Author's Note: This oneshot was inspired by the lovely Lady Elena Dawson (who, by the way, is a dedicated Ezria shipper and writes better stories about them than I ever could. So if you like them, you should definitely check her out).
Disclaimer: I do not own Pretty Little Liars.
Spirits were high at Rosewood High School. It was Friday afternoon, the bell signaling the end of the day had just rung, and Aria's friends had already gathered by her locker to make plans for the weekend.
"We haven't had a sleepover in a while," Emily pointed out.
"Yeah! Is everyone free tomorrow night?" Spencer said.
"That sounds good to me. You all can come to my house. My mom won't mind," Hanna said.
"Perfect," Aria agreed enthusiastically. Just then, her phone buzzed. She smiled when she read the name on the screen. "Hey, guys, I have to take this call. I'll catch up with you in a minute, okay?"
"Is that your mom?" Hanna asked.
"Come on, Han. No one grins at their phone like that when their mom calls," Spencer said. She winked at Aria as she began to gently pull Hanna away. "Tell Fitz we say hi."
Aria rolled her eyes as Emily followed the others and then picked up the phone. "Hi! What's up? Is something wrong?"
"Why do you assume something is wrong?" Ezra said indignantly. "Can't a guy just call his girlfriend to ask her out on a date?"
"A date?" Aria repeated.
"Yes, a date. Are you busy tonight?" Ezra said.
"Nope," Aria replied happily. "Did you have something in mind?"
"Well, I managed to snag a couple of tickets to the play A Doll's House. I thought we could see that after dinner at Chez Mirabelle."
Aria had to stop herself from squealing in excitement. "That sounds amazing!"
"Great!" Ezra said, obviously pleased with himself. "Be at my apartment at five."
"Okay," Aria said. "See you later!" Still smiling, she hung up the phone, tucked it into her pocket, and ran to catch up with her friends.
Five o'clock couldn't come soon enough. Aria passed the time doing homework and, when she couldn't concentrate on that anymore, picking out the perfect outfit for the occasion. She eventually settled on a dark purple dress, heels, and a pair of her signature large earrings.
"Where are you going?"
Aria whipped around at the sound of her brother Mike's voice. "Out," she replied vaguely.
"Duh," Mike said sarcastically. "I didn't think you were getting all dressed up to go to bed." He folded his arms and gave Aria a knowing look. "You're going out on a date with Fitz, aren't you?"
"What if I am?" Aria said.
Mike smirked. "Dad's gonna be mad."
"Well, then it's a good thing he isn't going to find out, isn't it?" Aria said.
"What's stopping me from telling him?" Mike fired back.
Aria smiled sweetly. "Nothing, I suppose. But I think this would be a good time to remind you about that time last week when you came home at two o'clock in the morning and I covered for you." Mike glared at Aria as she stuffed some money into a purse and swept out of the room.
"If anyone asks, I'm at Spencer's," she called.
"Don't be home too late," he yelled back.
"I won't," Aria promised. She sent a quick text to Ezra to let him know she was on her way and then left the house.
"Yes, I'll have the ratatouille with a small side salad, please," Ezra said to the waiter at Chez Mirabelle, handing over his menu without even glancing at it. Aria, who had already ordered, laughed as the waiter walked away.
"What's so funny?" Ezra demanded.
"I was just remembering the first time we came here," Aria explained. "You spent, oh, probably at least twenty minutes staring at the menu, trying to figure out everything. And now you just rattle it off like you've been eating this stuff forever."
"Excuse me for my former lack of familiarity with French vegan food," Ezra said with mock annoyance. "Because in reality, I've spent most of my life eating burgers and steaks."
"I'm only teasing," Aria said, smiling fondly. "Actually, I really appreciated the fact that you were willing to try it for me. Thank you."
"You know, I should be the one thanking you. I never expected to like this stuff as much as I have. You inspired me to give it a go. So thank you." Ezra gazed lovingly at Aria as he reached across the table and took her hand. "Anyway, how was school today?"
"Aw, you ruined the moment," Aria complained. "It's Friday evening, Ezra; do we have to talk about school?"
"Hey, now that I'm not teaching at Rosewood High anymore, I need you to keep me informed," Ezra said defensively.
"There's nothing to share," Aria said. "Unless you want me to describe the incident of the guy who vomited at lunch today."
Ezra wrinkled his nose. "No, thank you. I'd rather you tell me about how none of the other teachers at the school can ever measure up to me."
"Well, one of those teachers is my mom, and as for the others, I think you have a bit of an unfair advantage," Aria replied.
"I'll take whatever I can get," Ezra said with a shrug.
"You're such an idiot," Aria said, but nevertheless, she leaned over to give Ezra a gentle kiss.
After enjoying their delicious meals and chatting a little more at the restaurant, Aria and Ezra made their way down to the theater for the play.
"Have you ever seen A Doll's House before?" Aria asked conversationally.
"Once, yeah. It's been a while, though, so I'm looking forward to seeing it again," Ezra answered. "You?"
"Nope," Aria said. "Well, not in person. I may or may not have searched online for illegal bootlegs of the show."
"Aria!" Ezra said, looking shocked.
"Don't tell me you've never done it before," Aria said. Ezra shook his head. "Fine. It's not like you're going to report me to the police or anything. You'd have a lot more questions to answer than I would."
"Fair enough," Ezra said. "At least you get to see it legally now."
Several minutes later, they arrived at the theater. Aria and Ezra found their seats moments before the play began. Sighing contently when Ezra took her hand again, Aria settled in and prepared to experience the woeful tale.
"That was fantastic!" Aria gushed once the play had concluded. "The actress who played Nora – she was incredible, wasn't she? Even better than the one I saw on YouTube, I think. All those conflicting emotions…"
Ezra chuckled. "I'm glad you liked it."
"Me too," Aria said. "Thank you so much for taking me, and for this whole evening."
"Anytime. I think we both needed it," Ezra said. "So what do you say you come back to my apartment for a little while?"
"I don't know," Aria said hesitantly. "It's getting late, and I told Mike I wouldn't be out too long."
"Mike can get over it. Besides," Ezra added temptingly, "I might be able to dig up some chocolate cake from the oftentimes vast wasteland of my pantry."
"Chocolate cake, you say?" Aria repeated, pretending to think about it. "All right, you've convinced me. But I'll only come for an hour or so, okay?"
Ezra grinned triumphantly and leaned down for a kiss. "Like I said, I'll take whatever I can get."