‘HAS it got me,’ the old bird asked. The skin around her eyes was as thin as tissue and detailed with faint little veins.
‘Yes,’ coughed Sally. Clearing her throat and saying it again. ‘Yes it has. The dampness in your lungs is making it difficult for you to breathe and your body is tired from fighting.’
‘Feckin Corona. So what do we do?’ The old bird asked with a fierce strength in her tone.
Read MoreNEXT stop, Milltown. An chéad stad eile, Baile Muileann. The intercom called as the train eased its pace towards Dublin City. Declan sat leaning against the window of the luas with his arms folded tight as if to restrain himself. A couple of rows ahead of him two lads sat about the same age as Declan. Only they were leaning against each other cozily, one nuzzling the others cheek with his nose. Declan watched them closely. He watched to see if other people were watching them too; but nobody appeared to notice.
Read MoreTHE club was about to close. Donnacha and Gabrielle both knew that soon the lights would be turned on and the plug would be pulled on the music. Donnacha guided Gabriele by sleeve of his black button-up shirt and led him through Crawdaddy, across the dance floor towards the large smoking courtyard near the entrance; the echoes of the house-beats rippling after them into the cool night air.
Read MoreTHE “Plex” was the first place we all felt grown up. A dingy little arcade made out of a rundown barn towards the counties edge. It was somewhere to go on our own and meet outside of school. This hadn’t happened before really you see. And so on weekends I’d breeze through the house, offering the briefest of goodbyes to my parents, and walked the way a man with purpose walks, out the door to catch the bus. Hell, even taking the bus when not in a uniform felt grown up.
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