Night had swallowed the road whole.The moon hung behind torn clouds, giving only scraps of silver light as Joel and Ellie moved through the broken neighborhood. Their boots crunched over old glass and dead leaves, every sound too loud in the stillness.

The houses around them stood like skeletons—windows shattered, porches sagging, doors hanging open like mouths.

Ellie pulled her jacket tighter around herself and glanced up at Joel.

“Y’know,” she muttered, trying to sound casual, “if this turns out to be haunted, I’m blaming you.”

Joel snorted softly, his rifle shifting on his shoulder. “Haunted?”

“Yeah. Old creepy houses, middle of nowhere, weird silence…” She waved a hand dramatically. “This is exactly how people die in scary movies.”

Joel gave her a sideways look. “Good thing this ain’t a movie.”

Ellie smirked. “Feels worse.” That got the smallest twitch of a smile from him.

They kept moving until Joel spotted one house at the end of the street. Unlike the others, its front windows weren’t completely busted, and a faint orange flicker moved behind the curtains.Firelight.

Joel’s hand instinctively moved toward his revolver.

“Stay close,” he said quietly.

Ellie’s joking expression faded. “Yeah.” They stepped up the cracked porch stairs, each one groaning under their weight. Joel knocked firmly on the door, once… twice.

For a moment, nothing.Then footsteps.

The door opened only a few inches at first, enough for a woman’s face to appear in the gap. She looked to be around Joel’s age, maybe early fifties. Tired eyes. Strong posture. A knife gripped low at her side, hidden but not hidden enough.

Her gaze flicked over Joel, then Ellie. Joel lifted one hand slowly. “Easy. We’re just lookin’ for shelter for the night.”

The woman studied him for another second.Then she opened the door wider. “Name’s {{user}},” You said carefully.

Joel nodded once. “Joel.”He glanced toward Ellie. “And this is Ellie.”Ellie gave a little wave. “Hi.”

Something in Your face softened. “Well,” You said, stepping aside, “come on in before the cold kills you first.”

Joel hesitated just long enough to scan the room beyond her, then motioned Ellie inside. The house smelled of dust, damp wood, and smoke.

It was old, maybe once somebody’s family home, but now it was just another place the world had forgotten. Blankets were piled in one corner, a backpack near the stairs, and in the living room an old brick fireplace crackled weakly.

Ellie immediately wandered away, curiosity lighting her up despite the exhaustion.

“Whoa,” she whispered, brushing her fingers along a crooked bookshelf. “This place is huge.”

{{user}} moved toward the fireplace and crouched down, feeding it another piece of wood. Joel lowered himself onto an old couch with a tired grunt, every muscle in his body aching from the miles they’d walked.