Wow, I thoroughly enjoyed your reviews from the last chapter. You guys seem really excited about this story! Shout out to Bagilia for her perfect timing in entering the scene with her ultra long reviews and infatuation with her Shady Hacker Boy ;) this is for you, babe!
Now, this chapter I think is my favorite simply because one of my all time favorite characters in all of television comes into it, and I think about half of you can already guess who it is... So enjoy this chapter, and don't forget to leave a nice little review at the end! Happy New Year's Eve, and Happy New Year to those of you in different time zones!
Hanna took a long sip of her caramel macchiato as she tried her hardest to listen to the conversation surrounding her, but she simply couldn't bring herself to. From what she could tell, Spencer was spending the upcoming weekend helping Toby repaint his apartment, Aria was planning on getting tickets for her and Ezra to see a book reading of an author they both loved, and Emily and Paige had a "special evening" planned once the New Year's Eve party was over.
Hanna wanted so badly to care, but she found that she just couldn't. She loved her friends, but she couldn't bare to hear one more exciting detail about their love lives anymore. Especially with where her current one was.
When Hanna decided to leave her thoughts and join the conversation again, she realized she had missed out on a lot. Toby had arrived from his loft and had swept Spencer into a long, passionate kiss, and now he, Spencer, and Aria were having an excited discussion about the upcoming party that evening as Emily left them to take a few more orders from hungry customers.
Hanna inwardly groaned as she delved back into her macchiato. Maybe it wasn't the time to dive back into the conversation just yet.
She wished more than ever that she could have someone beside her to talk about the evening's events.
"Hanna?"
Before she even realized, another minute had passed, and when Hanna poked her head up from her drink once more, she saw Spencer leaning across the table - sans Toby, who had probably left for a carpentry job - with a forehead creased with worry. Hanna blushed. She supposed she was spacing out again.
"Are you alright?" Spencer asked carefully, and when Hanna looked closer, she realized Aria, who was sitting next to Spencer, was giving her an identical look, and Emily, who was standing up, clad in her waitressing apron and balancing a tray of cinnamon buns on her arm, also looked concerned.
Hanna avoided looking the girls in the eye. "Umm... sure," she said conclusively as she stood up, her highlighter green crop top that Aria had picked out for her flowing behind her as she did so. "I'm going to get a refill."
"I can get it for you," Emily offered up, but Hanna walked straight past her, plastic cup in hand.
She was halfway over to the counter when she felt someone grab her arm and spin her around, and when she looked straight out in front of her, she was frustrated to see Emily again.
"I don't know why you guys think I'm incompetent," Hanna snarled. "I can get myself a goddamn refill."
"I don't think you're incompetent, I'm just doing my job," Emily snapped back, snatching the cup away from Hanna as she took it behind the counter. Hanna watched, suddenly feeling bad as she realized Emily never raised her voice unless she was truly upset about something, but when she opened her mouth to apologize, Emily simply held up a hand, claiming she didn't have to.
"Don't worry about it," she said understandingly as she turned on the espresso machine and placed the cup under it. Hanna sighed.
"Look, I'm sorry that I've been acting so - "
"It's fine, really," Emily answered honestly as she handed Hanna her fresh coffee over the counter. "Listen, as hard as we try to understand your mood swings, sometimes we just can't, but that doesn't have to be a bad thing."
Hanna stood back, pondering this. "It doesn't?"
Emily shook her head. "We're your friends, not your therapist. We just want to see you feel better, which is why it would really mean a lot to me if you came tonight."
Hanna suddenly couldn't help the warm smile that crept across her face as she instinctively reached across the counter for Emily's hand. "Okay," she said compassionately. "I think I'll make an effort to come."
Emily's chocolate orbs gleamed with happiness at her friend coming, but their exchange was interrupted by the jingle of the bell above the door up front.
Mona Vanderwaal sauntered into the restaurant, a red burette sitting on top of her freshly curled hair and a sequined cream blouse falling gently down her petite frame, which was heightened by a pair of black Jimmy Choos.
"Happy New Year, ladies," Mona beamed as she walked up to the counter with entitlement and helped herself to a cinnamon bun. "Dare I ask what you have planned for the evening?"
"Nothing involving you, that's for sure," Emily muttered under her breath as she took a dish towel and Windex to wipe the counter clean.
Mona merely rolled her eyes. The girls knew she wasn't a part of the A team anymore, but they refused to accept her, so Mona had simply stopped trying.
"Fine then, Fields," Mona said dismissively as she sunk her teeth into her cinnamon bun, chomping through the icy goodness as she continued talking. "I mean, I was going to go into detail on how Noel asked me back out and is taking me to his cabin for New Year's, but apparently you don't want to hear it."
"That is correct," Hanna seethed, narrowing her eyes at Mona with betrayal clear in them, as Mona was just another reminder of how miserable the past year, and most likely the upcoming one, was.
With that, Hanna took her coffee and started out the door, forgetting for a moment that her friends were a few feet away, waiting for her return, but Mona stopped her.
"Oh, I assume someone is bitter that they don't have anyone to kiss the minute the ball drops?"
Hanna's heart sank. Mona wanted to play like that, did she?
"I mean, I'd love to help and all," Mona said matter-of-factly. "You know I'm always up for a threesome, but I doubt I could get Noel to agree - "
"Just stop, Mona," Hanna said coldly, turning back around to face her. "Don't even pretend you feel bad about this."
Mona's almond eyes widened in shock. "What? Why wouldn't I feel bad? It's a tragedy to be single on New Year's!"
"It's an even bigger tragedy knowing you're the cause of it," Hanna said in a low voice, and Mona gasped. In addition, Hanna heard three more gasps, and realized that her friends had been listening in.
Oh great, Hanna complained inwardly, but outwardly she kept going.
"If it weren't for you and your little black hooded cronies, I wouldn't be alone in the first place. My boyfriend would still be here!"
Mona gasped again, but this time she had gotten over her initial shock and was quick to retaliate.
"If you're going to think of it that way, you wouldn't have been in a relationship in the first place if it wasn't for me and my black hooded ex-cronies!" she said cleverly.
"I guess everything comes full circle eventually, doesn't it?" Hanna said simply, her eyes in slits as she held her gaze with Mona's. As much as this wasn't Mona's fault at all, Hanna couldn't help but blame it on her. She was tired of taking her anger out on her friends, but she needed to take it out on someone.
With an apologetic glance toward each of her friends, who hadn't moved an inch since her showdown with Mona had begun, Hanna made her way out the door, but once again, Mona stopped her.
"Hanna, wait!"
"Don't touch me," Hanna snapped as she stalked down the sidewalk, pulling her polka-dot scarf (again, Aria's choosing) closer around her neck to protect herself from the nippy air, but Mona was persistent.
"I'm sorry about Caleb moving," Mona finally said, her words sailing through the air, as if they were riding the wind waves and wafting their way into Hanna's ears, and Hanna froze.
For the first time that day, she was involuntarily speechless.
"Thank you," she breathed, the only thing she could think to say, especially since Caleb had been gone for a while now and no one had even thought this could have been why she was so bitter, and with that Mona walked away, the conversation suddenly becoming too sappy for her.
Had Mona just shown... kindness?
Oh Vanderjesus, how I adore thee. Like seriously, is there anything that girl CAN'T do?
Anyway, that concludes tonight's chapter, so I'll see you all tomorrow night, featuring Hanna bonding with one of the girls and Caleb growing a pair. Sound off in the reviews who you think Hanna will bond with, and what instigates Caleb's sudden courage!
