Author's Note: Here is the next installment. Hope you enjoy.

About a half an hour later, there was a rough knock on the door and Aria felt her stomach plummet. She looked to Ezra, who was bent over the oven, two mitted hands pulling a steaming dish off the rack, and told herself to take a deep breath. The news they had to share this evening was happy. Her parents would be happy. Mike would be happy. By the end of the night, they would all be laughing and smiling, and Ezra's hand would be resting gently atop her belly, just like every other evening they spent together at home, and they wouldn't have to worry about whether or not anyone was watching – because everything was okay.

That was the biggest thing she needed to remind herself as she entered the evening. She was no longer in high school, it had been years since he had been her teacher, they were getting married, they lived together, they both had a steady income, and they weren't struggling on any front. There was no reason they couldn't bring a child into this world.

She walked over to the door and pulled, smiling as she was greeted with Ella's smiling face.

"Hi, Mom," she said, standing back so that they could enter the apartment. "Dad," she said. Byron gave her a nod, and the look on his face did nothing to quell her nerves. "Here, let me take your jackets."

"Thanks, sweetie," Ella said, smiling and leaning in to kiss her daughter's cheek. Aria was grateful that Ella's hands were full. She didn't have a game plan for hugs. She'd successfully avoided them since her belly had truly began to grow, but that only meant that the last time they'd seen her, she really had been much thinner. A lot could happen in a few weeks. Aria hoped that her loose-fitted black shirt was able to conceal the party until the time was right.

At her request, both of her parents shrugged out of their coats and Aria took them into the hall, hanging them in the closet. She stood there, just out of sight for a moment and caught her breath, her hand resting on her belly for the last time until their news was out.

As she leaned against the closet door, her thumb making small movements along the edge of her belly button, she could hear her parents conversing with Ezra in the other room…

"How are you, Ezra?" Byron said with a happy lilt to his voice. That was good, Aria thought. That was a good sign.

"I'm great," Ezra replied. "It's been a long time since we've seen you guys, a few weeks I guess… but it feels longer. Can I get you something to drink? We've got tea, water, I have some scotch…"

Aria rolled her eyes. Of course he offers scotch. She was sure they had decided not to bring alcohol into the conversation because that would open the opportunity for her to refuse a drink. It was bad enough that her mom had instructed Mike to come bearing a full bottle of wine…

She gave her belly one final rub before turning the corner and putting on a happy face.

"Mom, how's the art gallery doing?" she asked. Ella had moved into the living room and was looking at a few pictures that adorned the shelves, while Ezra and Byron were making small talk in the kitchen.

For the past year or so, Ella had been curating at the art gallery again, and though Aria knew she missed teaching, she seemed much happier about where her time was being spent.

"It's great," she said. "We've got a new piece that I think you'd really like. It's kind of dark, but there's a lot of soul behind it. You'll have to come by and take a look. I have a few projects I'd like your opinion on as well. Maybe we can get lunch soon."

"That'd be nice, I'd enjoy that."

"This is a really cute little apartment," Ella said, looking between Aria and Ezra, even though Ezra was still in the other room, unaware of the conversation that was taking place without him. "How are you two enjoying cohabitation?" She winked. "If I remember correctly, this is a good size bigger than the old apartment, correct?"

If Aria's stomach hadn't already been a jumble of nerves, it definitely was now. She could feel it bottoming out at the mention of 3B – because along with that apartment came all of the drama of high school. Ella knew more now than she had back then, but Byron was still mostly in the dark about the finer details of exactly how she and Ezra had spent their time together, a decision that Ella and Aria had come to together.

Aria had promised not to keep any more secrets… but Ella had also requested that she keep certain things from coming to light in front of her husband. Considering that her family had finally reached a good place, she was hesitant to do anything that could jeopardize that peace.

"It's definitely a little more spacious," Aria said lightly, laughing as she met Ezra's eye across the room. "And he's let me move some of my things in, which is a nice change of pace."

He must have heard her or read her lips as she spoke, because he chose that moment to chime in. "Hey, I never objected to that before," he said, bringing his scotch to his lips and taking a sip.

Ella narrowed her eyes at Ezra, warning him that he was treading dangerous waters. Thankfully, Byron didn't notice, or didn't care to ask questions.

Ezra moved to join the ladies in the living room and Byron followed behind him.

"Thank you for having us over tonight," Byron said, taking a seat on the couch and bringing Ella down to join him.

"Oh, it's our pleasure," Ezra said. He reached out and slid his arm around Aria's waist, letting his hand sit on her hip. He tugged her in a little closer so that her body molded with his own. "We'll sit down to eat as soon as Mike gets here."

"He should be here soon," Aria chimed in. "I talked to him a little while ago. I think he had to drop something off at Mona's but he was going to be here after."

"Are they back together?" Ella asked. She hadn't heard her son mention hide nor tail of Mona Vanderwaal in some time, but she'd suspected that they were seeing each other again after seeing them at The Grille one evening. Mike had not seen her, and she hadn't said anything, but she'd been keeping an ear out since then.

"I think so," Aria said. "But I'm not sure. I'm still not sure how I feel about Mona. Hanna hangs out with her from time to time, but it's not usually when the rest of us are together."

Ezra moved to sit in one of the chairs off to the side of the couch and brought Aria down to perch on his knees. She leaned back into him, crossing her legs so that they weren't awkwardly touching the ground. She was surprised at how awkward she felt displaying this level of affection in front of her parents, especially when all she was doing was sitting on her fiance's lap. The idea of being able to openly love Ezra in front of anyone still threw her off at times. In a good way.

"So, Ezra," Ella started, changing the topic of conversation, "do you think you all will plan on living here after the wedding? Have you two set a date yet?" Her attention shifted from Ezra to looking between the two as her question changed. "I'm just curious if I should be worried about losing my only daughter in a few months."

"I don't think you have to worry about that," Ezra said. He let a hand run up and down Aria's arm, his fingers leaving a small trail of goose bumps in their wake. "We'll probably start looking for a house here soon, but I think we'd both like to stay in the area. For the time being at least."

"Really?" Byron questioned. He had been rather quiet since entering, aside from the surprisingly polite offer of thanks at being invited over. Aria's stomach sank for the hundredth time since the evening had started. She could tell from the tone of his voice that all the reservations he'd been pushing down over the past few months were starting to spring up again. She braced herself for whatever was coming next.

"Yes," she said. "Why wouldn't we want to stay in Rosewood?" It wasn't so much that she hadn't been dreaming of leaving the small town, but she was interested to know why her father was displaying a level of surprise at the fact that they might be sticking around.

"Well, I just thought, after all the trials you two have had, after all the events of the past few years, you might want a fresh start. That's all." Even though he was answering Aria's question, Byron's gaze did not leave Ezra's.

At the challenging remark, Ezra placed his hand further up Aria's thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze. Aria jumped a little as his grip tickled her. She felt herself grow uncomfortably hot. Aria turned to give Ezra a warning glance, but rather than loosening his hold, Ezra left his hand tight on Aria's leg and began making gentle strokes, dangerously close to where her leg met her hip. He adjusted his body a bit below her so that she was angled into him more than she had been before and he leaned in to give her nose a light kiss.

Aria was close to shaking with the amount of nerves and sexual tension coursing through her body. It was a strange combination - feeling uncomfortable in front of her parents while at the same time being turned on by the public display of affection. At this rate, it wasn't going to take her long at all to reach that point, and every look Ezra gave her made her wish they were alone that much more. And they most certainly were not alone.

They weren't by any means lounging or laying in the chair, but Ezra was definitely making it clear that they were in an intimate position, and that he wasn't self-conscious of who could see them.

"I think Aria and I both acknowledge that up until this point, we've had more than a few rocky roads thrown our way, but..." as he trailed off, he looked toward Aria to catch her eye, quietly assessing whether or not she felt the same way. It was a conversation they'd had plenty of times. They were ready to move forward, and that was a step they wanted to make together. "We don't want our past to keep us from living in the present, or planning a future."

"Well, don't you think that now, when you're both still fairly young, and untied by children and careers, would be a good time to go out and explore the world? Live in a new city, build a career from the ground up."

Aria had to work to keep her mouth from dropping open. However, she did not do anything to control the way her eyes grew in disbelief. Ezra slid his other hand so that it was under Aria, lightly grazing the outline of her back pocket. She knew he was warning her to stay calm, but his actions weren't exactly having the desired affect. He was having far more fun with this conversation than she was, and while she was glad for his input and control of the room, she couldn't keep her emotions in check. She was quickly reaching the point where she didn't know if she wanted to scream, or cry, or go hide in a closet. Being pregnant was wonderful, but all of the good things came at a cost, and tonight that cost was the ability to control her feelings.

At sensing the tension that had begun to settle over the room, Ella cut in. "Byron, really, if they want to move, they can move. But it's their life." She shifted her gaze from looking at her husband to looking at her daughter and soon-to-be son-in-law. "I for one wouldn't mind having you both stick around. I'd miss you if you were gone."

"I think that's a big part of why we want to stay," Aria said, testing the waters. She imagined the next words that would fly off her tongue. We want our baby to be near its grandparents. I don't want to go through these next few years without my mom.

But as she looked back and made eye contact with Ezra, she was reminded, with a great deal of relief, that they had agreed to wait until after dinner to share that news, and they definitely wanted Mike to be there when it was shared. He and Ezra had grown rather close, and neither of them could deny the fact that he was an excellent buffer between Ezra and Byron.

So instead, Aria settled for, "I definitely don't want to stay in Rosewood forever, but I think for now, we're both settled on staying. The Brew is doing really well, and this town is a good place for writing."

"Well, we can't argue with that," Ella said. "How is everything with the book coming along? Any news on the release?"

Before they had the chance to answer, there was another knock on the door. This time, though, the person on the other side did not wait to be let in.

"Hey sis, sorry I'm late," Mike called into the room, entering with his arms full and closing the door behind him.

Aria took the opportunity to bolt up to welcome her brother in, maybe a little too eager to leave the heavy gaze of their parents.

All through dinner, hardly a word was said.

Ezra was growing increasingly more uncomfortable the longer he sat across from Byron. He had genuinely not been worried one bit before they arrived. But now, after seeing the way Aria's dad had been acting toward them, he was starting to feel incredibly uneasy about sharing their news, and he could sense that Aria was feeling increasingly more stressed about the situation.

He was unbelievably excited about the baby, and he knew Aria was too. Though they hadn't been planning for it, he honestly couldn't imagine not being in this place with her at this moment. It felt like this moment had been years in the making, and honestly, it had been. The past three months had been a hectic ride, between the morning sickness and the hormones, and all of that on top of trying to come to a decision about the wedding and adjusting to living together… but at the end of the day, they were finally in a place where everything felt right.

He couldn't remember the last time his happiness came from something that wasn't related to Aria. The book... getting back together with her... getting engaged... the baby. All of the highlights of the past year had stemmed from the brunette sitting beside him, and that thought made his heart feel incredibly full.

There was nothing holding them back, and he had been overjoyed at that notion... until Byron walked through the door and he got the sense that the blessing he'd received a few months ago when he'd asked for his daughters hand in marriage had not been given as freely as he'd thought.

For as hard as Ezra tried, he was at a loss as to why Byron was acting so tense. Ella was being as sweet as could be and Mike had been a godsend since walking in the door.

It wasn't as if Ezra hadn't done things in the past to warrant hesitance from Aria's family. He definitely had, and he wouldn't have blamed Byron for one second if any of those things had been a reason for not wanting him to be with his only daughter. But the truth of the matter was – he hadn't mentioned any of those things the evening Ezra went to talk to them, or a single time between that evening and this evening, which spanned three whole months, and Ezra thought that it was fairly unreasonable for Byron to suddenly choose this moment to get upset.

He hated that Byron's attitude was rubbing off on Aria and that she was growing more and more anxious as the evening passed. And he knew from experience, that the more anxious she got, the more her stomach tended to act up. He'd been waiting for the better part of an hour for her to rush off in the direction of the bathroom and by the look on her face, it seemed that the time had come.

Almost on cue, Aria reached out and put her hand on Ezra's knee. They made eye contact and before he could say anything, she was up and down the hall. Thankfully, she was able to walk, even if it was at a brisk pace, and the only person who seemed to notice anything was Ella.

Ezra wondered what he should do - get up and go help the mother of his child as she inevitably hung her head into the bowl of the toilet, or sit and pretend like nothing was happening until the "time was right" and Aria was ready to tell her family their news.

He imagined that this was the baby's way of telling them there was no better time than the present. But he didn't want to throw Aria under the bus by making the announcement without warning. He decided a diversion would be the best option, then he'd excuse himself to check on her, and by the time they came back, they'd make themselves ready to share, regardless of whether or not that was really the case in their hearts.

Because, the fact remained: Aria would go through her entire pregnancy not telling Ella and Byron if she thought she could get away with it.

Okay, so maybe she'd eventually break down and talk to Ella. But Ezra knew that what she was dreading most was telling Byron. Admitting to your father that your high school English teacher impregnated you couldn't be easy, especially when you knew your father had his reservations to begin with… to hell with the fact that they hadn't been student-and-teacher for close to eight years at this point.

Ezra cleared his throat. "Anyone up for pie?"

"I was going to have another helping of the chicken and potatoes," Mike said, resting his fork next to his plate, "but pie sounds ten times better. What kind?"

"I think Aria picked up an apple, and if I had to guess…" Ezra scooted his chair back and walked over to the refrigerator, pulling out two boxes from Paula's. He opened one, the apple, and set it on the counter. He opened the other, "Uh, huh," he said. "Key lime."

Ezra saw Mike hold back a smirk. They'd gotten close. They joked. Close proximity and friendship might have meant that Ezra had, on occasion, shared a few memories and/or inside jokes with his soon to be brother-in-law. What Aria didn't know wouldn't hurt her, in this case at least.

Ezra knew better than to keep anything bigger from her after all those years. That was a mistake he'd never make again.

"I hope you were planning on waiting for me to eat that," Aria said as she turned the corner and entered the room.

Mike couldn't hold back his laugh this time. Aria gave him a curious look, but didn't press for details, assuming she'd missed something when she was gone.

"Doing okay?" Ezra asked, the real question written in the look they shared.

"Yep," she said, offering a thankful smile. "Just needed to use the restroom."

"That pie looks great," Ella said, coming up beside Ezra. She had all their plates stacked. "When I was pregnant with Aria, I ate a whole pumpkin pie by myself. It was the most satisfying and most embarrassing moment of my life." She looked over to Aria and winked. "I'm not surprised one bit that this one has such an affinity for pie. Would you like these in the sink or on the counter?"

"No, here, I can take those," Aria said. She quickly walked over and took the stack from her mom, shooting Ezra a look before passing them to rinse the dishes in the sink. "Mike, there are bowls in that cabinet, would you mind?" She held her elbow out, pointing to her right.

"Sure," Mike said.

Byron had not moved from his place at the table, something that seemed odd to Aria, and she knew Mike would be picking up on it too. He'd been especially quiet all night, and the look he'd been giving Ezra made Aria's skin crawl. She thought that they were past this.

"You know, Mom," Aria called, I put a pot of coffee on right before we sat down to eat. There are mugs on the counter, why don't you pour everyone a cup?"

Ella smiled and obliged, joining Ezra at the island counter as they both began to cut and pour.

When Mike had made his way over to Aria, he came up behind her and whispered quietly in her ear. "What's up with dad?" He didn't stay there long, moving to the cabinet and making a good bit of noise, hoping that their chatter wouldn't be super noticeable between the water and the clanking of dishes.

Aria looked at him out of the corner of her eye.

"I don't know," she mouthed. Mike sat the pile of bowls down on the counter and pretended to examine one. Ella and Ezra had started to chat about something behind them. For safety measures, Mike picked up a bowl.

"This one has a spot," he said, coming closer to Aria and holding it out for her to take. Then he mumbled, "Is everything okay between you and Fitz? Dad's acting like you're dating your teacher again."

"I don't know, but if that's what he's pissed about, I…" she was so irritated she didn't hardly know what to say. "I thought we were past that. I mean, Ezra and I are a lot more than that now, and even though we're the same people, it's not like he's still my teacher," Aria shot back, running the bowl under the warm water.

"Don't yell at me, I'm on your side. You're not a baby, so it shouldn't matter to him what you do."

"Well, somehow it seems like it does," she said. Then louder, "here, I think that's better."

"Thanks," Mike said, drying to bowl and moving the stack over to where Ezra was standing.

The moment the word baby had slipped out of Mike's mouth, Aria's heart had stopped cold. She was beginning to wonder whether or not tonight was a good time to mention it. With her dad acting so strange, she was afraid of the response she'd receive.

"Ezra," she said, turning and pulling a towel off the counter to wipe her hands. "Would you do me a favor and get a sweater for me? I'm feeling kind of cool."

"I can turn the air down if you want," he offered, still scooping pieces of pie into bowls. Aria looked at him, her head cocked and her eyes a little wider than usual. Now was not the time to for him to have a hard time picking up on what she was trying to say.

"I don't want to make everyone else warm," she said, her voice a little lower. She tried to convey what wasn't being said through her eyes.

"Oh," he stopped scooping and put down the serving spoon. "Oh…." She watched as realization dawned on him. This wasn't about the sweater or about the temperature inside the apartment. "Sure, do you want that one that's upstairs?"

Aria had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. "Yes," she said. "That'd be great." Ella conveniently chose this moment to turn and walk a coffee and piece of pie over to her husband at the table. Aria mouthed to Ezra, "I need to talk to you."

Ezra nodded and walked off toward the stairs, heading up to their bedroom "in search of her sweater" while Aria moved over to get a piece of pie for herself, counting to fifty before attempting to sneak away as well.

At one point in time, they had been very practiced in spacing out their departures.

Just as she'd sat her bowl down and was about to make small talk with her family in hopes of not making anything too obvious, Ezra called down the stairs, "Aria, I'm not seeing it up here."

Obviously, it had been some time since they'd needed to sneak around.

Aria looked to Mike, knowing he'd be a safe choice. "I love him but he's hopeless," she said.

Mike knew something was up as he watched his sister walk up the stairs. As he watched her retreat, he noticed for the first time that she was carrying herself a little differently. He had his suspicions… judging by the way her body had tensed when they were talking about her past relationship with Fitz, he'd started to wonder if something specific was going on. The way she and Ezra had been interacting with Ella and Byron all night and the fact that they had all been invited over for dinner was a clear sign that something was going on. He just wasn't exactly sure what.

He figured they'd all be let in on the secret before the evening was over. There was no need for both of them to be looking for her sweater upstairs. Especially when Aria had clearly been working up a sweat all through dinner.

When Ella made idle conversation, filling the silence that Aria had left them with, Mike let her, encouraging the chitchat as much as he could. Ezra was good for Aria and he'd be damned if he was going to let his parents come between them again. Mike and Aria had their differences, but when it came down to it, they always had each others backs.

Meanwhile, in the bedroom upstairs, Aria was pacing with one hand on her head and the other hand tucked along the underside of her small belly. She was anxious as fuck and she had no idea how she was going to make it through the rest of the evening without getting sick every five minutes.

Ezra was watching her from his seat on their bed, a boyish grin plastered on his face.

"Why do you look so calm?" Aria asked, stopping mid-pace.

"You're gorgeous, and I'm reveling in the moment," he said. "I am in love with the fact that you're starting to show." He leaned back on the bed and raked his hand through his hair. He was completely smitten with the picture of perfection in front of him.

Aria moved her hand to smooth over the material of her shirt. She'd been worried about what to wear for the past month. Up until the eighth week or so, she hadn't had to worry much, as her small frame hadn't taken on much of a change. However, due to being small, that hadn't lasted long. Practically the second she entered the final month of her first trimester, her belly had started taking up more space in every direction. The pants she was wearing at this moment were the last pair that fit comfortably – aside from sweatpants, but Aria was determined not to let her sense of style fall by the wayside just because she was pregnant. Soon she would need to actually buy maternity clothes, something she was incredibly excited for, she just wanted a few specific people to know about the baby before she made that next step.

"Do you think they've noticed?" she asked.

"If they have, does it really matter?" Ezra asked.

Aria shot him a look and he held up both his hands in defense.

"That was the wrong thing to say," he said, retracting his words as fast as he could. "I just meant, we're going to tell them tonight anyway, so if they've figured it out by now, what does it really hurt."

"It hurts because we were supposed to tell them before they figured it out on their own. They shouldn't have to find out they're going to be grandparents because my stomach has expanded an inch a day."

"It is not expanding an inch a day," he said calmly. He got up from the bed and walked over, pulling both of her hands in his own, and draping her arms over his shoulders. "Look at me. You are gorgeous. You have never been more beautiful than you are right now, and I am confident that I will be able to say that with sincerity every day from now until forever, pregnant or not. So stop worrying about your body." He reached a hand down and placed it over her navel. "You're making room for something very precious, and that's nothing to be ashamed of."

"I know," she said, "I'm not ashamed of anything." She took both of her hands and placed them over Ezra's, holding it there.

"We should get back down there. They're going to think we got distracted," he said, joking.

"They wouldn't think that," Aria said, giving him a surprised look. "You have to admit, we are a lot more well behaved now than we were when we were sneaking around while I was in high school," she offered, teasing him.

"Yeah?" Ezra let out a burst of laughter. "Try convincing them of that when we clue them in to this little peanut." He dipped his head down and captured Aria's lips in a chaste kiss. Before completely pulling away, he looked into her eyes and whispered so that his breath tickled the skin of her lip, "this is a good thing. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

Aria knew the meaning of his words were two-fold. They were a good thing. Their baby was a good thing.

He pulled away and sunk down so that he was crouching in front of her. He smoothed back the black material of her shirt so that it was tight against the gentle bulge that was their baby, and he placed a tender kiss in the center.

"Mommy and Daddy love you, baby," he whispered against her, his lips still touching the material of her shirt, "and so will Grandma and Grandpa and Uncle Mike."

Aria laughed quietly, her fingers now running through Ezra's dark hair.

"Thank you," she said.

He looked up to meet her eyes and smiled a little crooked grin, his hands still cupping the sides of her belly.

"Of course."

Author's Note: So I think this one was a little longer... I'll try to update soon, though I want to write the fourth chapter before posting the third, so it might not be as quick an update as this was. Please leave a review! I love knowing what you think. Thanks to everyone who's been sticking with me over the past few weeks as I've worked my way up to this multi-chapter monstrosity. I hope that I don't disappoint Lol (and by that I mean, I hope that I don't lose steam before this is completed! Nobody wants that...).