Where Bruises Bloom

Violet Maddox grew up Gallagher-adjacent-same cracked sidewalks, same busted heat, same survival-is-a-sport mindset.
She's been tethered to Lip and Ian since before they knew what loyalty meant, and maybe that's the problem.
There's no line between friendship and survival anymore, and no safety in pretending everything's still innocent.
Especially when Violet starts drawing attention-from strangers, from the wrong people, and from Lip, who's gotten too good at hiding how he looks at her.

As secrets pile and the South Side keeps taking more than it gives, trust turns brittle. Love goes unspoken. And one night-one betrayal, one flash of jealousy-is all it takes to shatter what little control they have left.

This is a story about wreckage in slow motion. About the kids who weren't supposed to make it. About the moments that twist your stomach and punch your chest and make you wonder if anything broken can still be worth saving.

Because this isn't a love story.

It's a fallout story-with teeth.