Playlist of all songs on this post
Introduction - Hello Darlings
[color = crimson] Play Fire on Fire – Sam Smith [/color]
Pain. It was a term that Daniel Parker had come to know exclusively for years. His youth was filled with it. And perhaps Dan didn’t have the best way to react to it… okay fine, he clearly didn’t have the best way of reacting to it as evident by his past. His actions weren’t always thought out most of the time. Sometimes… he just acted. It was something he was so damn good at. Acting without caring what the outcome was…. Acting… without caring who got hurt. And Daniel… he’d hurt a lot of people over the years. Some he didn’t regret – Yes, Dorian. We’re talking about you – but others, others he did. He may never fully come out to reveal the pain he felt at hurting certain people, it was simply not in his ability to do so, but he did feel it. For one… Valerie Wood never deserved how Daniel had treated her from middle school to the early years of high school. And let’s be honest, Dan did more than one crappy thing to her. So perhaps that’s why it always shocked him that she had given him another chance. Another opportunity to a person who deserved her. Perhaps it was the pain he had experienced in his past… Charlotte… Yara… everything… that made him who he was in high school. Jezebel and Jessica were his crutches, always making sure he never went too far. But Valerie… Val was something different. She understood him on a level no one had ever done before.
She was his person… his partner. She knew him. She understood him. There was no fully comprehensive way to describe someone who was simply the person you were meant to be with. There was desire…. a need to always be with each other. She was perfection. His only direction. And she was the only person he wanted… correction… needed.
So… how did Daniel Parker ever get so lucky? 10 years had come and gone, and he truly felt like the luckiest man alive. Ironically, though, he was never the person to be in the position where things simply go his way. Rather, it was always the opposite for him. His sister dying, his cousin leaving, Anna – which was a mess of its own, but the girl led to his breakup with Yara Keller who… was a girl he did love with his whole heart for such a long time. So, if you asked Daniel If he ever thought he would have ended up where he was now; the real answer was no. He didn’t feel like he deserved it. Like he deserved Valerie Parker to stand by his side through thick and thin. To be his one and only. But she did. And there was no describing the love Daniel felt for her. There was no way to even start describing it. It was passion… it was as if his heart had always been empty until he had met her, but he had never known how much until she took herself, and parked her ass right on into the Daniel Parker Heart Hotel.
But perhaps I’m skipping ahead too much? I. After all… ten years. Ten years filled with happiness. Sprinkles of other emotions, but overwhelming happiness. And it was all due to her… due to Valerie Parker. Of course, his sister and cousins played a role. And of course, his beautiful baby girl, Veronica Charlotte. But let’s start from the very beginning, shouldn’t we?
Year 1: Age 19 – 20 – Wait… Love Exists?
Play Met Him Last Night – Demi Lovato
Love? For the longest time – Daniel Parker would have sworn it was inexistent. A simple lie made by Hollywood to fool pedestrians into believing there was such a thing. Just look at him and Yara Keller, for example – do you remember how that ended? Love didn’t exist. It was a fact. It was one that Daniel had learned to fully believe in as he moved through the motions of school.
Well, it was a fact that Valerie Wood took and bloody threw out the window the moment he walked into that elevator all those years ago. An elevator that one should mention, Dan now owned – alongside the whole house that it came in. But that was another story. In any case, for a long time - perhaps even now, Daniel was what many considered a Satan incarnate. The Devil. A prince of hell. (and one cinnamin bun roll but we don’t talk about that Chid). Honestly, Dan loved it. He loved fear. He loved punishing people for their vices. But Valerie Wood didn’t care. Instead, she marched her cute ass down to his hell and took her seat next to him on the throne, wearing her crown with pride. Perhaps part of Daniel didn’t think it was going to last. That it was a disguise. A lie. And soon; it would be stolen away from him. But Valerie never allowed that to happen. It was truly a summer filled with the two were spending every single moment together. And there was no describing the happiness that Daniel felt after graduation and so on. For the first time in a long time, Daniel let someone in, and it felt good. He let someone see all the vulnerabilities he had…. let a short fiery girl hold his heart and trusted that she would be gentle with it. And somehow… she was… she had taken care of that heart better than The Beast from Beauty and the Beast had taken care of that rose. A beast that needed to be mentioned since Daniel still teased Val about her past lover’s obsession. But here’s the thing, that was always their relationship. The ability to tease one another, to push each other to be the best person they could, to love each other as neither had ever done before. And love… perhaps for a long time Daniel wasn’t sure if it existed. But with Val, he didn’t have any doubts. He loved her fully, with his whole heart. And there was no doubting that.
Play Looking at Me – Sabrina Carpenter (ps hi Sadie @novella)
Was everything great? Most things were. Freshman year, Daniel dominated Oxford. He was quickly making acclaim in college, but could anyone expect differently? This was Daniel Parker, resident genius. And he knew it, just as everyone soon learned. That’s not to say Daniel didn’t give back. He moved his little “favor for a favor” operation to college and soon had most students using him as a resource for everything. Was it a surprise he was recruited by not only CSI, but the FBI and MI6? Not by a longshot, and no, it wasn’t because his mother was the director of the CSI.
Did that mean Dan took those jobs? Perhaps… but you know those organizations. It’s a secret, love. Nice try. In any case; Dan also found a place in college he never had before. A group of people he tolerated – and Jessica and Elodie with him. Two girls he cared dearly for… even if one of them was related to the gag Dorian DeLoughrey and for some reason… one he would never understand… HIS COUSIN WAS FCKING DATING HIM. Ew. EW. It was even disgusting to think about. So did Daniel have his own personal mission to break them up because Jessica deserved better? Yes. Without a damn doubt. But that was a story for later. Though no one couldn’t say Dan didn’t warn Dorian – he warned him every chance he got. Sent photos to push them apart. But that’s beside the point. In any case, his sister and he also remained close with his adorable niece whose middle name was Danielle, and he would forever attempt to make that the girl’s first word… that or Dan, he’d take either. (Hint… it wasn’t Daniel. But the man could try right?). Throughout all of this, it was a great bloody year. Daniel had even had the opportunity to make one, Riker Taylor’s, life more than a little hell for what he put his sister through. Though perhaps part of him had held off only slightly just to protect Elodie who for some reason, loved the man. Though Daniel made it clear to the man if he ever, EVER tried to pull that sh!t, or even talk to his sister again – Dan wouldn’t hold back and Elo darling could say goodbye forever. Though, once again, it was a story for another time.
Year 2: Age 20 – 21 – Let’s take down an assh0le, get married, and still have time for dessert
Play Better by Jeremy Passion
His life was honestly going well… for a really damn long time. Was it strange that Dan almost expected things to come burning down into a million and three pieces? But oddly… it didn’t…. it… stayed. Dan and Val stayed in love, stayed constantly visiting each other, stayed by each other’s side any chance they could. Perhaps Dan knew love before, but this was honestly better than anything Daniel had ever known before. So could anyone blame him after two years to have no hesitation when he picked out a ring? He wanted Val, forever. He didn’t want to wait. What was the point? Maybe it was his fear talking. Maybe Daniel thought he could put a ring on her finger, and he’d always have her. But more than that, it was because he just wanted to be with her. That he couldn’t bloody imagine another moment without her.
Daniel could still remember that moment, as clear as day. It was spring break and Daniel had come to visit and spoil his love as much as he could. Though she was acting strange, and perhaps that only increased his anxiety as he had planned out a question for her later that week. A week that was… honestly filled with excitement on two fronts. One, of course, his loving girlfriend and hopefully soon-to-be fiancée, Valerie Wood. And the other, finally having due justice towards an as$hole he hated more than anything else in the world: Malachi Azure. Prince of whatever small ass country he was a part of. Who the hell cared. What Daniel did care about, however, was despite he, himself, losing the Blue Royalty game on purpose to reduce a hold from the Azure family on his own, Kai still had a hold over Parker Industries. And the issue was, Parker Industries was a network that kept growing. And the more it grew, the more control Kai had. Don’t get Daniel wrong, he didn’t hate all the Azures. Actually, he adored Akielah. The teenager had become a mentee of is over the years and he had the ability to mentor her through various aspects of the technology world. But Kai hadn’t just threatened Daniel in the past, he had hurt someone Dan cared about more than anything in the world.
So, what did Dan do? Dan did what he did best – Daniel Parker moved a chess piece on an ongoing game of Chess. He played a move. Perhaps Dan wasn’t thinking about all the implications. He never really did when he was angry. But after reading the Blue Royalty contract, Daniel did what no one would have ever expected him to do. He tanked the Parker Industries company – though making sure to give anyone who lost shares, some in his new company – and he created Parker and Co. LLC. See, Daniel Parker had learned that if Justin Parker didn’t technically “make” any money, that the Azures didn’t get a 51%. They got nothing. So instead of giving his father a paycheck, Dan simply made an account under his own name and gave his father full access to it. And here’s the thing, the bigger the company is, the harder they fall. And Parker industries fell fast when Daniel had a public announcement about the CEO change alongside stealing the company’s best engineers for his new company – blaming the whole issue on the Azure family, putting, for the first time, a spotlight on a family. Who thrived living under the shadows.
Was Valerie upset at him… slightly sure…But she did respect his position and Dan had given Akielah a heads up that something would happen. In any case, once that was locked up and out of the way, Dan had one other thing he needed to do. He needed to propose to the love of his life.
Proposals… Dan never thought he’d be in the position to do one himself, but here he was. It was at the end of the trip that Daniel had insisted the two go on a date before having to go back to London for school… though he didn’t actually need to go back. It was just something to amp the urgency of having a date instead of staying in. Daniel had planned a day for her; starting off by bringing her to a movie set where he had pulled a few favors and gotten her as an extra in one of the Marvel movies shooting in New York for the day: Iron Man where she had the opportunity to talk to good old Robert Downey Junior for a scene. From there, the two had hopped from the Marvel movie to another one – though this time, Val and Dan had the opportunity to play the dead bodies in a horror film, and finally, the two stopped by a rom-com acting like a happy couple in the background as the main characters fell in love. It was a way for Daniel not only to show her that he was willing to support her in her career as an actress but also have a hell of a lot of fun with her doing so.
By the time the two of them had gotten out of movie hopping, night had set in and Dan brought the girl to the streets of New York – a place that simply bursted with energy as screens lined every building advertising about anything and everything. Music played as street performers busked to get a few dollars, and the streets were filled with noise. Dan didn’t tell her what he was doing as he held her hand, walking casually down the street. Noise. It was the basis of New York – after all, it was the city that never slept. So – was it a shock when, after pressing a button on Dan’s phone, for a moment, everything went completely dark? There was slight chaos as people attempted to figure out what happened; Dan simply navigating the girl to the middle of the dark city before clicking another button on his phone which started music. In the middle of the street, now illuminated with the only light. There was a stage where his “friend”, Rihanna, had a stage set up.
Play and (maybe) watch Rihanna – Umbrella
“Only for you, Val,” Dan whispered to the confused girl as he walked towards the stage, smiling at Rihanna as water started falling from the sky with some movie magic. And for Val, and only Val, Dan did a dance he promised he never would do again. By the end of the song, Daniel was soaked from head to toe – though only then did he press his phone for the last time, all the screens in New York finally coming back to life; the question “Will you marry me” on them as Daniel walked back towards Val, getting down on one knee and looking at Val with a sense of love he never felt for anyone else.
“Valerie Wood. God… I wrote this speech a hundred times. And honestly, I could never find the right words. The right way to say this. Because you deserve more than perfection. You deserve the world. I don’t know if I can give you that, but I can promise I will spend the rest of my life trying. I will spend the rest of my life trying to make you laugh, to make you smile, to make you happy. So god… please Valerie…. Will you marry me?”
He looked as the girl stilled and for a moment, his heart begin to fell. Before she wrapped her arms around him, and Dan felt a sense of relief he hadn’t before. “Yes… and Dan?”
Daniel was too distracted in his excitement; in the way, he wrapped his arms around his girl… his girl. Wow. He didn’t care about the applause, the cheers, all he cared about was his arms around her, spinning her around. “Yes, my love?” Dan asked.
”I’m pregnant”
Year 3 – Never ready to lose those you love.
Play Moondust - Jaymes Young
Is this what happiness felt like? Having a women he loved as his fiancé? Having her be pregnant with your child? Was this it? Daniel Parker believed so. He had truly never been this happy before. He had Valerie as the love of his life. He had Jezebel by his side being a damn good sister, Little Laurel looking up to him. Jessica supporting him through everything. He had everything a man could ever want. The next few months went by in an instant, and not for a moment did his happiness subside. He loved Valerie and had switched his classes online just so he could be with her every step of the way. He was planning a wedding – one with both of them after the little one was born. A little one that was a girl…. Okay look, that wasn’t expected. A girl. sigh He did think he had been through this enough time with Jezebel begging for a boy. But was he upset? Not in the slightest. He was just… happy the baby was healthy. Happy that his life for once was just working out. Hell, even happy that Jessica and Dorian had broken up a few months prior. I mean… did it involve Dan playing a little part in convincing a soccer coach to have a talk with Jessica? Yes. Did it work? Hell yes.
Though… that being said… Daniel hadn’t actually seen Jessica since his proposal where she was invited to witness it. And he hadn’t heard from her in about a week which… look as bad as Jess was with her phone, she had never been this bad. This is why Dan had told his beautiful fiancé that he’d be gone for a few days to just check up on her.
Play Your Soul – Rhodes
He didn’t expect what had happened that day… maybe no one did. Daniel had tracked Jessica’s location through the last time that her phone was open back to her apartment. Knocking on the door, Daniel sighed. “Jess? Come on,” Dan sighed, taking his keys out and opening the door himself. “Hello, darling. I’ve been missing your constant nagging to go get food.” Dan said, walking into the dark penthouse. It was pitch black when he entered, and Dan had an immediate anxious feeling walking in. Opening the light, everything looked normal. It was quiet… almost too quiet. Perhaps Jessica had gone on one of her little adventures? But even then, she would have at least texted him. Or kept her phone on her so he could track her.
Walking deeper into Jess’ place, Dan noticed a book on the counter open to a page. The simple words “Names?” on the top with a dozen or so names on the list. A few crossed off with some sort of scribbling next to it.
Names:
Girls:
Naiomi?Nah we not gonna do that to a girl
Kristen?if it is a girl, she not gonna be a stripper this young man. At least give her time to decide omg.Boys:
Justin? – Possibility
Blake?Sounds like an assh0le lmao
A sigh left Dan’s mouth as some pieces started coming together. Please god tell him his cousin wasn’t pregnant… the only person who made sense would be Dorian and man did Dan not want to be related to Dorian.
“Jess?” Dan asked, walking towards her bedroom, which, like the rest of the room was empty. Though he did note her phone being on the counter. Hence the last location…
And then… Dan went towards the last room. Simply an extra bedroom for guests that Jess had lying around. He honestly didn’t know what to expect – though more likely than not, he was expecting it to be empty. But… it wasn’t. And the instant the door opened; fear met his body as it hadn’t had in years. As it hadn’t had since the moment of the last soccer game at Cerulean High.
Play Your Soul – Rhodes
The pain that Daniel felt finding his cousin lying in a crib with tear-stricken eyes was unimaginable. Daniel instantly begin moving towards her body… seemingly having grown destitute over the past few days. She looked bare-bones, her eyes closed, unmoving. There was no way to explain how Dan felt running towards her, and pulling her body out of the crib, laying her gently down on the floor. Her heart was barely beating at that point, but it was… beating. The next few hours went in a flash, Dan calling the ambulance… trying to wake Jessica up but she wasn’t moving. She was… completely irresponsive. And honestly… it was Dan’s fault. His whole body filled with guilt. He should have… checked on her more. He should have been there for her. It wasn’t hard to imagine what had happened. The room filled with baby memorabilia and Jess dying in the middle of it all… she was punishing herself. She always… punished herself meaning the one thing Dan knew the one thing she never wanted… had happened. She had lost her baby.
And Daniel later learned that, in a way, he had a hand in it. That she hadn’t gone to the doctor. Relief did fill his entire being when she woke up a few days later, her body being force-fed food that she hadn’t been eating for over a week. Her body was extremely dehydrated. She just… looked gone. And for a while… Dan didn’t know what to do. She looked at him with broken eyes when she woke up. It tore Dan up inside and he… he called the only person he knew he could. Jezebel Sloane. And somehow… somehow… Jezebel had saved her. Jezebel had fixed a mistake Dan had a part in creating. One that Dan would never let happen again. He never wanted his cousin to experience that pain… and he would make sure to watch her more carefully…. He would make sure that she didn’t do that to herself ever again. Was it selfish? Was it because Dan didn’t want to lose another person, he considered a sister? Maybe. But she deserved a better life than she had gotten, and there was no way to truly explain the regret Dan felt.
Year 4 – 9: James Bond-ing B!tch
Play Feeling Good – Michael Buble
Daniel was lucky. Not only in his love life, but in his familial life. Jessica survived that day and was okay… or as okay as she could be. She wasn’t… going to leave him. And as one of the most important people survived another day, Daniel met yet another girl who would become everything to him. Veronica Charlotte was the epitome of perfection from the moment she was born. She was his daughter… Val’s daughter… and his love for her couldn’t be contained. Daniel spent every moment after college supporting his wife, his daughter, and his family. Learning how to be a father wasn’t easy, but it was something he loved experiencing. And along the way, Val was thriving in her career. Both as an actress, as a mother, as anything she could ever set her mind on. Though that didn’t surprise him, people were just realizing how amazing she was as he had done years earlier.
Suffice to say; Dan’s career was interesting as well. For the first few years of VC’s life, Dan had taken remote jobs for Parker LLC. Though co-CEO, Dan had honestly let the job fall to his father and sister who truly cared about it. He simply sent a few prototypes when he created something for the next new technology or came in randomly to a board meeting when he was bored.
Mostly, however, Dan had shh found more than a few jobs with a covert agency in the government. It allowed him to do things he was already doing, with a focus on finding criminals who had escaped. Daniel created technology to catch hundreds of murderers, rapists, arsonists that had been on the FBI’s top 10 list for eons within a couple of months. And he continued to do so because now he had a new thing pushing him forward. He was not only making the world a better place for his daughter but all the people he cared about. And he would continue to do so for the rest of his life.
Year 10: Once a Savage, always a Savage
Play Savage - Megan the Stallion
Dan smiled as he handed the staff his luggage and Val’s luggage, the two had arrived at the yacht a few minutes prior. 10 years had come and gone, and overall, things had been well for Dan… despite what most of these seniors were probably hoping for Dan’s future. Let’s just say there was more than one person who hated Dan’s guts. But you know what? Their problem, not his.
Veronica Charlotte and Laurel had gone to Justin Parker for the weekend so the three can come to Yacht with no worries. Though there was one particular worry. Daniel looked at his wife as he helped her out of the car, the women’s belly being protruded with his second child… which… honestly was unexpected, to say the least. Dan really needed to get that… snip didn’t he? Though honestly, Dan did love being VC’s father… the trouble was now he’d have to figure out how to get another kid to like him and that was already worrisome with the first one. Though, on the bright side, guess who finally got his boy? YES SIR. Daniel Parker did. WHOO. Though the two had still been arguing about names.
“Luke? Isn’t that the guy you were obsessed with on that Gilmore Girls show?” Dan asked as he helped his wife out of the car, the two walking on a boat of people – some of which they hadn’t seen in years. Though there were a few that Dan kept in touch with… and a few he checked up on despite avoidance. Though, there were also others he rather not see. Dorian and Andy could stay as far away from him as they could bloody get. “Are you feeling okay, love?” Dan asked, a slight worry peeking through as he looked at the gorgeous woman that had only grown in her beauty over the years.
mentions
@astxrism - Elodie, Dorian
@CerealKiller - Yara, Andy, VAL like a million times val yes wifey 
@Littlefeets - Jezebel, Kai, Akielah, er… that it? I think
@novella - Sadie’s song used + Delilah hinted at