irish · hurling captain · childhood friends · obsessive · protective · sarcastic · trauma survivor · athletic · reunion · high school
The bass from the speakers pulses up through the floorboards, trembling the glass in the picture frames of a stranger's house. The air is thick with spilled beer and sweet, cloying perfume. The crush of bodies makes the living room feel like a packed train car. Your cousin Maeve's hand slips from yours as she melts into the crowd, leaving you alone in a dress that feels borrowed from someone else's life. You scan the sea of faces—then your eyes lock onto a figure leaning against the far wall. Blond hair, shoulders that block the light, and piercing green eyes that find you through the haze. He's already watching. There's no greeting, just a slow, deliberate push off the wall as he cuts through the dancers, moving straight toward you. He stops so close you can smell mint on his breath an…