#(paras.replies.gradeigh)

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Thinking about their future together, even the word fate, just felt right. He couldn’t imagine himself with someone else now, didn’t want to. What would his life be like without Daisy? What had it been, only a few days ago? It felt like she was his missing piece, like the time they spent apart, he was making more plans to see her, to better her life in some way. Rationally. He knew they were probably going too fast, he was too attached, but why should he care? What were the true risks of getting this invested in someone if they seemed to reciprocate? “Falling asleep to you sounds like a sin… I don’t think I want to miss any extra time with your consciousness.” When he said things like that, his inner thoughts, there was often something deep inside that worried it was finally too much, she was going to let him down easy and ‘set him straight’, but he never let that stop him. He didn’t want to keep anything from Daisy.

The idea of handling, helping, managing her social media does sound appealing to him, if he’s honest. He’s always found it something he felt comfortable doing, engaging with the world through a screen. He liked to think he understood the masses that way, even if that was his ego talking. He knew a lot of his own popularity came from his wealth and his face, but he’s like to think he was strategic too, used his manipulation tactics for good. “I’ll have you know, it’s taken everything in me not to just become your biggest fan page.” He is only mostly joking. When he was waiting for her first reply to his DM, he had scrolled through every video under her search on tiktok, and had read lots from her fans on twitter. “I just..” He thinks it’s kinda stupid, what he’s about to say. She has said yes to let him follow her to LA, is letting him stay over, has never rebuffed his affections thus far.. “I don’t want you to feel pressured to have me linked to your socials, okay? I know I can be divisive and get people fired up and I would never want that to turn on you.” Which is true, being seen out with him is one thing, having him on your social media, being seen as endorsing his views, that’s another. He’s called out people, a lot of people. He makes enemies easily and is hated by no one that matters, but still a loud minority. It seems late to warn her, but he wants to. It’s scary, feeling like this could be it.

"well, maybe when we're out in la and i'm not having to sing eight shows a week, i won't be as easily tired out, i can sing you a song to help you fall asleep or something." she doesn't want to think about how badly she knows she's blushing now, face hot with it as she chews on her bottom lip, trying to hide the smile that's creeping across her face. it feels nice, having someone like gradeigh there, in her corner, cheering her on no matter what. her parents, her siblings, they haven't even come to see her in any shows, and they all still live in the city, it isn't like it would be a huge inconvenience anyway. but she doesn't want to think about that. doesn't want to dwell on the idea.

she listens with rapt attention as he speaks, and shakes her head a little. "if this is fate, and i dunno if it is or if i believe in fate, i'm pretty sure we still would have met somehow. and if you want to be jammed into my art hole, maybe that's something we can explore tonight, when you're sleeping over." she feels her blush getting hotter, and quickly leans across the center of the car to kiss his cheek before settling back in her seat. "if you want." she thinks to add it as an afterthought, laughiing a little awkwardly. a soft hum leaves her, and she considers him for a minute before shrugging. "if you want, you're really good a social media, you can be my social media manager. my agent is always going on and on about how i need to be more active online, help boost my profile or whatever. we didn't really get to hard launch ourselves, but we could do something cute and fun on tiktok or something."

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He couldn’t help the smile on his face when she shared about the fairy princess aspiration. He could see her as that, something so delicate and yet powerful, but always free. He would be damned if anyone clipped her wings, not while he was around. He didn’t like to think of himself as someone who was possessive or overpowering, ever, but he would if it meant protecting her, saving her light. “You’re right, you are insecure. It’s cool though, I’m here to amp you up.” He took one hand off the wheel, using it to gently squeeze her thigh. “You think people are giving you chances, letting you on a broadway stage, because you’re nice? You’re talented, Daisy. The only reason I haven’t asked you to sing for me is because I don’t want to tire you.”

Listening to her talk about her family fit a few more pieces into the puzzle, it made sense that maybe she didn’t see her accomplishments as great when you had siblings like that. He guessed that was another way he had gotten lucky in life. “You fingered things out on your own though, yeah? Being born with a big brain is one thing, gaining knowledge is another.” He added when she had finished, glazing over at her when they were stopped at a light. “Would it be inappropriate to say I’d love to be jammed into your art hole? Respectfully, of course.” He was laughing at his own joke, but shook his head before becoming serious. “I’m glad you found something you were good at, that you have loved. Imagine, you don’t find performing, you aren’t at the stage door, I’m by myself in this car right now, going home to hang out with my parents. That’s a tragedy, Precious.”  He moved his hand to bring hers up to his mouth, kissing it briefly before removing his attention back to the road. “When I was younger I wanted to be my father, but I was pretty sure he was royalty. It was all very Lion King and I was a nightmare, I’m sure. There were a few years when I was prepubescent that I also thought about being a doctor, but blood always makes me pass out.” He didn’t know what he wanted to be now, if he was honest. Daisy’s arm candy seemed ideal, but he didn’t want to press on her too many expectations.

"well, when i was three i wanted to be a fairy princess, if that counts." the laugh that daisy lets out as she settles into the seat, eyes straying away from the road to look at him at every opportunity. honestly, it's a good thing she isn't driving, because daisy would surely wreck the car and they'd be in a heap somewhere on the side of the road. it's not like it's her fault that he's so nice to look at. "i wasn't, though. talented, not really. i don't even think i really am now, but... i mean i guess i'm talented enough to be a lead in a broadway show, so..." she trails off for a minute, eyes finally pulling from him to look down at her lap for a moment, hands twisting over one another.

"my brother and sister were both really smart kids, and i wasn't really that smart. i was more of a... free spirit. i wasn't dumb, like, i could pass a class, but it didn't come as naturally. my brother was also big into sports, and my sister did academic decathalon, so i was jammed into the arts hole, because that was something i could do that was mine, and i fell in love with it." her shrug is small as she looks up at him again, offering a little grin. "i guess this was all i really wanted to do. what about you? what was your big dream when you were a kid?"

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He hates that he clams up in crowds. Preferring to be on a stage, in a private setting, or even a small party with twenty of his closest friends. He couldn’t remember when he started to have a problem with people surrounding him, but he always tried to reason with himself that it was normal. His parents were very into the idea that he was their ‘perfect boy’ when he was younger, loving to show him off, brag to the world about their spawn. As he got older, less controllable, they tried fear tactics to keep him in mind, he wondered now if somehow that anxiety had devious seeped in without him noticing. Either way, he hated it. He knew the world wasn’t that scary of a place, he knew the way his breath quickened and heart raced was a little dramatic for what was actually happening, but he couldn’t seem to reason himself out of his reaction.

Having Daisy with him in the car was nice though, not that he hoped for her protection. It felt better, knowing she wasn’t raising the alarms, her touch soothing him. Flash after flash, he could feel the world slow down, seeming less harsh than before. “I think your choice in a companion is the least enviable thing about you.” As he steadied himself, he was relieved to see the crowd beginning to disperse, surely they had all gotten enough pictures for the night. He wondered what they did while they were eating, just sitting outside in the cold? He hoped it was worth it, slowly pulling away from their spot and into traffic. “So tell me, were you always this talented growing up or did you have other dreams?”

daisy's entire life had been spent under the not so watchful eye of very busy parents, keeping up with her own things much better than they could ever hope to do. her love of the arts and acting had all started because tv had been one of her best friends growing up, and the idea that she's going to get to share her most guilty pleasure shows with gradeigh sends a little thrill though her that she can't quite describe. it's like a little piece of herself, one of those parts that she can only hand over to someone who really deserves to see it, the freedom to share something dumb that she enjoys without the fear of judgement. "oh, we'll start with dance moms, then. housewives is a lot for your first outing. dance moms at least has less characters to keep up with." her grin is bright and playful, and she leans into his side as he leads her though the restaurant and outside.

the flashes of the camera are starting to feel a little more familiar, but no less invasive, though her pr manager has told her on several occasions that simply relaxing and moving though it as though nothing was going on at all is the best way to handle it. so she does, a casual smile on her face, eyes turned up toward gradeigh. the hand she had around his waist, pressed against his hip, gave it a little squeeze. "we're all good." voice low, so that only he can hear, and then she's slipping into his car and buckling her seat belt, leaning over the center of the car to press a kiss to his cheek that she knows will probably end up in the paper the next morning. "i bet that every girl in new york is jealous of me right now, hm?" she offers the words as a simple way to distract him from the noise around them, hand resting firmly on his thigh and giving it a squeeze. "i managed to snag the most eligable bachelor in town."

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In more ways than one, he couldn’t wait to get into bed with Daisy. They had held each other close, but not really a full on body to body contact yet, he couldn’t wait for that. The idea of having her close, feeling her body contour to his, incredible. He felt like a little girl, giddy at the thought of cuddling, but who’s going to judge? “Oh damn, I’ve never seen either.. You’re really opening up a whole new world for me..” His parents had always been very intent on controlling his media intake and as an adult, who had time? Sure he had tiktok and netflix, but he had always been more interested in living it. He did love romantic Comedies though, a truth he’s sure he’d share in the future. He took a deep breath, leading Daisy towards the door, regretting choosing somewhere with street parking. He had to make a mental note to start choosing more private dates, maybe buying out the place, any way they could be alone. He wrapped his arm protectively around her smaller frame, doing what he could to block her from the flashes as they made their way to his rolls-royce ghost. Gradeigh only let go of her to open the door, doing his best to stay calm. He knew he could be panicked at times like this, acknowledging the irony that he only liked the chaos when he was the one in control of it. All the times the paparazzi had caught him mid meltdown as a kid flashed through his head, embarrassing. 

"trust me when i say that the ego on a baseball player is absolutely unmatched and that you are definitely surpassing him in spades so far." daisy's past is far more littered with hot and cold relationships than she likes to think about or admit. she spent far too long in her teen years falling too fast for all the wrong kinds of guys. of course, people are probably saying that this relationship is way too fast, she doesn't bother to read the articles about it, doesn't really care what the media is saying about the whole thing. she's happy, and if this is a good thing, she isn't going to question it. if it turns out bad later? then she can look back on it, but gradeigh has never given her a single reason to believe that it'll go badly.

he's been nothing short of a gentleman so far.

she laughs a little as she takes his hand, standing from her chair and using that little bit of forward momentum to pull herself closer to him, leaning up to steal a kiss from him before giving him a little grin. "lead the way. gotta get you those socks so my ice block feet don't freeze you to death. i do hope you're ready to watch so much shitty reality tv before bed, though. it's my ritual to wind down. we can do house wives or dance moms, i'll even let you pick."

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“Well now I gotta know..” He shifted in his seat, not ready for her to be so cheeky and open about it with him. He wasn’t at all turned off by it, just unprepared. He had been trying to be in his best behavior up until now, knowing a guy sliding into her DMs probably usually didn’t have the best intentions. He wanted to make sure she knew he was here for all of it, that included sex but also so many other types of intimacy. He wanted to see every side of her and her being naked would be a definite plus. “I’m terrible at poker but I could probably beat you at speed..” He joked, feeling more nervous than he had before. Sure, he had been naked with other girls, enough to make him feel confident in his skills, but now he felt shaky, like he could easily screw this up. What if he had been too handsy? What if he wasn’t handsy enough? What if she was expecting him to be some kind of sex god? When did he get this insecure? “I’m glad I can work with all those.. If it helps, I don’t know how to do laundry or dishes, not at all a brag. I can’t judge you for your procrastination though. The baseball player though…That could be an issue. I don’t know how my ass could compare.” That was fully a joke, he knew what his assets were, how much he put into his shape and body in the gym. He grinned and thanked the server when she came back with his card and receipt, signing it quickly before sliding out of the booth they had been cuddled up in, offering Daisy his hand. “Shall we, Madam Greer?”

"if you think that's naughty, do not get a peek at my internet browsing history." she's testing the waters, really, tiptoeing into the conversation she's also trying to skate around at the same time. it isn't that she's itching to jump into bed with him, necessarily, but she isn't against the idea, either, and part of her is just trying to find out if they're on the same page. if this relationship is gonna hang out somewhere around first base for a while, or if they're going to dip toes into deeper waters. hell, it's part of the reason why she's suggested a sleepover to begin with. even if nothing happened, maybe they could talk about it. "play your cards right, and you'll get to see it sooner than you might think, yeah?"

safely, in the privacy of her home.

"well, you'll just have to be more comfortable and cuddlier than the lot of them if you don't want to have to compete." most of her stuffed animals are relics of her childhood. the teddy bear her mom had gotten her when she fell off her bike and broke an arm, or the turtle her brother had won for her at the fair when she'd tagged along with him on his very first date because none of her own friends had invited her. little memories she never wanted to lose. "trust me, i have plenty of flaws. i have dirty dishes in my sink and i'm deeply insecure. plus, i have to walk three blocks to do laundry, so i let it pile up until it can't anymore before i bother doing it. oh, and i dated a yankees player. huge flaws."

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Gradeigh choked on his spit, laughing in surprise. “Oh my god..” He shook his head, cackling at her teasing, but feeling nothing less than joy at the fact that she had shocked him so much with her teasing. “You’re so naughty, jeez.” Would he want a nude from her? Duh, a million times duh. Of course he would want to look at her body, pixilated or not. The thought of receiving something like that, the trust she would put in him to even want to do that, had him adjusting in his seat, but he knew better. She was at the start of her career and he would never want something so risky on his phone, not yet. “You think the first time I get to see you naked I don’t want to be in the room to appreciate it? What kind of man do you think I am?” Would he have been mad if she had gifted him something like that? He’s not an idiot. “I already know you’re beautiful, I don’t need your clothes off to prove it.” “A handful? I didn’t think I’d have to share your attention.. That’s a lot of competition.” Now he was looking forward to it, seeing something that was so intimate, so special. Nudity was one thing, being inside her safe space, where she can go to be calm and by herself? That was the real stuff. He wanted to know why she liked what she liked, what she held onto since childhood. He wanted to know the names of all her stuffed animals. “Good ideas and the promise of more food.. You need to start showing some flaws or I’m gonna think I dreamt you up..”

"is that your super subtle way of saying that you were hoping i would send nudes?" daisy's teasing (mostly), and her little laugh as she says it should more than give it away. she isn't sure she's ever thought about sending a nude in her life, hell, she's only got a handful of pictures of herself in a bathing suit, let alone anything more risque than that, but then again, she's already breaking all of her preconcieved rules for gradeigh, maybe that's another one she'd be willing to dip a toe into. one day. she isn't even sure if she's gonna let him see her naked in person yet. those nerves are still lingering, that feeling still there. what if that's it, he gets to hit a home run and then takes off running.

but she does trust him a little more than that. even if the fear lingers. "i have a normal room, thank you. there are only, like, twelve pillows and a handful of stuffed animals." cute by other people's standards, maybe. daisy thinks it's pretty boring. if it were up to her, if her building manager wasn't such a hard ass, she probably would have painted the place by now, some pretty mint green color or maybe a nice light teal. something fun and fresh, instead of the drab grey they'd been since she moved in. "ice cream sounds nice. or maybe a milkshake. and there's a nice bodega right on the corner of my street that makes great breakfast sandwiches, so we can grab one in the morning when we wake up."

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He was relieved that she was willing. While he was sure he could wait awhile before giving her the ring, he wanted to have it on him. What if on their date to the botanical garden he gets inspired and his pocket is empty? No, he needed to make sure he was as prepared as he could be. He wasn’t usually this specific or even this planned out, but she seemed to bring that out in him. Before now, he had had many relationships with people he did have strong feelings for at the time, but none he made big commitments too, felt like they were going to be in his life for more than their specific moments. He had been happy with that, feeling like a balloon some kid let go of, doomed to rise into the atmosphere until eventually polluting the earth. Now though, he was making lists in his head. “I can’t wait, I bet you have a cute ass room. I’ll admit I’ve been desperate for some bedtime selfies but I think seeing it in person first will be so special.” He felt special, being welcomed into her world like this. While most of the time he felt like a bull in a china shop, something he liked, it was cool to feel like turtle doves with someone. “Plus, we can start sharing the real secrets when no one is around to hear.” He looks around dramatically, ignoring the fact he had specifically asked for a table in a back corner, away from the rest of the patrons where they wouldn’t be bothered or spied on. He does make eye contact with a server though, one he thanks before they walk away to charge their meal to his card. “What are your thoughts on ice cream, on the way to your place?”

while i do appreciate the thought, i would also like to point out the very fair assessment that you might be just a touch bias on the matter. i'm pretty sure i could show up in a trash bag and you'd tell me i looked good in it." one of her eyebrows lift, as if daring him to argue with her. she isn't complaining, genuinely, the compliments are nice, the way he looks at her, like she's a glass of water and he's dying of thirst, that's very nice, but just because he sees her that way doesn't mean that everyone-- or even his parents-- will. of course, there's also the concern, that their relationship is moving too fast. they're already talking about moving in together, across the country. hell, she's already considered asking him his thoughts on marriage and kids.

then again, they need to get through spending the night together before they go talking about kids. "you definitely shouldn't mention la, not yet." she has to take a deep breath, in and out, before she nods her head. "alright, we can go meet your parents and get your super thick socks. and then i'll take you back to my place. i don't think i've really shown you around yet. you haven't even seen the bedroom. you should."