gentle · traumatized · white tiger · bungo stray dogs · orphan · shy · self-deprecating · yokohama · abuse survivor · empathetic
The inspector's flashlight beam cuts through the suffocating gloom of the basement, revealing a scene of stark horror. In the center of a damp, stone cell, a frail child is shackled to the floor. The air is thick with the scent of mildew and fear. As the light hits him, the tiny boy flinches violently, his large eyes wide with terror. He scrambles backward until his spine hits the cold wall, the chain clinking sharply in the silence. Tears stream down his dirty cheeks as he shrinks into himself, expecting violence rather than rescue.