Stood behind the counter in the diner, Aria got the drinks ready for an order and looked up as the sound of laughter reached her ears. Despite not being directly involved with the river boys, she had grown up around them and knew that they weren't bad guys... unfortunately not everyone cared.

"Good day, Gromit," one of the guys said as he approached her.

"Hey Axel," Aria greeted with a smile, walking around the counter and hugging him.

"You working here now?"

"I am, what can I get you?"

"Can we get three cheeseburgers and three choco shakes please?"

With a nod, she took their payment and told them to take a seat. She had just taken their order over and was about to clear another table, when Colleen emerged from the kitchen.

"What are they doing in here?" Colleen asked, motioning to where the river boys were sitting and shifting her attention back to Aria.

"Eating lunch," Aria answered with a frown.

"We don't serve people like them in this diner."

"You mean paying customers?"

"You know exactly what I mean."

"Unfortunately, I do," Aria stated, "You see them and all you see is trouble because that's the judgment you've made, but that's not who they are."

"What..." Colleen began, falling silent as Aria held up her hand and glared.

"I grew up with those guys and, despite their reputation in this bay, they are good people," Aria said, "You judge them on the way they look and the things that you've seen them do, but you don't [b]know[/b] them... you don't know what it's like growing up in a place like Mangrove River."

Not wanting to argue, Aria went back to clearing the table and focused on the job at hand. She was fed up with hearing how terrible the river boys were and felt oddly protective of them, protective of her family. Her shift soon ended and she headed home, finding the place empty.

Unfazed by the quietness, Aria made herself some hot chocolate and started on some of the homework she had. A few hours had passed when Brax finally arrived home, dropping a kiss on her head in greeting and opening the freezer.

"We really need to go grocery shopping," he mumbled, "How does pizza sound?"

"Pizza sounds good," Aria replied distractedly, continuing with her work and glancing up to find Brax watching her, "What?"

"Every time I suggest pizza from the freezer you either roll your eyes or lecture me on the importance of home-cooked meals, so what's going on in that head of yours?"

"What makes you think somethings going on in my head?" Aria stated, rolling her eyes when Brax just continued to stare and sighing, "Fine, do you ever get tired of the way people judge us?"

"I used to, but as I have gotten older other people's opinions have become less relevant to my life," Brax answered, "Why do you ask?"

"A couple of the river boys swung by the diner earlier for lunch and Colleen started as usual," Aria explained, "She always uses phrases like 'those sorts of people' and I guess, today I realized that I am one of those people..."

Aria watched as Brax put the frozen pizza in the oven, noticing the slight change in his demeanor and waiting for him to say whatever it was that he was thinking.

"Growing up in Mangrove with mom and dad wasn't easy, but I don't want you to go through life thinking that that's all there is to you because of what other's think," Brax told her, "You may be from Mangrove River and the Braxton name may not be squeaky clean, but you are so much more than that."

Author's Notes: Thanks for reading