Sunshine After The Rain

The blue umbrella stood out from the rest, promising better days to come.

 

DANIEL BRADSHAW pressed his forehead to the window-pane of his fourth-floor London office and peered at the lunchtime scene below.

There was nothing much to observe today but a sea of dark umbrellas, bobbing along the grey, rain-slicked streets.

Except for one umbrella, bolder and more whimsical than the rest. A dome of sky-blue heaven dotted with billowing clouds. Who would own such an umbrella, Daniel wondered. Who was the person sheltering beneath that canopy of summer, safe in the knowledge that no matter how hard it rained the sky above remained perfectly blue?

A woman, he imagined. A confident, happy kind of girl in possession of all the qualities that he’d lost recently.

A shiver, cool as a raindrop, slithered down his spine.

In his mind, he could still hear the voice of his bank manager, informing him over the telephone that the account of Bradshaw and Booth Architects was teetering on the brink of bankruptcy.

There wasn’t a penny left with which to pay bills.

The news caused the room to spin at such a rate then, he’d been forced to close his eyes – all the time wondering if it were possible for a twenty-nine-year old to drop dead from shock.

Once his stomach had settled and he’d peeked through his lids, he’d realised the truth of the matter.

His business partner’s desk sat cold and abandoned, the thieving man having made a run for it, leaving Daniel to face the whole wretched mess on his own.

It had taken all his personal savings to keep the company afloat, although already he’d begun to regret the decision. The fire in his soul that inspired him to draw and create beautiful things had smouldered and turned to ash, and he knew if he didn’t get back on the horse soon, in all likelihood he never would.

With hunger nudging his ribs, he locked his office and took the stairs to the lobby.