:D I'm trying to prevent such an awful disappearance again, so I just wrote somethin cute that's been on my mind, it's totally pointless and kind of a reference joke. I own nothing.
Searching for food in an apocalypse was a ridiculously tedious task. Digging through spoiled vegetables, expired dairies and other foods Ellie was vaguely educated of. They had bread at the quarantine zone, but it was flat and chewy. Milk was lumpy and powdered. Vegetables? Oh just a few horribly bitter carrots and limp lettuce that worsened the already terrible food her and fellow children had eaten.
Out with Joel in the cities, it wasn't any better food wise; they hunted and ate mysterious concoctions from tin cans, some of them hardly for food. Ellie didn't mind the chicken soup-it was better than the mystery meat mush at the quarantine zone. The spaghettios were actually the best. But back to the point; food was complicated and not a solid promise out in the abandoned streets of what Joel says was once a place called California. Sometimes, food was a luxury out there.
The teen sighed as she scanned the near bare shelves of a super market, her stomach rumbling in complaint of no sustenance in two days. Joel was somewhere in the store, searching for needles for his much abused plaid shirt. She ran her fingers over the dusty and cold metal shelves while she hummed the latest song she had come across. It was by someone called the Beatles. Joel said they were the shit for years before the apocalypse. She had taken quite a few tapes with their music on it; it was lighter than the usual music she found-it was as if people had listened to their most depressing records before the disaster.
She was halfway through the second verse when her hand bumped into a lone box. She curiously studied the colorful box, setting her index finger on the cardboard to read the bubble text. She frowned and cocked her head to side at the strange word. She threw glances around the ghost empty aisles and snatched the box, beginning a search for Joel.
She found him skillfully sewing his torn sleeve and side of his shirt, a scrunch in his aged brow as he carefully pulled and stuck the needle with a steady hand. He stopped, feeling her presence and setting his focus on her, raising an eyebrow as a silent 'Yes?' she scuffed her worn shoes on the tiles of the store and finally spoke.
"Joel, what are these?" she held up the blue box for his eyes, watching the scrunch go away and the smallest twitch of his lips igniting more curiosity in her. He lets a weak chuckle leave as he slides of a counter he was using as leverage and takes the box from her fingers, opening it with a harsh tug of a strip.
Their size difference led to Ellie not being able to see what he pulled out, only hearing the crinkle of something that wasn't paper and his hand returning with a bright yellow…thing packaged in clear plastic wrapping. The smile on his face was somewhat of a relishing, admiring smile; a smile of someone that misses certain things.
"What is that thing?" she pondered, watching Joel roll the yellow-apparently slightly squishy- log in between his fingers. He ripped open the plastic and pulled it out, breaking it in half to reveal a white substance inside.
"It's a Twinkie." He said the word so casually yet sadly at the same time, showing Ellie the 'Twinkie.'
"Twinkie…?" she trailed, slight distaste of the name jabbing her curiosity down a bit. But Joel wasn't having any of that and did something that shocked her beyond belief; he shoved a half of the strange log in his mouth and chewed. Oh my god it's food! The weird looking logs were food, and evidently good as Joel popped the other half in his mouth and swiped his hands against his jeans. There was a glint in his eyes that meant the small treat brought some sort of contentment for a moment.
"They're little sponge cakes filled with cream. People loved them and they were considered a classic for years. At fairs they would even fry the things." Joel pulled out two more Twinkies from the box and handed one to Ellie, a hint of a smile crossing his scruffy face at her suspicious acceptance. Joel lazily pulled his package open and took a bite as he moved back to the counter, remembering what he was doing before. He left Ellie to study the little snack, the packaging crinkling every time the pressure of her fingers moved.
She huffed in resignation and clumsily ripped the seal, taking the little cake thing between her fingers. She squeezed and prodded at it probably for a good five minutes before she groaned and hesitantly took a bite, her teeth slicing through the soft treat quickly. The almost overwhelming sweetness that spread across her tongue was a refreshing change to the dull pick-me-ups they usually came across like crackers or out of date chips. The softness and creaminess had her standing there with a near-silent hum of appreciation as she swallowed only to take a larger bite, the same effect having her eat the little cream log in seconds.
She wiped her hands on her pants like Joel had, rolling her tongue and still tasting the cream. She caught said male's gaze-the task known as his shirt finished and his package empty as well. It was obvious to him that was her first Twinkie, probably her first hostess snack at all. He breathed a chuckle when she looked away in a silent fluster and crossed her arms. He reached into the box, the crinkle catching her attention just in time to catch the Twinkie he tossed to her.
When Ellie glanced up from it, she wasn't expecting it see a smile on Joel's tired face or see a sort of…glitter in his eye. It was a new and alien expression, yet at the same time Ellie felt like it belonged there. He motioned her forward and patted the spot next to him on the counter. She complied and sat there fiddling with the package-not quite ready for the sugary snack. Joel set the box between them, digging through Ellies bag for one of her tapes and sticking one in the compartment the store used for entertainment.
The soft intro of the song played gently at the low volume Joel set it to, the companions sitting quietly just eating the fattening treat. Ellie had never experienced such a strange moment in the quarantine zone; she felt-not relaxed. Oh no that would lead to being vulnerable- but she felt herself separate from the stressful, backstabbing world outside the broken glass doors of the market and just sink into the trusting atmosphere Joel had built. The sugar of the snacks thrummed through their bodies and acted like alcohol, letting them tell snippets of stories and carry a conversation smoothly while the music delicately ricocheted off the walls. When the box was empty, Ellie frowned in disappointment but did not move from her spot in Joel's side, the latter tapping his fingers against his leg to music.
"So were there other snacks besides Twinkies?" Ellie coaxed, feeling comfortable for the first time in months-maybe longer. She felt Joel's chuckle rather than heard it, just slightly tipping her head up to watch his expression. He took in a breath, setting her large calloused hand on her shoulder.
"Tell you what, next store we hit I'll show you all the snacks I can. Sound good?" It was ridiculous plan in such a time, when people were turning on one another and working to survive. But the promise spread a smile on Ellie's face nonetheless.
"Yeah…" The two nodded and pulled their stuff together, knowing they spent too much time at the grocery store. Joel grabbed a few cans of beef stew and a few other soups to keep them at bay until their next stop. They maneuvered through the gnarled door out into the mossy, damp roads strewn with abandoned cars. As they began to walk, Ellie couldn't help but ask something.
"If we find more Twinkies, can we take them with us?"
The smile on Joel's face was wonderfully bright.
Omg this came out absolutely nothing like I imagined, but it's still cute. I have a feeling Ellie doesn't know a lot about little things like that. Lol Twinkies during an apocalypse! XD always a necessity!