used to being the family disappointment — in fact, it was no surprise that the heavy mantle had fallen onto his shoulders, as he had never been the type to settle down, be an adult or act responsible. That part was for his big brother, Dan, to play. And he did a damn good job at it, too. While the more mature brother got into the LAPD as a new deputy and began building his career there, and also got himself a pretty little girlfriend — Chloe Decker — Benji was out having fun, partying and exploring himself and the parts he was yet to show the world. It was an odd relationship between the two brothers, as Dan carried a badge and a gun and followed the law, but Benjamin did the opposite. A perfect summary of their drastically different personalities was the memory of Benji being stopped by the cops for reckless driving on the streets of L.A, only to realize it was his own brother busting him.

But despite the backlash his immature and impulsive behavior gained, it didn't discourage Benjamin. If anything, it simply convinced him to do whatever he wanted, whatever his heart yearned for, and with that in mind, he dropped everything and turned his back on L.A and the life he had built there. Now that both of his and Dan's parents were gone from their lives, and the older brother of the family that had been pulled apart like cotton candy was working towards his own future, Benji had no reason to stay behind and watch everyone else succeed in life. Instead, he decided to widen his horizons, so to say, and with barely any luggage with him, the youngest Espinoza had headed to the airport after buying tickets to a last-minute flight from Los Angeles to Italy.

Needless to say, it was quite the shocker for Dan to come home to a note on the kitchen table that said, "Hey bro, I decided to travel a bit so don't stay up. Try not to miss me too much. Love you", in its simplicity — not a heartfelt, tear-stained letter, but a quickly scribbled post-it note that could have as well pointed out how there were leftovers in the fridge. But there weren't — Benji had eaten every last crumble before heading out with a full stomach and an urge to roam the world, have fun and meet hot guys.

Florence was his first destination, but from there, Benjamin ended up visiting other beautiful countries and their busy cities, from London and Copenhagen to Toulouse and Helsinki. He never stayed too long in one place, he avoided attachment by hopping from one cheap flight to another after a few nights of partying in nightclubs, tanning on beaches and making out with some fine gentlemen. It was, simply put, fun — much like Benji himself. Whereas Dan was stuck in one place with a wife and a kid, Benjamin was traveling through Europe and squeezing all the excitement out of his young adult life, enjoying a carefree life with no responsibilities or worries in sight.

And he loved it. How could he not? It was the perfect opportunity to explore himself and embrace his sexuality, but never too much. It never got too serious, too emotional or too deep.

But, admittedly, after a few years he began to grow tired of the way he was living his life. He got older, and suddenly, the thought of dancing all night long only to make his way to a stranger's bed didn't sound so tempting. He was no longer so eager to travel to another country, but instead wanted to stay for longer periods of time and spend his time doing more than just have meaningless sex and get wasted. Of course, the party animal in him didn't die away, but it was finally on a leash.

It took Benji a while, but eventually, he realized what was missing. He had spent so many years living on his own, after detaching himself from his home and family, that he just didn't want to do it anymore — he wanted to be reunited with Dan, he wanted to be the uncle that spoiled his niece rotten, he wanted to bring the party back home.

That was why Benjamin took one last flight, from Barcelona to Los Angeles, with a heart full of longing for his brother and desire to once again find the enthusiasm that he had lost during his travels. This time, he had no intentions to leave quickly — if anything, he hoped that he could stay for good, if only Dan would still let him through the front door.

For the past years, Benjamin had kept his 1969 Camaro hidden in a container at a local storage facility, but now that he was back, he was obviously eager to get behind the wheel again. And frankly, it didn't take him long to find the black beauty and let the engine roar before speeding away, his hands happily gripping the leather wheel and his lips pulled upwards whilst a victorious laughter slipped from between his lips. It had been too long since he had felt this familiar thrill, the sense of freedom that caused his heart to flutter as he stepped on the gas pedal and let the muscle car take him into the dark night of Los Angeles.

However, he didn't get that far, when another familiar sound pushed its way to Benji's ears, over the purr of his car and the Whitesnake song playing from the radio. Sighing, Benjamin gave a bored look to the rearview mirror only to see a police car following him with the lights on, the flicker of blue and red breaking the inner peace within the guy. Granted, he was going over the speed limit, but hey — empty streets and a quiet night, what was he supposed to do?

Still, he didn't intend to kick off his return to L.A by breaking the law and being the ever disappointing little brother to Dan, who would no doubt get jokes and comments about his wild sibling around the precinct. So, like the good boy he could sometimes be, Benjamin lowered the volume on the radio and drove the Camaro to the side of the street, willingly giving up and stepping away from the game he was playing.

The bright light of a flashlight blinded Benji momentarily as the cop stepped out of the car and approached the young man in the vehicle, but once the lack of eyesight had passed and Benjamin could see who had stopped him, he broke into a wide smile.

"Déjá-vu, am I right?", the younger Espinoza teasingly grinned as his big brother lowered the flashlight, a sense of victory landing onto Benjamin's heart as he eyed Dan, whose face was full of disbelief. "Hey, I thought you were a homicide detective now. Why this whole, not on my streets, you speeding scumbag thing, huh?", Benji faked a much deeper voice as he pretended to be a cop as well, but whereas he ended up laughing and smiling at his brother, all Dan could do was stare and try to get over the shock in him.

"I—I am. I was just... heading back to the precinct when I saw you going over the— but, Benjamin? Is that really you? When did you come back?", Dan stammered, pushing the flashlight onto his belt as he rested against the door of the Camaro and eyed his brother in disbelief.

Laughing, Benji nodded. "Well, how many confident, sarcastic guys in leather jackets and awesome, classic cars do you know? Yes, it's me, obviously. I just got here, I was on my way to see you, actually", the boy then knocked the door open and stood up from the comfortable leather seat. It seemed Dan's eyes only widened as he stood straight and extended out his arms proudly, confirming that it was indeed his brother, the boy he had grown up with, the Benjamin he loved and had missed dearly.

That was the only thing Daniel could think about as he then stepped forward and pulled Benji into a brotherly hug, his hand smacking against the younger man's back as he wrapped his arms around him and broke into genuinely happy laughter. "Welcome home, Ben", Dan grinned, and laughing as well, Benjamin thanked him for the open arms he accepted him with. Frankly, a part of him had expected Dan to be angry and upset with him, but he had actually missed him. And that felt nice.

Clearing his throat, Benjamin then broke the silence between them, "Hey, you're not giving me a ticket, right?"

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