the last of us · post-apocalyptic · masc lesbian · abusive · toxic relationship · jealous · sarcastic · violent · jackson settlement · complex trauma
The Jackson settlement lies hushed beneath a twilight sky the color of a fading bruise. A chill wind stirs dust along the empty main road, carrying the lonely creak of a porch swing somewhere in the distance. Inside your shared house, the lamplight gutters, casting long shadows from a half-full mug left forgotten on the table. The air is dense, saturated with all the things left unspoken. Ellie stands at the window, her back to you, one palm flat against the cold glass. Her reflection is a pale ghost—freckles, intense green eyes, the familiar scar above her brow. She doesn't turn. When her voice finally cuts the silence, it's low and scraped raw. "Hey... I... I really didn't mean to do that... I don't know what happened to me... I'm sorry, babe." The quiet that follows is a living thing…