Some time later, Remi stood on a cliff with Clyde, Maeve, and Minow, staring out at the view ahead of them. Clyde was using binoculars as Minnow made a target by painting on a nearby catcus. Remi turned around worriedly when Joel wasn't behind them yet. She sighed with relief upon seeing him walk up the hill, but it was clear he was out of breath.

"That's a good, uh...Good little workout." He breathlessly spoke, siting down on the ground.

Remi chuckles. "You okay, Joel?" She asked, glancing at him worriedly.

He sends her a small smile. "Yeah, I'm good."

"So, the girl you're going to find..." Remi's voice trailed off as she spoke.

"Aimee." Joel informed her as he nodded.

"Right," She nods. "Aimee." She shrugs. "In my opinion it seems kinda dumb to travel across the monster infested land to find a girl that may or may not still have feelings for you." She didn't mean to sound a bit harsh when she said that, but her mind was telling her to keep a distance between the two of them. She didn't want to get too close to him and get hurt in the end. "But, hey," Remi shrugs. "You do you." She looked at the ground, biting her bottom lip nervously. She didn't know why, but she hoped Joel didn't get offended by what she said.

"What makes you think I'll get hurt?" Joel questioned, looking at her with an unsure look.

"People leave and people change. Especially in the world we live in now." She responded, a somber expression on her face. She felt Joel's eyes on her and she looked up to meet his eyes. "Don't take this the wrong way, Joel, but I've learned not to get too attached to anyone because people tend to leave without even saying goodbye." She looks away from him, looking at Boy instead. "So, if you're only traveling across the monster infested land, as I said before, to find this girl and she doesn't have feelings for you anymore then...It might not even be worth it and then you'll be hurt and-" Remi was rambling now, something she always does when she's nervous or anxious.

Joel grabs her hand, holding onto it and Remi stops talking, staring at him with a surprised look. She glances down at their intertwined hands and her heart fluttered in her chest. Joel speaks, looking her straight in the eyes, "Thank you for being honest, Remi. I promise to not get hurt and if I do then at least I tried, you know." He squeezes her hand and a small smile appears on her face. He smiles back and let's go of her hand. "But, I mean, how bad can she have changed?" Joel pondered out loud. "I'm not gonna lie and say I'm not scared that she'll turn me down, but I do have to try." He looked at the ground and Remi frowned a bit. She wanted him to be successful in finding Aimee and getting her to be his again, but she couldn't help the growing jealousy inside of her.

She didn't know why she felt jealous, she barely knew Joel and yet she couldn't deny that there was a spark between the two. Remi was afraid of the sparks, afraid of letting someone else in. Her parents died during a car crash, it was just her and her little sister, Sydney. But she hadn't been old enough to take care of Sydney by herself. Well, she could've but she was only 17 at the time and still in school. So she and Sydney had been sent to live with their aunt and uncle, but she basically raised herself and Sydney. Her aunt and uncle were barely ever home and if they did they didn't show that they cared about them at all. Remi and Sydney always felt alone. Then when the apocalypse began and the monsters took over, their aunt and uncle were killed. They hadn't felt that much remorse because their aunt and uncle weren't the greatest and they were glad they were dead. But it was just her and Sydney now. Remi couldn't afford to get distracted from her mission of keeping her and Sydney safe, she needed to focus on her little sister and that was it. And that's why she was on this mission to find her sister in the first place.

She wasn't going to let Joel get in the way of finding her sister and keeping her safe. Remi would not get close to him, no matter what. That's what she kept telling herself.

Joel gets up from the ground, dusting himself off. "So, why'd you leave your colony?" He inquired. "Why'd you leave your friends? Family? Why'd you leave all that behind?" Remi's gaze falls to the ground and Joel frowns. "Sorry," He apologized. "Was that personal? That was probably too personal." He was about to ask a question but Remi answers before he could ask.

"I wasn't really in a colony. Like I said before. It was me and Boy, trying to find Sydney. We got separated when the monster apocalypse happened and now I'm here, trying to find her." She shrugged and smiled sadly. "My parents died and my aunt and uncle weren't really the greatest people, so...There was no real family or friends." Remi shrugged, trying not to get emotional.

"You've been alone this entire time?" Joel looked at her with a surprised expression, his heart hurting for her. Remi nodded and he frowned. "I'm sorry, Remi. No one deserves that." She shrugs and smiles at him, trying to hide the pain and the sadness that she was feeling. But he could see right through her facade and he wanted to comfort her, but didn't want to overstep. "You have me now." Joel points at himself. "I won't let anything happen to you." He looks at Boy. "Or you."

Remi's heart was melting and her stomach was doing flip-flops. She could feel her resolve crumbling, her walls were coming down and she didn't know how to feel about it. She liked him and yet she was trying to avoid him, trying to build up the walls again. Remi was trying to stay focused on her mission and not be distracted by this boy. This boy who was sweet and funny, and was making her feel things she hasn't felt in a long time. Remi sighs. She was going to fail.

"Joel..." Her voice trails off as she tried to figure out what to say to him. She was about to tell him that she couldn't get distracted, but she didn't want to crush his heart. Because even though she hasn't known him for very long, she knew that he had a big heart and she didn't want to break it. Instead, she simply said, "Thank you." And she was sincere. He didn't know it, but he was making her feel less lonely. And she didn't want him to stop.

"Anytime." Joel responded, smiling softly at her. She smiled back at him and she hated how her heart fluttered at the smile he sent her. His smile was beautiful, bright, and it made her feel warm inside. Remi didn't like feeling this way, feeling all giddy and happy. It had been a while since she felt these feelings. But maybe, just maybe, she could let herself be distracted by Joel. Just for a little while at least.

"I still don't understand why you left a nice, safe colony to travel all the way to the ocean for a girl you ain't seen since you were, what, seventeen?" Clyde questioned as he looked out across the horizon with his binoculars, his voice filled with confusion. Remi noticed Boy had laid down by her and she smiled a little, kneeling down to rub his head. In response, his tail started to wag rapidly and Remi couldn't help the grin that appeared on her face. She loved her dog. She couldn't imagine life without him.

"No, I know what you're thinking. I know how it sounds. it's crazy. But...I don't know. If you knew our connection, you'd probably feel differently. We actually just got back in touch over the radio a few weeks ago. And it's still there. Its just magical. And so sweet. She loves me too so a 'pick up right where we left off' kind of thing. I don't know, it's just still there." Joel rambled, his cheeks turning pink and he smiled at the ground, his mind wandering to thoughts of Aimee. Remi's smile faltered a bit and her heart sank. There it was again. That jealousy. She didn't want to feel jealous, didn't want to get too invested in this boy. But it was already too late for that. She was already invested, whether she liked it or not.

"You ever hear the term 'fool's errand'?" Clyde inquired as Minnow handed Joel the crossbow.

"Alright, what, so I'm a fool because I believe in true love?" Joel questioned defensively while he stood up.

"No, you're a fool because you're out here alone, you don't know a thing about survival." Clyde started and Remi watched as Joel stood at a good amount of distance from the catus Minnow had made a target on with the lipstick. She raised her eyebrows, watching Joel shoot at the target and missing by a long shot. He was horrible at aiming and Remi couldn't help but chuckle a bit.

"Wind." Joel muttered, shaking his head.

"You shoot for s**t," Clyde continues, not believing it was the wind that caused him to miss. "Yet you got an attitude like you're some kind of noble warrior floating on the wings of love. Doesn't work like that."

"Okay." Joel mumbles, his face falling. "Super encouraging speech." He sarcastically spoke and Remi couldn't help the small giggle that left her lips. He glanced at her and he smiled a bit when he heard her giggle. It was cute and he was pretty sure that was the first time he heard her giggle since he met her. He had to admit, her giggle was one of the cutest things he has ever heard and his heart couldn't help but melt. When Minnow handed him the crossbow after she reloaded it, he aimed it at the target again and shot at it. This time it went past the cactus and he cursed, leaning his head back with an annoyed look.

"You're braining out." Minnow sighed, looking annoyed as well.

"Huh?" Joel looked at her with confusion, not understanding what she was talking about.

"Braining out. Thinking too much. I always clear my mind and say to myself, 'a needle through water'." Minnow confessed, glancing at him.

"A needle through water?" Joel repeated, now having a confused look on his face.

"Trust me. My dad was the best archer in my colony." Minnow replied.

"Oh, really? Okay. Then how come he's not the one over here giving me the lessons, huh?" Joel questioned, gesturing with a nod of his head to Clyde since he had assumed Clyde was her dad.

"'Cause I'm not her dad." Clyde replies and Remi had to admit she was surprised to hear that. She first assumed he was Minnow's dad when the two introduced themselves and she had a feeling Joel had thought the same. But she was happy Minnow wasn't alone. At least the girl had someone that could take care of her and teach her.

"Yeah," Minnow nods. "My dad got killed. Back when we lived in the subway station. Along with Elliot."

A confused look forms on Remi's face along with Joel as they both glance at Clyde. "Uh, who's Elliot?" Joel spoke, sounding confused.

"My son." Clyde replied. Remi frowned at the mention of his son, knowing what it was like to lose someone. Joel looked at him, his face filled with remorse.

"Oh, I'm sorry." Joel apologized.

"No need to be sorry. We all have stories like that. Don't we?" Clyde asked, glancing at Remi and Joel.

"Yeah." Remi replies in a soft tone. "We do." She glanced at Joel, who was looking at her. Their eyes locked and he sent her a small smile, which she returned.

Joel then aims the crossbow at the target, repeating what Minnow told him to say. "Needle through water." He murmurs twice before shooting at the target. He didn't miss it this time, but he still didn't hit it. This time the arrow hit one of the spikes of the cactus. "Hey, that was pretty close."

"It was better." Minnow nodded.

"It was really good, right?" Joel asks, sounding excited. Then he glances at Minnow when she didn't respond. "Right?"

"Tell you what, kid. You gonna hang with us, you need to know stuff." Clyde said to him. "Seems like Remi here already knows most of the things you don't." He looks at Remi with raised eyebrows. "Where'd you learn this stuff?" He inquired.

"Um, books." Remi admits. "Lots and lots of books." She chuckled with a small shrug. As she had traveled by herself (and with Boy) she managed to find some books along the way that were still partly in tact. 

"Smartypants, huh?" Clyde teased.

"Something like that." She shrugged, a small smile on her face.

Clyde then turns to face Joel. "First lesson."

"Yeah, hit me." Joel nodded, looking determined.

"Always survey from high ground when possible." Clyde said.

"Always." Minnow agreed.

"Always." Joel repeated as he nodded.

"Helps you spot the big ones in advance." Clyde added.

"It's nice to know that thing's not following us anymore." Joel admitted.

"No, no, no, it's definitely still following us. Just saw it." Clyde told him, earning a surprised look from Joel.

"What-"

"Yeah," Clyde interrupts him. "Chumbler." He said to Minnow.

"I knew it." Minnow mumbled.

"Big so of a b***h too." Clyde spoke.

"Big son of a b***h." Minnow agreed.

"Got your scent too, man." Clyde continues, looking at Joel. "It's gonna be hard to shake."

Joel's eyes widen. "Then why are we still standing here?"

"Relax. Chumblers aren't fast." Minnow reassures him and then glances at Clyde. "We gotta keep moving."

"Mm. Should've already been gone." Clyde agreed and followed Minnow as she started walking. Remi got up, causing Boy to get up as well and he followed her while Remi followed Clyde and Minnow.

"It's got my scent." Joel said worriedly.

"Oh, yeah it does." Clyde replied.

Joel rushes over to the edge of the cliff, his heart racing as heard growling and saw trees moving because of the monster. "Comin'?" Clyde called out.

"Yeah!" Joel quickly turned around and went after the others. Remi had stopped after a few moments when she noticed Joel hadn't followed them and she had glanced back at Joel to make sure he was okay. When she noticed that he was, she continued following Clyde and Minnow.

"Where you guys headed anyway?" Joel inquired.

"North." Clyde answered.

"To the mountains." Minnow chimed in.

"What's up there?" Joel questioned curiously.

"A, uh, place called Snow Mountain Wilderness. Supposed to be some kind of colony up there full of survivors. The cold and elevation help to keep the monsters away." Clyde explained as the four of them made their way pass the trees.

"You guys should definitely come with us." Minnow said.

"Well, I would, but you know-"

"You gotta go find your girlfriend, yeah, yeah." Minnow interrupted Joel and Remi was surprised to hear a bit of bitterness in the young girl's voice. Remi wondered if Minnow was upset with Joel for leaving.

"I would go with you guys too, but-"

"I know, you have to find your sister." Minnow mumbled. Remi had noticed the young girl seemed a bit hurt as she walked ahead of the group, climbing up the rocks to get to the upper part of the land.

Remi frowned a bit, understanding why Minnow was hurt. The young girl had lost her father and was probably scared of losing someone else.

"Minnow..." Joel starts, confused and a bit hurt when he saw the young girl's reaction. "If you knew her, you'd really like her. She's a super cool person."

"Well, she's not gonna like you 'cause you can't even get out of a Sandgobbler's nest." Minnow grumbles. "And honestly I just like you 'cause you have a friend who has a really cute dog." Remi chuckled a little, smiling softly.

"Hurts my feelings." Joel muttered.

"You're so useless." Minnow complained as she walked ahead of the group.

Remi decided to climb up the rocks to catch up to Minnow. "Hey," She called out, gaining the younger girl's attention. "You okay?" She questioned.

Minnow didn't answer her and instead continued walking. Remi's heart hurt for the girl and she understood how the young girl felt. After all, she had been in her position before. "You know, I was like you once." Remi began. "My parents died when I was younger and I didn't have any family. My uncle and aunt weren't great, so I didn't really have a home. I was alone, scared, and hurt. Then, when the monster apocalypse happened, I lost the one person that was the closest thing to a parent I had. It was just me and Boy." She gestured to the dog, who walked by Joel and Clyde, stopping when he reached the tree. Remi looked back at Minnow. "I know how you're feeling. You feel hurt and scared because you've already lost people. And you don't want to lose anyone else."

Minnow is quiet, breaking off a piece of tall grass she had picked up. She had been breaking the ones she picked up off as she walked, tossing them aside. She sighs. "He's so annoying." She mumbled.

"He's not that annoying." Remi said and when Minnow gave her a look, Remi laughs a bit. "Alright, he can be a little annoying sometimes." She admits and Minnow rolls her eyes, tossing another broken piece of grass. "But he's sweet."

"I guess." Minnow sighed, shaking her head.

Remi went to say something else, but she paused when something caught her attention. She saw something move of the corner of her eye and she froze, eyes wide at seeing a Chumbler across from her and Minnow and behind Joel and Clyde. Clyde had warned Joel not to move and he stood frozen, looking panicked. The Chumbler growled, the sound deep and threatening. Remi's heart was racing and her eyes were wide.

"Don't move." Clyde warned.

"Why?" Joel asked worriedly, his eyes wide.

"Give me your shirt." Clyde told him.

"My shirt? What do you mean?" Joel questioned, looking at him with confusion.

Minnow kneels down to try and hide herself within the tall grass and she tugged on Remi's wrist, trying to get her to do the same and Remi follows her lead. "Your shirt, man. Give me your shirt." Clyde said.

"Okay." Joel nodded but he didn't move, he was frozen in fear.

"Get-Hurr-Come on." Clyde spoke with frustration.

"Do what he says, Joel!" Minnow whispered.

"Give me your shirt." Clyde repeated.

"Shut up, I'm trying." Joel's hands are shaking as he took his jacket off along with his backpack.

"Easy, take it easy." Clyde reassures him. "That's it, that's it."

"Is it a Chumbler?" Joel whispered.

"No." Clyde replied. 

Remi watched with concern and her heart was racing as the Chumbler kept growling. Clyde managed to keep Joel as calm as he could and managed to get his shirt off as well. Remi had to admit, she couldn't help but admire how muscular he was, how his tan skin glistened in the sunlight. His hair was messy from taking his shirt off and she had to admit, he looked handsome. She shook her head, ignoring how her cheeks turned red and she forced herself to look away from him.

"Just stay very still." Clyde voiced, putting his hand on Joel's shoulder.

"Okay." Joel replied in a trembling and quiet tone.

"Okay, buddy." Clyde slowly walks towards the monster behind them. The monster looked like a huge snail, the shell being made out of rocks and mud, the body of the snail having a long and slimy body. The head of the snail had some kind of spikes or horns on it as well. "Easy does it." Clyde shushes the monster as he slowly walks over to the monster's shell, hiding the shirt in the rocks. "You're okay. It's okay." He says as the growling continues. Joel had turned around a bit, eyes wide when he saw the monster. He hadn't seen anything like it before and his heart was racing. "You're alright. Alright, okay, now. On your way."

Remi stands along with Minnow, both relieved as the monster slowly slithers away. "What you so scared for? Boulder Snails are nice." Minnow shrugged with a small smile.

"There can be nice ones?" Joel asked with disbelief.

"You can always tell in their eyes. Just look in their eyes." Minnow replied.

"This one probably saved our lives too." Clyde realized.

"Saved our-"

"Gonna spread your scent all over this hillside." Clyde interrupts Joel's breathy whisper, his eyes still wide and he still stood frozen. "Shoot. That old Chumbler ain't gonna know which way to go."

"So the Chumbler's gonna follow my shirt?" Joel asked.

"Thank you, Mr. Boulder Snail!" Minnow called out as she waved slightly and she smiled.

"Thank you!" Remi chimed in with a small smile.

"Thank you, Mr. Boulder Snail!" Clyde added.

"Thank you." Joel mumbled, still looking frightened and Remi didn't blame him. The Chumbler was terrifying, even if it did save their life.

"Yeah, they're very sensitive, you know. But they'll crush your a**...In a second." Clyde explained.

A/N i'm loving remi & joel so far, i hope you guys are as well !!