(A/N:) This is just a short one shot/ continuation of 4x20. I really wished Mona and Aria could have had more of a conversation after Aria walked in because out of the scenes with one of the liars and Mona, I like Aria and Mona the most. Especially now that Mike and Mona are an item :))) I mean, how can you not ship those two?
Anyways, enjoy!
Aria wiped away tears angrily and feeling like she could throw up at any given second. Ezra was using her. He had always been using her. She had defended him to family and friends so many times, trying to make them realize what they had was real, and it was true love, but in the end, it was all a sham.
As she drove back to Rosewood from the cabin, that was now hell on Earth, it seemed like every damn song on the radio was a sad one. Say Something. Wrecking Ball. Just Give Me A Reason. Once some Taylor Swift song came on, Aria let out a frustrated scream and slammed a button on her radio to just turn it off.
After forty minutes of deafening silence and tears, Aria pulled into her driveway. She prayed that Mike was out and she could be all alone. Aria rested her head on her steering wheel for a few minutes, sobbing to herself. How could Ezra do this to her? How could he just break her heart so goddamn easily? And Aria almost wished this could be like Jackie or his mother – after a few hectic conversations, they could make it through and go back to being the hopeless romantics they were. But Aria knew, there was no going back now. It was never, ever going to be the same between them.
Aria finally got out of the car and stepped into her home, immediately spotting the last person, aside from Ezra, standing in her foyer. Mona Vanderwaal.
Aria stared at Mona and felt as if there was a rain cloud over her head. Could things get any worse? Why, out of all the million people in this world, did Aria have to face Mona?
Mona instantly noticed Aria's puffy eyes and tear streaked face. Could Aria have… no, it wasn't possible. Mona cautiously looked towards her. "Aria? Are you okay?"
Aria said nothing and continued her walk straight to her room. Mona watched as she clomped upstairs and instantly felt guilty. Mona knew Ezra had been writing a book for a while. She could have sent an A text, warning Aria, but she never had.
Mike came out from the kitchen and looked at Mona, raising an eyebrow. "Was that Aria?"
Mona nodded and held up a finger. "Um, yeah. Let's just watch the movie, okay?"
"Alright," Mike agreed, still a little confused.
Aria gazed down at the inscription Ezra had written her in the book he had given her. It had once seemed so loving, so true. But now, it just felt empty and gut wrenching, as did their whole relationship; not just the stupid Sherwood Anderson book.
Aria was hit with a new wave of rage and she threw the book at her door. She hated Ezra at that moment and imagined she was wrecking him, not her room. She threw the one framed picture she had of them at the same spot, glass landing over the messy pages.
Aria wiped away tears with the back of her hand and she landed onto her bed. She grabbed a nearby pillow and let out a pent up scream into it. Fuck everything.
Mona and Mike tried watching the dull action movie, but lost focus after a sequence of screams and slams.
"Is she okay?" Mona asked quietly.
Mike shrugged. "How should I know? She probably just got into some stupid fight with Fitz. Nothing important."
Mona bit her bottom lip and stood up from the couch. "I'm gonna check on her, just in case." Mike was about to protest, but Mona waved him off.
Mona slowly walked up the steps to Aria's bedroom, not sure what she was walking into. What could Mona say? Should she even say anything? Before Mona could talk herself out of it, though, she found herself in front of Aria's door.
She knocked quietly to which Aria replied with, "Go away!"
Mona sighed before opening the door. Aria looked up from the pillow she was hugging and groaned. "Leave me alone, Mona. Not now, please, not now," Aria begged. Her voice, even though Aria tried for it to be stern, was traced with unshed tears and cracked with every syllable.
"Aria," Mona started gently, stepping over the pile of glass and into the room, "do you want to talk?"
"No," Aria cried. "I don't want to do anything."
Mona sat at the foot of the bed and slumped her shoulders. Cautiously, Mona questioned, "Is this about Ezra?" Aria let out a new wave of tears just hearing his name. Aria held a hand to her forehead and her heart broke even more. "Aria, he – "
"Shut up, Mona!" Aria yelled. "You don't know anything!"
"You'd be surprised," Mona teased.
Aria looked at her, tears dripping down her cheeks, incredulously. After a pregnant pause, Aria whispered, "Did you know he knew Alison?"
Mona nodded and gulped. What if Aria grew a pair and strangled her like Spencer had. Aria sat up in her bed and faced Mona. Mona was ready to defend herself, but didn't have to.
Aria lowered her head and started to wail. "I thought he loved me. I thought that he was gonna be it. We were going to be married and have kids and move out of this fucking town together! Why would he do this to me?"
Mona had never been close to Aria, but truly felt for the girl. Not that it was the same situation at all, but she had been so heartbroken after Noel dumped her, and he was just a typical, frivolous teenage relationship. She couldn't imagine how Aria was feeling. Ezra and Aria had been anything but a typical, frivolous teenage relationship. And when Aria said that she imagined her life with Ezra, Mona believed it, and believed that it would happen. Now she wasn't so sure.
Mona briefly flashbacked to how nice Spencer had been once she cried about Noel to her. Spencer and Mona were never close either, but Spencer had still been so nice to her and listened. Mona knew she now had to return the favor to Aria.
Mona pulled Aria into a hug and hoped it wouldn't be too awkward. Aria was resistant at first, and stiff, but after a second, relaxed into Mona's arms. She wept into Mona shoulder and repetitively screamed "why" and "how," but not even Mona had the answers.
"I'm sorry, Aria," Mona cooed. "I really am."
Aria sniffled before pulling away. "How much about Ezra do you know?"
Mona considered lying, but, for a first time, didn't want to. She was trying to back out of the A-Team completely, spend time with her hot, caring boyfriend, and one day make amends with Hanna. Why save Ezra's ass now? "I knew he knew Alison. And I knew about the book."
"How?" Aria muttered. She was still in shock of how many signs she had to have missed.
Mona cleared her throat. "He, um, he interviewed me for it. Research, I guess."
Aria's heart broke at the word research and she practically dove into Mona's shoulder. Mona was startled at first, but hugged Aria back. She had never, not even when she had tortured all of the liars endlessly, seen Aria crack like this. Emily would crack every week, Hanna would freak constantly, and Spencer got sent to a mental institution. Aria was the one who always kept it together, but right now, she was crumbling into her ex-torturer's arms.
"He used me for research. When we met, he knew, he knew…" Aria mumbled before crying more. By the volume of her cries, Mona slightly felt uncomfortable. She patted Aria on the back and pulled away. "Aria, I can call the girls, tell them to come over."
Aria nodded and wiped her damp eyes. "Thank you, Mona. Thank you for caring. It's nice to know someone does."
Mona smiled before sighing. "He loves you, Aria. I'm sure of it."
Before Aria could disagree, Mona exited the room and pulled out her phone to dial one of Aria's real friends. Before hitting the call button, Mona smiled a little bit, happy she could actually help someone. It was a different feeling, but it felt nice.
Maybe she should be nicer more often.
(A/N:) Don't forget to leave a review!
-M