insert dad joke here

@ceceliaphamx​

She took a moment, his name catching her off guard. That name. Brought so many bad memories back to her brain. Slowly, she lifted her hand to shake his. “You too.” She inhaled, and shifted in her chair uncomfortably. 

Being an observant person, it didn’t take long for Daniel to figure out that Lennon suddenly felt uncomfortable. “I didn’t say anything wrong, did I?” he asked, shifting a bit awkwardly in his chair. 

The fact that he got flustered made Lennon even more flustered. Her cheeks flushed when she heard the compliment back, as she shook her head. “No. I mean, I meant it, but I’m not usually one to–” She paused, giving him a look. “Do that, I guess.” She smiled softly. “I guess I should introduce myself. Now that I just complimented you. Uh, I’m Lennon.”

“That’s okay. I’m certainly not gonna complain about the compliment,” he said with a small chuckle. As she introduced himself, Daniel held out his hand for her to shake. “I’m Daniel or Dan. It’s nice to meet you, Lennon.”

This was going to shape out to be one of those days he regretted most things in life. Particularly the part where he conveniently forgot to tell his best friend that he wasn’t gay and been living with that lie since to get close with her. Now, Logan found himself in conversations like this and no idea what he was really supposed to say. “Ah, yeah, no kidding… I bet it happens a lot,” he hedged some, not quite looking at the other man as he gingerly sipped his coffee, feeling on the spot. But he had long since gotten over that mildly uncomfortable feeling of other men assuming he was attracted to them or that he was a viable option to pursue themselves. It didn’t happen often, so there was that. And at least right now, Daniel was busy chatting about his own appearance than anything else. “It’s probably better not to test those waters anyway, since isn’t there like, a thing about not getting involved with your patients anyway? If it were me, I’d take the compliment and be on with my day.” 

“It just sorta comes with the territory, I guess.” He said with a laugh, hoping that the other man knew that he was somewhat kidding in his remarks. Daniel certainly wasn’t narcissistic, but rather just a bit confident in his appearance.  “Oh, don’t worry. I have no intentions of treading those waters, believe me. I actually really like my job and wouldn’t lose it over a flirty patient anyday.” He said with a smirk. “Anyways, enough about me. What do you do for a living, man?” He asked kindly, shifting the attention towards the other male instead of at himself.

“You say that as if you’re not already the prettiest person in any room you enter,” Cecelia playfully rolled her eyes as the image of Daniel standing in front of a mirror and brushing his long, Lucious har until it was just right popped into her head. It was probably not too far off from reality, but still a laugh bubbled from her lips. She shifted over on the hammock, which was no easy feat considering it’s unstable nature, and happily leaned against him once he settled in. He smelled like deodorant and the faintest cologne, but it was just his smell, and it provided her an indescribable feeling of comfort. “I do. It’s inside and waiting in the oven. But it’s mushroom and pepperoni,” she said turning her head to look up at him. “Before you roast me for my taste in toppings, at least I didn’t put on olives or pineapple.”

As the hammock swung gently under their weight, she continued, “Thanks for coming by. My parents abandoned me for this hospitality convention in North Carolina looking for mattress vendors.” The staff at the hotel, business executives in Peach Hollows and family friends had been asking about her parents for what felt like days, and it was exhausting trying to keep up with their social lives as well as her own. Not that she had a crazy one to begin with. “Anyways, how was work? You save anyones life today? Give me all the juicy details.”

“Oh, I totally agree. I could totally be in a boy band or a male model or something, but instead I save people while serving looks,” he said with a chuckle, finding it amusing to think of himself doing anything other than what he already did for a living. As Cecelia leaned up against him, Daniel settled into the new position, looking down at the brunette with a big smile. Of everyone he knew, Cecelia meant the most to him. There wasn’t anybody that made him feel as secure and loved as she did. He truly believed the two of them to be platonic soulmates.  “Sounds good to me. Though I must say, your hatred of pineapple on pizza breaks my heart a little bit. It’s sweet and saucy. What’s not to like?” He asked with a smirk, feigning a look of disappointment in her pizza opinions.

“You know it’s no problem, Cece. It’s your world and i’m just living in it,” he said with a shrug of his shoulders. “A mattress vendor search, though? Sounds absolutely riveting,” he remarked sarcastically. Daniel was about as middle class as it came, and he was always surprised to hear about the lavish ventures Cecelia and her family went through. “Nothing too exciting, I promise. I’m waiting for something crazy to happen on one of my shifts. Recently, it’s just been older people getting check ups and a few broken bones here and there.”

She kept her eyes locked on the window outside. Being looking over at the male before her. “Hm?” She asked, raising an eyebrow before nodding. “Oh. Yeah, I know. You’re hot.” The words slipped out of her mouth before she had a chance to recover. “I totally–” She sighed and closed her eyes for a second, wishing she was dreaming. But upon opening her blue eyes, the male still sat before her. “–didn’t mean that.” She did. 

“Oh, I’m --” he started to say, nervously laughing at her compliment. He liked to talk a big game, but he was definitely on the struggle bus when it came to successfully flirting. “I mean, thank you. You’re not so bad yourself.” He finally complimented back. “Wait -- did you really not? I thought you were just a bold flirt,” he teased her playfully.