AN: Hey guys I'm back. Sorry this update took longer than usual, school's getting more and more hectic. Thank you all so much for the reviews. I genuinely appreciate it. Hope y'all enjoy chapter 3.
Chapter 3
Butterflies were fluttering about Ezra's stomach and he felt that he was on cloud 9. No, wait. Make it cloud 101. His mind kept wandering back to Aria's head of beautiful hazel locks, her hazel eyes and her full pink lips. He was absolutely enthralled by her beauty. Who was she? It was rare for someone like Ezra Fitz to fall head over heels for a girl in the short span of a mere minute. It was absolutely ridiculous. Even Ezra himself could not comprehend his feelings which were like a big, messy, tangled ball of yarn. He couldn't help but think about the tiny spark of electricity that had surged through every fibre in his body when his hand brushed against hers. What. was. that.
He took a sip of his coffee- his very special cup of coffee that started it all as he walked back to his apartment complex.
Ezra's apartment was located at the very far end of the neighborhood, far away from all the chaos of cars honking and people chattering. He loved the peace and quiet. It was undoubtedly difficult to get home every day but it was worth it. His tiny apartment was his sanctuary. To him, it was like a hermit crab's shell to a hermit crab. If given the choice, he would stay in there for the rest of his life. Ezra had mountains and mountains of money in his bank account from his best-selling book and also from his inheritance from his great grandmother who loved doting on him, even going as far as leaving him a hefty sum of money in her will, far more than any of his brothers received. However, since he was all about practicality, out of the many properties available, the tiny, and somewhat dilapidated apartment complex was his favorite and final decision.
Ezra enjoyed being isolated. He loved being alone with a strong passion. He loved reading alone, drinking coffee alone. He liked riding the bus alone, and walking home alone. He liked eating alone, and listening to music alone. It gave him time to think, to set his mind free. But whenever he saw a mother with her child, a friend laughing with his or her best friend or a pair of lovers, he realised that he did not fancy being lonely. It was during moments like these that he wished that he had someone, a life - long partner to be exact.
Walking into his apartment which was covered from its hardwood floors to ceiling were shelves and shelves of books of all possible genres, but of course, Ezra had a soft spot for the classic, sappy romance novels. His friends often teased him for it; Ezra Fitz, the only bachelor out of his group of friends and love did not go together. 'Ezra Fitz" and "love" were an oxymoron.
Ezra's POV
"Daisy, I'm home," Yes, Ezra did in fact name his ginger cat after Daisy Buchanan from the Great Gatsby. His ginger cat who was given to him by his mother on Christmas Day of 2009 purred and circled Ezra. Mrs Fitz had given Ezra the feisty ginger cat in hopes of helping Ezra feel less lonely. Since she technically could not get him a girl, a cat was the next best option.
"Guess what, Daisy? I met the most beautiful girl today. She had a head full of chestnut hair, the cutest lips, the prettiest hazel eyes and the most..most kissable lips," Ezra sighed dreamily as he shrugged off his jacket and plopped on the couch. As if she understood him, Daisy hopped onto the couch and lay on Ezra's lap, covering his black dress pants in cat hair, but Ezra Fitz was too lovestruck to care.
Ezra did not understand how some random girl at a coffee a coffee shop who simply served him coffee could leave him enthralled and nervous at the thought of her. He could not help but imagine how nice his lips would be against hers as they move in sync, before their tongues fight for dominance. 'Snap out of it' he told himself. 'For all you know she could already have a boyfriend, heck, she may not even be into him or boys for the matter.' Frustrated, Ezra tossed a throw pillow across the living room, causing it to land with a thud. I need to know who she is.
Next day
Aria was suddenly awoken by the cries of her 9 month old baby, Lily. She rolled her eyes 'so much for sleeping in' she thought to herself.
Aria rolled over on the pull out couch which also served as her bed since she was way too broke to be able to afford a proper bed as she covered her ears with her pillow to shield them from Lily's incessant crying. However, to no avail. The crying became screeching which only echoed off the walls of her apartment. Aria groaned, rolled off couch and trudged to the pearl white crib which she proudly assembled in the corner of the living room.
"Shh..Shh. Mama's here," Aria cooed as she lifted Lily out of her crib and hugged her close to her own body. Much to Aria's pleasure, Lily immediately stopped crying and rested her little head on Aria's shoulder. This was an example of the bond Aria and Lily shared. Since Aria first found out about her unwanted pregnancy, despite knowing she was far too young to support a child on her own while juggling her studies was near impossible and she would most likely have to sacrifice a large part of her life should she keep the baby, the bond she had with her unborn child was unbreakable, and nothing, absolutely nothing could have driven her to terminate her pregnancy. In a split second, her anger over the baby's sudden presence ruining her entire life was replaced by a wave of over-the -top motherly feelings and a strong sense of love for her child. Lily looked exactly like Aria, from the brown hair to hazel eyes, almost like a carbon copy of Aria. But her nose was unfortunately like her Daddy's. Or the "Runaway Daddy" according to Aria. That nose was literally the only thing Aria remembered about the guy you got her pregnant that drunken night. She was so terribly drunk that night everything was a blur. Whenever she racked her brains trying to recall what happened that night, all she gained was a terrible headache. She so desperately wanted to know who Lily's father was, but at the same time, she did not want to know. The thought of sharing her precious bundle of joy with some random guy gave her the chills.
Aria set Lily in her hi-chair and proceeded to feed her mashed bananas. The sight of a speck of the mashed banana on the tip of Lily's nose made Aria smile. "Here comes the airplane," Aria exclaimed as she made little airplane noises while feeding Lily a spoonful of food, sending Lily into a fit of giggles, making Aria smile yet again. It was the little moments like these that made Aria genuinely happy. Aria had deliberately called in sick the previous night so that she could have a free and relaxing day with Lily, preferably the both of them snuggled on the couch while she read poetry or perhaps reread "Love's Vanishing Acts" while Lily flipped through her picture book on animals. Working as an editor for that company was the epitome of miserable. Even since she told her supervisor about Lily's existence, she had to endure the judgemental stares, whispers and ostracization of her fellow narrow-minded colleagues. The number of times she caught her colleagues clustered in a group pointing at her with disapproving looks plastered over their faces was uncountable. It really lowered Aria's self-worth despite her constant reminders to herself that having a child at her age was completely fine. Her mental health was of top priority.
Fast forward to later that night…
Aria sighed as she absentmindedly flipped through the coffee shop's menu for what seemed like the millionth time, to the point where she could recite the entire thing word for word. There were barely any customers left for it was quite late into the night. Aria's shift was long over and she missed Lily dearly and could not wait to pick her up from the neighbor's but she kept convincing Henrietta to keep the shop open longer for anymore customers. Truth is, Aria was waiting for Ezra. Walking into the coffee shop earlier that day, Aria had a strong sense of hope that Ezra would return for another cup of coffee. As the seconds ticked by, Aria's heart sank lower and lower, and the tiny amount of hope she was so desperately clinging onto shrunk smaller and smaller. Soon, Aria's eyelids grew heavier and heavier and unknowingly, she slipped into a peaceful slumber on the counter top.
"Sorry, may I have a cup of coffee with two shots of espresso, please?"
Aria's eyes shot open and all of a sudden she felt wide awake. She recognised that voice at the back of her mind. She looked up, shocked and her hazel eyes were met with a pair of beautiful blue eyes.