Chapter X: Serenity
(Music: "Great Friends', by Jessica Curry)
The next few days were... unlike anything I'd ever experienced.
Even in the initial part of being brought into the settlement, rarely did I see looks of fear or resentment aimed at me by the townspeople, as so many previous communities had shown; I was given gifts and praises, and lauded for my saving Ellie from the 'ferocious beast' of a cougar (as one old man put it so heroically, as if he was there himself). I was not particularly impressed with what I did, considering I had nearly gotten my throat torn out because of it and basically made myself a wounded animal waiting to be snuffed out; but it filled me with a bit of... content to see the townspeople showing such kindness and compassion towards me.
What was this place?
It was so unlike the outside world; Where it was every man for themselves, where communities were formed only out of mutual interests and often broke down due to lack of resources or infighting; Where people would shoot children and cold-blooded killers with the same indifference, and suffocated infants to death to spare them from being devoured by Infected.
Even as I looked around me, I wanted to cry; There was no removing the taint in my eyes, of seeing the world in a cold and cruel light. Still, it relieved me that being here actually alleviated my long-standing anxiety. How long I had yearned to find somewhere like this; A near-paradise, a place of serenity that kept a large wall between me and that hellish world outside.
Yet still, in this vulnerable emotional state, I could not help but think cynically of the circumstances. I had secured a solid place in this little society now, and being introduced as a semi-hero could only raise my chances of survival. Unfortunately, I wasn't allowed to carry out any physical duties because of my 'injuries' (as if I hadn't had to do physical labor with worse wounds before), and so I was confined to the bed and wandering around certain parts of the town.
Despite my 'heroic' status, the strangers were still (understandably) wary of me; Ellie had seemed kind enough not to tell them of my 'reconnaissance' activities, and I repaid that kindness by following the restrictive rules they set for me, and areas I was allowed to walk around.
Basically, just the front gate, the street to and from my house, and the local bar. What a set of options!
A great mix of activities, I thought sardonically on my one-way walk towards said local bar. I can spend all of my reward money getting shitfaced, then walk home and hang myself!
Notwithstanding my rotten humor, I did enjoy the aesthetic of the bar- I hadn't actually been in there yet, considering how little exits there were, the number of stranger factors, the chance they would conspire to stab me to death for any number of reasons, the possibility that a hostile faction raid happens and I'm caught in the crossfire while drunk off my ass-
...
I considered, for a moment, if I was a bit too paranoid. But I decided it was better to be a living paranoiac than another dead body.
Shit.
I felt a familiar horror flood my brain as I saw the dreadful swinging doors of the bar; Only now noticing, up-close, the old-fashioned entry. I had nearly died to Infected more than once because of these damn devilish devices!
Hesitantly, tentatively, I tried easing open one of the doors, to avoid that all-too-familiar-
Squeeeeeeeeaaaaaakkkkkk.
...
SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT.
I saw most everyone's eyes beam towards the door, and had just barely managed to slip to the side and avoid being seen directly-
"Dude, what are you doing?"
"Huh?!"
Having slinked behind the wall next to the door, I noticed an Asian with black hair and a red button-down, along with a white dude wearing a baseball cap on and a blue flannel shirt. Both were staring at me with a look of perplexity.
"Uh, you good?" The white dude asked, in a low and bro-ish voice.
"Y-Yeah..." I muttered, standing up and realizing how dumb I looked in that moment. The Asian seemed to crack a smile as I did so, outstretching his hand.
"Jesse. You're the guy that saved Ellie from that big-ass monster, right? That shit was insane!"
"Yeah," The white dude pitched in. "I think I shit my pants just from seeing that thing from a distance! I can't believe the animals are getting infected, now!"
"That thing took like fifty bullets to put down!" Jesse said exaggeratively.
It was twelve, I thought irritably- How the hell did you get fifty?!
"Anyways," Jesse continued. "Me and Owen here-"
"Dude, I didn't even get to introduce myself!"
"Aw, shit, uh... sorry."
The white dude, whose name I definitely now knew to be Owen, patted the back of his head sheepishly.
"Heh, uh, yeah. Nice to meet you, man!"
"Yeah... I'm... Jack."
I had thought of using a fake name for a moment, but considering how I planned to stay here longer than a day, I knew I had to divulge at least this much. Jesse grinned, nodding approvingly.
"Jack... cool name! Let's head inside, then."
(Music: "strangers", by biosphere)
We entered the bar, some odd kind of music playing through surround speakers, and I was relieved to see everyone had returned their attention to their own activities again. Gambling, playing pool, drinking at the bar...
Shit, I thought anxiously, seeing Jesse and Owen scoot into the high chairs at the bar; Both of them looking at me curiously.
"What's up, Jack?"
I had wanted badly to simply order our drinks and sit in the remote area of the bar, with a full view of the exit and entrance; Preferably a second-story table so I could have the high ground advantage and additional exit routes-
"You wanna sit somewhere else?"
"N-No, here's good."
DIIIIIPPPPPPSSSSHHHHIIIIIIITTTTT!
FUCKING IDIOT! STOP SAYING THE WRONG SHIT! FUCK!
Immensely irritated with my disconnect between mind and mouth, I begrudgingly took a seat next to Jesse, as he called over the bartender.
"Can we get the drink menus, Joe?"
Of course his name's Joe, I thought randomly. Every fuckin' bartender's probably named Joe.
The bartender nodded, reaching below the counter -causing me to instinctively reach for a sidearm that wasn't strapped to my side- and pulled out two pamphlets, handing them to me, Jesse, and Owen. I would occasionally (frequently) dash my eyes towards the entrance and my surroundings to ensure no one was looking to shoot me in the back of the head.
"Happy hour ends in thirty minutes." He said simply, before returning back to his usual bartender duties. As Jesse and Owen looked over the menu, I stared at the pamphlet in my hands with fear rising in my throat. I glanced over at them, ensuring they weren't looking at me as I tried to decode the menu's contents.
After a few moments, Jesse noticed me staring intensely at the menu and spoke up quietly.
"Jack? What's up, man?"
"..."
I tried to ignore him, but then I thought of a way to circumvent this problem, and looked up at Jesse with determination.
"I'm not picky, just order me what you think is good."
Jesse grinned, nodding approvingly, and I breathed a sight of relief inwardly.
"Alright man, I gotchu! Bartender, get us three shots of Hi-Power!"
Being my first shot of liquor ever, I nearly vomited the contents, but in the face of seeing the other two down them, my pride had no choice but to swallow the foul and bitter content decisively, leaving me to fight back the urge to fall off my stool and claw at my throat. I chose to forego any form of liquor for the remainder of the night.
Still, that one shot managed to unravel the long-standing tenseness in my body that had strapped my body for years, and as the hours passed I sensed a general ease in my whole demeanor. I could feel my mental walls eroding slightly, and did my best to keep them up no matter what happened. Still, it became incredibly difficult to stay reserved and silent as Jesse and Owen's collective energy drew answers from me, albeit reluctantly.
"So, how long have you been on the road?" Jesse asked. "I wasn't sure if you were, but you got that kind of energy."
"Yeah, uh..." I mumbled, the drink beginning to get to me. "Just a few years."
A solid answer, both partially-truthful and not too revealing of the period of time. Still, both Jesse and Owen reacted with shock to the answer.
"Years?!" Owen spluttered. "You've gotta be pulling my fuckin' leg!"
"N-No, I'm not... pulling anything. It's... been a journey."
Jesse stared at me, a mix of awe and piqued curiosity surfacing behind his eyes.
"That's... unreal. Actually unreal. You're a fuckin' legend, dude!"
I chuckled nervously, not particularly sure how to respond to such outright compliments- This had never happened before. Ever. Nobody gave out compliments in the fucking wasteland. If I had known the word 'thank you' had existed, I would have said it to him. Instead, I merely grunted approvingly.
"Eh."
A question suddenly entered my mind, and I tried my best to ask casually, so as not to give any hints to my internal feelings.
"So, uh... where'd Ellie go? She didn't wanna come to the bar?"
Jesse huffed in slight annoyance.
"Yeah, she said she would, but then last-minute said she had to talk with Joel or somethin'-"
Crack!
"Woah, dude!"
Idiot.
My hand had tightened around the shot glass, breaking it and slicing apart the inside of my hand. I groaned slightly in pain as Jesse hovered over my wound in worry.
"Shit."
"No, it's fine, man! Here, I'll get a first aid."
Here I was sitting, drinking and breaking shot glasses, and I was losing track of my FUCKING MISSION.
After fixing up my hand and sweeping the mess, we went back to our drinking, as they soon forgot the incident and carried on in their merrymaking.
Though I did not. Now was not the time to be getting lazy and slothful and comfortable.
I needed to find Joel. I needed to get to his cabin, and talk to him. Just a few more days... A few more days...
...
...
...
"How'd you get those scars, man? You look like you've been through a warzone-"
"Let's just go play some poker, Jesse."
