A/N: Well, it's been QUITE a while since I've posted anything on fanfiction, so I decided to prove to everyone that YES, hugforhowiexx is still alive and writing...just completely uninspired. This is just a short, totally pointless story I've written- sort of an attempt to ease myself into the Left 4 Dead fandom before I start on longer, more detailed pieces. I've come up with an EllisxOC plot- sort of- but I'd like some help and time to expand it. Anywho, right now I'm going to list this as a one-shot, though I might write more (hopefully longer) adventures of Jay and the survivors. Enjoy (:

"Can I wear your hat?"

Ellis shifted his gaze over to the young girl who trudged along beside him. She stared up at him with looming brown eyes, her expression soft and innocent. Her dirty blond hair was pulled back in a messy bun and a Tweety Bird clip kept her bangs from falling in her face. She had seemingly come out of nowhere. One moment, him and Coach and been searching for pipe bombs and the next, they were attempting to pry this girl off of Ellis's leg. She had a stronger grip than a Jockey, something that surprised the Georgian immensely due to her size. She spoke weird too- sometimes in an accent similar to his own, when she got excited (which was often).

"I don't know if I-"

"Oh come on! Just for a few minutes?" Jaycie argued, removing her hands from the pockets of Nick's suit jacket (how she had managed to talk the conman into giving it to her, Ellis had no idea) and intertwining them, actually begging. "Please?"

Nick, who had been following behind a couple of meters, suddenly caught up, irritation spread across his unshaven face.

"Just give it to her, Overalls." He sighed, eyeing his precious white jacket longingly. "Don't give the kid a reason to alert the horde."

Ellis bit his lip and frowned lightly, hesitantly taking his trucker hat off of his head and playing with the strap absently. Jay watched on, her outstretched palm waiting patiently for him to hand the hat over.

"I know several different ways to startle the Witch." She informed him in a nonchalant manner and Ellis felt his face pale slightly. Was she threatening him? This kid was Satan! How did she even know all this stuff? He glanced briefly at Nick who glared at the girl silently before groaning and grudgingly handing his prized possession over to her.

Jay's face lit up instantly and she promptly threw the trucker hat on her head with a wide grin. She looked like she was about to have another 'fangirl attack' (the survivors had already witnessed three so far).
"Thank-you, Ellis." She chimed, running her hand over the beak and the Georgian forced a smile upon his face. He felt so…bare without his hat. He had the urge to rip it off the kid's head and put it back on his own where it belonged but knew better than that. Nick had tried it after he had been forced to hand his jacket over, only to have the girl alert a nearby Tank to keep him at bay. It had taken two medkits and five bottles of pills to get the conman up again after that.

"She's lucky I'm above hitting children." Nick said darkly so that only the mechanic could hear before he stalked off to go complain to Rochelle and Coach up ahead.

"Ellis?"

The mechanic looked down at Jay once again, or more his hat that was perched on her head. She had fished a box of Smarties out of her jeans pocket and was now crunching on them happily. Ellis couldn't help but wonder where the hell she had gotten them from.

"Yeah?"

"Will you tell me a Keith story?"

The Georgian's eyes widened in disbelief. Did she actually just ask to hear a Keith story? Nobody ever let him finish his stories about his unfortunate friend and this kid was actually ASKING him to tell one? Ellis rubbed the back of his neck absently, before licking his lips with a sudden grin. Maybe this kid wasn't so bad after all.

"Well, okay! I ever tell you about the time Keith fell out the rollercoaster…?"