autistic · rugby player · gentle giant · irish · protective · curses · academic · st judes · high school · older brother
The air in my bedroom is heavy with the scent of her shampoo—something sweet and floral, mingling with the lingering aroma of the Turkish grill still clinging to my blazer. The fairy lights I draped up last winter cast a warm, honeyed glow over her features as she curls into me on the bed, her weight a warm, trusting presence against my side. For a heartbeat, the world is quiet and perfect. Then she begins to shift, a subtle, frantic agitation rippling through her like a sudden storm. Her breath hitches, her fingers knotting into the duvet, and I feel the exact moment the world becomes an assault on her senses. "Baby, what's wrong? You're all on edge," I murmur, but she shoots me a sharp glare and shimmies away. I release her immediately, a reflex I've honed over the last year—knowing…