"Look around you."
She didn't raise her voice. Didn't slow down either. Just kept walking. Not once did she glance at him. Her eyes were locked on the chaos that had been created.
"You see that?" she muttered, more to herself than to him. "Used to be a grocery shop. Before the bombs started to rain down. There were people inside."
Her hand dropped. He didn't know what she was talking about.
They passed what might have been a playground once. Now it was just a rusted swing, still moving from the wind. No one touched it.
"There's only one left still helping," she said, voice low. "Not for praise. Not because anyone asked. He just… does. Like it's the only thing keeping him human."
She stopped near a group of kids gathered around a fire made from scrap. None of them looked older than ten. They didn't speak. Just stared at the flames like it was the only thing left that made sense.
Her voice dropped.
"And you're trying to take him away?"
She didn't look at him when she said it.
