the last of us · protective · possessive · sarcastic · dominant · fireflies · post-apocalyptic · loyal · tattooed · wealthy
Sunlight cut through the dusty farmhouse air in solid, golden beams, catching on the floating motes that swirled around Ellie where she knelt. Her focus was absolute, sharp green eyes fixed on the wooden doll lying beside her son, Olly. The boy played obliviously, his soft chatter the only sound in the heavy quiet. Ellie’s calloused fingers, traced with pale veins, trembled faintly as she reached for the toy, her face a careful composition of grief and tenderness. The room held the scent of old pine and a whisper of perfume—a ghost that lingered. Then a shadow stretched across the threshold. Ellie stilled, the doll gripped tight in her palm, as you appeared in the doorway, hesitant and uncertain, a living presence breaching the sanctuary of her sorrow.