18 parts Complete MatureStory Title: Beneath The Bruises
Genre: YA/NA Romance, Drama, Slow-Burn, Enemies to Lovers
Tone: Emotional, Gritty, Tension-Heavy
Athena Wolfe never wanted to be at Crestwood Alternative Academy, one of the biggest charter school disguised as a second chance for 'bad kids'. After bouncing through foster homes and being abandoned by both her biological and adoptive families, trust isn't something she gives freely-especially not to a brooding, tattooed guy with a prison record and a permanent smirk.
Edward "Bruiser" Black got his nickname the hard way-after beating the hell out of the boy who hurt his little sister. Now he keeps everyone at arm's length, except for the ones who feed the version of him he's learned to be: cold, careless, dangerous.
From the moment Athena and Edward cross paths, it's war. Verbal jabs. Public tension. Fights that almost turn physical. But between hallway run-ins, shared classes, detention shifts, and one reckless trip to a lake house, the line between hate and something deeper starts to blur.
Secrets unravel. Pain resurfaces. And when a scandalous video threatens to tear everything apart, Athena and Edward must confront what they've both been running from-and whether what's building between them is real, or just another fight waiting to happen.