A/N: Here's another flashback chapter for you in which we further explore the relationship between Ellie and Ben. It's a bit shorter than usual chapters, but I hope you won't mind it. :)
Cheers
Chapter 11 – Summer heat
Summer days were usually hot and dry even though the settlement was located in a mountainous area. The hot sun and clear skies heralded hot temperatures. The situation in the forests was a little better. The shade under the trees provided a milder kind of natural refreshment. Ben had largely started patrol training, learning new routes every day. He waited impatiently every next morning to climb into the saddle of his horse and ride out of the settlement. Little Tom envied him fiercely for that, and Ben kept teasing him about it, annoying him. In the end, he would always tell him that it would be his turn when he grew a little more.
There was no training that day, however, so Ben spent the morning playing basketball on the court at the end of the settlement.
"You're too small for me." teased a taller, black haired boy, guarding him tightly.
Ben dribbled the ball with his dominant left hand, guarding the possession by turning his back to his opponent, who could not grab the ball without fouling. He was only half a head taller than Ben, but he acted as if the difference was unthinkable.
"You talk too much, Jesse." Ben told him through a smile, feinting with every second dribble. Jesse was a better shooter and rebounder, but Ben was faster and twice a better dribbler. It was worth mentioning that Ben was a far better at driving to the hoop. He faked a turn to his left. The taller boy fell for it, allowing Ben to dribble freely past him on the right side. By the time Jesse realized what was happening, Ben was already far behind him, on his way to score a winning point. The match ended with a light layup.
"21-13." Ben exclaimed proudly as sweat dripped from his face. "You're too slow for me."
Jesse just nodded and bent down, clutching his knees, breathing deeply. Ben looked around and noticed the audience, half disinterested, applauding his victory. He bowed to them with a grin, finishing the show. He was aware that Jesse would probably have beaten him if he shot the ball the way he usually does, but he shot particularly badly that morning. Ben took advantage of that, dribbled him to exhaustion and easily won in the end. Those few baskets Jesse scored, he scored them only because Ben shot risky shots off the dribble, which he then caught under the basket.
Ellie stood in the shady protection under the canopy, leaning against a tree as she watched him.
"That wasn't as bad as usual." she told him when he approached.
He scoffed, "You're the one to say, can't even make a free throw."
"I can if I want."
"Yeah, you said so last time, and what happened?"
She punched him in the shoulder. "Shut up."
Ben laughed at that. It was so easy to piss her off. The shade didn't help her much from the heat. Peas of sweat were visible on her forehead. She held a plastic bottle filled with water.
"Here." she said, outstretching her hand. "You're allowed two sips because you won."
"Just two sips?"
"Just two."
He intentionally took three sips, swallowing loudly for her to notice. When she realized what he had done, she ripped the bottle from his lips, spilling fresh liquid all over him. The cold water cooled him, he didn't mind what she did.
"You're such an asshole." she said, rolling her eyes.
"I know." he replied. Whenever she'd call him an asshole, he would answer it with I know. He leaned against the tree next to her the moment she pulled the walkman out of her back pocket. Without a word, she offered him an earbud, which he silently accepted. It was their custom of a sort, whenever they hung out. He was too proud of himself when she turned up the volume, and the first song on the playlist was a techno song. She turned up the volume just enough that they could hear the song well and talk at the same time.
"Tomcraft is badass." she commented as Loneliness played in the background. "Such an underrated DJ."
"Told ya."
For a while, they just listened to music, enjoying themselves. They weren't even aware when they listened to almost half of the playlist. Their legs ached from standing, and they decided to take a short walk, to stretch them. A couple of boys and girls looked at them sideways. They all mostly hung out together, but the two of them had a certain company, which in most cases, ironically, included only the two of them. Ben even heard various gossips about himself and Ellie. Many thought the two of them were in some secret relationship. That, of course, was far from the truth.
"Look at those two." Ben said when he noticed Jesse and Dina sitting together on the bench and talking. Jesse was picking at a flower in his hands, tearing off the petals as Dina told him something, sitting perhaps too close to him.
"Lovebirds." Ellie said through a smirk. "They're cute."
Guess Jesse found himself a girlfriend. "Well, Dina's good looking. She has a big nose, perhaps, but she's pretty."
Ellie rolled her eyes as she listened to him. "What's wrong with her nose?"
"You know, it's kinda, um.." He tried to explain, pointing to his nose, motioning the shape of her nose. Then he realized that Dina was looking at him, and he tried to get out of the situation through a smile and waving his hand. He looked away, embarrassed by what he was doing.
"You're unbelievable." she concluded, sighing. They walked through the scorched streets of the settlement. Ben could hardly wait to take shelter somewhere colder, he could no longer bear the heat he felt on his neck. He had a feeling he could bake an egg on his own skin because of how hot it was.
"Wanna do something?" he asked her when they reached her house at the end of the street. Ben's house was still a few streets away.
"I promised Joel I'd help him skin the deer at noon, so.. maybe tonight?"
"Tonight's cool."
"All right. See ya."
"Bye."
The day was as long as it was boring. And that meant Ben had no idea what to do until the night. When he returned home, he met Emily and Tom. His older sister taught his younger brother to write and read. Little rascal learned quickly. Little Tom showed a great desire to read, just like his older brother. The two of them were almost identical in a way. Although shy at first, both of them would open up eventually and become playful and kind. They had similar interests and loved books. Before their father died, he taught them to play basketball, and together, the three of them watched old VHS tapes. He was born in Boston, thus was a fan of the Boston Celtics. That's what Ben liked the most about his father. Even though the world has gone to hell, he still found time for creativity, art, sports and other good things in the world.
"Hey." Ben greeted his siblings, who greeted him back. "How's the lesson going?"
Tom sighed, "It's boring. Emily is forcing me to read some boring instructions. I'd rather read a novel."
"This knowledge might save your life one day." Emily berated him, offended. "Keep reading."
Ben laughed at the scene in front of him, remembering how his father made him read the same thing when he was little. He left his brother and sister to study in peace and continued to his room on the second floor. Bedroom was a mess. His bed was not made, books were scattered all over the desk, several of them left open. He used them for inspiration and as help in writing his own work. Prologue was finished the day before, but it still required some further work, improvements of a sort.
Should I write some more, he thought, throwing himself on the top of the bed. Navy sheets were soft and refreshing, he liked the cool of it. Nah, no inspiration today. Ben was usually able to write whenever, his mind was busting with ideas, yet he had no inspiration that day. Must be 'cus of the hot weather. Scorching sun and a morning game already exhausted him. He took a shower and allowed himself a short nap.
When he opened his eyes, he realized that the nap was not short at all. In contrast, the sun was already setting behind the mountains in the west, coloring the sky with a reddish glow. Ben reluctantly got out of bed and stretched, feeling a crack in his back. He was not satisfied that he wasted the daylight in dreams. Speaking of dreams, he dreamed something about being chased by a beer bottle with legs. Weird.
He stretched once more and took a deep breath. At least now I don't have to wait to go to Ellie, he concluded and headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth. Once he was done, he got downstairs, noticing that Emily was absent while Tom watched an old movie.
"Tom." he called out for his younger brother. "I'm going to Ellie's. Don't stay up too long."
Little brother just waved his hand at him, absorbed in the movie plot. The air was a bit fresher in the evening, but that difference was not significant. The streets of the settlement were crowded with people. As he walked, Ben noticed couples holding hands, parents taking out their children, or people just walking their dogs. He thought about it and wondered if all people lived like this before the apocalypse.
Shortly after, he reached Ellie's house at the end of the street. The small hut was different from the other houses on the street. That suited her because she also stood out from other people. He knocked on the front door and decided to wait for a response.
"Come in." a muffled voice responded from the inside.
When he went inside, he felt a slight stream of air from the fan at the other end of the room. The air that dried the sweat on his forehead pleased him. Ben turned his head and saw Ellie and another person sitting on the couch, disappointed at the same time because he hoped that no one would interrupt their time together. Especially not Cat who had been getting more and more involved in their relationship lately. The tattooed girl with short black hair was not as bad as a person, Ben even got along well with her. The problem was that he was a little jealous that his best friend was spending less time with him and more with her. Don't be childish, you idiot.
"What's up?" he said in a greeting manner when he approached the two girls. Ellie raised her head slightly and acknowledged his presence with a smile.
"Hi, Ben." Cat said and smiled in the same manner as Ellie. "Didn't expect to see you here." The look in her eyes revealed to him that she wasn't pleased at all that he interrupted their hangout. Ben noticed a notebook in her hands, she was drawing something.
Didn't expect to see me here? I'm the one who was supposed to hang out with her.
He faked a smile as a response and looked at where he should sit. Ellie and Cat didn't really save space for him on the couch, even though it could easily hold three people. In the end, he decided to pull the chair from the kitchen area in the hut. The three of them sat in awkward silence. Ben was aware that he probably interrupted some juicy topic the two of them talked about.
"So.." Ellie began, "Wanna play some Playstation?"
"Sure." he said.
Ellie stood up and walked around the table, approaching the flat screen on the other side of the wall. The striking sound of a fan filled the room when Ellie turned on the Playstation 3.
"What do you want to play?" she asked, looking at Ben and Cat. "I got basketball, zombie-survival, races, shooters.."
"Oh, I'm not gonna play. Ben can chose." Cat replied. "I'll just finish my drawing."
Ellie looked desperately at him, and he knew she was aware of the awkwardness in the room. Why is she here anyway?
"Basketball?"
Ellie silently opened the box and inserted the disc into the played against each other for the next half hour. Ben picked the Boston Celtics while Ellie played with the LA Lakers, just because he told her the Lakers were Boston's biggest rivals. The game went on as usual, Ben winning and Ellie getting annoyed.
"Oh, man." she complained, "How is that a foul? I barely touched him!"
He sighed and tried to explain for the 101st time. "That's a reach-in foul. Every player has a personal space when dribbling the ball. You can't enter that personal space."
"How am I supposed to take the ball then?"
"Steal the ball."
"How am I supposed to steal the ball that's in a player's personal space if I can't get in that personal space?!"
"Ball is not always in a personal space."
"Ball is not always in personal space my ass. Every time I press square to steal the ball, it's reach-in foul."
"Because you don't do it right."
"How the fuck do you know how to do it right?"
"Because I win every time."
"I give up." she hissed, throwing the controller on the couch, angrily but still careful enough not to break it. Ben took a deep breath and enjoyed the fruits of triumph.
"What was the score?" he asked her, aware of the score, just to mock her. "95-49. Are you getting worse or am I getting better?"
Ellie's face was red as she stared daggers at him. "Shut up."
While the two of them fought each other while playing the game, Cat was silent. She didn't utter a single word while they played. Instead, she was drawing something Ben couldn't see. Small tattoos were scattered across her right hand. Those were cool in a way, but Ben didn't want to admit it.
"Are you done?" Ellie asked her after she calmed down. Cat nodded her head slightly, "Almost."
Ben suddenly felt the need to go to the toilet. He excused himself and went to the bathroom. Through the wall he heard the giggly voices of two girls as they said something to each other. When he finished urinating, he stood over the sink to wash his hands and looked in the mirror. He used that moment to fix his hair. The bangs fell all the way to his eyes, it had been about twenty days since Emily had last cut his hair. When he finished fixing his hair, there was silence around him. Giggly voices were no more. He came out of the bathroom and walked towards the girls, but then, he was taken aback by what he saw.
Ellie was lying on the couch and Cat on her. Their lips were connected as they kissed passionately, unaware of his presence. Some strange heat filled his chest and he didn't know what to say or what to do. Suddenly, it was as if they were back in reality and Cat abruptly got up from Ellie, noticing Ben silently standing above them. He was not aware of what kind of face he had made, but he felt a strong desire to leave.
"Shit." Ellie murmured as she sat up, aware that he had noticed them. "Sorry."
Ben suddenly became aware that he stood stiff like a statue and that it might've looked wrong. He cleared his throat and waved his hand away. "Oh, d-don't worry about it."
Discomfort could be felt in the air. Ben stood dumfounded, his hands on his hips as he looked away. Cat picked up her notebook again and scribbled something on it, and Ellie scanned the room restlessly, hugging her knees.
"I was just leaving anyway." he said in the end and smiled insecurely, pointing with his finger towards the door.
Ellie then looked at him and sighed, "But you just arrived." She was red in the face.
"Nah, I promised Tom I'd watch The Shining with him tonight. He's been annoying me for days to watch it with him." he lied. "So.. see you tomorrow."
Cat waved her hand weakly while Ellie looked away, disappointed. It was dark when he went outside. The air was getting fresher and fresher, but it didn't help him. The heat that had accumulated in him reached the boiling point. He felt it in his chest, in his face, in his hands, all over his body.
What the hell just happened? Why is it so hot all of a sudden? Why did this disturb me?
The fact that he would not spend half the night with her as he had planned made him terribly angry. Cat had to come just then and ruin everything. On top of everything, they kissed! He wanted to scream, now that he's going to lose his best friend. Ellie found a girlfriend with whom she would spend all her time in the future. He hated both of them, walking angrily through the empty streets of a settlement swallowed by the darkness of night.
x
When he awoke, the starry sky was still above him, but a yellowish color could be seen at the ends of the eastern horizon. His back was stiff from the hard wall backrest. He sighed painfully as he moved, feeling stiffness and every cut on his body. Ellie slept peacefully, leaning against the wall next to him, breathing evenly. Her bangs fell over her nose, which she slowly scratched in her sleep, causing a smile on his face, for it was quite an amusing sight. Despite the dirt, scratches and bruises, in some weird way, her plain face adorned with freckles and a scar over her right eyebrow was beautiful. He just wanted to let her sleep peacefully, separated from the dangers of that damn city they had come to. She deserved a little peace in her life after everything she went through and everything she survived.
"Ellie." he whispered, shaking her gently. "Go to bed, you'll catch a cold here."
Ellie opened her eyes, and Ben hated himself the moment he woke her up. She looked at him with half-open eyes and held her gaze.
"You're really here." she whispered weakly, and he nodded.
I'm here.
