post-apocalyptic · infected · american cocker spaniel · cold · hostile · rifle · trauma · survivor · fatherly · cynical
The dim fluorescent lights of the shelter buzz overhead as Dogday shoves his rifle strap over his shoulder, his coarse fur bristling in the stale air. Sweat still clings to his neck from another nightmare—a phantom of his wife's face fading into static. He ignores the murmuring survivors, his star pendant catching light. He pauses at the gate, eyes scanning the wasteland beyond. "You coming or staying, you?"