How come we don't get a table cloth like theirs.' 'Cos you don't deserve one, you common sailor,' Doc replied. 'These are our guests and they're decent people. Not like you lot of swabs. You ought to be caged in the fo'c'stle and only brought out when there's a full moon. Just like El Lupo.' The messroom rang to their laughter. Doc turned to the Americans and continued, 'If Nigel was talking to me, I'd get him to wait on you but as he's not, you'll have to come to the hatch yourselves.' They tucked in to Tomato Soup followed by Roast Beef, Yorkshire puddings, potatoes, cabbage and peas. The sweet was Manchester Tart and it was followed by coffee and cheese and biscuits. Slim sat back in his chair. 'Gee, I'm stuffed !' he said. 'Sure was a great meal, Doc,' Chuck complimented. Al rubbed his stomach.'I must have put pounds on already.' 'Chuck' Ricky enquired. 'Could you give me a lift to the store up town so I can buy a pair of boots?' 'Sure, no problem. But you don't need to pay their prices, I know of a store where we can get them a lot cheaper than up town. I'll take you there right now.' He rose from the table and the others followed suit. Slim went across to the serving hatch. 'Thanks for your hospitality, Doc.' 'No problemo.' Doc answered. 'Is it O.K. if we take Ricky up to get some boots ?' Chuck asked. 'Yes, get his boots or I'll never hear the last of it.' The three Americans said their farewells to the crew members in the mess and waved as they left. The four of them piled into the car and Chuck took them out through the docks and headed for the store a few miles out of town. He drove fast, and they were soon inside the old wooden store looking at the boots. Ricky gazed at the rows of fancy boots, practically drooling. There were dozens of styles and colours to choose from, and eventually he chose a light brown pair with fancy tooling engraved in the leather. He pulled them on and wore them in the car as they drove back to the ship. They were beautiful, shiny and sleek, with two inch heels and pointed toes. He saved two dollars on the price of them compared to the others he'd seen in the town shops. 'Okay if we drop you at the dock gates, Rick ?' Chuck asked. ' We have to get back to work.' 'Yes, that's fine. Thanks a lot for taking me.' 'No problem,' Chuck grinned. 'Instead of meeting up town tonight, I'll pick you up at the ship tonight at eight, O.K?' 'Great !' Ricky waved to them as Chuck turned the car and headed for town. It felt strange at first, walking through the docks with his new boots on, but he soon got used to them, and the extra height they gave him made him feel great. His new shirt and jeans were washed ready for the party that evening, and all that was left to do was iron them. Back onboard, Doc stared at his boots. 'Hmm,' he said. 'You'll probably fall off those heels and break an ankle.' Ricky did a little dance on the spot. 'They're great, aren't they Doc?' 'If you say so. Anyway the Bosun needs you on deck to help with the hatch covers. The cargo's loaded.' Ricky took his new boots off and put the old ones back on. He felt quite short without them. They spent the afternoon lowering the hatch covers on to the hatches, and securing them. Then there was the final clean up around the decks, washing down after sweeping up the grain spillage. A large truck loaded with stores arrived, and they unloaded it and carried the boxes and bags on to the ship. There were dry goods of all descriptions and it took them two hours to get it all on board. Doc had the task of stowing it all away in the stores so that he could get at it easily, and a continuous stream of men carried boxes and bags and placed them where Doc wanted them. The ship was to sail the following morning at 2 a.m, so a sign was placed on the gangway reminding the crew to be back aboard by one o'clock. After dinner, and once his chores had been done, Ricky ironed his clothes and got showered and changed. He was a completely different young man to the one who had joined the ship in Barry. He had filled out, was bronzed, and even without his new heels, he'd got taller. Doc warned him to be sure to get back to the ship by one a.m. as if he was late, the Captain would stop him a day's pay. While Ricky was out on deck, waiting for the car to pick him up the Mate came along. 'Don't forget, young Ricky.' he said, 'Leave expires at one o'clock.' 'Yes, Sir.' he answered, 'Doc has already told me not to be late.' The car arrived and Ricky ran down the gangway and climbed in. The three lads were in party mood and they sang songs as Chuck drove them through the streets of Port Arthur. Chuck grinned at the two American lads. 'Got to make one stop on the way.' Al and Slim gave loud whoops of joy. 'What's happening ?' Ricky asked him. 'Got to see this guy I know.' He drove out into the suburbs, the three hosts laughing and joking all the way. He pulled up at a detached house in a wide avenue. The houses all looked the same to Ricky, set back from the road by a large lawn, with a driveway up one side. Chuck got out, walked up the driveway and went around the back of the house. He came back out to the front of the house and beckoned them to come. Ricky was about to get out of the car when Al told him to stay put, and slid into the driving seat. He backed the car up the drive until it was level with the back of the house. 'Now we get out and load up.' he said. Chuck and another man were carrying crates of beer out of the house and piling them on the path. Al opened the huge boot of the car and they started loading the crates into it. There were fifteen crates of two dozen bottles and they fitted in the boot with room to spare. Chuck paid the man and they climbed in the car and drove off, whooping out of the windows, making a terrific din! Chuck's house was a ten minute drive away and they shouted and sang the whole time. The house was pretty much the same as the one they'd just left, only Chuck's drive was longer, and they had a two car garage. He drove up to the garage and opened the door into the house. Slim had the boot open, and they transferred the beer to Chuck's kitchen. The house was huge, compared with the houses that Ricky knew. There was a large lounge, a dining room, study, a kitchen with fitted units, four bedrooms, and two bathrooms, both with fitted showers. It was a palace! They busied themselves getting the crates opened and the beer set out. Chuck opened the fridge and got the sandwiches that they'd made, and the piles of sausages and beefburgers for the barbecue. The barbecue was outside on the patio and Al lit it up in readiness. They opened some beer and had a bottle each. It was different beer to the type that Ricky had drunk at home, being a lot lighter in colour and a lot gassier. Chuck put the record player on and the sounds of pop music filled the house. Slim beckoned to Ricky. 'Lets go help these people park their cars, or they'll just leave them anywhere. If they do, we'll have the cops around here and that's the last thing we want.' He pointed at the cars which were arriving in convoy, each with six or eight young people in each. They went out into the roadway and started directing the cars up the driveway. When the driveway was full, people parked on the front lawn until that was full as well. Dozens of teenagers flocked into the house, overspilling onto the patio at the rear. They brought records, more beer, and food with them, laughing and shouting to each other. The beer was flowing and some started dancing, while others sat on the furniture and stairs talking. Ricky watched as Slim took charge of the cooking at the barbecue, and soon the air was filled with the delicious smell of sausages and onions being cooked. Al introduced him to lots of people and they were surprised to learn that he was from England. He started off trying to explain that South Wales was not England, but soon gave up and accepted that the Americans were a bit confused about the different countries which made up the U.K. 'Come and meet these girls I know.' Al tugged at Ricky's sleeve. 'Girls' he began. 'This is Ricky. He's from England.' Ricky started to deny it but stopped. What was the use? 'This is Cindy, Tess and Babs,' Al continued. 'England?' Tess said with a little squeal of excitement. 'Have you met the King and Queen?' 'Er, not really, but our school took us to London for a trip and we saw Buckingham Palace and the Tower of London.' 'How wonderful.' Tess had a dreamy look on her face. 'I'd love to see all those handsome Guards marching in their gorgeous uniforms.' 'We saw them changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace,' Ricky added. 'It was a marvellous sight.' 'Do they still lock people up in the Tower?' Babs asked. 'No, not any more. It's like a museum now. They keep all the Crown Jewels there. Fabulous Crowns with millions of diamonds, golden orbs, pearls, swords of state, everything. Really marvellous.' 'I'd love to see it,' Tess whispered. Al handed beers to Ricky and the girls. Ricky was grinning all over his face. He was the centre of attention and he loved it. The girls were hanging on his every word. Slim and Chuck came across to them. 'Come on girls,' Slim said. 'Dance time.' And he led Babs off while Chuck slid an arm around Cindy and whispered in her ear. They started doing a slow creeping dance. 'You dance, Rick?' Tess asked. Ricky gaped at her. She was actually asking him to dance. 'Er,er' he stammered. He'd never been asked to dance before. At the Church socials at home, the girls all sat around the walls until a boy asked them to dance. Tess laughed. 'Come on, I'll show you how.' She took him around the waist and he hurriedly put his beer down before taking her hand and putting an arm around her. Tess had blonde, shoulder length hair and the bluest of blue eyes that he'd ever seen. She told him that her family had come to the states from Sweden many years before, and though she considered herself American, her Grandmother kept insisting she was Swedish. They danced a slow number, and though Ricky wasn't a very good dancer, she took control and showed him how the Americans danced. There was very little to it apart from holding each other tight and shuffling around from foot to foot. She smelled wonderful and it wasn't long before Ricky managed to kiss her full on the lips. Tess was a bit startled at first but when he did it again, she kissed him back. Al came across with some more beer when they finally let each other go, and they sat down on the stairs. Couples were hugging and kissing everywhere. On the furniture, lying on the floor, and while they were dancing. Chuck put some very fast music on and couples were starting to jitterbug and jive around. Tess got Ricky up to dance and showed him the moves. She moved like a gymnast and Ricky watched her, trying his best to get the hang of it, as she gyrated, twisting and turning, short skirt flying up, exposing her legs. She was beautiful and Ricky was madly in love! After a couple more beers and two more dances, Ricky's head was spinning like a top, and he made his way to the bathroom, holding on to the bannisters and walls. He threw up in the toilet, and cleaned the mess up before anyone noticed it. Taking a wet flannel, he bathed his face and neck and went back downstairs. Tess looked at him with concern written across her face. 'Are you alright, Rick ?' she asked. 'Yes, I'm O.K, thanks.' Slim brought some more beer over. 'This is what you need, Rick, baby. Drink it down, you'll feel better.' He lifted the bottle and drank it down in one go. After guzzling the beer, he felt dizzy again. He could see Tess and Slim in duplicate. Shaking his head, he staggered to the bathroom with his hand over his mouth. He seemed to lose track of where he was and what he was doing after throwing up again! The rest of the evening he remembered later as snatches of noisy dancing, loud music, and more beer followed by periods of loss of memory. He didn't remember passing out on the floor behind the settee in the living room, and the others were so busy with the good time they were having, they forgot about him completely. The clock moved around from midnight to one o'clock and the party raged on! Two o'clock came and went and Ricky was oblivious, slumbering gently, the air vibrating with an occasional soft snore!