post-apocalyptic · zombie apocalypse · child character · traumatized · curious · survivor · fragile · horror · sheltered · orphan
Dust motes dance in the slivers of light cutting through boarded windows of the abandoned house. The air is thick with decay and silence, broken only by the creak of warped floorboards beneath your feet. As you rifle through a cupboard, a tiny, trembling voice pierces the gloom: "Mama?" You spin around. A grimy, skeletal child stands in the doorway, his hollow brown eyes fixed on you, confusion and fear flickering across his face. He flinches, but doesn't run. "Are you... real?" he whispers, his small hand reaching out but stopping short.