Don't let go: Joel Miller x OC

My hidden demon

It had been days since he let his desires get the better of him. Days since he'd last touched her or so much as caught a glimpse of her.

He knew better now than to try and approach the woman, he learned that the hard way previously but he had hoped that she would have come to him. But no. Once again, there was nothing.

He scolded himself at the thought of what they had done. He was nearly bloody fifty, too damn old for doing shit like that although he couldn't deny that it did give a certain thrill.

Ultimately he knew that he should have listened to the small part of his mind that told him to just go home instead of entertaining whatever it was she was up to. It was too late now though.

He had thought about it over and over without being able to conclude even the slightest of an understanding of her actions from that night. It was her that initiated it, not him. He gave her the chance to put a stop to things escalating and she chose to continue.

Perhaps she just wanted sex and nothing more? No, she really didn't seem like the type and even if it was that, she probably could have had a chance with the majority of the men in that room...so why him? Was it because of her past and he was so familiar? He knew she had difficulties being intimate with new people but she had specifically told him to stay away from her and even so much as held him at gun point.

Maybe it was just time to accept that he didn't understand her as well as he thought. If she truly wanted to patch things up between them, she would have come to him by now, right?

It was time that he stopped chasing her. He wanted peace and security. He was too old to be playing games.

His thoughts were interrupted as the teen that resided in his house trudged into the kitchen.

"Good morning." Ellie spoke as she moved past him to raid the cupboards for food.

Joel only replied with a grunt to acknowledge her presence.

The teen looked back over her shoulder with a roll of the eyes, returning his overall grumpiness with a sarcastic expression, "Well aren't you just a ray of sunshine again today..."

He took a sip of his coffee and raised his brows, creases forming across his forehead. His tone flat and not reflecting his response, "I'm fine."

Ellie closed the cupboard and turned to face the older man, narrowing her eyes, "You've been in a piss for the last couple of days."

"More so than usual..." added as a mutter beneath her breath.

"I'm fine." He barked a little more forcefully. He didn't mean to be so brash with her, he just wished she would have taken his first answer and left it. The honest truth was that, yes, he was pissed off. Not that he was going to tell the girl why. That was none of her damn business.

The young girl dramatically threw her hands up in the air, "Jeez, don't bite my head off old man."

Joel sighed. He shouldn't have snapped, it wasn't the kids fault he was in a shitty mood. He decided to remedy his tone with a partial lie, "I'm jus' tired, that's all. You'll understand when you get to my age."

Ellie continued on her search for food before landing on some crackers, "Y'know, if you didn't get up at the ass crack of dawn each morning, you might feel less tired...Just a thought..."

She had a point. He'd often go to bed late but always seemed to be up by six in the morning at the latest. He'd never really been one to lie in unless there was something in bed that was worth his while staying for. He always felt as if he was wasting the day if he just laid there.