I don't own anything
Ezra's POV
It was almost 2 in the afternoon and I was once again sitting in the history classroom listening to Mr. Holdman. Each of us listened to carefully his every word and wrote down some notes. When everyone was done with their notes, he said we should all give presentations, but that we would do it in groups. We'd get to form the groups ourselves, from 2 to 3 people.
People started to move around the room doing just that, and Wren and I decided to do the presentation together.
"Hey, is there room in your group?" A fair haired boy came to ask us.
"Yeah, sure" I said to him.
"Can I join you?" He asked as if to make sure.
"Of course" Wren and I said at the same time.
"Great" He smiled and took one of the nearby chairs and put it next to our desks. "I'm Hardy, by the way" He introduced himself.
"Ezra" I returned the gesture, and Wren did the same.
Mr. Holdman made us to do the presentation about Pearl Harbor. We had time only enough to start it before the bell rang to indicate the class was over.
"We should probably meet sometime after school to make that presentation" I suggested as we walked out of the classroom.
"Sounds good" Hardy agreed.
"Just tell me where and when" Wren shrugged.
"Maybe we should swap numbers so we can text and arrange something?" Hardy said brightly.
"Fine by me" I replied, and we all swapped numbers with each other. I still had a math class, and Hardy would join me there. Finding friends here wasn't as difficult as it had felt like at first. Hardy and Wren both seemed really nice.
When I came home in the afternoon I found Elliot and grandma in the kitchen. She had flown from New York to stay at our for the week. Every time I come home she's found a new cupboard to arrange, and in the evening when my parents come home they start wondering where this and that has gone.
I talked with grandma and Elliot for a few moments before going to the back yard to read a book. Soon I heard her voice again.
"Ezraaa!" She called out from the house.
"Yeah?" I shouted in reply.
"Here's a girl asking for you" She said, apparently from the terrace. I noticed Aria standing behind her. I stood up and walked to where they were.
"Hi" I greeted her.
"Hey" She said. "I hope my timing isn't bad" She said, almost asking.
"Not at all" I reassured her. "Did you have something important in mind?"
"No, I just thought I'd invite you to the party I'm throwing tomorrow at the beach house. A day before the cotillion" She continued. Grandma was a few metres behind us, but I knew she was listening carefully.
"I'll drop by" I promised her.
"Good. Elliot's welcome, too" She smiled and we walked back to the front door.
"Nice, I'll see you tomorrow" I said as I walked her out.
"Isn't your girlfriend staying for coffee? I baked a cheese cake earlier today!" Grandma exclaimed, a little nosily to say the least.
"Grandma, she's not my girlfriend" I said embarrassed.
"Oh, I thought she might be" She said absentmindedly and walked back to the kitchen.
"I'm sorry about that" I mumbled.
"It's fine" She said, still smiling. "Right, well, see you tomorrow" She breathed.
"Yeah, see you" I smiled back at her. When she was gone, I went to the kitchen.
"She seemed like a nice girl" Grandma said while cleaning the kitchen counter.
She is" I confirmed her.
"You would be a fine looking couple" She continued.
"There's nothing between us" I insisted sternly.
"Between who?" Elliot asked as he barged in and went to the fridge.
"Me and Aria" I said and took my math text book from my school bag.
"No? It didn't look like that in the rehearsal" He grinned.
I recalled the situation and what it felt like to move my hands against her back and smell her amazing scent. Or what her body felt like under my fingertips. Or what if felt like when our hands touched on the beach.
"Ezra" Grandma said and sat down next to me. "I want to give you a very important piece of advice in life. Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery but today is a gift" She said and smiled tenderly.
I thought about her words. They reminded me of something that I had tried to forget so hard. They reminded of someone who used to be important to me.
Elliot nudged me lightly and asked, "Did you hear what we said?"
"What?" I asked.
"We said that maybe grandma could buy a house here.
"Yeah, maybe" I muttered and rose from the table.
"What's gotten into him?" Grandma asked.
"I don't know" Elliot replied.
I walked upstairs and into my room. I closed the door behind me and opened the drawer of my desk. There was a girl of a brunette girl with a beautiful smile. I took it and looked at it closely. A year ago everything was different, and now all I have of her is this photograph. She wasn't just a girl. She had once been a very special person to me, and still was. She reminded me of the time I didn't want to recall. It was too hard.
When we moved to here Newport I'd almost forgotten that painful and hard time. Partly because we had the chance to have a new start in a new place, but mostly because of Aria. I liked her company.
She made me forget all the bad. There are moments where I couldn't stop thinking about her. She's changed my life completely. I could never have believed I would feel this way about someone than I feel about her. But now that I look at the photo of this girl, a part of me feels guilty for it. But I can't help how I feel.
I then heard Elliot and grandma call me from behind the door. I hid the photo before they opened the door.
"Are you alright?" He asked worriedly.
"Yeah" I said with a smile.
"That's good, you made us worry" Grandma said relieved. All of us went down the stairs, and later when my parents had come home we ate dinner together and spent the time watching TV and chatting about the day.
Aria's POV
I was at the beach house with Spencer to make everything ready for the party later today. Emily had said she'd come to help us once her swimming training is over. I didn't know about Hanna, she'd probably come a little before the party would start.
A few hours later, and the house was full of people. On the background there was playing Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO.
I sat on the kitchen counter and listened to Nathan and his friends. Then I noticed Ezra talking to two other boys whom I'd seen him with at school as well. I took a sip of my drink and when I saw him finally alone, I walked towards him.
"You've found mates" I pointed the obvious, desperately trying to find some topic to talk about.
"Yeah, we met in the same course" He replied and drank his beer. Something captured Ezra's attention and when I turned around I saw Nathan looking at us angrily.
"Maybe this isn't a good idea" Ezra said warily.
"We're not doing anything wrong" I said calmly. Before I even noticed, Nathan was next to us with his mates.
"I don't understand. There are plenty of people for you to talk to, and you must chit chat with my girlfriend" Nathan spat at Ezra.
"Nathan, you promised you'd try to come along with him" I said sternly.
"I am, but it's hard. Every time I turn my back he's all over you" He countered.
"It was me who wanted to talk to him" I corrected him glaring.
"Why don't you go over to Emily? She looks rather lonely with her glass of beer" He asked.
"Because she can talk to whoever she wants to" Ezra countered, and Nathan took a hold of his shirt.
"Who asked you anything?" He sneered at him.
"I'm not gonna fight" Ezra replied calmly.
"No? Not even if I do this?" Nathan replied and hit him in the stomach.
"Nathan!" I shouted and crouched beside Ezra, briefly asking if he was alright. He nodded and I swiftly stood up. "You're such an idiot" I exclaimed at Nathan angrily.
"I'm leaving" Ezra said as he stood up himself.
"No, stay" I said.
"What are you doing, you want him to stay?" Nathan asked incredulously.
"Yes I do, and now I want you to leave" I turned to him and glared at him.
"What?"
"You heard me. Go" I hissed.
After a moment Nathan left with his friends, but not without shooting an angry look at me and Ezra. The whole situation was soon forgotten by all who had seen it. I talked with Spencer and a couple of our friends for a while, and then went to the bathroom. However, I had to wait for a few minutes for it was occupied. Through the door I head a discussion of two girls, and my attention was immediately captured by it.
"I saw Hanna Marin kiss that new guy. I think his name is Fitz or something" One of them said. "Anyway, soon I saw them go to the bedroom upstairs" The voice continued.
I gulped in some kind of shock.
"Seriously?" The other of them said.
"Yep" The first voice confirmed.
This couldn't be true. Hanna and Ezra? No, no it couldn't be possible, I kept repeating to myself. I walked upstairs not even knowing why. Seeing Ezra with Hanna was the last thing I wanted to see. Just when I'd reached upstairs the door opened and Hanna came out. Her hair was tousled, and both of us looked at each other horrified. Then, soon, behind her came Elliot who cast us a quick look before going down the stairs quickly.
"You and Elliot?" I asked her and raised my eye brows.
"Don't look so relieved" she said, sounding irritated.
"Sorry?" I frowned.
"Come on, stop pretending. We both know you were afraid it was Ezra with me. Like we both know you have feelings towards him" She replied, still sounding pissed off.
"I don't" I lied, trying to sound as convincing as possible.
"Then why were you so freaked out before you saw Elliot?"
"I-" I stammered, not knowing what to say.
"That's what I thought" Hanna said dryly. "Or would you have wanted both of them? I know how tempting two brothers must be."
"How dare you?" I yelled at her.
"How dare you?" She yelled me back. "You have Nathan, and yet at the same time you look at Ezra and flirt with him!" She went to walk down the stairs and spun around. "But congratulations, whether it was a new bag or a new guy, you always get what you want" She continued coldly and left.
What an amazing day. I'm fighting with Nathan, and with Hanna too.
The next day I stood in my room and held my cotillion dress in my hands. There was a knock and my mom came in.
"Aria, sweetheart, you must start preparing" She said softly.
"I don't want to go" I said.
"I'm sorry, what? I must've heard you wrong" She sounded startled.
"Nathan and I fought yesterday. Big time. I don't want to see him, let alone dance with him" I explained.
She sighed. "Aria, fighting is normal when you're in relationship. You've been together for ages."
"Maybe that's the problem. We've been together for ages" I said. "Maybe there's someone else there for me."
"Who? The boy from the neighbour, Ezra?" Aria, I don't want you to spend time with him" She said sternly.
"You don't even know him."
"I don't want to talk about this now. Now, get dressed and go to make your debut with Nathan" She said.
"I can't. I'm sorry" I said to her. Mom said nothing, but looked at me angry before finally leaving the room.
Ezra's POV
I walked on the drive way with a bag of trash I was supposed to take to the bin. I'd heard a few hours earlier that Tessa had had to fly to Los Angeles because her granddad had had a heart attack. This meant that I had no partner for the cotillion. Or apparently they could have gotten me another partner, but in all honestly I didn't feel like any of it. Not after what happened at the party yesterday. When I was flinging the bag to the bin I saw Aria on the driveway.
"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at the cotillion?" I asked, causing her to startle and drop the carton of cigarettes and lighter she was holding.
"Ezra! God you startled me" She exclaimed and crouched to pick the carton and lighter. "But I could you the same thing. Why are you here with a bag of trash in your hands when you should be dancing in a suit?"
"Tessa and her family had to leave for Los Angeles so I decided to stay at home. What's your excuse?" I asked.
"I don't want to see Nathan, or dance with him" She replied.
"I'm sorry about yesterday."
"It wasn't your fault. I'm sick of Nathan thinking he can tell me what I can do, like I was an object to him."
"So you decided to solve the problem by smoking alone on a dark drive way" I smirked.
"It looks like you're doing the same thing" She grinned at me back. "And when it comes to smoking on a drive way, I'm blaming you. It was you taught me this, remember?" She said and walked closer, smiling.
I chuckled. "I remember. "Well, two lonely people on a dark drive way. Any suggestions?"
"Dance with me. Come with me to the cotillion" She asked, a little nervously.
"What?" I asked. "Are you sure?" I wasn't sure if I'd heard right, or if I'd just heard the thing I'd wanted to hear since the talk about cotillion began.
"Yeah. What do you say?" She asked.
"Yes, I want to dance with you" I said, and we both smiled at each other. In a fifteen minutes we were where the cotillion was held and went to change the clothes. When we saw Nathan and Aria's mom, both of us came towards us.
"You came" Nathan said to Aria.
"Not with you" She countered.
"Thank God you came to your senses. Now, quickly get changed, Nathan will wait for you here" Her mom said rapidly.
"Aren't you listening to anything I say? I'm not going to dance with Nathan" She snapped.
"What did you say?" Ella said, shocked.
"Then who?" Nathan asked and looked at me. "You're not serious. I bought a suit for this and waited for you an hour and now you're telling you're dancing with him?" He shouted.
"Who asked you to come? Wasn't I clear enough yesterday?" She said to him.
Aria's mom was about to say something when she interrupted her. "I'm going to get changed and do my debut with Ezra. Whether you liked it or not."
"I hope you're happy" Nathan spat at me and left angrily.
Both of us went to get changed, and we went to our own queues. Gradually it got shorter, and when I heard Aria's name I walked to her. We went to join the others on the dance floor hand in hand.
Aria's arm was pressed lightly on my shoulder, and I put my hand on her lower back. When the music started we began to dance. My gaze was locked on Aria. Her hair was beautifully on her shoulders and right at that moment I wanted to kiss her bare shoulder and neck. But I couldn't. I pressed my hand harder on her back and felt her pressed her body firmly against mine. It felt good. We enjoyed the intimacy and how we got to jut hold each other.
"You're beautiful" I told her quietly.
"Thank you. You don't look bad yourself" She said, blushing slightly.
Ella's POV
When the cotillion was over, I held the sleepy Freya in my arms for she was too tired to stay awake. I stood up from the chair and went to look for Byron, Freya still in my arms. I saw a familiar figure by the bar, and it wasn't Byron. It was Stephen. In any case, soon Byron found me and I handed our sleepy daughter tired to him before telling him I'd be right back.
"Do you mind?" I took Stephen's glass of champagne and drank the last of it.
"Ella! What a lovely surprise. Don't bother asking, you've never cared what others think. Did you something in mind or did you empty my glass for no reason?" He said, irritated.
"I'm not sure if I expressed myself unclearly when I asked you to keep your son away from my daughter" I told him coldly.
"Do you have a problem with Ezra and Aria being friends?" He asked.
"Yes I do. Especially when she's dancing with someone she wasn't supposed to dance with."
"They're young. Let them have fun."
"So were we sometime and look what happened. I don't that to happen to Aria."
"If I recall correctly, it was you who decided how things ended" He said firmly. "And there comes the love of your life. Or should I say, the great mistake of your life" He said mockingly. Byron came to us, and Stephen left abruptly.
"Shall we go?" Byron said and smiled.
"Yes" I said faintly.
I won't be able to update in two weeks for I'll be in London, but I want to thank you for everyone for the reviews I got last time :)
