Disclaimer: I own nothing but my OC.
Chapter One: Pilot
Alison was not amused. Her parents sent her to spend the summer with her grandmother, who in turn dragged her to visit one of her old friends that basically lived in the middle of nowhere. Now she was stuck in an ancient house with nothing to do. She turned away from the window, deciding to head down stairs.
She found her grandmother sitting at the kitchen table, talking to her friend Olivia. "Gran, I'm going out." She said.
She turned away from her conversation. "Okay dear." She smiled. "Be safe."
Olivia smiled at her. "There aren't many children in this town, but there is a girl your age that lives a little ways down the road. It will be the last house you see."
Alison nodded before heading out the door.
I've never been so bored. She thought as she walked down the road. There was literally nothing to do in this town. She passed a small children's park as she walked. The jungle gym is wooden! Do they even still make those?! She walked a little longer before finally spotting a house at the end of the road. She rolled her eyes at the sight of it. Great. Gran's bestie sent me to the house of an ax murderer, who just happens to live far enough where no one can hear my screams. She contemplates turning around and getting the hell out of there when the soft sound of a guitar fills her ears.
She walks closer to the house, now realizing that the sound is coming from outside. She walks around the side of the house, the sounds of the guitar becoming louder. When she reaches the backyard, she is met with the sight of a girl. She's sitting in a lounge chair, softly strumming with her eyes closed. Her olive toned skin shines, even with the day's dreary weather. Her hair flows a little past her shoulders, swaying slightly with the breeze. Alison goes to step farther into the yard when a branch loudly snaps under her foot.
The girl's eyes snap open at the sound and turns towards the noise. "Who are you?" She asked at the sight of Alison. "What are you doing here?"
Alison walked closer. "Sorry." She said. "I heard music and wanted to see who was playing. I'm Alison."
The girl looked at her, a guarded look on her face as she stood from the chair. "I'm Trinity." She said as she put the guitar down. "What are you doing here?" She asked again.
"My grandmother dragged me here so she could visit an old friend. She told me that there is one other girl in this town who's my age and gave me directions." Alison answered, rolling her eyes.
"And you just decided to search for a complete stranger in hopes of what?"
"Look if you don't want to hang out, then I'll just leave." Alison said, turning to leave.
"Wait." Trinity called. Alison turned around, placing a hand on her hip. "What do you want to do?"
Alison raised an eyebrow. "What is there to do?"
"So tell me again, why am I following you through the woods?" Alison asked.
"You'll see." Trinity said. "It's just a little farther."
Alison heard the sound of rushing water. "What's that?"
Trinity smiled, grabbing her hand as she moved some branches aside. "It's that." She said, looking forward.
Alison gasped at the sight of the waterfall. "So this is where everyone hangs out?" She asked, seeing lights strewn around the trees.
"No." Trinity shook her head. "I own this land. It's private property."
"We've been walking for twenty minutes." Alison said. "There's no way you could own all of this."
"I do." Trinity said. "The west woods are mine. The east belongs to the town."
"Your parents must be loaded." Alison said.
Trinity looked down. "I'm an orphan. My parents died when I was three."
Alison's face dropped. "I'm sorry."
Trinity shook her head. "It's fine." She smiled. "On another note, this isn't all I have to show you." She grabbed onto Alison's hand and began leading her along the edge of the waterfall.
"Where are you taking me?"
"Ubi cataracta finit iter vera incipit." Trinity says.
"What?"
"Where the waterfall ends the true journey begins. It's Latin." Trinity smiles, as she moves towards the head of a cave.
Alison stops. "I'm not going in there."
Trinity turns around. "Trust me."
"Yeah." Alison draws the word out. "You're a complete stranger who wants to take me into a very dark cave that I may never come out of."
Trinity chuckles. "I've known you for less than an hour but I didn't think that you were the type of person who gets scared easily."
Alison's eyes narrowed. "I'm not scared."
"Then what's the hold up?"
Alison huffed. "Lead the way." She waved her arm out.
Trinity smiled before grabbing a hold of Alison's hand again and leading her into the cave. Trinity felt along the wall, finding a switch. The dark cave was lit by lanterns on the ceiling. "It's wired to solar panels in the trees and a generator just in case I come here at night." She said letting go of Alison's hand. "Follow me."
"How did you find all of this?" Alison asked as she followed Trinity along one of the tunnels.
"Well back during the civil war days, the people who owned this land were union sympathizers. They built this place to hide slaves who have escaped. There are all sorts of tunnels running through here. It's out of the way, there's clean water, and it's easy to find food from the fruit plants nearby. After the war was over the family decided to move up north, my ancestors bought the place. Including all of the interesting little knick knacks that came along with it."
"So you could just stay here forever and no one would know?"
"Yeah." Trinity nodded. "As long as I kept up with the weekly visits from my caretaker, no one would be the wiser. And I get emancipated when I turn sixteen. Then the visits stop, and I'm off to a new town."
"Caretaker?" Alison said. "You live by yourself?"
"I do. I chose to live out here because it's quiet and so out of the way that the court won't push for foster care. It's a small town; I can't get in trouble or hurt. It was the perfect situation." She came to a stop. "This is where I usually hang out."
Alison looked at the area. A mattress lied in the corner, next to a pile of books and a boom box. "This is what you wanted to show me?"
"Of course not, this is just my little room." She began walking up steps on the side of the cave, Alison following after her. "This is what I wanted to show you."
Alison gazed out at the woods and the town from the top of the cliff. "Do you come up here a lot?"
"All the time. It's a good place to clear your head." Trinity said, before turning to look at Alison. "So how long are you here for?"
"Until the end of the summer."
"Well while you're here we can make the most of it." Trinity smiled.
"This is boring." Alison said, staring at the chess board. "Why can't we go swimming again?"
"This is strategy." Trinity corrected. "And it's raining and windy; I have no desire to catch hyperthermia."
"What's the point to this?" Alison sighed. She had been hanging out with Trinity all summer. They have gone swimming, the town carnival, and sometimes exploring the woods. In between that, Trinity had been reading some of her books to her or teaching her how to play the piano and speak Latin.
"Remember when we were having that 'get to know each other' conversation? You know the one where you described yourself as a manipulative bitch?"
"Is there a point to this?"
"A true manipulator is good at chess." Trinity said.
"What does chess have to do with manipulation people?" Alison asked as she took her turn.
"Well, for starters you have to be able to think ahead of your opponent. Don't let them be able to ever know something before you do." Trinity answered as she moved her chess piece.
"And what else?" Alison asked, her eyes narrowed in thought as she stared at the chess board.
"You have to be able to read your opponent as well. You can't stay ahead if you can't properly know your opponents retaliation. Like how I know that you're going to move your pawn to E4, granting me success in my next five moves, leading me to a checkmate."
Alison paused, her hand hovering above a pawn. "How did you know that?"
"Like I said; you have to be able to read your opponent." Trinity smiled.
Alison smirked at her. "You hide behind this sweet and innocent little mask, but you have the potential to be a total bitch."
"Etiam maxime pulchra flos nocentissimum vi maxima potest esse venenum." Trinity said.
"Even the most beautiful flower can be the deadliest poison." Alison translated.
"You're getting better." Trinity smiled.
"You and Spencer would get along great. You both spend your time studying things no one cares about."
Trinity chuckled. "When you live in a town this small, you have to find something to entertain yourself. A TV and a computer can only come so far. And the cellphone is only useful if you have someone to talk to."
"I don't see how sitting outside reading you depressing books is entertaining."
"My books are not depressing." Trinity defended.
"They are filled with murder, thievery, and lying. That doesn't make out for a happy ending."
"You're looking at it the wrong way." Trinity said.
"How?"
"Well take this one for example." Trinity said, picking up a book from the table. "In this one the protagonist is being stalked by a psychopath."
"How charming." Alison said sarcastically.
"But the thing about it is that the guy that's stalking her didn't dig deep enough when he decided to target her. He got her daily routines, her habits, and other typical traits, but he missed one thing."
"What?" Alison asked.
"Her personality." Trinity said. "You see, he only ever saw the side of her that she showed others, even when he thought that she was alone he only ever saw her show face. For being so obsessed with her, he never knew her as well as he thought he did."
"What was it?"
"She was raised as a survivalist. She was taught to always be aware of her surroundings, how to defend herself, how to hide in plain sight, and most importantly…how to hunt."
"So what happened?" Alison leaned forward.
"She knew what was going on. She knew that she wasn't his first victim, and she knew that law enforcement wouldn't be able to stop him. So she took it into her own hands."
"The hunter became the hunted." Alison said.
Trinity shook her head. "She was never hunted. To beat the villain you have to be smarter, stronger, faster…" Trinity smirked. "To beat the villain you have to be the better villain."
"What did she do?"
"After he first spotted her, she knew what was going on. He found everything she wanted him to find. He only saw what she wanted him to see. While he was figuring out a way to go through her emails, she was searching every abandoned or remote location within every surrounding state. When he was following her to coffee shops, she was tracking him until the opportunity presented itself."
"What opportunity?"
"Contact. She needed to be able to get close enough to touch him."
"How did she?"
"She took a subway. It's a crowded, packed in place. She knew that he wouldn't be able to resist the opportunity to be so close to her. So when he bumped into her, she pretended to stumble and grabbed onto his shoulder. What he didn't see was the tracking device she slipped onto him. After that, she played along to all of his games, she acted paranoid, and she played terrified when the time was right. But the whole time she knew where he was. He was staying at an abandoned warehouse on the edge of the city. All public property blueprints are city record. She knew the ins and outs of his hideout. So when he kidnapped her that's when she ended it."
"That's it?"
Trinity leaned forward. "But that's the best thing. The way she ended it was so abrupt. No big fight or long speech. It was just short and sweet. Nothing that would be hard to hide." She said. "The way she did it though was the big revelation. She wasn't a psychopath but you could tell that it wasn't the first time she took a life. It's how her parents raised her. First with animals and then with people. No one innocent but a life's a life. They had to desensitize her so she wouldn't hesitate when it really counts." Trinity smiled. "It was an amazing read."
Alison stared at her. "Your creepy level just went up by like a thousand points."
They busted into laughter.
"I'm going to miss you." Trinity said; her eyes filled with tears.
Alison hugged her. "You have my number; you're not going to forget me."
Trinity chuckled as she squeezed tighter. "You're so modest." She pulled away from the hug.
Alison smiled. "I promise to keep in touch."
Three Years Later
The girls are in the barn drinking and having fun when the light and the music went off.
"What happened?" Emily asks.
"It must be the storm." Spencer says. A squeak blares.
"Something's out there." Aria says. The door of the barn opens.
"Guys." Hanna says.
The girls get up and look scared towards the door. They come closer, a glass noise blares, they shout but still came closer.
Ali comes into sight. "Gotcha."
"Aah!" The girls scream in shock.
"That's so not funny, Alison!" Spencer says, a little frustrated at her friends prank.
"I thought it was hilarious, girls." Alison smirked. They all laugh and settle down on sofas.
"Ali, did you download the new Beyoncé?" Hanna asks.
"Not yet."
"I'm loving her new video." Emily smiles.
"Maybe a little too much, Em." She smirks as Emily's face deflates. Ali gives a glass to Aria. "Your turn. Go on."
The girls watch Aria take several gulps. "Careful, Aria. Take too much, and you'll tell us all your secrets." Spencer says.
"Friends share secrets. That's what keeps us close." Alison says. "Drink up."
Aria wakes up after a clash of thunder. She looks around the barn, Emily and Hanna are still sleeping but Spencer and Ali are missing. She goes to wake the girls. "Em." She shakes her shoulder.
"Where's Ali and Spencer?" Hanna asks.
"We don't know." Aria answers. She gets up to go to the door and sees someone come through it. "Ali?"
"She's gone." Spencer says.
"What do you mean she's gone?" Aria asks.
"I've looked everywhere for her. I think I heard her scream." Spencer says.
An image of a newspaper of rosewood appears with a photo of Ali and in main headlines "still missing"
1 Year Later
Aria looks in the mirror.
"Aria, are you okay?" Her mother; Ella asks.
"It's weird to be home."
"We were gone a year. When you're 16, that's a long time."
"I think of her every day."
"Why don't you call your friends? They don't know we're back from dad's sabbatical."
"On the news, they're calling it 'The Anniversary of Alison's Disappearance', like it's a party or something."
"Why don't you give them a call? You five were inseparable, and those feelings don't just go away."
Her brother; Mike walks up the corridor. "I need a ride to lacrosse!"
"I'll take him." Aria says.
Mike searches in the pack boxes.
"Got lacrosse today?" Their father; Byron asks.
"It's first tryouts, and all my stuff's in about a hundred boxes." He says.
Ella and Aria walk in. "A hundred?" Ella asks.
"You know what I mean." Mike sighs.
"Come on, let's go look in the garage. Come on."
Ella and Mike leave to the garage as Byron approaches Aria. "Listen, I know coming back here brings up a lot of memories. You okay?"
"Dad, I'm still keeping your secret, okay?"
"I mean, are you okay with Alison?"
Mike and Ella come back and Aria and Mike leave.
Ella embraces Byron. "And they're running off to practice. We are officially home."
Aria and Mike are in the car front of the High School. Mike gets out of the car. "Hey, what time am I picking you up?" Aria asks.
"Uh, six."
"Okay, I'm gonna grab some food."
Aria sits at the counter of a bar; next to her a man reads a book. "Can I get a cheeseburger, please?" She asks.
"You got it."
Aria's face drops as she sees a wanted notice for Alison.
"You all right down there?" The man next to her asks.
"I'm a bit jetlagged. I just got back from Europe."
"Where in Europe?"
"Iceland."
"I spent some time in Reykjavik before I went to Amsterdam. It's a great city."
"So, do you go to Hollis?" Aria asks.
"Just graduated. I'm gonna start my first teaching job."
"I…I think I'd like to teach. God, I love this song."
"B26. What's your major?"
"Uh, well, I'm leaning toward English."
"That's what I'm teaching."
"Well, and I write too, but…So far, it's mostly personal. Just for me."
"I'm impressed."
"Why?"
"Well, I tried writing. I didn't get very far. You're lucky. If you're writing for yourself, it's pure passion. Maybe you'd let me read something of yours."
"Yeah? You'd really want to?"
"Yeah. You're smart, you've traveled, great taste in music. I'd like to know more about you."
"Yeah. I'd like to know more about you too."
Aria and the man are kissing in the restroom.
Hanna tries on a pair of sunglasses. "Could I see the Prada's in the front?"
"I'll have to put some in the back." The salesman notes.
"But they're all maybes."
Mona arrives with a scarf around her neck. "Hey, is this me?"
"Or is it a little too much your mother?" Hanna teases.
"I am loving those glasses. How much?"
"350." Hanna sees Spencer, who is looking at clothes. "I'll be right back." She approaches Spencer. "I cannot believe Spencer Hastings actually has time to shop. I mean, you're interning for the mayor, taking classes at Hollis, and redoing the barn. And in your leisure moments, you Facebook and tweet."
"You know me. I like to stay busy." Spencer says.
"It's called a summer vacay, Spence."
"You spent yours sunning and shopping."
"Tweet-tweet."
"Did you see the paper today?"
"Yeah." Hanna nods.
"She's gone, but she's everywhere."
"I can't believe it's been a year."
"Do you remember what Ali said that night, about our secrets keeping us close? I think it was the opposite."
"So! What's the occasion?"
"Family dinner. We're meeting Melissa's fiancé."
"Did miss perfect find a Mr. Perfect?"
"He's a med student, so everyone's thrilled." Spencer rolled her eyes.
"Then that's not the right top. You need to turn heads."
"Away from Melissa? Please."
"She doesn't always have to win. See you around the playground."
"See you."
Hanna goes to the exit of the store with the glasses that she stole on eyes.
"Hey, miss!" A guard calls. Hanna turns around. "You forgot your bag."
"Thank you."
Mona walks towards the door. "I so thought you were busted."
"Nice scarf." Hanna smirks.
"Nice glasses."
Aria, Mike and Byron arrives in front of the Rosewood's High School.
Mike gets out of the car. "Later. See ya."
"Good luck." Byron says. Aria gets ready to go out but he calls her back. "Hey."
"Look, it's the first day. I don't want to be late." Aria says.
"I love you, Aria. You know that, right?"
"Yeah. I know."
"And you know that I love your mom."
"Do you?"
"I made a mistake, okay? And I will be sorry about it for the rest of my life. I just hope that someday you'll be able to forgive me."
"I hope so too."
Flash Back
Alison and Aria walk in the street side by side eating an ice cream.
Mona follows them behind by running. "Aria! Hey, guys! Alison!"
"Hey! You hear Mona?" Aria asks.
"Hey, Aria!" Mona calls again.
"Maybe we should wait." Aria says.
"Hey, guys!" They hear Mona call.
"My god. Is she ever gonna get a clue? What a loser. Come here." Alison says, grabbing Aria's arm and jogging ahead. They turn a corner and stop at the sight of a car. "Hey, isn't that your dad's car?"
Present
"Aria?" Emily asks when she catches sight of her.
"Emily." Aria smiles.
"When did you get back?"
"Hey. Yesterday."
"I almost didn't recognize you. I think the last time we saw each other, you had a pink stripe in your hair."
"Well, when your parents want you to be yourself and you don't know who you are..." Aria trails off.
"You wore it well. You should have called. It's so weird just running into you here."
"Oh. Well, we've kind of lost touch, Emily, remember?"
"That's what we had to do."
"I saw a poster of Alison yesterday."
"It's awful. I mean, we all know she's dead, right?"
"I just never heard anyone say it."
Aria and Emily take their seats near the back of the classroom.
"So, I hear the new teacher's really hot." Emily says.
"Is that Hanna?" Aria asks when she sees her walk into the classroom.
"She's the "it" girl now." Mona comes next. "And where there's Hanna, there's Mona."
"That's Mona?"
"Can you believe it?"
"Wow. Talk about a makeover." Aria says. Hanna waves at the girls then turns the head. "What's up with her? You two fighting?"
"We didn't just fall out of touch with you, Aria. We all fell out of touch with each other." Spencer comes too, she smiles shyly to Hanna. "They're not so close anymore either." Emily tells her.
"So they're friendly, but not friends."
The new teacher comes into the class and writes his name on the board. He turns around and it turns out it is the man that Aria hooked up with at the bar. He turns around and realizes. "Holy Crap!"
Everyone looks at Aria who sees him. Her phone rings, which is quite embarrassing. "Sorry."
"Uh, I'm Mr. Fitz your new English teacher." The man tells the class.
Aria reads the text.
Maybe he fools around with students all the time.
A lot of teachers do, just ask your dad. –A
"Alison?" Aria whispers.
Mr. Fitz was discussing the class syllabus when the door opens. Trinity steps through with a paper in her hand. "Sorry to interrupt but are you Mr. Fitz?"
He nods. "Yes I am. And you are?"
"Trinity Clairborn." She smiles before handing him her late slip.
Ezra takes it and nods. "Well we've only just started. You can find a seat."
Trinity takes a quick glance around before heading to the seat at the back of the class behind Emily.
Emily is with her mom; Pam, who is preparing a couple of welcome baskets.
"I can't believe they sold the house." Emily says.
"Just too many memories for the DiLaurentis's. I can't even imagine."
"It's just so weird to think of other people living in Alison's house."
"I know, honey." Pam says.
"Aria's back."
"Does she still have that pink hair?"
"No, mom, she doesn't."
"You know something? I never really understood that family. Why would a mother let her daughter do something like that?"
"Because they believe their kids are their equals, not their property."
"Honey, I don't think you're my property, but I'm your mom. What kind of mother would I be if I let you run around looking like a Goth? That kind of lifestyle might fly in Europe, but it's not gonna get you very far here in Rosewood."
"Not everyone dreams of making it in Rosewood mom."
"Oh?"
"Some people dream of making it out."
Trinity looks at the house where Alison used to live. She sees the boxes on the pavement and picks up a medal. Didn't think that Alison was one for sports. She thought.
Emily was walking toward the house with welcome baskets in her arms when she spots the new girl looking at Alison's stuff. "Hi!" She calls.
Trinity looks up. "Oh hey!" She says. "We have English together right?"
Emily nods, looking at the medal in Trinity's hand. "What are you doing?"
"Oh." Trinity said looking down. "One of my friends used to live here. She always wanted me to come visit but I couldn't until I turned sixteen. By then it was too late."
"You knew Alison?" Emily asked. Trinity nodded, brushing her hair away from her face. "Did she give you that bracelet?" Emily asks when she spots it.
Trinity looks at the bracelet with her name stitched into it. "Yeah, a couple years ago."
Emily holds up her wrist. "She gave me one two."
Trinity looked at the bracelet. "Wait…Emily. Emily Fields?"
"You know me."
Trinity nodded. "She used to talk about you and three other girls."
"Hanna, Spencer, and Aria?"
"Yeah. You guys were her best friends."
"She never told us about you." Emily says.
Trinity shrugged. "We didn't live in the same state and didn't see each other often but we kept in touch. It probably never came up."
As they're talking a girl comes from out of the house. "You want that?" She asks, seeing the medal in Trinity's hand. "Maya St. Germain, A.K.A. New Girl."
"Trinity Clairborn. A.K.A. The Other New Girl."
"I'm Emily, welcome to the neighborhood!"
"Thank you. Mmm. Foie gras and cornichons. My favorites." Maya says.
Emily hands the girls the baskets. "It's from my mother."
"I figured. Oh, that stuff was in my room. You can have anything you want." Maya tells them.
"It all belonged to Alison." Emily says.
"Is she a friend of yours?" Maya asks.
"She was, a long time ago." Trinity says.
"That's all I get? No details?"
Trinity looked at Emily, gesturing her to continue. "Uh, there were five of us who used to hang out, but... We don't anymore."
"Would it be outrageous of me to ask if you'll help with our last few boxes?"
"Yes. But I don't mind." Emily says. Trinity nodded before putting down the medal and following after them.
"So, why aren't you still friends with the girl who used to live here?" Maya asks.
"You ask a lot of questions!" Emily says.
"How else am I supposed to get to know you?"
"There you go another question!" Trinity points out.
"Fine, your turn! Ask me anything."
Emily notices a picture of a boy on her dresser. "Is this your boyfriend?"
"His name is Justin."
"He's cute!" Trinity says.
"He's also three thousand miles away."
"My boyfriend's name is Ben." Emily tells her.
"What's he like?"
"He's a swimmer, like me."
"What about you Trinity? Do you have a boyfriend?" Maya asks.
Trinity looks up. "No." She shakes her head. "I guess you can say that I prefer the softer side of sex." Emily blushes as she gets the meaning of her words.
Maya smiles. "Girlfriend?"
Trinity shakes her head. "Nothing serious. Started quickly, ended quickly. So do you play as well?" Trinity asks.
"Yeah. But not the cello." Maya turns to Emily. "If you're a big jock, does that mean you'd kill me if I smoked a little weed?"
"Now?"
"I won't if you don't want me to."
"Where are your parents?"
"Relax. They're out."
"Go ahead." Emily says.
"You guys want to join me?" Maya asks.
"Okay." Emily says. Trinity nods her head.
"First time?" Maya asks. Trinity shakes her head.
"No." Emily says. Maya and Trinity look at her. "Yes."
"So we're corrupting you. You okay with that?" Trinity asks.
"Yeah. I think I am."
Spencer arrives when Melissa walks out. "Hey, what do you think?" Spencer asks.
"You have an eye for design. I absolutely love it." Melissa tells her.
"Thank you."
"Honestly, when mom said you were converting the barn to a loft, I couldn't see it, but it's beautiful. Job well done."
"I'm glad you like it."
"And I totally appreciate your letting us move in."
"What?" Spencer's brows furrow.
"Wren and I are staying in the barn while we redo my place in the city."
"I'm moving in for junior year, Melissa. That's the deal that I made with mom and dad. I got the grades, I did the internship, I gave up my summer because I wanted this."
"Well, you'll just have to wait."
"Why can't you stay in my room?"
"We're a couple Spencer. We need our own space, and mom and dad agree."
"But they promised me."
Wren walks out of the barn and approaches girls. "Is everything okay? I'm Wren."
"I was hoping you'd be happy for me." Melissa says.
"Well, you know what they say about hope. Breeds eternal misery." Spencer says before walking towards the house.
"Sounds like she was counting on moving into the barn." Wren says.
"Don't worry about Spencer. She'll get over it."
Wren crushes a crushes a cigarette while Spencer reads a book sitting in the armchair.
"Shouldn't you know better? I mean you are a med student right?" Spencer says.
"You're a bit of a smart-ass."
"A bit? Does my sister know you smoke?"
"Does she have to know everything? I'm sorry that we're moving into your loft. If you want me to say something-"
"It wouldn't make a difference. Thank you for being sorry. You're not like Melissa's usual boyfriends."
"How am I unusual?"
"We're late for dinner." Spencer gets up and makes her way to the house. She stops next to Wren. "I actually like you. That's what's unusual."
Aria walks through the empty hallways. She stops in front of Ezra's room and walks in.
"You told me you went to Hollis." He told her.
"No. I said I was thinking about majoring in English. And that's true."
"Look, I think you're amazing, Aria. When I first met you, I thought…'who is this girl?'"
Aria takes his hand. "I'm still that girl. Nothing's changed."
"Yes. Yes, it has. I'm your teacher."
"I know it's not just me. You…you feel like this is right for us too."
"It's not right. We just can't." He gets up and leaves the room.
Emily and Trinity are walking side by side.
"Thanks for walking me home." Trinity said.
"It's no big deal. Practice doesn't start until four." Emily tells her.
"The town that I lived in was so small that there were only a handful of teenagers. I've never had a jock friend before. I guess that makes you my first." They across the street, seeing the garbage man throwing Alison's boxes into the truck.
"How long did you know Alison?"
"About four years." Trinity shrugged. "I didn't know what happened until a month after she went missing."
"How?" Emily asked.
"Well she made sure to call or text at least once every two days. Then one day it was like radio silence. I thought that she was busy or just forgot. Then I checked the Rosewood website and her picture was on the front page."
"That's horrible." Emily gasps.
Trinity shakes her head. "It was a long time ago. I would say it's better now but-"
"Being here is bringing everything up again." Emily finishes.
Trinity nods. "Yeah." She sniffs, her eyes misting a bit.
Emily pulls her into a hug. "It'll get better."
"Yeah." Trinity pulls back a bit, meaning to kiss Emily on the cheek but ended up kiss the corner of her mouth. They pull away, embarrassed. "See you tomorrow?"
"Yeah. Bye."
Girl's locker room
Emily is opening her locker when Spencer arrives. "Hey, you been hanging out with Aria?" Spencer asks.
"Not really." Emily opens her locker, seeing a note sitting inside.
Hey Em! I've been replaced. You've found another friend to kiss! -A
"Emily. Is everything all right?" Spencer asks, seeing the look on her face.
"Why wouldn't it be?"
Spencer walks through the house in her swimsuit, throwing a towel over her shoulder. She takes a drink from the refrigerator when Wren walks in wearing swim trunks.
"Perfect time for a jacuzzi." He says.
"I thought you guys weren't moving in till next week."
"Melissa wanted to get settled before classes start. You wouldn't happen to have a towel, would you?" Spencer gives him the one from her shoulder.
Wren notices that she massages her neck. "Tough day at school?"
"Tough field hockey practice."
"I rowed for oxford."
"That looks good on a med school app."
"I did it 'cause I loved it. You probably have a fluid buildup in your bursa sac." He stands behind her.
"I bet you say that to all the girls."
"I can help."
"Okay…Dr. Wren." He puts his hands on her shoulders and begins his massage. "That's awesome."
"Is that all right?"
"Wren?" They hear Melissa call. They step away from each other and Spencer leaves outside just as Melissa comes in. "Who were you talking to?"
"No one." He says.
Ella looks into a box and takes out two stemmed glasses. "Found them." Byron is uncorking a wine bottle. "Look what else I found."
"Ohh. She used to drag that thing everywhere. I think you're happy to be back." She holds up a bear.
"Aren't you?"
"Well, haven't decided yet."
"Ohh. You and Aria are so much alike. I don't think she's happy to be home either."
"I know it was like a vacation from our real life, but…I felt like we really bonded when we were away."
"Well, we had to connect. We didn't know anybody else."
"I don't want to lose that."
"Are you really worried that we will?"
"It's just easy for stuff to get in the way."
"What do you mean? What kind of stuff?"
"Ohh…You know, I'm really surprised that she brought that with us."
"Well, she loves it because you gave it to her. What kind of stuff could get in the way of us?"
"No, nothing, nothing. You know me. I just get a little overly obsessed about work, that's all. We're good, Ella. Come here. It's all good."
"Oh, I drove past Alison's house today. It's definitely something I haven't missed."
"Oh, god. A year later. Imagine what that poor family is going through." Byron shakes his head.
"I can't. I don't ever want to imagine. If anything ever happened to you."
"Nothing is gonna happen. We are safe. We're together. And we're home."
Spencer is reading when she hears voices outside. She gets up to go to look towards the window. She sees Melissa and Wren kissing in front of the door of the barn. She walks away when receives an e-mail on the computer.
Poor Spencer. Always wants Melissa's boyfriends.
But remember, if you kiss I tell
-A
Flash Back
Alison goes into the house in bikini followed by Hanna and Spencer. Hanna takes a cookie. "Are you gonna eat that, sweetie? I'm being a friend, Hanna."
Melissa arrives with Ian hand in hand. "Aren't you supposed to be at Alison's?"
"Hi, girls!"
"Hi, Ian." The girls wave.
"You still need help with your scoop, Spence? I've got my stick in the car." He offers.
"Ian, what are you, her babysitter?" Melissa asks.
"You need to tell your sister." Alison says to Spencer.
"Tell me what?"
"Nothing." Spencer shakes her head.
"Come on." Melissa walks off with Ian.
"Outside." Spencer tells Alison and walks out of the house. "What the hell are you doing?"
"She's gonna find out."
"No, she's not."
"I promise you, she is, because if you don't tell her, I will."
"I thought you were my friend."
"Don't you get it? I'm trying to help you do the right thing."
"It was one kiss. Now, you listen to me, Alison."
"Or what?"
"If you say one word to my sister about Ian, I will tell everyone the truth about the Jenna thing."
Present
Spencer walks back to the window and looks in the room of the house in front of hers, which is Alison's old house. She sees a fair silhouette.
"Alison?"
Aria sits with Emily on her porch swing at her house.
"I'm sorry for just stopping by." Emily says.
"No. Any time Em. Come on, you know that." Aria tells her.
"Somebody left a note in my locker."
"From "A"?
"You too?"
"Do you really think it's her? Is it possible?"
"Only Alison could have known."
"What? Known…known what?" Aria asks.
"It was…"
"Personal?"
"I really believed she was dead."
"Yeah…yeah, we all did."
"Could she really be back?"
"I think she's playing with us."
"Why would she do that?"
"It's Alison that we're talking about here. I mean, wasn't that her favorite sport?"
"Should we tell someone?"
"I don't…I don't know about you, but…I can't."
"I'm glad you're back."
"It's funny…I mean, even though I grew up here, I feel like a total outsider."
"Me too." Emily smiles. "I need to tell you something."
"What?" Aria asks, a look of concern on her face.
"The new girl in our English class…Trinity?"
"What about her?"
"She knew Alison."
Aria's eyes widen. "What?"
Emily nods. "She told me that they've been friends for years. Ali even got her a bracelet too."
"Alison never told us about her."
"Alison never told us about anything."
Hanna and her mother; Ashley are cooking.
"I ran into Ella Montgomery today. Why didn't you tell me Aria was back?" Ashley asks.
"It's not like we're still friends." She says as they sit down to eat.
"She didn't know your father left. I hate telling that story."
"So change the story. I did. You grew up. You grew apart. It was mutual, and, honestly, we are much happier without him."
"Hanna."
"Say it enough and you'll actually start to believe it."
"Well, I have to admit, it does sound a lot better than the truth."
"Nobody needs to know that we got dumped."
"'We' didn't get dumped. I did."
"He left both of us." Hanna's phone buzzes.
"If that's Mona, I'm staging an intervention." Ashley teases.
Hanna checks her phone to see that it's a message from Spencer.
WE NEED TO TALK NOW!
"Hanna. It's dinnertime." Ashley tells her. Her phone rings and she picks up. "It's Ashley. Yes, I left it on your desk. Mm-hmm."
The doorbell rings and Hanna goes to open it. She is greeted with the sight of two policemen.
"Hanna Marin?"
"Yeah. Why?" She asks.
"Is your mother home?"
Ashley arrives. "Let me call you back." She says hanging up. "What's this about?"
"We received a call from rosewood mall security. They have your daughter on tape shoplifting a pair of sunglasses."
"I'm sure there's been a mistake." She says.
"I don't think so." He says. "Could you turn around?" He gestures to Hanna.
"Mom." Hanna says as she is handcuffed.
Police Station
Hanna is sitting in a chair; her mother is in the office with the agent. As Hanna tilts her head to take a peek, he gets up to close the door. Hanna goes to take a candy when she receives a text.
Be careful, Hanna. I hear prison food makes you fat. –A
The agent leaves the office followed by Ashley.
"What's going on?" Hanna asks.
"Let's go." Ashley tells her.
"Really?"
They walk out of the station and sit inside the car. Behind them police cars bustle. "In a small town like this, what people think about you matters." Ashley says.
"I know." Hanna nods.
"Then why would you risk it all to steal a pair of sunglasses? Hanna, I buy you everything you need to be popular."
"That's not why I do it."
"Then why do- this is something you do?"
"A few times."
"This is about your father, isn't it? You think this is going to get his attention."
"I made a mistake."
"In Rosewood, you don't have room to make a mistake. And neither do I."
"I'm sorry. I'll fix it somehow."
"You will deny you did anything wrong. It was a misunderstanding."
"But…"
"I'm taking care of it."
Trinity is unpacking boxes in her house when she comes across a picture of her and Alison. She smiles briefly before her phone rings. She takes it out, seeing that she has a text message.
Little girl blue a long way from home. Welcome to Rosewood. I'll be sure to make your stay here unforgettable.
-A
Trinity frowns at the message.
Emily walks alone in street when she sees an ambulance managed towards the old DiLaurentis's house. She runs to see Maya and Trinity standing in front of the house. "Trinity!" She calls when she sees tears streaming down her face.
"Emily!" Trinity hugs her. "I tried to call you."
"What's going on?"
"They found your friend." Maya said.
"I knew she was back. Is she inside?" Emily moves towards the house.
"Emily! I'm sorry. They found Alison's body." Maya says.
They turn to see two policemen pushing a body bag on a stretcher. Hanna stands in the middle of a group of people watching the scene.
Aria is in her car. When she sees that, she stops and gets out. She sees Spencer standing on the side walk and goes to her. "I heard the cops took Hanna to the police station today."
"You don't think she'd ever talk about…" Spencer starts.
"The Jenna thing?" Hanna says, coming from behind them. "We made promise."
Hanna is in the living watching the TV. "The current owners of the residence were in the process of demolishing the structure to make room for a renovation project when workers made the gruesome discovery. The parents of the deceased were unavailable for comment, but a family spokesperson has confirmed the gazebo was under construction the summer 15-year-old Alison DiLaurentis disappeared. Tonight, the family is asking for privacy As they come to terms with the sad ending to a year-long mystery, And local authorities are coming to terms With the fact a killer is at large in Rosewood."
Hanna hears a noise, she switched off the sound. It is her mother who goes in whirlwind into the house followed by the policeman. They kiss each other and go upstairs, Ashley turns to look at Hanna before continuing on. Hanna switches the sound back on.
People enter the church; a journalist is on the sidewalk. "Thank you…The discovery of her body rocked this community, and today, hundreds of mourners gather to say goodbye to Alison DiLaurentis."
Emily arrives with her mother; she crosses Spencer and her parents. Spencer and she take themselves in arms.
Aria is inside of the church looking through the window. She is joined by Ezra. "Was she a friend of yours?" He asks.
"Do you care?" She asks.
"I don't know what I feel worse about? Having to stay away from you or being a jerk about it."
"Yeah, she was one of my best friends."
"I'm sorry."
"For Alison? Or for being a jerk?"
"Both."
"Thank you. I would never want to do anything that would get you in trouble. Goodbye, Ezra." She walks away but Ezra catches her by the arm and kisses her. She kisses back for a moment before pulling away and leaving.
"Mrs. DiLaurentis." Aria says when she sees her.
"Aria!" She says before looking behind her. "Trinity!" Aria looks at the girl with a look of confusion before turning back to Mrs. DiLaurentis. "I'm so glad you came. I asked the other girls to sit together up front. It's what Alison would have wanted."
"Of course." Aria says.
"Thank you." Trinity nods.
Aria and Trinity walk up to the first row. Aria stops and observes the coffin when Hanna takes her hand. She takes place next to the girls.
Trinity settles in next to Emily. Hanna and Spencer look at her in confusion. "I'm Trinity." She smiles.
"She was Ali's friend." Emily tells them. "Poor Ali."
"Can you believe what a scene this is?" Hanna asks.
"Alison would have loved it." Trinity says.
"Popular in life and death." Spencer notes.
Hanna passes a flask to Emily. "No thanks, I don't-" Emily starts.
"Today, I think you do." Hanna tells her. Emily takes the flask.
Aria's cellphone rings, causing the girls to look at her.
"Anyone we know?" Hanna asks.
"No, it's just my mom sending me a text." Aria looks up, seeing the look on the girl's faces. "Emily and I aren't the only ones who got messages from 'A' are we?"
Spencer turns around. "Oh, my god. It's Jenna."
Trinity turns to see a blind girl sitting with the help of a young man. "Who's she?"
Emily shakes her head. "It's nothing."
The girls turn around as Alison's mother sits next to them. "Did you see that Jenna Marshall was here? I didn't realize she and Ali were friends."
"They weren't." Spencer tells her.
"The lord giveth and the lord taketh away." The minister says.
The ceremony is finished the girls walk out of the church when a policeman intercept them. "Emily, Spencer, Aria, Hanna, and Trinity."
"Do we know you?" Spencer asks.
"I'm detective Wilden. I understand you were all good friends with the victim."
"Yeah, we were." Aria says.
"I'm gonna need to talk to each one of you."
"We talked to the police when Alison went missing." Spencer says.
"And I intend to go over every one of your statements. This is no longer a missing person's investigation. It's a murder. Rest assured, I will find out what happened that summer." He turns and walks away.
"Do you think he knows about?" Aria starts.
"No. How could he?" Hanna asks.
"What are you guys talking about?" Trinity asks.
Their phones ring.
"Oh, my god!" Aria says.
"It's from-" Hanna starts.
"I got one too." Emily says.
"Me too." Trinity nods.
"' I'm still here, bitches'" Spencer reads.
"...And I know everything. 'A'." The girls finish.