So I wrote this story way back in 2014 and I did publish it, but I took it down after only the first chapter. This is an Alternate Universe story (if you didn't read the summary) and in no way could every happen in real life, but whatever. The idea of Joel and Ellie going 'back in time' has been played around with before and I know has been kind of overused but, I hope you still stick around and give it a read. I have written the next 10 chapters and if people want it, I will provide.

It surrounded me. Ice cold water layered my body and engulfed me. I was pumping my legs back and forth trying to swim to the surface as the water whipped me down and through the river. My heart was in my throat and I tried to grip on to something, but my hands kept grasping on to water as I was pushed deeper into the rivers ground. Panic was starting to take over me and I breathed in by accident. Water filled my nose and my hands wrapped around my face and neck as I tried to cough it out. I was chocking and I couldn't see clearly. My body was dragged down the river like a piece of drift wood, and I started to pump my legs again. I felt my chest clench around my body and I could hear my heart beat in my ears. I couldn't breathe in. I couldn't breathe out. I needed help, I was going to die! Where was Joel? JOEL! I opened my eyes up to see the top of the river and saw his blurry body running trying to catch up with me, his hand dipping in the water to find mine every so often. My breath was caught in my throat and my muscles wouldn't move. Reach for him you idiot! But I couldn't. My head started ringing and blurs of black dots started to cover my vision. NO! No this can't be it! It can't be over! I could feel my heart pump loudly and my head felt like it was going to explode. My limbs were limp by my side and my eyes started to close slowly losing grip off sound. I need to fight, I thought. Don't go to the light! Don't go to the light! This can't be it! Joel help me! This can't be the en-

My eyes fluttered open and I kept them on the grey ceiling on top off me for a while. The sound of water filled my ears as my hearing started coming back to me and I was able to move my eyes back and forth. I was in a room. Wait, a nice room. I was lying on a bed with grey and white covers that were clean as a whistle. The room was light blue and had posters all on the walls of some shit I didn't know. There was a white dresser across from the bed and a white desk with a green chair next to me. Where the fuck am I? I got up from the bed my head still spinning from a headache. Oh fuck! I almost died falling into a river! Now where was I? I looked down my hair falling in front of my face and saw I was wearing blue shorts and a short sleeved shirt that had the letters ACDC on it.

I swung my feet over the bed and rubbed my eyes, squeezing them to get the pain out of my head. I went to the open window, which had white lace curtains draping over it and looked outside into the midnight air. My head peered out and caught the sight I thought I'd never see. Cars! So many of them driving down a street! Wait a second. The street had headlights over it and on the side there were stores with lights on and people coming in and out of it! My mouth was wide open and my hands covered it in shock. What the hell is going on here? I stumbled back from the window, away from the outside and my heel knocked into the frame of the bed with a loud clunk.

"FUCK!" I yelled and grabbed my foot, hopping up and down. Anger and confusion clouded in my chest and I headed for the door that lead out of the room. What the fuck is going on? Where is Joel? I opened the door to find myself in a hallway of a house. There was carpet under my feet and paintings on the wall. I looked around quietly for anyone, when a painting caught my eye. It was a family portrait of three people. I walked up to it and let my eyes settle on the painting, they were still having trouble adjusting to the light. I squinted and saw a little girl around 10 smiling back at me with short blonde hair and rosy cheeks. Next to her was a man, about 30 with dark black hair that covered half of his face just enough so you could see his smile and brown eyes. He looked too familiar. As I got closer to him my heart jumped in my throat. HOLY SHIT ITS JOEL! Way younger I must say, but still it's him! I scanned my eyes across the painting next to the girl to see a somewhat short teenager, wearing a black sweater and a slight smile, with her auburn bangs falling on top of her eyes. My stomach swirled around and my heart fell to the pit of it. It-it was me...

Oh god. Oh god, oh god, oh god! Just breathe Ellie, just breathe. This has to be a dream, but it's just too real. I think I'm going to throw up. Just as I bent down to catch my breath from the shock, a door creaked open behind me and I whipped my head around to see a little girl with blonde hair come out of the room rubbing her eyes, obviously just waking up from her slumber. It was the girl from the portrait.

"E-Ellie?" she croaked and walked hazily towards me. I backed up from her holding on to the wall for support.

"What do you want? W-where am I" I said to her and she scrunched her eyebrows together at me and squinted. How the hell did she know my name? I need to get out of here and find Joel.

"What the hell are you doing? Ugh, it's late" she said and tussled her hair. I brought myself up with the support of the wall and pushed my hair behind my ears with my shaking hands. She took a step closer to me and I instinctively backed up and put my hands in front of me.

"I think that's close enough. Now tell me. Who are you and what am I doing here?" I said and brought my hands to my sides and clenched my fists as she backed up a bit to my first sentence.

She crossed her arms in front of her and sneered, "I am your sister, dumbass, what kind of games are you playing, because I'm not in the mood." She gave an annoyed groan and looked at me with squinted eyes. Sister? This was too weird. She was being serious though.

"I-uh..." My voice was caught in my throat. I wanted to scream at her, I DON'T FUCKING KNOW YOU! and TELL ME WHERE I AM NOW! But, she stood there so innocently and still I decided not to jump on her, but I needed answers, now.

She put her arms down and started twisted her foot on the ground. "Look, dad's not home, and I was having a really bad nightmare. C-can I sleep with you?" she asked quietly and peered up at me with big blue eyes. Oh no. I don't even know this girl (well apparently were sisters, or some shit) and now she wants me to comfort her.

"Uh..." I stuttered and shuffled around her. I saw a door leading to a small room that had a toilet in it and looked back at her. "I uh... need to um... pee", and with that I made a b line around her and went straight for the bathroom closing the door behind me and locked it. I placed my hands over the sink and took a deep breath in.

"Okay Ellie" I said looking at my reflection in the mirror above the sink. "You're okay. You're just in some really strange place that you have no idea where it is, and there's some girl calling you your sister. When you get out of here, you're going to run down stairs and go to the nearest shop, and get answers. Yeah, you can do this. Totally fine." I smiled reassuringly at myself, and jumped when I heard the girl's small voice from outside the door.

"Are you okay?" her little voice peered through the door.

"Mhhm.." I practically yelled back and started hyperventilating. Okay, remember your plan. I turned the taps and water came out, surprisingly. I put my hands under and warm water and was instantly filled with pleasure, oh wow. I licked my lips and dried my hands on the towel. Get yourself together, I thought.

I unlocked the door and opened it slowly looking for the girl, but she wasn't there. She must have gone into the room I was in. I took this opportunity and started tip toing on the carpet towards the staircase. Going silently down it, my adrenaline started kicking in as I descended the staircase and ran to the front door past the living room, ignoring the girl calling my name behind me from the bedroom.

I reached for the door handle and just as I was about to open it, it swung open and there was a man standing before me. I jolted back away from the door as he stood there still clutching the door.

"Ellie?" a musky voice came from the man's body and relief instantly flooded inside me as I lunged towards him.

"Joel!" I exclaimed and barreled into him my arms wrapping around his waist, while he wrapped his around my neck. I felt tears burning at the bottoms of my eyes and squeezed them shut, letting them fall onto my cheeks. I couldn't stop crying from all the confusion and finally seeing Joel. He let go of me and brought me out of the house closing the door behind him. Now in the light of the street lamps, I could see him clearly. He looked so young, all his wrinkles and grey hair from stress and seasons were gone, and I was presented with a youthful Joel. I stood in shock staring at him.

"I-I don't understand what's going on" I said and he put his hands on my shoulders steading me.

"Look, there is something strange going on. I don't know how and I don't know why, but somehow we are back in my home town a year before the outbreak. At least that what the newspaper on my porch can tell me" he said and took a deep breath as I processed everything he was saying. This couldn't be true. Then what could explain what's going on? I took a shaky breath and shook my head.

"I just remember falling into the river, Joel I was dying, and then somehow I wake up here- No clue what's going on, and some little blonde girl keeps calling me her sister, and I find a family portrait with you and me and a girl in it, and now I'm here and I-I..." I was lost for words. I couldn't take it all in before I would start to feel sick again. He nodded his head and kept his eyes on my watery ones.

"It's okay, it's okay" he soothed me and let go of one of my shoulders. "Just calm down. It seems as if were in my house in Austin, Texas around September, 2012. I don't know how we got here, but let's just play it cool for now." He looked up from me and to his house and then suddenly his eyes shot back down on mine.

"Wait a second" he said quietly, "did you say there was a-a girl with you" he asked and pulled his eyebrows together, his face getting hard and serious.

"Y-yeah, she, um had short blonde hair and she knew my name, and I think she called you dad..." and then it hit me. Oh my god. It was Joel's dead daughter. Sarah. I used my hand to cover my gawking mouth and he started to pant heavenly staring at me intently. He drew his hands (which were shaking madly), up to my shoulders again.

"Okay, it seems as if somehow, you, are now my daughter." I opened my mouth to say something in disbelief but he shushed me up. "For now, I need you to pretend to be my daughter around S-Sarah... okay? No one else seems to be in the same situation as we are, so until I figure something out, I now go by the name as dad" he said and never left his eyes from mine. I drew in a heavy breath and nodded my head slowly, anxiety running through my veins.

He opened the door and walked in slowly, until I heard him running up the stairs. I walked in and closed the door behind me looking at, what now, is my new home and my new life.