This is my first Pretty Little Liars fanfic (not my first fanfic ever, I used to have another account in this website, but I'm not going to share its username here, since I think my old fics are too lame) and of course it had to be Spemily. They're just so perfect, it's a shame they're not cannon.

Anyway, hope you guys enjoy the fic.

I do not own Pretty Little Liars.

Little Bit of Truth

Chapter 1: Achilles' heel

Temperature constantly decreased in the small town of Rosewood, Pennsylvania. The wind blew in a scandalizing speed and the water drops hit everything at reach with no mercy. The fog provided every inch of the town's graveyard a ghostly environment. Having that considered, one would think that would be the last place in which a sane person would be wandering, especially since it was almost night time and it was starting to get dark.

Except running within the rain was a skinny girl. Her boots collided with the grass with loud thuds as her hurried steps grew faster. Her breathing, normally timed like a chronometer, was as heavy as a wall of concrete. Her brown hair, usually perfectly brushed was now soaking wet and glued to her face. Her hazel eyes were wide in terror.

After what seemed an eternity, she finally reached the place she was so desperately looking for. Panting, she took a glance around and spotted the reason of her presence in such a morbid place. Another girl, taller than herself, was standing with her back to her, studying a particular grave. She was wearing a wine-colored hoodie, with the hood pulled up, and her grey converse shoes were dipped in a mix of mud and loose grass.

Extreme worry stabbed the brown haired's gut and she grabbed her dark-blue blazer's collar, practically digging her nails into the fabric, in order to stop herself from screaming.

"Emily." She managed to breathe out. It was a strangled sound, however, it did not go unnoticed, for the other girl turned her head and the almond brown eyes of Emily Fields met Spencer Hastings' hazel ones.

"Are you out of your mind?! What were you thinking when you so cleverly decided to come here in this horrendous weather?!" Spencer exclaimed, letting her concern get the best of her. Emily remained mute as she lowered her head, turning her stare to the ground, and hugged her own torso in an unconscious self-protective manner. Spencer instantly sensed her best friend's vulnerability and mentally punched herself for being so invasive. She would never admit it out loud, though, since it seemed to her that there was no other way to talk sense into Emily's currently troubled mind.

"Em…" she called, this time in a gentler tone. The swimmer stirred before looking up. "Let's go home. We can't stay here, it's practically begging to get sick."

"You go. I don't care." Emily let out sharply. "I don't care if I get sick. I don't care about me. Not anymore."

"Em, please…" Spencer pleaded, hesitantly walking towards the brunette until she was merely two steps away from her. "Don't do this to yourself. It's been a while, I figured-"

"I was over it?!" Emily spat, incredulous, and her beautiful face twisted in anger. Spencer flinched and looked away as Emily stuck her clenched fists into her hoodie's pocket. She knew it was a Hastings thing to define a term for everything, but realizing even grief was included in that category got her on the verge of exploding.

Some time passed and neither of them spoke again. In that very rare moment, Spencer, who was frequently taunted by Hanna for being a 'walking dictionary', due to her massive mental list of SAT words, had no idea of what to say. It was something that only Emily was able to accomplish – leaving her speechless, feeling like a curious and naïve little girl – not even Toby had such an ability.

Apparently words weren't at all what the Filipino girl needed to ease her emotional state. She should have thought of that the second she arrived at the graveyard and jumped off her car to look for her.

The wind blew with a tremendous intensity, making both girls shudder, and Spencer took it as a chance to scoot closer and carefully embrace her agonizing friend in a hug, wrapping one arm around her waist and the other around her shoulder. Emily froze at first, but quickly relaxed and buried her head on the crook of Spencer's neck, returning the hug. A feeling of safety – so unfamiliar ever since 'A' started haunting the group of liars – took over her and she snuggled even closer against the shorter girl, taking a second to breathe in her scent, wishing she could record it in her mind forever.

A strange feeling burned in her gut and was followed by a wave of guilt. She choked on the tears that were struggling to fall. She suddenly wanted to get away from Spencer's grip, but, at the same time, she feared it would kill her if she did. Spencer did not fail to notice the mood change and started to caress Emily's back to soothe her.

"Hey, now…it's ok, Em. It's just me." She said sweetly.

"Spence?"

"Yes?"

"I miss her."

With that, a loud sob emitted from Emily and she gripped Spencer's blazer, holding onto dear life.

Life.

She hadn't felt alive in months.

Spencer gulped, sensing she was about to cry as well. She couldn't. If she allowed herself to break down it would only do Emily more damage. She had to be strong for her. Somehow, she had to be her haven. Therefore, instead of giving in to her own sadness, she chose to breathe in and softly kiss the other girl's cheek.

"I know. I know." She whispered. "But I'm here. I'm here for you."

They remained that way, tangled under the rain, ignoring everything around them, until Spencer's phone beeped. She delicately parted the hug – which earned her a look from Emily that resembled the one of a child who had their favorite plushie stolen from them – and grabbed it, frowning in anticipation, but soon enough her expression changed to a relieved one as it turned out it was a text from Hanna.

Have you found her? Is she ok? –H

Yes, I have. She's not ok, though…emotionally. –S

Bring her here, like, now. –H

Spencer stared at the screen for a moment after that last text, wondering if taking Emily to the Marin's residence would be a good idea. Hanna obviously was welling up with worry, considering she had been stuck with her father and step-sister the entire afternoon of that day, in his eventually unsuccessful attempt of making them bond – that included taking away both of the teens' phones – which disabled her from helping when Spencer found out by a desperate call from Pam Fields that Emily had disappeared after school. In no time, Spencer had met Pam and Aria and the three of them went separate ways through town to try and find Emily. Needless to say, the young genius found her first.

Spencer sighed, deciding that too many people around would probably make Emily shut everyone out. With her mind made up, she finally answered Hanna's text.

I'm taking her to my place. Don't argue. She needs to be alone. –S

She then texted Aria and explained the situation to her. There was a bit of reluctance from her, but since Spencer stuck to her point of view and showed that she would not back off, she ended up agreeing and was asked to call Pam; after all, texting wouldn't be appropriate to convince her that her lost child needed to be away from everyone, including her mother.

Emily stayed still the whole time, simply watching her work on getting her safe. She observed intently the way her brow furrowed from deep concentration. At one point, she actually imagined little engines moving in her forehead and smoke venting from her ears through her curly brown hair; she would have probably found it amusing, had it not been for the subtle numbness that was starting to creep from deep inside of her.

"We should leave now." Spencer's voice echoed, piercing through her brief trance. It was a statement, not a request. Emily nodded weakly, which was enough for Spencer to wrap an arm around her shoulder to lead her away from the dreadfulness of where they were, but not before taking one last glance at the grave that had initially been Emily's main focus that day and the phrase carved into its stone.

'Maya St. Germain, loving daughter and friend.'

The Hastings' mansion was desert when Spencer and Emily arrived after a 10-minute drive. Spencer, for once, was thankful for having an absent family, it meant she'd be able to deal with Emily without anyone bothering them.

She parked her car in the driveway and breathed in before glancing at her side. Emily was curled up in the passenger seat, hugging herself and staring blankly out the window. The sight made Spencer's heart sink. Her best friend – the nicest one of the group, the girl who would flash a smile brighter than the sun and who would leave everyone in awe because or her caring attitude – was turning into a shell in front of her. She wanted nothing but to find a way to make her truly feel better, but things were getting worse at each second and she feared she would fail to save her.

No, she couldn't think like that.

She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment and her knuckles went white as she gripped the steering wheel, fighting to maintain control. Being a Hastings, she was raised to put her rational side above any sort of strong emotion. Therefore, letting her feelings take over made her feel incredibly vulnerable and, most of the time, she despised it. She just hadn't managed to perfect the blocking of them, especially when it came to people she cared for. Mainly Emily. Every single time the swimmer was put through a harsh situation there was Spencer to help her, wishing to take her pain into herself, doing the impossible to protect her. Emily was, somehow, her Achilles' heel.

But what exactly did that mean?

Her eyes flickered open at the thought and she gritted her teeth before unbuckling her seatbelt and getting out of the car. She walked towards the opposite side of the car and opened the door for Emily, who snapped out of her own thoughts and got out as well. They entered the house silently and went directly to Spencer's room.

"I'll get you some dry clothes while you shower." The brown-haired said hoarsely, implicitly telling her friend that not doing as she said was not an option. Emily half-smiled at Spencer's characteristic manners and went into the bathroom. That small gesture brought relief to the shorter girl. She was still there. Emily was still there.

About fifteen minutes went by before the brunette showed up again, wearing only a towel around her figure. Her hair was still wet, but the feeling of being clean had painted a more relaxed expression on her features.

"Here." Spencer handed her an oversized grey T-Shirt and a pair of black shorts, both cotton-made. "These should be comfortable enough."

"Thanks, Spence." The brunette received the clothes, for the first time in that day sending Spencer a full, true smile. She got dressed while it was Spencer's turn to shower and, a few minutes later, as she was lying in the bed, simply staring at the ceiling, Spencer showed up wearing what she recognized as Toby's blue long-sleeved shirt – the one he would never get back.

For an unknown reason to her, Emily, she couldn't stop her eyes from scanning Spencer's form. The strange feeling in her gut that had made her uncomfortable earlier appeared once more, this time accompanied by a light sting to the chest.

"Emily…?" Spencer raised an eyebrow, noticing the odd way the other girl was acting. "Are you all right?"

"Huh?" Emily blinked, realizing that she had stared for too long, and blushed. "Yeah…I'm fine."

"One thing…" Spencer said, serious. "Don't ever do that again."

"What, look at you?" Emily chuckled nervously.

"No! I mean what happened earlier." Spencer explained. She bit her lip and went on. "You scared the hell out of me. Please promise me that won't become a seamless habit."

"I can't just promise something like that." Emily stated. Spencer frowned and crossed her arms on her chest.

"Em…"

"Fine, I promise." The Filipino girl rolled her eyes. "But it's not like I have complete control of my nervous breakdowns."

"Well, then, do bother to call me if you sense you'll have another one." Spencer replied sincerely then sat by her side on the bed and their eyes connected. Emily smiled, this time a weaker smile, before reaching for her friend's hand and giving it a light squeeze.

"I…don't know why I did that." A new nervous chuckle echoed from her. Spencer glanced at their intertwined hands. The thought of how they fit perfectly popped up in her mind and she cleared her throat before looking back at Emily.

"It's ok. It's…nice."

Achilles' heel, indeed.

I'd love to know what you think. Reviews are welcomed!

~angstylullaby