Forever Torn

C12: Harry and Cyril (1/2)

CHAPTER TWELVE: Harry and Cyril

Years later Harry was to understand that the situation his grandparents faced was untenable but they had done what they felt they had to do. In fact before the Watermans had come on to the scene and expressed an interest in adopting Solly, Smeras had sadly contemplated putting them in Norwood Home (a place for orphans). In fact after Solly had gone, it still looked for a while that Harry would be put up for adoption too but he had determinedly told his grandparents that if that happened he would run away and so he stayed with them.

To tighten their belts the reduced family moved around the corner to a cheaper rented place in Hunton Court – Harry didn't mind as it meant that he could stay at the same school and maintain his old set of friends which was a blessing as he had suffered too much loss already.

The new flat in Hunton Court was on the second floor above a converted shop – it had a living room, kitchen/scullery and a bedroom for Smeras and Frade. The living room had a couch by day but at night it was converted into a bed for Harry. They had to use an outside toilet.

Smeras told him he had to wait a few weeks before seeing Solly, to give the boy time to settle into his new environment but as soon as he could he went round to the house and was received by Mrs Waterman who made him tea and cakes and told him Solly had a new name – Cyril Waterman.

Harry duly visited once a week for the next few weeks and was impressed by the grandeur of the house and even more impressed when Cyril told him that in another few weeks they would be moving to a newer and bigger house away from the East End. Harry told Cyril he would visit him in the new house even though he would have to get buses all the way out to Clapton, but shortly after this had an accident which delayed the start of his visits to Evering Road.

It involved a game of street football and his friend Bernie who affectionately used to call Harry 'Rushie' meaning from Russia – Lithuania was counted as Russia in the mind of the average ten year old school boy from the East End of London.

While the boys were outside playing football, Bernie charged Harry in an attempt to tackle the ball away from his friend, who then went flying through the air and gashed his head open against the pavement, denting his skull and resulting in a four week stay in hospital.

A head injury wasn't enough to dull Harry's energy for long and as the nurses had made a project of feeding him up to put meat on his skinny frame – they insisted he eat large portions of meat and potatoes (shepherds pie) followed by puddings covered in thick custard – he soon recovered his strength and was allowed out of bed and given a wheelchair to move about in.

He did so, probably at a faster pace than the ward sisters had intended, using the wheelchair to hurtle around from ward to ward until a Nurse or Doctor stopped him and insisted he return to bed where he had to stay and receive medication and constant observation in case his head injury turned out to be more serious than anticipated.

During this time he received regular visits from his Grandparents who sometimes brought his friends along including a repentant Bernie who strangely enough, he became closer friends with afterwards. He was also visited by one of his teachers, Mr Bernstein, who brought him fruit and the well wishes of the school.

Once he was out of hospital Harry started his visits to see Cyril in Evering Road, religiously taking the bus to Clapton every Sunday where he was graciously received by Mrs Waterman and took tea and cakes with the brother that he was only allowed to call 'friend.'

Cyril loved to show Harry his new room and possessions and in his turn, the older boy was most impressed by the brand new furniture that decorated the house. Aunt Jane once asked him what sort it was and he checked on the very next visit and was able to inform her that it was all from Maples which mightily impressed the females of the family – as far as they were concerned, if you shopped at Maples you might as well have been the King and Queen!

Occasionally there would be some of Cyril's new friends and even more rarely the other children's parents. Harry was always introduced as 'my friend Harry' by Cyril or 'My son's friend Harry' by Mrs Waterman. Relatives of the Watermans knew who Harry was and what the relation was but in hindsight, years after, Harry realized that the move to Clapton was so that Mr and Mrs Waterman could introduce 'their son,' to new neighbours and a new school and pass him off as their flesh and blood.

Cyril had taken to his new name and circumstances like a duck to water and several times Harry observed him hug Mrs Waterman and call her Mama with real, genuine affection. Mr Waterman was rarely seen on those Sunday visits, either being out or in his study but when Harry did see him, he acted politely if stiffly towards the boy but then again Harry had seen him act like that with Cyril's other friends so he knew no affront was meant.

For the next several years Harry would continue to visit Cyril once or twice a week, never specifically invited and never receiving reciprocal visits in return. Sometimes he would turn up to find his brother wasn't home and on those occasions he would go up the road to Springfield Park or walk the half mile or so to Lower Clapton to visit Uncle Joe, Auntie Janey and the girls. The visits became part of his routine and lessened the sadness he felt inside because as long as he was able to visit Cyril and be welcome, it was almost as if he still had his brother properly.