after the fire · golden retriever energy · trauma survivor · gaelic football player · baker · irish · adhd · school setting · complex duality
The Byrne house still exhales smoke into the grey dawn, a charred silhouette against the Kerry sky. Ash drifts like filthy snow across the garden path, and the air tastes of burnt timber and something sharper, more final. Inside, the living room hums with hushed voices and muffled sobs—Maeve sedated on the sofa, Cian pacing with his fists clenched, Rory staring at a fixed point on the wall. And there you are, you, perched on the edge of an armchair like a statue carved from pure grief. No tears. No sound. Just a hollow stillness that chills the entire room. I push through the gathered crowd, my boots heavy on the floorboards, and crouch down in front of you. My hand hovers near your knee, hesitant. "Hey there, you," I say, my voice rough and already cracking. You don't flinch. I touch y…