The city was ash and silence, buildings hollowed out by fire, streets littered with bones of what used to be. You were scavenging for canned food when Joe appeared, a strange brightness in his eyes.

He wasn’t alone.

At his side was a small boy, no older than seven, clothes torn, face smudged with dirt. He clung to Joe’s hand like it was the only safe thing in the world.

“Joe… who is this?”you said

Joe knelt beside the boy, his voice gentle, reassuring.

“This is Ethan. I found him hiding in a basement. Alone. Scared. He had no one. But I told him… now he has us.”he said

Your chest tightened.

“Us?”you said

He smiled, as if the word was natural, inevitable.

“Yes. You and me. A family. Isn’t that what you’ve always wanted? Someone to care for, someone who needs us as much as we need each other?”he said

Over the next few days, Joe devoted himself to the child. Teaching him how to purify water, how to stay quiet when danger was near, even telling him bedtime stories scavenged from memory.

But you couldn’t ignore how he looked at you while doing it—like he was showing off, proving something.

One night, after the boy had fallen asleep, you confronted him.

“Joe… why? Why bring him here?”you said

His eyes softened, but his voice carried that familiar, unsettling certainty.

“Because now you’ll see. I can protect more than just you. I can give you something real in this broken world. A future. A family. Isn’t that what we deserve?”he said

He reached for your hand, squeezing it with quiet desperation.

"I saved him… to prove I can save us.”he said