Let $\mathbf { a }$ and $\mathbf { b }$ be real numbers such that
$$\begin{aligned} & a ^ { 2 } - a = b ^ { 2 } - b \\ & a \cdot b = - 1 \end{aligned}$$
Given this, what is the sum $a ^ { 2 } + b ^ { 2 }$?
A) 6
B) 5
C) 4
D) 3
E) 2
Let $\mathbf { a }$ and $\mathbf { b }$ be real numbers such that

$$\begin{aligned}
& a ^ { 2 } - a = b ^ { 2 } - b \\
& a \cdot b = - 1
\end{aligned}$$

Given this, what is the sum $a ^ { 2 } + b ^ { 2 }$?\\
A) 6\\
B) 5\\
C) 4\\
D) 3\\
E) 2