Aiden woke up with the harsh morning light hitting him right in the eyes. He threw his arm over his face and rolled over. When he opened his eyes again he was surprised to see that Oliver wasn't there. He sat up quickly, looking at the empty spot where Oliver had been asleep last night. His eyes searched the room for Oliver. He saw that Oliver's dirty shoes weren't by the door, his wallet and phone weren't on the nightstand. He felt the knowledge hit him like a stab in the chest. Chase had been right, last night was just a hook up. The date had gone so well, when they had kissed in the car Aiden had a realization that there was much more chemistry between them that he had realized before. He had invited him back to his apartment and Oliver had stayed the night. The night's events had just confirmed to Aiden that he and Oliver connected. He wondered how he could have been so stupid. Aiden reached for his phone to see if Oliver had at least sent him a text, but the thing was dead. He threw his face into his palms for a moment, cursing his naivety.

He looked down at his body, dirt and sweat stuck together on his skin. He threw some pants on and walked out of his room. He found Chase on the couch, shirtless, watching television in the small space of the couch that wasn't covered in photos. He had a cup of coffee in his hand and he looked like he had just woken up.

"You look like hell," Chase said jokingly.

Aiden didn't respond. He walked into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee. He felt Chase's presence behind him. "I don't want to talk about it," Aiden muttered.

"What happened?" Chase asked. "Is that Oliver guy still here? Your door was closed last night so I assume he stayed over."

"Yeah he did, but he left," Aiden explained. He frowned into his cup.

Chase sighed. "It was a hook-up, wasn't it?"

Aiden shrugged. "You know, I really thought it was different with this guy. I guess I was wrong."

Chase placed his cup of coffee on the bench and reached over. He wrapped an arm around Aiden and pulled him into a hug. "Maybe he had an early meeting or something and didn't want to wake you. Call him today."

Aiden nodded as Chase stepped away. "Yeah."

Chase led Aiden back to the couch. He cleared another spot for Aiden to sit and motioned for him to join him. Aiden took a deep sip of his coffee and rested his head on the back of the couch. He couldn't stop thinking about Oliver. He unconsciously looked over at the hallway, his eyes searching for his room. He couldn't stop thinking about last night, the two of them kissing in his doorway, dirt and leaves still falling off of them.

The intercom buzzed and Chase got up to get it. Aiden assumed that it must have been Mary, coming over to see Chase. When Chase came back he had a giant smile on his face.

"You'll never guess who's on their way up."

"Mary?" Aiden asked. He wasn't excited to see her in the least, let alone when she found out that he had another hook-up last night.

"Your lover boy," Chase replied.

Aiden felt a smile overcome his face. "Oliver is here?"

"He must have had a change of heart."

It was soon enough that there was a knock at the door. Aiden practically ran over to the door and pulled it open. On the other side stood Oliver in new clothes, suit pants and a dark green shirt with a black tie. He had two takeaway coffees in his hands and an apologetic look on his face.

"I'm really sorry I had to leave so early this morning. My work had a technical crisis and called me in. I had to go home and change first so I didn't have time to wake you up," Oliver explained. "I got worried when you didn't reply to my message."

Aiden sighed. "My phones dead. It's okay, I understand."

Oliver handed him one of the coffees. Aiden took a sip. Even though he had just finished a coffee, he still drank the one Oliver gave him. No one had ever turned up on his doorstep with coffee before. "Thank-you. Come in." Aiden led Oliver inside.

Aiden practically ran into Chase who was standing near the entrance to the living room. Chase stuck his hand out. "It's nice to meet you, Oliver."

Oliver shook his hand. "You too. You must be Chase, the roommate?"

"Oh I'm more than the roommate," Chase said with a laugh. Oliver looked at Aiden like he had some explaining to do. Aiden rolled his eyes at Chase. "I'm the best friend," Chase continued, "the partner in crime and confidant."

"Sure you are, Chase." Aiden sent a stern look at Chase.

Chase just smiled back at Aiden.

"Are these your photos?" Oliver asked. He reached over to the couch and used both hands to pick one off the pile. It was a photo of the beach, a boat in on the horizon and the sun rising in the distance.

Aiden nodded. He was always a little embarrassed when people saw his work. Aiden watched Oliver's expression, and by the smile on his face he seemed to like the photo. "You can keep one, it's not going to sell anyway," Aiden told him.

"Don't speak like that," Chase chimed in. "You are going to sell heaps. You'll be famous in five years, just wait."

Aiden rolled his eyes.

"Chase is right. You have a natural talent for this," Oliver added.

"See," Chase said.

Aiden grabbed Oliver's hand and pulled him past Chase and into his room. "Sorry about Chase, he means well."

"He seems like a nice guy."

Aiden sat down on his bed with his legs crossed under him. He looked over at Oliver who had lingered in the doorway. Slowly, he walked the length of the room, his eyes were on the photos.

"I didn't notice all these last night," he told Aiden. "You really are an amazing photographer."

"Thank-you," Aiden said.

Oliver took a sip of his coffee. "I really had a good time last night. I hope you didn't think I was blowing you off when I wasn't here this morning."

Aiden felt like he could read his mind. "I did actually, so I'm glad you came back."

Oliver sat down next to him. He put his hand on Aiden's knee. "I'm sorry. Mustn't have been a nice feeling."

"You can make it up to me by hanging out with me today?" Aiden asked hopefully.

Oliver shook his head. "I have to go back to work. IT crises and all that. I was lucky to slip away right now, told my boss I'd be back in an hour."

"I understand." In fact, Aiden was disappointed. He would have much rather spent his day with Oliver. He still felt like there was so much more to know about him, that what he knew now only just breached the surface of who Oliver was. "How about you make it up to me with another date? You pick this time."

"Okay, that one I can do. Are you free Saturday?"

"I sure am."

Oliver leant over and kissed Aiden softly. "I have to go," he said. "I'll call you tonight and we can organise Saturday." Aiden nodded. He walked Oliver out into the living room. "Can I really take a photo?" he asked.

Aiden nodded. He didn't see why not, the photos had been sitting there for weeks. "Yeah, sure."

Oliver picked up one of the photos and tucked it under his arm. "Thank-you," he said.

Aiden kissed him at the door. He held on just a little bit longer, not liking the idea of not seeing him for a few days. He had only met this guy a few days ago, and yet he felt like he needed to be around him to breathe. Aiden stood next to the closed door for a few moments after Oliver had left.

"You two are so cute!" Chase practically squealed.

"Were you watching us?" Aiden asked, even though he knew instantly that it was true.

"Yep. He took your photo!" Chase cooed. "That is so cute!"

"Shut up," Aiden replied. He tried to keep his face natural but his lips turned into a smile on their own accord.

"I think you are right about this guy. He is different," Chase told him.

Aiden noticed that Chase was dressed. "Are you going to work?" he asked.

"Yeah, got some personal training sessions today. I should leave soon actually," Chase told him. "Oh and while I remember, rent is due next week."

Aiden sighed. Rent. A little voice that he instantly recognised as his father's came into the back of his mind, telling him that he needed to get a real job. He pushed the voice back. He loved photography and he refused to give up on himself. He just needed the online business to take off a little more. He might have to do another trip somewhere and get some good landscape photos for the fitness magazines. He might have to call Brian, his friend from Celebrity Today, too. He did some contract work for Celebrity Today whenever they needed him to, and Brian just might have something for him. "Okay."

"You will be okay for rent this month, right?" Chase asked. "I can always help you if you need."

Chase had never, not even once, told Aiden to get a different job. He was so supportive, more supportive than his family had ever been of him. He and Brian seemed to be the only ones who believed in him.

"I'll be okay," Aiden told him. "Thank-you though."

Chase headed out for work and Aiden started on his phone calls. He contacted a few magazines but there wasn't much work right now. So, he called Brian. The phone was ringing for so long that he was almost sure he wasn't going to answer. Just before Aiden hung up, a rushed sounding Brian picked up the phone.

"Hello? Brian Atkins here."

"Brian, its Aiden."

"How's it going?" Brian asked seriously.

"Good. I wanted to see if you had any jobs for me at the moment?"

"Yeah actually. Can you come to my office and we can talk about it?"

Aiden didn't particularly want to go into the city, but for Brian he wouldn't say no. "Okay. I'll see you soon."

Aiden had to catch the train into the city. There was never any parking anywhere near Brian's office. His building was shared with a few other companies. It was located in the centre of the city, which just happened to be the busiest part. Aiden didn't like the craziness of the city but he did like the sounds, the noise of the beeping horns and chatting people and the beep of the crosswalk. He took a few photos as he walked, his camera secure around his neck. He finally made it to the building just after midday. The lobby was busy and chaotic. There were business people practically running through the space. There was a large reception area placed in the centre of the marble floors and three elevators towards the back. He walked past the reception area and took an elevator up to the top floor.

He walked over to the cubicle that Brian usually worked at, only to see a blonde haired lady sitting at the desk. Her fingers tapped hard on the keypad. "Can I help you?" she asked when she noticed him standing there.

"Yeah, um, I'm looking for Brian. Brian Atkins."

The blonde pointed towards the row of doors to the side of the bullpen. "Second one from the left," she told him.

Sure enough, Brian's name was on the door she had pointed out. Aiden knocked on the door.

"Come in."

Aiden opened the door. Brian was sitting at a big, wooden desk with a large swivel chair behind it and fancy computer taking up half of the desk space. There was a photo of his Son and wife sitting on his desk, facing the door. His office even had a window overlooking the city around them.

"You're moving up in the world," Aiden commented. "When did you get an office?"

"Last week," Brian told him. Brian was always a serious person. A smile didn't even touch his lips. "I did a good job on a few Kim Kardashian stories and here I am."

Aiden would have laughed, but he wasn't sure if Brian meant it as a joke or not. "Well, it's an awesome office. You've done well for yourself."

Brian motioned for him to sit down. Aiden couldn't help but be a little jealous of Brian. Here he sat with his slicked back dark hair, expensive suit and shiny watch on his wrist. He was attractive too, sharp jawline and big, dark eyes. He had olive skin that Aiden had always been jealous of, considering the paleness of his own skin tone. He had this big job in the city, probably more money than he could ever dream of. He had a wife and son at home. Aiden wasn't jealous of some parts of Brian's life, but he couldn't deny that Brian had done well for himself. He was happy for his friend, he only hoped that one day he would have his life together like Brian did.

"It's been a few months since you've asked for work, what's going on?" Brian asked.

Aiden knew that Brian was only asking because he cared about him. Yet, he didn't like admitting to his friend that he hadn't been making much money. Brian, however, would know that he wasn't making much money because that was the only reason he ever came to Brian for work. "Photo's aren't selling. You know the deal. I just hope you have some work for me."

Brian nodded understandingly. "I do have some projects for you. I know you aren't really into the whole celebrity thing, but you're good at it. People like you, you're good in the field. You know, there's always a more permanent job here if you want it."

Aiden knew that. Brian had said that from day one, but this wasn't the type of photography he wanted to do every day. "I know, and I really appreciate it, but not right now."

"Okay. You know I hate to see you suffering," Brian said. He quickly changed the subject. "So what's going on in your world?"

"Seeing a new guy," Aiden admitted. He felt like he wanted to tell everyone about Oliver.

Brian smiled. It was the first smile from him since Aiden had arrived. "I'm happy for you. What's his name?"

"Oliver."

"Does he have a steady job?"

Aiden laughed. "You're such a parent."

Brian smiled again. "I am aren't I? I guess priorities change when you have kids."

"He does have a good job. He works in IT," Aiden told him. "How's Hayley and the baby?"

"They are good. You should bring this Oliver around sometime. You have no idea how fast Chris is growing."

"Okay," Aiden said. "So tell me about this job."

Aiden stayed in the office for over an hour with Brian. He got a few new assignments to do this weekend. There was a gala that needed to be covered Friday night so he was excited for that. He knew he would be able to dress up and meet new people, which was always a fun thing to do in Aiden's eyes. He was busy thinking about what he would wear when he stepped into the elevator. He looked down at his phone and saw that he had a text from Oliver. I hope you're having a good day, it read. Aiden smiled into the phone. He replied that he hoped Oliver managed to fix the IT crisis. The elevator dinged and he stepped out of the quiet elevator and into the sea of people in the lobby. He had only taken one step out of the elevator when he saw a face he recognised. It was Oliver. He was walking on the other side of the lobby, a woman typing viciously into her phone standing next to him while he shook the hand of four Asian business men. They were all wearing very expensive suits, and when Aiden looked at Oliver, he could see that Oliver was wearing a suit jacket, his hair slicked back more than what it was at his place this morning, and he was wearing a giant golden watch on his wrist that Aiden was sure he would have seen this morning if he had been wearing it. What type of IT does Oliver do? Aiden asked himself. He suddenly got the strangest feeling as if he had been lied to. He watched Oliver get into an elevator with the men and Aiden quickly disappeared into the crowd.

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