Alison's never known anyone as absurdly petty as Emily Fields.
They haven't spoken. Emily continues to ghost her out and continues to leave a trail of mess, in a transparent attempt to infuriate Alison.
She unnecessarily wakes up at five every morning, and trenchantly stomps around the room, sometimes playing music on her phone.
So in retaliation, Alison's been going to bed at midnight, hoping to alter the unpalatable routine. Though it seems to have done quite the opposite, encouraging Emily to raise the bar higher instead.
It is when Alison opens the door to their room, that her theory is proven right, in the most unjustified and despicable way possible.
She opens the door to see Emily and Paige - cuddled up and watching a movie.
Everything stands still for a moment, except for the excessive beat of her heart, and the slight tremble of her knees. Paige's demeanor changes, in sheer awkwardness - she removes her arm draped around Emily, and gives Alison a tight-lipped smile. But it seems that Emily has ulterior motives, reaching for the girl's arm and placing around her.
Alison lifts her gaze to meet Emily's maudlin and almost smug one, as if knowing that she got the upper-hand on Alison.
She flashes the couple a faux-smile, and steps over to her own bed. She revels in the way that Emily's expression quickly staggers, clearly taken aback by her move.
Alison's phone rings, to which Emily audibly sighs. In the mood for petty vengeance, she answers it.
"Hey, Charlotte."
January 2016
Alison absentmindedly runs her finger around the rim of her coffee mug and checks the time on her phone.
Thirty minutes. That's how late Emily is, and she begins to wonder if she'll even show. She also begins to wonder why she's still sitting here, waiting.
Alison sent Emily a text fifteen minutes ago, and is half-tempted to send another one, but resists.
The bell above the door rings, and Alison abruptly turns her head to see who it is. She glares at the ceiling when Noel Kahn walks in, and forces her lips upward when he approaches her.
"Alison Dilaurentis reading a book?" He teases, earning a flip of her finger. Alison sighs when he takes Emily's seat, then darts her eyes to the door. "Waiting for someone?"
Alison frowns at him. "No." She tells him, lifting the coffee to her lips. Her phone vibrates, and she almost too eagerly goes to check it. He grins at her, and lowers his gaze to her phone, then back up to her face - regarding her.
The bell above the door rings again, and this time, Alison stops herself from looking. "I'm so sorry that I'm late." Emily's voice comes from behind her. The blonde looks at Noel, and is half-tempted to wipe the ever-growing grin from his face. He slips out of the chair, and looks between her and Emily. "Catch you later, Ali."
As he walks away, Alison swears she hears muted chuckles coming from him. She heaves in a breath, and brings her eyes to look at Emily. Her hair is damp, and she pulls her over-sized jacket tighter around herself. "Was at practice," Emily explains, taking the now-vacated seat.
"It's okay, I was running late too," Alison says, taking another sip of her coffee. Emily lets out a sigh of relief, and gives Alison a warm smile. "So, any ideas for the project?"
Alison shrugs, then lowers her gaze to the books that Emily places onto the table, analyzing them; a biology textbook, a math book, and to her surprise - Great Expectations.
She hears Emily shuffle in her seat, and is piqued with interest when she looks at her to see a shade of red rises up her face. Alison grins as an idea forms in her head. "How about Great Expectations?"
Emily blinks at her abashedly and nods. "Yeah, sounds good."
Alison reciprocates the nod, and downs the remainder of her coffee. "Want another?" Emily asks, standing up. Alison wordlessly accepts the offer, by handing her the mug, and smiling gratefully. She watches Emily as she steps over to the counter.
She watches the interaction between her and the girl serving her, and works her jaw when the girl tilts her head at Emily, unabashedly checking her out. Alison's knee bounces at the way Emily almost sways from side to side, laughing at something that the server said.
It doesn't sit right with her. She isn't certain whether it's impatience or-
No. She quells that thought immediately.
She isn't about that.
She decides to sublimate her energy into checking her notifications. She rolls her eyes at Hanna's snap chat story, which consists only of selfies. Selfies and Caleb Rivers trying to make a run for it away from the camera.
Her Facebook isn't much more interesting. Just some comments on her new profile picture, and passive-aggressive status updates from Jenna Marshall. When she's certain that it's been two minutes, Alison steers her gaze to Emily again.
The brunette gives a small wave to the server, and walks back over with two coffees in hand. She doesn't miss the way that the server watches her. "One coffee," Emily says, placing the coffee in front of Alison.
"Thanks," Alison says. She catches the server glancing at Emily in the corner of her eye, and tries her best to stop the curiosity percolating. She fails. "What's her deal?" It comes out with more steel than intended, and Alison internally kicks herself.
Emily frowns at her, and turns to look in Alison's line of sight. She turns back and shrugs. "Sabrina? We work together." Emily says simply. Alison nods, and internally wonders why she hasn't seen her working here before.
"I didn't know you worked here," Alison tells her.
"I started a couple of weeks ago."
Ah, that explains it. Deciding not to dwell on the subject any further, Alison clears her throat and reaches for Emily's copy of Great Expectations.
"Have you finished it?" Alison asks her. Emily shakes her head. "Not yet. Not even halfway." Emily tells her, letting out a breathy laugh.
"You can tell me what happens, though- If you want. For the project." She adds. Alison considers this for a moment. "Really?"
"Yeah. Hit me with it."
Amused, Alison leans closer to the girl opposite her. "Pip gets Estella in the end." Emily's eyes light up; bright and sincere, with an undercurrent of something else unreadable.
But then she looks away, clearly overwhelmed under Alison's stare. It brings an involuntary smile to Alison's mouth, and she finds herself enjoying this far more than she should be;
Whatever this is.
Present
She's been chatting away on the phone for a couple of minutes, successfully pissing off Emily in the process, if any of her disgruntled huffs are of any indication.
"How's bunking with Americano going?" Charlotte asks, with the clear intention of poking fun at her little sister. Alison furtively glances at Emily. Her jaw is clenched, and she watches the laptop; eyes replete with unsavory-resentment. "Fucking unbearable."
Charlotte laughs, and Alison has to bite back the urge to rant. "I'm sure you'll both kiss and make up."
"Not funny."
She hears Charlotte sigh, and then a muted clink of a glass being put down. "Oh, come on Ali. You know I'm only playing. Listen, I'm sure things will get better. I mean, it's not like they can get any worse. You're already living together."
Alison tuts, and drags in a breath. "You have a point."
"Do you mind?" Comes Emily's voice from her left, even-toned and firm.
"Was that her?" Charlotte asks, intrigued. Alison looks at Emily, and the piercing expression on the girls face almost throws her off. Enthralled, she gives Emily a half-smile which she's confident will make her positively snap. "Yeah, that was her."
Emily's eyes flash with fury, and she gathers the sheet beneath her in an iron-clad grip. Paige shifts away from Emily, and places a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, don't let her get to you." She says, trying to get Emily to look at her - but she doesn't. Her eyes stay firmly on Alison.
"What's happening?" Charlotte asks, finishing with a gasp.
"Come to my place." Paige encourages, still trying to get her attention, but Emily still doesn't acknowledge her. When the girl realizes that there's no getting her to budge, Paige relents with a sigh. "Well, I'm going."
She shoves herself to her feet, and looks down at Alison. "You're pathetic." She turns to face Emily. "See you." It is then that Emily seemingly comes to her senses. She stands quickly and grabs Paige's hand to stop her.
"You don't have to go," Emily tells her, her voice surprisingly steady. Paige shakes her head, removing herself from Emily's grip. "See you tomorrow, Emily."
Paige heads for the door, slamming it on her way out. "What did you do?" Charlotte asks, proud and curious. Alison doesn't respond. She's unable to formulate a sentence when Emily's watching her like that - chiding and dangerous.
"You happy now?" Emily snarls, advancing towards the blonde, causing her to breath to hitch. "I'll call you back."
Alison doesn't wait for a response, she just hangs up her phone, and gets on her feet so she's eye to eye with the raving brunette. She drops her phone onto the bed, and crosses her arms.
Emily steps closer again. "What the fuck did I do to deserve you?" For what is conventionally a nice thing to say, is replete with such venom that Alison never knew was possible. Alison's exterior doesn't falter, but she's screaming inwardly. She's never seen Emily like this before, she's almost positive that nobody has until now.
The brunette leans in closer, successfully causing the blonde to gulp. "To deserve living with a phony who lies. Who used me." Alison's breath hitches, ultimately giving Emily more confidence. Emily's so close to her. They're so close, that she can feel the brunette's lips hover over her cheek.
"Because her boyfriend couldn't satisfy her." Emily scoffs. Alison feels poweless, and it feels wrongful. To regain some control, she looks into Emily's eyes, knowing that it will be too much for her. They are still filled with all the same rage as a moment ago, but there's an underlying conflict in them, which Alison can't quite discern.
The atmosphere around them shifts from bitter and stark, to one palpable with tension and pull.
"Neither could yours, if I recall." Alison bites back, amused by the way Emily's posture momentarily falters and her eyes darken. They alternate between Alison's intimidating eyes and her lips. Alison briefly revels, knowing that she's now got the higher ground.
A theory forms in Alison's mind. "Neither can your girlfriend, right?" Emily works her jaw, somehow managing to advance even closer. "You wish that-"
The next thing Alison knows, Emily's lips are on hers. Emily's lips are on hers, and they're filled with anger and worked up frustration. She marvels at the way Emily makes a needy noise as Alison slides her tongue against hers - tauntingly and effortlessly.
Emily grips her waist tightly, so tightly that Alison's certain she'll still feel it tomorrow - maybe that's her intention.
She hears Emily utter a breathy 'fuck' as Alison pulls her hips flush against hers. Every flick of Emily's tongue against her own sends shudders throughout her body, and she needs more.
But unfortunately, it's all over far too soon.
Emily pushes her away, and Alison stumbles backward; her rear hits the wall with a dull thump. She licks her lips, and lets out a shuddering breath, blinking and refocusing her eyes on Emily, who looks like she's on the verge of combustion.
"No," Emily whispers, blinking rapidly.
"No?" Alison reiterates, her voice uneven.
"I won't do this again. I won't sleep with you." Emily says, almost uncertain, almost torn.
Alison doesn't stop her as she grabs her jacket and bag. She doesn't stop her when she rushes for the door.
She doesn't stop her. She doesn't even budge.
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