I have no clue what was going through my head as I wrote this but I thought you guys might like it. It's very metaphoric. I think.
Traumatized: subject to lasting shock as a result of an emotionally disturbing experience.
Once, when it stormed as they trekked through the country and Joel had to call for a stop, he allowed her to cuddle him. Just this once, he'd said to himself, just for tonight and then it's back to being detached.
But as the nights grew progressively colder, the more he let Ellie snuggle up next to him. It was like a sort of illness, sneaking up on him, only truly revealing itself when it was to late to stop it.
He noticed she gripped the blanket more and more every night, nightmares growing and preying upon her. The only time he brung this up was when she awoke in tears. Other than that it was push ahead. Everyone had nightmares. It was inhuman not to have them in this time and age. So he never really worried about intangible bad dreams.
Until Winter came.
Winter, true to form, was cold, harsh, and unforgiving. It's snowy drifts covering all life, killing it. The few survivors of the snow were fragile and scarred. The thriving devoured. Fed upon the weakened animals and, when there were no more weak animals, each other.
Ellie pulled through. Scarred and broken no doubt, but alive. That's all he could ask for.
Many sleepless nights were spent guarding from the nightmares, both his and hers. And whilst she twitched and cried out in her fitful sleep, Joel would watch for a second with a throbbing heart. The awakening was always dreadful. She'd muffle a scream of terror and fight him until she realized it was Joel. Then she was crying into his chest until she fell asleep to repeat the cycle.
A month passed before the night terrors began to fade. Now only a few a week, they both began to regain sleep.
But there were still nights were Ellie just needed to be close to him. To know he was still there. Joel was still breathing, still protecting her until the storm ceased and the last rain drop fell.