Tim and Clarisse entered what was to be their new home in Jackson County.

Despite their exhaustion, the siblings both had a hard time getting to sleep in Ellie's old house.

After a small talk with his sister, Tim asked Tommy's permission to move into the house on the west end of Jackson the night they arrived rather than the next day.

Tommy escorted them to the house himself.

Upon entering, Tim and Clarisse saw that the living room and connecting kitchen was trashed with overthrown furniture and other debris. Connected to the left side of the kitchen was a room with a bed. Connected to the kitchen on the right was a hallway containing a bathroom and a spare room that also contained a bed.

Tim looked down at his sister, who yawned. He placed a hand on her shoulder and knelt. "Tired?"

"Yeah," Clarisse said as she blinked herself awake. "Can I sleep in a bed tonight?"

"Let's check."

Tim led Clarisse to the spare bedroom. Tim picked up the sheets and blankets, shaking them out. Aside from dust, dirt, and a few bugs, it looked and smelled usable.

Tim set the sheets and blankets on the bed. He didn't even have time to straighten them before Clarisse hopped on top and burrowed under the blankets.

Tim smiled. "Goodnight, Clarisse."

"Goodnight, Timmy," Clarisse said. She popped out from under the blankets and gave him a hug. "I'm glad that Ellie and her friend told us to come here."

"Me too," Tim said. He picked her up and lowered her on the bed, covering his sister up once again. "I'll be up for a while cleaning if you need anything. I'll just be in the other room."

Clarisse turned over and closed her eyes.

Tim finally placed the knives in his belt on the kitchen counter and spent the next hour cleaning around the rest of the house, trying his best to pick up anything that could be tripped on. Finally, he walked into his own bedroom and started looking through the closet.

After finding nothing, he cleaned up the bedside table. As he moved around the bed again, he almost tripped on a can, accidently kicking it under the bed. Tim knelt. Under the bed, he saw even more cans and some glass bottles.

Tim turned one of the cans and saw that it looked the same as the one that he had tripped over. He moved aside a few of the cans. Under the bed, he could see entire cases of bottles and cans.

Tim reached under the bed and started to pull out the cases. After he was finished, he counted. Fifteen individual cans. Twenty bottles. Ten full cases of cans and fifteen full cases of bottles. Where did this stuff come from?

Tim sighed and took a step back.

There was a loud crunch under his foot.

Tim knelt and picked up a piece of paper.

There was an old, faded note written on it.

The whole town's gone to hell.

The military ain't coming.

It probably won't take long for the infected to show up.

The police don't mean shit anymore.

Me and Jackie figured that nobody was going to drink this stuff. That'd be a damn shame. There wasn't anybody anywhere the near the liquor store anyway. Nobody's going to miss it.

P.S. If we don't get through it all MERRY FUCKING CHRISTMAS! We're probably dead anyway. Enjoy!

Tim shook his head and dropped the note. He placed what he could in his now empty closet and shoved the rest back under the bed.

Tim sat down on the bed, finally allowing himself to relax for the first time. It didn't take long for him to remember everything that had happened to him and Clarisse. Tim closed his eyes.

Crimson liquid covered his hands. Drops of blood fell from his blade and to the ground. His clothes were freshly stained red.

Tim opened his eyes. Attempting to clear his head of the recent memories, he paced around for a few minutes and stopped in front of his closet.

Tim sighed, opened the door, grabbed a can, and took a drink. After a few sips of the sharp-tasting drink, he put it down on the floor, somewhat savoring the new taste.

Suddenly, Clarisse started screaming from the other room.

Tim stood and ran into her room.

Clarisse was tossing and turning in her bed, whimpering.

"Clarisse!" Tim said loudly. He grabbed her shoulder and shook her slightly. "Clarisse, wake up!"

Clarisse stopped moving and slowly opened her eyes.

"It's alright," Tim said gently. He grabbed her hand and held it. "You're safe."

Clarisse grasped his hand tightly until she fell back asleep.

Tim took a deep breath and let go of her hand, brushing a strand of hair from her face. He walked back into his room as memories came flooding back in again.

Tim quickly grabbed the can and finished it. After a few minutes, Tim realized he was wide awake. He grabbed another can, walked into the kitchen, and started to clean out the cupboards and drawers as he continued to drink.

…

Months later, when Ellie and Joel returned to Jackson with Matthew, Tim found himself at a party in Tommy's house.

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

Throughout the night, Tim continued to drink and savor the warm feelings and comfort the drink provided.