Dark Paradise - Joel Miller x OC

Don't make me regret this

"Joel, wake up, wake up!"

The man stands up violently, disoriented at having come out of his deep sleep so harshly. He realizes that Chloe is standing in front of him. Panicked, he forces his still-heavy body to sit up.

"What's going on? Are you ok? Are you hurt?

-No, come look at the windows"

He rubs his face and stands up quickly. What can cause this agitation in the young woman? Trespassers? Infected? He quickly regains his survivor's reflexes, his body on alert, ready to fight to protect his life and those of his family. But no matter how well he scrutinizes the street, he sees nothing. Unless.

"Did you wake me up because it's snowing?!

-Look it's so pretty, everything is white!"

He rubs his face again, distraught that he had to cut his night short for this. But she doesn't seem to realize it and continues excitedly.

"And do you hear that silence?! Isn't that weird that the snow has its own sound?

-If you say so.

-Come on, be excited!

-It's 4 am.

-Don't be so grumpy, that's magical.

-You know that it snows all the time here, right? You'll see, by February you'll be fed up with it.

-Impossible!"

He's about to answer but he stops, looking out the window again. He can't suppress a smile as he listens to her amazement. It's true that it's beautiful. It's hard to get tired of such a spectacle, no matter what his crabby side might say.

They stay like that side by side for a while. Not saying a word, just admiring the flakes falling, adding to the already substantial layer covering the street. He only broke away from this vision when he feels her shiver next to him. She is wearing only a t-shirt and light sports pants, her feet bare on the wood floor. He speaks softly.

"You should go back to bed, you don't want to be sick before even going out"

She nods and with a superhuman effort looks away from the window. She gives a contrite smile to her host.

"Sorry I woke you up for that.

-It's alright, I'll be sleeping in no time.

-Good night Joel"

He follows her with his eyes as she leaves his bedroom. What a strange bird he got there. He slips back into the sheets, sighing at the time. He knows that his alarm will soon twist his ears. Much too soon. He wonders if it's even worth falling back to sleep. Did she even get a little sleep? He tells himself he should get up to check her out, but at the thought, his eyes close and he sinks back into sleep.

----

For the past few weeks, Chloe has been working at the diner. She enjoys this new position where she meets all the people of Jackson, getting to know them and listening to their stories. Maria is happy to have entrusted her with this mission, the young woman proving to be very comfortable in this job.

After all, she has experience behind a bar. But that, only Joel knows. It has been several days since she confided in him what had happened to her mother and her early years with Talia. But she didn't dare tell him that she too had been on stage. That she danced for these men. The same ones who came back afterwards, when Cyril was no longer there to protect her. When there was more to buy than her image.

Joel doesn't need to know everything, she told herself, convinced that there are things best kept a secret. She even probably told him too much already. But she can't help it. When they find each other in the silence and darkness of the house they share, at times when everyone is sleeping peacefully, then confidences come naturally. As if the words long imprisoned finally found a way to escape, leaving her no other choice than speaking them.