Disclaimer: I do not own any character of (The Last of Us) TLOU is owned by Naughty Dog and their creators.

A/N: Thanks for been reading this story, I'm very happy that is doing so well. Sorry for any mistake the writing has, but English is not my native language. I wanted to thanks all of you for be so supported in this story and for left review and comment on it. I have been received a few reviews telling me that this story is made some people feel good after the sad story the write for the second game. I want to say that I'm really disappointed with that story. And even that they kill Joel in the game we the fan will keep him alive here and in our heart. I really want to play that game base on Joel and Ellie just like the first one, but they ruin that. Anyway, I will continue writing stories about them no matter what, because that is what fanfiction writing exist. Now let's continue with our story and I wish the best for all of you and stay safe there.

Chapter 7: An Unexpected Reaction

After Joel got out of Arizona, he took the main road and started driving back to Minnesota. After two days of driving, Joel stopped in Colorado to eat and rest. He found a good motel to stay for the night and eat. Joel already filled his truck with gas a few hours ago so he didn't need to do that again until he hit Nebraska. After funding the hotel and getting a shower, he was planning to call Marlene to let her know that he was coming back to his house. So after he gets out and buys something to eat, he goes back to his room and makes the call.

"Hello, who is this?" Marlene asked after she picked up the call.

"Is Joel Miller, I just wanted to let you know that I'm on my way back," said Joel calmly. "So how is Ellie?" he asked before Marlene answered him.

"She is… fine for now. The pills the doctor gave her are keeping her calm, she is in her room now. So you decide to accept my proposal… that is good."

"I decided to go back and help Ellie to get better, but I'm not signing anything until I talk to her."

"Joel, you don't need to worry about that. I think this is the best way to ensure her future. If something happens to me before she turns 18 she is going to end up in an institution for minors… Do you really want that for her? Or what if it is after? She will have to deal with all this shit alone."

"Do you think that I do not think about all this… even when I was there before, I thought about what would happen when someone found out about us and how things were going to end."

"Well, I just hope this works… I hate to see her like that."

"I am not going to get into this again, but you should do things better from the beginning."

"We all make mistakes in our lives Joel. I just hope that we're not too late to fix this one. When are you will be back?'"

"I don't know yet, two days max, I'm in Colorado now, so I have to cross Nebraska and half of Minnesota to get there.

"Okay… but remember, you can't tell Ellie anything about this. I don't want her to know that I'm sick."

"I think that you're making another mistake there, she needs to know."

"That will be worse, I don't want her to worry about me. I want her to be happy, and I want you to make sure of that. I'm putting my trust in you, so please don't let me down."

"She will be mad at me when she finds out that I knew and didn't tell her."

"Maybe at first… but you have to believe that love can fix anything… you need to trust her and yourself to figure out how to pass all that when my time comes."

He rolled his eyes. "That is easier for you to say than done."

"Well, all you need to have is a little faith. Now call me when you arrive in Minnesota. Have a good trip." with that, she hung on. Joel put the phone back to the table and continued eating his food.

The next day, Joel wakes early in the morning, takes a shower, and eats breakfast. After that, he put his things back in the truck and goes back to the road. A few hours later he was in the middle of Nebraska. So he needed to stop for gas and find a place to eat.

After he found a diner place with a gas station beside it. Joel stops in the gas station and fills up his pick-up. Then he goes to the diner to have something to eat. It was passing the afternoon, so he probably will get back to Minnesota by late tomorrow.

So soon he got into the dinner, he walked to the counter and sat down. After a few minutes, the woman behind the counter walked up to him. "What can I give… honey?"

Joel looks at the woman and asks. "What is special?"

"That will be steak with mashed potato." replay the woman.

"Okay, that sounds good… I will take that, thank you."

"And for a drink?"

"Just a sprite… thanks."

The woman started to write in her notepad. "Okay… one special and one sprite… That will be ready in a few minutes."

Ten minutes later Joel was eating his food when a man approached him and sat beside him. "I hope you like your meal, mister," the man said while looking at him.

Joel turns his head and looks at the man. "Thanks, I will?" Joel turns his head again and continues eating his food.

The man put a mad face. "That wasn't a compliment, asshole. You better go out right now. We don't like people like you around here."

Joel turned his head again and looked at the man. "People like me? Look I don't know what your problem is sir, but I just passed through and-"

"My problem is people like you coming around here and fucking our town."

The waitress gets close to the counter and looks at the man. "Tom, he is not one of them. He is just here for dinner and-"

The man looked at her and pointed his finger at her. "Shoot you mouth Marta… and stop defending them."

Joel looked at the man. He never likes men that don't respect women. "Hey… you need to calm down okay? No one wants any trouble here. I just-"

Joel never finishes, because the man stands up from his chair and punches Joel in the jaw. Joel falls down to the floor and looks at the man staring at him. "Get up you bastard, I will teach to no steal our jobs."

Joel stands up not knowing why this man is attacking him. He watches the man moving at him with his fist toward targeting his face again. But this time Joel was prepared and moved to the side and pushed the man away from him. "Look, I don't know who you think I'm or what your problem is, but I don't want any trouble… okay?"

The man turns around and looks at Joel. "You already have it, you mother fucker…" the man ran toward Joel and tried to hit him again, but Joel was waiting for him and hit him in the stomach very hard. The man bent down and fell to the floor.

The woman walks out of the counter and grabs Joel by the arm and pulls him away from the man. "You better go, he is just drunk, but he has a lot of friends," the woman continued pulling Joel until they were out of the place. "Go… now."

Joel still doesn't understand what just happened. "What about the food… I need to pay for-"

"Is okay you don't need to pay for it is on the house… now go, before he calls his friends and gets worse," the woman pushes Joel away and goes back into the diner.

Joel didn't know what the hell was all that, but he needed to get back home, so it was better to avoid any more trouble. So he walked back to his truck and got out of there. He decided not to stop after that and drive all the way to the town. He will arrive late at night so it was better to go directly to his house and go to see Ellie the next day.

A few hours later he called Marlene and told her that he was going to arrive today but as it was going to be passing midnight, he will go to her house the next morning. Joel arrived at his house at 3:20 in the morning. The place was all covered in snow, but lucky for him, he stopped in a gas station as soon as he arrived in Minnesota and put on his winter clothes. So he just parks his pick-up in front of the house and gets out of it.

He grabs the bag in the passenger seat and closes the door. He needs to take out the other boxes he has on the back but that will have to wait for later. So before he started to walk toward the front door. He stops for a moment and starts to look around. It was a full moon night, so the surrender was a little illuminated. The place looks the same as it was before he went away, except for all the snow of course. He looked at the front of the house and saw that it was all dark. So he starts walking again until he gets to the front door.

Joel took his key out of his pocket and unlocked the door. Soon he went inside, closing the door behind him and looking around. The place was cold and dark, so he turned the light on and walked to the fireplace. He was lucky that it was some wood there. So he grabbed them and put them inside the chimney, then he grabbed a box of matches that was still on the top of it and started the fire.

The house will need time to warm up, so he stays with his coat on and picks up his bag. He looks at the place and even though it has some dust in some places the place looks very clean. He thought that it was probably because of Ellie taking care of the place when he went back to Texas. Joel starts thinking about her, and how she most suffers because of his decision to leave. He did not have too many choices after her aunt came to his house, but he thought that it was the right thing to do back then, now he is not so sure.

Yeah, he can go to jail for being with a minor, but maybe they could work something out if they have the time to talk about it. Even if he was not sure he loved Ellie, back then. The last thing he wanted was to hurt her. Being depressing at her age is not good for her health, so he is hoping to be able to help her with that. After a few minutes, he walked to his room and saw that the door was open. Yeah, he remembers Marlene told him that Ellie was coming here from time to time. So she probably slept in his bed a few times.

Joel was tired and there were a lot of things to do tomorrow so he needs to try to get some rest, at least for a few hours. So he dropped his bag on the floor and sat on the bed. He takes his boots off and his coat but leaves the rest of his clothes on as the cabin is still cold. Then he lays down on the bed and tries to get some sleep.

The place is still a little cold, but the fire will take care of that soon. So he put his hands behind his head and looked at the ceiling. How am I going to fix all this? Things were good with Ellie before that kiss, but after I leave her like that I don't think things are going to be the same. What am I going to tell her when I see her tomorrow? Joel stays awake for half an hour thinking about what he is going to do to help Ellie to get better. He was gone for a little more than three months and it seems that Ellie is suffering from that. He closes his eyes and lets go of his mind until his tiredness catches upon him and he falls asleep.

After Joe falls asleep. Somehow he just appeared in another place. Joel doesn't know what happened, as he does not remember to wake up and go anywhere. So he started to look around and try to see where he was. Then he noticed that he was sitting on the couch of his old house back in Texas.

"How the hell do I get here?" he asked while trying to get up from the couch but can't.

" That is a good question? Did you think that she is going to forgive you? Said a woman's voice coming from behind.

"Tess? Is that you?" Joel asked, trying to move his head but he can't either.

The woman just walked from behind him and stood in the front. "You're just a poor bastard that thinks that you can fix anything… But you can't… and you know why? Because you only ruin all that you touch. You always promise things that you never fulfill. So why do you think this is going to end out?"

"Tess, I don't know what you are talking about-… wait… this is just another fucking nightmare right?… I don't have time for this, so leave me alone…" Joel tries to move out of the couch again, but he can't move. After he tried several times he looked at his ex-wife that was still in front of him with her arm crossed. "Why are you here… torturing me? You were the one that wants to leave."

"Yes… I leave you because you make me… You push me away, just like you push away from your brother and just like you push away that poor girl."

Joel lowered his head and looked at the floor. "Yeah, I made a lot of mistakes before. But now, I just want to fix them."

"You can't fix anything Joel, because you're the one that is broken… you think that you're going to help that poor girl. No… because the only thing you're doing is fuck people's lives… like you did with the other people that love you, so the only thing you will do is fuck her life up, just like you did with everything else."

"I don't care what you think about me, but I can help her… I can change it. Yeah, maybe I could not save our daughter or our marriage… but I know that I can fix what I did to her…. I know I can. I just need to make her understand."

"Yeah, I can see how you help people… and she is just a kid. Do you think you love her? But you only looking for an excuse to fuck yourself up… again. Because you can't let go of the pain..." then the woman just disappeared from Joel's sight. Joel tries to get up again when he hears the sound of a baby crying coming from upstairs.

Joel tried to get up again, but this time he was able to. so he stood up from the chair and ran toward the second floor. "No, no… no…" soon Joel arrived on the second floor, he saw the corridor get longer and a lot of doors start to show on both sides. The sound of a baby crying can be heard in the corridor, but Joel didn't know from which door the sound was coming. Then a voice whispered in his ears.

"One of these doors will be your salvation and the one you love… but you need to find wish one. Try not to lose your time with the wrong ones… or you will be lost forever." Joel starts to run forward, but before he gets to the first one, all disappear and it gets all black.

Joel opened his eyes and sat up on the bed. His heart was beating as fast as it could. He hasn't had any nightmares for at least two or three days, so why are they starting again. And the voice, he hears that voice before… but can't remember where. After a few minutes, he lay back down and put one hand on his face. Fuck… I can't start with this again. If he wants to help Ellie I need to have my mind clear. After that, he closes his eyes and tries to fall back to sleep.

( Next day in the Morning )

Joel wakes up with a headache, and he still feels tired. Having nightmares again is not going to help him with this situation. But he needs to go and see Ellie, but first, he needs to get his things out of his truck. So after that, he gets off the bed and changes. He put up his winter clothes and got out of the house. Soon he was outside, his phone started to ring.

Joel takes out his phone from his pocket and answers the call. "Hello?"

"Joel? Is Marlene... Did you arrive at your house?"

"Yes… I arrived last night… well, early this morning… I just need t take a few things out of my truck before I-"

"Is Ellie there?" She interrupts him.

"Ellie? Why are you asking me that? She is not supposed to be in your house?" Joel asked with a worried tone.

"Yes, but when I woke up this morning and went to her room she wasn't there. I looked for her everywhere in the house, but I can't find her," she said with a worried tone. "Do I call the police and report her missing?"

"Okay, okay…do not panic and don't call the police yet… just check outside and see if you can find her or any clue about where she can go. I will be there in 15 minutes, okay?"

"Okay, I'll call you back…after I check outside," Soon Marlene ends the call, he put his phone back in his pocket and goes back inside the house to get the truck keys. After he found them, he went back out and walk to his truck. He opened the door and got inside, but before he started the truck his phone started to ring again. He takes out the phone and hopes that Marlene will give him the good news.

"Yes… did you find her?" Joel asked desperately.

"No… I look everywhere and I can't find her. She has done this before, but she always goes to your house. So if she is not there? I don't know where she can be… Joel, we need to find her… if she goes out during the night, and go into the forest… with this weather?"

"Don't worry... I will find her…" Joel lowered his hand and started to think. C'mon Ellie if you didn't come here… where did you-shit! He moved his hand with the phone up and talked again. "Okay, I think I have an idea where she is… I'll call you back in one hour okay."

"One hour? But Joel?"

"I call you back… as soon I find her okay? I promise..." Joel hangs the phone and gets out of the truck. He looks at the direction of the old cabin Ellie used before she met him and starts running into the forest. He is not sure that Ellie will be there but is a possibility if she didn't come to his house. It took him almost an hour to arrive at his destination. Lucky for him the snow wasn't too deep, so he didn't have any problem with that. Soon he saw the old cabin, he started to call Ellie.

"Ellie!... Ellie!" he starts to yell, soon he gets closer to the broken cabin. Shit… I hope she does not come here at night. This place is not going to protect her from the cold. Joel was going to enter the old cabin when he saw someone standing in the pier. Joel ran toward the little pier and stopped at the beginning of it. "Ellie… is that you?" the person was all covered up, so he wasn't sure if it was her. Then he remembers that she told him that no one came to this place. So Joel proceeds to approach her.

"Ellie… is me… Joel," he started talking while getting close to her. "Ellie!"

The person turned around and looked at him. Now he can see that it was her. "Joel?"

"Yes… It is me, Ellie," he said with a soft voice.

"No… you're no real… you're gone forever and never coming back. This is another projection of my imagination. Like the ones before," Ellie put one hand on her head and pointed at Joel with the other. "Just go away and leave me alone…"

"Ellie is me… I'm here… is not your imagination," he continued walking toward her, but Ellie just moved back.

"No… you're not real!... You always disappear as soon as I try to hug you," she said with tears on her eyes.

"Ellie… I'm real… I'm back…" he moved slowly at her and noticed that she was close to the edge of the pier. He needs to stop her before she continues moving backward and falls into the frozen lake. "Yes… I did go and leave you alone… but now I'm back… I came back for you, so give me your hand and let's go home."

Ellie was looking at him not knowing what to do. She has seen him before, and every time she tries to reach him he disappears. So now she is not sure if this was another illusion. "You leave me… after you promise… that you… never will," her voice was weak now.

Joel moved closer. "Yes, I did… and I'm so sorry about that… but I'm here now… so give me your hand, so that way we-"

"No… you're… not-" Ellie doesn't even finish as all go black on her mind and she starts to fall down.

Joel saw how she started to fall down toward the water and move faster toward her. "Nooooo..."