The Edge of Everything ¹ | THE LAST OF US |

seven ; please hold onto my hand

Seven ;

Please Hold Onto My Hand

Penelope was sitting in the backseat with the door wide open in the middle of the day, waiting impatiently for Joel to get going with whatever he had to do. Joel did tell the two girls to stay put, to which Penelope obeyed, and Ellie–like always–did not. He said something about gas for the truck, but Penelope wasn't paying attention. She was too engrossed in her new book she just started during the long car ride. The book is called, ' Secret Garden '. She had already gotten to the tenth chapter, where Mary had learned that she does in fact like Ben Weatherstaff.

As she reads further into the book, her imagination takes flight. She can see the words form images in her mind, as she watches the scenes unfold. By far, reading has to be Penelope's favorite pastime.

Before the trio left Bill and Frank's house, Penelope found a stash of books. She found, The Outsiders , A Wrinkle in Time , The Secret Garden (her current read), and Alice's Adventure in Wonderland —Penelope loved reading, and finding four more books for her to read? It was considered a score.

Granted, her backpack was much heavier now, with her clothes and food, her oxygen tanks, plus four more books? It practically weighed more than her! But she also had another backpack with her clothes. It was safe to say she had a lot more belongings than she did before she met Joel.

Every so often, Penelope tears her eyes away from the book in front of her. She watches the clear blue sky through the window, resting her head on her hand. Sometimes, her eyes follow Joel. Ellie had left the two, saying something about needing to use the bathroom. She's been down there for the past ten minutes. Oh well. She's probably alright.

Going back to her book, Penelope reads on. She was now coming to the eleventh chapter, immersed in the scenes unfolding in her mind.

Penelope's eyes tear from her book, seeing a figure—Ellie emerging from the gas station, walking over to Joel. Penelope abandons her book begrudgingly, using a random object to mark her page. She shoulders on her backpack filled with her oxygen tank and approaches the two.

"We have to do this every hour?" Penelope hears Ellie ask, as she weaves between cars to stand beside her friend, and...the annoying adult dragging them across the country.

Penelope hums as she watches Joel stuff a tube into the car, watching his actions.

"Gas breaks down over time. This stuff's almost water." Joel explains. He stuffs a rag into the hole of the car, Penelope watching his movements with her eyebrows furrowed. "Back in the day, we'd drive 10, 12 hours on one tank. You could go anywhere."

"So where'd you go?" Ellie quickly asked, furrowing her eyebrows.

Joel glanced up to Ellie, then to Penelope. "Pretty much nowhere."

He pulled up the tube in his hand and bowled into it. Penelope watched in awe as liquid poured out into the red object (Penelope had no idea what it was called, or what it was even used for).

"Nice!" Ellie comments. "How does that work?"

Joel looked up to the younger girls before him.

"It's a siphon." He says slowly, looking back to the object in his hand. "It's when liquid...travels against gravity because pressure—"

"You don't know." Ellie states, giggling a bit. Penelope smiles at Joel's explanation.

"I know it works." Joel replies.