This is Not the Last of Us

Chapter 25

Ellie and Dina were still sitting in the library. They had moved upstairs to watch the storm pass, silently hoping that it would go by faster. The generator probably didn't have much more gas in it, and that was starting to stress Ellie out. They'd die of hypothermia if the storm kept going for any longer.

The two girls were sharing stories about scars and laughing with each other. Trying to pass the time as much as they could. Ellie rubbed her tattoo awkwardly, half expecting it to disappear off of her skin.

They were suddenly brought back to reality when Jesse stepped into the building. The storm had almost fully died down, and he was dusting snow off of himself and then his horse.

"Jesse?" Dina perked up and stood, she rushed him in a tight hug and smiled, "What's the occasion?"

"You girls are supposed to be on patrol," he said gently, but accepted Dina's hug, wrapping his arms tightly around her, "What's that smell... Is that weed?"

"Yeah, but almost all of it is dead... Anyway, what are you doing here? You're supposed to be on patrol too, right?"

"Yeah, I was supposed to meet up with Tommy, Joel, and Seth's kid. None of them were at the lookout spot."

Dina and Ellie both immediately went to attention. Ellie shot up to her full height, "What do you mean they weren't there?"

"None of them were there. Not even on the log. None of them would have forgotten to log it. So, I came to this trail since it's the next closest. I was hoping you all ran into each other."

Dina shook her head and turned to Ellie, "Oh, no...."

"I take it you haven't seen them?" Jesse said softly.

"Well, we have to find them!" Ellie shouted.

"Maybe they just went back to town?" Dina suggested hopefully.

"None of them would have left without being replaced." Ellie whispered. "We have to look for them. How much of the region have you covered?"

"Not much," Jesse admitted, "I caught this place first. The lights were on."

"Then we'll all split up. We'll go from different sides."

"Why don't we check out that condo that's in the middle of nowhere?" Dina suggested suddenly, "It's on the way, they probably got about that far before the storm started, even if infected were around there."

"You may be right, actually." Jesse nodded. "Let's stick together, Ellie. The storm could hit again, so it's better to be in a tight group. We'll check that place first, it's our best bet."

Ellie hesitated, but she knew they were right. The two of them knew these routes like the back of their hands. They would know the best places to look.

Ellie nodded and got onto Shimmer, "Then lead the way. Let's get going."

When her walkie-talkie went off they all stopped. They were a mere minutes away from Baldwin when Ellie's girlfriend's voice cut in.

They were panicked when they heard the news, but they needed to pull themselves together. More for her girlfriend's sake than any one else's. She sounded terrified on the other side of the walkie-talkie.

To say she was terrified was definitely an understatement. She had slipped back into the house, she felt the need to stall. Hopefully, Ellie and Dina would be there soon. The three of them could maybe handle this... maybe.

She could hear Joel grunting downstairs, which brought her a great amount of relief. At the very least, Joel was alive. And they seemed more after Joel than they did Tommy.