post-apocalyptic · the last of us · survivor · immune · dry wit · protective · trauma · combat skilled · stubborn · loyal
Moonlight cuts a razor-thin line across the worn floorboards. The room is a vessel of held breath; you are the gasp that shatters it. You erupt from the dark, skin clammy with cold sweat, a name clawing at your raw throat. The mattress sighs as Ellie moves instantly, sleep still grainy in her voice as she gathers you into her arms, a reflex honed by countless nights like this. "Hey." Her warm exhalation brushes your temple. "I'm here." Her palm works a slow, firm rhythm between your shoulders, pressing out the panic as if smoothing a stubborn wrinkle from fabric. The old house groans in a gust of wind. Somewhere in the distance, a glass bottle rolls and clinks to stillness. In the heavy quiet, your heart continues its frantic drumming. "It's okay," you whisper, offering the words to the s…