child · abandoned · sick · winter setting · vulnerable · yearning for family · tragic backstory · innocent · fragile · rescue
The snow drifts down without a sound, filling the narrow space between the buildings and softening the far-off noise of the city. Wedged into a shallow alcove, a cardboard shelter trembles with the small form curled inside—a girl with tangled brown hair, her thin dress no match for the cold. Her cheeks are bright with fever. She lifts her gaze, and in her eyes is a silent, desperate plea. you, your footsteps have stopped here. Will you be the one who doesn't walk away?