Don't let go: Joel Miller x OC

Tell me...

The rest of that evening had just become a blur as they melted into one another. It was as if time had stood still, the world around them stopped and nothing else mattered apart from each other's presence and gentle touch. Nothing else to do other than submerge into each others hold and allow themselves to each drown in this newfound warmth and sense of belonging. It was a long lost emotion for both of them, an emotion that they had both thought to have been taken from them alongside their loved ones many moons ago. An actual mutual love that was free to act upon without the fear of it falling apart. Without the fear that it would leave them vulnerable and be detrimental to their survival on this wasteland of a planet.

That singular night away from their reality just didn't seem long enough. White light trickling through the threadbare drapes and illuminating the lavish bedroom they came to reside in, signalling the end of their little break away. The purple silk sheets slipping away from her soft skin and exposing her to the brisk morning air almost felt painful. A sharp reminder that it was time for life to continue and the sudden hit of nausea that came along with the hit of cold, only served as a reminder to her hidden burden. The world had once again begun to spin out of her control and time needed to go on.

As soon as they both set foot back in Jackson, Ava felt the weight of the world back on her shoulders. She couldn't bare the burden of her secret much longer, not now... not now knowing how he felt about her, what he felt for her and how it matched her feelings towards him. She didn't know much about how the concept of family worked, she'd been without one entirely for the last fifteen years after all... but that was what this was going to lead to, wasn't it? This baby... and Joel... They'd become a family of their own, right? The one thing she did know was that you shouldn't lie to the ones you love. She just needed to work out the perfect time. A time and place where it was just them, in a safe space...

Again her thoughts were interrupted, this time by Ellie marching up to them with affliction slapped across her unamused face, Rufus bounding almost playfully alongside her. "Where the fuck have you two been?!"

Joel gave her a questioning look, hands falling onto his hips as the teen spat her words, "I left you a note."

The teen mimicked his stance, her insolence seeping out as she slammed her eyes in disbelief. "Like fuck you did! Where?"

He scoffed at the sheer amount of attitude radiating off the kid. She had more nerve than most... but then again, she knew damn well that she could get away with a hell of a lot more than most. If it were anyone else speaking to him in that manner, he could assure them that they'd be leaving the interaction with a broken jaw... Not his little girl though, he'd never lay a single finger on her, no matter how she spoke to him. "Next to the kettle. Not that I need to explain myself to you."

Ellie nonchalantly shrugged, her attitude still sky high. "Well, I didn't see it and was worried."

"Well, we're both fine. Next time I'll leave a note on the fridge, then you'll fuckin' see it..." He sighed whilst muttering the last part of his sentence beneath his breath, referring to the fact that the kid was currently eating him out of house and home.

The teen heard him loud and clear, sticking her middle finger up to him in response as she turned on her heel and began to stomp away, "Dick."

Joel smirked as he went to follow after her before pausing with a furrowed brow upon noticing that Ava hadn't moved or actually now thinking about it, spoken a damn word since they got back. He glanced back over his shoulder towards her, finding her eyes vacantly glazed over, looking lost in her own little word.