Day By Day

Author's Note: Oh, wow. It has been so long since I've written anything. This is my first PLL story. I'm not sure where it came from. I just sat down at my computer today, opened up a Word document, and started typing. I re-read through it once, but it has not been beta-ed. I apologize for any spelling or grammatical errors that I may have made. Please keep in mind that it's almost 4am, and I've been working on this for a good twelve hours. I'm tired and my brain feels like it may explode. Those may be factors in any mistakes. With that said, I'm going to leave you with the story. Please let me know what you think of it- that would mean a lot to me.

Summary: Aria wakes up in an unfamiliar bed in an unfamiliar house with an unfamiliar man's arms wrapped around her. There's a glistening diamond ring on her left hand that she's almost positive that she's never seen before…and her belly is round with a child she didn't know she was carrying. (AU oneshot- based very loosely off of 50 First Dates; no Maggie/Malcolm or A.)

Sunlight trickled through the open blinds of the Moroccan-style bedroom. Aria's hazel eyes opened and blinked rapidly a few times as they tried to adjust to the bright light that was now invading the room. She gazed up at the ceiling, yawning slightly before reaching for the edge of the blanket that covered her naked body. And then two things happened at once- she realized that a man's large hand was resting against her unusually round belly and she could swear that something had just moved inside of her. She screamed and flew out from underneath the man's arm and the bed covers. She backed up against the door, her whole body shaking- whether the shaking was caused by the cold air or by the shock of what had just happened, she wasn't sure.

The man sat up in the bed, startled by the expected, yet sudden outburst. "Aria?" He spoke in a soft, kind voice. "Aria…sweetheart…."

Sweetheart? Aria thought to herself. "Wh-who are you?" she asked. "And why am I naked?" She felt a slight flutter in her belly and added, "Am…am I... pregnant?"

He looked as if he were trying to hide a smile. "Aria…I'm Ezra. Ezra Fitz. And I'm your husband. We've been married for three years. And that-" He glanced at her round belly. "-that's our baby, Aria. Our little girl."

Aria narrowed her eyes. "Husband? I don't think I have a husband. At least…I don't remember having a husband. How do I know you're telling the truth?"

"Ask me anything. We'll see if our answers match."

"Okay. What's my middle name?"

"Marie."

"My last name?"

"Montgomery. Your birthday is September 12th. Your parents are Byron and Ella, and your brother's name is Mike. Your first pet was a painted rock named Princess Belle, after the girl from Beauty and the Beast." It sounded to Aria as if he had rehearsed this answer…or given it to her a thousand times. But more importantly, it was all true. Every word, right down to Princess Belle. Most everyone had insisted on calling the rock just plain Belle, but she would always insist that its real name was Princess and its middle name was Belle.

Aria glanced down at her left hand, and there on her ring finger, glittering from the sunlight, was the most beautiful diamond ring that she'd ever seen. Tears formed in her eyes. "If…if you're my h-husband, then why can't I remember you? Why can't I remember our wedding or being pregnant before today?"

"Aria…three days after our wedding, you were in an accident. A terrible one. The driver was drunk. I…I thought I would lose you. I sat with you for five weeks, and every day I prayed that you would wake up. And one day…you did. You woke up and you knew who you were, and who your family was. But you didn't know me. You couldn't remember any of our dates or the day we got engaged, or our wedding. But you were alive. And for that, I was so grateful." Tears were streaming down his cheeks now. "The doctors said that you were one of the lucky ones. One of them insisted that you had a guardian angel watching over you that day."

A tear slipped from one of Aria's eyes. Her brain couldn't register any memories of this man, but her heart knew that he was telling the truth. "E-Ezra?"

"Yes, baby. It's me. Please." He patted the warm spot next to him, where she had lay sleeping not five minutes before.

Aria hesitated before she walked slowly over to the edge of the bed and lowered herself onto the mattress. She pulled the sheet up over her body, suddenly self-conscious. "And the baby?" she whispered.

Ezra smiled. "Even before our wedding, you always talked about having children. We would spend entire nights discussing how many we wanted, and what we thought we would have first. We even came up with a list of names that we both liked. After your accident, I didn't know if we would ever be able to have children. The doctors didn't advise it…but then it happened. I was thrilled, and you were, too. I…I hope you still are."

Aria smiled tentatively. "O-of course I am. I just wish I could remember everything…so you wouldn't have to explain it to me every morning. Did you say that our baby is a…a girl?"

"Yes, our baby is a girl. You always wanted a girl first." He grinned and reached his hand toward her belly. "May I?" She nodded. His palm rested against her belly button. "She's due to arrive in just ten weeks."

"Ten weeks? Seventy days…and I'll be a mom." Her voice cracked on that last word, and she started to sob. "I feel like a terrible mother already. What kind of woman gets pregnant and can't even remember her own baby?"

Ezra gathered her in his arms and held her while she cried. "Shh. Aria, you're going to be a wonderful mother. She's going to love you, just like I do. I love you so much, Aria. It hurts me to see you cry every morning."

Aria looked up into his ice-blue eyes, her tears blurring her vision. She sniffled. "I-I think I love you, too. At least…I hope I do." She giggled at the look on his face. "I'm kidding. I must love you, if I married you and…well…we did make this baby together. So…we must make love."

He smirked. "Yes, yes we did, and we do. You were amazing last night, by the way." He winked, and Aria blushed as he continued to speak. "Would you like to see the baby's room?"

She nodded. "I would love to. But we should probably put some clothes on first."

"Of course." He reached for his boxers and slid them on before walking over to the dresser and pulling out a pair of lacy royal-blue panties and a matching bra. "Here we are. These are your favorites. Mine, too. They bring out the color of your beautiful eyes."

Aria smiled as she stood and slid the panties on. "Would…would you like to help me with this?" She slid the bra up her arms and turned around. He brushed her chocolate brown curls out of the way, his fingers caressing her soft skin. When he was finished, he placed a gentle kiss on her shoulder. Aria shivered slightly as her body filled with a mixture of desire and delight. She turned around and nuzzled her face into his warm chest. "Thank you, Ezra." She cupped his face in her hands and pulled his head closer to her own. "For loving me, and taking care of me. For being there for me even when I don't know who you are. For believing in me. For everything. You are amazing." She pressed her lips to his and then lay her head against his chest. "I love you."

Ezra wrapped his arms around her and held her close. She could hear his heart beating; a steady rhythm. He kissed the top of her head. "And I love you. Would you like to wear your robe this morning?" She nodded, and he made a quick trip into the master bathroom. He returned only a few seconds later with a soft, plum-colored robe and helped her put it on. He then slid on his own robe and led her down to the closed door at the end of the hallway. "Here we are."

He opened the door, and Aria gasped. "It's beautiful," she whispered, stepping into the small, lavender-colored room. She took in every detail- from the beautiful wooden chocolate-colored crib to the butterfly décor and trim on the walls, to the full bookcase, to the plush rocking chair in the corner near the bay window, which was lined with stuffed animals. She walked over to the windowsill and picked up a small white teddy bear, hugging it close to her chest as she did every morning when he showed her the nursery. "Ezra…this is amazing."

He smiled. "This was all you. All I did was swipe the credit card and assemble the furniture. You picked out each piece on your own and showed me where you wanted each of them to go. It's just the way you wanted it."

She grinned. "I did a pretty decent job, then, huh?"

He laughed, nodding. "Definitely. Everyone loves it. Spencer and Toby, Hanna and Caleb, Emily and Paige, your parents…even your brother."

Aria's brow furrowed. "Spencer…that name sounds familiar. How do I know Spencer?"

"She's one of your best friends. Toby is her husband. Hanna and Emily are your other best friends. Caleb is Hanna's fiancé, and Paige is Emily's wife. Would you like to see pictures of them? And of us?" Aria nodded eagerly and sat down in the chair, nestling the teddy bear in her lap.

Ezra pulled a photo album off the bookcase and sat down across from Aria on the footstool. He handed the book to his wife, and she ran her fingers across the lettering on the cover. "'NEVAEH HOPE FITZGERALD'. Is that her name?" She read the rest of the words to herself. 'A BOOK OF FAMILY MEMORIES'.

He nodded. "Nevaeh is heaven spelled backward. You chose her middle name. And Fitzgerald is my legal surname. I figured that we would let her choose whether she wants to be Nevaeh Fitzgerald or Nevaeh Fitz."

Aria looked thoughtful for a moment. "I like Nevaeh Fitz much better than Nevaeh Fitzgerald."

He grinned. "Me too. But my parents insisted on Fitzgerald. And since I'm actually getting along with my family at the moment, I didn't want to ruin it."

"You weren't getting along with your family?"

"Uh…no. My dad left when I was a kid and only turned back up about a year ago. My mother…well, my mother is pretty full of herself. She didn't want me to become an English teacher. She knew that's what I wanted, but she was always breathing down my neck about it. I got fed up with her and left home. She never was very supportive of our relationship." He paused. This was where Aria would ask how they'd met.

Sure enough, Aria said, "Ezra, how did we meet?"

He told the story with a great amount of detail- from their first meeting at the bar, to finding out that she was his student, to the day that she graduated. "That was the day I asked you to marry me. You were ecstatic." He could feel his eyes starting to burn, but he didn't try to stop the tears from falling. As the first one cascaded down his cheek, Aria placed the photo album next to her in the chair and reached out to rest her hand on top of his in an attempt to comfort him. Ezra cleared his throat and continued speaking. "We got married that summer- on August 8th. Our wedding was so beautiful. You chose white roses and peachy-pink colored lilies for our flowers, and the girls wore coral pink dresses. Everything was perfect. But the most beautiful part of the wedding was you. Your dress was an A-line strapless gown in ivory, with beaded lace on both the bodice and the skirt. I'd never seen anything more beautiful in my life. And you were mine- all mine."

Aria's eyes were wet with tears. "I wish I could remember," she whispered.

"There are pictures. Lots of them, right here in this album." He flipped the cover open, and there, in those first precious pages, was the proof that she'd been hoping for. A photo of her walking down the aisle. One of the two of them exchanging rings. Their first kiss as husband and wife. A close-up of their rings, both with the inscription 'Forever and for always, Ezra and Aria' followed by the date of their wedding. A photo of her with her best friends, who were also bridesmaids- Spencer, Hanna, and Emily. One of Ezra and his groomsmen- his brother Wesley, Aria's brother Mike, and his best friend Hardy. The last thing on the page was one of their wedding invitations.

"They're beautiful," she breathed. She turned another page and then another. There were photos of Aria and Ezra from when they were dating, and photos of her with her friends. She smiled at all of them, and even laughed at a few. She looked up at Ezra. "Did you make this book for my benefit, or Nevaeh's?"

"We made this book, for all of us. And I thought we'd add to it after she's born. That way, it will be a book of memories for us and for our daughter."

Aria smiled. "That sounds perfect." She was quiet for several minutes, looking back at all the photos in the album. Finally, she said, "Ezra?"

"Yes, Aria?"

"How do you it? And why? I mean…it must be frustrating for you, having to repeat all these stories every day. Don't you get tired of it? Of…of me?"

He grasped both of her hands between his. "Aria, I do it because I love you. You are the love and the light of my life. I will never tire of telling you how much I love you. I love and cherish you more day by day. And nothing will ever change that." He placed a soft kiss on her lips. "Do you believe me?"

She nodded. "I do. And day by day, I fall in love with you all over again, Ezra Fitz. Thank you for standing by me and for loving me. It makes me sad to think that I won't remember this day tomorrow."

Ezra stood and pulled her up with him, placing the teddy bear back on the windowsill. "We'll take each day as it comes. Tomorrow is a new day… a fresh start. We may end up doing this all over again, and that's okay. But today, right now, is perfect. Shall we make the most of it?" She nodded, and he led her back to their bedroom, closing the door behind them.