𝐌𝐎𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐔𝐂𝐊- 𝐄𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐄 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐌𝐒

Chapter Eleven

"I Like Sheep"

4122 words

"You good?" "Yeah I just, I was so close to dying back there I really started thinking about my life's decisions. I know we've all had near death experiences but I was blacking out." Ellie jogged beside Aurora looking at the side of her head. "Thank you for the whole saving me thing by the way." Ellie continued jogging now looking forward, her eyes drifting from the road to ahead of her. "Of course." Aurora looked down at the broken road grass sprouting between the cracks. "Those wolves are really armed." "Tommy said this was a possibility. Does that change anything for you?" Aurora shook her head turning on the road past a few houses. "No, of course not El." They jogged through the tall grass coming to a slight opening. "From what I could see behind me, they were trying to smoke me out, didn't get to see much through."

"How many?" "Two ran off into the woods but for a while there it was a lot but dwindled. And once they realize we're out of the school this place is going to be crawling with them." "They'll be out hunting us." They turned running past more apartment buildings jogging beside each other. "I haven't seen people attack like that in a long time, they aren't like us. Though are there many like us these days?" "They might of thought we were refugees, needed the intel we might've had." "Not like they cared they almost blew my head off a few times, I kinda need that y'know." They entered an empty road, a motel in front of them Aurora slowing down beginning to go into a fast walk looking around. "Y'know I keep thinking, why didn't they kill me, you and Tommy when they had the chance? They kept us alive. Why?" "I dunno." Aurora shook her head, "Seems reckless." "What?" "What if, they weren't just killing to kill, they were specifically looking for someone, for Joel."

"They beat the shit out of us, the one guy, Jordan, beat my face in." Aurora bunched her face up crossing her arms. "Yeah...but why didn't they finish--" "Doesn't matter they fucked up." Aurora stopped talking, looking down at her boots fixing her appearance feeling uncomfortable with how she looked after that. "Maybe it's tied to Joel's past, Tommy said they did some fucked up shit, then again who hasn't." "Not sure, he wasn't big on sharing. Was Tommy?" "Loosley, he never did talk about any details. He'd always change the subject over to me but I never bought it though I never wanted to push, I get shit like that." They made it over to the motel the entire building boarded up and closed off.

"I don't think there's anyway in, see another way around?" Aurora asked her eyes, glancing at each boarded up window and door but nothing came of it. "Over here." Aurora turned, seeing Ellie pushing a dumpster towards a gate, a small tarp hanging over the side. "Y'know I remember my dad used to like to dumpster dive, he used to say that one man's trash was another man's treasure. He practically lived by that quote. My mom fucking hated it." Ellie chuckled pushing her entire body against the dumpster. "Need some help with that?" Ellie shook her head finally getting the dumpster against the fence huffing in a breath of air. "Your dad was smart, dumpsters can have some good stuff not many people like to check, over the years it starts decomposing. Learned that in school." Aurora frowned watching Ellie climb over the fence.

"I kinda wish I got to go to school. My dad tried teaching me things but for a long time I couldn't write very well or really at all, my dad tried but it was hard to be able to stop and teach me shit out here with infected on your ass constantly. Tommy taught me mostly." Ellie looked over at Aurora and frowned watching her stare at the ground while walking. "I never thought about that, I always knew that stuff." Aurora shrugged, smiling a little. "It's cool, now I'm great at it he even taught me cursive." She looked over at Ellie still smiling, "I didn't have to go to school to have better handwriting than you." Ellie scoffed lightly, shoving her shoulder. "Ha..ha very funny." "Through here." Aurora turned entering a backyard of sorts into an old, withered building. Inside were washing machines that lined one side of the wall, clothes scattered around.