A/N: I went back and forth on this story for a few days, and I genuinely was not sure if it would get posted. Firstly because I already have so many other projects that I'm working on, but secondly (and more importantly) because this story is so much darker than anything else I've ever written. And I'm not going to lie – I love me a dark story. Literally. My Nook is filled with dark fan fiction right now (I guess I'm just not in the mood for a cute love story right now? *shrugs*) Anyhow, I've been put in the position of having to deal with my own personal issues with the subject matter that this story is based around for the second time in my life, and because of that, this story has come to light. I realize there are two kinds of people when it comes to abuse and people who have lived through it: Those who will read about such subject matter in fiction, and those who won't. If you won't, LEAVE NOW. If you will, by all means, continue.

But keep in mind, this story will be gratuitously graphic. I will not apologize for it. (Actually, I probably will at certain points because of the reviews I will inevitably get, but as you all know, I like to reply to reviews when thought is put into them or someone asks a question.) BASICALLY: if you're going to read, review, and then tell me it's too much, Don't. Read. It. Otherwise, continue.

WHERE THE LONELY ONES ROAM

Chapter 1

Here Comes The Lullaby

Ella Montgomery bounced on her heels as she watched the man who would likely become her son-in-law one day with trepidation. It seemed that the last few minutes had brought her a world of difference that she had never expected to see from this man. When she'd first met him a year ago, he seemed so far away from anyone who would react like he did to her previous questions.

It had all started the night before when she was looking on the internet out of natural curiosity, to see what she could find about Ezra's past. She knew that he'd graduated with honors from Hollis, but she'd been curious to know what kind of student he was, but when she found herself coming up with nothing upon searching the trusty internet, questions had begun to stir. And somehow, thirty-six hours later, she found herself standing in his tiny studio apartment, unsure of how to make her next move.

Ella leaned against the couch in Ezra's apartment, watching him curiously. "Ezra, can I ask you something?"

He looked up at her and nodded. Ella pressed her lips together, well aware of the fact that he likely didn't have a clue what she was about to unleash on him.

"Why is your last name changed?" She asked.

His lips parted just in the slightest, and there was the smallest crease in his forehead as his eyes flashed with something. Fear? She wasn't sure.

"What makes you think my last name is changed?" He asked.

Ella crossed her arms under her chest loosely, shifting her weight from one leg to the other. "I was reading up on your college experience last night," she admitted. "But it occurred to me that there was nothing from before your freshman year. And I mean NOTHING."

She watched as he looked down at the floor. His eyes were like a strobe light with strong emotion flashing through past his façade every few seconds. She could tell he was trying to hide it, but something inside of him was trying to surface.

"That didn't seem right to me, the salutatorian in his graduating class has no prior notation in the papers?" She could see his muscles tightening in his arms and neck. Whatever he was hiding was clearly a big deal. "And so I started doing some reading.

"At first, I went as far as to believe that maybe you'd changed your name entirely, because Ezra Fitz didn't exist before 2006. And then I found some articles under a similar name."

"Stop," Ezra murmured quietly. "Don't go there."

Ella's brow furrowed as she stared at him, shaking her own head. "Why just change your last name?" She asked. "Unless you're not just hiding, but hiding in plain sight."

"Don't," Ezra said a bit louder, this time loud enough for her to hear it.

"Why are you living under a different name?" She asked. "Why leave New York for a little town like Rosewood?"

"Stop," he said firmly, looking up at her. There was raw emotion in his expression; a mixture of anger, pain, and something else she couldn't quite place. "I'd like for you to leave."

"Ezra-"

He walked over to her and gestured towards the door. "Please. Go."

He moved to walk over to the door and open it for her, but Ella caught his arm, and they stared each other down for several moments. She narrowed her eyes as she looked down, just a few inches down from his eyes and to the right. It was so light, she wouldn't have seen it if, on some level, she hadn't been looking for it.

A thin white scar just a few shades lighter than his skin. And for the briefest moment, she thought maybe it was from a seatbelt... Except that it was too straight, and thicker than a seatbelt.

She could hear his breathing quicken, and she wondered if Aria knew whatever it was that he didn't want her to know. She could see as she was looking at the scar that it wasn't something easily spotted. it ran under his hair.

"Ezra..."

She breathed nervously as she watched his eyes flash again with a quick range of emotions, like a paper unraveling when it wasn't supposed to.

Ella tilted her head to the side. "Is Aria safe?"

Ezra looked back up at her. She finally placed that emotion. Guilt and regret. "I...think so."

She wanted to lay into him about putting Aria in danger, but the mixture of the fear in his eyes combined with the fact that she didn't actually know what he was afraid of, made that impossible.

"Who did that to you?" She asked.

He turned away from her and walked across the room to the island in his kitchenette. He gripped the counter with one hand as the other ran down over his face. He turned and leaned against the island until he'd sunk to the floor with his back against the cabinets. There were tears pooling in his eyes that she could see he was trying desperately not to let fall.

Ella couldn't sit and watch him in that state. Her maternal instincts had her at his side seconds later. She reached out tentatively and placed her hand over his free one. The other rested over his mouth while his elbow was digging into his knee. He looked up at her as the tears finally fell from his eyes and began to trail down his face.

"Do you remember when you asked me if there was someone who would want to use the situation with me and Aria to hurt me?" He asked.

Ella nodded.

"My...my d..." He gulped. Another trail of tears made their way down his face. "My father."

A knot quickly formed in Ella's throat as she looked him in the eyes. It was like she was seeing him for the first time. The pain, guilt, regret, suffering... She didn't even have to ask him what had happened.

"My mom divorced him when I was twelve, and when I turned eighteen, she had me legally change my name and pick a city. I came to Rosewood." He said. "He..."

Ella shook her head, pressing her lips together and biting down hard on them to keep herself from crying.

Ezra reached up to his neck and pulled hard on the tie he was wearing. "The belt..." The tie came loose, but he kept pulling at his neck as if something was constricting it. "I can't..."

Ella pushed him forward a few inches and rubbed her hand over his back. "Just breathe. You're having an anxiety attack."

"Can't," he said, His entire upper half began to tremble as his breathing quickened still. "Get it off."

Ella shifted on her knees and pulled the tie over his head and then made quick work of the buttons on his shirt until it was open. Ezra shoved the shirt off of him as fast as he could. It was as if it was burning him.

Nervously, Ella stood and crossed the apartment. she grabbed the Hollis sweater resting on the edge of his bed and then walked back over to Ezra as he moved to his feet. His breathing hadn't slowed, but it hadn't gotten any quicker, either. She handed him the sweater. He took it from her and pulled it on before pushing the sleeves up and zipping it halfway.

"So he... he choked you," she said. She wasn't sure if it was a question or observation.

"Breath control," Ezra said disgustedly, almost too soft for her to hear.

Ella's eyes widened as she looked back at him. Ezra looked up at her and realized she'd heard what he said.

"He-"

"I didn't mean- I- He didn't- I'm not..." He stammered over and over, trying to come up with the right way to tell her what she thought wasn't the case, but her expression told him that she knew he was lying.

"Ezra-"

"I cant," he stammered. "Aria can't know. I can't do this, I can't-"

Ella could see his wheels spinning again, and before she could think to do anything else, she pulled him to her and wrapped her arms tightly around him. By his rigid posture, she could tell he hadn't expected it, but he was quickly faltering against her. She could feel the wetness before his muscles loosened. Before his hands were fisting her jacket. Before gasps for air turned to sobs. Before her own tears began to fall.

-
He takes my hand down the lonely road
-

Ella settled her bag on the couch as she sunk down onto it, rubbing her hand over her eyes. She was emotionally spent, and her children were going to be home in just a bit. Mike was seeing his therapist while Aria was with Spencer, Hanna, and Emily. She didn't even know where to start with Aria. Ezra had been adamant that she not know, and Ella didn't want to take that from him, but she didn't know if she could keep what she knew from her either.

She sat there until the front door opened and Aria came walking into the house. Ella looked up at her and smiled up at her. "Hey, sweetie. How'd studying go?"

Aria shrugged, dropping her bag onto the couch. "Okay, I guess. Emily's still really behind and Ezra rescheduled on her, so…" She paused, biting her bottom lip.

"What is it?" Ella asked.

Aria looked up at her and then shook her head. "Nothing. I mean…" She sighed. "He just seemed upset when I called to ask if he wanted to have dinner. He said he wasn't, but it didn't feel that way."

"I'm sure if something is wrong he'd tell you," she said. Aria nodded, but her expression made it clear that she wasn't quite sure.

"Why don't we get some food," Ella said, standing up. "And where is Mike?"

"With dad," Aria replied, adjusting her bag on her shoulder. "Dad picked him up from his appointment and he said he'd probably stay the night."

"Okay," Ella replied. "Well lets go get some food. You can tell me all about your day," she offered.

Aria nodded, though Ella could see that she was bothered by Ezra's lack of interest in seeing her. It made her want to tell her daughter why, but she kept her thoughts to herself as she headed out of the house with Aria.

They made their way into town and had dinner at the grill, where Ella did her best to keep Aria and herself distracted with meaningless small talk. They ran into Ashley and Hanna, which seemed to distract Aria, until Hanna mentioned Caleb. After that, Aria's focus was back on Ezra and wondering about whatever was wrong with him.

After dinner, they returned home where Ella distracted herself with grading papers, and Aria did the same with her homework. They each blocked out the world to the best of their abilities, even with nagging thoughts in the back of their minds. Ella briefly considered calling Byron, but quickly dismissed the idea when she realized he would sooner say that Ezra's past would be just another reason for him to not be with Aria.

Eventually evening fell over the city, and Ella had no more work to focus on. She could hear Aria in her room as she moved about, getting ready for bed. She headed out into the hall and pushed Aria's door open a few inches as Aria was starting to snuggle under her blankets.

"You okay," Ella asked.

Aria shrugged. "I guess. I'm just gonna go to sleep and maybe things will be better in the morning."

Ella nodded. Aria reached up and pulled the light switch on her lamp, turning it off.

"Love you mom," Aria said. "Good night."

"Night, sweetie," Ella replied. She watched as Aria turned over in her bed, and then turned and walked back to her room. She pulled her cell phone free from her pocket as she did and stared at it for a few moments before she flipped it open and pushed the number 3 speed dial and lifted the phone to her ear. It rang a few times before the other end picked up.

"Hey, mom."

Ella smiled. "Hey, Mike. You doin' okay with dad?"

"Yeah," he replied back. "There's boxes everywhere, but its good. What's up?"

"Nothing," Ella said quickly. "Just wanted to check in."

"Okay," Mike replied, though he sounded less than convinced. "I've got some homework to finish up, and then I'm heading to bed."

"Alright," Ella replied. "I'll see you tomorrow. Love you."

"Love you, mom," Mike replied. "Night."

The call ended, and Ella stared at her phone for a moment longer before she settled it on the night stand and then changed out of her clothes into sweat pants and a loose t-shirt. She plugged her phone into the wall and then walked out of the room and headed down the stairs to kitchen. She looked around the room for a moment as the light brightened the formerly dark room, and then walked over to one of the cabinets and grabbed a bottle of Merlot and a wine glass. She filled it halfway and then settled the bottle on the counter. She took a drink from the glass and then set it down on the counter. She was about to take a second drink when a knock at the front door stopped her. Her brow furrowed in confusion as she walked across the house to the front door. Her eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"Ezra."

He stood in front of her shivering, wearing nothing more than a crimson v-neck t-shirt and the same black jeans he'd had on when she had been at his apartment earlier. He was soaked to the bone.

She yanked him inside the house and pulled him into the sitting room. There was a basket of towels lying on the couch. She moved quickly, more concerned for his health than anything else as she made him strip to his boxers and then draped a towel over his shoulders. She walked over to the coffee table a few feet away and opened a box. She pulled out a thermal shirt and red flannel pajama pants that belonged to Byron.

"Here," she said, offering them out. The look on Ezra's face made her chuckle. "It's what I've got, and something tells me that you won't fit in my sixteen year olds clothes."

Ezra took the clothes from her, still shivering as he stepped into the pants and then pulled the shirt over his soaked hair.

"Stay there," Ella told him as she headed into the kitchen. She grabbed her glass of wine and then walked into the hallway and opened the storage closet. She pulled out a blanket and walked back into the sitting room and set her glass down long enough to shake out the blanket. She handed it to Ezra and then grabbed the glass. She watched his eyes and raised her eyebrow just slightly at him. "You want some?"

Ezra shook his head. Ella sat down next to him, leaving a few inches between them.

"Is Aria here?" He asked.

Ella nodded. "She's asleep."

Ezra nodded, looking down at his shaking hands as he rubbed them together, trying to warm them. Ella grabbed them in her own and held them tightly, lifting them to blow warm air. Ezra watched her, but it was clear to them both that she was acting as a parent would.

"So what brought you here?" Ella asked as she lowered their hands, though she didn't release them.

Ezra stared down at the floor for a moment, only daring a half-second glance at her before his eyes dropped. "I…" He took a deep breath and gulped. "I went home to New York last October. It was when Aria and I were first trying to make things work, but Mona somehow found out about us, and I got paranoid. I told her we were over and went home. When…"

He paused, shaking his head as he pulled a hand free to reach up and scratch his temple. He looked up at Ella, looking her directly in the eyes. "He was there. I came back to Rosewood because he trashed my brother's apartment, because he knew I had been there. He was looking for me. He has been since."

Ella nodded. "So you're worried about Aria?"

Ezra shook his head, biting down oh his bottom lip until it started to bleed. Ella reached up and cupped his chin, making him look up at her. "Talk to me, Ezra. What happened?"

Ezra's eyes grew wide for a long moment as if he were recalling something, and then it was over. He looked back at Ella again. "He's a cop. He's got friends in all the wrong places, and when he found my mother, he told her he'd kill me if he found me."

He paused again, taking a deep breath. "When I came back to Rosewood, I didn't even know if I could stay. I mean, I did everything I needed to, to stay safe. Nothing here is in my name. Its all in my best friends. I made sure nothing was taken or out of place."

"Okay," Ella said. She couldn't help but sense that there was a 'but' coming.

Ezra's hands started trembling more in hers. She squeezed them tightly. He brushed his tongue over the line of blood created from splitting his lip. "Hardy was beat up earlier today. My mother said he's going to be okay, but all the information he had about my things were in a safe in his apartment. The safe was taken."

Ella gulped, taking several long, deep breaths before she spoke again. "Ezra… I need to know what you're… What he did. Is Aria in danger?"

Tears started to fill at the corners of his eyes. "Everyone I love is in danger. He'll hurt anyone who tries to get in his way, trying to get to me."

"Ezra, what did he do to you?" She asked again. "I know he hit you-"

The words tumbled out of his mouth so fast that they were both surprised by them. "He sexually abused me until my mother divorced him."

Time seemed to freeze as Ella and Ezra looked back and forth between each other. After a few moments, he started to pull his hands down, assuming he'd somehow made her sick at what he was telling her. Ella quickly tightened her grip on his hands, refusing to let him go.

"What can we do?" She asked.

" You can't-"

"Ezra!" Ella commanded. "I am not about to let a psycho come to town and torture you. As long as you are with my daughter, you are a PART of this family."

Ezra steeled himself at her comment. "He'll hurt her, Ella. He'll hurt her like he hurts me, and then he'll kill her. And you, and Byron, and Mike. You can't-"

"Last I checked, I was the parent," Ella countered. "So you'll say here. You can sleep in the guest room. We'll tell Aria in the morning."

At the mention of Aria's name, Ezra's expression changed swiftly to one of pain and shame. Ella shook her head, waiting until she got his attention again.

"You can't hide this from her, Ezra. She needs to know. It's not exactly something that would be easy to dismiss, given the current situation." Ella said.

Before Ezra could continue to argue with her, his phone began to ring in the pocket of his jeans. He reached down and grabbed them, pulling it free. He stared at the screen with a blank expression for a moment. It was an unlisted number.

Under normal circumstances, he would've just answered, given that his mother's number was unlisted, but he knew the chances of it being his father were high. He looked back up at Ella. "It's unlisted."

Ella grabbed the phone from him and slid the arrow across the screen before lifting it to her ear. "Hello?"

"Who is this? Is this Aria?" A low female voice came over the phone line.

"No, this is her mother," Ella replied. "Is this Dianne?"

"Where is my son?" The voice replied.

"Sitting right next to me," Ella replied coolly.

There was a brief pause, and then a quiet sigh of what Ella assumed was relief. "Is he planning to stay there?"

"Yes," Ella replied.

"I need a different number to reach him at. He needs to lose his phone." Dianne replied.

"Alright," Ella replied.

"Might I speak with him?"

Ella looked up at Ezra as she handed the phone to him. He took it from her tentatively before lifting it to his ear. "Mom?"

Ella watched as his brow knit while Dianne talked. For a moment she thought it was because he was getting upset again, but after a few seconds, she realized it was an entirely different emotion. Rage.

"How the hell is that going to help anything!?" He argued into the phone. "He's not stupid! He's a second generation cop who's worked in New York for decades! Being in Rosewood-" He stopped talking, presumably because she had cut him off. Still, his rage didn't waver. In fact, it seemed to grow, the longer he listened to her speak. "Right, because the best thing to do is leave Aria in a position that some psycho is going to kidnap her, or worse-"

Ella knew better than to let what he was saying scare her. She knew that he was purposely provoking any option that might get his mother to change her mind about whatever they were arguing about. Regardless of whether he skipped town or not, there was still a large chance that Ezra's father could turn up in town and try to get information from Aria.

A few moments later, he pulled his phone away from his ear, and Ella couldn't help but cringe as he threw it at the wall. The screen smashed and the casing fell apart, leaving pieces on the floor. As she opened her eyes again, she watched him curl his hands into fists while his chest heaved with heavy angered breaths, and she knew he was pissed.

She didn't move as she spoke to him in the calmest voice she could manage, not wanting to provoke him further. "Ezra, running away from Rosewood isn't going to help. Regardless of where you go, you don't have the means or the funds to erase who you are. At least here-"

"Here, I'm an open target for him to find and kill," he growled as he looked over at her. The glare in his eyes was one that could rival her own. Still, Ella wasn't daunted by his anger.

"No," she disagreed. "Here, you are surrounded by people who care about you. Here, you've got people willing to keep you safe."

He shook his head at her, biting his bottom lip again. It wasn't until blood ran over the top of his lip that Ella realized what he was doing, taking his rage out on himself. She walked over to him and grabbed him by his shoulders, shaking him a few times until he released his lip.

"You don't get it," he said, straining to speak past the knot that had built up in his throat. "He won't just kidnap Aria if he finds out about her. He'll make someone hurt her for answers. He'll hurt your entire family, her friends, my friends… Anyone who knows anything. Him beating up Hardy today was just the beginning of it all."

"So what?" Ella replied. "Do you realize the difference between staying here and running?"

"No one gets hurt if I leave," Ezra said.

Ella shook her head. "No. Because if you leave, you'd have to go tonight. Without a phone, without any credit cards, bank statements, or anything else of the sort. You'd have to leave in a different car, too, with different plates. Tell me, how far could you get with no money?"

"Trust fund," Ezra told her. "I'd empty it."

Ella shook her head again, and her diaphragm spasmed once like it would if she laughed, dismissing his answer. "So what? You get three thousand miles away some other middle-of-nowhere town? How do you know he won't find you there?" She paused for a moment as she watched his eyes drop, considering what she was saying. "What then? With no friends, no family… No one to protect you. You really think he'd have the mercy to kill you?"

Ezra gulped and his shoulders shook under her hands. His reaction was clear in its answer that death would not be on the list of things Ezra's father would grant him.

Once again, tears filled his eyes, and Ella could see that it was sinking in to him. He looked down at the floor. She stepped away long enough to grab a washcloth from the basket of clean clothes. She grabbed a bottle of water from the table and then poured some onto the cloth before lifting it to Ezra's face and gently dabbing at the blood on his lip. He winced as she did so.

"I always thought if I was safe about things I did, he'd never find me," he said quietly.

"Why isn't he in jail?" Ella asked. She grabbed one of his hands and placed the washcloth in it.

Ezra looked up at her, but a moment later, his eyes drifted beyond her, and she looked over her shoulder. Aria was standing at the base of the steps a few feet away. Her head was tilted to the left and her mouth agape.

"I can't…" She looked back and forth between Ella and Ezra repeatedly. "You'd do this to me?"

Ella's brow furrowed slightly in confusion before she realized she still had Ezra's hand in her right, and her left was on his forearm. She quickly yanked them away, which only furthered how terrible the situation looked.

"Aria-" She started.

"I didn't- I mean I wouldn't-" Ezra stammered. There was fear in his eyes, but to an outsider, it was there for different reasons.

"All this talk about how you love me, and you'd do anything for us to be together, and you're doing this? My mother?!" She said angrily.

"Aria, I would never do that," he said, still holding the cloth to his lip.

"Right," she said, nodding disbelievingly. "That's why you're wiping lipstick off your face."

Ezra dropped his hand and looked down at the cloth. A few moments later, blood ran over the side of his lip again and began to make a trail down his chin. "No."

Aria looked back and forth between Ella and Ezra again, utterly confused.

Ella sighed, shaking her head. "You need to tell her," Ella told him. "I'll…take care of the phone. Is there anything you want from your apartment? Anything that can't be replaced?"

Ezra looked up at her nervously. "There's box of journals and photo albums in the closet, and my degree from Hollis on my desk. My laptop has a few things on it, too." He paused for a moment.

"What about clothes?" Ella asked.

"Ezra shrugged. "Whatever is easy to grab. There's a t-shirt and a sweater from Hollis that I want, but otherwise…And a cookie monster on a mantle. Looks ready to be thrown away, but-"

"I'll get it," Ella said, with just the slightest hint that she could've laughed in her voice. "You should ask Aria about Pigtunia."

She walked over to where he'd thrown his phone and picked up the pieces before walking into the kitchen. She returned a moment later with her coat and keys and looked between Aria and Ezra for a moment. They both looked apprehensive to say anything to one another. "I'll be back."

She stood there for a moment longer before walking out of the room. The door closed a few moments later, and Aria and Ezra stayed where they were standing. She waited a few moments before finally moving towards him. Once she was within a few inches of him, she tentatively reached down and grabbed his hand, taking the washcloth from him. She lifted it to his chin and wiped up the trail of blood that had formed before pressing it to the inside of his lip. He winced under her touch just like he had Ella's, but didn't move away from her.

"So what are you supposed to tell me?" She asked quietly. "She punch you after you tried to kiss her?"

Even though he heard the words coming out of her mouth, the sarcasm in her voice was clear enough that he was aware that she didn't really believe that was the case. How she had realized what she walked in on wasn't what she originally thought, though, was beyond his understanding.

"No," he murmured quietly. He lifted his hand to adjust the cloth, brushing his hand against the inside of hers as he did so. Aria pulled her hand away slowly, pressing her lips together as she waited for him to speak. Ezra watched her and gulped again as he tried to keep his emotions level. He had no idea where to even begin with her and explain everything.

How could he tell her about what had happened in New York last year? About what had happened to him growing up? How was he even supposed to begin to make her understand why his father wasn't in jail?

"Ezra?" She said quietly. His name sounded foreign coming out of her mouth, even though he was looking right at her. He blinked, and several tears ran down his face from the corners of his eyes.

Worry filled over her face as she reached her free hand up to his cheek, touching him gently. His vision turned to the floor as his chin trembled. Aria gently brushed her thumb against his cheekbone.

"I…" He looked back up at her, but his vision was heavily blurred by the tears glassing over his eyes. His upper body shook with fear as he looked at her. He blinked involuntarily and several tears made quick paths down his face.

Any wavering thought Aria might've had left that what she'd walked in had any trace of infidelity in it was gone as she felt his hand start to tremble under her own, and her throat became tight watching him suffer when she didn't even know what was upsetting him. She'd only ever seen him upset once before, and it hadn't even been close to this.

Aria opened her eyes and groaned softly as she looked around the room in front of her. She was aware that she wasn't in her own room, but it took a few seconds before she remembered that it was Ezra's bed she was in. He'd carried her over there after they'd started kissing at the counter a few hours earlier, and then proceeded to make love.

She reached her hand out to the other side of the bed, only to be met with the cool feeling of empty sheets. She snatched the t-shirt he'd laid at the end of the bed for her and pulled it over her head before pulling her hair free. The bathing suit she'd had on laid a few inches over on the bed. She retied both sides and then stepped into them as she moved off the bed.

Ezra was seated a few feet away on the couch with his back to her. She walked over to him and placed her hand on his shoulder. He looked up at her, a surprised expression on his face. There were tears on his face, but they seemed to be drying up.

She sunk down on to his lap, wrapping her arm around his neck. "What's wrong?"

He shook his head at, forcing a half-smile. "Nothing."

"You sure?" She asked with a slight chuckle. "You're not exactly the kind of person to cry over nothing."

Ezra nodded. "I promise." He rested his hand on her thigh, quickly changing the subject. "The pool is open. Why don't we go for a swim?"

She stared at him for a moment longer before resolving that she wasn't going to get whatever was affecting him, out of him. "Alright."