Hi!

So this story takes place before 2X25, Ezra took the job in New Orleans and left Aria. There are some differences from the show, I'm not going to follow exactly what happened in the show but I hope you will like it. I have to warn you, English is not my native language so I'm so sorry for the mistakes I make. Please tell me what you think about my story and about my English. If my story sucks or if my English is terrible, it's okay, tell me, I would not be upset and I will try to improve it. If you have some time it would be really nice to tell me which errors I made so I would be able to correct them and to improve my writing.

Thanks!

Chapter one

Ezra's POV

"Okay, thank you for your attention. See you on Thursday." I said to my students at the end of the day.

I was in New Orleans since four weeks now. Four weeks since I had left rosewood, four weeks since I had left her. The town was beautiful, the college where I taught was very great, with a good program, and my students were amazing. Actually, I had everything I had always dreamed of since I had decided to be a teacher but I didn't really care because I couldn't have the only thing I really wanted: Aria.

Since I was here, I hadn't been able to spend more than three seconds without thinking about her. I missed her so much; I had never missed someone like I missed Aria. When Jackie had left me and had broken our engagement, I had been very upset and sad but nothing comparable to the pain I was feeling now. I hadn't talked to Aria since I had left Rosewood even if, every night, I took my phone and began to dial her number but I hung up before I hear the first ring. I knew it would just make things worse for her and for me too. Plus, we had promised not to call each other and I was determined to keep my promise, but thinking that I would never be able to hear her voice again was horrible.

I left the college around seven, I had been in my office for two hours, I wanted to correct my students' tests but, as usual, I had spent two hours thinking of Aria without correcting any test.

I reached the parking lot, took my car and drove up to my apartment.

It was a nice place, on the fourth floor with a beautiful view over the city and bigger than my tiny apartment in Rosewood. The first thing I thought when I had seen it was "Aria would love this place" but, of course, I knew that she would never come here. This idea was killing me. I couldn't believe that I would never see her again. I couldn't stop wondering if I had made the right decision by taking the job. But, did I really have a choice? Her parents had been perfectly clear; if I didn't leave the town they would call the police. I had taken the job because I was very scared of what her father could do. When I had told Aria that I had decided to take the job she had been very upset but when I was on the point to tell her that I had changed my mind, she had told me that I should take it. So I had made the hardest thing I had ever done: saying goodbye to the girl I loved.

But how had I been able to think that I could get over her?

I was on the point to sit down on my couch with a sandwich when I heard a knock on my door. I had no idea who it could be. I didn't have any friends in New Orleans yet. Maybe just a neighbor! I opened the door and saw my best friend, Hardy, in front of me.

"Hey buddy," Hardy greeted me with a big smile on his face.

"Hardy! What are you doing here?" I asked him before hugging him. I didn't expect him at all but I was very happy to see him.

"Well, I couldn't wait to see where my best friend lived," he told me. "Are you going to let me come in or what?" He asked, smiling as I realized that he was still on the porch.

"Yes, of course, sorry, come in," I said, stepping to the side to allow him entry.

"Wow, man, what a good place!" Hardy said when he came inside, looking around him.

"Yes, the apartment is pretty good. Do you want something to drink?" I asked him.

"A beer would be perfect," Hardy replied.

"So, how are you doing? How is the life in New Orleans?" Hardy asked me when we sat down on my couch with two beers, a few seconds later.

"Oh, the city is great, I'm fine!" I lied. I didn't really want to complain about how much I missed Aria even if I had told him everything about my story with her a few months ago.

"Are you sure?" He asked me, septic. Of course he was not an idiot; he knew that I was lying.

I sighed. "Actually no, to be honest ,it's just like hell." I told him, choosing to be honest with him.

"It's Aria, isn't it?" He asked me, even if I knew he already knew the answer.

"I don't know if I will be able to do it, Hardy, I mean, to get over her. It's crazy how much I miss her; I can't stop thinking about her," I said.

"Oh man, I'm so sorry. I know it's hard but you need some time. But to be honest with you, you made the right decision," Hardy said trying to comfort me.

"Yes, I guess you're right," I said, less convinced than he was.

"What you need right now is a good time with your best friend, we could get out tonight, it would be great, wouldn't it?" Hardy asked me.

"I don't know, Hardy, I'm sorry, but tonight I really don't want to go anywhere." I told him, hoping he was going to give up on his project. I should have known that Hardy wasn't the kind of guy who gave up easily.

"Oh come on, you can't stay here all the time , you need to have some fun, plus, I really want to visit New Orleans, please Ezra, do it for me?" Hardy begged me.

After all, I could do an effort for my best friend, and maybe he was right, maybe I needed to get out.

"Okay, fine!" I complied.

"Great, come on, let's go," Hardy said, walking toward the door.

Half an hour later we were at the Maple leaf Bar. I had never been here but one of Hardy's friends had told him that it was the best bar of New Orleans so he had insisted to go there.

"Wow, this place seems great!" Hardy said when we came in the Bar.

There were a lot of people inside even if we were on a Tuesday night. But Hardy's friend hadn't lied, the bar seemed really great. Actually, it didn't even look like a bar; it was more like a cabaret. There were even dancers.

We sat down around a table and Hardy ordered two drinks. I couldn't help remembering the first time I had met Aria, it was in a bar, a tiny college bar, I remembered the first time I had seen her, so beautiful but also so sad , she was…

"Ezra? Are you still here? Come on, man, I'm talking to you!" Hardy said, interrupting my thoughts as I realized I hadn't even heard a single word.

"Sorry, what have you said?" I asked him with an apologetic smile.

"I said we should…" Suddenly he interrupted himself on the middle of his sentence and looked at something behind me.

"Damn! Look at these girls, they are so freaking hot!" I turned around and I saw two girls, a blond and a brunette who were watching us, smiling.

"Oh my god! They are looking at us!" Hardy said like a kid opening his presents on a Christmas morning.

"I'm gonna ask them to join us," he told me.

I shook my head. "No, please, don't do that!" I didn't want to talk to these girls but apparently Hardy and I weren't on the same page.

"Oh, come on, Ezra, we can't let go such beauties. I want the blond one, you can have the brunette," he told me.

"Hardy, I'm not interested," I told him.

"Oh, man, I'm not asking you to marry her, be nice and smile that's all, do it for me," he told me. And before I could add anything he stood up and walked toward the girls.

"No, Hardy, wait!" I tried to stop him, but it was too late, he was already talking to the girls. Two minutes later, Hardy came back with the girls.

"Ezra, this is Sutton and Lily," he said by introducing the girls.

"Sutton, Lily, this is my friend Ezra," Hardy introduced me.

"Pleased to meet you!" Sutton and Lily said, smiling at me.

"Me too," I said, trying to smile.

"We would be glad if you join us, right Ezra?" Hardy told me, looking at me intensely.

"Sure," I said, trying to be as convincing as possible, cursing Hardy at the same time to put me in this situation.

The two girls sat down around the table with us, Sutton, the blond one, next to Hardy and Lily, the brunette, next to me. We spoke together for a little while, or to be honest, Hardy spoke, making jokes which made laugh the girls, the most part about our college years but suddenly Hardy asked Sutton to dance , she said yes and they left me alone with Lily. Hardy didn't even look at me; of course he knew that if he had done it, my glance would have prevented him from doing that.

"So, Ezra, what are you doing in New Orleans? " Lily asked me. I looked at her; even if the only thing I wanted at this moment was to run away from there and go home, I couldn't be impolite.

"Oh, hum, I live here now, I got a job," I replied.

"What kind of job?" She asked.

"I'm a teacher," I replied.

"Oh this is great, my brother is a teacher too, and what class are you teaching to? High school?" Lily asked me.

This question! Aria had never asked it when we met, if she had done it, everything would have been different, very different!

"No, college," I said.

"Great!" She said, smiling. Then she took a sip of her drink. Maybe it was my turn to ask the questions now. And if I was lucky Hardy would be back soon.

"And what about you? What is your job?" I asked her trying to seem really interested.

"I'm a stylist, I have a little enterprise here! "She told me, proudly.

"Oh it's amazing," I said. But I didn't know what to say after, I was so uncomfortable, I wanted to be anywhere but there. I looked over my shoulder to see where Hardy was and I saw him, kissing Sutton on the dance floor. When I looked back at Lily she seemed closer to me and she was smiling.

"Sutton and your friend seem to have a good fun, maybe we should do the same, don't you think?" She said by enrolling up a drill of her hair around her finger.

I wasn't stupid, I knew exactly what she was thinking. I looked at her. She was a pretty girl; she was tall and thin with black hair and green eyes, she was exactly the kind of girl I liked but, right now, the only brunette I wanted to be with was in Pennsylvania. I wanted to run away from here but I didn't want being nasty, after all she was a nice girl; it wasn't her fault if she was trying to seduce a man who was deeply in love with someone else.

"Look, Lily, you seem very great but I can't," I told her.

"Of course you can!" She said. And before I could add anything, her lips were on mine. I pushed her away from me as fast as possible, maybe a little too hard.

"What are you doing? I told you NO!" I said angrily.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" She yelled at me.

Then I got up from the table and walked toward the exit without trying to find Hardy. I got out of the bar and began to walk toward my apartment. Even if it was far, I didn't want to take a cab , I was so angry that I needed to calm me down.

"Ezra, Wait!" I heard Hardy behind me.

I kept walking , ignoring him.

"Ezra , please!" Hardy begged again.

"Go away, Hardy!" I told him.

"Ezra, I'm sorry, I just thought…"

I stopped and faced him, anger all over my face. "You thought what?" I said, looking dagger at him. "That I was going to make out with the first girl I would meet? That I just needed to meet a pretty girl with a skirt to forget Aria? Don't you understand? I love her, okay? I just can't stop loving her and I don't want to, I want to be with her, I should have fought for her instead of running away like a coward and you know what? This is exactly what I am going to do," I said.

"What do you mean?" Hardy asked, amazed.

"I mean that I'm coming back to Rosewood!"