Three weeks following the events of "Special: Part I"

"Do you think this is a bad idea?" Ellie asked Heather as she examined the metal object she'd pulled from the fire using a stick.

Ellie and Heather were sitting outside on the grass in the hot summer night. Ellie was dressed in a sleeveless blue flannel shirt, one of her blue sleeves, and thin blue jeans. Heather was dressed similarly in a sleeveless white t-shirt and blue shorts. A small fire crackled in front of them.

"What you want to do? No," Heather said. She leaned back, adopting a more serious tone. "I can't say I'm thrilled about how you want to do it, though."

"I want it to be… I don't know," Ellie said, examining the object again. She sighed. "I just feel like I have to do it this way."

"Well, then I think you should," Heather said simply.

Ellie nodded and didn't reply.

"Something tells me I'm just the practice round," Heather said as she sat up again. "You haven't talked to Joel about it yet, have you?"

"Sorry for using you as the test dummy," Ellie said in answer.

"It's what I'm here for," Heather said, patting Ellie on the back.

"I heard you and Joey were going to hang out later tomorrow," Ellie said, changing the subject.

"We're just going for a swim," Heather moaned, laying back on the grass again to look at the stars. "Joey's pulling an all-nighter tonight and neither of us will want to jog. Plus, he's right. It's hot as hell."

"'Hot as hell' and 'Joey' should never be in the same conversation," Ellie commented.

Ellie received a punch on the back of her shoulder.

"Not funny," Heather grumbled.

Ellie laughed. She looked at the circular metal object on the stick one last time. Perfect. She placed the object it into a bowl she had sitting behind her.

"You and Joey ever talk about… what we just talked about?" Ellie asked seriously.

"Not really," Heather answered. "Joey and I aren't as connected as you and Matthew seem to be. Not yet anyway."

"Go have a vacation over the Wall. You'll get closer," Ellie replied.

Heather shook her head with a small smile. She picked up a stick and twiddled it between her fingers. "I think were both just happy to be close."

Ellie looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "How close are we talking here?"

Heather opened her mouth to reply when Joel walked into the back yard.

"Evening ladies," Joel said. He looked at the moon. "Or morning."

"It's late enough that I should get going," Heather said, standing. She looked at Ellie and lipped 'good luck'.

Ellie nodded and looked at the fire.

Joel sat down, fixing his gaze on Ellie. "You haven't come out here in the middle of the night for a long time," he said quietly.

"I had something to figure out," Ellie said cryptically.

"Nightmares?" Joel asked.

"No, nothing like that," Ellie said. She reached behind her and grabbed the bowl. "I've been working on something."

Joel looked at the simple metal ring in the bowl. "You've come a long way from making your own arrows," he said with admiration.

"It took a feel tries," Ellie admitted, motioning to the large 'failure' pile she had next to the fire. She leaned back. "But I figured I had time to experiment a bit. Matthew's pulling another all-nighter with Joey."

"So, this ring's not for you," Joel guessed.

Ellie didn't answer right away, unsure of how Joel was going to react. "I want what Tommy and Maria have," she finally said.

Joel looked at Ellie again and spoke softly. "Ellie, I think a lot of people would say you and the kid already have that."

"I know," Ellie said, looking down. "I know. But this is how it's supposed to be done, isn't it? I know the ring isn't much. I mean… it's just melted and reshaped metal. But it's something, right?"

"I'm sure Matthew will love it," Joel said gently.

Ellie looked at Joel. "So… you're cool with this?" she asked.

"To tell you the truth, I figured it would happen sooner or later," Joel said as he sat back. "Only…"

"Only Matthew was supposed to ask me?" Ellie said.

"Well, you've always been special," Joel said, reaching forward and ruffling Ellie's hair.

Ellie brushed the hand away. "You know I hate it when you do that."

"I know," Joel said with a small smile. He looked at his broken watch.

"What's up?" Ellie asked.

Joel looked over at her, confused.

Ellie pointed to the watch. "You only ever do the 'gaze of destiny' thing when… sorry. Too much."

"It wasn't," Joel assured her. He let his hand fall to his side. "I was just thinking about the first gift that ever really mattered to me."

Ellie touched the necklace hanging from her neck. "Small things, right?"

"Small things," Joel said, looking at his watch again.

Ellie smiled and the gazed into the fire. After a few minutes, a small amount of apprehension returned.

Joel looked at Ellie. "Is there something else you wanted to talk about?"

Ellie nodded. "The first part of this went a lot easier than I thought it would," she said, forcing a smile.

"The first part," Joel said.

Ellie gulped. "I want to ask him. I want to ask him… out there."

"Out there," Joel repeated. He looked into the distance. "Outside of Jackson."

"This is the part I knew you wouldn't like," Ellie said.

"You were right," Joel grunted. He sighed. "Why?"

"It's where we met," Ellie said. She looked at Joel. "It's where I met him, Joel. I just want it to be… right."

Joel looked away for a moment. "I don't like the idea of you two going out there alone."

"We've done it before," Ellie said. She ran a hand through her long hair. "Look, it'll only be a day, if that. We'll leave early. Mid-day at the latest. And I promise we'll be back before dark. I just… I want to do this my way."

Joel didn't answer right away. He ran a hand through his beard. "I understand that you want to do this your way. But doing this your way… it puts you in danger again."

"It's the last time," Ellie said. She looked Joel in the eye. "Joel, I swear, this is the last time. I just… I need to do it."

Joel didn't reply.

Ellie let the subject drop for a while.

They heard laughing from the front yard. A moment later, Tim and Vanessa walked around the corner and started moving toward them.

"Late night for you guys," Ellie commented. She looked at Joel who continued to look at the ground. Ellie looked at Tim and Vanessa. "I thought you two were staying in for the night."

Tim held up a walkie-talkie. "Bradley's kid had a bit of trouble at school today."

"Anything bad?" Ellie asked.

"Nothing serious," Tim answered. "I guess he just started throwing chairs. Clarisse and Lin managed to get him calmed down before anyone got hurt."

"You have a guess as to what's causing the crazy stuff?" Ellie asked.

"I gave Clarisse a few of my old books that I still have lying around," Vanessa said. "She and Lin are going over them at our place. They're thinking it's either ADHD or Autism."

"I don't know what either of those mean," Ellie admitted.

"Neither do I," Vanessa said with a laugh. She looked down sadly. "All I know is that a long time ago, my stepdad made me promise to keep those books in case they'd be useful. I guess he was right."

"He was right," Tim said quietly to her.

Vanessa nodded and shook her head. "Anyway, Lin and Clarisse have been at it since they got home. I'm sure they'll figure something out."

"Bradley wanted to walk his kid to school tomorrow," Tim said. "He asked if I could take the rest of his shift tonight so he could get some rest. I'm just getting off now."

Vanessa glanced behind Ellie at the fire. "Isn't it a bit hot for that?"

"Um…" Ellie's voice trailed off. She took a step back. "It's um… I was…"

Tim looked at Ellie curiously, then looked at the bowl containing the ring. A look of understanding crossed his face. He turned to Vanessa. "I think we should get going."

Vanessa looked at the bowl as well and ran forward, throwing her arms around Ellie. "Congrats!"

"Not yet," Ellie said, laughing slightly. She shook her head. "I still have to ask and… it's a tiny bit complicated."

"Leaving now," Vanessa said, taking the hint. She turned to walk way.

"Congratulations in advance," Tim said quietly to Ellie. He placed a hand on her shoulder. "You guys deserve it."

"Thanks, Tim," Ellie said.

Tim nodded and turned away.

Ellie stepped forward. "Tim. Do me a favor and keep Matthew's schedule clear for tomorrow."

"I'll do that," Tim promised.

Ellie turned back to Joel, who had pulled a lace from his boot and was tying it around the ring to create a necklace.

Ellie walked forward.

Joel placed the ring around her neck. It clinked softly against Sarah's old necklace. The necklace that Joel and Sarah had passed on to Ellie.

Ellie reached up and touched the ring and her necklace for a moment, feeling the warmth.

Joel moved back to the fire, gathered the failed attempts to make the ring, and placed them into the bowl.

"What are you doing?" Ellie asked.

Joel picked up a stick and adjusted the fire slightly before handing Ellie the bowl. "You'd best make a few arrows for tomorrow," he said. "Just in case."

"Good idea," Ellie said, taking the bowl.

Joel started to walk away.

Ellie reached forward and touched his shoulder. "I'll be fine," she tried to reassure him. "We'll be fine."

"I know," Joel said, turning back to her. Ellie could swear she saw a small tear in his eye. "You're fully capable of doing this, Ellie. Both of you are. I'll see you in the morning, kiddo."

Ellie watched as Joel returned to the house before sitting down in front of the fire, thinking of what changes the next day would bring.

…

Matthew walked into the house an hour before dawn, yawning. He took off his boots and walked into the bedroom to see Ellie in bed, already asleep.

Matthew took off his blue shirt and tossed it into the basket on the floor. He did a double-take when he noticed Ellie's backpack. It was sitting against the closet door. Next to it was a full quiver of freshly made arrows. Matthew's own backpack sat next to it, a similar set of arrows lay on the floor.

Matthew stared at the backpacks for a moment before stepping over Winston and lying down in the bed.

Matthew slipped a hand around Ellie's side.

Ellie moaned slightly snuggled closer to Matthew.

"Are we going somewhere tomorrow?" Matthew asked.

"Mh-hm," Ellie answered, barely awake.

"You gonna to tell me why?" Matthew asked, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"Tomorrow," Ellie said, dropping back off to sleep.

Matthew noticed a lace around Ellie's neck. He reached forward and slowly started to adjust it.

Ellie moaned again and placed her hand over his, blocking his view of the object attached to the lace.

Matthew nodded slightly and closed his eyes.

…

Ellie awoke before Matthew the next morning and sat up. She got dressed, placing on an old pair of blue jeans, one of her black sleeves, and a ripped, green flannel shirt.

Ellie exited the bedroom and stopped in the hallway as Joel walked down the stairs, wearing his own pair of jeans a red flannel shirt. He was also hauling a bag. He moved past her and to the front door.

"What's going on?" Ellie asked, spotting another two bags leaning against the wall. "We doing a major amount of bartering at the shop that I don't know about."

Joel turned to her. "I talked to Tommy and Maria," he said, shoving his hands into his pockets. "It'll take a while, but they said I could stay with them until I find a place of my—"

"Wait, what?" Ellie interrupted, completely shocked. "You're leaving?"

"I figure you and the kid can use some space of your own," Joel said, not looking her in the eye. "This house was always too big for me anyway."

"To big for us," Ellie corrected as Joel moved past her. "Look I appreciate your confidence in what I'm going to do today, but I don't want you to leave. Neither will Matthew."

Joel stopped and turned to Ellie. "I just thought—"

"You thought fucking wrong," Ellie snapped, placing her hands on her hips.

Joel closed his mouth, obviously unsure of what to say.

Ellie shook her head. "You're my…" she looked down for a moment before looking him in the eye, speaking firmly. "We're family. We stick together. And that's how it's going to be."

"Okay," Joel said. He nodded. "Okay, kiddo."

"Good," Ellie said, relaxing.

Joel picked up a bag and moved toward the stairs.

"Joel," Ellie called.

Joel stopped.

Ellie took a step forward. "Thank you."

"Your welcome, baby girl."

Ellie helped Joel return the bags to his bedroom and offered to practice with their guitars for a while.

Matthew emerged an hour later, dressed in a blue sleeveless shirt and a pair of ripped blue jeans.

"Good afternoon," Ellie said to him cheerfully, setting down her guitar.

Matthew chuckled. "Usually, I'm saying that to you. And that's without an all-night shift."

Ellie rolled her eyes and looked at Joel.

Joel set down his guitar. "I think you two should get going."

"Right," Ellie said. She placed her guitar on the couch, walked into the bedroom, and retrieved the two backpacks, Matthew's crossbow, and her own bow. She threw Matthew's backpack to him. "Let's go."

Matthew glanced at Joel, who was looking at his guitar.

Matthew slowly put the backpack on.

Ellie handed Matthew his crossbow. "C'mon. Time's wastin'."

…

Matthew walked behind Ellie as she led him to the south end of the Wall.

Matthew watched as Ellie briefed the man on the Wall, specifying what they were bringing with them and how long they'd be gone.

"Ellie, Matthew," someone called from behind them.

Clarisse, Lin, Tim, and Vanessa walked forward.

Clarisse wore a red shirt and blue shorts. She had a book tucked under her arm. Lin was dressed similarly with a blue shirt and a pair of red shorts. Vanessa wore a loose-fitting dark blue dress. Her arm was wrapped around Tim, who wore a light green t-shirt and a pair of ripped blue jeans.

"Shouldn't you two be at school?" Matthew asked Clarisse and Lin.

"We're on break," Lin answered.

"How's Bradley's son doing?" Ellie asked, rejoining them.

"Better than yesterday," Clarisse said with a shrug. "We actually got him to say a few words to us today."

"That's awesome," Ellie said to the two of them. "You know, if you want, you two could probably become teachers."

Lin grabbed Clarisse's hand and squeezed. "Actually, they suggested the same thing to us earlier."

"And?" Matthew asked.

"And they want us to stick around for a while tonight," Clarisse said. She shrugged. "I guess they want to show us the ropes."

"That's my girls," Ellie said, placing a hand on each of her shoulders.

Vanessa nudged Tim's shoulder. "Baby sister's all grown up."

"She's starting to make me look bad," Tim grunted.

"You don't need any help with that," Clarisse said under her breath.

Lin smiled.

Heather and Joey walked forward. Joey was wearing a red t-shirt and grey pants. Heather was wearing one of Joey's grey t-shirts and a ripped pair of green jeans.

"Wow," Heather said looking at all of them. "Look at that, we're all here."

Clarisse glanced at Matthew and looked at Ellie. "I just wanted to say good luck."

"Really?" Ellie said, fixing Tim with a raised eyebrow. "For what?"

Tim held up his hands in surrender. "Don't look at me," he said quickly. "I didn't say anything."

"It's true," Vanessa said, hooking her arm around Tim's. "I was with him the entire time."

"You two are going outside the Wall," Clarisse said. She looked at Matthew. "And you look like you have no idea what's going on. How am I doing so far?"

"Is there something that I'm missing here?" Joey asked.

Heather smiled.

"You know about as much as I do," Matthew said to Joey, Clarisse, and Lin.

"Like I said," Clarisse continued. She looked at Ellie. "Good luck with whatever you're doing."

Ellie hugged Clarisse with one hand and looked at Heather. "Have fun today."

"We'll try," Heather said. She cursed suddenly and looked at Joey. "I forgot. I was going to show Steven how to deal with a gunshot wound. I just remembered."

"That's fine," Joey said with a shrug. "I've got the day off. I can wait."

"You can hang out at my place," Heather said. "It shouldn't take too long. Steven learns pretty quick."

"When he's sober," Ellie commented.

"I don't think he's taken a drink in over a year," Matthew said, defending Jackson's doctor-in-training.

"I'll hang out for a bit," Joey said to Heather. "As long as it doesn't involve me getting shot for the sake of training."

Heather shook her head with a smile. "Relax. No test dummies needed this time."

Ellie grabbed Matthew's arm. "We should get going," she said, somewhat nervously. "I want to be back before sundown."

Matthew nodded. He and Ellie said goodbye to everyone.

Ellie climbed up the ladder to the top of the trailer and hesitated.

"You alright?" Matthew asked as he joined her.

"Yeah," Ellie said. She gulped. "I'm fine. Let's go."

"Go where?" Matthew asked as they jumped down.

"You'll see."

Matthew followed Ellie down the hill and eventually out of sight from Jackson.

For two hours, they walked without speaking. They easily fell back into their habits of having their eyes open and ears alert. They encountered no one aside from a few small animals that steered clear.

Many times, Matthew considered asking Ellie where they were headed. He resisted, knowing from Ellie's body language that she had a destination in mind. Eventually, they walked out of the trees and emerged next to a beach that connected to a river.

Matthew instantly knew this was where they were going to stop.

They split up without a word, examining the surrounding area for potential threats. The beach was empty and sported no footprints, indicating that nothing had traveled through the area recently. They also created a few sound traps along the way.

Seven minutes later, they convened at the center of the beach next to the river.

"You know where we are?" Ellie asked.

"It's where we first met," Matthew answered.

"Oh, good," Ellie said with mock relief as she sat down. "I thought I brought us to the wrong side."

Matthew sat down and glanced to his right, spotting a pile of old, burnt wood that indicated someone had once been camped next to the river. "I'm pretty sure we're on the right side."

They sat in silence for a time.

"You know," Ellie said, looking around. "I forgot with how long we've been in Jackson that this place can be quiet. And pretty. It's kinda nice."

"It is nice," Matthew admitted. He looked at Ellie with a small smile. "As long as nothing unusual is swimming around in the river and you avoid the occasional loud redhead that—"

Ellie punched him hard in the shoulder and smiled. "This redhead is the best thing that's ever happened to you," she stated proudly. "Right or wrong?"

"Right," Matthew confirmed, returning his gaze to the river.

Ellie shifted nervously next to him.

Matthew reached out and grabbed her hand, content to wait until she spoke.

"I suppose you want to know why I dragged you out here," Ellie said with a sigh.

"It couldn't hurt," Matthew replied. He looked at Ellie. "Frankly, I'm just as curious to know how Joel is okay with this."

"It took some convincing," Ellie said. She picked up a rock and tossed it into the river. "But it's a special occasion."

"Special," Matthew repeated.

Ellie nodded. She looked at the river. "I wanted to ask you something."

"What about?" Matthew asked patiently.

"Us," Ellie said, looking at him.

Matthew raised an eyebrow.

Ellie sighed and picked up sand with her free hand. She slowly let it flow between her fingers and fall to the ground before repeating the processes. "I know it sounds sappy, but… for a while now I've been watching Tommy and Maria."

"I've noticed," Matthew said, thinking back to the party three weeks beforehand.

"What they have," Ellie said. She squeezed the handful sand in her hand and released it. "Well… it's special."

"And?" Matthew asked, unsure of where this conversation was going.

Ellie turned to him. "And I want that."

Matthew squeezed Ellie's hand before putting an arm around her shoulder. "You've always been special," he said softly.

Ellie removed one of the two necklaces that she'd kept tucked into her shirt. Attached to it was a small silver ring. She offered the ring to Matthew.

Matthew stared between Ellie and the ring, his hand sliding from her shoulder and to the ground behind her.

Ellie's looked into his eyes. "I want you to be special with me," she said.

Matthew gently touched the ring with his fingers, taking in what possessing the object would mean. He closed his eyes for a moment and closed his fist around the ring.

Ellie didn't press for a reply. She simply waited.

Matthew opened his eyes and looked at Ellie. He opened his mouth to speak but couldn't find the words to express the emotion swirling within him. Matthew smiled and wiped away a tear that was forming in his eye before returning his gaze to Ellie.

The world was silent.

Matthew couldn't hear the breeze making the leaves on the trees shake. He couldn't see the river and beach surrounding them. The dangers that the world presented for any who lived in it no longer existed. There was no world.

There was Matthew.

And there was Ellie.

Matthew slowly uncurled his fist and slipped the ring over one of his fingers. "For the rest of our lives," he said.

"Right," Ellie said, smiling. She grabbed his hands and squeezed. "You're stuck with me now."

"I've never had a problem with that," Matthew replied. He looked out at the river and smiled again. "You're right. This is a nice view."

"Too bad I promised Joel this was the last time I'd see it," Ellie said, tapping the water with a finger and creating rings. "What is with us and water all the time."

"Strategic value," Matthew answered. "Limits the directions people can attack us from."

"God!" Ellie exclaimed. "Isn't it nice to have not to have to worry about that anymore."

Matthew chuckled. "Let's not press our luck."

Ellie smiled to and looked at him. "I've always liked it when you smile," she said, poking his face "Does it hurt? When you smile?"

"Not anymore," Matthew answered. He sighed. "To tell the truth I don't think I had smiled for months before I met you."

"Glad I could help," Ellie said simply.

They sat in silence for a while, smiling at the river.

Matthew looked at Ellie. "Thanks for this," he said, fidgeting with the ring. "Thanks for everything."

"Thank you," Ellie replied softly.

They both leaned in and kissed. When the kiss ended, they didn't pull away. They rested their heads together.

After a full five minutes, Matthew sat up and looked at the sun. "We still got a while before we need to head back," he said.

Ellie looked at him.

Matthew shrugged. "What do you say we do something."

"You got something in mind?" Ellie asked.

"Anything you want. We could go for a swim," Matthew suggested.

Ellie looked down at the ground.

Matthew looked around. "We could find a nice tree to climb. We could go hunting. We haven't done that in years."

"You shoot, I shoot," Ellie said, smiling again.

"I shoot, you shoot," Matthew said, smiling again as well.

"That's a lot to choose from," Ellie said. She shrugged, laying back and staring at the sky. "I'm just as comfy staying here too."

Matthew nodded in agreement and laid back as well. They laid in silence for hours, their hands tightly intertwined.

…

Ellie looked over at their hands. Matthew's ring reflected in the sunlight.

Ellie moved closer and laid her head against his shoulder. "I love you, Matthew," she said quietly.

Matthew glanced at her.

Ellie realized that it was the first time that either of them had said those words.

Matthew tilted his head and kissed her. "I love you too, Ellie."

Ellie kissed him again and laid back, content.