The sound of the TV invaded Drake's sleep, his eyes opening to see both the glare of the screen and Josh on their couch. "Dude, it's the middle of the night. What are you doing up?"

"Just watching Oprah," Josh said. "Couldn't sleep."

"Are you kidding me? After the day we had?"

"Yeah, it was a blast."

Drake turned over in bed, attempting to fall back asleep. "It was, and I feel like I could sleep for a month now. Don't stay up all night, man."

"Sure, Drake. I won't."

Drake opened his eyes again, peeking at Josh from underneath the covers. "Hey, you know it never could've happened without you, right? Spin City wouldn't have noticed me."

"Yeah, I know."

Drake tried to tell himself that what he could both hear in Josh's voice and feel in the atmosphere of their room was nothing, that he was just drowsy and not thinking straight. But he couldn't let go of the sense that something was wrong, so he dragged himself out of bed and wobbled down from the loft, joining Josh in front of the TV. "So-"

"Go back to bed, Drake. I just have insomnia. That's all."

"What does that mean?"

"The inability to fall asleep. It happens to people all the time."

"Oh. But there has to be a reason."

"There's not."

"We thought we were going to jail, and then I got a record deal. Maybe it was too much excitement."

"Maybe. But I'm the one who would've gone to jail. I switched the CDs, not you. I wouldn't have let you be in trouble for something I did."

"But you did it for me."

"Even though I'm a loser and always will be."

The moment Josh was referring to came back to Drake in a rush, the words he hadn't meant born of nothing other than anger and frustration. "Josh, that's not true. I was mad and said something I didn't mean."

"You also said I'm a mistake."

Drake seized Josh's shoulders, making his brother look at him. "But you're not. That's not true either, and I'm sorry I said it. Is that why you couldn't sleep? 'Cause of the stuff I said when we were fighting?"

"Yeah. Because you'd never said things like that to me before, Drake. I mean, sure, you've called me names. But not those. And since you've looked at me as your brother, I haven't cared what anybody else says about me. 'Cause if I'm your brother, then how could I be a loser? You're the coolest guy I've ever known, and you accepted me, no matter how much of a dork I can be. But, once I messed up, that was gone. To you, I became a loser and a mistake."

"But you aren't, and I'm a jerk for saying that to you. You're my best friend, Josh. I wouldn't have gotten anywhere without you. There could've been no contract in the first place if you weren't here to believe in me."

Josh latched on to the phrase 'best friend,' feeling Drake's hands squeeze his shoulders then let go as he pondered its meaning. "I am? I'm your best friend?"

"Of course. I thought you knew that. Come on, dude. We do everything together, don't we?"

Josh switched off the TV as he left the couch to head back to his bed while Drake did the same. "Yeah, we do. I guess I've just never thought about it in that context before."

Drake was halfway up the ladder that led to the loft bed when he paused to see Josh slip under his own covers. He then leapt back down to the floor, going over to sit on the edge of his brother's mattress. "Hey, Josh?"

Josh had already closed his eyes but opened them once more to see Drake beside him. "Yeah?"

"You get it, right? I didn't mean what I said, and I'll never say it again."

"I know. I believe you."

Drake grasped the front of Josh's T-shirt, pulling him up just enough to wrap him in a hug. "It's not gone. I still accept you."

Though he was momentarily stunned, Josh returned the unexpected embrace. "It's okay, Drake. I'm fine now, bro. You can go back to sleep."

"Why didn't you talk to me before it got this bad? Code word, remember?"

"I guess I just didn't know it was this bad til tonight. I was so focused on making sure the world got to hear your real song that nothing else mattered to me."

Drake pulled away, the darkness of the room not able to hide the grin that had graced Josh's features. "You're really proud of me, huh?"

"Heck, yeah, I'm proud of you, and I wanted you to get what you've earned, not have your creation destroyed just because I didn't read the contract like I should have."

"Scoot over a little, man." Once Josh had done so, Drake got in the bed with him, his legs tucked under the covers. "So, if I hadn't called you those names, would you still have switched the CDs?"

"I don't know. But it was more what you said about playing dirty that made me get an idea for what to do. The names kind of just rolled off my back until after the fight was over. Don't get me wrong. They hurt at the moment, but I wasn't thinking about that part constantly. I was trying to figure out how to fix my mistake and make you stop being angry at me. I didn't think you ever would if that commercial aired the wrecked version of your song."

"So it all just hit you after we got through everything?"

"Pretty much."

Drake couldn't say how long his anger would've stayed around if the bubblegum pop had been what played during the Superbowl, but he did know he'd put his brother in an unfair position. "Josh, I shouldn't have expected you to know what you were doing, not when it came to contracts and legal stuff. It was my fault too, bro. You're a great band manager, but you're new at it. I should've realized that sooner. I'm sorry I didn't."

"Well, now I know more about how things work. I know what's at stake with a contract and how illegal it is to break one."

"You know what should be illegal?"

"What?"

"Making a song sound like it got run over by a lawn mower."

"You're totally right about that, my brother." Josh yawned as he turned over on his side, facing away from Drake. "And now it's time to get some shuteye. You can sleep here if you want. I don't mind."

"Here? You mean beside you?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Oh." Drake was oddly comforted by the thought of staying so close to Josh the rest of the night, though he wasn't sure why or even if he ought to do so.

"You don't have to. I'm just saying you can."

Drake saw Josh staring up at him, the tables turning as he recognized that, while he had initially gotten up to be there for his brother, he was now needing some consolation himself. "I know. I guess I just didn't realize that I, um, would sort of like to. I mean, since I'm already here and all."

"Then stay. I've always got room for my best brother."

Drake lay down on the extra pillow, pulling the covers fully over himself as Josh turned to his side once again. He didn't point out the obvious implication in the phrase 'best brother,' realizing that they both knew there were no other brothers anyway. It didn't matter because the sentiment still stood as the perfect combination to describe a relationship built on being stepbrothers and best friends, and even if there were someone else in the picture, Josh would always win the contest.