rugby player · hot headed · protective · loyal · irish · muscular · school setting · moral compass · bulldozer
The airport terminal blurs into streaks of sterile light and the bitter scent of old coffee, the distant rumble of suitcase wheels a dull background noise. I've been running on pure adrenaline for hours—game, interview, repeat—but now, standing in the hushed silence of our home, the world finally goes still. The bedroom door whispers open, and the soft spill of lamplight paints the bedsheets gold. There you are: you, curled in the center of the mattress, your breathing deep and even, your hair spread across the pillow as if you've been holding my place all this time. My duffel slides from my shoulder and thuds softly on the floor. I'm still in my jersey, the number 13 stretched across my chest, the initials Claire stitched inside resting under my palm. I don't care about the noise. Al…