Dekalb, Illinois didn't have much. Not that she thought, anyway. It had some tall buildings, a lot of woods, but nothing really noteworthy and nothing that could effectively distract her from talking about Sam and Henry... or, trying to, until she pushed that button one too many times. Then, she'd been forced to internalize and that was worse.
Until. Passing through the streets of the small town, set on their trek out West where Tommy and the Fireflies waited for them, Ellie spotted it. There was a big advertisement, faded and greying against the glass of a bus stop: Star Worlds Arcade.
We ain't got time for this, she'd been told, to which Ellie said she needed a fucking break from the grief-ridden silence or she might explode. Reluctantly, with more than one sigh of exasperation, Joel agreed.
It took longer than either of them would have liked to find the place. The sun set over their search and Joel had just begun to air his protests when she cried out, pointing dramatically in the direction of a faded yellow banner with chipped orange writing.
"Told ya!" she chirped, smug, and headed to the door. Didn't matter that it was getting dark and they were both dead tired from... well, everything; she'd been trying to find a working copy of Angel Knives' game. Even though she'd been unlucky so far, the arcades usually had some supplies in the back room, enough scavenging to keep Joel occupied while she tested out a few machines. Sometimes he'd even indulge her in a story about some of the games he'd played as a kid and she'd crack a joke or two about his age, still listening intently through the grin.
"Oh, man..."
This place in particular was a wreck. Machines leaned sideways on each other, screens crashed through, consoles in pieces. She stepped inside with her nose wrinkled, not put out by initial failure (not now, not ever). Ellie glanced back over her shoulder, shrugging lightly, and began to move through the store.
"If you see it--you know the one--lemme know." She glanced up and cracked a smile; the ceiling was littered with what seemed like stars, dots that were illuminated above them in faded florescence. Can't believe those things still have juice. How d'they work, anyway...?
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Until. Passing through the streets of the small town, set on their trek out West where Tommy and the Fireflies waited for them, Ellie spotted it. There was a big advertisement, faded and greying against the glass of a bus stop: Star Worlds Arcade.
We ain't got time for this, she'd been told, to which Ellie said she needed a fucking break from the grief-ridden silence or she might explode. Reluctantly, with more than one sigh of exasperation, Joel agreed.
It took longer than either of them would have liked to find the place. The sun set over their search and Joel had just begun to air his protests when she cried out, pointing dramatically in the direction of a faded yellow banner with chipped orange writing.
"Told ya!" she chirped, smug, and headed to the door. Didn't matter that it was getting dark and they were both dead tired from... well, everything; she'd been trying to find a working copy of Angel Knives' game. Even though she'd been unlucky so far, the arcades usually had some supplies in the back room, enough scavenging to keep Joel occupied while she tested out a few machines. Sometimes he'd even indulge her in a story about some of the games he'd played as a kid and she'd crack a joke or two about his age, still listening intently through the grin.
"Oh, man..."
This place in particular was a wreck. Machines leaned sideways on each other, screens crashed through, consoles in pieces. She stepped inside with her nose wrinkled, not put out by initial failure (not now, not ever). Ellie glanced back over her shoulder, shrugging lightly, and began to move through the store.
"If you see it--you know the one--lemme know." She glanced up and cracked a smile; the ceiling was littered with what seemed like stars, dots that were illuminated above them in faded florescence. Can't believe those things still have juice. How d'they work, anyway...?