There's something so important to say about this scene and how it can be received from a lesbian perspective. Spoiler alert so don't read further if you haven't watched yet season 2 of "The Last of Us" and don't know anything from the game.
In episode 1 we can tell Ellie is crushing hard on Dina but we don't know what Dina's sexual orientation is, however in this scene, though in the next few episodes the show will try to make us doubt what we saw, what Dina says is clearly something a straight woman wouldn't say. Yes there's the kiss. That could have been done by a high straight woman trying to play with the feelings of a lesbian though, her tenderness towards Ellie with her gestures and especially her words is what make us know as viewers that she does have feelings back for Ellie. The fact that she smoke weed that night didn't change much of her love for Ellie, it was genuine even then.
Ellie (looking around while dancing closely with Dina) : "Every guy in this room is staring at you right now" - Here we see Ellie subtly flirting with Dina by complimenting her, basically saying all men are looking at her because she's very attractive. She's positioning herself as "other", not in the picture, sitting with her perception that Dina must be straight and mourning that.
Dina (barely looking around, getting closer to Ellie) : "Maybe they're staring at you" - Dina focuses on Ellie, whispering in her ear, trying to reassuring her. Ellie thinks she does that in an attempt to tell her these men think she's attractive too.
Ellie (looking around, still stiff) : "They're not" - She knows that men aren't looking at her the way they look at Dina. Not that she cares about men's feelings toward her but she feels sad because she thinks Dina sees the flirty compliment as a sort of straight woman hyping up her girl best friend compliment, thus comforting her idea that Dina is not on the same wavelength as she is, not reciprocating.
Dina (her mouth nearly touching Ellie's ear): "Maybe they're jealous of you" - She's now making it clear what she thinks, putting Ellie right back into the picture. She knows she is attractive but she's implying she doesn't really care about her effect on men right now, saying that Ellie is the centre of their attention because contrary to them Ellie is the one who's dancing with her.
Ellie (looking surprised but at this point only looking at Dina) : "No reason to be ... I'm not a threat" - She now knows Dina is not talking about looks but rather their proximity but she feels less than them, less than the men when it comes to Dina, an insecurity caused by living in a straight-dominated world. Ellie thinks men must see her as a joke, a sentiment especially shared by lesbians, who when it comes to love never see men as objects of desire but as rivals. She's basically saying "why would they be jealous, you're not interested".
Dina (moving away a bit from Ellie to initiate deep eye-contact, confident) : "Oh Ellie ... I think they should be terrified of you." Ellie looks at her lips, her eyes, unsure of what she's hearing, while Dina gets closer to her, breaking the barrier, kissing her first. Ellie isn't threatening to Dina, who shows her interest back, she is threatening to men. Dina joined action to her words, men might be looking at them together but she only has eyes for Ellie. She is in the moment, knowing what she's doing while Ellie is surprised that it's happening, trying to find Dina's gaze and failing because she's closing her eyes, too focused on her desire for Ellie, that's when Ellie realises her luck and gives completely in her desire too, this time finally confidently kissing her.
This is such a beautiful powerful scene showcasing a bisexual feminine woman reassuring a lesbian more masculine love interest on what matters the most to her. They the men don't matter in this moment, it's her, her the woman who doesn't fit in, the woman who thinks she cannot win the heart of a woman who never said she was also attracted to women, her the badass who thinks she's mostly alone in the world with her feelings. This is perfectly showcasing the rupture with heterosexual dynamics and expectations, femininity here is in control, reassuring, protecting. Ellie doesn't even realise the effect she has on Dina, doubting herself or the situation before Dina wins her over. It's even more visible directly after that straight man interrupts them with his homophobia and Dina is the one who by two times shows assertiveness, daring to look at him while Ellie keeps a low profile, that until he says "dykes" and Ellie fights back. A big thank you to everyone involved in the making of that scene, to the game writers, to the show writer and director, to the actresses. ✨
