Chapter Text
Daisy rolled over in bed and unlocked her phone. Things have quieted down a bit since they finished The Princesses of Philly.
She was tagged in a Twitter post. Someone reposted an article with the headline, “Is Daisy Calloway Fat Now?”
She hesitantly skimmed through the story. There were several side by side comparisons from her modeling days and recent paparazzi photos.
Ryke groaned in bed beside her, the tell tale sign, he was waking up. He came back to bed early this morning after his run with Loren. Daisy knew that he only did it for her. To help her sleep.
She got out of bed, before he could read the pained expression on her face.
It was mid-morning. The rest of the house was silent. They all must have headed to work already. Daisy headed straight for the bathroom.
She studied her reflection. Her scar was healing nicely. The swelling had gone down and all that was left behind was a brown diagonal mark across her cheek. Her cheeks were slighter rounder and her frame just looked more full.
Thanks to Ryke, she was no longer restricting herself like she had when she was a working model. She ate when she was hungry and paid no mind to calories. She was healthy, for the first time since she started working as a model at fourteen. Daisy knew she should be proud of that. She wasn’t a model anymore. No more morning measurements or designers critiquing every curve. She no longer had to be perfect.
But her reflection was jarring. She turned to the side. There was an unmistakable curve over her once flat stomach.
Footsteps enter the bathroom. But she was too dazed to perceive them. For as long as she can remember, her weight had been heavily controlled. Her mother made sure of it. Her mother went as far as advising her to stop taking birth control, because the pills caused unsupported weight gain.
“What the fuck are you doing Dais?” Rykes took his place behind her, wrapping his strong arms around her waist. Daisy tensed as his calloused hands rested against the slight pooch of her lower belly.
“Oh, nothing,” she let out a fake laugh. “I guess I ate a little too much pasta last night.”
“Don’t say that.” He kissed the crown of her head. “How are you feeling?”
“I don’t really know.” She was numb. She turned her back to the mirror and pressed her face into his chest. His hands moved to the small of her back.
“How’d you sleep?”
“Not great.” She gave his chest a gentle peck. “But better than before.”
***
Ryke ate his breakfast staple. Cereal. Daisy picked at a bowl of fruit, but Ryke could tell that her mind was elsewhere.
The weight of her new reality hit her. She wasn’t the girl her mother groomed her to be. She was no longer pretty. No longer the version of herself that was on magazine spreads and walked down runways.
Just a public figure with a body that seemingly the whole world had an opinion about.
“What’s wrong?” Rykes voice pulled her from her spiraling thoughts. He had finished his cereal and was washing the bowl in the sink. “You haven’t been yourself all morning. Did you have a nightmare?”
“Just not very hungry. I think I’m getting sick or something.”
Ryke hummed thoughtfully and put his own dish on the drying rack. His eyes were furrowed and she could tell his thoughts were racing.
Ryke dried his hands with a dish table and joined her at the island. He felt her head with the back of his hand.
As embarrassing as it was, she knew she couldn’t keep this from him. Maybe her sister and their partners, but not him. He always saw through her facade. It was like his sixth sense.
So, she came clean. “I’m not really ready to talk about it. But.. I got tagged in a post about myself. It wasn’t so nice.”
“You shouldn’t read the fucking comments, Dais.”
“I know I just…I saw the headline and I just needed to know.” Daisy pushed her fruit bowl away from herself and stood.
“I have to go get ready. I promised Lily I’d help at Superheroes and Scones.”
***
Daisy left with Coconut about twenty minutes later. She wore a matching black sweatsuit instead of her usual graphic t-shirt and jeans.
Ryke had planned to spend the day mapping out a mountain climbing route, but he called Sully to cancel the second Daisy left. Ryke spent the morning googling Daisy’s name and skimming through every article. Most were detailing the Paris Riot, her retirement from modeling, comparing her to Lily. All things she’s heard before. It wasn’t long before he found a scathing Celebrity Crush article. The headline read:
Is Daisy Calloway Fat Now?
Ryke saw red. He was ready to drive down to Celebery Crush headquarters and give those fuckers a new headline.
His phone started to buzz in his pocket and Connor’s name flashed across the screen.
“Have you read the article?” Connors' voice conveyed every bit of his disgust.
Of course he knew. He was always one step ahead.
“It’s taking everything in me not to fucking argue with those assholes on Twitter.” Ryke blew a steadying breath past his lips.”How did you see it?”
“Rose sent it to me.” Ryke could hear movement and the chime of an elevator. Connor was heading to his office at Cobalt Inc.
Daisy would be mortified. “Where is she?” Connor asked.
“She’s with Lily. I think they’re going through manuscripts at Superheroes and Scones.”
“Has she seen it?”
“Yeah. She wasn’t herself. And she didn’t eat fucking breakfast.”
“Is this new?”
“She used to skip meals sometimes when she was modeling. But she hasn’t since the riot.”
Connor huffed a breath but his voice was still void of emotion. “Quitting the industry doesn't magically heal your relationship with food or body image.”
Ryke hadn’t even thought about it. Sure her body is a little different than it was a few months ago, but to him, she was just as beautiful.
“I have to talk to her about it. Don’t let on that you guys know.”
“Wasn’t planning on it.”
Ryke hung up. He found himself scrolling through pictures from the last few months. He stared at a photo of Daisy and Coconut. Her smile reached her eyes as she rubbed her dog’s back. He wasn’t even sure if she knew the photo was being taken. It was a moment of pure happiness.
He posted the the photo with the caption:
She lights up the fucking sun.