The Aspiring Journalist Chapter 16

Several hours had past since Ezra's return to the hospital. The doctors gave Aria some sedatives and she fell asleep. A dilation and curettage procedure was scheduled for the next day. Ezra was outside Aria's hospital room. He had has iPhone in his hand. He stared a bit as his contacts list and he knew he was tasked at calling his mother and breaking the bad news. He regained composure and dialed his mother's number. After several rings, he heard his mother's voice say, "Hello".

"Hi Mom, it's me." He said with a bit of sadness.

"Oh Ezra, it's good to hear from you. How are you doing? How is Aria?"

"Uh, today Aria miscarried." Ezra said with his voice cracking.

There was a pause and then he heard his mother, "Oh I'm so sorry"

"Thank you Mom. I'm here at the hospital. Aria is asleep. They are going to do the procedure to remove the fetus and tissue that it is still inside."

Dianne said, "The poor girl. I'll go out to Rosewood tomorrow."

"It's ok, you don't need to." Ezra protested.

"You are my son and Aria was carrying your child. Both of you are going through a traumatic situation."

Ezra responded, "If you feel comfortable coming, it's ok with me."

"I'll leave first thing in the morning." She said.

"I'll see you tomorrow." Ezra said.

The next morning, Aria was taken in an OR for the dilation and curettage procedure. She was put under anesthesia. Outside her parents and Ezra were waiting in the lobby. Dianne arrived. Ezra introduced her to his parents.

Later on, a doctor came out and said that the d&c procedure went well and Aria was awake, but loopy. They would be able to take Aria home in a few hours.

Ella wanted to see Aria right away, everyone agreed to let her go in alone.

Aria was lying on a bed. She was feeling bit dizzy, her throat was sore. She was trying to take in everything that had happened since yesterday. She was in an emotional pain knowing that she lost her baby. She had really wanted that baby.

She saw her mom come into view and Ella said, "I'm here sweetie. The doctors said the procedure went without complications. In a few hours, Dad and I will take you home. Everything is going to be ok."

Aria just nodded at her mom and was still loopy, but felt the medications' effects losing some of their power.

An hour later, Ezra and his mom came into her room. Aria saw looks of sadness on the face of Dianne.

Dianne said, "I'm so sorry Aria about the miscarriage."

Aria said with a scratchy voice, "Thank you."

Ezra said, "I know you are going to be at your parents' house for a few days. We would like to visit you as you recover."

"That will be ok. Ezra thank you for all this support. Thank you too again, Dianne."

That night, Aria was lying in bed at her parents' house. She was given some antibiotics and other medications. She felt weird knowing that she no longer had a baby inside of her. She would never get to experience the rest of that pregnancy or ever see the baby. She wondered about what Ezra was going through.

Ezra was alone in his apartment. He had ordered some Chinese takeout for him and his mom. He didn't eat much and she left to her hotel. He tried watching TV and reading to take his mind off of his loss. He eventually noticed the shopping bag of baby clothes and diapers, that he had purchased. He cried looking down at the clothes. Ezra thought to himself that he shouldn't have purchased baby clothes that soon.

The next morning, Ezra walked into the Rosewood Pregnancy Crisis Center. A woman behind the front desk greeted him and asked if she could help him.

Ezra said, "I have some donations here for the center. It's a couple of packages of diapers and some baby clothes that has not been used."

The woman said, "Thank you Sir. We always appreciate donations for mothers in need. Do you have children?

Some pain was felt inside Ezra and he said, "No I don't. I hope to be a father someday."

He walked out of the center and headed to the hotel to meet his mom. From there, they would head to the Montgomerys.

Aria was still resting in bed. She was lying on her side reading email messages and texts from her friends on her phone. She was grateful for the condolences and support she received from friends, relatives, and colleagues. Spencer and Hanna also called her and promised to visit her soon.

Ella came in with a tray of food and glass of orange juice.

Aria said angrily, "Mom, you don't have to baby me. I'm fine."

"Sweetie, I know you aren't completely fine. I just want you to be comfortable here. You went through a lot the past two days."

"I'm sorry Mom for snapping at you. I just don't always like be helpless or sick."

Then they heard the doorbell ring. Downstairs, Byron answered the door and let Ezra and Dianne come in. A few minutes later, they were upstairs visiting with Aria.

Halfway through the visit, Dianne asked Aria about her future plans.

Aria said, "I will be going back to finish my Master's Degree and well I might have to change my thesis plans."

Ezra asked, 'Why would need to change your thesis plans?"

"My thesis was going to be an in depth look at disabled parents and how they parent children. I was going to include some of my own experiences with the pregnancy. But now I don't know if I should go through with it." Aria said.

"I know it would be hard since you miscarried. But you could still continue working on the thesis about disabled parents. You have lived with disability since you were 16 and maybe someday you will have children."

Aria realized that Ezra was right. Just because she miscarried, that didn't mean that she would never have a child again. She had enjoyed talking with some of the disabled parents and perhaps she could do a service to them by writing her thesis. She could use journalism as awareness for them.

Later on, Dianne joined Ella and Byron for coffee. Ezra stayed in the bedroom with Aria.

Aria had been concerned about Ezra's mental well being. She knew that he was still dealing with PTSD.

She looked at him with concern and said, "Are you doing ok, Ezra? This is hard on you too and I know this probably doesn't make the other issues you are going through easier."

Ezra said, "I had been taking some anti-anxiety and antidepressants and they have helped. I'm in emotional pain over the baby. If I get to a point where I feel really bad. I'll contact my doctor and therapist for more help. I really wanted that baby. The baby was a drive for me to get better about my PTSD. Now, I'm focusing on everyone in my life and that includes you. I still love you Aria."

Aria did still love Ezra. However, she wasn't totally sure if they should start dating again.

She said, "I love you too, Ezra. I want you to heal from the past and the present. Let's just continue being friends for now."

Ezra smiled and said, "Yes, I think that would be the best thing for us now."