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Despite Frank and Daphne being one of the earliest couples to get together, they were nearly the last to get married. For the longest time Daphne ‘lived’ in Franks’ guest room though she frequently found herself having sleepovers in his bedroom. Shortly after the divorce they sat down and set boundaries and laid out their relationship. They both acknowledged their affection towards one another but mindful of the neglectful marriage Daphne had just escaped from, Frank put the progress of their relationship entirely into her hands. She didn’t want to fall back into the loop of marriage, though he hadn’t meant James had caused her so much mental turmoil she was almost afraid of marriage.
She wanted to make her own decisions independent from the expectations of everyone else, she didn’t want to be the woman her parents raised her to be, didn’t want to be the homemaker marriage had made her out to be, but the problem was she didn’t know what else there was to her. Everything in her life had been decided for her up until she fell in love with Frank so now she was stuck at a point where she didn’t believe she had any individuality. She struggled to branch out at first, her ideas being small like trying a recipe for dinner she found online instead of something she knew how to cook, or teaching herself how to properly iron Frank’s button up shirts.
While Frank was trying to be supportive he gently advised her that her branching out should be activities outside the ones outside the house maintenance.
He suggested she assisted Chloe get things rolling for the bakery she wanted to open, right now Chloe was working out her and Curtis’ house while she tried to find a location and place a bid. She’d been so excited but after day two she solemnly told Frank she wouldn’t be returning to help Chloe, too many customers had complained about incorrect change or products being damaged in transit. Ever encouraging, he asked Annie to show Daff some of her skills thinking maybe she could become Aria’s personal assistant as she’d been looking for one since she’d been more focused on her modeling agency lately over her actual modeling. But an incident with burnt coffee being spilled all over Aria in a one of a kind gown had the designer screaming at Daphne, Aria tore the man a new one and terminated her contract with him but she had to let Daff go. Aria was frustrated by the situation but she reminded Daphne that no one had the right to speak to her in that manner. Then Curtis offered to pay her to help him work in his garden he’d let go during Chloe’s recovery from the Rumlow trail leaving an overabundance of weeding to be done. And while there was no disaster there she found she hated it, so she hopelessly gave, returning to things she knew. Cooking and cleaning for the Adler household, which Frank didn’t mind but he knew it was important to her to find someone for herself, to help her grow outside of who she was forced into being. He had to ride the line of being encouraging without making her feel like he was nagging her because he was content to just have her in his arms.
Returning to a schedule of housekeeping she finally found something she was passionate about and was moderately good at, unfortunately Frank’s response was poor.
Watching house flipper shows with Frank and playing sims with Mary she found herself enjoying the decorating of a home or businesses. She started picturing what types of furniture would look nice in their house, which colors would set certain moods like:a warm welcoming living room, cozy comfortable bedroom, clean and orderly bathroom, lively and joyful kitchen. She loved it but she was lacking in confidence so she decided to try her skills out on the Adler House, Frank had said he wanted her to treat it as her own house when she’d first moved in but all she’d brought was clothing and her toiletries so far. But now she was ready to push the limits of her skills and change the vibe of their home.
When Frank came home the day she redid the kitchen aesthetic (she wanted to remodel but she wasn’t sure that was something she should do without Frank’s input), he put on a bright smile and offered positive words for her. But 3 weeks into the room by room changes, he snapped. A rough day at work reviewing Delilah and Ransom’s months allowance had left him with a massive headache. Why the hell did Ransom need a $600 leather keyboard and why was his sister subscribed to a month-to-month dog treat box-she didn’t even have a dog! Rough day followed by him coming home and tripping over the new shoe rack that was supposed to add organization and distress to whatever had his fuse rising dangerously close to blowing. When he entered the kitchen he saw the crock pot out and on, hoping seeing dinner would bring his anger down slightly he leaned over to look but his gaze was instead drawn to a receipt for $1500. Fucking what?! She did their bedroom today, what could she have possibly purchased!
“Daphne!” He called out.
“Bedroom, honey.” she sang out. He walked the path to their bedroom, reading off the items on the receipt until he entered the bedroom that was done up with neutral tones, more photographs of the now three person family but all the furniture was the same as it had been. “Do you like it?”
“Like you? You spend $342 on decorative pillows.”
She nodded eagerly, “There was a bogo so I got two!”
“What the fuck am I supposed to do with a decorative pillow!”
“Well it helps bring ….” she trailed off not really knowing what to say and finally picking up on Frank’s foul mood.
He’d never directed his ire at her and he was right, the price was ridiculous for a decorative pillow now that she thought about it. It wasn’t even her money, it was his, he had every right to be mad at her. Though he’d given her that card to use how she wanted, this was taking advantage of his generosity.
“I’m sorry, you’re right.'' The crack in her voice diluted Frank’s anger as he realized what he’d said and how he was mistreating her. “I’ll fix it tomorrow, but for now I think the beef stew is ready.”
“Daff wait!”
“Mary, dinner is ready. Come help me set the table please.”
Sighing, Frank threw the receipt on the dresser and changed into his loungewear. He’d apologize after dinner and make things right, her food always put him in a better mood so he’d be more equipped to handle the situation delicately. But after dinner Mary had needed help with homework-turns out she hated English. Then when he went to fix things, Daphne had locked herself in the guestroom, so he pushed it off until the morning. Again she distanced her by using Mary, taking the kid to school before Frank emerged from his bedroom. He called her at lunch and she led the conversation, not letting him get his apology out by focusing on what he wanted for dinner the next week. He thought maybe things had resolved with time but when he came home from work that night, when he went to put his shoes in the rack, he found it missing. In fact every change she made to the house apart from her personal belongings had been reverted back to how it looked when she first moved in. Panic surged, thinking she’d left altogether, a relieved sigh slipping out when he found her in the kitchen cooking.
“Honey?” when she turned to look at him he instantly picked up on her despondent eyes. The look on her face was reminiscent of the first day they met, the melancholy he hadn’t seen since the divorce had been finalized. “What’s going on?”
“I’m making dinner silly.” she forced a smile and a giggle.
“Don’t do that, please.” Slow tears started falling down his cheeks. “Don’t pretend to be happy. Don’t let our relationship mirror your previous marriage.”
“I’m not,” she gently patted his check and went back to breaking up the hamburger meat. “I just realized what I do best is in the home and that's where all my energy should be.”
“No, honey!”
“I thought you liked-”
“No you are good at that but that’s not all you’re good at! The changes you’d made to the house were nice.”
“I shouldn’t have changed anything without your permission and I shouldn’t have used your money. I’m sorry Frank.”
“Daphne, the changes you made helped this house truly feel like a home. I shouldn’t have taken my anger out on you and your efforts.”
“My intentions weren’t to make you angry.”
“It wasn’t you, I just directed it at you because you were there. It was wrong and I am sorry.”
“Did you actually like the changes?” she asks, sounding hopeful.
“I did,” he places his hands on her hips. “I didn’t understand all of it but I liked the additions.”
“Can I put everything back?” she rocked a bit on her feet. “Most of it is still in my car, I only had time to return the bedroom stuff.”
“You can and maybe once we put everything back you can help Chloe renovate the bakery? She found and closed on a building but it needs a lot of work. It would be a good opportunity to start building a portfolio.”
“That’s a great idea.”
Together, as a family, Frank, Mary, and Daphne brought back the items Daphne hadn’t returned and placed the items back where she’d originally placed them. It took most of the weekend but it was the perfect chance for Daff to finally fully move into Frank’s bedroom with him.
This minor hiccup in their relationship being resolved was the reassurance she needed to progress in their relationship, though she still wasn’t ready for marriage. It wasn’t until she began to gain notoriety for her small design business that changed. After redoing the bakery, Frank had her do his office at work which led to Aria asking for her to do the lobby of her modeling agency. With Aria’s approval of how well she’d done, she gained her support publicly which brought in clientele far too quickly for her to manage the projects she received. Within 6 months she had a year-long waiting list.
For the first time in her life she felt like her own person, not dependent on anyone else and successful all on her own. She didn’t and would never again have to rely on someone else for her survival. Though Frank still made more than her, if their relationship ended she would land on her feet, only having to deal with the heartbreak of loss. It was her financial independence that finally had Daphne giving the go ahead for marriage, putting the ball back in Frank’s court. But she told him to take his time and ready himself, adjust to the changes in her life before determining if he wanted a future with her.
His first instinct was of course he was ready but he’d been patiently waiting on the sidelines during her character development-staying stagnant-so he considered her advice and waited. He went to Sarah and Annie for their sage wisdom to know when he was ready and when to propose. They told him to picture two lives one with Daff and one without but he couldn’t imagine the second option, when he’d voiced it the women smiled and told him he was ready. The next day he picked up Daphne’s best friend, Blair, and his sister-in-law Annie to aid him in his ring shopping though he wouldn’t propose for several more months.