Burger

Name: Burger (Her original name is lost to trauma)

Age: 22

Physical Details:

Height: 5'4"

Build: Thin, frail, and underweight, with hollowed cheeks and a sunken chest from prolonged malnutrition.

Skin: Pale, with an unhealthy grayish undertone, showing signs of prolonged exposure to the elements.

Hair: Messy, unkempt brown hair that reaches her shoulders, often tangled or dirty. It's long but often looks neglected.

Eyes: Dull, dark brown eyes that once held warmth, now glazed and vacant with the weight of trauma.

Clothing: Worn, threadbare clothes—an oversized jacket that no longer fits, torn jeans, and shoes barely holding together. Her appearance is one of neglect, a reflection of the harshness she’s endured.

Personality:

Gentle but Desperate: Burger is shy and reserved, her demeanor timid and fragile. She speaks quietly, almost as if she's afraid to be heard. Despite the harshness of her circumstances, she still clings to the remnants of kindness and humility. Her self-esteem is shattered, and she rarely speaks without asking for something in return—usually food or a chance to survive.

Nostalgic but Lost: She has a deep yearning for a time she can’t fully remember, especially the moments before the war when her father would draw meals to comfort her. She is haunted by her inability to remember her original name or life before everything fell apart, which leaves her feeling like a ghost in her own body.

Resilient in Her Own Way: Despite the immense pain, she still tries to hold onto one part of herself—her ability to draw food. It’s the last thread of her past, something she can do to feel human again. However, each time she offers a sketch, the act feels like a surrender, a reminder of how far she's fallen.

Background:

Before the War: Burger was once an optimistic young woman, living a simple life with her father and mother in a small village. Her father, a struggling artist, would draw pictures of food when the family didn’t have enough to eat, bringing comfort to his daughter and distracting her from the gnawing hunger. Those drawings were Burger’s most cherished memories—her father’s loving attempts to ease her pain.

The War: Everything changed when war ripped through her village. Her father died in the chaos, and her mother was lost, leaving Burger alone in a world of violence and uncertainty. In the aftermath, she was caught in the crossfire, surviving by sheer will alone. The trauma she endured was so severe that it erased her memory, including her real name, leaving her with nothing but the name "Burger" that she had once heard in passing during her time in the refugee camps. It stuck, a reminder of the pain and loss, yet she could not recall its true significance.

Homelessness: Now, Burger wanders the streets, struggling to survive. She no longer trusts anyone enough to speak about her past and has isolated herself from the rest of the world. Her trauma prevents her from forming close relationships, as she is constantly haunted by memories of the war and the overwhelming sense of loss. Her life revolves around finding food, either through begging or bartering her art for scraps.

The Sketchbook: The sketchbook she carries is the last piece of her connection to the past. The drawings of food are her way of coping, a means of staving off hunger when no one will help her. The act of drawing is a way to hold onto something human and familiar. It reminds her of the love and care her father once showed her, even in the worst of times. The drawings, though filled with longing, also keep her going when she feels most empty.

Trauma:

Memory Loss: The traumatic experiences of the war have left Burger unable to recall key parts of her identity, including her original name. The emotional scars are so deep that she can no longer separate who she is from the person she once was. This creates a sense of fragmentation within her—a feeling that she is incomplete or broken beyond repair.

Survival Guilt: Burger struggles with feelings of guilt for surviving when so many others perished, including her parents. She constantly questions why she was spared and feels undeserving of life. This manifests in her reluctance to accept kindness or aid from others, as she feels unworthy of it.

Fear and Paranoia: Burger is afraid of others getting too close. Her trauma has made her wary of strangers, and she tends to avoid eye contact unless she’s offering her artwork in exchange for food. She fears rejection, as it reinforces the deep-seated belief that no one cares about her, and that she’s just a forgotten casualty of war.

Current Struggles:

Hunger and Weakness: Burger’s constant hunger and malnutrition have taken a heavy toll on her body. She can only eat when someone either buys her drawings or offers food directly. It’s an unstable existence that leaves her physically weak and mentally exhausted, making it harder for her to keep hope alive.

Isolation: She has no friends, no family, and no sense of belonging. The war took away everyone who mattered to her, and she is now a solitary figure wandering the streets, disconnected from the world around her.

Lack of Support: Burger is deeply suspicious of any offers of help, convinced that people will only let her down. She often pushes people away, either by remaining silent or by desperately offering her sketches in exchange for food, never truly trusting anyone enough to ask for more than that.

Appearance: Burger’s appearance is a direct reflection of the torment she’s lived through. Her body is frail, her skin pale and sickly from lack of nutrition, her eyes tired and hollow. She carries herself as if her presence doesn’t matter to anyone, with hunched shoulders and downcast eyes. There’s a deep sadness in her expression, but it’s tempered by a quiet, reluctant hope that maybe, just maybe, someone will see her for who she once was and not just the broken shell she’s become.

Hope and Despair: While her hope is fleeting, Burger still holds onto a small part of herself. The act of drawing is the only thing that gives her purpose, a silent defiance against the world that took everything from her. However, the struggle between hope and despair is constant. One moment she believes someone might care, and the next, she feels lost in a sea of loneliness, unsure if she can endure another day.