There was always a brief moment of anxiety as Aria paddled out on her surfboard, the fear of not knowing what was heading her way or if she'd be able to handle it. She remembered the first time she caught a wave, it wasn't all that big, but she still managed to stand up and ride it back to the beach.

Brax had been super proud of her that day and from then on, surfing became a part of who she was. She found herself at peace out on the water, watching as new sets of waves formed and judging whether they were worth the effort.

Emerging from the water after catching a few good waves, Aria detached her board and dug it into the sand as she dried herself off a little. Hearing her name being called, she looked up and smiled as Casey made his way over to her.

"Looking good out there."

"Thanks, what's up?"

"Brax wants you to meet him at Angelo's," Casey told her, "Something about helping with a big delivery."

Checking her watch, she realized that she was going to be late and cursed under her breath.

"Can you take my board home for me, please?" Aria asked, kissing her brother's cheek when he nodded and rushing up the beach towards the restaurant.

"Nice of you to join us," Brax said as Aria walked through the doors.

"Sorry," Aria replied, leaning over to catch her breath, "I lost track of time."

"Go help Kyle in the back room and then you can give me a hand restocking the bar," Brax ordered, motioning for her to go and shaking his head as she walked away with a quick salute.

It took her and Kyle nearly two hours to finish checking that everything Brax ordered had arrived, but Aria knew that there was still plenty to do. Restocking the drinks behind the bar, she made sure that there were enough glasses for the night shift and took a seat at the bar as Brax opened.

Having nothing better to do, Aria took charge of a few tables and felt her heart drop a little as Romeo walked in with a girl that she didn't recognise. Seating them at a table, she took their drinks order and then switched tables with another one of the waitresses.

"I could always kick him out," Kyle offered as he prepared some drinks for one of the bigger tables.

"It's fine, he's allowed to date other people," Aria stated, glancing over at the couple who were laughing and continuing, "Besides, I'm the one that screwed up my chances with him and now I have to suffer the consequences."

It was almost midnight, when Brax was finally able to lock up and they headed home. Waking up early the next morning, Aria headed out to catch a few waves and then made her way over to the diner to meet Dexter for breakfast.

"Thank goodness," Colleen practically shouted as Aria approached the counter, "Perhaps you can get them to leave."

"Who?" Aria inquired, following the direction that the older lady was pointing and spotting a few of the river boys sitting around a table, "Why me?"

"They only started showing up and causing trouble after that bother of yours moved onto the Bay," Colleen told her.

"Well, what do you want me to do about it?"

"Order them to leave or something, I don't feel safe with them around."

"I'm not their mother and maybe if you showed them just one ounce of respect, then you might actually get some in return," Aria snapped as Dexter joined her, "If they're causing problems, then call the police and let them deal with it."

Storming out with Dexter hot on her heels, she waited for him to catch up and they went back to his house instead. It wasn't the first time she'd had a run in with Colleen and she knew it wouldn't be the last, but that didn't make it okay.

Pushing the anger out of her mind, Aria ate the food that Marilyn had made them and focused on the project they had to do for school. It was nearly lunch time, when she decided to head home and walked into the house to find Leah sitting at the kitchen table with Brax.

"Ari, can you come here for a minute?" Brax asked.

"What did I do this time?" Aria replied, joining them in the kitchen and leaning against the counter with her arms crossed, "Whatever Colleen is saying I did, I didn't do it and Dexter will back me up."

"Actually, I came here to apologise for the things Colleen said," Leah explained, causing Aria to relax a little, "I heard what happened and the way she treated you was unfair… so for that I am sorry."

"It's okay," Aria mumbled, unsure of how to respond, "I guess I should apologise too for snapping the way I did, I just don't like people bad mouthing my brothers and need to learn to control my anger."

"From what I'm told, everything you said was true and you have no reason to be sorry for defending your family," Leah added as she stood up to leave, "You know, not everyone agrees with Colleen's views of your family."

Smiling, Aria nodded and watched as Brax showed Leah out. Knowing that Brax would probably have a go at her about letting her anger win, she waited for him to return and was surprised when he pulled her into a hug as if he knew that that was what she needed in that moment.