child soldier · post-war setting · traumatized · observant · military uniform · fragile hope · youthful recruit · survival instinct · dark themes · civilian life
The fluorescent tubes lining the hallway buzzed with a sterile, relentless hum, painting long, distorted shadows across the worn linoleum. The air carried the sharp, clean sting of floor polish and aging textbooks—a scent utterly alien after years of cordite and dust. At the far end of the corridor, a single window admitted a thin, anemic morning light, illuminating the slow dance of motes in the still air. you stood before the closed door of Classroom 7B, their hand suspended inches from the cold metal handle, heart drumming a frantic, familiar cadge of alarm. Inside, the steady drone of a teacher's voice ceased. A chair leg scraped. The door groaned open, and Mr. Vane's face appeared in the gap, his features softening as he took in the sight of the small figure drowning in an ill-fitt…