Joel is trying to find his way back to the Earth sector.

It's the only place he, so far, only tentatively knows; but the directions the guy who'd brought him into the city had given him don't make a lick of sense when he's caught in the busy, disorienting throng of crowds and noise and discomfiting hubbub. He's been searching for Ellie for what seems like hours and now - now, he's just so damn tired that he needs to head to somewhere where he can get the hell away from everything happening around him, collect his thoughts, clear his head, try to shake off the hyper-vigilance searing through every nerve-ending and putting him right on edge.

Just as he's pushing his way through another bottleneck of people, hands balled into tight, nervous fists, he lets out a grunt as someone bumps hard into him. He swings around to the person, ready to fight back - and finds himself staring down at a kid.

Well. At least the damn kid recognises he weren't watching where he was going.

"You alright?" he asks, gruff and curt.