She glanced at Joel, knowing that he knew that something was up. She had been silent for movie night, a rare oddity, plus she kept glancing at Joel and she knew that the other knew. He just didn't know what was wrong. Realistically, she knew that she shouldn't be bugging about it this much, after all, his parents are gay but she couldn't help it. She needed to tell him but a small part of her thought that Joel would hate her.
She glanced at him when the movie paused, finding him already looking at her. "Alright, what is it?" He asked, turning to look at her.
She had decided to sit at the opposite end of the couch rather then next to Joel earlier that night, placing her feet in Joel's lap and despite his teasing, he didn't care. She shifted in her spot, unsure how to start. "I don't like boys," she blurted.
Joel's eyes widened. "Oh, uh..is this because of-"
"No!" Ellie interrupted, her own eyes wide before she cleared her throat, looking away. "No, this isn't because of him. I didn't like boys even before him."
"Oh, okay," Joel said, clearing his throat. "I still love you. No matter who you like."
Ellie's head shot up, her eyes searching for Joel's. "What?" she asked softly, her voice breaking. Joel loved her? Like...a daughter?
"What? Did I say something wrong?" he asked. He wasn't sure how to handle it, he's never done this before and he didn't want to hurt Ellie.
"You love me?" she asked, staring at him.
Joel froze. Oh , he thought, realizing what he had let slip. He nodded. "Yeah, I love you. You're my daughter."
Ellie's bottom lip wobbled before she promptly bursted into tears. Joel panicked, moving from his spot to pull her closer. "What's wrong? Is that not okay?"
Ellie shook her head. "Happy tears," she told him, sniffling. "Sorry. I didn't mean to make you panic."
Joel slumped down against the couch in relief when he was told that she wasn't upset. "It's okay."
"Joel? I've never had a dad before," she said. "Sure, my mom had boyfriends but none of them were dad. So I'm glad that you're my dad. Even if I don't know what that means."
Joel looked at her, smiling softly. "That's okay."
Ellie smiled back. "So does this mean I can call you dad?"
Joel shrugged. "You can but you don't have too."
Ellie relaxed, shifting to lean into his side. "Okay."
He kissed the top of her head, wrapping his arm around her. "Okay."
YOU ARE READING
save me
FanfictionShe never knew the feeling of comfort; the feeling of home. Instead, all Ellie Williams knew was violence. Raised by a mother who hated her, it was hard not too. When one day her whole life is turned upside down when she's split from her mother and...
