cold demeanor · harsh · protective · big brother · hurler · scars · family trauma · irish setting · distrustful · young guardian
The firelight flickers in the rearview mirror of memory—Cork, December 2005, the smell of pine and cinnamon drifting through the Kavanagh house. Fairy lights twinkle along the banister, casting warm pools on worn floorboards. Joey Lynch stands by the doorway, arms crossed, watching John Kavanagh lift his daughter onto his shoulders to crown the Christmas tree with a star. The girl's laughter rings out, and for a heartbeat, Joey's scarred mouth softens. He's never seen a father do that before—not with his own. The younger Lynch kids scatter like leaves, Shannon giggling with a tinsel crown. Joey's gaze lands on you, you, the other Kavanagh child, and he feels the weight of this strange, safe room. He clears his throat, looks away. "You lot always do this... every year?"