Hello, readers, and thank you all very kindly for your response last chapter. And while we're at it, thank you so much for your ongoing support throughout this story. You're all so wonderful and I'm very thankful to have such a great bunch of reviewers. Which makes this all the more sad, because this is the last chapter. And, fair warning, you guys are probably going to hate me by the end of it.

On a happier note, now that I've finished this, I'm happy to take on a prompt here and there. So if any of you want a Sparia one-shot or maybe two-shot, feel free to PM me and suggest it and I'll see what I can do. And if you need more Sparia in your life (and let's face it, who doesn't?), keep an eye out for Coming Around, a Sparia fic written by my good friend Runawaybaby555 and coming soon (right? Yes? Please?). So that's it from me. Thank you all again, and I hope you enjoy the last chapter. Don't forget to review.

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This was not a scenario either of them had expected, so it took them a long time to react. It took so long that the television automatically switched itself off, and Mike came home with a lacrosse stick dragging behind him, and still the girls didn't say anything. Neither of them could believe it. Spencer thought she must have fallen asleep and been dreaming the whole thing; Aria was convinced she'd finally fallen into one of her daydreams and was actually still standing in the kitchen waiting for the popcorn to cook.

The smell of popcorn wafted over them, and a phone rang in the background. Mike picked it up, mumbled something, and disappeared upstairs.

And finally, Spencer broke their own silence with the most eloquent thing she could come up with. "You… you what?"

Aria swallowed, simultaneously wishing that she could take back the words and that she had said them louder. They were true, oh god were they true, and it seemed like things might actually go the way she'd hoped they would. But maybe they wouldn't; maybe this part was in her head, because she'd lost consciousness after her confession and was lying in a hospital bed somewhere. "I like you," she muttered.

It sounded confessional, like something she was asking permission or forgiveness for. Spencer thought back through the last couple of weeks, looking for signs and hints that she might have missed. And she came up with a few – for one thing, Aria had been at a lesbian bar last night. That was probably a big hint. There had been other signs; secret smiles, covert glances, even awkward silences. Spencer was amazed she hadn't noticed it before. But then again, she'd been so caught up in her own feelings. "And I like you," she said, surprised that the words slid so easily off her tongue. This hadn't been as difficult as she'd anticipated, and assuming that she wasn't, in fact, asleep, this might be the start of something good. Something better.

Aria was still shocked, but a smile crept across her face. She met Spencer's eyes, and the two girls burst into nervous giggles. Both were exhausted from keeping their feelings from each other, relieved that they no longer had to do so now, and embarrassed that they'd thought it necessary to do so in the first place. "How long have you…?" Aria left the sentence hanging, not quite ready to say it out loud in case she broke the illusion. What if the second she said it, Spencer realized it wasn't true and fled from the house?

"A couple of weeks," Spencer said meekly, "give or take." She paused, her hands still clasped in her lap, and then asked, "You?"

"Longer," Aria said with a grim smile. "Since before… before I broke up with Ezra."

This was news to Spencer, and it wasn't altogether pleasant. Aria had liked for her so long? And had stayed with Ezra for so long after that? She wanted to ask whether she was the reason Aria and Ezra broke up, but she wasn't quite brave enough for that. So instead she asked, "Why didn't you say anything?"

Aria cocked an eyebrow. "Why didn't you?"

Both girls laughed again, the tension and awkwardness disappearing. They were both in the same place – or at least it felt like they were – and that was something they'd barely let themselves consider before. But maybe fate wasn't playing some cruel trick on them; maybe they were being given a break.

"So." Aria shifted her position on the sofa so that she was more directly facing Spencer, one leg brought up underneath her and the other lightly brushing the floor. Spencer did the same, bringing her knees up and resting her head on them, both settling in for what was bound to be a long conversation. "What do we do about this?"

Spencer didn't answer right away. Instead she let her mind wander. She had been keeping her distance from Aria ever since she broke up with Ezra, because she'd wanted to give her friend the time and space she needed to heal. But here she was, bright eyes and shy smile, and she didn't seem like she was heartbroken anymore. She seemed more alive than she'd been in a while, and like she was ready to jump into a new adventure.

But Spencer didn't want her to jump right into another relationship. She knew better than anyone how badly that could end.

"I'm not sure," Spencer admitted after a while. "What do you want to do?"

Aria bit her lip, biting back her automatic response. What Aria wanted to do right now was take Spencer's hand in hers, and to hug her, and kiss her, and – well, that wasn't going to happen. Neither of them were that impulsive, usually, and she sure as hell didn't want to screw this up. If she had a chance she was going to take it; she'd waited too long to mess this up so quickly. "I want to…" she started, then trailed off when she realized she had no idea what she was going to say. She glanced down and then back up, meeting Spencer's eyes, and her doubts faded. "I want to be with you."

The words sent a shiver down Spencer's spin, and she couldn't quite stop the delighted smile that slipped across her face. In all of the times she'd imagined this moment, Aria saying those exactly words had not occurred to her – yet somehow it was exactly what she wanted. "I want to be with you too," she said, and she realized that nothing had ever felt so right. Her hesitance had never been due to uncertainty about her feelings for Aria – it had been fear at their intensity. She wanted to be with Aria, and now here they were, and she was being given her chance. She wasn't going to waste it.

A pink tinge spread across Aria's cheeks. She could feel it, but she couldn't do anything about it. She focused on Spencer's smile, on all the tiny details of her face, details she'd long ago memorized without even realizing it. She knew Spencer better than just about anyone, but somehow she hadn't been able to predict this. But that's what made it so perfect – neither of them were expecting it. They had hoped for it, but they hadn't really expected it to happen. It was just the kind of surprise that they needed, that they'd been waiting for.

"Well that's good," Aria said, trying to cover up her embarrassment with humor, but she had a feeling she failed miserably. She didn't mind. Everything seemed lighter somehow, like it didn't matter if she made mistakes or if she said the wrong thing. She could see it in Spencer's eyes – she was safe here. They had finally found a safe place to land, and it was time to come down. It was time for Aria to let herself open up again.

And in that moment, they both felt… fearless.

"If we're going to do this," Spencer said, still in disbelief over the fact that this was even happening, "we have to do it right."

Aria nodded vigorously, her hair falling into her face. She reached up to brush the strands away from her face, but Spencer beat her to it. Spencer tucked Aria's hair behind her ear, and then let her hand brush against Aria's cheek. Then she drew her hand away, but Aria still felt tingles shooting across her face. "So we should take this slowly, right?"

"Yeah." Spencer couldn't believe this was happening; she was barely breathing, scared to close her eyes, worried she was going to wake up at any moment. But even through that, she knew that this was real. This was really happening, and Aria really wanted to be with her, and this all felt really, really good.

Aria hesitated, and then she took a chance. "So a kiss would probably be out of the question then, huh?"

Spencer jerked her head up, searching Aria's face for some sign that she was joking. She wasn't, and suddenly Spencer knew that everything was going to be okay. For real this time. She grinned. "Not if it's a slow kiss."

And it was.

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There you go. Let your imaginations run wild as to what you think would have happened next. Thanks again, everyone, and I hope to see you around.