David Essex - Faded Glory

But his personal life was becoming a bit rocky. Although the spark was still there, the distance between him and Wendy felt to Danny as if it was growing.

“It’s always bloody boxing with you,” Wendy seethed every time Danny cancelled any arrangements, or ran in the park, or trained at the Live and Let Live gym. “I’m taking second place here, and I tell you what. I don’t bloody like it.”

“It’s for us,” Danny tried to tell her. “For our future. I can do this, I can be good.”

“Graham says…” Wendy stopped.

Danny’s heart thumped. “Who’s Graham then? What’s he been saying?”

“Just a bloke I work with, for all you care.” Wendy applied her lipstick with vigour. “He’s a dead ringer for that singer Dickie Valentine, and a really good laugh. Which is more than you are these days, Danny Watson.”

“You seeing much of this Graham bloke at work, then?”

This seemed to touch a nerve with Wendy. “What are you saying?”

“You mention him a lot.”

Wendy sniffed. “Yeah well, I do see him more than I see you, don’t I? I see you now for a couple of hours now and then, but I’m in work for eight hours a day, aren’t I?”

“So would you rather be with this Graham then?” Danny challenged. “It sounds like you would.” Wendy’s eyes showed how hurt she was by Danny’s accusation. “Get out of my house, Danny Watson,” she said. “Go on, get out.”

Danny left, black thoughts floating in his mind. Deep down he didn’t think that Wendy would ever cheat on him, but the training and their lack of time together was creating tension. He loved Wendy and saw his boxing career as something that would benefit both of them. Why couldn’t she understand that he was doing it for them both? It was frustrating. He couldn’t give up, not now.

Feeling troubled by the argument, Danny decided to telephone Wendy as soon as he got home from his evening run. Going to a local phone box armed with four pennies, he called the Bristows’ house.

Mr Bristow answered the phone. “Hello?”

“Hello Mr Bristow, it’s Danny here,” said Danny. “Is Wendy there please? Sorry I’m calling a bit late.”

Mr Bristow sounded irritable. “I think she’s gone to bed, Danny. Is it important?”

Danny twisted the telephone wire round his finger. “No it’s all right,” he said reluctantly.

It wasn’t really. He had started building things up in his mind about this Graham bloke, and the thought of losing Wendy was tearing him up.

“I’ll tell her you called,” said Mr Bristow.

“Thank you.” Danny felt a sudden rush of emotion. “Will you tell her I love her, Mr Bristow? Will you tell her that?”

Mr Bristow laughed. “Will do, Danny. Bye now.”

Danny hung up, feeling frustrated and worried. He hoped Wendy’s father would pass on the message, and Wendy would be able to forget that he had doubted her. He couldn’t let go of his dream, not now, but he couldn’t lose Wendy either. It was a juggling act that he would have to address.

The following morning, Danny decided to try to explain the importance of his budding boxing career to Wendy. As he rode his bike over to the Bristows’ house, he went through the points he wanted to make.

Getting to the Bristows, and ringing the front-door bell didn’t help Danny’s nerves. The thought of either losing Wendy or losing his new-found boxing mission was too painful to even consider.

Wendy opened the door.

“Nice of you to fit me in,” was her spiky greeting.

Danny smiled hopefully. “Can we talk?”

“I think we need to,” Wendy said. She jerked her head. “Come in then.”

Danny followed her to the kitchen. “Look,” he said, “I know you don’t like me doing the boxing and it takes up some of my time, but Wend, I’m doing it for both of us. If I work hard and make it, we’ll have money, a future.”

“You reckon?” was Wendy’s non-committal response.

“I love you,” said Danny in desperation. “I want to spend as much time as I can with you, honest. I am doing this for both of us, can you understand that? I don’t want to end up like my so-called friends. They’re destined for a dead end, a life of crime. I want more than that, Wend, more than that for both of us.”

Wendy’s expression softened a little. Sensing a thaw, Danny took his reluctant girlfriend in his arms.

“I promise we’ll spend as much time together as we can,” he said.

Wendy looked into Danny’s eyes. “Promise?” she pleaded.

“I promise.” Danny gave Wendy a gentle kiss. “I need you behind me, Wend, if I’m gonna make a go of this.”

“But what if you get hurt?”

“I’ve got a good team behind me. It ain’t gonna happen.”

Holding each other felt good. Both of them feeling secure, together and close again felt right.

Wendy broke the warm silence.

“I suppose I will still love you with a broken nose,” she said.

Danny laughed.

Wendy struck a boxing-like pose. “And at least you can take care of me with those flying fists,” she said.

“Always,” said Danny.

And suddenly, the threat of Graham the Dickie Valentine lookalike seemed less of a worry.

Time passed under the watchful eyes of Patsy and Albert. With encouragement from Lenny, Danny was becoming, as Patsy put it, a contender. The trio, for Danny, had become like his family. Rosie knew of course that Danny went training, but was more interested in her own social life. And although there was still love between Danny and Wendy, his single-minded focus sometimes still brought the occasional chill to the relationship. Danny did his best to manage the balancing act and went on following his dream.

Three months after joining the team at the Live and Let Live, Danny was summoned by Albert.

“Patsy has some news for you, son.”

“Good or bad?” asked Danny.

Albert just shrugged his shoulders. As he had not been able to pay his club subscription through lack of funds, Danny wondered uneasily whether Patsy had finally lost patience and would tell him to leave.

Going upstairs to the boxing gym, which now felt like a second home, Danny could hear the familiar sound of Patsy’s voice barking pearls of wisdom to another hopeful.

“Albert said you wanted to talk to me, Pat?”

Patsy gave an intriguing wink. “Pop into the office, son, be with you in a minute.”

Patsy’s office was full of boxing trophies, posters and photos of legendary fighters. Danny waited tensely, staring at the photos. He wanted to be one of those fighters on Patsy’s wall, holding belts and trophies. He wanted it more than anything he’d ever wanted in his life.

Patsy eventually came in.

“Sit down, Dan.”

Danny sat on Patsy’s well-worn sofa while Patsy took a seat behind his well-worn desk.

“You’ve made good progress here, Danny boy,” said Patsy. “To be honest, I’m surprised how far you’ve come.”

“It’s all down to you and Albert,” said Danny.

Patsy shook his head. “It’s down to you and your commitment, Danny. And now I think you’re ready to represent the club.”

Danny’s heart leaped. The news was exactly what he wanted to hear.

“If you’re up for it,” Patsy continued, “you could be part of the team to take on the boys from the Bermondsey Club in a month’s time, at the amateur contest scheduled at West Ham Baths.”

Danny’s face lit up with a smile from ear to ear. “I’m up for it,” he said.

“Good boy.”

Patsy shook Danny’s hand, placing a West Ham Boxing Club vest ceremoniously into Danny’s grateful arms. Danny thought of his dad. This was his chance to make his father proud. He cherished the faith his new boxing family had shown in him and he was certainly not going to let them down. This was the first step and he was not intending to trip over it.