SURVIVORS GUILT
୨⎯ chapter two ⎯୧

━━━━ "hey." maria heard a girls voice said causing maria to gasp and back away quickly. "are you lost?"

maria didn't know who she was but she was around her age. short auburn hair, freckles and she looked like she has just escaped from somewhere. sasha then nodded her head.

"me too." said the unknown girl who then stood awkwardly in front of maria. the girl was currently on the floor, a scratch on her left cheek that had blood flowing down and dirt all over her.

the girl looked away once she saw that sasha started crying. "my sister," maria cried out sniffing up at looking over to the city, "she told me to run and now i lost her."

"oh, i, um," the girl cleared her throat before saying, "i'm sorry. i know how you feel."

maria turned around causing the girl to put her lips in a tight line and nod her head. "you do?"

"yeah. i lost my mom when i was younger. don't remember her but it's what i've heard. so i get you, the past of losing her." the girl didn't think that would make her feel better but it shocked her that sasha only sniffed up her tears.

"what's your name?" asked maria standing up.

"ellie." she greeted giving sasha a tight smile, "you?"

"mariposa."

and although they met far before, when they were only little kids who didn't know where to do. who didn't have any family left. who didn't know about about the cruel world that they live it. maria and ellie didn't meet again until years later when riley decided to talk to the quiet girl that has isolated herself ever since she arrived at the age of six.

everything happened so quick. one second marlene, ellie and maria were talking - deep talking - and the next screams were being heard. marlene left maria and ellie inside of the room while she checked the place out and helped.

maria held out a metal stick that she found on the ground and held it up as ellie kept her knife steady and ready to attack. maria flinched as gunshots ran through the building before grumbling in a frustrated tone hating how easily she gets scared of gun shots.

"death doesn't seem so bad right now." whispered maria and then hissed in pain when ellie gave her a pinch in the arm. "i'm just saying."

"shut up." ellie hushed as suddenly everything went quiet. ellie grabbed maria by the arm and slowly and steady making their way to the door. maria pressed her ear on the door hearing heavy footsteps.

maria didn't know what ellie had planned. and she certainly didn't know that ellie was going to open up the door and launch herself to the man that had a gun. maria screamed as ellie was thrown to the wall landing harshly on the floor.

"ellie you idiot!" maria gasped throwing herself next to ellie to gasped in pain, arching her back on the wall. sasha smacked ellie in the arm earning a glare from ellie.

"i'm fine thanks." ellie grumbled sarcastically to maria

"joel?" called out marlene who held a gun up to the man who turned around.

"marlene?"

maria then glanced down at ellie's knife and was going to reach for it but joel, the man standing above them, stepped on it. ellie pulled maria back looking over at marlene who relaxed a bit.

"ellie," marlene called out as then ellie turned around wanting to hurt the man, "ellie!"

"oh shit!" ellie exclaimed ready to protect maria who was only confused.

"no, it's okay. i'll be all right." marlene said holding her stomach. that's when maria saw. "and you can't be stupid like this."

"so this is who robert screwed us over with?" another woman said entering around the corner with another woman behind, "the che guevara of boston. i mean, war must be goin' pretty shitty for you to be buying from scumbugs like him."

"yeah it kinda has been." marlene snapped.

"how wonderful. wait, we got to fucking babysit now?" the woman behind scoffed fully taking a look at the girls. maria was still glaring at the man so she didn't acknowledge them. but she did. the woman gasped earning weird looks from the man and woman.

"mariposa?"

"maggie you know her?" the man asked and everyone in the room went quiet as they saw the way that maggie's face softened and tears started whelming up in her eyes. "wait, is that her? the kid?"

"you know my fucking name?" maria asked confused turning over to the woman. maria doesn't really remember anything that clearly from the outbreak. she remembers snips, those snips being blurry and never really being able to make out any faces.

"mariposa, it's me maggie," she smiled taking a step forward but marlene pointed her gun at maggie. her smiled dropped and took another step not feeling threaten by marlene. "your sister. don't you remember me?"

"wh-what." maria chuckled humorously shaking her head. "you've got to be fucking with me."

"listen there is no time for sentimental reunion. this is serious. the merch was bad, and he obviously didn't take "fuck off" for an answer." marlene explained.

"gimme my knife." ellie snapped still holing a protective arm in front of maria who was eyeing maggie trying to make something click in her mind. but nothing.

"what do you need a car battery for?" joel asked and ellie reached for her knife but joel pointed his gun at her, "don't."

marlene held it higher now causing the woman and maggie to point it at marlene.

"not her. point it at me." joel then slowly moved his gun away from ellie and maria and moved over to marlene, "and to answer your question i need it better than you do. no offense, but tommy's just one man. it's out business to know things."

"to know things." joel mocked, "you're the cause of it. you turned my own brother against me."

"okay, joel."

"that was a lot of gunfire. fedra is gonna be on the way." the woman besides marlene said.

"i know." marlene whispered.

"ellie," maria whispered to the girl who roughly put her hand on her collarbone and pressed on it sliding it up to her shoulder. "ellie."

"we were gonna move ellie outta the zone tonight. but won't make it anymore like this, not for a while anyway. so now i'm thinkin'... your gonna do it."

"the hell we are." snarled joel.

"i'm not goin' with them!" shouted ellie.

"god i wish i was dead." maria muttered throwing her head back against the wall. all the adults around ellie and her started arguing back and forth. maria couldn't even tune them out due to the fact that they were so loud.

maria also couldn't stop thinking about the woman, maggie, that claimed to be her sister. maria opened her eyes noticing tess and joel going off to the side to talk while maggie leaned against the wall looking at maria.

"asshole!" ellie shouted when joel threw her knife at a far away distance.

maria knows that she doesn't have parents. she knows they got in a car accident and died when she was five. but she doesn't remember anything in between five years old and seven. those three years being the worst years she could ever imagine.

"here's the deal," said tess walking back inside, "we'll get her to your crew at the state house but before we hand her over, they give us everything we want. if not, we kill her, there and then."

"deal." said tess without hesitation, "your also taking mariposa."

"what why?" joel asked.

"really? that fast?" ellie muttered over to marlene who sighed deeply nodding her head.

"ellie and mariposa are a package deal i suppose, if sasha doesn't go then neither is ellie and trust me ellie will do the impossible to get back to mariposa." marlene explained to joel causing ellie to blush furiously and maria to clear her throat awkwardly as marlene just exposed her best friend.

"and ellie, you are all that matters. my team will not jeopardize that. remember what i told you? now go get your backpack, you too maria."

joel, maggie and tess brought ellie and maria to where they stay. tess took maggie with her to clam down her feelings and not be too overwhelmed since sasha kept on ignoring her. so ellie and maria stayed with joel.

the grumpy man went to sleep on the couch leaving the two teenagers bored out of their mind. ellie sat on the arm of a rocking chair while maria sat on the chair. she found a comic book and that's what they kept themselves occupied with.

ellie leaned her head on the chair while maria held the comic book up for them both to read. soon it got too dark for them to read. instead they just decided to do their own thing. ellie looking out the window while maria continued to try and unlock those hidden memories.

they then heard rustling from the couch alerting them that joel was awake.

"i've never been on the other side of the wall. look at how dark it is." ellie said in a admiring tone of voice, "do you guys go out there a lot?"

"i guess." responded back joel.

"when was the last time?" asked joel.

"maybe a year. what's it matter?"

"but you know where to go." ellie said and as if something clicked inside of joel's head. he looked up at ellie who was already looking directly at him, "so we're gonna be okay."

"yeah."

ellie nodded her head looking back outside the window before saying, "oh, the radio came on when you were sleeping."

"what. what was the song?" joel asked alarmed.

"kept on saying, wake me up before you go-go." ellie said and maria grinned at her tone of voice. it wasn't a curious one, instead it was one that sasha knew so well. the one where ellie has a plan to find something out without seeming like she wants something out of it.

the look on joel's face said it all.

"gotcha." ellie grinned causing maria to let out a snicker and open back her eyes noticing the flabbergasted look from joel. "80s means trouble. code broken."

joel watched with a glare as ellie brought her hand up to maria to clapped it. both girls giving joel mischievous looks. but before joel could say anything the door burst open with maggie and tess.

"the spot under lancaster looks good. you got a jacket in y'all's backpack?"

"yeah."

"okay get it, it's time to go."