Asthma (The Last Of Us)

Escaping QZ

(TJ.'s P.O.V.)
I pull the hood of my jacket over my head to prevent me from getting soaked from the rain that had decided to pour down. Although it didn't matter anyway. I trail behind dad, Tess and the girl Ellie all the way to the appartment. I scoffed as I felt my shoes getting more and more drenched. I hate having wet shoes. Its more irritating than wet clothes. Yes clothes will stick to you once wet, but shoes will make an awfull squelcing sound. And it feels like you are walking in mud. I sighed with relief when I saw our appartment building. "Finally" I said and quickly got a move on. Dad chuckled as I ducked under his arm as he held the door open, being the first to enter. Without even waiting on the rest I speed walked to our apartment and impatiently waited for the adults and Ellie to catch up. Tess grabs the keys and opens the door and gestures for both me and Ellie to go inside. "Give us a minute" she told us both before slamming the door shut, "what the fuck!" Both Ellie and I screamed but it fell on deaf ears. I could hear the two of them mumble behind the door, but decide to just go further into the room. I walk to my usual spot by the window. "What are you doing?" Ellie questioned, "killing time" I answer her and continue to look outside. "Well what am I supposed to do?" She asked me. I shrugg my shoulders "does it look like I care what you do?". Ellie scoffs and walks around, exploring the room. She stops by the cabinet that has the number 1 hits book placed ontop. She grabs it and quickly flips through it. Dad soon enters and shrugfs of his backpack before sitting down on the couch. "So who is Bill and Frank?" Ellie asked. I turn my head from the window and look to her. Dad also eyes her. "The radio is a smuggling code right? 60's songs, they dont have anything new, 70's they got new stuff, what is 80's?". Dad stands up before snatching the book away from her, slams it shut and tosses it on the table. Then proceeds to lay on the couch. "What are you doing?" Ellie re-ask the same questions she had asked me. And just like me dad replies with the same answer "killing time". "Any idea what I should do?" She continues, "I'm sure you'll figure that out" dad replies and shuts his eyes to take some rest. Tess soon walks in and looks into my direction. "I need your help" she tells me with a nod of her head. I stand up from my spot in the window cill and follow her out the door. She needed my help to find some places to escape QZ. "Be carefull" dad warns me, "yeah yeah" I replied cheeky and close the door.

We found a good spot to escape and return to the appartment. "The spot under Lancaster looks good" Tess said throwing the keys on the table. "You got a jacket in your pack?" Tess asked Ellie who nodds her head. "Okay, get it. It's time to go". Meanwhile I also got ready to go. Grabbing my inhaler, last supply of medicine, my bow and arrows and some other general stuff. We make our way out of our own appartment and headed to an abandoned building that stood by the QZ-wall. "TJ, give me a hand" Dad said as he walked to a bookshelf that stood by a wall. I walked over and put my hands against it, then pushed while he pulled on it. Soon there was a hole revealed to another room. There stood a generator that was attached to a lift platform. Dad pulled the generator on so the lift could become operational. I pressed the green button and the lift sprung to life and brought us down. "Who's waitin' at the drop off?" I asked Tess who had spoken the most to Marlene. "She said that there's some fireflies that have traveled all the way from another city" she answered before turning to Ellie "girl must be important". "What is the deal with you?" I question Ellie, "you some big-wig's daughter or something?". Ellie sighs shortly but answers none the less "something like that". We arrive at the lower level ground, basicaply the cellar of this specific building. "Ellie, once we get out of here. I meed you to follow our lead and stay close" Tess orders the girl, "yeah, of course". I follow dad to the tunnel that had been dug years and years ago by other smugglers. Its dusty and filled with spiderwebs. I feel my asthma rise in my throat but keep going. We arrive at a ladder that goes back to the upper world. Dad climbs onto it to take a quick look if no FEDRA soldiers where around. "Alright, we're good. Come on up". I am the first to climb up of the girls. While waiting on everyone else I grab my inhaler. I shake it before taking a puff from it. Ellie comes up and stands up looking around the area, big eyes filled with excitement "holy shit, I'm actually outside!" She exhales. Tess is quick to pull her down to a crouch as a light sweeps past. "Follow my lead" Tess once again reminds Ellie before crawling underneath a schoolbus. At the other side we keep low as we move alongside of it. I see a light from one of the patrol vehicles and tap dad's shoulder. Who instantly hides behind the cars with me. A little further Tess and Ellie do the same. We all stay still as the patrol car drive by as its spotlight beam shine over the car graveyard that we are hiding in. Tess peaks her head over the car before continuing on. I follow them into a destroyed stormdrain. I wasn't paying attention and suddenly am pulled back by my backpack. Dad wraps an arm around me, stilling my movement. I look up to see the light of a search helicopter as it flies over us in search of people or infected. My eyes follow the chopper before shifting to dad after its gone. He lets me go and nods for me to continue crouching through the pipe. We exit the pipe and immediatly press our back against a broken wall as thunder lights up the sky. We walk past the wall and continue. "What the hell?" A voice sounds out and we all freeze to our spot. It's a FEDRA officer who was peeing against a wall. "Hey, hey! Don't, don't, don't move!" He orders as he struggled to do up his pants. I look for a spot to run to bur another FEDRa officer shows up trapping us in. I put my hands up like the others and I closely watch the officers "don't do anything stupid" the second one ordered, "Turn around". "Now hold on". "Get on your fucking knees!" The officer sneers, "you scan 'em, all call it in" number 2 tells number 1. "This is Ramirez in sector 12. Requesting pick-up for 3 stragglers". Soldier number 2, a man, pulls out a device and pushes it against each of our necks. I feel a slight zap as it detects if I am infected or not. It flashed green. Then he continues to Tess. "You let us do this run and we will make it worth your while" Tess offers, but the man isn't taking her offer, "shut up". He moves over to scan dad "I'm gettin tired of this shit" he speaks and the female soldier agrees with a hum. "What's the ETA?" He asked as he scans Ellie. "Couple of minutes". Then all of a sudden, Ellie slams her swiss knife into his lower leg and all hell breaks loose. The man pulls the knife out and aims for Ellie. But dad tackles him down, a shot is still fired off, thankfully missing everyone. I am quick to draw an arrow in my bow and aim it at the female officer who has my dad under shot and shoot. The arrow flies through the air and finds its way in her neck. The female starts to gurgle on tlher blood before falling down. Tess shoots a bullet, putting the female out of her missery. Meanwhile dad managed to get the upper hand of the male officer and kills him too. "Oh fuck" Ellue says scooting back on her butt. I walk over to the female to retrieve me arrow. I sigh and pull the arrow out. Another one to add to my list of things I have killed. "Oh, shit" Tess whispers. I turn to look at her. "Look" she said and tosses over the scanning device to dad. I walk up to see aswell. The screen flashes the red letters that spelled out positive. "Jesus christ" dad speaks and immediatly pulls me behind him, away from Ellie. Like I was a vulnarable kid and not a person who had just killed someone seconds ago. "Marlene set us up?" He asked turning to Tess, "why the hell are we smuggling an infected girl?". "I'm not infected" Ellie speaks out. "No?" Dad questions harsh, "this thing lying?" He snaps and throws the device to her. "I can explain!". "You better explain fast" Tess snaps and points a gun at her. Ellie rolls up her sleeve and shows us the bite mark. I clocksize my head, it doesn't look new. There is no dried up blood, the wound itself had healed for the most part and it almost looksled like it was just a scar. White vein impressions radiate out from the bitemark across her skin. "It's three weeks old" Ellie tells us, "no. Everyone turns within two days" Tess argues, "so you stop bullshitting". Ellie sakes her head and I can tell she isn't lying "it's three weeks. I swear". "I ain't buying it" dad mumbles and turns around. I look down at Ellie. She surely doesn't seem like an infected. She looks human, just with a bite mark. "Oh shit" I hear dad whisper, "Tess, TJ. Run" he yells. I instantly turn around and see the car that had been called by the officers drive up. Dad and Tess run and leave Ellie behind. Without hesitation, I grab Ellie by the arm and pull her up. "Go. Go. Move!" I tell her and push her in front of me. Both Ellie and I arrive by dad and Tess. I get an angry glare from my father. "I couldn't just leave her there" I tell him with narrowed eyes. "We'll talk about it later" Tess comes in between us before an argument could start. "On my signal. We run". "Signal, run. Got it" both me and Ellie nod. "Now. Run". Well hear it goes. I follow behind Tess, running low. We go down into the trenches and holes which where formes due to the bombing the did on the city. "Stay away from the lights" Tess said motioning to the search light. My breathing picks up as the search light scans just a meter in front of me. Don't go.  in the light, don't go in the light. "TJ, there's another sprint coming up". I groan as I hear I have to run again. Running is hard for people with asthma. Asthma symptoms can make breathing challenging. Although my asthma is controlled, running can still trigger an asthma attack. "Soldiers up ahead" Tess warns us, "I see 'em, I see 'em" Dad replies as we hide in the trench. "They must have gotten through" I hear a soldier speak out, "go take a look in the trenches". A light scans over my head and I hold my breath without having control of the reaction. "I don't see anything. You sure they are here?" The other one calls out, "unless we are told otherwise. Just keep scanning!". "Come on, kids. Follow Joel" Tess whispers to both me and Ellie. Dad walks out of our hiding spot and I follow him. I avoid the flaslight beams as I crouch further thriugh the puddles that formed in the trenches. We manage to safely get out of trench and into a bombed building. "Dad" I whisper and gain his attention. He turns his head at me and I point to a roll door. He nods realizing my idea and motions for the others. Dad stands and pulls on the chain, making the roll door opening up. "Ellie, come on" I tell the girl and we both duck under the door. Tess and I hold the door open so it wouldn't close after dad stops pulling on the chain. We arrive on main street. Tanks, cars and soldiers move around and we quickly run to the other side in the less collapsed buildings, to sneak past the other FEDRA soldiers. "Any idea where to go?" Dad asked looking at Tess. I have been outside the wall a couple times, not to dad's approval, but he quickly realized that I was capable enough to protect myself aswell. So I went on to some runs. But the last time I was out was maybe abiut a year ago. I look around and realize that this place seems familiar. "Follow me" I speak out and move. We succesfully avoid and sneak past the searching soldiers that are on the main street. I duck into another building and the rest follows me. I continue through to an open area, where years ago a building stood, but it was now a open space. Suddenly light flashes across and I instantly press my back against the wall. I am the only one who is in the open, the rest was still hiding in the shadow. I turn my head to look at dad. Before taking in a deep breath and go further. I stay in the shadow to lower the chance of being seen. I look up and see the soldier retreat and I turn back to look at the others. Before waving for them to go. We finally manage to get into a fully steuctered building. "Catch your breath for a second" Tess tells us. I let myself fall to the ground, breathing heavily and shortly. My heart pumping fast. My brain was to busy thinking that I wasn't realizing I was beginning to have an attack. "TJ" Tess spoke breaking me out of my thought. Without saying anything she motions to my pack. Telling me to grab my inhaler. I nodd and do so. I take a puff and feel my muscles relax and my airway opening up. All the while Ellie watches me intruiged. I raise an eyebrow at her "never seen anyone with asthma" I question her with a snap. I don't like being watched when I use my inhaler and get defensive when people do so. She mumbles a sorry and turns her head. "TJ, you okay?" Dad asked wanting to continue. I take another deep breath before nodding and standing up. We explore the building a bit more and come across an open sewer pipe. "Come on, up through her, through the pipe". I scrunch my nose up, not the ideal place to go through, but we had limited options. Thankfully this pipe hadn't been used in a decade and only contained dirty, muddy water. We follow the pipe and eventually come a iron gate. Dad opens it and we walk out the pipe into the open air. We survived leaving QZ and the city centre.