#HEAVY ON THAT JOEL
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vi-sinner · 1 year ago
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y’all hop in the asks and help me jumpstart my creative brain (pretty please)
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zero-is-nebulous · 8 months ago
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Tee bee atech I might jig this design a bit but this is what I have so far, he's a Japanese dragon because uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuh he's a big tall strong handsome man and allat
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Me: What would happen if I slowed *that moment* down...
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Me: 👀👀👀 And um...what if I, um, looped it?
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🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵 I...am having THOTS...and thinking about...SITUATIONS...and I... 😵‍💫
Pedro Pascal as Joel Miller in The Last of Us, HBO (Episode 9)
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tiredfoxtf · 9 months ago
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Grumbo month day 2. First I saw "music" then "alternative universe", then I said "huh, bet".
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arcanefox207 · 3 months ago
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The Wolf You Feed Masterlist
Set in fictional New England town, you fall for your handsome, intense and outdoorsy neighbor while renting out your parent's vacant summer home during a brutal winter.
Pairing: Joel Miller x Female Reader
Rating: Explicit, 18+ MDNI
Warnings: No Outbreak, AU but with TLoU characters, Large age gap (Reader is 29. Joel is 50). Angst. Dominant Joel. Drinking Alcohol. Pet names but no use of Y/N. Reader is smaller than Joel and has hair he can grab. See chapter specific warnings for smut.
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CHAPTER INDEX
Part 1 (8k Words) (AO3) March 17, 2024
Part 2 (5.6k Words) (AO3) April 25, 2024
Part 3 (6.2k Words) (AO3) June 20th, 2024
Part 4 (8.1 Words) (AO3) N E W ! 09-07-2024
Part 5/? Coming Soon
Part 6/?
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A O 3 | M A S T E R L I S T | N O T I F I C A T I O N
Author Notes: This series is ongoing. You can follow me at @arcanefoxfics and turn on notifications so that you never miss a chapter. Also, subscribe to me on A03 at Arcane_Fox. You can also follow this post or my main masterlist for updates.
Drop in my inbox anytime if you have questions/comments or wanna chat about my fic. It is so appreciated and encouraged and I can't thank you enough for the comments and reblogs. Writing is hard. Putting writing out there is scary. I'd love to hear from you if you are enjoying what I am doing.
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tieronecrush · 1 year ago
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hot & heavy
chapter four: american pie
neighbor!joel x f!reader
series rating: E (18+ only, MDNI)
series summary:
over the course of three summers, joel miller becomes woven into your life. the first summer is spent falling for him; nannying his daughter and sneaking around with him in a burning love affair. you know how you feel about joel, he isn’t so sure about how it all is gonna work. the second summer is brief. a month spent at home after graduation and before you move to boston for your dream job. one look at you, one time hearing your voice, and joel is hooked again. he pines over you for that month, but you think — how is long distance of over a thousand miles going to work for a single dad? the third summer, you return home burnt out and pride bruised from your post-grad life. you need time to feel at home again, like your complete self, so you’ve come back home with no return ticket booked. it’s only a matter of time before joel seeks you out, slowly spending more time with you. without an inevitable end to the summer looming over you both, what chances are you willing to take?
word count: 6.6k
warnings: NO OUTBREAK (don’t need to worry about the mushies), no use of y/n, inexperienced/virgin reader, age gap (joel is 30/31, reader is 22), canon-divergent (sarah is 7 y/o), nanny au, mentions of food/eating, pet names (sweetheart, darling, sweet girl, etc.), polite southern manners (use of sir), feeling familial and self-pressure, oral sex (m & f), slightly public sex (no bystanders), fingering, dirty talk, LATINO JOEL cause it's canon which means there's likely subpar spanish
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It was Thursday night, the week after you’d kissed Joel for the first time. The week after he’d told you that he’s been thinking about you since he met you. The week after he’d asked you to ride his thigh. The week after he’d made you come while teaching you Spanish.
The last two things hadn’t happened since, but it had been a week full of fleeting moments that made your skin heat up when you thought back on them. You stayed later and later each night that passed, talking with Joel and getting to know more about each other. Joel would prepare dinner, relax on the couch, or even stay in the entryway while the two of you conversed, flirty glances and affectionate smiles passed back and forth.
And in the moments when Sarah was off in her room playing or was outside in the backyard with you two watching her from the screened door, Joel’s hands would sneak around your hips or skim down your backside. Sweet and sultry kisses were shared, giving you more Spanish lessons to tell you what he desperately wanted from you. Last night he’d set dinner down in front of his daughter and walked you to the door, wrapping his arms around you and grabbing a handful of ass as he caught your lips in a heady breath, melding his tongue with yours and leaving you feeling like jelly as he pulled away.
Reminiscing on the moment now as you chop some apple slices for Sarah has you so distracted that you jump when you feel a tug on your shorts, tiny fingers poking at your sides.
“Can I have my snack now, please?”
You smile and nod, throwing the slices into the Aladdin bowl sitting on the granite. 
“Here you, sweet pea. Sorry for taking so long.”
“It’s okay! Thank you!” Sarah sends you a beaming smile and twirls around, bounding out to the living room again.
As you’re cleaning up the counter and the dishes, your cell phone vibrates in the pocket of your jean shorts. After drying your hands off on the kitchen towel, you fish your phone out and smile to yourself when you see Joel’s name on the small screen.
On my way home, you got a minute to stick around when I get back sweetheart?
Course I do :) See you soon, drive safe!
Will do. Gotta make it back to both my girls in one piece
The last message makes your smile grow wider, a giddy feeling in your chest at the simple affection, even via text. After rereading the message a few times, you finally slip your phone away again and turn back to your task.
Settling in on the couch with Sarah after the kitchen’s cleaned, Lilo & Stitch runs on the TV after a few incessant requests to watch it with you. Her tiny legs are stretched across your lap, her torso curled into your side, and her eyes glued to the animations on the screen. As Lilo is yelling about feeding fish tuna, Sarah giggles and you wrap an arm around her to pull her closer.
“I want a Scrump! She’s so cute,” Sarah points at the TV when Lilo pulls the doll out of her duffel bag, and you can’t help but grin.
“I think I want a Scrump, too. She’s so much cooler than those other dolls. Very original,” you squeeze Sarah’s side and grin, “Maybe you can get a Scrump for Christmas or something this year! Put it on your list for Santa.”
“But that’s so far away, like a trillion days,” Sarah replies in a louder volume with a huff, perking up at the sound of keys in the front door. Joel walks into the house, throwing his work bag down on the ground and kicking off his boots. He shuffles into the living room, giving both you and his daughter a quizzical look as he flops down onto the couch on the other side of Sarah.
“What’s a trillion days away?” Joel rubs his hands over his face and looks at the movie playing on the TV, laughing softly to himself and sharing a sweet look with you over Sarah’s head.
“Christmas! I want a Scrump doll and I could ask Santa for one, but it’s so far.”
Joel’s laugh fills out, a bit louder as he speaks directly to Sarah, “Well, that’s true that you could Santa for one, but y’know your birthday’s in just a couple’a weeks, Bug. Maybe one of your friends could get you one. Or Uncle Tommy. He’d get you something weird like that.”
“Weird? She’s not weird, Daddy!” Sarah sits up, crossing her arms in annoyance towards her father.
“Sarah’s right, she’s adorable. I told Sarah I want one, too.”
Joel raises an eyebrow at your response, shaking his head and looking back to the doll on the paused screen.
“That thing? Really?” He watches you both nod and grins, huffing a chuckle out of his nose, “Y’all are somethin’ else.”
You roll your eyes at him playfully, and Sarah gets the idea in her head that she could make her own Scrump like Lilo did, climbing off of the couch and running excitedly up to her room to find materials. Watching her with a soft smile, you turn back to Joel when she disappears at the top of the stairs.
He scoots closer on the sofa, a slight smirk raising one side of his mouth. His hands stretch out, one caressing your waist and the other crossing your lap to the side of your thigh to pull your legs over his. There’s a small gap between the two of you now, close enough to feel his breath against your skin while your eyes fall in line with his deep brown ones. Tension feels thick in the silent air, the sounds of Sarah’s footsteps and the birds outside being the only background noise besides your breaths.
“Missed you today, darlin’. Couldn’t stop thinking about you,” Joel’s voice is low, barely above a whisper as the smirk on his face still tugs at his lips.
“Missed you, too. Been thinkin’ about getting a kiss from you all day.”
Your heart rate increases as Joel’s subdued hum vibrates throughout your chest, his large palms skating up your back and fingertips tracing your spine.
“That so? Well, all you gotta do is ask, sweet girl.”
You laugh faintly, biting your bottom lip as your eyes flitter back and forth over his to keep eye contact.
“Can I have a kiss?”
Joel tilts his head, clicking his tongue in a tsk.
“Now I think we both know you have better manners than that, sweetheart.”
You sigh with added drama, mouth screwing up into a tight purse to one side. Joel’s face is still stern, smirk playing at the corners and humor glittering in his eyes. An idea comes to mind, from the first time you met him even, and you bite back the sly smile that would give you away. Instead, you put on your best sweet expression, batting your lashes as you ghost your lips over his as you speak.
“May I please have a kiss, sir?”
His eyes darken as you’re staring into them, a long exhale slipping from his lips as he shifts his hips under your leg. A simper stretches your lips to expose your teeth, a light laugh rolling as you throw a satisfied look in Joel’s direction. A simmer grows in your gut as you await his response, pumping your heartbeat in a steady, quick rate.
“Don’t start somethin’ you can’t finish, querida.”
“What makes you think I can’t finish it?”
“The fact that you have to go home tonight.”
Before you can offer a counter, Joel closes the small gap between the two of you, a sincere smile on his face as he presses his lips to yours in a tender kiss. With a few seconds passing of the PG-rated kiss, his hand drifting down towards your ass parts your lips in a gasp, his tongue melding with yours in a hotter exchange. The two of you makeout with each other for a few minutes before you both hear the pitter-patter of footsteps upstairs, pulling apart and separating to your original spots on the couch.
Nothing more comes from upstairs, and Joel sends you a suspicious look.
“Probably should go make sure she’s not destroying her room or somethin’ to make that weird doll.”
You laugh and nod, standing up from the leather seat. Joel follows you to the front door, watching you slip your shoes on and grab your bag from the table. He grins when you turn back to him, reaching out to pull you in.
“Wanted to ask you somethin’ before I forget.”
“And what’s that?”
His eyes drift down to the ground and he clears his throat, free hand finding the back of his neck and moving up to mess with the hair at the crown of his head. Legs shifting his weight back and forth, left thumb rubbing circles into your hip before his eyes come back to you holding trepidation.
Is Joel…nervous?
What the hell could he need to ask you that has him acting like this?
“Is everything okay?”
You lay your hand over his on your hip, giving it a gentle squeeze.
“God, yeah, I’m sorry. Just, I, uh, I was wonderin’ if you were doin’ anything on Saturday night?”
Joel Miller is this nervous to ask you out?
Joel Miller is this nervous to ask you out.
Damn, he’s adorable.
“Joel, are you asking me out?”
He sees the smile hidden in you expression, an embarrassed groan rumbling from his chest.
“I haven’t asked anyone out in years, sweetheart, so you’ll have to forgive me, but yes. Was wonderin’ if maybe you’d wanna go for a drive, and then stay the night with me? Sarah’ll be at her mom’s for the weekend. And I’ll be real lonesome.”
He shoots you his best pleading look with those big brown puppy eyes — another thing you never thought you would see from Joel Miller, but after a week of being something with him, you’ve come to learn that he uses them frequently to get what he wants.
And you definitely haven’t built a tolerance for them.
And probably never will.
“No need to try to persuade me, I’d have agreed without the eyes, babe.”
He winks lightning fast, shaking his head. Feigning innocence with the look across his face, shrugging his shoulders and holding you to his chest.
“Don’t know what you’re talking about, cariño,” a chaste kiss is shared, and then another, and another, “You really wanna stay over?”
“Course I do,” your hands find his shoulders, nerves crossing his eyes, “Don’t worry. I’ll tell ‘em I’m staying at a friend’s house. We can figure somethin’ out with my car.”
“I’m sorry, darlin’. Just don’t think it’s a good idea—”
“I know, Joel. It’s alright. Don’t want to have you end up with a shotgun pointed at you. Metaphorically speaking. Dad doesn’t have a gun.”
He huffs out a tight laugh, nodding slowly and pressing a gentle kiss to your lips.
“See you tomorrow? We can figure out Saturday night then?”
You nod and give him a taut, thin smile.
“See you tomorrow. Night, Joel. Tell Sarah I said g’night too.”
“Course. G’night, sweet girl. Sleep well.”
He gives you one last peck before holding the door open for you, watching from the threshold as you cross the yards and give him one look back, waving to him.
Excitement for the weekend swirls in your stomach, but you can’t help but feel the sharp pain of your heart constricting at the thought of keeping a secret for the summer.
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The pathetic air conditioning of your 1997 used Honda CR-V spits out lukewarm air while the rest of the car bakes in the 96º evening heat in the middle of July.
The skin of your thighs is plastered to the gray leather of the seat below you, and you can already tell it’s going to be extra painful to peel yourself out. At this point, you’re gripping the hem of your strappy white sundress and fanning yourself in an attempt to cool down even a little bit.
20 minutes have passed since you parked up at the far end of the lot outside of Foley’s department store at the Highland Mall. You’d told your parents that you were heading over to Emily’s house, a friend from high school, and spending the night there. After covering for her countless times over the last few summers, she owed you a favor — no questions asked — and so you made sure she would corroborate your lie if your parents asked.
But being the goody-goody you always were paid off from time to time. They trusted you enough to not have to check in with anyone you’d mentioned hanging out with, never expecting you to lie to them. And you really didn’t, not fully. You were going to spend the night at a friend’s house, it just happened to be Joel’s instead.
Joel didn’t let any detail slip yesterday when you were talking about tonight before you left. You’d come up with the plan to meet in the mall parking lot, but when you asked what he’d planned, he only gave you a grin and shook his head.
“It’s a surprise, sweetheart. What kinda first date would this be if there wasn’t some element of surprise? I wanna do somethin’ for you, so let me.”
Another five minutes have passed and you are nearing suffocation from the heat in your car. Finally, Joel’s Ford pickup is coasting through the virtually empty parking lot in your direction, slowing down to a halt before he throws it into park. You turn toward your passenger side to gather your purse and your backpack filled with your overnight necessities.
“Shouldn’t leave your doors unlocked just sittin’ here, sweetheart.”
Joel’s voice sounding from right behind you makes you jump, whipping your head around to look at him over your shoulder with a huff.
“Fucking hell, Joel, scared the daylights outta me!”
He laughs, leaning against the frame of your car to block you in.
“Like I said, shouldn’t leave your doors unlocked. Don’t know who’s gonna come by and try somethin’.”
“Oh hush, nobody’s out here,” you slide your purse over your arm and turn off the ignition, dropping your keys inside of its largest pocket. Joel backs up a few steps to let you climb out, a soft wince slipping from behind your teeth as your skin sticks to the seat. Once you’re standing in front of him, you turn around and lean over the seat and center console to grab your overnight bag.
Joel’s hands find your waist and turn you back to him when you have your backpack, a tender smile on his face as he looks down at you.
“Didn’t get to properly say hello to ya.”
His lips meet yours in a supple kiss, a smile finding its way onto your face as he lets out a satisfied hum.
“Hello to you too,” both of your smiles match before you continue, “So what’s the plan? I need somethin’ cold wherever we’re goin’, I’m sweating.”
His smile grows wider while his head slowly moves left to right. Your hands brush when he takes your overnight bag from you, his other hand finding the small of your back to guide you to the passenger side of his truck.
“You’re nearly there, darlin’. If I know anything about you, I know you’ll like what I’ve got planned for you.  And I promise it’ll cool you down.”
When the car door clicks open and he swings it out, Joel sends you a wink before offering you a hand to help you climb up into the cab. He closes the door behind you, making his way around the front to his side, setting your bag on the seat behind him, and starting up the truck.
Warmth spreads on your skin when his hand finds your thigh, long fingers extending to the inside while his thumb sweeps back and forth languidly toward the outside. Strip malls filled with one-off businesses, chain restaurants, and a few honky tonk bars blur past through the window, Joel heading in the direction opposite of your neighborhood and further out of Austin proper. The windows are cracked, and the speed of the car cools the wind down as it rushes in, swirling your hair around. You open the window further, extending a hand out and closing your eyes as you feel the evening summer air fill the car.
Joel slows to a stop at the first red light you’ve hit and you slowly open your eyes, taking in your surroundings and smiling softly when you recognize where you are. His timbre takes you out of your observations, head snapping in attention to him.
“You look real beautiful tonight, sweetheart. Pretty as a peach.”
The hand on your thigh finds yours closest to him, lacing your fingers together and bringing the back of yours up to his mouth to press a sweet kiss to your skin as the light turns green. You hold his hand with both of yours in your lap, a shy grin on your face.
“You clean up pretty well yourself, Miller. Lookin’ mighty handsome, but you always do.”
“Oh yeah? You think I’m handsome even when you see me dirty and sweaty and exhausted most of the time?”
He glances towards you, eyebrows raised expectantly.
“Well don’t go fishing now, but yes I do. Especially then,” you say casually, shrugging your shoulders before adding, “You’re built like a brick house. It’s hot seeing you all sweaty and dirty with your hair messed up and your t-shirts tight around your arms and your chest.”
Joel laughs, squeezing your hand in his and shaking his head in disbelief.
“Don’t think anyone’s ever said that I’m built like a brick house.”
“It’s true! In the best way possible. You’re solid and strong and tough. Safe. Sturdy. Reliable. The metaphor extends past your looks.”
“Thank you, sweet girl. ‘M glad you see me that way.”
He takes a breath in like he’s going to continue but it’s interrupted by getting his chance to turn off the main road and into the first destination of the night — the Tastee-Freez that you and Joel had talked about visiting when you were kids. Come to think of it, there’s a good chance you would have been there at the same time when you were younger.
A nostalgic grin crosses your face as you look over at Joel, a sheepish smile on his face. He scans for a parking spot, finds one, and lets go of your hand to stretch his arm behind your seat, twisting around in his as he effortlessly backs into the spot.
Why is it so attractive when a guy does that?
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At the walk-up window, Joel stands slightly behind you with his hand rubbing up and down your back while you both act like you’re reading the menu when in reality, you’ll get the same thing you’ve been ordering for years.
It was a quick wait until you were up at the window to order, Joel’s hand still on you.
“Ladies first, darlin’.”
For you, it’s a vanilla-chocolate twist soft serve in a cone with chocolate hardshell dip.
For Joel, plain vanilla with butterscotch hardshell.
And yes, you had to give him a little shit for that.
The two of you find an empty picnic table at the side of the building, sliding onto the benches across from each other. Joel rests on his elbows on the table, leaning closer to you while his right leg slips between yours as if you’re a magnet. In between bites and licks of ice cream, the two of you reminisce together about coming to this particular establishment as kids, and then as teenagers, rowdy and causing trouble in Joel’s case. 
“That poor kid!”
“Oh, c’mon. He was eleven and it was Tommy. He doesn’t need your sympathy, darlin’. He was askin’ for it.”
“No eleven-year-old deserves gettin’ an ice cream cone to the head when he was talkin’ to his first crush! I can’t believe you were such a cruel older brother back then.”
“Cruel? I wasn’t cruel. I was building character. Now he’s a slightly less annoying pest.”
“That’s such bullshit, oh my god!”
Easy banter bounces between the two of you, stories running off on tangents and revealing details to each other about yourselves. Laughs and flirty passes are shared, Joel insisting on you trying his cone after you dogged on his choice again. You ended up swapping, Joel giving you the last bite of chocolate dip that your original cone had before finishing it. Flimsy paper napkins stuck to your hands as you attempted to clean up the drips that covered your skin, giving up and running to the bathroom at the back to wash your hands quick. Joel emerges at the same time as you from the men’s, giving you a smile and catching his hand with yours as your strides match up.
“Ready for the next surprise?”
“If it’s anything like this one, you have my full trust.”
“So glad you said that, ‘cause I actually booked us an appointment to get matchin’ tattoos.”
Your face drops, gaze snapping over to Joel and rolling your eyes when you see the playful twist of a smirk on his lips, humor in his eyes. Gripping his bicep, you shove him to the side gently, Joel not getting too far with his hand anchoring him to you.
“Quit fuckin’ with me!”
Joel’s head falls back as he laughs, slowing his walk as the two of you approach the truck again. He opens the door for you, grinning sweetly and pursing his lips.
“Can’t help myself, you look cute gettin’ fucked with. All flustered and wide-eyed.”
He winks before kissing your temple, a heat crawling up your spine and settling in the back of your neck. After helping you into the car, Joel’s back in the driver’s seat and eases the car out of the parking lot. He takes a right, heading back in the direction of your neighborhood.
About three miles from home, he takes a left and drives a bit further west. The radio plays quietly, a comfortable silence filling the car. His hand rests on your thigh again, half of his fingers slid underneath the hem of your sundress. His gaze is straight ahead on the road, and you take a moment to study his chiseled profile.
Familiar trills of piano and a bright, full voice rings out from the speakers. An excited gasp drops your jaw in a short inhale, your hand reaching for the volume dial to turn it up. Don McLean’s American Pie plays loudly into the truck now, a wide smile on your face as you look over at Joel next to you.
“I fucking love this song!”
The slower introduction seamlessly transitions into the upbeat, classic summer song as you roll your window down all the way. Your arm falls out of the opening, hair blowing in the wind as you start to sing along with Don.
“Do you believe in rock 'n' roll? Can music save your mortal soul? And can you teach me how to dance real slow?”
Your eyes shut tightly while you nearly shout the words, laughing in between the lines.
Joel’s own laugh interrupts your singing of the rest of the verse, and you sit up quickly to turn toward him.
“Sing along! I know you know how Miller. I saw your guitar and your daughter likes to tell me about all the songs you sing together.”
“You sound much better than me, darlin’. I like listening to you.”
“C’mon, please! For me?”
The song continues to play while the two of you project back and forth, Joel giving in to your own pleading puppy eyes and joining in with you on the chorus. His voice is gruff and bluesy, and suddenly it’s your favorite sound besides his speaking voice. The two of you start to shout the words, carefree when you pull up to stop signs and dance in your seats. Joel holds his hand in a fist over to you, your own hands wrapping around it and using it as an air microphone. He brings it back to himself, bobbing his head while the words effortlessly fall from his lips.
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The river comes into view between trees, and a smile finds your face as you realize where he’s taking you. Another place you’d mentioned in passing that he’d paid attention to.
Parking up at the lookout point, the song fades into the next one. You turn the volume back down, sighing happily as you take in the view of the sunset starting. No other cars are around, the two of you alone in the spot you love to visit when you come back home during the summers to watch the sunset fully unobscured.
“You’re a good listener, y’know.”
Joel turns to you with a coy grin tugging one corner of his mouth up. He shrugs and rubs his hand against your thigh.
“Easy to remember things about you.”
The simple sentence strikes a chord in you, your heart beating faster and gut swirling with a warm, airy feeling. You can’t think of anything to say to him to convey what you’re feeling, so instead you unbuckle yourself, sit up and scoot over across the bench seat to his side. Your gaze only drops from his eyes to glance at his lips before you kiss him. It’s slow and syrupy, stretching your insides like taffy. Your tongue melts with his, soft whimpers being swallowed as Joel’s hands grip your thigh, gathering you across his lap. His hands move around you, pushing the steering wheel up as far as it could go and adjusting his seat back to give you more space to sit comfortably. Once the seat is settled, he wastes no time finding the flesh of your ass, hands slipping under your dress and moaning quietly when his fingertips brush against the lace of your panties.
“Wore somethin’ pretty for me, darlin’?”
“Mhmm. Wearing those white ones you like so much.”
“Fuck me.”
A giggle falls from your lips against his, the bulge of his jeans growing under you. His large hands on your ass push you down and grind his hips up against your covered pussy. The center of them sticks to your folds, your own hips swaying in the same rhythm. Heady kisses continued, Joel pulling away to attack your neck with kisses, licks, and tiny bites. All that comes from your mouth are whispers of his name.
Beneath you, you can feel that Joel is rock-hard. Saliva floods your mouth, an image of him in your mouth right here in his truck playing in your mind. A jolt of adrenaline kills your nerves, confidence filling your chest as you pull away from Joel, moving to sit at his side on the bench again. Joel stares at you inquisitively, his lust-hazed mind taking a moment to catch up until your thoughts become clear when you pop the button of his pants and drag his zipper down. His hand lays over yours, eyes locking with yours.
“You don’t have to do anything, sweetheart.”
The anxiety starts to crawl back, and before you lose your nerve, you shake your head.
“I want to. If you want to. It’s okay if you don’t, we can forget—”
“Definitely want to, darlin’. Definitely. If you’re comfortable,” his hand sweeps over your cheekbone and down your jaw, a tender grin crossing his face, “You ever done this before?”
Shaking your head, you bite your bottom lip.
“Never, um, with my mouth. But with my hand, yeah.”
“That’s a good start, cariño. I can teach you how to do the rest, but you show me what you know.”
You kiss him again while he pushes his jeans down to his kneecaps along with his boxer briefs, his cock springing up against his t-shirt. Your lips pull away from his as your head stares down at his lap, licking your lips. Joel’s voice rumbles low as he mumbles.
“G’head, pretty girl.”
A long exhale is quiet out of your nose, your tongue wetting your palm before your hand wraps around the base of his thick cock, starting languid strokes along the length. Pre-cum pebbles out of the slit at his tip, your thumb ghosting across it as your hand reaches the top on the next stroke. A short hiss squeezes out from behind your Joel’s teeth, his hand gripping your side while his head finds a place in the crook of your neck and his mouth continuing to pepper kisses and nips against your skin.
The pace of your hand speeds up, a faint moan from Joan vibrating against you.
“Fuck, sweetheart. Feels good,” another sigh of a moan cuts him off before he adds, “Think you wanna try with your mouth now? We’ll take it slow.”
“‘M ready.”
Joel helps you get comfortable kneeling over him on the seat and you feel the burn of his stare when you bring your mouth down toward his dick.
“Just start with the tip, darlin’. Y’can kiss it, lick. Only take it in when you’re ready.”
You follow his gentle instructions, kissing his tip and feeling his pre-cum coat your lips where it meets his skin, licking the spend before running your tongue across the tip. The sounds from Joel above you go straight to your aching pussy, your panties completely soaked without his touch reaching there. Your kisses drift down his length, tongue tracing over the veins before your mouth returns to his tip, taking the head into your mouth and hollowing your cheeks.
“Oh, fuck. That’s so good, baby. Just like that.”
At his encouragement, you swirl your tongue around him in your mouth before lowering your head and dropping your jaw wider to take more of his large cock. Joel instructs you to use your hand on the rest of him, following the same rhythm with your fist when you start to move your head up and down. He moans your name, hand resting on the back of your head and fingers tangling in your hair. You work your mouth on his cock, your free hand slipping between his legs to give attention to his balls.
“God damn, sweetheart. Sure you haven’t done this before?”
His breaths are short and you feel his balls tighten in your hand. He twitches in your mouth and he rasps out that he’s close. You’re desperate for him to come in your mouth, taking as much of him as you can before it sets off your gag reflex at the back of your throat. The loudest moan you’ve heard from him rumbles out of his chest, soft “fuck”s following it.
“Gonna come, sweet girl, fuck. Don’t have to take it in your mouth.”
Your lips leave him with strings of saliva tethered from his cock to your mouth, shaking your head quickly.
“I want it in my mouth.”
Joel’s eyes darken, nearly black, a flash of deep desire in them.
“Think we both know you got better manners than that, sweetheart.”
Your cunt flutters around nothing as his commanding voice, whimpering as he tugs your hair gently to look at him.
“May I please have your come in my mouth?”
“What are you forgetting? Ask again.”
His own hand works his cock, sweat pooling in the exposed skin at his collar.
“May I please have your come in my mouth, sir?”
“Good girl,” you relax next to him, bending over his lap again as you hear him give you permission, “Go on, pretty girl. ‘S all yours.”
His cock fills your mouth again, the tip gagging you again and muscles tightening around him send him over the edge, warm come spilling onto your tongue. You try to catch as much as you can before it slips down him from your mouth, his hand at the back of your head pulling you off to look at him again.
Awestruck, blown pupils stare at you as you show him his spend on your tongue, closing your lips and swallowing. He groans your name, breaths slowing while he watches you use your fingers to clean around your mouth, sucking your fingers before licking his cock clean of his come.
“God, you’re fucking incredible.”
He kisses you deeply, cupping your chest with one hand and thumb brushing over your hard nipple. You settle back with a proud smile, shrugging casually.
“Got a good teacher, I guess.”
He kisses you again, sighing softly as he pulls away.
“Better be ready for another lesson when I get you in my bed tonight. But I think you’d just qualify this one as a lecture. No need for student participation.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Mhmm. Gonna make you come with my fingers and then on my mouth. You want that, baby?”
Your head lulls in a nod, a smirk crossing your face.
“Yes, sir.”
Joel groans, shaking his head as he mirrors your smirk.
“You’re fixin’ to be trouble with that, aren’t ya?”
“Yes, sir.”
You wink as Joel tugs his boxers and jeans back on, not bothering to button them. After the two of you get buckled, he backs out of the parking space, shaking his head again as he starts back to his house, driving a bit faster than before.
“Mi pequeño diablo, my little devil. Who would’ve thought you were such a naughty girl?”
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Falling back against the pillows at the head of his bed, a film of sweat coating your naked body with a sheen and chest heaving to catch your breath after your third orgasm from Joel. He’d sped back to his house, only slowing down to drive normally down the neighborhood streets to not draw any attention to the two of you. Once you’d made it back, he’d virtually carried you inside with how quickly he was moving behind you and guiding you up to his bedroom.
His fingers had coaxed the first out of you, straddling his lap at the edge of the mattress after a heavy makeout session. His lips spilled out Spanish, translating for you after he’d let it all out.
“Te ves tan hermosa cuando te corres, cariño. Quiero que lo hagas una y otra vez solo para escuchar tus pequeños sonidos y mirar esa cara. You look so beautiful when you come, sweetheart. I want to make you do it over and over just to hear your little sounds and look at that face.”
Dressing you down to only the lacy set you had worn for him, he worshipped your body with his mouth, pressing kisses and marking you with lovebites as he got you completely naked. Teasing your nipples, fanning his breath over your wet cunt, he roused you up to use his mouth to make you fall apart all over again.
After his taste of you, he begged you to let him do it again.
“Just one more, sweetness.”
“I can’t do it, Joel, ‘s too much.”
His fingers worked you open slowly again, whimpers falling from you as he sends you soft encouragements.
“You can take it, pretty girl. This pussy was made for it, made for me to play with.”
It didn’t take much more convincing after he said that, his thick fingers and mouth pulling out that third ultra-sensitive orgasm from you, his name moaned repeatedly from you as you look down at him using his tongue to clean you up.
You finally caught your breath, exhaustion rushing over you as your hazy vision watches Joel clean you up with a warm, damp washcloth. Your eyes fell closed, turning on your side on his bed and using the last of your energy to slide under his comforter. The bed sinks when the weight of him joins you, strong arm wrapping over your side and tugging you closer across the sheets. He’s bare besides his fresh pair of boxer briefs.
“You sleepy, my sweet girl?” His voice is low and raspy, lulling you into the warm slumber.
“Yeah, but I wanna stay up with you.” You fight the feeling of falling, peeling your eyes open and stretching your lips into a drowsy smile when you see Joel’s affectionate look.
“‘S alright if you wanna go to bed, we’ve got the morning, too.”
“No, no. Just ask me a question, if I keep talkin’ I’ll stay awake.”
Joel chuckles, his smile showing off his teeth as his hand reaches for the side of your face, brushing your hair behind your ears.
“Alright, rapid-fire questions, sweetheart. Favorite color?”
“Green.”
“You?”
“Purple.”
“Childhood pet?”
“Dog. German Shepherd named Roxie. She was the best.”
He laughs softly again and nods.
“Had a mutt we found in our neighborhood. His name was Mancha. Means Spot, or really stain, in Spanish. My mom thought she was hilarious.”
It’s you laughing now, grinning widely.
“That is hilarious. Is she—is she still around?”
His lip twitches, eyes darting from yours for a second.
“No, she passed away when Sarah was two. Dad’s been gone since I was seventeen.”
“I’m sorry, Joel.”
You skate the pads of your fingers across his cheek in a tender touch.
“Thank you, darlin’.”
He punctuates his statement with a kiss on your forehead, hand tightening at your hip before he continues.
“What was your first impression of me?”
Your skin heats and a sheepish smile crosses your face, shaking your head.
“I was hoping you would never ask me this,” you groan before dropping your eyes from his and studying your finger as it creates constellations of the freckles on his chest, “I saw you first from my living room window getting out of your truck when you moved in. I thought you were really attractive; probably would’ve said hot. I thought it was kind of funny that you were yelling at Tommy, and I could see your whole demeanor changed when you grabbed Sarah out of the car. You just lit up and it was so endearing. And then I was immediately embarrassed when you noticed me and waved to me.”
“Y’know, I saw you way before that day, sweetheart.”
Surprise twists your face, wide eyes meeting Joel’s.
“What? What do you mean? Are you a stalker?”
“God, no,” he laughs before he caresses your cheek, thumb brushing back and forth, “It was the first time I toured the house. It musta been your Spring Break or somethin’, but you were sittin’ in the hammock in your backyard when I walked out onto the deck in our yard. Thought it was nice to see what the neighbors were like. Then you got up and walked towards the deck, and I really saw you when you got closer. Felt like the wind got knocked outta me, you were just so beautiful. Like the sun was radiating off of you that day, kinda— what’s the word?...Ethereal. I was sold on the house already, but the chance to see you again, meet you, was the cherry on top.”
You swallow audibly, breath caught in your throat as you look at him tenderly. Leaning over to him, you press a gentle kiss to his lips and say quietly.
“Bet my pajamas and bedhead look on your moving day had you second-guessing your choice.”
All he does is shake his head, a smile plastered on his face.
“Not a chance, my sweet girl. Not a chance.”
Conversation slows as both of you grow more exhausted, Joel turning to lay on his back and tucking you into his side. Your ear rests over his chest, the strong, steady thump of his heartbeat drawing you into sleep, not before pressing one last kiss to his skin.
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taglist: @beskarandblasters @undrthelights @swiftispunk @joelsversion @clingontolife @elizabeth01585 @wandaandellie @asirenbyanyothername @ellenmunn @ja-ehyun @livinxdeadxgrl @sw33tp1xie @starsandsaints07 @marisemonteiroo @brunetteeras @whydontyoysaynodoja @beee-haw @shmaptainshmerica07 @jenna-mcgraw19 @whore-4-pedro @spursgirl14-blog @katifefe @joelmillerswifu @itsgiorgiaz @soph55 @grapejuicesny @wild-hearts-runfree @youcancallmeelle @lisa-ru @jupitren @ziggy-star @miaispunk @oneofutoo @starkovli @thatgeminigirlx @marchai @bunnyskisses @houseofballoonsth @casual-obsessions @pedro-pascal-lvr @bimbodolls-world @burningnerdchild @tuquoquebrute @mrsvedder12 @estelivi28 @helllsent @bongsrconfusing @addictedtotlou @brittmb115 @angie2274 @owod3 @pedrostories @pedroholicx @theelishad @johnwatsn @sunakochansama43 @elissaaa @felicityofbakerstreet @atinylittlepain
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ethogirltournament · 8 months ago
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Joel. Joel Joel Joel Joel Joel. Double Life. They were soulmates. Decked out 2 stream, the neck kisses bit. The obsessed bit between them on hermitcraft. The neck kisses playlist made by the real Joel, along with a second playlist related to it, which both still are actively updated.
To put it simply, YouTube is Etho’s bitch. YouTube is happy with this arrangement, clearly. It has commented on so many of Etho’s videos man. Etho is a YouTube og, he is one of the platform’s favorites.
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bl00dfroma-fairy · 8 months ago
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mylostloversbookmarks · 2 years ago
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Waiting for a Miracle
Characters - Joel Miller x Reader, Ellie Williams
Summary - After being attacked by raiders, you sustain a serious injury - Joel and Ellie do everything they can to save you but will it be enough?
Word Count - 2.5K
Warnings/Tags - 18+ only Minors dni. Typical canon language, Angst, mentions of blood and wounds, swearing, hurt, anxiety, pain, guilt, insecure!Joel, upset!Ellie. Suicide attempt mentioned but not heavily discussed. Im not a medical professional so forgive me if anything is medically inaccurate!
A/N - I hurt myself with this one! Set Post-Outbreak! This is heavily inspired by EP.6 ~ Kin and the beginning of Ep 7 ~ Left Behind, and I thought it would be fun to reverse the rolls on this.
Reblogs, comments and feedback are so welcome and so so appreciated!
If you enjoyed this check out my other works here ~ Masterlist
Divider credit to @saradika
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As he walked through the barren wasteland, he could feel the all-too-familiar sense of desolation wash over him. The air is thin and icy, hurting his lungs as he inhales. The only sound that can be heard is the howl of the wind and the crunch of fresh snow under his tired, heavy footsteps.
Moving further down the dirt road, he can see the outline of the dilapidated farm house where he left Ellie watching over you. Its walls crumbled, the roof caved in, the windows shattered, and the once-blue front door hung loosely on its rusted hinges.
Inside, the scene was just as bleak. The remaining furniture was overturned and broken, thanks to raiders tearing their way through any property they came across.
The walls were peeling and covered from floor to ceiling in a thick coat of dirt and grime. A heavy layer of dust had settled over everything in sight.
Moving further into the house, he makes his way to the barricade he had put in place before he left you and Ellie this morning to look for more supplies and any medication he could get his hands on.
 "Ellie?" He huffs out to let her know it is him moving the barricade as he leans his weight on one side of the heavy mahogany book shelf, sliding it along the dingy wooden floor to reveal the doorway.
"Joel? Did you find anything?" Ellie's pleading voice is muffled from behind the closed door.
Opening the door, he finds Ellie in the exact spot he had left her several hours before, sitting on her knees beside the filthy matteress he had laid you on what felt like a lifetime ago.
She was hunched over you with an old rag in her hand, mopping up the sweat that was beading on your forehead. He could see the worry etched onto her face as she did everything she could to keep you comfortable. She looks up at him as he enters, her face grim.
"How is she?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. It wasn't that he didn't want to disturb you; he just wasn't sure he could stop his voice from breaking if he spoke any louder.
Ellie shook her head. "She's still unconscious, but I think her fever has gone down a bit and the wound isn't bleeding anymore."
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Joel just nods, his eyes fixed on you. Seeing you lying there so helpless and vulnerable, like a ghost of your usual bubbly, sarcastic self, the ever-present crease between your brows was gone; your teeth were no longer fussing at your bottom lip; your smart mouth was no longer calling him out on his bullshit; and your face was pallid and covered in a sheen of sweat.
The sight stirred up a storm of emotions within him that he couldn't quite put a name to. Joel knew that he had always been drawn to you, even before the attack.
Though he would never admit it and always did his best to hide it. He couldn't place what it was about you that brought him out of himself, despite his best efforts to keep you at arm's length.
He had vowed to himself that he would never get attached to anyone again. Not after what happened to Sarah.
It wasn't that he didn't want to care about people, but he has learned that in this world, caring for people only brings pain, and he just didn't know if he could survive another loss.
He almost didn't survive it the first time. The faint scar on his temple is a constant reminder of the events he has drank himself into oblivion over on many occasions in the hopes of scarring them from his memory, but it never works.
Though Ellie had always ribbed him when she caught him watching you from a distance, usually when youd set up camp for the night and you were rolling out your sleeping bag or flipping through one of the books you had picked up on the road.
She would jab him in the ribs with her elblow, uttering "Eh? Eh?" with a wiggle of her fair eyebrows. He normally silences her quickly with a stern warning glance, worried you might overhear her.
Now, though, his feelings were more intense, and he didn't know if it was because he was too tired to keep up the effort to hide them or that the fear of losing you was overpowering every other thought that raced through his head.
His mind was consumed by guilt; he had failed. Again. He had failed Sarah. He had failed Ellie over and over, and now he has failed you. Failed to protect you from the man coming at you from behind because he was too fucking old and deaf to hear him coming.
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He couldn't fathom why you both had insisted on staying with him when you had both overheard him speaking to Tommy. It was the first time Joel had opened up in what felt like two decades.
He openly admitted to his brother that he knew he was going to get you both killed. He begged Tommy to take Ellie the rest of the way, and he knew that you wouldn't leave her side.
He remembers standing in the stables thirty minutes after he had intended on leaving, pretending to check over the horses saddle and reins, when Ellie walked in, closely followed by you and Tommy.
He offered you both a choice, insisting you would be better off with Tommy. He didn't even make it through his sentence before Ellie was thrusting her pack into his chest, effectively silencing him.
You had given him a reassuring smile and a small nod as you moved to help Ellie onto the horse. And now here you are in front of him, lying lifeless on a soiled mattress in the dead of winter in the middle of nowhere because of him.
He knelt down beside the mattress and took your hand in his, his thumb rubbing small circles into the clammy back of your hand. Motioning to Ellie to pass him his pack, Joel opens it and takes out the supplies he found on his run.
"I found a drug store; it was mostly picked over, but I found this under one of the cabinates." He explains, lifting out a vile of pennicilin and a syringe that is still safely housed in its unopened sterile packaging. He says a silent prayer of thanks to whatever higher power allowed him to find this.
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Ellie just nods, her eyes glued to Joel's hands, watching as he takes hold of your hand, turning it so it is palm-up as he rolls your sleeve up past the crease of your elbow, removing his belt and tightening it around your arm.
Tapping at the viens in the crease of your arm but getting no response, you had lost so much blood from the wound that your viens were refusing to stand to attention.
Joel doesn't want to risk injuring a vein, so he decides to inject you directly into your wound. He removes the belt, throwing it to the side, rolls your sleeve back down, and sets your hand back by your side.
"Ellie, Im going to need your help." He murmurs to her, his voice thick with emotion.
"What do you need me to do?" she implores him.
"I can't find a vein; she's lost too much blood, so I'm going to have to put it into the wound. It's going to be painful, but we don't have another option. I need you to hold her still no matter what, okay?" Joel demanded it as calmly as he could.
"Okay, I can do that," Ellie confided, her voice wobbling with the unshed tears that were threatening to spill over at any moment.
"Hey, she's going to make it; she's going to be okay," Joel promises her, his hand coming up to rest on her cheek, wiping away a tear that was making its way down her cheek.
Ellie just nods in response, her tears flowing freely now. Joel pulls the blanket down and gently rolls your t-shirt up your torso, stopping at your ribcage. Removing the bloodied gauze that was covering the wound just above your left hip.
The wound was deep and had left a jagged, misshaped circle of angry crimson on your otherwise smooth, perfect skin.
He tore open the plastic wrapping and removed the syringe from its packaging, taking a deep breath before inserting the needle into the vein and withdrawing the medication.
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"Okay, hold her still," Joel says, his voice unsteady as he positions the needle over your wound, placing his other hand on your cheek and rubbing his thumb back and forth, willing you to hear him before he continues.
"Darlin, I'm sorry. This is going to hurt, okay? But it's going to help, I promise."
Ellie nods towards him, signaling she was ready; she has repositioned herself at your head, her hands resting on your shoulders, and tightens her hold on you as Joel inserts the needle and slowly pushes his thumb down on the plunger.
You flinch and groan in pain, but Ellie holds you steady, tears flowing down her face and leaving little dark spots where they land on the mattress.
Finally, Joel withdraws the needle and sets it back inside the packaging in an attempt to keep it as sterile as possible given the current surroundings.
He grabs another patch of gauze from his pack and presses it against the wound. He pulls your shirt down and lays the blanket back over you, tucking you in as best he can, being careful not to jostle you too much.
"That's it, sweetheart," he whispers, his voice gentle as he strokes your hair. "Now we wait," he sighs, more to himself than anyone else.
Joel and Ellie sit in silence for a few minutes, each lost in their own thoughts, exchanging worried glances, unsure of what the future holds.
Despite the uncertainty, Joel is determined to do everything he can to keep you safe and help you recover. He holds your hand tightly, and his thumb continues to rub small, reassuring circles into the back of your hand as he silently vows to protect you at all costs.
As the moments tick by, Ellie's anxiety grows with each shallow breath you take. She feels helpless and scared, unsure if you will make it through the night.
The weight of potentially losing another person she cares about is too much, and she breaks. Loud, ragged sobs break through her clenched teeth, shaking her small frame.
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Joel's eyes snap up at the sudden sound, and he can feel his heart constricting at the sight of her tears. He releases your hand, pulling her into a tight embrace. He strokes her hair, whispering words of comfort in her ear as she cries into his chest.
"Hey, hey, it's okay, baby girl," Joel murmurs softly. "We're here for her. We're not going to leave her. We're going to get through this together."
Ellie clings to Joel tightly, her body wracked with sobs as she tries to process her emotions. She's scared of losing you and of what will happen if you don't make it. Joel's presence and his words provide some solace, giving her a glimmer of hope that things might be okay.
The three of you stay like that for what feels like hours, huddled together in the dimming light, listening to the sounds of your breathing.
It's a comfort to hear the sound even out ever so slightly and to know that you're fighting to stay alive as hard as they are to keep you with them.
Eventually, Ellie pulls away from him, wiping her eyes on the sleeve of her coat. She looks over at you, still sleeping on the matteress, and takes a deep breath.
"We're going to make it through this, right?" She asks, her voice wavering slightly.
"We are," Joel replies firmly, his gaze locked on you. "I'll do whatever it takes to keep you both safe."
Ellie nods, a look of determination taking over her face. She moves back to your side, taking your hand in hers and squeezing firmly.
"We're here; we're not going anywhere."
The hours passed by slowly; it was well past dark now and getting colder. Looking over at Ellie, Joel can see she is fighting to keep her eyes open.
"You need to get some rest; I'll stay up with her." He murmurs; his tone is serious, and she doesn't bother to argue with him.
"Okay, but you'll wake me if anything changes." Ellie pushed, not moving a muscle until she had his word.
"I will," he whispered solemnly.
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Ellie stood and stretched for the first time in hours, grabbing her pack and unrolling her sleeping bag a few feet away from where Joel sat by your mattress.
She was so exhausted from the stress of the current situation that sleep found her quickly. In a matter of minutes, Joel could hear her soft snores.
Joel shifted into a more comfortable position beside you, stretching himself out on the floor so he was lying on his side, his head level with your own.
He reclaimed your hand in his. It was cold and limp, and he couldn't help but think about how much he had taken you for granted.
He has known that you were strong enough to handle anything that came your way and that you didn't need anyone's help. But now, as he looked at your pale face, he realised that it was ridiculous to think that anyone could have made it out of that situation in any other way.
He leans in close, his forehead resting against your hand, his eyes closed. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I'm so sorry. I should have heard him. I should have protected you." His voice broke, and he struggled to hold back the tears that threatened to spill over.
There was a long moment of silence, broken only by your steady breathing, Ellie's snores, and the occasional creak of the old farmhouse. Joel stayed there, still holding your hand, lost in his thoughts. He thought about all the things he wanted to say to you and all the things he wished he had done differently.
He wished he had been more open with you and told you how much you meant to him. He wished he had hugged you and spent more time just being with you.
It was too late for those regrets now. All he could do was sit there, holding your hand or stroking your hair. Willing you to wake up and hoping that somehow, someway, you would pull through. That you would come back to him, and he could make things right.
As he sat watching the steady rise and fall of your chest. Joel knew that nothing would ever be the same again. That he would never be able to erase these memories and that he would always carry this pain with him.
But he also knew that he couldn't give up, that he had to keep fighting and keep pushing forward. For you. For Ellie. For himself.
And so he sat there, stroking your hair and whispering all the things he should have told you before, waiting for a miracle.
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whumpypepsigal · 10 months ago
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Silent Night (2023): “Hey, hey. It’s okay. It’s okay.”
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antidarling · 1 year ago
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I like it when the man deteriorates after the break up.
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ovaryacted · 1 day ago
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Thinking about Joel Miller, Javier Peña, old man Logan, and Marcus Acacius today…I miss them so bad.
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lauronk · 8 months ago
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so a year ago today i stress-sweated and had heart palpitations while pushing publish on ao3 on my first last of us fanfic
and the response to it was beyond literally anything i could have imagined, and it's given me an incredible community and friends and so much joy.
so i wrote a bonus chapter of the millers on family vacation, hope you enjoy 💗
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chronicallyonlinewriter · 8 months ago
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My Work
Hi, this is my Tumblr. My name is Zee, and the TLoU brainrot is real. Currently working on the series: People Still Listen to Fleetwood Mac in the Apocalypse, featuring these two:
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(Art by @mote-of-star-dust) 🎸 First Fic: Go Your Own Way 🎸 233,277 words / 31 chapters Joel Miller / Benny Cooper (Original Female Character) In the winter of 2025, two strangers are found in the wilderness outside of Jackson, and are brought back to the settlement. One is a doctor with infallible optimism, the other is just trying to find a life worth living. (@toointojoelmiller featured this fic as part of her Saturday Story Spotlight series, including a review from @march-flowerr that still makes me weep.)
★ Second Fic: As Long as You Follow (WIP) ★ Currently 197,202 words / 14 out of 17 chapters Joel Miller / Benny Cooper (OFC) | Ellie Williams / General Badassery Three years after the events of Go Your Own Way, Ellie is given another chance to save the world.
🔥 Bonus Fic: Warm Ways 🔥 6,290 words / one-shot Joel Miller / Benny Cooper (OFC) It's smut. That's it. That's the fic.
Good Things Happen Bingo Fics:
🦋 Sunny Side of Heaven 🦋 5,845 words / one-shot Joel Miller & Ellie Williams | Joel Miller & Sarah Miller Joel Miller, his daughters, and a whole lot of butterflies.
Other Fics:
🐈 Winds of Change 🐈 5,472 words / one-shot Joel Miller & Ellie Williams | Ellie Williams & Fuzz Aldrin the Cat Ellie wants a cat. Joel...does not want a cat. So they compromise, and Ellie gets a cat.
🩹 What Makes You Think You're the One 🩹 2,498 words / one-shot Joel Miller / Tess Servopoulos Small one-shot about Tess and Joel going from smuggling partners, to...maybe something a little more. Maybe.
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tieronecrush · 1 year ago
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hot & heavy
chapter three: show me how
neighbor!joel x f!reader
series masterlist
series rating: E (18+ only, MDNI)
series summary:
over the course of three summers, joel miller becomes woven into your life. the first summer is spent falling for him; nannying his daughter and sneaking around with him in a burning love affair. you know how you feel about joel, he isn’t so sure about how it all is gonna work. the second summer is brief. a month spent at home after graduation and before you move to boston for your dream job. one look at you, one time hearing your voice, and joel is hooked again. he pines over you for that month, but you think — how is long distance of over a thousand miles going to work for a single dad? the third summer, you return home burnt out and pride bruised from your post-grad life. you need time to feel at home again, like your complete self, so you’ve come back home with no return ticket booked. it’s only a matter of time before joel seeks you out, slowly spending more time with you. without an inevitable end to the summer looming over you both, what chances are you willing to take?
word count: 8.3k (a long-y but a goody)
warnings: NO OUTBREAK (don’t need to worry about the mushies), no use of y/n, inexperienced/virgin reader, age gap (joel is 30/31, reader is 22), canon-divergent (sarah is 7 y/o), nanny au, alcohol use, pet name (sweetheart, darling, sweet girl), polite southern manners, feeling familial and self-pressure, masturbation (f & m), light voyeurism, THIGH RIDING, dirty talk, LATINO JOEL cause it's canon which means there's likely subpar spanish bye!!!
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Joel is trying very hard to be a good neighbor.
He can be friendly enough when he needs to be, but he absolutely did not know the kind of place he was moving into. It’s like Pleasantville had a baby with The Truman Show. Everyone here is so nice.
Not that his previous neighborhood wasn’t filled with people who were nice, but everyone pretty much kept to their own business and gave a wave here and had a quick catch-up across the lawn there. Well, except for the Adlers.
And here, they also do neighborhood events.
Which is why he finds himself nursing a can of Budweiser that’s dripping cool condensation in the mid-afternoon Texas heat of late June, surrounded by husbands having conversations about the upcoming football season, the latest Astros game, and their wives. He can’t really add anything to the conversation because he hasn’t kept up on any sports news, was working during the last game, and he’s single.
So fucking single that he spends most nights fantasizing about you, his daughter’s nanny. Or just straight up watching you like some depraved, desperate man.
Which isn’t too far off base, cause it’s what he’s feeling right now as he steals glances of you laid out on a patio lounger next to the aquamarine, chlorinated water. You’re sitting in a white linen cover-up dress, but the thin crepe fabric leaves nothing to the imagination when it comes to your swimsuit underneath. It’s modest enough for a family affair, covering up everything appropriately but it still does something to see your skin exposed in the sunlight, a sheen of sweat coating your body.
He’s noticed some of the neighbors around your age checking you out, even some of the men older than him ogling at you. It was hypocritical to feel the burn of anger — he was eyeing you all the same but to him, it felt a little different. Like you were closer to his than anyone else’s. He saw you every day; knew little things about you like how you always twisted the ring on your right hand around with your thumb or how you always left one last sip or two in every drink you had, never fully finishing them before abandoning them on the counter or in the sink.
Knowing more about you, from tiny details to what you wanted to do with your life, made him feel like he was dipping his feet into the pool of temptation. Every bit he learned made him want more.
And every time he saw you through the window of your bedroom, he jumped in head first into that alluring pool. It felt so right, so justified in the moment to him, but as soon as the lights clicked off on your side and he looked down at his come coating his knuckles, shame slithered up his throat and coated his mouth with bitterness.
Yet, he couldn’t stop. And some nights, he swears to himself that he sees you looking, watching his actions. Like you know exactly what he’s doing and you let him. One time, mind hazed over with pleasure as he got himself off to the sight of you alone and half naked, he even convinced himself that maybe you wanted him to keep doing it.
Joel knew you were flirting at times, but at other times he couldn’t tell if there was any difference between your polite, sweet demeanor and a subtle hint that you found him attractive.
Even if you were into him, there’s no way he could do anything about it.
Joel’s pulled out of his thoughts when he feels a tug on the hem of his swim trunks. His eyes flit down to his daughter, standing next to him with a pout on her face.
“Daddy, can I please go swimming now?”
Joel smooths a hand through her hair, bending down to her level to look her in the eyes.
“Can you give me just a few more minutes, Bug? I gotta talk to Mr. Clark about a job he might need help with at his house. I promise we can go down to the pool right after that.”
Joel’s cool thumb from the beer can swipes across her cheek as Sarah huffs in frustration, crossing her arms over her chest and staying put as a sign of her reluctant agreement. He smiles softly at her, kissing her hairline as he stands again, turning to the neighbor near him to answer his questions about a potential job refurbishing his deck over the weekends.
Wrapped up in conversation, Joel doesn’t notice the tiny footsteps padding away slowly at first, speeding up down the stairs. He doesn’t notice until his hand reaches for her curls, the swoosh of air under his palm tearing his eyes away from Mr. Clark. Panic sets in immediately, Joel excusing himself quickly to go to the edge of the deck to search the large party for his seven-year-old. Flip flops slap loudly against the concrete, the familiar voluminous hair bouncing as she runs towards the open water without anyone there to catch her and no safety floats on her arms.
He deposits his beer on the railing, starting to rush down the stairs to try to catch her but is stopped as he watches what plays out below him.
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You saw Sarah, without her dad following behind her, and knew something wasn’t right. Joel had told you that she was still in swimming lessons — Sarah loved the water but she’d only had a few lessons last summer so she wasn’t entirely ready to be able to jump in and swim completely without aid. That pings something off in your mind, instincts kicking in as you swing your legs over the side of the lounge chair and jump up immediately to chase after her. Your arms outstretched wrap around her tiny frame right before the edge of the pool, lifting her away from the water on the other side.
Sarah is in a fit of giggles, the idea of you snatching her a playful game in her childish mind. Relief washes over you and you go along with her giggles, spinning her around and bringing her back over to your chair.
“Gotcha, little miss! You’re eager to swim, huh?”
Sarah’s giggles die down while she’s still in your arms, and as you set her back down next to your seat, Joel jogs over from the stairs to the two of you.
“Mija, you can’t just run off like that. You scared me. And you know there’s no running around the pool, and no swimming without an adult. It’s not safe, is it?”
Joel’s squatting down to look his daughter in the eyes, seriousness evident in his tone but not to the point of anger. He’s calm and collected as he reprimands with reminders and honesty, his voice not ever nearing a louder volume than his normal cadence.
God, he’s such a good dad.
It’s so attractive.
Internally, your palm is hitting your forehead at the flutter of your ovaries. Externally, your eyes roll into the back of your head in a curse to your mind.
“You were taking so long, Daddy! I want to swim now.”
Sarah’s indignant, her actions were completely justified to herself when she didn’t know how it could have ended up.
“I’m sorry that it frustrates you to wait, but you can’t go running off. Next time, give me a reminder, Bug. Sometimes I don’t realize how long I’m taking, it’s a curse your dad has for lack of time management.”
You snort a laugh out, covering your mouth as the comment goes right over Sarah’s head. Joel’s eyes find yours, soft crinkles showing next to them as he grins at your laughter.
He sends Sarah over to her bag sitting a few chairs over to grab her floaties for him to put on, standing up and facing you. Hands slip into the pockets of his shorts, shoulders raising an inch.
“Thank you for grabbing her. I just, I dunno, I just panicked at the top of the stairs. Like seeing everything in slow motion and I was stuck there. But, uh, yeah, thank you for getting to her.”
Voice thick with ignominy, guilt sheening in his eyes as he looks at you with a vulnerability you’d yet to see from the daily interactions with Joel.
A crack formed in your heart at the thought that he was scared, that he feels like he failed in the moment for his feelings overwhelming him. Your head shakes side to side, your feet subconsciously step closer to him and your hand reaches out to sprawl across his bicep with a gentle, comforting squeeze.
“It’s alright, Joel. Nothing happened. Sarah’s totally fine, and still chomping at the bit to swim,” you console, a kind smile on your face, “Besides, I probably wouldn’t be a very good nanny if I didn’t do anything when I was way closer to her. You couldn’t have reached her in time, and I stepped in for you. You didn’t do anything wrong, Joel.”
His shoulders relax, hands slipping from his pockets as he nods.
“Thank you. For all of it.”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
“I know. But I want to.”
The words strike you in your chest, nothing profound said but the emphasis behind them warming you from the inside out like the Texas sun. You swallow, suddenly feeling parched from the heat and breaking the eye contact that Joel was holding with you to look down at Sarah as she approaches you again.
“Can you help put my floaties on?” She hands you the deflated safety devices with a toothy grin, the gap of lost tooth on the left side of her smile making you want to squeeze her from how adorable she looks.
“Course I can, girly,” you take the floats from her, finding the mouthpiece on one and looking back to Joel, continuing before you start to blow them up, “I can swim with Sarah, if you wanna keep chatting with Mr. Clark. I know he wanted to get your thoughts on his deck. You should go back and talk to him, could be an easy job with decent pay. He’s a generous guy. Go be social, charm the pants off of everyone.”
Joel nods and glances over his shoulder to the deck filled with neighbors. He turns toward you again, raising an eyebrow in question.
“You sure, sweetheart? You’re off the clock today, you should enjoy your free time.”
“Spending time with Sarah is fun. Wouldn’t want to spend my afternoon any other way. Plus, what else am I doing? Baking out in the sun like a lizard?”
Joel laughs, a genuine one that you’ve only heard a few times when a joke of yours really gets him, and he nods, bringing a hand up to gently pat your arm.
“Thanks, darlin’. I owe you one.”
The wink he sends you nearly has your knees failing you, a heat sent to your core at the subtle flirtation.
These charged moments between the two of you have been happening much more often, and with your new (almost) nightly routine waiting up for Joel in your bedroom, you’re waiting with bated breath for whatever is built between the two of you to snap and open the flood gates.
More and more, you’re imagining how it would feel to kiss him, how his hand would feel in yours, what he could take from you and what he could give you. There was so much you were admittedly naive about, but everything that you had once been intimated by seemed exciting when you thought of doing it all with Joel.
He’s kind, and respectful, and gentle. He cares. Even when he acts like a grump or teases you, you know there’s something there. There has to be, otherwise you’re going crazy for sure.
Pulling yourself away from your daydreams, you inflate the floaties for Sarah and help her get them on. You pull your cover up over your head, depositing it on the chair you were laid out on. Sarah’s small hand fits in yours, taking slow steps to allow her to keep up with you as you cross the concrete patio to the pool stairs.
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The two of you climb down the stairs and into the water, Sarah shrieks and giggles from the chill surrounding her hitting Joel’s ears all the way up on the deck. He’s back with Mr. Clark, having finished hearing him out about what he wants done and offering his services, reaching an easy agreement with him about when he’ll come by to start and what Mr. Clark will pay him.
Joel wanders away from the group, grabbing another beer, this time a Miller Lite.
Not his favorite, but he’ll take what he can get to keep a small buzz around all these people. Nosy, overly polite, and fake people make him uneasy. He's virtually the opposite, and it occurs to him that you are, too.
Maybe that’s why he feels so drawn to you.
Well, that, and you’re one of the most beautiful people he’s ever seen.
Cracking open the can, he leans on the railing with his elbows supporting him and watches you with his daughter. He takes a long sip, combing his gaze over the top half of your torso that’s out of the water as you stand in the shallow end. The bikini top he’d gotten a peek of under your coverup is on full display now, the sweet lilac color with ditsy florals tight across your chest.
He’s seen more of your bare skin from his window, but the bikini top sends a heat to the back of his neck and behind his ears, imagining you over him on his lap and his hand slipped under the swimsuit.
Shaking his head to pull him away from the image, he takes a deep breath and a few gulps of his beer, taking one more look at the two of you splashing around in the water with some of the other neighborhood kids swimming circles around you. He holds back a smile as he listens to your laughter mixed with Sarah’s, chewing on the inside of his cheek before he returns to be social like you told him to.
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Eventually, once they’re pruny and antsy again, Sarah and the other kids get out and towel off to play tag altogether in the grassy part of your backyard. You dry off and slip your coverup over your head again, the fabric clinging to you in places that weren’t fully dry. Bare feet pad against the wooden stairs as you climb them, taking a breath to brace yourself before returning into the mass of judgy neighbors.
The contents of the cooler have dwindled, so you opt for a Corona and pop the cap off, weaving in and out of the crowd to find a lime wedge. At the makeshift bar, you grab a slice and shove it down the bottleneck, taking a sip and turning towards a group of neighbors you actually like.
Walking up to the circle, you see your brother, Chris, a kid his age from down street, Ryan, and Joel standing opposite you. Everyone’s talking about setting up a bags tournament, and you volunteer to play as well. One of the young wives offers to pair everyone off into teams, and you get set up with Chris while Joel gets partnered with Ryan.
Everyone playing meanders down to the lawn where the handful of boards are set up for play, and the four of you end up versus each other. Chris and Ryan walk to the far side, leaving Joel and yourself at the opposite end to start the game.
He bends down to collect the beanbags, handing you the blue ones with a grin while he holds the red for himself.
“You ready to lose at cornhole, sweetheart?”
You scoff and roll your eyes.
“No, cause I’m ready to win at bags.”
Joel scoffs this time, letting out a short laugh and giving you a look of disbelief.
“Don’t tell me you’re one of those people, darlin’. It’s called cornhole. Why do you even call it bags? You’re from Austin. We say cornhole.”
“Um, I am ‘one of those people’ cause ‘those people’ are the correct ones. And there are plenty of people living in Austin that call it bags. For example, my dad who taught me the game.”
You turn away from Joel and lob one of your bags onto the board, watching as it skids across the surface and sinks into the hole.
“Your dad is from the Midwest. Doesn’t count, sweetheart.”
Joel tosses his first one, the red bag smacking against the surface and sticking to its place. You look at him with a satisfied, smug smirk.
“It does count. And even more so, everyone in Fort Worth at school calls it bags. People from Texas.”
Your next shot only lands on the board, an annoyed sigh falling from your lips.
“That’s Fort Worth. I’m talking about Austin. Your hometown. You can’t betray us by calling it bags, darlin’. You’re breaking my heart hearing that.”
“Well, then I guess I’ll always be a heartbreaker to you. Cause if I ever call this game cornhole, it’ll be the death of me.”
Joel sinks his next shot, giving you the same pompous look you’d given him.
“Now I can’t be losing you so soon, so we can agree to disagree. But I’m right.”
“Oh my god, no! I am right. And I will be teaching Sarah the correct name for the game.”
The blue bag in your hand lands on the edge of the hole, taking a second to let gravity pull it in. You cheer to yourself and hear Joel’s laugh next to you, your smile softening.
“Now that’s just too far, sweetheart. I draw the line at influencing the youth. My youth, especially.”
Your laugh pulls a smile from Joel, the shot leaving his hand to land right in the hole of the board. He looks back to you, eyes glistening with a tinge of admiration and teasing all in one.
“Fine. I will allow you to parent as you see fit, even if it’s wrong on all moral levels.”
“I can see who’s influencing her heightened dramatics lately.”
You pause, a beat of silence as you try to find a defense for yourself but coming up short. The last beanbag in your possession sails through the air, missing the board completely. A pout tugs your bottom lip out, huffing a sigh out of your nostrils and crossing your arms to watch Joel take his last turn for the round.
His hand twitches at the last second, changing the trajectory of his throw and sending the bag off to the side into the grass.
“I’ll admit, I do come up with…climactic story lines for her Barbies. But it’s to encourage her imagination!”
“I’m just teasin’ you, darlin’. You’re great with Sarah, and we both love having you around this summer. Don’t need to change a thing about you.”
He must mean the words in a friendly manner, but your heart can help but flutter at the thought of Joel enjoying you being around him often.
The game goes for a few more rounds, Joel and you keeping up with each other and tying at the end of each of your turns.
“Guess we’re a pretty good match.” You smile sweetly at him as you reach out your hand as a gesture of good sportsmanship when you and Chris take the win. Joel’s hand envelopes yours, shaking it firmly as a grin tugs one side of his mouth up.
“I think you’re right about that, sweetheart.”
“We’re quitting, this is boring! Sorry, sis! Sorry, Joel!” your brother shouts at you both, sauntering off with his buddy Ryan. Joel looks back at you, shrugging with his hands in his pockets.
“Think we’d be good partners? We could keep up the tournament together.”
A wide smile crosses your face as you nod in agreement.
“Let’s kick everyone’s asses. At bags.” You wink before walking ahead of him back to the group, getting assigned your new opponents.
You spend the next few games across from Joel, sharing knowing glances and grins, communicating with only a look for the rest of your games. You easily climb through the small, single elimination tourney and get to the winner’s game. The pressure, or as much pressure as a friendly, neighborhood game could be when you’re a competitive person, is on with the eyes of everyone eliminated on you. After a tension filled game, both in scoring, and the look in Joel’s eyes that’s sending a tingle throughout your thighs and between your legs, the two of you earn the victory 21-19.
You both cheer goofily, overly celebratory for the simple sport as you rush to the center of the pitch. Joel meets you halfway, laughing as you raise your hand for a high five. He complies, grabbing your hand when it meets his in the air, squeezing it as he drops them together between your bodies. His eyes are darker, filled with a glint of something that intensifies the feeling at your core.
At a barely audible level, his drawl curls around his words as he tells you, “Good job, sweetheart,” with a wink and a sideways smirk.
Your long dried bikini bottoms are soaked at this point, a chill tickling its way down your spine. His hand pulls away from yours, moving to your waist to guide you to the stairs. He follows you up to the deck, and you can feel the burn of his eyes on your eyes through the layers of thin fabric, imagining the subtle jerks of his arm and shoulder that you catch glimpses of from across the lawn on those late nights you unknowingly share with him. Before you can start a conversation to stay near him, or even suss out the electric chemistry that’s reaching towards a peak between you two, you both get pulled away from each other. For the rest of the night, you can’t ever seem to catch up with him, and you resign wistfully to being stuck in a boring conversation with your mom’s friends while your thoughts circulate around Joel.
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The sun set an hour ago, the temperature dropping only a few degrees with the night fall. Most of the neighborhood is still mingling around your family’s backyard, those with younger kids all making their way home.
Sarah’s head rests against Joel’s shoulder as he holds her at his hip, adjusting her to hold her higher as he chats with your dad and brother about his last season on LSU’s baseball team. He feels Sarah rub her face against his shirt and glances at her, checking the time on his watch. It’s about half an hour past Sarah’s usual bedtime, and if he doesn’t get her back home, she’s going to be as grumpy as he is without a full eight hours.
Wishing your dad and brother goodnight and thanking them for hosting, he turns to make his way across the deck and glances around in an attempt to find you to say goodnight. It’s Saturday, which means he won’t see you tomorrow, and the thought of that contracts his chest. He can’t think of an excuse to go on a search to seek you out, and without a reason, he meanders back over to his house.
Joel gets Sarah into her pajamas and lays her down for the night, kissing her forehead and smoothing her hair back. He smiles to himself at the peaceful look on her face, rubbing her back gently before shutting off her bedside lamp and closing the door behind him.
Retiring on the sofa, he turns on some reruns of the latest cable show, zoning out on the screen as his thoughts drift to you.
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The smell of chlorine on your hair starts to give you a headache, so you make your way inside and up to your room to shower off. Changing into your oversized sleep shirt and shorts, you fall back into bed and grab your book from the nightstand to read some pages to distract your brain before going to sleep.
You glance out your window to see if Joel’s come up to his room, like that first night you had waited for him and every time since then. When you can’t see his silhouette or any lights on in his window, you take a guess that he must be parked in front of the TV since he brought Sarah home.
After a chapter or two of your book, a vibration muffles against your comforter. The book gets discarded, probably losing your page while your hands scramble to find your device before the ringing stops. Right before it rings through, you grab the small phone and hit accept without a chance to check the contact.
“Hello?”
“Hey, sweetheart.”
The raspy drawl crackling through the line raises your heart rate, your eyes glancing to your alarm clock to see the time - 11:48 pm.
Why was Joel calling this late?
“Joel? What’s up? Is something wrong?”
“No, nothing’s wrong. Well, nothing serious. I, uh, just got a call from Tommy and he’s way too drunk at some bar downtown to drive home. I gotta go get him, but I don’t wanna wake Sarah to put her in the car or leave her by herself here obviously. So I was wondering if you’d—”
“I’ll be right over.”
Joel sighs, full of relief and breathes out his next words filled with gratefulness.
“Thank you so much, darlin’.”
You make a quick goodbye, gathering your phone and slipping out of your bedroom. Downstairs near the door to your garage, you slip on your flip flops and head over across your front yard and Joel’s. The humidity in the air has lessened, but your damp hair still sticks to the back of your neck. Your nails scrape up the hair and hold it off your neck, legs carrying you up the short set of stairs and up to the Miller front door. Your right hand knuckles tap quietly against the painted wood, letting your hair down and rubbing your sweaty palms on your t-shirt.
The door swings open with Joel on the other side, a sleepy grin on his face as he waves you in. He looks soft in his washed out Cypress Hill t-shirt and gym shorts, the vision of him in his version of PJs tugging at the corners of your lips.
“Thank you again for coming over here, darlin’. Sarah’s sleeping, should stay asleep while I’m gone. She was exhausted after tonight.”
Following Joel into the living room, he gestures to the couch and the TV that is still turned on to whatever he was watching before.
“Should be back soon, feel free to hang out here. Help yourself to anything to drink or if you want a snack, you know where everything is.” He smiles at the mention of you knowing your way around, grabbing the keys to his truck and slipping on some sneakers as you plop down onto the couch.
“Sounds good, I’ve got my cell so if you need any more help, text or call. But I’ll be camped out here until you get back.”
“Hopefully won’t need anything else, been dealing with Tommy my whole life. Always gonna be the annoying little brother,” he chuckles softly and lingers near the door, glancing around before his eyes find you again, “Guess I should head out, I’ll be back as soon as possible.”
“Drive safe! And tell Tommy I say hi,” you add with a quiet giggle, watching as Joel shakes his head and laughs to himself, heading out the front door. The truck rumbles to life in the driveway, and you watch from the window as he heads down your street and towards the city.
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The engine shuts off in the driveway, and Joel can still hear some echoes of the party carrying on from another neighbor's backyard. Getting Tommy from the bar took way longer than he thought it would, and it’s now 1:26am. Traffic was horrible attempting to cross the city ‘cause of some country show getting out right as he hit downtown, and Tommy wouldn’t answer his damn phone when Joel did get there. He sped back to Tommy’s and basically made him roll out of the car, idling to make sure his brother got inside alright. He was insufferable with his drunk babbling, and now by the time Joel finally got home, he felt a swirl of guilt in his stomach for making you come over. He thought it would be quick, and now he’s slinking inside to apologize profusely for taking an hour and a half.
The front door squeaks on its hinges, the hollow sound of the TV cracking through its speakers at a low volume. You don’t greet him as he slowly clicks the door back in place, locking the deadbolt and kicking off his sneakers into the pile of shoes in the entryway.
Sock covered feet echo muffled thuds across the wood floors of his living room, a grin tugging on his lips when you finally come into view.
Fast asleep, you're laid out on the leather couch with your legs curled into your stomach. One arm’s under the throw pillow your head rests on and the other is bent limply in front of you, fingers wrapped into a loose fist. The movement of your chest is languid and deep with your breaths, lips parted in relaxation and eyelashes resting against your skin.
Painfully angelic.
He’s frozen for a moment across the room, watching you sleep until the time reaches past 1:30am and he knows that he needs to wake you to get you back home and into your own bed. He selfishly wants to let you sleep there, doesn’t want to interrupt any sweet dreams you might be having or the rest you need after taking care of his daughter all week, after helping him too.
Sighing faintly to himself, he moves towards the couch and bends down to gently rub your shoulder to wake you.
“I’m back, sweetheart, you can head home.”
You gasp from the shock of being woken from a deep sleep, scrambling to sit up in a panic with heavy lidded eyes. Your soft touch presses warmly against his thigh through the fabric of his gym shorts, and he looks down at you as you start to fully wake.
“Joel? Oh god, I’m so sorry I fell asleep, I shouldn’t have—”
“Hey, hey, it’s alright, sweetheart. I took a lot longer than I thought I would,” the cozy look in your eyes plucks at his heart strings, and the touch lingering on his leg turns into an electric burn, “‘M sorry you had to sleep on the couch for a bit.”
Your head shakes with a dopey grin, fingers brushing his skin as it slips back towards your lap. The spot once covered with your touch sends a chill throughout his body. His eyes track your motion and his own hand reaches out for you. Large fingers slip between yours, Joel’s gaze returns up from your locked hands. Before you can say anything to him, and before he can overthink, he leans in and catches your lips in a fragile kiss.
Everything stops around him in the moment. The TV is muted in his ears, the chill of the AC isn’t felt with the fire alighting in his gut, his eyes close and bring him into an abyss where all he can feel is the plush of your lips against his and all he can smell is the candied scent of your green apple and lime body wash mixing in his nose with the bluebell and jasmine notes of your shampoo. It’s overwhelming, the way you have completely surrounded him with one kiss.
Your mouth is still against his for a few more beats, Joel imagining the shock you must be in and he immediately feels his stomach drop in a rush.
Fucking idiot. Why would you think it would be okay to kiss her? She’s obviously uncomfortable and now you are going to have to grovel out an apology for being creepy and completely unprofessional.
Joel’s head moves back to break the kiss, his eyes opening with dread flooding them. Scanning your own expression, he can’t quite read you.
“Darlin’, I’m so sor—”
“Do it again.”
Now Joel is still with shock, confusion contorting his face as his head tilts minutely.
“What d’you mean, sweetheart?”
“Do it again,” the smooth skin of your hand trails up his arm, across his shoulder, and wraps around the side of his neck, “Kiss me.”
His brain takes a few seconds to process your words and fire actions to his nerves and muscles, but when everything finally connects in him, he’s leaning in and molding his mouth to yours in a deeper exchange.
With hands intertwined, he reaches his other up to caress your cheek. His fingers splayed across your face, grazing the line of your jaw as you sigh into his mouth. The slight part of your lips with the exhale gives him a chance to lick into your mouth, his tongue tasting yours. Your hand on his neck tugs to pull him over you further, his back aching at the angle.
He pulls apart from you, breaths shallow as his eyes search yours for any signs of wanting to stop. When he can’t find any, he moves to sit on the couch, arms wrapping around your waist and pulling you to straddle his lap.
Joel chases your honey kisses, taking peck after peck as his hands run over your back. He feels your hands scratch into his five o’clock shadow, groaning against your lips when you sit back on his thigh and the front of your shorts brushes against his semi-hard cock in his pants.
Kisses intensify, heating up again. Joel’s hands skim down your back and each grab a handful of your ass, coaxing a small whimper from your lips. The sweet sound flips another switch in Joel, his hips canting up against you as he feels himself swell more in his pants.
Against your lips, he rasps out, “Y’have no idea how much I’ve wanted to kiss you since I met you, darlin’.”
“You could’ve. I’ve wanted it just as much…” you breathe out, a soft whine slipping after, “Don’t know how you didn’t—didn’t notice how much I wanted you.”
Joel’s mouth presses kisses at the corner of your mouth, along your jaw, and down your neck. He nips at your lush skin, moaning quietly and fanning out humid air at your collar. His hips grind up against you again, your inhale catching in your throat in a gasp.
“I noticed, sweetheart. Trust me, I noticed. Just couldn’t bring myself to touch you. Didn’t wanna make you uncomfortable,” his words tumble out in a lustful haze, the taste of you and the feeling of you lowering his inhibitions, “But I wanted you so bad. Ached for you, darlin’, and when I saw you in your window from my bedroom one night, dressed in nothing but those sweet little white lace panties you got, I watched you putting lotion on and fucked my hand. Felt so good watching your hands all over yourself, wanted ‘em to be mine.”
He moves one of his hands from your ass, slipping it between your bodies and groping one of your breasts through the thin material of your sleep shirt. You moan his name louder than before, your smaller hand gripping right onto his shoulder. He catches your lips in a kiss again to stifle your noises to be sure you two wouldn’t wake Sarah.
Your lips detach from his with a smacking sound, eyes looking into his blown wide with wonder.
“I knew you were there. I did it for you.”
Joel stares at you in disbelief, lips parted as he waits for you to continue.
“I wanted you so badly, that I thought—I thought if you saw me, it would maybe make you see me. Think I’m pretty or something. So I waited for you that first time, glancing over until I finally saw you in the window. And when I noticed you staring, I started to change my clothes but that wasn’t going to be enough cause it would be over so soon. So I put on my lotion. I could see you sitting there when I looked out my window, and I just—I guessed what you were doing cause I saw your arm moving and your head tilted back a lot. And it seemed like you liked it, so I kept doing it for you, and waiting for something to finally happen.”
His cock is rock hard and throbbing for some kind of attention. He can feel a wet spot forming on the fabric of his boxers from his pre-cum leaking out of him.
You knew. You saw him getting off to watching you parade around your room mostly naked. You liked it, and you kept doing it for him.
It’s the hottest thing anyone’s ever told him.
“Aren’t you a sweet little thing, huh darlin’? You did that for me every time?”
Joel uses the hand that was on your breast to brush your hair behind your ear, eyes piercing yours. He can see the shyness in you still, the hesitancy coating your expression and shaky breaths.
“Uh huh.”
“You wanted me to feel good? All those times, I got to take care of myself, but nobody took care of you?”
An audible swallow cuts the silence you’ve created, a shrug of your shoulders before your meek voice vibrates Joel’s ears.
“Um, sometimes—sometimes I would touch myself or rub against one of my pillows after I turned out my light. Not every night, but when I really needed to I did.”
A pout juts Joel’s bottom lip out, his head shaking back and forth.
“Mmm, poor thing having to touch yourself, bet it didn’t ever feel like enough, huh? Probably were thinking about my hands, my mouth, my cock. Am I right, sweet girl? Were you wishing I would find you in your room and make you come?”
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His words are shooting right to your cunt, fluttering inside of you and soaking your panties. This moment is more than enough for you to have your imagination run free, even if Joel never so much as kissed your cheek again. But his voice is addictive, his touch setting of ripples of goosebumps and making your body feel as if it’s filled with helium. You thought you would float to his ceiling if he wasn’t holding onto you so tight.
“Yes, yes I wanted that,” you close your eyes, the contact with Joel’s too much as you work up the courage to spill out the embarrassing reality that you’ve been dreading to tell him if you were ever caught in a moment like this, “I’m, um, I’ve never had anyone…”
Joel’s one hand plays with your hair and the other squeezes your bum gently. Your eyes open to see him staring at you full of doting affection.
“You’ve never had anyone touch you? You’re a virgin?” Your eyes cast down to the graphic on his t-shirt, nodding and feeling that meager inadequacy you’ve felt when the confession has come up to other guys and boyfriends in the past.
It wasn’t like you were saving yourself for any reason, it just never felt like the right moment. You never really wanted it with anyone in the past, and you took it as a sign when most guys, especially during college, would bolt after you told them. Your friends comforted you, after the first time telling you how shitty guys were and how they all had this complex that girls become obsessed and clingy with the guys they lose it to.
You braved yourself for that moment to happen now, waiting for Joel to tell you that ‘this wasn’t going to work’ or ‘that it’s getting kind of late’.
“Nothing wrong with that, sweetheart. We can do whatever you're comfortable with. Including doing nothing if that’s what you want.”
“What?”
Your head snaps up in surprise, facing writhe with skepticism. In Joel’s expression, you can’t find any signs of him being humorous or lying to you.
“I said, we can take this at your pace. I’d be happy just having you near me, pretty girl. I don’t wanna pressure you into anything.”
“No, no. You’re not,” your hands run across his broad shoulders, leaning in to press a featherlight kiss to his lips, “I want it with you, all of it. What I’m missing out on.”
His chuckle fills your ears, not laughing at you maliciously but as if you’re endearing to him.
“That can all happen eventually, darlin’. Not tonight,” Joel gives you a heady, yet tender kiss, pulling you by your waist over to his right more. Your knees lay on either side of his thigh, and you stare at him when he pulls back from you.
“How about tonight, you just show me how you make yourself come? I want you to show me what you like. Wanna see your beautiful face when you come. That alright with you, sweet girl?”
“What d’you mean?”
He’s patient with you, a warm palm running along your side as his head tilts.
“You rub your pretty little clit against my thigh. Just like one of your pillows. That okay? Think you’ll feel good doin’, sweetheart.”
“Okay, yeah. I wanna try it.”
Joel’s smile is sweetened as he looks at you, pressing a quick kiss to your lips. He pushes you to stand from his lap for a moment, holding you up on shaky legs while one hand tugs down the waistband of your shorts a few inches. He looks up at you through his long lashes (why do men always have the best lashes?) and presses a kiss to your hip bone.
“Can I take these off for you, darlin’?”
You nod slowly, feeling the words get caught in your throat as tension builds between the two of you.
“Need you to tell me. Always need to hear your words.”
Swallowing hard, your throat clears with a barely there hem and your voice comes out thick with want.
“You can take them off. Please take them off.”
Joel moves with your consent, smoothly pulling your cotton shorts down your legs and dropping them to the ground. He leans forward and grazes his lips along your thighs with a warm exhale, ending his exploration with a suckling kiss.
“Such a sweet, polite girl. How’d anyone resist you?”
His hands grip the backs of your thighs, bringing you into his lap and settling you over his right leg again. You whimper at the feeling of your weight pressing your clit against his thigh, the moment of friction as he adjusts your positions sending a jolt of energy throughout your bloodstream.
“Alright, pretty girl, you just move your hips how you do in your bedroom alone. Right here against my thigh.”
Hands on his shoulders brace yourself as you give your hips one roll against Joel, the wetness of your cunt leaking from your panties and onto his skin. When you pull back, you can see the slightest hint of sheen on him, mouth falling open at the sight of part of you marking him, even temporarily. A slow rhythm builds, Joel’s large hand encasing one of your ass cheeks and the other on your waist to help you find your pace.
“I imagined you over me like this all the time. Y’know what I would say to myself when I was looking at you, sweetheart?” The timbre of his deep drawl vibrates against your eardrum as he leans his head in to press a kiss right under your lobe.
“W-What would you say?” your voice is high-pitched and throaty, eyes screwing shut as you focus on his voice and the feeling of your clit dragging against him.
“I would say things like ‘Quiero saborearte’ and ‘Apuesto a que te sientes tan apretada y mojada’ and ‘Quiero dártelo’. Do you know what any of that means?”
Is he really giving you a Spanish lesson right now?
When you don’t answer, his hands grip you tighter and skid your hips to a halt, a whine pulled from your lips involuntarily as you look at him.
“I asked you if you understood what I said, sweetheart. I wanna know. Then you can keep going.”
He’s being serious, and you huff out a breath in frustration before you respond.
“All I understood is ‘quiero’ which is ‘I want’ and ‘saborear’ is to savor? I think?”
Joel rumbles out a satisfied hum, removing his hands from you completely. At the freedom, you move your hips faster, your arousal forming a wet spot on his shorts and skin. Quiet moans of his name are the only thing that you can speak as you listen to him again.
“‘Quiero saborearte’ is ‘I want to taste you.’”
Oh fuck.
His hands grip you again, moving you in figure eights to grind you harder on his leg.
“‘Apuesto a que te sientes tan apretada y mojada’ means ‘I bet you feel so tight and wet.’”
“Fuck, Joel…”
His dark chuckle cuts through after your breathy adlib, the burning hot coil in your gut twists tighter.
“God, you look so pretty like this. Can’t wait to see what you look like when I have my fingers or tongue on you. I know I’ll get you screaming my name.”
Smug fucker.
“And ‘Quiero dártelo’ translates to ‘I want to put it in.’ Is that what you thought about when you were making a mess on your pillows, sweet girl? Thought about me giving you my cock?”
“Joel, I-I’m gonna—“
“I know, sweetheart, I know. Let go, come on my thigh.”
That’s when the dam breaks and you're swept up into the flood of pleasure that washes over you like a tidal wave. All you can respond to Joel is “yesyesyes” as your eyes roll back into your head with your jaw dropped, his hands continuing to slide your hips back and forth to ride out your orgasm.
“So beautiful, darlin’…”
The feeling dissipates eventually, your chest heaving breaths to slow your heart rate down. Your eyes meet Joel’s again, a Cheshire smile wide across his face as he leans in and kisses you passionately. He pulls away, pressing quick pecks on your lips and around your cheeks, coaxing a laugh from you. You press his back against the couch, grin filled with a shy affection as you stare at him. You move to stand on your knees to climb off of him, your leg brushing his bulge and feeling his cock twitch in his shorts. Eyes snap back to his, a curious expression covering your features.
“Can I do something for you?”
“Another time, sweetheart. S’real late now, probably should get back home to get some sleep.” Joel thumbs your lip as you pout, wrapping around him in a tight hug.
“I don’t wanna leave.”
“I know, darlin’, I wish you could stay with me all night. But wouldn’t be the best look for you to walk home tomorrow morning from my house in your little PJs.”
You sigh deeply, pressing a light kiss to his neck before sitting up again and nodding in understanding.
“You’re right. I should get home,” you stand from the couch and pull on your shorts, slinking over to the front door with him in tow to slip into your flip flops, “See you Monday?”
You look up at him with wide, doleful eyes filled with hope, relief washing over you as he pulls you into him and gives you a breathtaking kiss.
“Can’t wait for it, sweet girl. Have a good Sunday.”
He sends you out the door after one, or a few, last kisses, standing in the doorway to make sure you get in alright.
Feeling your mind in the clouds and floating on adrenaline, you glide up to your room and flop onto your bed. Laying with your thoughts recounting the last hour of your life, you’re only pulled out when your phone buzzes with a message.
Joel:
Think you can sit up on your bed, sweetheart?
The message confuses you for a second until it clicks and you sit up quickly, turning on your mattress to face your window.
Joel’s lights are on for once in his room, his silhouette standing in the window. One hand supports him against the glass, shirt off and shorts pulled a few inches down his thighs. His arm flexes as he jerks his cock, breath fogging up the spot he’s closest to.
A wave of arousal rushes to your core, watching him on full display unlike every other time you’ve been the one to put the show on for him. It only takes a moment looking at you sitting on your bed, even in your pajamas, before his head is rolling back, jaw dropped and hand against the window clenching into a fist as he paints his hand with his come.
You fall back onto your bed when he walks out of sight, assuming he’s cleaning up. One more buzz sounds before you turn your light out, a second message from Joel:
Need you to stay late on Monday.
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taglist: @beskarandblasters @undrthelights @swiftispunk @joelsversion @clingontolife @elizabeth01585 @wandaandellie @asirenbyanyothername @ellenmunn @ja-ehyun @livinxdeadxgrl @sw33tp1xie @starsandsaints07 @marisemonteiroo @brunetteeras @whydontyoysaynodoja @beee-haw @shmaptainshmerica07 @jenna-mcgraw19 @whore-4-pedro @spursgirl14-blog @katifefe @joelmillerswifu @itsgiorgiaz @soph55 @grapejuicesny @wild-hearts-runfree @youcancallmeelle @lisa-ru @jupitren @ziggy-star @miaispunk @oneofutoo @starkovli @thatgeminigirlx @marchai @bunnyskisses @houseofballoonsth @casual-obsessions @pedro-pascal-lvr @bimbodolls-world @burningnerdchild @tuquoquebrute @mrsvedder12 @estelivi28 @helllsent @bongsrconfusing @addictedtotlou @brittmb115 @angie2274 @owod3 @pedrostories @pedroholicx @theelishad @johnwatsn @sunakochansama43 @elissaaa @felicityofbakerstreet @atinylittlepain
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lovelettersforthedamned · 1 year ago
Text
Happy Birthday! From, Your Girls.
--genre + trope: ANGST, hurt/NO COMFORT, fluff in the beginning, saw (safe for work)
--pairing: joel miller x f!reader
--word count: 4.5k
--summary: you cannot wait to celebrate joel's birthday as he's surrounded by family, but plans are cut short due to a mysterious virus going around town.
--warnings: fluff (barely), ANGST, hurt/NO comfort, outbreak day, MAJOR CHARACTER DEATHS, descriptions of injuries, weapons, violence, reader is the same age as joel, canon divergence, proposal, reader is a mom to sarah (not her birth mom).
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--gif credits: @elysean
Joel was never a birthday person if there is even a word for that. It’s not that he hated his birthday, he just wasn’t a celebratory type of guy. When Sarah came into his life, it changed things. There was a whole new person in his life to love and cherish, and most importantly celebrate. Sarah made it worth it. Then, you randomly showed up. You love to celebrate everything and anything, even the little things. There was no goal Sarah scored in soccer left ignored, and of course, no birthday left without a special something for the person involved. 
Joel was called into work early this morning, too early, but you figured this would happen. After he fell asleep last night, you snuck out from his hold to place sticky notes on places you knew he’d find them. There was a sticky note on his toothbrush, right on top of his pile of work shirts in the dresser, and the last one placed right on his keys. Each of them had a sweet note on it, followed by a messy little heart placed right at the bottom. He smiled to himself as he pockets two of them, and places the third in his wallet, next to a Polaroid of you and Sarah. 
In the picture, you have the widest smile painted on your face. He remembers taking it on your Christmas trip to Boulder last year. The snow is falling and you hugging Sarah tight due to both of you almost falling over in the slick terrain. He finds himself staring at it for a while, reminiscing about the tender moment shared between the three of you. He puts the photo back in his wallet and runs back upstairs to give you both a peck on the forehead before grabbing a banana and heading out to work. 
A few hours pass before your alarm goes off to take Sarah to school, slowly rising from your bed to look at the sun gleaming in through the window. You quickly get ready for the day before heading to Sarah’s room to check if she’s awake. Knocking before coming in, you greet her with a grin before embracing her with a tight hug. “Good Morning, love bug! You almost ready to head downstairs?” You ask, already making your way towards her door.
She responds with a nod, “Yep, is Dad already gone?”
“Yeah, he got called into work early, but I think he should be home before 6 today,” You add, “We’ll have dinner with Uncle Tommy tonight when Dad comes back.” She nods her head as you make your way downstairs into the kitchen. Pulling out the eggs, you hear the front door open. Whipping your head behind you, you see Tommy walk through the living room and sit at the table. 
“Did you wish your brother a happy birthday?” Turning around, you ask with your hand on your hip.
“What did you get Joel? Theoretically speaking.” He responds, ignoring your question.
You look back at him in shock and confusion, “Don’t you think it’s a little late to be asking me that question?”
He raises his hands in surrender, “I said theoretically!”
Before you could reply, you hear Sarah’s footsteps descend the stairs, “You really didn’t get him a present?” 
“Once again, I said theoretically…Did you get him a present?” He squints his eyes, questioning the teen. 
“Of course I did,” she retorts back, “Because I’m a good daughter.”
Shaking your head you hand Sarah her plate of scrambled eggs, “Okay, okay. Eat your breakfast before you’re late for the bus.”
You sit with the both of them as you take this moment in. Knowing what Sarah’s birth mom did, you were hesitant to let Joel introduce you to Sarah and Tommy. It’s not that you knew that you would leave, it was that you were scared that they thought you were going to. Of course, Sarah was timid with you in the beginning, she didn’t want to get hurt, and you understood that. The process of relearning for Sarah was slow but steady. Now that you’ve been with Joel for five years and some change, she knew you were here to stay. She’s growing up with you, and you were so happy to be there to witness it all. 
The honking of the school bus woke you from your thoughts as you gathered her backpack and water. “Bye Mom, bye Uncle Tommy! Love you!”, she yells as she swiftly walks to the door. 
You raise your hand to wave her goodbye, “Bye love bug! I love you too!” 
Hours pass as you finally get to sit on the couch. You’ve been running around the house all day cleaning and decorating for when Joel comes back home. You didn’t do anything too extravagant, knowing that Joel isn’t particularly fond of flashy things. Just a simple handmade poster with a ‘HAPPY BIRTHDAY, FROM YOUR GIRLS (AND TOMMY)’ written across it and his present wrapped and placed on the table. You made a photobook of all the pictures you had of Joel, including ones with occasional guests. Sarah was in most of them with him, along with Tommy. At the end of the book, there's a page-long letter addressed to him, filled with adoration for the man you’ve been able to share your life with. Looking at the clock nearby, you see that it’s already time for Sarah to arrive home from school. As if on cue, you see the yellow bus roll to a stop in front of the driveway. And outcomes Sarah, making her way to the door. 
She sees the poster first, staring at it for a second. “Oh no, does it look ugly?” You worry. 
She quickly turns towards you, “No! No, not at all. I think it’s really cute, Dad will love it.”
“You think so?” asking her. 
Making her way towards you, ditching her backpack in the process, she cuddles up next to you, “I know so,” she confirms, “Even if he hated it, he wouldn’t tell you because he loves you so much.” 
 “Oh like that is supposed to make me feel better,” rolling your eyes sarcastically.
You pass the time by talking about Sarah’s present to him, helping her with her homework, and preparing dinner. Two hours pass before you both turn your head to the sound of the door being unlocked. Ditching the homework entirely, you and Sarah run to greet Joel as soon as he steps into the home. At the same time, you hug him. Enveloping him in a group hug so strong, he almost topples over. Scattered greetings ‘Happy Birthday’ are flowing throughout the room. While smiling he replies, “Thank you girls…God I’ve missed you both.” He pulls back to see the poster taped to the wall and smiles again. This was all you needed, Joel and your little girl all together. “Where’s Tommy?” Joel wonders out loud as he pulls away.
“I think he’s on his way,” you reply, “With a cake.”
“Darlin’, I didn’t need a cake.” He argues.
 Furrowing your eyebrows together in confusion, “Of course, you need a cake, it’s your birthday for God’s sake!” 
Sarah butts in, “Saying that you don’t need cake on your birthday is like saying a plant doesn’t need water, it’s wrong.”
A breathy chuckle leaves his lips, “Yeah…I guess you’re right baby girl.”
Joel goes upstairs to change and get comfortable for dinner, and now apparently cake, to his surprise. While he’s changing, Tommy walks in with no cake in hand. Seeing him empty-handed you speak, “Hey, where’s the cake?”
He sighs and shakes his head slightly, “Fuck, I forgot it, but give me fifteen minutes and I’ll come back with-”. He gets interrupted by Joel coming down the stairs.
“Happy birthday brother,” he says as he brings Joel in for a hug. 
As Joel pulls away he also notices the lack of cake and a guilty look on Tommy’s face, “Hey, it’s okay. I think we still got ice cream in the freezer.”
You all walk towards the kitchen and help yourselves to the dinner you’ve made. The night is full of stories of Joel when he was a teenager that you’ve probably heard a dozen times before, but you don’t care. Joel and Tommy are going back and forth, throwing their heads back in laughter as a few swear words are dropped at the dinner table. Followed by a light-hearted, ‘Don’t say those words, they’re bad’ spiel directed to Sarah as she rolls her eyes. The energy between the four of you was warm and comforting. Nearing the end of the night, the lights are off, except for the flickering candle placed in the middle of a bowl of ice cream. Off-tune singing was all that was heard throughout the hallways of the home, followed by the cheers and whistles when Joel blew out the flame. 
Joel decided not to open presents in front of everyone, he always thought it was so awkward, so after a while of lounging at the table, Sarah headed upstairs. Another few minutes pass by before Tommy decides he's ready to head out as well, not before wishing his brother another ‘Happy Birthday’ and an embrace for the both of you. As you wave Tommy goodbye, you turn towards the birthday boy and give him a small peck, “Did you have a good day today?” 
“I spent it with my family,” he grins, “How could I not have a good day?” He shuts the door and leads you to the couch, slightly groaning as he sinks into it. Swinging his arm over your shoulders, he pulls you in tighter. “Thank you for today.” He says quietly.
You nuzzle into his neck, “Of course, my love. Any reason to celebrate with you, I will do with pride.” He looks down at you as you look up at him, traveling through each detail of his irises as you take him in. Joel leans in closer to lock his lips onto yours. There is no hidden intention of taking it further, he just wants to be with you in the most intimate way possible. You’ve been so kind to him, and he finds that words aren’t enough to express that. You pull away as he drags a blanket across your body, kissing the crown of your head in the process. He reaches for the outline of his left pocket to grab the ring box and make sure it’s still there. He’s never been good at making romantic plans, he usually leaves that to you, so as he sits there he decides that he could wait one more night before asking the question. Choosing to savor the quiet life he’s built with you. You don’t know how long you stay like that before you doze off, Joel quickly follows as well. 
Joel wakes up first, the distant sounds of commotion ring in his ears. Fluorescent lights flash through the window as he turns to look outside. The cul de sac is quiet, but the loud sounds of aircrafts above start to stir you awake. 
You look towards the clock to see it’s only two in the morning. “What’s going on?” There is a hint of worry in your voice. 
Joel responds as he rises from the comfortable position on the couch, “I’m not sure, go get Sarah.” There was a sense of urgency in his voice, not helping your now panicked state. 
Nodding, you run up to Sarah’s room. She was already awake and peering out her window. Without leaving her spot by the window, she turns towards you, “Mom, what’s happening?” You walk towards her, looking with her to see if you can get a better view of whatever was occurring outside the safe walls of your home. 
“I’m not sure baby,” you shrug, “Just put your shoes on, Dad’s downstairs.” She puts her shoes on as you make your way down to Joel. He’s looking at the TV before he looks at you two. The screen shows a message saying, ‘NATIONAL ALERT. PRIMARY ENTRY POINT SYSTEM ISSUED AN EMERGENCY ACTION NOTIFICATION’. The first sentence was all Joel needed to start moving. 
He grabs whatever he can and puts it into a nearby duffle bag he found in the closet. He even grabs his pistol from a high cabinet in the hallway, checks for bullets, and shoves it into the waist belt of his jeans. While Joel is running around the living room, you put your shoes on and take a glance over at Sarah. She’s staring out at the front yard, breathing heavily. You look at what she could possibly be staring at, and you witness the impossible. Your elderly neighbor is fully sprinting out of her house, blood covering the entire front of her nightgown. “Joel!” You shout. 
He focuses on you and your wide eyes, then directs his attention to the commotion outside. The woman, standing in the middle of the street in a crooked stance, her mouth was agape and seemed to have strings reaching out of it. There was nothing to explain what was going on, but Joel’s mind was focused on one thing, and that was to keep his girls safe. “Stay here,” Joel says sternly. As soon as those words leave his mouth, it seems to have grabbed the attention of your neighbor outside. She starts to walk slowly, creeping towards the house, then she breaks into a sprint towards your home. All you can do is start to brace to sprint before a truck slams into the older woman and kills her instantly. Sarah hides her face in your chest, unable to process what just happened. Still observing the scene in front of you, you realize the man in the truck was Tommy. He yells out for Joel, then your name, then Sarah’s. You run outside to meet him on the passenger side of the vehicle, a shotgun in his arms. You quickly usher Sarah into the backseat to avoid her seeing the body lying just in front of Tommy’s car. Quickly following her inside, the brothers hop in the front before driving away. 
Sarah is still at your side, clinging onto you as if you’ll slip away if she lets go. Joel’s gruff voice echoes through the car, “What the hell is goin’ on?”
“I don’t know,” he replies, “But it’s not lookin’ good. People are running throughout the neighborhood. The old woman outside your house isn’t the only one who’s like that. They’re sayin’ it’s a parasite, some kind of virus.” 
You’re suddenly very conscious of your body, and how you’re feeling. “How do you know if you’re sick?” You speak up for the first time since being in the car. You’re met with the sickening silence from both men up front.” How do you know-”, you raise your voice slightly before being cut off by your boyfriend. 
“We’re not infected. We’re not.” He states, plain and simple, like this would fix all the worries plaguing your mind.  
Rivers of break lights flood your eyes. “Looks like everyone had the same idea, fuck!” Tommy yells. 
Joel interjects, “Just cut through the field and we’ll rejoin it further ahead.” He didn’t know if his plan would work, it just kept them moving. 
Tommy turns his wheel to drop abruptly into the grass beside the highway. You look behind you to see that a few cars had the same idea as you speed towards anywhere but here. Words spoken between Joel and Tommy start to drown out as you look at Sarah, who is now holding onto your waist. Tears well up and cling to your waterline. Waves of confusion and anxiety dance throughout your body. Everything happened so suddenly and with such violent action that you almost forget what was being celebrated hours before. 
You caress Sarah’s head as you look out the window. There’s more noise surrounding you as you realize you’re heading towards town. A few people run past the car frantically, trying to escape the terrors of what’s happening outside. A few turned into crowds, all around the truck trying to escape people that looked similar to your neighbor. On the main street, you had the perfect view of the worst of it. Some cars had crashed into street lights, bodies splayed all across the sidewalk, and fires erupting from the buildings lined up on the side of the road. A steady flow of planes fly above you, the slightest gap in between each of them. Everyone had the same idea, escape the area as fast as possible with no guarantee of safety at the destination ahead. 
Tommy is trying his best to avoid the people scattered on the pavement, struggling to escape the infected while also avoiding moving cars like Tommy’s in the process. Unlike his brother, Joel doesn’t seem to care about the people in the way, telling Tommy to keep going. 
Suddenly a flood of people began to run towards the car, prompting Tommy to put the gear in reverse and make his way back to find a quick escape in an alley. In the distance, one of the planes taking off suddenly loses control, quickly descending as it makes its way towards the truck. Tommy quickly shifts gears again and slams onto the pedal, trying to make it as far away from the plane as possible before it touches the ground. A bright explosion lights up the crowd behind you before debris hits the side of the truck and topples the car. 
Your vision flashes as you fight unconsciousness. The sound of someone calling your name…not just someone...Joel? Or Tommy? Or Sarah. You try to blink back the hazy feeling creeping up on you… 
“Get her out,” the voice sounded muffled like you were underwater. The speaker is not registering in your mind. You feel your body being pulled in some direction. You groan as you push yourself from the person's grasp, “Don’t you dare, darlin’.” Joel. You allow yourself to be pulled from the ground. 
That's when you snap back to reality. You shoot up from the ground, pain flaring in your head and on your side, “Where’s Sarah?” Your voice comes out raspy and sharp. 
“M-mom!” Sarah cries out to you Sarah is standing close behind Joel and Tommy. As she’s slightly leaning her weight onto one foot while the other lays limp. 
“What happened?” You demand, now panicked. 
The group starts walking before you can get a definitive answer from Joel, “We have to keep moving, c’mon!”
Commotion still rang out from every direction as you tried to hustle your way out of there. You didn’t dare look down at your side, not when there were bigger problems, including your daughter’s inability to walk. Joel realizes the severity of Sarah’s injury and picks her up as she holds on tight to her dad’s neck. Tommy is leading the group through side streets while Joel is behind him, leaving you at the end. Maybe this was for the better, you didn’t want Joel to see your now bleeding side. There is enough going on, you didn’t need to add to the list. 
As you’ve finally made it into a clearing in a field, that’s when the fatigue of it all catches up to you. Your breathing is heavy and rough, and it feels like your limbs have weights attached to them, slowly pulling you to the earth. You’ve been holding your side to alleviate the pain, but it has done nothing. Joel and Tommy are occupied, their backs are turned trying to figure out what comes next in their hectic plan to get all of you somewhere safe. “Jo-Joel?” The weakest voice leaves you. They both turn, Joel still holding Sarah in his arms, as they witness you bend at the knees and fall to the ground. 
“Woah, woah, woah-Hey!” Tommy yells out.
Joel is the first one to make it to you, kneeling near your head and holding it. Sarah forces herself away from Joel and sits right next to your abdomen. She glances to the deep gash starting right above your hip, and ending an inch away from your navel. She calls for her dad quietly before gathering his attention to the wound. Seeing you in this state set Joel off in a panic, “Oh, my god…What happened? What happened darlin’, what happened?” Tommy has been standing near you, acting as a protector while also paying close attention to your actions. Your eyes are barely open, but you can see the situation perfectly clear. You weren’t going to make it.
Taking in a sharp and shaky breath you mutter, “Sarah, Joel…I love- I love you both, so-so much. Thank you.” Tears prick your eyes, knowing this will be the last moments with your family. You turn your head to Tommy who is now looking at you, “Thank you,” an abrupt gasp escapes, “thank you.”
Joel and Tommy realize that there’s nothing they can do, but Sarah has a harder time grasping that. Her voice laced with sobs call out for you, “Mom, please…please don’t go-please!” 
You reach up for her face and caress her cheek, glancing at her tired frame, “Being your mom was the best thing I’ve ever done love bug, I will love you for forever and ever.” You realize another person is leaving her for good, and that breaks your heart a million times over again. “I am so sorry, I love you so much.” Another apology, maybe it’s not your fault you’re leaving, but this little girl has been through too much at such a young age.
It was your turn to say your goodbyes to Joel, but he cuts you off, “Darlin’ before you say anything, I’ve been meaning to do this for a long time, but I’ve been too god damn scared. This is never what I wanted when I thought of when I’d do this, but I need to do this right now.” He reaches for the same square box he felt a few hours before, but this time he pulls it out and opens the box. Your eyes fall to ring, then rise to meet his gaze. Joel begins to speak again, not before a tear falls from his eye, “There was not a moment from when I first met you to now where I didn’t think I was going to marry you. You love, and you love unconditionally, and that is something not only I needed, but what Sarah needed as well. God, we love you so much and I can’t picture a moment further where we aren’t husband and wife. Will you marry me?” 
You use the last of your strength to nod weakly as you raise your left hand. Joel slips the ring delicately on your finger as he smiles amidst a sob. Leaning in he presses a passionate yet soft kiss to your lips, he’s able to kiss his wife for the first time. Pulling back he’s noticed your breathing has slowed and you don’t open your eyes. The hand held by Sarah lays limp in her palm. “Darlin’-I’m…F-FUCK,” he screams. He rests his forehead on yours and mutters endless apologies, hoping somehow you could hear them, “C’mon (Y/N), please,” His voice breaking, “Please don’t leave us. Don’t leave me.” 
There’s a moment that passes where Joel can’t hear anything around him, a high-pitched ringing floods his surroundings. He lost you, and he can never get you back. He thinks he’s a failure, a burden, a bad husband. That’s all he can think about as Tommy is trying to get him up, “Joel! Joel, I’m sorry, but we have to keep moving, I am so sorry.” 
“Yeah, yeah…okay,” Joel places one last lingering kiss on your forehead before pulling Sarah back in his arms. Sarah still has tears bordering her lash line, threatening to spill. They only make it a few feet ahead before they’re met face-to-face with a man in a military uniform. 
His weapon is pointed directly at Tommy, “Put the gun down, now!” 
Tommy lowers his gun and drops it to the floor, yet the man ahead of them still has his drawn and finger hovering over the trigger. This time it was Joel’s turn to speak up, “We are not infected. We are not-”. A bullet interrupts his sentence. They both duck down as they figure out if anyone was hit. A whimper from Sarah answers that question.
She’s in shock by the time Joel lays her on the ground and Tommy quickly picks up his shotgun and shoots the man dead. “No, no, no, no…not you too, please no,” Joel pleads. He pushes on her stomach where the bullet entered only to realize that it went straight through. The pain starts to seep into Sarah’s senses now and makes it even harder to keep applying pressure, even though it won’t help. This feels like deja vu for Joel, except he knows this has happened before because he can see your body as he glances back toward town. Joel feels like he can’t speak, all he can say is ‘I love you’ over and over again. Making it known that he’s always loved and will continue to love his daughter. Her breathing is shallow and fading fast. He can feel his daughter’s light slip from his hold until she’s completely dark, eyes staring into the night sky with such dullness. Joel flickers his gaze all across her face, looking for a sign of her to come back, but he finds nothing. “Sarah, baby-oh god. No!” He screams for the second time tonight. He lifts her toward his chest and cries out in sheer pain. He lost both of his girls tonight, and he doesn’t know what to do now. 
Picking her up, he carries Sarah over to where you lay in the grass. Tommy follows closely behind, a weight present in the way he walks. Joel carefully places his little girl right next to you and closes Sarah’s eyes. He stands back up to look at you both. To Joel, you guys fell asleep in the grassy field, cuddled together as you soaked in the stars. To Joel, he spent his birthday with you and Sarah, ending the night in this field. He’d take a picture of your sleeping forms and replace the picture in his wallet with this one. To him, he started the day with his daughter and girlfriend asleep and ended the day with his daughter and wife asleep. 
--author's note: i...am so sorry, i cried while writing this LOL. the last paragraph killed me if i'm being completely honest, like woah. pls don't forget to like, comment, and reblog! SUPPORT YOUR WRITERS PLEASEEE. okay thank you so much for reading this, take care of yourself ily bye.
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