Aria's hummed to herself as she strolled down the hallway to her locker on a chilly Thursday November night. She had left her physics textbook in her locker and needed to study for a big test the next day. The school was completely deserted at 9 PM, but she had gotten in using her mother's key to the building. It was a perk of having her mother be the head of the English department. It helped compensate for the sucky parts, like never being able to be yourself around friends, or having your mom ask you ridiculous questions about school gossip, or those awkward moments when she gives you a pop quiz and you fail and you start crying and EVERYONE sees.
Aria kicked the thoughts out of her mind and broke into a jog. She was grateful that she had made it into school before the alarm was set. It wouldn't be very long before it went off, and she would die of embarassment if she set it off. It had only bet set off a handful of times since Caleb stopped squatting here, all by lame kids or neighborhood drunks. Finally, she was just around the corner from her locker.
Aria stopped before she reached her locker, suddenly seeing someone around the corner. She had been on edge for the last week, ever since the disaster on Halloween. Being drugged and locked in a tiny box with a corpse can do that to you, she thought to herself. The cops still hadn't figured out what exactly had happened, but she was pretty sure that it A killed Garrett and just threw her in there to shake her up.
That night had been one of the worst of her life, second only to when Ezra died. She really thought she was going to die, and feelings like that don't go away quickly. People kept asking her if she was okay and she always told them yes, but deep down she knew that she wasn't. After her parents divorcing, Ezra dying, and nearly getting killed herself, she wasn't sure if she would ever be okay again. She wasn't sure how much fear and stress she would be able to take.
She was so grateful that her boyfriend Holden wasn't on the train that night. In the terrible month since Ezra had died, he had been an angel sent from heaven. Holden was everything that she could ever want- loving, caring, honest, attentive, and ignorant to everything that was happening in her life. He honestly thought that what happened on Halloween was some kind of prank on her, and that whoever put her in there had no idea that there was a corpse in the same box. Aria loved how optimistic and loving he could be, and it was very refreshing to not have a guy mixed up in her crazy life.
Yet, there was something off about their relationship. It could have been because she still was in love with Ezra, but there was something going on between them that she couldn't place. She just didn't love him like she loved Ezra. It would come in time, she was sure, but there just wasn't any magic between them yet. In two months of dating, they hadn't even gotten to second base yet. But Aria knew that sometimes, relationships would take work. Holden was crazy about her, and her love for him would show up one day when she least expected it.
She watched the lone figure darting around the hallways. She panicked for a second and grabbed her phone, ready to call 911, but she saw that it was only Toby, clad in dark clothing and gloves. She was about to ask what he was doing at school so late, but she stopped herself when she saw what he was doing. She peered around the corner silently as the scene unfolded in front of her eyes.
He was slowly and methodically trying to open Spencer's locker with some plastic card, probably his ID. When it clicked open, he pushed around a few books until there was space for the small, black box that he had in his hand. He set the box down in the empty space with a big, goofy smile on his face and closed the locker. Then, he walked away in the opposite direction, casually and carefree.
Aria stopped breathing. She recognized the box. It was identical to the one that Ezra had presented to her on his hospital bed on the day that he died. It was the same box that could be seen behind the counter in Rocks, the fancy jewelry store in town where most guys got engagement rings. It looked just about the size for a small ring. She remembered Toby casually asking Aria what kind of jewelry Spencer liked about a week ago and what her ring size was, but what was the occasion?
Then, she remembered tomorrow's date: November 6th. It was the day after Hanna had camped out with Caleb, the day after Spencer had slept in the motel with Toby. Their anniversary. Aria clasped her hand over her mouth so she didn't squeal. Was that an engagement ring? She knew how in love he and Spencer were, but it was so soon. They were both so young. Then again, they were pretty serious. It could very well be a diamond ring-
Probably not, she thought. It's just an anniversary gift. But must be really nice. That story is fancy, and Toby is on a carpenter's salary. She dashed around the corner to locker, grabbed her textbook, and walked giddily out the door. She couldn't wait to see the look on Spencer's face when she went to her locker next morning. More importantly, she couldn't wait to see how happy Spencer was going to be.
Aria couldn't have been any more wrong. Because the next morning, Spencer would not be happy at all. She wouldn't be happy again for the next few months, not until after she took a trip very far away. Everything was just beginning to be set into motion, little known to anyone, especially not Spencer, and especially not Aria. If they'd known, they would have run to each other and held each other close.
But they didn't know. So, Aria blindly grabbed her textbook and went home to study. Spencer was already studying, alone in her bedroom. Neither was aware of their fates shifting around them, all because of that little black box.