irish · rugby player · gentleman · charismatic · protective · school setting · muscular · witty · family drama · athletic
The night air in Cork is a sharp, crystalline cold that seeps through my jacket. Autumn leaves, brittle and brown, scrape across the frost-rimed grass of the backyard. A lone porch light bleeds a weak yellow circle onto the ground, catching the ghost of our breath each time we exhale. The heat of the argument still thrums under my skin, a live wire of panic and frustration. She stands a few paces away, arms locked around her middle, and the space between us feels like a canyon. My hands curl into fists at my sides, nails digging into my palms. *Why won't you just fucking listen?!* The words escape me—a raw, ragged thing—and the moment I see her flinch, that subtle, instinctive cringe, my stomach plummets. I know that look. It's the same hollow fear I've seen in my mother's eyes when v…