haleb is my guilty pleasure.
extended summary;
Hanna Marin had the life any girl could want. She lived in the best part of town, sipped lemonade every Sunday after church in her backyard with her friends, everyone loved her, and her father was the preacher at Rosewood Church of Christ. There was nothing in her way and she lived her life one day at a time.
Caleb Rivers was in and out of foster care services with little to no respect for anything or anyone. His entire life had been nothing but verbal and emotional abuse. He had simply grown up on the wrong side of the tracks.
When Caleb moves in right next door to the Marins, he meets the bubbly and bright Hanna. They have nothing to do with each other at first, but nothing lasts forever and nothing stays the same.
this will be a short story but with long chapters. maybe 7-10 chapters with 6-8k words a piece plus this prologue with only half the amount of normal word count. we'll see. fair warning; emison doesn't come in until later chapters near the main end.
this story will contain christianity and a bit of bashing towards god that may trigger some. read at your own risk.
disclaimer; i do not own pretty little liars or any of the characters.
i have not spellchecked so please overlook any mistakes autocorrect made.
PROLOGUE ; 3,272 words
It was a sunny, hot September day in Rosewood, Pennsylvania which was rare considering it was usually cloudy or pouring the rain. Everything had been seemingly perfect since Alison DiLaurentis' disappearance had been solved a few months ago.
Rosewood wasn't the typical place for crime as it was located an hour away from Philadelphia and rarely known by anyone. But, last year, Alison DiLaurentis went missing Labor Day weekend. Her friends didn't see her leave and no one knew what had happened.
After six months of searching, Alison was found at the Canadian border. She had been kidnapped and living in different RV's and thrown around by different men in a business that picked up teenage girls pretending to be public transportation.
Alison was safely rescued, brought back to Rosewood, the men were locked up, the "business" was shut down, and the entire town threw a party in her honor with Pastor Marin hosting it.
Tom Marin owned Rosewood Church of Christ and was also the pastor. Everyone in the town of Rosewood adored him and his family. They thought the world of him while Tom thought the world of his town and the life he'd built for himself.
Tom was married to Ashley Marin and they had a daughter. The family lived in the middle of the neighborhood where the grass was always greener and a white picket fence was the only thing that separated the neighbors.
The neighborhood was a place that everyone felt safe enough at to sleep with their doors unlocked. Family portraits would hang above the fireplace in the two story homes while homemade stockings would hang there during Christmas.
It truly was picture perfect.
Ashley Marin sat a plate of cookies with a pitcher of ice cold lemonade down on the white table along with five glasses. She shot a smile to the girls sitting around. "Anything else?"
"No, but thank you, Mom."
Ashley smiled and retreated back inside, sliding the glass door on the side of the house open and stepping in.
After Ashley had went back inside, Alison DiLaurentis grabbed the pitcher of lemonade and poured some in every glass.
"Thank you, Ali," Emily Fields said with a grateful smile.
Alison shot the smile back. "Of course, Em."
After every girl had their glasses filled with lemonade, Alison cleared her throat. "A toast to happiness and Hanna's mom's amazing cookies and lemonade."
All the girls laughed before clinking their glasses together and taking a sip.
Hanna Marin slid her sunglasses back down onto her nose as she leaned back and stretched her legs out on the white reclining lawn chair. She held her cold glass in one hand while the other came behind her head to use as a pillow.
She cherished these times with her friends as they had just entered their senior year at Rosewood High School. It was their tradition every Sunday to come drink lemonade and hang out at Hanna's house after they had all attended church.
It was crazy for any of the girls to think that their time together was limited and in eight to nine months, they'd be on their own ways getting ready to separate and go off to college.
When Alison disappeared, it brought the four girls closer together than ever. They would come up with conspiracy theories about what had happened to their friend and sometimes they would date themselves so much that they'd have to stay with each other just so they could get some sleep.
"How's Ben?" Spencer Hastings teased.
"He's the same as usual." Emily rolled her eyes with a playful smile. "How's Toby?"
Spencer blushed. "He's just a friend."
"I don't think friends start coming to church for the sole reason to see you, Spence," Ali said.
Ben Coogan was Emily's boyfriend. He was a laidback and an overall chill guy. Ben was in with the popular crowd at school, but so were the girls so it didn't really matter.
Toby Cavanaugh was Spencer's "friend" who had been to church every Sunday since he met Spencer just so he could see her which Spencer denied wasn't true, but obviously was.
"Well," Aria Montgomery drawled, "I think the real question would be how is Sean?"
Sean Ackard was the son of Hanna's dad's best friend and fellow pastor at another church right out of Rosewood. Tom had desperately tried to set Hanna up with Sean, but it didn't work as Sean wasn't the pretty church boy he seemed to be.
In a perfect world, the preacher's daughter and the preacher's son would be together, but it wasn't a perfect world and the one time she did try to go out with Sean, it was a disaster.
Hanna's parents were strict. They barely let her go anywhere unless they knew where she was going, who was going to be there, if alcohol or drugs would be involved, what time she'd leave, what time she'd get back; you get the picture.
It was to Hanna's surprise when her parents sat her down to tell her she was allowed to go out into Philadelphia with Pastor Ackard's son as long as she wanted to and she was back by midnight.
Seeing the chance to get out into Philly, one of her favorite places, she said she would go. Ashley and Tom were ecstatic and called the Ackards to let them know Hanna was available.
Hanna wouldn't lie that Sean was an attractive guy. He was sweet and thoughtful, but there was just something about Sean that Hanna really didn't like. It might've been the way they had always gotten along in church no matter what. Hanna liked bickering from time to time as she said it kept the relationship from getting boring, but her and Sean basically seemed like the same person.
Sean picked Hanna up that night in his car and was dressed nicely. He didn't open the door for her, but nonetheless was still nice. Sean talked his head off as Hanna just smiled and nodded and threw in the occasional laugh.
They ate at a nice restaurant, had a decent time, but in the end, Hanna truly wasn't feeling it.
He walked her to the door at precisely ten twenty-six which was almost an hour and a half before her curfew. He tried to kiss her, but Hanna denied. She told him she had never kissed someone before and was saving it for something and someone special to which he laughed in her face and tried again.
She pushed him off again and told him she wasn't joking. He said neither was he and why was she such a prude. This was when Hanna slapped him right across the face and went inside, slamming the door and not telling her parents what had happened until a week later.
"That's not even funny," Hanna said viciously as the other girls laughed.
"Is your dad still determined for you to be with him?" Emily asked.
Hanna rolled her eyes. "Dad said he just made a mistake because the Ackards are some of the best people he's ever met and Mom says she hopes he falls into a hole for what he did."
"I don't mean to offend you, Han, I truly don't," Aria said, "but why are you saving your first kiss? I mean, I'm not technically saving mine. I just haven't found the right person. But, what about you?"
Hanna really didn't know why she was saving her first kiss to be completely honest. It may have been because she was scared because she had no idea how to kiss. It may have been because she had never interacted with the opposite gender apart from friendship. There were many reasons.
"I don't know," Hanna lied. "It's just not really something I fantasize about. It's germy."
"It's actually really nice," Emily said. "Ben is a great kisser."
Alison shared a smile with Emily. "I'm glad he's good, Em."
Just then, a big moving truck pulled up into the house next to Hanna's. All of the girls shared a look while raising their sunglasses.
"I thought Mrs. Cline wasn't moving out until-"
"-next month, yeah," Hanna interrupted, "I have no idea what's going on. Hold on a second."
She put her near empty glass on the table and stood up to straighten out her blue dress she wore to church. Hanna followed the cobblestone path until she went inside to find Ashley peering out the kitchen window.
"What's going on over there?" Hanna asked as she joined her mother.
Ashley shrugged her shoulders. "I have no idea to be completely honest. I knew there was someone who had already bought the house out, but I didn't know they were moving out already. Heather Cline said they her and the kids wouldn't be moving out until next month."
"That's what we all thought," said Emily.
Hanna turned to find all four girls standing behind her. They filled in open spots around Hanna and Ashley until they were comfortable enough to lean against the sink and cabinets to watch.
A woman with long, red curls appeared from around the other side of the truck. She wore a sleek, black dress with red pumps. A man appeared wearing nice, red dress pants and a black button up, matching the color scheme of the person who they assumed was his wife.
Two younger kids, who were obviously twins and looked to be around six, ran around the yard. The girl wore a red dress while the boy wore the same thing as his father. The woman with the curls sternly put a finger up and the two kids stopped, walking over to the front porch and sitting down, but eventually moving when a guy with hair down to his shoulders appeared carrying a brown moving box.
He looked over to the window and while Ashley, Aria, Emily, Ali, and Spencer dunked down to the floor, Hanna stood still, fixated on him. They made eye contact and neither dared to change their facial expressions or move.
Hanna did, in fact, notice that he did not look like the others at all. For starters, his hair was dark when the father had blonde hair, the mother had red, and the two smaller kids had strawberry blonde.
He wasn't dressed like them in the red and black color scheme, but was instead wearing a gray flannel that was unbuttoned with a white tee underneath along with a pair of regular jeans.
They continued to make eye contact until the man said something and he was knocked out of his trance, nodding, taking one more look at Hanna, and heading into the house.
"Why didn't you get down? Did he see you looking?" Ali asked as all of them stood back up.
Hanna turned to her mother and friends. "He didn't see me or any of you guys. He went straight inside."
She didn't want to lie to the most important people in her life and she didn't know why she didn't just tell them the truth considering it wasn't anything serious, but Hanna felt as though what just happened was a moment she was meant to keep to herself.
"I will find out the drama on this in a few hours, girls," Ashley said as she moved the dishes from the sink into the dishwasher. "I'm meeting with some of the women from the church for dinner. Most of them live on this street. I'm sure they'll know."
"Is my mom going to be there?" Aria asked.
Ashley thought for a minute. "No, I don't think so. She was supposed to but she cancelled last night. Said something about how she was too bombarded with papers to grade."
Aria furrowed her brow. She opened her mouth to say something, but closed it again. "Yeah, that's right. She told me. Duh! Umm, thanks again for having me over, Ashley, but I've gotta get going."
"You usually stay longer. Is everything okay?" Ashley asked concerned.
"Yeah! I just have to get home. I completely forgot that Mike wanted me to help him write this essay he has due. Yeah, goodbye, guys."
Aria slipped out of the side door without a word.
She had been doing that a lot recently. When Aria would find out her mom wasn't where she thought she was, she'd get all weird and leave hastily without really acknowledging anyone.
None of the girls would ever bring it up to her though simply for the fact that everyone is entitled to have their own secrets especially when it comes to family.
Hanna snuck another look out the window as her mom disappeared into the living room and her friends headed back outside to enjoy the rest of their Sunday afternoon.
The guy wasn't there, but she was then looking into the eyes of the woman wearing the black dress. She threw a piece of her long hair behind her shoulder and forced the smallest smile Hanna had ever seen in her life.
Hanna awkwardly smiled before averting her eyes towards the floor and deciding to pick up her feet and walk back out the door.
"-shoes are fantastic," Ali said as Hanna shut the glass door.
"What?"
"Oh," Ali said, "I was just admiring that lady's killer fashion sense. Those shoes are impeccable. I don't know how she hasn't fallen or sunk into the grass by now."
Hanna propped her feet up on the chair again and moved her sunglasses down to her eyes again. It was around two P.M. and hotter than it had been all day.
"She looks a little stuck up," Spencer commented honestly. "Rosewood is a nice town, but no one dresses like that here. She just has a face that screams hateful."
"I agree," Emily said, "but Ali's right- those shoes are amazing."
"I got the gossip," said Ashley as she entered her daughter's room later that night.
Hanna looked up from the nail she was painting a light blue color. She had finished her homework, taken a shower, hung up laundry, ate dinner, and was just about ready for bed at the ripe hour of ten.
"What do you mean by the gossip?" She asked as she ran another coat over her ring finger nail.
Ashley pulled her hair down from the tight bun it was in that she had worn out to dinner and positioned herself beside of Hanna on the bed. "About our neighbors."
"Mom," Hanna groaned, "you've got to lay off the neighborhood gossip."
"Hush, Hanna. You'll never admit it, but you love the scandals of Rosewood just as much as me."
"Mmm, sure," Hanna said sarcastically. "What's the verdict?"
Ashley ran a hand through her hair before starting to talk. "Harold's new job started earlier than expected so they went ahead and sped up the buy. The Clines have been gone since this morning."
"Okay. And?"
"It's a five person family with the two youngest kids being the only biological kids while the oldest one with the long hair is a foster kid they took in about two weeks ago. He was born in Ravenswood and has spent his entire life going back and forth between foster families in Ravenswood and Montecito."
"Montecito? As in California?"
"No, Hanna. Montecito down in Mississippi, yes California."
"No need to get sassy," Hanna murmured. "Who knew all of this information?"
"Jessica DiLaurentis knows everyone's dirt in this town," Ashley said as she stretched back onto the bed.
Hanna sighed. "You sharing gossip with Ms. DiLaurentis doesn't exactly put a good reputation on you as the preacher's wife. She isn't exactly a good woman either."
"Oh please." Ashley rolled her eyes. "Our squad is tight. We would never discuss the drama outside of the group. Plus, everyone in town knows of Jessica's rocky divorce with Kenneth. It's not a secret."
"Did you just say your squad is tight?" Hanna cringed.
"Well, yeah. Isn't that what kids today say?" Ashley asked as she stood up.
"I don't know what year you think we're in but no one has said that since middle school."
"Whatever. You just wish you could be cool like your mom." Ashley made her way to the other side of the bed and planted a kiss on her daughter's head. "Goodnight, Han. Don't forget your devotions tonight."
"I never do," Hanna responded. "Goodnight, Mom."
Ashley smiled and left the room, shutting it softly as Tom was already asleep in their shared room down the hall.
Hanna shook her head with a small laugh at her mother's antics and finished painting her pinky finger before closing the tube of nail polish and putting it in a drawer in her vanity.
She threw her blonde hair up into a bun as she turned off the lights, only to turn the lamp next to her bed on.
With her book of daily devotions in her hand, she flipped to the page the bookmark was on and found which day she had left off on.
Hanna read devotions every night from a book of them that her dad, himself, had written and published. It was one of Hanna's favorite pastimes and she could spend all night reading them because of the assurance they always gave her in any life situation.
As Hanna neared the end of her devotion, something sharp hit her bedroom window. Hanna dismissed it at first, thinking she was hearings things.
But, Hanna was proved wrong as her bedroom window started to creak as if someone were opening it from the other side.
Trembling with fear, Hanna tossed her book to the side and stood up, grabbing a can of hairspray sitting on her vanity. She moved slowly to the window and immediately started spraying as soon as someone appeared from the curtain.
She continued to spray. "Get out! Get out! Intruder in-"
"Are you serious? Hairspray?"
Hanna stopped spraying for a second to see the boy from the yard earlier. He was wearing the same thing and was rubbing his eyes furiously.
"What are you- who even are you?"
"Help me get this junk out of my eyes and I will answer your questions."