Ryoma Hoshido. 25 years old and fresh out of college. He's a photographer and, even though he's new to the business, his fresh style has catapulted him to popularity among various businesses, magazines, and modeling agencies.

Outside of his professional life, Ryoma is the eldest of a family of four - Mr. and Mrs. Hoshido died on his 18th birthday, leaving him to raise his younger siblings with only the support of his closest sibling, 23-year-old Hinoka. Takumi, 18, had moved in with a friend almost immediately upon graduating high school, leaving only Sakura, 16, in her older siblings' care. The pressure of attending college and raising Takumi and Sakura had nearly overwhelmed Ryoma, but Hinoka kept him from dropping out and he was now fulfilling his dreams.

At this point in time, Ryoma was grilling dinner. Hinoka was due home from class shortly, Sakura was upstairs in her room, and Takumi was bringing his roommate over to visit for the first time before he headed to his own home for the weekend, so he was making hamburgers and hot dogs. Ryoma had been the cook for the family since his parents died - Hinoka claims she once set fire to a pot of spaghetti and, even though he knew this was (probably) an exaggeration, he trusted her judgment of her skills enough to not let her even try.

Even though it was already nearly autumn, the heat of the day combined with the heat of the grill had overwhelmed him early into the cooking process and he had ditched his signature red jacket and soon even the white tank top under it, seeing as he was more-or-less home alone. If he wasn't outside on a patio where all of his neighbors could see, he would've ditched the gym shorts, too; he was still melting. It was times like these he regretted growing his hair out so long - it was down to his waist untied and he was on the taller side - but he had looked like this for so long, he wasn't sure he would be as successful as a photographer if he got a haircut.

"I'm home!" Hinoka called as she walked in the front door. Ryoma turned from the grill to wave her over.

"How was class?" he asked as she came through the patio door, holding out his arms to hug her. She dodged backward.

"Good," she responded. "And there is no way I'm hugging you before you put on some clothes." She paused and sniffed the air. "And maybe not even after. You're planning on showering before Takumi and Leo get here, right?"

Ryoma frowned. "Do I smell that bad?" Hinoka pinched her nose and nodded. Ryoma rolled his eyes. "Fine, I'll go shower once I get the burgers off the grill. Tell Sakura to set the table."

...

Ryoma hummed a tune as he scrubbed his body with a soapy wash cloth. After rinsing, he shut off the water and pulled back the shower curtain to see Takumi leaning in the doorframe.

"Holy-" Ryoma said, stumbling backward in his surprise at seeing Takumi and quickly snagging a towel. "Seriously? Some privacy would be nice."

"Hinoka won't let us eat until you come downstairs and I'm starving," Takumi stated, ignoring Ryoma's reaction. "Come downstairs."

"Can I get dressed first?" Ryoma asked, gesturing to the towel.

"Fine, but hurry up," Takumi said, walking away. Ryoma rolled his eyes at his brother's bluntness.

...

"About time," Hinoka said as Ryoma came down the stairs. "Did you finish your beauty treatment?"

Ryoma glared at her. "You're the one who told me I had to shower," he complained, pulling out the chair at the head of the table. Hinoka and Takumi sat to his immediate right and left with Sakura and Leo beside them, respectively.

Takumi cleared his throat awkwardly. "Ryoma, have you met Leo?"

Understanding, Ryoma snapped to a professional posture and turned to Leo. "I don't believe I've had the pleasure. I'm Ryoma, Takumi's older brother."

"It's nice to meet you," Leo replied. His voice was calm but Ryoma recognized some damage that he speculated may have come from yelling which, in turn, might be a sign of anger issues. This was masked by a strong British accent, indicating a recent European family history. Ryoma kept these observations to himself for the moment, smiling politely. "I have to admit," Leo said awkwardly, scratching behind his ear. "I always found it strange you didn't make an effort to get to know me. The way Takumi has described you, you see quite… protective."

Ryoma chuckled, though he made a mental note to ask Takumi later exactly how he had been "describing" him. "Yes, well, I trust Takumi's judgment. If he's willing to move in with you, he must trust you quite a bit." Ryoma paused, considered the consequences, then added: "And Hinoka stalked you online, just to be safe."

"I did not!" Hinoka shouted back. Ryoma laughed, entirely aware that he was completely embarrassing Takumi.

"So tell me about yourself," he continued. "What are you attending college for?"

"Business and accounting," Leo replied, a small, proud smile appearing. "I hope to take over the family business some day."

"Ah, yes, your older brother is the founder and CEO of Nohr Industries, right?" Ryoma asked.

"That's right."

"Speaking of the family business," Takumi said, interrupting Ryoma before he could say anything else, "didn't you have something you wanted to ask Ryoma?"

Leo's eyes lit up. "I nearly forgot. You're a photographer, right?"

Ryoma nodded tentatively. "That's correct."

"My older brother wanted me to ask if you would be willing to do a photoshoot with him," Leo explained. "Something about 'getting his face out there'. You would be paid, of course."

Ryoma considered this. From what he knew about Nohr Industries, its CEO, Xander Nohr, was constantly out of the public eye. Leo was one of three younger siblings who had little connection to the company besides their surname. The second oldest, Camilla, was a famous model. The youngest, Elise, was a child actress. Whenever they were asked about their oldest brother, they would clam up and leave the interview. People spread a lot of rumors about Xander - what he looked like, his personality, his friends, his relationships - but no one had ever gotten any facts on him. Ryoma could be the first. "I'll have to check my schedule," he finally responded. "But have your brother contact me. I'll give you my card before you go."

...

"Thank you for having me over," Leo said as he made his way to the door.

"I'll walk you to the car," Takumi offered, following close behind.

Ryoma smiled. "No funny business while you're out there alone," he called. Takumi didn't turn around before slamming the door, but Ryoma knew he was blushing furiously.

"You really shouldn't tease him so much," Hinoka commented, punching Ryoma in the arm. Ryoma just chuckled.

"It's almost like they're brothers," he said, partially changing the topic.

Hinoka nodded. "Takumi isn't usually good at making friends. I'm glad he found him." They sat in silence for a moment. Sakura had excused herself to her room to finish studying shortly after dinner and was almost certainly asleep by now. "Have you ever thought about..." Hinoka said but stopped herself from finishing the sentence.

Ryoma cocked an eyebrow. "Thought about what?"

"Oh, er," Hinoka looked embarrassed. "Finding... you know, someone who makes you happy."

This time, it was Ryoma's turn to blush. "What are you talking about?"

"You haven't dated since... since we lost mom and dad," Hinoka said. "You put all of your time into work and family. You don't even have any friends. It can't be healthy."

"I'm friends with Saizo and Kagero-"

"They're your coworkers. Have you ever actually gone to dinner with them? Or asked them about their life?"

Ryoma knew he couldn't refute this, as painful as it sounded for her to say. "Don't worry about me. I can handle myself."

"Okay," Hinoka said. "But think about it, okay?" She gave him a hug before heading upstairs to bed. Ryoma sat in the room alone for a few minutes, thinking over what she said. Maybe he did need a significant other. But if he was being completely honest with himself, he wasn't all that interested in dating. Even before his parents died, he had never been attracted to anyone - he occasionally would attend a movie with a group of friends where one girl would hold his hand, but he had never even had his first kiss.

His thoughts were interrupted by Takumi returning through the door. "Did you kiss him goodbye?" he asked teasingly. Takumi's face turned red.

"We're just friends."

Ryoma grinned but didn't push the issue. "Here, take a seat. Let's talk."

Takumi looked nervous as he pulled a chair out and sat across from Ryoma. "What? Is something wrong?"

"No," Ryoma assured him. "I just want to talk about Leo some. Has he ever... yelled at you?"

Takumi raised an eyebrow. "Uh... I mean... we've gotten into fights, but... Why do you ask?"

"No reason in particular," Ryoma assured him. "He just seems... angry. I wanted to make sure he wasn't hurting you."

"I think I can handle myself," Takumi replied. Ryoma smiled. It was amazing how similar they were, yet so different.

"So what do you know about Xander?" Ryoma asked, changing the topic.

"Not a lot," Takumi admitted. "I haven't met him and Leo doesn't talk about him much. To be honest, the only reason he came up was that of the possibility of you doing a photoshoot. Why? Do you think you'll do it?"

"I think it would be interesting," Ryoma responded. "Seeing what rumors are true and what rumors are just that. And it would be good for my career to be the first one to see the man behind the curtain of Nohr Industries and spread that information to the general public." And maybe, just maybe…

Xander could be the friend he needed.

this is my first real AU? i'm kind of stressing about publishing this?

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