Somebody was shaking me awake. I was beginning to wake up and Spencer's face was in mine. I could still feel Ezra's lips on mine.

"Aria? Aria?"

"Spence, why did you wake me I was having the perfect dream."

"Hun, you were arguing with someone in your sleep. My guess was Fitz too, because you said Ezra a couple times. Then you began whispering something and crying hysterically."

"I know, but at least the dream let me hold on to what I have left of him. Now can you guys please let me go back to sleep."

"Hun, you have been asleep for almost 24 hours."

"Obviously not long enough, because he isn't back yet."

"Who isn't, Aria?"

"Ezra, Spencer, Do you remember anything from last night. Ezra isn't back yet."

"Aria, he isn't coming back. The news even confirmed that he is gone this morning. No amount of sleep is going to change that."

"Yes it will."

"Hanna, can you please go get Mrs. Montgomery?"

"Yeah, I'll go get her." Hanna left and Mike walked in. He crossed the room to my bed. He sat down and pulled me close.

"Aria, he isn't coming back." Mike whispered in my ear. "He's gone."

"No, he can't! I love him! I love him, Mike! He can't leave me! I need him!" I screamed, and cried hysterically into his chest. I heard my mom and dad run up the stairs. They were standing at the door and my mom was starting to walk in. "Mike, make them leave. I don't want to see their faces."

"Aria," Mom and Dad started to say.

"No, this is all your fault. If dad hadn't gone to his apartment and threatened him with the police this would have never happened."

"Aria, how do you know that?" Dad asked

"Which part? The one where you threatened him or he wouldn't have died! Let's see when I called him last week and he told me I couldn't call him anymore I knew that wasn't his choice! I knew someone threatened him so I guessed it was you! And the other part I know because I wasn't with Spencer last night! I was waiting for him! When I saw his car I knew it was because he was speeding to meet me in time! If he wasn't afraid of you and we didn't have to sneak off he would still be here! So this is both of your guys' fault!"

"Aria, I was trying to protect you. I was trying to ensure that you never got hurt. I never expected it to end this way."

"He never hurt me, Dad, you did! By not letting me see him! And now you got your wish! I can never see him again!"

"Aria, I never meant for this to happen, but he was your teacher. He crossed a line he shouldn't have crossed."

"You can't control who you love, Dad! And for the record we met on Labor Day, before we knew anything! I had no idea he would be my teacher! He had no idea I would be his student! When we found out he tried to avoid the relationship! When he found it was too hard and that we were falling in love he tried to find a new job so we could stay together! Until then we kept it a secret! You have no idea about anything we had been through! You don't know what it was like! I loved him with all my heart!"

"Aria," Dad tried to speak in a very soft voice

"Mike, make them leave now." Mom stood there amazed and slowly backed away.

"Byron," She called. "Just give her space. She is hurting right now."

"Ella, How can you side with her. She is 17 years old. She is just a kid. She doesn't know what real love is," Mike slid out from underneath me and went over to the door.

"How can you be such an ass! After she told you and mom about her relationship she talked to me. If you saw the look on her face when she talked about him you would have known it was real. Do you see her right now?! The pain has crippled her so much she can barely get out of bed! Did you see her last night?! Did you even notice it took three people to bring her into the house last night?! She cried herself to sleep and woke up crying! Someone who doesn't know what real love is would not have reacted that way!"

"Mike, you are just a kid, too. You wouldn't understand. I'm not denying that she cared about him, but it wasn't love. And their relationship was completely unacceptable."

"Dad, if you remember you also had a student-teacher affair almost two years ago!"

"Mine was not with a Minor, Mike, and I wasn't in love with her!"

"How do you know he didn't love her! You never gave him a chance!"

"May I remind you that you are the one that hit him!"

"Because I knew if I didn't you would, and then I listened to Aria. The look on her face when she talked about him gave you everything you needed to know. She loved him! Now she is in a lot of pain and you're being an insensitive ass! Just go downstairs with Mom! I'll handle Aria!" Dad looked livid and he stomped down the stairs and out the door. Mike entered my room again and closed the door behind him. I didn't know where Spencer, Hanna, and Emily went but I didn't really care. I just stared at my wall while Mike held me tight. I didn't eat, and I couldn't move. I just laid there. I eventually started to listen to music. I just played all of our songs on repeat. Mike sat there and watched me. He tried to talk to me but I could never respond. He grabbed the air mattress laid it on the floor grabbed his blankets, pillows, and a book to read.

"What are you doing?" was the only thing I could say.

"Someone needs to watch you. Your friends needed to go home and I don't think you want Mom and Dad to. We're worried Aria."

"Can you please do something for me?"

"Sure what do you need?"

"Call Spence and ask her to go to his apartment and grab a few of his shirts for me."

"Aria, I don't know if that's a good idea."

"Please, Mike? I need to be close to him. It's the only thing I can think of. Please?"

"Where's the key I'm sure he locked it."

"Under his door mat. Thank you Mike. Oh and can you give me that Sherwood Anderson book?" Mike grabbed the book and gave it to me. I opened it and read the note Ezra had wrote me. I brought the book close, turned the music back on and continued to stare at absolutely nothing on the wall. Mike called Spencer and began to read. I stared and cried for the rest of the day. Mike watched me and again tried to make conversation. I just continued to stare, not answering him. Spencer had finally dropped off the shirts, which I slipped on and crawled back into bed. I could smell his scent on his shirt and I cried even harder. Mike got up and pulled me in close to him again and I cried until I fell asleep.