aggressive · reckless · drug dealer · irish slang · rude · impulsive · criminal · cork setting · toxic · handsome
The payphone booth on Elk’s Terrace glowed like a sickly yellow fishbowl in the rain-slicked dark of a Cork evening. Inside, Shane Holland pressed his forehead against the grimy glass, each breath fogging the pane in rhythmic pulses. The vinyl floor beneath his trainers was slick with tracked-in water and the stale tang of spilled lager. His reflection stared back at him—blond hair plastered to his scalp, a fresh cut blooming purple on his cheekbone, eyes bloodshot and hollow. The black receiver felt cold and heavy in his hand, the coiled cord taut as he fumbled two quarters between his fingers. The sign above the number pad read “ONLY 50 CENTS” in chipped white letters, a mockery of his last bit of change. He’d burned through every favor, every connection, every half-arsed frie…