By the time Ezra pulled up in front of her dorm building, she was crying. She never cried, but she just couldn't control herself. This was too big.
Ezra had never seen her cry before, so when he saw tears spilling unabashedly down her cheeks, he knew immediately that whatever was about to happen, it would be unbelievably bad. Something shifted deep in his gut as a wave of panic flowed through him.
At the sight of him, Aria ran forward and crushed herself ungracefully into his body. She latched her arms around his stomach tightly as her sobs deepened. Her body convulsed ever so slightly because of the force of her tears. Ezra rubbed his hands slowly up and down her back, cooing at her as he tried desperately to comfort her.
After a few minutes, Ezra took note of his surroundings. People all around them were staring intently at the spectacle. Slightly embarrassed by all of the unwanted attention from strangers, Ezra directed Aria inside.
Once safely in her dorm room, Aria's sobbing became less violent and her breathing began to return to normal.
"Aria," Ezra began quietly, hoping not to destroy the relative calm that had settled over her. "What's wrong? Please tell me what happened."
"Ez…," Aria began, as another wave of sobs filled the room. "I-I-I just can't believe this is happening," she stuttered out.
"Ssh. We'll deal with it together. Don't worry. I'm here for you."
"It means a lot to hear you say that, but you might reconsider after what I'm about to tell you."
"Never," he said quietly.
"I'm pregnant, Ezra." She looked deep into his eyes trying to decipher the odd expression on his face. Was he excited? Petrified? Both? She couldn't tell. She'd gotten pretty good at reading his thoughts through his animated facial expressions, but this expression was something entirely new to her.
Ezra suddenly stood up and said, "Water. I need wa…" Before he could finish, his legs gave out beneath him as he collapsed on the floor.
