What happens when Aria runs into an unexpected confidant in the weirdest places after being left sole guardian of her younger brother...

Come on, come on, come on.
Kiss quick, I've got a line out the door
Who all think they can save me.
Oh, one by one they lay the world at my feet.
One by one they drive me crazy.

Shut your mouth,
Pull me out before this all goes grey.
One by one they lay the world at my feet.
One by one they go away.
They go away.
They go away.

Sell my blood for money,
baby, baby.
And I love how it feels.

This year, all but disappears.

Walking down the corridor, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. It was silent, but not too silent to raise alarm. There was no screaming or sibling fighting coming from the top level. There was no parental trying to calm the situation. No heavenly-smelling cooked breakfast already set on the kitchen counter. Only the soft buzz of the birds chirping and the cars passing by on the morning roads.

This has been the norm for the past year.

Aria Montgomery was a 20 year old struggling college student working 2-jobs, who was teetering the edge of losing her mind.

You see, last year as part of Aria's belated birthday present, Ella Montgomery who was 7 months into her pregnancy with a baby girl already named, Scarlett, and her husband Zac were flying from Vienna back into Rosewood to surprise her children Aria and Mike and settle back into American culture and prepare for the birth of their newborn child.

However, as they were flying into Rosewood, the plane's engine caught fire and sent them spiraling fireball to the ground. A sad twist of fate left them involved in a fatal plane accident that unfortunately took their lives.

This is when things began to spiral out of control for Aria.

Before the accident; Aria was freshly out of school and set to leave for college in New York to live with her boyfriend of 2 years, Noel Kahn, but promising to visit her family back in Rosewood as often as possible; Mike was going to unwillingly leave to Syracuse to live with Byron for a few months until Ella and Zac permanently settled back into Rosewood and things were supposed to be happy and care-free.

This wasn't the case.

On October 25, Aria had invited her friends over for a movie night. As she was lounging on her family couch with her friends and each of their respective partners watching their leading-favourite movie, Frozen. In the middle of the Let It Go sing-a-long, Aria carefully excused herself to the kitchen to answer her incessant buzzing phone with an incoming call from an unknown number.

The call that changed everything.

She couldn't believe it.

This wasn't happening.

This couldn't be happening.

So she sobbed. Loudly. Screaming at the ceiling, causing her friends to all rush into the kitchen, briefly stop in the doorway to assess the situation but quickly rush to her side and comfort her to the best of their ability without badgering her for information.

"They're gone" she barely muttered through sobs.

She couldn't comprehend what was happening but before she knew it, someone picked her up in their muscular arms and rushed her to the couch. Another voice called Mike and told him that something was wrong, they just didn't know what and to rush home.

The next few days leading up to the funeral were difficult and the Montgomery children were comforted by each other, their friends and distant family whom they haven't had contact with since the holidays and Byron who flew down to Pennsylvania as quickly as possible to be there for his children.

Ella's lawyer spoke to the remaining of the once-whole Montgomery family the day before the funeral to discuss Ella's will. Who would have access to particular assets; what will happen to the children etc. Byron was adamant that Aria and Mike would move to Syracuse with him, however, Aria could see the further pain in Mike's eyes as Byron made this decision on behalf of his children.

As Aria was of legal age, she chose to become Mike's legal guardian by staying in Rosewood instead of heading off to college, to care for her younger brother, with the promise of calling Byron or even seeing him as often as possible.

The Church was filled with old faces, new faces, warm faces, familiar faces, faces... That didn't include their mother.

The Montgomery and Waters family were seated on the first row of pews behind the three coffins at the front of the Church in front of a sea of black-clothed mourners. This was the hard part; when the priest finally called up Aria to say her speech about her mother and the memories they shared and to say final goodbye, Aria shakily stood up trying to keep composure for the sake of her family. She skimmed the crowd. The faces of her friends and family, school faculty and community members warmly watched on urging her to speak up.

The pity looks she gained.. She hated. She hated how now she would be seen as a child who was vulnerable and weak, she didn't want to cry and make her family see that she was unstable but what she didn't realize at the time was that it was fine to cry and feel what she was feeling. But this didn't stop her voice from choking back a sob as she farewelled her mother and the tears to fall - which made the crowd gathered, join her in crying. Half way through her speech as she became overwhelmed with sobs and couldn't stop her walls from breaking down, her friends all rushed up to comfort her and be there for her as she finished.

"My mom is… was a soldier. She was there for me whenever I needed her, even if it was just for a hug. I love you mommy. I wish you were still here with me." She said as she looked to the ceiling and in front to the coffins before continuing "She kept me grounded and gave me pep talks which I took for granted." Briefly stopping for a moment to look around the filled Church, she wildly began heaving and having panicked breaths "oh my God" she whispered "what if she didn't know I loved her and appreciated her. I should have called and spoken to her more. I didn't even say goodbye. No. no. NO NO THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!" and had her friends not been there, she would have collapsed in a pile onto the floor.

The cemetery wasn't any better. As the coffins were being lowered into the ground, Aria ran forward and again screamed. She fell to the ground and sobbed. She could sense the people around her watching her fall apart but she couldn't even care what people thought at that moment, she needed her mom back.

"MOMMY! NO MOM DON'T LEAVE ME. PLEASE I NEED YOU!"

Despite not being able to keep her emotions in check, Mike on the other hand kept looking straight ahead both at the Church and as his mother's coffin was being lowered. Looking at Mike from the side, one would think he was stoic and void of any emotions but looking at him straight on, you could tell that his face was tear-stained and he didn't attempt to cover it up.

'Keep calm, don't do this here.. Not here, not now. You need to be strong for everyone' were the thoughts rushing through his head.

But as soon as Aria ran forward and screamed at the coffins being lowered he lost it, this wasn't supposed to be happening, why is it happening to him, what did he do to deserve this? Rushing forward he embraced his older sister in a tight hug and didn't let go as they both sobbed together at the loss of their mother, one that wouldn't get to see them grow up, see them graduate and start a family.

As months flew by they barely got through. Aria was in a daze where she didn't step foot outside the house, barely even remembering to eat. She wouldn't even remember the day or whether it was day or night, the blinds stayed closed so she couldn't see out and no one could see in.

"7:40 am" the bright red symbols showed on the microwave.

"Mike? Breakfast is ready. Come on, you need to get up, it's Monday today, you have school" But all she was met with was the sound of the door locking. This too was normal.

Mike too took it hard, he didn't even return home for two months due to the house being filled left and right with memories that were once cherished, but now are dreaded and only brought on sadness. At first he hardly left is room and was diagnosed with a serious case of depression, didn't speak to anyone. After months he began to spiral out, starting to steal and drink. But one day as he returned home as a rare occurrence, Aria caught him and the situation was not calm at all. With unawareness as she scolded him, he pushed her into a cabinet and almost hit her which snapped him out of his daze. After this incident he began to appreciate his older sister and what she's done and given up for him, realising it's just the two of them from now.

He left his room and they quietly sat at the kitchen table eating their food with the soft murmuring of the TV in the background

"How's school?" she attempted to make small talk

"Fine" he grunted

"Did Byron call you? He said he had something to tell us both and that we should probably be together for the call, I don't know what it's about though, do you?" This caused Mike to hastily look up like Aria just said something unsettling

"What" he whispered in a haze

"NO Mike. Not like that I promise I won't let him take you away. We already went through this, remember little bro, he knows that too." She hurriedly added in with a small smile sensing his thoughts

"Yeah. Of course, you're right" he planted a fake smile on his face and said which Aria caught on to.

Not furthering this line of questioning, they continued eating their basic cereal and tea breakfast in silence with the TV playing in the background before Aria left to drop Mike off for school and head off to college for the start of a new week.

*** Song: Kiss Quick - Matt Nathanson

A/N: So this is my first ever fanfic and I know it's pretty shitty but it was stuck in my head so let me know what you think

I'm from Australia so I spell some words differently but I spelt "Mum" like "Mom" bc I find it weird in fanfics if that makes sense :/

I promise there's going to be so much Ezria but I need to build this up first

It's also complete AU if you haven't already noticed:
- Byron is living in Syracuse
- Ella was 7 months pregnant when she and Zac died in a plane crash in Vienna coming back to America
- Aria is turning 19 and is Mike's legal guardian and has been for the past year
- Mike is in his junior year at school and has been getting himself into trouble since Ella died
- Ezra was Aria's teacher but they had nothing more than a normal student-teacher relationship.