Chapter 3

"What about this one?" Toby asked, running his hand along the sides of a bright pink crib in the baby section of the furniture store at the Rosewood Mall. "It's only about 120 dollars. That's the cheapest we've found so far. And it's cute! Really cute! I think Shelby would like it."

Caroline scoffed and said, "A pink crib for my baby girl? Hell to the no, Toby! She resents pink. She's not going to sleep in a pink crib."

"You mean you hate pink and you don't want her to have a pink crib," Toby said, rolling his eyes. "Don't think I forgot how much you hated pink. You thought it was the color to show the weakness of girls. Never made much sense to me, but your opinion is yours. But you can't pretend like Shelby's opinion is yours. I doubt a three year old girl cares that much about the color of her crib, anyways."

"Are you kidding?" Caroline laughed. "Of course she cares about the color of the crib! Mother like daughter. She hates pink, trust me. I know my little girl. She gets upset whenever I show her pink toys and items at the store. But it is sweet of you to remember how much I hate pink."

"Yeah, that wasn't supposed to be a bonding moment, but whatever," Toby said, chuckling. "Maybe if I had known about her earlier, I would know what she likes and dislikes—"

"Toby, come on. How many times are we going to talk about this?" Caroline asked.

"A lot, Caroline!" he cried. "It's not that easy of a thing to get over. But fine, whatever for now. If Shelby doesn't want a pink crib, then she doesn't want a pink crib. Let's keep looking."

"Good," Caroline agreed with a smile. "Will you thank Caleb for watching her for me? I haven't got Shelby off of my back ever since the day my sister kicked me out."

"Yeah, sure. I don't know if Caleb will appreciate a thanking from you, but I will let him know anyway," Toby told her.

"Thank you for that," Caroline said with a small smile. Her eyes shifted to a different crib in the store. "Ooh, Toby, look at that white crib over there! Come on, it's perfect for her! Let's go check the price."

/

Don't cheat, don't lead him on, don't do anything more than try and become friends with him. Spencer's words repeated in Aria's head as she slipped down at a table in the Grille. She loved Liam. She was here to become nothing more than friends with Ezra Fitz. Maybe she overdressed for a casual lunch with a friend... she was wearing a fancy purple dress, and she may have spent more time than necessary doing her hair. Could you blame her? She didn't want to look like crap when she hung out with Ezra for the first time in years! She was the type of girl that liked to make good impressions.

"Aria? Hello," Ezra greeted, shortly after she had seated herself down at the table. "I was going to ask the worker to find me the most beautiful girl in the room, but I found her myself." She giggled, even though she didn't intend to. "You look lovely, Aria. As always..."

She blushed and quietly said, "Thank you. You look good yourself, Ezra. Really dapper in that suit."

"I thought it would be too much for a casual lunch, but I didn't want you to think I looked hideous or something," Ezra chuckled. "But I see you're wearing that gorgeous dress, so I don't feel too overdressed. Maybe this would have been more appropriate for a dinner, though. What happened?"

"Oh, um, I forgot I already had other plans for tonight," Aria told him, biting her lip. "It's no big deal, really. I'm happy you could make it for lunch. Why can't lunch be fancy? I think it can. And it is now."

Ezra laughed and commented, "Wow, you're just as charming as ever. You haven't changed a bit. I love that."

"You've complimented me more than necessary already," Aria bashfully informed him, staring down at her empty plate. "Why don't you tell me about how you have been doing in these years we lost contact?"

"Oh, definitely," Ezra agreed. "I traveled a lot. I can tell you all about my travels, if you would like to hear about them. Paris, London, Australia—"

"How about Paris?" Aria suggested. "The city of romance has always been my favorite."

Ezra's gaze locked with hers, and he agreed, "I love Paris. I should take you there some day. It's truly amazing. So, Paris it is..."

/

"Hanna! How do you make a stupid baby stop crying?" Caleb whined.

"You mean yourself? Because you keep whining about that stupid kid you're babysitting!" Hanna cried, rapidly walking down the stairs. She joined her husband in the living room. "Oh, great. The stupid thing is crying. We are never having children. I hate them!" She paused before asking, "Whose little nasty rat is this, anyways? She's cute, but horrifying."

"This is Toby's daughter," Caleb answered.

"What the hell?" Hanna demanded. "Since when did he knock Spencer up? How have I not known about this? Spencer is one of my best friends, I think she would tell me if she's preggers!"

"Well, that's because this isn't Spencer's kid," Caleb informed her.

"Wait, what?" Hanna asked, shocked. "Toby got another girl pregnant? Oh, please don't tell me it's that bitchy Caroline chick. She was always making fun of me when she was dating Toby!"

"She's just jealous of how perfect you are," Caleb told her with a chuckle, and then pecked Hanna's lips. "Unfortunately, she does happen to be Toby and Caroline's daughter."

"Wow..." Hanna muttered. "I was hoping I would be wrong."

/

"Did you get all the paperwork in?" a cute, brown-eyed young man asked, with the sweetest smile on his face. "You're lucky that you're running this case. It's a good one."

"Yeah, but it also requires a lot of work," Spencer said, letting out a quiet sigh. "I mean, I was prepared for this case. I was hoping I would get it, and I did! But now that I have it, I'm struggling with other things. Right when I get the case I want, my outside life takes a toll on me. So, I didn't get the paperwork done just yet. But I will. I'll have it done soon."

"No worries. You're the hardest worker in here, Hastings!" he exclaimed. "You deserve this case. I know you can do it. And if you do happen to need a hand, I'm here to help you out. I mean without charge, of course."

"Why would you help me for no reason?" Spencer asked, laughing quietly.

"Well, because you're pretty damn great," he responded, leaning back in his chair. "So, things are rough in your personal life? Spencer, we have worked together for a while. If you want to talk to me about it, I'm here for you again."

"Thanks, but it really is a personal matter. We should probably just keep work stuff professional while we're at work, Vincent," Spencer told him.

"No worries again," Vincent said with a grin. "But what about when we're off work? Would you allow me to take you out for a drink and just let you vent all your problems to me?"

Vincent Donovan was one of the most attractive men at the law firm. Even Spencer couldn't deny that. But to be fair, all the other guys were old men, so he didn't have much competition. However, he was still extremely cute. A perfect smile, neatly combed hair, dapper suits, and a little stubbly beard that made him much sexier... He was always trying to help her out, and she was pretty sure he liked her— not certain— but pretty sure.

"Vincent, that's really nice of you, but that sort of feels like a date to me, and I can't go on a date with you," Spencer said, sighing. "I have a boyfriend."

"Hey, hey, I didn't mean to overstep my boundaries! You've clearly misconstrued what I was saying," Vincent stopped her. "I know you have a boyfriend, and I respect that. I wanted to take you out to a drink as nothing more than a friend. I love spending time with you, Spencer Hastings. And I want to hear all about your problems. We can keep it professional in the office, and friendly outside. I mean no harm, just a simple drink while we talk. Your boyfriend wouldn't mind, would he?"

"No, no I don't think he would," Spencer agreed with a smile. "Let's go out for a drink soon. You're right. He's really got his hands full with other things, anyways, so I have free time. Would Friday night work for you?"

"Sure!" Vincent exclaimed. "I can't wait! I'm looking forward to Friday night, then. I know this great little bar up in Philly, and they have some amazing drinks. You'll love it, I promise."

Spencer smiled and said, "I can't wait, either. Blowing off some steam by venting could be very helpful."

"It will be," Vincent told her. "I have great listening ears. When I'm listening to somebody vent, I only talk at the best times. I'll be your perfect listening buddy. I can't wait to strengthen this friendship we have, Spencer Hastings!"

/

"Sir, we're looking for a crib that won't be easy to crawl out of. Our girl seriously has a thing for getting away from where she's sleeping. I keep her on my bed, and she's always trying to leave," Caroline explained. "Would this white crib that I've been totally in love with since I saw it be good for that?"

"Oh, yes, indeed!" the worker exclaimed. "This nice, sleek crib has high walls, so if your girl is one of the escapers, she'll be nice and sealed in this thing. It's a great price, too. 150 dollars. How does it sound to you now?"

"That's a pretty decent price," Caroline commented. "Toby, what do you think?"

She grabbed his arm and shook it with a smile on her face.

"First time crib buyers, huh?" the worker asked with a little chuckle. "You two make a lovely couple. I'm sure your little one will be raised well by two wonderful parents, such as yourself."

"Oh, no... we are not together, I can't stress that enough," Toby denied, shaking his head. "I have a girlfriend that I love very much. I'm not dating this girl. Well, I did, but we broke up. Unfortunately, she happened to let me know that she got pregnant and had my baby very recently. So, now, here we are. But we're not together. I'm dating somebody else—"

"Okay, okay. You're not dating," the worker laughed. "But you should know that parenting can easily bring two people together. Watching your little one grow up together... it's truly beautiful. I wouldn't be surprised if your relationship became more than what it is now again."

"No, stop," Toby said, staring at the floor. "That's never going to happen, and it really isn't your place to make a comment, sir. No more of this. We'll just take the crib and go."

"Sorry. Of course," the worker agreed. "Let me go check this out for you two."

Once he left, Caroline turned to Toby.

"Can you believe what he said?" Caroline asked, scoffing. "That's insane! We are not getting back together because of the baby. You love Spencer, and I get it."

"Yeah, he's being stupid," Toby said, shaking his head. "There's no way in hell that I'm going to get back together with you because of this baby. Or because of anything. Nothing in the world would make me want to get back together with you."

"Seriously? Nothing?" Caroline asked, biting her lip. "Toby, are you joking? Nothing in the world would make you want to date me again? You hate me that much?"

"Alright, fine. There's one thing that would make me be willing to date you again. In fact, I would be more than willing to date you again," Toby responded. "If you transformed into a tall brunette with brown eyes, a witty personality, and the most amazing personality I know named Spencer Hastings. How does that sound, Caroline?"

"Great..." she muttered.

/

"Hey, Spence!" Toby exclaimed when his girlfriend walked through the doors of their house. He approached her and hugged her quickly. "Want to come upstairs and see the new crib for Shelby that Caroline and I picked out?"

"Um, sure," Spencer responded. "I wish I could have been there to help you pick it out, but I had a lot of stuff to do at work, and I'm still not done with it."

"No worries, we picked out a great crib, even without your furniture expertise," Toby laughed, and then took her hand to bring her upstairs to the guest room. "I was thinking we could move Caroline to the other spare room as the guest room— temporarily, of course, and then we could make this one Shelby's room."

"Okay," she responded, scratching her head. "Toby, when are we going to figure out where Caroline is going to stay? We can't have a permanent house guest. And are you going to trade Shelby around like a divorced couple's kid?"

Toby sighed and told her, "I don't know. I'm still figuring things out."

"Well, you need to figure them out. I'm here to help, but this affects my life, too," Spencer reminded him. "I don't like not having a plan, okay? How are you not freaking out about this? You have a daughter."

"I am so freaked out, trust me. But I'm trying to make the best out of a tough situation," Toby explained. "You say you're here to support me, but it doesn't really feel that way."

"I didn't sign up for my life to be changed for a kid that's not even mine!" Spencer cried. "I just feel lost!"

"I didn't sign up for this either!" Toby yelled.

"Well, I'm not the one that got somebody pregnant," Spencer said, rolling her eyes.

"I wasn't trying to have a kid with her, so I didn't sign up for this, either," he snapped. "I thought we were going to deal with this together. You're supposed to be the one person that always supports me through anything."

"I need some certainty here. I can't keep waiting around while we figure out what to do with Shelby, and what to do with Caroline. I wasn't ready to parent a daughter. Things feel like they got so much more complicated in the past few days, and I don't like it. I want things to go back to the way they were," she said.

"I'm scared as hell about so many things. I love my daughter already, and I love you. I don't want to lose you because of the situation that I can't change. I'm so freaking scared that this is going to mess our relationship up, Spencer," Toby told her, staring at the floor.

"How do we fix this?" Spencer asked. "How do come up with a solution together about what to do?"

"What do you want to do?" Toby asked. "I will listen."

"Honestly, I would love to get rid of Caroline and just raise Shelby together. She's your daughter, and I can learn to love her if you do," Spencer responded. "But yeah, I know that's never going to happen. She's never going to let go of her daughter, even if it would make my life so much easier."

"What other option do we have?" Toby asked. "Do we kick her out and share Shelby? It just feels so complicated."

"The last thing I want right now is complicated," Spencer told him, letting out a long sigh. "But I need to know where this is going to lead us. What is happening to our future?"

"I am not going to let this destroy what we have," he assured her, taking both of her hands. "Let's figure this out together. It's a huge bump, but we have been through hell and back together. There is nothing we can't handle."

"You having a daughter seems pretty high up on the scale..." Spencer muttered.

"Okay, yes, it is something completely different than anything we have gone through, but we are still going to get through it. We always do," he said confidently, with a grin on his face. "I think we should ask Caroline if she wants to find an apartment or house, and then we can help her find a job, and then get her settled down. Hopefully some place close, so we can keep in touch with Shelby. It'll be like we babysit Shelby frequently. That sounds like the best plan so far."

"I do like this plan more than the others," Spencer admitted, a small smile forming on her face. "Okay. Take her house hunting sometime, but don't get too close. She already made a kid with you, she doesn't get to have you, too."

Toby chuckled and pecked Spencer's lips.

"Don't even worry about it. I'm only yours," he promised, and then put his arm around her. "So, what are we waiting for? Come check out the new crib we bought!"

/

Caleb had dropped Shelby off at the house earlier, and Caroline took her upstairs for a bath. Meanwhile, Spencer was taking a nap in her bedroom after her long, exhausting day at work. Toby was downstairs in the living room, watching some new political thriller film on the TV. Interrupting his movie was a knock on the door. He sighed, making his way to the door and opening it. He raised his eyebrows when he saw Aria Montgomery standing there.

"Uh, hi, Aria," he greeted, scratching his head. "Is Spencer expecting you to come over? She didn't inform me that you two have plans—"

"No, I came over unexpectedly. And I want to talk to Spencer about stuff, but I also wanted to talk to you," Aria told him, which surprised him a little bit.

It was surprising because Toby and Aria weren't really good friends. Not that they disliked each other or anything... They just had never really gotten to know each other. To Aria, Toby was the guy Spencer had been dating and loved, and to Toby, Aria was Spencer's best friend. They didn't spend much one-on-one time together hanging out. But of course, they still considered each other friends. Well, at least acquaintances...

"You want to talk to me?" Toby asked, confused. "Um, alright. Sure. Come inside. I can let Spencer know that you're here. I think she's upstairs sleeping."

"Wow, it's too early to sleep," Aria commented.

"Well, she had a tiring day at work," he explained. "What's up?"

"You can let her know that I'm here after we talk," Aria told him. "Toby, I know about your daughter. She told me about it, and she's really worried about everything."

"You know? Is that why you're here?" Toby asked. "To tell me she's worried about it? Because I'm worried, too, and I'm doing everything I can to make sure our relationship is still okay."

"No, this isn't about your relationship," Aria answered. "I went through something like this before, back in high school. I was in Spencer's position, and there's just some things I need to warn you about. When I was dating Ezra in high school, he found out that he had a son with his ex-girlfriend Maggie. I felt like crap when he started spending all his time taking care of his son Malcolm, and bonding with Maggie. Please, don't do that to Spencer."

"I'm going to have to spend a lot of time with my daughter," Toby reminded. "I would never try to hurt Spencer—"

"Of course I wanted to warn you about that, but I also want to warn you about the potential of her being a liar. Maggie had lied about Ezra being the father of her son. Turns out, Maggie screwed some other guy and got pregnant, and she blamed the baby on Ezra. He was devastated because of how close he got to Malcolm. I don't want to see that happen to you. I care about you, Toby, and so does Spencer. I know neither of us would want to see you get hurt, either. So do what Ezra did, but do it earlier than he did. Get a paternity test. It'll save you from a lot of pain if you want and get one later," Aria explained.

"You think Caroline is lying to me?" Toby asked. "No, Aria... I appreciate that story, and I'm sorry he went through that. I'm also sorry you went through that. But I saw the look on her face when she came to tell me about our daughter. She couldn't have been lying to me."

"You're hearing me wrong. I'm not saying she is definitely lying. There's a huge possibility the kid is yours, but that doesn't mean she's definitely telling you the truth. All I'm saying is that you shouldn't risk it. You should make sure she's telling the truth," Aria responded.

"I'll think about it. I don't want to upset her. If I tell her I'm getting a paternity test, she'll think I'm accusing her of being a liar or something," Toby said.

"That is no reason not to get one!" Aria argued. "Toby, come on. This girl has waited three years to tell you about your own daughter. What do you owe her? Nothing! You owe her absolutely nothing! Is it that hard to believe that you might not trust her after she kept something this huge from you for three damn years? I don't think it's crazy, Toby. I don't."

"Alright," he agreed. "Thank you, Aria. It means a lot that you were willing to share that story. I think I'm going to get the test soon. Do you want me to go wake Spencer up for you?"

"Yeah, that would be great," Aria said, smiling.

/

"Mm, I'm still tired, but what's up, baby girl?" Spencer asked, yawning.

"A couple things. One, I just told Toby to get a paternity test. Two, I might have screwed up really, really big time with Liam today," Aria mumbled, biting her lip.

"What? And what? Tell me what is happening!" Spencer demanded.

"Which do you want to hear about first?" Aria asked.

"Start with Toby. I feel like that's less interesting than your love issues. I was secretly hoping that he would get a paternity test, anyways, but I didn't want to be the annoying one that asked him to, so thank you for that," Spencer laughed. "What did he say? Is he going to get it?"

"He said he thinks he will. Basically, I just told him what happened with Maggie and Malcolm, and then told him it would be a good idea to get the test. I hope he does it, and you are welcome!" Aria said.

"Good!" Spencer exclaimed. "That takes a lot of work off my back. Now, what is happening with you and Liam?"

"Well, to him, we are perfectly fine, but I seriously screwed up," Aria confessed. "You know how you said to not lead Ezra on, and also to not hurt Liam? I might have done both."

"Aria Freaking Montgomery, what the hell did you do?" Spencer demanded, her eyes widening.

"I made out with Ezra when we went to dinner— actually, we changed it to lunch!" Aria cried, biting her lip nervously.

"No, no, no. You did not do that to Liam!" Spencer cried, shaking her head. "What happened? Why did you lose control of yourself like that?"

"Everything he said was so... perfect," Aria explained. "He was being so sweet, he looked so handsome, and we were having such a good time that Liam just became a blur in my memory. But I felt so guilty afterwards, and I also forgot to mention to Ezra that I even have a boyfriend. And I don't want to break up with Liam, okay? I love him, I just made a stupid mistake. Now I'm leading Ezra on, and I'm also hurting Liam. So, I failed."