Ella's POV

"Byron, there's another one" I yelled to him from the kitchen. He was sitting in the living room watching TV. I dried off my hands picked up Aria's phone off the counter to take in to him. I felt really bad about taking it from her, but it had been three days and she seemed to be doing fine so far. Besides the fact that she only came out of her room to eat.

"What does this one say?" Byron asked me when I entered the room. I stared down at the screen.

"I'll see you soon. Can't wait. Love you more than anything. -Ezra"

Ezra had been sending Aria texts on her phone saying things like this ever since he left on Sunday. There was even one up on the screen when I took it from her.

Aria, We'll make it through this, I promise. It will go by quicker than you think. Stay strong. I love you with all my heart. –Ezra

"Should we call and tell him to stop texting her? It's not like she can answer him, or even see the messages." I sat down on the arm of the couch next to him.

"No, I think it's his way of handling not getting to see her. They depended on each other too much. He might not do it as much after they see each other at dinner tomorrow night."

"I guess you're right."

"I always am" I said jokingly. He laughed and gave me a kiss on the cheek.

"I better get back to the dishes." I said. I stood up and headed back to the kitchen.

Ezra's POV

I knew Aria's parents had most likely taken her phone, but I couldn't help but think that maybe she was actually reading the messages I was sending her. And if she didn't have her phone, and wasn't reading them, maybe her parents were. Part of me hoped that her parents had seen the messages. I wanted them to see how much I needed Aria in my life. They say they do, but I don't think they truly understand how much I love her. I hoped the wouldn't blame me for taking her away without their permission, and they did seem surprisingly calm after Aria had gone inside. They know her as well as I do and probably figured that she had found a way to convince me. Aria is a very hard person to say no to, after all. Not only did she convince me to run off to Miami, but she convinced me to sleep with her once we got there. Actually, it didn't take that much convincing, but I was hesitant because I wasn't sure if she was really ready, or if she rushed into it since we were out of town. I know that I definitely didn't regret it and I was pretty sure that she didn't either. At least I hoped.

Aria's POV

These last four days without Ezra have been hell. The school day drug on forever, then when it was finally over, I had to go straight home. I still wasn't on speaking terms with my parents, and hiding out in my room wasn't exactly enjoyable. It seems like the only thing for me to do is sit and think. And cry. I was glad that it was almost lunch time. That's the only chance I really got to talk to Hanna, Spencer, and Emily these days.

"Hey!" Hanna said as I sat down at our table.

"Hey guys" I replied.

"So tonight's the night, right?" Spencer asked me.

"What do you mean?" I replied, confused.

""You get to see Ezra tonight, remember! It's finally Thursday!"

"Oh my gosh!" I said, a huge smile already spreading across my face. I had been thinking about Ezra so much lately, trying to hold on to our weekend together that I completely forgot about the dinner!

"How could you forget something like that!" Emily exclaimed.

"I don't know" I replied. "I guess I've just had a lot else on my mind, that's all."

"Like..." Spencer said, urging me to continue.

"Okay, there's something that I haven't told you guys yet." I said. They all stayed silent, waiting for me to continue. "When I was in Miami with Ezra, we-"

"Oh my god, you had sex with him?" Hanna practically yelled. I turned around, making sure nobody around had heard what she said. Luckily, I don't think anyone did.

"Oh my god, you did!" Emily said, smiling. "Look at her blush!" I felt my cheeks get hotter once she pointed it out.

"How come you didn't tell us until now?" Spencer asked. "You don't regret it, do you?"

"No, I don't regret it... it was incredible. It was beyond incredible."

"Then what's the matter?" Emily asked.

"I just got the feeling that he felt I was only doing it because we knew my parents might not let us see each other anymore."

"Well did you guys talk about it at all?" Hanna asked.

"No!" I said. "He said it was amazing, but we didn't talk about it at all other than that"
"I think you're just overreacting." Spencer said.

"Yeah, I bet he doesn't think that at all. He knows how much you love him and want to be with him."

"I know. I guess you're right."

"And besides, you spent almost two whole days with him after it happened, so I think you're fine. He would have asked you about it by now." Emily added.

"Thanks, guys." I said. We spent the rest of lunch talking and gossiping. It was nice to be able to get my mind off of things, even if it was just for a little while.

When I got home from school, I went straight to my room like I had been doing since Sunday.
I still couldn't believe that I had spent the last 4 days practically living in my bedroom. It was going to be so weird tonight having to go downstairs and talk to my parents. Ezra would be there, which would be good, but it was still going to be awkward. I just finished getting ready when the doorbell rang. Suddenly, all my fear and doubt was gone and I was ready for it. I sprinted down the steps and swung open the door.

"Ezra!" I yelled running into his arms. Surprisingly, he lifted me up and kissed me more passionately than he ever has before. Maybe it just felt that way since I had been away for a couple days, but either way, it was a pleasant surprise. I was lost in the kiss when I heard someone clear their throat behind me. I turned my head to see who it was.

"Oh, mom, could you... um... give us a minute?" I said trying not to laugh. She sighed and turned around, going back inside.

"Where were we?" I asked Ezra, who was still holding me, as I leaned back into the kiss. I wrapped my arms tighter around his neck. He held me there for what seemed like minutes.

"You ready to go inside?" He muttered into my ear, then kissing me down my neck.

"Not really" I giggled. My lips found his once more before I reluctantly pulled away. He put me down, grabbed my hand, and we went inside.

Ezra's POV

We walked into the house hand in hand. I could tell that Aria was happy because she had a huge smile on her face, but her mood shifted suddenly when we walked into the living room where her parents were. She was glaring at her mother and I felt her shift slightly closer to me.

"Hello Ezra" Byron greeted me. He was seated next to Ella in one of the chairs across the room.

"Good evening Byron" I replied. "Ella" I said, nodding a hello to her as well.

"Hello" she said stiffly. She seemed upset about the look of anger on her daughter's face. It almost looked like hatred. Is she really still mad at them for grounding her? I thought. We sat down on the couch. There was an awkward silence. Aria looked back and forth between her parents and they stared back at us. I could definitely feel the tension in the room.

"I should go check on dinner." Ella said, jumping up suddenly. She rushed out of the room and around the corner towards the kitchen.

"Um... thank you. For letting me come here tonight." I said, breaking the silence.

"It's really not a problem, Ezra. Once a week isn't a big deal. She suffers enough on the other days." He said winking at his daughter. He had meant for it to be funny, but Aria was not in the mood.

"That's not funny dad! I don't even need to be grounded at all! I've already learned my lesson!" she yelled.

"I didn't mean to say that we are doing this to make you suffer. But no, I don't think you have learned your lesson. The lesson is that we are your parents and you are a child. You need to listen to us and respect us."

Uh oh I thought. That is the one thing she hated being called the most. A child. I learned that the hard way when we first started seeing each other.

"How are things at home?" I asked her
"Uh.. fine. My mom and dad are having a date night."
"Hmm. Well maybe they are working things out."
"They can have all the alone time in the world, but she's... she's going to be miserable when she finds out."
"Aria, has it ever occurred to you that maybe your mom knows more about this than you think?"
"No, she doesn't know. That's the worst part. Well, almost the worst part."
"Well it's possible that your parents have come to some sort of...understanding. That you don't know about?"
"No, it's not possible. What do you mean an understanding?"
"Okay, um... when I was 12, my parents broke up and it threw my brother and me for a loop. I found out later they had both been cheating. They worked through their infidelity, it was just something else that killed the marriage."
"But that's your family, not mine. What are you trying to tell me?"
"I'm just saying that even though your dad put you in this position, it's not your problem to fix."
"I'm not trying to fix it, I'm trying to deal with it."
"But they're the ones that should be dealing with this. What you can't see now is that your parents need to figure it out for themselves. Like adults."
"Like adults."
"Right"
"Like, I'm not mature enough to deal with this?"
"Uh.. I didn't say that!"
"Yeah, I think that's exactly what they said. You said I am a child, and I should mind my own business."
"I guarantee you, that's not what I said."
"Well if I'm such a child, why did you ask me here?"
"I asked you here because I don't see you as a child... and that's exactly why we need to figure out what's going on between us."
"Okay, just leave my parents out of it!"
"You came to me about your father. Do you remember that?"
"You know, I.. um... I think I made a mistake coming here."
"I don't think you did"
"I do. It's not something an adult would have done."

I cringed at the memory of our first real fight. Aria got up off of the couch.

"Where are you going?" Byron asked her.

"I'm going back to my room"

"Fine" he replied. She pulled me up off the couch, onto my feet. I looked over at Byron questioningly. He sighed heavily before nodding his approval. He was obviously not thrilled with Aria's behavior, or the fact that I would be up in her room with her. She drug me up the stairs and into her room, closing the door tightly behind us.