They were in another Quarantine Zone, climbing over busses and cars. Luckily they hadn't seen any Hunters, and barely any infected. It was a warm day, so Ellie found her mind and eyes wondering as she followed her friend, Joel.
They were looking for the Fireflies, and apparently weren't too far out of where their base could be.
While walking Ellie kept seeing bright bursts of colour. The first time was a limp tatty flag hanging from a window, showing yellow pink and light blue. She frowned at is as she walked, spying another further down from that apartment. This one was pink, white and light blue.
"Ellie, watch your step. Your head's in the clouds but there are cracks everywhere."
"Yeah don't worry, I'm good."
He turned back around, chuckling to himself. Ellie made a point of looking down, avoiding the fairly large gaps in the pavement.
Suddenly she wasn't looking at moss-covered grey tarmac but at moss-covered red tarmac.
She frowned, looking further along to see other colours; orange, yellow, green, blue and purple.
Glancing at Joel, making sure he wasn't watching, she jumped across the tarmac, one foot in each colour, with large dumb steps. She laughs to herself, almost tripping over on the last one, catching herself on the bin at the end of the street.
More colour caught her eye, she moved some deteriorating trash when she found it; a small pin with the same colours as the floor, on what looked to be a flag.
Finally, her curiosity reached a boiling point, and she couldn't contain it anymore.
"Hey, Joel? What's with all the rainbows and flags?"
Joel turned, clocking the rainbow on the floor and the one in her hand. He rubbed the back of his head, hoping to god he got this bit right.
"Erm, it's a pride thing, for people who only like people who're the same gender as them. Men with men, women with women, anything in between an' all that."
"No way!" Ellie looked up, spying some more flags, "they had a day for that? That's so cool!"
Joel cleared his throat.
"Yeah, it was a day for many people to, erm, be themselves. Back before the outbreak some people still didn't 'get it' and were horrible to others for something as simple as who they love. 'least the outbreak made people stop getting angry about that."
Ellie looked at the pin, turning it over to see it still had the back on it.
"It's not normal to like someone of the same gender? Like… to kiss them?"
Alarm bells went off in Joel's head.
Don't fuck this up, don't fuck this up!
"No, I- I mean yes! It's good, it's normal. You can't change who you love, boy or girl or anything in between, or neither. Love is love, that's all that matters."
Ellie thought of Riley, how all the other girls she knew fawned over the boys, and how she only had eyes for her friend.
Maybe… maybe this is something I need to think about.
She told herself that, but she already knew. The immune girl looked up at the buildings, the flags still determinedly waving after all these years, and she nodded in determination.
She attached the pin to her bag, standing and shouldering it, giving Joel a smile as she walked past him. He spies the pin, nodding, feeling like he'd accomplished at least something good that day, and followed her.
Ellie is now sixteen and has been living in Jackson for almost two years. She's made a positive name for herself while there, old and young alike think she's a great helper and person.
Her two best friends, Dina and Jesse, are who she's closest to, and feels like she could tell them anything.
Which was why, when looking at her old bag pack, she felt like she'd been hit by a shard of ice when she spied the small pin.
I've never told them… fuck! I'm a bad friend.
Since she was young she'd done her research, finding several books in old stores, figuring out that she was what they'd call a 'lesbian'.
The flags interested her, all the colours and sexualities, it was beautiful. She'd never felt the need to divulge into it, though.
Until now, coming back from a workday with a girl she'd been getting strong feelings for, Kat.
I gotta tell them, they're my best friends!
She invited them to her home, serving food from her hunt earlier that day. Ellie was sitting on her couch, twiddling her thumbs until they arrived. They hugged, sat and ate, laughing and messing around like they normally do.
"So, Ellie, I hear you're spending a lot of time with Kat, hm?"
Jesse wiggled his eyebrows, Dina smacked his arm.
"Jesse! That is not at all subtle."
He shrugged, sipping his drink, and Ellie suffered a violent case of word vomit.
"I'm gay. I like girls- women. I like women, not men."
Jesse choked and Dina slapped his back.
"Phew, sorry."
Ellie's heart was racing, going incredibly faster when Dina grinned, giving her a cheeky wink.
"I figured you might be, no one can be that oblivious to all the guys flirting with her, but choke up at the slightest flirtatious girl."
She placed her hand on Ellie's knee, she determinedly fought off her blush, smacking Dina's hand away.
"Haha, fuck you."
Jesse took another sip.
"Sorry, it just caught me off guard when you said it. I'm happy you told us, though, must've been hard."
Ellie shrugged, and Dina slung her arm over her friend's shoulders.
"Well, there's the chance you'd hate me for it-"
"Nah, we're never gonna be like that. Hell, I like girls too! And boys, so-" she held up her fist for Ellie to bump, which she did after a dull look, "snap."
Ellie snorted and shrugged her arm off.
"As if you jumped on my coming out, snake."
Dina shrugged, offering a hand to the other girl.
"I never knew coming out was a thing until just now, but I'm sorry if you think that. I just wanted you to know you're not alone, you know?"
Despite herself, Ellie dropped the pout and took the offered hand.
"Thank you, least I know I got my two best friends by my side."
"And a future girlfriend in Kat, that girl never shuts up about you."
Ellie grinned as Jesse leant back in his chair, Dina remained quiet.
"No way, really? I ah, really like her, so that's good to know!"
Dina and Jesse shared a look before falling into a fit of laughter.
Ellie found out her old bag from the closet, taking her pin off of it, proudly wearing it on her jacket from that day onwards.
Joel's as the first to notice, when they were on horseback together, travelling through a lookout route.
"You found the pin again, huh?"
She twirled the small badge, smiling to herself.
"Yeah, I did."
Joel nodded, sitting a little straighter on his horse, knocking her gently with his elbow.
"Well, it looks mighty fine on you, kiddo. I like it."
Ellie grinned, pushing him back.
"Thanks, Joel."
"Anytime."