So, this story has been bugging me for a while, but I've been too lazy to write it. I hope you like it :)
Disclaimer: everything belongs to ABC Family
(oh, and btw, it takes place after Ezra finds out Malcolm isn't his, but Aria doesn't know)
Three long weeks had passed since Aria had kissed Ezra goodbye in the Rosewood High's hallway. Two weeks had passed since Aria had run out of Ezra's apartment complex just after he told her he would do anything for her. The past few weeks had been torturous for Aria. Every second she wished she could back to Ezra. She wished she could snuggle by his side as they watched old movies. She long to feel his kiss: his soft lips against hers. Yet, things couldn't go back, and Aria knew that.
Ever since her and Ezra's break-up, Aria had tried moving on. She had tried to move on with Jake, her martial arts instructor, but was unable to keep her mind off of Ezra. It was as if he was the only thing she could think about. During English class, Aria would never pay attention. She would muster all her strength and keep herself together, hoping that she wouldn't burst into tears in the middle of class. She would place her head on one fist and stare at Ezra, admiring the way he talked, the way he moved, the color of his eyes. Sometimes she would catch him looking at her, too, and they would share a glance of sadness. They both knew that they wanted to be together again, but things were not that simple.
At home, Aria would constantly type up Ezra's number on her cell phone. She would sit on her bed and just study his number, wishing she could press the call button. But she couldn't. In fact, Ezra had called her the day before, but she had ignored the call. She had thought that it was just because he had typed up her number like she did his, and accidently pressed call. She would never in a million years think it was Ezra calling her because Malcolm was not his.
Her life became boring and repetitive. She would think of Ezra every second she was awake then dream of him as she slept. He was implanted in her brain, and it was impossible to get him off her mind. Yet, one announcement changed her life, forever.
. . .
You see, it happened during English class. Ezra was rambling on about Hemmingway –and about how things truly evil start from innocence –when Vice Principle Hackett's voice boomed onto the loudspeaker.
"Uh," he stammered, getting used to how his voice sounded projected in every classroom of the school, "I'm sorry for this interference, but we have a surprise visit from somebody giving away tickets to the Osgood Museum. All students and faculty should proceed to the auditorium immediately."
There was a moment of silence after Hacket stopped talking. But that moment quickly ended and students began to talk and ask questions about why somebody would give away tickets to the Osgood Museum. After all, that was such an expensive museum, and tickets to see any of the expeditions cost a ton of cash.
The only people who see not excited about the announcement were Aria and Ezra. They shared a worried glance, and then quickly looked away. Yet, that tiny glance let them communicate quite a lot. The Osgood museum was where Aria and Ezra went to meet Dianne Fitzgerald. Was it a coincidence that somebody was handing out free tickets to the same museum? After all, Ezra's grandparents work was often displayed in that very museum. So there was a possibility that Dianne was involved in this charity program.
Aria's thoughts were quickly interrupted by Ezra.
"So," he mumbled as he stood from his desk, "I think we should all get to the auditorium, right?" He opened the classroom door and waited for everyone to migrate towards the auditorium.
Ezra was one of the last people to enter the auditorium. He walked down the steps in the dark, and spied Aria from the corner of his eye. She sat in the back row, surrounded by her friends, but even in the dark he could tell she was nervous. Ezra found a seat near the front of the auditorium, near the other teachers, and quickly sat down.
Ezra noticed that there was a projector in the middle of the stage in front of him, and that there was a computer attached to the projector. It was as if someone was about to show a slide show. However, the screen was covered by a piece of paper, and Ezra was left to guess what was about to be shown to the whole school.
A few minutes later, Vice Principle Hackett entered the auditorium. He stood in front of the stage with a microphone in hand. He tapped the microphone a couple times –just to make sure it was working –before speaking.
"Good morning," he told the students and faculty in front of him, "we have a surprise visit today. As I said before, some generous soul has offered to give everybody in this room two tickets to the Osgood Museum. There will be a collection shown just for our school."
Everybody cheered. They were all planning on giving their tickets to their parents for Christmas, which was just around the corner.
"Which collection is it?" some kid shouted at the Vice Principle.
"It's a collection from Lyle and Francis Springer," Hackett explained. "Their daughter will be here to present the tickets."
Ezra turned pale. He couldn't breathe. That meant that his mother would enter the auditorium in just a few second. And his mother knew about him and Aria. He was sure that she would do anything to get him in trouble. In fact, there was no generous bone in his mother's body, so the only reason that his mother would donate all those tickets would be to get him into trouble.
"Please, everybody," Hackett announced, "welcome Mrs. Dianne Fitzgerald."
Dianne entered the auditorium from the wing of the stage. She was covered in diamonds and bleached in Channel. She took a quick glance at the high school students, and then her eyes made her way to Ezra.
She gave him a quick smirk. He was right; she was planning to do something. And he had walked right into her trap.
What do you think?
