When All Else Fails
Aria had missed the next day of school, which was a Wednesday. She returned to class on Thursday though, and was told by her doctor that she had to take it slow. If she got a headache, she was to go home, and if the words she was reading weren't making sense, she had to see the doctor as soon as possible. She shrugged it off because her head wasn't hurting too bad anyway and she felt well-rested due to her day off yesterday. She showed up at her locker around 7:40, 20 minutes before first period started, which was chemistry. She met with Emily at her locker, who had just come from morning swim practice.
"Hey, how're you feeling? I'm surprised you're back so soon!" Emily hugged her, excited that her friend was back.
"A lot better, thanks! I was kind of looking forward to coming to school, I was bored out of my mind at home." Aria had spent yesterday at her dad's house, she didn't want to be invading all of Ezra's space and she slept better in her own bed. Her dad was easy to convince that she was sick, so that wasn't difficult.
"I bet, yeah!" Emily looked distracted, but trying to keep up with the conversation.
"So how's Paige?"
"Oh, she's okay, we're okay. Nothing new, you know. It's just been with all of this A drama, she's scared." The girls hadn't heard from A in awhile, and knew it was just a matter of time, they knew it couldn't be Mona, since she was getting A messages too. So who could it be?
"Oh trust me, I know the feeling." The girls continued to talk as they walked to chemistry together. The morning went well for Aria, with no headaches. Lunch came around and the girls stood in the cafeteria line together. Aria didn't know what to get, she already felt bad about herself because she had eaten an apple for breakfast, but now she was expected to eat lunch too? She would have to go the other route, even though that was the worst for her. Throwing up burned her throat, it made her eyes water, and worst of all, it usually didn't make her feel any better about herself. Sometimes, it even made her feel worse. She grabbed only an apple, carrots, a yogurt, and a diet coke. The diet coke made it easier to throw up afterwards, and it had no calories. She joined the three other girls in their booth in the cafeteria.
"Aria, are you on a diet? Because that lunch does not look very good if you weren't on a diet." Spencer pointed out, taking her homemade mac n' cheese from her lunchbag.
"Oh, no, it's just my mom wants us all to eat healthier at my house, so we're doing it as a family." Aria lied again.
"Sounds fun." Hanna laughed sarcastically.
"So do you guys want to go to the mall tomor-" Emily was cut off when all of their phones vibrated. They all made eye contact because they knew that could only mean one thing. They all read the message silently in their heads:
Looks like one of you four decided to betray the rest of your group just like I did.
I hope it works out better for you then it did for me, or else you'll end up six feet under, just like me.
Good luck bitches
-A
"What does that even mean?" Spencer asked as she put her phone down.
"She thinks that one of us is telling the rest of us lies. Who do you think she means?" Emily countered back.
"Has anyone told any lies?" The girls looked at each other with innocent faces.
"Aria, do you have any idea what this means? You've been a little quiet." Hanna pointed out.
"What? Why would I know what this means? I'm not lying about anything! Geez, get off my back!" Aria snapped back.
"Woah, slow your roll there crazy, she was just asking." Spencer tried to calm Aria down.
"Don't tell me to calm down, she was accusing me of being the liar for no reason! I didn't do anything! I'm out of here!" Aria stood up and walked away, leaving her lunch behind, untouched. The girls tried to get her to come back, but Aria stalked away, going to Ezra's classroom.
"Hey, what's up?" Ezra asked as Aria closed the door behind her to his classroom.
"The girls are just being stupid, whatever, I'm over it. What're you up to?"
"Just grading papers." Ezra shrugged and looked back at his papers.
"Do you mind if I read in here until class starts?" Aria asked, knowing the answer.
"Of course, that's fine." Aria pulled out A Farewell To Arms, the book they were reading in class. Aria was doing too much too soon for her head, and eventually her head began to spin. She put her head down on her desk.
"You okay? How's your head?" Ezra asked, looking up from his papers.
"Yeah, it's fine, just trying to read is hard sometimes." Aria mumbled, not looking up. Ezra looked around the room.
"Babe, if you don't feel well, go home. I can bring home your work for you."
"No, I already have so much makeup work to do, I'll be fine." Aria said as the rest of the class trickled in.
"Alright class, today we're going to reread some important quotes from the book, so I'll pick a person to read, but then that person will pick the next person and so on. So we'll start on page 87. John, you can start." Ezra announced to the class. John began to read and picked a kid named Tom. Eventually, someone picked Aria to read.
"Um well, as some of you know, Aria suffered a concussion and is having a little trouble reading right now, so why don't we pick someone else?" Aria was a little embarrassed because everyone was staring at her now.
"No, it's okay Mr. Fitz, I can read." Aria started her section and read the words, which weren't really making sense. Then, all of a sudden she started making random noises as she was trying to sound out the words.
"Aria, stop, I think you need to go to the nurse." Ezra said and wrote a pass to the nurse. Aria didn't feel like going home, so she went to the empty women's bathroom. She could still feel the few carrots that she forced down at lunch in her stomach. She made sure no one was in the bathroom and knelt at the bottom of the toilet and did a familiar action until there was nothing left to throw up. She flushed the toilet and wiped her mouth when she was done and proceeded to her next class.
Aria made it through the day and decided to surprise Ezra when he got home, since he wouldn't be getting home until five since he had a faculty meeting after school. She made a quick stop at home, and then the grocery store, and finally, to Ezra's apartment. She changed her outfit from her school clothes to a pair of skinny jeans and a tight black V-neck that showed off her cleavage. She started making dinner, Ezra's favorite, chicken parmesan. While the noodles were boiling, Aria fixed her makeup and her hair. It was almost five now, and Aria was excited. Her and Ezra needed a night to themselves, as they haven't had one in awhile. The sauce had just finished when she heard a key being put through the lock from the outside. Ezra walked through the door, surprised to see his girlfriend for the first time in a few days not passed out in his bed. She was even making dinner.
"Hi babe, how ya feeling?" Ezra asked as he wrapped his arms around his waist.
"Good actually, a lot better. I made chicken parmesan, your favorite." Aria turned around to kiss her boyfriend.
"Okay, let me go change and I'll be right out." As Ezra was changing, Aria dimmed the kitchen lights and lit a few candles, just as he had a few nights ago in the bathroom. When Ezra emerged, he was taken back by the sight. Aria was sitting at the table with candles lit and dinner served for two. The best part was, she was no longer dressed in her jeans and v-neck, but she was in a black robe with not much else on underneath.
"Babe, I don't know if I can wait for dinner to be over!" Ezra exclaimed not being able to take his eyes off her.
"Well who even said that you're getting anything?" Aria laughed, teasing him. He sat down for dinner and as the two finished up, Aria took their plates to the sink and started the wash them.
"That was so good, but I can't wait for you to do the dishes. Leave them, I'll do them later." The two went back to the bedroom.
"Aria, you have the best body." Ezra moaned while kissing her neck.
"Why would you say that? What's changed from before?" Aria asked worriedly, pulling away.
"I was just saying that before you were so bony and fragile, and now you are just so sexy and curvy." Ezra said not thinking anything of it.
"Wait, are you saying it looks like I gained weight?" Aria pulled even farther away from him.
"No, what I meant was that you look so good tonight." But it was too late, Aria had already ran to the bathroom with tears running down her face. Ezra ran to the bathroom door.
"Aria, what did I say? I'm sorry, I meant it as a compliment! I don't know why you're acting this way!" Ezra was a little frustrated with the way she has been acting recently. She wasn't his Aria anymore.
"You called me fat!" Aria swung the door open with her robe back on. She stalked out of the bathroom and began putting her jeans back on.
"No I didn't! I called you beautiful and you got all offended. What's been going on lately? You're acting so different, you're crying all the time, and getting angry. I don't get it!" Ezra yelled back.
"Maybe it's because I don't feel like I'm good enough for you anymore!" And with that, Aria left his apartment.