I'm glad so many of you are enjoying this story. Here's the next chapter.

Aria

The next morning, Aria awoke for her slumber with a huge smile on her face. She had worked everything out with Ezra. She quickly got out of bed so she could get ready for the day. After showering and getting dressed, she collected everything she needed, before making her way to school. After arriving, she made her way to her mother's classroom. She had something important to talk to her about, and if she didn't do it now, she might lose her nerve. Aria's heels clicked against the floor as she entered the room, causing Ella to look up from the papers on her desk.

"Good morning, sweetie," Ella said, standing from her seat to envelop her daughter into a hug.

"Morning, mom," Aria responded, returning her hug.

"Why are you here so early?"

"There's something I wanted to talk to you about."

Ella nodded, signaling for her daughter to continue.

Aria made her way over to the door, closed it, and made her way to the chair that sat next to her mother's desk.

"Well, as you know, Valentine's day is next week," Ella nodded, and waited for her to continue. "Well, since it's during the week and dad is heading back to Syracuse, I wanted to know it was okay for Mike to stay with you, so Ezra and I could do something," she hesitated before continuing, "at his place?"

Ella was taken back by her daughter's request. She wasn't stupid. She knew that they, at one point, had a sexual relationship. Ezra was older and more experienced, the Malcolm situation was a clear indicator of that fact, and unlike her ex-husband, she had no delusions that her daughter was still a virgin.

"I thought you two were taking things slow?" Ella asked her daughter after taking in what she had to say.

"We are," Aria responded, "and I'm not saying that we're going to sleep together, if that's what worried about?"

"I'm your mother, Aria, and I'll always worry about you no matter how old you are. You may not plan on anything happening, but in the moment, you could make a decision that could change your life, and his, no matter how careful you are."

The conversation between the two was more awkward than either expected. Although they had the sex talk years before, Ella still felt uncomfortable talking about her daughter's sex life, or in this instance, lack thereof, with her. However she understood that all the talking in the world wouldn't stop Aria from doing what she wanted, and she had to accept that.

"Aria, Mike can stay with me, just promise that you two will be extremely careful. I'm too young to be a grandmother."

Aria blushed at her mother's comments and just nodded. She understood her mother's worries because she wasn't ready to be a mother herself.

Ezra

Ezra had spent the day perusing the want-ads. Although he didn't need a job, he didn't want to be one of those people who only lived off his trust. He had to do something productive with his time. Once Aria graduated, she was going to college, and he needed something of his own. Just as he had given up hope of finding anything at the moment, he heard his cell phone starting ringing. He reached over to pick it up, and saw his mother's name on the screen. He let out and audible sigh, wondering exactly what she wanted. He pressed the button and answered.

"Hi, mom," Ezra said, trying not to let her know of his annoyance.

"Ezra, I hope I'm not keeping you from something important," Diane responded.

"Not really, I was just looking for a job."

Diane let out a chuckle on the other end, which caused Ezra to ask, "Why is that funny?"

"It's not," Diane answered, "It's just that I found out about a teaching job you might be interested in."

Ezra couldn't believe his ears. He loved teaching almost as much as he loved Aria, and the idea of having both again made him happy. That happiness, however, was replaced with fear. He wasn't sure where the job was, or if this was always her intention, getting him a job that would force him to leave Aria behind.

"Unless this job is in Rosewood, I'm not interested," Ezra confessed to his mother, "I'm not leaving Aria."

"The job isn't in Rosewood, Ezra, but it is in Philadelphia."

Ezra couldn't believe his ears. Getting a teaching job outside of Rosewood, but close enough so he wouldn't have to move was very appealing to him.

"What school are you talking about?", he asked, hoping it would be to his liking.

"St. Joseph's," she answered, "it's an all-boys Catholic school, about a 45 minute commute from Rosewood."

Ezra's eyes lit up. This was the ideal situation for him, also for his relationship with Aria.

"Are you serious," Ezra questioned.

"When am I not serious?" Diane countered, "One of their English teachers had to retire, so they're looking for someone to take over for the rest of the school year, and if they're impressed, you could be asked back in the fall."

Ezra and his mother finished their conversation, with him having an interview in three days time. Ezra couldn't contain his excitement, as he sent a text to Aria asking her to stop by after school because he had something important to tell her.

Aria

Aria sat, paying close attention in her last class of the day, when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Making sure the teacher couldn't see it, she pulled it out, and smiled as she saw it was a text from Ezra, asking her to stop by if she could after school. Aria typed a brief 'yes' and turned her attention back to her teacher.

After school ended, Aria made plans to meet her friends at the Brew after going to talk to Ezra. When she arrived, she entered her key into the lock, and walked inside of the infamous 3B. Once inside, she heard the shower running and decided to watch TV, until Ezra finished. Ezra walked out of the bathroom, in only a towel, and smiled when he saw her. She returned the smile while admiring her gorgeous boyfriend. She wanted him more than ever before. It had been a long time since they had been together. She was snapped back to reality when he finally spoke.

"Hey, I wasn't expecting you so soon."

"Hey, "she said slightly flustered from before, "I'm meeting up with the girls for coffee, so I came right on by." After she finished, she made her way over to him and gave him a passionate kiss.

"So, what's up?" Aria asked after they broke apart.

"I have a job interview, and wanted to tell you right away."

A smile spread across her face, "What's the job?"

"It's as an English teacher at a school in Philadelphia."

"What school?" Aria asked.

"St. Joseph's Boys School."

Aria was excited for him. He deserved this opportunity more than anyone. She knew how much he loved to teach and was confident that he had this job in the bag.

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