A/N: Welcome, ladies and gentlemen! I'm so super excited about posting this story. You guys don't even know. Well, one of you does. You know what I mean! Many thanks go to the wonderful stormygrace for the amazing cover art. I still have it as my desktop wallpaper!

For those of you that are wondering, yes, that is Jared Padalecki playing Priestly's cousin Ezra. Who else would I pick for such a role?

Disclaimer: I know I own Ezra, since I created him, but can I say that I also own Priestly? Is that too much to ask for?

"Man, Bo didn't say he was working with so many good-looking girls," thought Ezra Hale as he gazed into the Beach City Grill window. He watched the goings on of the sub shop for a few minutes, just to get a glimpse into life at the grill. A gorgeous girl with dark hair walked across the room to bring an order to a table. Her hair flipped flirtatiously over her shoulder before she turned back to the counter and started a conversation with a blonde girl sitting behind a computer. Ezra couldn't tell much about her because the brunette and the computer monitor were hiding her, but what he could see was quite pretty.

Just then, an older man entered the shop from the back and started talking to the two girls. "That must be Trucker," thought Ezra. He looked exactly as Priestly had described in his letters. Ezra was glad his cousin had a good man he could look up to. He remembered how his uncle, Priestly's dad, would look down on Priestly for his taste in music, clothes, and pretty much anything else. Ezra didn't see anything wrong with his cousin's style, but there wasn't anything they could do about it growing up.

Now, though, Priestly seemed to fit in pretty well with this eccentric and eclectic group of people. "Speak of the devil," mumbled Ezra with a smile as his cousin came into view. The smile grew when he saw his cousin wrap his arms around the gorgeous girl and plant one on her, much to the amusement of the rest of the employees. "Looks like now's a good time to surprise him." With a hard shove, the door swung open and Ezra stepped inside. "Bo, why you been holding out on me, man?" he demanded, arms held out to the side and a huge grin on his face.

"Ziggy? The heck are you doing here?" asked Priestly in wonder as he stepped out to hug his cousin and best friend. "When'd you get back? I thought you were supposed to be gone for a few more months?"

Everyone else at the grill looked upon the reunion with curiosity. None of them had ever heard Priestly mention anyone named Ziggy. They weren't surprised, however, by the man's appearance. At least they weren't surprised by the eccentricity of his appearance. Where they'd expected a brightly colored mohawk or spikes, the man's hair was twisted into dreadlocks all over his head, and instead of eye makeup and intricate sideburns, the newcomer had a somewhat thick beard covering his chin and cheeks. Another thing that stood out was the man's height. He was super tall! He even towered over Priestly, who wasn't short by any means. As the men hugged, the taller one's dark tan contrasted starkly with Priestly's much paler complexion.

The moment was interrupted a minute later by Tish, whose curiosity had gotten the better of her. "You going to introduce us to your friend, Priestly?" she asked.

"Yeah, yeah," said Priestly as he pulled out of the hug. "Guys, this is my cousin and best friend, Ezra Hale. Zig, this is Trucker."

He pointed to the older man, who gave Ezra an easy smile. "Good to meet you, man," he said and held out a hand. Ezra returned the handshake.

"This is my beautiful girlfriend, Tish," Priestly continued. Tish gave Ezra the same flirty smile he'd seen her give the customers a moment ago. He figured that was just part of her personality. "And this is Jen, who's like a sister to me."

When Ezra's eyes landed on Jen, he was taken aback. He had been able to tell from outside that she was pretty, but he hadn't noticed her light brown eyes or the freckles spotting her face. "It's nice to meet you, Jen," he said softly.

"Hi," Jen squeaked out shyly. It was no surprise that someone related to Priestly was attractive; Priestly was a very handsome man. But his cousin was something else. He had a dark handsomeness to him, with his tan skin and dark brown hair. But what really stood out to her were his eyes. They smoldered in their green depths as he met her gaze, and she had to turn away.

Ezra knew he'd flustered her by the pretty blush on her cheeks, and he fought off the smile that wanted to stretch his lips. "I got here yesterday, actually," he answered his cousin's earlier question. "I didn't tell you because I wanted to surprise you."

"Well, you certainly did surprise me," laughed Priestly. "Come sit down. Let me fix you a sandwich." As the mohawked cook returned to his station, Ezra took a seat at the bar to watch his cousin work and continue his conversation with the rest of the staff.

"So, where did you come from?" asked Tish. "You guys kept mentioning you coming back from somewhere. Where were you?"

"Jamaica," answered Ezra. "I was on a mission trip over there."

"Like a church mission trip?" Jen piped up eagerly. She had grown up as a minister's daughter, so she knew the ins and outs of missionary work.

"Yep," Ezra confirmed. "I've been going to Jamaica for several years now. I spend three or four months out of the year over there helping the villagers out and such, and all the while sharing God's Word with the people."

"Is that how you got the dreadlocks?" Trucker asked with a grin.

"Yeah," laughed Ezra. "A couple of the village girls liked my hair and asked if they could fix it. I was the only guy in a group of about ten girls fixing each other's hair." Everyone got a good laugh out of the story and the mental picture it created.

"And he's kept his hair that way ever since," said Priestly as he brought over his cousin's meal. "Here is your veggie sub. You and your rabbit food."

"Hey, it's not my fault," said Ezra defensively. "The villages we visit are primarily Rastafarian, and they're strictly vegetarian. So I got accustomed to not eating meat for long periods of time, sue me." There was no heat behind his words, so everybody got a kick out of it before Ezra bowed his head to pray.

"You know," began Priestly once Ezra started to eat, "you never told my why you came back early."

Ezra slowed in his chewing, mulling over his answer before swallowing his food. "It's not a big deal," he said lightly to cover his discomfort. But Priestly could see right through his cousin, and he knew there was more to it; he probably just didn't want to talk about it in front of everyone else. So he gave his cousin a look that said they'd talk about it later and dropped the subject.

Ezra stayed at the grill for the rest of the day, just chilling with Priestly, Trucker, and the girls. It was nice, just being able to sit and talk with people from home. It was much more comfortable, even though he'd gotten accustomed to the people and culture of Jamaica. It was good to be home.

A/N: That was a nice beginning, was it not? A very pleasant reunion between the cousins. There's much more to come, so I'll see everybody back here next Friday. Don't forget to review! Thanks!