A Daydream Away

All it took was one look. One look across Best Buy in Baltimore and Alex was hooked.

Her name was Ophelia, and he could've sworn that he had heard the name before. But, considering school was never one of his top priorities, he couldn't place it. She would later tell him it was Shakespeare, and Alex would admit that he didn't care.

What he cared about was how he had felt since the moment he met her. And Alex had never been an emotional person, but Ophelia had a way of getting under his skin that he didn't understand. And as much as he had thought that he was in control of his choices in life (or, well, women as he would say) but he was beginning to understand what people meant when they said that one has no control over falling in love.

Ophelia didn't care that Alex was some big rock star (or that was how he had played it off), and she didn't care that he had thousands of girls after him (and that wasn't even a miscalculation, she was sure). She could see why the females would flock to him. He was attractive without being stereotypical, he had a way of making anyone who talked to him feel special; he was charismatic and charming, fun and energetic, sympathetic and kind. Not to mention, his smile had made her weak in the knees since the first time they bonded over an Imogene Heap CD in aisle three at Best Buy. (Though, okay, they didn't number their aisles but it was the same sentiment.)

Alex didn't care about Ophelia's self-proclaimed faults--a twenty year old college student who still lived with her parents and worked full-time third shift at a local bakery. He didn't care that she was broke because of college, tired because of work and school, or slightly bitter because of past relationships. There were more important things that he focused on--the way her eyes lit up when he smiled at her or the way she would sing along to his music when he was playing.

It started with one date. A casual Wednesday at the local steakhouse, that's was how Alex proposed the idea to her when she was hesitant to the whole situation.

"You can even wear a casual jacket, if you'd like," he told her with a smile.

Ophelia blushed. "Casual jacket? What about casual jeans?"

"How about casual everything? Jacket, jeans, shoes, everything," he suggested.

Ophelia sighed. She couldn't deny that she was having a hard time refusing, considering that damn smile that never left his face.

"C'mon, what do you say?"

She bit her lip but nodded anyway. "Okay. Alright. But I'm wearing that casual jacket."

Alex laughed. "I'll even wear one myself."

It evolved from one Casual Wednesday to Business Casual Thursday (and even a Tuesday) to Formal Friday. Though Friday wasn't as formal as stated--Friday normally consisted of some weird and spontaneous act of stupidity that Ophelia would never, ever follow through with on her own, but somehow felt comfortable enough with Alex involved. And, okay, it usually involved him taking her out for ice-cream afterwards.

These stupid and spontaneous acts normally consisted of go-karting, paint ball, bungee jumping, and zip lining. One time it even involved a hot air balloon. Oh, yeah, Alex went all out. He always took her out on such ostentatious dates because, as he would say, he wasn't some random guy. He wasn't some guy from her school or some random guy off the stress--he was Alex Gaskarth, and he was special, he was...different. He wanted to make sure that Ophelia knew that she deserved special and memorable dates, events that weren't easily forgotten.

"Are you kidding me, Alex?"

Alex just laughed and handed his credit card over the counter. "Not in the least."

"This is insanity, Alex," Ophelia said, though she couldn't hide the smile on her face.

"I just remembered that you said you always wanted to try it," he told her with a shrug.

Ophelia smiled as she glanced up at the sign proclaiming "BUNGEE JUMPING." Sure, it was only two hundred feet, but she was terrified. And excited--definitely excited. And happy because she couldn't really believe that Alex had remembered something she had said only in passing. It felt...good.

"You good?" Alex asked, reaching down to lace their fingers together.

Ophelia smiled. "Very."

Alex's hand didn't leave hers the entire time. As they waited for the cords and vests to be secured around them, he could feel her shaking. They were standing chest to chest, as instructed, and Alex couldn't explain why he couldn't wipe the smile off of his face.

"You look beautiful," he said quietly.

Ophelia blushed. "Yeah, yeah, don't pander to me " she muttered playfully.

"Are you two ready?" the employee asked, his eyebrows raised.

Ophelia laughed. "No!"

"Yes, we are," Alex said.

Ophelia gulped. "What if we die?"

"We won't," Alex promised. "Do you trust me?"

"I've known you for six weeks!"

"Do you trust me?" Alex repeated.

"Whenever you two are ready, just jump," the employee instructed them.

Ophelia's eyes widened. "Alex--"

"Do you?"

Ophelia didn't even hesitate as she nodded. "Yes, I do--"

"Then hold on," Alex told her with a wink.

Then they jumped.

Of course, to Ophelia, all dates with Alex were memorable. She didn't care about his money or his fame, not the way some people had accused her. She fell in love with Alex--not his money. Alex had never tried to impress her--it just happened automatically. And it was something that neither of them could control.

And even though her parents were hesitant when she moved in with him, she didn't hold it against them. After all, she was barely twenty-one and they had been together for a year. She didn't make a rash decision--she had thought about it for weeks. While her parents thought he was taking advantage of her, she knew he wasn't. And she knew it was right.

"I never thought I would ever live with a rockstar," Ophelia joked as she carried a couple of boxes into her new house.

Alex laughed. "I hope you find my humble abode to your liking. I'm not here much so it isn't as decorated as I would like," he said with a shrug.

Ophelia shrugged as she set down her last box. "That doesn't bother me. Where are the pups?"

"Laundry room. They get excited when I have company."

She laughed, remembering the time Baz had peed on her new Toms the first time she had went to Alex's house. "Yeah, good point."

"They'll be happy you're here, though," he said, referring to his puppies.

"Oh, yeah?"

Alex nodded, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her over to the couch. "Yeah, you give them treats all the time," he told her. "And you're pretty. How could they not love you?"

"Good point," Ophelia said, rolling her eyes.

Alex pulled her down on the couch, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist. "I think we deserve a nap. What about you?"

"Agreed."

It was somewhere along the three year mark when Ophelia stared to notice when Alex was acting strangely. Though she couldn't place why to save her life. They had been living together for two years, and she wasn't sure when things changed. It wasn't major. There was no major scene or argument. Alex just got...quiet. And knowing Alex for as long as she had, she knew there had to be something going on.

She doubted there was another girl. No matter how much people tried convince her, she knew Alex wasn't the type. He barely had time for her, let alone another girl. But she didn't resent him--she knew his music was his life and she refused to make herself feel inferior when she knew she wasn't. Though she wasn't so confident when he started to question whether or not she had done something to spur his sudden mood swing.

When he came home late one night, she didn't ask him where he had been. She wasn't that girl. She trusted him, and it wasn't a blind trust like her mother assumed. It was legitimate and well-earned on Alex's part. She remained silent, watching some re-run of Tosh.0, when Alex joined her on the couch. He curled up next to her, resting his head on her stomach.

Alex knew something was amiss when Ophelia didn't run her fingers through his hair. She always did, purely out of habit. He glanced up at her, frowning. "Are you okay, babe?"

Ophelia nodded. "Yeah."

"You sure?"

Ophelia bit her lip. It's now or never, she told herself. "Did I do something, Alex?" she asked.

Alex sat up slowly, confused. "What? No. Why would you ask that?"

"Because you've been...different lately. And I don't know what did," she answered honestly and quietly. She sat up slowly, looking down at her hands as she picked at her cuticles.

"Babe, you didn't do anything," Alex reassured her, leaning in to press a kiss against her forehead.

Ophelia pulled away. "Then what's wrong? I don't want to be that annoying girlfriend that constantly questions you, but I wanna know."

Alex sighed. "I've just been thinking about the next tour a lot. I'm gone all the time. I want you to go with us," he told her.

"I thought you and the guys had agreed that no girlfriends were allowed to go on tour," Ophelia pointed out.

"Not as my girlfriend."

Ophelia sighed. "I'm not going as your merch bitch. Don't you think that's a little overrated and cliche?"

Alex smiled. "Not as a merch bitch, either. We have Vinny for that," he said with a shrug.

Ophelia frowned. "This isn't funny, Alex."

Alex ran a hand over his hair. "I took your dad golfing today."

"Goddammit, stop changing the subject, Gaskarth," she snapped, reaching over to slap his arm.

"Don't you wanna know why?" he asked, grabbing her hand and lacing their fingers together before she could slap him again.

"Why?"

Alex reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black and velvet box. "I, uh, contemplated this for a while, actually. Just...how I would go about this," he said, more to himself than to her.

Ophelia froze. "Alex--"

"And I realized that, uh, you would kill me if it was a public proposal. And I would love to go off on some eight hour tangent about how much you've changed my life, but that wouldn't even be enough time," he decided.

"Alex, I don't--"

"You are incredible, Opie," Alex said. He knew she hated the nickname, but he really thought that she secretly loved it. "I don't know when it happened, but I know that I don't wanna live without you. I'm not sentimental or romantic, not more than the average guy, but you are everything to me. And I don't want to wake up one day and not see you there, you know?"

Ophelia couldn't do anything but nod.

"I love you," he said with a laugh. "I guess that's what I've been trying to say this whole time."

Ophelia laughed. "I love you, too, Lex."

Alex smiled. "So, uh, I guess what getting at is... Will you marry me?"

Ophelia knew it was in her gut, but she also knew that the slightly unsure look on his face had something to do with t, too. She didn't need time to think about it. She didn't need a pro and con list. Hell, she didn't even care what the ring looked like. All she knew was that she didn't want to live without him. And she didn't wait a second before wrapping her arms around Alex's neck and pressing her lips to his.

Alex didn't stop smiling. "So, uh, is that a yes?"

Ophelia nodded. "That is definitely a yes."