Even with thick smoke assaulting her lungs and adrenaline making her body tremble violently, there was nothing more comforting than the embrace of Alison Dilaurentis. Everything ceased to exist as the tearful blonde girl wrapped her arms around Emily, and she allowed herself to feel grounded. To feel real. Alison was murmuring comfortingly into her ear, though Emily, mind fuzzy with adrenaline, hardly understood the words. Tears that weren't there threatened to fall, but Emily knew she wouldn't cry. She couldn't. All she felt was numbness as the realization that this was all finally over, and the only warmth to penetrate that numbness was Alison's touch.
Alison moved to pull back from the hug to look at Emily, and the brunette reluctantly released her grip on the smaller girl. She reached out to take Emily's hand, silently communicating that she was still there and unwilling to completely give up Emily's touch after having been without it for so long. She gazed into Emily's eyes, almost black in the dim illumination of the moon, and saw emptiness. Tired, pained, emptiness that conflicted with the whirlwind of emotion in the blonde's own eyes. Alison felt her heart break for the umpteenth time that night at seeing the taller girl, once lively, gentle, and sweet now all sunken eyes and a broken gaze. She wanted to pull Emily into another hug, but more than that she wanted to get away from the hell that Emily had been locked up in, and knew that if she embraced Emily again, she might not let go.
Alison sat in the driver's seat of her own car, waiting for Emily to buckle up her seat belt, which she fumbled with momentarily before clicking it into place. Alison, of course, was to drive her own vehicle home. Spencer, Aria, Hanna, Mona, and that other girl who's name Alison couldn't remember had gone with the police. Emily could have, as well, but when Alison saw how anxious the idea of getting into the cop car had made the brunette, she'd offered her a ride which Emily had accepted without hesitation. Alison has watched each of her friends get into separate police cars, and couldn't help but notice that, never once, did any of the girl's cast a glance at one another. Emily in particular had hardly been subtle about avoiding the girls as the police attempted to sort things out, and though Alison could understand that, after weeks of being locked up together, they might wish for some time apart, she thought it odd that they seemed to want nothing to do with each other. She didn't ask Emily about it, however. She didn't think it was the time to ask Emily much of anything, so instead, she pulled out onto the road in silence.
Alison drove in silence while Emily sat like a statue beside her, her body stiff and unmoving. Alison wanted so badly to say something that could comfort Emily, but she couldn't figure out what she could possibly say in that moment that would make anything better. The brunette girl must have gone through hell down there; Alison couldn't even begin to imagine what Charles had done to them. When she was stopped by a red light, she turned to Emily with a slight smile and opted for a comforting gesture to comfort her. Reaching out, she rested her hand gently on Emily's thigh and opened her mouth to speak when the taller girl jumped back suddenly, nearly hitting her head on the window as she did. Alison pulled away with a quiet gasp, startled by the brunette's reaction as Emily, limited in mobility by her seatbelt, sat in her seat as far as she could be from Alison, her breaths quick and eyes wide.
"Emily…" Alison started, realizing the idiocy of her own action. Of course Emily would react like that; she'd just gone through weeks of absolute hell. "I'm so sorry, I…" her voice trailed off and she let it.
Emily stared at her for a second, calming herself down as she settled back into the comfortable seat. She cast her gaze at her feet, looking ashamed. Alison felt even worse; Emily shouldn't be ashamed. Alison was the one who had messed up, and the blonde didn't want Emily to have to feel any worse than she already did, especially if it were because of her.
After what felt like an endless drive, Alison pulled into Emily's driveway. She turned to the brunette, who was looking out of the window with a seemingly confused expression on her face. It took Alison a moment to realize what it was that Emily was looking for, and she let out a quiet sigh.
"You're mom has been in Texas since you've been… away" she finished uncertainly.
"Away," Emily repeated darkly, and Alison tried not to react to the unfamiliar raspy dullness in her voice.
Alison offered a small, sad smile before getting out of the car and moving to open Emily's door for her. She thought about offering her hand to help the still-shaky girl out, but decided against it when she thought back to the earlier incident.
She found the spare key in a bush, remembering the time long ago when Emily had told her about it, and lead Emily inside. Closing the door behind them, she watched Emily carefully. The brunette took a few tentative steps further into the house, looking around as if the place were entirely unfamiliar to her. They moved through the house at Emily's pace, eventually reaching the brunette bedroom which she seemed especially hesitant to enter. Alison wondered about that, but was quiet as they went inside, seating themselves on Emily's bed, which bounced a bit with their weight.
Emily was fidgety as she sat, and Alison looked at her with concern in her eyes. "Do you want something to eat? Or drink?" she asked slowly, being extra careful now not to startle her.
Emily, who had been glancing anxiously around turned her gaze to Alison, and the blonde could have sworn that Emily relaxed just slightly as she did so. The brunette shook her head slowly, and reached her hand out towards Alison's, which was resting on her lap. Alison smiled gently and took Emily's hand into her own, grateful that the brunette had initiated physical contact and hopeful that it meant she was forgiven for the earlier incident. Entwining their fingers, she rubbed her thumb tentatively over Emily's, and felt the brunette relax a bit into the touch.
Emily's gaze observed Alison's touch carefully, before she looked up to meet Alison's eyes, allowing herself to be calmed by the oceans of blue that Alison held in her gaze. "Can we just sleep?" she croaked, squeezing Alison's hand a bit as if trying to ensure that the blonde in front of her was real, and not just another horrible game.
Alison gazed back at Emily, not wanting to look away for fear that it all might be a dream. It wouldn't have been the first dream Alison had of Emily coming home, but this time, it was real. Her mermaid was home, but taking a closer look at Emily's hollow eyes, Alison worried that Charles' torture had left Emily so far gone, that the brunette wasn't really home at all. She shoved the thought out of her mind as quickly as it had come. Of course Emily was home, she just needed time.
"Of course," Alison replied softly, giving one last gentle squeeze before she got up to fix the bed for Emily to sleep in. Alison knew that, really, Emily needed to eat and drink. The poor girl needed a shower as well, and to change out of her dirtied clothes. But, seeing the absolute exhaustion in Emily's eyes broke Alison's thoughts of reason, and she found herself tucking the brunette into bed, not wanting to deny Emily a thing that she wanted.
Emily curled up under the covers, Alison noted. Through all of their sleepovers Emily had always taken up her share of space on the bed, yet now, curled up in a ball, she was taking up as little space as possible. The blonde stood awkwardly over Emily, who shut her eyes. She took a step back, not wanting to leave Emily in the house alone but also not wanting to overstep her bounds and push the brunette too far, she opted for sleeping downstairs on the couch so that she'd be there for Emily, if she was needed.
However, eyes still shut, Emily caught her arm before she could move away. "Don't leave," she whispered.
Alison looked down at the brunette girl, who opened her eyes to gaze pleadingly back at her. "I'll just be downstairs," she assured her.
"No," Emily shook her head slightly. "Stay here, please," she gave Alison's arm a gentle tug towards the bed, and Alison, with only a moment's hesitancy, complied.
Emily shifted to the other side of the bed, and Alison crawled in beside her, keeping to the edge of her side in order to ensure that Emily had as much space as she wanted. Lying on her back, she stared up at Emily's ceiling, which was barely visible in the dim moonlight. Alison didn't figure she'd get much sleep tonight, her mind was far too loud for that, but she hoped that the exhausted girl beside her would sleep, even if just a bit. She deserved the rest.
She hadn't intended to touch Emily at all while they slept, only wanting to provide a reassuring presence considering that the brunette girl probably needed her space after what she'd been through. She found herself proved wrong when Emily shifted on the bed, scooting a bit closer to her. Alison didn't move, but soon Emily pressed her body up against hers, and Alison didn't complain. Emily buried her face in Alison's neck, draping her arm gently over the blonde's stomach. Alison, still weary of startling Emily, was slow and tentative when she began caressing Emily's dark hair.
"I missed you," Emily's voice was tired, but genuine as she nuzzled further into Alison's neck, breathing in the scent of her blonde hair.
"I missed you too, Em," Alison whispered, holding the brunette gently.
Alison felt Emily's quietly-shed tears on her neck, but didn't say a word.