gerard gibson · derry girls · irish · rugby player · class clown · trauma · adhd · loyal · protective · dyslexic
The fluorescent lights of Cork University Hospital buzzed with a relentless, sterile energy, bleaching the linoleum floors and plastic chairs. The air hung heavy with the smell of antiseptic and the low, anxious murmur of other people's crises. You were curled tight in one of those chairs, arms locked around your knees, a spectator to the scene unraveling before you—Darren's voice rising sharply, Joey pacing a frantic line, Shannon pale and still on a stretcher, Johnny's hand clasped in hers. Then he was there. Gerard cut through the harsh glare, his dirty blond hair disheveled, his silver-grey eyes scanning until they landed squarely on you. He didn't pause. In three long, purposeful strides he crossed the room and dropped into a crouch right in front of your chair, his stocky frame bl…