Lucky

Chapter 1

The day was a near perfect one, or least it was as close to one as it were possible. As Deaglan Gallagher stepped from his small homestead and drank in the day that was, he first chose to relish in the sun. The way it shone down on his face – warm without it being overly so – was transcendent and glorious to bask in. Next, he tilted his head and listened to the birds signing. They were loud to be sure, but not in such a way that they might disturb his resting grandmother or be a nuisance in any way. And finally, he took in a huge whiff of air and relished in the sting of the salted sea breeze as it hit his nostrils.

Deaglan Gallagher was perhaps the luckiest boy – recently turned man – in all of Ireland. And this wasn’t always the case. In fact if you had asked him not seven hours earlier who was the luckiest boy – recently turned man – in all of Ireland, his name would have appeared somewhere at the very bottom of the list. That was that way it had always been for Deaglan and the way he thought it was going to always be.

But something changed in Deaglan when the clock struck midnight not seven hours earlier. He couldn’t describe it. He couldn’t explain it. He couldn’t quantify it in any way whatsoever. So rather than trying to do these things, he didn’t. Instead he embraced this new sensation as of it had always been

Was it a little cocky of Deaglan to act in such away, especially when he had lived an entire life without so much of a whiff of luck? Perhaps it was. But as mentioned, something had changed in Deaglan and rather than run from it as he was wont to do, he decided to embrace it.

It was Deaglan’s twenty-first birthday – as of seven hours ago – and with this transformation from boy to man, Deaglan chose to transform his outlook on life too. Deaglan wasn’t handsome. He wasn’t particularity smart. And he sure as heck wasn’t funny or charming. But that was the old Deaglan. From the moment that his foot stepped outside the house, he knew his life was going to change  --

"Yee better hurry!" his grandmother's call from inside the small house pulled Deaglan back into the moment. "Don' yee go day dreamin' again, Deag!"

Deaglan opened his eyes as he looked over his shoulder, and back into the house. He smiled a confident smile; the first of his new self. "I'm doin' no such thing, ma!"

"Whatever yee say!" He chose to ignore the obvious disbelief in her voice. "If ye miss tha' bus again, you'll be sorry!"

Deaglan shook his head, amused by his grandmother's worry. Oh sure, she had every right to be concerned as Deaglan more often than not missed the bus and was forced to walk into town. But his grandmother didn't realize that today she was dealing with the new Deaglan. This was a Deaglan that got things done, and did things on his own accord. This was a Deaglan that didn't miss the bus, that didn't forget his own head and that didn't live in a state of perpetual worry over things that should concern him none.

This was a lucky Deaglan and lucky Deaglan didn’t miss the bus.

With this belief planted firmly in his mind like a new spring rose, Deaglan kicked himself into action and made from the from the front of his house and toward the driveway. From there it was a short skip and a walk down the hill and onto old Canary Road. And from there it was barely a hop and a jump to the bus stop not fifteen feet further down the way.

As Deaglan lived on a farm in the literal middle of nowhere, the single bus stop provided the only means by which to get into town. And as it was a Sunday, there was but one bus available and if he were to miss it... well the twenty-one-kilometer walk would give him plenty of time to think to himself on where it was that he went wrong.

Deaglan chuckled knowingly as he made from the front of his home and toward the grass-cut path that led down the hill. There was no way he was going to miss the bus, not today.