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penvisions · 1 year ago

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return the favor {chapter 18}

Pairing: Joel Miller x Smuggler! Reader

Summary: A cabin helps your trio to hide away from the winter storm that rages on as you trek across Nebraska. The little sanctuary is threatened as people discover the structure for themselves.

Word Count: 5.9k

Warnings: medial gore, medical jargon, description of injuries, blood, stitches, description of broken bone, use of narcotics, use of medical narcotics, reference to past fever, mentions of past violence, canon typical violence, sexual content, oral (f receiving), kissing, p in v smut, unprotected p in v, big feelings, small feelings, all the feelings, fighting, gun violence, mentions of forced restraint, tense moments, stressful moments, fear

A/N: found inspiration with these two and decided to get the ball rolling on this once again! sorry for the lack of updates with this and my frankie fic {the melting point}. this one is nearing the middle ground and the other is nearing the end and it's made me a little emotional. hope y'all enjoy this ♡ a lot happens, just be warned!

ao3 link || series masterlist || main masterlist || kofi

The cabin was in good condition, for being abandoned for such a long time. Cobwebs decorated every corner, every arch of the walls, inside every cabinet. The snow outside was gaining weight as it cascaded down from the low hanging, dark clouds urged all three of you inside quickly. The wind had been steadily picking up, the darkness of the sky overhead as it barely contained a storm not allowing you to distinguish time.

“Winter is officially here.”

“It’s only going to get harder from here on out.” You sighed, breath misting with the deep exhale.

There was a fireplace in the modest living room, an open floor plan to allow the kitchen to be visible, separated only by an island that still had stools set neatly beneath the overhanging counter on one side.

“Most of the wood will be damp from the snow.” Joel was crouched down by the chute, pulling the small mechanism to open it up, causing a small billow of soot to shoot out. He ducked his head in time to avoid it getting directly in his face. But some of it settled in his hair, masking the gray of it from view in a rather…endearing way. For a moment, you could picture a different setting, a different time. Perhaps a weekend getaway with the man at a younger age, both committed to each other and many more years ahead of you both that didn’t require such harsh survival skills. “If I can find an axe somewhere in here, I could chop smaller branches off with enough bristle to kickstart.”

“A fire!?” Ellie hovered at the top of the staircase, her smile excited as she took in the way Joel was messing with the fire place to ensure it would insulate properly. “There are two bedrooms up here! I call dibs on one.”

“I’ll sleep down here, it’d make me feel better.” Joel spoke quickly, not wanting you to claim the one on the entrance level. If there was a threat, he was sure you could get Ellie to safety from the top floor at the first sign.

“Copy that,” You quietly agreed as you began to lower yourself to the couch. Dust puffed up into the air, causing you to cough as you tried to expel the sudden intruder from your lungs. The shuffling caused pain to spark along your injured arm, from the slash marring the skin down toward where your mending bones were healing. Breathing heavily, you leaned back into the cushions gently, body exhausted from the past two days of trekking.

The cold hadn’t helped your waning fever, making the cold feel even more biting despite the flares of heat that traveled over your body at random intervals. But it was time, you mused with a frown as you watched Joel go through the process of cleaning out the chimney, of leaving and returning with small branches and some dried leaves he must’ve taken from where they still clung among them. Time to take the stitches out and to bathe the wound, really get the skin around it clean and tended to.

Ellie had moved beside you and your eyes focused as flames roared to life at Joel’s hands. He provided you both in the ways that he could, bringing warmth into your lives to help stave off sickness. Ellie’s hand trailed up and down her thighs, trying to warm them as the fire steadily fought off the chill that permeated the small sanctuary.

With your fever having subsided, you were more about your wits. Residual chills only due to the howling wind and the snow that didn’t seem to be stopping in its falling any time soon. Your arm was sore, but you decided to take the morning to unwrap it and look over the stitches. Sighing at the sign of how puckered the indentations were, how well the skin was holding up and the tenderness of the sight had waned. It was time. You had to remove the material or risk another wave of infection. You could only hope that the healing for your bone was going well underneath the skin, but you were still too hesitant to stretch your arm out lest it pull and tighten in a bad way.

Digging around in your pack, you laid out all of the items that were crammed into it. Taking inventory of your clothing, the weapons and ammo, the small collection of sentimental keepsakes, the contents of your first aid kits. All of it was laid out on the small island in the kitchen where you were sat on a stool beside it.

Mind traversing through thoughts a mile a minute, you tried to gage if you’d be able to withstand the winter as it progressed. That was harder to determine, even prepared with a map and clothing. It was shelter you were worried about, frostbite, body temperatures, enough food to keep the body running enough to persevere. That’s how Joel found you, contemplating everything as you cradled a small jar only big enough to contain a handful of dried seeds.

“Everything good? Looks like you’ve got a lot going on.” He poked around the ashes in the fireplace with a stoke, trying to see if there were any embers smoldering. Resigning himself to needing to go out and get some firewood squared away, he came up to stand beside you. Your eyes were still unfocused, thinking again about how the man had been aware enough to take care of you and Ellie while you were out of commission. Strong and capable, reliable if you were lucky enough to be deemed important enough to him.

Your name said in a stern call had you jumping where you sat. Eye’s focusing, you turned to see Joel leaning against the counter with his fist balled up and leaning down to try and bring you back to the present.

“Yes, sorry, everything is fine.”

“You sure? Lost ya for a minute there, how long have you been up?”

“Didn’t really sleep, anxious. Kept hearing voices in the wind, but I know that we’re relatively save out here in the middle of nowhere.” You set the small jar down, the glass clinking against the counter and drawing the man’s attention. “Ellie’s still asleep, she came into my bed last night. Watched over her.”

One of his hands relaxed and he reached out to brush it against your own on the counter.

“You need your rest, still recoverin’ from everything.”

He watched over as you tended to your injuries, offering his help by silently standing beside you. A soft brush of fabric over the skin of your arm around the gash that trailed down your left bicep. Helping to wrap gauze more securely around it than you would’ve been able to with one hand.

Watching over as you carefully cut and pulled the stiches from your skin, the skin swollen and discolored in a way that you could see worried him. But you assured him that it looked good for what had happened, it would heal okay. It was just a matter of the bone fusing back together in a way that still allowed for normal movement, for the bearing of weight in order to use it even a fraction of well as you could before. But you were honest with him, it was a risky thing without stints, without plates, metal to adhere to the bone to ensure such perfect healing, without the ability to take an internal look.

It was then that he muttered he had a similar mark on his forearm from fending off the bear as it had given chase. You helped him to clean that, more than the haphazard swipe of alcohol he had done himself in the immediate aftermath. You checked his hands, the knuckles he had injured what seemed like so long ago now. They were still swollen, though he had movement back in them. They seemed to lock up if he didn’t stretch it out every so often, the bones holding trauma and no doubt aching in the colder weather. You applied a salve to his hand with gentle motions, massaging it into the skin with careful attention. His eyes watched over your face as you did so, trying to figure something out that he didn’t speak on.

The rest of the day was spent pouring over maps and trying to figure out where you had ended up.

Being lost was a worry both you and Joel shared, but you kept it between yourselves. Not wanting to alert Ellie of the possible mishap, she was already going slow, the weather dampening her in the wake of what happened in Kansas City.

“So, are you going to like split off from us the second we step foot in Wyoming?” Ellie asked, a weird air about her as she watched the way your head turns on a constant swivel, taking in the environment around you both. A small trek around the lake’s perimeter had been the activity of the day during the calm dusting of snow that the storm had diluted down to. “Cause, we’re going North, according to Joel’s calculations.”

“I’m with you, gremlin, until you don’t want me.” You didn’t turn to look at her, so when she clung to you suddenly, it caught you off guard and your feet slipped from underneath you. You tried to twist so you wouldn’t land on her and she held tight as you both tumbled to the ground in a puff of snow. Laughter rang out into the cold hair in puffs of hot breath as you both sat up. “I wouldn’t have said anything if I knew you were going to take me out!”

“Thank you.” Her voice was muffled where she pressed her face into your good shoulder, the one not supporting the weight of your broken arm with a makeshift sling.

“Of course, Ellie.” You nuzzled your nose into the top of her beanie, arms wrapping around her as best you could. You both stayed there, entangled on the cold ground for a few moments.

She stood up and helped to pull you to your feet, glancing back at the cabin on the other side of the lake, something behind her eyes.

“Joel has changed, but he…he makes me nervous.” Her gloved hands, your own pair given to her, twisted and tangled as she fidgeted beside you.

“I get that, but he’s a good man, Ellie. If he didn’t want us around or didn’t want to look after you, he would’ve made that known. He just…carries a lot. We all do in this world.”

“What did one ocean say to the other?” Ellie waggled her eyebrows at you, shifting from serious to goofy as she followed you toward where Joel had strung up some snares the day before. When you just looked over at her with a raised eyebrow of your own, she was about to finish her joke when you stole the punchline from her.

“Nothing, they just waved.”

“Ah, no!! I was so excited to say it!” One of her small hands punched lightly in front of her, face scrunched up in mock annoyance but the corners of her mouth struggling not to life up with her mirth.

“I’m shore you were, gremlin. But ocean jokes are in my blood. Water you gonna do about it?”

“You’re krillin’ my vibe, man.”

It was silent for a few moments as you both breached the tree line, going toward where Joel had set the traps up. As you neared them, you could see two hares had gotten tangled in them. A meal enough for all three of you if carefully prepared. Ellie watched carefully as you walked her through removing them without causing damage to the small bodies.

“Are the beaches different on the other coast?”

You were sure your steps could be heard as you walked down the stairs. As quiet as you were, you knew he was on alert, even with his bad ear, he had good hearing. Though you could tell as winter prevailed, it was waning in his right one more and more. You wished you had the mechanics and materials to try and make something for him, an aid of some sort, but it was long past when that was something to offer people. The state of the world didn’t care about ailing injuries, about the loss of senses, the loss of what helped to make survival easier. It would damn you and watch on as it did so. Time and time again.

You noticed his door wasn’t shut all the way, left open a crack so he wasn’t sealed away in a bubble of his own making. A silent way of saying, I’m here and I’m doing my best to provide protection and be on alert even in sleep. That he cared, even if he was unwilling to voice it aloud in a substantial way. But that was part of his growing appeal, the way he was so willing to do what needed to be done for Ellie, for you.

The incidents faced so far, the way he had been willing to send Ellie away from the bear and back to you, the way he had gone to that house to take out the shooter on higher ground that had been about to take out your group like ducks who didn’t know the danger about them. the way he had killed that man for calling you names, threatening you in a way that seemed more real than the Infected that had chased you through the depleted store. Threats eradicated at his own risk of safety.

It was warm in the cabin, the fire gently crackling as it lost height from not being fed. The flames cast moving shadows about the small room, an excursion of bare minimum comforts in the form of indoor protection all the way out here. You worried for a moment if more were in the area, scattered about the lake. But you hadn’t seen any other structures during your trek and if they had once existed, you were sure they would be in rough shape, even if still standing. Wind howled outside, a testament to the elements siding with the worlds downfall, take take take. Take everything that is not strong, that does not want to life, that can not handle living in the design of its making.

The creak of the door to his room would surely alert him of movement, if your steps hadn’t. He was sitting up in his bed, fully clothed save for his boots. Bed made and top blanket thrown over him gathered around his waist as his eyes traced your entrance into his space. A question on his lips was stolen from him as you leaned down once beside the bed. The kiss searing as you suddenly settled yourself over his thighs, hands curling into his hair. He groaned into your mouth, and your tongue to sought out his own.

His hands were gentle, rough fingers barely making any contact as his eyes watched the way he skimmed them over your exposed body. His plush lips pressing kisses in their wake as he moved down down down.

“Darlin’,” He looked up at you, strand of steel hair curled over his forehead above his eyes. Pupils nearly consumed the comforting brown of them, desperate and worked up, his breath hot exhales over the bare skin of your abdomen. His hands were gripping your hips, fingers digging into the give there while his thumbs were brushing over the crease of your thighs. You didn’t see, couldn’t see the desperation in his eyes as he felt the heat of you as your legs spread and made room for him to lean in close. How he fit so perfectly there like the space was his. Looking up to see your head thrown back on the pillow, hair fanning out loose and beautiful in the moonlight peeking through the blinds.

“You were so hesitant before, is this…is this okay? Don’t wanna cross any lines, but goddamn, you look so good f’me.”

He dared to move one of his thumbs over the course hair at the apex of your thighs, the action eliciting a shuddering gasp as it settled right at the top of your core, lips puffy and slick as they parted for him to brush against that little bundle of nerves he wanted to take between his lips and lave with his tongue.

He groaned at the sight, at the way you spread yourself for him to see, to feel. At the whimper that fell from your lips as your eyes flew open and gazed down at him, the color of your eyes all gone as pleasure shocked through you. He looked away from the sight of you on display and caught your eyes.

In a gentle move, you reached from where your hand had been tangled in the sheets to run through his curls. Nails scraping lightly against his scalp had him moaning quietly, his breath puffing out directly against you, causing you to flutter around nothing.

“Fuck, please.” You panted, needing him to do something, anything, to relief the ache that had settled there and simmered all day. “Joel.”

His mouth pressed up against you, his tongue licking through the mess of your folds and you let out a shout as your fingers tangled in his hair and pulled him closer. The strong line of his nose bumped that bundle of nerves and you gasped at the pleasure that shot up your spine. You rocked your hips, dragging your clit over the edge of his nose as needy sounds filled the air. Unable to stop the movement if that was something possible to want, seeking out more more more from him.

“That’s it baby, use me,” His voice muffled where it was buried in your cunt, his sucking kisses making you dizzy as he let you move against him. That coiling feeling was tightening, stomach muscles jumping in your stomach. Your injured arm was twitching at your side, laid out on the bed beside you as you struggled not to reach down and touch every part of him you could.

“Need you,” He panted against you, his mouth moving in languid motions, tongue swirling and fingers coming to tease at your entrance. “Need to feel you, c’mon, cum f’me, darlin’.”

The stretch of his fingers delving inside had you clenching tightly around him as pleasure shocked through your body. Your hand detangled from his hair to clasp over your mouth, muffling the shout that ripped through your chest as you soaked Joel’s face pressed into you. His tongue trailed down, lapping up what leaked around his fingers before he was pulling those from you and licking them too.

“So damn sweet, you taste so good f’me.”

It was rough, the way he clung to you and moved against you, desperate. Like he thought he’d never get the chance again, to be with you this way. To show you how much he appreciated you, the things you did for him. Something simmered low in your chest, spurred on by his actions but you tamped it down, fearing that giving it attention would allow it to blossom. That he would see it, recognize it, should he have ever known it before and turn away from you. Emotions something that could make this mess you both made of yourselves, tangling together in understanding suddenly giving depth to something and stealing the touches and looks away from you.

The stretch of him entering you, the feel of him hot inside you, the way he sent pleasure rippling over your entire body. It was damnation and revelation all in one breath and it brought you back down to the scorched plane of existence that you lead. Grounding you in a way you thought you’d never have again. A sob wracked your frame, tears building at the corners of your eyes as you felt just as desperate for him as he seemed to for you in that moment.

Good hand scrabbling, you reached for one of his as he lifted it to cradle your face, thumb brushing at underneath your eye to catch the tears as they fell. To wipe them away with such a gentle touch. His fingers tangled with your own and warmth blossomed in your chest as he stilled deep inside of you, pressed to you as completely as two people could be.

His eyes found yours as you looked up at him, words stuck on your tongue, stuck in your chest, stuck in the chasm that had opened up inside of you. He leaned down to seal his lips against yours, stealing them where they rested and began to move again.

“H-hey.” You greeted, a nervous energy about you as you descended the stairs. Returning to your own bed the night before had been the right call, you would stand by that decision. A little distance in the wake of sharing something so all-consuming with the man who you never expected to be in your life in such a way, to be so important. But it was just favors, given and taken between the two of you. It had to be just that, there was no room for anything else, barely any room for the favors to begin with.

You must’ve spaced out, because the next thing you knew a warm mug was being pressed gently into your good hand. Blinking, your vision came back into focus, taking in the trees and snow blanketed ground that had turned into a swirl of colors before you turned to see Joel standing close.

“You…okay? Not sore or anything?” He helped you to get a hold of the mug, cradling the bottom of the mug until he was sure you had it secure in your grip by the handle.

“Oh, um, a little. But it’s okay, really,” Warmth spread across your chest, tinting the tan skin of your neck lightly. There was the phantom feeling of scruff brushing there and you hid what you could of your face as you sipped from the drink. You mumbled around a thick swallow.

“It’s a good kind of sore.”

He didn’t ask about your tears, didn’t ask about the way you had crumbled at his touch the night before beyond that simple question. You worried it had been too much for him, too much for yourself.

The day dragged on, the storm that had lulled was back in full force. Thankful for the shelter of the cabin, everyone kept to themselves, lost in different trains of thought but still needing to feel the presence of one another.

Stirring suddenly as a mangle of memories and dreams bled from your mind, you sat up in the bed you had taken for the night. The room was bathed in bright moonlight, the skies clear through the window.

Anxiety hummed a low timbre in your body, urging you to your feet and you checked the room across the hall from yours. You expected to see Ellie curled up, but the bed was empty, the sheets rumpled.

“Joel.”

He turned from where he was on the couch, head knocked back onto the cushion that lined the back of the furniture.

“Ellie’s not in her room.”

“’s okay, she’s right here.” He motioned with his chin to the couch and as you rounded it you could see her laying across the rest of the cushions. Her head was in Joel’s lap, a weathered pillow underneath her head and atop his thighs. Her hands were curled into her chest and you realized gloves should be something you looked for next. She was so young, she shouldn’t have to experience her first travelling winter without all the proper supplies.

“Oh.”

“She had a nightmare and came scrambling down the stairs. Found her staring into the fire, so I’m tending to it.” He motioned to the living flames, the way they were stoked and flourishing underneath his touch.

“How’s your arm, darlin’?”

“’S fine,” You mumbled, suddenly self-conscious. You were competent, you were a survivor, you were capable but something about the way Joel Miller looked sitting atop the ratty couch with a wayward teenager comfortably cuddled up in his lap made you feel like a small thing. Made you feel like you wanted to be the person in his lap, the person he watched after with every swoop of his gaze over the horizon, the person in the back of his every thought, the person he bonded with in a way that would withstand any challenge. The person that he would want.

And you know, deep down that you are incredibly grateful for the ways in which he’s melded himself together for her, the figures he represents as an amalgamation of whatever she’s lacked in her life and transformed himself into for her. Proud of him as he did such a thing so effortlessly, transformed and flourished into something that had never even been so much as glimpsed at back at the QZ. But had steadily shown its face and true heart once the confines of the wall and pseudo societal pressures had fallen away.

A strong pillar of what humanity should aspire to be, the best qualities of man all tied into one figure.

At the very base of humanity, Joel Miller was a good man.

And you were beginning to feel for him.

It made you feel small to face the crashing wave of realization, here in the middle of a thick forest while you sought shelter in an abandoned cabin from a world before. All of the things you’ve endured led up to this moment, to these feelings, to this man. You grieved all of the past versions of yourself, even the ones who never saw the light of day. And you grieved for the person you would become once he was no longer a part of your life.

Because this world sees hope, it sees love, it sees possibility. And it tears it away from steadfast hands as if it were the ocean and you were a child just learning how to hold yourself up, getting swept away by the current.

Voices.

You could hear faint voices out beyond the line of trees that surrounded the cabin you had taken for yourself and your people. The book in your hand fell out of your grip and you looked over to a sleeping Ellie sprawled out on the couch. You stood from your spot, moving her stretched out legs from your lap and began to reach for her to rouse her.

“Hide.” The simple, harsh command from Joel spurred you and Ellie into motion as he entered the cabin from the only door, as quickly and quietly as he could so as to not draw attention.

“You hear anything, you run. Keep heading northwest, I’ll find you in the nearest town like we agreed. Even if you hear shots fired, got it? Both of you understand?” His tone held no room for argument.

You and Ellie hid in the room he claimed on the ground floor, underneath the bed, pressed together as far underneath it as you could manage. Packs fastened to your backs in case you would need to run.

The creak of the front door was loud in the tense silence. Ellie shook beside you, the cold seeping into the entire structure.

“From the snares to the smoke, someone’s gotta be makin’ this their home for the winter.” A gruff voice boomed, not bothering to be quiet as they stalked around.

“I dunno, it don’t look like anyone’s been here for years.”

The next words about to be spoken were cut off with a loud gurgling sound, followed by a shocked shout from the man’s companion.

“Land is taken,” Joel’s threat was clear. There was the sound of a body collapsing before running footsteps filled the air. Struggling, two bodies fighting against each other, and then a grunt from Joel.

“Looks like you aren’t as good as you think you are, old man.”

More voices filled the cabin, too many voices. Laughing and jeering at the sight of a beaten Joel filled the space in a mockery of how he hadn’t been able to hold his own. All men’s voices and fear had you reaching for Ellie to pull her closer to you. Men were dangerous, men were predictable, men could only mean one of two things for someone like you and Ellie. The sound of the front door slamming shut, and locking signaled your entrapment of a space that had meant safety only minutes ago.

Hours passed and night fell, the rowdy group not bothering to keep quiet or try to conceal themselves as your own trio had done. The fire roared to life under their ministrations, warming the place almost too much as they overfed the flames. Your entire body was wound tight, muscles screaming for relief from the crouched and tense position you were frozen in underneath the bed still.

“What’re we gonna do with him? He was obviously protecting something.”

“You got a pretty little thing with you, huh, bud? She out there hiding in the trees, waitin’ on you to return to her?”

There was no response from Joel, whether he simply didn’t engage or couldn’t due to a gag, you weren’t sure. But he was tied up, that much you knew from the effort it took to subdue him. He had been knocked unconscious, as someone had been preening over a few hours ago. He must’ve been coming back to consciousness, if the sudden stillness of the room was any indication.

They seemed to lose interest in his lack of engagement, the bodies dispersing to claim beds for the night, there would be enough for each of them. There were four different voices you had picked out as you stayed hidden. Heavy steps entered the room and the bed dipped as someone rested their weight atop it, the springs creaking against the frame protecting you and Ellie from the intruder.

She tensed up, nails digging into her palms as she looked to you. You shook your head, letting her know to keep quiet and that you would try your best to make sure things worked out okay. It was only a matter of minutes until loud snoring sprung into the air. You detangled yourself from Ellie, slowly guiding yourself along your back to the edge of the frame’s protection.

The man atop the bed was passed out, no weapon visible on him or in his grip as you held your head and torso up enough to glimpse at him. You shimmied as best you could out from underneath the bed completely, standing and ignoring the protest of your stiff muscles from the sudden movement after being locked for so long. You walked as lightly as you could over to the door and peered outside into the living room.

The fire was dying in the pit, a man passed out on the couch, and…

Joel was tied up, his hands and feet bound together. He was awake, though the swelling on his face didn’t look good. One of his eyes was blackened and it was swollen shut. They had taken his jacket from him, discarded it on the floor too far for him to reach for. Used to cover the body of the man he had killed. You crouched down to signal to Ellie that it was safe to come out. She stuck close behind you as you exited the room, trying not to touch the door and cause the hinges to give you both away.

Joel’s good eye widened as he say you move through the semi-darkness of the space. You crouched before him and used your machete to cut the rope from him. He got to his feet as quickly as he could, a frown overtaking his features as he retrieved his coat. Shrugging it on, he looked around for his pack but it was nowhere to be seen.

He made sure to get your attention and point to the door, motioning between you and Ellie. You nodded, understanding that he wanted you both to make a run for it while it was still quiet.

You were barely out the door when Joel was suddenly pushing you forward, a warning falling from him to run. The man on the couch had turned in his sleep, bleary eyes catching sight of a standing and unbound Joel jolting him awake completely.

“He’s making a run for it!”

Chaos ensued, heavy steps bounded down the stairs and echoed out into the open air as your trio trudged through the built-up snow. It was deep, nearly up to your ankles and made it hard to keep your balance as you waded through it. Ellie was ahead of you, a little faster, a little more right on her feet.

Joel grunted as a shot rang out from someone’s gun and he quickly brandished his own and fired a shot back. A howl as the bullet lodged itself into its victim was the only warning you got before a body collided with yours, knocking you down and you felt the world tilt as you rolled. Snow flying up all around you blurred your vision but the sound of something crackling was loud in your ear.

You stilled, panic spiking hard in your chest as you realized you had landed on the ice that covered the expanse of the lake. Up on the shoreline to the frozen water, Joel was still struggling fighting off two of the men. One lay dead next to Ellie, who was reaching for her gun to try and help. You yelped when there was sudden weight on you, pushing you hard into the freezing cold ice. Your face went numb as the ice cracked a little underneath it, the pressure causing the shards to cut into your flesh. There were two gunshots, one unnervingly close.

There was a loud cracking sound as the ice all around you broke. You felt your body fall, gravity taking your mind with it as you and your assailant plunged into the freezing water below.

“JOEL-“ Ellie’s terrified scream was the last thing you heard before the water swallowed you.

“No. No, no, no.” Joel chanted as he tried to put some distance between him and the last man still fighting him. He took a few steps back before rushing at him, throwing his entire weight into him and knocking him to the ground. As soon as they both landed, Joel stabbed his knife to the hilt into the man’s chest. He scrambled up as quickly as he could, ignoring the pain in his knees and shoulder. He slid as he ran toward the ice, being as careful as he could in his panic. He couldn’t see you down in the gaping hole of the broken ice, the water eerily still.

Everything fell quiet, there was no thrashing from below the ice, no more cracking of the ice. Joel’s mind was racing as his eyes scanned the expanse of the lake, hoping to catch a sign of movement from below.

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