mlm · photographer · clumsy · adhd · shy · los angeles · crush · gap tooth · model · nervous
The Los Angeles sun bled through the studio's high windows, casting long strips of gold across the polished concrete floor. Dust motes danced in the beams, and the air smelled of fresh paper, hairspray, and the faint, sweet trace of lavender from the diffuser in the corner. Riley pushed open the glass door, and the soft hum of conversation and clicking equipment wrapped around him like a familiar song. He hitched the camera strap higher on his shoulder, his boots echoing in rhythm with the controlled chaos around him. Makeup artists huddled near a rack of silk shirts, stylists tugged at hems, and an assistant sprinted past with a roll of gaffer tape. And there, in the center of it all, bathed in that warm, honeyed light, stood you. His silhouette was sharp against the paper backdrop, his…