Hi people on the internet :) Abbey here! This was originally just a story I wrote for fun but I decided to convert it into an Ezria AU so it has all the same character just much different plot :) Enjoy and all criticism is welcome! Now I realise a lot of people do not read A/N but for some reason I'm still writing... So without further a due, I present "Friends Or Family".

-A

"Ezra! Leave the boy alone!" Aria yelled out the back door, stifling a laugh as she saw the two boys wrestling. Her dark hair flew in brisk, cold autumn air, she tugged her khaki jacket closer to body, she figured it was probably time to start wearing warmer clothing as it had started to go into the colder, winter months. Her laugh was barely audible as she watched the older boy smile with joy as he threw his younger brother onto his shoulders.

"He likes it! Don't you Wes?" he said as he looked up through his mop of black unruly hair at the ten year old above him. The boy just simply nodded and looked down at Ezra with adoration. "And besides, just 'cause he doesn't like you as much doesn't mean you have to stop our fun!" He said with a smirk. Ezra lowered the boy down to the ground as he brushed all the dirt of his jeans.

She raised her hand to her chest in mock hurt at the taller boys words. She giggled as she saw Wes run around the yard chasing Scout, my labrador, and trip into a pile of freshly raked fall leaves, disappearing from our view.

"Mom told me to tell you that lunch is ready, so go clean up." I yelled towards him. I saw him suddenly appear from the myriad of leaves and sprint off through the door; she ruffled his light brown head as he ran past her into the kitchen. "I swear, he is ten and he already has an appetite almost as big as yours. You boys could eat a truck full of lasagne and not even feel full! " She said amused as Ezra walked up to her.

"Like I didn't see you a devour a whole burger, fries and large coke at the diner last week" He chuckled.

"I didn't see you this morning; you were gone by the time I woke up." She said softly as they walked towards the porch swing next to the door. She lay against the arm as she tossed her legs over Ezra's lap. She shut her eyes as she listened to the soft rustle of the leaves in the breeze. "I would have gone with you, you know." She whispered softly.

"It's ok, I kind of wanted to be alone this morning for a bit; I went to see her and drop off some flowers. Besides you had breakfast with Noel." He explained, leaning his head back against the swing. The gentle breeze reminded him of the picnics that he would go on with his mother and Wes by the lake on the late autumn afternoons. A smile became etched on his face as memories of the brisk afternoons filled with laughter and joy flooded his mind.

"You know I still would have gone though, right?" she asked reluctantly. She looked over at him and saw him vaguely nod.

"I just can't believe its been ten years, it feels like so much more." Ezra said quietly as his voice caught in his throat. The one thing he hated to do in front of Aria was crying and he swore he would do his best to be strong for her. They sat there quietly as they enjoyed the silence before Ella interrupted them.

"Aria, Ezra, lunch is on the table!" They both heard Ella yell from the kitchen. They reluctantly got up and finally got into the kitchen, Aria and Ezra playing a game of shoulder wars as they walked in.

Just as Ezra was reaching for a fry, his hand was slapped away, "Hey!"

"Wash your hands; God knows what you touched in that yard." Ella said simply as she flipped through a Home Living magazine. Defeated, Ezra walked into the bathroom and washed his hands. He watched himself in the mirror as he washed his hands and studied his face, he stared at the discoloured skin that made up a line behind his left ear. Memories from that night encased his every thoughts as he tried to block out the horrid scenes and pictures that flew through his mind. He plastered on a fake smile and could hear laughter as he walked back into the kitchens and found Wes with two fries in his mouth, imitating a walrus. Ezra chuckled at him at grabbed his plate as he took his seat in between Wes and Aria.

"Thanks Ella, this is delicious!" Ezra said with admiration towards the older woman. You could definitely see the similar features between Aria and her mother; they both had the same green eyes and long, dark, luscious hair.

"Of course, sweetheart." She said with the same heart warming smile that he has know for basically all of his life. The next twenty minutes were spent talking about what everyones plans were for the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday. "I am assuming that you will be joining us again this year?" The older woman asked him, you could hear the hope in her voice. Ezra nodded as he smiled, He still remembered the day that Aria told him, she had never seen her mother so happy on a holiday since she was a little girl. He remember the mutual feeling over actual happiness that filled the room as we ate the delicious home cooked meal.

For the last ten years, Ezra had spent Thanksgiving at the Montgomery household and no one was planning anything different for the approaching holiday.

For the early years of Ezra's life, Thanksgiving was never a very nice experience as it should have been, it was full of bad memories and hiding in his room. However, the first time he was invited to the Montgomery house for Thanksgiving, it was filled with laughter, happiness and actually giving thanks for the small things in his life.

As everyone finished of their lunch, and Ezra finishing Aria's for her, Ezra took all the plates into the kitchen and rinsed them before filling the dish washer with the dirty dishes.

He could hear someone walk in behind him; he turned his head to look who and saw Ella standing there staring at him. He smiled quickly as he finished packing the dish washer and turned it on and then finally fully turned around. He saw the sadness in her eyes as she looked at his face and saw the scar near his left ear from when he was a child.

"Your mother would be very proud of you, you know." Tears started to well up in her eyes as she thought about the woman who was her best friend for over ten years. Ezra started to walk towards her as he slowly enveloped her into a hug. It was in that moment that she finally broke down as he lowered her to the floor and gently rocked her; he took note many years ago that this was the best way to calm her down when she got worked up.

"Hey, she would be proud of you too; it's not exactly easy basically raising two boys with the appetites of a elephants." He could hear her faintly chuckle. they sat there for what felt like hours but probably only minutes in silence as they separately reminisced the times that they had spent with Ezra's mother. He squeezed her tightly once more before letting her go and standing up to help her get to her feet. She looked at him once more before quickly wiping the tears from her face and she walked away.

He gripped the edge of the counter and shut his eyes. He heard footsteps as he opened his eyes and saw Aria leaning against the door frame. She walked over to him and hugged him. They stood there for a few minutes before he pulled away and excused himself as he walked into his room, muttering something about studying, and slammed the door behind him. She figured it would be a hard day for everyone but it was definitely the hardest for his mother and Ezra, and she didn't blame them.

As Aria walked into her respective room deciding to take a nap, she could hear the blasting sound of Green Day and Simple Plan coming from Ezra's room. She understood that today was a hard day for him and she figured knew Ezra liked to deal with things like this alone so she let him be. But that didn't stop from her own heart breaking at the thought of Ezra in pain.