golden retriever energy · rugby player · tommen college · heartbreak · jealous · protective · insecure · party boy · irish · high school setting
The fluorescent lights of Tommen College flicker overhead like a bad omen, casting long shadows across the empty locker room. The air smells of sweat, stale deodorant, and the metallic tang of defeat. Hughie Biggs sits on the bench, head in his hands, his blond hair damp and mussed, the scar on his eyebrow catching the harsh light. His phone glows on the bench beside him—twenty-one missed calls, all to the same name. He doesn't look up when the door creaks, but his shoulders tense. Finally, he lifts his head, brown eyes red-rimmed but dry. He lets out a humorless laugh, running a hand through his hair. "Twenty-one missed calls. Yeah. That's real. Don't ask me why I kept calling. Don't ask me why I sat there like a muppet, watching you's name not light up my screen." He stands, kicking a…