Dawn: The Last of Us

No Escape

My chest hit the opposite roof. Hard. It felt as if someone had started a fire in my lungs. I couldn't breathe. It was like drowning, but there was no water. I barely heard AJ telling Joel to jump as well. But when he did, and he landed next to me, the world came spiraling back into existence.

"Ellie, you need to move." Joel helped me up. "Are you alright?"

"Yep. Fine. Just let me catch my breath," I groaned, holding my side.

"AJ, we need to hurry!" Joel shouted to the third member of our trio.

"Keep going, Joel! I'll hold them off!" AJ yelled back, putting his last magazine into his pistol.

"AJ, jump the fucking roof!" Joel started forwards.

"Joel, come on," I grabbed his arm, "He'll be right behind us. Come on."

He looked at me and knew it was a lie. Just like I had looked at him when he had promised that there were more like me. It was a lie.

"AJ," Joel said hoarsely, "I'm not--"

"Joel, we need to go!" I hit him in the arm as hard as I could. He flinched but wasn't focused on the fact that I had just hit him.

AJ fired his pistol, but this time, it was I that wasn't focused on him. "Joel, we need to go, or we are going to fucking die."

He looked at me, blinked, and turned back towards AJ.

"Joel!" I shouted. "I'm going to fucking die if we don't leave him!"

That seemed to do the trick.

"Run."

And I did. I ran. I jumped the next gap, rolled to my feet, and kept running. All the while, Joel was at my side. He didn't look back not once. Not even when we heard a black man begin to scream in pain. We just ran.

We didn't stop until it was nearly dark. The sun was just beginning to set behind us, and a long, beaten road stood before us.

Joel hitched his backpack and looked back at the town once.

I wanted to say something to him, but I had long ago learned that Joel wasn't one to bring up the past and people that he'd lost. All I could think of was Riley and how losing her had felt.

I constantly thought about what she had said once we'd been bitten.

"Let's just wait it out. You know, we can... be all poetic and just lose our minds together."

I stole a glance at Joel, who was silent as he walked beside me.

First his daughter, Sarah, then Tess, now AJ.

I looked back. There wasn't anyone following us. Not that we could see, at least.

"C'mon, kiddo. There's a dirt path just beyond there," Joel said and pointed ahead. I nodded but didn't look where he was pointing. I had too much on my mind. I'm sure he did as well.

We made our way to the dirt path, which was hidden by a ton of foliage, and hiked it, our ears and eyes open to our surroundings. The only thing in sight was trees, trees, and more trees.

I began to think of ways to start a conversation with Joel, maybe try and coax something out of him, but I eventually gave up. There was no way I'd be able to get him to speak. After traveling with him for two years. I'd come to realize that.

"Ellie, I think I see somethin' up there." Joel pointed.

I followed his finger and spotted a structure that was nearly hidden by a group of trees. As we got closer, I realized it was a treehouse.

"Whoa!" I ran up to the ladder that lead up to it. "Joel, it's a treehouse!" I said, suddenly smiling.

He walked up to me. "Huh. That it is." He looked around for a moment, and then pointed up. "Well, get up there." Smiling, I slung my rifle and pulled myself into the trees. 

The treehouse itself was pretty big. At least ten by fifteen feet. Inside there was a single mattress and an old burnt out oil lamp. I set my rifle in the corner and sat down on the mattress, yawning.

Joel pulled himself into the wooden structure, shaking his head.

"What?" I asked.

"Oh, nothing." He used the wall to lower himself onto the floor and sighed.

I stared at my feet, not knowing what to say.

"You just remind me of Sarah."

My head snapped up.

What? Joel, talking about Sarah?

"Oh." I didn't know what to say. Hell, I didn't even know if that was a good thing or not.

After that, he was silent.

When I pulled my coat around myself and settled down to sleep, Joel's words echoed in my mind.

"You just remind me of Sarah."

For some reason, the words felt like a knife in my back.