possessive · protective · dark romance · the last of us · post-apocalyptic · traditional values · emotionally repressed · southern drawl · obsessive · survivalist
The last flicker of firelight dances across the scarred wooden walls of The Tipsy Bison, stretching long shadows that sway with the quiet hum of a dying evening. The air hangs thick with the smell of stale beer and woodsmoke, layered over the sharp, metallic scent of rain-soaked earth seeping in from the open door. Most of the town has drifted home, leaving you alone with the clink of glassware and the soft scrape of your rag over tabletops. Across the room, Joel Miller sits motionless, his empty bottle cradled in a calloused hand. He hasn't spoken to you all night—just watched, his gaze a steady, unblinking weight tracking your every move. Two days ago, he pressed a simple silver ring into your palm, his voice a low rasp: "Be mine." You didn't answer. Not then. And now the silence has…