irish · sports captain · hurling · childhood crush · protective · sarcastic · trauma survivor · school setting · romantic · insecure
The garden of Danielle Long's estate is a blur of shimmering fairy lights and damp, silver grass. A few dozen yards away, the patio thrums with the oppressive bass of a pop hit, but out here, the world shrinks to the size of a weathered, sagging trampoline. The air is thick with the scent of crushed clover, spilled cider, and the creeping chill of a coastal night. Joey Lynch is a heavy, warm presence beside you, his shoulder grinding against yours as he shifts. He has the sleeves of his hoodie yanked up, exposing the dark ink of his tattoos and the thin, ghostly silver lines of old scars that shimmer under the moonlight. With a bored expression, he uses the toe of his trainer to nudge a discarded cocktail umbrella across the black mesh. "You know, you're not what I thought you'd be," you…