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gracieheartspedro · 9 months

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Cool About It

joel miller x fem! reader

Description: you've only patrolled with him a couple times, which made you kind of hate him. but after a night of subtle flirting at the tipsy bison, tons of alcohol, shooting pool, and making fun of some guy's tattoos, you realize you're really into joel. after you get him, you realize maybe you shouldn't want him.

Part 1/3

PART TWO IS HERE

Word count: 5.3k

Warnings: MINORS DNI! this is 18+, post!outbreak joel, drinking, playing pool(?), possible age gap (not specified really), very smutty, unprotected p in v, fingering, oral (f receiving), overstimulation, dirty talk, multiple orgasms, joel is a menace a bit, ellie is also a little shit haha

hi lovers, how's it going? this is going to be a three-parter, inspired by Boygenius' song "Cool About It". it's gonna be smutty in all three parts so be ready (: please reach out if you have any requests or just wanna talk! I'm friendly I promise lmao

Met you at the dive bar to go shoot some pool

And make fun of the cowboys with the neck tattoos

Ask you easy questions about work and school

I'm trying to be cool about it

Feelin' like an absolute fool about it

Wishin' you were kind enough to be cruel about it

Tellin' myself I can always do without it

Knowin' that it probably isn't true

You keep your head held high while you walk into the Tipsy Bison, the only bar in Jackson. You were not familiar with the walls of the establishment, but the plan was to get out of your comfort zone. You were good at being a social outcast, and Maria, the only friend you had here, told you to try to break out of your shell.

So here you are, at a bar.

Immediately you recognize a couple of familiar faces, including the Millers.

Tommy and Joel were the patrol leaders for Jackson. You always felt comfortable around Tommy. He was more laid back and funny. On the couple of patrols you did with him, he always made sure the time went by quicker. While serious in times that are pressing, he brought light to darker situations. Maria, his wife, was the first person to introduce you to life in Jackson. She got you set up in a house by yourself and had you start patrolling when she realized you were an excellent shot. She was kind, always making sure you were looking out for yourself and invited you to family dinners sometimes.

Joel was different.

Very quiet and deadly serious when he was speaking. He made you feel insecure about your abilities, always double and triple checking things behind you. You couldn’t bring your own horse out of the stable without him checking your pack and ensuring you packed extra bullets.

“You never know what’s out there, girl,” He would tell you.

You find an empty seat at the bar. Only one seat away from Joel.

The bartender approaches you, asking what you’d like. You gesture towards Maria.

“Whatever she’s havin’.”

Maria finally takes notice from beside Tommy and waves at you with a huge smile plastered on her face. It warmed your cold little heart.

“Hey pretty lady,” She hops out of her chair to give you a half hug, “Glad you are doing this.”

Tommy was looking at you from beside Joel, a smirk playing on his face.

Joel stared forward with no emotion, not even daring to glance your direction.

“How’s it goin’?” Tommy asks, scooting his chair back to begin his way over to you, taking a spot next to Maria.

You nod, “It’s going.”

“You were on that patrol with the raiders a couple days ago, right?”

He was referring to two days ago when a couple of shitty raiders took down your partner’s horse and almost shot you through the back. You guys got the upper hand, of course. You never went without packing two guns, so you had quickly slid off your horse to find cover behind a downed tree and used a hunting rifle to take two headshots. Your partner wasn’t so lucky. He was an older man and he fell hard when his horse went down. You had to race back to Jackson getting him into the infirmary as quickly as you could. Turns out he broke his arm and a couple of ribs. He would be off patrols for awhile.

“Sure was,” You reply, “Luckily Eugene got out with just a broken arm. I was happy to be there for him.”

Before Tommy could reply to you, Joel quips up.

“He told me you got both of the guys between the eyes,” He mumbles, “That true?”

You shake my head positively. You didn’t even want to speak to him in fear that you’d say the wrong thing. He would overanalyze you at the drop of a hat.

“That’s impressive,” Tommy remarks, “Glad you got out of it unscathed.”

“My girl here is a badass,” Maria pats your shoulder, “Glad you are doing better. I know you were a rattled a bit.”

You take a sip of my drink, noting the intense burn, “Yeah, me too.”

You guys make more small talk, mainly about some recent patrols and what you found. You try to act interested, but the truth was you wanted to go home and read. Your mind was better occupied with made up stories than the stories that were playing out before you in real life.

“I think we should get home to Ian,” Maria says to Tommy, referring to their newer son. He was about five months now, very cute, and chunky. He resembled your nephew before the world stole him and his mother from you. So you always refused to hold Ian, knowing it would send you into a spiral as soon as his little fingers found yours. Maria understood, telling you she knew exactly how you felt. She’s felt loss like that before, too.

“Ellie probably wants to be relieved of her cousin duties,” Joel grumbles from beside Tommy, “Poor girl doesn’t know what she agreed to.”

“Ian’s sleepin’,” Maria says putting on her coat, “She is probably bored.”

“Tell her to head home when you see her,” Joel comments.

You have met Joel’s girl more than once. She was kind of stand-offish, intially. Now that you’ve met her a couple times, she was more chatty and goofy. She was a spitfire towards Tommy, which always made you laugh.

From what you understood, Joel had a daughter before the outbreak. Tommy and Maria keep her name on a little memorial above their fireplace, with Maria’s son’s name scribbled beside hers. You didn’t know the backstory behind Ellie, but you realized the last time you were around all of them, she doesn’t call him dad. Just Joel or old man. Maybe she adopted?

Maria pulls you out of your thoughts, nudging you a bit.

“Stay awhile, have another drink.”

You nod giving her a gentle smile, “I will. Get home safe.”

“See you around, girl,” Tommy says, giving you a half hug. You turn back to face the bar, noticing Joel’s still sipping on his whiskey.

You two sit in awkward silence when they leave, not saying much to one another. You drink your second round quickly, calling over the bartender for another one. Joel says he wants the same. Once you get your pours, he finally decides to talk again.

“You still with that one guy?”

You look at him curiously, not sure who he’s talking about. You rack your brain trying to figure out who he’s referring to and then it hits you.

“Kendrick? Oh no, he’s not anything,” You respond.

Kendrick was one of your patrol partners. You two hooked up once and realized it was too weird. He was younger than you, which didn’t mean much. But that was a huge factor in his performance. He wasn’t sure what to do. He didn’t know what foreplay was, which meant the sex was dry and not pleasurable in the slightest.

“It seemed like something the other day,” Joel notes, “Wouldn’t stop staring at you at the town meeting.”

You could not help but notice the slight venom in his tone.

“Interesting you’re taking notice to other guys who look at me. You jealous, Miller?”

He turns to you finally, his eyes a bit glassy. The whiskey was making him bold, you could tell.

“Just observant,” He remarks, “He doesn’t seem like your type.”

“Oh, now you know my type?”

He shakes his head at your response, “I imagine you like them a bit older than him.”

Maybe you were overanalyzing the situation, but it seemed to you that Joel Miller was flirting with you. You felt like he was suggesting you were into him.

Truth be told, you did like them older. You liked a rugged man who was a bit of a mystery. You also liked assholes. All things Joel Miller was. So maybe you were into him.

You lean in to speak to him quietly, “Are you trying to suggest something?”

“Not at all,” He murmurs, “Just answering your question. Am I wrong?”

You purse your lips, “Not wrong.”

Another awkward silence.

“Wanna play some pool?”

You furrow your eyebrows, not knowing how to respond. You think his goal was to change the subject and avoid more silence. So you just nod, hopping off your barstool. The two of you make your way through some occupied tables to the one empty pool tables. You grab a stick while Joel starts to corral all the balls and set them in place.

You’ve played pool before, but you were never good. Your ex found a pool table once while you two were traveling and he spent hours teaching you how to play. It led to a screaming match. You decided after that, it just wasn’t for you.

Joel was patient, watching you line up the white ball and hit it with hardly any force, not breaking up any of the balls. You just shake your head in disappointment.

“You ever play?”

“Yeah, I just suck.”

“Fair enough,” He replies, taking his shot. You guys go back and forth. You getting no balls in the pockets, him getting all the balls in the pockets.

You ask him about patrols he’s been on recently, trying to make light conversation. You really just wanted to see if your conversation would lead back to where it started.

It didn’t.

Instead you two got more rounds of drinks and played more pool. He became more chatty, standing behind you every time you tried to take a shot, giving you advice here and there. Once you stood straight up after finally getting a ball in a pocket, he leaned in a bit.

“You see that guy over there?”

He gestured towards an older gentleman at one of the far tables. He seemed like the type to have a Confederate flag hanging outside his house. He also seemed like the type to call a woman a slur if they turned down his advances. Maybe you are just a bitch and assuming all of this. Or your assumptions about a man were right, per usual.

You turn to Joel, glancing up at him. He was close, his face centimeters away.

“Mhm?”

“He’s got all those tattoos,” He looks towards the man again, “The one on his neck is a skull with one of those Native headdresses. Looks fuckin’ dumb.”

The way he says it sends you into a fit of giggles. He starts to laugh, too. It was the first time you saw him genuinely smile and damn did it look beautiful on him. His eyes crinkled a bit, his shoulders falling in a very relaxed way.

You finish up your round of pool and decide it’s time for the both of you to retire back to your houses. Conveniently, your house was right off Rancher Street just like his. You grab your coat off the one barstool, watching Joel put on his.

“We are going the same way, do you mind walkin’ with me?”

“No problem.”

You two walked side by side, your steps almost in sync. It was much darker now, the sun set hours ago. You felt like you went through a time jump. You didn’t feel like you spent tons of time at the Tipsy Bison.

Joel’s house is before yours on the street, so when you arrive in front of his steps, he stops completely.

“Here’s me,” Joel mutters, “You comin’ in?”

“Should I?” You question, stupidly.

“Well I invited you, so yeah,” He suggests, “You should.”

He walks in front of you, reaching for his front door. His house was comfy and warm. Looking around, you could tell he kept it well maintained. It was clean, only a couple dust bunnies lined the hallway baseboards. He had pictures on the walls and blankets littering the couch.

“I ain’t done this in awhile,” He says, sliding his boots off at the front door. You follow suit, not really taking in the words he said. He stares at you carefully, waiting for a response.

“I’m sorry, what exactly?”

He approaches you slowly, his demeanor shifting. He looks down at you, his stature a lot bigger than most of the men you’ve been with, you note. He was broad and brilliantly tanned. His dark chocolate hair was speckled with grays. He had some fine lines on his face, especially where he furrowed his eyebrows 24/7.

“Brought a girl home.”

His brown eyes grow ever darker, his arm enveloping you for a moment. You don’t pull away, letting him bring your body closer to his. You feel butterflies in the pit of your stomach, something you’ve not felt with a man in years.

“Feelin’ a bit rusty?” You suggest, your hands resting on his chest.

“Don’t know about that,” He mutters, “Do know I’ve been thinkin’ about this for a while.”

His comment takes you back, completely sobering you up. The warmth from the alcohol subsides and you blink at him for a minute.

“What do you mean, a while?”

His face centimeters away from yours, again. You instinctively wrap your arms around his neck, having to get on your tiptoes to do so.

“Meanin’ every time ’m around you, I think of how amazing your ass looks in those jeans.”

Your heart skips a beat.

“You’re only now telling me this, Joel?” You ask, playing up that you were annoyed. You were kind of, because what the fuck, you could’ve had him sooner?

“Didn’t think a pretty young thing like you would want me,” He says, “Now I know better.”

He leans down, his lips hardly touching yours. You assume he’s waiting for your move, so you give in first, capturing his lips against yours. It was gentle at first, until he takes notice to how you’re pulling him down further.

He deepens the kiss, pressing your back against one of the walls nearby. His lips were soft, his mustache tickling you a bit. He adds tongue seamlessly, feverishly grabbing you everywhere. Your hips, lower back, your butt.

I can’t believe I’m making out with Joel right now.

Your brain stops for a moment when you realize one thing you never thought about before. Where’s Ellie?

It brings you out of the kiss. You pull away slowly, trying not to alarm him too much.

“Is Ellie home?” You mutter, your eyes fluttering open to meet his.

He looks to the side, glancing out the back window.

“Probably, but she stays in the garage out back. She has uhm,” He gestures towards the backyard, “Has a whole set up in there. She never comes in here, don’t worry.”

It reassures you enough to bring him back into the kiss. His hands return to your waist, pulling you closer. You couldn’t help but grip his arms, feeling his muscles through his long sleeve.

“Bring me to bed, Miller,” You moan between kisses, “Need you now.”

He doesn’t say anything before he leans down, hiking your legs up around his waist. He carries you like you’re a light little feather. You use this time to attach your lips to his neck, giving him soft kisses up to his earlobe.

Joel may be a bit older than you, but he carried you up the stairs like no other 50-something-guy could. He didn’t even fumble, his steps heavy and calculated. Once you two get to the landing, he readjusts you, his hands now holding you up by your ass.

“Let’s get you out of these clothes,” He murmurs in your ear, walking you into his bedroom. It smells like fresh air, which throws you off a bit. You notice the one window in the corner is cracked slightly, letting in the springtime air.

He tosses you on his made up bed, making you a bounce a bit. He’s standing over you looking a bit dishelved, his eyes dark with desire.

He unbuttons his shirt, shaking it off his shoulders. You watch the piece of fabric fall away from him. His upper body is toned, some areas of his stomach and shoulders are littered with scars. The moonlight highlights them, but honestly, they made him hotter. He looked more dangerous, more unattainable for a girl like you.

“You just gonna gawk?” He teases, leaning down to let his lips meet yours again. In between kisses, he tugs down your pants, leaving you just in your underwear and top. He throws your pants across the room, his hands trailing up your bare thighs.

“Let me get my top off,” You say pulling away from his eager lips. He sits back on his knees, watching you slowly peel off your top and undershirt. The undershirt has a built in bra that hardly keeps your boobs supported, but it was easier than wearing the uncomfortable bras you usually wore. You throw both shirts across the room before you lean back on your elbows again.

“Jesus fucking Christ,” He says, his hands reaching out to touch you. He finds your collarbones first, before letting one hand trace the swell of your breasts. He was taking his time with you.

“You just gonna gawk?”

He smiles.

“I am gonna ruin you, girl,” He spits. You stare at him with your best doe eyes, trying to see what kind of rise you could get out of him.

He grabs one of your boobs, before pushing you all the way on your back. His lips trace all over your body before ghosting right above where your underwear sit on your lower tummy.

“Joel-” You begin, until he starts tracing your slit with his fingers, right over your panties.

“Hm?” He chuckles, his soft touches making you writhe under him, “What, sweetheart?”

“Need you-” You choke out, “Please.”

He chuckles darkly, “Love to see you beg.”

You knew he was going to be dominant, but you didn’t expect him to be so candid. He seemed so quiet and steadfast in day to day life, so when you see him like this, you knew you were fucked. He was the type to talk you through the whole experience, something you’d never had with another man. Everyone you had slept with was so vanilla. No one was like the guys in the novels you read. Dominant, hungry for more, and vocal.

“Let’s take these off,” He says wrapping his finger around the band of your underwear. You were so giddy now, you lift your ass a bit so he could get them off you. When you do that, your bare pussy gets so close him that you could feel his breath on your mound slightly.

“You ever been eaten out before, girl?”

You shake your head, “Yes, but I didn’t really enjoy it.”

“Just let me know when you’re about to cum, baby,” Baby, “I know you will.”

You loved how cocky he was. It made the anticipation almost too overwhelming.

He leans down, his tongue flattening over your slit. You watch him close his eyes and instantly get into devouring you. He flicks his tongue up and down, eventually pressing his lips around your mound. You lose all ability to speak, so when he pulls away, you groan in displeasure.

He says nothing, just put his middle finger and ring finger into his mouth, covering them in his saliva. He looks up at you, those fingers beginning to trace you up and down.

“You-” Is all you can say before he’s sinking his fingers inside. He reattaches his lips to your clit, sucking as he fucks you with his digits. The wet squelching from the action sends your head into orbit. You cannot believe how good it feels because every other sexual encounter you had the guy would go in dry, maybe giving you kitten licks, and call it eating you out. But not Joel. Joel knew a woman’s anatomy. He knew exactly how to treat it.

You just moan out his name, letting his actions take you to that familiar heat build up in your tummy. Usually you had to get there yourself. You throw your head back into his pillows, your eyes crushing shut as you take in the feeling.

“Hey,” You hear Joel growl, “Eyes on me, or I stop.”

Your eyes fly open, watching him return to sucking your clit. As you stare down, you notice him adding another finger into the mix. The pressure felt so good, your walls feeling everything he was giving you.

“Can I please,” You are about to let go, but you remember you were supposed to tell him, “Cum?”

You can’t even form sentences.

He pulls away.

“Since you asked nicely,” His lips are wet with your slick, “Cum.”

The magic word that sends you into pure bliss. Your body quakes while he still fucks you with his fingers. You can only chant his name, begging him not to stop.

He removes his fingers, smiling at your post orgasm face. You blush, suddenly becoming extremely self aware. You had no reason to be timid or shy now, being splayed out like you are in front of Joel.

He stands tall over you, making you feel so small in his big bed.

“That was so good baby, but I ain’t done with you,” He pulls you by your legs to the edge of the bed, “Need that perfect pussy wrapped around my cock.”

“Jesus fuck,” You moan, still sensitive from what he just did to you.

He groans, “Name is Joel. No Jesus here.”

He just had to give into the dad jokes. You slap your forehead in disappointment, making him grin a bit.

“Got you all nice and stretched, now.”

You realize he hasn’t even taken off his pants in that moment, because he pulls down his tented pants to reveal himself to you. He was bigger than you’ve ever had, which sent you gawking again. He pumps himself, watching your widened eyes.

“You’re too easy to read, girl,” He mutters, “I’ll inch it in, let you get adjusted nicely.”

You lean forward a bit, back onto your elbows, “You’re gonna fucking split me in half.”

He runs his dick between your wet core, which sends shockwaves up your body.

“Like I said,” He licks his lips, “I got you nice and stretched.”

Him repeating it made you smirk devilishly. He continued to run his cock up and down your wetness, getting ready to plunge into you.

When he stops right in front of your hole, he stares into your eyes like he’s trying to read your mind.

“Fuck me, Joel Miller.”

He sinks into you, inch by inch. You groan in pleasure. The stretch is nothing like his fingers, it’s even better.

He’s taking his time, pulling back a bit before pushing back into you. It’s slow, gradual. After three pumps, he leans down to catch your lips. He continues to grind into you, the mixture so intoxicating. You moan into the kiss, your mouth opening up for his tongue to slip in. He tasted like you, which was something you never really tasted before.

“Your pussy was made for me,” He moans, “Fuckin’ hell.”

He sits back, bringing the pace up a bit, his balls slapping into you now. The sounds were borderline pornographic. The panting, the wetness, the slapping.

“You’re takin’ me so well,” He grunts, “I want to hear you.”

You cry out as he speeds up, “Please, d-don’t stop.”

And he doesn’t. He keeps the pace the same as he fondles your boobs. He pinches your perked up nipples, clenching his teeth. You can tell he’s getting close, but instead of chasing that high, he stops.

He manhandles you, pulling you up like he did when he carried you up the stairs. He somehow keeps his dick inside you as he finds a seat on the bed. He’s holding you above him, completely switching positions.

“Want you to ride me,” He says, “Need to see those beautiful tits bouncin’.”

You take up the challenge. You rest on your knees first. You circle your hips, dragging your clit across his lower tummy. You never knew you could feel so full before, especially in this position.

He just stared at you in awe, playing with your tits as you grind down on him.

You take one of his hands in your own, placing it right below your belly button.

“I feel you right here, Joel,” You moan, “Fillin’ me up so good.”

You knew he wanted to cum right there because his dicks twitches inside you.

“You are one dirty girl,” He growls, “You’re lucky I’m even letting you cum again, talkin’ like that.”

You plant your feet on the bed, finding all your strength to start bouncing on him. He steadies you, bringing his hips up to meet yours. This angle hits different, especially when Joel’s thumb finds your clit again. You couldn’t help yourself, chasing that same high you felt before when his face was between your thighs.

You look down at him with hooded lids, “I’m gonna cum again.”

“Yes you are,” He smirks, “Cum all over me baby, I feel you.”

Your release hits you, making you fall to your knees again. Your hips girate, the spasming around Joel’s cock sending him into a moaning mess. He lets your settle for a moment before lifting you back up. His dicks slides out, which causes him to hiss and you to groan. Instead of laying you face up, he throws you face down into the pillows.

“My turn,” He says, dipping his cock back into you. As soon as it happens, you realize you weren’t done. That same sensitivity was back, but this time you felt the burning pick back up even quicker. He’s settling into a brutal pace, grabbing both your ass cheeks and spreading them apart. You turn your head, trying to get a view of him.

He was watching himself plunge into you, over and over again. It had to be the hottest thing you’ve ever seen. He’s dripping in sweat, his body glistening, clenching his teeth at the sight of your bodies meeting.

“‘m bout to cum,” He moans, “Where do you want it?”

“Fuck it into me, Joel.”

The words slips out so quickly. The tipping point hit you both at the same time, the spasming hitting you all over again. You scream into the pillows, biting into them trying not to be too loud. He releases himself into you, stilling his movements.

He doesn’t say anything when he pulls out, you both just breathe out loudly. You felt so empty without him.

You had never cum so much in one night before.

Joel Miller made you cum three times.

Without any help.

You hear his footsteps trail to his attached bathroom, hearing some water run from the faucet. You return to laying on your back, unsure if you could trust your legs to stand. Joel’s figure returns to the room, a damp rag in his hands. He smirks at you all the while nudging your legs apart. He slowly drags the rag around your sensitive area, making sure to get any cum that was leaking out of you. After he cleans you up, he wipes off his dick a bit.

He tosses the rag into a basket of clothes nearby.

“You want any water?”

You take note to how gentle and sweet he was being after being so aggressive towards you before. It was a side of Joel you really appreciated. He wasn’t talking down to you, he genuinely took your needs into account.

“I think I’ll be okay,” You respond, your eyes finally shutting, “Don’t think I’ll be able to walk home.”

“You can stay,” He grumbles, walking to the side of the bed, “We both have patrol in the morning anyway.”

Your eyes fly open, “Shit, I do! Wait-”

“Yeah I’m on with you. For the rest of the week.”

You could scream. This man just gave you the best dick of your life and now you had to patrol with him? You didn’t know how you’d be able to contain yourself.

“Fuck,” You place your hands over your face. You settle in the thought that you needed to sleep if you were going to be alive for morning patrol and you’d worry about your horny desires for Joel.

“C’mere,” He says, pulling you further up the bed. He positions you next to him in the bed, pulling some covers over you, leaving your boobs still out for his viewing pleasure. He wrapped one arm under you, letting it rest around your neck.

His sheets were flannel and so warm. His scent overtook you as soon as you relaxed into the pillows. One of them is the one you bite into earlier.

You felt at peace, wanting to stay in this spot for as long as possible.

“I’ll wake you a bit earlier so you can go home and get dressed,” He grumbles, “And…”

You don’t even realize how tired you are. Before Joel can finish his sentence, you fall into a deep slumber, praying sunrise doesn’t come too quickly.

You wake up when it’s still dark outside. Joel woke you up with a gentle nudge. You shoot up, scared for a moment before you take in your environment. You realize he’s fully dressed already. You groan, rubbing your eyes.

When you start to slip out of bed, you start realizing you’re still completely naked.

And in Joel’s bed.

You plant your feet on the wooden floorboards, using the light from the one lamp in the corner of the room to find your clothes. You could not find your panties for the life of you, so you give up and just shove your legs into your jeans and throw your shirt over your head. Joel lets you wake up in silence, not asking you questions until you make it downstairs.

“I’ll see you at the stables,” He mutters, pouring warm water into a mug that has a tea bag hanging off of it, “You go get changed.”

He was being short, you could tell. You feel a sinking feeling, like he probably regretted what happened last night. Before you could respond, the back door swings open and a smaller frame enters the dark house.

“Ellie,” Joel hisses, “What are you doing up?”

Her tired eyes are on you. You freeze in your spot, not knowing how to react or what to say. Your head just races with shitshitshitshit.

“I knew I heard your voice last night!” She laughs, “Y’all have fun?”

Your cheeks heat up instantly, not able to think of a response.

“Ellie!” His voice is stern and borderline scary, “Go back to your room, now.”

It was a demand.

She just chuckles, grabbing the door handle and pulling it close.

“See you around, Joel’s lady friend.”

You stand there completely dumbfounded and embarrassed. Joel sips on his hot tea, not really paying attention to your response to Ellie calling you his lady friend.

“Go get dressed.”

It was another demand. It sent shockwaves through your body. Maybe your sinking feeling was correct.

Joel only did what he did last night because of the alcohol. It didn’t change how he’d treat or talk to you in real life. You kind of wished he’d just be cruel about it. Like he would just read your mind and tell you how stupid you were to think this would change anything.

You felt like a fool. You don’t say anything as you walk to the door and put on your boots. As you walk out of the house, you promise yourself to take it one minute at a time. Don’t overthink everything. Just let it be a one night stand. Don’t make it about your feelings. Be cool about it.

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alrightieaphroditie · 10 months

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screwed | j.m series masterlist | next part!

pairing *:·ﾟjoel miller x female!reader wc *:·ﾟ2.2k an *:·ﾟ.... yeah i don't know where this came from. i've literally been itching to write for joel but the man makes me so nervous. not too sure how much i like this but i think this will be the beginning of a lil series so hopefully i can make it work! pleaase let me know if this is bad lmao i really appreciate any feedback! i hope you enjoy!

synopsis *:·ﾟyou can't stand the sight of joel miller sitting alone - again - at the tipsy bison, so you finally decide to introduce yourself to him.

you knew who joel miller was before you even officially met the man.

granted, anyone in jackson could’ve made that same claim. it wasn’t like you were special or anything, really. but when tommy came into the community, it only took him a few weeks to get settled in. it took about the same time for him to casually be able to mention his brother into almost every conversation.

helping some of the guys out with making plans for a new building? joel miller would’ve been great at that. trying out a batch of the new whiskey they had made? joel miller would’ve been all over that. brushing the horses and maintaining the stalls? tommy actually wasn’t sure how joel would feel about this one, but he made sure that everyone knew his brother would do it if asked, no hesitation.

so, when you heard that joel miller had shown up near jackson, and was going to be entering the community, you felt like you had a decent understanding of the man. however, you weren’t anticipating joel miller to look… like that. even now, you still remember being huddled outside near the entrance of the town, bundled up in an oversized jacket. as the gates opened and you first caught a glance at the older, taller man walking through, you felt your cheeks burn bright red.

your first thought about joel miller? he was unrightfully handsome.

it wasn’t until after joel and the girl he came in with, who you later learned was named ellie, got settled that the rumors started to spread. you weren’t entirely sure where the source came from, but soon enough the town of jackson was talking about joel as much as his own brother had, but this time it was accompanied by whispering, stolen glances, and an air of hesitancy.

you were never one to gossip, but you couldn’t help yourself strain to listen to those whispers floating around. you couldn’t understand how someone who was as highly praised by tommy, a man so well trusted within jackson, could be so ostracized in the community. you heard mumbles of him being a hunter, previously. of him murdering innocent people for his own selfish ways. of how some people didn't feel as safe in the community now with this big, bad man roaming around.

the thing was, you had gotten quite close to ellie in the weeks that they had been there. she appeared at your house one day, standing near the curb as she watched you and some of the towns children haphazardly building a snowman. you caught her eye, waved her over, and that was that. she was your new best friend. she showed up on your doorstep almost every day after, and the two of you would talk about almost anything. especially about joel. she was very much like tommy in the sense that ellie could relate almost anything back to that man, and she meant it as praise. she really did look up to him.

during your talks, while you sat at your small dining table with cups of tea (which, ellie had decided she quite liked chamomile tea, so you made sure you stocked up for her) you learned more about the man that joel was, and with every conversation, you found yourself wanting to simply know more about joel. ellie often referred to him as a 'scary motherfucker' but the fondness that laced her voice betrayed her. it was because of ellie that you were part of the minority of the town that was not afraid of joel miller.

and it was then that you knew you needed to do something. it wasn’t really the whispers, the rumors, that bothered you. there wasn’t much to do in jackson, truthfully, so when people needed the entertainment, they tended to make it themselves. a few weeks ago, you were the center of it, the people claiming you were glowing from pregnancy from a hookup that quite honestly never even happened. all you could do was laugh. the people would believe whatever they wanted to, even if you were adamantly insisting otherwise.

the thing that got you, though, was how joel seemed to have almost expected being treated poorly, being totally unwelcomed in this small town. how he seemed to be fine quietly eating dinner alone almost every night when ellie wasn’t around or tommy had patrol duty, then sitting alone, again, at the bar with a shot of whiskey. the way he seemed so comfortable being alone, and yet you couldn’t help but notice the yearning in his eyes as they shifted around. the weariness. as if he was used to everyone in his life leaving him, alone, and he was the only one left to pick up the pieces.

so, one evening, almost a month and a half later, when you walked into the tipsy bison for dinner and saw joel sitting in the back - his usual spot, his back to the wall, facing the door - alone, again, you paused in the doorway. his gaze was focused on the lone glass of whiskey in front of him, his fingers trailing the rim slightly. the image sent a shock of pain in your heart for some reason, and before you even realized it, your footsteps were carrying you to him.

his gaze shot up as you drew near, and you watched as his eyebrow quirked up slightly. you cleared your throat softly, suddenly feeling more nervous than you probably should've, your fingers fiddling with the edge of your sweatshirt the dead giveaway of your anxiety.

"hi," you managed to get out as you stepped up the edge of the table. his brown eyes were staring intently into yours, and you swear you saw the corner of his mouth quirk up. "i know you've been here a little while now and i just realized i never got around to properly introducing myself. i'm-"

"i know who you are. the kid never shuts up about you." he interrupted, raising the glass to his lips, and taking a sip of his drink. you trained your eyes to stay on his, focusing really hard to not let your gaze go to his lips as he licked them.

you felt your cheeks flush almost immediately, and a small smile found its way to your lips. all this time that you felt like you had known who joel was, and for some reason, you weren't prepared to hear the slight southern accent in his voice. you thought it was cute. "well, i hope that's a good thing," you motioned to the chair on the other side of the table. "may i?"

his face gave away nothing, and it could have just been you, but his eyes widened slightly at the question. he hesitated for a split second before nodding his head to the chair, shifting back in his own seat. "sure, have at it. s'long as you’re not afraid to be mingling with the town outcast." he gave you a grin at the self-deprecating joke, and you didn't want to but you couldn't help but laugh.

"oh, i promise you aren't the town outcast. i think that title goes to jimmy. i haven't seen him around town in weeks, but i know he's home because he keeps shovelin' his driveway." you teased, smiling even more to yourself as joel huffed out a laugh before drinking again. "besides, ellie doesn't think you're all that bad. that must count for something, yeah?"

his eyes went soft at the mention of the girl, which caused your heart to melt. he shook his head while examining the glass again, his finger wiping off a bit of condensation on the side. "that girl is about as fearless as it gets. not sure you really wanna be followin' in her footsteps."

"i'll take my chances, then." you traced a crack in the wood on the table, suddenly feeling a little awkward. you weren't the best with people, having been quite the introvert before the outbreak. good to know somethings never really changed. "how are you liking it in jackson so far?"

"s'alright. i never thought something like this could be possible again," he trailed off, draining the rest of his drink in one go. he leaned back in his chair, arms folded against his chest. you couldn't help but notice how his long sleeve shirt stretched across his broad arms. "'m happy that tommy was able to find a community like this." he confesses, which makes you smile. the one thing you had learned from both tommy and ellie was how loyal joel was, especially to his family. it was a trait you heavily admired, and something you genuinely didn't see nowadays. it was every man for himself out here. well, not in jackson, but that's besides the point.

"it is pretty great," you agreed. you didn't know where you would be without the community. you had somehow luckily stumbled upon them from the woods as you escaped from a group of hunters that had kept you and your best friend captive. maria had seen you and instantly took you in, giving you space to heal while becoming comfortable again. you didn't share this joel, although you felt the strange urge to, to maybe help joel see that the town wasn't all that bad and that there was good in it.

"so, i admit i had a secret agenda coming over here. i wanted to ask you something." you tucked your hair behind your ears, trying to muster up the courage to ask. you weren't scared of joel miller, but god he was really intimidating. you weren't sure what you would do if he turned you down.

"oh?" he looked intrigued, that eyebrow of his quirking up slightly again. his expression was soft, almost inviting. "well ask away, sugar."

sugar. your blood rushed in your ears at the endearment.

"well, i wanted to invite you and ellie over for dinner one night. i already mentioned it to her earlier, but i figured i should probably ask you directly as well." you confessed with a small laugh. ellie swore she would mention it to joel, but then the next second she was asking you about one of the books you had on the counter, and you really can't be sure that she remembered your invitation.

joel was silent for a moment, his eyes studying you in a way that made your knee bounce. the silence made your thoughts go into overdrive. maybe you misread joel earlier when you believed him to be lonely. maybe he really did just enjoy his own company and maybe he didn't want some strange girl inviting him over and interrupting his time. and maybe -

"i'd like that, yeah." he responded quietly, tilting his head slightly in your direction as a subtle nod. it could've just been the whiskey, but you could've sworn his eyes shined in the light. you stared at him for a moment. your brain and thoughts catching up to the confirmation joel gave you.

"oh, perfect!" you resisted the urge to clap your hands in excitement. and you were excited, but you didn't want joel to know just how much lest you come off as some crazed woman. with the way he looked he probably dealt with that all the time, right?

"okay, well, ellie already knows where my house is so that covers that. if you both don't have duties tomorrow, we could do it then? or if you wanted, we could schedule it for next week or somethin'?" you were well aware that you were rambling, but you couldn't help it. joel didn't seem to mind it, though, as he gazed at you while you talked with your hands.

"tomorrow's fine with us, 'm pretty sure." he adjusted himself in his chair, the old wood creaking slightly under his weight. “i appreciate the gesture, too. nice to know i haven’t scared everyone off.” you think he’s teasing with you, his grin almost invisible but you can see it. tommy never said his brother had a good sense of humor, but you were starting to wonder if there was a different side of joel that he was letting you see. you felt like you could run 10 laps around the border of the town with the way your heart was racing after his grin.

“of course! truthfully it’s more for me than it is for you; i got a little sad seeing you in here alone almost every night.” you started to laugh, but then your words caught up to your ears and you realize you inadvertently told joel you’ve been watching him. embarrassed, cheeks flushed with heat, you stood up quickly, tucking your chair back under the table.

“well, it was nice to finally meet you, mr. miller. i’ll see y’all tomorrow night!” the words rushed out between your lips as you slowly backed away from the table, giving joel a small wave before turning around. he probably thought you were acting like a fool, but you knew you needed to get out of the building before you said something worse.

as you passed the tables towards the exit, you could’ve sworn that you heard a deep chuckle coming from the corner of the room, coming from the table that you just vacated.

oh boy, you thought. you were officially screwed when it came to joel miller.

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totheblood · 1 year

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Hi, can you do hc’s of ellie having a crush on/dating a friendly and outgoing girl ❤️

a/n: hey, im taking time today to get to my inbox and write for ellie my beloved… i feel a lot more confident now given that i am just ab finished with part one of the game but still, reserving my time for writing! so send requests, i have a few but still 🫣 anyways, thank u anon ilu

ellie is such an ambivert so whenever she’s around someone more introverted she’s determined to pull them out of their shell, but when she’s around you, an obvious extrovert, she can feel herself drawing inwards

she first noticed you on her first day in jackson and found herself dumbstruck as she watched you tell what seemed like an interesting story to a group of people your age. they all seemed so entranced, and ellie couldn’t lie, she was too.

she felt like such a stalker after that day, writing down your name in her journal with small doodles of your face and side profile. the way you so effortlessly drew people in, how you made everyone feel welcome and included, everything about you left her in a daze.

quickly after arriving she fell in with dina and her group of friends so she would find herself sneaking out at night to drink and play games in dina’s basement.

to her suprise, you were there. not to her suprise, you were there with a guy, and whatever hope she had of ever being with you was crushed. you didn’t even look like you liked the guy, she thought, as she watched you subtly push his hand away from your face.

later that night ellie cornered dina to ask her about you, the one drink in her system showing itself suddenly.

“what do you know about yn?”

dina snorted. “what, do you have a crush on her?” it was meant to be a joke, at this point ellie had not made it clear that she was into girls, but when dina saw the way her face faltered she completely changed her tune.

“oh shit, you do!”

“shut up, i do not.”

“well, get in line.”

“you have a cr-?” ellie was confused.

“what?! no, but practically every guy here does, she never pays them any mind though.” she said gesturing to you, again as you looked completely uninterested in the guy in front of you.

“oh.” was all ellie could say.

from that day on she interacted with you infrequently, occasionally having short conversations with you during class where her cheeks would burn a bright red whenever you laughed

plus, her crush went away for a while when she had a fling with cat. but as soon as that was over she was right back to stealing glances at you at community events

so here she was, harboring a four year crush on someone who didn’t even know who she was, it felt pathetic

it all came to a head when she started getting assignments around the town and was paired with you in the stables

she was shocked when you greeted her with a wide smile on your face

“hey! ellie, right?”

“yeah,” ellie let out a breathless laugh “you know my name?”

“town’s not that big, ellie.” you laughed as you watched her cheeks grow red like they always did when she spoke to you

since you could talk to a brick wall it was no shocker that you and ellie talked throughout your entire assignment

everytime elle would make you laugh she would feel so accomplished even though a part of her knew you were just being nice

after that day ellie practically begged maria to put her on the stables with you, even going as far as to say she would take two assignments a day if she just got to do the one with you

you were so good at making her feel comfortable, and a part of her felt like you were flirting with her half the time, but her insecurities got the best of her

soon enough you were inviting ellie everywhere… to secret parties, to show her a flower you found growing behind the stables, and even just to get a sandwich with you at the tipsy bison

ellie knew that you were nowhere close to hers but she couldn’t help but get jealous when she would see how well you interacted with others… she knew it was your nature but it still burned

whenever she would see you laugh a little too hard at a joke she wanted to turn around and throw up, but she didn’t… the sound of your laughter was peace enough

one night she decided to walk you home and after she had finished saying good bye you reached up and kissed her

she was so dumbstruck that she just stared at you, and how beautiful your eyes looked with the snow catching on your eyelashes. she was so wrapped up in your beauty and by the taste of your lips still on hers that she didn’t even recognize the horror that was painted so clearly over your face

“shit.. ellie i am so sorry, i don’t know why i did that. i thought there was something between us but i so clearly misread that and i shouldn’t have assumed just because of cat that you would like me. god i feel so dumb especially since this has happened to me where people think just because i’m nice to them they can kiss me or something but i should have nev-“

you were cut off by ellie pressing her lips to yours again, her hand gripping the back of your head

you couldn’t tell how long you had been kissing but when she pulled away her lips were swollen and you were dizzy

“you didn’t misread anything.”

“obviously.” you laughed.

after that the little invites you gave ellie began to feel more and more like dates, especially since they almost always ended with your hands down her pants

when you became official, ellie knew she had to find a way to be secure with you

she knew you wouldn’t do anything to hurt her, but it wasn’t you she didn’t trust. it was the people who often took advantage your kindness

so she would be extremely protective over you, everytime you two were at a party together she would have her arm wrapped around your waist, her fingers brushing the top of your hip

she would occasionally pull you in for a sloppy kiss whenever she would notice someone staring at you for too long. even though she hated PDA she felt it was necessary when being with you so people knew exactly who you were with

even though it made her nervous she would never ask you to change. it was just who you were and it was one of the things that made her fall for you in the first place.

whenever you would get antsy at a party because you wanted to go and talk to large groups of people she would gently push you towards them with a “go fly, my little social butterfly.”

she was more than happy to take a backseat and watch you thrive

#ellie williams x reader #ellie williams hcs #ellie williams oneshot #ellie the last of us #tlou 2 ellie #tlou imagine #tlou x reader #ellie williams imagine #ellie williams headcanons #ellie williams

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thetriumphantpanda · 10 months

Note

Hi! Are you still taking prompts? You’re one of my favorite writers lately and I’m wondering if you’re still taking requests…

If so can I ask for “i’ve been thinking about you all day“ & “shh. there’s people in the other room.“ with Joel Miller. Semi-public where they do it in the bathroom with people outside. Maybe they even get caught whatever you like and make it as freaky as you want 🥵

Thank you so much! 💖

Hello Anon! Thank you so much for sending this in and for such kind words, I'm so glad you're enjoying my writing! 🫶🏼 This was such a perfect prompt pairing for our man Joel - I really enjoyed writing this!! I hope you do too! Hopefully it's freaky enough for you! 😘

Pairing | Joel Miller x Female Reader

Word Count | 1.8k

Warnings | Kinda public sex, unprotected PiV sex (Honestly guys unless it's the end of the world, wrap it up), just Joel being a general menace really, tiny return to mirror sex (is this now a thing?). SMUTTY SMUT BELOW THE CUT.

You’d been thinking about Joel all day and judging by the way he was currently staring at you from across the room, he’d been doing the same. You’d woken up too late that morning to indulge in what was quickly becoming a morning ritual of getting each other off in bed before you went about your daily tasks. He’d tried to blame the tiredness on you, but when you’d retorted that if he’d stopped at making you come twice with his mouth, instead of insisting on three times and then the two more he’d coaxed from you whilst he was buried deep inside you, you’d have been asleep at a reasonable time. Not even Joel Miller could argue with that.

The party was in full swing at The Tipsy Bison – It had become a weekly occurrence on a Friday evening for as many people as possible to gather in the bar and toast making it another week through the end of the world. You were leant against the bar, only half-listening to what the girls around you were talking about, eyes trained on Joel who was doing pretty much the same as you, half-listening to Tommy and the other people around him, sipping at whiskey with his eyes never leaving you or your body.

You can tell you’re both playing a game, wanting to know which one of you is going to break first and drag the other one home. You want him to break first, it’s always you. Whilst you have his eyes on you, you lift your own glass of whiskey to your lips, pulling it away too soon on purpose, letting a drop of the amber liquid pool on your bottom lip. You stare him straight in the eye over the crowd as you drag your tongue across your lip, biting into it a little for good measure. You can see the smirk on his mouth, he knows exactly what you’re doing.

You watch as he rests a hand on the back of the chair next to him. He bends to set his empty glass on the table and then he stands back up, hip popped in his usual stance, fingers stuck through his belt loop. He knows you love it when he stands like this, even better if it’s leant up against the doorway to your bedroom. You curse at the fact that you've lost this battle, yet again.

“Excuse me ladies.” You smile at the group around you, leaving your half-finished drink on the bar.

You slink through the crowd before you come to a stop next to him, greeting Tommy and the rest of the men in his group with a small smile and a ‘hello’. You snake your arm around his waist, pressing the side of your body to his. To anyone else it looks innocent enough, but then they can’t see your hand slipping into the back pocket of his jeans. Joel looks down at you, eye glazed dark with lust as his free arm comes to rest along your shoulders. Everyone else is deep in conversation around you, not really noticing you.

“I’ve been thinking about you all day.” You say quietly, just loud enough for him to catch.

“is that so, darlin’?” He replied, southern drawl more prominent thanks to the whiskey in his system, “What were you thinkin’ about, specifically?”

Your hand in his back pocket squeezes the meat of his ass, “Was thinking about being able to get you home, strip you down and have my way with you.”

“That so?” His eyebrow raises, you’re always surprised by how he can act so nonchalant like this in public, even with your hands all over him, “Well darlin’, I’ve been thinkin’ about you all day too, but I don’t think we need to go all the way home to get what we want.”

Your eyes widen at his suggestion. He wouldn’t, would he? Find somewhere here that he could fuck you? But the more you think about it, the more you realise that exactly what he would do and that’s exactly what he’s talking about. His arm drops from your shoulders, drags your hand from his jeans pocket and then he’s dragging you away from the group, not even bothering to mumble an excuse.

It's busy enough in the bar that no-one really notices his purposeful strides through them. No-one notices when you slink by the side of the bar and down the small hallway. No-one is around to see him push you into the small bathroom and lock the door behind you.

Your back is pressed against the wall and he’s on you in seconds once he’s sure no-one is going to burst in through the door. His hands are cupping your cheeks, it’s a softness that is completely opposite to the way his lips are moving against yours. They’re pressed to yours almost painfully, your hands are gripping the lapels of his jacket to pull him closer to you, if it were even possible.

You open your mouth against his and all at once his tongue is in your mouth. The taste of him is overwhelming, whiskey mainly, but the telltale taste that’s just Joel. Your tongue is on his and at this point you don’t know where you end and he begins, it’s always so overwhelming. His hands drop from your face to hold your hips through the denim of your jeans. His mouth is pulling from yours and you’re whining at the loss of contact.

“We don’t have much time, darlin’,” He muses, turning you so your front is facing the sink of the bathroom, there’s a small mirror in which you can see you both, “We gotta be quick, okay?” You nod, “And quiet.”

You nod again, and then he’s reaching around and undoing the button of your jeans, pulling the zipper down before he’s yanking them and your underwear down to your ankles.

“Touch yourself for me,” He demands as he moves back from you, you follow his orders and dip your fingers down to your pussy, you’re already slick, “Tell me how wet you are for me alright.”

“Joel-” You moan as you bring the gathered slick up to rub circles on your clit, “I’m soaked for you baby.”

“Of course you are,” you watch as he grins at you in the mirror, hearing him undo his belt, “You always are.”

You can hear him shedding his own jeans behind you and excitement pools in your belly, he really is going to fuck you in the bathroom with people just a few feet away. You feel his hands palm the globes of your ass, before one of them dips to your pussy, testing your claim that you’re soaked for him.

“You weren’t lyin’ were you?” He chuckles as he pushed two fingers inside of you, eliciting a loud moan from your mouth as the intrusion mixes with the pleasure of your fingers on your clit, “Shhhh. There are people in the other room, baby.”

“It’s hard, Joel.” You whimper, referencing the need to be quiet.

“It certainly is darlin’,” You’re watching him in the mirror as you feel his cock nudge at your weeping entrance, “All because of you.”

“I wasn’t-” You try and talk, but he’s already sliding the tip of his cock inside you, “Ohhhh fuck Joel.”

“You like that, darlin’?” He asks once he’s fully sheathed in your tight heat, you lift your head and catch his eyes in the mirror, your mouth is hanging open as he starts moving out of you, “You look like you do.” He fucking winks at you then and you swear you almost die on the spot.

“Oh my god Joel just fuck me already.” You’re begging now and one of his hands flies to your mouth to cover it.

“What did I say about bein’ quiet?!” He hisses into your ear, “You gotta keep your mouth shut if I’m gonna have to stop darlin’, you understand?” Another nod from you.

His hand doesn’t leave your mouth, but he starts a punishing pace of thrusts into you from behind. It’s your favourite position, Joel always seems to reach as deep as is humanely possible when he takes you from behind and tonight is no exception. You can feel him hitting that sweet spot inside of you, add that to the circles you haven’t ceased drawing on your clit and you’re close. So very close.

“Joel-” You mumble against the palm of his hand, he moves it slightly so he can hear you, “I’m so fucking close.”

He chuckles again, still thrusting his cock inside you before he speaks, “Don’t hold back on my account.”

It’s all the permission you needed, his palm straight back over your mouth as you fall over the edge. You can feel your pussy fluttering around him as you rub yourself through the aftershocks of your orgasm and you can hear his own grunts from behind you. It’s always like this, once your tight heat is clenching around him he’s never far behind you.

“Darlin’, you feel so fucking good like this,” He whispers into your ear, “Gonna come for you baby.”

Another moan, yet again muffled by the skin of his palm. You groan at the emptiness you feel when he’s pulling from your pussy, you know he’s fisting his cock behind you and within seconds you can feel the warmth of his cum spreading over your backside – thick ropes of it painting your skin as he lowly groans out your name.

There’s always a moment like this with the two of you, in the moments after you’ve both tipped yourselves into oblivion, when you’re silent save for the heaving of you both trying to catch your breath. This time it’s interrupted by someone trying the handle of the door and then loudly knocking on it.

“Gimme a minute!” Joel calls out, moving quickly to gather some paper towels from behind him.

He’s usually softer with this part, but he’s running the towels quickly over your skin to wipe the remnants of his spend from your skin. Then he’s roughly pulling your jeans up – you catch them halfway and finish dressing yourself whilst he does the same behind you. You’re about to reach for the lock on the door when his hand catches your wrist.

He’s pressing a soft kiss to the corner of your mouth, letting his hand softly run through your hair, “I promise I’ll take my time with you later, darlin’,” He’s smiling before letting your wrist go, “Ladies first.”

You silently groan as you unlock the door and pull the door open. There’s a man stood against the wall that you don’t recognize, maybe he’s knew – what an impression to make. His eyes widen in realization when he sees Joel follow you out of the bathroom with a grin on his face, “Sorry, didn’t mean to keep you waiting,” He’s grinning like the cat that got the cream, “Enjoy the rest of your night.”

“Enjoy the rest of your night?” You’re hissing as you walk back into the main room of the bar, “You’re such a dick sometimes.”

“What?” He’s laughing now, “I know I’ll enjoy mine, just wanted to make sure he did too.”

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marvelwitchergilmore · 8 months

Text

Quiet Crushes

Summary: Joel Miller x Fe!Reader ~ You have always been nervous around Joel Miller. Ever since he came to town it's like you're a teenager again with a crush on the hottest guy in school. But, when someone unexpected turns up, it seems that even Joel has found the courage to talk to you.

Disclaimer: I haven't written in a while so there may be some spelling mistakes (I'm gonna blame the lack of sleep). Fluff, angst, idiots in love, speechless around crushes, kissing.

You didn’t know how long it had been since you’d last slept. 12 hours? 24? None of it mattered. All you could focus on was your brother, lay on the bed in your spare room, breathing up and down, freshly cleaned and slowly healing physically.

Joel was downstairs in the kitchen cooking something.

You’d heard the pans clatter every couple of minutes until you heard the mugs and the plates. But you couldn’t concentrate on that. Your gaze and mind remained focused on your brother’s chest, watching it rise and fall; fearful that if you looked away, even if just for a second, he would stop and he’d be gone from you and this world permanently.

You’d not seen him in almost four years and in that time you’d somehow convinced yourself he’d died. That a clicker or worse had got to him and killed him. He’d been dead to you for just over three years. But despite this, part of you still held hope.

That was the only part of you that was happy.

It was proved right. Your brother was alive…to an extent.

Lord knows what he saw and what he went through to find you. You didn’t even want to imagine. Your mind had been so focused on getting him cleaned up, you couldn’t bring yourself to step over the line and ask the questions about his scars.

He’d tell you in his own time, you hoped.

The moment you saw him walk through the doors of Jackson…you felt your heart both drop and soar at the same time. He was like a drowned-rat in the rain. Both of you were by the time you left Joel’s side from the covered porch of the Tipsy Bison to run out to the muddied path in the rain and embrace your brother.

The mud on your jeans proved to you that you’d been there to hold him in the mud when you both collapsed from the sheer impact of the hug.

You vaguely remembered Joel telling you to get a shower…but you couldn’t remember how long ago that was. The moment they carried your brother into his room, you hadn’t so much as left his side, let alone the room.

You patched up his wounds whilst he slept and woke him part way through so he’d finally eat something and get his strength up.

It was only as you sat alone in the silence of your sleeping brother that you let your mind go back to the moments just before he’d come through the gates.

You’d been talking to Joel or, at least, trying.

Ever since Joel arrived in Jackson, your crush on him had been a burden to bear.

You never liked having crushes; they either lead to embarrassment or pain. Neither sounded appealing.

And, so, for the first eight months, any conversation you had with him never extended past three words a day, if that. You’d remain quiet and get your work done.

It was only after these eight months that Tommy came to you, asking you to actually try and talk to Joel. You were only one of the few that didn’t. Whilst the others seemed to have something against Joel, Tommy seemed to be blind to the fact that you actually had something for Joel.

But Maria wasn’t.

She saw it instantly.

The way the blood rushed to your face. The way your breathing became unsteady and you couldn’t seem to form a single sentence in his presence.

You liked Joel…a lot.

As did many other women in Jackson.

And men.

But still, no matter how hard you tried, you were just a bumbling mess around Joel.

After Tommy’s talk, you’d been fixing a lightbulb in the Tipsy Byson when the bulb shone too bright, shocking you and causing the ladder to rattle beneath you.

However, it stopped falling when Joel caught it, and you.

His hands were on your waist.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes.” you eventually managed to answer as you climbed down.

You could only be thankful that your back was to Joel but the instant you turned around, you were met with his gaze and any human function you had in your body seemed to instantly disappear. After a couple of attempts, you managed to make your “Thank you,” loud enough for the human ear to hear before running off.

It seemed to only get worse after that.

And already being aware that you were a blushing mess when you even thought about him only added to that. Feeling the heat of your cheeks, and being all too aware of it when faced with Joel Miller only increased your embarrassment.

There were some moments where you thought he was flirting with you but your conscience quickly brushed that aside. After all, why would Joel Miller be interested in you when most of Jackson was after him?

And that evening, everything felt like it was coming to a head. You were so sure Joel knew about your feelings towards him, despite the fact you wanted to forget about them. Why else would he ask you to go outside with him? You figured he’d let you down gently at least. Tell you he wasn’t interested but he’d be sure you were a lovely woman.

Instead, he’d stepped closer to you.

If it had been anyone else, maybe you would have backed away. But not with Joel.

He wasn’t threatening to you in his gaze or his touch but rather gentle, soft and kind. Despite all what you had heard about him, you’d never seen him be anything but kind and caring to those around him. A vastly different version that Tommy had been expecting, that’s for sure.

You couldn’t even remember what Joel had said to you.

One minute your mind was growing dizzy with the simple thought of him. The next, you’d flicked your eyes away for a moment only to see a lad run at full speed past the bar and towards the gates.

Both you and Joel’s gaze followed the lad and when you saw your brother…Joel saw the change in you.

Most times, you were flustered. Running here, there and everywhere. Hell, you rarely seemed to have time to have a conversation with him before you were dashing off to somewhere else.

Since he started working with Tommy again, he wanted to know more about you.

You seemed to keep to yourself, mostly. Tommy said you were trustworthy and the one to go to whenever or if ever he had a problem whether that be with a light fixture, plumbing, cooking or even just with life.

That day you’d nearly fallen from the ladder, he’d hoped to have a drink with you - talk to you. Get to know you.

He’d tried for weeks after that, but again, always flustered. Part of him figured that perhaps, maybe, you felt the same way about him as he did about you.

So, that night at the Tipsy Byson, he was hoping to ask you.

But then you looked away and suddenly everything about you became…cool.

You were no longer a “flustered mess” as he’d heard someone call you in the bar one night. You no longer had that light dusting blush across your cheeks that seemed to brighten every time he got closer which made his stomach summersault.

No, instead, you became more reserved.

You stood straight and had your arms folded. Your eyes narrowed to look at the face of the weakened man in the middle of the two brother’s helping carry him inside the walls of Jackson.

Joel had called your name and asked you a question but he knew none of it had registered. But you had managed to answer his next question without him having to ask it.

“That’s my brother.”

Without a second thought or care to the rain, you left the shelter of the porch and walked out and once you were close enough, you called your brother’s name and Joel watched you run to your brother, and him run to you.

He watched the pair of you reunite before dropping to the mud beneath you both. You pulled back for a second to look your brother over before pulling him close again and holding the back of his head.

Joel had told you to go for a shower when your brother got settled but since he didn’t hear the shower turn on, he decided to cook. You hadn’t eaten since before you got to the bar and, despite your brother needing nourishment, you’d be in need of it, too.

“Hey,”

You turned to look at Joel who was standing in the doorway.

“Hey.”

“Here. I made you some stew.”

“Oh, thank you.”

“There’s more in the pot in the kitchen but, I’ve got to go and get Ellie. I’ll be back later, though.”

“Thank you, Joel. But, honestly, you don’t have to.”

“If I don’t, I have a feeling you’ll sit here all day and watch him and forget to look after yourself.”

“Joel-”

“I’ll be back. I promise.”

As Joel gave you a warm smile and left you with a bowl of fresh stew, you heard your brother’s voice.

“Well, he’s nice. When’s the wedding?”

You put down the stew and rushed to his side. “You’re awake.”

“And you’re in love.”

“Randy.”

“Y/n.”

“He’s just a friend.”

“Well, I don’t know what you’ve been doing for the last four years, but that is definitely not the look of friendship and don’t give me any of that bullshit about how he doesn’t like you. He’s in love with you.”

“Now who’s the one with the bullshit.”

“Hey, don’t forget, I have the luxury of the male perspective. He’s in love with you, kid.”

“Did you get a concussion on your way here?”

“Maybe a few. But I’m still right. And so is he. You need to eat. And stop watching me sleep. It’s both weird and creepy. It’s like when you were six and would sleep walk into my room and watch me sleep.”

“I did not do that.”

“You totally did. Do you not remember mom had to start locking my door at night so you couldn’t get in?”

“Oh, yeah.” you smiled at the weird memory.

“Go on, eat. And then go and get me a bowl. It smells good.”

“Taste’s good, too.” you said, trying not to burn your mouth on a hot piece of carrot.

God, if that man didn’t make you fall from his looks and charm alone, his cooking tipped you over the edge.

Hours passed and eventually Joel came back only to find you sat outside in the back garden. The window to your brother’s bedroom was open so you’d be able to hear him call if he needed you though you doubted it since he was a heavy sleeper and he would sleep all day and night if he could.

“Hey, what are you doing out here?”

“Wanted to watch the rain fall.”

“Mind if I join you?”

You shook your head and smiled, “Not at all.”

Joel sat just close enough to you for you to feel his body heat as he covered his lap with a spare blanket you had on the bench.

“How are you feeling?”

“Like I could sleep for a year.”

Joel mirrored your smile as you laughed and set your book down. “I just…for the longest time I thought he was gone. I’d made myself believe it and then suddenly he’s back and he’s alive and he’s…he’s here.”

“You look really happy.”

“I am really happy. How’s Ellie?”

“She’s good. She’s having a sleepover tonight with a couple friends she met at school. I’m just hoping she won’t be a bad influence on them.”

“I’m sure she won’t.” you assured him. “Besides, it might not hurt for those kids to learn a couple swear words here and there.”

“God, you sound just like her.”

“Oh, come on, Joel. You can’t tell me you weren’t swearing like a sailor when you were her age.”

“Growing up is a tough gig.”

“Amen to that. Why not be able to swear your way through the rough periods?”

Joel simply smiled at you and you smiled back before turning to watch the rain pour its way down and land on the country garden you’d managed to plant for yourself.

What you didn’t notice, at first at least, was Joel’s gaze fixing itself on your side profile. He looked at you with such wonder and kindness and love, Randy - who watched from his bedroom window - wanted to throw a rock at you just so you might, in fact, look in Joel’s direction and see that your brother was right in saying that Joel was completely head-over-heels in love with you.

And probably had been for the longest time.

Though, rather than interfere and have you poison his stew with some random plant you’d been growing in your garden, probably plotting his death, he quietly closed his window and left you and Joel to it.

But not before wishing upon the highest star he could see.

“Please. Please, please, please, for the love of God, let these two idiots be together. I don’t know how much more of the lovey-dovey eyes I can take. And I’ve only been here for 24 hours. Thank you. Amen…and all that.”

You both sat for a while, in a quiet solitude.

It was quaint.

It was also the first time you’d held an audience with the man and not freaked out, tripped over your words or even blushed so hard you thought your blood vessels might, in fact, break or burst at any moment.

“You know, when we were kids, we’d spend hours outside. He’d always be playing football and I’d be with my dad in the garden.”

“Was he the one that taught you about plants?”

You nodded with a soft smile graced on your lips. “Yeah. He was a Horticultural and Agricultural Professor. He knew everything that could ever be known about plants and what they helped with, also what they hindered with.”

“And your mom?”

“She worked in Business Management.” you said. “Randy took after her more. Was closer to her, too. I mean, we were all close. And I was close to my mom, but…you know that connection a child has with their parents. One is stronger than the other? When they’re ill or they get hurt, it’s the parent they go to?”

Joel nodded.

“For him, that was my mom. For me, it was my dad. Randy spent more time at her office - mostly because he had a crush on her co-worker Annie. Meanwhile, I’d go to Dad’s lectures and tell Mom all about them and she and Randy would sit and listen for hours. I loved it.”

“So, is that what you did? Before the world went to shit and all?”

“The world has always been shit, but, yes. Though, I studied Biology instead. It gave me more places to find a job. And, for about two years I taught High School Science. I loved it but I always needed something else to keep me busy so I’d go to the library and pick out books and I taught myself to be my own mechanic. It was cheaper and easier than dealing with those who would ask if my husband would be coming with me to drop off my car and when my ‘husband’ didn’t turn up, would hit on me to the point where I once threatened to break their nose.”

“And did you? Break it, I mean?”

“Joel Miller. I only threatened to break his nose. I broke his wrist, instead.”

Joel smiled for a moment. “Did he not press charges?”

“Nope. Luckily his sister had just come round the corner and she was some fancy lawyer in New York. She threatened to break his other and then we went out to lunch. Turned out he had a history of broken bones.”

Joel laughed and you found yourself laughing, too.

It felt freeing.

“What about you? Tommy told me you had your own business.”

“Yeah, I, uh, I was a contractor in Texas.”

From there, you and Joel spent over two hours talking about the past and your lives before the Outbreak. Everything; from your childhood to his, you work and eventually, children.

Joel hadn’t meant to bring Sarah up. Hell, he didn’t even talk about her with Tommy, or Tess for that matter. Sure, there was some mention of her here and there, but he’d never told anyone of her as a baby or of the silly things she used to do as a kid that would make him laugh and smile.

“She sounds wonderful.” you smiled.

Joel’s smile, although still with him, faded a little as he looked to his hands, rubbing his fingers against each other.

“Yeah, she was.”

“It sounds like she would have liked Ellie, too.”

Part of Joel returned at the mention of Ellie from you. “Oh, completely. They’re not similar - I mean, Sarah was more…girly? But they’re also not unsimilar. She would have loved her.”

Neither you or Joel fully knew which daughter he meant when he said that; She would have loved her. Ellie? Ellie would have loved her. Sarah? Sarah would have loved her. Both? They would have loved each other.

However, just as you both sat, looking at each other with sad yet content smiles, a light began to flicker on the porch and with a sigh, you got up.

“This damn thing. I just changed the bulb yesterday.”

Within moments, you had your ladder and tool box out as well as a new bulb.

“Are you sure you don’t need any help?”

“Nope. I’ve got it.”

“Okay, but, be careful. It’s still a little slippy out here.”

Joel spoke the truth. Despite being the spot where they sat being completely dry, the other half of the porch was still somehow sprayed with water.

Whilst you got to work trying to take the cover from the light, hammering the screwdriver end in with your hand until you heard the pop!, Joel had his foot on the bottom step of the ladder, watching you from below.

Yet, somehow, you still managed to slip once you, after a very rare struggle, managed to get the cover from the bulb off.

Maybe it was some twist of fate, but somehow you ended up in Joel’s arms.

At first, your back remained to him.

“You okay, Darlin’?”

For the first time since being sat with him, you found yourself speechless again. Flustered.

“Oh, I, uh…mm-hmm.”

“You sure?”

Turning your head, you found Joel inches from you. Your bodies were pressed so tight, you’d be surprised if even a shadow could fit between you both.

“Yes.”

Joel swallowed thickly as his gaze flicked from your eyes to your lips and back again. You could feel his warm palm spreading across your hip, his strong forearm flush against the bottom of your back, pulling you just that little bit closer to him. And when he spoke, you found your breath caught in your throat.

“Can I kiss you?”

Your brain felt both electric and fried at the same time. Maybe you were just hallucinating; imagining he wanted to kiss you.

But then his other hand came up and brushed the stray hairs from your face, tucking them behind your ear.

“Because I’d really like to, Darlin’. But I won’t unless I have your permission.”

If that wasn’t enough to make a girl melt on the spot.

At first, all you could do was nod.

“I need words, Darlin’.”

Good, Lord!

Swallowing thickly, you forced your voice from your throat. “Y-Yes.”

“You don’t sound too sure.” Joel hesitated.

“Yes, Joel. You can kiss me.”

Your voice, although still quiet, was more assertive that time.

“Are you-”

“Just shut up and kiss me, Miller.”

You saw a split second of Joel’s smile grace his face before he pulled you closer to him and kissed your lips.

And it. Was. Electric.

Your hand came to his collar, pulling him closer to you although you both figured that was impossible by now.

His thumb brushed the side of your temple before he pushed his hand through your hair and drank you in once more. Meanwhile, the arm that held you securely around your back, tensed. His hand came into a fist and it scrunched the corner of your jumper and t-shirt with it.

You moved your hand to his neck, pulling him closer still until finally you both had to stop in order to catch your breath.

Joel’s hand relaxed for a moment before you felt his palm touch your skin beneath your clothes.

“Sorry,” he apologised after a moment, his voice husky. “Got carried away.”

You smiled and shook your head against his. “Don’t be.”

“Mind if I do it again?”

“Not at all.”

#joel miller #the last of us #pedro pascal #joel miller x reader #love #kissing #angst #nervous #ellie williams #ellie miller #tommy miller #maria miller #tlou #tlou hbo #joel miller x fe!reader #joel miller x y/n #joel miller fluff #quiet crushes

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king-crawler · 3 months

Text

The Disney villain book i ordered 3 weeks ago finally came and the sleeve was oily and chafed but at least I get the fabled single paragraph of King Candy insight

this is truly a game changer

And ralf

[TEXT DESCRIPTION BELOW]

Page 166: Disney Villains: Delightfully Evil.

KING CANDY - WRECK-IT RALPH.

RELEASE DATE: November 2, 2012.

DIRECTOR: Rich Moore.

VOICE TALENT: Alan Tudyk.

ANIMATOR: Zach Parrish.

"Everyone should have known with a pass code like UP, UP, DOWN, DOWN, LEFT, RIGHT, LEFT, RIGHT, B, A, START that this sugary-sweet king was not on the up-and-up. Who in the gaming world doesn't know that cheat code?! King Candy is the ruler of Sugar Rush, a video game made of everything sweet to eat, or as a wise Wreck- It Ralph sees it, a "candy-coated heart of darkness.' " But Sugar Rush was not always such a dark place; it was once a happy kingdom where Princess Vanellope von Schweetz ruled until an evil racer from a game called Turbo Time messed with her code and took her game for his own. The biggest shock? King Candy and that villainous racer known as Turbo are one and the same. Alan Tudyk, the voice of King Candy, said he had imagined King Candy to be a much bigger character, size-wise, and found it really funny that he was actually such a small man."

“Portrait of King Candy. Artist: Clay Loftis. Medium: Digital."

“Final Frames of Turbo from Wreck-It Ralph (2012)”

"Concept art of Turbo. Artist: Jim Kim. Medium: digital."

Page 184: Disney Villains: Delightfully Evil.

WRECK-IT RALPH - Wreck-It Ralph.

RELEASE DATE: November 2, 2012.

DIRECTOR: Rich Moore.

VOICE TALENT: John C. Reilly

ANIMATOR: Nik Ranieri

“Wreck-It Ralph is a "bad guy" who has been forced to spend every day for the last thirty years trying to destroy the apartment building that took his home away and to thwart Fix-It Felix from fixing everything Ralph wrecks. After "wrecking" the thirtieth anniversary celebration of his game, Ralph decides to go on a quest to earn a medal and prove to everyone, including himself, that he can be a good guy and do good things. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, director Rich Moore said that the idea for Wreck-It Ralph came when he was asked by Walt Disney Animation Studios to revamp an idea they had been working on for a while: a movie that takes place in a video game. "Video game characters do the same job every day," said Moore. "I don't know how you could tell a story about that, and then it kind of hits me. ... What if the main character did not like his job? If you had a character who is actually wondering: Is this all there is to life?" "

Concept Art of Vanellope and Ralph. Artist: Bill Schwab. Medium: digital.

Page 185: Disney Villains: Delightfully Evil.

Story sketches of Ralph. Artist: Jim Kim. Medium: Graphite

Final character pose of Ralph.

Final frame of ralph with the Bad-Anon support group from Wreck-It Ralph, 2012.

“Bad-Anon-One Game at a Time

"I'm bad, and that's good. I will never be good, and that's not bad. There's no one I'd rather be than me."

-The Bad Guy Affirmation

Evervone needs a little help from their friends, even if their friends are a group of "bad guys." Bad-Anon is a place where the who's who of gaming bad guys can meet and talk about their feelings and what it is like to always be the one everyone loves to beat. Here are some of the familiar faces from the video games of the 1980s and 1990s.”

Bowser--King Koopa from Super Mario Bros.

Clyde--Ghost from Pac-Man.

Dr. Robotnik- -as himself from Sonic the Hedgehog.

Kano--as himself from Mortal Kombat.

M. Bison--as himself from Street Fighter.

Neff-as himself from Altered Beast.

Zangief-Red Cyclone from the Street Fighter series.

[TEXT DESCRIPTION END]

#the illustration is the best part #I knew there’d only be a page on him LMAO I’m not mad #I will still read the whole book in full ❤️#wir #wreck it Ralph #turbo #king candy #🐛VIRUS OFFERINGS #Disney villains #Disney villains: delightfully evil #concept art #alt text #book #wir Art Book

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mydarlingdyke · 4 months

Text

come into the water

an ellie x fem reader drabble

A new yet cold day settled in Jackson, Wyoming. The frost decorating the trees and hanging on the windowsills made its home there for what seemed an eternity; no signs of melting whatsoever. The bite of the chilling breeze on people's faces only reinforced the seemingly permanent beauty of the winter wonderland the town had come to be, the only refuge from it being the glowing embers inside homes, the comforting warmth of hugs and kisses and the consoling burn in your chest from downing a glass of your preferred brand of whiskey.

Yet the only thing Ellie needed to feel enveloped in the warmth of spring in the midst of a snowstorm was to see you. Your bright smile could easily light up a room, melt an entire year's worth of snow from a mountain. Your aura shone like alpenglow, reflections of soft spring colors and summer warmth. You reminded her of the wildflowers she saw on patrol, the vast blue sky over her head, the scent of marshmallows burning at a campfire, the warm waters of the lake the kids would bathe in in June.

She thought of you in every waking moment of her solitude. And this morning wasn't exempt from the way she pictured your smile, heard the laughter that bubbled through your chest, felt your soft fingers against hers when you'd pass her a cup of hot cocoa you made for her. Ellie's mind was racing with you and you only as she sat at her desk, turning on the lamp Joel had fixed for her and opened her journal. Endless scribbles of plants, people and places were etched on the pages, small notes and diary entries complementing them. The graphite markings became softer, however, as she reached the most recent pages.

Everything was, actually. Softer traces, softer words, softer edges... And what a coincidence it was that their contents revolved around nothing else but you. Small doodles of your nose from every possible angle she could recall, trying to capture the way your eyes would shine when you smiled, failing miserably at capturing the soft glow of your skin, or those sweet dimples on your cheeks.

Slowly, but surely, she began to write.

do you wanna be my baby?

are you waiting to touch me?

Ellie had always been bewitched by you. From the second she saw you at the Tipsy Bison, helping out by serving bottles of chilled beer in a hot, summer day. You became friends almost instantly, but the ache in her chest was always present. That weird, aching feeling that wasn't unpleasant, but it sure was annoying. Countless days she'd fantasize about kissing you, holding you, just yearning to feel you against her skin. And when she did, yet only through friendly hugs and playful shoves, her mind would be replaying that moment over and over for the rest of the day.

you look so good but i keep my hands

til you come into the water

Gentle, glowing, welcoming. You were, in her eyes, a lively pond full of fish and colorful aquatic vegetation, brimming with life and sound. And she was... So afraid. Afraid that if she basked in your warmth for a little too long she'd become obsessed, completely neurotic when you were not around. Like a drug, some kind of escape from the cruel world you both lived in.

She held it in for as long as she could. The desire to touch you, to breathe in your scent, to fully immerse herself in you. Because she was also afraid you'd think badly of her if she warmed up to you the way she wanted to. That you'd find her weird, maybe even disgusting. Did you even like girls? She'd never seen you with a guy around town. She'd never heard you speak of a guy in a romantic way... But she wanted to be sure. She wanted to hear it from you.

maybe I'm the same as all those men

writing songs about their dreaming

Ellie was the type to write down her feelings instead of openly talking about them. She would sit on her desk at the end of the day, worn out pencil in her hand, and vent about anything and everything; a behavior that contrasted her usual extroverted self. It'd been taken out of habit, not having anyone to really express her emotions to when growing up— except Joel, but she never opened up to him like that.

So that's why sometimes her words on paper would accidentally rhyme. They'd have a rhythm, felt like they're made to be sung or recited. Usually, those lines were about you. About your hair, or the wrinkles around your eyes when you smiled, about how your voice sounded like a lullaby... It reminded her of all those love songs she heard in those cassettes and vinyls from the old world. She'd borrow them from Joel, or just straight out came over to sit on his chair and listen to tunes about unrequited love, broken hearts, secret love affairs, tender love confessions...

She wondered why these melodies wouldn't resonate with her, why they didn't seem to tug at her heart strings like they were supposed to. She asked herself what was so special about love, about that fuzzy feeling in your gut that those songs described; why people seemed so eager to throw themselves into a flaming volcano, to break every rule of nature, to literally carve their hearts out and wrap them in a bow like a gift for someone.

After meeting you, she understood all that perfectly.

so would you tell me if you want me

'cause i can't move until you show me

Ellie was not just yearning, you see. She was burning. Burning for you. The heat was enough to melt her fingers off when she wrung them in anxiety every time she caught a glimpse of you out and about. Her lip was cracked from the amount of times she'd unconsciously bite down on it, trying to hold herself back from spilling out everything that her heart was holding onto. Desperately, silently, so eagerly swallowing her words into the fiery pit that her ribcage contained.

The warmth that radiated inside her was so unusual, so foreign, it would paralyze her. The urge to touch you, to be engulfed by the flames of your glory, the desire to breathe in the sweet scent of your hair and skin... All of it, turning her to stone. Unable to fulfill her wishes. For how could she? How could she dare approach such a divine creature? It's not like she knew how to either way... She had to be taught. Taught how to explore your delicate curves, how to fly across the pink sky of your mind, how to take care of the gentle flowers and how often she should water them?

She'd be your devoted pupil, for sure.

I didn't know I had a dream

I didn't know until I saw you

For the longest time, Ellie was alone. She had felt alone, before she met Joel and finally came to Jackson. And maybe after that she allowed herself to breathe in fresh air, explore other possibilities of life that don't involve running and hiding. She allowed herself to love, to care, to laugh, to enjoy. And maybe that was what led her to experience this amount of infatuation for you.

You were the only one capable of giving her peace. Only one glance and her day was made. Only two laughs were enough to make her smile for the rest of the night. Only three words out of your mouth were all she needed to feel like life was worth living after all. Could an ocean be set aflame? Could her usual turbulent waters be tamed by a single ray of sunshine peeking through the clouds? She liked to think it could.

And if only you knew. If only you knew how her heart ached tonight, how her heart had been aching since she met you. You showed her the beauty of living, a concept so unknown to her before. Something she never really had the time to think about. But that when she met your pretty eyes for the first time, all those years ago... It would be the only thing on her mind for the rest of her life.

so would you tell me if you want me

'cause i can't move until you show me

Little did she know, you were lying awake in your bed that night, a million thoughts plaguing her mind. Not the usual worries that would cloud your skies, or the frustrations that would pluck the flowers from your pretty garden, or the sadness that would dampen your fluffy clouds; just a small whirlwind of chilly air that grew bigger, and bigger, until it made snowflakes fall in the middle of April. Beautiful, white snowflakes that when melted would water your flowers, brighten your skies and whiten your clouds, all of them carrying a single name.

Ellie.

#ellie williams #ellie the last of us #ellie tlou #ellie x reader #ellie x fem reader #tlou #tlou2 #tlou ellie #the last of us #the last of us part 2 #lesbian #wlw #wlw fanfic #mydarlingdyke #mydarlingdyke works

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mugentakeda · 4 months

Note

opinion on Iroh living in Ba Sing Se in the comics ? :3c *bats eyelashes at Iroh meta mutual*

personally I get the political reasoning for it (he very much was well known for participating violently in the war so it'd be a pretty awkward way to start peace talks and such) but like... as an Iroh + Zuko codependency truther... hmn...

though he DOES come to the FN later in the comics to help Zuko out so its like.. did you leave him because you were terrified of making things worse ? were you convinced he didn't need you anymore and so lumbered off to BSS in self-imposed exile certain that you'd be a burden to his personal growth ? or did he just underestimate the distance .. forgot Zuko wouldn't be able to hop on a Bison all the time to visit him... driving me Krazy.

honestly. i think a horrific combination of all of these could work simultaneously. like theres political merit but also iroh might also personally somehow think him being away from zuko will benefit zuko (as if zuko didnt miraculously managing to undo his lifetime of Bad Things in less than like. A year. entirely through various methods of suffering. things that would take grown men their whole life and then some to undo, if even that. And hes like 16 and now hes a monarch and hes gonna be busting his ass everyday for the rest of his life until hes too old to stand up straight). and that yeah hed also underestimate how much being a world away from zuko actually sucks

because something i lovee highlighting in my art of them is that iroh doesnt just love his nephew, he likes his nephew. hes fond of his nephews crankiness, the hovering, the theatrics, the shouting and stomping, the awkwardness and thoughtfulness. there are probably days where iroh just cant work up the typical jovial customer service and diplomacy energy and just broods in the jasmine dragon because he keeps accidentally brewing enough tea for two, cooking enough dinner for two, calling through the house for his nephew and then remembering hes stuck cooped in the caldera, having screaming matches with his councilmen over how to deal with shit iroh and his brother and their forefathers did to scar the world not even before lunch time.

so its like. a combo of the Grand Lotus in iroh who focuses on the political merit and worldly benefits of him being in bss, the shitty ill in the dome codependent Uncle iroh who mopes over not having his prickly ass barnacle of a nephew looming over his shoulder and glaring at people all the time, the Bad At Emotions And Communicating guy in iroh that gets so ashamed of what hes willing to put his own kid through for the sake of the world that he doesnt know if he even has the stomach to visit the caldera and look his nephew in the eye as he drowns under mountains of stress dealing with irohs baggage, etc etc.

and there are also probably things zuko doesnt know about and iroh isnt sure if hed ever have the strength to tell zuko about. at the beginning of zukos joke banishment, the white lotus had been like well if you do decide to take the throne once we figure out how to take down ozai youll need an heir and if your nephew is as good deep down as you claim then maybe mold him to align with us so when you step down he could at the very least be a puppet ruler so we can ensure he doesnt start another war. and then that plan just got adjusted slightly and expanded upon once the avatar wasnt a fairy tale anymore. it hurts worse now after they had reconciled before the comet because now zuko looks at him with a loving, trusting, praising look, despite how little iroh believes he really deserves it. and worst of all he doubts theres anything he could really do to convince zuko that he doesnt deserve that because iroh would bet anything that zuko genuinely thinks hed deserve it if iroh decided he didnt want anything to do with zuko.

hes like doing these weird gymnastics where he pushes these hoity toity white lotus beliefs onto zuko despite barely even abiding by them himself , and then also knowing he doesnt deserve the blind adoration zuko has been showering him in lately. its like iroh takes all his conflicting emotions and opinions, puts them in a blender, drinks it, and then throws it all back up. i doubt theres anyway to conclude his thought process in a paragraph or less basically.

like i know a lot of people agree leaving zuko for bss retirement era is stupid and i agree but also consider the angst potential and also the white lotus is stupid and iroh is stupid and zuko isnt stupid but he also thinks iroh hung the sun and stars so its more sad on his part than anything because he cant even escape getting the short end of the stick with IROH and doesnt even know it. and it will probably stay that way. Lol!!!!!

#so in summary i think its all of the above . thank you gremkins #i had to stop myself because i could go on for like 1million more paragraphs about iroh and zukos dumbassery #weirdest best worst normalest insanest uncle nephew father son dynamic ever #they both are SO DERANGED!!!#atla #asks

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javipispunk · 4 months

Text

PINE SYRUP

Chapter Four: The Crater

Jackson Era! Joel Miller x f!reader

Summary: Through the cold and desperation the pine needles do not fall. The needles are sharp and bitter to ward off strangers, yet with tender care they make the richest syrup.

TW: smut, unprotected p in v (wrap it before you tap it folks), drinking, degradation, dissociation, slight exhibitionism, premature ejaculation, daddy/sir kink, pet names (darlin’ baby, sweetheart), joel is bad at apologies, age gap (27/56)

A/N: sorry this took so long. life comes at ya pretty fast ya know. anyways enjoy!

Word Count: 2.1K

Masterlist

You hurried towards the Tipsy Bison in a daze, running into people left and right. Your ears were ringing and you became exceedingly warm in contrast to the late October air. Like hypothermia had just cast itself upon you, you stripped out of your layers until you were just in a thin t-shirt. Everything felt too constrictive, your body was on fire. You needed to do something, anything to keep yourself from doing something you would regret. Jackson was civilized but who knew if they had the means for a correctional facility or if they would just throw you to the clickers if you committed a crime. Or at least whatever constitutes a crime these days. You thought about going back to Joel and asking him to go back out into the wilderness with you. Pretend you needed help finding something you dropped. Then get your revenge on his cold shoulder, make it look like nothing short of a hunting accident. Hell, you’d done it before who was to say you couldn’t do it again.

All of a sudden snow flurries jerked you out of your convoluted daydreams. The chill of the snow and wind cut through your burning skin, taking out the impulsive thoughts. You had to get it together. You’d only been in Jackson for a week, you could keep your homicidal sentiments about Joel to yourself for at least a little while longer.

Once you’d sat down on a barstool and had a drink, even if it was watered down, placed in your hand you felt like you could breathe. Some Gordon Lightfoot you vaguely remember from before was playing on the radio. There weren’t many people around, just the bartender and a man in the back corner with his feet up and cowboy hat low down on his head. You downed your drink, sat back mimicking him and stared till he looked up at you. He gave you a quizzical look and you nodded at him to come over. He let out a huff and obliged. You thought he could tell that you had some promiscuous reasons for him to sit next to you. And he would be right. You felt dirty from Joel being the last person that had touched you. Nothing like another man to erase Joel from your body's memory.

Flirting with the tall blonde was easy. You didn’t ask for his name and he didn’t ask for yours. It was all light touches, soft smiles and eager eyes. He wasn’t much of a conversationalist, which in all honesty made it easier, you didn’t have to pretend to want to talk to each other and could just get right into what you wanted to do. After a short, very short while the man grabbed you waist and whispered in your ear, even if there was no one around to hear it.

“Wanna get outta here?”

You flitted your eyes at him, “Don’t gotta ask me twice.” Then he led you out of the bar with a hand so low on your back it was practically on your ass.

Out of the corner of your eye you spotted Joel. He was standing there seething. Before you could hurry out of his field of vision he called you over. “Come here for a sec, need your help with somethtin,”

“I’m a little busy at the moment.” You called back.

He started tapping his foot impatiently. “I don’t got all day.”

Begrudgingly you apologized to whatever this guys name was and stomped towards Joel. The aggressive kicks partially because of your anger and partially because of the accumulating snow.

“What do you want?”

“What do you think you’re doing?”

What? You were so confused. “Minding my business, as should you. What do you need help with?”

Then he smirked. That wasn’t good. “You’re such a whore, eager to go home with anyone who looks atcha ain’tcha darlin’.” Was Joel jealous? No way, he made you cry barely an hour ago. No way he was actually gonna chastise you about this right now.

“No. We aren’t doing this right now. If you just called me over to ridicule me about my sex life then you got another thing coming bud.” You said dryly.

“The only thing coming will be me in that tight little pussy of yours.”

You pushed him hard in the chest, well at least you tried too. He grabbed your wrists quickly so you didn’t get too far. “Let go Joel.” He didn’t budge. His eyes were drilling holes into yours, you could feel your fight or flight kicking in. Like he could tell he dropped your wrists without warning. You hated to admit it but you already missed his touch, the warmth of his hands. Then with a huff you raised your head high. No man, not even Joel Miller would make you feel small.

“Get a drink with me?” He asked quietly.

You were taken aback. The amount of times his mood changed in a day was baffling. You wanted more to drink, that was the only thing making you only slightly consider his offer. “Are you serious?”

He nodded. Maybe it was his way of an apology. Or maybe he just wanted you drunk so you would argue with him, since he seemed to enjoy that so much. And to be honest you kind of did too. Angry sex was fun and you half hoped that's where this would lead to. It’s the least he could do for cockblocking you.

“Why should I?” Joel raised his eyebrows at you, clearly not the answer he was expecting.

“Your buddy Dave said you wouldn’t be such a pain if you got your fix.”

“You’re not helping your case here.” You rolled your eyes at him. And you decided you were gonna have a talk with Big Dave. He seemed sensible enough and anyone with a brain that saw you and Joel interact would know that putting you in close proximity together was a bad idea. “Maybe I wouldn’t be such a pain if you weren’t such a dick.”

“Or maybe you need some dick to go along with your drink.” He winked at you and started to walk towards the Tipsy Bison. You were too stubborn to go with him so you went the opposite direction towards the greenhouses. By the time Joel got to the door you were well on your way away from him. He frowned.

The greenhouse was warm. At this point your body temperature which meant you could actually feel the cold now. You wandered around half inspecting tomatoes while your mind ran circles. Joel was not a simple man even though he said he was. Trying to figure him out was like trying to do expert level sudoku drunk in the dark. That thought made you laugh, laugh hard. You probably looked deranged laughing to yourself in the greenhouse. But then Joel, like the prick he was, burst your bubble.

“What’s so funny?” He asked as he stepped into the greenhouse.

“Don’t mind me, just being delusional in the greenhouse again.” you responded.

He walked closer towards you and half stuck his hand out before he pulled it back into himself. “Ellie told me I should apologize.”

You cackled. “Joel. That’s not how apologies work.” He grumbled something you couldn’t make out. “Well let’s hear it then.” you said while looking at him expectantly.

He threw his hands in the air. “You’re so frustrating.”

“Great start bud.” you said with a sarcastic thumbs up.”

He was getting closer to you. It was intoxicating. You could smell him, it was rich and earthy, piney almost. It reminded you of the syrup you used to make in the Spring with fresh needles. Instinctually you closed your eyes, the scent bringing you back to a place you knew you’d never be able to go to again. You sat like that for a moment before his hot breath against your ear made you jerk your eyes open. “I’m not too good with words baby, you should know that by now.” he said as he placed one hand on your waist.

You sighed and ran your fingers through his curls. “I hate you.”

“I know.” And then he leaned down to kiss you. When you didn’t move away he took it as a sign to continue. His kiss was angry, he was aggressive and his hands on your hips were surely going to leave bruises. Joel pulled you close and you could feel his growing bulge through his jeans. “You wanna be a whore? You better act like one.” He chastized you, obviously jealous at your prospect of getting fucked by somebody else. With one hand he started to unbutton your pants and the other grabbed your cheeks forcing you to open your mouth. Then he spat directly into your mouth. “Swallow.” He commanded. You did and then opened your mouth wide to show him.

Then he yanked your pants down and started to touch the wet spot on your panties. “Joel. What if someone comes in?” You whined.

“Then they’ll get a show, won’t they, pretty girl.” You were bucking your hips trying to create more friction where his fingers were softly grazing you. “Shhh relax baby, I’ll take care of your sweet pussy.”

“Please sir, touch me.” You were begging. He groaned as he got down onto his knees, then he brought his face to your cunt and inhaled your sweet scent.

“Not so eager to get away from me now are ya, just beggin’ for Daddy’s cock.” Your pussy was clenching around nothing, dying to be filled with Joel. He pulled your underwear down and lifted one of your legs out of them and your pants. Then he threw that leg over his shoulder and dove right into your folds. His warm wet tongue felt like relief. You were holding onto his hair for dear life, trying not to keel over. He was moaning into you as he licked your juices. With each flick of your clit you felt yourself coming closer to your release. Your leg was trembling trying to keep you upright, his large strong hands were kneading your plush ass. He was going to make you cum with just his mouth, his beautiful mouth was made for eating out pussy. “I know you’re close darlin’. I gotcha. Cum on Daddy’s tongue.” Those words had you gushing on his lips. He drank up every last drop and then looked up to you with satisfied eyes. “Sweetest thing I ever tasted.”

In your post orgasm bliss you just nodded, trying to get back down to earth from wherever he had brought you. Still on his knees he undid his belt and then grabbed your hand to bring you to the floor. There were leaves and dirt littered around but you didn’t care. Joel shoved his pants and boxers down to his knees and laid flat on his back. His cock was standing tall and proud at the base of his stomach. It was gorgeous, red, veiny and weeping. You immediately reached out to touch it, and were glad to see it twitch at the contact. Without instruction you straddled him, your knees on either side of his broad abdomen. Then you brought his dick to your entrance, collecting your wetness. He was moaning under you. “Shit baby.”

You slowly sank down onto him, both of you breathing hard. He held you still for a second once he was fully inside you. When he was ready you started to bounce up and down. However after only a few thrusts he grabbed you and tried to pull you off him. “Off.”

Hurriedly you backed up just in time as he came all over his stomach. You were slightly in shock but managed to stand up. “Let me get you a cloth or something.” You offered.

“Fuck. No.” He was glaring at you as he began to clean up with his shirt.

“Joel, it's okay.” You said as you pulled your pants back on.

“Fucking embarassing.” He muttered. You didn’t know how to tell him that it was actually kinda hot you could get him to come that quickly. Joel struggled to get up, you could tell he was in pain. You stuck out a hand to help him up, which he ignored. Once he was finally up and jeans snug back around his waist he left, the whole time not even bothering to look at you. The air felt fragile, like any movement would result in the world collapsing. You stood frozen, heart racing, a mix of emotions between anger and disappointment.

#joel miller #joel miller x reader #joel miller fanfiction #the last of us fanfiction #tlou fanfiction #joel miller fanfic #joel miller smut #joel miller x you #joel miller x f!reader

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humanbug · 1 year

Text

Someone else? pt. 4

Tommy and Joel discover another immune person.

a/n: this will probably be the last part...i said that last time but idk maybe ill change my mind again. i don't loveee this one but i kinda had writers block. again thank you for all the interaction!!! it makes me want to keep writing! as always feel free to comment your thoughts and dont be afraid to send me requests about what i should write next! reblogs are also appreciated!! enjoy!!!

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

The sun was beginning to lower in the sky as you made your way to the couch. You smile as the scene before you seemed too good given the shit-hole of a world you lived in. You had a roof over your head, clean hair, several blankets surrounding you, a mug of tea, and music playing softly on the record player.

Ellie was out on patrol tonight and wasn’t expected to be back until early morning. You felt nervous spending the night alone but already felt like such a burden living in her home and her taking care of you. She would constantly be giving you reassurance opposing the very idea of being a burden but the fear was still there.

As you snuggle into the blanket nest you’ve made on the couch your mind wanders to the conversation you had with Ellie this morning. She had let you know that Tommy had found a place for you to live on your own but if you wanted to keep living with her that you could. It had been on your mind all day.

‘Do I want to live alone? I haven’t…ever lived alone? God, the very thought makes me nauseous. That’s so pathetic. Fuck this shouldn’t be such a hard decision-’ Your thoughts are interrupted by a knock at the door. You sit up, frozen, heart racing. Another knock sounds followed by a soft voice calling your name. Dina? You had gotten to meet her about a week ago but what was she doing at your door this late?

Walking to the door with a blanket around your body you open it to see Dina standing there.

“Hey! Can I come in? It’s freezing but I wanna ask you something!” She asks with a gentle smile.

Stepping aside, she walks in rubbing her hands over her arms to warm herself up.

“Uh…what’s up Dina?” You shift nervously on your feet.

She smiles warmly at you, “Jesse and I are planning on hanging out at the Tipsy Bison tonight. We thought we’d ask you to join us. I know Ellie is on patrol tonight and thought you might enjoy some company!”

“Oh! Um- I mean- I dunno. I mean, yeah? Yeah! I’ll join you guys.” You stutter out. Anxiety filling your body to the brim. It couldn’t hurt to go out. You had basically been a hermit the last few weeks anyway, only going out for some meals and to the medic building a few days ago to get your stitches removed. Besides Ellie won’t be back ‘till the morning anyway and you’d probably get bored soon just sitting around the house.

“Yes! Oh I’m so happy! I’ll wait outside for you to get dressed and we’ll walk over.” She grins in excitement, already easing your anxiety at her eagerness to spend time with you.

Changing into jeans and a long sleeve shirt, slipping one of Ellie’s hoodies over. Slipping on your boots you look into the small mirror, smoothing your hands over your hair anxiously.

‘Deep breaths! Just be cool. It’s not a big deal and whatever you do, do not mention your…injury.’ You give yourself a pep talk and before you can psych yourself out you swing the door open and step outside.

Walking over to the Tipsy Bison together, you two make small talk. You learn that Dina has lived in Jackson for about three years and that she and Jesse are dating. She asks about you and Ellie’s relationship and your face burns and you ramble out, “Relationship!? Oh, I- We aren’t- She just took me in because Tommy asked her too! I don’t- She’s not- I’m- I’m pretty sure I am more of a thorn in her side than anything.”

Dina looks over at you, giving you a knowing smile as you ramble. “I mean, if you insist! I see the way she looks at you and trust me, if someone is a thorn in Ellie’s side she…doesn’t hesitate to let them know. That girl has no filter and is the worst at hiding facial expressions.” She laughs out.

Before you can ramble out even more about what a pest you’ve been to Ellie you are walking through the doors of the bar. The building is warm, both in temperature and in ambiance. The room is dim with warm lighting, there is a large bar covering one side and tables and chairs made out of old wooden barrels along the opposite wall. There are a decent amount of people around causing your anxiety to sky rocket, still not being used to being around so many people all the time.

The two of you join Jesse at the table in the corner of the bar. Noticing that he has a game of scrabble ready to be played, your face lights up at the thought of playing a board game. You couldn’t even remember the last time you could enjoy something as simple as a board game.

—

“Shvitz is a word goddamnit! It’s a word! Twenty one points! Write ‘em down!” Dina shouts at Jesse.

“Fine! Fine but only because I am feeling kind…because it’s not a word.” Jesse concedes causing Dina to give him the middle finger. Dina leans over the table to watch and make sure Jesse gives her the correct amount of points.

You are laughing so hard that your cheeks hurt. The two of them had been arguing over every other word played and it never seemed to get old. Realizing that you're starting to get a small headache from laughing so hard you look over to the bar wondering if you should ask for water.

‘C’mon don’t be a baby. Just get up and ask!’ You think to yourself.

Taking a deep breath you rise up and walk over to an empty standing spot. Making eye contact with the bar-tender and giving him a small smile just to get his attention you patiently wait for your turn. Leaning against the bar and fiddling with your fingers, your shoulders square and a chill runs down your back and the sudden intrusion of your personal space. Turning around slightly you see a young man standing…way too close looking down at you. A smug smirk on his face.

Giving him a tight lipped smile you try to scoot past him abandoning the idea of getting water however he places his arm on the bar in front of you becoming painfully invasive of your personal space, that stupid smoke growing as if he won something.

“Excuse me…please move.” You mumble.

“Aw c’mon now. Don’t run off like a scared little kitten. I’m just tryin’ to talk to you.” He jeers.

‘Oh my god. Oh my god. Please just move.”

Giving an uncomfortable smile, not wanting to anger him, “I- I’m okay. Really.” You begin to take a step back but he places a hand way too low on your back.

“And what’s a little thing like you gonna do if I don’t, hm?” His voice takes a mocking tone.

“Please- Please just-” You are cut off by the man being violently shoved off of you. Gasping you press yourself against the bar as you see Ellie getting in the man's face.

“You put your fucking hands on her!? Huh!? Fucking answer me. You were so fucking cocky ten seconds ago!” She says inches from his face.

‘Ellie!? What the fuck!?’

You see her rear her hand back in a fist but before you can think you rush forward to stop her. This needs to stop, she got her point across. Grabbing the back of her jacket you pull her attention towards you.

“Ellie! Please stop. C’mon you got your point across. Please!” You say desperately.

As her attention shifts to you, her gaze softens into worry. Grabbing your hand she rushes out of the bar with you stumbling behind her.

Dina and Jesse are rushing behind you two.

“Ellie! Ellie, stop! What the fuck?” Dina is shouting at her.

As the four of you step into the cold, Ellie turns around keeping you behind her. You keep your head down feeling downright mortified.

“Me ‘what the fuck!? What the fuck were you thinking taking her out? Did you even see that sleaze touching her? Huh!?” She seethes.

You mumble out, “It’s not their fault Ellie please…”

Jesse steps forward holding a hand out to Ellie, “Christ, Ellie take a breath!”

“I just-” She takes a deep breath, “I just panicked okay? I got back from patrol early and she wasn’t home and I just panicked, okay?” She rushes out, regret settling deep in her bones.

Looking over at you apologetically Dina sighs, “We’re sorry for not seeing that creep. We just wanted to invite you out and really didn’t think some perv was gonna try something.”

Feeling so embarrassed you almost cry as you rush out, “Please! Please don’t apologize! I had so much fun, really.” Turning to look at Ellie, “I’m okay, I promise. Please don’t be mad at them Ellie.” You give your best puppy dog eyes to her.

Running a hand over her face, she huffs out a breath, “I can’t be mad when you’re looking at me like that…I didn’t mean to freak out. I didn’t mean to ruin you guys’ night either.” Regret laced in her tone.

“Can we hang out again tomorrow night! Please!” You ask everyone, hoping to ease the tension. Really hoping they agree so you can spend more time together. Feeling overjoyed at the feeling of normalcy that Jackson has given you. You got to go to a bar and play board games, never in your life did you think that you would be able to have that kind of fun.

The tension dissipates from the air as Dina grins ear to ear, “Of course, Tipsy Bison tomorrow at seven!” She beams with almost as much excitement as you.

–

As you both walk back to the house there’s a tension that lulls in the air. Neither of you can figure out what to say to the other. You bite your lip in anxiety and kick stones on the ground as you shuffle along.

‘Fuck it! Just say it! Say it!’

“I don’t want to live alone!” You rush out, your cheeks turning red, not giving her a chance to respond you ramble on, “I- I’ve never lived alone and- you make me feel safe and I- If you are totally sick of living with me I understand- so don’t hesitate to tell me-”

“I’d like that. For you to keep living with me.” She cuts off your rambling, making you look at her with wide eyes.

“Really?” You practically whisper. Not believing what you heard.

“Really.” She assures as she unlocks the front door.

You toe off your shoes and flop down on the bed and she leans on the edge of her desk, fiddling with her fingers. Silence falls over the two of you again.

Feeling confident at Ellie’s lack of rejection of your confession, you take a deep breath and move to stand in front of her. Upon sensing your movement she glances at you as you step forward and take her face in your hands, pressing your lips to hers.

She stills for a second before returning the kiss with fervor. Placing her hands low on your waist she pulls you flush to her body. She runs her tongue along the seam of your lips, asking for entrance and you give it to her without hesitation. Ellie’s grip on your waist tightens as she begins to stand, lips still molded onto yours. Needing air you pull back, not expecting her to keep kissing across your cheek and down your jaw you whine. She lets out a chuckle at your sound and guides you backward, bodies still pressed together.

The back of your knees meet the bed and you fall onto it with a small gasp. She pulls back, leaning over you with her hands on either side of you, she presses her forehead to yours.

“I want to keep you safe.” She whispers, almost as if she’s afraid of what she’s saying. Placing your hands on either side of her jaw you look into her eyes.

“I’d really like that.” You whisper back.

taglist:

@daddysfavoritesexkitten

#ˏˋ°•*⁀➷humanbug fics #the last of us fic #the last of us ellie #the last of us #alternate universe #fanfic #tlou fanfiction #ellie x reader #ellie williams #ellie imagine #tlou ellie #tlou

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zuzu-firequeen · 28 days

Text

Fire Queen

Series Masterlist

Zuko x OC

Hello… Zuko Here

"Hello ... Zuko here, but I guess... you probably already know me, sort of. Uhhh ... so, the thing is I have a lot of firebending experience, and I'm considered to be pretty good at it."

Zori nods with a numbs up. The rehearsal going smoothly so far. "Well, you've seen me, you know, when I was attacking you." Zori cringed. "Maybe apologize for that too?" Uhhh ... yeah, I guess I should. But anyway, I'm good now." I clench both fists and place one on my chest while the other arm is raised. This is so awkward.

"This is getting painful." Zori grits her teeth. "Why don't I go talk to them?" "No! I need to do this."

I take a deep breath and start again, "I mean, I thought I was good before, but I realize I was bad, anyway, I think it's time I joined your group and taught the Avatar firebending. I understand Truble was supposed to teach you, but... I can do it." Zori stays silent. "Well, what's your answer?" The child sits on a rock with a frown. "It's a no for me boss." I sigh defeated, "That's what I'd say, too. How am I supposed to convince these people that I'm on their side? What would Uncle do?"

Zori jumps to the ground staring to imitate Iroh. "Zuko, you have to look within yourself to save yourself from your other self. Only then will your true self, reveal itself." "What would Azula do?" Zori smirks playfully before she begins to imitate Azula. "Listen, Avatar, I can join your group, or I can do something unspeakably horrible to you and your friends. Your choice." I laugh lightly. "I'm glad I packed some comedic humor along." Zori smiles, "I'm glad I came along too. I'm glad you chose the right way." I look away from her with a sheepish smile. "It's what Truble would have wanted. I regret not being there when she was hit. I think about her every day."

Aang springs excitedly, "Okay, we can do that while I show you the giant Pai Sho table! Oh, you're going to love the all-day echo chamber!" Toph furrows her brows, "I think it will have to wait." Toph points behind herself, Team Avatar looking at her quizzically. Appa moves out of the way to reveal a shadow, it is revealed to belong to Zuko. They look at him with shocked expressions, which subsequently turn into anger.

Zuko waves, "Hello. Zuko here." "AND ZORI!" The 10-year-old jumps off his back. "Zori!" The team chants with happiness. Katara hugs the child. "Where have you been? Truble..." Katara glanced at Zuko, but he avoided her gaze. "She wouldn't want you to run off like that, Zori."

Zori looked around the group, noticing the missing member. Her worry grew for Truble. Knowing it wasn't the appropriate time to reveal the truth of her death or rather nondeath. Zuko would have to find out on his own.

"I heard you guys flying around down there, so, I just thought I'd wait for you here," Appa growls at him and licks him twice. Aang lowers his staff slightly. "I know you must be surprised to see me here." Sokka shakes his head, "Not really since you've followed us all over the world."

"Right. Well, uhhh ... anyway ... what I wanted to tell you is that I've changed, and I, uhhh, I'm good now, and well I think I should join your group, oh, and I can teach firebending to you." Toph shouts confused, "You want to what now?" Katara crosses her arms. "You can't possibly think that any of us would trust you, can you? Especially after what you did to Truble. I mean, how stupid do you think we are?!"

"I've done some good things! I mean, I could have stolen your bison in Ba Sing Se, but I set him free. That's something!" Appa licks him again, much to his surprise. "I can understand why you wouldn't trust me, and I know I've made some mistakes in the past."

Sokka starts, "Like when you attacked our village?" Then Katara states, "Or when you stole my mother's necklace and used it to track us down and capture us?" Then Toph continues, "Or when you betrayed Truble." I look up at her with a glare. Zori holds my hand lightly. "Look, I admit I've done awful things. I was wrong to try to capture you, and I'm sorry that I attacked the Water Tribe. I'm sorry I went against Truble. And I never should have sent that Fire Nation assassin after you." Toph and Sokka's eyes widen with shock.

"Wait, you sent Combustion Man after us?" "Well that's not his name, but-" Sokka rolled his eyes, "Ohhh, sorry. I didn't mean to insult your friend!" "HE IS NOT MY FRIEND!" I should angrily. I look to Aang, "Why aren't you saying anything? You once said you thought we could be friends. You know I have good in me."

Aang turns to look at his friends, and Sokka shakes his head. "There's no way we can trust you after everything you've done. We'll never let you join us." Katara tugs Zori behind her, "You need to get out of here. Now."

"If you won't accept me as a friend, then maybe you'll take me as a prisoner. I kneel, bend my head, and raise my arms in surrender. "No, we won't!" Katara blasts water at me. "Get out of here, and don't come back! And if we ever see you again, well, we'd better not see you again!"

Zori looks from behind Katara. She nods, and knowing she will be safe, I walk away. Some hidden paths are crossed alone. Uncle would be proud.

I wiggle in my chains, my shoulders both out of place by now. I've been suspended for days, and the tips of my toes barely scraped the metal floor. Sweat covered my face, along with bruises and blood from endless interrogations.

"Where is he? Where is Savrar?" A guard punches my stomach making me grimace in pain. "I told you. He's dead. I am the only one left." "And we don't believe you!" Another blow to my stomach and I spit blood into the guard's face. "You little," he grabs my chin with rage in his eyes. "She's supposed to be left alive." A chilling voice sounds from the entrance.

Azula enters with two figures behind her, her so-called friends. She shoves the guard out and shuts the door. "You should be dead, rat."

I look down at my body, a smirk growing on my lips. "Am I not? Hm, weird." One of the girls cartwheels over to me, she runs a finger down my long red hair, "This is really pretty! I've never seen this color before!" The other girl crosses her arms, "so bright it's burning my eyes." Azula smirks at her friend and grabs a knife from Mai's hand. "Let's give you a makeover." Azula moves behind me, grabs my hair in a wad, and pulls my head back, the muscles in my body straining. "Where is the avatar?" "Why don't you use my pendant and see?" Azula slashes a section of my hair, it falls to the ground in uneven lengths. This is humiliating. "Oh, I wish I could. Zuzu took it before I even knew the value. I guess he wanted a souvenir."

Azula slashes another wad off. "So this is what he left me for?" Mai asks walking around me in a circle. "I can't say I'm impressed." I glare at her. "Oh just wait until I get out of here!" I huff fire with fury, thrashing around in my chains. Mai smirks tilting her head. "I'm shaking."

Azula cuts the remaining hair off, leaving it to fall just before my shoulders. "Now you listen rat. We're moving you to boiling rock. One flicker of a flame and I will burn your face off." I smirk at her, "I love when you talk dirty to me." Her eyes bore into mine only making me smile widly. She can't stand my lack of fear. "You should be terrified. I could kill you, rat!" I get as close to her as I can, my face heating up, "I don't do scared." Azula glared at me and stormed out, steam rolling out of her ears.

As the metal door slams shut I rest my head. I see the fallen strands of my hair and sigh. I was taught to never crack. My father was a

Strict man when it came to training and one of the key things he drilled into me was never giving in. Even if it meant death. Which seems like a welcomed friend at this time.

"You've got to keep going." A tiny voice rings in my head. "Zori?" I ask aloud, searching the room from top to bottom. "You can't give up Truble." I allow my head to fall. "I can't do it Zori. I can't get out of here."

"Then I'm coming to get you."

#aang #fire lord zuko #katara #prince zuko #sokka #avatar the last airbender #zuko x oc #prince zuko imagine #zuko fanfic

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justsomewritingblog · 8 months

Text

Avatar: TLA (Part 10 of many)

Request: None

Requested By: Nobody

Pairing: Zuko x reader

Summary: The Waterbending Master

Warnings: none?

A/N: Zuko either in the next chapter, or the one after that. I’m looking forward to this interaction.

Word Count: 4K+

Last Chapter - Next Chapter

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You flew low. So low, in fact, that you could see an otter floating on the surface of the water.

“I’m not one to complain,” Sokka started. You let out a small chuckle, which he ignored. “But can’t Appa fly any higher?”

The bison’s feet dragged along the water, creating ripples. Sokka was currently leaning over the back of the saddle, watching the passing fish.

“I have an idea.” Aang said, turning around so you could see the anger on his face. “Why don’t we all get on your back and you can fly us to the North Pole?”

You rolled your eyes and continued to watch the small icebergs.

“I’d love to. Climb on, everyone.” Sokka said, jerking a thumb at his back. “Sokka is ready for takeoff.” He declared. Momo flew over and landed on his back.

“Look, we’re all just a little tired and cranky because we’ve been flying for two days straight.”

“We’re getting close.” You said. “There isn’t a lot of land out here.”

“Exactly! There’s nothing up here, which means we can’t find the Northern Watertribe.” Sokka voiced, crossing his arms. (He was now sitting properly.) A splash was heard as a wall of ice appeared in front of Appa. Aang yelled and steered the large bison to the side. Walls kept appearing, and you, Sokka and Katara were holding on for dear life. Appa’s foot caught a piece of ice and he went spiraling into the sea. The water around him froze as a few small ships came into view. Within moments, you were surrounded.

“They’re waterbenders! We found the watertribe!” Katara exclaimed.

“I’ll take care of this.” You announced, grabbing the waterbending scroll from the bag and leaping off Appa. They watched as you talked with one of the men on the boats, though they couldn’t hear what you were saying. They saw you show the man the scroll and gesture at them, before continuing your conversation. You came back a few moments later and sat in the saddle, a smile on your face.

“What did you say?” Aang asked.

“I told him how I found the scroll, and therefore you guys.” You answered simply as Appa followed the boats.

“Who was that guy?” Katara asked.

“Hm? Oh, Liam. He’s an old friend of mine. He’s known me since I was a baby. He-” you stopped yourself, not wanting to go any further. “We go way back.” You finished quickly. Katara and Aang smiled, while Sokka seemed slightly suspicious. He was about to say something, but the Avatar cut him off.

“There it is!” He suddenly shouted, standing and pointing at the wall of ice.

“The Northern Watertribe.” Katara mused softly.

“We’re finally here.” Sokka added. You smiled at their amazed faces. The waterbenders on either side of Appa used their bending to make a gap in the ice, big enough for Appa to float through. He swam forward, the ships following. You were then faces with four large walls on every side as the opening behind you closed. The men that stood atop each wall forced water down, bringing the wall with it.

“I can’t believe how many waterbenders live up here.” Katara announced.

“We’ll find a master to teach us, no problem.” Aang said. You frowned.

“Actually-”

You were cut off by the loud gasps that followed. You huffed. Katara, Aang and Sokka were all staring, amazed, at a long flow of water, leading into a city. They led the gaang around turns, under bridges, and through tunnels, amazing them even more. You chuckled. Aang waved to a few people.

You continued sailing when you saw a familiar purple. Princess Yue. She was in a boat, sitting neatly, while a man behind her bended the water, steering the boat. You turned and saw Sokka already watching her, a blush covering his cheeks. You covered your mouth with your hand, containing the laughter that threatened to spill from it.

“This place is beautiful.” Katara said.

“Yeah. She is.” Sokka replied, clearly in a daze.

~~~~~~~~~~

A feast was being held. You, Sokka, Aang and Katara were all seated in front of a table, watching men pound on drums. There was also a fountain sitting before, in a constant flow. Two men carried a giant board over to Appa, with a lot of seaweed, you guessed, on it. He roared, chasing the men away, allowing him to eat in peace.

A man that was seated at the middle of a long table stood and began to speak, drawing everyone’s attention to him. “Tonight we celebrate the arrival of our brother and sister from the Southern tribe.” He began, gesturing at Katara and Sokka who smiled. “They have brought with them, someone very special. Someone who many of us believed disappeared from the world until now. The Avatar!” He said, gesturing down at Aang, who grinned and waved. Everyone clapped and cheered. “We also celebrate my daughter’s sixteenth birthday!” He said, stepping to the side, revealing Princess Yue. “Princess Yue is now of marrying age!”

You saw Sokka lean backward to get a better look at her and you rubbed your mouth with your hand, as if trying to physically wipe the smirk off your face. “Thank you, father.” The Princess spoke softly, turning to the rest of the crowd. “May the great ocean and moon spirits watch over us during these troubled times!” She spoke clearly, undoubtedly having lots of experience and practice. “We would also like to celebrate Y/n, who has returned from her task!”

Your head shot up and you sat up straight upon hearing your name.

“As some of you know, she has been gone for a little over a year, tracking down the thieves that took a sacred scroll from us. She has returned with it now, and we are grateful for her.”

Everyone clapped again and your face turned pink disliking the amount of attention. Sokka leaned over to you. “You’ve been gone for a year?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re my age, aren’t you?”

You paused, raising your eyebrow. “Yeah?”

“They let a fourteen year old wander around the world? By herself?”

You shrugged. “Yeah.”

He stared at you, slightly dumbfounded.

“You’re fifteen. Katara’s fourteen. I don’t see the big deal.”

“But at least we’re traveling together.”

“Sokka, it’s already been done. It’s too late to do anything about it now.” You hissed at him.

“Now Master Pakku and his students will perform!” Princess Yue’s father spoke. You all turned, and sure enough, Master Pakku and two boys, around your age, were bending water out of three jugs before them. They snaked them around each other, creating beautiful and fluid movements. They then combined the water into one figure, and circled it around themselves.

You saw Princess Yue approach out of the corner of your eye. Smirking, you slid away from Sokka so she would sit between you. She did. Sokka had currently been stuffing his face, but when you moved away, he turned to you in confusion, only to see the Princess sit. The look on his face was priceless.

He quickly swallowed his food, and leaned his forearm on the table.

“Hey there. Sokka, Southern Watertribe.” He introduced himself, flirtatiously.

“Very nice to meet you.” She said, bowing slightly. They became silent for a few moments. You continued eating, as though you weren’t listening to their conversation.

“So….uh….you’re a princess! Huh?!” Sokka continued, trying to keep the interaction flowing. You chocked on the roll you were eating. Yue nodded at him. “You know, back in my tribe, I’m kind of like a prince myself.” He bragged. Your eyes widened in amazement at the lie. You heard a small laugh.

“Prince of what?” Katara asked.

“A lot of things.” Sokka defended, an aggravated tone in his voice. “Do you mind? I’m trying to have a conversation here?”

“My apologies, Prince Sokka.” Katara teased, mock-bowing. You broke into a coughing fit, laughing too hard. Yue turned to you.

“Are you alright?”

You waved a dismissive hand. “I’m okay.” You wheezed out, beginning to cough again. Her concerned eyes remained trained on you, however. “Really, I’m fine. Go back to your conversation.” You instructed, the coughing dying down slightly. You took a swing of water to wash it down.

“So it looks like I’m gonna be in town for a while. I’m thinking maybe we could…do an activity together?” Sokka asked, turning back to Yue, ignoring your previous suffering.

“Do an activity?” Yue asked him, taking her eyes off you. You could see the beads of sweat trailing down Sokka’s face. He stuffed some food in his mouth, looking like he wanted to die, and swallowed, as if the food could had given him confidence.

“Very smooth.” Katara whispered, leaning over to him. You felt a presence, so you looked up, spotting Liam. You smiled.

“Liam!” You exclaimed quietly, standing and hugging the man before you.

“Y/n, I’m so glad you’re back. You’ve been gone for so long.”

“Well, I wasn’t coming back empty handed.” You announced, crossing your arms. “Not after being out there a year. I wasn’t about to waste a year of my life, only to come back without the scroll.” You informed. Liam was silent for a short while, as if thinking it over.

“That makes sense.” He concluded.

“I know.” You said, smiling. At this point, Sokka and Katara were watching you, curious. Liam noticed this and grew silent, feeling uneasy. You turned and saw the siblings as well, before turning back to your friend.

“Perhaps we could go on a walk. To catch up.” You offered. Liam smiled and gestured for you to lead the way. You did, and you were soon outside, walking along the pathways.

You walked for a few moments in silence, simply enjoying the other’s company. Liam spoke up first.

“There’s something you want to tell me.”

You looked up at him, a small smirk finding its way on your face. “How’d you know?”

He chuckled quietly. “I’ve known you your whole life, Y/n. I think I know when something’s been eating at you.”

You looked down at your hands. “You always could read me. I could never keep a secret from you.” You admitted.

“So what’s the trouble?”

You bit your bottom lip, debating, before finally deciding that he would know if you were lying anyway. “I-uh.” You paused for a moment, trying to plan out how you were gonna do this. He waited patiently for you to continue. “I may or may-not have practiced waterbending….while I was away.”

He stopped his movements and turned to you.

“We were in trouble, I had no choice, if I didn’t do anything people would have died, and I-” You began to explain quickly, hoping that he wouldn’t be mad. He simply sighed, shaking his head.

“You’d better not let anyone else hear that.” He cocked an eyebrow, looking down at you. “They won’t all be as understanding.”

“So you won’t tell anyone?”

“No. I understand that in some circumstances it’s necessary.”

You let out a breath you didn’t know you were holding. “Thank you.”

He smiled.

“So, in order for me to keep my promise, how about you tell me some of your adventures?”

A smile immediately made its way onto your face. As you walked, you told him of your adventures. How you met the gaang, the issues with Jet, you told him what you knew about the tribes that Aang, Katara and Sokka led through the canyon, and how you, Sokka and Katara all got sick after being out in a storm. Naturally, you left the part about saving Zuko and his crew out. He didn’t need to know about that.

You told him of the fortune teller, but also leaving out her predictions. Liam asked about them but you shrugged him off and continued as if he hadn’t said a word. You told him of Bato, of the Deserter, and how Katara can heal, and you told him of the Southern Air temple, leaving out the parts about Teo’s father previously working for the firenation.

“And so, that brings us here.” You finished. It was now quite dark, and you felt as though you were gasping for breath from talking so much. You in fact, were.

“I can’t believe how crazy your life’s been. You’ve done all of that in a year?”

“A few months.” You clarified. “I’ve been gone for a year, but I didn’t meet them until a few months ago.”

Liam whistled. “Are you glad to be home?”

You thought for a long moment. “I’m not sure. It’s nice to be back, don’t get me wrong, but I think I’ve grown so used to traveling around, and being….free….that I don’t know if I want to stay.”

You saw Liam visibly deflate. “That makes sense. I don’t want you to make your decision quite yet, though. You still have time to think it over.”

“I guess you’re right.” You mumbled. “Liam, it’s been great talking to you, but I think it’s time to turn in.” You looked up at the sky. “I finally get to sleep and wake up without fear of the firenation on my tail, which means I can sleep in.” You said. He smiled and hugged you, wishing you a good night. You walked away, yawning, as you gently bended the water to make it flow towards you.

You climbed into bed, alongside Katara, and pulled the blankets over your head, falling asleep in no time.

~~~~~~~

When you awoke, you were the only one in bed. Katara, Sokka and Aang had all gone. You groaned at the sunlight and rolled over, pulling the blankets over your head again before you remembered that since you were back home, you had to go to healing lessons. You jumped up, and ran out, trying to smooth your hair on the way. You rushed in, just in time for it to start.

“Y/n. It’s good to have you back.” Yagoda spoke.

“Thank you.” You replied, fixing the remainder of your hair. “So much for sleeping in.” You mumbled under your breath. You were in there, watching her work, when Katara walked in.

“Um, hi. Are you Yagoda?”

The old woman turned to her. “Are you here for the healing lesson?”

You watched as Katara’s eyes scanned the children, six of them, before her eyes settled on you. You saw her eyes widen. You looked down, slightly ashamed that you were the only fifteen-year-old among five year olds. “I guess I am.” She said, frowning. She walked forward and took a seat next to you.

“Welcome. Welcome.” Yagoda greeted cheerfully.

The session went on for about an hour until Yagoda finally declared that that was all for today. You helped the children put the dummy away, when you heard Katara speak to Yagoda.

“Thanks for the lesson.”

“So who’s the lucky boy?”

“Huh?”

“Your betrothal necklace.” Yagoda clarified. “You’re getting married, right?”

“Oh, no. I don’t think I’m ready for that yet. My grandmother gave my mother this necklace.”

You emerged just then, having known were the practice dummy goes.

“And my mother passed it down to me.” She continued.

“I recognize this carving.” Yagoda observed. “I don’t know why I didn’t realize this sooner. “You’re the spitting image of Kana.”

“Wait, how do you know my gran-gran’s name?” Katara asked, taking a step back.

“When I was about your age, I was friends with Kana. She was born here, in the Northern tribe.”

“She never told me.” Katara muttered. You took this as your cue to leave, and rushed outside, feeling the sun on your face. You smiled and deeply inhaled, smelling the water. You opened your eyes and saw Sokka sitting cross-legged on the edge of a sidewalk. You cocked an eyebrow and walked over, fluffing his ‘warriors-wolf-tail’ to announce your presence.

“Katara, go away. I’m busy.” He replied, not turning around. “Shouldn’t you be practicing with Master Pakku anyway?”

Your smile dropped, but you quickly put on a new one. “Guess again.”

He turned around and his eyes landed on you. “Oh, Y/n. I’m sorry, I just assumed-”

“It’s fine.” You assured, raising your hand slightly. You sat down next to him. “What are you working on?”

“Well, I’m supposed to meet Yue tonight at a bridge. I was carving her a fish.” He announced, holding it out to you. It didn’t look at all like a fish, but he looked so happy and hopeful that you couldn’t possibly tell him that.

You simply looked at it in silence, trying to think of a comment about it. Thankfully, you didn’t have to.

“So, were have you been?”

“Katara and I were in healing lessons.”

Sokka hummed, then did a double take. “Wait, Katara was there, too?” You nodded. “I thought she was supposed to be training with Aang.”

“About that,” you rubbed the back of your neck, “women actually aren’t supposed to learn waterbending unless it’s healing.”

Sokka began to open his mouth, but you placed a hand over it, silencing him.

“I know, I think it’s stupid too, but those are the rules and I can’t change them. I’m sure she’ll learn waterbending another way.”

You took your hand off Sokka’s mouth, before placing it right back on.

“Just make sure that you don’t tell anyone I was waterbending. I’ll get in major trouble since I grew up here, and knew the rule.”

Sokka nodded and you slid your hand off his mouth. “Thank you.” You muttered, hugging your knees to your chest.

“So, you’re meeting up with Yue, ay?”

“Yeah.” He said, a light dusting of pink finding its way onto his cheeks. You grinned.

“You know Sokka, pink goes great with your skin color. Really brings out your eyes.” You teased, making the color deepen. He sent you a small glare, but you could tell he wasn’t actually mad. You chuckled and stood, patting him on the shoulder. “I’ll leave you too it, then.” You informed, walking off.

~~~~~~~~

“How’s warrior training going?” Katara asked. You were all currently back in the room, getting ready for bed. Sokka kicked at his still rolled up sleeping bag. He flopped on it, letting out a groan.

“That bad?” Aang questioned.

“No, it’s Princess Yue.” He scowled.

“Princess Yue?” You parroted. “What happened?”

“I don’t get it. One minute she wants to go out with me, and the next, she’s telling me to get lost.” He was silent for a moment. “How’s waterbending training?” It was Katara’s turn to flop down.

“Master poop-head won’t teach her because she’s a girl.” Aang explained, exasperated. You almost laughed at his new nickname for Master Pakku.

“Oh yeah, Y/n told me about that.” There was silence for a moment. “Why don’t you just teach her, Aang?”

“Why didn’t I think of that?” Katara asked, mostly to herself, sitting up. “At night, you can teach me and Y/n whatever moves you learned from Master Pakku. That way, you have someone to practice with, and I get to learn waterbending! Everyone’s happy!”

“I’m not happy.” Sokka grumbled.

“But you’re never happy.” Katara retorted. “Come on, Aang.” She said, Aang following her outside. You turned to Sokka and placed a comforting hand on his back, rubbing it in small circles. He hummed in contentment and buried his face in the sleeping bag, soon drifting to sleep.

You sighed, feeling bad for him. “Oh, Sokka.” You whispered, looking down at him. You leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on his temple before snuggling down to sleep as well.

~~~~~~~~

You were shook awake.

“Y/n, get up!” Katara urged. You groaned and snuggled further into your pillow. “Y/n, it’s important!”

You cracked an eye open, squinting at the light behind Katara’s concerned face. “What is it?” You asked, voice groggy and rough.

“Master Pakku caught me and Aang last night, and he said he wasn’t welcome as his student anymore. And get off my brother, for crying out loud.”

You looked down, and sure enough, you were cuddled up against Sokka, your ‘pillow’. You must have rolled over in your sleep and latched onto him. He was still asleep however, which you were thankful for, but that didn’t stop you from getting up as quickly as you could, a bright pink on your cheeks.

“Where’s Aang?” You questioned, trying to distract yourself from the mortification.

“He’s outside.”

“You wake up Sokka, I’ll go talk to him.” You instructed, going outside. Aang looked up, hearing your footsteps.

“I blew it.” He whispered. You crouched down next to him, he was sitting, and you placed an arm around him.

“Aang, it’s alright. I’m sure that if you-” You cut yourself off, not fully thinking this through.

“Why are you blushing?”

You blush deepened as you turned to him. “It’s nothing, don’t worry about it.” You sat in silence for another moment, Aang raising an eyebrow at you in disbelief, before your eyes widened. “Liam!”

“Who?”

“My friend, Liam. He can help you! He’s a waterbender, too. I told him about the stories, and he wasn’t upset. Maybe he can teach you!” Your large grin turned into a frown. “But I don’t want him in trouble.” You muttered. You fell on your back and groaned just as Sokka and Katara came out.

“Let’s go talk to Master Pakku.” Sokka said. You followed them.

~~~~~~~~~~

“What do you want me to do? Force Master Pakku to take Aang back as his student?” Yue’s father asked, once you’d arrived. He sat between Master Pakku, and his daughter.

“Yes! Please.” Katara added.

“I suspect he might change his mind if you swallow your pride and apologize to him.”

You all looked to Katara, who looked at Aang, weighing her options.

“Fine.” She decided.

“I’m waiting, little girl.” Master Pakku taunted. Your eyes widened as you looked to Katara. This couldn’t be good. You were right, as she clenched her fists.

“No. No way I’m apologizing to a sour old man like you!” She yelled, pointing at him. The ice behind her feet trembled and cracked. Your eyes widened in terror. The crack made its way along the floor, cracking one of the jugs they used for the performance a few nights ago.

“Uh, Katara.” Aang started quietly.

“I’ll be outside if you’re man enough to fight me!” Katara announced, turning and walking away. Everyone gasped. You shared a panicked and concerned look with Sokka and Aang.

“I’m sure she didn’t mean that.” Aang told everyone.

“Yeah, I think she did.” Sokka said, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

“This isn’t gonna go well.” You muttered to yourself, running after Katara. Sokka and Aang quickly followed. You all fell in step beside her.

“Are you crazy, Katara? You’re not gonna win this fight.” Sokka warned her.

“I know!” Katara said, pulling off her coat and throwing it in her brother’s arms. “I don’t care!”

“You don’t have to do this for me. I can find another teacher.” Aang offered, trying to smooth things over.

“I’m not doing it for you.” Katara told him. “Someone needs to slap some sense into that guy.”

She turned and saw Pakku at the top of the steps, making his way down it.

“So, you decided to show up?” She taunted. He was silent, reaching the end of the steps and walking further away. “Aren’t you gonna fight!?” Katara yelled.

“Go back to the healing huts with the other women where you belong.” He spoke calmly. Oh, that was a mistake. Katara pulled water out of a crack in the ice and struck Pakku in the back of the head with it. He halted his movements.

“Fine. You want to learn how to fight so bad?” He asked, turning around. “Study closely.” He taunted. He drew water out of two pools, for waterbending practice, and threw them at Katara, knocking her back. He flowed the water around them, drawing her closer.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to hurt you.” He told her. She brought the circle to an abrupt stop, sending the water out of the way. It came flowing at Sokka, and you quickly used bending to move it out of the way.

Katara rushed Pakku again, and he made a wave, turning it into ice as she rode up it. She leapt off and landed on a pillar at the base of the steps. Master Pakku turned the ice into an actual wave, rushing it towards her.

She used bending to freeze ice around her ankles, keeping her in place. As the water came towards her, she smacked it out of the way again, revealing her, unmoved.

“You can’t knock me down!” She told him. Everyone cheered.

“Go, Katara!” Aang encouraged. She rushed him again, and they got into close combat, which was clearly not her strong suit. She was quickly knocked into the water and you cringed, squeezing your eyes shut. You heard cheering and opened your eyes, seeing Katara send ice-discs at him. He broke most of them, simply hitting them with his forearm.

Katara sent water at him, which he quickly began to control, turning it back on her. She slid backwards, and you watched Aang and Sokka’s concerned faces. She got up and brought down empty containers, made of ice, atop him. He did something, turning them into a cloud, making it hard to see. When it cleared, he retook his stance and spoke.

“I’m impressed.” He admitted. “You are an excellent waterbender.” He complimented.

“But you still won’t teach me, will you?”

“No.”

You rolled your eyes as they began fighting again.

“Does she even need a teacher?” You asked yourself. You looked back to the battle just as Master Pakku trapped Katara in long icicles. Sokka and Aang were very concerned, their faces riddled with worry.

She looked up and struggled against them, as Master Pakku walked past her. “This fight is over.” He announced.

“Come back here! I’m not finished yet!”

“Yes, you are.” He suddenly stopped, and picked something up off the ground. “This is my necklace.” He said quietly.

“No it’s not, it’s mine! Give it back!” Katara shouted.

“I made this sixty years ago. For the love of my life. For Kana.”

The spikes around Katara melted into water.

“My gran-gran was supposed to marry you?” She asked, quietly.

“I carved this necklace for your grandmother when we got engaged.” He explained. You, Sokka, Aang, Yue and her father all moved closer, while everyone else seemed to have left. “I thought we would have a long, happy life together. I loved her.”

“But she didn’t love you, did she?” Katara asked softly, almost afraid to break the moment. “It was an arranged marriage. Gran-gran wouldn’t let your tribe’s stupid customs run her life.” She said, walking forward. “That’s why she left. It must have taken a lot of courage.”

Yue suddenly ran off, crying.

“Go get her.” Aang told Sokka. Sokka nodded once before running after her. You ran a hand down your face, already sick of the drama. You watched him leave, hoping things would go well for him.

~~~~~~~~~

The next morning, Katara shook you awake.

“Come on, it’s sunrise!”

“And?” You asked, voice muffled by your pillow.

“We have to start training. Get up!”

She ripped the blankets off of you, took ahold of your arm, and drug you outside, with you groaning all the way.

“Alright, I’m up.” You mumbled, standing and adjusting your hair and clothes. She quickly took ahold of your hand and drug you along with her. She drug you to a group of people, Aang among them, practicing waterbending. The boy turned around.

“Hey, Katara! Hey, Y/n!” He greeted. You waved.

“What do you two think you’re doing?!” Pakku asked. You sent a worried glance to Katara. “It’s past sunrise. You’re late.” He continued, taking his stance. You let out a breath of relief and took your stance as well.

“Good to see you guys here.” Aang commented.

“You, too.” Katara replied.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A/n: Which chapter has been your favorite so far?

#My works #Mara's works #A:TLA #Avatar #Avatar: TLA #Avatar: The Last Airbender #Zuko x reader #x reader #reader insert #reader #Avatar: The Last Airbender x reader

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annasinterests · 9 months

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don't look at me like that unless you mean it

pain, make your way to me, to me ♫ and i'll always be just so inviting

|| series masterlist || main masterlist ||

a/n: this chapter properly beat my ass. like. i struggled so hard to write this one you guys. however, i'm excited for the chapter after this one! i do think the next one will be a lot longer than the previous chapters, i've written a lot and i haven't even gotten halfway the plot of it. that being said, it may take a little longer to push out! as well as the fact that i will be working a lot this week (i do contracting work so i'm also lowkey daydreaming of joel half the time and let me tell you,, i will prob be putting out works based on those daydreams alone lmfaooo). anyways, i'll cut the rambling short- hope you guys are enjoying this fic! :)

word count: 3k

pairings: joel miller x f!reader

warnings & tags: minors dni, angst, reader dealing with past trauma, depictions of anxiety, ellie and reader spend time together, joel is cute at the end — please tell me if i missed anything!

Today marked your final day of administration duties for the week before a much-needed two-day break for patrol rotation.

You dreaded the switch more than ever now, but also because of the heat. During the summer, patrol weeks always felt like they came too quick. You could do the cool nights, you actually looked forward to those more, but you absolutely hated the long, unbearably hot days that preceded them.

The house had been quiet since your last conversation with Joel days ago. Since he held your face and told you that everything was going to be okay with the most tender look on his. Since you once again walked that careful line of what is and what could be.

During the day, you were able to keep yourself occupied with work, but it was harder at night when all you could do was stare at the ceiling and think yourself down a hole.

Ellie took note of your change in behavior. In fact, she knew it all too well. How it always looked like your head was somewhere else other than the present, the quietness, the thousand-yard stare. She especially sensed it when she overheard you and Joel talking on the back porch one night when you thought she wasn’t home, revisiting your previous conversation and asking how to break it to her that she couldn’t do patrol until things settled down. Though she didn’t outright confront you about it, she knew something was under your skin.

And she was right; you just couldn’t shake this off. So, you slung your pack over your shoulder and your gun in its holster on the way out to find the one person who could give you the answers you sought: Maria.

Her office resided on the second floor of the town hall, facing the wall built around Jackson, specifically arranged so she could watch the gate when she wasn't doing other duties around the town.

You thought up reasons and excuses to give for dropping in, but they all pointed to ones that wouldn’t warrant a visit or would reveal too much of your own thoughts.

Coming to the Bison tomorrow? No. She wouldn’t be interested in having that conversation, probably. Hey, any updates from patrol? Too direct. She’ll know you’re looking for something. You scoffed at yourself for not having a better plan.

Approaching her door, you silently prepared yourself for a somewhat calculated conversation. You knew her guarded nature, and you needed to employ a cunning approach to elicit the details you came for. Be light– not intrusive or eager. Maria was smart, you had to conceal and control your words and expressions.

You plastered on the biggest smile you could muster and knocked on the door, peeking your head in. “Maria, not catching you at a bad time, am I?”

Her head turned towards you, “Oh please, come in,” she gestured for you to join her at the window she stood at, "out of anyone, I'm glad it's you that came knocking."

This.. could be easier than you thought. You sauntered over next to her and followed her line of sight that fell upon the patrol, they'd been in a tight circle just before the gate. Tommy stood in the center of it all– seemingly giving a speech as he pointed and paired up people as he went along. When you caught sight of Joel, your heart skipped a beat, followed by a weight of discomfort. You watched as Fitz strolled over to him with a wide grin, which of course he didn’t return.

"Most of the time, I don't feel anything when he leaves," Maria's voice was calm and steady, "because part of me knows that he'll come back." She maintained her gaze below, shaking her head that it was almost imperceptible. "But now.. I'm not so sure of that."

You turned your attention to her, eyebrows slightly furrowed, looking for any indication of emotion from her words, but she stayed the same. Relaxed. Which contrasted from what she was insinuating. And while she was speaking of her own dilemma, you couldn't help but see that it was yours too.

“I’m gonna tell you something that has to stay between us,” you eased your expression as she shifted to face you, “and I’m gonna trust that you keep it to yourself, for now, at least.” Her eyes locked on you with caution before turning away to her desk, leaning her weight upon her palms.

"This group.. They're called the Washington Liberation Front. Most of them are former Fireflies."

Your jaw tensed at the name. The Fireflies, once perceived as fighting for a good cause, had betrayed you in the worst way possible, almost taking another person you loved, and framing it as a sacrifice for the greater good of humanity. Your hands twitched into a fist at the memory.

“Tommy started noticing the same descriptions on the patrol logs, so he sent a small group out for a couple weeks to see if they could find a trail.” You glanced back towards the window; the patrol had already left. "They found camps, concealed caches full of weapons and supplies.. And believe it or not, the last Firefly activity.”

You snapped your head at Maria as she chuckled lowly.

“Seems like they had some big operation in..” she flicked through some papers on her desk, dragging her finger across a page and tapping it once she found it, “Salt Lake City.”

It was like a pair of hands wrapped themselves around your throat.

No.

“I just- I don’t know-” she shook her head, “I don’t know what Jackson has to do with it.”

The wounds were tearing open, reminding you of all the bloodshed from that day, and how it stained your hands permanently. That shattered hospital, a place forever burned into your memories, tormented your conscience and left you wishing that you could erase every second spent in there.

You slowly leaned your arm on the window sill, trying to stabilize yourself as it felt like you could've collapsed right then and there. You hoped to God that your face wasn't giving anything away as you tried to maintain steady eye contact with her, even though she wasn't looking at you. She pulled a tattered paper from her drawer and handed it to you. "We found this the night before the meeting."

With shaky hands, you unfolded a map marked with color-coded strategic points and messages in regard to the group's surveillance of Jackson.

The havoc you wreaked on the Fireflies hadn’t been enough to end them, leading to something far worse; a bigger, stronger, more threatening militia than you could’ve imagined. The weight of the world threatened to crush you, you tried to control your breathing through your nose and struggled to keep your hand steady as you looked over the map. You felt your heart beating so hard that you were sure Maria could hear it too.

You had to maintain your composure. Nobody in Jackson knew, not even Tommy, and you were not about to fill the gaps for Maria right now.

As you studied it, you noticed an emblem in the top right corner that read ‘W.L.F’ with a crudely drawn wolf head right beneath it. Ugh– another one of those cliché military group symbols designed with an overinflated ego and heightened sense of self-importance. Overlooking your personal issues with it, you read a specific note in red ink:

WV - EC - CB

MVL > BM

Mike, Tango 2x, Sierra 2x

Fuck, that does looks like some sort of tracking. Goddamnit, Tommy.

Your face scrunched up as you reread the words, racking your brain to figure out the combination of military-alphabet and abbreviations. You held up the map with an inquisitive brow, “Have you figured this out?”

“No,” Maria shook her head as she pulled out more papers from her desk, stacking them gently before pushing them into your possession, “but I think maybe you can."

She looked at you in a way that let you know that you couldn't decline at least trying. You reluctantly nodded as you folded up the map and added it to the pile you held in between your fingers. Her trust in you was appreciated, but at the same time, you didn’t want it. Not for this, at least.

You gave her an affiliative smile and turned away to the door, but she called your name at the last moment as your hand grabbed the handle, anchoring you where you stood. You turned over your shoulder to her.

“Do you have any idea what they want with Jackson?”

You bit your lip and shook your head in a moment of silence.

“No.”

The rest of the day dragged on longer than ever, and forcing yourself through interactions proved harder to be than you thought. Even though most of your conversations were regular routine checks, you dreaded each one. You counted down the minutes until you could seal yourself away in your home.

The papers stuck out of your pack the whole day, a nagging reminder of what you had to look at sooner or later.

As soon as the town lights came on, that was your cue that your work day had come to a close, and you carried yourself home as quickly as possible, feeling like your legs would give up on you at any moment. Once the door clicked shut, you slumped against it and slid until you hit the floor, throwing the cursed papers away from you and sitting in complete silence and darkness.

You wanted to cry. Scream. Punch, kick, or break something. All day, you had to bottle up this knowledge while faking your smiles and laughs. But now it all came barreling down on your head. You had just gotten everything back, finally able to put the past behind you. But you felt it resurfacing with a mean fucking vengeance, and you didn’t know if you could endure it this time.

If this was your karma– a toll had already been taken. How much more had to give for your sins?

You tried to take deep breaths, but they seemed to make things worse. A familiar dizziness and numbness riddled your body as your hands and arms trembled. The air was getting thicker, and you were gasping out, fearing you couldn’t get enough of it into your lungs. Tears blurred your vision and hot streaks streamed down your face. Involuntarily, you rocked back and forth, hiding your face in your hands and knees that were pulled to your chest, and letting out broken cries and choked breaths.

It hit you with an overwhelming force. Your thoughts spiraled, each worry and concern feeding into the next. Minutes stretched into eternity, and it felt impossible to rip yourself from the vicious cycle.

You rested your head against the door, pushing out heavy sighs to ground yourself from the come down of adrenaline, and letting a profound exhaustion settle in. You rubbed at your eyes to dry any residual tears and massaged your temples, staring straight forward at the laundry room at the end of the hall. The streetlight filtered through the back door and glowed over a pair of Joel’s boots and Ellie’s sneakers kicked off next to each other. You whimpered and closed your eyes, not ready to start crying all over again.

You wanted them home so indescribably bad.

When you opened them, they landed on the documents strewn about the floor in front of you. And with a flicker to the laundry room and back, you leaned forward to grab them and pushed yourself off the floor.

Upstairs in your room, you flicked on a lamp and spread out the papers onto your bed to see exactly what Maria had given you: The map and a roster of members retrieved from their camp, a copy of Jackson's previous and future patrol schedules, threat assessment reports from patrolmen, and descriptions pulled from patrol logs.

You lazily glossed over the threat assessment reports, most of them contained the same details and alluded to the same idea that they meant harm. You didn’t bother looking at the roster and patrol logs for now, not even trying to attempt to make connections between descriptions and names and whatnot.

You grouped the items and slipped them into your nightstand drawer, turning your attention back to the map and patrol schedule. You sunk into your bed as you flipped through the several pages of the schedule, reading the same names, days, and times over and over again, your eyes lingering longer when they read Joel’s name.

After a certain point, you couldn’t make out anything, and a fizzled-out frustration crept in as the pieces of parchment became nothing more than just blurs of ink. Your head was pounding between the crying and attempting to make sense of all the information. Your fingers soothed the skin on the bridge of your nose, gliding over your eyebrows and temples, and then dragging down to rest your cheeks in the palms of your hands.

“Hello! Anybody home?”

Ellie’s voice caught you off guard, you hadn’t even heard the front door open.

“Up here!”

You quickly stowed away the rest of the papers in your nightstand and made your way downstairs. She'd been taking her shoes off on the couch when you saw her, and you felt instant relief. She was home. Home and safe. She peered over her shoulder at you as she fussed with the laces, "All the lights were off?"

“Oh- I just.. got in a few minutes ago,” you turned into the kitchen in time to miss the iffy look she gave you, “wasn’t sure if you were coming home or not.”

Ellie followed into the kitchen after you. “Sorry, I know you said not to be out past curfew,” she gestured two glass tupperwares in her hands towards you, “I was packing up leftovers from Dina’s for you and Joel.”

With that sheepish smile on her face, you couldn’t even be mad at her. She’d been late because of you. You smiled warmly at the sentiment, placing them on the counter and pulling her into a hug, holding her longer and tighter than you normally would, afraid to let go as if maybe you wouldn’t get the chance again. As you broke away, you lovingly smoothed her hair, “Thank you, Ellie.”

She stayed in the kitchen even after you went to store the leftovers in the fridge, watching you with an attentiveness you weren’t particularly used to from her. “Something on your mind?”

Her bottom lip jutted out, her voice a little higher than normal. “No.. Just wondering if maybe you wanted to.. watch a movie?” A small smile appeared on her face as she raised her shoulders.

You mirrored her smile. “I’d love to, kiddo. Why don’t you go pick out what you want to watch?”

She shook her head, walking over to you and guiding you out of the kitchen. “Nuh-uh. You always let me pick, I want you to pick and I’ll get everything else ready.”

You chuckled at her insistence and padded into the living room, crouching before the media center and picking through the titles until you found the one that piqued your interest the most.

Once you had it, you popped it into the DVD player and fiddled with the remote until it was at the title screen. You moved the coffee table in front of the tv and pulled the couch over accordingly, and just when you were about to go fetch more blankets and pillows, Ellie joined you with your share of the leftovers heated up “just incase” and a plethora of snacks and drinks. She swatted at you to sit while she reminded you that you were only supposed to pick the movie and nothing more, scolding you down the hall as she retrieved all the movie night necessities.

“Curtis and Viper 2? I swear, you and Joel are the same person sometimes!” She laughed as she finally saw the screen. “Speaking of Joel– he’s gonna be so mad when he sees that we watched it without him-”

“Again!” You blurted out with her, falling into a fit of laughter.

For the next almost two hours, you were able to forget about your entire day, solely enjoying the time you had with Ellie. Together, you recited your favorite lines from the film without missing a beat, humming the soundtrack while making dramatic action-like moves with your arms at each other. You bursted out in laughter at the cheesy one-liners, and gripped the blanket with anticipation at the climax of the film, though you knew the resolution. Your cheeks hurt from smiling so much and your lungs ached in a happy pain.

This was what you needed.

In somewhere in the falling point of the film, you dozed off to sleep, unable to fight against the soft pillows and blankets you were wrapped up in. Ellie noticed when she went to nudge you during another scene you both loved and you didn’t respond, and instead of waking you up, she lowered the volume on the tv and sat with you until the end credits rolled.

It was well after midnight when Joel came home and Ellie was already in her house in the back. She’d tiptoed around the house to clean up so you wouldn’t have to in the morning, but forgot to put the DVD back with the others.

He almost walked past the living room until he saw the furniture rearranged, taking a few steps in to see you peacefully sleeping on the couch. He mustered up a tired smile at the sight of you, gently reaching out to brush stray hairs from your face.

And when he noticed Curtis and Viper 2 still on the coffee table, his smile deepend despite missing out on movie night once again. He spoke in a whisper that could have easily been to you or himself.

“You two are gonna be the death of me, you know that?”

#joel miller #joel miller x reader #joel miller x f!reader #joel miller fic #tlou #the last of us #tlou fanfiction #annasmasterlist #annawrites

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oneatlatime · 11 months

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The Winter Solstice Part 1: The Spirit World

I'll be watching this two part episode as two separate episodes.

Starting strong with some stunning pastoral views.

I like how Appa's shadow undulates over the clouds.

Is Aang passively airbending at all times when they're on Appa? Otherwise how do they hear each other? Unless it's a windless day and they're flying at walking pace there's no way they would be able to have a conversation.

Can you imagine the freedom of being able to throw yourself into the air with no consequences? Imagine how being able to ignore gravity since (presumably) a very young age would shape your worldview. Aang must look at the world in a fundamentally different way.

Blow dried Momo.

Could Katara stop babying Aang for five minutes?

The perspective is so funky in this shot that Appa looks Momo sized.

Did Gyatso say that Roku specifically would help Aang? He said that someone in that special room would guide him, but the only living creature in there was Momo.

Emotional support Momo. Maybe the help Gyatso spoke of actually was Momo.

Every time Iroh appears I become increasingly convinced that the creators of this show are fans of The Big Lebowski.

I love Iroh weaponizing teenage awkwardness to get himself five more minutes in the tub. I think I can also now declare myself officially used to Zuko's voice. I no longer find it muppety.

This is the environmentalism after school special.

The way this guy talks about flying Bison and airbender tattoos, is he actually old enough to have known airbenders?

Katara blindly trusts this guy because... he's old?

Pretty.

"It is the greatest honour of a lifetime to be in your presence." "Nice to meet you too." Yep, those greetings are definitely in proportion to each other.

I love the lighting in this scene. Everything has this golden glow.

The winter solstice sounds a bit like Halloween. The walls between worlds thin to almost nothing and things can cross over which shouldn't.

Aang's eyes are brown in this episode.

I love this attitude. Optimistic, upbeat. "I have to try, don't I?" is so true.

Is it just me, or is Sokka's ponytail weird this episode?

I think this is the Bumi guard voice guy again.

This episode appears to be taking place in a part of the Earth Kingdom that hasn't been taken over by the Fire Nation (unlike last episode). So for Zuko & crew, this is enemy territory. Iroh, who is a general with a fancy title, the brother of the leader of the fire nation (so I guess the next in line to the throne?), and so recognisable to the enemy that they can identify him without a single piece of insignia or even clothing denoting his country of origin, thought it would be a good idea idea to have a solo, unguarded spa day here? I bet the fire nation is happy the other brother is the one in charge.

More pretty.

Sokka racking up some major Big Brother points this episode. Aang may be the Avatar, which makes this kind of stuff his responsibility, but he's also 12 and clueless. He shouldn't have to face this alone.

This village must be close to the Avatar world's equator because that sun set ridiculously quickly.

You know, if I turned around and saw that thing following me, my first impulse would be to scream and run away, not introduce myself. This is why I'm not the Avatar.

If that's their water tower gone, this village is done for with or without the Avatar's help.

This spirit is throwing a proper tantrum. I love the way it moves too fast to see. I did not see Sokka getting kidnapped coming. I actually had to rewind and watch it again because it happened so fast that I did not see it at all the first time through.

I think the fire nation solider here is the Bumi guard voice too.

This is an insane shoulder to waist ratio. Also nice to see Zuko figure it out so quickly. This show has given me the impression so far that he's kind of stupid, but I guess not.

It's a panda! Black and White spirit, plus the environmentalism stuff from earlier, I really should have put that together sooner.

"I Failed." yeah you kind of did. So pick yourself up and try again.

Bird horses? Also those earth soldier helmets are probably really effective, but they look so stupid.

Proof that Katara is used to relying on Sokka to do all of her thinking and planning like I said last episode. If Sokka was the one left behind and Katara the one missing, he would not be so passive.

"All I have to do is figure out what I have to do. But once I do that, no problem." Even the most impossible tasks can be broken down into manageable steps. I love Aang's attitude.

It's so painfully in character that what gets Katara out of her funk is looking after someone else.

Where's Momo in all this?

In the spirit world, the avatar is just some guy? Can't bend. So what makes him uniquely qualified to be the guy who deals with spirits?

Dragons can talk with their whiskers. I'm sure I've seen that somewhere before.

Iroh can see stuff in the spirit world? Maybe it's an old people thing?

How stupid are these earthbender guards? Nice call back to the water heating trick. This show is really good at set up and payoff like that.

This dragon is very fluent at talking in pictures. Also the sky in the accelerated days and nights animation is actual live action footage of sky, right?

Earthbenders can skate on their bare feet. That's beyond cool. Imagine having an inborn ability to sock slide at will. I'd never walk anywhere again. Only slide.

Comforting Appa really did get her out of her funk and inspire action. Neat.

Aang and Zuko's stories do intersect this episode after all. Also I had no idea the two parties were this close to each other. Zuko showing this episode that in addition to deductive reasoning, he also has long-distance tracking skills.

I want to visit this village just to see the sunsets in person.

Iroh was right, they were clearly outmatched. These guys are just the worst. They're on a dirt floor in a dirt cave with the advantage of numbers and actual pants, and they still lose. Did Iroh even firebend?

I take back what I said earlier about Iroh being stupid for going off alone in enemy territory. If this is the calibre of soldiers he knew he would possibly run into, then he was perfectly safe all along. Although the last minute rescue from Zuko was a nice touch. Did anyone really believe that he would choose chasing the Avatar over his uncle? I didn't.

I like the creepy spirit whispering at the gate.

Did Katara yelling to Aang attract the spirit's attention to that main building? Because it seemed to be ignoring it before.

Chekov's acorn!

When Aang went to the spirit world, his body stayed behind on the statue's head. But when Sokka went his whole self was stuck there? Also that bathroom joke is payback for all the denied potty breaks.

Sokka's practicality and bluntness is just so perfect this episode. A nice counter balance to the spirity stuff. Just spent 24 hours in the Spirit world? That's nice. Can we have supplies?

Momo's back in these final scenes, but where was he the rest of the episode?

How does Aang know the island is in the fire nation? From the temple architecture?

Final Thoughts

I really like this episode! There is so much that is good: -beautiful visuals (so many sunsets!) -interesting sound design (that whispering was neat, and the single wind chime in the last spirit attack was so eerie) -so many well-executed set ups and payoffs (acorn, firebending heating stuff, how the spirit does relate to the burnt forest from the beginning) -So much good dialogue, from Zuko especially ("Now would you please put on some clothes?!?" / *sniffs* "Yeah, that's Uncle Iroh.") -relationship stuff (Sokka being big brother, Katara being lost without him until someone else needs her to be strong, Aang's relationship to his responsibilities both internally within himself and externally with how the village sees him and what it expects of him, the exasperated teenager and secretly amused parent dynamic between Zuko and Iroh switching flawlessly into a fighting team, then flawlessly back) -Everyone feels in character (optimistic sweetheart Aang, practical protective Sokka, caring Katara, super chill yet super skilled Iroh, Zuko just so fed up with everything) -The humour was downplayed this episode but the few jokes that were there were genuinely funny. Sokka getting hit with the acorn in particular. I'm thinking that there must have been a rule in the writing room that it's not a proper Avatar episode unless Sokka gets to be the butt of the joke at least once. -Zuko and Iroh finally getting fleshed out a bit. I feel like this is the first episode where Zuko hasn't come off as an asshole. -Worldbuilding (this is the first time the avatar's done his job as per the job description) -How it's supposed to be the first half of a two part episode but it doesn't feel like set up at all. It's a self-contained story with actual stakes, a conclusion that matters, lessons learned all around, and ALSO set up for next episode.

Once I had gotten a good look at firebending in the Southern Air Temple episode I started wondering how the fire nation hadn't completely decimated all their enemies. After I saw Bumi's bending skills I understood how the earth kingdom had resisted the fire nation for a century, but Bumi really was the exception to the rule, wasn't he? If these earth kingdom soldiers are typical of the earth kingdom army, I'm going to have to switch back to my original opinion and wonder why the fire nation didn't win the war 85 years ago. Because these guys are bad. They are surrounded by their element. Their prisoner is standing on their element. Just make the ground grab his feet! He'll be a sitting duck and they'll be able to do whatever they want to him. Better yet, just bury him completely. Or make handcuffs out of rock instead of metal. That being said, the soldiers' stupidity set up a really cool fight scene. How did Zuko not break his foot with that kick?

Everything is woven together so well in this episode. Almost nothing feels contrived - you can't tell me that Zuko didn't wait behind a bush somewhere so he could time his rescue of Iroh to have maximum drama. But otherwise this episode feels organic - like we were actually watching a couple of days in the life of these people.

I really liked this one.

#atla #avatar: the last airbender #the spirit world #avatar the last airbender

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thetriumphantpanda · 10 months

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Ghost of You | J. Miller (Chapter Four)

Series Summary / Grief is a strange thing. In the beginning it had been all-consuming. There wasn’t a moment of the day where you didn’t cry, didn’t ask yourself why it couldn’t have been you instead. And no-one ever explains the guilt you feel when it isn’t anymore. When it’s just a dull ache and you can finally breathe again, when you can start letting people get close to you again. People like Joel Miller.

Pairing / Joel Miller x Widow F!Reader

Word Count / 4K

Warnings / Descriptions of grief and depression, a therapy session, some Ellie/Reader fluff but nothing else - let me know if I've missed anything!

Authors Note / You know when I said this would be slow burn? I really meant it. I really hope you guys aren't getting bored but I promise things are going to heat up from Chapter 5 onwards 👀 Thank you once again for all your love on this series - I say it every time but it's really close to my heart and to know you guys are enjoying it really does mean the world! If you like this then please considering reblogging, leaving comments or popping into my ask box with some love! I love y'all!

Series Masterlist / Main Masterlist

You never thought you’d be the kind of person who needed a therapist. Even when your parents had passed in quick succession before the outbreak you’d managed to carry on with the distraction of normal life, processing your grief quickly, distracting yourself with finishing school and applying for college. Even now, when you thought back to them, it was with fond memories. Nowhere near the level of grief you had now after losing Mark.

Maybe it was the change in the world or the fact that Mark had been a part of your life longer than your parents had? You didn’t really know. Maria had suggested that trying to unpack your feelings with a therapist would be beneficial for you, someone neutral who could help you back to the person you’d been before he’d died. It had been six months since you first sat in this chair, the same feeling of anxiety you had then was apparent now, as Belinda poured you a glass of water and situated a box of tissues on the table, you took one, knowing you’d need it like you always did.

“So, how are you?” She asks, settling down in the chair opposite you with her notepad resting on her crossed knee.

“I’m okay.” You say simply.

This is a rehearsed response. You always say it. Because if you needed a therapist, were you ever okay?

Belinda nods like she always did, “I wanted to start today by revisiting what we spoke about last time,” Her voice is high and sweet and she’s at least twenty years older than you, “Remember we spoke about doing something to push yourself out of your comfort zone?” She asks, and you nod, “Did you do anything since our last session to work on that?”

You take a deep breath; how much should you tell her?

“I have, yeah.”

“That’s good,” She praises, a genuine smile on her mouth, “Can you tell me about it?”

“I went to The Tipsy Bison last week.” Is all you offer her.

“With Tommy and Maria?”

You nod, “And his brother and the little girl he’s got.”

She quirks her eyebrow a little, if you hadn’t been paying close attention to her face you would have missed it, “And would you say Tommy’s brother is a friend?”

You shrug, “I don’t know, I guess so, he came around a few weeks ago and fixed my porch step and he’s helping to build the table and chairs that Mark was going to do before he got sick.”

“Do you talk to him about Mark?”

“We’ve spoken a little about him, he actually lost his own daughter on outbreak day, so I guess I feel like he understands what I’m going through.”

She nods, “Let’s go back a bit and talk about going to the bar,” She writes something down on her notepad, you never really know what it is she’s writing, “Was it as bad as you had expected?”

You look down at your hands, scrunched tissue in one hand as your nails pick at the skin of your cuticles, “I was nervous about going, and I think I stood outside the door waiting to go in for too long, my mind was thinking of what would happen, like I would open the door and everyone would stop and go silent and just look at me, but no-one really noticed, but when we sat down to have a drink, someone said something and it kinda ruined everything.”

“What did they say?” She pushes.

You sigh, “That I’d made a miraculous recovery all of a sudden.”

“And how did that make you feel?” Ah. The classic therapy question.

You take a moment to formulate your answer in your mind, “I was angry,” You reply, “But not at the person who said it, I was angry at myself because it was true.”

“But is it true?” Belinda pushes, “From my perspective, of course we’ve made steps since you first began coming to see me, but I don’t think either of us think you’re fully recovered, do we?”

You shake your head to agree with her, “I guess what I’m trying to say is that sure, what was said wasn’t really true, but it’s the things they didn’t say which made me think they are,” Belinda is looking at you to continue explaining, “In the back of my mind I thought, well of course I’m recovered if I’m sat in a bar with a smile on my face, and if I can do this then why can’t I go back to work? Why can’t I start contributing to the community again? That’s what I think they’re saying in their heads about me.”

“But you don’t know that do you?” She asks, “This is something I’ve noticed about you, that you project your own feelings onto other people, even though you have no idea what else they’re really thinking.”

You nod because she’s not wrong, of course she’s not, “How do I stop?” You almost beg her.

She shrugs a little, “You’ve got to stop caring about what other people think,” She says it like it’s the simplest thing to do, “Of course not the people who really matter to you, Maria, Tommy, his brother, their opinions matter, but those people who you see in passing, what they think doesn’t matter because they don’t really know you.”

She looks briefly to her watch, “We don’t have much time left, but I’m proud of you, and if you think you’re ready to go back to work then challenge yourself, maybe ask Maria for a couple of hours a week, just to ease yourself back in, and we can talk about it a bit more next week?” You nod in agreement, “And it’s good to hear you’re making new friends too, I think Tommy’s brother might be someone to keep around if it makes you comfortable, friend’s with shared experiences can be helpful in recovery.”

You nod in understanding and spend a few minutes agreeing on what day and time you’ll meet next week before she’s ushering you out of her office in time for her next patient. As you stand in front of her office, a thought spring to your mind. This is the first time you’ve left having not cried. The tissue is still dry in your hand, a small victory that you can hand yourself on your journey to healing.

Just ten minutes later you are stood outside Maria’s house, knocking on the door. You can hear shuffling behind the door before she pulls it open, a look of shock written on her face that it’s you.

“Is everything okay?” She asks.

“As fine as it normally is,” You respond, “I was just coming back from Belinda’s and I wanted to ask you something.”

“You want to come inside?” She asks, “I’ve just made coffee.”

You gladly accept and before long you’re both sat on the couch, sipping coffee, “I think I’d like to go back to work.” You say simply before you get the opportunity to chicken out.

She almost chokes on the coffee she’d just taken a drink of, “Are you sure?”

“Definitely not full time,” You’re quick to add, “I just want to start with a few hours and see if I’m okay.”

“Where’s this come from?” You let out a sigh, “I’m fed up Maria,” You speak honestly, “Fed up of people thinking I’m useless, fed up of spending every day in the same four walls,” And then you add, “And I’m fed up of thinking that Mark would hate what I’ve become over him.”

She pauses for a moment, “Let me speak to Kate and see if we can sort something out from next week,” She smiles, “I’m sure she’ll be grateful to have you back, she always complains that Charlotte still doesn’t understand the library system,” She puts on a poor imitation of Kate’s accent, “Jane Austen next to Philippa Gregory.”

You both laugh and you think it’s truly the first time you’ve properly laughed in what feels like forever. You spend a little more time with her, finishing your coffee before leaving her to it and as you walk down the street towards your own home, you can’t deny that you feel a little lighter than normal.

It’s Monday afternoon, one of two afternoon’s you’ve agreed to step back into the library to help. Kate had suggested it because it was the afternoon that the teacher’s brought the kids down to choose a book to take home. It would be busy enough to distract you and meant you wouldn’t spend your time sat thinking.

You’d already helped two classes this afternoon, the last class we’re due in a few minutes, so Kate and you were enjoying a moment to sit and recuperate over a cup of tea. Well. Tea was stretching it – it was Kate’s usual concoction of boiled water and water flavourings she could get her hands on. Today it was lemon slices and honey, but it was warm and soothing so you wouldn’t complain.

“I’m really happy to see you.” She speaks honestly, grasping at your arm to give it a squeeze, “I know this can’t have been easy, but I’ve hope we’ve not scared you off.”

You offer a small smile, “I’ve actually enjoyed it, I guess my therapist was right when she said finding distractions would be helpful.”

Kate is about to speak again when the library door swings open and the older children start filing in, their teacher doing his best to corral them into the middle of the room. It’s just as you remember, he tells them they’ve got fifteen minutes to browse and choose and book and once they have, they need to come to the front desk to check it out.

You notice Ellie is part of the group, she’s hanging back, shuffling from foot-to-foot, but once her teacher lets them go, she’s just as excited as everyone else, picking up books and reading the covers. She’s one of the first to bring her choice over to the desk. You smile as you take it from her.

“Artemis Fowl?” You grin, “Great choice, it’s really good.” You write her name in the checking-out book and then the title of the book, before writing the date three weeks from now that she needs to bring it back on the inside cover of the book.

“I didn’t know you worked here.” She comments, taking the book back from you.

“I’m only here for two afternoons, trying to ease myself back into things, but yeah, before everything happened with Mark, this was my full-time job.”

“I bet you’ve read everything here, right?”

“Not quite,” You smirk, “But pretty much, if you ever want to know what else is good to read, you know where to come.”

She smiles and says thank you and just before she turns to leave, “Say, you don’t think you could ask Joel to pop by sometime and finish up the table for me, could you?”

She smirks, “Only if I can come so you can teach me how to make pie?”

You hold out your hand and she takes it to shake, “You’ve got yourself a deal.”

It isn’t until Sunday that Joel and Ellie turn up at your front door. Summer really is in full swing now and it’s warm. You’ve been padding about in the garden trying to clear up, tank top now slightly sticking to your back from the thin sheen of sweat you’ve worked up and you think it’s possible the skin on your legs will be burnt when you finish up for the day.

Joel heads straight for the back porch with his toolbox in hand, Ellie lingers at the kitchen table.

“Do you want coffee?” You ask, tilting your head around the open back door.

He shakes his head, “Water would be nice though.”

You head back to the kitchen and pour three glasses of water from the jug in your fridge, adding lemon slices to give it a little flavour. Joel thanks you when you had him the glass and you smile at him before heading back to the kitchen to focus on Ellie.

“Alright, you ready?” You ask and she nods with enthusiasm, “I tried to get apples at the market, but they were all out, so I’m afraid it’s cherries today.”

You bring out a bowl of cherries from the fridge and put them out the counter, “The first thing we need to do is wash them and take the stones out, it’s a bit fiddly but it’s fun, I promise.”

You rummage around in your cutlery drawer for the pair of chopsticks you know are hidden somewhere. You can almost imagine the family living in this house before the world went to shit, sitting at their table, eating Chinese food with them. God, what you wouldn’t give for fried rice right now. You had one of the sticks to Ellie once she’s washed her hands and rinsed the fruit.

“So, you take a cherry and pull the stem off,” You do it to show her, “And then you eat the first one to make sure the fruit is okay,” You smile as you pop the cherry into your mouth, watching as she does the same, “You think they’re good?”

She’s smiling at you, “They’re fucking great!”

You spit the stone into your palm and put your hand near her face for her to do the same before you discard the stones in the trash bin next to you, “Okay, now we know they’re good, what you need to do is take the smaller end of the chopstick, and can you see where you pulled the stem out from?” You point to the spot on her fruit, “You just push the end through it and hopefully….” You draw out as you push your stick into the cherry between your fingers, the stone pops out through the bottom, “That will happen!”

You watch as Ellie copies your movements, the stone popping out through the bottom of the cherry, “Does it matter that the fruit broke?” She asks, placing her destoned cherry in the bowl with your own.

“Not at all, we’ve got to break them to eat them, right?”

Joel is working studiously just outside the kitchen window and when you reach the last cherry in the bowl, you take it in hand, opening the window, “Hey Joel?” You call, he looks up from his work and you dangle the cherry out into the open space, he smiles as he takes it, popping it into his mouth before mirroring what you’d done, spitting the pip into his hand and slinging it over the side of your fence.

It strikes you in this moment that being with Joel and Ellie is effortless. Although they both know what happened and a little about how you’ve delt with it, they don’t seem to judge you, neither of them look at you with sorry written in their eyes, they don’t press you to talk about things you don’t want to and they both seem genuinely interested in what you have to say, or in Ellie’s case, teach them.

You take Ellie through the rest of the steps of preparing the fruit, drizzling them in a little honey in place of sugar, teaching her how to make the pastry, which involves more flour ending up on both of you that it does in the recipe. You let her pour the fruit into the pastry and decide which kind of top she wants on it. She’s a girl after your own heart and opts for lattice.

Once it’s in the oven baking, Ellie sits on your couch with her book whilst you tidy up. You refill her glass of water before heading out to do the same to Joel’s. He’s almost finished with the table, just a few more planks of wood to hammer into the top and he’ll be done.

“Thanks,” He says simply when you fill his glass, he takes it and drinks deeply, brushing his forehead for sweat, you stand with him for a while, “Ellie says she saw you at the library earlier this week, is that where you work?” He’s making polite conversation and you smile.

“I worked there before everything happened,” You explain, “I was speaking to my therapist a few weeks ago who said she thought it would be a positive step for me, so I’m just doing two afternoons a week to ease me back in,” You refill his glass when he’s finished with it, “Baby steps and all that.”

“S’good,” He nods, “You seem a bit happier today.”

“I think it’s more to do with her,” You speak honestly, motioning your head inside to where Ellie is, “She’s a great kid Joel.”

“She is,” He agrees, “I’m glad she’s finally gettin’ the chance to be a kid for a while.”

He’s finishing up with the last few bits of wood for the table, “You wanna stay for a slice of pie?” You ask, “It shouldn’t be long coming out of the oven.”

“If it’s anythin’ like the last one then I don’t think I can say no,” He smirks, “Let me finish up here and I’ll come in.”

“Oh no, stay out here, we need to make sure your handiwork is sturdy enough.” You give him a little wink just to play with him, before wondering whether that was too much. He doesn’t suggest it was, just beams his lovely smile at you.

You turn on your heel and head back into the kitchen. You kneel in front of the oven, and you can see through the door that the fruit is bubbling through the lattice top and the pastry itself is looking lovely and golden.

“Hey, Ellie, you wanna take your pie out of the oven?” You ask, she’s folding the corner of the page she’s reading and is by your side in record time.

You hand her the oven gloves, another souvenir from whoever lived here before, it’s white, or would have been before they’d been used to death and had a pretty floral pattern on it. Not what you’d have chosen if you’d been filling your new home, but you always tried to remind yourself that beggars couldn’t be choosers in this world.

“Careful when you open the door, it’ll be really hot.” Ellie shoots you a playful look that tells you she isn’t that dumb.

She pulls open the door and steps back to let the steam flow out before she’s wrapping the oven gloves around the pie and putting on the stove top to cool, “As the expert,” You speak, “I have to say that looks and smells fantastic.”

You peer out of the window; Joel is just shutting his toolbox and you watch him takes his hands a brush the tabletop of any dust and debris left over from him building it. He then takes the chairs he’d made and sets them around the table. You turn your head when he starts moving to come inside.

“Kiddo, that looks great,” He praises Ellie, looking over her shoulder at her creation, “Let me wash my hands and we can dig in.”

You busy yourself with grabbing some plates and forks, handing them to Ellie to take outside, whilst you take the oven gloves and take the pie outside, setting it down on the table. You stand back and look at what Joel’s made. In the old world, this would have cost you a pretty penny and you can’t help but realise how talented he is. There’s nothing to suggest that you hadn’t been down to the best furniture store and paid thousands of dollars for it.

“I brought a knife.” Comes Joel’s voice from behind you, he’s brandishing your biggest kitchen knife and you think that in any other circumstance you’d be threatened by him, but there’s something about the goofy grin on his face that you know means that he would never hurt you.

He gives the knife to Ellie and sits down in one of the chairs, you follow suit, taking time to warn her to be careful if she needs to touch the pie tin because it’s likely to still be hot. You catch Joel smiling at you and you know it’s because he’s her dad – whether by blood or not, you can tell that he cares deeply for her and he’s thankful, in some small way that you are too.

Ellie cuts into the pie and struggles to get it out of the tin, the pastry below breaks and the fruit spills onto the plate that she only just manages to catch the slice on.

“I’ll take that one,” You smile, holding out your hand for the plate, “Got to break it to eat it, right?” You echo your words from inside the kitchen earlier on.

Once everyone has a slice on their plate and has left it to cool for long enough, you’re all digging in and you have to admit it’s just as good as the one you made yourself.

“Maybe I should sign you up for kitchen duty,” Joel jokes as he spears another bite with his fork, “You can start earning your keep, kiddo.”

Ellie looks disgusted at the very notion of being put to work and you all laugh together. It’s in this moment that you think to Mark. Would this have been your life if you’d been blessed with children? When you’d arrived in Jackson it had been a serious conversation. You were safe. People had been having children for months. They had a real midwife for God’s sake. The lack of children hadn’t been through lack of trying either. You remember lazy Sunday mornings wrapped up in bed together, hands raking over naked bodies, moans and praises spilled from mouths. You’d just never been blessed. You’d never talked about who might have been the problem, it didn’t matter anyway, if it couldn’t be with Mark then it wasn’t meant to be.

And perhaps now you’re thankful. If Mark had still died, there would have been someone else to care for during your grief. A constant reminder, in the flesh, of who he was, who he’d been. You hated to think of not being able to look at your own child because they reminded you too much of your dead husband. No. Better to be alone in your grief than add that kind of complication.

Once the slices were finished on everyone’s plate and you’d packaged two extra slices for Joel and Ellie to take home, you’re standing on your porch. Ellie is already making her way down the street, but Joel is hanging back.

“I really don’t know how to say thank you,” You admit, “You’ve been a real lifeline since you came here so just… thank you.”

He smiles at you, secretly wishing he could reach his hands out to touch you. He can’t remember the last time he genuinely wanted to touch someone like he wanted to touch you. He didn’t even think he had that with Tess. Sure, she’d been a comfort and he cared for her, but it had never been love. Just a means to an end, a way to ease each other’s pain for a moment. Then he caught himself. This wasn’t love either. Sure, you’d spent time together and all he really wanted to in any moment he saw you was kiss away the furrow of your brow, but he couldn’t love you. Not yet.

“I just like helpin’ out,” He offers, quickly looking down the street to find Ellie talking to someone from school, “I like knowing it makes things easier for you, that’s all the thanks I need.”

“Well, consider Ellie and you guests of honor when I can finally host that dinner on your handiwork.”

He winks at you, and you think you can feel a slight flush across your cheeks, but you think if it is appearing across your skin, you can pass it off as the hear, “Consider it done, sweet pea, I’ll see you around.”

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