#Aerosmith's Greatest Hits | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

pascallftv · 11 months ago

Text

Girl Next Door— Part 2

Previous Part Series Masterlist

This is part 2 of a series. I highly recommend you read part 1 first!

Summary: Joel takes you to the store to pick out the materials for your new bathroom. At the store, you have an uncomfortable run-in with Joel’s ex wife.

Content: This is a plot based chapter, but it’s very important for the trope <3 Also thank you so much for the love on the last part. Part 3 will be here soon, she’s so cutesie and I can’t wait for you to read it :)

Word count: 4.6k

The drive to the nearest home improvement store was half an hour away. You watched as Joel popped a CD into the CD player in his truck, immediately recognizing the intro to the Rumors album by Fleetwood Mac.

“Rumors?” You said, blocking the sun from your eyes with your hand as you hit the road. Joel glanced over at you, the hint of a smile toying at his lips.

“I didn’t take you as a Fleetwood Mac kind of girl.” Joel said. You watched the veins on his forearm and hand as he gripped the steering wheel to make a turn.

“Dad always played this album when I was growing up. He loved to try and explain all the romance drama in the band to me.” You explained, tapping your thigh with your free hand to the beat of the song.

Your bangs fell softly over your forehead, the golden sun making your skin radiate. Joel kept peeking over at you to admire your beauty. You were so effortlessly beautiful.

“What else do you listen to?” Joel asked you. You looked over at him, admiring the way the sun made the brown in his eyes softer.

“A little bit of everything. I love classic rock because of my dad, but I dabble a lot into pop and alternative. I’d say my favorite artist is probably Aerosmith.” You bit your lip as you thought about your music taste. Most of the artists you listened to were probably after Joel’s time. “What about you?”

“Hmm.” Joel hummed in thought, tapping his forefinger against the steering wheel. “Anythin’ from the sixties and seventies. I love Pink Floyd and Elvis.”

“Interesting.” You said. You noticed a pair of yellow aviators sitting on the dash of his truck, so you reached out to grab them, placing them over your nose. Joel looked over at you, shaking his head.

“Makin’ yourself at home, huh?”

“Do I look like Elvis?” You bit your lip, snapping your finger and pointing at him.

“Somethin’ of the sort.” Joel teased, turning back to watch the road.

“He sure was dreamy wasn’t he.” You said, watching at the fields flashed by you as Joel accelerated down the highway. “I had such a huge crush on him when I was a teenager.”

Joel knit his brows together and glanced over at you with a look of interest, silently asking you to elaborate.

“I had a random Elvis phase. Dad made me sit down and watch a documentary about him one night and after that I was infatuated.”

“Didn’t take you as the type to like Elvis either.” Joel observed, glancing over to look you up and down. “I have his greatest hits CD in the glovebox.”

You grinned and opened the glovebox, sure enough finding the CD. You pressed the eject button and the CD player spit out Rumors, and you carefully replaced it with Elvis 30 #1 Hits. You quietly hummed along as Heartbreak Hotel began playing.

The rest of the drive, you exchanged small talk about music with Elvis playing softly in the background, making it go by in a flash. When you reached the home improvement store, the sun was beginning to set in the horizon. It was golden hour as Joel shifted the truck into park and you both climbed out. Joel caught himself staring at you again. You looked even more beautiful in this lighting and he couldn’t get over it.

You walked beside each other as you entered the store. Something about the smell of a home improvement store felt nostalgic to you. The crisp smell of fresh wood wafted into your nose, mixing with the smell of Joel’s aftershave.

“Let’s look at tiles first.” Joel said, leading the way through the aisles of the store. The store was overwhelming; there were too many aisles to count and you had no idea where anything was, but Joel knew the place like the back of his hand. Going to the hardware store was a common trip for him and he had the store almost memorized.

“Here we are.” He said, entering an aisle with a wide array of both shower and floor tiles. There were so many different colors and textures of tiles, and you immediately began inspecting some that caught your eye. You started with shower tiles.

Your eye landed on a beautiful, dark green backsplash that was coated in a gloss, emphasizing the shifts of color within it. You immediately fell in love with the style of it.

“I think this might be the one.” You said, pointing towards the forest green tile. Joel stepped closer, running his forefinger over the sample of the tile. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. In his chest pocket was a pen, and he jotted down the inventory number of the tile.

“Alright, now what about flooring?” He said, stepping to the left towards the arrangement of flooring samples. There was an overwhelming number of floor tiles.

“Joel?” A voice spoke behind you. Both of your heads snapped up, and standing there was a woman who appeared to be in her forties. She had blonde, blown out hair and a striking red lip. Her makeup was done boldy, and she was wearing a long black dress with sandals.

“Josephine.” Joel cleared his throat. His brows were knit together in irritation. His ex wife was the last person he wanted to see right now.

“And what brings you here?” Josephine questioned, her eyes flickering over to you. She eyed you up and down, taking in your appearance. Suddenly feeling very insecure under her stare, your arms crossed in front of you.

“Buying some things for a remodel.” Joel said monotone. He noticed the way she was eyeing you, and he knew she assumed the worst, but he didn’t care. In that moment he wanted her assumptions to run wild. He didn’t care if she thought you were his girlfriend.

“And who is this?” Josephine said in a catty tone. Her smoked out eyes locked on you, her red manicured fingernails tapping against her purse. You looked down at your own nails. Your nails were barren of any polish, and you felt childish standing next to her.

Joel told her your name and glanced over at you.

“I’m remodeling her bathroom for her.” Joel clarified, his finger toying with the sheet of paper in his hand.

“Hmmm, Lionel’s daughter?” She pursed her lips. “I’d say she’s a bit young for you, huh?”

Your stomach dropped and your eyes quickly landed on Joel. His expression was stoic and almost peeved.

“Where’s Rick?” Joel changed the subject. “Usually when I see you, your tongues are down each other’s throats.”

Josephine scoffed, rolling her eyes. It was then you noticed the massive diamond ring on her finger.

“He’s over in the light section. We’re replacing our chandelier in the foyer.” She said, glancing back over to you. “What’s a spry little thing like you need a new bathroom for?”

“I just moved back from Chicago to live with my father for the time being, and my bathroom needs some updating.” You explained, your voice wavering.

“Living with your daddy, huh?” Josephine’s eyes reverted to Joel’s with a smirk toying at her overdrawn red lips. “I remember those days. Mooching off my parents with no responsibilities.”

You shifted your weight on your feet, now feeling extremely uncomfortable. You weren’t sure who this woman was, but it was evident that she and Joel had a past and she was making it a point to make jabs at you. Joel’s fists clenched at his sides.

“That’s enough, Josephine.” Joel grumbled, shooting daggers with his eyes. She chuckled manically, looking back at you.

“Oh, please. You know I’m just being satirical.” She half smirked, winking at you. You stared back at her blankly.

“Jo?” A man’s voice interjected your attention. A man who looked to be in his thirties was walking towards you all. He appeared to be younger than Josephine, a ring also adjourning his finger. Putting two and two together, you realized this was her husband. His gaze stayed on Joel for a few seconds before landing on you briefly.

“Hi, baby.” She said, pulling him in for a rather long, wet kiss. You tried to hide your face of disgust and turned to distract yourself with the floor tile samples.

“Joel.” You turned your head at her husband’s voice. He was nodding at Joel, and Joel stared back at him with a blank stare.

“Well, we should get going.” Josephine cleared her throat. “It was wonderful to see you.”

Josephine patted her husband’s chest, her fake nails clacking together. Her eyes flickered over to you, but didn’t acknowledge you. The two of them walked away, leaving you with a steaming Joel.

“I fucking hate her.” Joel grunted, stepping closer to you, your shoulders bumping together. “I’m sorry about that. Don’t take anything she said to heart. She’s a miserable bitch.”

“Who is she?” You asked. His brows were taught together in frustration and he shook his head.

“My ex wife. It’s a long story.” He mumbled, lifting the piece of paper with the inventory number. You frowned up at him.

“We don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, but I have all the time in the world if you want to tell me over dinner.” You said caringly, your hand reaching up to touch his arm. Joel looked down at your hand, his eyes then moving to your face. His brows drew together at the gesture, your touch sending heat up his arm. God, you were beautiful.

“I’m sure it would bore you.” He murmured.

“Far from it.” You responded sweetly, removing you hand from his arm and pointing towards a black and white checkered tile. “This one’s perfect.”

He nodded at you and quickly wrote down the inventory number.

“Let’s go pick out your sink and shower so we can get out of here.” Joel said.

You quickly chose your sink, faucets, toilet, shower basin, and shower head. You made sure to choose a detachable shower head, and you hoped to god Joel didn’t pick up on your intentions. Joel, on the other hand, knew exactly why you wanted a detachable shower head. All he could picture was showering with you and using it on your pretty pussy, but he quickly discarded his dirty thoughts, considering you were still in the middle of a home improvement store.

After you’d checked out and left, it was already dusk outside. The materials for your new bathroom would arrive early next week which was perfect. You both climbed up into Joel’s truck, him starting up the engine. Elvis began playing softly through the speakers again. You glanced over at Joel, his mouth turned downward in a frown. The interaction with his ex wife was still bothering him. He was incredibly guilty; it was his fault she degraded you and he should’ve blown up on her right then.

“Where would you like to eat?” You asked, attempting to distract him. He looked at you, his eyes softening when he made eye contact with you.

“Hmm.” He pondered, resting his arm on the door, and scratching his chin in thought. “There’s this diner down the road with really good burgers and shakes. That okay?”

“Sounds amazing.” You replied, reaching to turn the volume dial to turn up the radio as “Return to Sender” began to play.

The drive to the diner was silent, both of you lost in your own thoughts. You were trying your best to seem indifferent, but you truly felt insecure after your interaction with Josephine. After that conversation, you realized you were way too young for Joel and it would never be anything close to what you fantasized about. You felt stupid to even think you’d ever had a chance. Before you knew it, you became teary eyed, but you quickly blinked away the tears. The last thing you needed was to cry in front of Joel.

Joel pulled into the parking lot of the diner, putting the truck in park. You followed behind him inside, keeping your head low. He opened the door for you, noticing your change in mood. He sighed quietly and followed you inside. He followed you to a booth tucked away in the corner. The restaurant was mostly empty aside for a couple elderly couples.

“This place is cute.” You observed, looking around at the various retro decorations. In the corner you noticed a jukebox and bit back a grin.

A waitress approached your table and sat down your menus. You ordered your drinks and food since you already knew what you wanted, and she quickly whisked away with your orders. You cleared your throat and played with your hands in your lap. Joel was looking out the window, his face still laced with irritation.

“So..” you began. “Josephine.”

Joel shifted his eyes to you. He swallowed and rested his arms on the table.

Joel and Josephine’s relationship dated back to high school. They dated on and off for ten years. When they reached their mid twenties, Joel decided he wanted children, but Josephine did not. Albeit, Joel decided it wasn’t a dealbreaker, and decided to stay with her. She was the first woman he truly loved, and he was willing to do whatever it took to please her. Despite her distaste for starting a family, Joel proposed to her on the night of her twenty-eighth birthday. They had a courthouse wedding the next day per her request. Fast forward to their thirties, and Joel noticed that Josephine was acting differently.

Josephine began leaving home for days at a time without an explanation. She stopped being intimate with Joel altogether. He would try, and Josephine would complain that she was tired and not feeling it. One night, Josephine snuck off, and Joel decided to follow her. She drove a few blocks away, and parked at a random house. Joel’s heart dropped when he realized what this meant. Joel parked one house over, and waited several minutes before getting out of the car. He tried the front door, and it was unlocked. The door swung open, and he found Josephine spread out on the couch with Rick between her legs. Nauseous at the sight in front of him, Joel slammed the door behind him and stormed to his car, Josephine yelling his name. Joel ignored her and revved his engine, speeding off.

After he caught her cheating, he soon after learned that Josephine was pregnant, but not with his child. Joel filed for divorce soon after, and it wasn’t a pretty divorce. Joel won the house, but Josephine won most of his money. Years after the divorce as Joel grew older, he realized nothing was tying him down to that deadbeat town. He moved next door to you over four years ago.

Your food came during his story, and you quietly ate as Joel spoke. No wonder he was so agitated at the sight of that woman. You frowned as Joel finished telling you the story.

“I haven’t made an effort to date since then.” He said. “I don’t know why she was at the store. Must not’ve had what they wanted at the store in their area.”

“How long had it been since you’d seen her?” You asked, then took a sip of your chocolate milkshake.

“I’d seen her at our mutual friend’s wedding a couple years ago. She was there with Rick, tonguing each other down the entire time. Then again when my Mom passed away. She had the audacity to show up and kiss on him at the funeral.” Joel said, wiping his fingers with a napkin.

“Oh my god.” You said, reaching across the table to touch his hand. “I’m so sorry. What the fuck is wrong with her?”

Your touch sent shocks up his forearm. He swallowed hard, glancing down at your hands touching.

“I don’t even think god knows.” Joel said as he waved the waitress over to give him the check. You reached for your purse, pulling out your credit card, quickly handing it to the waitress.

“What— no.” Joel said, pulling cash out of his wallet.

“Yes, it’s fine. You drove and you’re doing me a massive favor.” You insisted, Joel putting the cash away in defeat.

“I owe you one.” He said. He cleared his throat looking down at you.

“So, are you seeing anyone?” He spoke, taking a drink of his shake. You laughed and looked down at the table.

“Absolutely not.” You sighed with a smile. “Now that’s a long story.”

“Well, sweetheart. I’ve got time.” Joel responded, tapping his finger against the glass of his milkshake.

“Give me one second.” You said, reaching into your purse and pulling out a five dollar bill.

You stood up from the booth and walked over to the jukebox, inserting the bill into it. You searched through the database of songs, choosing several that stood out to you. You smiled as Sweet Emotion by Aerosmith began playing through the speakers of the diner. When you’d chosen all the songs you could, you found your way back to the booth. Joel gazed up at you with wonder in his eyes. He chuckled softly and shook his head at you. While you were gone the waitress had returned your card, and he slid it across the table to you. You grabbed it and put it away in your purse, then leaned onto your crossed arms on the table.

Joel listened attentively as you gave him the rundown of your last relationship. Similarly to what your dad had told him, you explained that your ex boyfriend cheated on you after dating him for two years. You caught him cheating on you with your best friend at the time. There wasn’t anything crazy about the story, just that you spent many sleepless nights crying yourself to sleep wondering what you could’ve done differently. You wondered if there was something wrong with you; you had given him your all just to be torn down entirely. Among many firsts with him, he was your first love and was the one to take your virginity. Since then, you’d avoided getting close with anyone romantically out of fear of getting hurt again.

“I went on a few dates in Chicago, but none of them really amounted to anything.” You said, your finger tracing the rim of your milkshake glass. “I didn’t want to waste anyone’s time in all honesty. My ex fucked me up pretty bad and I just wasn’t ready to commit to anyone. I’m glad I didn’t.”

“You’re glad you didn’t?” Joel questioned, furrowing his brows.

“Yeah, I don’t think that would’ve been fair to someone, you know? Me not being ready to commit and fighting my own insecurities shouldn’t have been anyone’s problem but my own.” You explained further.

“And how do you feel currently?”

You cleared your throat and averted your gaze around the restaurant as you thought. You bit your bottom lip as “Crazy Little Thing Called Love” by Queen began playing.

“I’m not sure if I’m being honest with you. I’m not entirely opposed to trying a relationship again, but I’m not going to actively go out and seek something. If it happens, it happens.” You said. “And you?”

“I think you explained it perfectly.” Joel said as he pulled his truck keys out of his pocket. “As much as I’d like to keep chatting, the night isn’t getting any younger and neither am I.”

The next day, you were working attentively in your makeshift office while Joel began tearing apart your bathroom. After your dinner the night prior, all you could think about was Joel. Your heart ached for him. You felt hopeful that he had enough trust for you to tell you about his past. You also felt more comfortable with him in general. It was comforting seeing a side to him that wasn’t abrasive and stand-off. You’d both had your tribulations with your romantic pasts, and it made you hopeful that just maybe there was a future for the both of you. You felt silly for even thinking there was a part of you that thought there was a possibility of you two being able to be together.

By noon you were finished with your work for the day, so you decided you could help Joel with the demolition. You stood from your desk, closing your laptop for the day after sending off your completed content. Suddenly, you got an idea. You remembered you brought your vintage camcorder, and this would be the perfect opportunity to use it. You could record the progress of your bathroom remodel and make a short video when it was all finished.

You entered your bedroom to the sound of Joel ripping apart the walls of your shower. You reached into one of the boxes you had yet to unpack and pulled out your camcorder. You turned it on, and walked over to the entryway of the bathroom, recording him. You admired the way his muscles flexed as he pried apart the paneling of the shower wall, exposing the bare wall behind it. He was sporting protective glasses and thick gloves. You watched as he leaned over in his jeans, the material pulling tight against his muscular legs. A smile tugged at your lips as Joel turned around, his breathing heavy.

“What are you doing?” He said winded, letting his hand with the crowbar fall slack to his side.

“Making a progress video.” You replied, zooming in on him with your camera. Joel fought back a smile, shaking his head at you.

You looked adorable standing there in your flowy sweatpants and off the shoulder sweater. Joel could tell you weren’t wearing a bra underneath, your nipples poking through the material. You looked so cuddly and he wanted nothing more than to halt working for the day so he could spend his time cuddled up next to you in your bed kissing every inch of your body.

You lowered the camera from your eyes, and turned it off. You tossed it on your bed, then turned back around to watch Joel for a moment. You leaned against the door frame and crossed your arms. Joel continued peeling the shower paneling off the wall, tossing the remnants into the tub behind him.

“Can I help you?” You asked. Joel turned to face you, his chest rising and falling, his breathing heavy.

“No need.” He said, wiping the beads of sweat off his forehead.

“But I want to. I’m done with work for the day, it’s the least I could do.” You pleaded. Joel stared at you for a moment before finally reaching down to his tool bag, grabbing a spare pair of gloves and goggles.

“Here.” He said, holding out the gear for you to take. You grabbed them from him, carefully putting the goggles over the bridge of your nose, then sliding on the gloves.

“Do you see those tiles behind the paneling? I need you to break those off the wall.” Joel instructed. “Watch me.”

He brushed past you, rearing back his dominant hand with a hammer, striking the tiles with force, watching them crumble down into the shower basin. He stepped back to give you room to take.

“Your turn.” He said, gesturing for you to try.

You stepped forward, taking the hammer from his hand, clearing your throat. You wound your arm backwards, before hitting another tile. You didn’t hit it hard enough, as the tile didn’t budge. Joel approached you from behind, grabbing your hips, then snaking a hand around to lay flat against your belly. Your breath hitched in your throat, the touch planting goosebumps across your skin. Joel leaned down to your ear, his breath hot against your skin.

“Keep your abdominals tight. Twist your torso like this when you swing.” Joel said, using his hand to twist your hips backwards slightly, then twisting them back parallel with his own. Your back brushed against his chest. Your cheeks felt hot, and the air began to feel stuffy in the room.

Joel’s internal monologue was screaming at him to back away from you. Your body heat was radiating onto him, your hips pressed to his. Your sweet vanilla scent enveloped him, his eyes fluttering shut as he made a mental note to cherish this moment with you, for he didn’t know if he’d ever be this close to you again. Snapping out of his trance, Joel backed away from you, giving you room to try again at the tiles. Your cheeks were flushed and your skin was on fire. You knew you were pooling in your panties; you felt pathetic. The most innocent of touches and you completely and utterly in shambles.

You inhaled deeply, and did exactly what Joel told you to. You tightened your core muscles, and wound back to swing at the tiles, shattering two of them on impact. You smiled proudly, turning your head to gauge Joel’s reaction. A smile tugged at his lips, and he brushed his hand across your lower back.

“Amazing, sweetheart.” He said. His touch sent chills up your spine.

For the next hour, the both of you took swings at the tiles, knocking the rest of them off the wall. By the end, you were both sweaty and exhausted. You were starving by then, your stomach grumbling.

“Sounds like someone is hungry.” Joel observed ss he took off his gloves and glasses, tossing them in his tool bag. You mimicked his actions, placing yours adjacent to his.

“I haven’t eaten since this morning.” You admitted, running a hand through your hair to get it off your forehead. Joel noticed one of your hairs sticking up, so he reached up and gently fixed the hair, blending it in with the rest of your locks. You bit your lip and averted your gaze. The effect Joel had on you was insane. You felt like a swooning teenager again, like a ball of putty anytime he touched you.

“How about this: I planned on grilling tonight. Why don’t you come over and I’ll make you dinner.” Joel offered.

“That sounds amazing.” You smiled. “I’ll shower, then I’ll head over.”

Joel wondered if you’d touch yourself in the shower like you did the day before. The possibility aroused him immediately. He longed to shower with you, washing your hair and massaging your beautiful body for you.

“I guess I’ll see you in a little bit, darlin’.” Joel said, grabbing his phone and sliding it in his back pocket. Joel started to walk away, and you reached out to grab his arm to stop him. He turned to you with a look of confusion.

“Do you like scary movies?” You asked, keeping your hand on Joel’s wrist.

“I don’t mind them, why?” Joel questioned.

“I’ll bring a couple movies over and maybe we can have a movie night. I know I’ll have nothing to do tonight and I’m sure you get lonely over there by yourself.” You said. You wanted to be able to spend more time with him without raising any red flags or seeming desperate. You couldn’t help that all you wanted was to be around him.

“Sure, that sounds nice.” Joel said, glancing down at your hand on his skin, then giving the slightest trace of a smile on his lips. You smiled up at him, releasing his arm from your grip.

“See you there.”

#joel miller #din djarin #pedro pascal #pedro pascal smut #pedro x reader #tlou fanfiction #joel tlou #the mandalorian #dbf!joel #joel miller smut

265 notes · View notes