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#love you ellie <3
mrkis · 4 months
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cherry red. (x.dj)
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PAIRING: xiaojun x fem!reader GENRE: smut WORD COUNT: 707
SYNOPSIS: you didn't expect to see one of your favourite colours between your legs.
CONTENT WARNINGS: established relationship, oral (receiving), mentions of hair pulling, praising, 'princess', 'good girl' and 'pretty girl' is used,
AUTHORS NOTE: for @thetypingpup. not a long fic, but its something... attack me with mark and i attack right back (with love) <3
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Sharing in conversation with Xiaojun about how you adore the colour cherry red wasn’t supposed to go any further than that; just a simple conversation. 
The deep and intense hue of cherry red easily captures your attention, standing out among the other colours that are present. Sometimes, you can associate it with love, evoking feelings of passion and romance. Other times, it embodies desire and lust, igniting a sense of intensity and yearning.
When mentioning this, you didn’t expect anything to come out of it, and you didn’t pay too much attention to the way Xiaojun’s eyebrows raise as he absorbs your words, a look of curiosity and wonder displayed across his features, deep in thought as you continue talking about other topics. 
But, here you are, a day or two later, finding yourself lying across your shared bed with your legs spread, Xiaojun’s hands keeping you still as his head of newly dyed cherry red hair is between your legs, tongue slurping at your arousal that seeps into the sheets below. 
“Tastes so sweet,” He practically purrs, pressing a quick kiss to your clit in adoration. “Always tastes so sweet for me, don’t you?”
His gaze shifts up, eyes locking with yours, hair tickling the insides of your thighs and he lips curl into a grin, watching as your body reacts to his touch and how he relaxes into yours when your fingers thread through his hair to tug at the roots, the vibrations of his moan sends a shrill up your spine.
“Please,” Your voice, barely a whisper, speaks out. 
“What are you begging for?” Xiaojun asks you as he presses his mouth to your skin, leaving gentle kisses in his path. “I’m giving you everything you want. I always do.”
You don’t exactly know what you’re begging for, but you can’t seem to stop, the words tumbling from your lips like a broken record and he chuckles, leaving one last kiss to your thigh before he licks between your puffy folds and presses his mouth back to where you need him most, hands sliding around your legs to put his fingers to use, spreading your folds wider apart to swirl his tongue around your entrance.
You wail, clenching around nothing, hands gripping his hair tighter as you grind your hips against his face for more and he gives in, pushing two of his fingers inside and massaging the warmth of your walls as his tongue keeps up the pace, sucking and slurping to feel your legs tremble around his head.
“Look so pretty from down here, princess. So pretty, aren’t you?” He compliments and you hum, but the non-verbal response isn’t enough to please him and you gasp loudly, head thrown back against the pillows as his fingers press down on a particular part inside and how his mouth sucks a little harder at your clit. “Say it, pretty girl. Tell me how pretty you are from this angle.”
“I’m pretty.” You’re quick to agree.
“How pretty?”
“So pretty,” The whine at the end of your voice is what pleases Xiaojun and he smiles, beginning to pump his fingers at a speed that has your toes curling and grip on his hair tighten, back arched and skin sweaty as his mouth resumes in licking and sucking at the spots that sends you teetering over the edge of your orgasm.
Xiaojun knows well when you’re close, knowing your body like the back of his hand. He’s studied the ins and outs of you, maybe he even knows you better than you know yourself which is why he continues his movements, keeping the pace the way it is, adding a few extra flicks of his tongue over your clit to hear those sounds that makes him feel proud.
Unable to hide the smirk on his face, he watches as your body seizes up as you cum, squeezing around his fingers and sucking him in so tightly as your hips buck, airy gasp and whines leaving your lips as bliss hits, fucking yourself on his fingers despite him already helping you ride it out.
“That’s it,” He praises so endearingly, kissing your puffy folds as if he would your lips. “Let it go, princess. Good job. Good girl.”
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©𝗠𝗥𝗞𝗜𝗦
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ecstarry · 17 days
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"Regulus' collection" a microfic for my love, @bellaxisworld
Regulus had been collecting them for a while—his Sylvanian Families collection, that is. It all began with gifts from Sirius. The first one was a little raccoon, and Sirius had carefully wrapped it for him before leaving for school ten years ago. Each time his brother visited for the holidays, he would add another one to Regulus' collection.
He had never felt embarrassed of them, not until now, at twenty-one years old, with a shelf displaying them in an apartment where his brother’s hottest friend would be coming over. They were about to host their first dinner since leaving their parents' home, and Regulus had gladly obliged, anything to make his brother happy. But now, as those little shits looked back at him from the dustless shelf, he couldn't help but feel embarrassed.
Regulus had been crushing on James for as long as he could remember. They had seen each other not more than three times, which meant he had experienced the warmth of the sun in close proximity that same amount of times. And Regulus hated the cold.
When Sirius insisted on them living together, he was also adamant about their home feeling like a place where they both existed. It was actually his idea to have his collection on display. Now, Regulus wonders if his brother's plan had been to humiliate him all along.
He tried discreetly covering them with anything, even willing to shove them all inside a drawer. But as he grabbed the first one, his brother stopped him.
"What are you doing, Reg?" Sirius laughed a little as Regulus blushed.
"Nothing, but I just don't want your friend to think I'm lame," Regulus replied quietly, his gaze stuck on his shoes.
"Remus has seen your collection millions of times, Reg. It's just James who—" his brother stopped talking, and Regulus dared to look back at him, guilt all over his face.
"Reggie, do you care what James thinks?" Sirius' tone was much more gentle than Regulus had expected.
"So what if I do?" and at the response, Sirius' eyes softened.
"No, fuck no. Don't look at me like that. I don't like James or his stupid smile."
"Reg-"
"I know, I know! Of course, I care what James thinks, now help me hide them, but be careful!" Regulus started delicately placing them in a drawer, but Sirius' grip stopped him once more.
"Do you want to know a secret?"
"Sirius, we don't have time-"
"James has a collection of his own."
Regulus smiled but quickly called his brother's bluff, "you're just trying to make me feel better."
"I would never lie about a Sylvanian Families collection! I swear on Moony!" Sirius drew a cross around his heart.
Before Regulus could protest any longer, they heard a knock on the door.
It was James. Handsome and perfect James, who brought flowers and exquisite wine for dinner.
It was James. Adorable and kind James, who complimented Regulus' collection all night and insisted it was much better curated than James'.
It was James. Lovely and breathtaking James who would one day have a shelf next to Regulus' for his own collection.
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zeleneagle · 5 months
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A dinner date with Donna. Made some more resident lover fanart :)
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jerzwriter · 1 year
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We don't talk about this scene enough...
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Currently watching TLOU for the (won't say the number... it's embarrassing) time, and the end of episode 3 always gets me. This was where it all started to change.
Two broken souls in the middle of a crazy world sharing a genuine father/daughter moment that could have taken place at any point in time. "Wait! This song is great! You know it?" "Like, why would I know this?" "Mmm... this is good stuff." "Eh... it doesn't totally suck... I guess."
Then Joel Hardass Miller laughs. Not a smirk. Not a chuckle. A feel it in his gut, eye-crinkling laugh. I wonder how long it's been since he's had one of them?
Then, the best part: Ellie's smile. She did it. She made him laugh, and I have no doubt in my mind that she promised herself, right then and there, that this would be the first of many... flash forward to her book of puns.
Joel Opens the gate, and they drive off... it's a new start.
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schmweed · 3 months
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skoulsons · 1 year
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You have no idea what I’m capable of
Her screams rang in her ears as she shot awake, hastily sitting up in her bed as the white moonlight still trickled in through the uncovered windows. 3:24am.
“Fuck,” she groaned, rubbing the pads of her palms over her eyes with enough pressure to form splotchy colors and wavy patterns in her vision.
Her heavy comforter, a welcome home gift from Tommy and Maria, was wrapped around her small frame, her socked feet showing through where the comfort wasn’t bunched up. She balled it up in her fists as she held it close to her chin. “He’s gone.” She inhaled, held the breath, and exhaled, a small exercise Joel taught her. Not one hundred percent effective, but it helped. Sometimes. “He’s gone.”
A few minutes of breathing, memories with Joel, and tossing and turning in bed did nothing to wipe the images out of her head. Frustrated, she wrapped the comforter around her, waddling out of her room and down the hall to Joel’s.
As always, his door was open. It was always more for her than him; an effort to say you are welcome to come in. She took it most nights. But tonight…she felt guilty, almost. She bothered him a lot. He was sick of her by now. He must’ve been.
She brought herself to the wall beside his door and backed up against it, slowly sliding her comforter-wrapped self to the floor with a small “oof” as she hit the hardwood.
“Ellie?” Shit.
She closed her eyes, trying to keep quiet, hoping he’d fall back asleep if she didn’t make any noise.
He called again, his accent very strong. “Kiddo? Everythin’ alright?”
She exhaled as she stood, not getting any closer to his door. Her voice was quiet, shy. “Sorry, didn’t mean to wake you”
His fingers reached out from his bed, gently opening the door open a smidge more. “You’re awake for a reason. What’s goin’ on?”
“Nothing, just…I’ll go back to bed.”
“Hey.” His voice was so soft. Never demanding, always inviting. “C’mere,” he asked, nudging his door open a little more with his fingers.
She smiled slightly, pushing his door open the remainder of the way with her foot, her arms still around herself to keep the comforter held in place.
Without a word, she walked to the other side of the bed, pulling the sheets down far enough to fit her the comforter in his bed. She laid down on her right side, facing Joel, and bent her knees, tucking herself into a mini cocoon beside him.
Joel cleared his throat slightly, his hands resting on his stomach. “You know…I have blankets on this bed already.”
“Nothing wrong with an extra one,” she mumbled, face tucked into the slack of her comforter.
He turned his head towards hers, unable to find her eyes. His voice was quiet and gentle, his Texan drawl still making itself known. “What was it tonight?”
Ellie sighed. “The same.”
She wiggled herself closer to him and rested her head on his bicep, his hands still on his stomach. Her knees followed suite, pushing up against the side of his thigh as she tucked herself away against him.
“Ya okay?”
“Mmhm…just needed…” she trailed off, sighing into his arm.
He wiggled said arm out from under her and brought it around her, pulling her closer to him as her head rested over his heart.
“Go to sleep,” he whispered, lips finding her auburn as she dozed off, Joel holding her close to his side.
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actual-changeling · 1 year
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This post is something that can actually be so personal and no I am not done talking about it. There's a whole concept behind it and the fucking hair ties are just one way of channeling it but oh boy is it a good one. This works so well with the hair braiding too and i cannot think about it to much or i will spontaneously combust, but I had to so I hope you enjoy the result of it.
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Joel has a hair tie on his wrist because Ellie forgets to take a spare and when the first one breaks or she loses it somehow, he can offer it to her before her hair becomes an annoyance.
He has one because she gives it to him sometimes when they're laying on the couch and her ponytail makes resting her head on a pillow or against his chest uncomfortable. At times she also takes it out simply because her scalp is especially sensitive that day and the constant pull becomes painful after a while. There's always another one in his jacket pocket, too, so when Ellie asks him for braids afterward or allows him to do her hair he isn't limited to simpler styles.
It starts with hair ties in Jackson but there are months of different acts preceding it.
Joel carried whatever he could for her, taking more than necessary sometimes because the slim line of her shoulders being weighed down by her backpack made his heart ache even when he couldn't admit it to himself back then, not at first at least. There are water bottles, sweatshirts she cannot quite fit into hers that day, all of their food, whatever first aid materials he can find, even a spare bar of soap.
Then he starts carrying hair ties once they get to Jackson and suddenly he needs to keep a brush on him, too, and with the brush comes a comb and with the comb comes a hat and with the hat comes a homemade creme he traded for since her hands are uncomfortably dry sometimes (she never said so but he knows her), and after that what started as a small piece of twisted fabric turns into him carry a bag around that is filled with everything his brain thinks Ellie might require at some point. Sure, maybe he is being a little bit overprotective and maybe Tommy jokes about getting him a purse several times, but he can offer her sunscreen and a bottle of water during summer, he gives her gloves and a scarf in winter when she doesn't remember to put them on before leaving, there's always one of her books in a side pocket, too, and as soon as he finds her a new one, her Walkman gets an especially safe place in his bag.
And yes, he fusses over her a little bit too much, maybe even to the point of being smothering sometimes (she always tells him to back off when that happens and he does without complaint), but Ellie grew up utterly alone and without someone to look after her for fourteen years, she deserves to know what it is like to be cared about by someone. Whatever she asks for, whatever she needs, he gives it to her even when she could walk home and come back with the thing in question in less than ten minutes. There's always a snack, a spare sweatshirt in case she gets cold, space for the one she takes off when she gets too warm, a small sketchbook and a pencil both as a distraction and so she can draw whenever she feels like it.
No one pays any attention to it, and while Tommy softly teases him about it from time to time, the smile that blooms on Ellie's face when he quietly gives her something she needs based on nothing but hardwired instincts before the words leave her mouth tells him everything he needs to know.
Joel might not be good with words, but he continues to carry a bag and hands her little pieces of his love time and time again, hoping she can put the puzzle together, hoping she knows.
Ellie does the same, hoping Joel notices it, hoping he knows what it means, that with every time she tells him to rest, every cup of coffee on his nightstand, every night spent in his bed when she wakes to the mere suggestion of a nightmare and brushes them away before they can settle so she can put herself in their place instead, every trashy action movie she borrows from the library for their weekly movie night, every handmade guitar pick she gifts him, every single gesture she does not have to do but does regardless because she wants to, she is saying I love you, too.
They notice, they care, they willing hand over carefully chosen parts of themselves and the puzzle they piece together is one and the same, because paying attention to things is how they show love and it is oh so easy when there is nothing to look at but each other.
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joelslegalwhre · 5 months
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(a little surprise for y'all under the cut <;3)
I don’t even know what to say 😭❤️
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it’s so surreal to think that so many of you care about my nonsense ILYSM!!!
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I’m the worst at finding the right words for things like these (I can’t take a compliment and that right here is a BIG one lmao)
So I’ve made this for y'all
✨*shoves it in your face*✨
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mangora · 6 months
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“Jake is annoying” my brother in Christ I respect your opinion but if I had lost my grandfather before being on a survival reality show and my grandmother during a survival reality show and I just got out of a toxic relationship and I scored with a mysterious twunk and then immediately discovered he’d been hiding the fact he was a government spy and saw everyone I was close to including my living grandmother figure brutally die only to be told it was a VR bit and then after that I was told by one of my closest friends that my spy boyfriend who had just trusted me with some major shit was cheating on me then yeah you’d probably have to lock me up I think he’s handling this pretty well all things considered
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dilf-din · 11 months
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Alive at the End of the World — Saeed Jones / 11 — Wendell Berry / Audre Lord / After a Month of Rain — Linda Pastan / Love Comes Quietly — Robert Creely
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rotisseries · 4 months
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inspired by elli's poll lol cause this seems fun actually but if you guys have bad answers I'll kill myself on your doorstep or smth
#“rori all of these are your faves how can there be a bad answer” well I still have an internal ranking on some of these#and if all of you pick an option that I think pales in comparison to the others. well. hm#I know what's gonna sweep though because two of these are niche as hell and 4 maybe 5 of these are things you people don't follow me for#fun fact I actually had to scrape my brain to make sure I couldn't come up with any more#I am unintentionally very picky on what is a favorite apparentlyyyy#I also just don't watch/read enough stuff these days so there's that#AND I NEED LONG TERM EXPOSURE TO KNOW THEY'RE STICKING AROUND#so like. I have some options but I don't KNOWWW if they're sticking yet#but this feels like such a small poll lmao#also no sapphics on here this is actually cause I hate women-#NO. JOKING. zelink is here. I almost put gideon and harrow but I'm in a perpetual state of not having finished tlt#and I couldn't put nebetta and darya I was drawing the line at 2 tbos ships. well. actually. changed my mind#not editing these tags actually you guys can see my thought process#WAIT AND SAYMARI. FUCK. I LITERALLY MADE A PLAYLIST FOR THEM I LOVE THEMMM#ok. is 4 tbos ships too many. hmm#I said 2 of these are niche now four of these are niche it's really the “which tbos pairing is your fave” poll#THIS POLL IS SO FUNNY IT'S SO SELF INDULGENT I HAVE TO TAKE OUT AT LEAST ONE TBOS SHIP#I should add one more general one...#cause I do actually want genuine and varied answers I gotta give y'all options so they don't all pool at the first two#I also almost put ellie and abby on here.. that would've been so funny four popular 1 rarepair 3 super niche ships#ellie and abby are soooo interesting to me though so of course the thought of them having something horrible going on together compels me#and they are one of my 3 favorited ao3 tags... they deserve a place...#ok well while I debate on that I'm putting akutagawa and atsushi on here I admittedly have only had like two months of exposure to them#but it is enough I can tell they are so crazy to me#the way my tags are just me overthinking everything on what is supposed to be a fun and silly poll... no one does it like me I'm afraid
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dykeomania · 11 months
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i don't really mean to ruin your day, but like (not proofread),
made sleepy by unforgiving winters and a population of people who were only young, once, the carnival reminds modern!ellie’s small wyoming town of what it’s like to be youthful, and alive.
tellingly so, people in her town consider this the happiest event of the year. but if it’s just between ellie and god, the significance of multicolored fair rides or the sun beaming hard enough to scorch the morning dew off of joel’s front lawn faces no match against the hatchling of your smile, once made dormant under the hazy coat of november through april, and defrosted by the month of july.
it’s the 4th. and amongst a spectacular of beams and fireworks slashing through a sky made thick with clouds, ellie swears that tonight she will kiss the girl of her daydreams. 
she has also sworn this, for the past three summers.
for the past three summers, she has ridden the same rides with you in almost identical order – familiar of every trough, and yet screaming with you through every loop. you take the same edibles, and you get the same order of fried concoctions, from the same stand and share the same $7 lemonade, from the same cup and the same swirly straw. 
it’s the same saccharine fling, bubble-wrapped in infatuation, and spared the harm of teeth sinking into its flesh in fear of eviscerating the bond that lies underneath.
but she swears, she will kiss you. this time, she will. she swears, she will.
with tongues coated with carbs and a mind made dizzy with sugar, you make the decision to ride the ferris wheel. she buries herself in the brash cackle of your laugh as she nearly rocks the cart off of its hinges. as you settle, belly and chest full of brightness, ellie watches you. your back is slumped against the metal, your head is thrown, and a hand is splayed over your stomach. the neons of the park flicker and change as you the two of you pass through them. ellie watches as they paint your body, electric; this way, she can see the symptoms of summer, highlighted, right on your cheekbones. beaming brightly, adding a shimmer to your smile, like a sparkle on a wink. ellie always has a tendency of falling in love with girls who are nothing like her. in the summer, ellie just burns. but not you. you have always glowed. 
the fireworks break through the sky, booming through the city like miniature cannons. the only unpredictable thing of all this, is the show. pop, a red firework. pop, a green one. pop, pop, sizzle. this one, a cluster of both.
boom. 
the familiar crust of a hill climbs up ellie’s throat and it’s an act of strength to swallow it all down. “wow,” she hears you remark, completely airless, a loopy grin stretching across your lips. “that’s so pretty.”
ellie nods, damning the fireworks and instead only looking at you. “yeah..” ellie swallows, again, hearing the croak that lines her own voice. “well, you’re pretty, too.”
there’s a silence that hangs, like your eyes, onto hers. and then it’s broken -- shattered not by combustion, but by a giggle turned spitting cackle, tumbling uncontrollably from your lips.
ellie’s furrows her eyebrows, “are you.. are you okay?” and starts laughing with you, only half-nervous, but like–
sizzle, sizzle,
“no.. no.. well– like yeah. like, no, yeah i’m just..” you lick your lips, close your eyes,
grin, and shake your head,
“i’m just really glad that you’re my friend.” 
boom.
the firework burns and dies in the iris of ellie’s eye, and brings with it ellie’s reminder to blink. or to do anything, really.
ellie has a tendency of falling in love with girls who are completely different from her. who want different things, and go at different paces,
who are her best friends.
she smiles. tight.
“yeah..” ellie concludes. “yeah, me too.”
she holds your hand on top of her lap, and halfheartedly thumbs over your knuckles. she lets you slot your fingers into hers, the same as you always do. and she squeezes, like normal. lets you rest your head on her shoulder, and rests her forehead atop of yours, like usual.
pop. pop. pop.
this year, she chalks her excuse up to.. loitering in opportunity. wading in questions she knows the answer to.
sizzle. sizzle. sizzle.
maybe, she’ll try again next summer. 
pop,
or maybe, it’s better that she doesn’t.
sizzle.
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ellieloves2draw · 1 year
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important dates in the life of a solicitor’s clerk
(ID: six pencil headshots of jonathan harker, showing how he changes throughout “dracula”. jonathan is a pale young man with short dark hair and eyes. he has a cleft chin, dimples, and a somewhat large nose, and he is wearing glasses and sideburns.
in the first drawing jonathan is smiling, showing off his dimples. this drawing is labeled “may 3”.
in the second drawing, jonathan’s hair is unbrushed and slightly longer. he has deep eyebags, a beard, and small wounds on his neck. one of his glasses lens is cracked. he is looking to his left with a nervous expression. this drawing is labeled “june 29”.
in the third drawing, jonathan’s hair is neck-length. he has lost weight, his beard is thicker, and his glasses are missing, but he is smiling tiredly. this drawing is labeled “aug. 24”.
in the fourth drawing, jonathan’s beard is shaved (showing a small scar on his cheek) and his hair is tied back in a neat ponytail. he has a sad, somber expression, and he is wearing funeral attire as well as a top hat. this drawing is labeled “sept. 18”.
in the fifth drawing, jonathan’s hair is pure white. he has deep eyebags and has an expression of barely-restrained rage. there are no highlights in his eyes; instead, his pupils are white. this drawing is labeled “oct. 3”.
in the last drawing, jonathan is once again smiling. his roots have been growing in dark again, and the scar on his cheek has faded. this drawing is labeled “epilogue”. end ID.)
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schmweed · 3 months
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fandom-blackhole · 1 year
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hi :3 your jackson song as a joel fic is still rent free in my head. could you share your idea? or is it still under wraps?
mwah mwah!! 😘
You know what? You asked for this, you made me think of this fic idea again, so you're getting the full fic rn. I hope you enjoy it lmao <3 <3
Pairing: Joel Miller x Reader (gender/race neutral) Summary: Three times Reader sings Jackson by Johnny Cash and annoys Joel, and the one time Joel actually joins in. this is a 3+1 bc i couldn't decide which scene I had imagined for this to write so I went with all of the above (I heavily suggest listening to the song at least once, it's a great tune and will get stuck in your head lol) Warnings: contains spoilers for the show and game (bc as usual I am mixing the two together, mentions of violence and guns, really just reader being annoying to Joel, me shitting on KC (im from KS so im allowed), UNEDITED (bc i am being a bit lazy sorry) WC: 4.5k (how do all of my fics get away from me like this smh)
1
It had been a long few hours. Emotions were a little high and tension was a bit thick. Neither you nor Joel had been expecting what you found when you finally got to Bill and Frank’s small town. You’d expected a smile and hug from Frank and grumpy complaining from Bill over bringing an outsider, let alone a kid to his town. You’d expected to see Frank take to Ellie and want to show her around, clean her up and feed her like he loved to do. You’d expected to find two of the few you allowed yourself to call friends. Instead you found quiet emptiness, dead flowers, and a note that had your heart breaking for the second time in so many days. Tess' death still heavy on your heart, now had the company of losing Bill and Frank.
So when the first notes softly floated from the speakers of the truck Bill left Joel, you had to do a double take, a grin quickly lighting up your face as you jumped forward in your seat and turned up the radio. The words you knew by heart, the song one of your mother’s favorites, so at the exact time Joel turned to you in question, you grinned widely at him and sang along, “We got married in a fever, hotter than a pepper sprout.”
With a huff Joel whispered to himself an exasperated, “Christ,” but you carried on.
“We’ve been talkin’ ‘bout Jackson, ever since the fire went out.”
You could hear Ellie behind you laughing to herself as Joel shook his head. You didn’t let up, though, you kept singing and pulling laughs from Ellie, making sure to put emphasis on the way you sang every time Jackson was mentioned. You made sure to put on a show as the song switched back and forth between the duet, deepening your voice and acting all suave while Johnny Cash sang and all smooth and flirty during June Carter’s parts.
By the time the song was over, you were a bit breathless from your antics and Ellie was doubled over in the back seat of the truck laughing at you and clapping for you. Joel, though, simply reached over and turned the radio back down til the next song was just barely heard over Ellie's wheezing and the sound of the truck’s engine. 
Turning to Joel with a giant grin, you see him simply shaking his head. So you tilted your head at him, as he glanced at you out of the corner of his eye. 
“Well? What did you think of my once in a lifetime performance,” you asked with a teasing grin.
Joel simply huffed, “It was, uh, somethin’.”
With faux pride you close your eyes with a nod and confidently say, “Thank you, I worked very hard on that you know. Gonna be singing on the big stage one day.”
That drew a chuckle out of Joel as he grinned and said, “I look forward to seein’ it.”
2
Kansas City looked a bit worse for wear than you had expected. Though you probably should have really expected this, the rumors that floated around about the city were not favorable. Of all of the cities and FEDRA run quarantine zones it was well known that Kansas City was one of the worst and you better off trying to survive on your own rather try and find refuge within the city. Honestly though it's not too surprising the quarantine zone ended up the way it did, the city was situated in the ass crack of Missouri and Kansas afterall. 
You were however caught off guard when you found that the Kansas City FEDRA had finally toppled and the city had been taken over by a group of hunters who were more than happy to use what the soldiers had left behind after their deaths. The hunter were still crafty with their environment, you had to give them that. 
The crash had left all three of you disoriented. You had not expected the bus that they had let loose on the truck and you highly doubted Joel had expected it either. When the truck crashed into the convenience store you were thrown forward, smashing you head into the dash so hard spots formed in your eyes and you could feel a piece of glass dig into the skin right above your left eye. 
After that things kind of passed in a blur for you. You knew there was a fight and you knew that you had shot at a few guys, though you kind of doubted that you actually managed to hit either with how disoriented you were. Once it was safe for the moment, Joel raced to check on you and Ellie, shoving your bags into your arms. Ellie as it turned out was no worse for wear because she’d been ducked down in the backseat out of sight of the hunters, and your only injuries were from the crash, a small gash on your forehead and a mild concussion from Joel’s estimate.
The three of you didn’t really have time to waste on first aid at that moment, so you’d simply pressed a bandana you had to you head and motioned to a large building a little ways away, whispering, “That’s probably our safest bet right now, we’ll get me fixed up once we know we are all safe.”
Joel had only hesitated for a second before agreeing. He led you and Ellie carefully to the building, safely making sure the three of you stayed out of sight. Once inside, you found that the building was an old hotel, and a nice one at that.
You quietly whistled and said, “This place is nice, could only dream of coming to a place like this before the outbreak.”
Joel just grunted as he looked around for useful things, finding a safe as he replayed, “Isn’t exactly nice anymore.”
You leaned against the counter beside where he was crouched trying to crack the safe and watched as Ellie looked around the lobby with an interest only a child could have. Sighing you shrugged and glanced over your shoulder as you heard the door creak open and replied, “I don’t know. If the outbreak did anything it did bring a certain beauty to the world. There’s something poetically beautiful in the sight of nature reclaiming what once belonged to it.”
Walking around the counter, Joel stood in front of you with a brow raised and shook his head, “Maybe that concussion is worse than I thought if you’re gettin’ all philosophical on me.”
With a huffed laugh you  rolled your eyes and just nodded to the stairs, “Come on.”
Your progression upward went smoothly until the fourth floor where per your group’s usual luck you found the stairs blocked with all kinds of debris. You never thought you would miss stairs, but as you picked your way through the floor scouting for a way up you wished that just once the three of you would pick a building that had a simple straightforward way to the top. 
You were pulled from your melancholic thoughts by Ellie’s raised voice, “Found a way up!”
You were a little thankful to be pulled away from your thoughts, the action slowly making the ever present headache since the crash throb. Quickly as possible you made your way across the hallway to the room Ellie had been looking through and smiled when you found a concert room with a stage and a beautiful grand piano. You made your way to the stage, noticing the way up Ellie found was on the corner of the stage where the above balcony’s railing had fallen. Gently you ran your fingers over the piano, a little sad to see such a magnificent creation in such disrepair. Looking up to Ellie who stood on the other side you made your way around and hip bumped her. 
“You know how to play?”
Ellie laughed and turned to you with a look that screamed she was judging you as she replied, “You really think they’d teach us to play piano in FEDRA school? Let alone find one that actually works,” she shook her head and slowly made her way to the edge of the stage, jumping down. “What about you? You play?”
You hummed and ran your fingers over the keys, cringing at the awful out of tune melody that played. You were stopped from answering though as your fingers fell upon an old rusted microphone. Picking it up you smiled and looked up right as Joel walked into the room. Instantly you laughed, and your grin spread as your eyes met Joel's stoic hazel.
Gently you twirled to the center of the stage, a little dizzy from the sudden movements, but didn’t let it deter you. Looking up at your crowd you heard Joel ask Ellie, “What on Earth are they doing?”
You saw Ellie answer with a shrug and that's when you started to sing the opening notes of the song you had been annoying Joel with for weeks. Ellie laughed and Joel tried protesting but you just carried on. You let yourself get carried away singing the lyrics and making a fool of yourself on stage with your poor excuse of dancing. 
It didn’t take Joel long to make his way to the stage, to stop you or figure out how to reach the balcony on the second floor you weren’t sure, but if you had to put money on it you’d guess both. The second he was within reach you grabbed his hand and pulled him towards you as you sang, “Go play your hand, you big talkin’ man. Make a big fool of yourself.”
Rolling his eyes Joel pulled away and you let him go only a second later as you spun yourself again the dizziness became too much and you found yourself stumbling with a gasp. Thankfully Joel had been close enough and had caught you before you fell and hit your head again on the stage.
He led you over to the piano bench and sat you down, taking the microphone from you as he said, “Sit and rest, before you hurt yourself more. Not exactly smart jumping and twirling around with a fresh concussion, nor making a bunch of noise when we are supposed to be keeping a low profile so we aren’t found by those hunters.”
With a sigh you just pouted, over not being able to finish your song but you listened to him and sat there and watched as Joel and Ellie pushed the grand piano over to the wall and watched as Ellie used it to jump up to the next floor. Joel followed but turned to you after getting onto the piano, motioning like he was going to help you up, which he did and then helped boost you to the next floor even if you didn’t need it, getting the feeling he was coddling you now.
Once he was up next to you again, you turned to him with a faux pout, “You said you looked forward to seeing me perform on a stage.”
With a huff, Joel gave you a look that said he was already tired of this situation and only replied, “Do it again when you aren’t a danger to yourself or the rest of us.”
3
Joel was infallible. At least you had always thought he was. He was the best survivor you knew, there was no question as to why he had gotten this far into the apocalypse, he just knew how to take care of himself and protect those around him. You had seen him get scrapes and bruises from fights and a couple of grazes from near misses from bullets. Never could you imagine that the man you held on such a high pedestal could fall as heavily as he had. You never thought you’d have to watch the man you’d found yourself caring for whole heartedly almost bleed out before your eyes. 
But here you are, watching him shiver from the cold and no doubt from the pain wracking his body. Watching him sleep in fits and gazing into glazed eyes when he was barely awake. It was hard to watch, but you tried to be strong for Ellie’s sake. You sometimes would catch her staring at Joel’s fitful body, worry echoing on her face before she threw up a wall on her emotions. You didn’t want to admit it, but of the two she was more helpful. She’d been more successful with finding food and hunting than you have been. Ellie is also the one that had managed to find and bring back the full stocked and sterile first aid kit that you’d used to suture and clean Joel’s wound with, even if the supplies hadn’t done too much for his weakening state. You had found that your main use was only keeping the three of you on track to Salt Lake City and acting as a nurse to Joel, getting him to drink water or broth without drowning him, something Ellie found she didn’t really have the patience or the bedside manner to do. 
Still you hid your worries, and shared optimistic thoughts with Ellie during the day even if you didn’t truly believe them yourself.You like to believe you’re helping Ellie by doing this, but in truth you think she’s doing the same for you, just putting on a brave face to make you feel better. 
Each night the two of you would take turns taking watch, Ellie always going first, insisting you get rest and not truly trusting you to wake her for the second watch- which was fair because the one time she had agreed to let you take first watch you hadn’t had the heart to wake the exhausted girl to which she’d given you the silent treatment for the next day. 
It was only during your watches, once you knew for sure Ellie was asleep, her breaths evening out and her body relaxing, that you allowed your mask to slip, to let your worries out. Each night that passed you swore Joel got paler, that he looked closer to death’s door. You hate watching him wither away like this, hate seeing the strongest person you know, your rock in this world, fall and not be able to help him even though your heart screams at you. You have found yourself sobbing helplessly into your hand in attempts to stay quiet a few times, the hurt and worry building up inside you until it exploded. You hated that you felt weak, but truely what could you do when your strength lay slowly dying on a nasty old twin sized mattress? 
Tonight though the tears don’t come. Instead you find yourself feeling empty in your grief as you sit beside Joel’s head gently combing your fingers through his hair in a soothing motion. You weren’t sure if it was meant to sooth Joel or yourself, but either way the action seemed to be grounding you and it could be your imagination but it seemed that Joel’s face seemed somewhat more relaxed so you didn’t stop. 
You aren’t sure when, but you caught yourself humming at some point and you couldn’t help but smile and jokingly think to yourself, ‘if anything is going to get a reaction out of him, it’ll be hearing me annoy him with this song again.’
You let yourself hum it a few times, making sure to stay quiet, not wanting to wake Ellie who’d become somewhat of a light sleeper, but eventually you had to laugh and whisper, “Yeah, go to Jackson, and go comb your hair,” as you ran your fingers through Joel’s hair. 
You let yourself sing a few more lines, not really paying attention to anything but where your fingers continued their path through his hair, so you were surprised when you felt your free hand, which you had just had laying on Joel’s chest, be enclosed in a rougher calloused hand. Pausing your singing you looked down in surprise and found Joel’s lips turned upward just slightly, and his hand enveloping your own in a loose hold. 
With a watery smile, knowing that just moving his hand had to have had taken a lot of energy from him, so you clutched it tighter in your hold as you turned back to running your fingers through his hair as you whispered to him, “Yeah, you go to Jackson, you big talkin’ man. And I’ll be waitin’ in Jackson,” before trailing back off into a hum. 
4
It was over, all of it was finally over. The fireflies were gone, something you would never have to worry about again. Joel was strong again, Ellie was safe, and all three of you were all back in Jackson settling down and making a home for yourselves with Tommy and Maria and all of the townsfolk. And you couldn’t be happier. Everything in life just felt right for the first time since the outbreak. It was odd in a way, but it was so freeing that you didn’t care. You never could have let yourself dream about a life like this, of having a family like this that you could allow yourself to care for. You didn’t think something like this would ever be allowed to live, to thrive in a world so torn apart by a deadly infection and the worst of humanity. But you found it, and you let yourself bask in it. You let yourself be happy.
When the three of you all arrived back in Jackson it had taken a while for each of you to all settle in and relax. It was so foreign after spending months fighting and protecting each other's backs from every danger imaginable. Ellie had taken about a month to situate herself in the town, finding it a bit easier with teens her age being so interested in being her friend and getting to know her as the new kid in town. She settled into the garage and made it her own. Watching her have her own space was a little hard after having her in your sights 24/7 for so long, but you knew she needed it, that she deserved it after everything she went through. You and Joel stayed in the house together, both unwilling to be to far from the teen after everything that went down in Salt Lake City at the hospital and finding the bond between the two of you keeping you together. You each had your own rooms though Joel’s only got used every once in a while, many nights bringing him to your room when your nightmares wake him up. His own nightmares occasionally brought him to you as well, as he found comfort in not being alone, in waking up to find you laying there with soft breaths next to him.
Joel took about a little over a month to settle into the community but once Tommy got him in on the patrol board, he immediately found his place. Letting Joel have some control over where and how the patrols went allowed him to feel a sense of peace. It played into his strong suit of needing to know that the people he cared about were safe and taken care of. Seeing Joel let himself relax and fill the role really warmed your heart, happy to know Joel was finally at peace after so many years of functioning just in fight-or-flight mode. 
You, though, took the longest to find your place in Jackson. You didn’t slack, you jumped from job to job filling any empty position in any area that they would let you, but the truth was you didn’t have a strength or a useful skill that could be applied somewhere within the town. You could hunt, but you were not the best at it. You were decent at growing things but the greenhouse didn’t really need anymore volunteers. And while you did love children you neither had the patience or the knowledge to be teaching. So as time passed and Joel and Ellie found their rhythms in the town you found yourself feeling like you were floundering a bit, drowning in a pool of water where your feet should be touching the ground. It wasn’t until you were doing a patrol with Joel a few months after settling back in Jackson that he brought up that the doctor in town was looking to train a new nurse. He had brought it up nonchalantly, but you could tell by the way he glanced out of the corner of his eye that he had a reason behind bringing it up. Later you managed to weasel it out of him, to which he simply replied, “I may not have been all there, but I remember how well you played nurse for me. I think you’d be good at it.”
He had been right of course, you had taken to the position like a duck to water and within no time you found yourself finding your own path in Jackson, letting yourself finally fall into content happiness that Joel and Ellie had also found. In no time at all the three of you all found yourself falling into a routine, each of you revolving around the other two and finding ways to still stay close and not get too busy to not be able to know what the others were up to. Your favorite day in the routine was every three days you’d all have a family meal, Tommy and Maria joining the three of you every other meal.
It was on one of those nights that Joel had come home late from his patrol. You had already started making dinner and had simply shooed him upstairs to take a shower while you finished cooking, knowing that it was only a matter of time before Ellie burst in the back door groaning about being starving. 
You weren’t sure how long Joel took to get cleaned up, you had zoned out into your thoughts shortly after hearing the shower turn on, but after what you knew only had to have been a handful of minutes you heard him coming back downstairs, and when he came into the kitchen you simply motioned to the table, asking if he’d set it for you as you had dinner already almost finished. 
You however didn’t expect to hear Joel turn on your little portable CD player on the counter and skip through the songs as he said, “Found you something’ while on patrol today.”
You hummed in question, curiosity over taking you as you glanced over your shoulder at him before turning back to stirring what you were cooking. Only a few seconds later you paused as the all to familiar notes floated around the kitchen and a soft smile found its way onto your face. Gently you started swaying as you cooked, but almost as soon as you had started you found a pair of arms wrapped around your middle as Joel pulled you away from the stove, as his deep accented voice sang, “We got married in a fever, hotter than a pepper sprout. We’ve been talkin’ ‘bout Jackson ever since the fire went out. I’m goin’ to Jackson, I’m gonna mess around. Yeah I’m goin’ to Jackson, look out Jackson town.”
Laughing joyfully you join in right as June Carter does and turn to face Joel sticking your spoon in his face as you back up towards the stove to turn it down as you sang, “Well, go on down to Jackson. Go ahead and wreck your health. Go play your hand, you big talkin’ man, Make a big fool of yourself. Yeah, go to Jackson, go comb your hair.”
With a grin Joel grabs the spoon from your hand, laying it on the spoon rest, before grabbing your hand as he picked up his part of the duet once more, “Honey, I’m gonna snowball Jackson, see if I care. When I breese into that city, people gonna stoop and bow. All them women gonna make me teach ‘em what they don’t know how. I’m going to Jackson. You turn ‘n’ loosen my coat, ‘cause I’m goin’ to Jackson.”
Swaying in Joel’s arms as he sang was perfect and you wished more than anything that you could pause time right there and just enjoy this for all eternity. As his part finished once more, Joel twirled you, which you used to sway away from him as you came in singing, “”Goodbye,” that’s all she wrote. But they’ll laugh at you in Jackson and I’ll be dancin’ on a Pony Keg. They’ll lead you ‘round town like the scalded hound, with your tail hooked between your legs. Yeah, go to Jackson, you big talkin’ man. And I’ll be waitin’ in Jackson behind my Jaypan fan.”
You managed to stay out of Joel’s reach until the end laughing as the two of you joined together twirling and dancing around as you sang together.
“Well, now, we got married in a fever, hotter than a pepper sprout. We’ve been talkin’ ‘bout Jackson ever since the fire went out. I’m goin’ to Jackson and that’s a fact. Yeah, we’re going to Jackson, ain’t never comin’ back.”
Joel’s grin was bigger than you’ve ever seen, your happiness radiating off eachother as he swung you out and brought you back in as the two of you finished the song together, eyes never leaving the other’s, “Well, we go married in a fever, hotter than a pepper sprout. Honey, we’ve been talkin’ ‘bout Jackson ever since the fire went out.”
At the very end Joel surprised you by dipping you low, which pulled a loud gasping laugh from you before he pressed a small kiss to your lips before pulling you back up. You couldn’t wipe the grin off of your face once you were back on your feet, not even when two sets of claps came from the doorway along with a quick retching noise. Whipping your head around you felt yourself heat up in embarrassment to see Tommy and Maria standing there grinning at the two of you while Ellie wrinkled her nose and called the two of you gross.
  “Hope the two of you didn’t burn our dinner while you were too busy being all lovey dovey,” Ellie griped while plopping down into her seat at the table.
“As a matter of fact I turned the stove off at the beginning of the song, so don’t worry, your food will be just fine,” you replied carrying the pot to the table as Joel passed around plates and silverware, taking it from you once you reached the table with a soft loving smile which you returned, making Ellie groan about losing her appetite even though she was smiling. All the while Tommy and Maria simply enjoyed the entertainment, though Maria did lean over and whisper, “Why can’t you be romantic, like that?”
To which Tommy grinned and simply replied while filling her glass with water, “You want me to try?”
With a sigh, Maria met his gaze and said, “No, I’m not sure I can hand whatever you think would be romantic.”
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otterlis · 2 years
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