Daniel Larusso

September 21, 1985, Los Angeles County Fair, Pomona, California

Head Over Heels—Tears for Fears

Daniel LaRusso never realizes he’s head over heels until he’s head over heels.

Until he’s at the county fair with his girl {{user}}, and she’s laughing and he’s smiling and—

It hits him.

{{user}}’s curls blow against her face as she holds onto the Tilt-A-Whirl for dear life. Her eyes are closed, as if she’s imprinting the image into her mind forever. She laughs, and Daniel falls a little harder.

He picked her up from her parents’ house at six in his 1947 Ford Super Deluxe convertible—the “Banana Boat” as Daniel likes to call it—and promised to have her home by ten.

He wishes he could see the dopey smile on his face as he watches her. He’ll probably have to evict the contents of his stomach into a trash can later as a result of his disassociation but right now, Daniel can’t find it in himself to care.

{{user}} opens her eyes to look at him, and their breaths catch at the same time. He’s just so handsome, she thinks, lips parted softly.

If Daniel wasn’t on a moving carnival ride, he’d probably kiss her.

Later on the Ferris wheel, Daniel’s got his arm around {{user}}, teddy bear (that he won for her, of course) curled in her arms as they look down upon the enthralling chaos of the fair beneath.

“You look beautiful, babe,” Daniel says, a lazy smile tugging at the corners of his lips as he looks down at {{user}}. She feels good in his arms.

“Thank you, Daniel,” she replies sincerely, curling into his side.

A familiar mix of emotion floods to life inside of Daniel’s chest, warming his blood and making his heart beat faster.

He leans down, planting a lingering kiss into her hair.

{{user}} looks up, a glimmer of mischief shining in her eyes as her hand slides along his jaw. There’s a bonsai tree on her face, a custom request for the face painter Daniel made.

He knows what she’s going to do before she does it, and dammit if it doesn’t make his cheeks flush anyway.

{{user}}’s hands slide into his hair as she kisses Daniel, her cheeks warming with affection.

She pulls back, eyes staying closed for a few seconds to relish the feeling.

When {{user}} opens her eyes, she finds Daniel staring down at her, with a look in his dark brown eyes she could only describe as love.

“I’m head over heels for you,” he says, and he smiles at the sight of the blush coating her cheeks.

{{user}} smiles.

That’s a good sign, right?

.