This Town

Chapter One

Niall's POV

Mullingar, County Westmeath, Ireland, Late Summer 2000

I was rummaging through my room, looking for my new school supplies that my father had just bought for me when I saw her for the first time. I had the windows open to let in the last of the summer breezes before my freedom was to be snatched away by school. I heard a slight thud and then a few seconds later a commotion going on outside and some yelling.

I peeked through my window to see what was happening. A car had hit a moving van that had been backing into the driveway across the street from my house. The two men were arguing over who had caused the minor accident when I saw a little blonde haired girl sitting on the front stoop of the house, her hands cupping her face while she sat there, watching. She looked a little raggedy from my point of view but then again, this wasn't exactly the swanky side of town.

"Niall!" I heard my father shouting for me. "C'mon, son, we need to go run some errands."

"Okay, dad, be right there!" I shouted back. I turned back to the scene outside but the car was gone and the girl was too. "Hey, dad, it looks like someone has finally moved into the house across the street." I said, as I walked outside to head into town with him.

He looked across the street in the direction of the moving van, which had come alive again with the one man moving things out of it. Still no sign of the girl.

"Hmmph, we'll have to go introduce ourselves later. But we first need to finish picking up some things from the grocer and a few more school supplies for you."

"I think I have everything I need, dad."

"I'm sure there's something we've forgotten. Did your mother get anything?" He turned to looked at me while we continued to walk.

"I don't know," I mumbled.

"Niall, did you ask?" He looked at me, "Nevermind, we'll phone her at the grocer and see if she has anything for ya at her house."

While my dad picked up food for the week, I found a payphone and called my mom real quick to ask her. She had gotten some things and felt I was ready for school when it began the following week.

I took a sit outside the grocer's and took a look around. Mullingar wasn't too big of a town, a decent size yet small enough for everyone to know your name and your business. Old man Leary could always be counted on to walk out of his shoe repair shop at exactly 4 in the afternoon to check his watch and the sky above. At the same time, the widow Murphy would stroll down the street to this little candy shop to purchase her daily dose of chocolate. Conor and Rory Byrne were twin boys the same age as my brother, Greg. They were assholes and always up to no good. They came from one of the wealthier families in Mullingar and basically thought they owned the whole damn town. And then there were the two old geezers sitting to my left, Mr. Walsh and Mr. O'Farrell. The two of them could always be counted on for the most up-to-date gossip around town.

"You're little Bobby's youngest, ain't ya?"

I turned and looked at them "Yea," I said.

And that was it, they turned away from me and continued their gossip. "Yeah, I heard they're from the North," Mr. Walsh, said, digging into his pocket for a cigarette. "And that they essentially got kicked out of their town."

Mr. O'Farrell response was a scoff. "Which means they're no good."

"You ready, kiddo?" I heard my dad behind me, making me jump. He laughed a little, "Sorry, son, didn't mean to scare ya. Let's roll."

"Okay." I said, getting up.

"Dad," I started as we rounded the corner for home, "Do we not like people from the North?"

"What do ya mean?"

"Just, Mr. Walsh and Mr. O'Farrell were talking about the people who are moving in being from the North and thus no good."

My father looked down at me, "Son, don't ya pay no mind to them old farts. You always treat people with kindness, ya hear me?"

"Yea, I hear ya."

The next day I decided I needed to spy on my new neighbors. The moving van was gone and in it's place, this hunk of junk that I couldn't even begin to describe. The front door opened and the girl with blonde hair stepped out onto the porch holding a doll of some sort. She slowly skipped around the porch and into the yard. She was wearing the same dress as yesterday. After awhile I got bored and ditched spying for my friends.

I ran outside as soon as I saw my friend, Thomas, and we made our way to the playground. A little while later, as we were playing, I saw out of the corner of my eye, the new girl approaching with her doll in hand. Thomas and I stopped what we were doing as we both saw Conor and Rory Byrne following behind her.

"Oh boy, this won't be good," Thomas quietly said.

The two boys got closer to the girl and Rory snatched the doll from her hand. She screamed and tried to get it back from him but he just held it above his head, away from her reach. "Give it back!" She screamed, almost in tears.

Everyone else on the playground stopped to watch. The sad thing about this town is that as much as we knew about each other, we still stayed a good distance from each other. The girl continued to jump up and down trying to get her doll back which only solicited cat calls from Conor and Rory because she was wearing a dress and the jumping made the skirt go high enough that you could see her underwear.

"Jesus," I whispered. And then I remembered what my dad said about how we treat people. I don't know what got into me but this girl didn't deserve to be harassed on her first day here. So I jumped off the swing and marched my way over to them and demanded, "Stop! Give her back her doll you idiots!"

Both boys turned to look at me, while the girl looked embarrassed. "What did ya say, Horan?" Conor responded.

"Ya heard me. Leave her alone!"

"Or what?" Rory said, bringing his arm down yet still not giving the doll back.

"Or else I'll make ya!"

They both started to laugh as well as several other people watching. I knew I couldn't make them but I didn't care. "Go away, dude, tell yer brother we'll see him later."

They turned to continue teasing the girl when I ran up behind Rory and kicked him in the knee, making his legs buckle from underneath him. He dropped to the ground and let go of the doll. As I was about to grab it, I got knocked down by Conor. Well, here I was, six years old and in my first fight, all over some stupid girl.

I didn't see what happened next but some adults walking by ran in to stop the fight. When I got up, the girl and her doll was gone.