Fandom The Day The World Changed { The Last of Us 1x1 with icedthemoon }

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Josh saw the tears on Hayden's face, heard his broken words. His own body trembled as he read the messages. They couldn't stay here, their apartment door was broken and he had no way to fix it. He heard the words, and was moving. He stepped around the bodies and to the couch and grabbed Hayden's phone. He swallowed hard as he looked at the bodies and then at Hayden heaving out on the floor. He dropped to the other side of his fiancé and rubbed his back. "I've got your phone baby, but we need to get moving. If you can't stand, I'll pick you up. But we have to go, our door is busted so much, I can't board it up like they want us to." Josh said, grabbing his phone and calling his mom.

"Josh!? Oh thank god, are you and Hayden okay?" He heard his mom ask. "We are, but our apartment isn't safe, can we hunker with you and dad? Are you two okay?" Josh asked as he heard his mother. "We're fine, you can come over, quickly." Claire told him. She and Lucas were fine for now. They lived in a house in the suburban side of Seattle with less people.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

The sudden feeling of something touching him made him flinch away, casting eyes up that were wide and wet and full of a fear he didn’t know he would ever experience. His breath slowly came back as he realized that it was just Josh. Josh who held a phone in his hand. Who was talking… talking to… His mom? His mom. Going to his mom. But what about Hayden’s mom? Were they okay? Were- The loud sounds of the blaring sirens racing down the street cut off his thoughts, and he shoved hands over his ears. They weren’t normally as loud, but it felt like there were less barriers now. Barriers like doors that broke down from the beating of neighbors who were more like animals than people. Animals who were so angry and violent. Violent like…

He nodded. He could move. He could stand up. Hunker. They had to go hunker, because the door was broken, and they couldn’t board it up like they wanted. They? Who were they? He pushed himself up, and when he realized quickly that he was going to fall again, he grabbed at the table near the door and used it to as leverage to get up the rest of the way. Broken door, sirens, body pile, bat covered in sticky blood that was compacting and congealing and-

“Josh?” He choked out the name, the plea, as his entire body felt like it was going to give in. “What is going on? Why-“ His head snapped towards the door at the sound of heavy footfalls crashing towards them to be interrupted by a loud bang and the movement to stop. There was yelling. Yelling like, “Let’s go!” And “Move, move, move!” A head poked in from the doorway, and Hayden jumped back, barely staying up. A man looked down at the pile and then towards them. He was one of their neighbors who was part of the army or some sort of military. Hayden never really paid attention. He was armed, and Hayden was pretty sure that was just his own weapon. He always wondered how a military guy wound up in small apartments like these, but he didn’t really have time to think about that now. His name was Soren. “You guys okay? We gotta move. We’ve got a team coming real fast to deal with some of this but I don’t know how fast that really is.”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Josh heard sirens echoing through the apartment as he hung up his phone. He noticed Hayden shoving his hands over his ears and he sighed, as he stood up. He had seen the fear in Hayden's eyes and it broke his heart. He hated this, and then he went to right him but Hayden caught himself on the table near the door. "Hayden.. I don't know." He replied, before he heard heavy foot falls, and yells. He looked at the door to seen Soren. A military man that Josh had always admired. He saw the weapon in his hand and looked at Hayden. "We're fine! But, Soren. What's going on?? What happened?" He asked as he led the way towards the man. He wanted to protect Hayden, protect his family and the rest of the people. "What can I do to help you? I just need to get Hayden safe first."​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

“Brother, do I wish I knew.” He held up a hand, listening, and then leaned back out of the doorway, shot something once- twice, and then leaned back in. “But I’ve heard some crazy stuff. You got a weapon?” He eyed the bat in Josh’s hand and then surveyed the body pile. “That’s good enough for now. If we can make it past my apartment on the way out without it causing too much trouble, we can grab my spare gun.” He peered out again before looked towards them. “You good with a firearm?” Soren knew a little about Josh and Hayden, and he always thought Josh had potential to be one of those great soldiers in another life. Honestly, he could have done it in this life. He had the passion and the drive. Soren would have loved someone like that on his team. He didn’t know much about Hayden other than he was too soft for that probably. He could have been wrong, but the look on that scared face certainly did not make him believe that he was.

Door, bodies, sirens, bang, shot, firearm. Everything was spinning, and he couldn’t keep any of it straight. Which way was up and which was down? The seams between one direction and the next were blurred as Hayden tried to walk, because they needed to walk, right? They needed to move, because the door was broken, and they (Soren?) wanted them to board it up, but neighbors like Chase and Ken were angry animals who wanted to hurt people. Hurt like bat against head against floor against them. Against people. People against people. People. More screaming from somewhere else. There was so much screaming. He grabbed Hayden’s hand and closed his eyes. Close your eyes love. He could close his eyes. And walk. He could walk because they had to go- He tripped over something that moved and squelched. An arm. He tripped over an arm. Soren reached out and grabbed onto Hayden before he made it too far down. “Okay, great. So we have to get you somewhere that isn’t here.“ He jerked his head to the side. “You ready for the journey of your life?”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Josh sighed and shook his head, not even Soren knew. "I've got this bat, but I'm pretty good with guns." Josh said. He and his dad used to go to the shooting range when he was a teen, but he never got a gun of his own. He should've though. He felt the squeeze to his hand and walked with Hayden, seeing Soren grab onto him when he tripped. Josh stayed close to Hayden and looked up at Soren. "My parents said that their house is safe, it's on the edge of town, the southwest side." Joshua told Soren, reconsidering his choice of not being in the military. He wanted to keep everyone safe, and the moment he had a chance to do that, he would. He'd jump on it. Anything to keep Hayden and the others safe. "Let's get moving."​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Soren led the way out of the apartment, gun pointing out in front of them as they moved. “Bat’s better than nothing if it’s as bad over there as it sounds.” As they moved forward, Hayden keeping one hand over an ear, Soren started explaining what very little he knew. “I got some buddies telling me that it’s really ugly all over. People are losing their minds, attacking people. They’re acting like they’re infected with something is what one of my men told me. Lots of theories floating around. We’ve got troops flocking in to the city, but brother, it’s all over.” He looked back at Josh and shook his head. “Like everywhere. I’m talking all over not just the country but the world.”

“Everywhere?” Hayden asked, voice little as he clung to Josh. Josh may have been in his element, doing what he needed to do to save his people, but this was not Hayden’s. He was not built for this. He was not built for the violence and the horrors. He was not built for the sounds that crashed around them. Sounds of more sirens, honking, what he could only assume were crashes, screaming, wailing. In front of them, a girl- a little girl- ran forward, crashing into a wall before snapping her head towards them and sprinting that way. Hayden’s eyes went wide, breath coming too rapid as his heart pounded. What were they supposed to do? She was covered in blood, and the closer she got, the more detail he could see of the veins on her face. It looked like something had taken a giant bite out of her cheek. She was so young and so- he jumped, and she fell, writhing on the ground before she stopped moving. Soren kept walking over the body of a small girl he just shot. “Everywhere. And everyone.”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Josh's eyes widened as he listened to Soren, shaking his head as he heard the sirens around, crashing, the screaming. So much screaming. "Infected? What are they doing to help us? What can we do to protect the city? Humanity is over?" Josh was calmer than he thought he should be, but he wasn't being calm for himself, no. He was being calm for Hayden, knowing how soft he was. He heard that little voice, and felt him clinging to his side. He saw the little girl rushing towards them, seeing her veins on her face and the bite taken out of her cheek. He didn't even jump at the sound of the shot, and just held Hayden closer as they walked past the small girl. "Everyone? No. Have you heard about the hospitals?" His voice grew nervous as he thought about Jacob and Logan. They both worked for the hospital. They might not.. they.. no. Josh swallowed hard as they moved forward.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Soren moved them forward, a watchful eye everywhere. “I don’t know about humanity before over, but it’s certainly something. I don’t understand exactly where this is coming from. I’m only getting intel via the texts and phone calls the boys send me when they can. They’ve summoned me back to base, but they clearly haven’t noticed how very much I can’t just jump in my truck and get there.” He sighed. “You see the parking lot? It’s gonna be real hard for us to get to your parents.” When they reached the view of the parking lot, it was swarming with running people both screaming like they lost it and screaming like they were running from something. Everything was chaos.

Hayden stopped, shaking his head. “We can’t go there. We can’t or they’ll-“ attack us. Hurt us. Kill us. Screaming, running, crouching, hunting. They were hunting. He could see them move. He could see what they were thinking. But it wasn’t a hunt for food. That wasn’t the same. This wasn’t what it should be. It wasn’t how it should be. “The twins.” He remembered them in that moment, jumping back to the hospital. “The hospitals?” He repeated. Soren hugged. “Swarmed. I don’t know much more than that. We need to get somewhere else first or we’ll end up in there. If we’re lucky.”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Josh looked at Soren and then at Hayden, with a rough sigh coming out. "Back to base? What about us here? What do we do?" Josh asked, concern in his voice as he held onto Hayden. His heart stopped as he saw the parking lot, seeing the people running, some being chased and others chasing. Screaming echoed in the air as he felt Hayden stop. "Is there a way around this? Or do we have to go through?" He asked, before his attention was brought back to the hospitals. "Swarmed.. Jacob. Logan." He said softly. He had to think that they were safe, they had to be. Hopefully. Josh couldn't think about anything right now, he was too concerned with getting Hayden to safety. Then he'd find out more about what was going to happen, and what he could do for his city.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

A man ran like a puppet still moving with frequently cut strings. His limbs flailed, and his legs crashed into each other and the cars next to him. He banged hard into the side of a little red vehicle, twisting around violently, and though that should have made him too dizzy and out of sorts to keep moving, he pulled his body back up and kept running as full and fast as he could after another man who was not fast enough to get away. The man from behind grabbed the one running and yanked at his arm, tearing at something before pulling him to the ground. They fell. Both of them. And then the one that was wrong was on top of the other. Tearing him. Biting him. Eating him.

Hayden could not stop watching. That was just one of many instances. One of many such attacks. If he turned to the left, there was another. To the right, another two. These people who were… troubled were winning. Well, mostly. Some other people also brought out their various weapons and were walloping on them too. But it never seemed to be enough. Soren was talking again. “If you are wanting to get anywhere fast, I think the truck’s probably our best bet.” Hayden was shaking his head. “No,” he was saying quietly while Soren was talking potential strategies on how to get around this. Talking about civilians getting to safety and then military working to contain the situation. “No,” Hayden repeated, “no no,” his voice getting a little louder and higher as he spoke. The panic was breaking through. He pulled at Josh’s sleeve. “No, we can’t go there. We can’t go- go-“ anywhere? Because when he looked across the street it was just as bad. And the streets themselves were already full of cars. How were they supposed to get anywhere? How was he supposed to do anything? Was he supposed to have a weapon? Were his hands supposed to be holding something that was going to kill his neighbors? Like a bat or a gun or or or or-
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Josh was looking at Soren, as he held Hayden close. The military was working to contain the situation, and get civilians to safety. He was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard Hayden, heard that higher voice and he looked at him, feeling the tug on his sleeve. “We have to baby, we have no choice. Soren, I’m trusting you to get us to that truck.” Josh said, and he picked up Hayden in his arms. “We’re going to get somewhere safe then we’ll find your parents, find the twins and Kyra. They’ll all be okay.” Josh told him, the arm around his back cupping the back of Hayden’s head and bringing him into his chest.

“Just don’t look, we’ll get through this.” He said before he turned to Soren. “After you.” He said, ready to follow the man through the screaming, screeching and animalistic mess of a parking lot in front of them. Josh couldn’t believe what was happening, and seeing these people eating.. eating others. He was still unsure of what happened, but he knew that the world had changed.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

No no no no they couldn’t go can’t go too much too dangerous too close no no “No no no,” no no “Can’t,” shouldn’t “No” no no. Hayden squirmed in Josh’s arms, and not because he was a grown man who could walk himself and he was too embarrassed or macho or whatever to be carried around. Josh’s touch was both comforting and foreign all at the same time, and Hayden could not comprehend the meaning of it. He was so uncomfortable and on edge, that it felt like if he could rid himself of at least one stimulus, everything would be easier. But Josh’s arms were so tight around him, and he wanted to melt into them without sight or sound or smell. The smell. Acrid wafts swirled around his head and crept into his nostrils and bled into his throat. He buried his face into Josh’s shoulder neck arm, holding his eyes closed tight. If only he could hold his ears closed too. As they moved through the parking lot, Soren lead them quickly with the hopes that these people would be too easy with the consumption. In the darkness of the cell of his own creation, Hayden could still hear. Foot falls, airplanes too close, heavy breathing, slamming breaks, yells from somewhere further away, a loud bang like a shot, another and- another, quicker movements, a strong curse from a frustrated military man before the sound of something heavy being shoved into something else, the screech of something inhuman. Blood. That kind of smell of blood meant there was so much. “Move move! Ugh, we gotta move real fast. I’m running out of bullets! Trucks unlocked!"
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

“I’ve got you Hayden. I’ve got you. I’m right here.” Josh repeated, over and over. Holding him close to his chest, even when he squirmed. Josh breathed as slowly as he could, trying to not smell the odors around them. He kept his eyes on Soren and the truck. He tightened his grip on Hayden when he felt him bury his face into his neck, shoulder and arms. “I’m here.” Josh’s voice was soft and soothing. He looked up and saw the truck up ahead, watched Soren and he nodded as he heard that. Josh used his hand under Hayden’s knees to pull the door open. He managed to get Hayden inside when something grabbed at his arm. Josh wrenched his arm up, and twisted his body at the same time, the person’s hold broke and he scrambled for something. Anything. He settled for his foot, kicking the person in the chest and then slammed his foot in their head. They stopped moving and Josh was able to get in the truck, shutting the door.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

The chaotic movements of thrashing and opening and kicking broke through his hardened wall, and Hayden’s eyes flew open for the first time in the longest minutes of his entire life. He scrambled away from Josh, away from the person who was trying to keep them from fleeing, and rammed hard against the other door on the other side. He slid down, shoulder already forming a bruise he couldn’t see, He pulled his limbs together, huddled into as small a ball as he could make, and tried not to look out the window as Soren slammed the door to the driver’s seat shut and the engine roared to life. “This is gonna be a bumpy ride, fellas,” Soren warned as he peeled away from his parking spot, knocking into who knows what as he moved. “Oh f-“ he cut off with a groan and smacked a hand into the window. He tossed his gun to Josh as he pressed the gas so hard that it jerked them forward. “They get too close, you get rid of ‘em.” As he swerved dangerously around cars and sped out into a quickly growing busy street, he dug into a pocket and threw three additional bullets. “That’s it, I’m afraid. Now, how are we getting to your parents’?”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Josh saw Hayden scramble away as he’d been grabbed. His eyes were pained as he saw him in that small ball. Comfort could come later unfortunately, he had to get him safe first. He grabbed the gun from Soren with a nod, although he only had a few bullets including the three he was given. “They’re out in the suburbs near Westlake bank. I’m not sure but I believe we go straight here, then when we get near the Serevena, it’s out there.” Josh explained, shooting at a person who tried to get on the truck. One shot to the head and down. He’d keep the people away as Soren drove.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Soren moved that truck as fast as he could make it and around as many other cars and people as he could. At some point, avoiding the people who were swarming in the hopes of potentially eating them was not so much an option, and the answer was to run them down. Hayden’s response to this was to throw up again. Not that there was much left in his stomach. It hurt more that there was nothing left to let go of than it would had he actually eaten the night before. A phone rang in Josh’s possession. Hayden’s. The Legend of Zelda theme ran through the truck. Kyra was calling. Hayden sat up and dug through Josh’s being, fumbling with his trembling hands until finally he could answer the phone. Her voice was loud and shrill as they tore down the streets. “W-we’re coming,” was all he could manage before she was going on and on about exactly the same kind of experiences that they just witnessed. “Josh’s p-parents.” Her voice cut through again, and there were so many words that he couldn’t understand. “Hayden, listen to me.” He was trying. He was trying to listen. “Hayden are you listening to me? Did you hear what I said? Dad’s dead.” He dropped the phone and it skidded on the floor of the truck, sliding away from him as Soren jerked the car around what looked like a horde of people rushing to them.
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

So many people were on the streets, some running after others and some already dead. Joshua looked at Hayden, seeing him throwing up again. Josh didn’t know what he could do to help, was there anything he could do? Not really. He just worked to keep them away, as he heard Hayden’s phone ringing. He glanced down when he felt Hayden searching for his phone and he looked back to see him trying to listen. He saw the phone drop as Soren drove around a horde of people.. Josh’s eyes were wide and he almost missed the shot when someone came close. He looked around and saw the Serevena hotel up ahead. “Take a left up here and it’s a short drive past the bank.”​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Dead. dead. Dead dead ^dead dead DEAD _dead dead dead. _{if you say a word long enough, it stops possessing any meaning.} just letters and syllables and sounds all mashed together like graham crackers that got soggy in the tectonic plate experiment. dripping dripping drop d e a d like a cat on the side of the road with haunches up by his face like he fell over not at all like he’s d e a d.

“It’s gonna be a tight left turn,” Soren warned as he whipped the truck around several other cars that were now parked in the street from where their drivers had abandoned them. He swerved through more of these crazy people and booked it down the street, racing by the bank. “Which one am I looking for?” He ignored the people on the streets begging for him to stop. For him to help. There was nothing they could do for them.
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Josh looked at Hayden, something was wrong. He looked up ahead as Soren took that tight turn. “It’s the blue house up there with the black roofing. About three houses up on the right.” Josh said, pointing it out. He could see his dad’s truck in the driveway, but his mom’s was missing. Where was she? No. She must’ve tried to get the twins. Jacob usually drove them both in but his car had been in the shop. So Claire must’ve decided to pick them up. Which means she was at the hospital too. “Hayden, honey. We’re almost at my parents house.” He said, not sure if he’d hear him. Josh needed to figure out what happened but he didn’t know where to start. “Just pull up and I’ll grab Hayden and we’ll be fine. Thank you Soren and if there’s anything you need from me, anyway I can help, please let me know.”​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

They were moving far too fast down this road for anything good, but they had places to be. Soren pulled up at the house and turned to Josh before eying. That was going to be rough for him. “Alright, you get him out, and I am going to pull out that fancy work phone thing they let us keep for emergencies. I would call this an emergency.” He jumped out of the truck and swung around to the back, pulling open the bed and swinging one of the storage bins to him. He rifled through it, pulling out a phone and another gun. How much ammo did it have? Hardly any but that would have to be good enough for now. He pulled the phone to his ear.

When the truck stopped, Hayden didn’t actually notice. The movements were so chaotic that he stopped feeling them. Words and screams and explosions were all the same as they riddled his ears. They meant nothing. Nothing and everything. Dad’s dead. He blinked until it occurred to him that everything had stopped moving around him, and the world was as it should be for just a moment. Dead. He scrambled to the door, fumbling with handles and knobs, ignoring the limbs of the other person with him, until he opened and he tumbled down, crashing down on the ground hard. Body pile on the floor but this time with three instead of two. Four. Five. Six. How many fell in front of him. How many fell behind?
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

As the truck came to a stop, Josh got out and went to go to Hayden’s side right as he heard the sound of him hitting the ground. “Hayden! Honey?” Josh was at his side instantly. He picked him up and in his arms. Lucas had come outside, gun in hand and breathed a sigh of relief. “Let’s get him inside, he doesn’t look so good.” Josh’s dad said as he led the way inside. Josh would take Hayden in and up to the spare room that had been his. He needed to get Hayden alone and in a quiet space to talk to him.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

The world was wide like water and wind, but the bubble was bending and breaking, losing its buoyancy from the boils. Sounds touched ears but bounced somewhere else. A hardness captured his body, and everything spun and spun as though he were in a seasick teacup. Dad? A different dad. One who could have been a dad, enough of a father, stood so close. Hayden thought about touching him, but he was gone. Forward and turn and up and turn and down. He wasn’t even crying anymore. When did he stop? When did he start? His whole face was slathered in tears that weren’t falling. Did he ever cry, or did he just leak? Kyra. Where did Kyra go? She was right there, wasn’t she? He could hear her words so close to his ear. Dad’s dead. Gone. Gone? “Where did he go?”
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Josh set Hayden down on the bed, sitting beside him. An arm over his shoulders and holding him close. Josh didn’t know what was happening, but he heard him. Where did who go? “Who? Baby who are you talking about?” Josh asked, not sure what was going on in Hayden’s mind. He turned so he could look at Hayden and put his hands on his cheeks, so he could look at him.​

 

[icedthemoon]

Hayden Gaines
Citizen of Seattle, WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

He was swimming through images distorted by tears and time and terror. His head felt like it was stuffed with the sickness that came with a cold or flu. His eyes tried to focus on Josh who was right there. Right there. Holding him. Who. “Dad.” Where did he go? “She said-“ said- “he’s-“ dead. Silent tears fell against his cheeks and onto fingers that held his head in place. “Where did he go?” he repeated, because the word wasn’t real, so something else had to take its place.
​

 

[EquineGurl23]

Joshua Smith
Citizen of Seattle WA | 24 | Current location ;; Washington State

Dad. Oh. Uh-oh. Josh froze, feeling the tears on his fingers. Tears he wiped off. “I.. He went to go see Daisy.” Josh told him, speaking of his old dog, one that he swore had a better relationship with Michael Gaines than she ever had with Lucas. They’d gotten Daisy for his dad years ago and she’d been gone a year already. “You know how close those two were.” He added, somehow understanding that what Hayden didn’t say, was that his father was dead.​