Refuge For My Fandoms

Place to share my love of all things Star Wars, The Last of Us and Disney

[naliljedi13]

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

Summary:

Bucky Barnes, seeking atonement in the present for the sins of the past, meets a beautiful young woman who looks uncannily like the love he left behind when his future was taken from him. One lost in time, the other lost to time, but their love remained timeless.

[naliljedi13]

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[deliriusdaddy-deactivated202406]

The Last of Us

[firstofficerwiggles]

Jon Favreau saying Din Djarin was never meant to be Star Wars Aragorn is dumb on many levels, but primarily because no one saw him as Aragorn!

Aragorn was born to be a king and knew this his entire life. He struggled with it, rebelled against it, and then finally realized it was his destiny. No one in Star Wars is an Aragorn.

Din Djarin was never born to be a king, and he never considered that he would be one. If Din is anyone, he is King Arthur, a person who performed an extraordinary task to win a powerful sword.

The idea that the story was not setting Din up to be a leader is ridiculous, though, because in all three seasons and The Book of Boba Fett, we see Din as an effective leader. In several episodes and across the story arc, Din brings people together to fight and win unlikely battles. He manages to diplomatically get different groups to work together. He comes up with the plans that will take advantage of everyone's best skills. He puts himself in positions of extreme vulnerability because he knows it's what they need to win. He also manages to pull off some incredible moves of his own that just make everyone go. "Wow! That dude is awesome!" Din does all this while still being respectful and kind to the point where at the end of the battle, the people in the group are willing to follow him anywhere if he asks.

Then you have the audacity to sit there and tell me you didn't create a king.

[rise-my-angel]

I'm so tired of this misunderstanding of what a reluctant hero arc is, like you got it totally right here. Aragorn's story is not about accepting that he grew to be a man capable of being a leader. Aragorn's story was about coming to understand that accepting the fate he was born to does not mean he is destined to make the same mistakes.

Aragorn's story isnt just a man who doesnt want to be king. Aragorn's story is about realizing he can do better then the kings and men who failed before him. Arwen summarizes his story arc perfectly when she tells him "You are Isildur's heir, not Isildur himself." He isn't unwilling to become King, he is afraid he will fail at defeating the darkness like those before him.

Din, was never born for any great fate. He was born a normal boy to normal parents, and even as he grew up never was expected for greatness.

It wasn't until he meets Grogu does something in him begin to change and grow, and we see that in order for Din to truly protect him as a father he ends up having to become a leader.

What makes a good reluctant leader arc, is when a character recognizes he doesn't want to be a leader, but realizes that he is meant to be. That the people aroung them already look to him as a leader and that he has to learn to want it. He has to learn to want this as a duty because everyone else already is looking to him like he is.

Everyone follows Din. In season 2 especially Din is the one who everyone follows to rescue Grogu. No one would or could have ever done this without him, and even though the plan sounds insane? They trust him.

Mayfield is the perfect example of why Din already is seen as a leader. These two have no reason to get along and Mayfield has every right to tell Din to go to hell since he is the reason he's in prison. But by the end of the episode, Mayfield not only followed Din to success, but actively change his mind about him and killed the men in that room trying to almost atone for the fact that everyone had to see his face for this to work. Mayfield doesn't end this episode bantering about how this almost didn't work or this was stupid hope its worth it. No he just ends it with respect for Din and willingly accepts going back to prison because ultimately he feels like following Din was a worthy thing to do for a once bad man like himself.

Din getting the darksaber through a fight with a man who multiple times tried to kidnap and murder his son, is the reason we all saw this as a sign he deserves to be a leader. He didn't do it for glory or gain, he triumphed on his own merit as a man and the audience understands that its that which is the quality of a leader people want to follow.

Din works as a reluctant leader eventually finding himself as the leader of Mandalore because he didn't seek it out. He naturally proved himself and gained this position through nothing but pure emotional merit that exemplifies everything good Mandalorians stand for.

Aragorn is not a relucent hero. Aragorn is a born hero terrified of making the same mistakes as his ancestors and runs from his fate in fear until he realizes he is not like them. He becomes the King he was always born to be, because his entire arc is about breaking that cycle of fearing becoming what Isildur failed at.

Dins entire story is about a normal man through his own sweat and blood, fighting soley for the rights of the people he loves coming into power. Soley beacuse his own merit as an individual is a greater leader then those who presume to rule in the first place.

Din is meant to be a King because he grew to have qualities that make a great King without ever seeking it. Aragorn is meant to be a King because he was born to become a a King.

And by refusing to allow Din the story of growing to accept a role he once never wanted, you have crippled him of the development of realizing WHY these people believe in him, and this now Din will never truly believe in himself. Beacuse he now has no duty to fufill for the good of his people that would develop those traits.

Din giving that up without ever accepting he was becoming a leader in the first place is NOT just letting Din chose the path he wants. The best hero characters didn't get to choose their path because most often great heros never thought they would be anything of greatness. It isn't just giving Din what he thinks he wants.

It's actively taking away any chance of future character development, because now you have put him in a stagnant cycle where nothing about him ever has to change ever again.

I'm not just saying this as someone who personally wanted to see Mandalor Din, I am saying this as a writer who has spent many years studying narrative themes and character development structure. Who realizes that you have completely crippled any ability to explore a very large part of Din's seasom 2 development, by refusing him any way of growing those traits he developed.

Din shouldn't have been Mandalor because he had won the Darksaber. Din should have been Mandalor because everyone already looked to him as their leader before he ever defeated Moff Gideon in the first place.

You have not given Din what he wants, you have ruined an extremely effective method of character development by taking away all that was worked up towards. You have made Din hand leadership over to a woman who sought to use that power to corrupt in the first place. And even worse, you ruined his valiant character by making him do it willingly.

You have given Aragorn an ending where he justs his sword to Saruman, and tells him "you lead the orcs into war against us, you're already sort of like a King, you defeat the great evil and I shall go back to being a ranger hiding in the woods."

I write fanficiton. I should not be better at understanding your story and characters then you are paid to do, Jon.

It's embarrassing.

[naliljedi13]

This is perfect!

[quicksilvermad]

They have a home now 🥹 — Abigail Larson

[the-ginger-hedge-witch]

Broken Vows by Naliljedi13

Summary: Set between Book of Boba Fett and Season 3. Din Djarin is trying to reconcile his past and face his future when he crosses paths with a Force-sensitive woman with a mysterious past.

Na'lil Rawen is an apothecary living a quiet life on La Paz, a refuge for those who wish to remain lost, until she runs into a Mandalorian bounty hunter and his son. Forced to run, Din agrees to help Na'lil all the while hoping to use her to get closer to Grogu. Din's loyalty to his creed is tested as he grows closer to Na'lil and he considers what kind of Mandalorian he wants to be.

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

[pinkiemme]

I didn’t like the background so I changed it to give more western vibes 💖

Cowboy Mando bolo tie , belt , fancy boots

[pinkiemme]

We’re slowly going up the Cowboy Mando

Belt here 👀

Fancy boots here

And the Space cowboy enamel pin Kickstarter

[pinkiemme]

Cowboy Din with his horse Razor 💕

[pinkiemme]

We’re finally seeing cowboy Mando’s hat ❤️‍🔥

Bolo tie

Belt

Fancy boots

Space cowboy Kickstarter

[guess-my-next-obsession]

Joel Miller Masterlist

SERIES

the stable girl* — soft but hesitant!joel develops a crush on reader, the new horse trainer at the stables. he’s reluctant to believe that he deserves someone as good as you, but with everyone falling in love and finding happiness around him, he can’t help but start to feel hopeful too. (COMPLETED)

breaking up slowly* — a six-part series where joel and his ex-girlfriend, reader, find themselves tasked with escorting Marlene’s immune teenage ward to the Fireflies. all the yearning and all the lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers shit that makes me happy. (ONGOING)

elementary* — you’re Sarah’s fifth grade teacher, and after meeting her father at a parent/teacher conference, you find yourself developing a strong interest and affection for the two struggling Millers. (COMPLETED)

ONESHOTS

A Symptom of Age* — joel is exhausted and has a case of impotence, reader proves she doesn’t care the best way she knows how. 3.4k

What I Love* — joel details what he loves about reader. soft sex. 1.4k

Christmas Tree Farm* — part of 8 Days of Christmas ‘22. from The Stable Girl universe. smut and domestic fluff. 4.2k

Drunken Serenade* — smutty fluff about how reader won over the grumpiest guy in Jackson. 2.5k

The Babysitter* — pre-outbreak!joel x babysitter!reader. smut and feelings. 1.2k

Dust To Dust* — reader and joel have a well-practiced routine. smut and soft ending. 2k

Not-so Formal Introduction* — reader meets joel’s family for the first time in an awkward way. 1.7k

A Warm Bed* — reader gets lonely and so does joel. FILTH. 3.4k

The Third Date* — you invite joel in after your third date. smut and fluff. 2.6k

DRABBLES

The Visit* — part of Spooktacular ‘22. ghost!joel visits a mourning reader. sad vibes and ghost sex.

Trick Or Treat — Joel takes Sarah trick-or-treating and meets you.

Swallow* — joel face fucks you. that’s it.

Drunk On You* — smut.

Eyes on Me* — joel doesn’t want you to look away.

EXTRAS

tlou crash course for beginners

my joel playlist

TLOU joel scene #1

[bunnelbie]

cozy in the crest 🥺

PRINTS · MANDO ART TAG · INSTAGRAM · COMMISSION

[yelena-bellova-deactivated20241]

Twenty Years Later - Joel Miller x F!Reader

Plot: It’s been twenty years since Joel and Y/n parted ways with a farewell so crushing, they were sure it would last forever. Now, fate brings them back together in the form of a 14-year old named Ellie and forces them to set aside their past in order to secure the future.

Warnings: M for violence, gore, language, implied smut, and adult themes (16+)

————

Chapter One: Reunited

Chapter Two: Strangers In The Night

Chapter Three: Out On The Town

Chapter Four: Luck

Chapter Five: Soundtrack of Life

Chapter Six: Road Trip

Chapter Seven: Hands

Chapter Eight: Someone’s Something

Chapter Nine: Dry Your Tears

Chapter Ten: September 26th, 2003

Chapter Eleven: Almost

Chapter Twelve: (coming soon!)

Chapter Thirteen: (coming soon!)

Chapter Fourteen: (coming soon!)

Chapter Fifteen: (coming soon!)

Chapter Sixteen: (coming soon!)

Chapter Seventeen: (coming soon!)

——————

playlists

creations: moodboard by @nairafeather

Q + As + Headcanons: Rosebud’s Age

Alternate Ending (no Cordyceps)

Joel and Rosebud + fights

Joel and Rosebud + meeting after Outbreak

Rosebud + dating before Joel/meeting Joel pre-Austin

What if…Tommy and Rosebud?

Harry Potter houses

[stevenrogered]

PEDRO PASCAL as JOEL MILLER The Last of Us | 1x06, “Kin”

[mymycorrhizae]

The Last of Us | S01E06

[rylandsgrace]

#I will never be the same (insp)

[guess-my-next-obsession]

Elementary, Chapter Three

pairing: pre-outbreak!joel miller x teacher!reader

chapter rating: E (18+ only, mentions of periods, one brief mention of grief, oral (m rec))

word count: 4.5k

series masterlist | joel masterlist | joel playlist

“Mornin.” Joel’s southern drawl called your attention as you stood in front of the whiteboard jotting down today’s objectives. He stood in the doorway of your classroom holding two coffees and a white paper bag, a hopeful smile on his face. “Brought you a coffee and some donuts.”

“Well that’s awfully thoughtful of you,” you beamed as you walked over, accepting the paper cup from his hand before gesturing for him to join you at your desk. “Sarah’s actually out at recess? That’s a shocker.”

“No, she had a bad headache this mornin’ so I let her stay home,” he informed as he pulled up a seat and sat beside you.

“So you came all this way just to bring me coffee?”

“And donuts,” he corrected with a boyish smile, pulling a glazed donut that was still warm out of the bag and resting it on a napkin. The unexpected gesture paired with the instability of your PMS hormones brought tears to your eyes. “I hope you don’t mind,” he began carefully, a look of concern on his face as he studied your eyes. “I just wanted to see you before I head out to work.”

“No, I don’t mind at all. I’m just…I’m on my period so I’m sort of an emotional wreck right now,” you chuckled as you the felt waves of tears you were holding at bay begin to spill over your waterline, Joel’s thumb beating your own as you moved to wipe them away. “Thank you. God, I hate being a woman.”

“It’s no problem,” he laughed. “Anything I can do to help brighten your day?”

“As if you haven’t already,” you countered with a smirk, pointing to the treats he brought you. Joel gave you a bashful smile and reached for the donut, holding it up for you to take a bite. You hummed at the taste and plucked it from his fingers only to feed it back to him. “Almost as sweet as you,” you teased.

“What a line,” he chuckled and sucked his thumb clean, shaking his head. Your eyes were glued to his lips as he licked them clean, the urge to kiss him swelling inside your chest the longer he sat with you.

“You gotta go,” you urged, shaking your head and looking towards your computer in hopes of it distracting you.

Joel laughed. “Why’s that?”

“Because I’m supposed to be a role model and all I want to do is stick my tongue down your throat,” you confessed, earning the most hearty laugh to date, your grin widening at the mere sound of it. “It’s torture!”

“I’ll go, I’m sorry for torturin’ you, baby,” Joel looked into your eyes, his amused grin softening into something more gentle as you let out a chuckle. “You doin’ anything tonight?”

“I think you’ll find the answer to that question is always the same: no.” Joel’s smile widened again and he nodded.

“In that case, how would you like to join us for dinner? Tommy’s cookin’ so I promise it’ll be edible.” You giggled and nodded eagerly, standing up with him and walking towards the door. “I’ll pick you up at six?”

“Sounds perfect,” you slid your arms around his waist and smiled up at him as you hugged him close. “Thank you for the coffee, and the donut, and the you.”

“More coffee and donuts and me to come,” he promised with a grin and leaned down, filling the space between your lips for a gentle peck. “I gotta get outta here before I get you fired.”

“Yeah, you really do.” You kissed him again anyways, Joel’s smile pressing against yours beginning to feel like a drug. “I’ll see you at six.”

“Sharp.”

At six o’clock when Joel’s truck had yet to pull into your driveway, you brushed it off. No one was ever that on time. And then at 6:20, you reasoned that perhaps traffic had still been busy from rush hour. But when the clock neared seven and you still hadn’t heard from him, the excuses started to become harder and harder to find. And eventually, at 7:20, you resigned to having been stood up completely and marched yourself into your bedroom to wallow in pity.

As you changed out of the sundress you chose with Joel in mind, your head spun with worries of what could have happened—did he forget he invited you? Did he change his mind? Did Sarah change his mind? He mentioned she wasn’t feeling well—was she okay?

Your head spun and spun until you were sure you were going to be sick, and then the doorbell rang.

Shuffling out of your bedroom in your robe and slippers, you checked your watch—8:30. No one but Joel could be knocking on your door at this hour, but the certainty of it being him didn’t help soothe your anxious stomach.

“Joel,” you acknowledged his presence as you opened the door, keeping a cold distance and crossing your arms as you waited for his explanation.

“I’m late,” he sighed apologetically but you gave him no response, not even a blink. “You already know that. I’m sorry.” He rubbed his forehead and squeezed his eyes closed. “Tommy and I got caught up at work. Sarah ain’t too happy with me either.”

“As she should be,” you sassed, his excuse not good enough to tame the irritation your hormones amplified. “You have a cellphone, you know?”

“Broke it earlier,” he held his smashed Nokia up, offering you a tired but hopeful smile. “I really am sorry. I…fucked up. Can I please make it right?”

You eyed him carefully, your irritation fading with every passing second, the tenderness and sincerity in his smile winning you over.

“Sure,” you finally sighed. “But this is your one and only pass at standing me up. Got it?”

“Yes ma’am,” he smiled and stepped closer to you, his hands finding your waist. He eyed your robe-covered form and chuckled, earning a swat to his stomach. “What was that for?”

“You’re laughing at me,” you accused with a hint of playfulness in your tone.

“No I’m not,” he chuckled again. “I just like the sight of you in a robe. Looks comfy.”

“Yeah, well, I thought I was being stood up,” you countered with a raise of your eyebrow. “Let me go change.”

“I can come with ya,” he offered, your eyes rolling and a laugh bursting from your chest at his attempt.

“Yeah right,” you turned and walked towards your bedroom, Joel remaining in the door way. “Maybe if you showed up on time we could’ve arranged that.”

“I’m gonna be apologizin’ for this for years, aren’t I?” he called out and you beamed at the fact that, even flippantly, he thought about the prospect of the two of you being together years from now.

When you stepped out in your dress, Joel looked like he might faint, his eyes raking over your form like you were a feast and he hadn’t eaten in years.

When was the last time he’d…eaten?

“I am an idiot,” he stretched out the syllables in the last word, bringing a wide smirk to your face as you grabbed your purse and followed him out of the house. Joel’s hand rested on your lower back as he walked you to the passenger side, opening your door for you. Before you climbed in, he stopped you with a mischievous grin, leaning in for a kiss. You obliged willingly, smiling into the tender peck that quickly snowballed into him pinning you against the side of the seat. “You look too damn good.”

“You’re just trying to butter me up,” you mumbled against his lips as he continued pressing soft, slow kisses against yours.

“Mm-mm,” he shook his head, his hands on your waist sliding down to your hips. “S’the god’s honest truth.”

After a couple more kisses, the two of you found the strength to pull away from each other so that you could get home to Sarah and Tommy who were likely sat stewing waiting for your arrival.

“Sorry,” Joel apologized as soon as the two of you stepped into the house, Sarah and Tommy sat in front of the TV with bored faces. “Tommy, you remember—“

“I remember,” he smiled at you, tipping his chin your way. “How’s the car runnin’?”

“As poorly as it ever was, but it’s running,” you chuckled before turning to watch as Joel and Sarah walked into the kitchen, whispering about something you couldn’t hear.

“Sorry I made Joel stand you up,” Tommy offered, pulling your attention back to him. “I didn’t know he had a date lined up.”

“Oh, so you’re the one I need to be mad at,” you teased as you moved to sit down on the sofa.

“Sarah,” Joel called out in a sigh as Sarah stormed out of the kitchen and up the stairs, you and Tommy watching the scene unfold. Joel stomped to follow her, but the slamming of her door seemed to stop him as he came shuffling back downstairs a moment later. “Sorry,” he exhaled as he looked at you, embarrassment flashing in his eyes. “She, uh, she’s havin’ a bad night.”

“Oh,” you replied, suddenly feeling guilty. Had your presence caused this? Were you unknowingly stealing him away from her, or at least making her feel like you were? “It’s alright, I can call a cab if you need to—“

“No.” He quickly shook his head and sighed again, clearly exhausted and frustrated with more than just tonight’s complications. “I want you to stay, I mean. If you still want to.”

“Are you sure? She seemed pretty upset.” The last thing you wanted to do was to further complicate the night by staying when Sarah clearly didn’t want you to, but Joel’s earnest eyes began to dissuade you.

“She just needs time to cool down,” he assured, waving for you to join him in the kitchen as the two of you finally remembered Tommy’s presence in the room.

“One more minute of that back and forth and I might’ve stomped upstairs with her,” Tommy muttered playfully as you got up and followed Joel into the kitchen.

“Sarah had a fight with her friend, I guess,” he filled you in as he leaned back against the counter. “Somehow that turned into us arguin’, and then she just ran out.”

“Arguing about anything in specific? Or…anyone?” you hinted, Joel’s eyes softening as he noticed your worry. He walked to you, gently sandwiching you to the counter behind you. You placed your hands on his chest and smoothed over the cotton covering his warmth. “Joel, if this starts to mess with our student/teacher relationship, I can’t—“

“She loves you, I promise you that,” he assured, reaching up to cradle your face. “She was just hopin’ tonight would be just me and her, I guess. Even Tommy was drivin’ her up the wall. But I told her that I invited you over and it would be rude to cancel, ‘specially after already showin’ up so late.”

“See,” you pouted, poking his stomach. “I should go.”

“I want you to stay,” he frowned, resting his forehead against yours.

“And I want to stay, too, but take it from a former pre-teen female when I say the longer you let her ‘cool off’, the more pissed off she’s getting.” Joel exhaled a chuckle and nodded, stepping back enough to give you some room. You rested your hand on his chest and slid it up to his neck, your fingers toying with the baby hairs on the back of it. “Besides, me being on my period kind of kills some of the fun I was hoping to have.”

“One of these nights we’ll get it right,” he husked in a whisper, his eyes staring into yours with an content adoration.

“Hey, I’m fixin’ to head out,” Tommy walked in and interrupted the moment, Joel’s eyes begrudgingly leaving yours to look at his younger brother.

“Mind giving her a ride home?” Joel asked, his hand rubbing your back as though to beg you to reconsider leaving.

“Sure.” Tommy shrugged and nodded. “Everything alright with Sarah?”

“That’s what I’m gonna figure out,” Joel replied before turning to you. “Come on, I’ll walk you out.”

“Well, I guess that’s my cue to stay inside,” Tommy chuckled as the two of you walked past him. “You got five minutes on the clock.”

The darkness of the spring night didn’t offer any chill, just a warm breeze that flowed through the skirt of your dress as you stood at the bed of the truck, his hands on your body—one on your waist and the other holding your face—his lips and hips pressed into you like he was trying to become one moving entity. Your fingers tangled and tugged on his hair as he kissed you breathless, the two of you desperate like a couple high schoolers though you were long beyond that.

“Howdy, neighbor!”

You jumped at the sound of an outside voice, Joel’s sigh brushing across your lips as he pulled away from you.

“Hey, Mr. Adler,” he forced out, offering him a strained smile and a wave. Your face hid in his chest, embarrassed giggles being muffled by the cotton of his shirt as he carried on a conversation with the older man next door as though he hadn’t just had his tongue down your throat.

“I see you’ve got a new friend,” Mr. Adler pointed out and Joel nodded in confirmation. “Maybe the two of y’all can come over for bible study sometime this week? I know how easy it is to fall into the temptation of the flesh—“

“Alright, well, we’ll keep that in mind. Right now she’s actually goin’ home, so—“

“Ah. Well, it was nice to meet ya, sweetheart!”

“Nice to meet you,” you croaked, face still hot from being caught in the act. You waited until Joel confirmed that Mr. Adler had gone back inside before lifting your head. Joel’s grin was contagious, the two of you snorting in laughter like two little kids. “Bible study?”

“I know,” he exhaled in a huff of laughter. “Can’t count the amount of times I’ve been hoodwinked into sittin’ through one of his wife’s sermons. She’s worse than him, believe it or not.”

“You sure you don’t mind all the temptations of the flesh?” you teased, pulling him closer.

“Not when it’s your flesh doin’ the temptin’.” He pressed a soft kiss to your lips. “I really am sorry tonight went so shitty.”

“It’s alright,” you exhaled, your palms rubbing over his waist as you held him close. “Dating is hard, and I’m sure it doesn’t make it any easier dating your kid’s teacher.”

“No, it doesn’t make it easier,” he agreed. “Does make it a little saucier, though.”

“Oh, I’m just a part of your little fantasy, huh?” You poked his stomach and earned a laugh, Joel’s smile turning boyish. “That’s alright, because sexy single-dad who works with his hands is actually my fantasy.”

“Oh yeah?” He lifted an eyebrow and smirked down at you as you nodded, your lip bitten between your teeth. Joel gave you a shake of his head and a groan before resting his forehead on your shoulder. “You’re killin’ me with those eyes.”

Petting his head, you laughed. “I promise we’ll figure it out one of these days. But for now, you’ve got an angsty little girl upstairs who probably misses you.”

“Yeah,” he nodded and lifted his head, pecking your cheek one final time before stepping back. Tommy walked out right on time and patted his brother’s back as the two of you stood longingly staring at one another.

“Time’s up, kids.”

Saturday had gone by quickly, the book club meeting being cancelled due to some networking event at the library, leaving you with the rare opportunity to go check out the farmers market and do some shopping. After your errands, you tucked in to get some grading and lesson planning done, and before you knew it, the day was over. The only thing that could’ve made the day better was a call from Joel, but you swallowed your neediness, knowing that days would likely come when you’d be far too busy to call, as well.

On Sunday morning, you were surprised to hear a knock on your door as you shuffled around the house tidying up. With a furrow in your brows, you grabbed your robe and tied it closed to hide the fact that you were in just an oversized t-shirt, your hair untouched from your night of sleep. Swinging the door open, your eyes went wide at the sight of Joel fully dressed and carrying a bouquet of flowers, his smile widening as he took in your slept-in state.

“Joel,” you nearly gasped before realizing you still had yet to brush your teeth.

“Hey,” he greeted, his eyes filled with the same affection as always. “Did I wake you up?”

“No, I just…I was just cleaning up,” you chuckled and gestured for him to come inside. “I’m gonna go make myself look a little bit more human real quick.”

Joel laughed and nodded, pointing towards your kitchen. “Can I get some coffee goin’?”

“Oh, yeah,” you led him into the kitchen and showed him where you kept everything before rushing off into your bedroom to try and make a miracle happen in under five minutes.

You handled your hair first, doing the quickest and easiest hairstyle you could think up before running through your skincare and brushing your teeth. Throwing on a bit of concealer and mascara, you gave yourself a once over in the mirror before settling on your appearance. You tossed on a t-shirt and a pair of jeans, too lazy to put on anything more than that, and doused yourself in your perfume in hopes that it would mask the fact that you hadn’t had the chance to shower since yesterday morning.

“There she is,” Joel chimed as you walked into the kitchen, two cups of hot coffee waiting on the counter beside him. “Didn’t know how you took it, so I left it black.”

“I actually prefer it black,” you announced with a smile, delighting in the look of surprise on his face. “Creamer and sugar just makes me feel heavy and sick in the stomach.”

“Interestin’,” he lifted his cup to his lips and took a sip. “Sorry for comin’ over unannounced. I was gonna try callin’ from our landline, but I couldn’t remember your number and you ain’t in the phonebook yet.”

Well, that explains the lack of communication yesterday.

“No, I don’t mind. I mean, aside from you seeing me in my true form,” you joked as you waved him to follow you through the house. “I have an Arizona room out here where we can sit.”

“Fancy,” he teased as the two of you stepped into the half-inside, half-outside room. Joel looked around the room with an impressed frown, nodding at the decor before joining you on the vintage floral sectional you thrifted when you moved to Austin.

“Yeah, this was just a porch when I moved in, but I’m not a huge fan of bugs so I built a little enclosure for myself.” Joel turned to you with a shocked look, gesturing around at the half-walls with mesh windows.

“You did this yourself?” You nodded in confirmation and felt pride swell in your chest as he gave you an impressed look. “Might have to fire Tommy and hire you.”

“Have you always been into construction?” Joel shook his head and chuckled as he took another sip of his coffee.

“No, no, I used to—“ He paused to laugh, the sound of it pulling one from your lips as well. “I used to want to be a singer, believe it or not.”

“A singer?” Your face lit up at the new trivia, your mind immediately trying to wrap your head around the man in front of you on a stage.

“I know,” he laughed and turned bashful. “Then I realized I’d have to sing in front of people.”

“Stage fright?”

“Almost everything-fright. I’m apparently an anxious person—if you ask my therapist, at least.”

Another surprising detail.

“So sexy contractor who’s also in therapy? I won the lottery.” Joel grinned at your teasing and rolled his eyes affectionately.

“It was Sarah’s idea, believe it or not. After her mom passed, she convinced me to go to some sessions with her, and then I ended up really likin’ it, so I started going on my own.”

“Everything I learn about you just makes me like you more,” you admitted, your eyes locked on his as he turned to look over at you. “I really like you, Joel.”

“And I really like you,” he husked, his eyes falling to your lips momentarily before lifting to meet yours again. “God, I feel like a little kid again. Butterflies and all that.”

“I give you butterflies, Miller?” you asked in a teasing tone, tilting your head and smirking. Joel leaned in, his lips just brushing yours as he spoke.

“A whole damn mess of ‘em,” he mumbled against your mouth and you couldn’t suppress the soft moan that rose from your chest at the sound of him so hushed and raspy against your lips.

You threw your leg over his lap, his hands resting on your hips as you settled against him. Joel kissed you like he needed it to survive, his lips so soft and pliant against yours it felt like you were melting into him. He slid his hands up your sides so that he could hold both sides of your face, the tender action pulling a soft moan from your lips into his.

“I’m on my period,” you reminded him, but mostly yourself as you fought the urge to roll your hips against him.

“I don’t mind,” he mumbled against your lips.

“I might’ve taken you up on that offer if it wasn’t our first time together,” you replied as you broke the kiss and pulled back enough to look at him, his lips kiss-bitten and eyes lazy with lust. Your smile beamed as you reached to trace the outline of his bottom lip. “But…”

“But what, baby?” he asked, voice content and tender as he watched you climb off his lap and shimmy your way to the floor between his spread thighs. “Oh.” His smile turned mischievous for s moment before he composed himself. “You really don’t gotta—“

“Oh, I want to. Trust me.” You laughed to yourself as you thought about the amount of hours you’d spent contemplating the way he’d feel in your mouth, the way he’d taste, since you first started this whole thing. “But only if you want it, too.”

“If I want it?” he repeated your words with a chuckle as he punched your chin. “Baby girl, you’re all I can think about these days. Of course I want it. Want you.”

“Good,” you grinned and slid your hands up his thighs, relishing in the hitch of his breath brought o. by your fingertips nearing closer and closer to the slowly growing bulge in his jeans. Joel’s eyes were glued to yours as you undid his belt buckle, his chest rising and falling with each heavy breath. With a smirk, you popped the button of his jeans open and unzipped him, Joel lifting his hips and shucking his jeans off for you, his proud length springing out and standing at full attention. “Jesus,” you gasped as you gripped him in your hand, his girth teetering on too much. “You have a huge dick, Joel. Are you aware of that? I feel like you’ve gotta be aware of that by now.”

Joel chuckled and nodded, his smile softening into a look of relief as you pumped him in your hand.

“Fuck,” he moaned, his head tipping back. Your grip on him was firm, your wrist twisting with every stroke until a bead of his arousal formed on the tip of his cock. Unable to stop yourself, you leaned forward and licked the bitterness away, bringing his eyes back to you. “Baby,” he cooed with a pained face as you wrapped your lips around his bulbous tip.

“Taste so good,” you hummed, kissing your way down his shaft to his balls before taking one into your mouth. Joel whimpered at the sight, his hand cradling your jaw as you continued to work him up to the point of mewling desperation.

“Please, baby,” he breathed out, absolutely drunk on you. “Take me in your mouth.”

You grinned as you gripped him at the base and swirled your tongue around his tip a few times, his cock twitching in time with his moans. Spurred on by his vocal nature, you wrapped your lips around him and locked your eyes with his as you swallowed him down inch by inch until you were kissing your fist wrapped around his shaft. Joel whimpered and rolled his head back before gathering himself, clearly determined to watch the show you were putting on for him.

“So beautiful,” he praised, his voice even huskier than it normally was. You sucked him in time with your strokes, sinful slurping and gagging filling the space and no doubt traveling through the open air into your neighbors backyards but you couldn’t find it in yourself to care, not with the way he was whimpering and gasping for more of you. “Fuck, baby. I’m…fuck, I’m close.”

“You gonna cum in my mouth?” you purred as you took a much needed break from choking on his length, your saliva-wet fist pumping him all the while.

“Please,” he groaned, his neck straining as his hips bucked up into your fist. “Want you to swallow it all, baby girl.”

You couldn’t wait.

Bringing your mouth back to his cock, you sucked him as though your life depended on it, stroking him fast and taking him deep with ever bob of your head.

Joel looked wrecked as he finally gave in to the euphoria of it all, his cock throbbing as it spilled deep down your throat, so deep you couldn’t even taste him on your tongue.

“Fuck,” he panted, his pleasure-lazy eyes batting open to look at you still between his thighs, wiping your chin. “Jesus Christ, woman, I think you nearly killed me.”

“Would’ve been a good way to go,” you countered with a proud smirk as you got up and sat down right beside him. Joel was quick to pull you closer, his lips kissing any inch of skin he could find.

“Have you eaten?” he asked as he placed feather soft kisses to your jaw.

“Nope.”

“Well, let’s get you cleaned up and then I’ll take you out for some breakfast.” Joel stood up and tucked himself back into his jeans before holding out a hand for you to take.

“It’s closer to lunch at this point,” you corrected as you accepted his help up. Joel rolled his eyes playfully and tugged you into his side as he walked the two of you back into the house.

“Fine. Lunch, then. Doesn’t matter what we call the damn meal as long as you’re the one I’m sharin’ it with.”