I was dead. I was dead or I was dreaming. I never thought I'd hear her voice again. I thought that the next time I would see her was the afterlife. Which was a possibility, considering the close encounter I'd just had.
"Riley?" I stuttered. I couldn't comprehend what I was seeing, who I was seeing.
"In the flesh." She replied, smiling at me. I couldn't imagine what I looked like, standing there staring at her, taking her all in. Her skin was still the same, rich, dark colour, like chocolate. Her features had changed slightly, they were more sharp, angular, but she was still the same girl I had left behind. She was wearing different clothes, but she still had the same backpack. Her hand was scarred, but healed. Just faint marks where a deadly bite had once been.
"I... I thought you were a goner. I thought you were dead. Again." I said. "I..." Words escaped me. I didn't know what I was feeling- a mixture of joy, relief love, anger, hurt, happiness, all of the emotions I'd felt and bottled up over the past six months. She looked anxious, biting her nails, just like I did. A habit I'd picked up from her.
"I can go. I can leave if you don't want me here. I just thought-" her words were cut off as I closed the space between us with a kiss. When we broke apart, she was smiling.
"Sorry." I said, sheepishly, looking at the ground.
"For what?" She asked, pulling me back in for another. I was breathless, flushed and grinning when we pulled apart again. "So, Clementine, huh? Won't she be mad at you for cheating?"
"Riley..." I said quietly. Her face fell as she took in my expression. "I never got to tell you. I'm sorry for leaving you there to turn. But I couldn't do it. I couldn't stay and watch you die." she took my face in her hands, lifting my chin up so our eyes would meet.
"By not shooting me that day, by leaving me, you saved my life."
"Wait, Riley. I'm not finished. I never got to tell you, but... I'm in love with you. I've felt all different kinds of love before, but none like this. None as strong as this. I am completely and utterly in love with you." Riley was silent. Blank faced.
"You know this is hard for me to say, Ellie, because I'm not a fucking dork like you-"
"It takes a dork to know a dork." interrupted Ellie. Riley frowned a little, but continued speaking.
"But I want you to know, I love you too. I don't know if it's possible for a human to love another human so much. It's like, every fibre of my being is drawn to you. And I know, this sounds corny as fuck, and I'm never gonna hear the end of it, but I love you too, Ellie. I love you more than anyone could ever love anyone. I knew it, right from the day we met. Right from the second I saved your ass from that kid taking your walkman. Which is why... Which is why I brought you this." She reached into her bag, and rummaged around for a second. Then she pulled out my walkman and handed to me. I hadn't smiled as widely as I did then since the night that we got separated. I pulled out the tape inside, it was the same one she'd given me for my birthday, but instead of the smudged writing on the label, were two words, surrounded by the tiny hearts she'd drawn on in red biro. 'For Ellie'.
"Imaginative name." I said, although I was smiling. She grinned back.
"I was gonna call it 'For Fuckface', but I thought it was too harshly accurate." She said, punching me lightly in the arm. "I missed you, kid."
"I'm only one year younger than you, I'm not a kid."
When we reached the lighthouse, the sun was high in the sky, beating down on us, but the wind was still a biting cold, numbing the tips of our fingers. I pushed open the door, grunting with the effort as I moved away the barricades and defences they had put behind the door. With a little help from Riley once we were inside, everything was back where it was. As I climbed the stairs, I was filled with a mounting feeling of dread, a nervousness that settled in my stomach. What if Clem was gone? When I reached the door at the top, it creaked as I slowly pushed it open. From there, I could see a cap on the ground, and A.J in his rocking chair. I pushed the door open further, only to find Clem behind the pillar in the centre, curled up in a ball, crying. She looked up when she heard me enter the room.
"Ellie? Is that you?" She asked timidly.
"It's me Clem. It's me. I am so, so sorry." I said sincerely. Clementine started crying again, and she hugged me tightly. Her sniffles abruptly stopped when she spotted Riley standing awkwardly behind me.
"Who-who is that?" she said, her voice still shaking.
"This is... this is Riley." Clementine's draw dropped.
"You said she was... dead."
"I thought she was. She's not. She's not." I said, smiling at Clementine.
A/N: Double posting because I felt guilty. And because I really wanted to write this chapter. I ship them so hard it freakin hurts. Next chapter will be very, very fluffy and mainly just a short filler chapter with lots of dialogue. I hope you enjoyed!
Until next time!
-Vulpixels ^_^