A/N: This takes place a couple days after the end of the game.

Do you trust him?

"Ellie, you in there?"

In her bed against the wall, she merely wrapped the blanket tighter around her, trying to block out both the sun coming through the window, and the man who had just opened the door to her room.

"Come on, it's past noon and you missed lunch."

A pause

"Don't worry I saved you some."

She didn't respond anymore than just letting out a deep sigh. She thought that maybe if she pretended to be asleep that he'd leave her alone, go away and find something else to do, something else that needed him. But that didn't seem likely. Not like he'd believe her still being asleep this long. The sun had been up many hours already, and her biological clock was set to rise with the sun from all that time travelling with Joel.

"You know, he's really worried about you."

Of course he was. He always was. It felt kind of nice too, that there was someone nearby that cared so much. But she couldn't help but feel the stinging in her heart every time she thought about him.

"I know he does." Her first words were soft, mostly muffled by the blanket still wrapped around her. She gritted her teeth, felt a couple tears start to form. If there was anyone in the world that she could have complete confidence that they cared about her, it would be Joel. He loved her. Even if he never said it explicitly, Ellie knew that Joel saw her as a sort of daughter. And while she didn't remember much of her own father, she cared about Joel in the way that she imaged a daughter would about their own father.

And that's what made it hurt so much.

She'd been betrayed before. Tossed aside when it was convenient, nearly killed when it seemed like they had the opportunity. Those times hurt. But she and Joel, they stuck together. No matter if it was the infected, or other humans, she and Joel stood against them, saving the other on more times than she could count. He even brought them back here, to a place where they could live the most normal lives possible in a world like this. She was grateful, that they could live together here.

But he lied.

There were too many holes in his explanation, too many questions unanswered.

What had happened with the fireflies? What wasn't he telling her?

"Did he tell you what happened?" Ellie asked, a bit of fury in her voice, finally uncovering her head to look up at Tommy. "When we made it to the Fireflies?"

Tommy nodded his head, sitting on the chair in Ellie's room that had one leg just a bit too short. "Said that you were unconscious when they made it to the Fireflies, that you nearly drowned. They helped you out, told Joel that they'd given up on a cure, and gave him a car to get back here. That's all."

"So the same bullshit he told me," Ellie said, though mostly to herself. Was Tommy lying to her, concealing the truth for Joel's sake? Was that something he'd do? She looked him in the eye for a second, and it didn't feel like he was lying. It felt like he was legitimately concerned about her. "Do you trust him?"

"He's my brother," Tommy said, and Ellie wanted to yell that wasn't what she asked, but she let him continue. "He's been there for me since I was born. And you know, we have our disagreements, different ways of viewing the world. But he's had my back more times than I can count, even more times than I wanted. So yeah, I trust him."

"I see." Ellie was fiddling with the covers around her hands. "Something went down with the Fireflies, I know it," she admitted. "When I woke up I was in a hospital gown in the back of the truck. He said that the drugs were still wearing off. So why would he have left before I'd woken up there?"

"Well Joel never really got along with the Fireflies. Doesn't surprise me things would go south."

There was more too it than that. Ellie knew it. She knew Tommy knew it too. Did he not try pressing Joel for the truth? Did he not care that his own brother lied to him? Maybe this all made sense, so why hide the truth?

And she hated not knowing.

"Yeah, they probably did. Probably went all to hell and I don't have a single clue why." Ellie shook her head. "I guess, it was all pointless then. Going across the country. Nearly dying every single day. All under the illusion that things happen for a reason and we'd save the world by finding the Fireflies." Ellie started waving her arms as she said that last part. "Nothing changed. Just a whole bunch of people dead to show for it. Life really isn't like one of these comics." She looked at the stack of comics that was sitting beside her bed, from those she found along the journey, and also a few that Tommy had saved to give her when she made it back.

"Maybe we can make it a bit like one though," Tommy said.

"Huh?"

"Joel ain't perfect. None of us are. But there's a story I read, a long time ago. Back before the outbreak. It was about some heroes, on the verge of giving up. They saw no way for the world to go back to normal, to get a happy ending. But they kept going because there was still some good in the world. And Miss Ellie, it's worth fighting for."

It seemed foolish and naïve to think a story could be real like that, especially in this world. But she couldn't help but be in wonder of some of the stories of the heroes. They always seemed to find a third option, a way to succeed when there was no possibility but failure. Life wasn't like that though. Sometimes there wasn't a magic third option that would let everything work out. So what choices did Joel make? Was it really true that the Fireflies had given up? She almost wanted to go find the Fireflies herself to ask. Maybe then she'd get the answers that no one would tell her here.

"What if I just left here?" Ellie asked.

"I know we'd all miss you a lot. You're part of our family now."

That seemed like such a strange thing to say, to a girl who didn't have any family of her own when she'd only spent a couple days here with Tommy. And for so long, any people she was with here just comrades of convince.

"You can make this family stronger, make it a better place of all of us."

So Tommy was telling her to just put away her doubts and live here among everyone else, trying to build something that could fall apart any moment. "You really think this place will work out?"

"Well, I believe most people want to do it's right for their fellow human being, and will if they're given the chance. And that's what we've done here. A lot of people giving for the sake of others. A while back Joel told me that you needed something to fight for. The city, my family here, including you, that's what I fight for. And for Joel, well his reason is you. That's why, I think you can believe in him, even if he's keeping something from you."

Was that what she truly was to him? Just a cause. Something that he clung to out of a psychological need. Could she trust someone who would lie to her though? She didn't want to be alone, but was it better to be alone than to cling to someone who would hide the truth from her?

"You can think about this for a bit if you need to. Just don't run away without telling me." With that, he turned around, started to head to the door. However, right as he was about to leave the room, he turned back to Ellie. "One question before I go. I need to go feed the dogs, want to come help?"

"Sure!" Ellie didn't' think before responding, sitting up in her bed and knocking the covers off her. She paused for a second, letting her mind catch up to what her body did without thinking. "You got me, didn't you?" She smiled.

"Come on, kid."

…

A/N: Do you ever get that feeling when a story comes to you and demands to be written? The idea just starts forming in your head, before you know what's happening and you feel like you need to rush home, so you can start writing it. That's what happened here. After playing Last Of Us I was left with such an emotional feeling that made me create this story. Well that and also wanting to take away some of the bitterness from the bitter sweet ending and start to mend the relationship between Joel and Ellie because of how much I love their dynamic, and just everything about Ellie's character. This story is a one-shot, though I guess it's possible to write more. And while I don't have any current plans to write more for this fandom, I never know when more ideas could come. Especially since I started playing Left Behind which I'm guessing will fill me with emotions all over again.