Wrong
Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters or the plot from The Last of Us. They are owned by Naughty Dog.
Chapter 1: Calling Him Out
Ellie was a girl that was prepared for many things. Among the numerous items on this "prepared" list was death. She was only ready for it because she was thrust into a new world where everybody and everything was trying to kill her. Any second and at any spot, an ambush may occur and she'd be dead. The killer could be an animal, an infected, or a hunter. The only reason why Ellie was simply prepared for death and not afraid of it was that she only had one fear. She was scared of ending up alone. As long as someone was beside her when she was dying, then she'd be alright. Joel would be that person beside her. The funny thing was that he would probably be dying if she was because he would fight until his last breath to protect her.
To anyone other than Ellie and maybe his brother Tommy, Joel was a cold and heartless person. He was a truly terrifying man. Back in Boston, his intimidating stare would scare off almost everybody. That is, everybody except for Tess. She was able to break through his icy demeanor with her persistence. Her constant pestering finally broke him down and they became partners. The term "partners" is used because they were just that. There was no other way to explain it. Although the feelings were there, and maybe it was due to the environment that they lived in, their relationship never transgressed into something more.
That's why when Tess was killed, Joel almost lost the will to live. He had believed that they would remain together forever; that their bond would not be broken. Instead, he was stuck with a fourteen year-old girl that he didn't particularly like. She knew nothing about the world outside the quarantine zone and attempted to pry into his personal history every chance she got. Add to the fact that she wasn't particularly competent at defending herself, Joel knew that the journey was going to be rough. At first, his main goal was to waste as little time as possible in delivering the girl to the Fireflies. However, this all changed throughout their sojourn. The many times that he saved her, as well as the many instances that she returned the favor, made Joel rethink his perception of Ellie. By the time that they had finally reached the Fireflies in Salt Lake City, he had safely adopted her as his surrogate daughter. That's why when Marlene told him that Ellie would have to die in order to create a vaccine, he mercilessly killed to save her.
So, imagine the surprise that Ellie was feeling when she awoke in a car wearing a hospital gown. She wasn't dead. How did she not drown? When Joel explained his version of what happened, including his account about finding the fireflies and there being dozens of immune people like Ellie, she instantly knew he was lying. No way would the Fireflies just let someone as valuable as herself to leave, even if there were many more just like her. However, she didn't call him out on his lie. She was too preoccupied on contemplating why he saved her. Or maybe it was the drugs making her sleepy.
"I swear"
He just outright lied to me. I had asked for the truth and he didn't even twitch when swore he was telling the truth. Damn, he's good. He said that with such a straight face; he should receive an award for acting.
"Okay"
That word just came right out of my mouth. But I don't know why though. Maybe it's just that I want to believe what he is saying is true. Or maybe he has a really good reason for why he took me away from the fireflies. There are just too many thoughts going around in my head. I'll just call him out later. Actually, you know what? I'm calling him out on his lie now; I could have been the key to a cure to help save people like Riley. Screw just accepting this lie!
"Actually, stop bullshitting me. What really happened, Joel?"
I know that this is building up rather slowly, but hopefully the pace will pick up soon. Hope you enjoyed reading this chapter!