˗ˏˋ 🕰️ 'ˎ˗ 𝐈𝐍 𝐖𝐇𝐈𝐂𝐇 ─── You and Ellie have been inseparable ever since she came to Jackson. When the two of you find out about your feelings for one another, a lot changes within a matter of months, some changes better than others.
This fan...
Strangely enough, a complete silence filled the room you were about to enter, making you even more worried than you already were. You put your trembling hand on the knob of the door and hesitantly opened the door. What you saw made you cover your mouth with your hand, as you slowly took a step forward. The main thing that caught your eye was Joel. His face was badly beat up, and you could tell he was long gone. A silent tear made its way down your cheek as you tried to compose yourself for the rest of the people in the room. Tommy was unconsious, but it seemed as if Joel took the main hits. You ran over to him before you knelt down next to him, pressing two of your fingers against his neck to make sure he had a pulse. Meanwhile, Jesse just stood there, speechless. You put your ear close to Tommy's mouth and when you confirmed he was breathing, your eyes made their way to Ellie's body.
She was also unconsious, and even though you had a billion thoughts running through your mind right now, a part of you remained rational as you tried to wake her up. You tried to hide the fact that your entire body felt like it was about to explode from all the emotions, and you ignored the many tears you felt prickle your skin as Ellie finally opened her eyes. "Ellie!" A feeling of relief rushed through your body as you gently put your arm on the girl's cheek. The auburn-haired opened her eyes slowly as her eyes drifted from your tears to Joel's body on the other side of the room. "No. No..." The tattooed girl shook her head, causing you to lift your hand from her cheek, tears streaming down her face. This entire scene broke you as you could feel the cold and bitterness of it all radiating through your freezing body. The small shake in her voice made you want to hold her and never let go, but as she rejected your touch from earlier, you knew it wasn't the right thing to do.
A soft groan caused your gaze to shift away from a sobbing Ellie, and another feeling of relief went through your body as you saw Tommy waking up. Even though it felt wrong, you stood up and walked over to your father figure, leaving Ellie with Jesse. The older man immediately tried to stand up, but you stopped him by pressing your hands on his shoulders. "Slowly. Be careful." You shook your head at him and felt yourself get emotional again as your name fell out of his mouth, making you give him a tight hug. He let out another, this time louder, groan out of pain as he hugged you back. The pain didn't seem to matter to him as you burried your face into his shoulder. "I love you, kiddo." He whispered into your ear, and you could feel the tears making their way down your face again.
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The four of you had made your way back to Jackson late that night, and you decided then that you wanted to let Ellie sleep instead of burdening her with your presence, as it had only been hours since Jesse and you had found her in that basement. A part of you had wanted to reach out to Jesse about it, but you knew he was probably with his girlfriend right now, as he should be after all the things he saw today. Poor guy seemed traumatised, and you were sure all four of you were going to get some major PTSD after all of this had cooled down, if it ever would. The only place there was left for you to go, was Maria. But allas, you didn't want to bother her as she already had enough on her plate with Tommy's injuries, and the loss of Joel.
Your mind had yet to process his death, and everything seemed to feel like some odd fever dream, which you wanted to wake up from so badly it almost made you angry. Even though it hadn't been that late, you went to bed early that night, hoping to talk to Ellie as soon as possible the very next day. A part of you felt nervous about seeing your girlfriend after the serious events of yesterday, you weren't sure as to what state she was going to be in, and you weren't sure if she even wanted to see you in the first place.
With all the courage you had left in you, you knocked on her door. Pure silence was all that came from inside, making you worried. "It's me." Your voice was louder than usual, really hoping to get through to her. It remained silent for a few moments before a clearly sleep deprived Ellie opened the door. She was still in the same clothes she was in yesterday, and from the looks of it, she didn't get any sleep last night. Her eyes seemed dried out as she looked into your eyes, craving a warm hug from you. Before giving in, you stepped into her place and closed the door behind you. The second you heard the door behind you close, you wrapped your arms around the auburn-haired girl. She didn't reciprocate the hug right away, probably because she was so tired, but it didn't take long before you could feel her arms wrap around your lower waist.
You gently began stroking her hair as the quiet sniffs started. Knowing Ellie, you didn't make a big deal out of this to keep her satisfied, but instead just stood there with her. The hug continued for a good ten minutes, as you didn't want to let go of her while she was in such a fragile state. The pain seemed to have made her numb to everything other than the pure grief. You felt the need to take care of her, so you did. Instead of being hesitant about it, Ellie let you help her take a shower, wash her body and hair, dress her in clean clothes, and even feed her. The weakness that had taken over her body and mind was so hurtful and raw to see, you had to try your very hardest not to let tears slip in front of her. The state she was in made you want to hold her forever, but you knew you couldn't.
As the two of you laid down in her bed, you put your arm over her waist, holding her. You stayed with the older girl until she had gotten at least three hours of sleep. It wasn't like you thought that was a good amount of sleep for anyone, but at that moment in time you knew it was the best you were going to get. "Do you want me to come back tonight?" You asked, tilting your head as you looked at the broken girl in front of you. "I think I'd like to sleep on my own, if that's okay." Ellie responded.
You could lie and say you weren't surprised, but a big part of you was. You constantly had to remind yourself that Ellie wasn't you, and you weren't her. Both of you wanted different things in time of need, and you had to find a way to respect that. "You sure you'll be okay?" You wanted to make sure she stood behind her own words before walking out on her. Instead of audibly letting you know, a weak nod was given to you. "Alright, I love you. Please let me know if you need anything at all." You said, looking back once more before leaving her place to go back to Tommy, who had been so overridden with guilt and grief, it made you break the second you witnessed it. This time was rough for everyone, but seeing two of your favourite people in so much pain surely was the worst thing you had ever felt and witnessed in your entire life.
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Words: 2080
Please vote and/or comment, it really helps me out and motivates me while writing!<3
A/N: Now I would say I'm sorry but this chapter was SO FUN to write. I hope I did the original scene justice:)
Quick explanation as to why the reader aka you chose Tommy over Ellie in this chapter TWICE, please remember that Tommy is for the reader what Joel was for Ellie. Yes this means there is yet another crazy parallel:)
Also the reader lore!?!?
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