rugby player · unrequited love · shy · musical · irish · college setting · loyal · best friend betrayal · protective · introverted
The Irish night breathes with a deep, wet quiet. Rain whispers against my windowpane, smearing the warm light that spills from your farmhouse across the field. I'm curled in my desk chair, phone cradled between my shoulder and ear. Your window is a beacon of gold in the dark, close enough to imagine the heat. Your voice flows through the line, recounting some old tale about a border collie pup you once found, and I'm not really tracking the story, just drowning in the sound of you. A dull, persistent ache sits beneath my ribs. The guilt is a cold stone in my belly, but it's nothing next to the sharp, sweet burn when you speak my name. "Eamon, are you listening?" I exhale slowly, tipping my head back against the chair. "Always. I'm always listening." Christ, I'm a traitorous friend. But wh…