Chapter Nine
Breaking the News
Aria
"You sure you're okay?" Ezra asked as he dropped me off at school.
"Yes," I chuckled. "I'll be fine. I'm just grabbing my school stuff and some more clothes. I'll see you in an hour or so."
"Okay," he sighed.
"Ezra, I'm okay. Becca can help me get stuff to my car and I'm fine to drive. It's not like I'm driving back to Rosewood. It's a fifteen-minute drive across town. I'll live," I promised.
He just nodded, looking like he wasn't entirely convinced. I kissed him goodbye and got out of the car. I was staying with him until we left to go back to Rosewood for the holiday. It was partially for my benefit because I'd need help with stuff like changing the bandage on my arm and because his bed was a lot more comfortable than the sack of sawdust in the dorm room. But mostly it was for his benefit. What Mr. Thomas had done to me had thrown him for a loop, big time. He didn't want to let me out of his sight any more than he had to. While I thought it was a little much, I knew he was coming from a good place. And that he'd calm down after some time had passed. This weekend had helped a little, but he still wasn't entirely convinced that I really was okay. So I hadn't pushed back when he had asked me to stay with him.
"Aria," Becca said as she gave me a hug the second I walked in the door. "Are you okay?"
"I'm getting there," I said truthfully. "Ezra took me out of town for the weekend and that actually really helped. I am going to stay with him this week though. I think he's having a tougher time than I am, and I can't change this bandage on my arm by myself. Besides, his bed is a lot more comfortable than the one here is. And my back still hurts like hell."
Becca chuckled. "I had a feeling you'd end up staying with him through the break. I got all your textbooks and binders packed up for you."
I smiled. "You're the best. Thank you. I just need to grab some more clothes then. And my camera. I don't really want to leave it here unattended."
"That's understandable," she said as she went to grab a duffel bag from the bottom of the closet. "Here. I imagine bending over doesn't feel so great right now."
"Nope," I chuckled as I started packing. "Definitely not."
"So where did you go over the weekend?"
"St. Augustine, Florida. Just a few hours south of here."
"My parents took us to Disney once and we stopped there for a couple days. I remember loving it."
"Yeah, I loved it too," I said.
Friday night had been one of the best nights of my whole life. Really, this whole weekend had been incredible. Ezra had managed to turn what could easily have been some of the worst days of my entire life into some of the best days of my life. He seemed to have a knack for that.
"Okay, what gives?" Becca asked. "Going out of town after getting assaulted by a professor should not lead to that smile."
"You know, between you and Ezra, I can't have any secrets at all," I giggled. "You're both creepily good at reading me."
"So, spill. What's up with your smile?"
"Um...well, we talked this weekend. And he said that what happened to me made him not want to wait anymore. So, unless my parents kill him when we talk to them over the break, it looks like we're getting married this summer."
Becca jumped up and hugged me too tight. She was clearly thrilled at this news.
"Ow!" I laughed. "Remember, bruised spine?"
"Sorry," she giggled. "But I'm so happy for you. Hopefully I'm invited."
I laughed. "Invited? You're going to be up there with me."
"Seriously?" she asked, sounding completely surprised.
"Why is that such a shock?" I asked. "You're one of my best friends. I can't imagine getting married without you there."
"Even though you haven't actually asked me to be a bridesmaid yet, I'm honored," she said, hugging me again.
"Do me a favor and don't say anything to Jordan or Kendra, okay?" I asked. "I want to tell them myself."
"I won't," she promised. "It's not my place anyway. You're the one who's getting hitched. Now, I hate to ruin the mood, but I need to tell you something."
"What is it?"
"Um, apparently Mr. Thomas didn't take a deal. Your case is going to trial, along with all the rest of the charges against him. He's being represented by one of the best defense attorneys in the state. The police came here looking for you after they went to Ezra's and you weren't there. Asked me to have you call them."
"Why didn't they call me themselves?" I wondered aloud. "My phone was on all weekend."
"I asked them not to. When they said you weren't at Ezra's, I figured you'd probably gone somewhere to decompress. I told them I'd have you call them when you got back. Here's the number."
"Yeah, I'll call tomorrow after exams," I sighed. "God, I've seen way too many courtrooms in my life. I was hoping to avoid another one."
"What do you mean?" Becca asked.
"I don't want to talk about it, but just Google my name and Rosewood, Pennsylvania. There's a few different newspaper articles and some news footage that'll come up. I'll answer any questions you have, but I just don't have the energy to tell you everything right now."
"Okay," she said. "I'm not going to Google anything though. You can tell me when and if you want to."
"It's not that I don't trust you," I promised. "I do. I want to tell you. I'm just too tired and I'm still processing this. I can't go back to that place right now."
"I know," Becca told me. "And it's okay. You take all the time you need. Just know I'm here and when you're ready to talk about anything, I'm ready to listen. I'm not going to judge you and I'm not going to push you to tell me anything you don't want to."
How had I gotten this lucky? I had some incredible friends here in Savannah. Friends who didn't judge me and didn't push me to tell them anything I didn't want to tell them. And I had the world's most amazing fiancé. And it was for real now. We were actually getting married. Despite most likely having to testify at Mr. Thomas's trial, my life was pretty great right now.
"Thanks, Becks," I said. "I hate to be this person, but I'm tired and still in pain. Can you help me get my stuff down to my car so I can get back to Ezra's?"
"Yeah, of course," she said. "I'll see you tomorrow. Maybe we can have lunch after Psych before you take your English exam?"
"I'd like that," I said, smiling.
It seemed like Ezra had a huge weight lifted off his shoulders the second he saw me in his parking lot. He'd literally stayed in his car and waited for me. Hadn't even bothered to go upstairs. And he just stood there in the freezing cold holding me tight for a few minutes before taking my bags out of my car and going inside.
"So, apparently Mr. Thomas didn't take a deal," I said as I sat down on the couch. "The case is going to trial. I guess the police came here and to the school looking for me. Becca told them I'd gone somewhere for a few days and asked them to let me call them back when I got back. I have to call them after my Psych exam tomorrow."
"And here I was hoping we might avoid another courtroom," Ezra sighed as he sat down and handed me a cup of hot cocoa. It was too late for coffee, but we needed something to help us thaw out. It was below freezing outside.
I had to smile at the word "we." It wasn't even a question. Ezra was going to be in that courtroom with me. But it worried me. He'd already missed several days of work because of me. I wasn't sure how the principal would feel about him taking time off to go to the trial.
"I know. Me too," I told him. "But I'm kind of glad the other girls get a shot at justice too. Rather than him accepting a plea bargain and being out of jail in a few years. I just wish I didn't have to testify. I hated testifying at Charlotte's trial."
"You'll be fine," he assured me. "All you have to do is tell the truth. He can't hurt you anymore. And you know you're not going to be alone in there, right?"
"I know. But just promise me that if it's between going with me to the trial and keeping your job, you'll keep your job. Jordan is going to have to testify too, so I won't be alone either way. Okay?"
"Aria—"
"Promise me," I cut him off. "I want you there and it means the world to me that you're being so supportive, but I'm not going to let you lose your job over me again. Do you know how awful I felt when my dad got you fired from Hollis? Not just because I thought I was going to lose you. Because I felt responsible. I'm not going to let that happen again if I can help it."
Ezra smiled. "Okay, I promise. But you realize I knew what was going to happen from the second I turned down that job in New Orleans, right? That was my decision."
"Which I pushed you into."
"Maybe," he chuckled, pulling me into his lap. "But I still have no regrets. Because I meant I got to keep you. Is it weird if I say the night I got fired was one of the best of my life?"
I smiled and kissed him. I knew why he'd said that. And I was right there with him. It was one of the worst nights of my life because I'd thought I was going to lose him. But it was the first time we'd slept together, and that made it one of the best nights of my life. I'd never realized it ranked so high with him though.
"No, it's not weird," I said. "Me too."
He kissed me again and squeezed me too tight. I winced and pulled back.
"Sorry," he said immediately.
"You and Becca tonight," I teased. "You both seem to have forgotten that my spine is bruised. I'm all for hugs, but seriously."
Ezra chuckled and kissed the tip of my nose. "I take it you told her, then?"
"I wasn't going to until we told my family, but I forgot that your mind-reading skills seem to have rubbed off on her," I said. "She knew I was keeping something from her within two minutes. Which means I give Jordan about five minutes."
"Five? You're being generous. I give her three minutes," he teased.
I laughed. "Okay, look, let's get my arm wrapped up. I need to take a shower and get to bed. I do have two exams tomorrow. They're the easy ones, but still."
"And I'm going to be bored out of my skull all day administering mid-terms," he chuckled. "Which means I'll probably be trying to find affordable wedding venues in Rosewood. We do kind of need to book one soon."
"Don't you think you're putting the cart before the horse, doing that before we even talk to my parents?" I chuckled.
"No," Ezra said. "Frankly, talking to them is just a courtesy. While I'd like their blessing for your sake, I'm good doing this with or without their approval."
"So am I," I agreed. "Though it would be nice if they were on board with it."
Ezra
Aria looked like she would have rather been just about anywhere other than on her parents' front doorstep a week later. While I couldn't necessarily say I blamed her, it was doing nothing for my already shaky nerves. It would be the first time she'd seen them since everything happened. And we were (well, I was) about to have a pretty uncomfortable conversation with them. We'd talked about this on the way here and agreed to just get it out of the way on the first day. Then we wouldn't be trying to hide it for the whole trip, and we could actually try to do things like put a deposit down on a venue while we were here. Might as well take advantage of the three weeks we had here in Rosewood.
"You ready for this?" I asked.
"No," she sighed. "But I don't have a choice. Let's do it."
She took a deep breath and knocked on the door. Her mother answered within thirty seconds, which I thought was strange since she didn't live there. But then, she'd known we were coming today. And it made things easier for me and Aria, not having to have the same conversation twice.
"Aria," Ella said, giving her daughter a hug. I could tell before Aria even said anything that it was way too tight. Her back was still on the mend.
"Ow, Mom," Aria said, backing up and wincing a little. "Take it easy. My spine is still bruised."
"Sorry, sweetie. How are you other than that?"
"I'm good," she said. "See, my arm's pretty much healed. Still kind of hurts but I'm just glad I got to stop using the gauze wraps a few days ago. Taking exams with my left hand was awful."
Ella chuckled, then turned to me and gave me a hug. "And how are you holding up, Ezra?"
"I've been worse," I said. "Just glad Aria's on the mend."
"Well, come on in, guys," she said. "Coffee's fresh."
"It's like you don't know us at all, Mom," Aria teased, chuckling. "Where's Dad and Mike?"
"Digging the Christmas tree and decorations out of the basement. Figured you guys could help us decorate today."
"Us?" Aria asked as she poured two mugs of coffee.
"Yeah, I moved back in," Ella said. "What that means for your father and I, I'm not quite sure yet, but I'm back here. The lease on my apartment was up last month and they were going to almost double the rent. It was your father's idea that I come back and live in the guest room."
"Well, if you guys are getting along without wanting to kill each other, I think it's great," Aria told her.
"So far, so good," she said. "I'm going to go make sure they're not trapped under boxes or something. They've been down there almost twenty minutes."
As soon as Ella left the room, Aria turned to me and handed me one of the coffees she'd just poured.
"And she couldn't tell me that over the phone because?" she chuckled.
I chuckled a little too. "Beats me. Makes it easier for me though. I only have to have one awkward conversation instead of two."
"I can handle telling my mom as long as you talk to my dad," Aria said.
"Great. Give me the hard job," I teased.
"Honestly, I think he'll understand. If you talk to him one-on-one and explain yourself, he'll see where you're coming from. Maybe."
"Or maybe I'll walk out of here with a black eye and a broken jaw."
"No, that'll happen when you tell my brother," she giggled.
"Tell me what?" Mike asked as he walked into the kitchen and came to give his sister a hug. "Hey, Aria. You okay?"
"Getting there," she said. "Maybe about seventy-five percent."
"Good. I'm glad. Mom told me the case is going to trial."
"Yeah," Aria sighed. "I have to start prepping to testify when I get back. Not looking forward to that. Can we talk about something else? I don't want to spend the entire holiday talking about my photography professor."
"Sure," he said. "We can talk about whatever you guys were going to tell me that's going to make me punch Ezra in the face."
"Um…I think we should tell Mom and Dad first. Can you be patient for a couple hours? And if it's all the same to you, I would really appreciate it if my fiancé left here with his face intact today."
"Thanks for that, babe," I chuckled, kissing her head.
"No promises," he teased. "Seriously, though, I can keep a secret. Tell me."
"And what happens when they walk back in here while we're in the middle of the conversation?" she countered. "Not happening."
"Damn you and your logic," Mike laughed. "No wonder you're maintaining a 4.0 GPA. Do you even have a life in Savannah?"
"Yes, I have a life," Aria chuckled. "Sometimes it revolves around keeping my grades up so I can keep my scholarship, but I have a life. And I have fun."
"Hopefully not too much fun," Byron said as he came into the kitchen.
"What's that supposed to mean, Dad?" Aria said as she hugged him. "I like to think I'm a pretty responsible person."
"No, you are," he agreed. "You doing okay, kiddo?"
"Getting there," she sighed. I got the feeling she was getting tired of saying that.
Hopefully her entire extended family hadn't heard about this too. Otherwise she'd be spending all day on Christmas telling everyone that she was okay, but still on the mend. Though hopefully we'd have some happier news to share with them on Christmas.
"How are you holding up, Ezra?" Byron asked as he gave me a somewhat reluctant hug.
"I'm good," I told him.
"I don't think I've ever been gladder that you were down there with Aria than I was a week and a half ago," he said. "Thanks for taking care of her."
"You don't need to thank me," I told him. "I've never been surer of my decision to move down there with her than I was that day. It's where I'm supposed to be. Look, do you think we can find some time to talk later? Alone?"
Considering that my stomach was already in a knot and we weren't even talking about this yet, I was surprised at how calm I'd sounded.
"Of course," he said. "But first, want to give me a hand putting this tree together?"
"Absolutely. Put me to work."
"I think Mike's glad you're here now, Ezra," Aria laughed. "That's usually his job."
"Which I will happily relinquish," Mike chuckled. "You two have fun with that."
A couple of hours later, the house was decorated and the tree was trimmed. And now it finally felt like Christmas. This was going to be the second Christmas in a row that I hadn't spent with my family, and I couldn't have been happier about it. My family had always gone overboard for Christmas, but it felt like a show. It was never this warm and genuine. The more I got to know my future in-laws and the more they accepted me into their family, the more I liked them.
"Ezra, you wanted to talk?" Byron asked me when we were done.
Aria looked at me, I guessed trying to determine if I was okay to do this by myself. Part of me did want her with me for moral support, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized she was right. This conversation needed to be one-on-one. I took a deep breath.
"Yeah," I said. "Is there somewhere we can speak privately?"
"Sure," he said. "My office is right there. Top off your coffee and come on in."
Aria followed me to the kitchen.
"You okay?" she asked me.
I smiled. "I'm good. Having a little trouble breathing, but I'm good."
"Do you want me in there with you?"
"No," I told her. "I mean, I do, but I think you're right. I need to do this myself. Besides, you have to talk to your mom and your brother. Seems like your dad and I just gave you an opening."
"That you did," she said, giving me a kiss. "Good luck."
"Thanks," I chuckled, and turned to join her father in his office.
"So, what did you want to talk to me about?" Byron asked as he shut the door and went to sit down on the couch next to me.
I took a deep breath and turned to face him. I tried to figure out where to start, and I decided just to go for it.
"Look," I started. "When I got the call at work that Aria was in the hospital, I think I aged ten years in one minute. I'd found out literally two days before that the same professor who hurt her had…well, actually succeeded in his attempts with other students. I'd met one of the students, the daughter of one of my colleagues, and she'd talked to Aria the day before she was assaulted. But despite Aria trying everything to make sure she didn't end up in a position where he could hurt her, he managed to get her into the position anyway. I literally have no words to describe how terrified I was that the same thing had happened to her. I've never been so glad that she and I broke up and she dated Jake for that month than I was that day when I found out that she was able to fight him off."
"I can imagine," he said.
"I've kind of gone off on a tangent," I chuckled nervously. "I guess my point is, what happened made me not want to let Aria out of my sight ever again. And I'm not going to turn into that paranoid nut who never lets her go anywhere or do anything without me, but it did make me stop and think."
"And you don't want to wait to get married anymore," he finished for me.
I sighed. "No. I don't. And I'd like to get your blessing."
"As long as Aria promises to finish school and keep her grades up, you have it," Byron said, squeezing my shoulder. "I had a feeling this was what you wanted to talk about. Because if it was me, I'd feel exactly the same way."
"I promise, I will make sure she finishes school and keeps her grades up," I told him. "There's nothing I want more. I'm more than happy to support her for the next three years so she doesn't have to work and go to school at the same time or take out more student loans than necessary. It'll be my debt to pay off, too, and I'd like to minimize it as much as possible. I'm still paying off my own student loans too."
He chuckled. "In that case, you have my full support and blessing to marry my daughter. I appreciate your courage in asking me. Especially given our history."
I laughed a little. "Thank you."
"So, are we going to be attending a shotgun wedding while you're here?"
"No," I laughed. "That wouldn't be fair to Aria. We were thinking of having the wedding here in Rosewood over the summer. So you and her friends can be there. Easier for us to fly her few close friends from college here than for everyone to come to us down there."
"That sounds perfect. And Ella and I are more than willing to help however we can. I hope you don't mind me talking to Aria in private for a minute, though."
"Of course not. She's your daughter," I said as I got up and headed to the door. I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
"Do you mind sending her in here?" Byron asked when I opened the door.
"Not at all," I told him, and headed to the living room.
Aria looked at me quizzically when I walked into the room, as did her mother and brother. I guessed they were all trying to figure out how the conversation had gone, and my face wasn't giving anything away. I wasn't purposely trying to hide anything, but I also didn't want to say anything to Aria before her dad had a chance to talk to her.
"He wants to talk to you for a minute," I told Aria, kissing the top of her head as I sat down.
She took a deep breath. "Okay."
"If I survived talking to him, I think you'll be fine," I said as she stood up.
Aria looked a little like she thought she was heading to her execution as she walked into her father's office. And as soon as the door shut, Ella turned to me.
"Well?" she asked. "How did it go?"
I sighed. "As long as Aria promises to finish school, he's good with having a wedding here this summer. And there is nothing I want more than for her to finish school and keep her grades up. I'll make sure it happens. He said he had a feeling that was what I wanted to talk to him about, because if it was him he would have felt the same way."
"So you look like someone just ran over your puppy because? This is not the face of a man who's getting married this summer."
I smiled and chuckled a little. "I just didn't want to say anything to Aria before her father had a chance to talk to her."
"Well, I think Mike is a little too excited about writing the world's most embarrassing toast," Ella said, clearly trying to lighten the mood.
I laughed. "Now that, I am very much looking forward to. If Aria lets him anywhere near a microphone."
"Man to man, you've got to help me with that," Mike said.
"I think your sister will have something to say if I do," I chuckled. "I'd prefer to start off my married life on the right foot. With her not wanting to kill me."
"Or you could start everyday married life right off the bat," Ella teased. "You might as well get used to it."
We all laughed, and Aria and Byron emerged from his office. Apparently he hadn't had too much to say to her, because that had taken all of two minutes.
"Why do I feel like you're all plotting something?" Aria chuckled.
"Mike's trying to involve Ezra in his nefarious plans to hijack the wedding toasts, but Ezra's having none of it," Ella chuckled. "Said he'd prefer to start off married life with you not wanting to kill him."
"Well, I'm glad to hear that," Aria said as she sat down next to me and put her head on my shoulder.
"What can I say? My survival instincts are kicking in," I teased, kissing her hair.
"You're a smart man, Ezra," Byron chuckled. "No one can hold a grudge like Montgomery women."
"So you're saying you're okay with this, but now you're trying to scare him off?" Aria giggled.
"It's going to take a lot more than that to scare me off," I assured her, tilting her chin up for a kiss. "Face it. You're stuck with me for life."
Aria
I walked into Spencer's barn a couple of days before Christmas with my hands full of gifts for my friends and trying to figure out how to tell them about the wedding this summer. And about the fact that I'd been thinking long and hard about it, and I just didn't feel right asking one of them to be my maid of honor, so I'd decided to ask Becca. I'd talked to Ezra about it to make sure he was okay with me having so many bridesmaids, and he said he was good with it. He was fine having Mike, Caleb, and Toby as groomsmen to even things out a little.
It almost felt like it had been too easy with my dad a few days ago. When Ezra had sent me into his office after they got done talking and literally the only thing my dad was concerned about was whether I felt forced into this wedding, I'd almost fainted. After I assured him that I didn't, that it was my decision as much as Ezra's, he'd told me that as long as I promised to finish school, he had no issues with us getting married this summer. Ezra and I had already talked about that too, and he'd told me (and my dad, apparently) that he was happy to support me for the next few years so I could concentrate on school. I'd brought up getting a part-time job (which I'd already been considering before this anyway), and he'd all but plugged his ears. He wasn't hearing it. He'd said that school was only going to get more difficult and time-consuming, and that there was no reason why I needed to work and go to school at the same time.
"Aria," Emily said the second I walked in the door of the barn, hugging me before I could even set the gifts I'd brought down. "Please say you're okay."
"I'm okay, guys," I promised them. "My back is still healing, but other than that I'm great."
"Thank God for that," Alison said, waiting for me to set down the gifts before hugging me in turn. "God, I was so worried when you called me."
"Well, if it hadn't been for Ezra, you all would have gotten a group text. It was torture telling the story so many times," I said.
"We all appreciated the phone calls, though," Hanna told me as she hugged me. "You sure you're okay?"
"I promise I'm fine, Han," I sighed.
"Thank God you had Ezra there," Spencer said as she gave me the last hug of the group. "And thank God he thought to take you out of town for a couple of days."
Well, there was my opening.
"Yeah, about that," I said. "Um, let's sit down. I have something to tell you guys."
"About Ezra taking you out of town after your professor assaulted you?" Emily asked, clearly confused.
"Yes," I sighed. "Um, we talked that weekend. And he told me that what happened made him not want to wait anymore. So we're getting married this summer."
"Show of hands, who saw this coming?" Alison said, raising her hand.
The other three shot their hands up immediately.
"Yeah, bit of a foregone conclusion, weren't we?" I chuckled.
"Just a bit," Spencer teased. "So, where is it happening? Here or in Savannah?"
"Here," I said. "Easier to fly my three closest friends from college here than it would be to fly everyone from Rosewood down there."
"I know I'm not the only one who's curious to know how exactly he asked you what you thought about moving the wedding up a few years," Hanna giggled.
"You sure you want to hear all the sappy details?" I asked.
"Duh!" she said.
I told them everything, about him whispering "marry me" right into my ear and making me melt into a huge puddle, about the conversation we had about it, and then about his crazy stunt re-proposing in the middle of downtown St. Augustine.
"Wow, where is this place and what are they putting in the water?" Spencer said. "I think I need to plan a trip there with Toby. Apparently it's so romantic that Ezra felt the need to propose again."
We all giggled like we were back in high school.
"St. Augustine, Florida," I told them. "And it is home to the Fountain of Youth, so I'm not entirely sure what they're putting in the water."
"Well, Caleb and I clearly need to plan a trip too," Hanna chuckled. "Don't worry, we'll stop in Savannah on the way down."
"You better," I laughed. "So, that being said, I have something very important to ask all of you. Will you be bridesmaids in my wedding this summer?"
"Oh, my God, of course," Alison chuckled.
"Absolutely," Emily said, grinning from ear to ear.
"Yeah, what they said," Hanna giggled.
"Ditto," Spencer agreed.
"I do have to tell you guys something, though. And I hope you won't be too mad at me for it," I started.
"What would we possibly be mad at you for?" Emily asked.
"Well, I've been doing a lot of thinking about who I want to be my maid of honor. And I love all four of you so much that I literally can't choose between you. So I decided not to. I'm going to ask my roommate and best friend in Savannah, Becca, to be my maid of honor," I said hesitantly.
"What about Jordan?" Spencer asked. "You've told us a lot about her too."
"I'm going to ask her and Becca's girlfriend Kendra to take the pictures," I explained. "Kendra's an amazing photographer too, and I'd rather have people who know me and Ezra capturing the day on film."
"Well, I for one can't wait to meet Becca in person," Emily said. "She seems like such a sweetheart. Jordan and Kendra too."
"They're all amazing," I agreed. "Becca has been so awesome from day one. I couldn't have gotten luckier with the random roommate assignments. I was just hoping I'd be able to tolerate my roommate. I had no idea she'd turn into one of my best friends. And Jordan and I clicked the first day we met in our photography class. When Mr. Thomas started acting so weird towards me, she tried never to leave me alone with him. Which worked great until it didn't."
"I can't wait to meet them either," Hanna said. "Okay, so are we doing presents sometime soon? I'm super excited to give you guys your gifts."
"Yeah, same here," I said. "I can't wait for you guys to see what I got you. So you're all really okay with me asking Becca to be my maid of honor?"
"You've been living with her for a semester," Alison said. "And you two have been through a lot together this semester. I'd be surprised if you didn't ask her."
"Yeah, I'm just glad you didn't just throw us to the curb completely," Spencer teased. "And now that this has happened, I totally see where Ezra's coming from. I can't wait to be there when you get married."
"Thanks, guys," I said, smiling. "So, let's do presents. Who's going first?"
I walked back into the hotel room a couple of hours later to find Ezra looking bored out of his skull reading a book.
"Hey," I said as I walked up to the couch.
"Hey," he said, pulling me down onto his lap. "Have fun with your friends?"
"Yeah," I said. "You look like you've been sitting here watching paint dry since I left. I feel bad for abandoning you now."
He chuckled. "No, I've only been watching paint dry for half the time you were gone. I was reading Ulysses for the other half."
"Finally finish it?" I teased.
"Nope," he shot back, giving me a kiss. "So, either you're not telling me how your talk with them went because it went terrible or because you're drawing out the suspense."
"Well, who says it's not both?"
"Seriously? It went that bad?"
"No," I laughed. "They saw it coming from a mile away and were thrilled to be asked to be bridesmaids. Though why they ever thought I wouldn't ask them is beyond me. And they were fine with Becca as my maid of honor. Ali even said she would have been surprised if I hadn't arrived at that decision. But seriously, are you sure you're good with me having so many bridesmaids and using my brother and my friends' boyfriends to even it out a little?"
"I told you before, I actually did bond with Caleb and Toby over losing our minds trying to find you girls for three weeks. And Mike's going to be my brother too. So I'm more than good with it. I'm a little confused as to why your bridal party isn't even larger, actually. What about Jordan and Kendra?"
"Well, Kendra is actually a pretty amazing photographer. Every bit as good as Jordan. So my plan was to ask them to take the pictures. I'd rather have people who know us well doing that than people who are just in it for the money."
"I have no idea why I even had to ask you that," he said, shaking his head. "I should have known. At least about Jordan. And it's brilliant. I'm sure they'll be thrilled."
The ear-to-ear grin on his face literally had not disappeared since we'd talked to my dad the day after we got here. And neither had the light in his eyes. It was pretty stinking adorable how excited he was about starting to plan our wedding.
"If I didn't know better, I'd say you were getting excited about this," I teased.
"Now what in the world would make you think that?" he shot back. "The fact that I'm starting to plan my wedding with the love of my life?"
"No, the fact that your eyes have been lit up like a little kid on Christmas morning and you've had an ear-to-ear grin on your face ever since we talked to my dad a few days ago. It's pretty adorable, actually," I said, smiling.
Ezra laughed and kissed me. "Is it?"
"It is," I giggled, kissing him again. "And for the record, I'm getting excited about it too. Now that I know my best friends here don't want to kill me for asking Becca to be my maid of honor. Which I haven't even done yet."
"Good," he said, grabbing his tablet from the table next to him. "Because I actually wasn't watching paint dry while you were gone. I was looking at venues. You up for seeing what I found?"
"Absolutely," I said, resting my head on his shoulder.
Ezra squeezed me a little tighter and kissed my forehead before pulling up the information on his tablet. And really, the prices weren't nearly as bad as I'd thought, especially on relatively short notice. I'd already told him I wanted an indoor venue. No way in hell was I about to get married outdoors in the dead of summer. He'd agreed with me. Outdoors would have been even worse for him because he'd be wearing black.
He'd actually been really busy while I was gone. Even made some phone calls and seen what dates were open. Looking at what he'd come up with, it looked like we were looking at mid-to-late July for a date. I didn't want to do it in June, because I wanted to be able to have some time to get back up here and do some last-minute planning and such. I'd feel too rushed if we picked a date in June.
The entire Christmas break seemed to fly by, and we actually did get a lot of planning for the wedding done. We'd settled on a wedding date, put a deposit down on a venue and a caterer, and I'd talked to the girls and my mom about coming to visit in Savannah for a weekend so they could meet Becca and go dress shopping with me. We settled on a weekend in mid-February, and I'd even texted Becca to make sure it would work for her too.
Before we knew it, Ezra and I were getting back into his car to head back home. Strangely enough, Savannah already felt like home to me. As nice as it was to come up here and see everyone, it was even nicer to be going back to Savannah. I was really looking forward to seeing Becca and Jordan and Kendra again. And even to getting back to school. Though after having spent almost a month living with Ezra, it was going to be rough going back to the dorms. He'd admitted it would be rough for him too and reminded me that I still had a key to his place.
Becca was already in the dorm room when I got back, with Kendra. Kendra had brought Becca home to meet her family over the break. While Becca's mom was making progress accepting this new side of her daughter, her father still wasn't budging. I'd offered that if Becca didn't have anywhere else to go, she could come home with me and Ezra, but I'd been thrilled when Kendra invited her to go back to Maryland instead.
"Hey," Becca said, giving me a hug. "How was your Christmas?"
I smiled. "Amazing."
"That's all we get?" Kendra chuckled.
"Fine. Ezra and I talked to my parents, set a date for the wedding, and put deposits down for a venue and caterer. This is really happening," I giggled.
"That's awesome," Becca said.
"Um, Becca, I have something I need to ask you," I told her. "And you too, Kendra. I was hoping Jordan would be back already, but I'll talk to her later."
"Talk to who later?" Jordan said as she knocked on our doorframe.
"Um, no one apparently," I chuckled, getting up to give her a hug. "Have a good Christmas?"
"Yeah, great. You?"
"Great. Okay, what's with the ear-to-ear grin? I mean, I know you're happy to see me, but this is something else."
"Aria and Ezra set a date and put deposits down on a venue and caterer while they were in Rosewood," Becca said before I could. "It's official now. They're getting married this summer."
"Oh, my God!" Jordan said, hugging me again. "That's amazing!"
"Thanks," I giggled. "Come sit down. I have something to ask all of you. Actually, I'm going to start with you and Kendra. I feel like a jerk for not asking you two to be in my bridal party, but in the interest of trying to keep it from getting out of control, I'm limiting my bridal party to five. Which is already one more bridesmaid than the number of groomsmen Ezra has. And I have another job for you guys. It would mean the world to me and Ezra if you two would be our photographers."
"I'd be honored," Kendra said immediately.
"Ditto," Jordan agreed. "I'd love to. I was actually going to ask you if you had a photographer yet."
"We'll pay you both, of course," I said.
"Oh, no, you won't," Kendra shot back. "Consider this my wedding gift to you guys. I'll literally flush any money you try to give me down the toilet."
"I'm with Kendra," Jordan said. "Don't even think about trying to give me any money. Just maybe let me use a couple of the best shots in my portfolios when I start applying for jobs."
"Okay, then. Thank you guys," I chuckled. "Now, Becca, I was trying to find some creative way to do this, but I didn't do anything creative for my friends in Rosewood, so I'm just going to ask you. Officially. Will you be my maid of honor?"
"Oh, my God," she said, starting to cry. "Seriously?"
"Seriously," I laughed.
"Absolutely. Yes. I would love to be your maid of honor," she giggled.
I hugged her. "Thank you. I can't wait for you to meet the rest of my bridesmaids when they come in February. You're going to love them. And Kendra and Jordan, you'd better not be planning anything the weekend after Valentine's Day. Because you're coming with us to shop for wedding dresses and bridesmaid dresses."
"I'll make sure my calendar is clear," Jordan chuckled.
"Me too," Kendra said. "Seriously, Aria, I'm so thrilled for you. Your face could light up a stadium right now. Oh, speaking of clearing calendars, you didn't tell us the wedding date."
"That would help, wouldn't it?" I giggled. "It's July 20th. I'll let you guys know when I need you there as soon as I figure it out myself."
"How about if we just plan on being there on the 10th?" Jordan suggested. "That'll give us plenty of time to have a bachelorette party and a wedding shower too."
"Yeah, that works," I agreed. "Oh, my God. This is actually happening, isn't it?"
"Darn right, it's happening," Becca chuckled. "You're getting hitched in six and a half months."
