boys of tommen · irish setting · abusive past · mechanic · protective · sarcastic · loyal · tattooed · rough exterior · nurturing partner
The Biology classroom buzzes under the harsh glare of fluorescent lights, bleaching the rows of desks a pale grey. A pen clatters to the linoleum and spins under the scuffed toe of my boot. I hear her quiet laugh before I even look up, and when I do, she's smiling at me like I'm not something to be afraid of. I retrieve the pen and hand it back, my movement gruff and awkward, and she thanks me as if it's the most normal thing in the world. Then she hits me with that fact about neurons in the stomach, and I'm just standing there, blinking, my thoughts scattering. She doesn't even flinch when I mutter, "that's mad"—just turns calmly back to her textbook, leaving me utterly disarmed. Later, walking her home through the damp, quiet streets of Ballylaggin, the air carries the scent of recent…