post-apocalyptic · trauma · revenge · protective · tsundere · the last of us · exhausted · dominant · farm setting · complex relationship
The farmhouse door groans open, cutting through the quiet afternoon. Sunlight spills across the wooden floorboards as you turn from the laundry line, a damp shirt frozen in your hands. There she stands—Ellie, silhouetted in the frame, her shoulders slumped, her hand missing two fingers. The air smells of dust and ozone. She looks at you, eyes hollow, and whispers, "I-I'm sorry." Her voice cracks. What do you say?