Ellie returned to an empty farmhouse, finding Dina and JJ gone. Picking up Joel's guitar, she recalled their final conversation on the porch where she offered to try forgiving him. Leaving the guitar behind, Ellie walked away into the unknown as the credits rolled on her emotional journey.
Ellie made her way back to the farmhouse, missing two fingers on her hand from the brutal fight with Abby when Abby bit her down by the ocean. She looked better physically, though far more worn than before.
Heading inside, I hoped to see Dina and the baby doing well, wishing for a peaceful ending after everything that had happened. But, the entire house felt empty, quiet, and pale after stepping through the front door.
I headed upstairs to check the second-floor rooms, but every area was completely clean and abandoned, making it obvious no one had lived there for a long time. In the room containing her paintings, I spotted two music cassettes resting on top of a guitar case.
Finding no one around, Ellie opened the case and pulled out the guitar. Sitting down, she began strumming the strings, showing she could still play despite her missing fingers, remaining silent the entire time.
As she played, a memory took hold, the very moment of Joel playing his guitar that had flashed in her mind during the beach fight with Abby. The memory went back to the night after the party where Ellie had lashed out at Joel for intervening during her argument with Seth.
Ellie walked up to him on the porch, and they opened with a brief, casual conversation about the coffee Joel was drinking and how he managed to trade for it.
Ellie told him she had the situation with Seth under control and asked him to stop lecturing Jesse about her, which Joel quietly accepted.
Joel then asked if Dina was her girlfriend, but Ellie brushed it off, saying it was just a single kiss that meant nothing. Sensing her true feelings, Joel noted he did not know Dina's mind, but she would be lucky to be with Ellie.
Frustrated by his persistent care, Ellie called him an asshole before bringing up the truth about the hospital in Salt Lake City. She stated that her life would have mattered had she died there, but Joel took that purpose away from her.
Joel looked at her and made his stance absolute, stating that if given a second chance at that moment, he would do it all over again because he could never let her die.
Ellie admitted she did not think she could ever truly forgive him for what he did, but she would like to try. Joel smiled softly hearing that.
Returning to the present, Ellie finished remembering the conversation. She set the guitar down against the window frame and picked up her backpack.
The camera stayed focused on the window, watching her figure walk away across the field, leaving the farmstead behind with no clear path forward.
Watching the end credits roll with the guitar soundtrack playing, I checked for a post-credits scene. Learning there was none, I returned to the main menu, noting the rogue-like survival mode available to try later.
We'll check what happens next in another post.
Image Source: In game screenshots.
End of the post.
Peace.