Hey guys! I'm writing this on Sunday night at the moment, but you're not gonna see it till probably Tuesday/Wednesday... Kinda like talking to the future, huh? Anyway, did any of you watch Brant's Ustream? (2/10/11) All I can say: IAN'S TONGUE IS FAMOUS.

So it's not too long now till the Halloween prequel... EXCITED!

Right this is becoming too awkward and random now, so I'm going to let you go read my fanfic! OH and sorry if some of the things about the flight are wrong, I haven't been on a plane since I was like, 2 so not too familiar with the whole shenanigans... ENJOY!

Ezra's POV

Saying goodbye to Aria was the hardest thing I've ever had to do; seeing her beautiful pale face streaming with tears as I walked out. As much as I love her and I would adore a life with her, I just can't let myself be manipulated like that. Just a mere 5 hours after my proposal and I find out my fiancé has been making out with her middle-school crush? How messed up can it get? I sit down on the plane, ironically seat 3B, and get out my notebook and pen. It's only when I start writing that I realise it is the pen that Aria gave me on my first day at Hollis. 'It will make you look so professional, Mr. Fitz' she had said, a smile playing at the corners of her rose-tinted lips. Gosh, how I'll miss those lips. No, I tell myself, I cannot be messed around like this. It ended up just like Hardy had said. I just got caught up in a little high-school drama, as he called it. The only difference this time was that I love her, I really do. This isn't just a meaningless fling; I truly felt that this was real. At times like these, the only thing I can think of to do is write. It was the same when Jackie left me; I spend days with my head buried in a notebook writing all sorts of soppy love poetry and sonnets. None that got published though, that privilege was saved for the best. My favourite. B-26. Everything about that night was special. It was the first night in a while that I had been outside of my new apartment since The Jackie Thing. I remember the first time I looked over at Aria. The way that she looked new, like nobody that I had ever seen in Rosewood. She looked like she had appeared straight out of one of those European fashion magazines, wearing a simple ensemble of dress & jacket that fitted her body perfectly; her chestnut brown hair was curled loosely and fell perfectly on her shoulders. As soon as I set eyes on her I realised that she wasn't just the typical American teenager. Then, of course, came our make-out session in the bathrooms- classy, right? It sounds stupid but it seemed like we were connected in a way that only happens once in a lifetime. Just a single touch of our hands or a brush of our lips and it was like fireworks were being set off inside me. When I was with Aria, I felt safe. When we were together I felt like I didn't have a care in the world. Now, of course, I'm fully aware of what she was doing behind my back. Of all the people, she chose Noel.

At this point I'm so lost in thought that I don't realise I'm not alone. Sat next to me is a woman with long strawberry-blonde hair; she looked like she was alone on the flight. Well if I'm going to be sat next to her for the next 5 hours, I might as well make conversation.

I was just about to introduce myself when I saw that she had a book in her hand; Loose Leaf by Leonard Adams. Why is there so many things reminding me of Rosewood? Some would say 'a message from the earth' or 'fate', but whoever said that has evidently never felt betrayed like this. All I want to do right now is get the hell out of Rosewood, just get out of the state. Maybe when I get to California I'll automatically move on from Aria. Of course, I know that I'll always love her in some way, but hopefully I'll start to numb to the pain, you know? Someday ill be able to think back to this time and smile, but not feel. Maybe that's what life without Aria will be like; boring, free of emotion and hurt. Not prepared now to talk to the woman at my side, I slipped in some earphones and listened to some music, hopefully it would, combined with my writing, take my mind off of the situation with my, now ex, fiancé. Two sonnets, three haikus and a whole notebook of doodles later, I found myself waking up from a long nap with the last half hour of the flight ahead. As I sat up, the pen in my lap fell onto the floor and rolled over to the other side of the sleeping woman beside me. To my surprise, she opened her eyes in a flash and bent down to retrieve my pen.

"Hi, I'm Nicole," she stated as she placed it securely in my waiting hand.

"Oh, Hey. I'm Ezra. It's nice to meet you. Thanks for, you know, getting my pen. It's a nice one..." It's a nice one? Really, Ezra?

"It is. Look, are you okay? This whole journey I've been watching you and you seemed really focused on what you've been writing... Very intense."

"Oh really? Well, I got a lot on my mind at the moment. I'm starting a new job on Monday, a college here in California... Apple Valley, do you know it?"

"Apple Valley? Oh my gosh, that's where I'm from. I've just been on vacation to see some family in Pennsylvania."

"Sounds great... Where were you staying?"

"Oh a place called Rosewood I think? Just a little motel, it was only for a few nights so I figured that it would do."

I chuckled to myself, Nicole seemed like a really nice person and it was a plus that she was going to be in Apple Valley whilst I'm there, at least I know at least one person now. "I used to live there... I still do... Kind of... It's complicated."

"Relationships, huh? Wanna vent to a random stranger about it?" She had a good sense of humour, and was easy to talk to. Why not? So then I delved into the whole story of Aria and I, even sharing the part about me being her teacher. When I had finished, she looked at me in the eyes and said the words that made my whole world crash down: "You were a little harsh just walking out like that. Maybe there was a legitimate explanation for it? I mean, I have no idea what this girl is like but from how you describe her it's pretty obvious that you love her."

They were the words that I had feared most since arriving at the airport. Maybe I should have let her explain, but how could she explain something that I could understand so easily with just one photograph? In any case, it's too late to go back. I made my decision when I stepped out of apartment 3B.

Aria's POV

After Ezra left, I simply sat down on his leather couch till my t-shirt was damp with tears of devastation. After all we've been through in past months, I thought he would at least hear me out. Surely he would know that I did it because of A, he must understand that whoever it is made me do it. At about 11:30pm, I make my way to my parents' house. I could have stayed at the apartment, but I couldn't stop re-living what had happened earlier that day and honestly, the more I thought about it the more guilty I felt for obeying A's demands. I should have known that something like this would happen...

"Aria? What's the matter, honey?" My panicked mom asked me as I walked into my home for the past 17 years.

"Mom, Ezra left me" I started sobbing as I listening to comforting words from my mother. I couldn't get hold of the breath and self-control to tell her about kissing Noel, so for now she was holding my shoulders close to her as I cried into her pale blue dressing gown. When I had calmed down, and my moment of hysteria had passed, I walked up the stairs to my room and drifted off into a deep sleep.

So sorry that this chapter wasn't too eventful, I just needed a chapter to link 6 and 8, and this is what came of it.

The next chapter will take place about 6 months after this, and we're going to see some more of Nicole & some Aria/Jason... But he gets rejected, so it's all ok ;)

Thanks for reviews on the last chapter, you have no idea how excited I get when my phone bleeps with an email from fanfic. Seriously, I'm talking major 'EEEKKKK REVIEW!' moments here.

Anyway, please review & I'll update again at the weekend...

xo, Bethany.