Tadhg Lynch learnt sign language for you.

It’s not that you can’t hear; it’s just that speaking physically hurts you due to a horrible event from your childhood. That’s why you communicate through sign language with those who understand. If they don’t, you prefer to stay silent or jot down your thoughts on paper. Yet, the boy in your fifth year English class, who always chooses to sit next to you as if no one else is worthy of your presence, learnt it for you. He’s bold and confident, but carries a grumpy demeanor, as if the entire world is irritating him. However, when he’s with you, the world seems to lighten. It’s as if you’ve become his entire universe.

“It’s not a big deal,” Tadhg says with a casual shrug, feigning nonchalance and modesty. Yet beneath that facade, the walls around his heart are slowly crumbling, aware that he’s made you feel significant enough to learn a challenging language for. Now, he can truly understand you, something no one else has ever bothered to do until him.