"Are you okay?"
"Of course." she smiled.
"You seem a little zoned out." Spencer chuckled.
"I was just thinking about last night." Well, it wasn't a lie.
"Ooh, you and Mr. Fitz." Hannah wiggled her eyebrows, elbowing Aria playfully.
She chuckled "Shut up Hannah."
Her words lacked their usual amusement they always had when she playfully scolded Hannah.
"What did you guys do that was so memorable?" Spencer grinned. She hadn't been the most supportive of the relationship but she seemed to be okay with it recently. Aria's smile quivered at the thought.
"Stop it guys, she probably doesn't wanna share it right now." Emily spoke up, a shy smile dancing on her lips as well. She was just as curious as the rest of them but Aria was glad she was putting an end to the conversation, she didn't know if she could go on with it any longer.
"Well, at least tell us he treated you well. No girl deserves any less than the most extravagant dinner for her one-year anniversary." Hannah said.
Aria's smile froze in place.
"Yup. It was special alright." the girls didn't seem to notice the sarcasm lacing her response which was perfectly fine by Aria.
The conversation mercifully switched to Hannah's struggle to get an A in calculus and the others suggesting a sleepover which Aria had mechanically agreed to.
Their get-together ended as quickly as it began when they realized that it's getting too late for their parents to be okay with them staying out. Never mind that Aria had stayed up even later last night without her parents' knowledge.
She was glad to be able to walk back home alone and think about things for a while, but upon parting ways with her friends she suddenly felt lonely. The streets of Rosewood, she remembered, weren't kind to the lonely individual walking home in the night.
Nonetheless, she swallowed her fears, a lump forming in her throat as she walked down the sidewalk. Why hadn't she organized a ride home? Just about anyone would be welcome right now to stifle the increasing loneliness she felt. She started thinking about how foolish they all were, casually walking home alone as if nothing was happening. They all desperately tried to ignore the lingering threat of 'A' who had recently gone MIA. The suspense was probably the worst, they knew 'A' is still out there, watching, but they didn't know when they would strike.
Aria had had her own surprise last night, but she didn't want to alert her friends about it, not yet. She didn't want to believe it herself, but there it was, right on his laptop. It's like he wasn't even trying to hide it. And that's what worried her.
-Was it all intentionally left there for her to see? Was she walking into a trap?... Did she make a mistake deleting what she saw?
The sudden noise of a car passing by made her jump. It's just a car, she assured herself.
But the car stopped and its window rolled down. She felt her heart drop when she saw who was inside.
"Miss Montgomery!" Ezra Fitz waved at her.
She formed a shaky smile.
"Hey Mr. Fitz!" her stomach twisted upon her words. How could she have been so stupid?
"It's pretty late for you to be out by yourself this late. Do you need a ride?" the tone of his voice was casual, friendly even. Just a benevolent teacher helping out his student.
But a glance in his eyes and she saw the order behind his words. Get in now.
Despite her hammering heart and shaking hands her voice was steady when she responded "I'm okay thanks."
He frowned, just a worried teacher is all. His eyes were hard to look at as she could see the discontent that would have, not only days ago make her heart ache and have her obsessively apologizing. Now she just remembered all the times he'd use that frown she'd labeled "adorable" to his advantage.
"It's pretty scary out here, are you sure?" his eyes portrayed a warning she didn't care to listen. To hell with him, she would go home by herself.
"Yes, I'm good on my own." she tried to sound decisive but her voice wavered at the end.
"Alright. See you at school." he rolled up his window before she could pretend to care and wish him a good night the way a polite student would.
She didn't realize how tense she was until he left and her shoulders seemed to relax. She let out a breath and her steps felt lighter as she walked onwards.
Still, a creeping fear gnawed at her. Should she have done that? Maybe she should have just listened to him and went in the car. He'd driven her home many times, why would this one be any different?
She glanced back a couple of times. Almost there, just one more street and she'd be home where she could lock herself in her room, pull the curtains and bury herself with blankets. That sounded great and she hurried her steps, anxious to finally get away from this eerie evening.
The beep of a text from her phone was loud in the silence of the night and it startled her. Holding her breath, she pulled out her phone. She didn't dare stop to read the text, instead doing it along the way.
You shouldn't have deleted those folders Aria.
The number was blocked, there was no 'A', no nothing. But she knew it was him. He knew what she did.
Her breaths became faster as her mind was plagued with thoughts of what he'd do to her if he caught her. 'A' was scary enough up until that point, but had never gotten violent. Would he?
She clumsily stuck her phone in her bag and sped up even more on her way. Her high heels clacked against the pavement and she considered taking them off for a second but decided against stopping for a longer time.
Her phone beeped again and after a moment of internal struggle she opened it again and nearly dropped it from the shaking of her hands.
Stop.
She didn't bother using the bag this time, instead gripping the phone in her hand as tight as she could.
Another beep.
She kept walking.
Another beep.
She shakily unlocked her phone to turn off the sound but her eyes caught the texts displayed on the notification wall.
I said stop.
You're being very disobedient today. I think we're gonna have to fix that.
Her lips trembled and she bit down on them so as to not cry. She couldn't, not when she was so close. So close to home where her parents would -
She froze. The reason she got away with her date last night was because her parents were at her grandmother's funeral. On the other side of the country.
She stopped walking to take a deep breath, fighting the upcoming panic attack. What could she do?
Hannah. Hannah lived close by. Kind of.
She'd have to turn back to get there and walk all the way back. All the way down the lonely street she just walked through. And who knows if Hannah's mom would even let her stay? Maybe she'd close the door on her for distracting Hannah on a school night. Mrs. Marin was usually nice but Aria didn't want to believe anyone for sure anymore.
Glancing around herself uneasily, wondering why she was stupid enough to stop to think when she was sure she's being watched, she took off towards Hannah's house.
The streets were empty. Rosewood is a small town and people usually go to bed early, especially after the recent party at Noel Kahn's place that was busted. Luck was not on her side.
Upon turning a corner, she was met with Ezra and almost screamed at the surprise.
"Oh my god!" she panted, putting her hand over her heart to calm herself down even though she knew that wouldn't happen.
"What are you doing here?" she tried to smile but ended up looking uncomfortable.
"I stopped to grab a coffee." he smiled.
"Wh-why would you turn back? You were just heading in the other direction."
The look in his eyes made her regret asking him and she began fidgeting in her spot. She really should get going.
"I was always driving this way. Don't you remember?" he asked "I was going to turn back for you."
She thought back to when she saw him. She was pretty sure he was heading in the opposite direction. Wasn't he? She would remember that…
"You're probably just tired." he put a hand on her forearm and Aria flinched.
"Why are you heading this way? Did something happen?" he dropped his hand, looking disappointed at her rejection.
She gritted her teeth and forced herself to look him in the eye, expecting his usual pleading look that would inevitably coerce her into feeling sorry for him. The look she saw surprised her. She was expecting him to be at least agitated by her confusion or refusal to go in the car with him earlier, but he only seemed concerned.
"No, I just got a text from Hannah, she wants me to come over." she glanced around them uneasily, the street was empty.
Shifting in her spot she decided she shouldn't be wasting more of her time.
"She's waiting for me, I should really go."
"Aria." goosebumps crawled down her spine at the way he said her name.
His voice matched the glare she saw in his eyes and it made her want to run as fast and as far away from him as possible.
He's been angry before, but she never feared for her safety at those moments. He would scold her and hold against her something good that he's done for her that week to guilt her into apologizing. Like the time she tried to surprise him in his apartment. It started out with her giddiness to do something nice for her boyfriend and ended with her blaming herself for the idea and comparing herself to how great he was to her while she pulled crap like that.
"I'll see you tomorrow." she mumbled, pushing past him, but no sooner did she feel his tight grip on her shoulder.
"I will take you there." it wasn't a request like earlier, this was an order. Her skin crawled as she touched his hand, removing it from her shoulder and turned to face him. That same hand was, only a day ago, running down the length of her body, over her mouth, stroking her hair... She almost gagged thinking about it. Thinking about how she was so stupid to let him manipulate her, deceive her... And how stupid she was to fall for it.
"No I-"
"Nonsense, my car is right here." he grasped her hand and tugged her along with him to the car, his other arm around her shoulders.
She shook like a leaf, brainstorming ideas to get out of the situation. Her legs could barely hold her the closer she got to the car. There was no one around to call for... They were so close to the car now. A few more steps...
A whimper got stuck in her throat and she abruptly stopped, surprising Ezra.
"Aria?" he turned to look at her questioningly.
She opened her mouth to say something but no sound came out. She was glued to her spot. She didn't know what she wanted to do, but she did not want to get in that car.
"You look scared." he never let go of her hand, but he took a step closer to her "What happened? Please talk to me."
For a split second she wanted to hug him and tell him everything so they'd laugh about it later. She wanted things to go back to how they were, only... They never really were as good as she remembered. Her hug would be a non-consensual invitation for him to start kissing her. Her confession would provoke the usual "mock berating" from him where he would tell her that it's okay to be scared, but not by such foolish things, only kids were ever scared of foolish things. He would be sweet and kind until he made an off-hand comment about her age or her issues. 'It's so easy to complain about grades when you don't have taxes.' And of course, she wouldn't mind, after all, he loves her right? He would do anything for her.
"It's really nothing." her voice was hoarse and she had to stop and clear her throat, afraid of the weakness it might have shown him "I think I should walk, I could use some air." she smiled sweetly at him, her smile close to wavering.
She felt the grip on her hand tighten. She hasn't felt that anger since he got jealous of Jason that one time. He hadn't hurt her, but she could feel how angry he was. He had almost slapped her but his decision to not do so made her think that he cares. He's just jealous because he cares about me, she used to think. He's so angry because he doesn't want to lose me.
She didn't think so at the moment, when his angry glare did the talking. She was almost certain he would push her in the car whether she wanted to or not, there was no one there to stop him. He could knock her out and she wouldn't even have time to scream.
When he reached forward with his other hand she flinched away. Her mind was screaming at her to leave as fast as she can.
"I'm going." she took a step back but his grip on her hand didn't ease, the intense stare focused on her.
"Let go of me." she put as much strength into that demand as she could.
"You're scared of me." he took another step closer.
Aria's breathing accelerated and she relentlessly pulled her arm, trying to get it out of his grip.
"N-no." her answer came out in a whimper.
He reached forward again and once again she moved her head away, but this time he didn't put his hand down. He grabbed onto her head and forcefully pulled it closer to him.
"Why are you afraid of me Aria?" his tone was dark and threatening. It wasn't a question; it was yet another order to answer. She'd heard plenty of those, disguised as favors and "things that girlfriends are supposed to do" -something she wouldn't know because she's so inexperienced.
They never made her fear him, but some of them were questionable enough to make her uncomfortable or doubting. But after every one of her favors, he would give something back, a date, a gift, something that would make her feel good about the whole thing because, he respected her as much as she did him. She hadn't noticed that pattern until a few months ago when her rather forced task of waiting for him in his apartment for five hours while locked inside was rewarded by yet another piece of jewelry and a night out in the next door town. She had plans that day, she had a family lunch she'd been looking forward to, but Ezra had insisted that it was the least she could do for him after all the risks he'd taken for them. So she waited, growing more and more worried with every passing minute. She'd lost her key to his apartment a few days prior to that so he had locked her in- just so no one was able to break in he said. She foolishly waited only for him to come late at night, have an unwanted grope while kissing her and then ask her to leave with a lot of insincere apologies. She now knew it was just another one of his games, a test to prove her loyalty.
"I'm -" her breath cut off when she saw his other hand that was until very recently grasping onto her hand move back.
He smiled in amusement causing her stomach to roll over.
"I was just closing the door." he pushed the car door shut and resumed his position, grasping her already bruising hand.
"Now, I hope you're not lying Aria. Because this could have very serious repercussions." he spoke very quietly, deliberately stroking her hair back and away from her face as she shivered against his touch. She didn't want his hands on her, and if she was being honest to herself, she never really did.
Even during all those dates with the two of them cuddling or making out, there was something about the way his hands always roamed over her body that was just a little too harsh to be considered loving. But as with all the other signs, she just brushed it aside as her being jittery and inexperienced. She'd confronted him once, when he got just a bit too aggressive during their making out and he had apologized. He was very nice after that, pampering her the whole day and always being extremely gentle. Then the next day it was as if nothing had happened, he was back to undesired groping, aggressive kisses, hands freely roaming her body even if she didn't really feel like it that day. But she'd let it slide, she was supposed to enjoy it, that's how couples worked and she just wasn't used to it.
For a moment, she was ready to respond with confusion, but she was getting sick of pretending, he clearly knew what was going on and her playing dumb only made it more fun for him. She kicked him in the groin, something he clearly didn't expect, and pushed him off her, running in the direction of Hannah's house. How long would it take? Five, maybe ten minutes? She's never thought about counting the time to Hannah's house.
She wasn't sure how she would be able to run further with her heels or her lack of stamina. Spencer was always damn right, she'd told her to participate in gym class, but Aria almost always had some 'girl problems' that the coach was too quick to accept. Now she was paying for her stupidity.
She ran for a while, only seeming like seconds to her. Maybe she could get to "The Brew" again, it should be in sight soon.
Coming up with another idea she fumbled with her bag, still running, to fish out her phone. She glanced at the phone and back in front of her. Hannah's number wasn't hard to find, having her on speed dial, and she rang.
Beep... beep... beep... beep...
"You've reached Hannah! I'm probably sleeping or whatever. Leave a message." the cheerful voice of Hannah came from the phone.
Aria cursed under her breath, dialing Spencer's number next.
Tires screeched and a large object stopped in front of her, abruptly stopping her in her tracks and making her drop her phone. He has a car. How could she forget that he has a car?
She looked on in desperation as the car door opened and then immediately turned to the side and ran, her discarded phone long forgotten. She could circle around it if she was fast enough.
"The Brew" was so close… so close… she would be safe there-
Strong arms enveloped her from behind, one of them flying up to her mouth to muffle her screams.
"I know you saw the folders Aria." he whispered into her ear, holding tightly onto her.
"They were a test." he turned towards the car with her in his arms "And you failed." his breath tickled her ear and she felt bile creeping up from her stomach. He was everywhere, his body pressed against hers, his arms holding onto her tightly, his breath on her neck... It was like the first time they had sex all over again. Only now the doubt that what she was doing was wrong was replaced by certainty. Her concern of what he might do was doubled. Her, the slightest bit anxious, wish to receive his touch was replaced by her repulsion upon feeling it. She felt trapped by his body, unable to do what she wanted and overpowered if she tried.
But in both cases, the worst part was the closeness. Then, she had told herself that she wanted it, and she did, but not that way. His aggressiveness when making out fully transferred to his actions in bed and so did her discomfort. It had felt good, but so much of it made her anxious of what he would do next. And yet she'd assured herself that it's what lovers do, sex is supposed to be exciting and unexpected, she was supposed to doubt his actions because they were no doubt something that would make her feel good. She was supposed to feel discomfort because it only made it more thrilling. She was supposed to agree because he was her boyfriend and she was his girlfriend.
After all, all the other girls were doing it.
Her struggles were pointless as he threw her in the back of the car and locked the doors from the driver's seat.
Her heart was thumping in her chest so loud she thought it would jump out and she found herself gasping for air.
"Oh Aria, you don't need to have a panic attack over something like this." he gently scolded "You'll just tire yourself out."
"You…" she panted, struggling to take a breath.
"Don't worry, I'm just taking you home. Like I promised I would." he smirked at her before starting the car.
"You're 'A' aren't you?!" she finally shouted when she caught her breath.
"And here I thought Spencer was the smart one." he chuckled.
She held back her sob "Why?"
"It started with Alison. Her disappearance was…it was an inspiration. I decided to write a book about it, but the 'local mean girl is dead' story is so overused." Aria kept trying to open the doors in the back to no avail "So if I added the twist of blackmail to it, it would draw people in."
"Did you…did you know who I was when we first met?" She already knew the answer, but she prayed that at least from the start she wasn't the only one in the dark about the whole thing.
"I sought you out on purpose Aria. You were the hottest of your group…and the easiest to break."
She clamped a hand over her mouth. A week ago she would've found a compliment in his comment and reluctantly ignored the rest, but it made her sick realizing just how badly she was played. She'd always known it was wrong on some level, he was her teacher. But she ignored it all in favor of her schoolgirl crush and her raging hormones that told her it's all just a bit of fun. With time she started to believe his claims that he loves her and thought she felt the same. It was an exciting adventure and the hiding made it feel more special. But eventually she realized that something feels wrong, that she couldn't enjoy her relationship for more reasons than the fact that it was forbidden.
"And all of the times you struggled with our relationship…"
He smiled "Just for show. You had to think I was a good guy. A good guy that is willing to screw his sixteen-year-old student." he chuckled "Honestly Aria how could you be so stupid?"
She couldn't say it didn't hurt. She might have admitted to herself and acknowledged that it was all wrong, but she still had some feelings for the man. It only reminded her though, how easily she had been manipulated into feeling guilty at his smallest comments.
"Let me out of this car Ezra!" she shouted.
"We're almost there, don't worry."
She tugged at the door handle "LET ME OUT!"
"I swear to god Aria, if you don't shut up I will make you." he gritted through his teeth and she abruptly stopped.
He was bigger and stronger than her, she would never be able to beat him if he tried to hurt her. She would have to play along, at least while they were in a confined space.
"So all the texts and the games...you already had information on us for your stupid book, why would you do that?"
"The only thing better than writing your characters into doing what you want is manipulating actual people into doing it." a chill went through her.
The car stopped in front of her dark house. Her brother wasn't there either, she knew. He'd told her he'd be staying over at a friend's house although she knew he was actually visiting Mona. They'd started a friendship that surprised everyone, especially after what Mona did to his sister, but Mike had seemed happy about this friendship so Aria didn't interfere.
If Ezra is 'A', then what was Mona doing?
"What about Mona?"
He waved with his hand "Mona was merely one more of my puppets. I can't have the actions of the main villain be traced back to me. The poor girl was already mentally unstable so I used it to my advantage. Being a teacher gives you a lot of power over your students." he turned off the car.
"Now if you scream or try to run, so help me god, I will get in back in this car and run you over." he unlocked the doors and left the car. The door next to Aria was opened as well and he held out a hand for her to take.
She looked away from his hand and stepped out of the car on her own. His hand grasped hers anyway though, and he pulled her out of the car causing her to stumble over her feet and lean on him to keep from falling.
She scrambled to distance herself from him as he led her to her front door.
"Good night Aria." he kissed her forehead, holding her from moving away with his other hand.
He was letting her go? She didn't want to believe she's so lucky. But why would he trust her not to tell anyone?
She wasn't about to complain but something was very off about the whole thing. She knew his secret, she knew that he had been manipulating her the whole time and he… just let her go?
"You're letting me leave?" she blurted out. She had to know why, she couldn't live with the suspense of it all.
"Where else would you go? It's the middle of the night!" his teasing smile made her blood boil. She was conflicted between wanting to punch him and just taking his unexpected act of kindness and leaving.
She opted for the latter as it would ensure she lived to see another day. She headed for the doorknob, but Ezra's tight grip on her hand held her back.
"What happened to my goodnight kiss?" he smirked at her.
She shook her head "Do you seriously expect-"
He pushed her against the door, his hand circling around her throat.
"I'm letting you walk away with my secret, the least you can do is give me a little kiss." he growled, his grip on her throat growing dangerously tight with each passing moment. She managed a sort of nod and before she even had time to take a proper breath, his lips crashed on hers. She didn't want to anger him further so she played along, every second the kiss went on making her sick. She felt the familiar hand wondering over her back and settling on her ass and this time she didn't dare playfully move it away as she usually did. Let him go through with it and he'll let you leave, she kept thinking.
An agonizing several seconds later the kiss ended and he backed away, lecherously grinning at her, his eyes roaming over her body.
He was her teacher, she would have to see him at school tomorrow, she remembered.
"Let's keep this a secret. You've seen my family, you don't want to get in trouble with someone with as much money as me." he waved and started walking away.
Aria stood at the door for a couple of seconds, paralyzed in her spot. She knew she wasn't safe in her house and going to any of her friends' places was clearly not an option as she was sure Ezra would find her again and drag her back to her house, possibly doing worse than just kissing her next time.
With shaky hands she stuck the key in the lock, regretting the loss of her phone already. She could've at least called someone…the police or her friends…But she doubted she'd do that anyway with Ezra's threat plaguing her thoughts.
She entered her house and double locked the door behind her just in case. She drew all the curtains and went straight for her room, locking that door behind her as well and storing away a knife she brought along from the kitchen.
She let out a scream upon entering her bathroom. There was a note on the closed toilet seat that she shakily picked up.
After reading it, Aria fell to her knees and grabbed the trash can, emptying her stomach in it.
A polaroid of her sleeping, taken from outside her bedroom window was attached to the paper, followed by the message:
Sleep tight, I'll be watching.
-A