Nights Like This One { a joel miller fanfiction }

XIII.

A.N. "happy" joel/tlou day! i really wanted to get this out for ya'll today so please ignore any editing issues and let us commence act one of me tearing all our hearts out! ily all, thanks for reading <3

"And I miss you, I'm going back home to the west coast."

— Coconut Records, West Coast

______________________

September 20, 2003

Lily grabbed a jacket from the closet, folding it and placing it on top of the already stuffed suitcase that was laying open on the end of the bed.

"Don't ya got four jackets in there already?" Joel asked from his position, leaning back against the headboard.

"Yeah," she shrugged, "but San Francisco weather is unpredictable. I need layers."

"You're the expert," he remarked with a little smirk, moving his arms so they were folded behind his head.

She let out a slow exhale, examining her packing before letting her gaze drift up to Joel.

"Are you sure you're not upset that I won't be here for your birthday?" she asked, with a concerned lilt plaguing her voice.

She hadn't been working at The Austin American-Statesman for a full month yet and they'd already asked her to travel to California for a piece on the aftermath of the dot-com boom— and subsequent crash— and what it meant for Texans with all the misplaced Californians moving to their state. She was the obvious choice, being a Californian herself, but the trip meant she'd miss Joel's birthday, and she'd almost asked them to give it to someone else before Joel assured her it was fine.

"'Course I'm not upset, honey, I told ya, I'll be workin' anyway," he reiterated, sitting up a bit and patting his thigh, an invitation for her to come sit on his lap.

She shuffled over to him, letting him tug her onto his lap by her waist, folding her into his wide chest, the warmth of him immediately tunneling into her core, easing a bit of the anxiety that'd been plaguing her since she'd agreed to take the piece.

"It'll be good for you, career wise, and I'll be right here when you get back, it's only a week, baby," he hummed, his thick fingers gently brushing through her hair, his warm baritone rumbling in her ear.

Only a week.

She hadn't been away from him for that long before, not since they met, beyond those two weeks after he'd first tried to kiss her, which felt like a hundred years ago now.

"Are you saying you won't miss me at all?" she asked, mostly in jest, shifting in his lap so she could see his face, watch as those warm brown eyes softened as they traced her features, the motion causing her belly to flutter and swirl.

"'Course I'll miss ya, I'll miss ya the second I drop you off at the airport," he crooned, reaching up to tuck a piece of hair behind her ear, "but I'll also be there to pick ya up the second you land."

She let out a sigh, her head falling onto one of those massive shoulders. Joel wrapped his arms around her, crushing to his wide chest. She took a deep breath, greedily inhaling the woody scent of his skin, letting it tunnel into her, ease some more of that tension.

He was right, this would be a good move for her career. Showing that she was willing to travel for a story early on meant that she would be considered for promotion a lot faster than if she'd refused to leave Texas. But she didn't want to leave Texas, didn't want to leave him.