This chapter, I'm not going to lie. Was really hard for me to write. I had sent it over to Sarale, my BETA she amazing and wrote so much extras. So please lets thank her for this. THANK YOU THANK YOU TAHNK YOU!

So on a second note, I have seen the Much Music promo for PLL, and I must say I didn't like it. It seemed rushed and I don't know, but I think it's just because it didn't have any Ezria. :(

Also, Does anyone know when they usual send out the sneak peeks? I am dying to see those. But as for now, please read on and don't be afraid to leave a comment.

Aria's POV:

I sat in my classroom trying to work while waiting for Mom. It's been three days since meeting with the girls and four since I've last spoken with Ezra. We seem to be playing phone tag: every time we've called one another it seems like we've just missed the call. Today was a boring and frustrating day. It was the last day of administrating finals and a week away from summer vacation. Vacation is in the air and it's hard for everybody to concentrate.

But that wasn't the cause of my frustration. It started with my mother and ended with Charles. Charles was being a bigger pain in the ass than usual. One would actually think that we were still dating and having relationship problems. Reality is that we aren't dating and we don't have relationship problems. The only problem here is that Charles can't let go. He doesn't want me to leave which caused a fight. I can't continue living like this being pulled between two men; I am going crazy. Without Charles' knowledge I'm looking for an affordable apartment in my spare time, which unfortunately I don't have that much of so as of now I'm still living with Charles. It seems that nothing was going my way.

"Aria, are you ready?" My mother asked walking into my classroom with a hand full of papers.

I closed my eyes and rubbed slow circles around my temples, trying to relieve some of the tension. "Mom, have you talked to Mrs. Fitz?" I opened them up to see my mother arching an eyebrow. "I was just wondering if you are in touch with her."

She nodded her head. "I spoke to her a few days ago. Why do ask?"

I sighed as I gathered up all my stuff. "She didn't answer when I called her yesterday. I just wanted to know how things are."

Mom smiled. "Well, she said something along the lines of visiting. But that was just it."

I nodded and took some of the stacks of papers from my mother. She smiled warmly at me in lieu of thanks before I closed the door behind us. Since my father wanted me over for dinner tonight my mother offered to pick me up from school and drop me off at home later. She never really told me the reason behind that; just that she didn't want me driving late at night.

We walked into the house just in time to see my father whispering to someone about calling them back later. I gave him a quizzical look, instantly suspicious. Being that I had kept secrets for years I knew exactly what someone looked like when they were hiding something and my father had that look on his face. I placed my purse down on the table near the door.

"What's going on, Dad? You're pale."

He shook his head. "I'm fine, just one of Mike's old friends asking if he could crash here for a night or two. I told him I needed to speak to your Mom about it first and that I'd call him back later,"

My father answered and gave my mother a kiss before turning to me. "How were finals?"

I rolled my eyes. "Can we please not talk about school? I feel a major migraine coming on and I just want something hard to drink."

"Aria, if you do have a migraine coming on alcohol isn't going to help. I'll get you some aspirin," Ella interjected.

Byron smiled at Ella. "A little something won't hurt. Do you want anything in particular?" He asked going over to his liquor cabinet.

"No." I sat down on the couch and crossed my legs, leaning back. "So which friend?"

"Huh?" He turned around confused.

Yep, something was definitely up. "You said one of Mike's friends wanted to come over, which one?"

"Oh, that's right. Yes, um Kevin, Kevin Mitchell."

I knitted my eyebrows and looked over at my mother who just walked back into the living room with the pills and a glass of water. "Who's Kevin Mitchell?"

She and my father exchanged looks before she shrugged it off.

Anger flared instantly. They were keeping something from me, I knew it. "Mom? Dad? What is going on here? What are you guys keeping from me?" I yelled.

"Nothing, nothing," My mom said in a very unconvincing tone. "We just wanted to have a family dinner, why are you being so paranoid?"

I hated when she did things like, shifting the blame onto me. As if I was the one acting strange being paranoid, as if here and my Dad were acting completely normal. I mentally shrugged, too tired and hungry to put up a fight. I'd get whatever this was out of them a different time.

The next couple of days were ordinary and passed in a blur. I had finally gotten through to Ezra but he said he was driving and couldn't talk. I frowned when he told me that and wished that he was right beside me. I yearned to speak with him. I needed his calmness, his clarity, to help me through my emotional turmoil that living with Charles was putting me through.

"Charles, we need to talk," I announced fiercely when I walked through the front door. Even without Ezra's help I was determined to clear things up once and for all. "This is getting out of hand."

He looked at me from his position on the couch, confusion written on his face. Though, I couldn't really be sure how he felt. All these conversations started to feel like a game where I played the part of the vicious ex-girlfriend, and he played the part of the innocent and wounded ex-boyfriend. And believe me, he was an excellent player. "What? What is getting out of hand? The fact that you're dating my cousin? Or that fact that you expect me to be happy about it?" He hissed. "Because as far as I know, you and Ezra will get the fairy tale ending, while I'm going to rot away here all by myself."

He played the wounded part to perfection. I was tired of his games but didn't know how to change the rules. I gave him a genuine hurt face, "Is that what this is about? You being left alone? You're going to mope around all the time, making me feel guilty?"

His whole demeanor changed; he became more aggressive. Suddenly I was frightened. "In a way it is."

He stood up and stalked over to me. I backed up until my back was against the door of the apartment. He stood over me, his hands pressing against the door on either side of my face, effectively trapping me. He leaned his body in against mine. I could feel his chest pressing uncomfortably against mine.

"Charles, stop! What are you doing?"

"Stop, what are you doing?" he sneered, mimicking me.

I could feel the sexual tension radiating off of him. Terror overtook me. Ezra was right, my Mom was right; Charles was cracking right in front of me. He leaned down and kissed me roughly on the lips. I closed my eyes briefly as his tongue prodded against my lower lip. My stomach churned and I resisted the urge to vomit. Whatever we used to have was gone now, destroyed. Using whatever strength I possessed I pressed my hands against his chest, pushing him off of me. He stepped back; his eyes flashing.

"Damn it, Aria?" he yelled. "Why are you doing this to me? Don't you remember what we have? Don't you know that I love you? How can I prove my everlasting love to you?"

I took a shaky breath and violently shook my head. "That's where you are wrong," I spoke quietly. "We had," I emphasized the past tense. "There is nothing between us anymore. Your love is irrelevant. You doing that," I gestured between me and him, "You just ruined everything."

Charles blinked a few times as if coming back to himself. He rubbed his face. "Oh my God, Aria, I'm so sorry. I don't know what came over me. I didn't mean to hurt you, I swear, I just wanted to remind you of the good times. Oh God, I just screwed everything up, didn't I?" He rubbed the back of his neck and then without another word he exited the apartment.

Charles' POV:

I can't believe I just did that. I can't believe I lost control like that. I never ever intended to hurt Aria. I never thought I would or could be that person. Aria doesn't deserve it. If I'm honest with myself I know that Aria is working so hard to keep both me and Ezra happy. I'm the one being an idiot moping around, trying to keep Aria close to me, and hoping in vein that she'll come around.

I've been acting like an immature jerk. I've got to man up and face the truth. I've got to get a life and move on. I should get another apartment. Wait, no, if Ezra's plan works out then there's no need. That's it. I'm going to help Ezra and make sure his plan comes to fruition. I'll do exactly what he told me.

I should go back and apologize to Aria. She probably hates me now; she'll probably never forgive me. Not that I deserve it anyway.

I had been walking aimlessly but now I headed back towards our apartment building. I stopped in my tracks when I saw Aria on the front steps, head in her hands, sobbing. Oh God, it's entirely my fault. I can't go back now and face her. I turned on my heel and walked away figuring that I'd let her calm down before I go back.

Ezra's POV:

This was the longest drive I had ever taken and I have done some road trips but nothing as extensive as this. This drive was for me to get a handle on my thoughts, this is where I could think uninterrupted and without being judged.

I had a plan, a secret plan. I thought about what I was really going to do once I get into Rosewood. I thought about how I was going to do it, and when I was going to do it. I thought about my cousin and how our awkward conversation over the phone just before; I had roped him into the plan but he understandably hadn't been very enthusiastic. There was something in his voice that I couldn't place. Remorse, maybe?

I was about five minutes away from the Montgomery house when Aria called me again. That was twice today. I cursed silently; what bad timing. I knew I couldn't ignore her again so I answered but with a sigh.

"Aria, what's up?"

"Where are you?" She asked worriedly. "You said you were going home. I called and you didn't answer."

She sounded choked up; was she crying? "Relax, Babe. I am right around the corner." Little did she know that I meant it almost literally. "What's wrong?"

I heard her suck in a breath, "I really don't know what we're doing anymore. Everything is falling apart. Nothing is going right. My parents are hiding things from me, my boyfriend barely speaks to me, and my friends are miles away. And Charles… he… I don't even know…" She was crying really hard now, unable to string together a proper sentence.

"Aria, hey, Aria, breath." I shook my head and lifted up a finger when I saw Ella on the porch walking down to her mailbox. "We are only a week away from summer vacation. I promise I will be there for you!"

"I want to break up."

My eyes went wide at the sound of those words.

"This is just too much for me to handle."

"Aria, stop," I rubbed my face. "You are being really irrational right now. Why don't you just go and have fun tonight. Think about yourself for once and stop trying to please everyone. I know you don't want to end our relationship because of Charles. Please, don't say things that you'll regret later."

"I have to go." Her voice was cold.

"Aria, Aria," I yelled into the phone but she already hung up. I moaned and redialed but she didn't answer. I waited for the voice mail to pick up and left a message. "Aria, please. We have worked so hard to be with each other. Don't give up just yet. I promise I will make everything work, I promise."

Aria's POV:

I threw my head back and let the tears fall freely. I was sitting outside on the steps leading up to my apartment building. I felt awful about what happened, too awful to go back inside. The shock of what Charles had done was starting to wear off and instead I just felt exhausted. I was too weary to even be angry at him. I was tired; tired of working so hard to please everyone. I was seeing that it doesn't work anyway. Things have never been so hard, so difficult. Not even when I was being stalked. This situation that I am torn in two is so much more.

Forget it, I thought. Screw Charles and screw Ezra. After hearing over and over what Ezra had said on my voicemail I had finally, given up waiting. I decided what I needed was to get out so I could forget about the messy situation I was stuck in. I called my friends from work and asked a few of them if they were free. Three of them said yes and the other two that I had called, already had plans. But even with three I am more than grateful.

I wearily climbed the stairs up to my apartment to shower and get ready. I was glad that Charles left because right now I could not deal with anything. It was already nearing seven when I was heading out the door and to my car. I know I shouldn't be driving in this state of mind but I really didn't feel like paying for a cab especially when the bar wasn't too far away.

I saw my friends standing outside the entrance as I pulled into the parking lot. I smiled and waved at them as I got out of my car. It was good to see and spend time with people that were completely oblivious and uninvolved in the drama.

"Hey Aria," Arnold and Sammy said in unison. They both laughed when I looked at them with a raised eyebrow.

"I asked Ashley if she wanted to come too. I thought she would have been her by now."

"She's inside," Sammy answered, "It was getting pretty crowded so she went in and saved a table."

I nodded and looked around the parking lot before Sammy linked her arms with mine. She started to pull me towards the entrance and I grabbed Arnold's hand pulling him in with us. We looked around from the door and saw Ashley, sitting in a corner booth, talking with some guy. We all looked at each other and shared a laugh as we approach the table.

Ashley looked up at the sound of our laughter before rolling her eyes. "Please, this is my cousin. Jordan, this is Aria, Arnold, and Sammy."

"Hi," the three of us said at the same time.

"So, are you joining us?" I asked taking a seat.

"No, my friends are all at a table waiting for me. I just thought I would say hi before I was too wasted," he replied. "But I will see all of you later," he winked at me before giving Ashley a kiss on the cheek.

Our night was slow. At first we talked about school and how our finals were going. Then we talked about summer plans and that's when I had changed the subject. Talking about summer plans made me uncomfortable because mine were so indefinite. Things began picking up speed after a while, well after quite a few drinks.

As our night ended I had to call my mother to come pick me up. It was now two in the morning and the bar was closing. I was too wasted and unable to drive so the bartender told us to either take a cab or call someone to pick us up. I ended up calling Ella,

"I can't believe this Aria, what were you thinking?" She yelled as I stumbled into her car.

"Mom, stop yelling," I rubbed my face. "I needed to get out. I took Ezra's advice." I felt like an idiot blaming Ezra but I didn't want to tell my Mom about what Charles had done, especially when I was so drunk.

She shot a glare at me for a few seconds and then turned back on the road. "You're a responsible adult, why are you drinking like a college student?"

"Everything is falling apart," I whispered, "My life is a mess right now. I need to get out of my apartment. Can I just stay with you and dad for a few weeks?"

She sucked in a breath. "That's not a good idea right now. Remember we have a guest staying in your -"

"What?" I cut her off, "Whom?"

"Aria, it's not a big deal. You can stay over on Tuesday; he'll be gone by then."

"Whatever, just tell that 'PERSON' not to touch my stuff." I leaned my head back and closed my eyes realizing that I would have to go home tonight and confront Charles.

She smiled and nodded. "Will do. Please be careful," she told me when she parked the car and I opened my door to get out." I will pick you up tomorrow morning. We can go get your car."

"Okay, Mom and thanks."

Ezra's POV:

I walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. At first, it was a bit awkward for me to be staying in a house that once shunned me. But after a while I started getting more comfortable because by now Byron and Ella were so warm and welcoming. We stayed up late chatting, until Aria called and asked if Ella could pick her up. Of course I wanted to go, but couldn't because that would ruin everything that we were working at.

"Morning," I chimed, "How was Aria?" I asked Ella,

She shook her head and walked over to the coffee pot, "Bad," was all she said.

I sighed. "Maybe I should just go over there? I mean, I feel like I'm lying to her."

Ella let out a short laugh, "Because you are, in a way."

I nodded and took a sip of my coffee, "So I was thinking maybe I could start apartment hunting today."

"If you find one are you really going to take it?"

"I think so. I never thought I would go back but if it means being able to be with Aria then that's what I'll do."

"Ezra," she placed a hand on my shoulder. "Do what you think is right. If you want to come back to Rosewood High then come back. Don't do it because you know that it would put you and Aria on the right track."

I looked at her confused, "I thought you wanted me to be with Aria?"

Ella nodded picking up her keys. "I do, but Aria would never forgive herself if she thought you're only staying to make her happy. All she cares about is you and your happiness; she won't see it unless it's her way."

I nodded, silently agreeing. Ella waved and left. I put my empty coffee mug in the sink and took a deep breath, ready to face my ,hopefully, eventful day.

So what did you all think?