Getting up at the ass crack of dawn on a Saturday was not in Alison's plans. She had been out late last night at Noel Khan's end of the year party and didn't get in until almost three in the morning.

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The party had started out fine, she arrived at eleven thirty (fashionably late as always) and the alcohol was flowing the music was loud and most of the attention was on her. Alison was eating up the lustful stares of the guys and the envious ones of the girls, she was in her element. She did her usual rounds, gossiping with the girls who all strived for her attention, inconspicuously gathering new secrets to catalog away for future use, flirting with all the hopeful boys who thought they had a chance with her and categorizing them into who she could easily bend to do her bidding and who to keep a ten foot distance between at all times.

By the time one A.M rolled around she was pleasantly buzzed and had decided to take a break and dance. Her body had easily started rocking to the rhythm of the bass that was pumping from the speakers, letting herself get lost in the music for a bit. As one song bled into the next she felt hands come to a rest on her hips causing her body to tense. She spun around a scathing comment prepared on the tip of her tongue waiting to be released. Her fierce blue eyes met amused brown ones and she felt her lips tug down into a frown.

"Mind if I have this dance?" The confident voice of Noel Khan floated into her ears. She knew from the smirk on his face he didn't expect to hear a no but Alison didn't want to give him the satisfaction of hearing a yes so she shrugged one shoulder and turned back around to continue dancing.

That was her mistake.

See Alison knew that Noel wanted her. And she's sure she isn't exaggerating when she says most of the guys in school wanted to get with her. But Noel had taken a special interest in Alison, and the blonde wasn't going to tell him his little crush would never get him anywhere. Noel was a one of her best chess pieces on the board at the moment. He was loyal, willing to do any request Alison sent his way, and he could keep a secret, and if the price for this valuable piece was letting him dream that they could ever be a "they", then it was a small price to pay. Though sometimes he could get on Alison's last nerve. He was constantly trying to push the boundaries she put up for everyone, pushing harder for them to become an item, and Alison would always swiftly shut him down.

"You're sweet hun, but you still have a long way to go before I can even consider you in the race."

Sometimes that would placate him and he would back off for a while, but lately he's actually taken her words as a challenge and has doubled his efforts. And it made Alison uncomfortable because she kinda considered Noel a friend and she didn't want to have to lose him because she genuinely wasn't interested in him.
So she let him dance with her, swaying her body with the upbeat music while his hands rested on her hips following her lead. She had almost forgotten about his presence completely until a new song rolled in with a sensual bass and warm melody.

When the lyrics came into play Noel's hands started to wander. He tried to slide them down toward her ass but she quickly caught his hands and led them upwards again keeping them there. When she felt that he wouldn't try that again she released her hold on his hands and went back to dancing. But not even thirty seconds later he was stepping closer to her and running his hands up over her stomach. Feeling irritation bubble up inside of her she shrugged out his hold and moved away from him without even a backward glance. She decides to head to the kitchen and grab another drink.

She makes her way to the island in the middle of the kitchen where a giant cooler rests. She pulls out a strawberry daiquiri wine cooler. Leaning against the island she opens her drink and takes a swig silently watching everyone milling about in the kitchen.

She briefly wonders why she's even here. Sure it's what's expected of her, and she really does like the attention the feeling of control that sparks in her veins. But after a while being around all these people becomes tedious. She doesn't really care for anyone here so it's hard to find a reason to stick around after the hype of her arrival dies down. She's been taught how to use people and get them to love and fear her. But sometimes she wishes she had people she could relax around, at least a little because sometimes being Alison DiLaurentis is exhausting. Sometimes she feels like she could just give this all up, just runaway and start a new life somewhere new, maybe somewhere out of the country maybe a somewhere in Europe-

She's pulled out of her musings when a pair of arms wrap around her waist.

"Why'd you run off, I thought we were having fun dancing?"

Noel's slightly slurred voice brushes against her ear. Rolling her eyes she quickly shrugs him off and turns toward him crossing her arms over her chest.

"Back off Noel"

"Aww come on baby, this whole hard to get game is getting old."

Alison scoffs, "It's not a game, and I'm not asking you I'm telling you to back off now." She growls low and dark clearly sending a warning.

"Come on Ali what's the big deal, I'm a better choice than any of your other boy toys that you whore yourself out to-"

"Shut the fuck up Noel you don't know what you're talking about!" Her voice rose as she took a menacing step forward not even noticing the crowd that was watching on in anticipation.

"It's not like it's a secret, everyone knows how you go around slutting it up with every guy you meet, and I'm just giving you a chance to make an honest woman out of yourself for once." Noel ends his statement with a self assured smirk on his stupid face as he reaches out to caress her face. And if that wasn't bad enough the sound of stifled laughter fills the suddenly quiet room.

In that moment Alison sees red and in a flash she's throwing her drink in Noel's face and her other hand flies up and smacks him right in the face. Next thing she knows she's all up in his personal space basically growling at him.

"Listen up you prepubescent douche bag. I don't give a fuck what you think you know about me and it doesn't matter how many people you think I've screwed. When I tell you to back off you back. The hell. Off. And if you touch me again without my consent I will pick up the nearest sharp object and castrate you."

Alison steps around him heading toward the exit and the crowd of people that gathered there quickly separated not wanting to incur her wrath. Before she steps out into the main room she looks over her shoulder at a red faced Noel.

"And maybe you should lower your ego a bit hun, if I've had as many boy toys as you claim then what does that say about you since I don't even want to look at you let alone let you touch me."

And with that she strode out in true Alison DiLaurentis fashion.

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By the time she got home her makeup had been messed up from her rubbing her face to stop the tears that spilled without her permission.

She knew what people thought, what they said behind her back and sometimes to her face, but being called out for sleeping around always strikes a chord somewhere inside her. It wasn't true, she wasn't like that and she hated the looks people gave her, like she's less of a person, like she was some kind of joke.

She swore to god that she was going to make Noel's life a living hell from now on, but right now she had other things to attend to...

There's a nudge to her stomach followed by a whine that makes Alison's lip twitch up in amusement.

"Alright baby I'm coming"

Rolling out of bed she's met by a giant mass of fur that was the reason she was up at five thirty in the morning on a Saturday.

"Morning Pepe my sweet boy"

Running her hand through his fur she gently coos at the sheltie.

"Did that stinky old dad of mine and useless brother forget to take you out? I'm so sorry baby, give me five minutes and we'll go."

Honestly she doesn't ask much from her family, and waking a dog isn't that hard. But they forgot about her poor pup, although she should have expected that. They weren't exactly thrilled when he arrived.

She looks over at the dog as she shrugs out of her dress she didn't bother changing out of last night. He stares back at her sitting patiently by her bed panting no doubt from the exertion of holding his urine for such a long time.

He's such a good boy, he didn't even wet in the house, he just patiently waited for her to come home, even letting her get a little rest before he woke her up. And look at that face how could you not love him? Alison smiles again as she pulls on some jeans and a tank. Quickly finding a pair of flats and slipping them on, she makes her way to her bedroom door.

"Come on Pepe"

Before she even finishes her sentence Pepe rushes past her and runs down the stairs. Shaking her head at his eagerness she makes a quick pit stop at the bathroom pulling out the Aleve bottle in the cabinet and taking two from the bottle.

When she makes it downstairs Pepe is standing by the door tail wagging waiting for her. She grabs a water bottle and his chain and they make their way outside.
Quickly downing the pills she allows Pepe to jog ahead of her and pee on the light post at the corner of the street. He waits for Alison to catch up and clip his chain on him before starting to walk again.

"Since you were such a good boy how about we stop at the park so you can stretch your legs for a bit?"

Pepe yips in excitement and Alison is just overwhelmed with love for him. Pepe is truly her only friend and the best friend there is. He's always there for her ready to provide comfort or a laugh whenever she was down, and was always an open ear for her to rant to. Fuck Noel, she didn't need him or anyone else; she had Pepe who loved her unconditionally. If she decides to run away she was definitely take him with her, maybe they could go to Paris it would be great maybe she'd even find a girlfriend for her pup.

"Pepe how do you feel about poodles?" He turns and gives her am unimpressed stare before he went back to sniffing around a tree.

"I know they look pretentious but you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. Under that stuck up exterior they might actually be really nice and just want someone to love them." Alison trails off at the end not really sure if she was still talking about poodles.

Pushing those thoughts away she and Pepe continue down the block taking a left turn when they got to a crosswalk.

The park was now in sight right across the street. Looking both ways the duo make their way across the crosswalk. As soon as her feet hit the grass she unclipped Pepe's chain and he runs off doing laps around the sand box. It was such a cute sight it made the stress of the previous day melt away.

Honestly getting Pepe was one of the best things her mom had ever done for her. She'd have to remember to do something nice for her when she came back from her conference.

After his laps Pepe came back with a stick in his mouth placing it at Alison's feet.

"You wanna play boy? Okay"

She picked it up and tossed it to her left. Pepe dashed after it catching it in midair. He swaggered back to Alison obviously pleased with himself.

"Alright, alright, that was a good catch but don't get cocky. Let's see if you can do it again.

Cocking her arm back further Alison threw the stick harder than last time. Pepe dashes off again getting right under the flying object ready to leap and catch it again.

Suddenly his attention is stolen by the sound of feet hitting the pavement. He pauses letting the stick fly past him perking his ears up in interest. He tilts his head in the direction of the path that surrounds the park. His interest is peaked when he sees a girl in bright running tights and equally brightly colored shoes jogging by. Totally enraptured by the colors he runs after the girl easily catching up easily and matching her pace. He hears his momma call out for him but he can't help but want this new person's attention. Eventually the girl slows down and pulls something from her ears and looks at him.

"Hey there cutie, what are you doing here?" The girl bends down and scratches Pepe under his chin just like he liked. Leaning closer he sniffed the mysterious girl before deciding that he liked her. Giving a quick lick to her check the girl giggled in amusement.

"Pepe leave that girl alone."

Uh-oh, his momma doesn't sound happy. But he figures if she meets this girl he'll be forgiven, she's nice and his momma has been sad lately maybe this girl can make her smile. Turning in a circle and barking in excitement Pepe waits for his momma to come over.

Alison didn't know what got into her dog, he was really friendly but he didn't usually go off and bother people. Realizing that he wasn't going to listen, Alison jogs over to her mutinous dog and the strange girl that he was cuddling up to.

"Pepe come on let's go."

But her dog just ignores her and continues to sit next to the girl nuzzling her hand.

"I'm sorry about him, he's just really affectionate."

"It's no problem, really, he's actually really cute," Pepe barks and stands up on his hind legs "and really energetic" the girl giggles and Alison takes a moment to really look at her.

Honestly she's beautiful, tall, tan and lean with a cute shy smile on her face. Alison tries to figure out if she's ever seen this girl around but her mind draws a blank.

"So what kind of person willingly wakes up before ten on a Saturday?" Alison says casually trying to pick up a clue on this girls identity.

"One who is captain of the swim team and has to stay in shape."

Oh she's a swimmer, figures, the one sports team she doesn't keep tabs on.

"But summer just started and it's Saturday."

The girl shrugs, "It's a habit now, plus Sunday is my rest day and running helps clear my head."
Giving her another once over Alison notices how toned her arms really are and silently approves of the alluring view her tank top provides.

"Well you definitely have the arms of a swimmer; all those laps in the pool have paid off."

Alison casually brushes her fingers across the other girls' forearms feeling the muscles jump under her touch.

"T-thank you" the girl blushes and ducks her head. Alison just shrugs but can't help the slight smile that tugs at her lips.

"Um, you're Alison right?" The girl asks.

"Yeah that's right; I guess you've heard of me."

"I'm pretty sure everyone has heard of you.

Alison frowns for a second wondering what this girl has heard about her, which of the rumors has made its way to her ears and if she believes it all.

She hopes not.

Turning her facial expression back into a playful one she speaks again."Unfortunately I haven't had the pleasure of hearing about you."

Suddenly deep brown eyes lock onto her slightly shocked blue ones. Alison wonders where this burst of confidence is coming from but can't deny it adds to the allure of this mysterious girl.

"I'm Emily, Emily Fields"

"Emily... What a pretty name. Nice to meet you Emily Fields"

They stare at each other for a while both smiling unaware of anything else.

They're broken out of their reverence by a soft bark. Reaching out and petting her little troublemaker Alison introduces him, "And this here is Pepe."

"It's nice to meet you Pepe" Emily jokingly holds out her hand for a shake and startles when Pepe reaches his paw out and places it in her hand humming in getting.

"Pshh showoff" Alison rolls her eyes at her dog but can't help the amusement dancing in her eyes. "Sorry we interrupted your run."

Emily shakes her head, "Its okay I was just finishing up anyway. So what made you get up willingly before ten this Saturday."?

"I was out last night and my family forgot to take Pepe out for a walk, my poor baby was suffering all night," Alison bends down and ruffles his fur, "Isn't that right Pepe. The only person you can rely on in that house is me." She coos at the dog getting swept up in his adorableness.

Emily's laughter brings her attention back to the brunette.

"Sorry it's just, you and him are really cute," Alison smiles suppressing her blush, "Plus you seem different then I thought you'd be."

Standing back up the blonde shrugs, "Even the infamous Alison DiLaurentis takes a break from herself every now and then." Pepe whines and bumps his head into Alison's thigh.

"Oh so now you're rushing me? Well you'll have to wait a moment mister." Alison turns her attention back to Emily who was looking at her curiously. "He refuses to eat when he has to go so he's probably starving right now so I should go feed him."

"Oh, umm okay," Alison watches as Emily's shy demeanor comes back, "I guess I'll see you around then?"

"Yeah I'd like that. Actually do you have your phone on you?"

Emily detaches her phone from an arm band she was wearing, unlocks it and hands it over to Alison the blonde does the same and they exchange phones. Quickly putting in her information and snapping a picture of herself before saving the information.

"Here now there are two reasons for us to meet up. One you have my number so I'll expect a text when you get home. And two that picture is not up to my standards since I look like a hot mess right now."

Fiddling with the phone in her hands Emily suddenly blurts, "I think you look beautiful"

A cute smile appears on the blondes face.

"Why Ms. Fields are you trying to butter me up with flattery? Well if you heard that I like having my ego stroked then I can confirm that rumor to be true."

Deciding to quit before the poor girl exploded from embarrassment Alison clipped Pepe's chain back to his collar and turns away from the red faced brunette.
As she walked away Alison looked over her shoulder and winked, "I'll be eagerly anticipating your text Emily."

And then she finally walked away enjoying the slight fluttering she was suddenly feeling in her chest.

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MC: Hey everyone, *you guys probably*(damn max, back at it again with staring a new multi chap fic). Yup I couldn't resist. Honestly I had like 5 or six stories for emison/pll started on both my phone and computer but couldn't find the inspiration to finish any of them. Honestly shout-out to Drea82581 author of "What's a Girl to do?" and Packersgirl492 author of Guardian Angel, reading their great stories inspired me to finally finish one of the stories I had laying around, so if you haven't already go read their stories and leave them some nice words in a review!

So about the story, as you can see it's AU, set during the summer before junior year. I'm pretty excited about this idea, it's actually mostly fluff which is good for the soul. The title is tentative and is subject to change, especially if you guys have any ideas. My goal for this story? Emison endgame obviously, but also having Alison connect with all the girls, and to please my inner Ali-stan! So fav/follow/and drop review if I've happened to catch your interest, next chapter will definitely have more emison!