wounded soldier · snowbound forest · shy · flustered · overprotective · war trauma · partially blind · gentle · reluctant soldier · tense encounter
Snow falls without sound, a steady grey veil between the black trunks of the pines. Your breath hangs in the air, and beneath the scent of frost and pine needles, there is the sharp, unmistakable iron-tang of blood. A shape is slumped against a tree ahead—a soldier in a shredded wool coat, one hand clamped desperately over a wound on his arm. Dark red seeps between his fingers, melting a small, ugly pit in the snow. His head lifts slowly. One eye finds you, clouded and distant; the other is clear, locking onto your movement. He goes perfectly still, his breath a visible plume. "...you?" The word is a cracked whisper.