Joel looked up as Ellie walked out of her room yawning.

Joel put down his glass of milk. "Good afternoon," he said.

Ellie looked at the clock and rolled her eyes, moving to grab a soda.

Joel placed his glass by the sink. "Don't even think about it, Ellie."

"What?" Ellie groaned. "It's noon."

"And you just woke up."

"All the more reason for me to drink a soda to feel awake quicker," Ellie retorted grabbing some water.

Joel gave Ellie a piece of toast and allowed her to eat in silence. As Ellie ate, Joel noticed that the emotion he had seen the night before had begun to creep into her eyes. Ellie finished eating and took her plate to the sink. She stood there for a moment, looking out the window next to them.

"What do you say we for a walk," Joel suggested, pulling on his jacket over his red flannel shirt and black jeans.

…

Ellie took a deep breath as she walked outside. She hadn't bothered to grab new clothes before leaving the house.

There were several people moving on the streets, working on buildings, and shoveling sidewalks.

Joel and Ellie began walking.

"It'll be alright," Joel said after they walked a block.

"It's going to be a long three days," Ellie said evasively. She didn't speak for a moment. Then, she looked at Joel. "Sorry I couldn't talk to you last night."

"Well, obviously, the kid figured something out," Joel said simply.

Ellie smiled slightly and shrugged. "It's always been easier with him," she admitted.

"That's because he's closer to your age," Joel said. There was no hint of anger in his voice. He continued. "And it's because he always supports you no matter what you want. And I don't always go that route."

"It's not that," Ellie said quickly.

Joel raised an eyebrow.

Ellie sighed. "Okay, maybe that's part of it. But that's always been your job. And although I will never admit it to anyone else, it's helped keep me alive and sane over the years."

"Your welcome," Joel grunted.

"Thank you," Ellie replied.

They both smiled as they passed by a dad and his child shoveling the snow.

Ellie looked at Joel. "Matthew's always made me feel special without treating me like I have to be special. It just makes it easier to talk to him, I guess."

"Does he make you want to be special?" Joel asked, stopping.

"Well, not in the 'I'm the Messiah who's going to save the human race' special," Ellie answered sarcastically.

"Well at least we have that," Joel said with a shrug as they continued walking.

"Where is Matthew anyway?" Ellie asked, looking around. "Every time I wake up, he's gone."

"He went to 'your place' to work on something," Joel answered. "He said you'd know what that meant."

"Yup, I know what it means."

Joel grunted. "I'm assuming that 'your place' is in Jackson and that you're behaving yourselves."

"Yes, it's in Jackson. As for behaving ourselves…" Ellie turned to Joel and raised an eyebrow.

Joel opened his mouth to reply when there was a loud commotion down the street.

"Wade!"

Ellie and Joel saw a man being dragged out of an old abandoned bar, throwing punches at the men dragging him out. One of the men was Tommy. The other, Ellie remembered from her time in Jackson, was Marcus.

"Wade!" Tommy was shouting as the man kicked his legs against Tommy's black jacket and pants. "Calm down!"

Wade started shouting. "Get your hands off me, you fucking Hunter!"

Ellie and Joel ran forward as Marcus was thrown off balance, getting his black sweater and jeans filled with snow. As the wild man continued shouting, Tommy tried to hold him in place.

"Stay here!" Joel ordered Ellie.

"Fuck no!" Ellie replied.

Joel ran forward and grabbed Wade under the arm and allowed Tommy to get a better grip. Ellie ran forward to help. Wade kicked out with a foot and hit Ellie in the chest, sending her to the ground.

Ellie stood as Joel, Tommy, and Marcus continued to struggle with Wade. When she looked around, Ellie spotted an old metal trash bin filled with light, fluffy snow.

"Move!" Ellie shouted as she picked up the bin.

Joel, Tommy, and Marcus separated as Ellie lunged forward, dumping the entire bin of snow over Wade.

The man froze from the unexpected cold and slumped to the ground, breathing heavily.

Joel, Tommy, and Marcus took a step back, taking deep breaths themselves.

"Nice work, Ellie," Tommy said bending down and helping an almost limp Wade to his feet. He glanced at Marcus. "Let's get him home."

Joel stepped back as Marcus assisted Tommy in walking Wade down the street. Ellie stood off to the side watching as the disoriented man slowly recovered and began walking for himself.

"I never would have thought of the snow thing," Joel said to Ellie. "Where'd you learn that?"

"Back in military school, a jackass tried to steal my knife," Ellie explained. "It was the only thing Riley could do to stop me from killing him before the teachers showed up."

Joel nodded and they both brushed snow off themselves.

"What the fuck was that about?" Ellie asked, picking up the trash bin as Joel closed the door to the bar that the three men had exited.

"Old wounds, bad memories," Joel replied. He sounded reluctant. "It happens to all of us."

"I don't remember seeing anything like that before," Ellie replied.

Joel hesitated. "I didn't let you."

"You were afraid I'd blame myself," Ellie guessed.

"I was afraid it would make things worse for you and… this isn't a guilt that you need."

Tommy returned to them. "Thanks for the help," he said, still breathing heavily. "That hasn't happened to Wade in a while. He picked up an old knife and just freaked."

"How often does this shit happen?" Ellie asked.

"Often enough," Tommy half answered.

"What were you doing at the bar?" Joel asked, changing the subject. "I would have thought you'd cleared it out already."

"We cleared it out years ago," Tommy explained. "Now we're just trying to clean it out and figure out what to do with it."

"Any ideas?" Ellie asked, glancing at the door.

"Not yet," Tommy answered. "But it's pretty bad in there. We were just here to look at what needs to be done. We've got a few other places we want to fix up first."

Down the street, Joey turned a corner and jogged toward them. "Sorry, dad," he said reaching his father. "I got caught up."

Ellie noticed Joey's body stiffen as he spoke as well as a lack of eye contact. He's lying.

"Ten minutes late," Tommy said. He shook his head. "It's alright. We had a situation too. We better get moving."

Tommy's walkie-talkie chimed. "Hey, Tommy?"

Joey relaxed.

Ellie looked at him and raised a questioning eyebrow.

Joey looked away.

"Hold please," Tommy said, putting the walkie-talkie to his mouth. He looked at Joel and Ellie. "Well, duty calls. Will I see you tonight?"

"Yup," Ellie answered.

"Good," Tommy said. He looked at Joey. "The glass on one of the buses near the south side of the Wall cracked the other day. We'd better go get it boarded up."

"Sure," Joey answered.

Ellie and Joel turned and walked back to the house.

Ellie took off her winter coat and sat down on the couch. Joel sat down on a chair across from her. Ellie brushed her hair behind her ears and held it there for a second.

"You okay, kiddo?" Joel asked.

"Yeah," Ellie said quickly, letting go of her hair. She ran a hand down her face. "Sometimes, it sucks to realize that as good as this place is, the world out there has still gone to shit."

"That's not something we can control," Joel said.

"That's not the way it should be in Jackson," Ellie countered.

Joel nodded in agreement but offered no reply. He glanced at the clock. "Dinner at Tommy's is not till later. You wanna practice on the guitar for a bit?"

"I don't really feel like it," Ellie said as her doubts following her revelation to Tim instantly reentered her mind.

"Don't do this to yourself," Joel warned.

"I can't help it," Ellie said. She sighed. "What if I was wrong?"

"Then you were wrong," Joel answered.

"Not helping," Ellie groaned.

Joel leaned forward. "Kiddo, we'll just have to wait and see what happ—"

There was a knock on the door.

Ellie stood and opened the door.

Clarisse barreled into her.

Ellie hugged the little girl in surprise and looked up.

Tim stood in the doorway, his hands in his pockets and his expression unreadable. Both were wearing the same outfits as the previous night.

"Ellie!" Clarisse was saying, holding up her art book she was carrying. "I want to show you something!"

"Um… I…" Ellie stammered. She looked at Tim, who nodded.

Ellie knelt to Clarisse's level. "Tell you what. How about you go show Winston first. He's in my room."

Clarisse ran past an equally surprised Joel and into Ellie's room.

Ellie looked back at Tim. "What… what about the three days?"

"You saved our lives," Tim said after a moment. He took his hands out of his pockets. "You. Matthew. Joel. We wouldn't have made it here without you guys."

"I'm not sure I would have made it back here without you two," Ellie said slowly, glancing at her bedroom door. "You don't owe me anything."

"Well," Tim said, smiling sheepishly. "Clarisse really wanted to show you her drawing."

"So, we're cool?" Ellie asked nervously.

"We're cool," Tim assured her. He chuckled. "Look, I've got a plumbing emergency at a house near the west end of the Wall and I don't have time to drop her at the shop. Would you mind?"

"I'd love to," Ellie said as relief spread through her.

"I'll pick her up before dinner at Tommy's tonight," Tim said. "She found a dress at the shop that she wants to wear."

"Matthew told you about the party, then?" Ellie asked.

"No, Clarisse earns me automatic invites."

"Well, I'll keep an eye on her till then," Ellie said, finally relaxing.

"Clarisse," Tim called. "I'm leaving. I'll see you in a few hours."

"Bye," Clarisse called from the other room.

Ellie closed the door as Joel walked forward.

"What the fuck just happened?" Ellie whispered.

"What you wanted to happen," Joel replied. "Go on. We'll practice later."

"Thanks, Joel."

Ellie walked into her room and found Clarisse laying on the bed, using Winston as a pillow.

Ellie got onto the bed as well. "What did you want to show me?" she asked.

Clarisse smiled broadly and flipped through her art book. Ellie glanced at a few pages and saw that the drawings were basic, but colorful. They completely lacked the reality of the outside world.

Clarisse finally stopped on a page and turned it to Ellie. It was a giant red, square-shaped building with two openings on either side. In the middle was an orange fire. On the either side of the fire were two sets of stick people. One had long red hair.

"It's us!" Clarisse said excitedly. She began pointing at various sections of the picture. "That's me. That's Tim. That's your boyfriend, Matthew. And that's—"

"Me…" Ellie completed. She felt her eyes start to water. "That's the night we first met."

"Why are you crying again?" Clarisse asked.

"No reason," Ellie said, regaining her composure. She scooted a little closer to Clarisse. "So, are you going to write your name on it? All the old artists put their names on their art."

Clarisse looked away and Ellie saw her eyes started to tear up.

"Clarisse," Ellie said, concerned. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know how…" Clarisse's voice dropped to a mumble.

"Kiddo, what's wrong," Ellie asked, turning Clarisse toward her.

"I don't know how to write," Clarisse said quietly. She looked at Ellie. "My dad taught me to read. But then he had to leave. Tim has tried but…"

"It's okay. Sometimes, it just takes time," Ellie said, rubbing Clarisse's back. "You know what?"

"What?" Clarisse asked.

"I didn't know how to read a map until I was fourteen," Ellie whispered.

"Really?" Clarisse asked. "Tim taught me after you found us."

"See, you are six years old and you know how to read a map," Ellie said lightly. "Writing just takes time, that's all."

"Can you help me learn to write?" Clarisse asked hopefully.

"I can try," Ellie said uncertainly. She stood and grabbed her own, rarely used notebook from under her bed. She also grabbed a pencil from her closet. Ellie sat back down next to Clarisse, who leaned closer.

Ellie took a deep breath. "Soo… what letters do you know?"

Clarisse started naming off letters, taking the pencil from Ellie and writing in the notebook.

"Okay," Ellie said. "So, you know 'O' and 'I'. Do you know the small version of the letters?"

Clarisse drew a smaller 'O'. She put down the pencil, disappointed. "I don't know 'I'."

"Hmmm…" Ellie said, thinking for a moment. "How did you learn 'O'?"

"It looks like the moon," Clarisse said.

"How do you know 'I'?"

"It looks like a stick."

Clarisse bowed her head as Ellie thought for a moment.

Ellie looked up and smiled. "We can do this."

"We can?" Clarisse asked hopefully, looking up.

"Yeah," Ellie said excitedly. She pointed to the letters. "'O' looks like a moon, and the 'I' looks like a stick. Do you know how to make a triangle?"

Clarisse drew a triangle.

Ellie smiled and added two downward-sloping lines on the lower points.

"See?" Ellie said. "An 'A' is just a triangle with two sticks at the bottom."

Clarisse did her best to copy Ellie's 'A'. The letter could be described as bumpy, but passable. Clarisse stared at the letter and smiled.

"There," Ellie said. "You just wrote a big 'A'."

"What about the small A?" Clarisse asked.

"We'll worry about that later," Ellie said. "For now, we should just practice our 'A'."

"I just did 'A'," Clarisse said, confused.

"Just because you can do it, doesn't mean you know it," Ellie said. "You have to do it over and over again."

"Fine…" Clarisse groaned, earning a small smile from Ellie. Clarisse tightened her grip on the pencil. "How many times?"

Ellie gently grabbed the pencil and started writing Capital A's down the page, leaving plenty of space for a second set.

After a minute, Ellie gave the pencil back. "Let's start with a hundred," she said.

Ellie turned on her kid-friendliest CD and sat down in the bed, watching Clarisse work in silence.

After about seven minutes, Clarisse put the pencil down and gave Ellie a nervous look. Ellie leaned forward and traced a finger down the page. The shape and straightness each 'A' began to get better as Ellie reached the bottom of the page.

"Getting close," Ellie said. "Do you want to try 'B'?"

"Can I do more 'A'?" Clarisse asked.

"That's my girl," Ellie said, wrapping her hand around Clarisse's shoulder and giving the young girl a squeeze. Ellie began writing the letter 'A' repeatedly. "'A' it is."

"Did your dad teach you to write?" Clarisse asked after a moment.

"No. But Joel did teach me to play the guitar," Ellie replied without thinking. She stopped for a moment, threw the next thought aside, and continued writing as she spoke. "He always said that repeating helps develop muscle memory."

"What's that?"

"It means that you can write an 'A' without having to think about it," Ellie explained. "That's why I made you write 'A' a hundred times."

…

Matthew opened the door to the house and took off his coat before removing his boots and walking into the kitchen where Joel sat at the table, reading a book.

Like Ellie, Matthew was also still dressed in the clothes he'd worn the day before.

Joel marked the page he was on and set the book down.

"What have you been doing all day?" Joel asked, noticing Matthew's dirty and untidy clothes.

Matthew looked around. "Is Ellie here?" he asked, avoiding the question.

Joel inclined his head toward the hallway. It was then that Matthew heard the voices coming from Ellie's room. He recognized Clarisse's voice instantly.

"How do I make a 'B'?" the little girl was asking.

"A 'B'," Ellie began. There was a slight hesitation. "A 'B' is one stick down and two sideways hills."

Matthew listened for another minute and smiled. He turned away from the hall and looked at Joel. The older man's attention was also focused on the voices down the hall and he had a rare smile on his face.

"Okay…" Matthew said, more confused than ever. "I obviously missed something."

Joel shrugged and picked up his coffee.

…

Over the next hour, Ellie and Clarisse continued to work on the first two letters of the alphabet.

After examining yet another column of letters, Ellie found them to be rudimentary, but recognizable.

Eventually, somebody rapped their knuckles on the open door. They looked up to see Tim standing there, his arms folded.

"Timmy!" Clarisse said excitedly, jumping off the bed with the notebook, showing it to her older brother. "Timmy, look! Ellie showed me how to write!"

"That's great!" Tim said genuinely. "Are you ready to go?"

"Do I have to?" Clarisse moaned.

"You'll see her later tonight," Tim assured her.

Clarisse jumped onto the bed and tackled Ellie, wrapping her in a hug.

Ellie hugged back and handed the little girl the pencil and notebook. "Keep practicing."

"Go get your coat," Tim said to Clarisse. As his sister left the room, Tim looked at Ellie. "Did she behave?"

"She was awesome," Ellie said. She handed him Clarisse's coloring book. "She's a smart kid too."

"No thanks to me," Tim muttered. He looked down. "I… I'm not always the best teacher."

"I think you teach more than you realize," Ellie said with a small smile. "I um, I wrote down the rest of the letters in the notebook a hundred times each. And if you ever need us to keep an eye on her, were around."

"Thanks," Tim said, lightening up. "For everything."

"No problem," Ellie said. She and Tim walked to the front door where Clarisse was just zipping up her coat. Ellie opened the door for them. "See you soon."

"She's still a keeper," Tim said loudly.

Matthew sent a half smile, half glare in their direction and went back to his chess game with Joel.

Tim smiled and grabbed his sister's shoulder. "Let's go."

Ellie closed the door and took a seat at the table as Joel tipped over his king with a grunt.

Matthew didn't reply.

"Again?" Joel offered.

"Actually," Matthew started. "I was hoping to borrow Ellie for a bit before we go to Tommy's. I wanted to show her something."

"Okay," Joel said. "You should probably get ready before you go. I'll meet you there."

"Sounds good," Ellie said, standing up.

…

Matthew waited until Ellie left the room before he started packing up the chess game.

Joel took their glasses of water to the sink.

Matthew was still sitting when Joel turned.

"What's up?" the Joel asked.

"I don't know," Matthew answered honestly. "I uh, I just realized that I have no idea what to do next."

"I think you should find a nice-ish looking shirt and not worry about anything after that," Joel replied. He grabbed the chess case and set it aside. "You're still not used to staying in one spot, are you?"

"No," Matthew said with a laugh. "If my dad were here, he would be telling me to find something useful to do."

Joel didn't reply. He just listened.

"Don't get me wrong," Matthew said quickly. "He was a good man. But it was his job and… it was supposed to be my job, to make sure that the family survives."

"I can understand his point of view," Joel said.

Matthew lowered his voice. "Do you think it was like this for Ellie when she first got here?"

"Ellie spent a lot of time working when she was here," Joel confirmed. "Hell, there were more than a few times that she was gone before I woke up and I didn't see her until she was closing the door to her room for the night."

"But it's different now?" Matthew asked.

"Yeah," Joel said. He sighed and scratched the back of his head. "I'd like to say it's something I did, but—"

"How do I look?" Ellie asked, walking into the room with a hairbrush in her hand.

Ellie now wore a long-sleeve red and black flannel shirt with blue jeans. Her now brushed hair flowed down over her shoulders.

Matthew glanced at Joel and saw an unexpected look of pride on his face.

"You look great," Joel finally said. He turned to Matthew. "Did you get any nice clothes the other day?"

"Nice enough," Matthew said with a shrug.

Matthew walked into Ellie's room and closed the door. He moved to the closet and grabbed out a blue flannel shirt and a clean pair of jeans before grabbing the shaver Joel had given him, attempting to get rid of the scruff he'd accumulated over the past few days.

When Matthew returned to the kitchen, Ellie was already pulling on her boots.

Joel had walked up to his room and closed the door.

"Look at you all cleaned up!" Ellie said dramatically.

Matthew grunted.

Ellie rolled her eyes. "Fine, don't take the compliment."

"I don't think nice is my look," Matthew said with a small smile.

"Mine either," Ellie said. She raised her voice. "We'll see you at Tommy's, Joel."

The sun was setting as Matthew and Ellie exited the house and started walking down the street.

"So, did you ever have any parties with your family," Ellie asked.

"Not really," Matthew said. He shrugged. "We had a house in Billings but… we couldn't exactly trust our neighbors. We didn't go outside unless we were headed to the ration line. Even then, we always kept our doors locked."

"Keeping doors locked is not a bad idea here either," Ellie said.

"What do you mean by that?" Matthew asked.

"Let's just say that the guitar I'm always playing… wasn't my first."

Matthew stopped and took a step back in amusement. "You're telling me that the same girl who laid on her backpack the first night I met her because she thought I would take it allowed her guitar to be stolen?"

"Hey, I was younger!" Ellie argued. "It was my third day here and I was helping Joey with something and I forgot to lock the damn door."

"So, it was Joey's fault?" Matthew said with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes," Ellie said calmly. As they continued walking, she grabbed Matthew's hand. "Eventually you'll learn that everything is Joey's fault."

"Noted," Matthew said. He sighed. "Why the hell would somebody steal a guitar anyway?"

"Who the fuck knows?" Ellie answered. "If I ever found out who did it, I'll kick their asses."

Matthew was silent for a few seconds before speaking. "Can I ask you something?"

"Always."

"Your outfit tonight."

"You don't like my outfit, now?" Ellie asked with no small amount of attitude.

"That's not what I meant," Matthew said with a chuckle. "It's just when you walked out of your room—"

"Our room," Ellie interrupted.

Matthew gave her a confused look.

Ellie rolled her eyes. "We both live there, we both have our stuff in that room, we both sleep in that room. It's our room."

"Okay," Matthew said. "When you walked out of our room, you brought attention to your looks, which you've never done, and Joel had… a look."

Ellie didn't answer. After a moment, she sighed. "These are the clothes I was wearing when Joel and I first came to Jackson County."

Matthew didn't interrupt. He simply waited.

Ellie shrugged. "It was a rough week. The shirt… well I felt angry every time that I put it on. Angry and scared and… not normal. I shoved it in my closet and haven't touched it since."

"So, why bring it out now?" Matthew inquired.

"I just wanted a new memory to go with it," Ellie said with a shrug. "It's stupid, I know."

"It's not stupid," Matthew assured her.

They arrived at the park a few minutes later. The sun had set.

"So, was this where you were all day?" Ellie asked.

"Yeah," Matthew answered.

"It doesn't look any different," Ellie said, looking around.

Matthew walked her around the group of trees and brush concealing their spot.

Ellie looked around again. "Still not seeing anything."

"Look up," Matthew said.

Ellie looked up. "Oh…"

The trees above them had been completely trimmed. Matthew had spent the day climbing up the trees and using his knife to cut away the branches and discarding the piles away from their spot, trying his best to eliminate any branches blocking their view of the sky.

"I figured we should actually be able to see something from the hammock," Matthew replied simply.

"Yeah…" Ellie said craning her head and spotting the moon through the large gap in the trees above. She turned to Matthew. "So, what really made you think of this?"

Matthew leaned up against a tree and looked down for a moment. "When you asked me if I liked this spot… well let's just say that I wasn't being entirely truthful."

"Matthew," Ellie began, concerned. "You know that we don't have to hang out here."

"It's not this spot specifically," Matthew tried to explain. He stopped leaning against the tree. "I was scared the other day. And I woke up from a nightmare today."

"What was it about?" Ellie asked.

"I was caged," Matthew said, scratching the back of his head. "Here, it's safe. I get that. But out there, I knew what I was in for. Here, I—"

"Feel trapped," Ellie completed. "It feels like everything that you knew, no matter how shitty it was, is worth nothing here."

Matthew nodded, grateful for her understanding. He stood next to Ellie and looked up. "So, I wanted to take something safe from out there…" Matthew pointed at the stars and moon above. "And bring it here. And you always liked looking at the stars. I figured that you wouldn't mind."

Ellie smiled and looked up at the stars again before stepping closer to him. "You know, you keep doing cool things like this, I might just have to kiss you."

Matthew laughed. "I'm glad you like it."

Ellie kissed him and grabbed his hand again. "C'mon. We're going to be late."

"So," Matthew said awkwardly as Tommy's house came into sight. "Do I get kisses in advance or is it a form of payment only."

"Hey, don't get greedy," Ellie warned. "And make sure to knock the snow off your shoes. Maria's got a thing about that."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Okay," Ellie said. She took a deep breath. "Here we go."

…

Joel and Tommy looked up as Ellie and Matthew walked in.

Joel glanced at his brother as Ellie took off her coat.

It was obvious that Tommy noticed Ellie outfit. "Isn't that the shirt she was wearing the first—"

"I'm just going with it," Joel said as Joey walked into the kitchen. "Hey, Joey."

"Howdy."

…

Matthew and Ellie discarded their jackets as Joey walked forward.

Matthew glanced at Joey, who seemed determined to avoid his eye.

"Alright," Joey said lightly, making it clear that he wasn't going to talk about the encounter from the previous night. "I guess mom's showing up in a little bit with food and everyone else is showing up in half an hour. You want the tour?"

A few minutes later, Matthew and Ellie found themselves in Joey's room.

As Matthew looked around, he noticed that Joey's room was more cluttered and filled with items that he had only seen in abandoned buildings. It was obvious that the young man had lived in Jackson for years.

Matthew turned as Ellie looked at one of the room's corners.

There was a hanging shelf on the Wall.

"Damn," Ellie said with a hint of admiration as she turned to Joey. "You actually did a good job repairing this."

"Thanks," Joey said with a chuckle. He reached under his bed and grabbed three sodas. He turned to Ellie and handed her one. "Please don't break it again."

"How'd it get broken in the first place?" Matthew asked.

Ellie folded her arms and raised an eyebrow at Joey.

Joey looked down. "Let's just say that I used to say and do some stupid things when I was younger."

"Don't be embarrassed," Ellie said, putting a hand around Joey's shoulder. "It's okay to be beaten up. Especially by a girl. It makes you stronger."

"And sorer," Matthew added. When Joey glanced at him, Matthew shrugged. "I've said and done some stupid things too."

"Getting beaten by Ellie seems like a rite of passage," Joey commented.

"It's not my fault guys are stupid and deserve to be beaten every once in a while," Ellie replied with a shrug.

"Kids," Tommy called up. "Heather's here."

Ellie turned and left the room first, leaving Matthew and Joey alone.

Joey waited for a moment before moving toward the door.

"Joey," Matthew said quietly, stopping the younger man at the doorway. "About last night. You and your—"

"They're all talk," Joey tried to say lightly. "Don't worry about them. Just act submissive and you'll be fine."

"That's not what I was going to say," Matthew said, taking a step back. "I don't exactly like fighting. I was just wondering if you needed any help."

"Meaning?" Joey asked, dropping the lightness in his voice.

"Meaning the first impression I had of you didn't match the second," Matthew said carefully. "And you don't seem like the type to hang out with people like that."

"What's it to you?" Joey challenged.

"Ellie and Joel consider you family," Matthew said. "And I owe them a debt. So, I just wanted you to know that if you ever need—"

"You're not my friend," Joey said firmly. "And you sure as hell ain't my family. Are we done?"

"Yeah," Matthew said, backing down. "We're good."

As they descended the stairs, Joey offered Matthew a soda.

…

Ellie walked toward the front door as Heather placed her coat in the nearby closet.

Ellie stopped short, noticing that Heather kept one hand in her sweater pocket. There was some tension on the right wrist.

"Hey," Heather greeted. "Anyone else here yet?"

"Not yet," Ellie said. She took a step closer and lowered her voice. "What's with the knife?"

"What knife?" Heather said, making a noticeable effort to take her hands out of her pockets.

"The knife in your sweater," Ellie said. "Don't try and tell me it's not there. Trust me. I know what it looks like."

"Let's just say that I have trust issues too," Heather said quietly after a few seconds.

"I thought you had a good read on people," Ellie countered.

"There was a time that I didn't," Heather replied firmly, implying that she was ready for the conversation to end.

Heather looked around and spotted Joey coming down stairs with Matthew. Ellie noticed small smiles exchanged between Heather and Joey. Ellie put a hand on Heather's shoulder and nudged her in Joey's direction, moving away before the young doctor could say anything.

Ellie walked to the kitchen where Joel was grabbing a pack of beer out of Tommy's fridge. After a moment of hesitation, Joel offered two beers to Ellie.

"I trust you can handle that?" Joel said half seriously.

"Pfft. Give me some of those," Ellie said, grabbing two cans. She turned. "I've probably drank more than you."

"Excuse me?" Joel said, turning.

"Well, maybe not here," Ellie clarified.

"Right," Joel said.

Ellie passed by Matthew and handed him a beer without thinking before moving toward Heather and Joey. Joey moved forward to help Maria as she entered the house carrying a few bags of food.

Heather spoke as she turned to Ellie. "So, Joey was just saying that Tim and Clarisse are coming tonight."

"Yup," Ellie said. "Do you know them?"

"There's something I should tell you," Heather said. "Clarisse is—"

The door opened as Tim and Clarisse walked in.

Tim was now dressed in a clean purple shirt and had changed into clean blue jeans. Clarisse wore a loose fitting blue dress that went to her ankles. She still held the notebook that Ellie had given her. The little girl looked in Ellie's direction and smiled, running toward her.

Ellie was surprised when Clarisse ran straight past her and jumped into Heather's arms.

"Dr. Heather!" the little girl said. "Dr. Heather! I didn't know you were gonna be here!"

Ellie scratched the back of her head, attempting to ignore the pang of jealousy she felt.

Heather smiled and looked at Ellie. "She's my other patient."

"Isn't she the best doctor ever?" Clarisse asked, turning in Heather's arms to look at Ellie.

"She's great," Ellie said with a hint of sarcasm.

"Sorry," Heather mouthed to Ellie.

"Okay, I'll take that," Ellie said, grabbing Clarisse. She handed Heather a beer. "And you can take this."

Heather smiled as Clarisse hugged Ellie.

Ellie looked at Heather over the little girl's shoulder. "Mine," she lipped.

Heather smiled, walked to the kitchen counter, and replaced the beer with a glass of water.

Ellie raised an eyebrow.

"I don't drink," Heather explained. "It can lead to bad things."

Ellie nodded and allowed Clarisse to slide down her and onto the ground.

The young girl walked over to her brother, tugged on his sleeve, and whispered.

Tim nodded and Clarisse moved in the direction of Tommy's bathroom.

Heather moved to stand next to Ellie as they both took a drink.

"Clarisse is yours," Heather assured Ellie. "Every time I see her, the first person she mentions is you."

Ellie smiled.

…

Matthew soon found himself standing in a corner observing the social gathering, still holding both a beer and a soda. He felt slightly uncomfortable and unsure of what to do.

"Dinner," Tommy called.

Ellie walked over the table with Heather, grabbed one of the plates, and stacked it with food before moving back to the couch.

After a brief hesitation, Heather followed suit.

Matthew moved aside as Clarisse moved past him to the table.

Matthew placed the soda and beer he was holding on a lamp table before moving to the kitchen table and waiting behind Tim and Clarisse.

Tim let Clarisse move in front of him and stack her own plate full of food. Despite Clarisse's complaints, Tim also placed a few vegetables on her plate.

"Kid," Tommy said quietly as Matthew grabbed small pieces of food and placed them on his plate. Tommy chuckled. "You don't have to starve yourself."

Matthew nodded his appreciation and grabbed a little more food before moving back to the corner. He watched as Ellie, Tim, and Clarisse sat down on the large couch in the living room. Clarisse eagerly handed Ellie her notebook.

Across from them, Joey and Heather sat down on opposite ends of a second couch. Matthew observed Heather physically relaxing for the first time since she entered the house and also noticed a small, knowing smile form on Ellie's face.

Matthew watched and ate for a time as Ellie and Clarisse began to discuss the work the young girl had done in the notebook. Tim slowly got up and returned his plate to the table where the adults were still sitting and talking happily.

Matthew had discarded his plate on the lamp table and picked up the soda, opening it. Tim joined him a second later. Matthew took a drink of his soda and they watched Ellie and Clarisse smiling and laughing on the couch.

"I haven't seen Clarisse this happy in a long time," Tim said quietly.

"I could say the same about Ellie," Matthew replied.

They both laughed for a second at the déjà vu feeling of the conversation.

"It feels like just yesterday that we were in that barn," Tim commented.

"Not for me," Matthew said.

Tim pointed at the beer on the lamp table next to Matthew. "Can I try that? I've never had one before."

Matthew hesitated and handed Tim the beer.

"I'm surprised you're actually letting me," Tim said with a chuckle.

"I'm not your father, so I don't exactly feel right stopping you," Matthew said. He sighed. "That being said, I've never been comfortable with alcohol."

Tim didn't ask any questions.

Matthew shrugged. "You've shown that you're adult enough. But don't have more than one of those. It makes you act different after a while."

"I'll keep that in mind," Tim said. After taking a swig, he looked at Matthew again. "You uh, you never answered my question."

"What question is that?" Matthew asked, turning to Tim.

"The night we met, when you taught me how to use my knives," Tim explained. "I asked you why you were helping us. You said, 'you had your reasons', but you never actually answered the question."

"You won't like the full answer," Matthew said.

"Try me," Tim said.

"I helped you because…" Matthew took a deep breath. "I helped you because you were just like me."

"That makes no sense," Tim said with a small laugh.

Matthew took a drink of soda before explaining. "I was about seven when the zone I used to live in fell apart. One day, dad got… infected."

"When that happened to my dad, it was one of the worst days of my life," Tim said softly, taking a swig of his beer.

Matthew gave Tim a few seconds of silence before continuing. "My mother said it was my job to keep my sister safe."

Matthew looked at Ellie for a moment before turning back to Tim.

The younger man remained silent and stood waiting.

"It all happened pretty fast," Matthew said softly. "Dad turned and mom… she didn't make it."

"What happened to your sister?" Tim asked after another few seconds of silence.

Matthew looked down and shook his head. "In the end, both my parents were gone and my sister… I abandoned her," he almost whispered. He sighed again. "I abandoned her. And then some."

"So, she… she didn't make it," Tim said, glancing at Clarisse. He looked at Matthew. "I'm sorry."

Matthew nodded and took another drink of his soda before returning his gaze to Tim. "I helped you because you are what I should have been. You were her protector. You embraced who you had to be. I didn't. You deserved every chance you could get. As for me… maybe I thought I was making up for something."

"That's why you tried to teach me how to use a knife," Tim said.

"Yeah," Matthew answered. "I hoped that you wouldn't have to use it, though."

"Well, I did have to use it," Tim said. Matthew saw Tim's features darken as he took a large gulp of beer. The look was gone a second later. Tim placed a reluctant hand on Matthew's shoulder. "You saved me and Clarisse. That's gotta count for something."

"Maybe," Matthew said. His gaze drifted to Ellie, Clarisse, Heather, and Joey. They were all laughing at something Ellie had said. Matthew placed a hand on Tim's shoulder. "You think we should join them?"

"Yeah," Tim said lightly. "I think we should."

…

Ellie noticed Matthew moving toward the couch. She grabbed Clarisse and placed the girl into

her lap. Matthew sat down next to her as Tim found a seat in a chair across from them.

They conversed for a while as Tim continued to slowly drink the beer he held. Matthew handed his soda to Clarisse. The girl chugged it as fast as she could. Heather and Joey laughed at the sight.

After a small pause in the conversation, Clarisse looked at Ellie. "How did you and Joel meet? Was he there when you were born?"

"No," Ellie answered with a laugh. "I met Joel when I was fourteen. I um, I needed to get somewhere and he helped me."

"Where did you have to go?" Clarisse asked.

Ellie glanced behind her and saw Joel and Tommy talking near the living room window. She looked at Clarisse. "I had to be somewhere other than where I was."

"Kinda like me and Tim," Clarisse said.

"Exactly," Ellie said.

Clarisse was silent for a moment. She looked at Matthew and back up at Ellie. "How did you meet Matthew?"

"Oh, God," Matthew mumbled.

Ellie reached over and pinched his arm before resting her hand on his. "We don't have to go into that," she said.

"I wanna know," Tim said.

"Me too," Heather said.

Ellie looked down and saw that Clarisse was still looking between Ellie and Matthew, expecting an answer. Ellie sighed. "Okay, I went for a swim a month before I met you and…"

Ellie hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to proceed.

"She started drowning," Matthew continued for her.

"Yeah," Ellie said quickly. "Matthew thought that I was drowning. I was really just playing around."

"At, like, one in the morning," Matthew added quietly.

"Anyway," Ellie said flatly, throwing a glare in Matthew's direction, silencing him. "He came into the water to see if I needed help and well, we've been together ever since. Mostly."

"Oh," Clarisse said. "Where was Joel?"

"Oh…" Ellie hesitated. "He um…"

"It was my fault," Joel said from next to the window. Everyone's eyes turned to him. Joel took a step forward. "Ellie uh, Ellie needed my help with something. Something that I could have helped her with. But I didn't. Ellie is braver than I ever was. So, she tried to figure it out herself."

"Like when Tim taught himself how to throw knives?" Clarisse asked.

"Yeah," Joel said. He looked at Ellie and Matthew. "Anyway, I think it all worked out in the end."

Ellie smiled and felt Matthew give her hand a squeeze.

There was a brief silence.

Everyone looked at Clarisse, expecting another question.

"Anything else?" Ellie asked.

Clarisse yawned and looked down. "I don't have any more questions…"

"I got one," Heather said. She stood and walked over to Clarisse whispering something in her ear.

Ellie listened, but couldn't catch what Heather had said. Ellie looked at Matthew, who placed his hand over his face and was shaking his head.

Clarisse looked at Ellie. "What was the first thing you and Matthew said to each other?"

"Oooooakaaaayy," Ellie said loudly. She sent a look in Heather's direction that implied pending payback before placing her hand on Clarisse's shoulder. "We'll get into this another time."

"Wait," Joey said. "I want to know what he said."

Heather sat down next to Joey and whispered something in his ear.

"How are you still alive?" Joey exclaimed, looking at Matthew.

Matthew put his hands in the air.

Tim smiled and continued to drink his beer.

Ellie found herself smiling more as the group continued talking, laughing, and joking for over three hours. When Ellie looked down next, she found Clarisse passed out in her arms. Matthew nudged Ellie with his shoulder. She looked at him.

"Déjà vu?" Matthew asked quietly.

Ellie looked down again and remembered the night they had met Tim and Clarisse. She had woken up the next morning with Clarisse in her arms.

Ellie smiled again.

"Alright," Tommy said speaking above them. "I know you guys are having fun, but Maria and I have an early day tomorrow and it's already one in the morning. We're going to have to call it a night."

Everyone stood and started saying their goodbyes. Matthew shook Joey, Tommy, and Maria's hands as Tim stood. Ellie hugged Clarisse close to her for a moment before handing the girl over to her older brother. Tim took the girl and stumbled slightly.

Ellie glanced at the empty beer can. "You okay?" she asked with a hint of amusement.

Clarisse stirred. "Are we going home?" she asked, still half asleep.

"Yup," Tim said, letting Clarisse support her head on his shoulder. He nodded his goodbye to Ellie.

"Bye, Tim," Ellie said. She looked at the girl as Tim turned to leave. "Goodnight, Clarisse."

"Goodnight…mommy…"

Ellie froze as Tim walked out the door. After a few seconds, Ellie chuckled and turned to Heather. As Heather turned away from Joey, Ellie walked up to her. Heather turned and grabbed her coat. Ellie saw a flash of silver as Heather transferred an object to her front coat pocket.

Ellie chose to ignore what she saw. "So," she said as Heather turned toward her. "How would you rate tonight?"

"Not as scary as I thought it would be," Heather replied. "Considering it's the first time I've been around more people than just Joey's family, Tim, and Clarisse."

"Yeah," Ellie said as Matthew pulled on his coat. "It's kind of a first for me too."

"Really?" Heather said, surprised.

"I didn't exactly have a large social circle as the old people call it," Ellie replied.

"Hey, don't be mean to the old people," Heather said. Ellie heard humor, but also a small pinch of bitterness in Heather's voice. The bitterness was gone a moment later. Heather moved toward the door. "But tonight was fun. I'll see you around, Ellie."

"See ya," Ellie said as the door shut behind Heather.

Ellie turned to Joel, who was still sitting at the table with Maria and Tommy.

"Are you coming?" Ellie asked.

"There are no curfews for the old people," Joel replied. "I'll see you in the morning, kiddo."

"Alright," Ellie said. She walked toward the door with Matthew and said goodbye to Joey.

…

Joel watched as Ellie and Matthew left the house smiling. He let out a breath, relieved that the night had gone well for all of them.

"Joey," Tommy said to his son, breaking Joel from his thoughts. "Bed."

"Gladly," Joey said with a yawn.

"Are you going to be home tomorrow?" Maria asked her son.

"I may go hang out with a couple people tomorrow afternoon," Joey said. "But I can be free if you need me to be."

"Are we ever going to meet these friends," Tommy asked.

"Probably not," Joey replied, standing by the stairs. "It's hard enough being the son of the town leaders or whatever. I think you'll scare them off."

Joel sniggered under his breath.

Tommy glared at him.

Joel shrugged. "He's your son."

"Goodnight," Joey said, moving up the stairs.

"At least bring Heather around more often," Maria called. "I like having her."

"Goodnight, mom."

Joel smiled slightly and took the last drink of his beer.

…

Heather arrived home a few minutes later and unlocked the door to her house. She walked into the living room and sat down on the couch, taking deep breaths.

Heather opened and closed her hands. It was fine. Everything went fine.

Heather took one last deep breath before taking the scalpel she'd had in her pocket out and placing it on the table in front of her. After taking off her coat and boots, she laid down on the couch facing the door.

Arata got up on the couch a few seconds later. The cat curled up into a small ball on her legs and fell asleep, purring softly.

…

Ellie and Matthew stood over the bed, dressed in their pajamas.

"You tired?" Ellie asked.

"Not really," Matthew replied. "We've had a lot later nights than this."

"That means the sheets are going on the floor," Ellie said. "Grab that end for me."

After laying the sheets and blankets on the floor, both of them laid down.

Winston walked in and stretched before hopping up on the empty bed.

A half hour later, they were all asleep.