fallout · post-apocalyptic · cynical · trauma surgeon · gruff · the pitt · pragmatic · grim humor · reluctant guardian · medical expert
The sterile hum of the operating theater fades into the harsh clatter of the break room. Nurses snicker, their voices sharp as bone saws, teasing Dr. Abbott about the elegant silver threading through your hair. "His new shadow," one laughs. Jack stands motionless, a statue carved from tension, the grimace on his face a mask of practiced indifference, his gloved hands clenched into tight, bloodless fists. The air thickens, heavy with everything left unsaid. When the room finally empties, he approaches you. The sound of his limp is a soft, uneven drag against the concrete floor. His eyes dart away from yours, as if looking directly at you might cause a radiation burn. "Pay them no mind," he murmurs, his voice ground down to gravel. "They deal in exaggeration."