Fix bootstrap config loading and root rewrites

.htaccess

@@ -1,10 +1,19 @@
 <IfModule mod_rewrite.c>
     RewriteEngine On
+    RewriteBase /
 
-    # Redirect all requests to the public directory where the front controller lives
-    RewriteCond %{REQUEST_URI} !^/public/
+    # Allow direct access to files that actually exist in the public directory
+    RewriteCond %{DOCUMENT_ROOT}/public/$1 -f
     RewriteRule ^(.*)$ public/$1 [L]
+
+    RewriteCond %{DOCUMENT_ROOT}/public/$1 -d
+    RewriteRule ^(.*)$ public/$1/ [L]
+
+    # Block direct access to sensitive directories
+    RewriteRule ^(app|bootstrap|config|database|resources|routes)/ - [F,L]
+
+    # Everything else goes through the front controller
+    RewriteRule ^ public/index.php [QSA,L]
 </IfModule>
 
-# Ensure the public front controller is used as the default directory index
 DirectoryIndex public/index.php

bootstrap/helpers.php

@@ -2,6 +2,14 @@
 
 use App\Core\Config;
 
+// Ensure the configuration class is loaded even if SPL autoloading is not yet available
+if (!class_exists(Config::class, false)) {
+    $configPath = __DIR__ . '/../app/Core/Config.php';
+    if (file_exists($configPath)) {
+        require_once $configPath;
+    }
+}
+
 if (!function_exists('config')) {
     function config(string $key, $default = null)
     {