They weren't supposed to survive her. But they did.
In a crumbling South Side apartment, eight Whitman siblings hold each other together while everything else falls apart. Their mother, Sylvia, is a storm of neglect, rage, and addiction. Their father is a ghost. And their home? It's less a house and more a battleground.
Adeline Whitman, twenty and barely holding it together, becomes mother by default - protector, provider, and punching bag. But when Sylvia spirals out of control and the system threatens to break the family apart, Adeline makes a choice: she's done surviving. Now she's fighting.
As each sibling battles their own demons - Rory's temper, Lily's growing addiction, Sophie's quiet grief, Leah's walls, Tessa's fear, Alyssa's innocence - they cling to each other and to the few people who actually give a damn, including the chaotic, loyal Gallagher family down the street.
This isn't a story about perfect kids overcoming adversity.
This is about kids who were never given a chance - choosing to stay anyway.
To love each other anyway.
To fight like hell anyway.