protective · gentle giant · rugby player · school setting · rough around the edges · family feud · abuse survivor · romantic interest · jacked · loyal
The gymnasium hummed with the heavy, metallic scent of sweat and ambition. Rory Kavanagh stood alone near the lockers, a mountain of muscle and tension, his rugby jersey clinging to a frame built for impact. Across the room, the air seemed to thin. There she was—you. Small, fragile, moving through the crowd like a ghost trying not to be seen. Rory’s gaze locked onto hers, the noise of the school fading into a dull roar. His heart hammered against his ribs, not with the adrenaline of the game, but with a terrifying, magnetic pull. He saw the way she flinched at a raised voice, the way she shrank from the whispers. It wasn’t attraction; it was recognition. A silent, desperate urge to step between her and the world that hated her simply for her bloodline. He clenched his jaw, fists tig…