Aria Montgomery groaned in frustration, fed up with the constant screams of ecstasy emanating from the dorm next door. The thunder outside couldn't even drown out the noise. Her father chuckled from his reclining chair, where he remained reading the paper, completely unbothered.
"Really, dad? How can you stand this?"
She shook her head at him, her pink highlights flying about. She got up from her chair, deciding that if he wasn't going to do something about it, she would.
"Aria honey, what are you doing?" He called as she marched her fourteen year old self to the door. "Come on, it'll end soon enough. They're college kids, let them be." He tried reasoning.
She spun around. "College kids? Dad, please. They're meant to be the brightest, most studious group of fourth year students, not...that." She gestured to the thin walls.
"Besides, your job is to make sure that kind of thing doesn't go on. I understand that you want to be the cool, laidback Dean who everyone loves, but seriously? At THIS cost?"
Byron Montgomery laughed. At fourteen, his daughter was quite the little adult.
"Alright, alright. You've convinced me."
She waited for him to get up and deal with the crazy sex fiends, but he went right back to his newspaper.
"Dad?" She waited, tapping her foot.
"Oh, I thought you were dealing with it?" He asked.
She sighed, making her way next door as he continued to laugh. She waited momentarily in front of the door, hoping that she could somehow will them to stop instead. When that didn't work, she resorted to knocking. There were muffled voices as she waited for someone to open it.
"Ezra," A female voice giggled inside. "Come back, screw whoever it is."
She couldn't make out the guy's response, but soon he opened the door and she faced a very handsome, very shirtless man. Sure, living in Massey Hall with her dad, she'd seen her share of shirtless college boys but none like this one. There was something about him that made her heart beat just a little faster.
"Hi." He said to her, a little red in the face.
"Hello," Aria responded, trying hard not to stare at his chest. "Sorry to introduce myself like this, but I'm Aria, your neighbour."
She gave him a little smile. "I was just wondering if you guys could tone it down a little, I'm kind of writing a paper."
Ezra opened his mouth to speak, before a voice interrupted. "Is that a girl, Ezra?" The girl came to the door and stood behind him, clad in an oversized white shirt.
"Oh." She said, surveying the little girl with the pink hair in front of her. "You're the neighbour? You're like...twelve."
Aria tried not to roll her eyes, managing to keep the annoyance out of her voice when she replied.
"Yes, like twelve. And this twelve year old girl needs to get her paper done, so if you could enjoy yourself just a little bit less, I would be greatly appreciative."
Ezra hid a smile. The proverbial girl next door certainly had spunk.
"We're really sorry, Aria." He told her, "If anything, I could help you with the essay. I work as a TA when I'm not in class."
Her heart fluttered slightly when he said her name. She didn't understand why, but this guy seemed to have an effect on her.
"That's okay, I can manage. Thanks though," she gave him a smile. "I should get back, I'll see you later."
He gave a brief wave, smiling at her as he shut the door.
The next afternoon, Aria came home from school to find that her dad had forgotten to leave the key in the mailbox. Sighing, she sat in the hallway, settling in with a book.
"Hey there, neighbour." A deep voice called. Ezra walked by her to his door, keys jingling. "You okay, there?"
Aria felt her heart quicken. What was it with this guy?
"Yeah, just waiting for my dad. He forgot to leave the keys again."
He gave her an understanding look. "You know, you're more to welcome to crash at my place for awhile."
She quickly shook her head. As much as she wanted to say yes, she didn't. He probably felt obliged to ask her, considering her dad was the Dean. It would probably be like babysitting to him.
Ezra nodded, accepting her answer. "So, what are you reading?"
She held up the book. "Ulysses," he read. "Hate that book. I started it, maybe five years ago and still haven't finished it."
Aria laughed good naturedly. "It's not that bad. You probably don't have time to read because you're too busy with that girlfriend of yours." Her cheeks turned red, realizing what she'd just said.
"Sorry, that was completely out of-"
"No," He waved a hand, "it's fine. We don't really get busy like that all the time...just so you're aware."
Aria could barely look at him. "No, of course not," she managed.
"I'm sorry," Ezra groaned, running a hand through his hair. "I've embarrassed you."
She realized that he probably saw her as a little girl who didn't know what sex was. It was a little annoying.
"I'm fine." She told him firmly, finally daring to make eye contact.
He nodded, changing the subject. "Speaking of me and reading though, I don't think you realize just how much of a nerd I am. My bookshelf is to die for, let me tell you."
She grinned. "Is it now?"
"Hell yes. You have to come and see it sometime. I don't let anyone near it unless they've got what I like to call "book lust". You seem qualified," he said with a wink.
Aria blushed slightly. "Yeah," she replied lamely.
"Aria!" Someone called from down the hall.
Aria looked passed Ezra to see Alanna, a girl who lived on the floor. Though she was friendly with just about all of the college kids in the small building, Alanna was like an older sister to her.
"Hey, Alanna." She smiled, as Ezra turned around and gave a friendly wave. Alanna walked towards them.
"You're home early." Aria remarked drily. Most nights, Alanna was out partying. It was a wonder they were friends, Alanna and Aria were nothing like.
"Yeah, Paula ditched me at the mall for a guy she met in the food court. Can you believe it?" She rolled her eyes. "Anyway, who's this hunk?" She held out her hand to Ezra who seemed a bit taken aback by her presence.
Aria gave her a pointed look. "That would be Ezra, my new neighbour. Ezra, meet Alanna, she's on this floor too."
"Pleasure to meet you," he smiled, shaking her hand softly.
A look passed between them that Aria couldn't quite decipher. All she knew was that it made her feel a little lonely.
"I should...probably get going." Ezra excused himself, heading into his dorm.
"That is one sexy neighbour." Alanna stated as soon as the door shut. Aria thought she heard a muffled laugh on the other side.
"I think he heard that." Aria laughed.
"Good. Come on," Alanna looped her arm around Aria's.
"Where are we going?"
"To my place, where else? We can Breakfast Club for the umpteenth time. Or are you in a Clooney kinda mood?"
Aria pretended to groan, "Now? I was just getting to the good part of this book."
Alanna glanced at the title. "Seriously? Here's a spoiler, there is no good part. Now, come on, we're having a girls day before your dad gets back. And maybe you can spill some deets on that hot neighbour of yours."
That was the last thing Aria wanted to do, but she let herself get dragged into Alanna's dorm, set for an evening of their favourite movies and dreaded boy talk.
A week later, Aria came home at the same time as Ezra. She hadn't really seen him all week, both of them busy with school. She imagined his girlfriend was over a lot as well, though the lack of "Oh, Ezra!" throughout the week said otherwise.
"Hey stranger," he said, stopping to talk.
"Yeah, long time, eh?" She smiled.
"You know, you still haven't taken me up on that offer. The Bookshelf? Ring any bells?"
Aria laughed. "Ah yes, The Bookshelf. Not too sure if I believe in it, to be honest." She teased.
Ezra faked a gasp. "Well, that's it. You're seeing it now."
He unlocked his door and ushered her in before she could say anything else. Aria barely had time to register the fact that she was in alone in a dorm with a college boy.
"Alright, let's see this fantastical bookshelf then."
"You'll be eating your sarcasm, Montgomery." Ezra promised, shutting the door.
Before Aria could turn around, he put his hands over her eyes. She nearly gasped in surprise.
"Not quite yet." With his hands still on her eyes, he guided her to a corner of the room.
"What, are you trying to hide the evidence of your maledom? Let me guess, dirty clothes everywhere, a plate or two on the coffee table, maybe a girl on the sofa," she joked.
Ezra laughed. "Something like that. Alright...we're almost there. Just a few more steps...ah. Do you smell that?"
Aria raised an eyebrow underneath his warm palm, which cupped her eye. The mere closeness of his body was a little much for her, but she managed to stay calm.
"Do I smell that? Are you craz-" And then she realized that she did smell "that." That amazing scent that books give out when they're piled together, old and new. The smell of old coffee meets ink, meets wearied paper.
She breathed it in deeply. "Wow," she whispered.
"Yeah," Ezra agreed, happy that she understood.
"Can I see now, Ezra?"
He nodded, and then realized she couldn't see his response. Gingerly, he removed his hands and turned to look at her reaction. She was in awe.
Rows and rows of books lined the shelves. There were classics, poetry collections, modernist literature...everything, it seemed. Aria scoured the names, and nearly fainted from happiness when she saw that all of her favourite authors were there. There were maybe hundreds of books, all beautifully organized along a bookshelf that took up an entire wall. It was magnificent.
"Ezra," she breathed, "I don't know what to say."
He smiled from ear to ear. Though most of friends were in the English major program, he had not seen anyone else respond to the bookshelf like Aria did. Someone finally understood.
"Moving it all in here was torture, but so worth it." He told her.
She nodded, lost in the books. Her fingers traced them, as she went through each one individually. Ezra could see she would be there awhile, and decided to give her some space.
"You're welcome to go through each one, I'll just be in the kitchen preparing dinner." He informed her.
Aria nodded absentmindedly, settling down on a plush chair with a book she'd just taken out. Ezra watched her from the kitchen as he cooked pasta. He noticed that she kept her head bent, biting bit her lip every so often. After a couple hours, he realized that her dad would probably be wondering where she was.
"Aria," he called.
No answer. Laughing, Ezra walked over to her, contemplating yelling in her ear. Thinking against it, he pushed a lock of her hair out of her face. She looked up immediately.
"Hey," he smiled.
She smiled back, slightly blushing. "Sorry, I got carried away, didn't I? Damn that Ezra."
He gave her a questioning look. "Pound, not...whatever your last name is."
"Fitz. Sorry to break your little bonding session with Ezra-Pound, not Fitz-" He winked. "But I thought maybe your dad would start to get worried? Should you call him?"
"Oh, crap." Aria rose, the book falling out of her lap. "He's at a meeting still, but you're right. He'll want to know if I had dinner. I'd better get home and warm something up."
"Or…" Ezra stopped her, "You could have dinner here? I don't mind the company."
He smiled that gorgeous smile of his and Aria nearly melted. What was it with ridiculously attractive guys?
"I could." She hesitated, "But I wouldn't want to intrude-"
Ezra raised a hand to silence her. "I'm inviting you to dinner, Aria. No intrusion here."
Her heart sped up at his words. She told herself it was silly to think of them in any way but an innocent neighbourly gesture.
"Okay." She finally agreed.
An hour later, they sat comfortably at the table, laughing at a story Ezra told about his aunt's cat. Aria felt at ease, like they were old friends. She began to tell him a story about her own cat, when a knock at the door broke their conversation.
Ezra went up to open it, letting in the girl Aria recognized as his screaming lover. Her mood dampened almost immediately.
"I just had the worst day, Z." She said as he took her coat off.
"Oh, hello." She said to Aria, giving Ezra a quizzical glance.
Aria felt her cheeks redden, as if she was intruding on a date.
"I think I should actually get home now, Ezra." She said, standing up.
"No, we were having a great time. You should stay, Marilyn and I would love to have you stay, isn't that right?" He gave his girlfriend a warning look.
Aria felt even more stupid now, and had to stop herself from running to the door to get out. He only saw her as a little girl who needed to be pitied and given dinner when daddy was at a meeting. That hurt.
"No, I have a lot of homework to get done. You guys enjoy yourselves." She grabbed her coat, and left before Ezra could respond.
He turned to his girlfriend, closing his eyes momentarily. "Seriously, Marilyn? You had to do that?"
He left her standing with her arms raised in defiance, taking Aria's unfinished plate to the sink.
"Do what? All I did was give you a look." She shrugged her shoulders, and sat at the table.
"Let's just eat," he told her, trying to keep the anger out of his voice. She was always like this, and it was starting to really get on his nerves.
