New Girl In Town
Emily shook as a cold wind whipped around the corner of The Brew; she hid in her fur coat to keep warm as she lagged behind the other three liars, battling their own gust in front of them. A paper rolled by the girls, the date was September 27 1950, five years had passed since WWII but a completely new battle was beginning on their home soil.
"Well I never felt such a wind in all my days!" Hanna exclaimed, hurrying herself inside.
"Didn't I warn you before we left that you needed more than that silly sweater? Really now, you never listen to a word I say!" Spencer replied.
Aria jumped in, "She did warn you sweetie, and you're bound to get pneumonia if you keep this up! What is so special about that sweater of yours?"
Hanna simply replied, "It's a special sweater alright? Caleb bought it for me, now stop busting my chops!" The three laughed as they turned to Emily, who at this point had not said a word the entire night.
"Emily, is something wrong?"
In fact, there was not something so much "wrong" as it was confusing to the brown-haired woman. The night before, Emily walked home from work at The Brew, a walk she had done many nights before, only this time, something was different. Normally this wouldn't be a big deal for Emily, she knew everyone in Rosewood, or at least she thought she did. She met a girl, there was something different about her, something Emily just couldn't put her finger on, not yet anyway.
"As a matter of fact, have you met the new girl in town?" Emily's words intrigued the group, a new girl in town? That was definitely gossip worthy.
They gathered around closely, the coffee shop was empty, the way it usually was on Sunday nights.
"Did you speak to her? What did she say?" Spencer and Aria were spitting out question after question, she couldn't get a word between the two.
"What I really need to know is if the dame is a looker or not, there's only so many fish in this city."
Spencer took a sip from her coffee, side eyeing Hanna "Fish in the sea, sweetie."
"Slow down! I only met her once; all I know is that she goes to school with us. She mentioned joining the swim team so I may get a chance to grill her at the pool on Monday." A smirk formed on Emily's face, she didn't want to know everything about everyone as the other three often did, she kept to herself mostly.
"Well, did you at least get her name? I can deal with the details later." Hanna said
"Paige, Paige McCullers" Emily tried to hide a smile, her mouth slightly curved just enough for Hanna to take notice.
"Paige? Hm… Well, you'll just have to keep an eye on her for us, I wouldn't risk this hair for that chlorine cesspool if you paid me!"
Emily laughed, relaxing into the leather couch. A perplexing feeling of relief and confusion came over her, why am I so nervous talking about Paige? I only met her yesterday evening, what makes her so different? I never felt this way before… She sat up as the other three started putting on their coats, the storm growing even fiercer outside.
"How about we share a cab? The wind looks like it picked up and I don't think I'll survive another beating!" Spencer said, they nodded and agreed with the plan.
The next day at lunch the four girls talked amongst themselves as Alison sat down with her tray, "Morning girls", she said, a 'guess what I know' face lingered on as the other four took notice.
"Just what is that face for?" Spencer said, leaning in and taking interest.
Alison sat back, a sly grin formed as it often does when she knows something "There's a new girl in school, she was in my writing class." Emily perked up as the other three looked at her, and then Alison followed, "Oh, you know her?"
"Emily met her this weekend, it looks like we're the only ones who haven't met this mysterious woman yet." Aria said, her eyebrow pops up slightly. If there's anyone who knows everyone and what and who they're doing, it's Aria, and she hated being out of the loop.
"Oh, Paige? I bumped into her this weekend, we have swim practice after school today," Emily said, clearing her throat slightly. This got Alison's attention, she leaned in slightly towards Emily's direction,
"You know her?" she said, trying to get some sort of response from the girl. Emily's eyes dodged back and forth, trying not to make contact.
"Like Aria said… I only met her once." Emily replied.
Alison retreated back in her seat, she believed her, but she knew there was more to that story than Emily was letting on. As the bell rang signaling the end of lunch, the five girls hugged and headed to their separate classes, but all of a sudden, Emily felt a tug at her arm.
"Emily?" she turned, seeing Paige smiling back at her. They had a connection, but they didn't understand it, they smiled at each other for a second, and another, then another.
Emily finally spoke up, "What class do you have next?" she smiled.
"Geography, I'm actually a little lost, could you help me?" Paige replied, showing Emily her class schedule. It read Period one: Mathematics, Period 2: Writing, then break for lunch, Period 3: Geography, and finally, Period 4: Physical Education.
We have P.E. together. Emily thought to herself, "Mrs. Walton's class is just down the hall to the left, we have P.E. together so maybe we could walk there together?"
Paige smiled shyly, "That would be great, first days are usually the worst for me." Emily looked at Paige who was now putting the schedule back in her bag.
"It's no problem, and if you need anything just come and find me, okay?" Paige smiled back at Emily's offer, "I will definitely do that, thanks." The two walked along together until they hit the end of the hallway, they shared one last smile as they parted ways.
Emily sat through her Algebra class, watching aimlessly at the clock as time went by, every second felt like an hour, she couldn't keep her mind on the lesson thinking about what she would say to Paige the next time she saw her. Hi? No, hello? No, that sounds too formal, she'll think I'm a freak… What's happening to me? Why do I feel like this, and about a girl? There's something wrong. You like boys, there's no other option. It's just the excitement of someone new in the school. In that era, there was no other option, none that Emily knew of. But of course as she would soon find out, there was another option, another option that both scared her, and excited her at the same time. The bell finally rang, the students poured out of the classroom and Emily made her way to Paige, clawing their way through the sea of teenagers to get to each other until… Their eyes met.
Emily motioned for Paige to follow, the two made their way to the locker rooms and as they entered, Paige looked away sheepishly.
"Something wrong?" Emily asked, only, she knew what Paige was feeling. She knew because she felt the same way, she felt as if she shouldn't walk in there with Paige, or at least she didn't feel like she should.
"Nothing… I just… I don't have a school gym uniform yet" Emily smiled assuring Paige, "Don't worry, you can wear the extra set I have in my locker, my mother insists to have two of everything, just in case" she said winking at the taller girl, causing her to blush.
"Alright?" Emily said
"Alright." Paige replied smiling.
The two entered the locker room, Spencer was getting undressed by Emily's locker as they walked by, "Oh, and who might this be?" She said in her sports bra and shorts.
"Spencer, this is Paige, the one I was telling you about the other day?" Emily replied as she opened her locker, giving the extra set to Paige. Both girls at this point wouldn't make eye contact with each other, their eyes wandered from naked body after naked body, dodging eye contact with every girl in the room. They didn't say a word to each other until Spencer noticed,
"It's nice to meet you Paige, and you two better get dressed before Coach gets in here, I'm not in the mood for extra push-ups!" The brunettes laughed and agreed as they got dressed and headed out the doors.
Every once in a while they would catch the other looking, they tried not to smile when they did, but they couldn't keep their eyes off each other. The bell rang signaling the end of the school day, the two got dressed and walked out of the school, talking about this and that until they ended at Paige's locker.
"So, you're coming to practice right?" Emily asked
"That's the plan, I have to go home and get my swim suit though, I forgot it at home thinking practice was tomorrow." Paige gathered her books and bag as they headed to the door, Emily heard a car horn, "Is that your mom?" she nodded.
"Yep, I'll see you soon!" The two hugged and Paige was off.
There was an hour before practice started, a time Emily normally went and did homework in the library or warmed up in the pool. She made her way towards the library as she heard a familiar voice behind her-
"Em! Wait up!" It was Alison, trotting along in her baby blue skirt and white top, her hair flowing evenly on both shoulders.
"Oh, hi Alison, what are you still doing here?" Ali paid no attention to the question, she had more to talk about than why she was still at school.
"Never mind that, hey you know that new girl? Have you noticed something different about her?" Emily took a sharp breath in, something about what Alison was about to say scared her, and she had no idea why.
"Different? How so?" the two walked along, arm in arm as they made their way to the back of the library,
"You'll see" Ali replied.
Alison grabbed a dictionary from the nearby shelf and the two sat down next to each other, Emily listened attentively as the blonde shuffled through the pages until she found the word she was looking for: "Lesbian" Lesbian? What does that mean? It sounds like some disease you catch from being around a group of people too long! Emily thought to herself as Ali read the definition aloud:
"A lesbian is a female homosexual who experiences romantic love or sexual attraction to other females." The brunette relaxed for a moment, then immediately tensed up, she knew what it meant and why it settled with her so well, There's a name for it? I'm not alone?
Alison read on, "A psychological disorder often treated with electro-shock and conversion therapy." Emily held her breath, How could something so wonderful be a psychological disorder? How is love a disorder?
She put the book away, a sly grin still on her face, "So, I think Paige is a lesbian. Should we tell someone?" Emily could feel her throat start to close, she didn't know how to respond, she couldn't let anyone know about her feelings for Paige… If she had any at all.
"I'll talk to her first, don't tell anyone Ali, I'm serious." The blonde-haired woman put away the book and brushed her skirt, smoothing out the wrinkles as she turned to Emily.
"Oh sweetie, don't worry, it'll be our little secret." Ali winked and turned around to get her backpack, the two still nestled between two bookcases, as Emily turned around she was met by Alison's lips. Emily didn't know how to respond, Why is she doing this? She suddenly backed away from the kiss, Alison was left standing, a smug look on her face was all Emily saw as she ran out the library.
It was approximately 15 minutes before she could calm down, her heart was in her ears and her stomach dropped down to her feet, she didn't know what to do. "Okay, calm down, calm down."
Emily repeated to herself, when she felt a tap on her shoulder, "Hey, are you alright?" It was Paige, and before she could say anything Emily hugged her, she tried to comfort her new friend the best she could.
"What happened?" Paige asked, wiping the tears from the girl's cheek.
"Nothing, I'm just… I just need a minute" a concerned look from was all it took for Emily to start feeling safe again.
"Why don't we just skip practice today and you talk to me about it, alright? I'll tell coach you weren't feeling well." Em nodded her head, agreeing as they exited.
The two left the school and headed to Emily's house, they spoke only when they thought of something clever to say. As the girls entered, a conversation was going on between Pam and Wayne Fields, it was made obvious that the parents hadn't heard the two come in. If they had, they probably would've saved the conversation until it was behind closed doors, the girl's listened in.
"You know that and I know that, but now the government and that fucking prick McCarthy are going door to door asking if you're a fruit or a lesbian!" The girls listened attentively, making sure they were neither seen nor heard.
"How could they even ask you something like that? You're married, and you have a child! Wayne, this is going too far, you know we have nothing to hide but… I'm afraid," Pam said as Mr. Fields wrapped his strong arms around her.
"I know, but we have nothing to worry about, alright?" he replied, assuring her that everything would work out.
This was all they needed to hear to retreat to Emily's room upstairs and shut the door, Paige sat next to Em on the window seat, neither said a word, but deep down they knew what the other was thinking.
"What do they do if they find out you're gay?" Paige asked, Emily could feel her throat closing again, "In the military, what would they do?" a sigh of relief.
"I… I don't know. I heard my dad talking about a man he used to work with, they arrested him and he had to resign. I think they sent him to Radley for mental illness, I think he was gay." The room grew silent, a sense of understanding between the two filled the air, they didn't have to say it.
Emily talked for a while on her bed, about her friends and about school and swimming, Paige mostly listened and laughed when the occasion called for it.
Suddenly, a knock at the door, "Emily honey, it's time for din- Oh!" Pam walked in, noticing Paige, "And who's this?" Paige got up to introduce herself, almost knocking her backpack off in the process.
"My name is Paige, Mrs. Fields, Paige McCullers." She smiled, Mrs. Fields looked at Emily and back at Paige/
"Well Paige, I hadn't planned on a dinner guest but you can stay if you'd like, we're having pop-overs!" Emily smiled, she got up from the bed and replied for her "Oh it's okay mom, Paige has a lot of… Homework to do!"
Paige looked baffled for a second, then confirmed what Emily said. "Aright, get washed up sweetie!" Mrs. Fields said, turning to the other girl,
"And it was very nice meeting you Paige." She left and as the two hugged to say their goodbyes, they hung on for a moment longer, the sort of hug-limbo, too long for friends, and too short for lovers.
Emily walked to the door with Paige, "I'll see you at school tomorrow!" she said smiling.
"See you soon" Em replied, leaning on the door frame, smiling as Paige's figure disappeared in the distance.
"Em, sweetie shut the door! You're letting the flies in!" She snapped back to reality by the sound of her mother's voice. The dinner was more quiet than usual, Pam asked how each of their days was and fed along the gossip she heard from the grocery store. Em went to bed with an empty stomach and a full head, she couldn't eat, how could she when her whole world seemed to have changed overnight?
The next day came and went, her classes went by slower than usual and lunch was quiet, neither Ali nor Emily said anything about the day before. Finally, it was time for swim practice. Emily got into her swimsuit and swim cap, putting her clothes back into her gym locker and as she turned, she saw Paige. She was already clothed, but the outline of every bump and muscle she had pressed against the delicate swimsuit, Emily couldn't look away. As far as muscles go, Paige was toned, her shoulders broad and muscular, her legs were long, a body built for swimming. Most of all, she was beautiful, Emily watched as she took her brown hair in each hand to put it in a ponytail, after a second Em realized she had been staring.
"Hey Em, could you help me with this? I can't seem to get my ponytail right." Paige said, obviously struggling with her hair.
Oh god, help? I can barely speak and she wants me to help?
"Um, sure, let me get that."
Paige turned so that her back was to Emily, Em took the hair tie from her and started to brush the hair back. As Emily did this, Paige closed her eyes, she could feel the warm breath on her shoulder, and as Em edged ever closer she let go of the hair. Paige turned around and the two were close, close enough that not even an inch separated them, as they moved closer a voice started calling them. The two jumped back, their hearts beating a mile a minute.
"Paige, Emily, get in the pool this minute or you'll be doing laps for the next week!"
They ran out of the locker room, Paige first and Emily followed closely behind, it was a normal practice for the two of them. Coach Fulton was impressed by Paige's performance in the freestyle and backstroke but said her breaststroke needed some work.
"Paige, Emily, would you two come up here for a moment?"
The two exited the pool and put their towels on, meeting the coach at the edge of the pool.
"Is there something wrong, Coach Fulton?" Emily said, wiping off the excess water from her face.
"No, actually quite the opposite, you two are the strongest leaders for captain right now, but Paige you need to work on that breast stroke, Fields you still need to work on extending those arms."
"Well, I can help Paige work on her breast stroke" Emily said smiling
"And I can help Emily with her arms" Paige said, trying not to laugh.
"Sounds like a plan. If you two want to continue going through exercises, Emily I'll leave the key to lock up with you. Principal Hackett would skin me alive if I left this to a student, but I trust the both of you to remember, alright?" Coach gave the small key to Emily and exited, the day was over.
At this point, the rest of their teammates had left, Emily sat the key on the side of the diving board as the two got back into the pool. The darkness outside made it so the only source from the room came from the few lights overhead. The girls swam for a while, teaching each other what they could before they burst into laughter.
"It's so much calmer when she's not yelling at us every waking minute, 'Point those toes! Kick! Fields, Kick!'" Emily laughed.
"Is she always that… Enthusiastic? I thought she was going to have a heart attack, her face was so read I thought it may blow up!" Paige swam over to the edge of the pool where Emily was sitting, her legs draped over into the water.
Emily watched as Paige's shadow moved in the pool, closer and closer until she finally surfaced, slicking back her long hair and wiping the water from her eyes. Paige looked up, Emily's brown expressive eyes staring back at her, the two just smiled. Suddenly, Emily noticed Paige had a smirk on her face, her eyebrow raised and she side eyed the girl, What is she thinking? And before she could finish that thought, Paige had pulled her into the pool.
"What was that for!" Emily said as she resurfaced, pulling her hair back.
"I don't know!" Paige laughed, as the other girl started to splash.
The two swam towards the edge of the pool, the blue reflection of the water lit up both of their faces, they treaded lightly, not saying a word until. They couldn't take it any longer, neither of them knew who made the first move, and they didn't care. Paige backed Emily into the corner, both of her hands holding herself up, Emily reaching her arms around her strong neck as they kissed. Water dripped from both of their faces, their tongues intertwined, exploring each other's mouths.
Everything felt so right, no one could tell them what they were feeling was wrong, and no one could ruin that perfect moment for them. The girls continued to kiss passionately for a minute or two, breathing each other in, every sensation, every movement, everything.
Suddenly, the two heard the familiar sound of the gym door opening, Paige turned her head quickly and backed off. No one was there, and the two looked at each other one last time before exiting the pool, careful not to kiss in case someone was still there.
"Caught you, bitch."
Alison hid behind the gym door, careful not to let the two girls see her she sneaked off, an evil grin hidden behind her flowing blonde hair her as she ran to the exit. This was all she needed to see.
Chapter 2
Emily couldn't remember a time in her life where she was caught between two people she loved. Deep down, she knew she had strong feelings for Paige, and whether she wanted to pursue those feelings she had yet to decide. As she was about to find out, someone had seen them at the pool that night, and this discovery may change the course of her life, forever.
Before she knew it, Friday was here and the weekend was in sight, the swim meet Saturday night had her stomach in knots. Emily walked to her locker and spun the lock dial to open it, 11-5-12, a sudden popping sound startled her as she swung the door open causing a folded sheet of paper to drop out.
"Oh Emily, one kiss is fine, two is dandy, but kissing two girls the same day? I wonder what mommy and daddy would think of their little girl swinging that way? Tell them about Paige or I'll do it for you. –A"
Alison? Why would she do this? How did she know about Paige and me? It didn't make sense to her, why would her friend want to hurt her like this? Emily thought about asking Spencer, surely she would know what to do about it. No, she couldn't do that either, it would mean exposing her secret and Paige's as well, she was trapped.
Emily went the rest of the day avoiding Alison and the liars, trying to decide what to do about the threat until she got home. Fourth period came around, she had P. E. with Paige, she knew she had to do something, this threat involved her too. As she rounded the corner, she spotted a familiar face in the crowd, Paige was waiting for her outside the locker room, and she looked worried.
"Paige? Are you alright?"
"We need to talk Em, can we go somewhere quiet?"
"Sure."
The two walked around the corner, not saying a word to each other until they got to the ladies bathroom down the hall. Paige locked the door behind them, making sure no one was to interrupt their conversation, she looked as if she were going to break down and cry any minute. Emily thought for a second, and then she realized-
"You got one too…"
Emily's eyes widened as Paige revealed a crumpled up letter from her bag, the note was almost identical to the one she had gotten this morning.
"Who would do this?"
"I may have an idea of whom, but I don't know why they would do this, it doesn't make any sense. Can I see your note?"
Emily took Paige's note and read it aloud:
"The new girl in town has found a new friend, better watch out, who you're kissing may cause you meet an unruly end. –A"
She stared at the note for a moment, analyzing it, the handwriting, the way it was written, it sounded like Alison was trying to get rid of Paige. But why?
"Who would do this?" Paige asked, her arms crossed, obviously trying not to express how afraid she actually was.
"I-I don't know, Paige. I really don't know."
Suddenly, a pounding on the bathroom door startled the two.
"Occupied!"
Emily said, hoping whoever was on the other side of the door would leave. It didn't work. The pounding on the door intensified to the point the door was shaking, Paige ushered Emily behind her and backed away from the door. Finally, it stopped.
"You hide in the corner, I'll check to see if they're gone, alright?"
Paige walked slowly to the door, a pencil in hand just in case whoever was there still wanted a fight. She slowly unlocked the door and cracked it open, peeking through to see if anyone was there, the hallway was clear. She opened the door fully and went back to check on Em, she was shaking from head to toe, someone was after them and Emily may know who it was. Paige knelt down to hug the shaking girl, comforting her the best she could, whatever was going on, whoever was doing this to them, they were in it together now.
"We have to tell someone."
"Paige, you know we can't do that, we would be outing ourselves and given a one way ticket to Radley for treatment. And I don't know about you, but I don't want to change, and I don't want to be away from you."
She took Paige's letter and ripped it in half, then again, and again, she ripped it to the point the letter was so small it could be used as confetti and threw it away. There was some satisfaction in the act, she rested her forehead on Paige's, they were scared but felt comforted by each other.
"Coach Fulton is probably wondering where we are-"
"Probably."
Em closed the bathroom door and locked it, her left eyebrow raised to one side, a seductive look that drew Paige in. The edged closer to each other until their bodies were touching, Paige brushed the few strands of hair from Emily's forehead and cupped her chin. A feeling of power and seduction filled the room as the two finally kissed, it was all the two of them could think about since the pool incident. Her lips are so soft, she makes me feel so safe and strong when we're together. This is how you're supposed to feel kissing someone. A knock on the door caused the two to jump apart-
"Emily? Paige? Please tell me you're in there!"
It was Aria, she sounded panicked. They wiped their lips and composed themselves, opening the door revealed the other two liars, also looking distraught.
"Guys, what's wrong? Where's Alison?"
Hanna, Spencer, and Aria looked at each other, then to Emily.
"She's missing."
Emily looked at Paige, she hadn't told her about what happened in the library the same day, at this point, she didn't want to. Moreover, if Alison was missing, how could she be the one who gave them the notes? It didn't make sense.
"Was she here at all today?" Emily asked, almost as lost as the other three were.
"We thought she was with you! That's what the note said at least." Hanna replied.
Note? They got a note as well? This couldn't be a coincidence, there was something wrong with the entire situation, and I have a feeling Alison may have something to do with it.
"Were they signed-"
"-A?" Paige jumped in, the liars looked at her and their eyes widened.
"We got one too, Emily and I did. What did your notes say?"
The three liars looked away from each other, obviously avoiding eye contact, something in those notes made them uncomfortable.
"It was something personal, wasn't it?" Emily finally spoke up, the five had an unspoken understanding that whatever the notes contained couldn't be said aloud.
"Very personal."
"I think we should split, I don't trust anyone in this joint and I really don't feel like taking heat from Mr. Fitz about my homework." Hanna said, looking through her handbag for her red lipstick.
How could Hanna think of lipstick and homework at a time like this? Alison was missing and they were getting threats from someone, threats that could possibly ruin them. Even worse, they couldn't talk about the details with each other in fear of what would happen if they did.
"Alright, we'll meet at my house tonight, my parents are out of town with the firm; some murder investigation in Courtland is keeping them occupied for the weekend. I think it's a good idea if we stay as close together as possible this weekend, just in case."
The five girls left the school and decided to meet at Spencer's house around 8 o'clock, they had a lot to talk about, at least… They thought they did. Paige and Emily decided they would drive together to the Hastings household, thinking it may give them a second to talk before heading inside with the other three liars.
Emily heard a knock at the door, she ran down the stairs, backpack in hand to open the door. Before she got to the handle, Pam stepped in and opened it, motioning for Paige to come in.
"Alright sweetie, do you have a change of clothes?"
"Yes."
"Toothbrush?"
"Yes, and a jacket, socks, and extra pair of underwear just in case it gets cold. I'm going to Spencer's not leaving the country, mother."
"I'll take good care of her Mrs. Fields, don't you worry."
Pam side-eyed Paige, who then swallowed her words, Did she know? Impossible. We didn't do anything… But she's a mom, of course she knows! Emily kissed Pam on the cheek and said her goodbyes as she ushered Paige out the door, before her mother could voice her second thoughts about the entire idea.
A beautiful 1950 Ford F1 truck sat outside the house, the reflection of the house glimmered off the black paint, lighting up the way as the two walked down to meet it. Paige ran around to the passenger side door to open it for Emily, they weren't going on a date so she didn't know exactly why she had done it, but it felt right. The two were silent for a second as Paige started up the car.
"Did you tell your mom about Alison or the note?"
Emily looked down sheepishly, she hadn't told Paige what her note said yet, she didn't want to ruin what they had for something Alison forced her into.
"My mom works at the precinct so she knew about Alison's disappearance when it was called in. And no, I didn't say anything about the note, I couldn't."
"Em, what if Alison was the one writing those notes? What if she was the one banging on the bathroom door today? If they find out somehow that it was her, we would get in trouble for not handing the letters over to them."
Emily looked at her, she was right, and every way she thought of bringing up the note ended in possibly losing Paige, she just couldn't do it. Just then, Emily spotted something, a short woman in high heels and mink coat leaned into a beautiful Cadillac, she recognized the shoes from a mile away; Mona Vanderwaal.
"Wait, Paige pull over and shut the car off, make sure the lights are all off so we can't be seen."
"Why?" Paige replied, complying but confused.
As she pulled over and shut the car off, Emily pointed out the woman.
"You see that gal? She goes to our school, her name's Mona Vanderwaal. Ali didn't like her so much, the two fought like alley cats whenever they came in contact with one another, I wonder if she had something to do with Alison's disappearance."
Mona stood up, looking around to see if anyone was watching, not noticing the two women in the car further down the street, she leaned in to kiss the driver. As far as Emily knew, Mona had no beau , she tried to look as close as she possibly could to identify the driver, a snappy 3-piece suit and fedora was all she could see in the drivers mirror. It was late, the roads were still glistening with the rain from earlier and the fog had drifted around the town, spooky was putting it lightly. The short brunette backed up to the curb as the driver started his car, taking out a tiny mirror from her purse, she adjusted her smudged lipstick, angling it ever so slightly so that the girl's truck was in view. She smirked and began to walk around the corner, her heels clicking rhythmically against the pavement, the fog covering every step.
"Follow her."
Paige nodded as she started the car, the beams from the headlights cutting through the dense mist. She edged forwards, barely seeing 10 feet in front of her, she turned left, the way Mona had gone only a few seconds beforehand.
"Where did she go? She couldn't have gone far."
"Em, in this weather she could be right in front of the truck and I wouldn't know it."
Suddenly Paige slammed on her breaks, someone in a black hoodie stood right in front of the truck holding up a sign.
"Looking for me? What does that mean?" Paige said, looking to Emily as if she had a clue.
Emily opened the car door, Paige following closely behind to make sure she didn't get hurt.
"Alison?"
Emily's foot hit the ground and the second it did; the hooded figure took off, leaving something on the ground for the girls to see. The headlights of the truck gave off just enough light for Paige to see the small trinket, she picked it up and held it in the air. Emily recognized it immediately.
"That's Alison's necklace, her dad gave that to her for her 13th birthday, she never takes it off."
This was all it took for Emily to get worried, something was wrong, and somehow she knew those notes were connected to her disappearance. She just didn't know how.
"We need to get to Spencer's, NOW."
Paige and Emily jumped in the car, making it to the Hastings household in record time and practically running over the neighbor's cat in the process. Paige grabbed the bags out of the back, Emily grabbed the necklace and the two headed inside, obviously startling the other three liars. Hanna and Spencer each had a fireplace poker in hand, Aria holding a butcher knife from the kitchen, something happened to them.
"WOAH! What the hell?!" Emily said, jumping back and turning the kitchen lights on.
"Jesus, Emily! You could've announced yourselves!" Aria exclaimed, all five girls let out a sigh of relief.
"What the hell happened before we arrived?"
Paige's question caused the three girls to go completely white, they looked at each other before nodding to Spencer for an explanation.
"We saw someone, someone in a black hoodie. They started banging on the door, the whole house practically shook-"
Hanna couldn't stay silent any longer, if she didn't speak up her head would explode from the pressure building up inside.
"I'm pretty sure you were the one shaking Spence, but they did a number on the door, it practically came off the hinges. And they left another note… For the five of us."
Aria held the note in hand, she passed it to Emily who read it aloud.
"One down, five to go, you better ask yourselves now, are you ready for the show? Get ready bitches. –A"
Paige looked at Emily, the fear was gone and all that was left was rage, pure rage. She hadn't done anything to deserve this, and neither did Emily as far as she knew, they needed to find this person and stop them before it was too late. Emily took the necklace out of her pocket and held it up for the group, the three gathered around her to examine it, they all recognized it immediately.
"Why do you have Alison's necklace Em?"
"We had a run in with the person in the black hoodie before we got here too, they left this. Guys, I think they have Alison."
Aria gasped and covered her mouth, the expression on Spencer and Hanna's faces said it all, shock, but there was a deeper sense of 'So, someone finally got fed up with her bullshit and decided to fight back.'
"Who would do this to her?"
Paige's simple question turned into a long discussion between them about Alison's bullying tendencies, her long list of secret lovers, they told her only the things they felt she needed to know. If it turned out Ali had simply run away with some boy, they couldn't have her coming back and finding out they spilled all of her secrets. Ali would destroy not only the liars, but Paige as well, just to keep their mouths shut.
"How could someone be so cruel… And how could anyone be friends with a monster like that?"
The liars looked down, ashamed because they knew she was right, every single time Ali bullied or harassed someone, they stood by when they should've intervened. They hated Alison and they loved her as well, she used them, she made them what they were, but she also brought them together. For now, they needed to figure out what happened to Alison, and who was harassing them.
"I forgot to mention, Paige and I saw Mona on our way over here. She was talking to someone in a car, we couldn't see who was driving, but it was definitely a male."
The girls sat around the living room, a fire roaring in the back as they discussed the plan, when Emily mentioned Mona the girls immediately took interest, especially Spencer.
"Mona? What was she doing out this late?" Spencer said, taking a sip of coffee, leaning in to listen to the conversation.
"I don't know, the fog got too dense when Paige and I tried to follow her, we couldn't see a thing. The next thing we knew, the person in the black hoodie was in front of the car. When we got out, they ran off and left the necklace."
Hanna's eyes narrowed and her body language changed, what was once a sweet demeanor changed into suspicion. She crossed her arms and legs, leaning back into the chair, raising one eyebrow, the group recognized the look oh so well, the 'Hanna is annoyed' look. It wasn't surprising considering they were accusing her best friend of having something to do with Ali's disappearance, Hanna and Ali rarely got along since her weight loss, and when Alison wasn't there for her, and Mona was.
"Mona is many things sweetie, but she's no kidnapper. How about we hit the sack gals, I need my beauty rest, and Spencer you better lock every single door, window, and room in this house."
The girls agreed, it was nearly 1 am and there was little to talk about now. Since there were five girls and only three bedrooms, Emily and Paige opted for sleeping in the living room, it gave them time to talk alone in a safe place. Spencer and Hanna brought down extra blankets and pillows for Paige and Emily to sleep on, they helped build make shift beds on the floor and couch, finally it was time to sleep.
"Alright gals, sleep tight and don't let the bedbugs bite" Spencer said, leading Hanna up the stairs.
"Bugs? You invited us over when you know there's bugs! You know how I feel about bugs!"
"Hanna, honey, it's a figure of speech. There are no bugs."
"You can't just say goodnight like a normal person?"
Spencer shook her head and rolled her eyes, if there was anyone who could annoy Spencer and make her laugh at the same time, it was Hanna.
"Goodnight, Hanna. Goodnight Spencer."
Emily and Paige said as the other two liars walked upstairs, laughing and shaking their head at Hanna's comments.
"Is Hanna always so… Funny?" Paige said, laughing as she got ready for bed.
"Yeah, she's always like that" Emily replied as she brushed off her pillow, laughing as well.
The two talked back and forth, it seems as if they were only talking for a few minutes, when Paige checked her watch she was surprised to find it was already 3 am.
"It's already three o'clock! My watch must be broken, we were only talking for a few minutes, right?"
Emily leaned on her side facing Paige, the couch was comfortable but a tad stiff, but she didn't mind so long as she could talk to the girl. Paige poked the fire, keeping it going as they talked through the night, her bed was on the floor, three pillows and two blankets made for a comfortable sleeping area as she faced Emily. The two smiled at each other, as they started to doze off, the fire died behind them and they slept. An hour or so passed when all of a sudden Emily fell off the couch, right next to Paige.
"OOF!" Paige exclaimed as the girl knocked into her, a rude wake up call for the both of them.
"Sorry! I must've turned over in my sleep, thank god you had that pillow there."
Paige smiled, a small idea in the back of her head thought maybe Emily did it on purpose to sleep next to her, she didn't mind either way. Emily was still in her arms, the two facing each other smiling, Paige leaned in closer, their noses barely touched and they could feel each breath the other took.
"Kiss me"
Emily looked into Paige's eyes, then to her lips, she edged closer biting her bottom lip until she couldn't wait any longer. There was a hesitation between the both of them before their lips touched, it was gentle, every worry and hesitation they once had melted away. Paige brought Emily in closer, her strong arms keeping her safe, building a home for Em to build with her. The kiss couldn't be explained, it was that single moment someone experiences the perfect kiss, each one mouthing works of literature, Emily with the balcony scene from 'Romeo and Juliet' while Paige replied with Edgar Allen Poe's 'Annabel Lee'. As they pulled away from each other, they knew their love was special, and not a single person in the world could tell them that their love was wrong.
The two lay in each other's arms the rest of the night, Paige with her arm around Emily who rested her head across her chest. Suddenly they heard the sound of a pair of feet behind them, causing them to jump.
"Relax, you two. I don't care what you're deal is, if you like each other or whatever, that's your business. Just don't let anyone see you, I think you already know what people around here think about that sort of thing. And whatever happens, I'll deny it, defend you, whatever you want, love is such a beautiful thing to be wasted on those who try to force others into a certain way they see fit."
"Thank you, Hanna"
Emily got up and hugged the blonde, they had a special friendship that you find once in your lifetime, if you're lucky enough to find that person of course.
"How about some coffee? I had better make it before Spencer wakes up or we'll be wired for the rest of the month. I just don't know how she functions on the stuff."
The girls laughed and agreed, Paige got up and grabbed the keys to her car, she realized she had forgotten her change of clothes in the back seat. As she walked over to the door, she noticed something funny about Spencer's car.
"Hanna, Emily, can you come over here for a second?"
"Sure, what's wrong?" Emily replied.
"You need to see this…"
Hanna, Paige, and Emily stood in disbelief of what they were seeing, in big red letters painted across Spencer's car was a message.
The three read aloud at the same time
"A picture is worth a thousand words, just think what I could do with these. –A"
Scattered all throughout the yard was picture after picture of the girls sleeping, someone had been inside taking pictures without any of them knowing.
"I need to get Spencer and Aria to help clean this up before anyone notices."
They nodded in agreement as Hanna ran to get the other two, it was only a moment later when all five were picking up photo after photo.
"Who is this monster…" said Aria, looking over to Hanna who was now critiquing them.
"The least they could do was get a proper angle, these are all so wrong!"
The feeling of disgust and anger was overpowered by the intense fear of someone sneaking into each one of their rooms. Looking through the photos was a hard task for the five girls, and just when they thought it couldn't get any worse, Emily face went completely white.
"Oh my god…"
Paige and Hanna stopped what they were doing to see what she had found, and what they saw horrified them. It was Alison, her hair filled with blood and her body mangled and thrown into a grave, dirt covering her limbs. The girls frantically looked for more pictures to piece together what they could, with every photo they found, the dirt in the grave rose higher and higher until they couldn't see Alison's body at all. It was Paige who found the last picture taped to the windshield of Spencer's car, this one wasn't of Alison bloodied and bruised, this one had her smiling in the same yellow shirt she was buried in. As she turned the photo over, she realized there was a message, a message written in blood.
"Guys."
The tone of her voice was all it took for the liars to get nervous, they walked over, stacks of pictures in each hand as they gathered around. Hanna took the photo and gave it to Emily who then read the message aloud.
"Her blood is on your hands now bitches, you snitch and you'll be digging the next ditch. –A"