𝓗𝓪𝓻𝓿𝓮𝓼𝓽 𝓜𝓸𝓸𝓷 (Joel Miller x Fem OC)

𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 𝐼𝒱

▷ Hello Stranger - Emmylou Harris

A makeshift fire warms a busted pot filled with who-knows-how-old canned soup. It was gelatinous and held the shape of the can when he shook it out and into the pot.

I'm sitting across from Joel, the flames softly flickering across his weathered face, his eyes fixed on his stirring. We hadn't spoken a word to each other since we sat down and set up our camp for the night, but I didn't mind. I was enjoying watching him stir so intently. Something about being around another human after such a long time is comforting - even if that human wants nothing to do with me.

"Stop starin'."

Joel's lowered voice startles me. He gazes up from his stirring, his dark eyes peaking through the orange light and straight into mine. I divert my gaze, face blushed with red - but he couldn't see that. He finishes his task, emptying the contents of the pot into two separate bowls, then passing one to me over the fire. We're both fixated on our own food, savouring each bite as we hadn't eaten for quite a few hours. We both resorted to drinking the soup straight from the bowl, ditching the spoons as it didn't satisfy our need for more. Once we reached the bottom, the fire was packed up and our sleeping bags were laid out, keeping a distance of about 10 feet between us. Joel tosses me a blanket.

"Found this in the back of the truck..." He stands with his hands on his hips as I cover myself in the fabric, "Should keep you warmer tonight."

I smile softly at him, a gesture he doesn't reciprocate. Instead, he flips his gun strap over his shoulder, keeping it close to his chest.

"I'll take first watch. You should get some sleep." It's easy to tell when he's tired as his voice deepens greatly.

The forest was silent aside from the gentle rustle of leaves in the wind. A cricket here or there. I nod and crawl into my sleeping bag, eyes drowsily gazing at Joel standing a few feet away. His back was turned towards me as he constantly surveyed the surrounding area, keeping a close eye and ear out for anything alarming. My mind is racing again tonight, I know it won't be easy for me to drift off. Thoughts of Bill and Frank, wondering if leaving was all a mistake and the fear of heading into the complete unknown.

I untangle myself from under my sleeping bag and walk over to the man, his head turning in response.

"I've been with you two days now and you still don't know my name." I whisper softly, staring out into the thick forest ahead. I can feel his eyes on me.

"Not important. You're just ca-"

"Cargo... sure. I know" I'm not sure how I expected this interaction to go. I watch his head turn to face the forest out of my peripherals. I let out a deep sigh and turn back around, beginning the walk back to my sleeping bag before Joel speaks once more.

"Daisy."

I stop dead in my tracks, slowly pivoting back to Joel. I don't respond, I just stare at him, brows furrowed in confusion at the surprise of hearing my name. Joel is still staring out into the darkness.

"Saw it written on the back of a photograph of you downstairs before you woke up that morning..." He keeps his tone flat and repeats, "Daisy."

Before I have time to respond, the sound of faint clicking in the distance causes both Joel and myself to stand frozen, Joel gently sliding his finger onto the trigger of his gun. He slowly turns to me, and in the darkness, I can faintly make out his other finger over his lips. My heart begins to pound as the clicking sounds draw closer, Joel backing up as quietly as possible, quickly manoeuvring from side to side to locate the direction of the sound. I grab the pistol in my coat pocket and gently position it in front of myself as Joel cautiously makes his way next to me.

"Stand as still as you can and stay absolutely silent, understand?" I can feel his breath close to my ear as he whispers quietly. I nod in response, swallowing hard. Our heads simultaneously shoot to the left of me as the sound of limping footsteps drag through the dead leaves causing Joel places his arm in front of my chest, ushering me behind him. I obey, watching him prepare to aim at whatever is coming towards us. I'd been lucky enough to not see an infected for quite a long time, and I didn't want to break that streak now.

Joel places the gun close to his eye as a mangled figure creeps out from the void. My heart stops at the silhouette of something un-human. As the creature gets closer, Joel finally pulls the trigger, firing a bullet straight into the chest of the being. There's a slight moment of hesitation where we both thought it was finally dead - its body limped over at the shot. Though, that moment didn't last long at all.

The figure lunged forward, charging directly at us. Joel shouts at me to get back, and in my haste I trip over myself and fall hard on the ground, slamming my head. Everything goes dark and the only thing I can hear are faint shots being fired.

I'm not sure how much time passed before I regained consciousness. I wince as I raise my head, my hand caressing a wet spot on my skull. I slowly open my eyes, blinking repeatedly but unable to see anything in the pitch black. The mixture of blindness and the ringing in my ears causes me to become disoriented. As I carefully roll over onto my back, a shadow grows bigger. I scramble back, kicking up leaves and dirt as I attempt to get away. In almost a split second, the shadow pins me back down, causing a guttural scream to leave my throat. A final shot rings out and the lifeless monster lay on top of me, my body frozen in horror and my mouth agape in shock.

Joel rushes over to me, tossing his gun back around his shoulder and quickly dragging me out from under the spored pile of flesh. He pulls me close to his chest and cradles my head with a firm hand.

"I've got you baby girl. It's ok, I've got you. You're okay..." He repeats himself, his voice shaky and out of breath. He rocks me back and forth in his arms, the thumping of his racing heart is the only thing I can hear in my dissociative state. My eyes are wide open and my mind is completely blank, unable to comprehend what just occurred. After a few moments, Joel grabs my head in both his hands, the dim light of the moon showing the fear and concern in his dark eyes. My breathing is uneven as I stare blankly back at him.

"Are you hurt? Where did you fall?" His words are rushed as his hands explore my hair, eventually landing on the same wet spot I felt earlier.

"Fuck." He curses under his breath. Joel pushes my head towards his chest once more, his head falling on top of mine as he attempts to catch his breath. His large arms hold me tightly as the world spins around me. I lay limp in his grasp as the dissociation turns more into a loss of consciousness.

The sounds of his breathing fades out and I'm left, completely alone in the darkness.

—