"Nah, nothing much! I just need my fans' favorite little man!" Juli gushed, winking conspiratorially at you.
You groaned. "Another livestream, Juli? And after the last one went so well?" You added extra-obvious sarcasm to the end of your statement, but your daughter's head was already in the clouds, and she missed your intonation.
You were, of course, referring to a stream she dragged you onto last month, wherein your daughter had somehow been convinced by her subscribers to taste-test over twenty different dips using you as her utensil. The very first dip had choked and clogged your throat, rendering you unable to scream at Juli to stop as she dunked and licked you clean over and over again, to the cheers, laughter, and constant stream of donations from her rabid fanbase. Juli, in her own words, had 'made total bank' on that stream, and you had spent three whole days trying to wash yourself clean of dip.
You weren't a total spineless coward of a father, of course, so you'd chewed Juli out for her behavior during that stream afterwards. To her credit, she had apologized, but you doubted the sincerity given she was right back to her attention-seeking antics the very next day. Honestly, it was a bit exhausting how often your crushed or molded body had featured on her social media posts, drawing some rather insane viewer numbers. You were, on the one hand, happy your daughters had found a hobby (and a job) she loved, but since it came at your expense often...your feelings were ultimately conflicted.
Juli beamed at you. "You're always the star of the show when you're on my streams, dad! My little Gems just can't be satisfied with photos and vids alone! It's gotta be live and uncut!" She laughed, and you had to take a second to recall what she meant by 'Gems'.
Your daughter's handle as a streamer was 'JewelyJuli', and befitting the gemstone motif of her name and streaming interface, she referred to her fans as 'Gems'. It was cute theming, and your daughter truly did have a knack for the influencer lifestyle. It was little surprise that she'd amassed such a staggeringly large fanbase, to the point where being an influencer was bringing in almost as much money as you made managing a gym franchise!
You crossed your arms. "Okay, Juli, but you have to promise me that this stream won't get out of control. I'm your father, and I love you, but I also have to put my foot down sometimes. Your fans don't seem to respect me."
Juli waved her hand dismissively. "Aw, come on, daddy! You're overthinking it! They totally love you! And, obvs, so do I!" Juli giggled and leaned down quickly, pecking you with her lips and leaving your hair partially coated in saliva and bits of pink glitter from her lipstick. She then turned back to her computer, apparently having answered your request in her own way...or so you had to assume. Juli never did have the best control over her excitement when her fans got riled up.
Pouting a bit, you tried to clean your hair as Juli finished getting her stream ready. She adjusted a few different light fixtures, dusted off her high-quality webcam, affixed her microphone and pop filter in just the right place, and prepared her streaming deck (replete with all the requisite silly memes and inside jokes her Gems loved to see during streams). Finally, your daughter gave you another wink, took a deep breath, and hit the button to go live.
"What's up, my adorable little Gems!" Juli eagerly exclaimed, face bright and cheerful. "It's JewelyJuli, here for another dazzling stream! And, wow, do I have a surprise for you guys! I know I set this stream to 'Just Chatting', but I've totally got a surprise guest joining us that I know will bring the fun like you wouldn't believe!"
You cleared your throat, prepared to make a grand entrance, only for your daughter to hastily snatch you between her fingers, slightly pinching your stomach. You opened your mouth to protest, only for your daughter's long pink fingernail to slide between your lips, crushing your tongue back and forcing you to make a comically pained expression. She then dangled you in front of her camera, oblivious to what she'd done or how pitiful you looked.
"Ta da! My little Gems, it's the one and only Lil M!" Juli cried, hammering an obnoxious sparkly horn button on her streaming deck, as her chat went wild with excitement.
As soon as those words exited your daughter's mouth, however, a part of your soul died. In the past month, you'd completely forgotten about Lil M, your on-stream nickname.
It had been created by her fans at first, but Juli found the name hilarious and quickly adopted it and made it official. Almost overnight, whenever you were on stream or otherwise featured in a humiliating social media post, you were exclusively referred to as Lil M. Not as Juli's father, and not even by your real name. Just by a little pet name, as if that's all you were: a little pet. Something to tease and toy with and not view as a real person. It was, inarguably, quite demeaning.
You'd asked Juli to stop, once, sitting her down for a serious talk about her often casual treatment of you. But you'd made the mistake of including Mari in the conversation, and your wife (bless her lovely heart) just couldn't see Juli's actions as bad. She'd taken Juli's side, assuring you it was all in good fun, and under the intense gaze of both of their big doe eyes, you'd relented and let Juli keep the nickname, for as much as it annoyed you. Seeing her happy in life was still, as her father, one of your most important goals in life.
You just wished you didn't have to suffer for it so often.
Juli re-centered herself in the camera. "Anyway, my Gems, this stream is officially going off-the-books! I've got no plans, and instead want YOU guys to give me your ideas for what Lil M and I should do today! Hit me with everything you've got!" Your daughter pumped her fist, and her eyes grew wide as the comments (and donations) began piling in. Dangling in her grip, you could only glumly hope for an uneventful stream.
1) Juli's viewers want her to try modeling some clothes, and they want Lil M to be the volunteer fabric for the job. Juli, of course, is more than happy to oblige!
2) Juli's viewers want her to do another gaming stream, and suggest that Lil M should be used as some sort of 'lucky charm' by Juli. What way does Juli choose to use you to satisfy them?
3) Juli's viewers set up a donation-based dare-game, where they'll send money and gift subs for each successful dare Juli accomplishes using you. No doubt this will spiral out of control very quickly, and Juli won't have the self-control to stop.
4) Juli's viewers suggest a game of hide-and-seek, where she should stick you around the house near Mari and Riley and see how long it takes your oft-oblivious wife and daughter to find you. Juli thinks this is hilarious, so she transfers the stream to her cell and heads out of her room with you in tow!
5) *Writer's Choice*
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