Jesus, man. Did I really just write a L4D2 fanfic? And it really Nellis? And am I seriously thinkin' about writing another one? Holy crap... iSpazzeh is gonna kill me!

So, yeah... Not exactly the best at writin' L4D2 fanfiction yet, so... This is gonna suck. I think Nick's a little OOC, and Ellis is too... think-y? I didn't know he could, but... Eh. Whatever.

Well, yeah. Enjoy 3

Disclaimer: In my eyes, it is not a glitch that Ellis won't talk after Nick dies. I do believe it is true love. But, Valve owns the game, so it's a "glitch". I think people of fandom disagree?

Hope

"Hey Nick? What's hope?"

The ex-gambler looked over with a face that told of confusion, his hand pausing from cleaning his gun as he stared at the younger man next to him with his green eyes. "What?"

"What does it mean? I mean, Ro's been tellin' us for months to just keep hope, but I dunno what she means…" The mechanic shifted his weight against the wall, bringing his knees close enough to rest his arms on them, staring at the ceiling rather than his companion, blue eyes clouded over with thought.

Nick looked to his gun- now shining- and shrugged. "I don't know either, Overalls. I've never really had 'hope' in much of anything."

"Nothin' ever?"

The older man smirked at the mechanic's Southern accent straight from Georgia. "No, Ellis. Nothing ever."

Ellis frowned at the brunette for a moment before fixing his cap to shield his eyes. "Gosh, that sounds terrible…" he said softly, eyes trying to focus on anything beside the person next to him.

"What about you? What's hope to you?"

The twenty-three year old blinked at the question, then smiled. "Well, I think it's kinda like that thing you've always got, even if everythin' seems to be crashin' down, ya know? Ro believes in it to stay strong for us, and Coach makes it by because he needs to show us how to get home. I think I believe in it because I just wanna get through this. It's prolly what keeps us together, Nick."

The gambler sighed, and then leaned back against the wall as Ellis was, staring at the ceiling, silently counting the dots on the tiles. He had gotten to about ten before he opened his mouth again. "Hope's the one thing I can't ever believe in because when I needed it the most, I just couldn't find it."

Silence settled over them, and Ellis couldn't find anything to say relating to the subject. "Did I ever tell ya about the day my buddy Keith died?"

Nick looked over at Ellis through the corner of his eye. "No…"

"He was a great friend, Keith was, and the day they were evacuatin' the city, we decided we were gonna be stupid brave and try to zombie proof a truck. Y'all heard that story at the mall, right?" He stopped long enough to check for Nick's nod, and then continued. "Well, when the one percent that wasn't zombie proof broke, Keith risked his life to save me… I couldn't get the damn gun to work, and those zombies just kept comin' and comin'. Keith told me it'd be okay, that we'd get out alive, but… Only one walked away alive."

"I don't get why you keep telling all those stories about him, then."

Ellis smiled, looking over at Nick. "'Cause even though he's dead, he's still my very best buddy, Nick!" His smile faltered a little, then he turned his attention back to the ceiling. He could hear the infected roaming around outside the safe house and Coach's awfully loud snores from the other room, but the only thing that really made sense was the sound of his heartbeat. "I know that ain't got to do with anything, really, but it does, in a way…"

"How?" Nick's sarcastic attitude was returning, somehow knowing it had been repressed for a few moments.

Ellis titled the hat down again. "What about love, Nick?"

The conman gaped at the redneck for a moment before regaining his cool. "That's a word I definetly don't know."

"I figured not, and don't take no offense, okay? I'm just askin' 'cause… I think that I really liked Keith, and somehow, I don't think it was just 'best buddies' like either, ya know? It might sound weird, but maybe I was in love with Keith?" Ellis stopped to glance at Nick, but found him to be nearly stone cold unreadable. "But, I dunno, because I think I've fallen in love again."

"With a Witch? Or a Hunter?" Nick was laughing, making Ellis shove him way with a blush on his cheeks.

"No man, that's just wrong. I mean, I think I love with someone in our group…"

The conman's green eyes widened. "Rochelle?"

"Nah man, she's like my sister or somethin'." Ellis frowned. "And it ain't Coach either."

"But that leaves me, Ellis…"

Ellis smiled, a little embarrassed, and rubbed the back of his head. "I know…"

"Ellis, you-"

"Yeah, so I know I'm kinda stupid. We haven't even known each other very long and I'm already startin' to say 'I love you' and stuff, but… I feel the same way now as I did when I was around Keith."

Nick scooted closer to Ellis without the younger man knowing. "Enlighten me."

"Well… My stomach's getting all those butterflies and stuff, and my heart's goin' real fast like, my cheeks are real red and I can't see straight…" Ellis blinked. "And when I was around Keith, that's how I felt…"

The conman cleared his throat making the mechanic look up. "While love might be a word I don't know, I think I could learn it, because, Ellis… I…" He stopped, rubbing the back of his neck. "I guess I love you, too…"

Ellis' face exploded red, and he then noticed how close they were. He went to move away, but Nick wrapped an arm around his shoulders and kept him close, letting the kid's head fall on his shoulder. "It's kind of weird how I never felt this way for my ex-wife, yet, here I am, supposed to be fighting zombies and shit, and I fall in love with a stupid redneck mechanic."

The mechanic smiled, closing his blue eyes slowly as he moved his hand up to fix his hat. "Shucks, Nick. You're getting' me all flustered and shit…" He looked at Nick with a even wider smile, then rested his hand in his, squeezing a little. "But I don't mind none."

"Good, because even if you did, I was still going to do this."

"Do what-"

Ellis wasn't even able to finish his sentence before Nick's lips were on his, just settling on his mouth, and Ellis slipped his eyes closed, putting his arms around Nick's neck. The gambler parted, nearly laughing at Ellis' softened face and even more when the redneck blushed and squeaked a little. "God, you looked hilarious!"

"Shut up! I ain't never kissed no one before!" Ellis yelled, making Nick's eyes widen.

"You haven't?" the conman asked carefully, watching as the mechanic settled back up against the wall, leaning his head on Nick's shoulder.

He nodded once. "Well, yeah. I ain't never had a girlfriend, so I ain't never kissed no one… Well, 'cept my ma, but does she really count?" He looked up at Nick, smiling when he shook his head. "Then that's that. You were my first kiss!"

"At twenty three…" Nick chuckled.

"Age don't matter. I ain't ever been in love, either. Not until Keith."

"Yeah, yeah. You should get some sleep. We're going down to New Orleans tomorrow. We don't need you passing out on the way there."

Ellis smiled, kissing Nick's cheek softly. "'Kay. Night Nick. Love ya."

As the redneck laid down and settled into a comfortable silence next to Nick, and it seemed his breathing evened out a little, Nick ran a hand through the kid's hair and smiled. "Night Overalls. Love you too."