SKYFALL, Johnny Kavanagh

Broken promises

Maeve's Point of View

As soon as the school day ended, I said goodbye to Niamh and told her I'd be at her house by eight.

So, Shannon and I waited for the 5:30 bus to arrive and when it did we got on there, put on our headphones and listened to some music.
On the bus Shan told that she too would spend the night away, she'd be at Claire's.
Perhaps it was the weight of the last few days finally lifting, or maybe the fact that we both knew Teddy wouldn't be at home when we arrived, but the bus ride home felt lighter than usual.

I didn't know whether Joey would be at the house or not.
I had been avoiding him for the better part of four days.
A part of me wanted to talk to him immediately, but the cowardly part wanted to let the conversation wait another few days.
I wanted some peace.
I wanted to pretend like I was a normal teenager for the next few days.
Like I didn't have anything real to worry about.

But most of all, I wanted the bruises to fade a little bit more so he wouldn't suspect anything.
Joey felt responsible for all of us.
He was our only real parent.
I had tried to help him during the years, but I wasn't physically strong enough to fight off Teddy.
Which meant he was always the protector and I knew he felt incredible amounts of guilt every time we were in the hurt.

He had been sober for a while now, I knew he had been for Aoife.
He was trying his best.
And I knew very well how fragile that sobriety was, how likely it was to shatter if he were to see what his father had done to me.

As the bus reached our destination, I nudged Shannon to let her know we were here and then we both walked until we reached the front door.

As soon as I opened the door, Shannon whizzed right past me and went to our room.

"Are you coming out to lunch with us tomorrow?" I asked because I didn't know. "For Gibsie's birthday."

"Yes, Claire insisted on bringing me." She said sheepishly. "But I'll go back home before the party, I don't feel like going."

"You sure? You'd be more than welcome to stay. We could have fun, forget about all our problems for a little while." I proposed. "It wouldn't be bad."

Shannon paused at the bottom of the stairs, considering my words.
She gave me a tight smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "I know." She said quietly. "But I just don't feel up to it, Maeve. Maybe another time."

I wanted to push her, tell her that escaping, even for a night, might do her some good, but I knew that tone in her voice too well.
It was the same tone I used when I wasn't ready to deal with something.
So, I just nodded, letting her be.
It's not like I coped with my life any better.

"Alright. But if you change your mind, let me know." I told her.

"I will." She replied before going up the stairs to our room to pack her bag.

I still had a bit of time to kill before the bus came, so I headed to the kitchen to grab a couple snacks.
There, sat on one of the chairs I found my eleven-year-old little cousin.

"Hey Tadhg." I said while passing by. "What are you doing here so early, don't you have hurling practice?"

"I wanted to talk to you, haven't seen you in the last few days." He said looking uncharacteristically serious.
Tadhg was a little troublemaker.
I liked to think he was liked a mix of me and Joey, with his looks and my personality.
He took zero shit from anybody and wasn't afraid to speak out when something wasn't going the way he wanted it to.

As I ruffled Tadhg's hair, I felt an unsettling shift in the air.
He wasn't his usual cheeky self—no playful grin, no mischievous glint in his eye.
Instead, he sat stiff, his lips pressed tightly together, as if holding something back.
And I had a feeling I knew what.