It has been a while since I last touched this series.. teehee...
SO, If you're new to the blog or need a refresher, here is Part One and here is the TLOU Masterlist! Fair warning, previous parts could use some editing. I've gone back to add some paragraph breaks to help with reading, but it's otherwise the same.
~~~
They abandoned the bar when the sun began to descend over the horizon, weaving in and out of buildings to avoid the risk of being spotted out on the streets by living and dead alike as night fell over the city, bringing with it a blanket of darkness they used to their advantage.
Nighttime was perfect to avoid humans, but dangerous when it came to avoiding infected. Though, (Y/N) was certain he hadn't seen a single one since they entered the city.
Joel led them down an alleyway between some office buildings, his head on a permanent swivel and his footsteps light as they rapidly approached the side entrance to the taller of the two buildings.
The plan was to get to a building that was tall enough to touch the clouds, reach the highest floor possible, and search for a safe enough path out of the city before they could be tracked down by the vengeful locals.
Joel attempted the doorknob, giving it a few hard shakes before he took a step back to assess the wall. (Y/N) could practically see the lightbulb flicker in his head when he spotted the older man glancing between Ellie and the vent just a couple of inches above the door, his eyes roving over her to assess her short, skinny build.
He motioned to it and bent his knees with a quiet grunt, lacing his hands together and nodding for Ellie to use his hands as a step. Reluctantly, Ellie set her foot over his hands and squeezed her hand over Joel's shoulder, her lips forming an uncertain frown.
(Y/N) stepped behind her and reached out, placing his hand against her backpack and offering her a reassuring smile when she glanced back at him, the nervousness written all over the furrow of her brows.
She pressed her mouth together in a tight line and took in a deep, shaky breath. The chances of all three of them toppling over onto the floor were high, but at least she'd have a soft landing.
"One... two..." Joel counted, a long exhale of sharp air whizzing past his lips once he began lifting Ellie. His knees wobbled with effort as he attempted to straighten his back under the weight of her body.
Ellie squirmed instinctively, quiet curses leaving her lips when she wobbled, but after a few seconds of panic, she managed to find her balance again. (Y/N) kept her steady, the hand on her backpack keeping her straightened up whilst she fiddled with the vent until it broke.
His nose crinkled at the sound of the metal clattering onto the floor, the sound echoing loudly. Ellie wriggled through the small opening, just barely small enough to fit through.
Straining to hear, (Y/N) waited with bated breath for the distant sound of car engines or tires squealing, but there was only the faraway sounds of insects trilling and Ellie shuffling around. The anxiety humming in his chest eased.
"I think we're good."
"Alright."
Joel straightened his back and winced, a quiet, semi-pained grunt vibrating from his chest. He cringed at the sight of Ellie's flashlight shining against the wall and the soft clanks and thumps that echoed back out into the alleyway whilst she walked around.
"Take a look around first. Ellie- Goddamit."
The door swung open a moment later, and Ellie's victorious grin greeted them. "Where'd you be without me, huh?"
"By now, Wyoming," Joel answered bluntly, aggravated, and turned on his flashlight, cautiously stepping into the building and observing their surroundings, waiting for any potential danger that may have been attracted by her small ruckus.
"Oh, yeah," Ellie pursed her lips and closed the door behind (Y/N). "Walked right into that one."
The building they were in appeared to be thankfully empty, incredibly cluttered, and covered ceiling to floor in dust that made (Y/N)'s nose itch with the inescapable urge to sneeze. He held his breath until the itch went away.
An old, unused, likely long-dead van sat in what appeared to be a garage or loading area of sorts, surrounded by junk, papers, and random items that appeared haphazardly tossed around as if a tornado had run through the room.
Along with their soft footsteps, there was the distant sound of creaking and water dripping from a nearby pipe, but no distinct noises that could've belonged to someone, living or dead.
Joel pointed his flashlight at the door in front of them with a sign that read B3-42 No Roof Access. "We'll make our way up, and come morning, we'll take a look at the city, and find our way out," Joel explained, climbing up the small set of stairs and slowly opening the door.
He peered inside first, one hand tightly clutching his pistol while the other slowly moved the flashlight to illuminate the room completely. When there weren't any signs of immediate danger, he took a slow, mindful step inside and scoped out the room again with the experience of someone who'd likely been caught off guard more than once before.
Ellie clamped her hand around (Y/N)'s arm and blinked at him with wide, dread-filled eyes. "We're going up forty-two flights?" (Y/N) could already feel his muscles aching just from thinking about it.
"Forty-five." Joel corrected her, motioning for them to follow with a jerk of his head.
A soft whine left (Y/N)'s throat, and Joel glanced back at him over his shoulder, the ghost of a grin on his face. He pointed his flashlight up the center of the staircase and grimaced when the light couldn't even reach the ceiling.
"We ain't goin' all the way."
"How far?"
"As far as I can make it," Joel answered grimly, Ellie's giggle bouncing off the walls before their combined footsteps drowned it out.
They marched up for a while before their heavy panting and sluggish footsteps filled the air. The three leaned and braced themselves against the railing to keep trudging forward, their wobbly legs occasionally threatening to give out from under them.
(Y/N) was used to exercise; a couple of jogs around the block, some sit-ups and pushups, and half an hour of training with the punching bag were the norm for him, per Bill's instructions to stay active. To stay ready for anything.
But climbing multiple stairs and passing by multiple floors felt like a whole other beast. His chest was starting to burn. Each breath he took made it feel as if someone had set his lungs alight and then squeezed them.
The bottom of his feet ached, a shot of soreness and pain darting up his leg with each step. His shoulders had long begun to slump, his body's way of trying to escape the ache between his shoulder blades.
Ellie rubbed her forehead with the back of her sleeve to rid it of sweat and let out a heavy exhale, arms hanging limply at her sides and flashlight threatening to slip from her fingertips.
"Hey, you know that guy who said he was hurt? How did you guys know it was an ambush?" Ellie asked, lifting her head curiously when Joel paused and leaned his body against the railing with a wheezy breath.
(Y/N) grimaced and placed his hand on Joel's back to rub comforting circles. Joel took a few gulps of air and peered at them over his shoulder, his eyes lingering on the girl before they moved to lock onto (Y/N).
"I've been on both sides." He revealed gruffly, and (Y/N)'s hand dropped from his back, the exhaustion draped over his body so thick he hardly reacted.
It didn't stop the memory of the first attempted raid on his home from flashing back to him. So much fire, so much smoke, so many gunshots, and whizzing bullets. He could still taste the ashes on his tongue.
"It was a long time ago. We did what we needed to survive."
"You and Tess?" Ellie's voice had dropped into a near whisper, astonished.
"And the people we were with. My brother, too." Joel added breathlessly, wincing slightly when he craned his neck to check where the next closest floor was.
"Did you kill innocent people?"
The echoing of bullets rang in (Y/N)'s ears, the feeling of the cold pouring rain on his face, and the hot blood on his hands while frantically tending to Bill's injury still fresh in his mind.
They almost lost Bill that cold, stormy night.
It'd been on him to head out the next day to tend to the bodies lying outside the fence, to try to assess and deal with the damage without Bill over his shoulder, telling him what to do. Corpses looked nothing like the infected.
He swallowed thickly, blinking at the feeling of fingers wrapping around his wrist. He looked down and found Ellie holding his wrist, a mixture of concern and sympathy in her eyes. Joel remained silent, chest still heaving and features grim.
"C'mon," He grunted and tore his gaze away from them, forcing himself forward up the next couple of stairs despite his swaying and almost stumbling form.
(Y/N) sighed heavily, feeling his throat dry and yearning for a cold drink of water, but he followed after Joel despite his aching legs crying out for a moment of rest. They'd get a good night's sleep, at least.
"Finally," He groaned softly at the sight of a door, leaning against the wall beside it as Joel pushed it open, checking out the room first with his flashlight before entering completely.
Ellie and (Y/N) stumbled inside, and (Y/N) slumped back against the wall with Joel, a soft, tired laugh leaving him when Joel slid down the wall to sit on the floor.
His legs extended out in front of him, his head tilting back to rest against the wall as his body slumped with gravity. (Y/N) shook out his own legs, wishing he'd grabbed Bill's compression socks and taken them with him.
"Thirty-three floors," Ellie motioned to the number on the wall of the slim hallway, smiling widely and tiredly. Never again was the only thing (Y/N) could think of despite Ellie's cheery mood. "That's good!"
"It's gonna have to be." Joel breathed out, head tilting back against the wall and eyes fluttering shut.
His cracked lips remained parted, inhaling and exhaling large gulps of air. A small kick to his foot forced him to open his eyes and look up at the grinning Ellie, who offered him her hand.
"Gimmie a minute." He dismissed her.
Ellie rolled her eyes. "Get up, you lazy ass."
"Lazy ass."
(Y/N) chuckled at the scoff on Joel's face and reached down to slip his hands under Joel's armpits, grunting as he helped the man back onto his no doubt sore feet.
Joel released Ellie's hand and shot (Y/N) a thankful glance, brushing past Ellie with a quiet retort, "I'm fifty-six years old, you little shit."
Ellie only cackled in response.
They continued down the hallway, keeping an eye out for danger while they searched for a good room to spend the rest of the night in. Peering through the thick darkness, he noticed old, dust-covered furniture sitting around and a few small rooms with computers and printers. (Y/N) deduced they were in some kind of office building.
He'd only ever seen the inside of one on television back before the outbreak, when his mother would put on a random show in the background while she cooked. He wondered where all the workers had gone, if some had managed to make it back to their families and lived in the QZ before it fell apart.
The sound of glass shattering brought his attention back to the door, hearing the soft click and creak of Joel opening the door into another office space. Dusting off the couch cushions, (Y/N) and Ellie placed them down on the floor in three rows to create make-shift beds for the night as Joel began scattering the glass shards across the floor leading up to them.
(Y/N) slipped his backpack off his shoulders and let it plop down onto the floor, giving his sore shoulders a roll and sharing a perplexed glance with Ellie.
"Joel," Ellie called out, sitting back on a cushion and toying with the laces of her worn sneakers. "Joel... Joel!"
"What?"
Joel peered at them over his shoulder with knitted brows, tone laced with some exasperation. He took in their equally puzzled expressions and finished scattering the last of the glass before he straightened up.
"I don't want anyone sneakin' up on us while we're sleepin'," He explained with a mutter.
"Oh, crunch crunch crunch. I get it." Ellie nodded, her messy ponytail bouncing with her movements. "Well, good night!"
She slumped back on the cushions and shimmied around until she got comfortable, her hands slipping beneath her head to act as a pillow.
"Smart." (Y/N) complimented, carefully setting his rifle down by the bed and lowering his aching body onto the surprisingly comfortable cushions. He sighed softly and lolled his head to the side, observing Joel when he slipped his jacket off and folded it up to use as a pillow.
"Night." Joel exhaled, sparing him the briefest of smiles before lying on his side with his back turned to them.
A brief moment of silence passed, and (Y/N) turned his head to look up at the ceiling, tracing the subtle cracks in the foundation whilst he waited for sleep to finally settle into his bones. The ceiling was white and speckled and reminded him of the doctor's office he'd go to as a kid with his mother.
Parts of it had become a darker shade of brown from pipes leaking, and presumably, mold growing. His eyes moved to the walls in search of anything that hinted at what the room had been before the outbreak.
There were some generic paintings on the walls, and bookshelves pressed to the walls with books that'd likely been left untouched for years and years. Framed pictures that looked like diplomas and certificates hung over one of the couches.
His ears picked up a quiet sigh from Joel before the man spoke. "Hey," He called out quietly, waiting to hear their hums of acknowledgment before continuing. "When we were talkin' about hurtin' people.. what did you mean it wasn't your first time, Ellie?"
Ellie rolled over onto her back and stared up at the ceiling, the curiosity that'd been on her face melting into a sullen, hardened expression. (Y/N) tilted his head toward her with a small frown, taking note of the tension in her usually relaxed body.
"I don't want to talk about it." She answered quietly.
"Alright."
Joel shifted as well, turning over onto his other side to face them. He made brief eye contact with (Y/N), taking in the encouraging nod from him and crossing his arms over his stomach.
"You don't have to. I'm just sayin'... it isn't fair, your age havin' to deal with all this."
Ellie's lips pressed into a hard line, and her chest rose with a deep inhale. "So, you're saying it gets easier when you're older."
"Nothing gets easier, Ellie." (Y/N) spoke next, giving a light shrug of his shoulders. "You.. learn to handle it better, like all things, I guess. It's just the price of living.. of being human. You live, you learn, you bear it. But you don't have to do it alone. Frank always said everything's better when you have someone to share the burden with."
Silence fell over them again, and with the day's chaos finally settling over his body, he felt his eyelids begin to droop. His body practically melted into the cushions.
He tried desperately to ignore the dust rubbing onto his skin or the fact that he really wanted and needed a shower to wash all the grime he'd collected through the mayhem.
"Did you know diarrhea is hereditary?" Ellie's voice filled the air again, quiet and reeking of mischief. His eyes opened to look at her.
Joel blinked, his voice breathless with confusion when he asked, "What?"
"Yeah... it runs in your jeans."
Scoffing quietly, Joel rolled back over to face away from them, but it hardly stopped his shoulders from shaking with a snicker as the other two erupted into a fit of giggles and snickers.
"That is so goddamn stupid." Despite his attempt at keeping his voice even, it trembled slightly with his barely contained laughter.
"You laughed, motherfucker!"
"I didn't laugh."
"Yes, you did!" Ellie giggled some more and reached over, offering her fist for (Y/N) and grinning wildly when he bumped his hand against hers. "You're losing it big time, buddy!"
With a few more giggles and laughter, the ache in (Y/N)'s cheeks dulled as sleep began seeping into his body once more. His body grew heavier, and his eyelids began drooping again until they refused to remain open.
The cushions beneath him felt comfier than the sleeping bags and the passenger seat of the truck, allowing his body to sink further and further into sleep until he drifted off into a world different from their own.
He dreamt of large, beautiful fields and bustling towns without walls surrounding them. He dreamt of having a home once more, a place he could permanently call his own, and the laughter of children running around without fear.
He dreamt of Joel and one of his rare genuine smiles, the ones that made the laugh lines on his face more prominent and made his eyes crinkle. The rough feel of Joel's withered and collapsed hands in his own, the feel of his facial hair tickling his skin.
His dreams faded into a blur, fleeing further and further until his mind finally registered something cool and hard pressing against his forehead in two taps. His brows creased.
"Ellie," (Y/N) sighed and raised a sluggish hand to his forehead to rub the spot. Another tap, this time on the back of his hand, and a little harder. "Quit."
"That's not me."
His body stiffened with alarm, and his eyes shot open, words screeching to a halt and lodging in his throat as he stared down the barrel of a pistol.
His vision adjusted to the darkness around him easily, and he followed the hand and arm up to the gunman, a shaky breath leaving him when he made eye contact with the young man.
His head turned slowly to check on Ellie, and a frown tugged at his lips at the sight of a kid, one not much younger than Ellie, similarly holding her at gunpoint.
"Wake him up." The man hissed, nodding his head in the direction of Joel, who still slumbered, blissfully unaware of the new danger just a few feet away.
The gunman's hand lightly trembled, and his eyes flickered back toward the boy who (Y/N) rapidly realized looked a whole lot like him. A son or brother, he assumed, and spared the trembling Ellie another glance.
His brain worked quickly, his eyes darting toward the hallway. No flashing lights or footsteps, no rumbling of engines outside. They were alone.
"Joel." (Y/N) called out gently, dropping his gaze down onto the sleeping man, but there was no reaction from him.
He swallowed and slowly pushed himself up, keeping his palms pressed flat against the cushion and in the man's line of sight before he twisted his hips to lightly kick Joel's leg.
"Joel!"
Joel startled and groggily raised his head, his bleary eyes squinting through the darkness in confusion until his mind processed what he was staring at.
He sat up swiftly and then froze when the man jerked his hand closer to (Y/N)'s temple, irate frustration sweeping over his face that deepened when he caught sight of Ellie.
"Eyes on me." The man demanded sharply, and Joel reluctantly looked back at him. His voice was youthful and clear, yet held a tremor to it, just as his hand did. "You don't have to worry about what to say. We don't want to hurt you. We wanna help you."
Joel's lips twisted, unconvinced. "Okay."
"Okay.. uhm.."
Oh, he was wildly out of his element and alone. (Y/N)'s eyes jumped toward Joel's face, the realization swirling in his dark eyes as well, like a predator waiting for its prey to slip up. He couldn't help but think of the kid.
He was young, not even a teenager yet. Potentially not with the locals, considering they hadn't immediately started hollering for backup the second they awoke. Or maybe they wanted to prove themselves, show off by capturing the invaders.
"I don't know what the next step is with something like this, but if I lower my gun, we didn't hurt you, so you don't hurt us, right?"
"That's right," Joel answered lowly, his voice rough and laced with irritation, and the man swallowed thickly.
"That's a weird fuckin' tone, man."
"That's just the way he sounds. He has an asshole voice." Ellie desperately sputtered, her head whipping to stare wide-eyed at Joel. "Joel, tell him he's okay."
Joel paused for a long, tense moment, his eyes gravitating back to peer at (Y/N)'s face. His eyes softened in the slightest, brows twitching with focus, but their weapons were too far, and bullets were quicker.
(Y/N) softened his brows. Come on.
"Everything is great." He muttered next, voice devoid of emotion, which only proved to unsettle the man further.
"Dude!" Ellie hissed desperately.
"Okay, alright."
(Y/N) carefully maneuvered his way onto his knees and sat back on his thighs, each move done slowly to avoid startling either of the two.
He searched for his rifle through his peripherals until he noticed the outline of it a few feet away, likely kicked just out of reach before he'd been woken up. At least they were smart.
(Y/N) tipped his head back to look at the stranger, his brows lifting slightly. "You have a kid, we have a kid. Nobody wants either of them to get hurt, right? For their sake, all of us will play nice, okay? It's obvious you don't want anyone to get hurt, and we don't want any trouble."
The man's chest stuttered with a relieved exhale, nodding his head. "Okay. I'm- I'm going to trust you to keep him in line, then. But if any of you guys try anything-" He gave his pistol a shake and raised his brows. "Yeah?
"Yeah, that's understandable."
Much to his surprise, the man addressed the boy with sign language and then motioned for him to take a step away from Ellie. The boy did as instructed and stepped back tentatively, keeping the revolver raised and pointed at Ellie as a precaution. He'd been taught well.
"My name's Henry. That's my brother, Sam... I'm the most wanted man in Kansas City. Although right now, my guess is you're running a close second." As Henry spoke, he slowly lowered his hand until the pistol hung at his side. His brother copied his movements, and Ellie dropped her arms to her sides in relief.
Clearing his throat, (Y/N) turned his head toward little Sam. He raised his hand to the base of his neck and formed the letter C with his fingers before moving his hand down to his stomach to do a simple sign: Hungry?
Sam blinked at him, the corners of his mouth threatening to lift until he caught himself and looked toward his brother. The tension in Henry's shoulders eased a smidge.
"We're hungry, yeah."
There was a subtle tension in the air, one that continued to linger as they huddled around Henry's lantern and nibbled on granola bars. Joel watched the brothers closely, his shoulders squared and tense, as if ready to leap up and attack at any moment's notice.
Joel was a dangerous man, that much was obvious from the way he looked and carried himself, but Henry's own shoulders had long slumped, and he looked a whole lot less rigid.
"Where'd you get these?" Henry asked, his dark brown eyes flickering between the three of them.
"My fathers," (Y/N) answered, his gaze dropping to study the lantern as he pushed another sticky piece of granola past his lips. A heavy weight formed in his gut that he desperately tried to ignore. "They're dead."
"Oh," Henry grimaced, having the kindness to look the slightest bit sympathetic. "I'm sorry."
(Y/N) only hummed in response and broke another piece off his bar, letting the quiet sigh that formed in his chest escape before he popped it in his mouth.
Just barely, he felt Joel's shoulder graze his, pushing slightly, purposefully, as he wrapped up the rest of his granola and offered it over to Sam. The little boy took it, the surprise evident on his face, and he turned to sign to his brother.
Henry swallowed the food in his mouth. "He says thank you. I'm guessing you don't have much, so... this means a lot."
"How old is he?" Ellie asked, wiping her hands on her pants to get rid of the crumbs and sticky residue before she propped up her arms on her knees.
Henry signed the question to Sam, briefly waiting for him to sign his response. "He's eight."
"Cool." Ellie smiled, all the panic and fear she'd previously had whilst on the other end of their guns forgotten about. "I'm Ellie."
(Y/N) vaguely recognized the signs Henry did as he spelled out Ellie's name for Sam, managing to catch just a few. His memory was fuzzy on the little sign language he'd read up on back in Lincoln, although it hadn't been much, as he'd swiftly gotten bored with the book.
He remembered some letters, a few basic signs, just enough to make a flimsy attempt at spelling out his own name for the boy. Sam allowed himself to smile that time, wide and pleased with his attempts at communicating with him.
He assumed that, with the internet no longer at their fingertips and many cities reduced to their downtown areas, it was a little harder for people to learn sign language without many resources readily available.
When Joel remained silent, Ellie swatted at his knee and arched an expectant brow, like a mother silently egging her kid on. With pursed lips, Joel swallowed the last of the granola and looked up at the brothers.
"I'm Joel." He introduced himself stiffly. "Look, you ate, we didn't kill each other, let's call this a win-win and move on."
"Well, I'm betting.. ya'll came up here to get a view of the city and plan a way out." Henry assumed correctly, almost smugly, his jaw moving slowly with each time he chewed. Swallowing and swiping his tongue over his lips, he raised his eyes off the floor to address the three of them, his mouth curled upward. "And when the sun's out... I'll show you one."
(Y/N) turned to study the side of Joel's face. His expression was stern, unreadable, a hint of a glare still in his eyes. He assessed Henry with warranted suspicion and doubt, his lips rubbing together in consideration before he turned his head to look at him.
Their eyes met, and Joel's brow twitched with a silent question: You trust this?
(Y/N) swallowed, his hand rubbing over the fabric of his pants. What choice do we have?
something about joel being terrified now that ellie is someone he loves and bill saying he wasn't scared before frank came. something about love being both a driving force and a paralytic. something about having characters like bill and frank and henry and sam come around to show different kinds of love but still paralleling their stories to joel and ellie.
