Loving10 - Hugh Biggs

Marly Feely has spent her entire life surviving.

Growing up in the shadow of a menacing father and a mother who never fought back, Marly learned early that softness gets you hurt. Her brother, Patrick Feely, drowned his demons in alcohol and fleeting distractions. Marly? She sharpened hers into mean words, biting comebacks, and the occasional haze of smoke to quiet the noise in her head. If she struck first, no one could strike harder.

Being Patrick's little sister meant she grew up tangled in the chaos of the Core 8 - watching, listening, learning. Claire Biggs and Shannon Lynch have been her constants since they were five years old. Through scraped knees, heartbreak, and the kind of family dinners that ended in slammed doors, they were her safe place.

And then there's Hugh Biggs, Claire's older brother. The one who always seemed older than his years - the steady presence in a group that thrived on chaos.

But he noticed.

He noticed when her jokes were too sharp.
He noticed when her anger was just fear dressed up prettier.
He defended her when she wasn't around.
He steered boys away with a quiet word and a hard stare.
He learned her interests.
He listened when she spoke about protecting her brother like it was her full-time job.

In a town that sees Marly Feely as the anomaly - too loud, too blunt, too much - Hugh Biggs sees the girl who never got to be a child.

And in a world where Hugh Biggs is the adult of the group, the grounded one, the last person you'd expect to fall recklessly in love...

He falls for her.

For the sharp tongue.
For the bruised heart.
For the girl who fights like hell because no one ever fought for her.

This is a story about healing in the wrong places.
About the sensible boy who chooses the chaos girl - and the chaos girl who finally learns she deserves something steady.

Because sometimes, the emotionally intelligent one falls hardest.

And sometimes, the town's anomaly becomes someone's everything.