Chapter 1- Follow Me
You don't know how you met me
You don't know why
You can't turn around and say goodbye
All you know is when I'm with you
I make you free
And swim through your veins like a fish in the sea
I'm singin'
"Ezra!" She squealed, laughing in delight as he tickled down her sides. The two were sitting in his one bedroom apartment, enjoying the peace and quiet before she had to leave. Leaving back to her three bedroom loft she shared with her fiancé, Kevin.
Ezra and Aria had known each other since high school. They dated Aria's sophomore and junior year, Ezra's junior and senior year before Ezra packed up and moved up state to New York. He had received a full ride to Columbia, his dream school, and he couldn't leave it behind just to be with Aria. It wasn't fair to his parents. It wasn't fair to him.
It wasn't fair to Aria, most of all.
Follow me everything is alright
I'll be the one to tuck you in at night
And if you
Want to leave I can guarantee
You won't find nobody else like me
"I don't want you to go." Ezra whined, burying his head into Aria's French vanilla scented hair. They were standing outside his apartment, latching onto the last few seconds they had for that day.
"I have to." She pouted, pulling herself out of his embrace momentarily before latching her lips to his in a fierce kiss.
He kissed her like there was no tomorrow. Hands drifting everywhere; up her spine, entwining themselves in her hair, gripping her bottom. Her hands were pulling the curls on the back of his neck, causing simultaneous moans to escape from his mouth. Ezra was the first to pull back and catch his breath.
"I'm going to miss you." He whispered against her lips. "When can you come back?"
She kissed him chastely before answering a dreadful apology. "I'm sorry, I have no clue. With the wedding coming up and…I still have to find the girls dresses and-"
"Call it off."
"What? You know I can't do that. It wouldn't be fair to him. I'd feel so guilty and you know how I get when I'm guilty. I ca-"
"Aria. Call it off." He put his hand under her chin, lifting her lips to his and kissing her. He pulled back, looking in her hazel eyes before walking back inside and shutting the door, leaving a confused Aria in the hall.
I'm not worried 'bout the ring you wear
Cuz as long as no one knows than nobody can care
You're feelin' guilty and I'm well aware
But you don't look ashamed and baby I'm not scared
I'm singin'
"Babe?" Kevin called out to the empty loft when he heard the door open and close.
"I'm here." Said a tiny voice from the kitchen. He walked out and grabbed her waist from behind.
"Man, I thought you'd never come home. You must really love your job." He said huskily into her ear before kissing his way up her neck.
There was nothing wrong with Kevin that made Aria cheat. There was nothing wrong at all with their relationship. It was happy, loving, and fun. Aria sometime wondered herself why she decided to sleep with Ezra that night at the bar.
"Yeah." She mumbled. Kevin stopped his pecks and looked at his fiancé questioningly.
"What's wrong?" He asked, leaning up against the white counter as she heat up the dinner he saved for her. "Pre-wedding jitters?"
"Uh." She stopped, placing the plastic wrap down on the table that had covered the lasagna he made. "Uhm…" turning around, she looked him in his eyes. Aria couldn't say no to those beautiful, green eyes.
She jumped in his arm and kissed him with all her might. She kissed him until her lips were bruised and swollen and it heart to suck in air. When she was lowered, she realized her decision.
Meanwhile, After Ezra had decided that he was in love with Aria, he asked her to call off the wedding. Yes, he knew it was only three days away, but if she didn't call the wedding off, he was going to march in the chapel and declare his love for her.
No, he didn't have steady job, nor did he work on Wall Street like Kevin Benton. But he loved Aria, he had loved Aria for as long as he can remember. He could offer Aria much more than Kevin ever could emotionally.
He sat down the third beer he had had that night and sprung up from the leather couch. Running his hand through his dark brown, ruffled hair, he looked at his cell phone.
Nothing.
What could he expect? Aria miraculously calling him at three in the morning saying she called off the whole ordeal and to meet me him at the airport in twenty so they could jet off to Rome? No, that only happens in the movies.
This is no movie. This is life.
Follow me everything is alright
I'll be the one to tuck you in at night
And if you
Want to leave I can guarantee
You won't find nobody else like me
"What was that for, Aria?" Kevin asked, wiping a bit of saliva from his upper lip. "You've never kissed me like that before."
"I needed to know." She said sheepishly, putting her plate in the microwave.
"Needed to know what?"
She hesitated before answering. "To…to realize that we're meant to be, babe." She smiled before wrapping her arms around him and burying her head into his chest.
"I love you." She heard him mutter.
Won't give you money
I can't give you the sky
You're better off if you don't ask why
I'm not the reason that you go astray and
We'll be all right if you don't ask me to stay
"Spencer, will you loosen this? I'm dying." Aria gagged, pointing to the corset on the back of her dress. Spencer, her maid of honor, waltzed over to wear Aria was standing, or more like crouching, over the couch and untied the corset dress.
"I don't know why you chose this dress. When Toby and I got married, wore a simple-"
"Yeah, yeah. You were a simple silk dress with no bra to show off your perky pregger boobs." Hanna laughed. Emily widened her eyes and tried to contain her giggles.
"Hanna!" Aria laughed. Spencer gave the blonde dagger eyes before re-tying Aria's gown.
"It's not my fault the condom broke. It's Trojan's." Spencer defended.
When Toby and Spencer got married two years ago, Spencer was pregnant with her first child, Evelynne. She was around two months, so she wasn't showing, resulting into the newlyweds to hide the pregnancy until after the honeymoon.
"Sure, it broke." Hanna laughed again.
"Okay, enough champagne for you." Aria giggled, grabbing the glass flute from her perfectly manicured hand and downing the thing.
"Damn, Ar. You sure you're okay?" Emily questioned. Aria never drank a day in her life, except a year ago, when she graduated with her doctorate.
"Pre-wedding jitters." She repeated Kevin's word to the three girls, hoping they would go through to the butterflies flowing throughout her abdomen.
Meanwhile, Ezra was sitting out in front of the church, watching the sun slowly go down, nursing a bottle of scotch in his tuxedo. In the middle of December, watching the sunrise was the most surreal and beautiful thing you could ever see this end of Philidelphia.
"Hey." A soft voice came from behind him. It was Aria's mother.
"Ms. Montgomery." Ezra forced out. He was on edge.
"Call me Ella. You know that." She sat down next to him, taking the bottle of scotch from him. She opened the top and downed it in five seconds. She took the bottle from her lips and snapped the top back on, giving it back to Ezra.
"You good?"
"I want you to stop the wedding." She said before going back in to her daughter.
Follow me everything is alright
I'll be the one to tuck you in at night
And if you
Want to leave I can guarantee
You won't find nobody else like me
After the dress had been loosened, the blue heels had been strapped on, and an entire bottle of champagne gone between four girls, Aria was starting to ease down off the scared high she had earlier. Until a knock came to the door.
"Spencer, will you get it? I can't get up." She laughed.Spencer walked over to the door and gasped when she saw who was on the other side.
"I need to talk to Aria." Spencer looked back at Aria who had closed her eyes and gave a sigh before shaking her head yes.
"We'll give you two some privacy." Hanna said before grabbing Emily and pulling her out the door along with Spencer.
"Aria-"
"No, Ezra. You don't get a say. My ignoring you for that past three days should have told you enough. I'm not calling off the wedding. Too much time, energy, and money has gone into this."
"Aria-" He started again, but was cut off…again.
"There are over 300 people out there waiting for me to get married to Kevin Benton, Mr. Wall Street! I can't give up something like this. Not for you. Not for me. Not for anyone."
"Aria-" He tried again.
" I should have stopped this months ago. God! Why did you have to come back? I was so happy before you walked into my life again! I had a great boyfriend, great friends, great life! Why can't I just be happy with out all your frustrations! I don't want to hurt anybody! Why can't you see that?" Aria screamed, tears running down her face.
"Aria!" He screamed. She jumped a little at the sound of his voice. She had never, in the 10 years she'd known him, heard him yell at a person. Not even at the jackasses he put up with.
"What, Ezra?" She whimpered.
"Aria, I love you." He walked up to her, grabbing her hands. "I love you, Aria. I love you so much."
He grabbed her face, moving it towards his in a fast paced move. Their lips connected and Aria gasped. Ezra moved his hands to her waist and pulled her towards his hips, trying to get as close as ever to her. Her hands went to his back and neck, grasping onto his jacket. She pulled away first.
"I..I can't…" She stuttered.
"You can." Ezra whispered to her.
"Ezra, I…I r-really c-can't." She whimpered, shoveing him away.
"Aria, but you can! I can offer something he can never offer you! Never! I love you too much to see you throw your life away for him!" Ezra cried, tears of his own forming in his ice blue orbs.
"Aria, it's time." Spencer said, standing in the door way.
"I…I have to go." Aria whispered before picking up the train of her dress and running towards the door, leaving Ezra staring after her, a tear running down his face.
You don't know how you met me
You don't know why
You can't turn around and say goodbye
All you know is when I'm with you
I make you free
And swim through your veins like a fish in the sea
I'm singin'
"Do you, Kevin Ethan Benton, take Aria Lucille Montgomery to be your lawfully, wedded wife, to have and to hold, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in the name of God." The priest said looking from his bible to the groom.
"I do." Kevin smiled wide. He laughed a little as Aria smiled.
"Do you, Aria Lucille Montgomery, take Kevin Ethan Benton to be your lawfully, wedded husband, to have and to hold, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in the name of God." The priest smiled.
Aria looked around and saw all the eyes in the room on her. Looking over towards her side, she scanned the pews, not finding the one person she hoped would be in the back, fighting urges to stand up and stop the wedding. She couldn't find Ezra Fitz.
"Aria, babe." Kevin whispered, getting her attention. Her eyes snapped forward, forgetting where she was.
"What, huh? Oh, sorry." She laughed at how ridiculous she was being. Of course, after all she had said to Ezra, of course he wouldn't be here. She had been so selfish into thinking she could have everything she ever wanted, including Ezra.
"Aria, are you..are you okay?" The priest asked. He looked at Aria curiously, as did everyone else in the chapel.
"Uh…uh, yeah. I'm just…cold." She smiled at Kevin before looking at the priest. "Where were we again?"
"Do you take him?" The father smiled.
"Uh…" She looked around again, seeing the bored faces on the girls, the worried look on her mothers brow, the curious complexion on her fathers.
"Ar?" Kevin said one last time.
"Kevin, I'm sorry." Aria started, taking her hands from his. She ripped the veil from her head and dropped it on the ground. "I can't do this. I'm really sorry."
She took off down the walkway with four people chasing after her. The three bridesmaids, Spencer, Hanna, and Emily, and her mother; hoping for the best.
She burst open the chapel doors to find Ezra leaning against a motorcycle.
"Ezra!" She kicked off her heels and ran down the steps into Ezra's muscular arms. He kissed her wildly before setting her down on the concrete ground.
"Aria, are you sure?" He asked her, wiping a thumb across her cheek.
"Ezra, I just left Kevin standing in the alter with over 300 people watching us. I think I'm sure." She smiled before kissing him again. "I love you."
"Let's go." Ezra his bottom lip. "Wait, I don't think you're going to fit on the bike with that thing on."
"I don't have extra clothes. They're all at the house." She smiled. People had started coming out the doors, watching the runaway bride and her lover.
"I might have a fix." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his key. "This better fucking work."
He knelt down and started tearing into Aria's four thousand dollar wedding dress, the dress that Kevin's parents paid for. Cutting it mod-thigh, he let the train drop, earning gasps from the crowd formed outside. Kevin stepped through the throng of people and stood jaw-opened, looking at his fiancé ride off with another man.
"Off to Vegas!" Aria yelled, gripping Ezra's waist as they road off into the night of December. Aria's family clapped and cried, wishing the best for their little Aria. Ella, crying the hardest out of everyone, finally thinking her daughter chose the right decision.
"I better get a fucking post card, Aria!" Hanna screamed. "And a gift!"
Follow me everything is alright
I'll be the one to tuck you in at night
And if you
Want to leave I can guarantee
You won't find nobody else like me
