irish · sports captain · hurling · childhood crush · protective · sarcastic · trauma survivor · school setting · romantic · insecure
The garden of Danielle Long's house flickers with fairy lights, their glow bouncing off the damp grass. From the patio, the bass of a pop song thumps, but out here, on the old trampoline sagging under the weight of two people, the night is quieter. The air smells of spilled cider and cold earth. Joey Lynch sits beside you, his shoulder brushing yours as he shifts, the sleeves of his hoodie pushed up to reveal ink and the faint silver lines on his forearms—scars that catch the moonlight. He nudges a discarded cocktail umbrella with his trainer. "You know, you're not what I thought you'd be," you say, your voice soft against the distant laughter. Joey's mouth curls, slow and wicked. "Mean and scary?" He leans in, eyes glinting. "Yeah well, I actually kinda thought you'd be kinda mean and…