A/N: You guys asked for more flashbacks from the girls, so flashbacks is what you'll get! I'll start the chapter off with explaining the cliffhanger, and move onto the flashbacks!
One Big Happy Family
Previously:
A SOS text from Aria interrupted my thoughts.
"Time to go to Aria's." I told Caleb.
He waved goodbye, and I walked across the street.
I rang the doorbell, and Aria opened it.
"Hey Ar!" I greeted her.
"Hey." She replied.
"Why did you call me over?" I asked.
I looked over at the couch, and saw Mona.
Ch 10: Aria's Flashbacks
Hanna POV
"What the hell are you doing here Mona?" I sneered, my hand still on the doorknob.
"Hello Hanna." She replied.
"What the hell are you doing here Mona?" I repeated.
She shrugged.
Spencer, Emily, and Ali came up behind me.
"Mona?" Spencer asked.
"You're supposed to be at Radley." Ali added.
"Did they release you?" Em asked.
"Come in." Aria told us.
We hesitantly walked in and I shut the door behind me.
I sat down on the couch across from the one Mona sat in.
"What are you doing here?" Ali bellowed.
"I wanted to see you." Mona responded.
Ezra came downstairs, "What's going on?"
"Get out of my house!" He yelled at Mona.
"When did she come here?" Em asked Aria.
"She rang my doorbell, charged into the house, and sat down on the couch.
Mona still remained on the couch.
"Get out!" Ezra yelled.
Mona stood up from the couch, and Aria opened the door.
Mona walked out, and Aria shut the door behind her.
"So that happened." Spencer stated.
We nodded.
"What now?" I asked.
Everyone shrugged in response.
Aria POV:
"Well, I've gotta go grade papers." Em told me.
I nodded as all four of the girls headed out the door.
I went into my bedroom to relax, and have some alone time.
I helped the girls each decorate their homes, and one of the ideas I came up with, was a photowall for our master bedrooms. Right across from my bed, I have my photowall. Whenever I'm stressed, or confused, or bored, I just look at my photowall. There were tons of memories on it, proms, my wedding, the proposal, John's first birthday, when John was born, my birthdays, vacations, pictures from when the girls and I were younger, etc! I just stood in front of the photowall, and the picture of my wedding stood out to me.
Flashback
I stood in my wedding venue's makeshift dressing room, and stared in the mirror. My dress flowed down to the floor, and had gorgeous lace. The girls stood behind me, putting on the finishing touches.
"You look gorgeous Aria." Spencer told me.
I nodded, and replied, "Thank you."
"Alright, remember to walk through this door right here, which will lead you to Ezra, and everyone else." Emily told me.
"I'll walk through this door right here." I echoed.
"Got it." I added.
"Byron will be in here soon." Spencer told me.
'We've gotta go start things, alright?" Spencer asked.
I nodded, and the girls squeezed my hand.
Out of the 5 of us, I'll be the second one to get married. Spencer got married last year, and Hanna is currently engaged. I was so nervous, what if something went wrong or.. my train of thought was suddenly caught off.
"Aria?" Byron asked.
I turned around to see my father in his tux, standing in front of the door.
"It's time." He told me.
I took a deep breath.
"Hey, you look beautiful, okay?" He assured me.
I was so nervous, and certain that this wedding would be a blur.
Byron took my hand, and I opened the door.
Music began to play, and Byron and I moved down the aisle.
Around me, people just stared.
This 100% didn't help with the pressure, but I'm sure everyone was just excited to see how beautiful I look.
I looked around to see Ashley, Ted , Pam, Wayne, my mom, and Veronica; some of my supporters all in the front row. I smiled at them, and Pam mouthed 'you look beautiful.'
I couldn't help but grin, as I proceeded down the aisle.
There he was, Ezra Fitz, standing at the end of this area.
To the left were my best friends, and to the right, Caleb, Toby, and Wes.
There would've been an additional groomsmen, but Mike's.. gone.
The thought made me cringe.
I finally got up to the top, near Ezra, and Byron shook his hand.
My dad had really come around over the past years, and treated Ezra right.
My dad took his seat next to my mom, and I stood across from Ezra.
'You look gorgeous' He mouthed.
The comment just made me grin even more.
The minister began to speak, "We're gathered here today, to celebrate the joining of two people, Ezra Fitz & Aria Montgomery."
The minister continued to speak, but the words were all a blur until Ezra said 'I do.'
I snapped back into reality, and waited for the minister to ask me my line.
"Do you take this man, Ezra Fitz, to be your beloved husband, whom you will spend the rest of your life with?"
"I do." I told him.
"Then by the power invested in me, I pronounce you, husband and wife. Ezra, you may kiss the bride." He told us.
Ezra leaned in for a kiss, and we were undeniably happy.
Ezra slipped my ring onto my finger, and I slipped his onto his finger.
"I love you." I whispered.
"I love you too." He replied.
We linked hands, and went back inside to celebrate.
Everyone around us applauded, and my grin continued to grow.
"You and me." Ezra told me.
"You and me." I repeated.
Ezra and I sat down at the table designated for the bridesmaids, and groomsmen, along with the bride and groom. The bride parents and the groom's parents were designated to sit at the table as well. Once everyone, including other family and friends were sitting, Spencer stood up to make a toast.
"I'd like to make a toast." Spencer began, holding up her glass.
"I'm so happy to see these two today. From the moment I met Ezra, I've gotta say, I didn't expect him to be with my best friend. Ezra was our English teacher in high school, and well I just admired him and respected him as my teacher. When Aria told me that her and Ezra were together, I was shocked. This was many years ago however. After Toby and I went on dates with these two, I knew that they were soulmates. The way Ezra looks at Aria is like no other man looks at her. You can tell in his eyes, that he loves her, and would do anything to protect her. The way that Aria talks about Ezra all of the time, and the way she looks at him, you can tell these two are soulmates and lovebirds. I am so happy that these two get to spend their lives together, and share every laugh, tear, and smile. Ezra, if you ever hurt Aria, I'll break you." She announced, and paused for everyone to laugh. Soon enough, the laughter came on.
Tears formed in my eyes at the kind words Spencer said.
She continued, "In conclusion, I am so happy for the two of you, and may you have a great life together! To Ezra and Aria!"
"To Ezra and Aria!" Everyone echoed.
I wrapped Spencer in a hug once she had finished the speech, and after everyone took a sip of their drinks.
"Thank you Spence." I told her.
"Your welcome. I love you and I'm so happy for you." She replied.
I noticed that tears started to form in Spencer's eyes, so I wiped them away.
"Hey? I'm gonna be fine okay, I'm just married. No big deal. Now go ahead, and hang out with Toby." I told her.
"I don't want to lose you!" She exclaimed.
"Spencer, you'll never lose me. I promise that we'll be together forever." I told her.
I lead Spencer back to her seat, and Ezra and I headed around the grand room to thank everyone for coming. I went over to where my aunts, uncles, and cousins were.
"Thank you so much for coming!" I exclaimed.
"It means so much." Ezra added.
"I'm so happy for you!" My grandma exclaimed.
I turned around to see my grandma with my aunt in her wheelchair.
I bent down and gave her a hug, "I love you grandma."
"I love you too my sweet Aria." She nodded.
"May I have a word alone with Ezra?" She asked me, and I nodded.
I left Ezra to talk to my grandmother, and waited for him at the top.
He came back shortly, as my grandmother wheeled away to my other family members.
"What did she tell you?" I asked him.
"That stays between grandma and I." He replied.
I shrugged, and we moved onto Ezra's family.
"Thank you so much!" I exclaimed once again.
Ezra's aunt- I think- came over and gave me a hug.
"You're so beautiful Aria!" She beamed.
"Thank you!" I exclaimed.
"I'm so happy you married Ezra here, he's quite a handful." She told me.
She gave Ezra a light nudge and he chuckled.
"Thanks Aunt Marge." He told her.
"You'll have to come visit our beach house in Florida, you'll love it there!" She insisted.
"Thank you, we sure will!" I replied.
Ezra's cousins came over to me as well.
"Hey Aria!" Matt greeted.
"Hey Matt." I replied.
"I just wanted to say congratulations." He told me.
"Thank you." I replied.
"I'm happy for you Ez." He told him.
"Thanks man, I've just officially married the girl of my dreams, so I'm pretty happy myself." He told Matt.
I nudged him and blushed, "Oh stop you're gonna make me cry!"
"Sorry babe." He chuckled.
"No but he's seriously too sweet." I told Matt.
I waved goodbye to Matt, and headed back over to the table I was previously at.
Dianne came over to me, and gave me a hug.
"Sweet Aria." She cooed.
"Hi Dianne." I greeted.
"I'm so happy that my son is finally married!" She exclaimed.
"I'm also happy that he's married to you." She added.
"Thank you Dianne, it really means a lot." I told her.
"Here, I want you to have this." She told me and passed me a diamond necklace from around her neck.
"I can't accept this it's-" I began.
She cutt me off with the wave of her hand, "Nonsense. It runs in the family! It was passed down from my mother, and her mother, and her mother, well you get the point."
"I seriously can't-" I started.
She demanded, "Aria keep it. You're like the daughter I never had, I insist."
She put the necklace into my palm, and Ezra took it off of my hand, and told me, "Hold your hair up."
I did as I was told, and Ezra put the necklace on.
I admired the diamond, as I placed it in between my fingers.
"Thank you." I told Dianne.
She nodded, and I headed over to my parents.
I ran towards Ella, and gave her a huge hug.
Tears were streaming down her face.
"I'm so happy for you!" She exclaimed.
"Oh mom!" I protested.
Tears were soon streaming down my face as well, and Aria caught them.
"Baby girl, I'm so happy." She added.
Ella looked down at the diamond necklace and gasped.
"Is that from Dianne?" She asked.
I nodded, "I told her I couldn't accept it, but she insisted."
"That's awfully generous." Ella agreed.
She looked up at Ezra, and told him, "Take care of her."
Ella went off to talk to Dianne, while Pam, Veronica, and Ashley approached me.
I wrapped my arms around the women who were like my second mothers.
"We love you Aria and we're so proud of you!" Pam exclaimed.
"You look gorgeous." Ashley added.
"You did good Aria." Veronica told me with a squeeze.
"Thank you ladies." I told them.
They nodded, and went off to find Ella.
Byron came over to us, and engaged in a conversation with Ezra.
I took the moment to slip away, and find the girls.
The four girls were chatting it up at the table, and immediately stood up.
They wrapped their arms around me, and Ali cooed, "You look stunning."
"We love you Aria." They chorused.
"I love you guys too." I told them.
The chef that Ezra and I had hired; Talia found me.
"Hey Aria, the food's ready, do you want to start sending people in?" She asked.
I nodded, and Talia headed back towards the kitchen.
I found Ezra, and beckoned him to the stage.
I grabbed the mic, and got everyone's attention, "Excuse me everyone, may I have your attention? The food is ready, and I'd like to call up the first table to go get their food please." I called.
I watched the first table head off for their food, and once they returned, I called the other tables.
Ezra and I sat back down to see that someone already got our food for us.
I dug into the food, and looked at Ezra the whole time.
A voice interrupted me while I was eating.
"Excuse me." They said.
I turned around to see the team of photographers on the stage.
"May we have the bride, groom, and everyone who was in the wedding (the bridesmaids and groomsmen outside for photos please?"
I stood up, along with everyone else from my table, as we headed outside for pictures.
They had asked for pictures of Ezra and I first.
Ezra and I smiled for one, had a serious one, one of us kissing, one where our arms were wrapped around each other, and more for the next thirty minutes. Next we were asked to have a picture of Ezra and I with the bridesmaids, and we took several shots. After that, we got more of just me and the bridesmaids. Including one where the girls were surrounding me, admiring my ring. The same thing went for the groomsmen. In one of the photos with the groomsmen, Ezra, and the guys held me up bridal style.
Once the photos were done, we headed back inside, so I could toss the bouquet.
I stood on the stage, as all of the ladies gathered around behind me. I faced the wall, took a deep breath, and threw the bouquet over my head.
I spun around to see that one of Ezra's cousins had caught it, and then I sat down so that Ezra could take the garter off of me. Once it was off, Ezra did the same, and stood on the stage, throwing the garter. Wes had caught the garter, and we all cheered.
Talia brought out the wedding cake, and her and a team of chefs served it. I fed Ezra some of the cake, and he fed me some in return. I looked around at all of the ones I loved, and there was no doubt,that that was the best day of my life.
End of Flashback
I moved onto the next picture. The picture was of Byron and I together, he was lying in a hospital bed, and I was crying. This was my least favorite picture on this wall, but the last picture I took with my dad. I found out some terrible news from Byron once I got back from my honeymoon.
Flashback
I lay down on my bed in my apartment, and my phone rang.
I grabbed my phone, and saw that my dad was calling, I tilted my head to the side, and answered the phone.
"Hey Dad!" I exclaimed.
"A-A-Ar-Aria, can you come over?" My dad sobbed.
"Dad, what's wrong?" I asked.
"Can you just come over?" He asked.
"I'm on my way." I told him and hung up.
I raced downstairs, and saw Ezra on the couch.
"I've gotta go- something's wrong with my dad." I told him.
Ezra nodded, and I raced into the apartment garage.
I sped to my dad's house, and knocked on the door.
My dad opened the door, wiping his eyes, and he led me to his couch.
"What's wrong dad?" I demanded.
"Aria, darling, I have brain cancer." He told me.
"What?" I sobbed.
He nodded, "They found a tumor, it's really big. I'm only gonna live a month at the most."
"But this is a mistake! You were found the other week! Your so young- you can't have cancer." I protested.
"I do though." He told me.
"Dad this is crazy!" I sobbed.
"Aria I have cancer." He stated.
"This can't be happening." I sobbed.
"Daddy!" I cried.
I leaned my head into his chest, and he held me there for a while.
The Day of Byron Montgomery's Death
I lounged on my couch, texting the girls, and my phone went off.
I answered the phone with a, "Hello?"
"Are you Aria Montgomery?" The person on the other line asked.
"Yes?" I asked.
"Is your father Byron Montgomery?" The line asked.
"Yes. Who is this?" I snapped.
"This is the hospital that your father resides in, I'm afraid your father will die today." They told me.
"I'm on my way." I told them, and ran out the door.
I sped to the hospital, and demanded at the front desk, "I'm Aria Montgomery. I'm here for my dad."
The woman gave me a visitor sticker and told me that he was on floor D, room 206.
I went up the stairs, and raced to the room.
I found my dad surrounded by doctors, hooked up to a ton of machines.
"Ma'am you can't be in here." A nurse said.
"That's my dad!" I yelled.
A man spun around, and led me outside of the room.
"Hi I'm Dr. Ramirez, I'm your father's doctor." He introduced.
"Hi, what's wrong with my dad?" I asked.
"His cancer's bad, really bad. We've been trying everything we can, I'm afraid that your dad'll die today." He told me.
"We have to take him off of his treatment, we can't save his life." He added.
My whole world crashed down in that very moment.
"Can I see him? Is he awake?" I asked.
"Barely, he's weak, but you can." The doctor replied.
The nurses and doctors exited the room, and I headed inside.
I leaned over Byron's bed, and said "Hi daddy."
Tears began to run down my face.
"Hi Aria." He whispered.
"I love you." I told him.
"I love you too." He replied.
"Tell E-E-zra that I said- take care of her." He said.
"I will Daddy, I will." I sobbed.
"Goodbye dad." I sobbed.
"Bye Aria." He said.
All of the sudden, a bunch of machines began to go off, and the signature "beep, beep, beep" noise began to go off, signaling that he was gone.
The doctors and nurses rushed in as I dropped to the ground.
"I'm sorry Miss Montgomery." The doctor told me.
He gave me his hand, and I sat down on the bench outside of the room.
I pulled out my phone, and shakily dialed Ezra's number.
"Hello? Aria?" Ezra asked.
"He-He-He's gone Ezra." I sobbed.
"Where are you?" He asked.
"The hospital." I replied.
"I'm on my way." He told me.
The phone hung up, and I sat there on the bunch, my face in my hands.
About half an hour later, Ezra found me on the bench.
"He died Ezra. He's gone." I said.
"God." He replied and began to cry.
"What were his last words?" Ezra asked.
"Bye Aria." I replied.
"I told him goodbye." I added.
Ezra squeezed my hand.
"He-He told me to tell you- to take care of me." I told Ezra.
He nodded.
Ezra took my hand, and we took the elevator back to the main level.
"I'll take you home, we'll pick up your car tomorrow." Ezra told me.
He scooped me up, and placed me into the passenger seat of his car, and drove us back home.
End of Flashback.
Tears began to stream down my face at the memory, and I grabbed my tissue to wipe them away.
There was a soft knock on the door.
I advanced towards the door, wiping my tears away.
"What's wrong Mama?" John asked.
"Nothing baby, I just miss grandpa." I told him.
Jonathan never got to meet his grandfather, and never will.
"Don't be sad Mama." He told me.
Jonathan grabbed my legs, and I scooped him into my arms.
I sat down on the floor with Jonathan, and he pointed to a picture of him when he was an infant, when he was first born.
Flashback
I sat down on my hospital bed, and held baby Jonathan in my arms.
"What are you going to name him?" The nurse asked.
"Jonathan." I told her.
"Jonathan Byron Fitz." I finished.
"That's an adorable name!" She exclaimed.
"Thank you." Ezra nodded.
I looked down at Jonathan's beautiful face, and sighed.
The nurse headed outside, leaving Ezra and I alone.
Spencer wobbled inside of the room with Toby.
"What the hell Spence?" I asked.
"You're supposed to be in bed." I scolded.
"I snuck out." Spencer said with a 'shh' gesture.
They walked over to see baby Jonathan, and I let Spencer hold him.
"Who has Michael?" Ezra asked.
"Mikey actually." Spencer corrected.
"Veronica does." Toby answered for her.
Ezra nodded, and Spencer cooed over Jonathan.
"Jonathan Byron Fitz right?" Spencer asked, passing Jonathan back to me.
I nodded and held Jonathan.
"I've gotta get Spence back." Toby said and they left.
My phone went off, and Ezra answered it for me.
"Hello!" Ezra said and waved.
It must've been some sort of FaceTime call.
He flipped the camera and mouthed 'wave'.
I waved.
"Hey!" Alison and Hanna exclaimed.
"Hey guys!" I replied.
Alison and Hanna were both due any day now, and were on bedrest.
"We just wanted to see baby Jonathan." Ali explained.
Ezra took Jonathan and gave them a good look at him.
"He's so precious." Hanna cooed.
We nodded.
"Well, I've gotta go before Em kills me, Pam's coming over today, and Em is on her way to the hospital now. Bye!" Ali waved.
Ezra hung up the phone, and we just sat there staring at our beautiful Jonathan.
End of Flashback
I moved onto the next picture, vacation with the girls. We all went to Key West for a week together, and it was a blast. We went in our sophomore year of college, at our summer break.
Flashback
"Now boarding Flight 106 to Key West now boarding!" A woman announced.
"First class passengers first please." She announced.
I watched as the first class was called, military, special needs, etc until we were finally called. I looked around at Ezra, Spencer, Toby, Hanna, Caleb, Emily, and Alison, and we boarded the plane. I sat down in a window seat next to Ezra. A man sat down on the other side of Ezra, and looked strangely familiar.
"Hardy?" I asked.
He spun around and looked at Ezra and I.
"Ezra! Aria!" He exclaimed.
Hardy gave Ezra a hug, and Ezra looked just about as surprised as I was to see him.
Spencer and Toby leaned over the seats from behind us.
"What?" Spencer asked.
"Guys, this is Hardy." Ezra introduced.
"Nice to meet you." They chorused, and Toby shook Hardy's hand.
"Aria and I are on to our way to Key West with our best friends." Ezra explained.
"Ezra everyone on this flight is on their way to Key West honey." I pointed out.
Before we knew it, the plane took off and we talked to Hardy the whole time.
"So are you two married?" Hardy asked.
"No." I said.
"Not yet." Ezra added.
"We will be though." I agreed.
"We're a couple." Ezra finished.
"That's great!" Hardy exclaimed.
"Thank you." I nodded.
"So why are you on your way to Key West?" Hardy asked.
"Vacation." Ezra and I chorused.
"That's great." Hardy said with a nod.
"Thanks, how about you?" I asked, keeping the conversation flowing.
"My wife and I are going for a vacation as well." Hardy replied, gesturing to the woman sitting next to Spencer and Toby.
"Aw if you would've told us earlier- we could've switched seats!" Ezra pointed out.
"It's alright, I get to catch up with you guys." Hardy insisted.
"Where are you going to college Aria?" He asked.
"NYU." I replied.
"Ah, a great college." He replied.
"What are you majoring in?" He added.
"English, like Ezra." I replied.
"Following your boyfriend's footsteps." He remarked.
I nodded, and left Ezra and Hardy to talk for a little while.
I put in my earbuds, and listened to some music.
Ezra laced his fingers with mine, and I smiled.
I'm pretty sure I slept the rest of the flight, because Ezra nudged me when we were landing.
"What?" I asked groggily.
"You slept the whole time sweetheart." Ezra said.
"Oh." I pouted.
'It's alright, we're 20 minutes away." Ezra told me.
I sat up, and noticed that my phone and earbuds were already undone, and back in my purse.
I turned back towards Ezra, and he nodded.
"Thank you." I told him.
"Ah the young one has awoken." Toby murmured.
I looked through the crack between the wall and seat, and found Spencer.
"Good morning sleepyhead." Spencer joked.
"Very funny." I muttered with an eyeroll.
The plane quickly descended and we went down the runway.
"Welcome to Keywest!" The pilot announced.
We all cheered.
"I hope you have enjoyed your flight. We are 30 minutes early, which is no problem because our terminal is open. I look forward to seeing you on your flight back to Philadelphia International Airport, enjoy your stay." He added.
I grinned.
The plane took a safe stop, and Hardy stepped out into the aisle, and passed us our things.
"Thank you." I told him.
"I'll see you around." He replied.
I waited until the three of us could get into the aisle, and I got in there.
I smiled at the flight attendants and we headed off of the plane.
Once we were inside of the airport, Ezra and I pulled over and waited for the six others.
"Where do we go now?" Hanna groaned.
We looked up at the sign, and one said 'buses' with an arrow going north.
I pointed up at the sign, and told everyone "This way! We have to catch a bus!"
We ran towards the north direction, following the way to where we would get our information about the bus.
Hanna was walking so slow, that Caleb had to drag her the whole way.
"Come on Hanna!" Spencer yelled.
We reached the Bus Information desk and I blurted, "We need a bus to the Crowne Plaza Hotel."
The man nodded, and said, "You're in luck, there's one leaving right now, right out this door."
We ran outside, and the driver opened a space in the side of the bus for us to put our luggage at.
We headed inside of the bus, filing in the open seats.
I looked out the window at the beautiful sights, and arrived shortly at the plaza.
Once the bus came to a stop, I headed outside and grabbed my luggage, and waited for the others. Once everyone else got off the bus, and finally Hanna did, we grabbed the rest of the luggage.
We headed inside of the hotel, as Toby and Caleb checked in for us.
The person at the desk beckoned us towards him, and I lugged my suitcases to the desk. He passed each of us a key to the room, and told us that our room was on the second floor. We hopped into the elevator, and split up into the two rooms. The two rooms were conjoined, and there was a door that shared the rooms, and you could access the other room ,Spencer, Toby, and I headed into one of the rooms, and the others headed into the other room. Toby opened the door, and we greeted the four others. Hanna, Caleb, Emily, and Ali headed into our room, and I set my luggage beside a bed. There were two queens in each room, and a pull out couch.
"Is this how we want to divide ourselves?" Spencer asked.
We nodded.
"If we did girls in one and guys in the other, then it would be uneven." Toby pointed out.
"We could always switch it up too." I added.
"Alright, we're gonna settle in, text us when you're ready. I'm pretty sure there's a hotel tour at 5, but I would rather do exploring around the hotel as the 8 of us." Caleb finished.
Toby shut the door, and Spencer and I checked out the closet.
"Guys, come check this out!" Spencer called.
There was a decent sized closet with two racks, a row of shelving, and drawers beneath each rack. Spencer pointed to one side "This is where us girls keep our stuff," and the pointed to the other rack, "You guys can keep yours here."
"Aria and Spence can unload their stuff in here, and we'll change." Toby told Ezra.
Spencer and I headed out to grab our suitcases, and pulled them into the closet. Within 10 minutes, we had successfully hung up and unloaded our clothes. We wheeled our suitcases beside the beds, and I grabbed my outfit and bathing suit for today from the hangers.
I checked the time, it was 4:00.
The guys had finished changing and I called, "Switch!"
Spencer and I got changed in the bedroom, and then each sat on the beds, and texted the girls.
Ali opened up the conjoined door, followed by Emily and Caleb.
They joined us on the bed, and Caleb shut the door behind him.
"Hanna's still getting ready." He explained with an eye roll.
"Of course!" Spencer exclaimed.
Ezra and Caleb came out with their clothes and a pair of swim shorts under their pants.
"We'll get dinner at 5, I already made reservations." Spencer explained.
We nodded, and finally Hanna came into the room.
"I'm ready." She declared.
"Does everyone have their keys?" Toby asked, double checking.
We all nodded.
"We should go snorkeling tomorrow!" I suggested.
"That sounds like a great idea!" Ali agreed.
"Yeah, you guys know I'm in, I love to swim!" Em exclaimed.
We headed downstairs, and explored the resort.
There was a huge pool, the beach of course, and a great dining area.
As soon as we were finished, Spencer informed us that it was 4:45.
We headed to the front desk, and the woman told us that a shuttle would be here shortly.
We headed outside of the resort, and a shuttle picked us up.
The shuttle dropped us off at the 915 restaurant and we headed inside.
Spencer approached the host and said, "Hi, I have a reservation for Cavanaugh."
The host nodded, and told us "Follow me this way please."
We followed the host to a table for 8, and she handed us all menus.
Since we weren't 21, we had promised our parents to be responsible, and we ordered Cokes all around. However, Toby and Ezra could drink, but they felt bad.
Spencer, Ali, and I ordered the Organic Chicken Breast.
Ezra, Toby, and Caleb ordered the Seafood Soup.
Emily and Hanna kept it simple and ordered Caesar Salads.
"Em it's your vacation, you don't have to stay on a diet!" Ali protested.
"I know.. I was just in the mood for a salad." Em lied.
"Same with you Hanna." Caleb scolded.
"It's fine babe." Hanna insisted.
Soon enough, we had all finished our foods and headed outside.
We took the shuttle back to the hotel, and went back to our rooms.
Quickly, we threw off our clothes, and headed outside in our bathing suits.
I jumped into the pool and so did Em. I crept out of the pool and grabbed my camera.
Hanna was laying down on a chair, and Em and Caleb crept up towards her.
Caleb grabbed her head, and Em took her legs, and they threw her into the pool.
"Noooo!" Hanna screamed.
I threw back my head and laughed.
I just so happened to get a picture of the whole thing, and I put my camera back in its case. I jumped back into the pool, where an upset Hanna was.
We all surrounded Hanna and I pouted, "Come on Han. Lighten up."
I dove underwater and swam with Em.
Ezra scooped me up, and we dragged each other under.
He leaned in and we shared our first underwater kiss.
We headed back to the top where the others were.
Em began to do laps in the pool, it was huge!
I swam with her, and so did Ali.
The guys and Spencer joined, leaving Hanna in the shallow end.
I dove after Hanna, and dragged her to where we were.
Hanna smiled, and we all swam back and forth together.
Of course, Em won every time.
I went under again, and the way that the water felt on my back was amazing.
I came back to the surface and wrapped my arms around Ezra's neck.
My hair started to feel cold, so I headed back under.
Once my head bobbed back to the surface, I blurted "Thank you Spence."
"What for?" She asked.
"Setting up this vacation!" I exclaimed.
"Your welcome." She grinned.
Caleb shoved Hanna underwater, and she came back to the top with a grin.
"It's on!" Hanna screamed.
She and Caleb went back and forth and we all began to chuckle.
When Ezra wasn't looking, I dunked him under and laughed.
Laughing underwater feels so weird I realized.
Ezra dunked me as well, and the other couples were influenced to dunk each other.
"Guys.. we're the only ones in the pool." I noticed.
"Everyone's probably sightseeing." Spencer pointed out.
"Or at dinner." Caleb added.
"So this is a good time to be out and have everything to ourselves." Ali concluded.
I hopped out of the pool, dried off, and moved my stuff to a beach chair.
Everyone was still in the pool.
"Come on guys!" I yelled.
Everyone hopped out of the pool, and did the same.
I ran into the ocean, followed by Em and Spencer.
Everyone else followed, and the waves were surely coming.
I linked arms with the girls, and the guys continued to go further into the ocean.
"Be careful!" I called.
"We will!" Caleb assured us.
The girls and I jumped over the waves in sync, and it felt great.
A huge wave sent Hanna flying, and Em luckily caught her.
"I've got you Han." Em assured her.
"Thanks." Hanna said with a nod.
She shook it off, and headed back into the ocean like a trooper.
Caleb had already ran onto the shore to make sure she was okay.
"I'm good babe." She assured him.
Caleb ran back to the guys further into the ocean.
I started to swim back there, and Ezra called "Baby you're too short."
'Aw." I pouted and headed back to the other girls.
"You've gotta stick with your pack." Hanna pointed out.
"Yup I'm here." I assured them.
"Everyone in this ocean is my pack!" I exclaimed.
"Let's go back to the pool." Em suggested.
We headed back to the pool, and I jumped back in.
"Ouch that kinda burns." I sighed.
"Are you okay Aria?" Ezra asked.
"Yeah I'm good, I just hit the water a little quickly." I assured him.
Ezra nodded.
Ezra and I held each other in the pool, and we all just stayed like that for a while.
"We should go back inside." Spencer suggested.
I looked around and noticed it was pretty dark, and I nodded.
I dried off my clothes, and threw my coverup back on.
We headed back inside of the hotel, and Em and I whipped out our keys.
We opened the doors, and headed inside.
We all decided to hang out in Em's room, and we just sat there and talked the rest of the night.
Around 10, I headed back to my room.
We did shifts again, the guys changed first, and then we changed.
Ezra and I got into our bed, Spencer and Toby got in theirs.
"Goodnight!" I announced.
"Goodnight!" We all chorused.
I leaned over to the bedside table and turned off the lamp.
The Next Morning
I awoke to see Spencer, Toby, and Ezra getting out of bed.
I looked over to see that it was 8:32 am.
The breakfast closes at 10, and I ran to get my clothes on.
Once I was changed, Spencer, Toby, Ezra, and I headed downstairs.
Ezra grabbed us a table for four, and I headed around to get my food.
I made a Belgium waffle, had bacon, hashbrown, and an egg omlette.
I sat back down at the table, and dug into my food.
I looked around but couldn't spot Caleb, Hanna, Em, and Alison.
I leaned over towards Ezra and asked, "Where are the other four?"
"They woke up early, Em wanted to get extra pool time in." He replied.
I nodded, and Spencer and Toby sat down with us.
"Did you guys wait for me to wake up?" I asked.
"We woke up about 15 minutes before you." Toby replied.
I nodded my thanks, and finished my food.
"Spencer found a place for us to go snorkeling at 11." Toby told me.
"Awesome thanks Spence!" I exclaimed.
"No problem." She nodded.
I threw away my food, and headed out the door.
I ran into the ocean to find Ali, Hanna, and Caleb talking.
"Good morning!" I greeted.
They waved in response.
"Where's Em?" I asked.
Ali pointed to the pool.
"Ah." I blurted.
I saw Spence, Toby, Em, and Ezra approach.
They gestured for us to go up to them, and we did.
"If we want to go snorkeling, we have to catch the bus now." Spence told us.
I nodded, dried off, and we headed outside.
We boarded the bus, and headed off to go snorkeling.
Once we arrived at our location, Spencer thanked the driver, and we headed out to the shore. A catamaran was in the shallow end of the ocean, along with an instructor.
"Hello!" Spencer called.
The instructor waved in return.
We all headed up towards the instructor, and Spencer told him, "I'm Spencer Cavanaugh."
"Ahh Mrs. Cavanaugh, yes I spoke to you on the phone. Hello." He replied.
"Alright, let's get snorkeling! I'd like you all to split in half, my other friend is right over there with his catamaran. He gestured to the other catamaran and the man." He finished. We gathered around and decided that Hanna, Caleb, Ezra and I would go with the other guy, and the others would go with the man who Spencer spoke with.
Hanna, Caleb, Ezra, and I headed towards the other man.
He greeted us, Caleb, and Ezra took one side of the catamaran,, and we took the other side.
We headed far out into the ocean and went as far as the man would let us.
We dove off the catamaran, and our wet suits smacked against our bodies.
I looked over at Em, Toby, Spence, and Ali, and waved.
I looked down to see turtles, sharks, fish, and all kind of beings. We headed throughout the water together, us 8. It was quite amazing, when we were finished, we hopped back on the catamaran. The two instructors had been so kind as to take us around in their boat a little while longer, since we were finished. After the catamaran ride, Spencer thanked the men, and we walked across the street from the beach. We all stood there, waiting for the bus to come back.
"That was amazing." Em sighed.
We all nodded.
The bus swung around, and it dropped us off at the hotel.
We all headed back into the pool to relax.
End of Flashback