CHAPTER ONE

ARIA

Nothing could erase the enormous smile that adorned Aria's face as she climbed into her car. She ignored the gloomy rain clouds that promised of afternoon showers and the thick throng of traffic as she pulled out into the busy Rosewood streets. She had just received some of the best news of her life and she couldn't wait to share it. Picking up her cell phone, she wasted no time in dialing her best friend and after three rings, she finally picked up.

"Hello?"

"Spencer! You'll never guess who just called me?!" Aria exclaimed excitedly. She could barely contain herself from just screaming her news out the car window, so she was surprised she lasted long enough for her friend to reply.

"I don't know, Aria, President Obama?"

Aria's smile, if possible, grew even larger. "Close, Spenc! But no… Remington Williams! He runs the Philadelphia Inquirer! You remember? I had an interview with him last week for an open photographer position!"

Spencer's high pitched squeal caused Aria to pull the phone away from her ear for a moment in order to protect her hearing. "Oh my God, Aria! Did he offer you the job? Of course he did! He'd be an idiot not to!"

Aria wasn't quick enough to stop Spencer's rant about how talented she was and how lucky Mr. Williams was to have her, so she sat quietly, driving until she reached the three story apartment building she and her boyfriend of three years lived in. Pulling into her designated parking spot, she quickly cut the engine and interrupted her best friend.

"Look, Spenc, I just got home. I-I've still got to tell Jason. Do you think he'll be excited about this?" Aria asked nervously. She hadn't told her boyfriend about the interview or the open position at all. Instead, she had lied, saying she was headed to Philadelphia to have a long girl's weekend with Spencer. It wasn't that she was afraid of how he would respond to the opportunity, she was afraid of forcing him to choose between his life in Rosewood and one in the big city. She never wanted to be one of those girlfriends.

"Aria, Jason will be thrilled for you. He knows how long you've worked to be able to see an opportunity like this and I'm sure that he will be nothing but supportive. Besides, you don't have to move up here right away. Sure, it's an hour drive, but you can take time to adjust to this big change before making any permanent decisions. Who knows? Maybe this will force him to finally pop the question!"

Aria sucked in her breath at Spencer's optimism. She honestly wasn't sure that she and Jason were at that point in their relationship, three years or not. Sighing quietly to herself, Aria plucked her handbag off of the passenger's seat and after locking her car, headed towards the apartment building.

"You're right. I'll let you know when I plan on being up there soon. Maybe we can grab lunch or something? Anyway, I gotta go. Talk to you later, Spencer," Aria said, bidding farewell to her best friend. The resonating click of her heels against the hardwood floor leading up to the second floor seemed to vibrate indefinitely in her ears as she walked. She nervously pushed a few stray hairs behind one ear as she thrust her key into their apartment door and pushed her way in.

"Jason, I'm-" Stopping short, Aria knit her brows in confusion when she took in the scene in front of her. Scattered across the coffee table in the living room were Chinese take-out containers and a few empty beer bottles. The television was left on to some sappy Hallmark movie and the smell of popcorn floated out from the kitchen, as if someone had cooked a bag but then forgotten about it.

"Jason?" Aria called out. He should be home. Teaching physical education over at Rosewood High School, Jason was often home before her and she knew that he didn't have anything planned for after school today… So where was he? Her call through the apartment suddenly set into motion an afternoon that Aria was sure she would never forget.

Jason suddenly came running into the entryway where Aria stood, haphazardly tucking his shirt into a pair of sweatpants that Aria could see he had put on backwards. He ran his hand through his hair in an attempt to straighten it out as he caught his breath.

"Aria! Honey! What are you doing home so early? I thought you had that freelance job over in Willmington today?" The way he nervously threw together his greeting instantly put Aria's nerves on edge. Something was most definitely going on.

Gritting her teeth, Aria clenched her purse strap so tightly that her knuckles turned white. "Lucas needed the gig more than I did so I let him take it." She took a deep breath, scanning her eyes once more over what she was able to see before turning her steely gaze back towards her boyfriend. "What's going on here, Jason? And don't treat me like I'm stupid, I've obviously interrupted something."

"No-nothing, Aria! I swear, I-"

Aria didn't let him continue his stuttering lie before turning on her heels and stalking off in the direction from which he had come. Rounding the corner of the kitchen, she came to an abrupt halt outside of their bedroom door. It was shut tight.

"Aria, Sweatheart, please listen to me," Jason begged. Aria could see the desperation in his face; he was desperate for her to not walk into what she was almost positive was a situation that was sure to be the end of their relationship. She gave him one last glare before pushing open the bedroom door. The sight that greeted her was just as heart wrenching as she had expected.

"Aria…" CeCe whispered as she stood from where she'd been sitting on their bed. She looked as mismatched and thrown together as Jason. Aria scoffed internally as she let her icy stare gaze over her one-time friend. She could have at least attempted to look more normal, she'd at least had more time.

"CeCe, it's been a while. I do hope Jason here gave you a proper tour of our home," Aria spit out between clenched teeth.

CeCe raised her hands in front of her and slowly took a hesitant step towards her. Aria instantly backed up, eager to keep as much distance between the two of them as possible. "Aria, listen. We didn't plan on this happening. I ran into Jason at the supermarket today and-"

"And what? He kindly invited you back to our apartment so you could catch up in our bed?! You know what let me finish that tour for you, CeCe. We'll conclude with the front door."

Before Aria could blink an eye, CeCe was showing herself out, scurrying out the door faster than any of the girls Aria had ever seen doing the walk of shame.

All was silent for a few moments as both Aria and Jason collected themselves. Closing her eyes, Aria took a few deep breaths to calm down. She now had a massive headache and the adrenaline running through her veins was enough to cause a constant tremor in both of her hands.

She listened as Jason took a tentative step towards her. "Aria, it's not what you think…" he trailed off.

Aria's eyes shot open at this. "It's not what I think? What I think, Jason, is that my boyfriend of over three years was up here screwing one of my old high school friends while he thought I was at work. Or did I miss something here?"

Jason extended a hand towards her, a look of complete remorse covering his face. Aria jerked back before he could touch her.

"Don't," she spit out. "Just… don't."

"It was a mistake," Jason whispered, finally avoiding her gaze. He stared at his scuffed up sneakers lying nearby on the floor instead.

"You're right," Aria responded. "It was a mistake. I can't do this anymore. We're over."

Aria hastily wiped away a few angry tears as they coursed down her cheeks before hitching her purse higher onto her shoulder and heading for the front door. Her sudden movement caused Jason to jump into action, a sudden look of panic filling his eyes.

"Aria, wait." The second his hand touched her arm, Aria spun on her heels, the palm of her hand connecting solidly with his face. She didn't give him a second chance to stop her before throwing open the door and rushing out to her car.

Shoving the key into the ignition, she watched as Jason stumbled out of the building, his eyes sweeping the parking lot for her. She quickly started the car and without a glance back, left what remained of her life in Rosewood standing in the parking lot, clothes disheveled and with the red mark of a hand print on his face.

Thank you all for being so patient until I returned, the last semester of graduate school is quite a load! Anyway, I'm trying something new here so let me know what y'all think of this story line! I love reviews!