Releasing 10 (Boys of Tommen, #6)

by Chloe Walsh

“And you must never let anyone make you feel like there is something wrong with you.”

Interesting..

Her blue eyes started to water. “Please talk to me.” Sniffling, she swept me up in her arms and held me to her chest. “Please, Liz, just one word. I’m begging you.” I’m trying.

“It’s called trauma, Michael, and you of all the people in the world should understand how she feels.”

“When you’re a grown-up, I’ll explain everything to you.” “But I want to know now.” “Trust me, you don’t.” “But you’re not a grown-up,” I pointed out. “So how come you get to know?” “Because I learned about it the hard way.”

“Do you see that signpost, sweetheart? Look out the window.” I searched until my eyes landed on a huge signpost on the side of the road. Ballylaggin County Cork

“Don’t say that,” one of her friends from school said while he rubbed her shoulder. He was the only boy at her party. “I have younger brothers and sisters, too, and they throw tantrums all the time.” “Not like her, they don’t,” Caoimhe wailed into her pillow. “You clearly haven’t met Joey,”

I didn’t feel bad, though. I didn’t feel like screaming. Instead, I felt warm. My thoughts were nice and slow. It always happened when I sat next to Shannon Lynch. It made me want to sit with her forever.

“You’re different, Lizzie Young.” “I am?” She nodded and smiled. “You’re special.” “Is that bad?” “No.” She shook her head, still smiling. “You remind me of Joe.” “Your brother?” “Yep.” She nodded again. “And that’s a very good thing.”

“Heads up!” I heard a boy call out moments before the bully staggered away from us. “Omigod!” Gripping her head, the girl started to scream like a banshee. “My head, my head!” Shocked, I turned to see Joey Lynch coming down the steps that led from the pitch to the school gates with a hurley slung over his shoulder.

“I’m just thinking about my friend,” he explained, still chuckling. “He’s dressing up as Peter Pan.” He choked out another hearty laugh, and this time a snort escaped. “He has green tights and everything.”

“You really don’t have to dress up.” His tone was gentle when he added, “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.” “Really?” “Yeah.” He looked at me for a long time before he shook his head and stood up. “I better go back to my friends.” Reaching for his bag, he slung it over his shoulder and offered me a smile. “See ya later.” “See ya,”

Ill be seeing ya malloy ahh

She sort of resembled a ghost. Or an angel. Something different. Something special.

“That was so badass,” Gibsie panted, climbing out of the bushes, with Patrick and Claire in tow. Jogging over to us, he slung his arm over my shoulder and laughed. “Lads, we have to keep this girl.”

“Then it’s official,” Hugh said, turning to smile at me. “You’re one of us now.” “I am?” “That means we keep each other’s secrets and stick together, no matter what.” My heart leapt. “No matter what?” “Yeah, Liz.” Hugh smiled. “No matter what.”

“You’re a good boy, Hugh, and I know you’re so emotionally mature that I don’t need to ask, but please keep an eye out for her.” Mam stroked my cheek and smiled sadly. “She’s a very fragile little girl who needs looking after.” “I’ll do it,” I vowed, casting a glance out the patio window to the blond girl twirling around in circles in her denim dungarees. “I’ll look after her, Mam, I promise.”

“Sometimes grown-ups do bad things,” she agreed. “But just because the grown-ups do bad things, doesn’t mean the kids are to blame.”

Before Liz, I never really believed that a girl could be your best friend, but she was living proof of it. I preferred her company above all others and spent all my free time with her.

In that moment, I vowed to never sit back and do nothing. I would never be a statue like Mark or incapable like Sadhbh and Keith. For the rest of my life, I would help. I would save people. I would bring them back to life.

“What about my heart?” He laughed softly. “Your heart works just fine.” “But what if it breaks?” “That won’t happen.” “How come?” He turned another page before saying, “Because I won’t break it.”

“I fucking hate him, Liz,” he admitted when I asked if he was happy that his dad had come to the party tonight. With his arms resting behind his head, Hugh stared up at my bedroom ceiling and sighed. “He might as well have just stopped swimming that day because he hasn’t lived a day since.”

All I could do was stay. So that’s what I did. Because I knew deep down inside that I would sit with Lizzie Young for the rest of my life if it kept the sadness out of her eyes.

“Hey, Lizzie?” “Yeah, Gibs?” “You sure you’re okay?” “Yep.” Smiling, I reached up and brushed a tear from his cheek. “I’m always okay, Gibs.”

I knew the lads at school would call me an egghead for admitting it, but I fucking loved reading. Thrillers, murder mystery, true crime, autobiographies—it didn’t matter. I devoured every genre like crack. For me, books trumped rugby, soccer, and pretty much every other extracurricular activity I found myself lumped into.

One of my favorite things about Liz was that she matched my enthusiasm for reading. We could easily sit for hours in each other’s company reading, without feeling an ounce of pressure to make awkward conversation because there was never any awkwardness between us.

Oblivious to the fact that his shirt was about three sizes too small for him, Joey Lynch rolled what was left of the sleeves up to his elbows before ruffling his sister’s hair and offering her a warm smile. It wasn’t raining today, but the cold October breeze was skinning, and I knew he had to be freezing. So why did he do it? Why did he give her something he didn’t have to spare?

“That there’s only one boy I want as my boyfriend.” She kept her eyes on mine when she stepped closer, so close that I could feel her heart thundering in her chest. “And he’s the only boy I’ll ever say yes to.”

“You know what they say about weirdos, don’t you?” “They’re drawn to fellow weirdos?” Hugh mused with a knowing smile. “That must be why I’m so obsessed with you.” My heart skipped a solid three beats in my chest when he said that.

“Okay, that makes sense.” He looked thoughtful for a moment before turning to scowl at Feely. “Why didn’t you just say that at the beginning, Patrick.” Feely opened his mouth to protest, only to think better of it and mutter the words “give me strength” under his breath instead.

“So let’s have it.” Flicking a trail of ash onto the grass, Joey took another drag of his self-made cigarette. “Who made you cry?” “Why?” I arched a brow. “Are you going to beat them up?” “I might,” he replied with a lazy shrug. “If you need me to.”

“I’m okay, Hugh,” he whispered, trembling beneath the covers, as he curled up in the fetal position. “I’m always okay.”

I tried to tell Sadhbh about the bullying, but she wouldn’t hear a word said against her precious stepson. I tried to tell Caoimhe, and she believed me even less.

“I’ll always pick you, Liz.” Hugh’s arm came around my waist and he pulled me closer to his chest. “You’ll always be first choice.” “For trips?” “For everything.”

“I heard he’s some hotshot from Dublin.” “His dad’s one of the Kavanaghs from town.” “And he’s joining our class after summer?” “Yeah, he joined sixth class for a couple of weeks before we broke up for the holidays.”

JOHNNYYYYYYYYY

This girl and these lips would haunt me for a lifetime.

I couldn’t go to my mother for reassurance about the things happening to my body, and I shouldn’t have had to go to my friends, either. I should have been able to go to my father.

Shivering violently, I watched him kiss my shame away. Because those scars on my wrists depicted the ugliest parts of my mind. But Hugh kissed each one like they were beautiful. Like I was beautiful. Like I was still me.

My girl.

None of the lads in our class could understand why someone like Johnny would want to hang out with Gibsie. I could. Gibsie was the greatest friend a person could have. He was loyal, trustworthy, had the best personality in the whole school, and really fucking cared about the people he loved. Feely and I both knew that friends like Gerard Gibson didn’t come around too often, and I was glad Johnny realized it, too.

He would always have me in his corner, no matter what, but seeing him making his way at school, and making friends for himself, made me so fucking proud. Because Johnny Kavanagh was his friend. Yeah, the four of us all hung out at lunch together, and Feely and I considered Johnny our friend, too, but everyone knew where Cap’s loyalties rested. With our Gibs. “What are you thinking about?” Liz asked, grinning at me. “You’ve got the biggest smile on your face.” “Nothing,” I replied, still smiling. “I’m just happy.”

“Whenever Mam gets sick, Caoimhe always gets to have him over.” She choked out a pained sob. “It’ll happen again this time. Dad will leave and I’ll be left alone.” “No, it won’t because I won’t let that happen,” I promised, holding her close. “She has him, but you have me.”

“I was there that day on the boat, asshole, and I was at the funeral, too. I remember everything. I especially remember the smirk you had on your face when my friend was saying goodbye to his father, who, just so happens to be my godfather.” “Was your godfather,” Mark shot back with a cruel smirk. “Joe Gibson is past tense.” Instead of losing the head, I smiled in response, and it seemed to throw him off-kilter. “Is that how you do it?” I asked with a low chuckle. “How you get under people’s skin? You target their deceased loved ones?” I laughed again, thoroughly enjoying how his face reddened. “Jesus, you’re even more pathetic than I realized.”

CLOCK it

“You mark my words, Biggs, one day in the future, when you’re all grown-up, I’m going to hunt you down, and I’m going to put a bullet in your head.” “Oh yeah?” Still smiling, I locked eyes on him and warned, “Or maybe, one day in the future, when I’m all grown-up, I’ll hunt you down and put a bullet in yours.”

if this is foreshadowing a hugh death in ANY way, i will crash out

When Hugh was around, everything in my life stabilized. It was as if he held my world in his hands and forced it to stop spinning, giving me time to catch my breath and get back up on my feet.

Monster. He was a monster. The monster was real. Mark was the monster.

“None of what happened that day was your fault, Gibs. Do you hear me? It was an accident.” Swallowing down my emotion, I steadied my voice before adding, “It was a horrible, awful, terrible thing that happened, Gibs, but it was an accident.” I tightened my arms around his trembling frame. “I know you feel alone in that house since your mam married him, but I promise you that you’re not. You have us. My family is your family, too.” Clenching my eyes shut, I squeezed the shit out of my friend, desperate to soothe his pain. “And you have me, Gibs. You will always have me.”

first cry of the book

But it wasn’t Gibsie keeping her company, like I had implicitly instructed him to do. It was Mark.

I dont like how he said this, makes it seem like its all gibs fault

Lizzie released one more gut-wrenching sob before looking Gibs right in the eyes and saying, “Don’t ever speak to me again.” It was at that exact moment I came to the sudden realization that nothing would ever be the same.

“I’m going to grow up, Liz. One day, I’ll be a man, and if that prick even looks in your direction, I’ll put him in the ground.”

Meanwhile, Gibsie was so inconsolable over the whole ordeal that he could barely function. Beyond devastated at the realization of losing one of his best friends, Gibs had spent most nights since the funeral in floods of tears, finding comfort in Claire, who, aside from school, remained faithfully by his side.

though. There was a part of my girlfriend that went into the ground with her sister, and I couldn’t stop it from happening.