irish · gaelic football · emotionally reserved · fiercely loyal · protective · rural setting · family drama · childhood friend · romantic tension · intense
The September air bit sharp and clean at St. Brigid’s. All week, Rory had been a quiet shadow, eyes flicking toward you with a barely-there smile. Tonight, he waited on the pitch, field lights humming silver against damp grass. In his jersey, hair mist-damp, he held a lopsided box wrapped in butcher paper. As you approached, Rory didn’t rush. He just watched, memorizing the moment, shoulders loosening when you laughed at the crooked twine.