Looking For A New Life Chapter 1
In New York, 21-year old Alison DiLaurentis was quickly putting suitcases into her black Mercedes. Her best friend Hanna Marin stood by watching her.
"You don't need to do this Ali. You can stay with me. Your dad won't know." Hanna said.
"He'll find out. He always finds out. You can never try hiding in the same city as a mob boss. Hanna, you should know that your family is connected to the mob too. I have to leave, there is no way I'm going to marry Joey Vitto." Ali said.
"Where are you going?" Hanna asked.
"When I was a kid, we used to visit a town in Pennsylvania called Rosewood. My mom used to have friends there, they don't live there now. But I just remember that I liked the town for some reason. I'll hide there for awhile."
Hanna went up to her best friend and hugged her.
She said, "Call me when you get there and if you need anything just give me call. I'll get myself down to that town as soon I can."
Ali looked at her best friend and said, "Thank you. You have always been my best friend. If you find out that my father is close to tracking me down, let me know."
"I will."
The two friends said their goodbyes.
Ali got into her car and set up her to GPS to guide her to Rosewood, Pennsylvania.
After hours of driving, she arrived at her destination. She remembered some of the town. She remembered the shops that lined the main street. As she drove, she saw a coffee shop, "The Brew". She pulled over and parked. She went into the shop. She was thirsty and needed a pick up. She went into the shop and made her order with the barista.
She then saw a rack titled "Rosewood Visitor Pamphlets"
There were pamphlets titled "Lodging"
She took one. The barista called out that her order was ready. She got her cappuccino and sat a table.
The lodging pamphlet listed a few area hotels and then Ali saw a listing that read P&W's Boarding House."
Ali drank her cappuccino and then headed out to the boarding house.
The boarding house was a large home. It was a light blue color and the lawn looked well maintained. Ali took out her purse from the glove department.
She walked into the lobby area and saw a young woman who looked around her age behind the counter. The woman had brown hair and looked short.
The woman said, "Welcome to P&W's, I'm Aria, how can I help you?"
"Yes, I would like a room for about a week." Ali said.
"Ok, that will be $150 for room costs and $75 for food costs."
Ali grabbed some cash from her purse.
Aria took the money and said, "I need to see an ID and then I will register you into our computer system."
Ali handed over her driver's license.
Aria said, "So, Ms. DiLaurentis are you new to Rosewood?"
The blonde decided to lie and she said, "No my first time visiting. I'm a photographer who wants to capture photos of small town America."
Well, the part about photography wasn't a lie. It was one of Ali's hobbies and at times she hoped she could turn into a career."
The clerk said, "I hope you enjoy taking pictures here. Maybe I can show you around if you want."
"That would be nice."
Aria said, "Let me go into the office to get your keys."
Ali watched as Aria opened the office door. There was window into the office, But the blinds were closed.
She heard a female voice says, "Did she say she was going to spend a week?"
Aria's voice said, "Yeah."
Aria came out and closed the office door.
"Here is your key. Our dining area and kitchen are always open if you want a snack or reheat some meals. Breakfast is served between 7:00 to 9 am, lunch is 11:30 to 1 and dinner is 5 to 7. If you missed the scheduled times, just ask me or another clerk to help you get something to eat." Aria said.
Ali said, "Thank you."
Aria said, "Do you need help with your bags?"
"Yeah."
"I'll help."
Aria followed Ali out to the parking area.
Ali used the remote to pop the trunk open.
She pulled out two suitcases and then she handed Aria a third a suitcase.
The two went back into the boarding house and to Ali's room on the second floor.
The brunette asked, "About we go down and get you something to eat?"
Ali said, "Is there anything light to eat? I don't feel like eating a huge meal."
"About some soup."
The two made their way downstairs and Ali lead her to the kitchen and dining area. While Aria pulled out the soup and heated over the stove. Ali walked around the dinning area and on a small table, she saw a picture of a couple and their young daughter. The couple's clothing looked dated. as well as the clothing of the young daughter. The husband appeared to look Asian. Underneath the frame, an inscription read owners Pamela and Wayne Fields and their daughter Emily.
Aria came into the dining area carrying a bowl.
Ali asked, "Are these the owners?"
"Yes. Pam and Wayne. They both passed away. I knew them since I was a child. Very kind people. Their daughter took over ownership. Emily and I are the same age." Aria said.
Ali blew onto her soup and took a spoonful before asking Aria about her age.
"I'm 21."
"Me too." Ali responded.
The blonde then asked, "Do you do anything else around town?"
"I go to the local college Hollis. I'm studying to be an English teacher. I work here when I'm not in class or doing other things." Aria said.
"I'm taking a leave of absence from college."
"Where do you to school?" Aria asked.
"NYU"
"Wow. New York City."
Ali just nodded. She wanted so much not to think about New York.
After finishing her soup, Ali said, "I'm going to my room."
Aria said, "I could show you around town tomorrow, how about we meet in the lobby about around 11 am."
"Sure."
Ali headed to her room. She was happy to have already made a friend in Rosewood.
She changed into a nightgown and fell asleep. She only slept a few hours before waking up and seeing the digital clock read 2:00 am. She got out of bed and decided to walk around in hopes she would get tired again.
She walked out of her room and around the hallways. Framed art work was on the walls. She then headed downstairs. She saw light source glowing on the first floor.
She quietly walked and saw that the lobby area had light. There was a figure with long dark hair looking over at the computer and records. Ali didn't want to startle the figure. But she watched out of curiosity, she saw how well toned the young woman's body was. The young woman then turned around.
What Ali saw made her gasp a little. The young woman's face was scarred on the right side. Ali then headed back to her room. The image of the scarring stayed in her head for awhile.
She eventually fell back to sleep.
The next day, she met Aria down in the lobby.
Aria smiled and greeted Ali.
"Ali, I would like you to meet my mother, Ella Montgomery .
Ella was behind the counter. She had the same dark features as Aria.
"It's always nice to meet a new face to Rosewood."
"Thank you. This town seems like a kind place."
"If you need anything, let me know." Ella said.
Aria and Ali then headed to the parking lot. Ali was carrying her camera bag.
They got into Aria's car. Aria started up the car and then the pulled out of the parking lot onto the main road.
Ali decided to ask about the young woman she had seen.
"Around 2 am, I couldn't sleep, so I went for a walk and there was this young woman in the lobby." Ali said
"That was Emily. You didn't approach her, did you?"
"I didn't. Can I ask about what happened to her?"
"It was a fire. The same one that killed her parents three years ago. A fire broke out in their home. Emily tried to save them, but she couldn't. She was in the hospital a long time because of the burns. The house didn't burn down completely, luckily the insurance company paid for it be restored and partially rebuilt. Emily never wanted to live there again. She has the place rented out. When she got out of the hospital, my family took her in. She stayed with us for awhile. She lives at the boarding house on the first floor. She does a lot of the administrative work, but tries not to let guests see her. She does housekeeping, when boarders are out. My mom and I have been helping her over the past few years. My mom is an adjunct art professor at Hollis, so she is able to help out. There are other workers in the kitchen and dining area. My younger brother Mike and a friend Holden do maintenance work when it is needed." Aria said.
"Poor girl. She doesn't have any other family." Ali asked.
"She was an only child. She has relatives, but they live in other states and some of her relatives seem to be uncomfortable around her because of the scars."
Aria then pulled into the town square area.
The two young women got out and Ali snapped a few pictures of buildings. They walked around. Aria introduced her to some people. A few hours they headed back to the boarding house.
Aria and Ali ate lunch. Aria said she needed to run some errands, but maybe they could hang out later on.
Ali went up to her room and turned on the TV. She was entertained for awhile, before she started thinking about her family. Her father Kenneth DiLaurentis was born into the DiLaurentis mob family of New York. He grew up understanding the mob world and when he reached his 20s, he married his wife Jessica. They had Ali's older brother Jason and then her. "
Despite her family's lifestyle and criminal connections, she still loved them. But there were things she hated about them. Her father wanted her to marry Joey Vitto, a young man also from another mob family. The Vittos were on good terms with the DiLaurentis family. Kenneth was to expand more on those good terms and Ali marrying Joey would be a way for that to happen. Ali thought the idea of an arranged marriage was so archaic. So she fled.
Nighttime came into the boarding house, she went down and ate dinner and chatted with other people staying in the boarding house. That night she awoke again and decided to go for another walk. She was still curious about Emily. She figured it must take a lot for the young woman to hide herself as much as possible.
She headed downstairs and she found the lobby area with lights on. Again, Emily was at the computer looking over things. She saw that the young woman was wearing a flannel button down shirt and jeans. She watched her quietly and then decided to head back up to bed. She started up on the stairs and lost her balance on the third step. She slipped down back on the stairs. She felt pain in her lower leg. She cried out.
A minute or so later, Emily appeared.
"Are you ok?" Emily asked.
Ali said, "My leg."
She was in pain. Emily helped her into a sitting position. Ali watched as Emily looked at her lower leg area. She saw the scars on Emily's face more closely. Some scars were a pinkish color, while others were a whitish color.
Emily caught her looking at the scars.
"I probably scare you." Emily said.
"You don't scare me. You are the owner." Ali said.
"Yeah. I'm the scary owner. You are the new guest Alison, is it right?" Emily said with a sense of bitterness in her voice.
Ali nodded while in pain.
She then said, "I'm taking you to the hospital."
"You don't need to." Ali said.
"You got hurt in my business and I feel obligated to." Emily said.
Ali said, "Ok and can you go up to my room and get me some clothes."
Emily headed up to the room. She came back down with a t-shirt, jeans, and a pair of shoes.
She helped Ali change out of her nightgown into clothes.
"We better not to a shoe on that foot. I think your lower leg or ankle might be broken."
Emily then helped Ali hobble out to the parking lot. They went to Emily's blue car and Emily helped her into the passenger seat.
They arrived at the hospital 10 minutes later. The small town hospital wasn't too busy and they didn't have to wait long before a man in green scrubs came out.
The doctor said, "Oh, hello Emily."
"Hello Dr. Kingston." Emily responded.
Ali noticed the doctor's British accent.
The doctor said, "What do we have here?"
"This is Ali. She is staying at the boarding house. She got hurt awhile ago." Emily said.
"I see. Ali, my name is Dr. Wren Kingston."
Wren then called out for a nurse to bring a wheelchair. They took Ali to the exam room and X-rays were taken. Which confirmed she had a broken ankle. A cast was put on and she was given crutches.
Before leaving the hospital, Emily asked Ali, "Do you have any family that could come and get you out of Rosewood?"
"I don't have anyone. I would like to continue staying at the boarding house." Ali said.
"But your room is on the second floor." Emily blurted out.
The brunette then said, "We will switch rooms. You will stay in my room on the first floor."
"Is that ok?" Ali asked.
"Yeah, it's fine, you need it more than I do." Emily said.
Wren came into the exam room and said, "Here are some pain pills for now. I have written out a prescription so you can get more later on. Just rest for a few days." Wren said.
Twenty minutes later, the two young women were back in the boarding house. Emily led Ali to her first floor room.
"Go ahead and lie down. I'll go and get your stuff from upstairs" Emily said.
Ali looked around the room. There were some books on a small shelf and then saw family pictures on a table. She crutched over to the table. She saw pictures with Emily and her parents at various ages. The pictures showed her what Emily used to look like without the scars. She was beautiful.
She went over to the bed and laid down.
A few minutes later, Emily brought her in luggage.
"You need to get some sleep. I'll see you later on. If you need anything, use the phone on the table to ring the front desk."
"Ok. Thank you Emily." Ali said.
Since taking pain pills, Ali felt less pain and thirty minutes later she fell asleep.