I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm SO sorry that it's been so long since I've updated! This week was kinda crazy, but I'm here now! And here to talk about that episode...
I've heard mixed opinions about the premiere, but honestly, I LOVED it! I even loved the creepy music that played over all of my precious Ezria scenes! Okay, so that part is the cause of my deflated heart, as was Caleb leaving (and CRYING! When Caleb cries, the whole world cries... that was just too much, I was sobbing), but everything else (minus Toby's mom drama, which I could care less about) was spectacular. Sassy Emily snapping at everyone about her feelings was surprisingly entertaining, Evil!Ezra was GREAT, as was his scene with Mona. Oh my god his scene with Mona... that was my favorite scene in the episode, because 1) Vanderjesus, and 2) Ezbian standing UP to Vanderjesus! Also, Ezria was the most thrilling they've ever been. Every time she was with him I was screaming at my television, "NO! GET AWAY! HE'S GOING TO KILL YOU!" Scariest thing of my life. All in all, I'm really, really liking this season. Can't wait until Tuesday!
Now without further ado, here's your chapter, and it's not too easy on the feels. I was crying while writing this chapter, but not throughout all of it. One part in particular took me forever to write because I kept having to stop to cry throughout it. You'll see! But all in all, enjoy, and don't forget to review at the end!
On Friday night, Aria called up Spencer, who answered after the first ring.
"Hello?"
"Hey, Spence," Aria said meekly, leaning against the door to her bedroom as she surveyed the rest of her room. She had been working on it ever since she had gotten home from school, which was hours ago. Now, almost every single memory of Ezra was packed away in a box. Not just the pictures of him or the gifts he had given her, but also every romantic novel she had ever owned, ranging from John Keats to Nicholas Sparks. Her room looked completely deserted now, and she hated the sight, but she recognized it as something that had to be done. All of those books reminded her of the love life she sought for, and the love life she thought she had, and she couldn't bear to be reminded of that again.
If there was one thing she had learned, it was that love never had a happy ending. Ever.
"Aria," Spencer breathed into the phone, breaking Aria out of her thoughts. "What's up? Did you change your mind about coming over?"
Aria sighed, the gentleness in Spencer's voice being enough to break her heart. Spencer had invited all of the girls to sleep over at her house, but Aria had declined, claiming she had too much homework. She didn't want to deny Spencer like this, but she kept talking. "No. But I... I have something to tell you."
There was silence on the other end as Spencer processed this. "You... you do?"
Aria nodded her head on the other end, until she realized that Spencer couldn't hear her movements through the phone. "Yeah," Aria said as she willed herself not to cry.
She heard shuffling on the other end of the phone, and guessed this meant Spencer was sitting up. "Aria, are you okay?" she asked worriedly.
"... No," Aria said honestly. "No, I'm not, and I never was. Can you and the girls be over here in 15 minutes?"
"Of course," Spencer said determinedly. "Stay where you are, we're coming."
"Thanks," Aria squeaked out as she hung up the phone, a stray tear rolling down her cheek. She had quite possibly the most amazing friends in the world, and the worst part about it was that she didn't even deserve them. Especially after what she was about to do.
She just hoped that they'd be able to forgive her for it.
"Guys, change of plans," Spencer said as she hung up the phone, turning to Emily and Hanna. Both were currently on the couch, with Hanna sprawled into Emily's lap as she nursed a headache and with Emily stroking Hanna's hair. After her run in with Ezra earlier, and after learning about Mona's involvement with the A team again, Hanna was pretty shaken up.
"What?" she groaned as she sat up.
Spencer sighed. "Aria has something to tell us, so we're going over there in a little bit."
Suddenly, Hanna straightened up and out of her slouching posture, and Emily stood up off of the arm of the couch. "What did she say?"
"She didn't say anything," Spencer said honestly. "But I think she's ready to open up to us about her weird mood as of late."
"Open up?" Hanna's eyes were now the size of quarters. "That can't be good."
"Why not?" Emily asked, confused. "At least she's not shutting us out."
"But she was shutting us out for a reason, wasn't she?" Hanna pointed out. "Whatever she has to tell us, it's not going to be good. Like, what if she just found out that she's pregnant with Fitz's baby?"
"Hanna!" Spencer scolded. "That's not why she's shutting us out or what she has to tell us!"
"You come up with a better alternative then!"
"How about that her boyfriend is on the A-team?!" Spencer exclaimed obviously. "She obviously feels like she can't let anyone in right now, but based on the phone call we just had I think she's ready."
Hanna rolled her eyes as she stood up from the couch, too. "You all go ahead and keep thinking that that's all there is to it," she sneered, "but I know Aria, and based on how she's been acting, she's not just upset about that."
"What do you mean based on how she's been acting?" Emily asked. "What else have you noticed?"
"How about how she's never looked any of us in the eye since the night Spencer found her in the woods?" Hanna said. "How she never talks to us unless we initiate the conversation? Or how she's worn jeans for weeks in a row! She's never done that in her life!"
"I told you, she's upset about Ezra," Spencer said logically, but Hanna wasn't buying it.
"If that were all there were to it, she would stay at home and cry for the rest of her life," she said bluntly, "but she didn't. She chose to come to school, she chose to sit in his classroom every morning, and she is keeping something from us greater than Ezra's involvement."
"But why would Aria lie?" Emily said softly, clearly wounded at the thought of one of her friends keeping something from her.
"I'm not saying she's lying," Hanna reassured. "For all we know, she could be doing this for our own safety!"
"Well whatever it is, it looks like we're going to find out today," Spencer said as she glanced at the clock. "We should probably head over there now."
Emily and Hanna gathered their things from Spencer's kitchen, and Spencer grabbed her keys as they all headed out to Spencer's car, with Hanna being the last one out the door. "I swear if we see a baby bump in another few months - "
"Not another word!" Spencer snapped, pointing to Hanna accusatively as she headed out to the car.
"Wait, slow down," Aria said into the phone. "How many pastries did he have lined up around the room?"
"47," Aria's mother, Ella, answered back. Ella was still in Vienna, but Aria had sent an email, desperately asking if they could talk, so Ella had gone to the nearest pay phone to dial up her daughter. "It was very romantic!"
"Jeez, and this was only a date?" Aria said, impressed. She could almost hear her mother eagerly nodding into the phone. "Zach is quite the charmer."
"He is," Ella said dreamily. "But enough about me, you're the one who wanted to talk. What's going on over there? How're the boys?"
"Mike's out with friends," Aria listed off the top of her head. "And dad should be home any minute. He went to the grocery store to get dinner."
"Has he given you food poisoning yet?" her mother joked, and Aria laughed at this.
"Not yet," she answered honestly, "but it's only a matter of time!"
Ella laughed, and Aria sighed contently. It was good to hear her mother laugh. It was good to hear her mother's voice. When Ella had left for Europe, Aria was heartbroken, but she still recognized it as something she had to do. But now, she could use one of her mother's hugs.
"How about your friends?" Ella continued. "Oh! And that boy you were seeing! Is he still around?"
"The girls are doing... well," Aria lied smoothly. "But... Jake is out of the picture, unfortunately."
"Aww, honey," Ella said sympathetically. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay!" Aria said breezily. "He's not my type, anyway, so I'm not too bent out of shape about it."
"Then... why are you bent out of shape?" Ella asked uneasily, and Aria had a double take.
"What would make you think that I'm - "
"Aria," Ella said warmly, letting her calming words wrap themselves around Aria like an argyle sweater and make her feel safe... for once. "I've been your mother for nearly 18 years. I know you."
"Well, only so much can be conveyed through a simple phone call," Aria muttered, but Ella was persistent.
"You'd be surprised!" she offered up. "Tell me, sweetheart, what's on your mind."
Her mother's comfort and loyalty suddenly becoming too much for her, Aria let out a hiccupy sob, but tried her hardest to hold in her cries. She let a stray tear roll down her cheek as she whispered, "I just miss you, Mommy."
There was silence on the other end, and Ella's hesitation scared Aria for a minute, until she finally uttered, "Oh, baby, I miss you, too."
Aria sniffled indignantly as she wiped any other tears that escaped. "Wh-when do you come home again?"
"Soon, baby," Ella said softly, at a loss for words on the other end. She didn't know what happened, but she wanted more than she ever had the entire trip to be at her daughter's side, holding her close as she helped her with whatever was going on. "I won't be here for much longer. But you were the one who wanted me to go so bad in the first place, remember?"
"I know," Aria admitted, trying to say as little as possible so as not to burst into tears. "A-and I'm really glad that you're having a good time down there, but... I miss seeing you every day, you know?"
"I know," Ella said understandingly. "But I'll be home before you know it, I promise. Is there anything else you need?"
"No," Aria said softly, her voice quivering. Maybe this phone call hadn't been the best idea. It was taking a great deal of willpower not to crouch to her knees and sing like a canary about everything she had been dealing with for the past few weeks. "I... I just wanted to hear your voice."
"I understand," Ella said sweetly, but Aria thought she could hear tears welling up in her mother's throat as well. Had she made her cry? That hadn't been what she had intended.
"Mom, I have to go, but this was nice," Aria managed out, her throat dry and her tongue feeling like sandpaper.
"Alright, Aria, I won't keep you any longer," Ella said, newfound sadness in her tone. "I love you, sweet girl."
Aria pressed her palm to the speaker of the phone as she let out a shaky breath, but once she had composed herself she spoke into it again, fresh tears meeting her eyes. "I love you, too, Mom."
Aria then hung up, somehow feeling worse than she had before. She thought a phone call to her mother would be a way of encouragement for what she was about to do, but now she just felt more broken, more vulnerable.
But you can't feel vulnerable, she told herself. If you want to step out of your rank as the weakest link, you have to be ANYTHING but vulnerable.
Aria nodded to herself as she swallowed back any unshed tears and wiped away any that had already succeeded down the frame of her face. She had now taken care of the four most important women in her life, and it was time to set out.
She checked her desk, made sure her note was properly in place, and then walked out the door.
"Aria?"
The girls went up the stairs, but paid attention to every creak the wooden boards made when they went up it. The house was quiet... too quiet.
"She has to be here," Emily reasoned. "Why else would she leave the door unlocked?"
"More so than that, why else would she tell us to come here?" Spencer added. But once they got up to her bedroom and noticed her door was ajar and that every single book, souvenir, and bohemian object that made the room so Aria, was missing, they became aware of how wrong they were.
Spencer lurched forward, feeling like she was going to throw up. "Aria?" she called, walking into the room and checking into every nook and cranny, including under the bed and in the closet. "Aria, where are you?"
"She's not here," Hanna said simply, but when Spencer turned around, she saw the fear in Hanna's face. Where was their friend?
"Guys..." Emily said, over by the desk. When Hanna and Spencer looked into her face, they saw how pale she was. Her skin was almost 3 shades lighter than usual, and her chin was quivering madly.
Spencer rushed over to the desk to see what Emily was looking at, and found nothing but a piece of looseleaf, with typewriter neat handwriting scripted across the lines.
When the girls read the text, their blood ran cold.
Girls,
I'm writing this to you to say that I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I consistently put the person we most feared over all of you. I left you all in the dust to feel safe, but I was the one in danger the entire time. The worst part is you all forgave me, and it's taken me until now to apologize. But that all ends here. I'm going to make everything right. I'll see to it that this is all over.
Don't even try to stop me. I'm already gone.
I love all three of you so much. Don't forget that.
-Aria
So this is it. Aria has run off, and it looks like she's finally ready to strike. After weeks of sending Ezra threatening glances, silently warning him not to hurt her friends, she's ready to take action. What do you think she's going to do? Sound off in the reviews!