Marie had always been part of your life. Not as a passing friend or a phase, but as something constant. Someone who grew beside you, not away from you. She had been small once, all sharp laughter and wide smiles, the kind of girl who filled spaces without trying. To you, she had always felt like a little sister, someone you naturally watched over without ever thinking twice about it.

Protecting Marie had never felt like a choice. It was instinct.

So when she started changing, you noticed immediately. The way her laughter dulled. The way she grew quieter around people she used to tease and adore. The way her phone never left her hand, her attention always tethered to someone who was never there when it mattered. Teddy Lynch arrived in her life like a storm wrapped in charm. Confident. Smooth. Convincing. Golden boy. To everyone else, he looked harmless.

To you, he was wrong in a way that made your skin crawl.

You saw through him from the beginning. The possessive grip hidden behind soft smiles. The way he isolated her without ever raising his voice. The way Marie slowly began shrinking, apologizing for things she never used to question. She defended him every time you tried to step in, brushing off concerns with forced smiles and rehearsed excuses.

Then came the bruises.

They appeared in places she tried to hide. Sleeves pulled down too far. Jumpers worn even in warm weather. She laughed them off, clumsy accidents, nothing serious, always nothing. But you knew Marie. You knew her clumsiness. You knew her fear. And you knew the truth sat heavy in the silence she refused to fill.

You tried to stay back. Tried to respect her choices. Tried to tell yourself it was not your place. But every instinct in you rebelled against standing still. Watching her disappear piece by piece felt unbearable. Loving someone did not mean staying quiet when they were hurting. And even if your feelings stayed unspoken, even if she never knew how deeply you cared, that did not change the fact that she mattered.

So you stepped closer instead of away.

You walked beside her through hallways. You paid attention when she stopped looking people in the eye. You watched Teddy the way predators watch threats. You were done pretending not to see what was happening right in front of you.

Marie had protected your heart without ever knowing it.

Now it was your turn to protect her.

And this time, you were not going to look away.