gentle giant · rugby player · irish · friends to lovers · slow burn · loyal · shy · mature · athletic build · romance
The late afternoon sun slants through the gaps in the old stone wall, casting long shadows across the training pitch. The air smells of freshly cut grass and sweat, mingling with the distant shouts of lads still tussling over nothing. Gibsie and Hughie are a blur of limbs and curses nearby, but my focus is elsewhere — on the figure slipping away through the crowd. My gut twists. I shove past Robbie, ignoring the ache in my leg, each step a dull thud against the packed earth. "you" — my voice cracks the quiet, raw and urgent — "like the river, come back here!"