The drive to Ezra's seemed to take seconds, whereas normally Aria couldn't arrive fast enough. She delayed the inevitable by climbing the three flights of stairs rather than taking the elevator but, by the time she stepped in front of apartment 3B, she was no more prepared than when she'd left home.

This is it, she thought as she knocked on his door. A few seconds later it opened to reveal the mischievous brown eyes and infectious smile that made her heart skip a beat. Aria longed to run her hands through his soft, brown hair but restrained herself.

"Hey, beautiful." Ezra said, giving Aria a quick peck on the lips before letting her in.

"We need to talk", Aria replied, sounding very serious. Ezra frowned slightly.

"Is everything ok?" he asked, his voice full of concern.

Aria looked up at him and saw love and a need to fix whatever was bothering his girlfriend, deep in his eyes. That was all it took to make her burst into tears.

Ezra wasted no time in pulling her close and stroking her hair, whispering that everything was alright and he was here for her no matter what. His readiness to comfort her at all time was one of the many reason she loved him, and one of the many reasons she hated herself right now.

After a moment, Aria pushed him away. She turned to face him and began the one thing that she knew would make her hate herself and A forever.

"Ezra, I need to say something and before I do, I need you to know that this is not your fault. I just-I can't do this anymore." she stuttered on the last part, trying to hold back the flood of tears she could feel forming in her eyes.

Ezra was silent for a moment, letting the words sink in.

"Aria, I don't understand. What happened? Why are you doing this?"

"I'm so sorry" Aria whispered quickly moving towards the direction of the door before she lost control. Ezra grabbed her arm and refused to let go, no matter how hard she struggled to break free. He gently turned her around to face him, careful not to hurt her.

"Aria, please talk to me. Tell me what's going on. We can get through this, just like everything else. Please don't give up on us." Ezra's voice cracked on the last word, and Aria realized he was trying to hold himself together.

"Ezra, please let me go! You have no idea how hard this is for me to say, but I just can't deal with this anymore. We're never going to be accepted here, I just can't fight a losing battle anymore. It's just not worth it.: The words killed her to say, and she didn't mean any of it, but she knew she had to make him believe her for his own safety.

"How can you say love isn't worth fighting for?! Look me in the eyes and tell me you don't love me. If you can do that, I promise to leave you alone."

Aria was barely able to meet his gaze since she'd first walked in, but she had no choice. What A wanted, A got. Aria looked into Ezra's eyes, trying to force herself to say the words, but they wouldn't dare come out of her mouth.

"I-I can't" she stuttered, after a long moment. "Ezra, I love you so much, more than I could ever express in words, and I will always love you no matter what." She touched his cheek and slowly ran her hand through his hair. He opened his mouth to speak but she shook her head to signal she wasn't finished. "Ezra, this is for the best. Trust me. If you love me, you will let me go, and just forget about me. Promise me."

After what seemed like eternity, Ezra shook his head. "I can't. I won't. I love you and I won't let anything come between us no matter what happens. Aria, whatever it is, we can fix it. As long as we love each other, nothing else matters.

Aria didn't know whether to be happy, angry or scared. This wasn't working. How could she make Ezra let her go. She decided to resort to anger.

"Ezra! Can't you hear me?! I'm done! It's over! If you want me to be happy, just forget about me and leave me alone!" She took advantage of Ezra's shock and stormed out of his apartment before he could stop her. She ran and didn't stop until she got to her car, where she burst into tears. Her phone signaled a new message.

"Well done. Stay away from him if you want me to do the same" - A