Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Party music played loudly from the Hastings’ barn, drowning out the sound of the                                                                                       raging storm outside. The wind seeping through the cracks and the incredibly loud thunder that would usually force them to hide under the covers of their beds didn’t seem to register. The four girls laughing and singing along were there to have a good time and not even a giant storm would stop them from making that happen.

Hanna took out a bottle of rum from her backpack and the others chuckled, albeit some of them uneasily. Hanna poured them all a glass and in the spirit of having a good time and trying to ignore the anxiety-inducing storm they all accepted it.

Suddenly the music cut off in the middle of 3OH!3’s “Don’t trust me” and the lights went off, leaving them stunned in the darkness.

The cheer and good mood that was present dissipated from the room, leaving a looming sense of anxiety.

"What happened?" Aria was the first to speak up.

She fumbled with the contents of her bag before her hand finally closed in on the flashlight which she immediately turned on and shone in the direction of her friends. She was hoping she wouldn’t have to use it when she packed it, but alas, the storm had other plans.

"Must be the storm," Spencer mumbled, lighting a match on the small coffee table and putting it up to the five candles gathered in the middle of it. It was supposed to be used as ‘mood lighting’ as Alison called it, but surprisingly turned out more effective than anticipated.

After a particularly strong gust of wind, the entrance door creaked loudly causing them to all jump and turn to stare at it in anticipation.

"Something's out there," Aria whispered, alarmed.

“I-it’s just the wind,” Emily insisted, but still stood up to stand next to Aria whose flashlight was pointed at the door.

Spencer’s match almost fell out of her hand when the doors rattled and her friends gasped out loud. She stood up to join them in huddling around Aria and her flashlight.

Hanna was grasping onto Aria’s arm, sharing a fear-filled glance with the brunette.

"Guys," she whispered, unable to look away from the door, “What do we do?”

Spencer pulled out a flashlight as well and gestured them to follow her, trying to appear braver than she felt. As a group, the girls slowly neared the barn's open door when a loud noise came from its direction and they halted, squealing in surprise. After a moment's hesitation they kept moving, drawn by the unfamiliar presence before them.

They got closer and closer until...

“Boo!” A blonde girl wearing a yellow top jumped towards from behind the door.

The girls’ screams almost immediately turned to relieved laughter and half-hearted glares.

"That's so not funny Alison!" Spencer chuckled uneasily.

"I think it was hilarious girls," Alison grinned, strutting along before the others and taking her seat at the chairs around the coffee table.

The others hastened to make themselves comfortable again, still feeling somewhat spooked by Alison’s prank. Alison began going through their joined playlist on her phone and played one of their songs, leaning back into her armchair.

"Ali did you download the new Selena?" Hanna asked from across her.

"Ugh, not yet," Alison said regretfully. “Jason is hogging the laptop until he gets a new one.”

"I'm loving her new video," Emily grinned.

"Maybe a little too much Em," Alison playfully taunted, causing Emily's smile to shift into an awkward one while the others chuckled in confusion, not wanting to be left out of the joke.

Alison saw Aria eyeing her glass on the table and smirked, "Drink up, come on."

Aria hesitantly took the glass and with a half-hearted smile drank the whole thing. A cheer led by Alison erupted when she did.

"Be careful Aria, you take too much and you'll tell us all your secrets," Spencer chuckled, drawing a slightly suspicious look from Alison.

The girls, slightly tipsy and just happy to be there giggled at Spencer's unfunny joke.

"Friends share secrets. That's what keeps us close." Alison's smile was gone and her eyes seemed almost teary when she spoke. The others quieted down at the shift in the mood, desperately searching for another topic in their heads to break up the uncomfortable feeling.

Lucky for them, Alison’s patented mischievous grin fell back into place almost immediately.

"Drink up girls." She giggled.

The others were quick to accept her shift in demeanor and went back to the exciting evening...

Aria slowly lifted her head, wondering how and when she'd fallen asleep in her armchair. They've been preparing for that night, the big sleepover, for weeks now, and she ended up sleeping through it. She looked around the room and was a bit surprised, although not concerned, to see two of their friends missing. She shook Emily who was closest to her awake.

As Emily stirred awake Hanna opened her eyes as well.

"Where are Spencer and Ali?" she mumbled, still stretching from her sleep.

"I don't know,” said Aria. When no one else seemed to care enough, she got up and lazily walked to the door.

When she neared it, she heard footsteps and slowed down, remembering their scare earlier that night. It was probably just Alison again, she and Spencer lived nearby anyway - maybe they went home to get something.

Spencer appeared at the entrance and Aria exhaled in relief, feeling a sudden urge to hug her. It was really not a big deal, but seeing her friend there made her feel relieved. Alison and Spencer had been fighting more frequently those past few days and she was afraid they’d done it again.

"She's gone." Spencer blurted, a confused expression on her face.

"What do you mean she's gone?" Aria furrowed her eyebrows, preparing herself to laugh at whatever dumb joke Spencer was trying to play.

"I looked everywhere for her."

But the look on Spencer’s face was serious, she was scared.

"I... I think I heard her scream,” she said with an empty voice.

The others helped her back into the barn and talked to her about what happened but Spencer couldn’t remember anything. Aria was sure it was just some misunderstanding. It couldn’t be real, their lives were not some sort of dramatic television show… Surely, Alison couldn’t just disappear. No, this was just Alison being Alison and bailing on them again. It had to be.

But there was one thing that wouldn’t get out of her head even as they were searching for her throughout the yard, several minutes later.

I think I heard her scream...

Aria looked at herself in the mirror of her old room. She didn’t look too different since last year. The only real change was her now completely brown hair as opposed to the pink strands she had in it when she was sixteen. Seventeen didn’t feel too different. But being back home did.

Even as they entered Rosewood again, she noticed the differences. The houses at the start of the city looked newer, repainted after years of neglect from their elderly owners. Their next-door neighbors had a new addition to their family, evident from the toys scattered around their yard, and a new café had opened near the school called “The Brew”.

The most prominent change, however, were the posters. The ones still hanging all over town since she’d helped put them up. A lot of them were on the ground, flying around at the unexpected gusts of the fall wind, but the majority of them were still there. Why hadn’t anyone removed them?

She didn't want to go back to the place that would remind her of Alison. She was secretly hoping they'd all forgotten. It was a terrible thought, but she wasn't sure if she could handle another year of mourning her just as she was going back to normal. She was in a good place and didn't need the reminder. Alison was gone and that was it, there was nothing they could do about it.

Unfortunately though, the most interesting thing to happen in Rosewood was still Alison's disappearance, as seen by the daily newspaper marking the one year anniversary of her disappearance and it seemed Aria would not get away from the reminders any time soon.

"Are you okay?" her mom asked, startling her out of her thoughts.

"Yes." Aria smiled, "It's just so weird coming back... It feels like we were gone for so long..."

"One year is a long time when you're a teenager," her mother smiled sympathetically, "You should call your friends, they don't know we're back yet."

“I’ll get around to that,” she shrugged. "In the newspaper they're calling it the anniversary of Alison's disappearance. Like it's a party or something."

Her mom affectionately ran her hand through Aria's hair. "Give your friends a call. You five were inseparable, those feelings don't just go away. You can get through this together honey."

“Yeah, I know.”

Her brother ran across the hallway outside her room announcing to anyone with a driver's license in the house that he needs a ride to lacrosse practice and causing Aria and her mother to chuckle.

"I'll take him," Aria said.

They went downstairs where he was complaining about being unable to find his equipment and Aria’s mom offered to help him look in the garage, leaving Aria alone in the room with her dad.

"A lot of memories coming back here... Are you okay?" he asked.

Aria's smile fell, giving him a slight glare, "I'm still keeping your secret dad. Don't worry."

"No, I... I meant are you okay with Alison," he frowned.

Aria glanced up at him, finally meeting his eyes after a year of trying her hardest to avoid him. She didn't know what to say. She only knew that he didn't care about her feelings, he just wanted his stupid secret to stay hidden.

Thankfully, her brother came back racing towards the car and Aria followed, using the chance not to talk to her father any longer. She would probably avoid coming back home that day until she absolutely had to.

After driving her brother off to practice, Aria had two hours to kill. She decided to get something to eat instead of calling her friends like she'd originally intended. She didn't want to face yet another reminder of Alison. So, she ordered a veggie burger and sat at the Hollis college bar. It probably wasn’t the best place to go but it was the last place anyone would expect to find her.

She was still considering at least calling Emily. Emily always knew how to make someone feel comforted and Aria could have really used that familiarity. But one look at the picture of Alison on the newspaper left at the bar made her reconsider again.

"You okay down there?" A voice snapped her out of her thoughts and she turned around to face a cute looking guy a few seats next to her.

"Yeah, a little jetlagged. Just got back from Iceland," she smiled in a friendly manner.

"I stayed in Reykjavik once, it's a great city."

"Do you go to Hollis?" she asked.

"No, I just graduated. I'm about to start my teaching job,” he said.

"I think I'd like to teach."

She was going to ask him more about going to college, but a song started playing that got her attention and made her stop. It was a song that Alison had played for her once, knowing she’d like it. Now it was just another reminder that her friend was dead.

"I love this song," she said wistfully.

"B26," he said, surprising Aria. She hadn’t expected anyone to know of it as it wasn’t very popular.

"What's your major?" he asked.

"Uh..."

He thinks I’m a college student?

She was going to correct him, but then she remembered what Alison had told her. She shouldn’t waste an opportunity by telling the truth. Besides, a little lie never really hurt anyone.

"I'm leaning towards English," she said. It felt odd to take her advice after having avoided it for so long. But it also felt very easy.

"That's what I'm teaching," he smiled.

"A-and I write too, but it's mostly personal. For now." She hadn't told many people about that and sharing it with a complete stranger was definitely not in her plans, but it sure felt good to say it out loud.

"I'm impressed." He moved to a seat next to hers.

"Why?"

"I tried writing but I always got stuck at some point." He looked her in the eyes.

"If you're writing for yourself that's pure passion," he said, "Maybe you'll let me read something of yours?"

"You'd want to?" Aria was really taken aback by his reactions to her hobby. She'd never wanted to share her work with anyone, but the interest he showed...

"Yeah. You're pretty, you're smart, traveled... Great taste of music." They chuckled.

"I'd like to get to know more about you," he looked at her suggestively.

"I'd like to get to know more about you too," she smiled, the butterflies in her stomach doing backflips.

She knew somewhere in the back of her head that she shouldn't be doing this, making out with a stranger. And in a public bathroom of all places. But the guy was a really good kisser and she couldn’t make herself stop.
It could've been her inexperience talking, after all she'd only had one boyfriend before, but she didn't really care at the moment. All of her thoughts were pushed aside the longer she kissed him. It felt really exciting and the thrill of getting caught... Well, nothing would actually happen, but it still made the whole situation hotter

She wrapped her arms tighter around him and he tightened his grip as well, the both of them reveling in the feeling. Aria couldn't care less about Alison, about Iceland, about her dad... or about her annoying brother that was probably waiting for her.

She opened her eyes, wanting to pull back but his grip wouldn’t allow it. She felt his hands slide lower down her back and she moved back a bit stronger. His arms moved away immediately and he smiled at her sheepishly.

“Sorry, was that too much?”

"Sorry. I have to..." she couldn't catch her breath. From the kissing of course, not because she felt anxious there for a moment.

"I have to pick up my brother," she smiled awkwardly.

"Yeah. Of course."

"But uh... I hope to see you again?” she asked.

"Definitely," he grinned, "Here."

He gave her his phone with his phonebook opened. She arched an eyebrow at him in amusement.

“Oh,” he chuckled nervously, “I’m old-fashioned.”

She chuckled, writing down her number and hoping he’d text first before calling.

A confident looking Hanna looked at her reflection in the mirror, trying on her tenth pari of sunglasses.

"Can I see the ones in the front?" she asked with a sweet smile.

"I'm gonna have to put some of these back." said the clerk awkwardly, gesturing at the full counter.

"But they're all a maybe," she pouted.

"Is this me?" her friend asked her from a nearby mirror, sporting a colorful scarf.

"Or is it just a little bit too much your mother?" Hanna added sarcastically.

Rolling her eyes in begrudging agreement Mona turned away from Hanna and walked out of her view.

Hanna tried on another pair of sunglasses that cost way over her weekly allowance and was about to ask for more. But then she spotted Spencer at the far end of the store, browsing through the clothing racks. She hadn't seen her in a while. They saw each other in school, but after...

It would be rude not to catch up, she thought. She didn't really want to go over there and say hello, after all the sunglasses were waiting for her, but she just couldn't help it.

I just want to help with her awful fashion choices, nothing else.

"I'll be right back." She sent a charming smile at the salesman before walking away.

She wanted to put on a fake smile to appear polite, not wanting to start off on the wrong foot after everything, but she found that the smile tugging at her lips was genuine.

"I can't believe Spencer Hastings actually has time to shop!"

Spencer chuckled after her initial surprise.

"I mean you're interning for the mayor, taking classes at Hollis and redoing the barn. And in your leisure moments you casually win state-wide debates."

Spencer smiled sheepishly, "You know me, I like to stay busy."

"It's called a summer vacay Spence."

"Hey if working twenty-four seven gets me to law school then I'll do it."

Hannah chuckled in fond amusement. "Wasn't that your last tweet?"

Spencer chuckled as well, "It was three AM and I was caffeinated as hell when I wrote that."

"Well, you know what Alison always says-" Hanna stopped herself mid-sentence. An uncomfortable silence stretched out between the two.

"Did you see the paper today?" Spencer asked solemnly.

"Yeah." Hanna looked down.

"She's gone but she's everywhere," she said before continuing, "Do you remember what she said that night? About secrets keeping us close?... I think it was the opposite."

It’s what Hanna had been thinking the whole time. Alison's secrets were what got her killed. And Hanna was certain that Alison was killed. Almost the entirety of Rosewood had their secrets kept by her and it wasn’t hard to imagine that someone got pissed off enough to do it.

She shook off the unpleasant thoughts and grinned again, signifying the change of the conversation.

"So, what's the occasion?"

"Family dinner." A sarcastically happy smile formed on Spencer's face, "We're meeting Melissa's new fiancé!"

"Oh did Miss. Perfect finally find Mr. Perfect?"

"Oh yes, and he's a med school student so everyone's thrilled!" She said in mock cheerfulness.

"Then that's not the right top." Hanna eyed Spencer's choice and instead pulled a strapped red shirt from the clothes rack. "This is. You need to turn heads."

It was definitely not Spencer's style, but Hanna knew fashion. She also knew Spencer and Melissa were always at each other's throats, and Spencer usually wound up miserable because of it.

"From Melissa?"

"She doesn't always have to win." Hanna smiled mischievously.

Spencer accepted the shirt, albeit a bit hesitantly.

"See you around Spence."

"See ya."

Hanna confidently strolled through the mall, heading for the exit with the sunglasses still on her head.

"Excuse me, miss," a security guard patted her shoulder. With butterflies in her stomach and her breakfast threatening to spill out again she turned around to face him.

One long second later, he said, "You forgot your bag."

The tension gone, she smiled at him. "Thank you."

Exhaling in relief she met Mona just a few feet away.

"I totally thought you were busted!" Mona whispered loudly.

"Me too!" They laughed.

"Nice scarf by the way," Hannah smiled knowingly, eyeing her best friend’s stolen accessory.

Aria’s dad drove her and Mike to school the following day. Her brother immediately ran off, anxious to meet up with his friends before class starts and Aria was about to follow suit when her father spoke up.

"... You know I love you, right?"

She moved her hand away from the door and hesitantly nodded.

"And I love your mom too."

"Do you?" she immediately fired back.

"I made a mistake okay? And I will regret it for the rest of my life. …I just hope you will be able to forgive me some day."

"Yeah, I hope so too." She abruptly walked out of the car, hoping she wouldn’t have to hear any more of his excuses.

She'd tried to forget she ever saw that and ignore him, but once the latter became impossible, she never thought about bringing it up. But he always did. He must've been scared of her telling on him so every chance he had, he'd remind her that he loved her and their family. She believed that, of course, but the fact was that he cheated on her mother and Aria just couldn't let that go, no matter what he said.

She still remembered the day when she saw it.

Her and Alison had gotten some ice cream and Mona, or as Alison liked to call her, Loser Mona, had seen them from across the street. Aria didn't generally mind her company, but she was Alison's main target and Aria didn't want to get in her way.

Mona was running after the two while Alison snickered at the girl's desperation to talk to them.

"Hey Alison! Aria!"

"Maybe we should stop." Aria glanced back at Mona.

"No way!" Alison chuckled "She's so desperate, will she ever get a clue?"

Aria felt a little uncomfortable laughing along with Alison, but Alison was her friend, and the perks of popularity were so hard to give up. Alison grabbed Aria's arm and the two ran off, giggling, leaving a defeated Mona behind. They ran into an alley where a car was parked and Alison suddenly stopped.

"Isn't that your dad's car?"

It was, and upon closer look, Aria had frozen in her spot. She would have gladly talked to Mona if it meant not seeing what she saw that day.

Her father was in his car, making out with a woman that was clearly not her mother.

She was glad when her trip down memory lane was suddenly interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Aria?"

She turned to face her friend with a genuine smile on her face, "Emily!"

The two hugged, happy to see each other for the first time in a year.

"When did you get back?" Emily asked, smiling.

"Yesterday. We had a lot of work so I couldn't call..."

"It's okay, I'm just glad you're finally back!" Emily grinned.

That was what Aria always loved about Emily. All of her friends were nice towards each other, but Emily was always the one who was the best at it. Her cheerful and friendly personality always made all of them feel welcomed. Her happiness was almost contagious and Aria always loved talking to her. Emily was the first person she'd call when something went wrong, it was never anything big or serious, but for sixteen-year-old Aria those conversations with Emily about their unfair teachers or her new failed hairstyles were something she'd always fondly remembered. It almost felt too good to see Emily again. She'd talked to her during her first few weeks in Iceland, but then they just -stopped. She suddenly couldn't find it in her to meet her eyes.

"Last time I saw you, you had pink streaks in your hair," Emily chuckled, touching a strand of her hair.

"Well, when your parents want you to be yourself and you don't know who you are..." Aria gestured to her hair and they laughed.

They walked together for a bit in silence. Neither one knew what to say until Emily hesitantly asked, "Why didn't you call all this time?"

Aria dreaded that question ever since she stepped foot in Rosewood.

"We kind of grew out of touch remember?" she said, feeling hurt by her own words. But it was the truth, and Emily knew that too.

After the night Alison disappeared, they met up a couple of times but each time one of them had something to do and the meetings grew shorter until they completely stopped merely a week later. They were all too wrapped up in their grief and when Aria moved to Iceland, it felt like an official end to their friendship.

They never even had a proper goodbye after all those years of being friends. The last conversation Aria had had with Emily was about buying a new shirt from Iceland after which they stopped talking altogether.

Attempting to move out of the awkwardness, Aria mentioned the first thing that came to mind.

"I saw a poster of her yesterday."

"It's pointless," Emily said. "We all know she's dead."

Aria's breath hitched. She'd been thinking it all along but hearing it out loud felt surreal. And from Emily of all people. The girl was always so enamored by Alison, it almost looked like she had a crush on her at some points. She was kind of hoping she'd just pop out of somewhere and tell them it's all an elaborate prank.

"Yeah. Hearing someone else say it..."

"I know." Emily looked sympathetic. "It freaks me out too."

They walked in the English classroom together.

"So I hear the new English teacher is really hot," Emily grinned, taking a seat next to Aria.

"Don't you have a boyfriend?" Aria teased.

Emily chuckled, not meeting her eyes.

The last of the students were taking their seats and a familiar looking blonde entered the classroom. Aria did a double take upon seeing her. She’d lost a lot of her weight since Aria last saw her and her clothes looked nothing like what the Hanna she knew would wear. Long gone were the oversized shirts and lazily brushed hair she used to have. It wasn't a bad thing, but it all screamed 'Look at me!' and Hanna had never been one for attention.

"Is that Hanna?" she asked in surprise.

Emily nodded, "She's the ‘It’ girl now. And where there's Hanna, there's Mona."

Aria turned to look at the dolled-up brunette, dressed in expensive looking clothes standing next to Hanna.

"That's Mona?" Aria looked at her with wide eyes.

Hanna noticed the two and waved at them briefly, looking like she'd rather be doing anything but that.

Aria smiled, but quickly looked down at her desk. After meeting Emily again, she wasn't prepared for such a cold welcome. Especially since Hanna had always been nice to her. She'd never seen Hanna do anything even close to mean and seeing the “It girl”, as Emily had called her, just didn't sit right with Aria.

She glanced to the side and saw Spencer seated towards the front of the classroom and was really glad her back was turned to her. She couldn't deal with another cold greeting, and she knew Spencer could be very cold if she wanted to.

She pulled out her books when the teacher entered the classroom and began organizing the things on her desk while he wrote his name on the board.

"My name is Mr. Fitz, and I will be your new English teacher." That voice sounded familiar.

Aria looked up and almost shouted out in surprise. The guy from the bar was her teacher. The guy she'd made out with and lied to about going to college was her teacher.

He met her eyes in passing and stopped for a second before quickly turning back around to take out his things.

Maybe he didn't notice?

Suddenly her phone beeped, very loudly, and a couple of heads turned her way, including his.

"Miss..."

She realized he was waiting for her to answer.

"Uh, Montgomery."

"Montgomery. Please turn off your phone during class, thank you." He really didn't seem to remember her. He sounded calm and unfazed by her presence. It kind of hurt.

Once he turned back around to the board, she looked down to read her text.

Maybe he fools around with all the students, a lot of teachers do. Just ask your dad.

-A

What the hell?

She turned around but no one had a phone near them. It was probably just a coincidence… She’d received a lot of empty threats after Alison’s disappearance.

She couldn't think straight for the rest of the class. The only person who knew about her dad was...

Alison.

Emily’s mom was preparing a welcome basket for the new neighbors while Emily shared the news of the first school day, leaning on the counter next to her.

Emily exhaled, "It's just so weird to think of other people in Alison's house."

"I know honey," her mother glanced at her sympathetically.

Emily was worried of what the new family might do to the place. She obviously didn't expect from them to demolish the house or anything like that, but they'd create new memories. They'd erase all of their memories and soon everyone will forget about Alison DiLaurentis like she'd never existed.
All of her friends already had.

"Aria's back," she said.

"Does she still have that pink hair?" Her mother scrunched up her nose slightly.

Emily chuckled, "No."

"You know there's something I don't get about that family. How could a mother let her daughter do something like that?"

Emily loved her mother, she really did. But sometimes she would go on a tangent about the smallest things that bothered her and Emily simply couldn’t disagree more. Sure, maybe Aria had made a rash decision with her hair, but she was sixteen and it wasn’t not like it really changed anything for her. But Emily's mother always had to make a lesson out of things. A small step out of the norm was always a bad thing.

"Because they think their children are their equals not their property." Emily said, with a little more annoyance than she'd intended.

"Honey, I don't think you're my property." Her mother looked at her incredulously. She put her hand on her shoulder affectionately. "But I'm your mother, I can't let you running around looking like a goth."

Emily bit back her response. She really didn't want to argue with her mother about something Aria did a year ago that had absolutely nothing to do with her.

"That kind of lifestyle might fly in Europe but it's not gonna get you very far in Rosewood."

"Not everyone dreams of making it in Rosewood mom."

Some people dream of making it out.

Alison had told her that once.

It was a sleepover with only her, Spencer at Alison at Spencer’s house. Things were pretty tense in the Hastings household, as per usual, and Spencer's parents were out of town, supposedly for business, although Spencer wasn't convinced. Melissa was supposed to stay and watch over her younger sister upon their parents' request, but she was instead out on a date with her then boyfriend, Ian.

"So where did Jason go for his trip?" Emily asked, trying to diffuse the tension after Alison bluntly ignored Spencer the whole time since she’d arrived.

Alison scoffed "Somewhere in Europe, I don't know."

"You guys fighting again?" Spencer asked timidly.

"We can hardly hear each other with all the yelling coming from your house," Alison retorted.

Spencer looked away, refraining from further questions. Emily had begun noticing that Alison was particularly cold with Spencer recently, and that night only proved it. She'd considered talking to her about it, but every time she intended to, she'd be too scared to even get a word out. It wouldn’t have been wise of her to get in their business – Spencer and Alison always fought over some thing or other, but resolved it in the end.

"Would you like to go to Europe someday Em?" She smiled her way, and Emily felt butterflies in her stomach.

"Maybe." She smiled shyly.

"I'm thinking somewhere in France." Alison casually tucked a stray strand of hair behind Emily’s ear.

"I-uh yeah. It could be fun."

"With the amount of French you two know you won't survive a day." Spencer chuckled, her chuckle lacking the amusement.

Alison had turned to look at her, but when she started speaking, her voice was nice and playful, as if she hadn't just insulted Spencer a minute ago.

"Well at least we have you to teach us Spence," she smiled sweetly at her.

"Mords moi," Spencer smiled back.

Alison fell back on the bed, sighing. "I would do anything to get out of here girls. Rosewood is just... A volcano ready to erupt any minute."

Emily had thought that was foolish thinking - Rosewood was their home. Sure, she'd want to go visit other places, but she was positive she'd always come back home. She didn't want to think about her home the way Alison described it, it didn't add up with the happy families and friendly neighbors she always saw.

"I don't know Ali, you could still make it in Rosewood," she shrugged.

"Not all of us want to make it in Rosewood Emily. Some of us want to make it out."

Emily walked up to the DiLaurentis house with the gift basket in hand. She wasn't sure if she could step inside again, it just wouldn't feel the same without Alison.

She stood in front of it, reluctantly eyeing the house and pondering if she should even go in. Her mom probably wouldn't mind if she didn't deliver the basket. She might feel a little bad that she wouldn't get to welcome the neighbors, but she'd understand. Hopefully.

She told herself to be brave, but once she stepped closer, she noticed the boxes filled with Alison's things. The DiLaurentis-es had moved. Why were so many of her things still there? Did they not want them? Did they forget about her already? How could they just forget about their own daughter and leave her things behind?

She picked up a medal from one of the boxes. Alison had won it in the third grade at a Spelling Bee and Emily had been so proud of her. She felt tears prickle her eyes as she gripped the medal in her hand. She couldn't very well take all of the things, but she didn't want to just leave them out there on the sidewalk.

"Do you want that?" A girl called out from the house, walking her way.

Emily turned to her with a friendly smile, blinking away her tears.

"Maya St. Germaine," the girl grinned, shaking hands with Emily.

"Welcome to the neighborhood," Emily handed her the basket. “I’m Emily.”

"Thanks,” Maya grinned.

"This was all in my room,” she gestured at the boxes, “You can take it if you want."

"They were Alison's." Emily glanced at them.

"Is she a friend of yours?"

"She was, a long time ago." her stomach flipped at the thought. One year ago... It felt like so long and yet she still couldn't stop thinking about her.

"That's all I get? No details?" Maya teased.

"There's no details to share. We hung out but now she's gone," Emily shrugged.

"Gone like... Left town or...?"

"She's..." Emily didn't want to say 'dead'. She'd said it with Aria this morning and immediately regretted it. But it was the truth and the sooner she'd accept that, the sooner she could move on.

"She's the girl from the posters, isn't she?" Maya looked sympathetic.

She nodded.

"Well, I have two more boxes left. Would it be outrageous if I asked you to help me with them?"

"Yes, it would," she said, "But I'll do it anyway." They both chuckled.

Emily put down the medal before following Maya in the house.

She tried not to look at the room too much. Every part of it had some memory attached to it. The good ones were always from their childhood, and the bad ones... She tried not to think about those, but they all came back together anyway. Alison became more and more secretive throughout the years until she wouldn't invite them to her house much at all. She'd snuck them inside her room a couple of times but they rarely ever hung out there the last few years.

It was a little easier for Emily than she expected, to be inside. The place was already looking different, somehow radiating Maya's charm. It made her both sad and happy.

"Do you have any other friends around here?"

She didn't want to say no, so she said, "You ask a lot of questions."

"Well how am I supposed to get to know you if I don't ask any questions?"

"There you go again," Emily teased.

Maya chuckled, "Alright. Your turn. Ask me anything."

Emily looked around the room at the half-unpacked boxes. There was a framed picture of a guy on the dresser next to her.

"Who's this?" she walked up to it.

"That's my boyfriend."

"He looks cute." She commented, trying to be polite.

"Yeah, and he's also ten thousand miles away," Maya said distractedly, going through her boxes.

"My boyfriend's name is Ben. He's a swimmer like me,” said Emily.

Maya looked up at her, slowly moving her eyes up and down her body in a way that made Emily feel that familiar flutter in her stomach.

"I bet you're good at it. You totally have the body."

Emily felt her cheeks heat up and she turned to look out the window so Maya wouldn’t notice.

A few minutes later Maya spoke up again.

"Since you're a big jock, does that mean you'll kill me if I smoked a little weed?" she asked sheepishly.

"Now?" Emily was a bit baffled.

"It's okay if you don't want me to," Maya shrugged.

"Where are your parents?"

"They're out."

Emily didn't necessarily want to agree to that, but then again, she really didn't want to blow her only chance at a new friend. Maya seemed really nice so far.

"Go ahead," she shrugged, wrapping her arms around herself.

Maya took out a small box and sat on the bed before looking at Emily. "Do you wanna join me?"

No, I don’t.

"Yes." She sat down across from her.

"First time?" Maya playfully quirked an eyebrow.

"No," she said nervously.

Maya looked at her skeptically.

"Okay, yes." She'd never been a good liar.

"So, I'm corrupting you." Maya grinned mischievously before dropping her amusement for a moment, "You're okay with that, right?"

She wasn't particularly keen on trying it. In fact, she never really wanted to try weed. But this gorgeous, no, she thought, why would she describe Maya as gorgeous? This girl was offering her friendship and if it meant smoking pot once... She'd try to. Alison had always complained about her being too shy anyway.

"Yeah, I think I am."

Spencer Hastings anxiously waited in front of the barn for her sister's verdict. Her summer-long project was finally finished and she couldn't wait to move in. It wasn't far from the house, but at least she wouldn't have to literally share the same roof with her family anymore.

"So, what do you think?" she asked when Melissa exited the barn.

"Honestly, I love it. You have an eye for design." Melissa smiled at her.

"Thank you," Spencer grinned, feeling that sense of pride she always felt on the rare occasion her sister had something nice to say to her. Not that she’d ever admit that it meant something to her.

"When mom said you were converting the barn into a loft, I couldn't see it. But it's beautiful, job well done."

"I'm glad you like it,” Spencer looked away to hide her blush.

"And I totally appreciate you letting us move in," Melissa added, making Spencer freeze in her spot.

Her smile dropped, "I’m sorry, what?"

Melissa looked confused at her surprise.

"Wren and I are staying in the barn while we redo my place in the city. Didn’t anyone tell you?"

"No, I made a deal with mom and dad. I'm moving in for senior year Melissa! I've got the grades, I did the internship, I gave up my summer because I wanted this!" She knew it was too good to be true and had been just waiting for the other shoe to drop. She wasn't sure how, but she knew her sister would find a way to ruin it for her.

"Why can't you stay in my room?" she knew Melissa's answer before she said it, but she was really desperate.

"We're a couple Spencer, we need our own space and mom and dad agree."

"But they promised me!"

Wren exited the barn and stood next to Melissa.

"Is everything okay?" Apparently, he was British.

Melissa scoffed in disbelief, "I was hoping you'd be happy for me." She wrapped her arm around Wren's.

"Well, I was hoping that my sister would care about someone other than herself for once in her life, but you know that hope breeds eternal misery."

Not waiting for a response, Spencer stormed away, hearing Wren ask if Spencer had to move into the barn and Melissa telling him not to worry about her. She'd be the one to worry, Spencer would make sure of it. This would be the last time Melissa screwed her over.

Spencer was sitting on the deck in their backyard reading a book. She was wearing the shirt Hanna had suggested. She didn’t particularly like it as it wasn’t really her style, but she knew it was the right one for the occasion.

She pretended to be immersed in the book when Wren came out and put out his cigarette in the potted plant nearby.

"Shouldn't you know better? I mean you're a med school student."

"You're a bit of a smart-ass." He grinned.

"A bit?" she teased. "Does my sister know you smoke?"

"Does she have to know everything?" he leaned against the fence. This would be easier than she thought. She smirked at him.

"I'm sorry we're moving into your loft. If you want me to say something..."

"It wouldn't make a difference. Thank you for being sorry." She closed her book and got off the chair. "You're not like Melissa's usual boyfriends," she glanced at him.

"How am I unusual?" he smiled.

"We're late for dinner." She walked towards the door before briefly stopping next to him.

"I actually like you. That's what's unusual." She quickly walked away while he smiled at her, intrigued by his fiancé's sister.

Aria nervously walked the empty halls of Rosewood high. She needed to see him, she needed to know if he remembered, if he felt something, if he... If he wanted to end it. She knew it was unusual, forbidden even, but she just couldn't help it. She'd really liked him yesterday at the bar. Sure, she told a small lie to get close to him, but it was worth it.

She anxiously opened the door once she saw he was alone in the classroom.

He turned to look at her and she halted. All the things she wanted to say evaporating from her head.

"You told me you went to Hollis," he said, his face expressionless. She immediately felt shame for her actions. She was being stupid, why did she think she would be able to get away with that?

"No, I said I was thinking of majoring in English," she said lamely. It was technically the truth.

"And it's true." she quickly added, desperately wanting him to forgive her for that. She never should've taken Alison's advice, it wasn’t like all of her lying brought her any good.

"Look, I think you're amazing. When I first saw you, I thought, look at this girl."

She stepped next to him and put her hand over his. "I'm still that girl. Nothing's changed!"

"Yes, yes it has. I'm your teacher."

"I know it's not just me! I know you feel it's right for us too."

"But it's not." He moved his hand away from hers and got off the chair, distancing himself from the confused Aria. He left the classroom without another word.

Aria felt bad, worse than she'd felt in... Well, in a year. She already missed the man she met, the one she was hoping to get to know. They had so much in common and it was so... exciting. She loved every minute of their conversation and what followed after and now it was all gone.

Emily was walking home from school with Maya, the two walking incredibly close to each other, closer than Emily's walked with any of her other friends. But she didn't mind it. Maya was just a different kind of person, she liked hugs and speaking her mind with no care about who will hear and Emily admired that about her. She was the opposite of Emily, who always cared about people's opinions and was overthinking all of her actions. It felt nice to be around someone like Maya.

"Thanks for walking me home," said Maya.

"It's no big deal, practice doesn't start until four."

"I've never had a jock friend before," Maya mused, "I guess that makes you my first." She gave her a pointed look that Emily chose to ignore.

They laughed, Emily a little too hard. That was some interesting wording.

They were interrupted by the sight of Alison's things on sidewalk being thrown into the garbage truck. Emily resisted the urge to run up to them and stop them.

"It must be hard for you," said Maya.

"I... Wasn't exactly honest about the girl that used to live here."

"Alison."

"Yes. We were really close. The two of us and three other girls. We were practically inseparable and then one day..." she sighed, "I used to think that if I don't talk about her, I wouldn't think about her."

"But you still do."

She nodded. Alison was everywhere. Even without the posters around. Everything reminded her of Alison, even unrelated things such as her boyfriend... She always thought of how it'd be nicer to feel Alison's lips instead of his. Alison's arms around her, her voice telling her how beautiful she was. She'd only ever thought of it once, but she was certain once the blonde had gone missing. She had a crush on Alison. It was a thought she desperately tried to shove to the back of her head hoping it would never get out.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that. I have some experience with ended friendships, I get it to some extent. But it’s probably not even half the pain you’re feeling right now.”

Emily nodded, squeezing her hand. Wait, when did we start holding hands?

She turned towards her, wanting to thank her for being so nice about this, even though she hadn’t really done much. She was just happy to have Maya around. And then, very slowly, Maya moved a bit closer. Emily found herself mirroring her movement. Their lips brushed against each other and alarm bells rang in Emily’s head, making her move away quickly, chuckling awkwardly.

"See you tomorrow," she said.

Maya was smiling at her and Emily didn’t know how to handle it.

"Bye Emily." Maya walked away before Emily could figure out what to say.

She found herself wishing she could call her back and kiss her again. It wasn't exactly a proper kiss... But it was what she'd been hoping for ever since she saw Maya. She chuckled thinking about it on her way home. Her stomach still felt like it had butterflies even when she headed to practice afterwards. She was really looking forward to seeing Maya again tomorrow.

The day had been very boring so far and the only thing Emily was looking forward to was seeing Maya after school again. She couldn't stop thinking about her cute smile, contagious laugh, soft lips... She really needed to get a grip if she had any intention of getting through the rest of her classes without distractions.

When she opened her locker, a note fell out. She picked it up, frowning in confusion.

'Hey Em! I've been replaced, you've found another friend to kiss.

-A'

Her hands trembled. She'd only kissed one other friend once in her life. It couldn't be anyone else's, only the two of them knew of that. Only her and Alison.

"Hey Emily, everything alright?" she looked at Spencer whose locker was next to her, and saw concern. Her and Spencer had never had any disagreements but they’d never been particularly close either. Seeing her concerned for her made Emily's heart ache for the old days though. She really missed her friends.

But she wasn't really ready to share this particular secret. She wasn't even sure if it was hers to share.

"Yeah, why wouldn't it be?" She stuffed the note in her bag, giving Spencer a barely believable smile. Spencer reluctantly walked away, giving her a final concerned glance on her way out.

Spencer was getting ready for the hot tub; she deserved it after a hard day of studying ahead of the material. The classes were always so slow at the beginning of the year and she didn't like feeling like she wasn’t doing anything so she took it upon herself to read ahead and be prepared from the start.

But she had other plans in motion as well. She knew Melissa would be moving in the barn today with her fiancé so she can start her classes and be closer. She also knew that the hot tub was fairly close to the barn.

Towel over her shoulder and wearing her skimpiest swimsuit – which wasn't really all that skimpy – she headed for the hot tub. Along the way, she stopped at the fridge to get something to drink and heard someone walking in the room.

"Perfect time for a Jacuzzi," said Wren.

"I thought you guys weren't moving in until next week." Spencer turned around, pretending to be shocked.

"Melissa wanted to move in before her classes start."

It was probably the accent, but he really sounded innocent when he spoke and Spencer almost felt bad. But then she remembered that this whole thing was all about Melissa and Wren didn't deserve her anyway.

"You wouldn't happen to have a towel, would you?" he asked.

"Have mine." She threw it to him with a smile.

She glanced at him before leaning on the counter and rubbing her shoulder.

"Tough day at school?" he asked, coming closer.

"Tough field hockey practice."

"I used to play in Oxford."

"That looks good on a med school app," she teased.

"I did it because I loved it." He walked behind her "You probably have a fluid buildup in your versa sack."

She turned to smirk at him playfully, "I bet you say that to all the girls."

He chuckled, "I can help.".

"Okay, Dr. Wren."

He stood behind her and began to massage her back. Spencer was surprised that she actually enjoyed it and found it a little difficult not to say anything.

"Oh that's awesome."

She really had been tense, although she was pretty much used to feeling that way most of the time.

"Wren?" Melissa's voice rang out from the hall and Spencer immediately stepped away from him, Wren himself putting down his hands and taking a step back as well. Without a word, she grabbed the towel and left the kitchen.

"Who were you talking to?" Melissa put down her bags at the table.

"No one." he pulled her in for a kiss.

"Found them!" Ella Montgomery exclaimed triumphantly as she pulled the wine glasses out of the box. She scurried towards the couch where her husband was waiting with the wine bottle.

"Look what else I found." She held up an old pig hand-puppet.

"God, she used to carry that around everywhere," Byron chuckled.

"I'm glad you're happy that we're back," he said, putting his arm around her shoulders when she sat down next to him.

"Aren't you?" she asked.

"I don't know, I haven't decided yet."

"You and Aria are so much alike. I don't think she's happy to be back either."

"I know it was like a vacation from our real life but I feel like we really bonded when we were away," he said.

"Well, we had to connect, we didn't know anyone else," she smiled at him adoringly.

"I don't wanna lose that," he took her hand in his and kissed it.

"Are you really worried that we will?"

"I just don't want stuff to get in the way."

Ella put down her glass, "What do you mean, what kind of stuff?"

He picked up the hand puppet "I can't believe she took that with us."

"She only loves it so much because you gave it to her." She took the toy from him, "What kind of stuff can get in the way?"

He sighed, "You know me, I can get obsessed with work."

"Mh-hm," she mumbled, not entirely convinced. But she decided not to push it, her husband would eventually share any troubles he had on his mind. He’d always been stubborn about sharing his concerns with others anyway.

"We're good Ella." He pulled her in a side hug and they both leaned back on the couch.

"I drove past Alison's house today. Definitely something I haven't missed," said Ella.

"Oh god, it's been a year. I can't imagine what that poor family is going through."

"I don't even want to imagine. If anything were to happen to you -"

"It won't. We're all fine, we're together, and we're home." He leaned towards her and kissed her.

Spencer was almost finished with her premature book report, when some chatter from outside caught her attention. She went to the window and saw Melissa and Wren laughing and talking. They looked happy, sharing a quick kiss before they went in.

She didn't particularly care for Wren, but she needed to speed things up a bit if she wanted her revenge to be quick. She had work to do after all, she couldn't let petty revenge get in the way of her studies too much.

Her laptop bleeped with a new message.

'Poor Spencer always wants Melissa's boyfriends. But remember, if you kiss, I tell.

-A'

The last time that happened... But Alison is dead.

She was the only one who knew about that, other than him of course, but she knew for certain that he wouldn't risk it like this. Why would Alison do this? Where was she?

She remembered the confrontation they'd had about it.

It was one year ago, in the summer. They had gathered at Spencer's place to use the hot tub after they'd finished making cookies. Hanna wanted to eat one but Alison stopped her.

"Are you really gonna eat that, sweetie?" Hanna guiltily put down the cookie and Alison smiled at her, "I'm just being a friend."

Spencer wanted to call out Alison but Melissa walked in with her boyfriend Ian at the same moment and her attention was diverted.

"Weren't you supposed to be at Alison's?" Melissa asked, annoyed to see them there.

"Hey, Spence, if you still need help with your scoops, I've got my stick in the car." Ian smiled at her.

"Ian, you're not her babysitter," Melissa chuckled playfully, slapping his arm. The couple started leaving the room when Alison said:

"You need to tell your sister."

Melissa stopped to look at Spencer with confusion. "Tell me what?"

Spencer wracked her brain for an explanation until blurting out, "I don't like your shirt. It makes you look... Flat."

Melissa scoffed, rolled her eyes and dragged Ian along with her out of the room.

"Outside,” Spencer commanded Alison, darting out of the kitchen.

"What the hell are you doing?" she asked immediately after closing the door behind her.

"She's gonna find out." Alison crossed her arms over her chest and stood up straighter in front of Spencer. She'd somehow managed to appear taller than her despite their height diference.

"No, she's not!"

"I promise you; she is. Because if you don't tell her, I will." Alison shrugged.

"I thought you were my friend," Spencer scoffed in disbelief.

"Don't you get it? I'm trying to get you to do the right thing."

"It was one kiss!"

"That's how it starts Spencer. Take it from me, revenge is not something you want to do."

"I swear, I am not going to do that." Spencer sighed, "It was one kiss and then I changed my mind."

Alison shook her head in disapproval and began walking away, but Spencer grabbed her arm, not convinced by her response, and pulled her back.

"Listen to me Alison."

"Or what?" she fired back.

"If you tell anyone about this, I will tell everyone the truth about the Jenna thing."

With a death glare, Alison walked away.

Looking back, Alison had been right. The revenge path was not a good idea and she'd kept doing it even after convincing herself she wouldn't. And here she was, doing it again. She knew that it wasn’t right. Going on like this would only make things between her and Melissa worse and even worse than that, her parents might actually act on their threat of sending her away to boarding school...
But it was so easy, and so satisfying to finally beat her sister at something.

She glanced out the window towards the barn. It was already too late, she'd already started, might as well go all the way.

A movement coming from the house across caught her eye. It was Alison's old house. She knew she shouldn't have been so jittery, there was a new family there now so naturally someone would be in her room, but she could've sworn she saw the familiar blonde hair and that knowing smirk of Alison's, if only for a brief moment.

She closed the curtains.

Emily and Aria were sitting together on the swing on Aria's patio like they used to before. The five of them often gathered there in the summertime, it was right by the street and they could judge all the people passing through. For most of them, it was just harmless fun, but then Alison would speak up so the people hear her and it wasn't as fun being shot down by glares by the woman with the garbage dress when going to the supermarket.

"Sorry, I just dropped by."

"Any time Em."

They'd grown apart, but Aria would welcome any opportunity to be friends again, even if it meant just school friends. She really missed the three of them.

"...Someone left a note in my locker today... It was personal and-"

"Was it from ‘A’?"

"You got one too?" Emily asked, relieved.

"Yeah." Aria scoffed, "And it was personal alright."

"Do you really think it's her? Is it possible?" Aria asked after a beat.

"Only Alison could've known." Emily sighed, "I really believed she was dead."

"We all did."

"Could she really be back?"

"I think she's playing with us."

"Why would she do that?" Emily wasn't unconvinced, but she didn't want to have to admit that.

"It's Alison that we're talking about, wasn't that her favorite sport?"

They sat in silence, the possibility weighing on them. Alison was more than capable of pulling something like that... But Emily was convinced that Alison wouldn’t be as cruel as to fake her disappearance.

"Should we tell someone?" she asked.

"I can't. I don't know about you but mine isn't for sharing." Aria glanced at her lap, she really wanted to tell someone, and Emily seemed like the perfect choice. But she knew she shouldn't just expose her father like that.

Emily nodded in agreement.

"I'm glad you're back,” said Emily.

Aria smiled briefly. "It's funny, I grew up here but I feel like a total outsider."

"Me too."

The girls sat in silence, thinking over the events that happened in the last few days. The thought of Alison being alive had crossed their minds so many times, that thinking about it being true wasn't even that shocking. It wasn't entirely unlike her to do something so rash and take off without a word.

Still, the thought of their friend being alive unnerved them more than it comforted them.

Hanna's mom was putting the takeout food into plates in the kitchen when Hanna joined her.

"I ran into Ella Montgomery today. Why didn't you tell me Aria was back?"

Hanna shrugged, "It's not like we're friends."

"She didn't know your father left. I hate telling that story." Ashley sighed.

"So, change the story. I did." said Hanna, sitting down at the table. "You grew up, you grew apart and it was mutual. Honestly we are much better without him."

Her mother smiled, "Hanna..."

"Say it enough and you'll actually start to believe it." Hanna smiled at her mom sympathetically.

"Well, I have to admit it sounds a lot better than the truth."

"Nobody needs to know that we got dumped," Hanna shrugged, picking off some of the food off her plate and leaving behind only the salad.

Ashley put her glass down "We didn't get dumped, I did."

"He left both of us."

Before Ashley had the chance to convince Hanna that she's wrong, her phone rang and Hanna quickly pulled it out of her pocket.

"If that's Mona I'm staging an intervention," she said in a somewhat serious tone.

Hanna chuckled sheepishly, “I’ll turn it off.”

She was surprise to see that the text was actually from Spencer.

WE NEED TO TALK!!!

She couldn't find any reason for that but she decided to call her-

"Hanna, we need to have dinner-"

Her mother's phone suddenly rang as well and they both chuckled at the absurdity. Ashley answered her phone and immediately after, the doorbell rang, drawing a chuckle from Hanna and an exasperated sigh from her mom.

Hanna left her mom to finish her conversation and opened the door. She was surprised to see a police officer and a detective in front of it.

"Hanna Marin?"

"Yeah, why?" She tried looking disinterested, when really, she was trying really hard not to slam the door in their faces and run to hide in her room. She knew what this was for.

They showed her their badges, "Is your mother home?"

Ashley joined her at the door looking concerned, "What is this about?"

"We received a call from Rosewood mall security. They have your daughter on tape shoplifting a pair of sunglasses."

Hanna froze. She knew the risk but it really looked like they made it out this time.

"I'm sure there's been a mistake," Ashley insisted.

"I'm afraid not. Can you turn around?" The one talking took out a pair of handcuffs from his coat.

"Wait a minute, there's really no need-"

"Ma'am, I know the protocol." Detective Wilden interrupted her.

Ashley angrily followed them to the car but the detective stopped her from entering it.

"I'm afraid you're gonna have to take your own vehicle for this."

"Are you kidding me?!" she shouted, "She stole a pair of sunglasses, she's not some criminal you have to tie up!"

"If you continue to protest it might get worse for your daughter, please."

Ashley was fuming and felt incredibly close to punching him, but for Hanna's sake she marched over to her car.

Hanna sat waiting outside detective Wilden's office where her mom was paying for the glasses. They had the money, but Hanna had chosen to steal. Looking back, she really hated herself for doing that so sloppily, she should've played the long game. But Mona was in a rush, and then there was Spencer... Well, it wasn't their fault. Hanna got caught because she was just bad at it.

She put her head in her hands. Her mother didn't deserve this humiliation, she always tried so hard to provide for her so Hanna could have everything she wanted and now she was sure her mom felt guilty about not noticing this. She really wanted to tell her it wasn’t her fault, that it was just a fun hobby and nothing else.

There was a bowl of candy on the table next to her and she instinctively reached for it. When stressed, she'd always eat something and she hadn't even noticed the sweets in her hand until her phone beeped with a text and she dropped them in disgust.

Be careful Hanna, I hear prison food makes you fat.

-A

Her head darted up, looking around herself in alarm. Whoever sent that must've been there. Right?

When she began to accept that someone was probably just messing with her, her mother marched out of the office. Hanna quickly stood up, rushing along after her.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"We're leaving."

"Really?"

She followed her mom to her car and they both went inside. Her mom didn’t immediately start the car and they both sat in the silence for a few minutes. Hanna began to grow nervous with every passing second.

"In a small town like this, what people think about you matters," Ashley started calmly.

Hanna couldn't bring herself to meet her eyes and stared ahead, mumbling, "I know." Tears stung her eyes.

"Then why would you risk it all to steal a pair of sunglasses? Hanna, I buy you everything you need to be popular."

"That's not why I do it!" she exclaimed.

"Then why do you... This is something you do?!” her mother raised her voice as well.

Hanna realized her mistake too late and looked away again. "A few times," she mumbled.

Ashley sighed.

"This is about your father, isn't it? You think this is gonna get his attention."

Hanna didn't answer. She didn't know what to say. She certainly didn't want to admit that her mom was right, that would be even more humiliating than being dragged away from her home in handcuffs like a criminal.

"I made a mistake," she said quietly.

"In Rosewood you don't have room to make mistakes. And neither do I."

"I'm sorry, I'll fix it somehow."

"You will deny anything happened."

Hanna looked at her incredulously.

"It was a misunderstanding."

"But..."

"I took care of it," her mom insisted.

"How?"

"You don't have to worry about it, Hanna."

Hanna wanted to ask further, but after what she put her mother through, she didn't want to pry. She'd already done more than she should have.

"People here are merciless, Hanna. The minute you finish high school we're flying out of here. For good."

She'd wanted to leave Rosewood ever since Alison disappeared and she didn't care where they would go. She only wanted out.
She didn't want to deal with the remaining pieces of Alison's reign, but Mona had helped her rebuild her popularity and make it her own. She loved her for that nd the only reason she wouldn't want to leave Rosewood would be because of her. In the past year Mona had meant so much to her and she didn't want to lose her, not like she’d lost the others.

But if moving meant she and her mom could finally get rid of the memories of Alison and her dad then she'd be happy to try.

"I like that."

Her mom smiled.

Emily was walking back home from Aria's down the peaceful, albeit a bit creepy, street leading down to her house. In retrospect, she probably shouldn't have gone to Aria's after dark. Rosewood had always been safe, but after Alison, every dark corner looked like it had a shadow looming in it. Upon the thought, she gripped the strap of her bag tighter and hurried her steps.

Suddenly an ambulance rushed past, startling her. It was heading down to her street.

Without thinking she sprinted down the sidewalk in the direction.

The police were gathered in Maya's yard, going in and out of the house. Emily's eyes darted around the place, looking for her. Her heart felt like it would jump out of her chest when she still couldn’t find her a minute later.

Not again, please not again.

Then the St. Germains came out of the house, looking worried, with Maya a bit shaken up, but looking overall okay.

"Maya!" Emily couldn't help shouting out in relief and running towards her to envelop her in a tight hug.

"Emily!" Maya sounded relieved to see her as well.

The two stood hugging for a few seconds before Emily stepped back.

"I thought something happened to you!"

"I was about to call you," Maya looked concerned.

"What's going on?" Emily did a quick once-over to see if Maya looked injured in any way.

"Emily... They found a body...” Emily raised her eyes to meet hers, frozen in her spot.

“It was Alison's."

The words seemed to ring out inside her head, her blood running cold. It was a surprise she didn’t faint from the shock. None of the preparations and assumptions of her death could have prepared her for the reality of it.

Her eyes darted over to the gurney that was being rolled out of the house and towards the ambulance. She wanted to go and see her for the last time, even though she probably wouldn’t even look like herself. The thought made bile rise up and she barely held back her disgust.

She was here the whole time. All the times they searched for her... they could have walked over her body…

She gripped onto Maya when she felt her legs shake to the point of almost giving out. She’d never felt like that before and she didn’t know how to deal with the feeling. The only thing she found she could freely do, was cry with her face hidden in Maya’s shoulder while the latter caressed her back soothingly.

From the other side of the street, Aria Montgomery was driving to pick up dinner for her family and was stumped at the sight of the giant crowd gathering in front of Alison's old house. She exited her car to look closer when she noticed Spencer standing off to the side, just at the entrance to her yard, and rushed over to her.

"What's going on?" she asked breathlessly, already having an idea of the answer.

Spencer stared blankly ahead as she answered, "They found Alison's body."

The information somehow didn’t register and all she could manage was, "What?"

"Apparently she was buried in her own backyard." Her voice betrayed no emotion, but Aria glanced down at Spencer's hands, and sure enough, they were shaking.

"Hey, Spence..." she cautiously took her hand and squeezed it reassuringly.

"I always thought..." Spencer stopped when her voice suddenly broke.

"We all did," Aria said.

Spencer sobbed and quickly wiped the tear that had escaped off her face. Aria leaned her head on Spencer's arm, still gripping onto her hand. She was close to crying herself, especially with Spencer doing so. Spencer never cried, for anything.

"Got room for one more?" Hanna reluctantly stood a few feet away, her eyes teary as well.

Aria extended her free hand Hanna's way and the blonde took it, stepping next to her and holding tightly onto her hand.

The three of them stood silently, holding hands and crying for their friend. It felt like a punch in the gut that after their lives finally seemed to settle down, being thrown back into the whirlwind that was Alison's life. Only this time, it was her death.
But at least for the first time in a very long time, standing in the comforting presence of each other, they didn't feel so alone.

Several news anchors were positioned around the church the following morning, reporting on the latest, most exciting event to happen in Rosewood. Everyone knew Alison, or at least knew of her through their bullied siblings, nieces and nephews, or grandchildren. The younger a Rosewood resident was, the more likely they were to know Alison personally, which was rarely ever a good thing.

The majority of the people that gathered were there see it for themselves, to make sure that the queen bee of Rosewood was really dead.

Alison's best friends and their families were among the few that actually cared. The girls all looked shaken up, Emily's eyes red from crying, as they made their way inside the church. Emily and Spencer were first to arrive and Emily was a little surprised to receive a hug from Spencer, but grateful nonetheless.

Spencer took her hand and they walked in together, followed by their parents.

Aria was already inside the church, standing at the staircase off to the side. She'd arrived early with her family; her mother having offered the DiLaurentis-es to help out with some preparations. Aria wanted no part of it and immediately bolted under the excuse of having to use the bathroom. She couldn't stand having to be in the same room as Alison's body.

She was trying to figure out how to get back downstairs without having a breakdown when Mr. Fitz appeared out of nowhere.

"Was she a friend of yours?"

She looked up at him in surprise, quickly schooling her expression into looking like she wasn’t bothered.

"Do you care?" she immediately fired back. "What are you even doing here?"

"I was looking for the bathroom," he said.

"I meant the funeral!" Aria shouted angrily.

He shrugged, "People talk in small towns.  It would’ve been weird if I didn’t go since everyone else is here."

She nodded and looked away, fully intending on stopping the conversation and walking away. He’d told her they were done and she didn’t appreciate him showing up out of nowhere on such a painful day.

He sighed, "I don't know what's worse, having to stay away from you or being a jerk about it."

She looked down at the people walking in through the window. More than half of them hated Alison and she’d always been alone. Not even her family knew her secrets and that was probably the reason it came to this in the first place.

Aria didn't want to end up alone like her.

"She was one of my best friends," she answered his first question.

"I'm sorry."

"For Alison or for being a jerk?"

"For both."

"Thank you."

She knew it wasn't right, he was her teacher and at least five years older than her. It was wrong and it shouldn't have even happened. It felt good for the hour that it lasted, but now it was time for a reality check and he wasn't going to throw away his life for one random high school girl he met in a bar.

"I don't want to do anything that will get you in trouble. I know I was being unreasonable the other day, and I'm sorry. Our relationship will be strictly professional. Goodbye Ezra."

He abruptly pulled her back by her arm and directly into a passionate kiss. She got lost in the moment, forgetting even where she was when she felt his lips on hers. Her heart thumped against her chest and her hands ran through his hair.

It ended too quickly for her liking, but she managed a coy smile before walking back to join the others while Ezra looked longingly after her.

Aria went up to greet Mr. and Mrs. DiLaurentis.

"Aria!" Mrs. DiLaurentis hugged her, "I'm glad you made it. You should sit at the front with the other girls, it's what Alison would've wanted."

The poor woman looked absolutely crushed and Aria's heart broke to see her like that. Alison's parents had always been strong people, stronger than most, and seeing them like this felt almost scary.

She made her way to the front where the others were already seated and took her own seat.

The casket was closed and it was probably better that way; Aria didn't know if she could deal with it otherwise. The picture they chose... It stopped her breath. Alison looked so happy and innocent on that photo. She didn't look that happy the last few days before she went missing... Well, before she died. Maybe she saw it coming, maybe the weight of all those secrets finally caught up to her. Whatever it was, Aria could only hope that her friend was now at peace.

Hanna grasped her hand from the seat next to hers and she squeezed it back. She was incredibly grateful her friends were there; it was just a little more bearable with them around.

"Poor Ali," said Emily.

"Can you believe what a scene this is?" a small smile danced on Hanna's lips.

"Alison would've loved it," Aria smiled as well.

"Popular in life and death," said Spencer.

Hanna glanced at the grief-stricken Emily whose tears were still sliding down her cheeks and pulled out a small flask from her bag, handing it to her.

"No, I don't..."

"Today I think you do."

Emily hesitantly took the flask. She was most likely not going to drink it, but it was Hanna's way of helping and she appreciated it.

Aria's phone suddenly beeped with a text and they all nervously fidgeted in their seats while she checked. Hanna anxiously asked, "Anyone we know?"

"No, it's just Mike."

Aria looked up at her friends which all had the same anxious look on their faces.

"Emily and I aren't the only ones who got a text from ‘A’, are we?"

The silence was an answer enough. They didn't have time to discuss when whispers broke out through the room. They turned around just in time to see the fairly recently blind Jenna being guided by her step-brother and her cane to a row of seats.

"What is Jenna doing here?" Spencer whispered. Jenna and Alison were infamous for their two year-long rivalry since the former had moved to Rosewood. Fortunately for Alison, Jenna’s accident had had a clear perpetrator that took away the suspicions from her.

Before either of them could comment on her presence, Alison’s parents took their seats and the ceremony started.

It was an unspoken agreement that the girls leave together after the funeral, linked by their arms in pairs of two. They didn't say a word after it was all done.

They walked up to the side walk, dispersing the pairs. They didn’t get to even get a word out when a man with a suit and badge walked up to them.

"Spencer... Emily... Aria... And Hanna."

"Yes?" Spencer looked annoyed while Hanna kept her head down, trying not to meet his eyes.

"I'm detective Wilden." He handed Spencer a card which she passed around. "I understand you were all good friends with the victim?"

"Yes." Aria looked uncertain.

"I'm gonna have to talk to each of you."

"We talked to the police when Alison went missing."

"And I intend to go through every one of your statements, because this is no longer a missing person's investigation, it's a murder."

The girls shared a concerned look.

"And rest assured I will find out what happened that summer."

Spencer had a few choice words to share with him, but Detective Wilden walked away before she could actually say them. After a beat of silence, the four of them reluctantly began walking away as well. Their anger at his obvious distrust towards them was beat by the fear of their biggest secret being uncovered.

Finally, Aria asked what they were all thinking. "Do you think he knows about -"

"No!"

"No, how could he?"

Four text message beeps rang out at once. They glanced at each other before quickly opening their phones.

The text was the same on all of them:

I'm still here bitches, and I know everything.

-A