Ch. 49
General POV
Aria and Ezra walked into the Chinese restaurant that was actually in the completely opposite direction from where Ezra had led them. Ezra pulled the chair out for the petite brunette as he asked her with a smirk,
"What are you going to get?"
She laughed at his question since the answer was obvious – they always got the same thing every single time. He watched her eyes light up at the humor she had found in his question as the waitress came over to take their order. Ezra ordered for them, knowing that they both would get the same thing. The way he knew what she wanted without her having to say it was one of the many things that Aria loved about being with Ezra. He knew her better than she knew herself, and she was glad that at 17 she had found her soul mate.
"What are you thinking about?" Ezra said teasingly as he took her small hand in his much bigger one from across the booth.
"Just how perfect this is," Aria said with a small smile, "How perfect you and I are together. How perfect you are."
Ezra grinned at her compliment.
"So," she began as she took a bite of her food, "Did your tattoo hurt?"
Ezra shook his head slightly before saying, "It hurt like hell, Ar."
Aria burst out into laughter, "I didn't really see you as a guy with a high pain tolerance," she said with a sly smile.
Ezra pretended to be hurt and shocked at her statement, "Aria, I am an English professor. Why would you ever think that I'm not tough?"
Aria's face was flushed from her laughter and overall happiness, "Don't worry," she said flirtatiously, "I'm going to be an English major, too. I guess that makes both of us wimps."
Ezra smiled at the girl across the table from him. Seeing how her hazel eyes were shining with tears of laughter and happiness made his smile grow larger.
"What are you grinning at?" Aria asked.
"Nothing," Ezra said as he rubbed his thumb over hers, "I'm just glad you're happy."
"I'm always happy when I'm with you," Aria said with a smile as a deep blush came over her cheeks, this time with embarrassment at revealing how she really felt.
Aria heard the bell chime at the door, signaling that someone else had entered the restaurant. She glanced over Ezra's shoulder to see who it was. Her face became stony and solemn when she saw who the woman was that entered the restaurant, and who she was with.
"Aria?" Ezra questioned slowly as he turned around to see what had made her freeze.
His eyes took in Meredith standing at the podium and waiting to be seated, and Byron Montgomery was with her.
"Aria," Ezra said softly as he turned around to face her, "Do you want to leave?"
He didn't really know what to say to her, but he figured that she didn't want to be here right now.
Aria shook her head as her mouth formed a tight line, "I want him to know that I saw him," she said fiercely.
Ezra took a deep breath as he awaited the drama and theatrics that were bound to follow.
"Aria?" Byron's voice called out in a disbelieving tone.
"Dad," Aria said bitterly.
"Aria," Byron began as he closed the gap between them, "I swear that this is not what it looks like."
Aria laughed darkly, and it made Ezra shutter, "Really, dad? There's no point in lying right now. You've been caught, and you cannot ask me to keep this a secret again," she shook her head and smiled, "You of all people reprimanded me for having an inappropriate relationship. Take a look in the mirror."
She stood up from her seat to leave and Ezra quickly motioned to get some take out boxes.
"Aria Marie Montgomery!" Byron exclaimed as horror came over his face, "Since when do you talk to your parent like that?"
"Since my 'parent' is an adulterer," Aria said as she grabbed the to-go boxes and Ezra's hand.
Ezra threw some money on the table, hoping that it was the right amount, but he didn't want to stop and count. He knew that they needed to leave. Now.
As they walked out into an unusually cold summer's evening Ezra gently touched Aria's arm and stopped her,
"Aria, are you ok?" Ezra asked softly.
He knew that she wasn't, but he also knew that he needed to ask her what she was feeling. He wanted her to confide in him and to talk to him.
Aria shook her head as the tears streamed out of her eyes. She opened her mouth to answer him, but no words came out.
Ezra nodded and pulled her into a tight embrace,
"Aria, it's going to be okay. Whatever you decide to do with the information you've gained, none of this is your fault," Ezra said soothingly as he stroked her silky hair.
Aria's small body shook against his chest as she gasped for air,
"I can't even imagine how I'm going to tell my mom," Aria said before she completely broke down again and started to sob uncontrollably.
"You don't have to worry about that right now," Ezra sad softly as he put her face in his hands and gently wiped away the tears that had streaked her pale and flushed face. "We still have almost three weeks of summer classes left, and this isn't a conversation that you want to have over the phone."
Aria nodded as she leaned her head against Ezra's chest. Her fingers gripped his t-shirt and pulled his body closer to hers.
"Come on. Let's go home," Ezra said as he wrapped his arm around tiny waist.
Author's Note:
Once again, thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed. Your comments have been unbelievably nice and inspiring. Your thoughts mean so much to me! Xoxo, PenGirl97
