𝙝𝙖𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 ━ 𝙟. 𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙧

the view

T H E V I E W

It was spring now and they had escaped David's grasp a while ago. Ellie was uncharacteristically quiet since the ordeal, not really talking like she used to unless Joel or Iris spoke first.

Joel had fully healed since his injuries in Colorado and he was now back to his normal self. He and Iris had grown much closer since then, they were constantly by each other's side, cracking jokes to lighten the mood and not so subtly flirting, it was painfully obvious that the two liked each other, Ellie even brought it up before, but the pair always denied their feelings.

They walking down the highway so closely that their hands grazed as they walked, neither bothered to move it, even though their faces were a light pink, Ellie caught them sharing longing glances to each other and pretended to silently gag so the adults wouldn't hear her mocking them.

The redheaded girl stops as she looks over a deer emblem on the wall, "Ellie! Did you hear me?" Joel asks, "no. What?" She replies.

He points to the big building in the distance, "look. Hospital. This is where we get off. Let's go, kiddo." They walk down the street as Joel hums, "heh. Feel that breeze, huh? I'll tell you, on a day like this, I'd just sit on my porch, pick away at my six string." Iris looks up at him, "well, once this is all over, why don't you play somethin' for us country boy?" He chuckles, "deal." She points at him with her index finger, "I'm holding you to that, cowboy." He pushes her fingers out of his face with a goofy smile and looks at Ellie.

"Once we're done with this whole thing, I'm gonna teach you how to play the guitar. Yeah, I reckon you'd really like that. Whaddya say, huh? Ellie, I'm talking to you." She looks up from her fingers, "huh? Oh, yeah, sure, that sounds great." She agrees.

They continue walking until they see a plane on an advertisement, the young girl stops in from of it and begins, "I dreamt about flying the other night." Iris crosses her arms across her chest, "oh, yeah?" Ellie nods her head, "yeah."

"Go on, tell me about it." Iris encourages as Joel wanders off to look inside an old caravan, "so, I'm on a big plane full of people. And everyone is screaming and yelling 'cause the plane's going down. So I walk to the cockpit, open the door, but there's no pilot. I try to use the controls but... I obviously have no clue how to fly a plane. And just before we crash, I wake up. I've never been on a plane before, isn't that weird?"

The older woman nods her head in understanding, "yeah, well, dreams are weird sometimes." Joel reappears and they see a warning sign where the road ends, "look at that. Another city, another abandoned quarantine zone. There's that hospital the fireflies mentioned. C'mon kiddo."

They jump over the QZ fence and and enter an old bus station, Joel Iris look around for a way up, as Ellie sits down on a bench in the middle of the room, she was looking down at her lap, avoiding any eye contact as she was left in her thoughts. "Everything alright, sweetheart?" Iris asks, concern lacing her words as she puts her hands on her hips, "yeah, I'm fine." The young girl answers shortly.

"You just seem a bit quiet today." Ellie looks up at her with big innocent eyes, "oh, sorry." Iris shakes her head, "No, no... it's fine."

Joel finds a ladder just beyond reach hanging on the edge of the balcony, he shouts for the girls to come help him, he gets into a position for a boost, but Ellie doesn't seem to hear him and stays put on the bench, "Ellie. Ellie." She finally acknowledges his shouts, "what?"