January 1, 2033
Boston, Massachusetts
Twenty years after the CBI outbreak
Tess opens her eyes groggily, blinking at the daylight that gushed in through the window blinds. She's naked under the sheets, and finds Joel walking into the room, wearing only his jeans. He has two mugs of water in hand, as he walks to sit beside her on the bed, wishing her faintly.
Tess (wrapping the sheets around her because of the cold): It's suddenly chilly.
Joel (gesturing towards the radiator in the corner): Yeah, electricity's cut. Won't have it again until three weeks.
Tess (with a tired groan): Fuck's sake!
She lays in bed for a while, then sits up, sheets hooked under her armpits. She takes the mug and drinks the water quietly.
Tess: Any notice of the next shipment from Bill?
Joel: No, not yet. I'm guessin' another two weeks.
Tess (glancing at the blinds): Fucking hate this snow.
Joel (with a light smirk): Good thing we don't got any job today.
Tess (looking at him incredulously): We got the drop off in Area 7, to Raoul.
Joel (with a light shake of the head): The deadline for that's day after, Tess. Let's just take it easy for today.
Joel leans forward at her impatient sigh, inching closer to her on the bed.
Joel (gently tugging a strand of hair behind her ear): I ain't gettin' any younger, you know.
Tess (looking in his direction, eyes on the sheets as she mumbles): Yeah, I know.
Joel (with a breath of relief, leaning back into the headboard): Well, so we got the day to ourselves.
Joel looks at her sideways as she sits forward, folding her legs under the sheets. With a light hand, he traces shapes on her wing bone, and then slides his finger down her spine. He turns sideways and closes his eyes, sighing deeply as he attempts to sleep again.
Tess (in a low voice, mumbling): I'll go update our record.
Joel grunts faintly, resting a hand under his head as she gets up and gets dressed. He opens his eyes for a moment, eyeing her discreetly as she pulls on her shirt and underwear, stands in front of the window for a while, looking out. He sees her stroking a strand of brown hair, twisting it around her finger absent-mindedly, and then tugging it behind her ear. She sighs and turns, and he immediately closes his eyes. Tess is unaware of his silent observations.
She walks into the hall, pulls out a notebook from the drawer and begins to take stock of their possessions. With a creased forehead, she counts food cans, water bottles, pills, ammunition and clothes. She separates the extra stock for selling in the black market, and arranges all their supplies in the cabinets. She peeks into the bedroom once, only to find Joel still asleep.
She sits back in the couch, a glass of whisky in hand as she drums her fingers on the armrest impatiently. She pulls out a paper, and begins to doodle random things, begins to draw a stick figure of a woman with a gun, scribbles irrelevant dialogues with an amused smile.
In a while, she crumbles the paper and throws it across the hall weakly, finishing her glass of spirit. She glances into the bedroom again, and finds Joel asleep. With an impatient sigh, she dresses herself in her jeans and shirt, pulls out a receipt from the notebook and stuffs it into her pocket. She walks into the bedroom and sits on the chair beside the window, looking out, waiting.
Minutes pass by, then an hour. Joel begins to mutter and mumble in his sleep, tossing weakly to his side.
She glances in his direction pensively, sitting upright.
He sits up suddenly, eyes wide open, gasping and panting. He takes a moment, realising that he was in the bedroom. With a deep, shaky breath, he runs his hand across his face.
Tess (voice a little soft): You're okay, Texas.
Joel glances in her direction, breathing faintly. He says nothing, but doesn't meet her eyes.
Tess (standing up, with an air of equipment): Get up. Let's get the Raoul job done.
Joel (grunting in annoyance, still groggy): What?
Tess: Let's go get our payment. After that we'll head over to Donovan. He'll have a job for us.
Joel (impatiently): I thought we were gonna stay in.
Tess (walking to the hall, pulling out a can of beans): Yeah, and do what?
Joel (with a shrug, looking in her direction): I don't know, rest?
Tess (shaking her head with a smirk): The whole day?
Joel says nothing, but raises his eyebrows like the answer is obvious.
Joel (leaning forward in the bed with an air of condescendence): We've been workin' our asses off the entire month Tess. I think one day off wouldn't hurt nobody.
Tess (after a moment of silence, resting her hands on her hips and breathing deeply. The crease between her brows deepens): Fine. You stay in. See if that rest fixes your knees.
She turns around and leaves, throwing a blazing look at him once.
Joel sighs deeply, shaking his head. Tess walks out of the apartment and takes the familiar route to the tunnel, stubbornly. As she walks down the corridor, she hears quick footsteps, a door locking.
Joel (voice softer, more understanding): Tess, wait up!
She slows down, closing her eyes once as he rushes to her side in a light jog. His eyes are determined, and slightly apologetic.
Joel: Good to go.
Tess says nothing, but continues on her way, Joel walking by her side.