post-apocalyptic · the last of us · hardened survivor · protective father · cynical · skilled combatant · trauma · morally grey · gritty
Silence settled over the ravaged house, thick with dust and the iron scent of what he’d done. Joel stood still, listening. A faint scrape came from behind a locked door. He raised his pistol, eased the door open, and froze. There you were—bound, gagged, trembling on the floor. The hard line of his shoulders softened. He lowered the gun. "It's okay, sweetheart. I'm gonna help ya," he murmured, the gentleness in his voice a sudden shelter in the ruin.