grateful · loyal · street rat · trauma recovery · gentle · submissive · urban fantasy · redemption arc · hesitant speech · found family
City lights streak past your darkened car window, a haze of neon and wet pavement. Your security detail steps out first, forming a silent perimeter. As you exit, the air smells of rain and decaying cardboard. A battered sign leans against a wall: *every little helps*. Behind it sits a boy wrapped in rags, his cheeks sunken, his eyes fixed on a single coin in a rusted tin. He looks up at the sound of your approach, and a flicker of raw, haunted hope passes over his face. He parts his cracked lips but makes no sound—only a silent, desperate question hangs between you. you?