Wow! You guys are amazing! Over twenty reviews and that was only the prologue. I have a really good feeling about this story. It's a busy week, but A Little Romance and I Know You will be updated soon!

There isn't much of a note, but I really can't thank you all enough for the reviews!

I DON'T OWN ANYTHING.

~Chapter 1~

In only the matter of a few weeks, Ezra's life had rolled itself into one huge ball of confusion and disorder. One moment he was a Hollis college professor with a flexible teaching schedule. The next he was fired. Then his travels took Ezra upstate to New York City to stay with his father. And now his journey was heading back towards Rosewood. Ezra was grateful that he hadn't put his apartment on the market the minute he left.

Going back to his roots in the apartment he spent majority of his childhood hadn't been something Ezra wanted to do willingly. Leaving Aria wasn't something he'd do on his own accord. But her father shoved a wedge in that by getting him fired. Byron had hoped it would keep Ezra away; far, far away. But no matter how hard Ezra tried, he couldn't stay away from her.

The night he returned to surprise Aria at the masquerade had been one of his favorites purely for the fact that Ezra had finally stomached up enough courage to show the world that Aria was his. He was well aware though that things had gone down that night from Aria's phone calls.

But Ella's call was the last thing Ezra had ever expected. He didn't think that he'd ever speak to the Montgomery's besides Aria ever again. Ella's voice had sounded stern, but pleading. It wasn't her tone that was sending him back. It was that Aria needed him; maybe even a bit more than Ezra needed her.

Ezra's old room had been preserved over the years. Dark blue, almost black walls with posters for old films he loved and dusty novels that he collected. It was practically his apartment, even in size, but minus all his possessions from his world travels during college or summer vacations. Ezra had always been an old soul, as was Aria.

The ample amount of clothing he had stuffed into a large leather suitcase had gone from being strewn across the floor in Ezra's normal fashion to being packed up tightly with the clamps and buckles about to burst. He was afraid that the pressure from the airplane would make his entire case explode. The books Ezra wasn't worried about; they were stowed in his carry-on.

"She must be some girl if you're flying back and forth, never knowing where you're going to land," said the voice of his father, Joseph, from the doorway. Ezra was the spitting image of his father, minus the graying hair. And his nose was more upturned than the older man's.

Joseph had always been wise, almost all knowing. When Ezra was younger, he thought his father was somewhat of an oracle; he always had an answer for everything and it was usually right. Any rough spots Ezra had to endure, regardless of age, his father was there with guiding advice. Right now was one of those rough spots.

"Go to her, Son. You need her and she needs you." Ezra felt a light pat on his back and a small smile crept up onto his lips. It was the first time he had smiled since being at the ball with Aria.

"I'll bring her up sometime, Dad," he smiled, grasping the handle of his suitcase. With diligent care, Ezra made sure that the sudden movement wouldn't jostle the locks and have everything spill out. Joseph chuckled as his son bit her lip, trying to maneuver himself around.

"I'll hold you to it," his dad laughed, following Ezra out of the room.

Ezra had forgotten what it felt like to live in the city. Although he was used to living in a tiny studio, Rosewood wasn't a city. It was a suburb where he just happened to live in a more central area far away from the rows of houses with white picket fences. He missed the hustle and bustle, but that fast paced lifestyle was nothing to him if Aria couldn't stand beside him with her hand held tightly in his.

With a few goodbyes and promises to call, Ezra left his dad's apartment in search of a taxi. It didn't take him more than a few minutes to tag one day; it was abnormally slow that Monday evening. The ride to the airport was filled with silence except for the buzzing of the small TV monitor in the passenger area. Ezra was left alone with his thoughts, dwelling on Aria and her family.

Would this make Byron see how much they needed one another? Surely, whatever was happening with Aria had brought Ella around, but could the same happen with her the eldest Montgomery man?

Ezra hated times like this where there wasn't anything in his reach to record down his feelings. He'd much rather write everything down and spin it into some sort of story than let the thoughts bounce around in his head, ricocheting off the walls of his brain. He wasn't an upfront type of guy, but now was a good time to practice. Ezra let each thought rattle itself off, confronting them. He wasn't going to hide any longer and that would go into effect the minute he landed in Rosewood.

"Ella, you can't be serious," shouted the angry Byron across the rustic looking kitchen. His face was tinged red and saturated with rage. Just when he thought he'd be getting his way, everything was backfiring. Byron hadn't been too observant of his daughter though, unlike his wife.

Ella saw how much Aria needed Ezra to keep her sane and grounded, and now, possibly open her back up again. She saw past the age gap now and the student/teacher aspect when her daughter broke down after speaking with Ezra after Ella told him to come home. She'd handed the phone to Aria and she collapsed into tears. The speaker had been loud enough to hear Ezra's tense voice as well.

But Byron still saw him as a monster; something that Ella was determined to change now. "I'm serious," she retorted, once more using all strength to maintain her composure. With gritted teeth, she turned towards her husband. "You have no idea how much she needs him. Have you noticed our daughter in the past few days after everything happened?"

Byron looked at Ella, almost dropping the plate that lay in his hands from dinner. "Has he brainwashed you too? Aria is enough of a problem regarding that. I don't need you to start acting that way too."

"Obviously, you haven't been watching your daughter," Ella scoffed. "Do you notice how she doesn't come down from dinner? Or that she wakes up screaming in the middle of the night; sometimes a blind shrill and others crying for Ezra? Whatever happened when they found that St. Germain girls body and Mona being locked up is tormenting her. And we took away the only person that brought Aria to life when things were getting hard. She needs him, Byron. And I'm beginning to think that there's a lot more to their relationship than what you think there is."

The plate in Byron's hands shattered into bits on the floor. His hands had gone slack, thus letting the porcelain dish slip from his grasp. His mouth was formed into an 'O', but his eyes were filled with pure anger. Wordlessly, he fled the room and was out the door. Byron wasn't in the mood to say a word.

Exasperatedly, Ella leaned against the counter with a hand pressed against her forehead. She could feel a headache beginning to arouse itself from the deep confines of her head. The last thing she wanted was the high pitched noise of the doorbell to irritate it even more, but there was that small ping, signifying someone's arrival.

Knowing exactly who it would be, Ella's stomached flipped nervously. Her heels clacked cautiously against the hardwood floor. Once the big oak doors were open, there stood a bedraggled Ezra Fitz. He ran a hand through his hair as a thunderstorm broke out over head from the slowly forming cloud cover.

Ezra was exhausted and was pretty sure his entire demeanor and the way he presented himself made it clear at how he was feeling. But, Aria was only a staircase away rather than a good couple of states. He wasn't going to sacrifice the opportunity to hold her once again instead of waiting a day. "Is she…is she alright?" He didn't want to ask about the nightmares or crying. Not yet, anyways.

"She's been asleep. Woke up once earlier in tears, but she seemed to manage fine by putting on a movie."

"Has she eaten anything? Showered?"

"Showered this morning, but hasn't eaten," Ella replied as if she was checking things off on some list that was mentally made up in her mind. "She refuses to move, but I think that's partly because Aria still resents us for pushing you away. I—I'm sorry about that, Ezra. If I had only known…"

"It's alright, Mrs. Montgomery," Ezra said with a slight nod. "Apologies don't matter at the moment. What matters is bringing Aria back. And to be clear, I'm never leaving her again."

Ella nodded solemnly. She knew Ezra meant every single word that was coming out of his mouth. "I'll take you to see Aria."

Leading Ezra up the staircase and towards Aria's oak door, Ella gulped nervously. It was a tender situation; one that if the slightest thing went wrong, both she and Ezra could send Aria flying off the deep end. Her knuckles wrapped at the door and Aria's weak voice tried shooing her mother away.

"I have a visitor. We're coming in."

Pushing back the heavy door, Ezra walked in while Ella lingered in the doorway. His heart sped up at seeing the girl he loved, but also broke simultaneously at seeing her so fragile and broken. Her hair was stuffed into a ponytail holder. A new Hollis shirt adorned her small frame and the TV was deftly playing in the background. Circles were under Aria's eyes and she looked gaunt almost.

"Aria," Ezra said, trying to keep his voice calm. The girl looked up at him from her bed, her heart beating wildly at seeing him standing there.

"Ezra," Aria spoke, her voice cracking as tears rolled down her cheeks and her arms stretched themselves out in wait to receive him.