been the type to dwell on things or chase after boys, which was exactly why he tried to shrug Lucifer Morningstar's sudden exit off as no big deal. Instead of shooting yearning, dramatic looks to the door that his tall figure had sauntered through only moments earlier, Benjamin reminded what kind of a man he himself was — confident, brave, independent, and above all, carefree.

With that word pluckily remaining in his mind, Benji then proceeded to have a drink — just one, due to promising Dan he'd be responsible and smart with his behavior and pastime activities — and chat it up with the strangers by the bar counter. His laughter was loud, matching up with the volume of the music as his eyes crinkled and his hand went to his chest, confirming to the people around him that he was having a good time. In his mind, he could imagine Daniel's proud smile, one that would have meant something like, "See, you don't need to be drunk to have fun!"

Perhaps it was true.

"Hey, cutie, another drink right this way, pretty please", Benji lifted his finger then, earning the attention of the adorable but muscular bartender behind the counter, his hair in a neat bun and a lovely smile on his lips. "But, wait — make it alcohol-free", the youngest Espinoza then added, proud of himself as he flashed a convincing grin at the bartender, who instantly got to work.

"Oh, I'm sorry", a female voice then spoke up from beside Benjamin, who turned around quickly, only to find an awkwardly smiling blonde standing there, glasses resting atop her nose and her hands fiddling with her white jacket. "Did you— uh, are you two...", she stammered, nodding subtly towards the bartender, and eyes widening, Benjamin realized what she was referring to. And somehow, he was glad he could say no, because frankly, the woman was just downright adorable.

"Oh no, no! By all means, flirt away. I'm, uh— well, it's about my brother. I've only recently returned to L.A. I kind of promised him I'd act more mature this time, so, no more sleeping around I guess", Benjamin reassured the blonde, who nodded and took a seat next to the man, both of them still smiling at each other — until he ended up chuckling in some kind of embarrassment and shaking his head. "Sorry, you didn't really sign up for my life story. TMI, I know", he apologized quickly, proving what most people didn't believe, that even if he was a wild boy, prone to bad behavior and impulsive actions, he did have manners.

But luckily, the woman was quick to comfort him. "It's okay, really. I'm a therapist, so I'm used to it. I guess I just have one of those faces", she explained, and Benji, who was just about to sip on the drink that had been delivered to him, lowered the glass quickly and lifted his eyebrows. He didn't consider himself someone who needed therapy, but he was intrigued by the line of work.

"Really?", he wondered, "what's your name, if you don't mind me asking?"

In an instant, the blonde stuck out her hand for Benjamin to shake, which he did quickly. "Dr. Linda Martin. And you are?", she introduced herself with the smile on her lips only growing brighter, and impressed by her enthusiasm and lovable personality, Benji gently gripped her hand and nodded approvingly.

"Benjamin Espinoza. Very nice to meet you, Linda", he beamed, always glad to make new friends — even the kind of friends he didn't end up sleeping with. However, something he said caused Linda's eyes to widen, and he wasn't quite sure what it was, but it was visible on her face that she was surprised, perhaps even amazed.

"You're Dan Espinoza's brother? I had no idea he even had one. You are... wow", Linda waved her hands in the air, and rolling his eyes, Benji sighed.

"Does everyone here know my brother? When did that happen?", he ran his fingers through his tousled hair, before letting the frown upon his plump lips develop into a full-on grin. "Thank you, I'm aware. I got all the good genes", Benjamin added confidently, causing Linda to laugh slightly at the half-joke.

The two didn't have the opportunity to talk more, when the young man's phone suddenly began to ring a familiar tune, and whipping out the cracked iPhone from the back pocket of his skinny jeans, Benji checked the caller ID and gave a sarcastic smile to Linda. "Speak of the Devil", he sighed, before adding, "I don't mean Lucifer— it's, it's Dan." With that, he stepped away from Linda and took the call, a new smirk finding a way to his lips as he greeted his brother with, "Hey bro! How's it going?"

Chuckling at his younger brother, Dan lowered the music of his radio, confirming to Benjamin that he was currently driving. "It's going good, Benji. And I assume you can safely say the same, hm?", he wondered, but instead of waiting for the answer — which kind of terrified him, anyway — Dan had already continued. "I was hoping you could do me a favor, bro. It looks like I'll be stuck at work a little longer because of this demotion, so could you pick up Trixie and drop her off at Chloe's?", the oldest Espinoza carefully asked, knowing how terribly Benjamin dealt with responsibilities, but at this, his eyes lit up.

"In other words, would I like to pick up my niece and see my sister-in-law? Damn right I would. Consider it done, Detective Douche. In return, I expect pizza for dinner?", Benji smoothly questioned, and given no options but to agree, Dan promised to bring pizza with him once he'd get home.

That was quite enough for Benjamin, who proceeded to end the call and then grab his leather jacket from his seat by the bar. But before he left, he gave Linda Martin one last look, and a charming smile — as always. "Here, why don't you have my drink? Good luck with Mr. Man-Bun McHottie over there", he nodded towards the bartender they had both been eyeing, and after offering Linda the drink he never got to have, Benjamin shrugged on his jacket and took out his car keys before walking out of Lux.

And as he found his Camaro and revved the engine proudly, he realized that now, he could finally catch up with Trixie and Chloe, and question the latter about his rather intriguing partner at the LAPD.

Lucifer Morningstar was a mystery to him, and one that he intended to solve.

—————

it was always a surprise to find out what a soft teddy bear Benjamin Espinoza actually was. Even if he occasionally broke the law and acted impulsively more than his family would have liked, he had a soft spot for kids, romance and puppies. All things pure and warm, basically. And Trixie was no exception — if anything, she was Benjamin's favorite little angel, a small princess whom he loved dearly.

Trixie had still been young when Benji had left to travel the world, but the man had spent a fair amount of time playing with her as a baby, nonetheless, forming a bond between the two. One that was impossible to break. They were practically best friends, especially now that Benjamin had returned, and instantly took his niece for ice cream after picking her up from school with his awesome car, turning the heads of little kids as he arrived, sunglasses on his eyes and a bright smile impressing the many mothers and fathers on the yard.

Frankly, Benjamin was the one who had taught Trixie to be a little devil at times — bargaining for chocolate cake and using her undeniable cuteness to get out of trouble whenever necessary. But as much as Chloe and Dan wanted to scold Benji for teaching their daughter how to be immature like him, at least she was an actual child, and the two had an adorable relationship. That was usually why they let things slide — or perhaps because Benjamin and Trixie had perfected their puppy eyes together.

Eventually, the two arrived at the Decker residence, both of them licking their ice cream cones whilst holding hands, and needless to say, Chloe was just a little bit shocked to find them on her doorstep like that. Dan had mentioned Benji's return to Los Angeles, but Chloe hadn't fully grasped the reality of that, not until she found her brother-in-law standing there in all of his glory, arms opening wide to pull the shorter woman into a tight, loving hug.

"Benjamin! You're really here", Chloe laughed whilst embracing him, her heart filling with joy, whilst Benji felt the same way. They had always loved each other, just like family should, and whereas his and Dan's parents had been a little unsure about their oldest son getting married, Benji had accepted Chloe right away. They had formed a relationship instantly — then again, that usually happened with Benjamin. "Come on inside! You too, monkey", the detective then smiled, letting go of her brother-in-law so he could step indoors, whilst Trixie sneaked from underneath Chloe's arm and ran to her own room to finish her ice cream.

"Great to see you, Chlo. I really missed you, you know", Benjamin gently kissed Chloe's temple before walking inside and eyeing the large, fancy house. "Ice cream?", he turned to her, offering his half-eaten cone for her, and unable to resist the temptation he always managed to radiate with, the woman chuckled but accepted whatever was left of his cookie dough scoop. After walking around the lovely house, Benji eventually turned back to his sister-in-law and flashed yet another smile, "Divorce becomes you, sis. How are you doing? With all that, you know, drama", he wondered out loud, before taking a seat on the living room couch and throwing one leg atop the other.

Shrugging, Chloe followed the lead and took a seat next to Benjamin, still munching on the ice cream whilst she thought about how to form her answer. "It's not easy. How could it be? But I try to focus on the good stuff, like Trixie. And honestly, it could be worse. Dan is handling it all maturely, and hopefully, so am I. What about you — how did Europe treat you?", she explained eventually, and nodding his head, Benjamin couldn't help but agree.

"Yup, that's Dan. Mature", he nudged Chloe, causing her to smile. "Europe was great, until I started to miss home. But I did learn how to play the piano. I had fun. I got to be myself. And I worked as a bartender for a while!", he ended up gushing, and reminding himself how truly awesome it had been to travel and explore the world, and himself. He got to embrace his sexuality, party and learn a lot. Frankly, it had been the best years of his life — but like everything else good, it had to come to an end eventually. And being back in L.A did feel nice for a change.

"No boyfriend yet?", Chloe pouted, and chuckling, Benji shook his head.

Well, there was one exception. "There was this one guy. Irish, hot, big into guyliner. We had something, but I kinda ended up running away when it got too serious. But I mean, L.A is full of guys, so...", Benjamin explained, and suddenly, he remembered his ulterior motive for stopping by Chloe's place. "That reminds me, can I ask you something?", he carefully questioned, and nodding, Chloe finished the ice cream.

"Anything!", she assured, and breaking into a smile, Benjamin was really glad she said that.

Crossing his arms, he was a bit unsure how to present his question, but he tried to make it as casual as possible when he eventually parted his lips, "What's the deal with Lucifer Morningstar, huh?", his eyes darting over to Chloe, who groaned and shook her head. As her palm came in contact with her face and a deep sigh slipped from between her lips, Benji couldn't help but laugh a little — it seemed this was a question she had to answer a lot.

"Not you too, Benny. I swear, everyone is swooning over him. Okay— what do you want to know?", the woman eventually looked over to Benjamin, using her wonderful detective skills to realize he wasn't going to give up without answers to his questions. She did know that Lucifer had a charm, and that only few could resist it — herself being one of those lucky people. Apparently, Benji was not. Nonetheless, she knew that if she were to ask him about his feelings and push on the subject, he'd only close up and deny that he was merely curious in the most innocent way possible.

"Well, for starters, what's up with that name? Dan told me he's the Devil but I mean, really? Also, is he straight or nah? And why is he this mysterious, dangerous dude I'm supposed to stay away from — because that's not happening", Benji bombarded Chloe with questions, and eyes widening, the woman wasn't even sure where to begin. But after taking in a deep breath, she responded as clearly as she only could. Hell, there were still things about Lucifer she didn't understand.

"He says he is. The Devil, I mean. I don't know, how could he be, but he makes a pretty convincing case, honestly. As for his sexuality, he doesn't seem like the kind of guy who lets genders get in his way. He has for sure slept with like half of L.A, men included. Now, if you're wondering if he happens to be into men, meaning you, he'll probably make it very clear very quickly", Chloe chuckled, making Benji do the same — but it was some kind of good news. He wasn't looking for a relationship, and he had promised Dan not to fall for Lucifer, but he could deal with him being the Devil. He had faced worse during his travels. Probably.

"And I don't think he's dangerous", Chloe then continued, looking at Benjamin with a serious stare. "He does have a temper, and since he claims to be the Devil, he takes punishment and all that pretty seriously, but he doesn't try to intentionally hurt anyone. If you want to be his friend or... something more, I'm not stopping you. As much as I want to protect you, you're a grown up, Benjamin. And so is Lucifer", she eventually broke into a smile, giving Benji's hand a reassuring squeeze.

Maybe he could handle that. He had promised to be responsible and act his age, but what was life without a little danger? And if Lucifer was indeed the Devil, how was Benjamin supposed to resist that?

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