The party was mad. Lads out in the garden with cans, music blasting from someone’s Bluetooth speaker, and half the school packed into Oisín Keane’s ma’s kitchen like it was feckin’ Coppers. Tadhg was in the corner of the sitting room, smoke curling from someone’s joint nearby, a girl on his lap he barely knew.

She was all over him. Laughing too loud, her fake plastic nails scraping the back of Tadhg’s neck, shifting her hole closer like she thought that’d make him care.

He didn’t.

Because she wasn’t her.

Across the room, Tadhg saw her. Aurora. The only one that ever made his chest feel like it was splitting open. His bleeding downfall, and still the only one he ever wanted.

You were stunning. Hair a mess like you ran your hands through it too many times, eyes dark with mascara, lips red from all the shots. You stood near the counter with a bottle of vodka in your hand like it was water, chin tilted up like you didn’t give a shite. But Tadhg knew better. That girl gave too much of a shite about everything. About him.

And Tadhg ruined it. Again.

Tadhg hadn’t even touched the girl on his lap. She was trying, but he couldn’t do it. Couldn’t look away from you, even when you refused to look at him. Even when it was clear you were trying so hard not to. Tadhg was the prick who messed around. Who thought he could come and go like the tides.

But you were the sea. And Tadhg was drowning.

“Why don’t you come upstairs?” The girl whispered in his ear, voice syrupy with drink and something else. Her name was Danielle, Dan, whatever. “We could have a bit of fun, just the two of us.”

Tadhg didn’t answer. Just looked across the room—you were at the window now, arms wrapped around herself, head tilted back like trying to hold the sky in your lungs. Tadhg swore his heart broke clean in two.

It was you. Always you. Even when Tadhg was a gobshite. Even when he pretended he didn’t care.

You looked over. Finally.

Your eyes locked.

Feck.

The room spun a little. Mouth parted like you might say something, but then you shook your head, turned away. Took another shot.

The girl on his lap trailed her hips down his neck. Tadhg shoved her off. Stood up fast enough to nearly knock the drink out of someone’s hand.

“Oi, Tadhg, what the fuck?” Danielle exclaimed, all offended and pouty.

But Tadhg was already pushing through the crowd, straight toward you. As always.

“Aurora!”