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Chapter 4:

Aria was snuggled against Ezra's strong chest, his arms around her, struggling to stay awake. They were watching a movie, and Aria was determined to stay awake through the entire thing, although she knew it was only a matter of time before she drifted off because they were only twenty minutes in, and there was at least an hour and a half more.

"Tired yet?" Ezra teased.

"Nope, I'm good" Aria lied. She would not give him the satisfaction of being right. She had to stay awake, no matter what.

"If you say so." Ezra said, smirking. He knew shewouldn't last, which made her even more determined to prove him wrong. Aria was nothing, if not stubborn.

Half an hour later, Aria was slowly drifting off to sleep, when a movement jerked her back to full consciousness. She looked up and saw Ezra watching her, laughing.

"I need coffee." Aria said, sitting up.

"I think that qualifies as cheating." Ezra pointed out.

Aria pouted. "But..."

"Sorry, but if you want coffee, you're going to have to admit defeat." Ezra said, smiling triumphantly.

"No way! I'm going to win! It's just another hour." Aria said, laying her head back on Ezra's chest and staring at the screen.

Ten minutes later, Aria was snoring softly against Ezra's chest. Ezra chuckled to himself as he leaned over and grabbed a blanket, gently putting it around Aria.

LATER:

Ezra awoke to a knock on his door. He gently got up, carefully trying not to wake Aria, who was still leaning against him. He opened the door to find none other than his little brother, Wes, standing in the hallway.

"Hey." Wes said, nervously.

Ezra stared at him angrily for a moment and then punched him. Wes swore as his hands went straight to his lips. Blood trickled onto his fingers.

"EZRA?!" Ezra turned around to see Aria standing behind him, staring at Wes, horrified.

"What, so now you're going to defend him?" he asked, furious.

"Of course not! But look at him! There's blood all over his face! I get that you're mad and all, but he's still your brother." Aria exclaimed.

"Yeah, he's my brother, but that didn't stop him from kissing my girlfriend" Ezra argued.

"He's right. It's my fault." Wes said, breathing hard.

Aria looked between the brothers. "Both of you, inside, now." Aria said firmly, daring either of them to disagree. Neither of them did and they both filed inside the apartment and sat down. Aria grabbed the first aid kit, and handed it to Wes. "Go clean yourself up in the bathroom. Hurry up, and come right back here."

When Wes left, Aria turned to Ezra. "Care to explain?"

Ezra stayed silent, glaring at the bathroom door.

Aria tried a different approach. She walked up to Ezra, and took his hands. "Look, I don't want to come between you and your brother. I just want us all to sort this out so we can all be happy. Please?" Aria looked into his eyes, pleadingly.

Ezra sighed. "Fine, maybe I could have handled that a little differently." he admitted grudgingly.

"That's a start." Aria encouraged. "So what happened? Because, when I woke up, I heard Wes swearing and I saw blood."

"I opened the door and he was standing there so I punched him." Ezra said, staring at the floor.

"Did he say why he was here...before that happened?" Aria asked.

Ezra shook his head, not meeting her eyes.

At that moment, Wes walked out. "Okay, I'm here."

Aria turned towards him. "Not to be rude but, why are you here?"

"I came to apologize. What I did wasn't right, and I deserved that punch. I totally won't hold it against you." Wes said, sincerely.

Ezra looked up. "Why did you do it?" he asked.

"I don't know. I guess I was..." Wes trailed off, looking suddenly embarrassed.

"You were?"

"I guess I was jealous." Wes said. It was his turn to stare at the floor.

"You? Jealous of me?!" Ezra asked, incredulously. "Bro, you have everything! A house, a nice car, a good education-"

"DON'T YOU GET IT?! None of that stuff is really mine, it's mom's! And you were always the one that found people who cared about you. Everyone always looks at me and automatically assumes I'm a spoiled rich kid. I can never know if people really like me or my money. You don't have to deal with that, anymore! You get to live a normal life, have a great girlfriend and awesome friends that like you for who you are, not what you have. I would give anything to have that!" Wes said, frustrated.

Ezra was quiet for a moment. "Wes, I had no idea-"

"Of course you didn't! Because you left me to deal with mom all by myself! It never occurred to you that I wanted to go with you?!" Wes asked, angrily.

"Wes, I wanted you to come with me, believe me I did. But I didn't know where I was going at the time. I didn't have any plans. When I bought this apartment, I tried to call you but mom convinced me that your life was great, and that you didn't want to come live with me. I know I was stupid to believe her, but we both know how manipulative mom can be." Ezra explained.

Wes looked at his brother for a moment. "Really? You tried to get me out of there?" he whispered.

"Of course! I promised you before leaving that I would try to help you out. I wouldn't break my promise to you." Ezra said, solemly. The two brothers hugged each other.

Aria, who was pretty sure the boys had forgotten she existed, quietly snuck out of the apartment. Her work there was done.

Aww, bromance! I hope you liked this chapter. Next chapter, Aria's going to meet Malcolm. :) (Don't forget to review)