Chapter 3

A Friend In Need Is A Friend Indeed

"Hey." Ezra pleasantly greeted Aria as he entered their apartment, placing his keys and satchel on the table as he did so.

"Hey." She distractedly replied, staring down at the text book in front of her as she tapped her pen against the blank piece of paper.

He smiled to himself as he watched her being so studious, she was so beautiful that he couldn't help but stare at the picture he got to return home to every day after work.

It had been a week since they had begun their new lives, it was definitely tiring the couple. Ezra would often return home by the time Aria had fallen asleep or was distracted with the copious amount of homework that she was set. He didn't mind though because her education was certainly priority.

Since the dinner from hell, Ezra had promised that he wouldn't be of any distraction to Aria this next year and only of assistance. He put her needs before his because going a week without much intimacy would be worth it when she gets that degree and he gets to see her walk down the aisle in the fall after her graduation. They had agreed to hold off on the wedding until after college so that they could save up and hope that Aria's parents would come around by then. There was just something about tonight that made Ezra want nothing more than to take her and carry her off to the room where he could shower her in the love that she deserved.

"You look so hot when you concentrate." He flirtatiously complimented as took a seat beside her on the couch.

She shot him a warning look before turning back to her work, "I always seem to look hot when you haven't seen me all day."

"That's not true; you are just always so god damn hot." He seductively whispered as he placed a soft kiss on her neck.

She let out a loud huff, certainly not the reaction he hoped his actions would elicit in her. She gathered up her text book and left the room, disappearing into the bedroom. Ezra watched her with a look of disbelief before falling back against the couch in defeat. He was annoyed at her rudeness, but brushed it off as he knew that studies were before sex. He took a deep breath and shook off the rejection, turning to face the television where he began watching football.

After around 30 minutes, Ezra began hearing the sound of muffled giggles coming from the bedroom. He furrowed his brows and looking towards the door that lead into their room. He knew that the work definitely wasn't the cause for her laughter and he was determined to know what was. He jumped up from the couch and headed for the bedroom. He knocked on the door and waited until he heard Aria call him to enter. He poked his head through the gap he had opened in the door and eyed Aria suspiciously as she looked down at her work innocently.

"Did I just hear giggling coming from in here?" Ezra interrogated, playfully narrowing his eyes on Aria as he fully entered the room, scanning the room for a source to her laughter.

"Nope." She replied, feigning confusion at his accusation.

Ezra knew he wasn't going insane and gave her another accusing stare to which she finally gave in. She smirked and retrieved her phone from her pocket, handing it over to Ezra as if he were her teacher again. He didn't confiscate her phone even then being that he liked to tease her with texts during class.

"Do you need any help?" He offered as he sat beside her on the bed, careful not to knock her work.

"I'm fine, thank you." She sweetly replied with a grin that made her lips so desirable that he couldn't help but peck them gently with his own.

"Really? Because that blank page suggests otherwise." He quipped as he motioned over to the paper that only contained Aria's name that she had clearly traced over more than once.

"Fine, but don't mock my stupidity." She light-heartedly cautioned with the stern point of her finger.

"I do that enough already." Ezra cheekily smirked causing Aria to gasp in offence as she lightly hit his chest. "You know I'm kidding." He said as he got more comfortable, resting on his side as his arm snaked its way around her waist, his fingers absently tracing patterns on her exposed skin as he guided her through her work.

After an hour, Aria was finally finished with her essay. Ezra threw himself back against the pillows at the head of the bed, placing his hands behind his head as he fought the exhaustion that the work had evoked in him. Once Aria had completed the last finishing touches, she, too, joined Ezra. They stared up at the ceiling for a moment until Ezra lazily threw his arm around Aria, his face meshing into the pillow. Aria giggled and shoved his chest so that he was facing her again before leaning over him to place a lingering kiss on his lips. As she went to pull away, Ezra placed his hand behind her head, pulling her lips to his once again, catching her in a heated kiss. Aria was about to further this actions when her stomach growled in protest. Ezra chuckled into their kiss before pulling away.

"As much as I would love to continue this, I think food is a must." He laughed causing her to roll her eyes in good humour. "Thai or Chinese?" He asked her as he stood up from the bed and retrieved his phone from his pocket.

"Thai."

Ezra sat on the couch with a sleeping Aria in his arms only an hour into the film that Aria had promised she would remain awake throughout. He didn't mind though because he knew she was worn out from school and he loved the feeling of her body wrapped around his like he was her life-sized teddy bear. He did, though, suspect that the make-up was going to leave a mark on his new white shirt, as usual, but she was too cute for him to be mad. The sound of a phone beeping caused Aria to stir slightly in her sleep, revealing the patch of make-up that resided on his shirt. Analysing the stain, he light-heartedly groaned, knowing that it was going to be a stubborn one. She was just too precious though, having her so close to him was worth the expense of a new shirt.

Then there was that beeping sound again and Ezra was sure it came from inside his pocket. He furrowed his brows in confusion as he looked over to his phone which resided on the coffee table in front of him. He then remembered that he had confiscated Aria's phone earlier, the memory making him smile to himself. Shovelling his hand in his pocket, he retrieved the phone, careful not to wake his sleeping fiancée.

The smile on his face disappeared though as his eyes were subjected to the text that appeared on Aria's screen that read: 'Josh: I'm glad I can make you laugh when you're feeling this way. If you ever need a shoulder to cry on, just give me a shout.' Ezra couldn't help but feel the jealousy rise in him. He wasn't aware of their being a Josh in her life, she had mentioned many new classmates yet the name Josh never escaped her lips. He was not only jealous; he was offended that this man was comforting his girlfriend at times that Ezra hadn't even been aware she needed comforting. Why was Josh's shoulder any more suitable than his own?

Aria began to stir again and Ezra quickly placed her phone on the coffee table besides his, pretending as if he hadn't seen anything, though the frown on his face was hard to hide. He heard Aria gasp and alarmingly looked down at the girl in his arms.

"I left a stain on your shirt again." she guiltily stated with the pout of her full lips. "How many of your shirts am I going to ruin before you realise I am insensitive and leave me?" She joked, but Ezra noticed the true insecurity that seeped through her humorous tone.

In that moment Ezra knew he had nothing to worry about. This girl loved him more than he thought anyone could love someone like himself, she loved him too much to ever hurt him in that way. He trusted her, whole-heartedly.

"You could ruin every shirt I own, or will ever own, and I still wouldn't leave you." Ezra convicted, his voice filled with promise as his deep blue eyes stared down into Aria's making her heart swell.

She readjusted her position so that she was eye level with Ezra, holding each side of his face in her tiny hands, "I love you so much." she whispered before attaching her lips to his.

Her lips crushed against his, the kiss was filled with so much aggressive love and passion that Ezra couldn't help but wince. She tried her best to pour her love and adoration for him into one kiss and she succeeded. He did the same, pushing back against her as his tongue slivered into her eagerly waiting mouth. Aria repositioned herself so that she was straddling his waist, her hands moved down for his face to grip on to the collar of his shirt as she rocked against him.

Ezra was overcome with need and he couldn't prevent his hands from caressing every desirable part of her body, which was most of it. His hand travelled from her breast to her ass before resting on the back of her thighs. Aria began unbuttoning his shirt and that was enough for Ezra to know this wasn't going to be just another heated make-out session. He gripped her thigh tighter as he lifted her off the couch, their lips never parting.

The journey to the bedroom was filled with stumbles and laughs being that it was new to the both of them. However, it led them to the same place in the end, their bed. Their bed where they were able to provide each other the love and intimacy that they both desperately craved, fulfilling each other's needs until they had exhausted every bone in their bodies.

"Do you have to go?" Ezra teasingly pouted as he took hold of her arm, preventing her from leaving their apartment.

It reminded them both of old times, when they would sneak around at his apartment until her parents would inevitably call and she would leave him. Back then he longed for a time where she wouldn't have to go home, a time that his home would be hers also. That time had come, but he still had a hard time letting her go, especially when they had been so happy recently.

Aria rolled her eye and turned to face him with a light-hearted warning look, "you know I have to go. This is beneficial for my school work. I would much rather stay here with you."

"So do!" He exclaimed hopefully. "I can help you, I've taught English at a college before."

"I have to go, plus you have your right hand and a few dated nudes in your phone to keep you company." She teased, leaning up to kiss his lips.

"But I want the real thing." He whispered against her lips, kissing her again.

"Ezra." She warned, but she couldn't oppress the smirk that formed on her lips when she saw his puppy dog eyes pleading her. "My professor is probably already waiting for me."

"What's your professor like?" Ezra randomly questioned. The question wasn't random to him, however, as the question had been on the tip of tongue ever since she informed him of this unconventional meeting.

"Old." Aria shrugged.

Ezra narrowed his eyes at her, his challenging gaze making her playfully roll her eyes. She knew exactly what he was hinting at. 'Old' never seemed to faze her before.

"Too old for me." Aria shone her perfect teeth at him, sycophantically, and kissed him again, her way of calming him. "I'll be back by 12." She called as she headed for the door.

Aria was stopped in her tracks at the sound of Ezra calling out her name, "I love you, remember that."

She frowned down at the wooden floor beneath her and bit her top lip before turning back to him and calling a nonchalant 'I love you' back.

Aria sat alone at the crowded bar, lucky to have found two spare stools. She was nervous, hoping he hadn't stood her up as her eyes anxiously roamed the bar for him. Finally, a man holding a pint of beer and a glass of soda approached her. She smiled at him as he took a seat on the stool beside her.

"This is for you." He said as she handed her the glass of soda. "Maybe once you turn 21 I'll buy you one of these." He joked, lifting up his pint to her slightly to which she grimaced.

"I'd pass. Beer tastes like old people sweat." She shivered slightly at the thought.

"Exactly why I like it." He smirked, playfully licking his lips.

Meeting her professor in a bar on a Friday night certainly wasn't the most appropriate thing, but they found it to be most suitable for the both of them seeing that Aria didn't live on campus and it happened that Professor Dunne lived closer to her than UPenn anyway. They decided on meeting in the bar that was located exactly half way between both of their homes because it was certainly more convenient than travelling all the way to UPenn.

The thought that it was unlikely Professor Dunne would go to these lengths for any other student had crossed her mind, but Aria wasn't just any other student. She and Professor Dunne had formed a close relationship since she had started UPenn last month. She had been stressed out from the work one day and she went to speak to him, one thing lead to another and she ended up crying on his shoulder. Ever since then they had seen each other as more than just student and professor; they were friends. They realised that they had common interests and really hit it off. Aria couldn't help but think that Ezra would get along well with Professor Dunne, yet a part of her wanted each of them all to herself. Of course the relationship was rather inappropriate, but Aria was no stranger to pushing boundaries with her teachers. She put it down to her being mature.

She smiled as her eyes absently wandered over Professor Dunne's person, finding his attire as humours as always. It seemed to Aria that appearance was one thing that Dunne didn't care much about; His mousy hair was as distorted as his tie, his shirt supported more creases than an old person's naked body, and his short beard was rough and untamed. She may have also embellished when she told Ezra that Professor Dunne was 'old,' he was certainly older, but he was only roughly 30 years old. Aria wasn't really sure if she lied to Ezra for her sake or for his… she just hoped it was the latter.

"So, did you bring the work that you wanted me to look at?" Dunne asked as he placed down his beer and eagerly rubbed his hands together as Aria retrieved her work from her purse.

Aria's pulse raced as she watched Dunne read over her essay at a speed she found to be absurd, surly he wasn't even able to process the words at that velocity. She watched him intently, trying her hardest to decipher his unreadable expression. Then a hint of a smile formed on his lips and Aria was more surprised by his reaction than pleased. She thought her work was so bad that it could have been passed for a 5 year olds, but Dunne's expression told her otherwise.

"Aria, this is amazing." He gleamed, looking at her with pride and disbelief for her scepticism towards such high standard work.

"Really?" Aria asked with a hint of doubt still present in her voice.

"Honestly, the way you spoke about it, I thought it was going to be terribly but this at a standard higher than I expect most graduates to write at." He enthused, skimming over the pages once more with his ever present smile. "You're so talented." He breathed out.

Aria wasn't sure why she believed Professor Dunne so quickly. Only last night Ezra had said something similar to her and she had argued against him, claiming that he was lying to her. Why was she so quick to believe a man whom she just met over the man she loved?

"Thank you." Aria shyly replied as a coat of pink rose on her cheeks.

She liked to think that she would blush if Professor Dunne was a balding 50 year old man, but she knew that wasn't the case. His looks certainly affected Aria, even if she didn't care to admit it out loud.

She never saw herself fancying a man to this degree since Ezra, she felt like a swooning teenager again. She couldn't possibly help it. Joshua Dunne looked like he had been pulled from her TV screen and into her reality; he was that type of handsome. But so is Ezra she reminded herself as she absently grinned at the man opposite her. Her smile faded into a frown as she realised how wrong this all was. Of course she hadn't done anything or was planning on doing anything with Professor Dunne, yet once and a while inappropriate thoughts of him swarmed her mind and to her that was terrible enough.

"Are you okay?" He concernedly asked, noticing Aria's despondent gaze.

Aria shook herself and plastered on her false smile, "I'm fine."

"Are you sure? How are things with your parents? Have they come around yet about the engagement?" He asked as his attention drifted to her left hand, noting how bare it was.

"No." Aria dejectedly sighed; she didn't see them coming around anytime soon.

"What is the problem? Why are they so against you marrying this man?"

Aria contemplated whether she should tell him the truth, the whole truth, but decided against it. People tended to view their relationship different once they knew the initial circumstances in their relationship. As soon as the truth came out, suddenly Aria was a slut and Ezra was paedophile which couldn't be further from the truth. They were just two people who fell in love at the wrong time in their lives. Aria knew that he was her soul mate and whether they pursued their student-teacher love affair or not, they would one day be together in the end. It was merely their fate.

"Ezra's 8 years older than me." Aria hurriedly informed him, like pulling off a Band-Aid.

"Ezra?" Dunne asked. He spoke as if he knew something that Aria didn't. Aria's eyes widened at the revelation that she had let his name slip. "I know an Ezra, around 26-years-old, works at Rosewood High… Aren't you from Rosewood?"

"Yep. That's my fiancé." She sheepishly admitted with a purse-lipped smile.

She couldn't believe her luck. How was it possible that her English Professor knew her fiancé/ex- English teacher? This world was too small, so small that she was beginning to feel suffocated. Was it selfish that she was saddened by this news? That she wanted to keep these parts of her life separate?

"How do you know him?" She casually asked, hiding her true trepidation.

"He went to College with my younger cousin." Dunne nodded, pleased with his findings while Aria was finding herself feeling faint.

Aria heard her phone buzz from inside her purse, she scurried to check it, but it was merely a reminder that she was running out of storage space. Nevertheless, she saw this as an opportunity to leave. She glanced at the time and feigned a shocked expression, looking back to Professor Dunne who sipped on his beer.

"Is that the time already? I promised Ezra I would be back by 11." She excused, always being a pro at lying. "I should really get going."

A look of disappointment formed on his face as he handed Aria the essay she had given him to read. It was due in for Monday when she planned to formally hand it in. She placed it gently into her purse and gave him a thankful smile. Aria jumped down from her stool, surprised when he, too, stood from his, their chests so close that she could feel the heat radiating from his body and the strong smell of alcohol drifting from his breath.

"Do you need a ride home?" He offered, swinging his car keys around his finger.

She couldn't, she needed to get away from him.

"No, thank you. I only live down the street." She coyly smiled as she took a discreet step away from him. "Are you staying?"

"Yeah, I have nothing better to do." He shrugged. "There's no one waiting at home for me to get back." He jokingly stated, though there was a hint of ruefulness lacing his words.

Aria didn't know what to say and instead nodded as her teeth grazed her bottom lip, "I'll see you tomorrow, Professor Dunne."

"Aria, you know you can call me Josh out of the classroom."

Aria arrived back to her apartment, tiresomely flinging her black mac from her body and throwing it carelessly to the coat rack beside the door. She halted her obnoxious movements once she saw Ezra sleeping peacefully on the couch, smiling at the way his chest rhythmically raised and fell, and the sound of the air blowing through his slightly parted lips. She removed her heels and carefully approached her sleeping fiancé, sitting on the arm of the couch as she admired him. Her eyes wandered to the floor beside him, noticing the scrunched up tissues that littered it, grimacing at the thought of what they contained.

Ezra then began to stir, his eyes fluttering open, revealing his dark blue eyes. She missed seeing them whilst she was gone. A smile rose on his lips as his eyes adjusted on to her, a sight he loved waking up to.

"I didn't think you were going to take the right-hand thing so literally." She joked, gesturing to the tissues surrounding him.

Ezra just rolled his tired eyes, "I was watching 'My Sister's Keeper,' for your information." He retorted as he sat up, bringing his feet to the floor.

"Aw, my little sensitive Ezra." Aria cooed as she slipped into the new found space beside him and pulled his head to her chest, stroking his head.

"I'd like to see you watch that film and not cry." He challenged, pulling out of her hold and raising his brows at her

"Touché." She laughed before pulling him into a kiss.

"How was the study date?" He asked once their lips parted, pulling her into his side, and resting his head atop of hers.

"He said it was better than most graduates." Aria proudly stated.

Ezra squeezed her tighter, seeming just as pleased with the news as she was. How could she ever possibly be interested in another man when she already had the most perfect man in the world?

"I told you. You are so smart, you should never doubt yourself." He convicted, his fingers brushing through her brown locks.

"God, I am so lucky to have a fiancé like you." Aria openly mused, nuzzling into his chest.

The thoughts of Joshua Dunne had vanished from her mind as she realised there was no one in the world she wanted to spend the rest of her life with more than Ezra Michael Fitz.

So, this is the first introduction to Joshua Dunne. Ezra still doesn't know that Joshua and her professor are the same person. I really enjoyed writing this chapter, especially the hidden metaphors that I hope you guys noticed. I am trying to be really inconspicuous with this story so a lot of small details that might seem insignificant will make a comeback throughout the story. Thank you for reading and reviewing. love you guys!

- Tasha x