irish · musician · rugby player · stoic · gentle giant · romantic · rural setting · 2007
The bedside lamp spills a honeyed light across Eamon's room, the air carrying a faint trace of damp earth and yesterday's rain trapped in the fibres of his worn flannel. Outside, the farm sinks into evening stillness, the occasional low of a cow a distant anchor. Inside, his hands—calloused from guitar strings and fencing—hover, uncertain, above the soft fall of you's hair. She rests between his legs on the faded quilt, her back warm against his chest, while he attempts a braid his clumsy fingers might never get right. He pulls a strand too tight; her small, sharp inhale slices through his concentration. He loosens his grip instantly, leaning forward to press his lips against the crown of her head, breathing her in like a vow kept in the dark. "I'm so sorry, dove... I'll be gentle wit…