He hit me and I knew he loved me.

[hostage]

WHO: Jesse, Joel & Ellie
WHERE: #202 Xavier School
WHEN: After this
WHAT: A family reunited! Sort of!
WARNINGS: Foul mouths everywhere, mentions of cannibalism and trauma.

[Their little shopping spree earlier means that Jesse and Ellie are surrounded by junk: pizza boxes, fast food wrappers, bags full of snacks and other knick-knacks Ellie picked up from the convenience store. The TV's on but playing at a low volume while Jesse's pacing around and talking on the phone, and Lucy's happily chomping on a dog biscuit beside Ellie. It's all pretty much perfect, by Jesse's standards.

Once he hangs up, Jesse turns to Ellie.]

That was Joel. He's on his way.

Comments

[shittybirthday]

[ Joel notices the way Jesse slides down to the floor. ]

He, uh.

[ He's seen Jesse regenerate from far worse things than this pretty fast, so he'll no doubt recover soon enough. Still. Joel isn't taking any chances. Gripping Ellie's arm, he stands tall and hauls her to her feet and tugs her quickly past Jesse towards the bathroom door, clearing space for the toilet. Just in case Jesse suddenly pukes. (He's already been puked on by Jesse once before. Never again.) ]

Just, uh. Leave him be a few minutes, alright?

[nohalfway]

[ Ellie stares at Jesse, eyes wide as she is successfully dragged by Joel out the bathroom. ]

No, wait, did he just...

[ He absorbed her nausea just now didn't he? Ellie is reminded of the papers crunched up in the pockets of her old pants, the file containing details of her powers. Something about absorbing illnesses and injuries and regenerating herself soon after taking them? Isn't that exactly what Jesse did? ]

It's like he stole my stomach ache. So the super power thing is for real here?

[shittybirthday]

[ Joel looks at Ellie, glances distractedly at Jesse, and then back to Ellie. He's become used to the whole superhero thing but how the hell does he explain it to her without sounding like a complete lunatic? ]

Yeah, he, uh. It's a thing he does.

[ Good explanation, Joel.

An uncertain pause and then: ]

The whole... superpower thing: it's real. You got 'em, I got 'em. Everyone here's got 'em. You'll, uh. You'll get used to it.

[nohalfway]

[ Too be honest, she feels pretty awful that this guy took her extreme nausea. It's pretty fucking bad. But the realization and reminder of what she was told before? Ellie wears a look of curiosity, but there's almost a fearful undertone. If this is what she can do too, how dangerous is that? ]

That's...

That's what the woman with my file told me I could do. The same exact thing.

[ She looks to Joel. ]

They said I have the ability to absorb injuries and heal from them quickly. I mean, it sounded like a load of horse shit and I was too busy trying to get out of there so I forgot, but...

Wow.

[shittybirthday]

[ Thaaat gives Joel pause. He stares down at Ellie. Well, fuck. If Ellie can absorb injuries just like Jesse can... Well, Jesus, he's seen Jesse take on some pretty goddamn horrific injuries, seen him healing from even worse injuries, to the point of puking his innards out, and there's no way in hell he'd want Ellie going through something like that.

If he suddenly looks really uneasy, it's because he is: he shifts on the spot, lips pressed into a thin, uneasy line. It looks like he wants to say something, which he does - he wants to tell her not to go messing around with that superpower of hers, not to go healing people or doing anything stupid, but he knows the whole situation is no doubt crazy enough already for Ellie to try and grasp.

So, he's just gonna... ignore that she said that. He'll address it later. ]

Uh.

[ He turns his attention back to Jesse instead. ]

...You alright? You good to show us to the room yet?

[hostage]

[Jesse's been listening to them, his head cradled in his hands. Poor Ellie, getting stuck with this same power. Lachesis is such a bitch sometimes. At least Joel will keep her from using it as recklessly as Jesse.

When Joel addresses him, he lifts his head and looks over. He still looks miserable, but the sickness has mostly faded. He pulls himself to his feet, wiping his sweaty forehead with his sleeve.]

Yeah. I'm good.

[nohalfway]

[ Ellie catches that, the pause in Joel's response and the downright uncomfortable look on his face. It's what she would expect from him, honestly. After some time had passed, Ellie realized that Joel's stubbornness when it came to what Ellie was capable of and what she should do were sensitive subjects for him. He's impatient, stubborn, demanding, and downright annoying sometimes, but Ellie got it a long time ago that it was just this sort of fatherly kind of instinct. ]

[ Not that she would say it aloud. One: it's weird and two: he'd get pissed, probably. She's not even sure at this point. ]

[ Ellie turns to Jesse with a look of concern, and almost a little fear. But if Jesse has the same powers as she does? She might benefit from talking to him about it. Eventually. ]

[ There's relief in how quickly he's able to get on his feet. At least she didn't put a bad mark on him or something. ]

Hey, thanks for that. You... Really didn't have to.

[hostage]

Aw, it's no big deal. I barely feel it.

[Highly unpleasant, but pretty low on the severity scale. Compared to, say, full-body third-degree burns. Anyway, he only has himself to blame for getting her sick in the first place.]

I picked you guys a suite on the fourth floor. Oughta be quiet up there. Pretty big, too.

[He beckons for them to follow him out into the hall.]

[shittybirthday]

[ Good, Joel is glad no further attention is drawn towards what just happened, although as Jesse leads the way out of the room, Joel can't help feeling a niggling sense of utter discomfort at the news that Ellie has the same goddamn power Jesse has.

He doesn't show it, though, not in the way he pats his thigh at Lucy with a, "C'mon, girl," for her to follow them. The dog perks attention and then is suddenly galloping happily after Joel and Ellie. Joel trails after Jesse, follows him up to the fourth floor with Ellie at his heels and Lucy bounding off ahead of them, and when they reach the room, Joel stops just inside the doorway and surveys the suite. ]

Yeah, alright. This'll do.

[ He looks over at Jesse. ]

So, how do things work here? There a weekly payment on this place or somethin'?

[nohalfway]

[ Ellie follows in toe, silently. From time to time, she pats Lucy on the head who seems excited every time she does so. Everything is still so fucking surreal, so clean. It's so odd when she looks down at the clean clothes Jesse has so graciously provided for her, how clean her skin is and how nice her hair smells. Each time she gets a waft of the smell of shampoo, her nose wrinkles to the strength and surprise. It reminds her how fucking long she went without one. ]

[ When they arrive to the apartment, it starts to feel even more real. Joel discussing the rent, Lucy happily running around in the empty space that will soon be filled with furniture and all sorts of things. Is this really happening? Is she really excited over a new, permanent home? ]

[ Ellie quietly listens to the conversation, eyes wide and curious as she looks back and forth between Jesse and Joel. ]

[hostage]

[Jesse makes a face when all Joel has to say is, "This'll do." Like, that's it? Jesse happens to think this suite is very nice. It's a lot nicer than his room. He expected a little more appreciation.]

No rent or anything. It's covered. Utilities, too. When you're ready, I can take you down to the storage unit, load up your truck with all your stuff. Should make this place feel a little more like home.

[He looks Joel up and down, then glances at Ellie.]

Figure you guys probably wanna get some rest first.

[shittybirthday]

[ Joel catches the tail end of that face Jesse pulls. Like with most of the faces Jesse pulls, Joel ignores it. "This'll do" is more than what Joel might normally say, which is usually an outright nothing.

He purses his lips. He's got quite a few questions he wants to ask Jesse but... He glances at Ellie, too, then back at Jesse. He nods; a small, subdued but appreciative nod that gets Joel's gratitude across about as good as a gruffly muttered "thanks" would. Questions can wait. Ellie comes first. ]

I'll be in touch.

[ And with that, he turns towards Ellie, leaving Jesse to see his own way out. ] C'mon, Ellie.

[nohalfway]

[ Ellie immediately notices the look on Jesse's face... Mostly because she's familiar with it. Joel's hard to please, and even when you do there isn't much recognition for it. It's just how he is. She sits through the brief silence that follows Jesse's remark patting Lucy on the head, scratching her behind the ear. ]

[ When Joel calls for her, her attention is taken. She looks to Jesse, meekly forcing herself to say something, because he at least deserves a try. ]

Thanks a lot, Jesse. It's... It's really nice.

[ And with that, she follows right on Joel's heels. ]