I smile brightly when I walk out of the shop. It already feels as if I can take on the world. It is amazing what a new hairstyle can do for a person's mood. I must definitely do it more often.
Impulsively, I decide to walk from the mall to the centre of the village. I will go to my favourite coffee shop and select the biggest slice of chocolate cake they have. I usually always eat their delicious Lasagne, but I predict that from now on Lasagne will always leave a bitter taste in my mouth.
I walk out of the mall and notice that the grey clouds have moved on, the sky is clear again. I consider taking off the unsightly jacket, but I am not sure what to do with my shopping bags. I do not want to put them down onto the still wet paving.
Outside the mall, I walk onto the pedestrian bridge, which crosses the Boyne River and is my shortest route into the village. Looking down, I see the grey, dark water swirling past under my feet. The bridge is always crowded with people so I look back up to avoid unnecessary impacts and rude mutters from the other people.
On my way to the coffee shop, I stop at the school uniform shop and I buy myself a new school skirt, a longer version of the one I have at home.
Eventually, I reach the noisy hustle and bustle of the coffee shop. I go to the counter and pick the fattest slice of cake. The chocolate cake is sold out, so I settle for vanilla instead. I ask the girl behind the counter for a large coffee as well. With my arms pushed into the carry handles of my shopping bags, I carry my food on a tray and then I navigate the stairs carefully. I go up to the next level and I pick a table by the window so I can look down on the people hurrying past.
Jayden decides to walk into the village. Kieran left early to go to school and he is bored with the only three channels on the TV.
While he walks through the narrow streets, Jayden wonders if they let Kieran into school and if they accepted him as a student there. Although Kieran is only sixteen years old, the wisdom and insight, which you only acquire after many, many years of living, shine brightly in his eyes. The things his eyes have seen make them look older than the sixteen years he is. Many times, he himself has caught a dull glint in his own eyes, which would not fit a typical eighteen-year-old boy.