FOURTH SHOT

[dog_eat_dog]

Lee ––

I met with Joel. I don't know if you've met him, since he's hardly been here longer than I have, but he's my better half. We went out into the woods and waited it out so he could put me down, but I didn't turn. And when Joel wasn't watching me, I went down to the damn clinic, where the world's most terrified doctor hacked off the wound.

So now that my shoulder has roughly the same texture as raw hamburger, and it doesn't seem to be spreading, I can finally let you know that your advice was complete bullshit... but I appreciate it all the same.

We should get drinks. Proper ones, this time.

Tess



------



Hey, kid.

You've been here much longer than I have. Let me drill you for information and I'll make it worth your while. What do you say?

Tess

Comments

[rightchoices]

Can't be easy on him. But I respect that.

[ He reaches down to rub his own wrist, an idle and sort of thoughtful gesture. ]

You guys've been living with that kind of thing for how long? It'd be easy to get hard to something like that. Must mean a lot that you were close at all. [ It's an observation, though - he's not prying at or hinting that he wants to know more. ] He and Ellie make it out?

[dog_eat_dog]

[She nods. It does mean a lot that they're close, even though they seldom show it. They keep each other at arm's length for so many reasons, emotional or practical or otherwise.]

Twenty years total, but Joel and I met a few years in.

But yeah, he and Ellie got out alright. The people who were supposed to take the girl and pay us were taken out by the military that went after us, so I told Joel to take her the rest of the way. He took it on. He's a good man.

[She's not saying that Ellie was the cargo, but there's no point in lying about it, either.]

[rightchoices]

Keep wanting to say that I can't imagine what life must be like for you guys. [ Lee is quiet, but just for a moment. He's ruminating, before continuing: ] But a year ago, I couldn't imagine life with the walkers everywhere. Never would've guessed a place like this would be possible six months ago.

[ He leans back, glancing sideways at her. ]

Why was the military after you?

[dog_eat_dog]

I would never have anticipated it either. Everything at home, or everything here. Life throws curveballs, even if you don't play sports.

[Tess shakes her head.]

We were doing business with the Fireflies... a radical group, they wanna restore the government. The military is wiping the last of them out.

Also, we killed some of their guys in the early hours of that morning so... you know. There's that. [A shrug.]

[rightchoices]

.. retribution. Glad to hear that something's remained constant through the end of the goddamn world.

[ He doesn't sound dismissive. Grimly amused, maybe. ]

Sounds like you guys got a lot more problems than just the infected.

[dog_eat_dog]

People are people, no matter what else is going on.

And people start getting crazy when they know there is no future, or at least nothing to come back to.

[rightchoices]

Seems like that's how it goes.

Well - regardless. Glad you and your crew are here.

[dog_eat_dog]

I am, too.

You glad to have your people here?

[rightchoices]

Missing quite a few. But - yeah. More than I can say.

[dog_eat_dog]

[She nods, and drinks.]

I was gonna say, with Joel here, I'm covered for people who really matter... but if this place can take people from the dead, I guess everyone's going to be missing quite a few.

[rightchoices]

You know-- even with that in mind, I'm only missing a couple that matter.

[ That's just really now occurred to him. His parents and brother, maybe. Kenny and his family. Christa, Omid, Chuck - and even them, out of loyalty more than really missing them.

Thinking too long on this place made his head hurt. ]

[dog_eat_dog]

The dead should stay dead, you mean?

[rightchoices]

Probably. But not what I meant. Just that the end of the world's pretty good at showing you what and who you really care about.

[dog_eat_dog]

True. And after a while, you stop even thinking about a lot of people.

[rightchoices]

... not me. [ He shakes his head. ] Not trying to be sentimental, just - as long as I'm here, I guess. They deserve to be thought of.

[dog_eat_dog]

[She shakes her head.]

It's too damn tiring to live like that, after a point.

[rightchoices]

[ And he just laughs, humorless but genuine. ]

Probably a reason why you made it twenty something years.

[dog_eat_dog]

You'd get sick of nostalgia at some point, good survivor or not. I've survived because I give a shit about my future, not because I let go of my past.