Alright guys! Here it is! I know it's been a long wait and I apologize for that, but I will try my best to make it worth your while. I appreciate the comments that you guys have been giving me, and it seems as though a lot of my readers are big fans of the AJ character. With that in mind, I decided to create a new story with AJ, along with our beloved Joel and Ellie. This chapter is a little on the short side, but I will try to make them longer as time rolls on. I hope you enjoy!

2 years after the events of "A New Journey"

The wind had begun to blow heavily as the night sky was beginning to settle above them. It wasn't normal for the wind to be this strong in this part of town, but nothing was normal in the world they lived in anyway. It had been three whole hours since Joel had left to go scavenge for more supplies and catch some dinner and he was yet to return. Ellie was starting to get a little worried.

The auburn-haired girl began fiddling with her hands while keeping her head staring directly at her feet. "What if he ran into trouble? We both know he's not getting any younger." She got up slowly and started pacing across the room. "I can't lose another one. I just can't."

Ellie began to head towards the door with a plan in mind. Unfortunately for her, AJ knew what she was thinking and he was not going to allow it. "Now Ell. You gotta take it easy. Even if Joel got into trouble, we both know that he sure as hell can handle himself. There's no need for you to chase after him."

The young girl sighed. She knew it wasn't the smartest idea, but she felt the need to check up on her surrogate father. She needed to make sure that he was alright. "Besides you, he's all I have left. Please. Just let me go look for him."

The dark-haired boy looked into her eyes and realized that she was desperate to be reunited with the man that took care of her for the past 3 years. He knew he was going to regret his decision, but he didn't want to let Ellie go out there. "Okay. If it really means that much to you, I'll go. I'll bring him back. You don't need to worry."

She let out a big smile at those words, but it quickly turned to a frown once she had processed what he had said. "Wait. I'm coming with you right?" She had a feeling she knew what the answer was going to be, and she did not like it one bit.

"Uhh, yeah about that. I don't think so. It's just not safe for-"

She cut him off at that split second. "Not safe! NOT SAFE! I've been travelling around my whole life surrounded by dangerous threats and you're telling me that this isn't safe! I think I can handle myself." She didn't mean to come off that hard on him, but after all the time they had been together, he still didn't understand that she didn't want to be treated like a child.

He placed a hand on her shoulder trying to calm her down but she just shrugged it off. "Ellie, listen. I know you can handle yourself. You're definitely the most badass girl I've ever met." When she heard him say that, she cracked a small smile. "But just like you can't stand losing Joel, I wouldn't be able to live with myself if something were to happen to you. So if you don't mind, I think I'll be on my way now. I'll be back soon."

Just as AJ was about to turn the knob to head outside, he felt a small hand grasp his own. He turned around and Ellie immediately pulled him into a tight embrace. "You're such a dick sometimes, you know that right?" The teenage boy snickered at her claim and was relieved that she was finally listening to him. "Promise me you'll be careful and bring back Joel in one piece. Just don't take too long."

"I promise." And with that, he stepped out the door with his rifle in hand, prepared for whatever he was about to face. He took one last look at the door way as Ellie slowly shut the door. Once it was completely shut, he turned back away from the house and took a deep breath. "Here we go. I'm coming Joel."

After hours of searching, it finally dawned on him. The place was picked clean and he wasn't going to find anything. He tossed the last empty can he found on the ground in frustration. Joel figured that it was best to make his way back home as he knew that Ellie would be worried sick. He looked out the window of the rundown house and was not looking forward to the walk back home. On top of the wind that was present when he had gotten to the house, it had now begun to rain heavily as well.

"Jesus Christ! Can't an old geezer like me ever catch a break?" He sighed. "Of course not...Well, I better get a move on before Ellie starts a riot." He was about to make a move towards the front door when he heard the sound of a bomb explode. He then remembered that he surrounded the house with four bombs before he entered, just to be safe. But his intuition told him that the bomb hadn't exploded because someone was nearby. Rather, he was damn sure it had exploded because someone had shot it. He began to get a little worried and kept his pistol at the ready.

He began to whisper to himself. "Son of a bitch! Today is clearly not my day." Just then he heard the sound of three more bombs going off. He was officially trapped and he had no idea how many of them were out there. He saw the shadow of a man near the rear entrance and kept his pistol trained right at it, not knowing for sure who, or how many guys for that matter, he was dealing with.

While AJ was out searching for Joel, and Joel was god knows where, Ellie was trying to cheer herself up by reading her joke book. After a couple of jokes, she grew tired of it. It wasn't the same without someone to tell jokes too. She remembered the time back in the mall when Riley gave her the joke book and they shared jokes as if they had no care in the world. A tear began to glide down her face as she recalled the memory. It was too much, too soon. She also remembered the fact that her jokes always pissed off Joel, which lit a smile up on her face, and she hoped she would get the chance to share jokes with AJ soon as well. She set the book down as she locked her eyes on the doorway as she took a seat on their rusty, old, green couch. She promised herself that she would not fall asleep until she knew for sure that the two men in her life were safe and sound at home.

"I really hope they're okay."

Well there's the first chapter of my new story. I hope you enjoyed it. As always, please make sure to leave a review and follow the story so you know exactly when a new chapter has been posted! I will try to get them out as soon as I possibly can. Until next time, endure and survive my fellow survivors!