2016

How the hell had she let this happen? Surely it was the alcohol she'd consumed that night that caused her to make this decision. Surely it was the adrenaline that had been pumping through her veins in the minutes after it had happened that had made her heart so kind. Surely it was the overwhelming sense of déjà vu that tricked her into thinking that this was okay, that this was normal. Surely there was some extravagant explanation as to why Aria Montgomery was now alone with Ezra Fitz in her apartment at 11:00 on a Wednesday night, putting sheets on a trundle bed for him while he stood by in the kitchen, sipping coffee from her #1 Teacher mug.

*Three Hours Earlier*

Aria hadn't been sitting down for 5 minutes before Noel Kahn's tongue was down her throat. She'd been surprised by his forwardness, seeing as how they'd never even so much as held hands in public, but she wasn't entirely put off by it. Noel was a phenomenal kisser. Things definitely could have been worse.

The couple had exchanged pleasantries when Aria had first arrived. An informal "hi, how are you" followed by praise on the other's appearance had sufficed as enough small talk. Aria donned the red dress she had promised Noel she would wear, along with heels that made her legs look a mile long. From the moment Noel saw her, he couldn't tear his eyes away. The dress was short, lace, and had a plunging neck line. It didn't leave much to the imagination. Although, Aria could practically see the wheels turning in Noel's head as he tried to conjure up what she looked like in the places the fabric did cover. It was flattering, though admittedly, a little unsettling. He'd seen her in this before, but hadn't seemed to take this much interest in her the last time.

The first time Noel kissed her that evening, Aria could tell that the beer sitting on the table was not the only thing he had had to drink. If her taste buds were correct, he'd also consumed at least one shot of tequila before her arrival. She didn't blame him though. He was probably just as nervous about this date as Aria was. It was their 6th time out together. Talk of making things official had been thrown around and avoided, but tonight, it felt inevitable. They would either leave as boyfriend/girlfriend or nothing at all. Aria was hoping for the former and she was sure Noel was too.

While Aria got situated in the booth Noel had gotten for them in the back corner of the dimly lit establishment, Noel slipped off to the bar to order Aria a drink. When he's asked what she wanted, she'd responded, "Surprise me." He came back with a Cuba Libre and a hopeful grin. However, before Aria had the chance to try it, Noel pressed his lips to hers and refused to stop. 15 minutes had passed since then and Aria was starting to think he'd just wasted $7.

For the millionth time since they started kissing, Aria moaned softly into Noel's mouth as she felt his hands slither over the curves of her body and settle on her thighs, pushing gently on the hem of her dress. His fingers dug into the soft skin as a response to her noise. With one hand, Aria clamped down on Noel's neck and pulled him closer, while she let the other rest tentatively on his jean clad knee. In the back of her mind she heard a little voice telling her to stop-they were in public and what the way they were kissing each other was meant to be kept behind closed doors. But she allowed those thoughts to be pushed down by images of what she thought Noel might look like naked…and on top of her. It had been so long since she'd had sex and this was the most action she'd gotten in months. She had no plans to stop any time soon.

Their lips danced and smacked against one another's loudly, distracting them from the sound of pool balls being hit and loud laughter from groups of kids Aria wasn't sure were old enough to legally be drinking.

"Mmm, Aria," Noel breathed, pulling his mouth from hers for a split second before reattaching it to the smooth skin of her neck.

"Huh," Aria sighed, arching her back and tilting her head to the side to give Noel the best access to her sweet spots, many of which she'd forgotten where they were located.

She reveled in the way his tongue and teeth worked on the column of her throat. He really knew what he was doing. God, he was heaven sent. It had been years since someone had made Aria feel that good without taking her clothes off. She didn't want to get ahead of herself, but she couldn't help but wonder if maybe, just maybe Noel was her replacement soul mate. Since Sophie's father, Aria's first real soul mate, was no longer in the picture, maybe the universe had sent her another in the form of Noel Kahn to make up for the loss of the first one. Wouldn't that be nice?

Her thoughts of forever were rudely interrupted by the feeling of Noel's hands slipping up her dress and fingering the elastic of her panties. In a knee-jerk reaction, Aria pulled her body away from her date so fast that she slammed her head into the wall behind her, however she felt no pain due to shock. She hadn't been expecting that. Not here, at least. Making out in public was one thing. Finger fucking her in public was another.

"Whoa, Noel," Aria pulled his hands out from between her legs and shook her head. "No."

Noel stared at her, confusion evident on his features. Clearly, he hadn't been anticipating that reaction. "What's wrong? I thought you were in to that?"

"I was," Aria offered a weak smile. "But not here. We're in public where anyone could see. I like to keep that kind of thing private."

"Do you want to go back to my place then?" Noel scooted back slightly as if he were ready to take off at her word.

Aria narrowed her eyes. Truthfully, she did want to go home with him. She wanted to experience that euphoric feeling she got from an orgasm for the first time in too long. But she also wanted it to mean something. She didn't want to be a one and done type of girl to Noel. If they left right now, she could be. If he was willing to stay, to talk to her for the rest of the night, to work for her body, it meant he cared about her feelings and emotions. It meant he wanted it to mean something too. "Yes, but not right now. Can we…can we talk for a little bit first?"

She watched hesitation flash across Noel's eyes before he sighed in resignation. "Yeah, okay. That's fine. What do you want to talk about?"

Aria smiled. He cared. "Um…how was your week? Any crazy ER stories?"

As if Noel wasn't perfect enough in look and personality, he also had a huge heart. On their first date, he'd told her about how his passion for saving lives drove him to become an ER nurse. At first, Aria had been skeptical about his almost too perfectly crafted career story. It sounded like a typical story used for baiting women into sleeping with a man. But after a few hours with him, Aria decided that it hadn't been fabricated. He really was as selfless as he made himself sound.

"None that I can legally tell you," Noel laughed. "HIPPA would hunt me down."

"Oh come on," Aria urged, poking his knee gently. "I won't tell anyone you told me."

Noel smiled as he shook his head, "I wish I could. I'd love to tell you about the condom wrapped carrot I had the pleasure of pulling out of someone's ass on Monday morning."

"You're fucking with me. You did not," Aria's eyes were wide, displaying an equal level of disgust and intrigue behind them.

"I can't tell you!" Noel put his hands up in surrender. "I also can't tell you about the guy whose fiancé nearly bit his penis off giving him a blowjob."

"Holy shit," Aria scrunched up her nose at the image that just formed in her brain. "A carrot in the ass and a chewed up penis…they should do a 'Sex Sent Me to the ER' at your hospital."

"Oh no, the carrot one wasn't about sex," Noel corrected with an overly straight face.

Aria cocked her head to the side and raised an eyebrow, "It wasn't?" She honestly could not imagine what other reason a person would have to shove a vegetable up their butt than the logic, or lack thereof, of assuming they'd derive pleasure from it.

"No it totally was," Noel chuckled. "I'm just messing with you."

"I knew it," Aria stuck out her tongue. "God, what is wrong with people? That's seriously so gross."

"I guess some people get really bored in Rosewood," Noel shrugged. "I mean, haven't you?"

"Gotten bored? Of course," Aria nodded, picking up her drink for the first time that night and taking a long sip. It burned as it slid down her throat and sent a warmth throughout her body. She didn't drink hard liquor very often anymore, but when she did, she was reminded of how much she used to love it. The burning sensation and the almost instant buzz made her feel 16 again.

"You grew up here, didn't you?" Noel shifted so that his arm was resting on the booth and around Aria.

"Yep," Aria popped the 'p' then sighed.

"You grew up here, went to college here…have you just never wanted to leave?" Slowly, Noel's arm descended onto her shoulders, his fingers beginning to gently stroke her arm.

Aria laughed and leaned into his body slightly. "I was supposed to go to college in New York, you know, before I got pregnant with Sophie. I've wanted to live there my entire life. I thought I'd get my degree in journalism and work for the New York Times or at some big shot news station and live in a high rise apartment with my two Maltipoos, Jack and Rose. But a night I don't remember too well and one child later, it was way cheaper and easier to go to Hollis and stay in Rosewood than it would've been to try to live in New York. Maybe someday though. I don't want to stay in this town forever."

"Let me guess, Sophie's father got to live out his dreams and go to the college of his choice though, right?" Noel scoffed as if he knew the answer was yes.

Aria felt a twinge of something in her stomach. Guilt, maybe? Anger? She wasn't sure, so she brushed it off. "Uh, Matt actually stayed here. Well, I mean, not here here. He enlisted in the military and spent a great deal of time in Afghanistan before he um, died. He was good to Sophie. I couldn't complain."

"That's good, I guess. How long has he been gone?" Noel picked up his beer and took a large gulp.

"5 years." Aria followed Noel's lead and took another sip of her drink. "Sometimes it feels like longer. Other times it feels like I got the news yesterday."

"Wow," Noel nodded slowly. "I can't even imagine. I am so sorry. Does Sophie have a father figure in her life now? I mean, I've heard that's kind of important for a young girl to have."

"Yeah, my step-dad and brother are pretty involved in her life," Aria smiled slightly at the thought of the two best men in her life interacting with her daughter. "I'm lucky to have them so close."

"Sounds like it," Noel agreed. "Well, no pressure, but whenever you're ready to introduce us, I'd love to meet her."

A warmth different from the one the alcohol brought her spread throughout Aria's insides. She hadn't brought a single one of her dates home to meet her daughter, but there was such a sincerity about Noel that had her seriously reconsidering her reasons for keeping them at bay. He was right. It was important for Sophie to have a good male role model in her life, and while her step-dad and Mike were great, maybe adding a third father figure would be beneficial. Sophie could learn a lot from him. He was kind, funny, intelligent, and he was a nurse, so having him around her chronically ill child could give them a sense of comfort they've never had before. Maybe it was time to test these uncharted water.

"I know she'd like that," Aria grinned. "And she'd like you, especially because her mommy does."

Noel laughed and kissed Aria's temple. "Good. I like her mommy too."

The two continued like that for the next hour, discussing their personal lives and cuddling and growing tipsier by the drink. Aria talked about growing up in Rosewood, although she consciously left out the biggest part of her childhood to avoid any awkward questions she wouldn't know how to sufficiently answer with a buzz. And Noel listened, occasionally butting in with his own stories, but mostly keeping quiet, letting Aria do the talking, and focusing on emptying his bottle.

When the conversation fell flat due to their inability to pronounce words without slurring them, they decided it was time to go home…and by home, they meant Noel's apartment.

"Hey, hold on," Aria slurred, gripping the table for balance as she stood up for the first time since she'd sat down. "I need to pee so bad. Let me go before we leave."

"I'll go with you," Noel suggested, offering his arm for Aria to take a hold of.

Aria giggled, "You can't go in to the women's bathroom."

"Let me at least walk you to the door so that you don't fall," Noel slurred, holding out the 'l' in 'fall' for an extra 3 seconds. "I want to make sure you're safe."

"Okay," Aria shrugged, hooking her arm on Noel's and starting towards the door with the skirted stick figure.

Completely sober, the walk to the bathroom would've taken about 5 seconds. A few drinks past tipsy, the trek took almost 15, mostly because the heels she'd worn for the aesthetic were not friendly to someone who couldn't walk totally straight.

Letting go of Noel, Aria found her balance on the door as she tried to push it open. But much to her dismay, it was locked. "Someone's in there," Aria pouted. "I can't wait. I have to pee so bad it hurts." The parts of her still clinging to sobriety knew that was a gross thing to say to her date, but there were too many other parts too far gone to feel shame.

Noel furrowed his brow, then stepped to the side, in front of the door with the skirt-less stick figure, and pushed it wide open. "Just go in here. It's empty."

Aria's eyes widened, "But that's the men's bathroom."

"No one's in here. It's fine," Noel stepped inside and offered his arm once again. "Come on. I'll stay in here with you so it won't be totally wrong."

"Uh okay," Aria giggled like a giddy school girl who wasn't used to breaking the rules or using a bathroom with a urinal, two things in which Aria had done while sober.

Noel closed the door behind Aria as she stumbled to the toilet in the corner. "Face the wall. Don't watch." Aria instructed. She waited until he had done as he was told before she hiked up her dress and sat down.

Once he heard the toilet flush, Noel turned back around. Aria smirked at him as she walked across the bathroom to the sink to wash her hands. He took that as a cue to meet her at the counter. After al the touching they'd done that night, 2 minutes was a long time to be without.

Aria watched in the mirror as Noel snaked his hands around her waist, brushing over her ass as they did so. He positioned himself behind her and rested his chin on her shoulder before turning his head and placing a few kisses on the side of her neck. Aria smiled at the image staring back at her. It appeared that he was as infatuated with her as she was with him.

He continued sucking on her neck as she turned off the water and shook her hands out over the sink. Aria made a move to reach for the paper towels, but was stopped by Noel's strong grip on her.

"Noel," Aria giggled. "Let go, I have to dry my hands."

"No," Noel muttered against her skin.

Figuring he was joking, Aria threw her head back onto his shoulder and laughed loudly. "Noel, really, come on."

"No," Noel repeated, this time taking one hand from her waist and bringing it up to massage her breast.

Her body went rigid at his abrupt change in pace. "Noel, I'm serious. Let go. We need to leave."

"Why?" Noel continued to squeeze her boob, unaware of Aria's sudden discomfort.

"So we can go back to your place?" Aria reached a still wet hand down to her hip and began trying to pry Noel's strong fingers from her body, but they wouldn't budge.

"Why do we need to do that? Let's just do it here?" His hips began to grind on Aria's ass, forcing her closer to the counter, limiting her movement and essentially, trapping her.

"I told you earlier, I prefer to do this kind of stuff in private," Aria whimpered as she tried to convince her brain to sober up so that she could regain control of the situation.

"Come on, babe," Noel nipped at the skin of her shoulder. "Be adventurous for once in your life, little miss I've-never-lived-outside-of-my-hometown."

Aria's lip quivered, "This isn't about being adventurous, Noel. It's about being uncomfortable. Please stop. I don't like this."

"What don't you like about it?" Noel purred, causing Aria's stomach to flip. "It's the same thing we would've done back at my place."

"Okay, well then I changed my mind. I don't want to do this anymore. I don't want to have sex tonight," Aria said with as much conviction as she could muster. It wasn't true. She was dying to get laid, but not like this. She wanted it to be on her terms, not anyone else's.

"It's too late to change your mind, bitch," Noel hissed, sliding his hand from her waist down to the hem of her dress. "You don't get to change your mind now."

Before Aria could respond, Noel yanked her dress over her hips, exposing her thong, and essentially her ass, to him. Tears welled up in her eyes and bile rose in her throat as a terrible sense of déjà vu washed over her. The taste of liquor on her lips, the trust she'd placed in a guy she didn't think would hurt her being broken in an instant, the discomfort, the terror.

"Noel, please stop." The first tear spilled over her ducts.

He didn't respond. She felt his hands leave her body to fiddle with his belt buckle, incidentally creating enough space between her body and his so that she could turn to look him in he eyes. But in her attempt to change up the situation, her ankle gave out and sent her crashing to the ground.

There was a loud thud as her skin slapped against the tile floor, followed by a curt laugh from Noel's throat. By the time Aria recovered from the shock and surge of pain in her foot, Noel had dropped his slacks and had lowered himself down to her level.

"Noel, please don't," Aria shook her head rapidly and began scooting back towards the wall in a desperate last attempt to get away.

"Shut the fuck up," Noel spat, inching closer.

As he got closer and closer to Aria's face, she felt her world collapsing in on itself. Her chest heaved and involuntary sobs escaped her lips. Her brain whirred, inducing a nauseating feeling in the pit of her stomach. This was not the man she thought she was dating. This was not how she thought the night was going to end. What had happened to the sweet, caring man who'd inquired about her daughter in the sincerest way anyone ever had? Had the alcohol done this or was that all just an act to get in her pants? God, if it was, he deserved an Oscar for his performance.

A hand that was much rougher than it had been before clamped down on her thigh and pulled her right leg away from her left, allowing just enough space for him in between them. Aria caught a glimpse of the tent growing in his boxers and felt goose bumps rise on her skin. Once again, she felt like she'd been here before, like this wasn't the first time this had happened.

"Stop. Don't do this. Stop. STOP," Aria screamed.

What happened next was a blur.

One second Noel was on top of her, the next he was across the room, lying on his back and holding his hand over his eye like he'd been hit. Later, Aria would learn that that was exactly what happened.

A man Aria recognized, but couldn't quite comprehend who it was, helped her up and shuffled her out of the bathroom. He sat her down in a more well lit area of the bar and got her a glass of water before calling a security guard over to their table and pointing him in the direction of the men's bathroom.

Aria watched as real police officers escorted a now black-eyed Noel out of the building before having to face one herself to recount the story.

"Please, do not hesitate to call if you need anything else," The police officer said, handing a still distraught Aria a card with her name and number on it.

"Thank you," Aria whispered, unable to look the woman in the eye. She felt dirty and unworthy of consideration. Though nothing had happened, Aria still felt like all of the event of that night were her fault. She felt like she could've prevented them. If only she hadn't led him on. If only she hadn't stopped to pee before they left. If only…

"And, I'm sorry but I didn't catch your name?" The officer turned to the man who hadn't left Aria's side since he discovered her in the bathroom.

"Ezra Fitz."

Aria's heart dropped. No fucking way.

How the hell had she not recognized him? Was she that drunk? That traumatized? She'd spent 18 years of her life with that man, not to mention seeing him for the past 3 days in person. How did it not click with her? She'd thanked him. Let him hold her while she cried. Sat with him for an hour and listened to him fill in the parts of the evening she didn't quite understand. How had she been so blind?

When the officer walked away, Aria kept her eyes straight ahead, but addressed Ezra as if she were looking right at him. "Are you following me or something?"

"Of course not," Ezra leaned back in his chair. "But even if I was, aren't you glad I walked in to the bathroom when I did?"

"I'm more grateful that Noel forgot to lock the door," Aria muttered. "Anyone could've walked in."

"For God's sake, Aria,' Ezra rolled his eyes. "Can you not be civil with me for once? I just saved you from being raped in the bathroom at a bar and you're acting like I did you a disservice by even breathing the same air as you."

Aria sighed and closed her eyes. Raped. Now that was a word Aria hadn't heard in reference to herself in quite sometime. Her chest tightened. Ezra had saved her from being raped. He had saved her from Noel and here she was, being a bitch and acting like it didn't matter. But it did. It mattered a whole lot.

She hadn't known who he was, but she thanked him. She thanked him because he rescued her. She'd cried onto his shoulder even though she thought he was a stranger. She'd cried because she was scared of Noel, but grateful for her knight in shining armor. She'd sat with him while she talked to the police and listened with admiration to him explain how he found them and how he'd fended Noel off. She hadn't known who he was, but he knew her. Ezra knew she was Aria and he'd helped her anyway. Honestly, she couldn't say she would've done the same for him, but now…now she would.

"You're right. I'm sorry." A fresh set of tears pooled in her eyes. "Thank you so much for what you did. I owe you more than just one civil conversation. Is there anything you need? Money for a hotel? A job referral? Someone to buy that laptop you wanted to sell? Anything you need, I'll do for you. Well, within reason."

*Present time*

The clock on the wall ticked to 11:01 pm, officially signifying 30 minutes of silence in Aria's apartment. She and Ezra hadn't said more than necessary once they arrived back at her place from the bar and Aria wasn't sure if that made things more or less awkward between them. However, she decided against trying to start any conversation in the event that it make things worse. She'd already accidentally offered him a place to stay for the night during one conversation with him. She didn't need to auction off anything else to his charity case with her word vomit.

At the bar, this had seemed like a good idea. He saved her from Noel, she gave him a place to stay for one night. Emphasis on one night. But like a lot of mistakes Aria had made in her life, the idea had been way better in theory than in practice. Aria just hoped that Ezra was as uncomfortable as she was and would leave first thing in the morning. Although, his willingness to spend the night at her place made her think that maybe she was alone in the feeling.

"Okay, your, uh, bed is ready," Aria said as she threw the last of the spare pillows on top of the trundle. "It's not the most comfortable thing, so I apologize in advance."

"It's a place to sleep. It'll be fine," Ezra offered a small smile. "I can sleep pretty much anywhere, remember?"

She did. Ezra often got in trouble during school for falling asleep in class. And Aria couldn't even begin to count the times he'd fall asleep, head cocked at a weird angle, on an inner tube at his lake house.

"I think I'm gonna stay up and read for a bit, though," Ezra pulled a book out of the bag he'd had in the trunk of his car, ready to accompany him to wherever he slept next. Instantly, Aria recognized the cover due to the curly handwriting in the top right hand corner that defaced the original artwork. He was going to read 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'…the same copy of it that she'd given him for his 9th birthday.

"That thing is still in tact?" Aria raised an eyebrow.

"The whole series is," Ezra shrugged. "Which is surprising considering I've read it 7 times over."

"Wow," Aria folded her arms across her chest, smiling slightly in spite of herself. However, when she caught her face betraying her, she forced herself to frown. "I should get to bed."

"Okay," Ezra nodded. "Goodnight, Aria."

"Goodnight, Ezra."

As soon as Aria shut herself behind her bedroom door, another powerful sense of déjà vu overcame her body, only this time it wasn't entirely negative. She recalled the last time she and Ezra had slept under the same roof. It had been 8 years and 1 month ago. They'd been discussing books before bed back then too, only the conversation hadn't ended so abruptly. When they decided that it was time to sleep, a door hadn't been between them. Nothing but the thin layer of their pajamas had separated their bodies. And after they had said their goodnights, they said their "I love you's."

A/N: Sorry for the delay, though. I knew where I wanted to take this chapter, but I had some serious writer's block. I feel like it's not totally up to par with the other chapters, but I hope that you still enjoyed it.

Now that Ezria are civilly talking things are about to start heading in the right direction! I will tease that the next '26' chapter will be ENTIRELY Ezria, so get ready.

As always, please review. I'd love to know your thoughts and feelings on this chapter. Thanks for reading!

-Erin xoxo