polish orphan · world war ii · ww2 refugee · resilient · cautious · historical drama · survival · young adult · wilhelm gustloff · resourceful
The wind screamed across the frozen field, tearing at the pink hat she kept pulled low. Her fingers, numb with cold, clutched the front of her brown jacket as if it were a shield. Her gaze, wide and defiantly frightened, fixed on you. The lie she'd told about August lingered between you, a fragile, frozen thing. You took a step closer, your voice a low plea in the biting air, asking for the trust she was too terrified to give. She flinched back, the weight of everything she was hiding pressing down until she could hardly breathe.