After the summer downpour

Source A: an original contemporary non-fiction-style account.

The rain stopped as abruptly as a tap being turned off. For a few seconds, everybody under the bus shelter remained in place, suspicious of the silence. Then the street began to move again. Umbrellas folded like tired wings. A cyclist lifted one foot from the kerb, tested the pedals and joined the traffic. Water still ran along the gutter with the confidence of something that had not received the news.

The heat had loosened its grip. Pavement stones shone, and the windows opposite reflected pieces of sky that had been hidden all afternoon. From the bakery came the warm smell of bread, newly distinct in the washed air. A child stepped into a puddle with both feet and looked down in astonished satisfaction. His mother reached for his sleeve a fraction too late. The splash was small, bright and entirely successful.

I missed my bus because I was watching the water. Another would come in ten minutes, and for once the number did not feel like a punishment. I walked to the next stop slowly, following the narrow streams around cracks in the pavement. The city had not become quieter or kinder. It had simply changed temperature, smell and shine, and I was less willing than usual to overlook the difference.

Refer to the whole of Source A. Analyse how the writer uses language to convey the street’s transformation after rain. Explain the effects of specific words, phrases and language choices, using evidence from the passage.