Chapter One
Monday, September 1st, 2012
Radley Mental Hospital
California
Aria Montgomery woke up in a blurred daze in an unfamiliar surrounding. Her head was pounding and the strong sunlight in the previously dim lit room caused her eyes to squint. It felt almost like a hangover, except that there was no drinking involved the previous night. Aria tried to get out of her bed but her entire body was soar and ached all over. In frustration, she lay back down on the bed, and contemplated where she was.
The room she was in was painted yellow. The walls were yellow and so was the low roof. Why was it yellow? Yellow was a happy color. It was supposed to bring joy and lift up spirits. The room should have been painted black instead. There as music player at the other end of the room. Classical music were tumbling out of the speakers in a failed attempt to sooth me. I didn't like classical music. It did not sooth me.
Footsteps echoed in the hallway followed by urgent whispers. The conversation was barely audible but judging from the tone of voice of the speakers, Aria deemed it was vital and had to do with herself.
"Are you sure you want to keep her? She tried to kill herself!" The man in the white coat and dark glasses said, taken aback that a couple was willing to adopt a depressed, suicidal teenager. He looked strangely formal. A bit too formal to work in a Mental Hospital full of suicidal teenagers.
"Yes, we would like the to keep her." The middle aged couple standing opposite the psychiatrist replied. "But tell me, what caused her to take such a dramatic step and pull the trigger?"
The psychiatrist looked to the ground and cleared his throat. He was silent for a couple of seconds and the only sound in the hallway was coming from the tapping of his shoes as he paced back and forth. "I'm sorry but it is not in my position to give out that information. It is up to Aria if she wants to open up to you or not."
"I see." The woman standing next to her husband in the hall replied curtly.
"Are you sure you want to keep her? This would be a enormous responsibility." The psychiatrist asked one more time. "And once the documents have been signed, there is no going back."
"We are positive." The husband replied firmly. "We want her. When will she be released?"
"One year max." The psychiatrist replied. "You are most welcome to visit her in the hospital if you like, but I am not allowed to give her to you until we are certain she is no longer a danger to herself. Do you understand?" The couple nodded and signed the adoption form handed to them.
One year later
Rosewood High school
Rosewood, Pennsylvania
Aria Montgomery stared up at the towering building in front of her. It was her first day at Rosewood High. But most importantly, it was her first day of school in an entire year. Ever since It had happened, Aria lacked the strength and will to go to school and to lead a normal life. All Aria had done the past year is lay around in bed and stare at the ceiling.
This morning, Aria had spent hours getting ready. She hadn't properly dressed up in a year, since she only wore one outfit in the Mental Institute. It was her first day in high school in a year, and Aria wanted to make a good impression. No, it wasn't those hideous white gowns you see on TV, but it wasn't that pretty either.
A swarm of butterflies gathered in Aria's stomach when the 5 minute warning bell rang. Aria had 5 minutes to reach the Principal's office where she would be given her schedule. A group of teenagers shoved passed her, giggling and taking selfies of themselves. So typical, Aria thought to herself. Some were humming on songs and others were gossiping with their friends. Aria felt a pang in her stomach and tears filled her eyes. Their cheerful faces reminded her of how joyful her life had been before It had happened. She had a perfect life, the kind you see in the movies and wonder if that kind of happiness is even possible.
Aria forced her eyes to part from her fellow students and focus on the pathway in front of her. She made her way towards the Principal's office without getting lost and nervously knocked on the door.
"Come in!" A loud voice said and Aria walked into the room. It was quite small to be a principal's office but Aria figured that it served the purpose of an office since it had a round desk and chairs on either side. "Please take a seat, Aria." The Principal said and Aria passively did as she was told. What was going to happen now? She asked herself.
Luckily, Aria's question did not go unanswered for long since the Principal cleared his throat and begun speaking. "I know you have had a troubled past." A look of horror spread on her face. He couldn't know! How could he know about what had happened? How could he have known about it? "The doctor's told me what happened." The principal continued. "I am terribly sorry about it and I hope Rosewood high would be a place you love."
Aria nodded and grabbed her schedule before hurrying out of the principals office. How many teachers knew about it? How many teachers had the doctor told? Aria did not want anyone to know about that terrible night on August 31st 2012. She wanted to keep it buried deep in a memory, if forgetting about it completely wasn't an option.
Aria read over her schedule. Her first class of the day was English with Mr. Fitz. English had always been Aria's favorite subject. Aria used to spend nights holed up in her room reading books and writing short stories. Her favorite book was To Kill a Mockingbird; classics was always something Aria loved. She also loved the book The Great Gatsby. But after It had happened, Aria had lost her interest in both reading and writing. It was almost as if all her passions and desires had disappeared.
Sometimes when Aria was sleeping, that night would find it's way into her dream. It would poison her thoughts and turn her dreams into nightmares. Time to time, the nightmares would get the best of her, causing panic attacks and anxiety issues to form. No matter how much she tried to live a normal life, the waves of panic and anxiety always seemed to tear her down.
Aria shook her head. Do not think about that night! She scolded herself. But no matter how much the young girl tried, the events of that devastating night was etched into her soul. And no matter how much Aria begged, the heartbreaking memory would not leave her alone.
Ezra Fitz stood in front of the whiteboard, explaining the story of To Kill a Mockingbird. Ezra had been a teacher for less than an hour and he was already loving his job. He loved to reading as well, however he wasn't that good at writing. Or at least that was what he though; his students thought he was marvellous. When his students first piled into the classroom, they looked bored and uninterested. But now, each and everyone one of them was eagerly listening to their teacher; even the ones who had a tendency to dose off. Ezra Fitz wasn't that old. To be precise, he had turned 22 only last week, causing every single girl in the Senior classroom to ogle at him.
Suddenly, Ezra heard a knock on the door. The attention of the entire class turned to the short brunette who had just appeared in front of the door. She looked nervous, obviously, since she was fiddling with her purple bracelet. She was wearing a simple blue dress with a leader belt at her waist. Her long brunette hair was cascading down her shoulders and her slim figure occupied every guy's attention. Aria bit her lip and asked, "is this Mr. Fitz's classroom?"
Ezra nodded, tearing his eyes apart from the brunette standing opposite him. "Yes," he replied once he cleared his throat. "You must be Aria Montgomery, the new student." Aria nodded and quickly scurried into the vast classroom. She felt 24 eyeballs on her as she slid into a seat next to the window. Back in Rosewood, Aria never got to sit by the window since one of her classmates always called on the seat. But today, Aria received a chance to be seated by the window.
Why are they all looking at me? Aria wondered to herself. They couldn't know about It. They couldn't right? Surely, the Principal would not give out such private information to a school of 500 teenagers, right? Aria asked herself worriedly. They are probably just looking at me since I am new, Aria reassured herself.
For the rest of the class, Aria focused on the young teacher in front of her. He had curly brunette hair, the type that never straightened itself out no matter how much hair product you applied to it. His buttoned down shirt was haphazardly ironed, but formal enough for work. Aria had to admit that this teacher was stunning.
Since Aria had read the book To Kill a Mockingbird a countless times, she had no problem grasping the concepts being taught in class. Even though she had missed an entire year of schooling, Aria had no difficulty in understanding the course material Rosewood High would teach this year.
Suddenly the high pitched bell rang and everyone jumped up from their seats and piled outside the door, causing a deadly stampede to form in the hallway. Aria however, was still seated. She liked to take her time when packing up her books. She had no intention to join the stampede of excited teenagers, or at least she hadn't every since It had happened.
"Aria, could I talk to you for a second?" Ezra asked, approaching her desk. Ezra had stared at Aria all through class. He hadn't planned to. He definitely wasn't proud of it. But he couldn't help it since his eyes refused to tear apart from the beautiful brunette girl.
"Sure," Aria replied. Once she was done stuffing her novel in her backpack, she looked up to meet Ezra's gaze. Aria looked more even more gorgeous up close. Her eyes captivated Ezra's attention immediately. They were hazel. But not any kind of hazel, it was a unique hazel with specks of yellow and green here and there. But there was something else in her eyes; sadness. Sadness was everywhere in her eyes. Every inch of her beautiful eyes were buried underneath the sadness.
"Um, so I spoke to the Principal and he told me that you had missed Junior year since you...um..." Ezra trailed off uncomfortably. But Aria new exactly what he meant. Last year, It had happened, causing her to break down and end her life. Which, she also failed at, landing her in a Mental Institute.
"Um...yeah." Aria stuttered embarrassed. She hadn't wanted anyone to know about what she had done to them and herself.
"I'm supposed to help you catch up with work that you missed the previous year," Ezra explained. "The principal asked me to set up a calendar for possible study sessions. Would you be free tomorrow after school by any chance?"
"I guess, yeah," Aria replied, adamant that she needed help in English, her favourite subject. Ezra had noticed that she had not yet stopped fiddling with her purple bracelet, and her eyes were cast down to the floor.
"And Aria, I don't know the details of what happened to you, but if you need anyone to talk to, you should know that I am here for you." Ezra offered. Wait, so he didn't know about It?! His tone was sincere and for a second Aria believed that maybe somebody actually cared for her. But as soon as the theory entered her brain, it slipped out and Aria denied his offer.
"I'm sorry but you don't need to help me. I'm not worth it. I'll see you tomorrow after school for our study session." That was all Aria said before giving Ezra a sad smile and heading out of the classroom.
Authors Note:
This story is based on a dream I had last night. I know you guys are all probably wondering what was it and I promise that I will reveal everything that happened that night in later chapters. The plot line is a little different from Pretty Little Liars since it is based on my dream. But the character are same, even though I will be introducing new characters later in the story. I really hope you liked this chapter. Please review and tell me what you think about this story! The more reviews I get, the faster I will update this story.