I wrote this as a competition entry (er, I didn’t win!) circa 2006. I like the positivity of it, and there are some aspects of it that I’m really proud of, but there is something about it that is more … shall we say, magazine-style than my own style of writing.
The ending feels rushed (to me), and whilst the final paragraph is somewhat sickly, it felt right to end it like that.
I’ve tweaked the odd word/phrase while typing it up; small improvements after not reading it for so long. I like to think that this story, despite my own criticisms, is a stepping stone to better writing.