A/N: Hi guys! This is only my second story ever on ff, so don't expect perfection. And for my True Love is Forever readers, I promise that the next chapter will be longer. I'm working on it, but it's been a rough week. One of my friends died on Tuesday night and it's just been emotionally exhausting for all of us. Add that to my pile of schoolwork, friendship drama, and just plain stress and I'm about ready to throw something at a wall.
On a happier note, I wrote this between 2x22 & 2x23 so I had no idea Caleb wouldn't be back until 2x24 but whatever. Hope you enjoy!
It was 8:00 am on a bright and sunny Saturday morning in the small town of Rosewood, Pennsylvania, and Hanna Marin awoke with a start as her new phone began belting out her ringtone at top volume.
"With the taste of your lips, I'm on a ride; you're toxic, I'm slippin' und—"
The disheveled blonde groaned and rolled over, clearly still half-asleep. Without even checking who it was, she answered her cell phone, cutting off Britney's voice, and growled, "What do you want?" She knew her groggy voice was unattractive but at this time, who cared?
Emily still lay asleep on the other side of the room, but after the night she'd had, Hanna didn't blame her. Em had spent most of her time lately looking for or worrying about Maya, so volume wasn't an issue. Plus the girl was a heavy sleeper unlike Hanna, who woke up to any small sounds.
Caleb's deep chuckle echoed through the receiver and it picked up her mood just a tad. "Good morning to you too, princess," he greeted her sarcastically.
"Are you insane? Isn't it like 6am in California?" she questioned bitchily, only half joking. As she uttered this, she rubbed her eyes and stretched out, letting her sapphire blues adjust to the light.
"What grade do you have in math, Han? It's 5 over there," he laughed again.
"Why the hell are you up then?" she asked cluelessly, clearly not having yet processed his last statement. If so, she would've picked up a clue as to the fact that both ends of the conversation were going on in the same house.
"Go have breakfast, I'll talk to you later," Caleb told her suspiciously before hanging up quickly, leaving a confused Hanna to wonder what exactly that meant. Shrugging to herself, she started down the stairs as gracefully as she could so early. Her mother was out getting groceries according to a note left on the top of the stairs.
Sighing, she jumped for a fifth time to try to reach the cereal. Why was it so high up anyway? Neither Emily nor Ashley would've moved it out of the short blonde's reach.
Her question was answered as she felt a strong pair of tan arms wrap around her waist. The voice belonging to the person whispered huskily into her ear, "Need some help with that?" Shrieking loudly, Hanna spun around and practically fell into Caleb's arms. Her face immediately lit up, and she buried herself into him, returning his hug. So it was a set up, he knew she'd have to jump. After a reasonable amount of time, she pulled away slightly and hit him on his chest. "You scared me!" she blamed him, to which he responded with a laugh.
"You know, you're really bad at locking doors." To this, she glared playfully at him, figuring Em and her mom knew the entire time.
After making plans, and many welcome back kisses, Caleb and Hanna parted ways for a few hours. Now, Hanna's loosely curled hair bounced on her shoulders as she sauntered down the stairs once again, ignoring her mother as she arrived in the kitchen. Finally, the quiet tension became too much for Ashley so she broke it suddenly.
"Hanna," she began, surprisingly calmly. When her daughter didn't reply, still pouring coffee silently, the adult had to be more forceful.
"Hanna," she repeated, the tone in her voice forcing her daughter to look at her with pursed lips that signified she was annoyed.
There were so many things Hanna wanted to say.
How betrayed she felt.
How she wished things were like old times, no matter how clearly different they were.
How she used to count on Ashley to be the one person she could trust not to go behind her back. As of the moment, nobody filled that spot and it was a horrible feeling. Her friends had betrayed her, Caleb had betrayed her, and now even her own mother was in on the fun.
She wanted to say so much, but none of it would come out. "I have to go," she told her mom sharply, still angry. As she crossed the threshold, Hanna lingered for a moment while she considered going back and hearing out her mom, but her pride shot down the idea quickly. So she simply left without a word.
After an excruciatingly awkward half hour spent at the Gottesmans, the couple relocated to the Marin home. With a sudden streak of luck, the house was unoccupied and they had it all to themselves. Ashley was working and Emily was most likely hanging out with Spencer or Aria.
If anyone was home, they wouldn't be able to be doing what they were right now: making out heatedly against a kitchen wall. His body was flush against hers, which was backed up onto a wall.
After he traced his tongue on her bottom lip, Hanna moaned, granting him easy access to her own mouth. Both tongues battled for dominance until Caleb broke away. Immediately, she craved the feeling again of his lips on hers again. All of her thoughts fluttered away when Caleb began sucking on her pulse point, emitting another low moan from her, no matter how hard she tried to cover it up. There would surely be a mark there in the morning, but it was coverable. With a gallon of concealer no doubt, but it was so worth it.
"I. Missed. You. So. Much," he told her in between kisses. "California would be so much better with you there."
"Mmm... I missed you too," she murmured, euphoric at his touch. They were interrupted by a sharp ping that rang through the atmosphere of the kitchen. Both heads turned towards the source: Caleb's bag. Or more specifically, his laptop. Hanna's heart rate sped up, and she had a feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach. Was it another clue on the mystery of A? Getting him involved was such a bad idea.
He reluctantly separated himself from her and made his way over to the computer. Following suit, she took place beside him as he started typing, seemingly at the speed of light. The screen changed a few times, then a video popped up. The feeling of dread spread from the pit of her stomach to the entire thing. Whatever this was, it was going to be important.
A much younger Melissa Hastings burst into the room, her face reflecting just why she was here. "Where is she?" she insisted, disheveled. "Where the hell is she?" she repeated, clearly expecting an answer that no one had. "I'm going to kill that bitch," she added, storming over to Ian. The start of a sentence came from Jenna, then it was cut off.
Panic struck Hanna's features and her mouth gaped open. It was so obviously Melissa, Spencer needed to realize it! Caleb turned to look at her and suddenly, her composure was back. The calm facadé returned to her expression and she turned to look back at him.
"What did we just see?" Caleb asked her, to which she simply shrugged. Inside though, she was freaking out. Melissa killed Alison! She was A, and she killed Alison!
"Um, it's... it's nothing." He wasn't buying it, so she sighed and escaped to the bathroom. "I'll be right back." The one mistake she made, the one that would change the direction of the entire day: she left her phone on the counter.
While Hanna took deep breaths and stared at her reflection, Caleb replayed the video, trying to make sense of it. Why was Spencer Hastings' older sister looking for Alison DiLaurentis? And why would she make such an obvious threat?
Hanna's phone beeped once, then again and again and again. She was too busy collecting herself in the other room to notice it, but Caleb sure did. If it was that insistent, he figured she wouldn't mind if he read just one. It had to be important.
The first three were from her friends: Spencer, Emily, and Aria. He ignored those though; his sights were set on the Unknown Sender.
"Escaping reality? There's no outrunning me, Han. The truth needs to shoot out eventually, and you bitches are my targets. -A"
"Hanna?" he shouted, trying to get her attention. She was snapped out of her reverie and exited the bathroom calmly. "Who the hell is A?"
Review & the next chapter will come quicker ;) They'll also make me happier and take my mind off of my friend. Now I'm just trying to make you guys feel bad...