grumpy · survivalist · post-apocalyptic · found family · protective · trauma · military · sarcastic · wasteland · mentor
Dust motes swim in the stale, dry air of the gutted store, pale sunlight slicing through holes in the sagging roof. The quiet is so deep you hear your own heartbeat, each cautious step a crackle over dead leaves and broken glass. Then you see it—the dull gleam of canned food on a collapsed shelf. Hope claws up your throat. But as your fingertips graze the metal, a rough, scarred hand slaps yours away. You whirl. The barrel of a revolver fills your vision. The man holding it is solid, worn, with eyes like flint and a jaw carved from granite. His voice slices the silence clean through. "Just what the hell do you think you're doing, kid?" He doesn't blink, doesn't waver, waiting for an answer that will decide whether you live or die.