Always & Forever (A 'The Last Of Us' Fanfic)

Chapter 19

Joel's eyes grew cold as he asked, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Joel...I know I'm the last person you want to see after what I did," Roxanne began.

"You took advantage of me and almost caused me the most important person in my life. Get the hell out of here," Joel snapped back.

"I need to talk to you," she said pleadingly.

"What could we possibly talk about, Roxanne? You know, other than your mental stability," he said.

"Look. I really need to tell you something. Will you please give me the chance to? Please," she said.

He looked at her. She seemed different somehow. She didn't have the crazy look she had every time she pursued him. He sighed.

"Okay. Fine. Talk," he said.

"Not here. Somewhere a little more private?" she said.

"What? Like a bedroom?" Joel retorted.

"No. I swear. I'm not trying to pull anything. What I did to you was stupid. I realize that now. And I am truly sorry for doing it. But right now, I have to talk to you about something really important," she said.

"Beth is on her way home," he said.

"Then we better get this done quickly," she said.

"Just wait a sec," he said.

He went inside and grabbed his keys out of the tray.

"Mom. I'll be back in a few minutes," he said.

"Who was at the door?" she asked.

"A classmate of mine. She needs help with something," he lied.

"Is she okay?" she asked.

"Yeah. Everything is fine. Tommy, will you tell Mr. Logan that something came up and that I'll meet them back here as soon as possible," Joel said addressing the both of them.

"What's in it for me?" Tommy asked.

"Tommy. I seriously don't have time for this. Please just tell him," Joel said growing anxious.

"Okay. Yeah. Sure," Tommy said not wanting to anger him.

"I'll see you all later," he said.

He kissed his mother goodbye and went back out the door.

"Get in," he told Roxanne the once he was out.

They got into the truck and drove to the nearest park.

***

Beth was finally gone and Roxanne couldn't wait to sweep in and steal Joel away. The first few days without Beth, she planned about what she would do. She would play nice with him. Get him to forgive everything that she did. She was confident enough to know that it wouldn't take him long to fall for her. It wasn't hard to get guys head over heels for her with just a simple look. She knew she was probably the prettiest girl in town. However, on the night she was getting ready to make her move, she became very sick. She was throwing up more than she was comfortable with. She convinced herself that she had caught some bad bug or something. Maybe the alcohol she had drank that night was finally catching up to her. But when her nausea didn't die down, her mother told her to go and see the doctor and to tell her when so she'd go with her. She promised that she'd go and make an appointment. The truth was that she was going to go some time that her mother didn't know about. She didn't want her mom with her because she knew that she was going to make a big deal out of whatever it was that they found wrong with her. Her mother always did. She couldn't stand her parents and the continuous expectations they had for her. She wanted to live her life the way she wanted and not how she was told to. Which is why she was anxious to graduate. They wouldn't be able to tell her what to do for much longer. She just had to wait it out until next summer and was determined to do so. She went to the doctor's office one day when both her parents were at work. More than likely they'd prescribe her something to take care of the nausea that was coming to be an everyday occurrence. When she came back from the office, she suddenly wished she'd never gone. That visit changed everything for her. For the first time in her life, she was afraid of the uncertainty the future held.