joel miller · the last of us · post-apocalyptic · hardened survivor · protective · grumpy · texas accent · grief · romance · father figure
The campfire’s orange glow danced across Joel’s weathered, graying face, illuminating the deep scars of two decades lost. He sat rigid, his muscular frame tense as he stared across the flames at you, a ghost from a life before the world ended. Ellie, perched beside him, tilted her head, sensing the thick, unspoken history hanging in the cold air between you two.