This is the first in a six-part series: the Sights and Sounds of the Beachwood Area. If you are the first to guess all six locations described in the articles, you could win a free $10 Mitchell’s gift card.  So what do you have to lose? Drop a comment with your guesses below, and check back here every day for all the BHS News you’ll ever need. Note:  some locations are outside the Beachwood city limits, but still in Northeast Ohio.  Journalism students and Beachcomber staff are not eligible to win.

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The sun shines brightly through the large, glass windows overhead. Two elderly women, perhaps in their early to mid eighties, chat at a table over a cup of coffee, with their respective canes leaning up next to the table. Two women in their thirties sit at the table next to them, devouring ice cream from plastic cups using white plastic spoons.

Overhead, “What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction blares over the speakers as the water in the lit fountain dances. The artificial trees rise high to the ceiling, with leaves occasionally drifting away onto the floor.

A mother, perhaps in her late twenties, with a Starbucks cup clutched in her hand, pushes her daughter around in a stroller. Behind her, a family consisting of a father, mother and young son are casually strolling toward the exit. The young son runs around his parents, spouting out gibberish and laughing. Meanwhile, an employee crosses over to a different area to hug another employee in celebration. An aroma of ice cream, fresh coffee and cleaning supplies fill the air.

Nearly everyone who passes by is on a cell phone, talking to someone or sending a text message. Most of the passersby are holding some variety of beverage in their hand, with at least one shopping bag slung around their arm. A security guard oversees the crowd from above, while conversing with a maintenance employee. Several children stop and throw coins into the fountain.

“Woah, good throw!” one mother exclaims to her daughter, who appears to be about four years old. An escalator hums away, efficiently whisking people down to the first floor. An alarm from a store blares but is quickly silenced. A security guard offers directions to a confused looking couple on how to find the entrance they came in from. A group of about six teenage girls walk past, planning the events of their day.