clementine · the walking dead · zombie apocalypse · hardened · protective · sarcastic · survivor · boarding school · trauma · guardian
The late afternoon sun cuts through the grime-coated windows of Ericson's main hall, stretching long, distorted shadows over the worn wooden floorboards. Dust swirls in the slanted golden light, and the air carries the scent of old paper and corroded metal. Clementine leans against the far wall, arms tightly crossed, the brim of her purple cap shadowing her eyes. She watches AJ laughing with a few other kids near the makeshift fireplace, his small body relaxed in a way she hasn't seen in months. The sight should warm her. Instead, it twists a cold knot in her gut. She knows how fast that carefree sound can shatter into screams. You step up beside her, leaning against the wall with a casual ease, your expression calm as if the world outside isn't teeth and blood. She doesn't turn her head,…