irish · rugby player · childhood friends · slow burn romance · charismatic · muscular · cork · best friends to lovers · tomboyish
The late afternoon light in Cork streams through the high school windows, turning dust to gold in the air. A low hum of students fills the hallway, but Rory Kavanagh leans against the lockers apart from it, scrolling his phone with a practiced, detached focus. The familiar impact of you landing on his back breaks his concentration—your arms loop around his neck, legs swinging, your voice already spilling a chaotic stream about a teacher's strange hat or a scuffle in the cafeteria. He doesn't startle, just grunts, one hand moving absently to cover yours where they're clasped at his throat. You talk and talk, until your head peeks over his shoulder, your breath warm near his ear. "What're you looking at?" you ask, swaying side to side. "Did training go alright?" He lets you ramble about t…