Disclaimer: I do not own any character of (The Last of Us) TLOU is owned by Naughty Dog and its creators.
A/N: Again thank you for the support on this story and have a great 4 of July week. Now let's continue with the story that is getting close to his end.
Chapter 19: Ellie Surfing Lesson.
Ellie wakes early the next morning because she barely sleeps during the night just thinking about the surf lesson in the water that Joel was going to give her and other stuff. Also, I had to answer her mother's messages before going to sleep last night. She told her that everything was right and that she was okay and enjoying her vacation. She also told her that she will extend her vacation and that she will stay on the island probably the rest of the summer. Of course, her mother sends her a message asking her why she needs to stay there for more than a month. But Ellie only told her that she was having so much fun and that she found something there to do and needed the extra time. Ellie promised to call her as soon as she had the time but told her that it was not going to be soon. She assured her that she was fine and happy there. Even though their relationship is getting better, Ellie doesn't want her mother to worry about her too much.
Riley sent her a few messages too. Most of them asked her how she was and if she already made her move with the tour man. Ellie finds that funny because her friend always tries to find her a boyfriend even when she told her that she doesn't need one. Ellie told her on her last massage that Joel was older than her, but she doesn't mind that. Riley even told her that having an adventure with an older man will be a good experience for her. She teases her about old men being good in bed and that she should go for it. After Ellie finishes with the text she tries to fall asleep, but she can't stop thinking about Joel and how she starts feeling about him. After thinking about him forever, she finally fell asleep but only for a few hours.
Ellie stays on the bed for a few minutes before sitting up and getting out of bed. She walks out of the room and goes to the living room to look for Joel, but he was not on the couch when she got there. Ellie started looking for him around the house but finally found him out in the backyard tying up the surfboards on top of his jeep.
"Hey… you go up earlier than me," said Ellie while walking out of the house wearing long sleeping pants and a t-shirt. She also put a sleeping robe on to cover her body from the morning cold.
Joel quickly turned his head while continuing with his work. "Yeah… I want things to be ready before you wake up. I hope you're not too hungry. It is better if we only eat something light before going there. So not a big breakfast for today… but we can bring some sandwiches and other stuff to eat there."
Ellie walked closer to him and looked at the Jeep. "Okay… that is fine with me. I'm so excited that I don't think I can eat anything anywhere. Do you have everything we need ready?"
"Almost… I still need to get a few things and yours of course."
"Okay… then I will get the food ready to go and prepare my stuff to get ready to go."
"Good I deal… I will finish here, then we can eat something light and we can go after that." Joel watches Ellie smile at him before turning around and walking back inside the house. Soon he finishes with the boards he walks toward the shack to get the rest of the things he needs.
xXx
Two hours later, they were on the road. Joel was driving toward it a knew it would be good for Ellie's first lesson. Yeah, he already teaches her the basics she needs to know about surfing, but doing that in the sand is not the same as doing it in the water, so he needs to take her to a safe place for her first lesson.
"So, this beach where you're taking me… is good? I mean there will be people there or will there be big waves?"
"No, those beaches are on the east of the island, and as you have never surfed before I need to take you to a more safe beach first."
"Oh… okay." Ellie looks at the road until Joel makes a turn to the rural path with a sign that says CERRO DRAGON. "Are we close now?"
"Just 10 more minutes," he said while continuing to drive.
"What is a Cerro dragon? That doesn't sound like a safe beach name."
"The locals put that name to the place because there is a cliff before we go down to the beach."
"Do people come to this place? Or we're going to be alone there?"
Joel looks around to see if there's any track on the road. He knows that not many surfers come here because of the lower waves, but that doesn't mean that other people can come here to practice or just enjoy the beach. The beach is good enough for practice or past time there as it is a solitary place. Also, people can also swim in some parts there. Joel drives on the ground road for 10 minutes, until he enters a grassy clearance.
Joel saw two cars parked there, so he knew that they were not going to be alone there. "I think that answers your other question, about someone being here," he said before parking his jeep a few feet away from the two cars.
Ellie looks toward the two cars before getting out of the jeep. "I don't see anyone… Do you think they are on the beach?"
"Probably…" said Joel while turning off the engine and opening the door to get out.
Ellie opens her and gets out too. "Do you think they're surfers?" she asked.
"I doubt it… unless they came here to practice or something… experiment surfers do not come to this place. The waves are not good for them here."
"Have you used it before for that? I mean, have you used this place to teach someone before?"
"I came here a few times to teach… Yeah, but it's been a long time and I was hoping for no one to be here today. But, anyway. Let's see who is down there." Joel walked away from the jeep and toward the cliff that was the end of the clearance. Ellie follows him until they get close to the edge of the cliff.
Soon they go there, they can see the beach below. It wasn't too high from it and the view was spectacular. They can see all the open sea from there. Joel looked down at the beach and saw a few people there sitting in the sand. They look like a family, and Joel doesn't see any board there or in the water. So they're not surfers, just some random people that were enjoying the beach.
"They look like a family down there… is that going to be good for us?" said Ellie while looking down to the beach too.
"Yeah… that is good… is better for us if we don't have any other surfers here," he said before turning around and starting to walk back to his jeep.
Ellie was still looking down and noticed that they started to pack their things. That was a little strange since it was not even noon yet. "Hey… I think they're leaving," she said before turning around and walking toward the jeep. Soon she was close, she said it again just in case Joel didn't hear her the first time. "Hey… I saw them parking a few of their things down there… so maybe they're leaving." Ellie will be happy if they are going, she does not want people watching her in the water when she falls down during her practice.
Joel unties the board from the roof before looking at her. "Well, that will be good. That way we get the beach all for ourselves." Ellie also smiles at that, because she was hoping to spend the whole day with Joel… alone.
Soon Joel finished untying the boards, he put them on the side of the jeep. Then he saw a man and a young boy walking up the path that goes down to the beach before they looked at them.
"Hey dad… are they surfers?" asked the boy to the man that was probably his father. The boy looked like he was 10 or 12 years old.
"I guess they are…" answered the father quickly.
"Cool… I wanted to be a surfer too." said the boy excitedly and quickly ran toward Joel and Ellie. Soon he got closer, the boy started to look at the boards. "Wow… your board is so cool…" said the boy while touching one of them a little.
"Jonathan… don't touch it." said the man while walking toward them. "Sorry… he likes to see surfing competitions on tv," said the man. "He is a real fan of the sport."
"Really!" Ellie said excitedly. "Are you from the state?" she asked the man.
"Yeah… we live in California… That is why my boy here likes all that. Actually, that is why we came here for our vacation. We found out that a lot of people came here to surf… especially before the state competition started."
While Ellie continued talking with the man, the boy continued checking the board before he turned his head around and looked at Joel. "Are you a professional?" asked the boy. "Because I think that I saw a board like this one in a competition before." Joel looks at the boy trying to find a way to answer. But he can't be talking about him because he must be two when he gets out of surfing.
Ellie hears the boy talking to Joel and quickly stops talking with the man and walks toward them. Ellie grabs Joel's arm and put it around hers. "He just surfed a little for a hobby and the board, he bought the board from a second hand. We only came here to enjoy the beach and try to surf a little for a while… is that not right honey?" she said with a smile on her face and her head on his shoulder.
"Ahhhh… I was hoping to see some surfing here today. Some told my dad that some surfers come here to practice, so we thought that we can find someone here," said the boy with a disappointed tone.
The father moved close to the boy and put his hand on his shoulder. "Is okay Jonathan… we can go to another beach later for that."
"If you want to see some surfers, I can recommend Garrapatero Beach… is where most of the surfers here go."
"Thanks for the tip…" said the man. "By the way, my name is Charlie and this is my son, Jonathan," he said while extending his hand.
"Nice to meet you… my name is Ellie and this man here is Joel," she said after both Joel and she shook the man's hand.
"Are you two on vacation too?"
"No exactly… I-" Joel started, but Ellie moved closer to him and put her arm around his waist and her head on his shoulder again.
"Yes… we're… actually we're on our honeymoon." She before turned her head to look at Joel's face which looked as surprised as the man was.
"Are you two married?" said the boy while looking at both of them. "I thought that he was you, Dad," said the boy.
"Jonathan!" the man squeezed the boy's shoulder. "Sorry… he is not meant to offend you… he is just… a kid." said the man with an embarrassed look on his face.
The boy turned his head and looked at his dad. "I'm not a kid… I'm 12." said the boy to defend himself.
At that moment a woman walked up from the path carrying a few things. "Hey, you two… the things are not going to be carried by themself." Said a woman coming from the path and continuing to walk toward one of the cars.
"Okay…" said the man while looking at her. "Jonathan, go and help your mother." The man pushes the boy toward her mother's direction, then looks at Joel and Ellie again. "Sorry about… my boy's comment. Is just-"
"We don't look like a couple… okay we get that a lot," answered Ellie before Joel said something.
They get saved by the bell as more people start to come up from the beach. "Anyway, thanks for the information and you two enjoy your time here… we will be going soon… so you will have the whole beach for yourself," he said with a smile.
"Thanks…" said Ellie, embracing Joel more. "Anyway, I don't think we will be alone… there is another car over there… so-"
"Oh… that one is ours too… big family vacation I guess." said the man.
"Oh…okay."
"Yeah… well time to go… Nice to meet you…" said the man before walking away. The woman yells at him again telling him to hurry up. "I'm coming… Jesus."
Ellie stays close to Joel until the man walks away from them and starts to help the others.
"Do you think that was wise?" said Joel in a lower voice after staying silent for almost all the conversation. "I mean telling them that we're married?"
"What? I don't think you wanted to tell them who you're. Imagine what happens if you tell that boy that you're a famous surfer and that you're going to teach me how to surf?"
"Was… a famous surfer… remember."
"You still are… no matter what you say or how long you have not been surfing," she said proudly to him. "Besides, who is he going to tell that we are married? They're just tourists."
Joel rolled his eyes before starting to move away from her and moved to the back of the jeep where they have their things. "Let's just finish unpacking our things from the Jeep… okay."
"Yes Sir…" Said Ellie with a smile on her face, before starting to help him out. By the time they finished, the big family was inside their cars and started to drive away. The boy and the father waved their hand at them as they said goodbye to them. Ellie and Joel do the same, before grabbing their bags and boards and start walking toward the beach.
Soon they arrive at the beach and put their thing on the sand Joel speaks again. "Did you see the man and their bot face when you tell them that we're married? I know that you were trying to help me, but you should tell them something else… I don't like people thinking that-"
"You don't need to worry Joel, nobody is going to know or care… can we forget all that?" Ellie said before lowering her bag on the sand and stabbing the board beside her things. "Now… what are we going to do first?" she said quickly to change the subject. She doesn't know why Joel was making a big deal of what she said, she was only trying to help him. Before Joel said something else, Ellie took off her t-shirt and shorts and stayed in her dive suit.
Joel does the same but starts looking for something in his bag. "Okay, let's start with what we came here for…" said Joel while taking a small jar from his bag. "First we need to wax the boards," he said before tossing her a little jar with wax. "Then we go to the water."
"Cool…" says Ellie after catching the jar with the wax.
While Ellie put the wax on the board, Joel takes his t-shirt off and shorts too, and starts to do the same with his. Soon they finish putting the wax on their board, Joel and Ellie grab them and walk toward the water. "Okay, the first thing you need to know is how…"
"How to paddle on top of the board? C'mon Joel, I already know how to do that." Ellie walks into the water and as soon as she puts the board on it, she gets on top of it and sits on the board. "Are you coming?" said Ellie before laying on the board and starting to paddle with her hands.
Joel shakes his head before starting to follow her. Soon they were far from the shore, they sat on top of the board and got side by side. Joel looks at her with firm eyes. "First… that is not what I was going to say… second if you want to learn how to surf, you need to follow my instruction… is that clear?" he said with a serious tone.
"Yes… sir!" she said with a smile on her face.
Joel rolled his eyes again. "This is not a game Ellie, you can get hurt or drowned if you don't know what you are doing."
"Sorry, Joel…I will follow your instructions," she said more seriously now.
"Okay… thanks… now, you know how to paddle with your hands. I can see that, but you need to learn how to pass a wave under the water to continue forward." he lay on top of the board and started paddling. "Now watch me."
Ellie watches Joel with determination to learn, but also with worried eyes. She remembers the doctor saying that he should not be surfing anymore and even though the waves were lower here she still has some concerns about Joel's health. So she will keep an eye on him in case something happens. After Joel shows her how to do it, she tries to do it by herself a few times. As the day continues. Joel teaches her how to do things the safe way on everything. They practice things on the water for a few hours before Ellie gets the chance to get her first wave. Both of them move forward and pass a few waves before stopping.
"Okay… this will be your first chance… don't try to get on the first wave, just wait for the right one." Said Joel while looking at her.
"And how will I know that?" asked Ellie.
Joel looked into her eyes and saw the nervousness. "Just relax and use your instincts… I know you don't have any experience with that when it comes to surfing, because that will take years of practice. But try to use your eyes to see which wave is good for you."
"Okay…" Ellie turns her head and starts looking at the coming waves. Okay… Ellie, you can do this. The first one was too low and Ellie didn't feel like that was the right one. She looks toward Joel that is already moving a few feet away from her. She hears him encouraging her and after a few more waves, she decides to take it. Ellie gets into position and starts to paddle with her hand as the wave moves below her, but when she tries to get up, she does it at the wrong time losing her balance and falling into the water. As the wave passes, Ellie surfers from under the water and gets into the board. "Sorry… I… I did it wrong…" she said as soon she saw Joel moving toward her.
"Is it okay… no one will make it right on the first try." She hears Joel say. "Now… let's try again… and don't worry, we just started."
Ellie quickly gets ready on the board to try again. She gets back to her previous position and waits for another wave. Ellie has a few more tries, but all end in the same way. After one hour of trying to get one right, Joel calls for a break. So they paddle back to the beach sand. Soon they were back on the shore, they took out their towels from their bags and sat on them.
"Why do I always fall down? What am I doing wrong?" she asks before grabbing one of the plastic bottles of water and taking a drink.
"You're doing fine… you don't need to feel bad about it, this is just the beginning. Besides, you almost made it in the last two tries. Surfing is not as easy as some people think. You will get it right soon."
"Yeah… but I still feel like this was a bad idea. It looks so easy on tv," She put the bottle down in the sand and looked at the ocean. "I saw a lot of people on TV and even here when I arrived and… they make it look so easy."
Joel moved closer and put a hand on her shoulder. "Those people have experience… Ellie, so don't feel bad. This is only the first day and those people have probably been surfing for years."
"Yeah… I know… I just," she lowered her head and looked at the sand. "I know this is stupid… but I really wanted to do this because my dad and I have a list of things to do… and I wanted to do all that even if he was gone, so maybe-"
"Look, I know this is hard… It wasn't easy for me at first even though I love it. So the only thing stopping you is… yourself. Maybe it is time for you to stop thinking about this like it is something you have to do to make your father proud. That is what is holding you back. So stop thinking about doing this for your father and start doing this for yourself." said Joel with a firm voice.
Ellie turns her head and looks at him. "But I'm doing this for him… I thought I could do it, but now I'm not so sure I can."
Joel grabs one of her hands making her look him in the eyes. "I know that I have only known you for less than two weeks, but if something I'm sure is that you can.… You think you're doing this because you think that your father wants you to, but I think that that is not the only reason you want to do this. I can see how much you love and respect the ocean and that is a good quality of a surfer. I know surfing is not easy… but I know that you can do this. I saw the passion you put on this when you started and I see that now… you just need to feel it and do it because you want to… no because you think that you have to."
Ellie lowered her head and looked at his hand that was still holding her and started to think about all he just said. And he was right, she was doing all these things because she promised her father that she would do all the things they put on that list to honor him, but it was not just that. She really wants to do all those things and not only for her dad but for her too. She feels happy doing all those things or visiting all those places around the world. But surfing was something that she really wanted to do and she did not want to fail that. After a minute of silence, Ellie saw Joel moving his hand away from hers, so she turns her head and looks at the waves, and tries to imagine what Joel sees in there.
"When you surf… what do you see?" she asked without looking at him.
Joel looked at her for a few seconds, then at the water. "I see… I see a road that I can drive on without something to stop me… I can see the sky that I can fly on by falling down to the ground… when you love surfing… you can lose yourself in it… but you don't need to feel that… just be yourself and let go of the fear and doubt that are holding you back. Concentrate on what you love and put your mind to it… then you will find the balance you are looking for."
Ellie stayed quiet for a few minutes looking at the ocean. "Thanks, Joel… for doing all this for me." She turned her head and looked at him. "I know how hard this is for you and I'm not talking about the surfing part, but about everything you have endured to get to this point," she said with a smile on her face.
"Thank you… that means a lot… now get a few more minutes to rest and let's go out there and try again."
"Okay…" Ellie grabs the bottle of water again and drinks the rest of the water.
They wait in the sand for 20 minutes before Ellie gets up and grabs her board and walks toward the water. Joel decides to stay on the beach and watch her from there for a while. Ellie didn't mind that even if she liked having him close. But this time she wants to do this on her own. Joel yells at her encouragingly as she moves far from the shore. He tells her that she can do it and that the only thing she needs to succeed is to believe in herself. Ellie pass a few waves before finding the right one for her and got into position and start to paddle. As soon as the wave started to form Ellie got up on the board and try to keep her balance. As the wave moved forward and she did not fall down, she looked toward the beach where Joel was.
"Hey! I'm doing it!" she yells as she continues surfing toward the shore without falling down. As soon as she noticed that the wave was getting closer to the shore and was going to break down, Ellie kept her balance until the end. When the wave broke at the shore, Ellie went into the water, but she finally finished it without falling down. "I did it!... I did it!" Ellie starts to yell with happiness as soon she grabs the board and starts to walk out of the water. "Did you see that?" she said while happy before starting to run toward Joel that was waiting for her on the sand.
"Yes… you did," said Joel while starting to walk toward her.
Soon Ellie gets to the sand, she drops the board, takes the cable off her leg, and runs toward Joel. "I can't believe it… Joel… I finally did it." she jumps into Joey's arms laughing with happiness. "Thank you…" she said while wrapping her arm around his neck and looking at his face. "Thank you for making me believe in myself… I will not do it without your help."
Joel moves his arm around her waist and holds her close. "You don't need to thank me… you do it on your own… I just push you a little." he said while wrapping his arm around her.
As Ellie continues to look into his eyes, her heart starts to beat faster than before. Her whole body was feeling something, something that she was trying to hold back for too long, but now she just wants to let it out. So without giving it more thought, Ellie moves her head forward, closes her eyes, and kisses him.
Ellie moves one of her hands behind Joel's head and presses the kiss deeper. Ellie thought that Joel was going to push her back, but she still felt his hand on her back. After a long minute, Ellie feels his hand moving away from her back and his mouth goes separating from hers. Joel's hand stays on her waist, and his body closer to her as both of them look into each other's eyes.
"I… I'm so sorry… I think… I get too excited… I don't mean to make you feel unstable." said Ellie while moving her hand to his shoulder and looking at his face waiting for Joel to say something. But he only stays there looking at her. Maybe in shock after Ellie kisses him out of nowhere. "Everything is okay… Joel?" she asked after a few minutes of silence. You're not mad at me… because I… kiss you right?"
"Well, I know that it was just a happy reaction…so I think it is okay," he said while removing his hand from her body. "You just ride your first wave… and go excited… I get it." He turns his head and looks at his watch. Is a little early… so if you want to try for a little while… we can do that."
Ellie looks at him for a few minutes a little surprised by his cold reaction. She likes him a lot, but it seems that he doesn't feel the same, so maybe it was better for both of them this way. "Sure… now that I'm starting to get used to all this… maybe I can get better than you in no time." Ellie gives him a sad smile before she turns around and looks for her board.
"Don't let all that go into your head," he said while trying to understand what just happened. "This is just the beginning."
Ellie grabbed her board and started walking toward the water. "Yeah… you said that because you know I will be better than you after a few more lessons." she smiled at him again before starting to run toward the water.
"Yeah… you wish…" He grabbed his board and started running after her.
They continue surfing for a few more hours and even Joel gets some waves to surf after Ellie protests and tells him not to do that. Joel just told her that it was alright since the waves here were not big and he will be fine. Ellie gets to ride a few more even if she falls a few times too. Joel told her that it was all right and that no one will be perfect on the first day. After the last one, Joel and Ellie were getting tired, so they stayed sitting on the board in the water as the sun was starting to get down.
"Is getting late… is better if we go back," said Joel while sitting on the board beside Ellie. The water was getting calm as the sunny day was almost over.
"Can we stay until sunset?" she said while looking at the ocean horizon. She said but her mind was on the kiss she gave him before.
"Sure… I guess we can do that. It will be a beautiful sunset." said Joel thinking about the same.
"Yeah… I can see now why you love this so much," Ellie continued watching the sun getting close to the water for a few minutes. "Joel… can I ask you something?" she said without looking at him.
Joel turns his head and looks at her. "Sure… what you want to know."
Ellie turns her head and looks at him. "Do you think… what I did before was wrong?"
Joel looks at her trying to know what she was talking about, but deep inside, he knows what she means. "You mean about the kiss?"
"Yeah… I just want to know, because for me it was not just a kiss. I know that you must think that I am just a young girl that is just confused… well I'm confused but not in the way you think. Because I really wanted to kiss you." Ellie turns her head away and looks at the ocean. The waves move the boards softly, but not enough to move them apart. "I know that you think that all this is crazy, but I like you… a lot and when I'm close to you I feel safe and… and I don't know… god with myself," She turns her head and looks at him again. "I don't know what I exactly feel… but I don't want to stop feeling it."
"Ellie… I don't know what to say…"
Ellie turns her head away from him, so he can't see her eyes watering. "You don't have to say anything… I can see that you don't feel the same… just don't say that I'm too young for you… because I don't even care about your age."
"Ellie…" said Joel, while moving his hand and grabbing hers. Ellie turned her head and looked into his eyes and they just froze in time. The sun was going behind the water on the horizon and after a few minutes, both Joel and Ellie started to move closer and closer. Don't think Joel… just follow your heart. He hear in the back of his mind before both got close enough until their mouths found one another again.
Joel and Ellie kiss again more passionately this time, not just because of the exciting moment, but because they really want to and something inside telling them that it was right. The sun started to go down on the horizon while they continued kissing. After a few minutes, a ghostly figure appears on the sand beach a few feet away from them with a smile on his face.
Nicely done... girl