The Summer House

Chapter Four- Sunrises and Heartbreaks

The sun rises into the sky as Aria stops in front of the house. She just went on a three-mile run around Sassafras River. It has a great path around the river and when she's running her mind clears for the slightest second. "Hey, what are you doing up so early", Liam asks her as he loads tools into his pick-up truck. "Do me a favor, keep your kid away from me for a couple days, this week is a mess for me usually, and I don't need her seeing anything, especially me drowning into the bottle", Aria asks him. "Yeah, sure, I'll come by and check on you later, I'll bring booze if that means me being able to be near you", he offers. She nods her head as she walks up the finish porch steps. She's got to admit, the new steps are looking great, the entire porch is looking great in comparison to what it was.

A knock on the door followed by its opening is what snaps Aria out of her Gilmore Girls reruns while she downs a pint of Ben and Jerry's ice cream. "Hey, I know todays harder for you than most days, so I bring pizza and pot stickers", Lucy greets. Jessie and the other debutante girls from our class behind her. "Yeah, come on in, you can just put everything buffet style on the counter, and I'll just put my ice cream back in the freezer", Aria explains as she tries to straighten herself up.

Further up the street, confused and hurt, Annabeth sits on her couch with a small pint of the same Ben and Jerrys. "I don't understand why Dad won't let me go see her this week, I need her help with the debutante stuff, and with finding a dress or an escort, literally all of it", the young girl rambles to her aunt.

Her Aunt knows the truth of why Aria has requested Annabeth not see her for a couple days. "Love, I promise you, just give it a couple of days, it gives you a couple days to spend time with your favorite Aunt", Freya assures her niece. "No offense Aunt Frey, but it's not the same, she's not an aunt to me, she's...", the young, confused girl trails off. "Like a best friend, maybe even a mother figure to you", Freya speaks softly. "I mean, yeah, kind of, I don't know, how am I supposed to figure it out if she's avoiding me", Annabeth questions her aunt. "I'll talk to your dad, I'll figure out what this whole thing is about, but for now, eat your ice cream and watch your reruns of Gilmore Girls, it is your favorite show after all", Freya smiles.

Freya knocks on her ex-best friend's front door while she shoves her hands into her pockets. The door opens up to a couple country club ladies standing there. "Freya, huh, what can we help you with", Jessie asks her. "I just need to talk to Aria, it's got to do with a personal matter", Freya speaks freely. "Aria isn't in much of a mood right now, come back later", Lucy instructs. "Who's at the door", Freya hears Aria call out from further in the house. Jessie blocks the door frame more. "Just some solicitor, nothing important, we're getting rid of them now", Jessie smirks as she looks Freya up and down.

Freya walks off the porch a little more pissed off than she originally was. She should have expected this when it comes to the country club mothers, but she thought things would be different with Aria back in town. She was wrong, she should have realized Aria's arrogant too now. Freya walks through her backyard as Letty studies her daughter's annoyed stance now.

"What happened", Letty questions as she pushes her daughter's hair back. "They're still the same people that I walked away from, arrogant and snobby", Freya huffs as she leans against her mother. "I'm sure everything will work out, this is Aria, she was never fully like them, and if they mess with our little sunshine, well then she'll go crazy", Letty assures her daughter. "Then why is she avoiding Annabeth, and why did she tell Liam to keep Annabeth away from her", Freya questions instead. "We never told you, did we", Letty sighs as she pushes her hair back frustrated now. "Told me what", Freya asks confused. "Come sit, I'll tell you all about it", Letty instructs her daughter as they sit on patio furniture.

"It was Aria's senior year of high school, well the summer before technically. Aria's mother, Bethany; she started to get sick. They pushed it off as her yearly cold that she got at the same time of the year. It was so much worse though. Aria came home one day, and she found her mother crying, that's when her mother explained what had happened. Her kidneys were failing along with her liver, her lungs had collapsed twice, and they were going to have to put her into a coma because that was the only way to help her. She knew how much time she had left though; she didn't want to be sick though, she just wanted to be with her kids. It didn't get to go that way, she collapsed, and Aria had to rush her to the hospital while trying to get ahold of her entire family to explain what was happening. She passed away within a month of being in the coma. Nobody ever got a proper goodbye. Aria had to live with all of it.", Letty explains fully to her daughter.

"Wait, so Bethany's gone", Freya asks with tears in her eyes. Letty pulls her daughter close to her while watching the country club ladies leave. "Why don't you go check on her, she'll want to see you, I'm sure of it, you two were like magic together", Letty urges her daughter.

Aria opens the door, expecting it to be Liam with booze. Instead, though, it's Freya with a bottle of vodka and some Ben and Jerry's. "My Mom just told me, I didn't know, I would have come if I knew", Freya rushes her words out. "Come on in, I've got reruns of Gilmore Girls running and plenty of food", Aria invites her in. Freya steps inside but doesn't move any further before hugging Aria. Aria just hugs her back before they both pull apart and make their ways to the couch to watch television and eat junk food all night.

"She deserves to know why you separated yourself from her this week", Freya informs her. "I didn't want her to see me drinking or sad, she deserves better than that", Aria defends herself in the morning. "She's heartbroken, she thinks you want nothing to do with her anymore", Freya explains. "I'll make it up to her, just have her dressed and ready to leave within the next hour, you're coming too", Aria lectures as she formulates her plan in her head.

"Where are we going, you taking us out in the middle of the woods to kill us or something", Annabeth questions as Aria steers the boat. "Freya, maybe, but not you munchkin", Aria assures her as she moves her hair from the young girl's face. "You don't get to ghost me for a week and then act all parental, that's not going to work with me", Annabeth lectures off. "I'm showing you why I ghosted for a week", she explains as she pulls up to the other Romano property. "What is this place", Freya asks as she ties the boat to the docks. "This is where Bethany is buried, this is also where I used to train", Aria explains to them as she climbs out. "Wait whose Bethany, and what were you training for", Annabeth asks another billion questions. "Bethany was my mom and uh I was training in riding horses", Aria explains as she helps Freya out of the boat first then Annabeth.

Freya places some of the wildflowers on the grave. She found them on their way to the grave. "It was this week, the anniversary, you didn't want me to see you at your lowest, is that why you ghosted me for a week", Annabeth questions Aria. "I don't want you to see me as a mess just yet, I figured I'd save my tears around you until the debutante night", Aria explains to the child. "So much for the sunrise and heartbreaks this week, huh", Freya speaks up as she looks around at the gorgeous property. The other two just nod as everyone continues to take in the peaceful bit of the land.