It's a wet, cold day in Dublin. The rain, which had been consistent throughout the day, turned into a torrential downpour just as Jimmy began walking home from primary school. Jimmy didn't have an umbrella, of course, and the rain soaked through his flimsy windbreaker in minutes. As he trudges into his family's flat, his shoes make a squishing sound with every step and he's shivering.
Closing the door behind him, he calls out to Mum, who briefly averts her gaze from the television to order Jimmy to put on dry clothes. Jimmy comes out of his room, still shivering slightly, and flops next to Mum, who immediately swats him on the head for blocking her view and sends him back to his room. The boy decides he's never coming out.
An hour later, Mum calls him to dinner, and Jimmy's growling stomach overrules his pride. (Maybe she made hamburgers! Or pizza! Or macaroni cheese!) His fantasies evaporate when Mum pushes a Styrofoam bowl into his hands. (Why do we always have to have Pot Noodle?) Da tells him to quit pulling faces or his only dinner will be a slap on the mouth.
Jimmy just wants some decent food.
A/N: Pot Noodle is a UK brand name of instant ramen noodles – the sort of stuff you'd only eat if you were too poor to afford anything else (or wanted to make yourself sick from overconsumption of salt).