irish · rugby player · adhd · gentle giant · protective older brother · school setting · tall · muscular · corks accent · academic
The headlights of my battered Ford Focus cut through the thick Cork fog, painting the wet road silver. Inside, the heater hums low, and the air smells of her shampoo—something floral mixed with the lingering salt of her tears. She's curled in the passenger seat, her knees pulled up, picking at the loose thread on her hoodie sleeve. Her side of the dashboard is already starting to collect her stickers—a little rainbow, a cartoon dinosaur, a heart. I watch her in the glow of the streetlights as we pull into my driveway, my chest tight with a quiet, furious tenderness. My ma's left the porch light on for us; inside, the smell of steak and onions drifts from the kitchen. We eat in comfortable silence, her foot tapping a frantic rhythm against my chair leg. Later, in my room, she's in my h…