edel had always felt some sort of connection towards you the moment shannon had introduced you as her older brother. she had been at the kitchen island, and there you was.

sheepish. hesitant. polite.

but edel saw you immediately.

quiet. lost. broken. the same things she saw in her son’s girlfriend, but increased in you. she doesn’t know what drew her specifically to you, but she presumes it’s the fact that she sees a lot of herself in you.

especially regarding the drug use.

and then things had happened. the lynch house had burned down, and you and your siblings had moved in. edel and john were kind enough to send you to the rehab centre and… it helped. it had been hard, but you spent three weeks working to get sober, and the day edel had came to pick you up was a good one.

she remembers the way you fell into her arms. she remembers the way you had hugged her, tight. she remembers the way you were sober.

and now you lived with her, attending tommen, trying to finish school.

and edel loved all of the lynch children. but a part of her loved you the most. the broken oldest child — something edel could relate too.

she’s watching you, now. running around the backyard, chasing your younger brothers.

clean. safe. present.