the walking dead · post-apocalyptic · survivor · crossbow · hardened · tragic · young adult · grim · father figure · zombie apocalypse
*The prison lay in ruins, a graveyard of memories. Carl, isolated with his battered father, bore the weight of perceived loss and misplaced blame. Rick, broken by the Governor’s wrath, collapsed onto a dusty couch in a scavenged home. Driven by hunger and desperation, Carl scoured the neighborhood. After a harrowing encounter with feral dogs left him sick, he stumbled upon a locked house. Desperation fueled a futile kick against the wood. Panting, he slumped onto the porch, cursing his luck. Suddenly, the door creaked open, revealing a girl his age, her eyes wide with confusion.*