THE UNEXPECTED

30

"Everything okay? Not long until the hospital now." I feel Joel's stern gaze on the back of my head as we entered an old building to get a better look of our surroundings from above. This was one of my better days, I'd been trying to forget about everything that happened in Silver Lake and Joel had been there to comfort and console me through every step of the way.

"Peachy - my legs feel like jelly." I say, mumbling to myself as I rub my sore thighs. All this walking had finally caught up to me.

"I second that." Ellie also says, looking pretty bummed out. I've noticed a change in her behaviour lately and I can't say I'm surprised, she hasn't really spoken all too much of what happened but there wasn't really much of a need - I was there too.

I felt for Joel also, he was trying so hard to lighten the mood and keep our spirits high but a lot of the time it was no use. He was like the glue which held us all together and without him we'd disband.

"C'mon slowpoke." I nudge Ellie, attempting to make her smile even a little bit but all I get in response is a mere tug of her lips. It's better than nothing but I miss that silly and go-lucky girl who she used to be - I wonder if she'll ever recover from this.

"Gimme your foot." Joel says to Ellie so he can give her a leg up, gesturing to the ladder laying on the platform above. The teen nods and placed her hands on his shoulders as he took one foot between his palms. Within moments, Ellie had been thrown up and she'd pulled herself onto the platform.

"Ellie?" I call out, not hearing any noises. Joel glances at me worriedly all before a crash sounds and the ladder comes clattering down onto the floor, "Shit!" I hiss, the ladder narrowly avoiding hitting my foot.

"Oh my God! You guys gotta see this!" Ellie finally replies, and we hear her foot steps running off excitedly.

"Ellie!?" Joel is quick to ensure the ladder is upright before hauling himself up it. Once he's stood above me, he waits until I'm safely next to him which I'm appreciative of.

"I think she went that way." I point to the stairwell which leads even further above us. I wasn't sure what I was expecting to see but Ellie gawking at a fucking giraffe definitely wasn't it. "Jesus..." I trail off, my lips parting as I stare at the giant spotted safari animal before me - It's blissfully unaware of our presence as it chomps into the greenery beside us.

Joel then nudges my side, his lips are tugged into a small smile and he gestures for me to follow his lead,

"C'mere." Softly, he takes mine and Ellie's hand into his much larger one and we slowly advance forward to where the giraffe is still grazing.

"Careful!" Ellie whispers, "You'll scare it." I glance down at her with a wide smile, I'm happy to see her face lit up again. It's a sight to see.

"Gentle." Joel says, bringing our hands to the neck of the giraffe where we caress it's fur slowly. I'm at a loss for words as I take everything in, it's magical and I never would've thought that I'd ever see something like this.

"Wow." I mumble, my breath caught in my throat as I try not to scare it off.

"Awe, where's he going?" Ellie whines as the giraffe tugs it's neck away from the greenery before stalking off and away from us. Her eyes are as wide as saucers as she then takes off again, leaving Joel and I once more.

"Let's go follow the kid." I smile at Joel and he clasps his hand into mine, intertwining our fingers as we retrace Ellie's steps.

We climb to the top floor of the building and onto the roof, but the scene before us is what really makes me gasp. It's like something out of a movie - Jurassic Park - or something of the sort. A whole hoard of giraffes are grazing amongst the grass below us and it's quite literally breathtaking.

"Oh, wow," Ellie is the first to speak as she leaned against the edge. "Look at those things." Her fingers point at them as she stares in awe.

I make my way over to her, resting my hands on the edge of the brick. "They're beautiful, truly."

"So...this everything you were hoping for?" I feel Joel's presence behind me, his chin resting on top of my head as it slots nicely above me. His hands are ghosting my sides which brings a smile to my lips.

"It's got it's up and downs, but...you can't deny that view though." Her tone is breathy as she continues to stare at the giraffes.

"Facts." I say in agreement. We've come so far into this journey and it was all so unexpected for me, I'm beginning to feel slightly overwhelmed. Looking back on the last couple months I've spent with Joel and Ellie, I wouldn't change it. I've grown closer to Joel in ways I never would've imagined and as a bonus I've met a little girl so full of life that I just want to protect with everything in me. In a way, we're like some dysfunctional family but they're my family, and I love the both of them to pieces.

Whether it was luck, fate or whatever it was that brought me back to Joel - I'm thankful. I'm thankful to be by his side and to have a stable place to return to. I'm looking forward to see what's in store for us once this is all over. There's only a small way to go and there's no halfway with it, we've all come so far.