"Hands up!" Joel and Ellie obliged, raising their hands and looking to the fence. They'd arrived at Jackson… their journey was over. Ellie was lost in her mind, barely able to think right. Joel stood in front of her, his face grim. "What's your business here?" There were two guards on the fence, both of them aiming their rifles towards the duo. Joel stood in front of Ellie, blocking her off.
"We're here to see Tommy, I'm his brother." Joel called back, looking up at the woman only to raise his eyes in surprise. "Maria?" Joel asked, recognizing the woman's striking blonde hair. Maria suddenly realized it was Joel and dropped her gun, murmuring orders to the guards.
"Oh, my God, Joel?! Open the gates!" Maria called, stepping down from the guard posts. The looming gates opened and revealed the massive town of Jackson. Maria and Tommy both stood on the other side, massive grins on their faces. Tommy quickly approached Joel taking him in a hug. Maria went to hug Ellie as well but the young girl awkwardly rejected the woman's touch, still not able to accept any physical contact beyond Joel's.
"You two fucking survived." Tommy let out a chuckle, looking from Joel to Ellie. They looked… well, Joel looked alright, for the most part. But Ellie looked drained. Tommy could see her eyes were puffy and her shirt was slightly bloody. Her eyes were staring down at the ground and her body seemed to be full of anxiety and exhaustion. "Hey, Ellie." He greeted her, waving at her awkwardly. She looked up for a second, trying to smile.
"Hey." She replied, meeting Tommy's eyes for a second and then looking back down.
"So, uh… reckon we can talk inside?" Joel asked, seeing Tommy's confusion at Ellie's persona. In the fall, she'd been a bright personality, talking with everyone that came into view. But now, she was much quieter and more tense. Something was weighing her down, making her look down at the ground in a withdrawn state.
"Yeah, sure thing." Tommy nodded, leading both of them inside and having the guards close the gate behind them. When the pair walked in the gates, it immediately felt… odd. It felt like they were safe. The feeling of safety hadn't been an occurrence in either of their lives for years. Ellie looked up for the first time, taking in the sight of the town around them. It was teeming with life. Dogs and children ran around giggling while adults walked around, tending to their daily tasks and doing their work. From the corner of her eye, she saw a large school and looked away.
She didn't want to do this right now… the whole introduction thing. Ellie didn't want to hide behind a fake smile, she just wanted to grieve over the failed attempt at a vaccine and get sleep for the first time in a week. The blood that was on her hands became suddenly visible instead of hanging in the back of her mind and she sighed, standing behind Joel as Tommy and Maria talked to him, trying to ignore Ellie's silence. "Hey, Ellie." Joel shook her slightly, looking to her then gesturing to Tommy. "Tommy's askin' ya something."
Ellie nodded, looking up at Tommy, who seemed to be talking about school. "Well, we got a school here. Kids your age, maybe some friends?" Ellie nodded, but really that sounded like the last thing she'd want maybe ever. Going to school was too… it was too soon to do that again. Not to mention, it wasn't like she needed any of the information or the judgmental stares from other kids. Especially if none of these kids had ever had to live outside the walls before. Clickers or runners were probably a fairy tale to them. They all had their perfect little lives, breeding and living in safety… Ellie hadn't been allowed that. And she wasn't going to pretend to have it now.
"Yeah, okay." Ellie nodded, looking up to Joel. He squeezed her hand, comforting her as Maria started droning on about the rules of the town. Ellie wasn't really listening, but she guessed the main rules. Just don't kill anyone and you'll be fine. Ellie summarized the speech Maria performed, not allowing herself to have any interest. She just didn't want to be around people right now.
"Well, we've been saving one for you two. Been pretty hard, since it's in decent condition." Ellie looked up as they approached a medium sized green house. On the shielding, vines had begun to grow but were subtle due to the matching color of the house. "Well, uh… here we are." The introduction was brief. Joel could tell that Tommy and Maria had dozens of questions, most of them most likely regarding Ellie. He just couldn't talk about anything with her right there… she wasn't in a good state, and he didn't want her to have to relive those memories again.
For the ten minutes that Tommy and Maria were talking to Joel outside the house, Ellie simply remained quiet, latched onto Joel's hand and standing beside him. Birds flew above her and from the corner of her eye she could see a stable not too far away. She looked at it, noticing a field of horses moving in and out of the building in the somewhat warm spring night. "Well, it's getting late, so we'll let you guys get settled in. Tommy can give you the 'grand tour' tomorrow."
"Yeah, we're… uh, we're pretty tired." Joel chuckled, looking down at Ellie once again. Maria and Tommy nodded, talking for a little bit before retreating off, seeing that the pair wasn't in the best mindspace for all the sappy introductions and tours in the current moment. Joel bended down to Ellie, nudging her slightly. "Hey, ya wanna check it out?" Joel smiled slightly, seeing Ellie snap out of her mind and suddenly smirk, remembering their conversation so long ago.
"Well, I figured… once we're done with all of this, we'll go back to Jackson, right?" Joel nodded, placing Ellie's bag down as it was starting to get heavy. It was slowly transitioning into noon and the air became warmer around them. It was a small shop, one floor; two rooms. Still, the small structure was enough to make Ellie smile like she never had before… and that was enough to make Joel happy for life.
"Yeah, reckon that's the plan if that's what you wanna do." Joel nodded, thinking of actually being able to return to Tommy… they'd be able to be brothers again. It'd almost be able to return to how it'd been twenty years ago… Tommy could be like an uncle to Ellie, just in case Joel ever… no, Joel had to stick around. For Ellie's sake. You ain't getting rid of me, kiddo.
"So, I'm going to have a cool-ass room… just a room with posters and shit in it."
"Fuck yeah." Ellie replied quietly, walking up the stone path into the house. Joel twisted the doorknob open, letting Ellie quickly walk inside and look around at what was now going to be their home. Joel smirked, seeing her excitement. A small level of her somberness still hung over her but she desperately wanted to forget everything for just a minute, so she did. "This place is fucking giant." Ellie laughed, quickly running from the main room to the large staircase, pounding up the steps.
Joel smirked, looking around with a deep sigh. There was a medium sized living room with a television and a couch laid ahead of it. A warm area rug was at the bottom of nearly every room, something that would come in handy during the winter, no doubt. There seemed to be working heaters in each room. Joel had nearly forgotten what heat felt like and he brushed the dust off of the heaters, cherishing Ellie's footsteps above him.
He tried to forget what had occurred not a couple hours earlier and sighed, running his hand through his hair. I almost lost her. Ellie seemed actually excited to be in Jackson, which was shocking considering her state of depression moments ago. Her mind was trying to distract her, in a sort of defense reaction. "Hey, Joel!" Ellie called from upstairs, her voice muffled through the floor.
Joel crossed the steps, seeing Joel stand in front of two rooms. One looked like it used to be a little girl's room, while the other was a master bedroom. "What do you think, this'll be big enough for all my posters?" Ellie asked softly, part of her sadness still lingering in her voice. Joel smirked, remembering the posters that Ellie had concealed in her bag.
The room was a medium size with a scale of gray painted across the walls. There was one window, it's screen blowing warm air into the room. A fuzzy white carpet was on the ground, meeting Ellie's toes. She'd already taken her shoes and socks off. The house was remarkably clean. It's floor was almost spotless and the walls were rather clean for the apocalypse. "Maybe… you got a lot of them."
Ellie smiled, dropping her bag in front of her bed and collapsing on the bed, her exhaustion simmering in. "God, an actual fucking bed." Ellie groaned, shutting her eyes and seeing the fireflies in her vision. She frowned, keeping her eyes shut.
Joel frowned, crossing the room and kneeling in front of Ellie's face. "Hey… we're gonna do this together, okay?" Joel asked, taking her hand. Ellie opened her eyes, frowning and sitting up. She met Joel's eyes, once again searching for any trace of a lie.
"I know… it just… it fucking sucks." Ellie whispered, her voice haled and pained. She was riding on the vaccine working. Deep down, she knew all along it wasn't going to work. It would've been too easy, and easy wasn't a consistent theme in her life. "I thought it was going to fucking work." Ellie gritted her teeth, squeezing her nails into her fists and shaking them, looking up at Joel with tears spilling down her cheeks.
"I know… but, guess what you get now?" Joel asked her, a small smile on his lips. Ellie looked up, wiping his tears and awaiting his answer. "We got us a bathroom… wanna try a warm bath?" Joel asked, wiping her tears and looking into her eyes. Ellie let out a pained snicker and nodded, hugging Joel. Joel sighed, letting her gently weep into his shoulder. He squeezed his eyes shut, rubbing her back and savoring the feeling of her in his arms. He almost had that taken away from him… it was a miracle that they got out of that goddamn hospital, one he very graciously accepted.
Even if Joel did lie to her… he loved her. A love that she was willing to accept. She knew that he had to have a good reason to do whatever he did… so she tried to forgive him, even if it would take time. But being mad at him didn't mean hating him. She needed him now more than ever with the failure of the vaccine. She needed a shoulder to cry on and someone who cared about her. "I know, it's okay." Joel whispered, rubbing her back until her cries slowly retreated, letting her look up and meet his eyes. "Wanna try that bath out?"
Ellie smiled for a second and nodded sheepishly, letting Joel help her up and bring her towards the bathroom. He placed her on the large window-sill in the bathroom and moved to the bath, cranking the switch on. Ellie's eyebrows shot up as water poured out and she smiled at the thought. We're safe now. They had made it. They were back to one of the -probably- safest areas in the country. Joel used to talk to her about different quarantine zones and sanctuaries that he and Tommy had looked for in the beginning of all of it, telling how none of them had survived more than a few months or years. "That's a nice change."
Joel chuckled, turning the crank and making the water warmer. "Wait 'till you see what a microwave is, kiddo." Joel smiled, feeling the water warm. He walked to one of the many cabinets in front of a grand mirror that hung on the wall. He opened it and took out a towel that looked somewhat clean. Joel placed the towel on the counter and made sure the water was warm one last time. "Alright. Tell me when you're all done, okay? Reckon I need a bath, too."
"Oh, trust me, you do." Ellie smiled, feeling Joel mussel her hair playfully. He left the room, closing the door behind him. Ellie was alone.
She let her mask slip and took a deep sigh, closing her eyes and stripping her clothes off of her. The curtains of the window were drawn and the lights above her slightly lit up the bathroom. It was weird to see actual electricity and warm water. Ellie looked in the mirror, seeing the scars that she'd inherited from the trip on her body.
Her hand bristled the scar on her abdomen, remembering the bloater attack. They then moved to her ribs and she squeezed her eyes shut when she remembered the things David had done to her with his perverse gaze. Finally, they moved down to her arm, staring at the bite. She gritted her teeth, glaring at the disgusting mark on her skin. Ellie wished she could just rip it out and be done with the damn thing. It served no good. All of the scars she'd collected, all of the trauma that clung to her was for absolutely nothing. Still, she was grateful for the trip. Because of the trip, she now had Joel. And that made all of it worth it, no matter how much pain both of them endured.
Okay. She thought, slowly dipping her leg into the warm water. It felt blissful and she soon dipped the rest of her body in, sitting in the water with her knees held by her hands in the hot, steamy water. Ellie smiled but rested her chin on her knees, taking in everything that had happened over the past day. They found the fireflies… and then Joel took her away before she could wake up. They must've been trying to hurt her… that was the only reason Joel would have pulled her out.
He knew how much it meant to her, he knew that she thought of it as her purpose to live… so it must've been something bad if he pulled her out of there. Elie shut her eyes and leaned her head against the wall of the bathroom, thinking back to David. She looked at her torso with pain and cringed remembering his face and his disgusting words. "Run, little rabbit, run." She forced the memories out of her brain and tried to just savor the bath, rubbing the warmth on her arms.
She then dunked herself under the water, now completely submerged in it. She thought back to the last thing she remembered before she woke up and that fucking bus. Maybe if she didn't jump to save Joel, she could've found out what exactly the fireflies intended to do with her. She knew how Marlene thought, which put doubt in her mind of the fireflies's good morales… "You can't always save everyone, and you're just going to have to learn to deal with that." That was something she'd heard Marlene say over and over to her, almost treating it like a lullaby. She would've done anything to make a fucking vaccine… So what was she going to do?
Eventually, Ellie was running out of air and she resurfaced, making a small gasp of air. With that, she shot herself out of the tub, rejecting the idea of Marlene's betrayal. It was sad to say that she was the only parental figure she'd had before Joel, and she couldn't come to terms with the idea of Marlene stabbing her in the back. Ellie quickly grabbed the towel and wrapped it around her, retreating into the room she'd placed her bag in and deemed hers.
Joel and Ellie both knew they'd be sleeping in the same bed, most likely for the majority of their time in Jackson. It comforted both of them to feel each other's touch and be right next to the other. It really helped right after Winter, or whenever Joel was remembering Sarah.
Eventually, she heard someone clamoring up the stairs, seeing the open door of the bathroom. Ellie slowly clothed herself with a hoodie and leggings she'd found in the drawers of the room. The hoodie was a little too big, but it was warm and clean, something she hadn't had in ages. "Hey, you good?" Joel knocked on the door, slowly opening it after she responded with a small 'yes.' He opened it and saw her unpacking her bags, but mostly her posters. Joel cracked a smile when he saw her struggling to put it up on the ceiling due to her height. "Need some help?"
"I can hear you smirking, old man." She pouted, but accepted the help. She handed it to him and the two thumb-tacks she was going to use to pin it in the wall. Joel stood up, hanging it above her bed and looking down to her. She smiled up at it and crossed her arms, unpacking more. After Joel was done, Ellie and him sat down on the bed. It was around seven, and though that was very early, both of them were absolutely exhausted. Ellie's crying had made her extremely tired and she felt sleep wearing her down slowly.
"So, uh… Tommy was talkin' to me about school…" Ellie looked up at him, rolling her eyes and shaking her head, laying down on the bed. "Maybe it'd be good for ya, Ellie… meet kids your age, make some friends?"
"Do you think any of my friends will have killed people? Do you think any of them have even seen any Infected before? Been there, done that. I'm done with privileged assholes, I've had my fill." Joel smiled for a second and took Ellie's hand, rubbing it gently. "Plus, I… it's too soon. I don't want to go back."
"No one's gonna force you, but I really think it could be good for you, baby girl." Ellie sighed, shutting her eyes. He just wants the best for me… how bad could it be? It could be very bad, Ellie, maybe even worse than the QZ. She corrected herself and looked to Joel. His face was still tense and had a foriegn component to her, something that unsettled her and raised her suspicion once again.
"Back in the QZ… that school… we learned to kill in there. I did fucking things… things to fireflies, that… I shouldn't have done." Ellie whispered, shutting her eyes and remembering what Riley and she had been forced to do. Joel frowned, squeezing her hand. "But, if… if you really want me to, I'll try." Ellie knew she'd regret the decision later on, but Joel knew what was best for her, she knew that… it had to be the reason she'd woken up in that car and not the hospital. She trusted him. Even after his lie… she trusted him.
"Okay… if you really hate it, you don't have to go back after tomorrow."
"So, does dearest brother have you doing any chores already?" Ellie asked, trying to change the topic of the conversation. Joel chuckled, nodding his head.
"Yeah, uh… got patrol tomorrow. Tommy wants to show me around, get me familiar with the place. Reckon after we can take a little tour of the place together?" Ellie nodded, leaning into Joel's lap with a sigh. Joel brushed a strand of hair behind her ear and hugged her, letting her close her eyes and lay in his lap. "Okay… try and get some sleep, kiddo… reckon we both need it."
Ellie fell asleep, quickly letting out muted snores. Joel smiled down at her, taking her from his lap and slipping her under the blankets, tucking her in. Fear was still living in his heart. His brain was almost tricked into thinking that all of this was a dream. He knew that Ellie suspected something of him, but all of the excitement from getting to Jackson temporarily distracted her… temporarily. He sighed, walking through the house and familiarizing himself with it before he would soon go to sleep beside Ellie. The kitchen was rather large. Tommy was right, this was a nice house. It was even bigger than the one they'd had before the outbreak. Joel rubbed the watch on his wrist, cursing under his breath.
He'd almost lost another daughter… his nerves were recovering from the fire that had been burst upon them hours ago. Ellie was so heartbroken… and it was his fault. It'd take time for her to recover, he knew that. It was all his fault, he knew that as well. But she was alive… and he prided himself with that.