hi y'alls! back again. thanks as always for reading! this is the longest chapter yet, so i hope you like it :) and i'm aware that this is a very long 24 hours in this fic so far, but don't worry! we'll get to traveling by next chapter. i'm working on an update for Paily Roadtrip, so keep an eye out for that as well! now for the chapter...

I walk into my apartment for the second time today and put my keys on the shelf by the door. At first glance, you'd never be able to tell that Paige doesn't live here. Pictures of us adorn the walls so that "it's like they painted the place Paily instead of gray," in Hanna's words, and her writing awards and swimming medals hang beside our photographs proudly. I stare at the picture next to my keys. It was taken right after we graduated from Rosewood, and we were all hanging out at the Brew. I'm sitting in her lap, and she has her arms around me. My fingers are clasping her wrists, and we're kissing with the biggest grins on our faces. I smile at the memory of that day. Spencer must have snapped it while we weren't paying attention.

"Whoo! Officially done with high school, you guys!" Spencer yelled as she carried the tray of five coffees.

Hanna whooped. "Yeah, no more gym class! Fuck you, Ms. Wellington!"

Spencer and Aria glared at her. "Language!"

Hanna rolled her eyes and waved her hands at Spencer expectantly. "Gimme my mocha."

"Yeah yeah, large double chocolate mocha with whipped cream, extra sugar, and heart attack syrup," Spencer muttered as she busied herself passing around the drinks. "Aria, your iced latte, and Emily, your iced hot chocolate. Em, don't you think that icing it defeats the purpose of calling it hot?" Spencer continued, not noticing that Emily wasn't listening.

Aria tapped her shoulder. "Uh, Spence? I think the cold hot chocolate can wait a bit," she whispered with a smile. Spencer looked up at the same time as Hanna, and they burst into grins.

Emily was perched on Paige's lap, and Paige's arms were wrapped around her girlfriend's waist. Emily's fingers were tangled together with Paige's, and their heads were close together as they whispered, oblivious to their audience. Suddenly, Emily burst out laughing, and Paige smiled and kissed her exposed neck. When Emily had caught her breath, she leaned toward Paige to whisper something else, and Paige blushed and touched her forehead to Emily's. The latter's gaze shifted from her girlfriend's eyes to her lips, and Emily leaned in to kiss Paige.

Spencer poked Hanna gently. "Can you get my backpack? My camera's in there," she mumbled out of the side of her mouth. Hanna grinned and rifled through their bags as softly as she could to hand it to Spencer. Spencer quietly took the cap off the lens and raised the camera to her eyes to focus on the kissing couple.

Snap! "Yes!" Spencer exclaimed with a fist pump, earning her a smack from Aria as Emily and Paige jumped apart to find Hanna leering at them.

"You guys are so cute it makes me sick," Hanna declared before she took a swig from her cup.

Emily flushed, and Paige fidgeted with Emily's hands before looking up with a smirk. "You know, Han, the whole point of being lesbians is that there is no guy." She laughed at the expression on Hanna's face. "And you look like a gaping fish."

Emily slapped her shoulder lightly. "Be nice," she murmured into Paige's ear.

"And why should I? She interrupted a perfectly good kiss. A great kiss actually," Paige said with a pout, and Emily barely stopped herself from leaning in and kissing her again.

Hanna cleared her throat. "Actually, that was Spencer. And Paige, the whole point of being done with school is that you can stop correcting my English."

"Nope, never gonna happen," Paige and Spencer replied at the same time before grinning at each other.

Hanna glared at them. "Don't you dare," she hissed at them as they were preparing to high-five. Spencer and Paige stared at her, heartbroken.

"What?! It's our thing!"

"You can't just stop a McHastings high-five like that!"

Aria was about to intervene when Emily bit Paige's ear. "If you're going to high-five, do it already. My hand's getting cold," she whispered. Paige quickly slapped Spencer's limp outstretched hand before grabbing Emily's hand again.

Spencer pouted. "What? That's hardly worthy of being called a Spaige-slap. Really?"

Paige shrugged. "Duty called."

Aria squinted and shook her head at the couple. "You're so whipped," she said, wagging her finger at Paige.

Emily smiled and squeezed Paige's hands. "Yup, and she's mine, and she's amazing."

Paige grinned and nuzzled Emily's neck with her nose. "Mm, babe, you smell nice."

Hanna made barfing noises and waved her hand at them. "Are you going to tell us what you guys were whispering about, or do we have to guess?"

Paige and Emily blushed on cue, and Aria cooed at them. "Aww, it's a couple-blush."

Hanna glared at her. "What is it with you guys lately with making up weird hyphenated words? And come on, what were you guys talking about? It wasn't sex, was it?" Hanna's eyes bulged. "Oh it totally was. Were you talking about cunnilingus?"

Emily blushed again, and Paige buried her face in Emily's hair. Spencer gaped. "Where did you learn these words? Hyphenated? Cunnilingus? What is cunnilingus anyway?"

Aria smirked. "Really, the 2014 valedictorian of Rosewood High doesn't know what a word means. Spencer, cunnilingus isn't even that hard."

"Can we please stop saying that word," Paige mumbled into Emily's neck.

"What word, cunnilingus? I mean, we're assuming that's what you were talking about, since you haven't corrected me," Hanna said.

"Baby names, okay? We were talking about baby names," Emily suddenly exclaimed, her face beet red. Paige rubbed her belly comfortingly.

Aria clapped her hands. "Ooh, do tell!" She quickly put her hands in her lap when Hanna and Spencer turned their heads to stare at her. "What? It's adorable."

Paige glanced at Emily for approval before speaking. "Well, we've only considered the first kid so far. We were thinking that we'd call him Connor if he's a boy and Grace if she's a girl. That second one is her idea. I wanted to name her Emily, and a boy could be Emilio, but what the girlfriend wants, the girlfriend gets," she said before setting her chin on Emily's shoulder. Emily kissed her forehead.

Aria smiled at them. "And who's taking whose last name?"

Paige looked up with a grin. "We're going to be the McCullers Clan," she declared, beaming.

Aria's eyebrows shot up. "Clan? How many kids are you planning to have?"

Emily nudged Paige curiously. "Yeah P, how many?"

Paige stared into Emily's eyes. "Enough to fill the house. I want as many mini-Emilys as possible," she whispered. Emily stared back before lunging at her face so that Paige fell with her back in the couch cushions with Emily sprawled on top of her.

Aria stared at them kissing before sighing. "It's a good thing Emily's not working today, or she'd be fired for dilly-dallying with the customers."

Hanna blinked. "Is dilly-dallying code for making out?"

"Hanna!"

The blonde pouted. "I miss Caleb," she said before crossing her arms.

"Hello, can someone PLEASE explain what cunnilingus means?"

A throat-clearing behind me shakes me out of my reverie. "Last time I checked, packing entailed actually going inside the apartment," Lynn says. I can tell she's smirking without even seeing her face.

I wipe the tears from my face and tear my eyes away from the picture. "Welcome to my humble abode," I say with a sarcastic sweep of my arms.

Lynn smiles. "Yeah, humble indeed. It must cost a measly fortune. This place is gorgeous!"

I shrug. It's just home to me. Meanwhile, Lynn bounds all over the place, examining everything from the marble countertop and the dining set in the kitchen to the black and white leather sofas and light blue drapes in the living room. She sprawls herself on one of the sofas and grins at me. "Your girl a fan of contemporary stylings, Em?"

I shrug again. "We both are. She insisted on the puffiest drapes they had in that color, so I insisted on having one big bed instead of two smaller ones."

I make my way into the living room and sit next to Lynn. She looks up at me. "Doesn't it hurt, having these reminders around all the time?"

I shake my head. She's on my mind constantly anyway, and I'd rather fill our space with reminders of how happy we were if I can't fill it with the real deal.

"Em, has she ever seen the apartment?" Lynn asks me softly.

"No. I mean, we picked it out together, but we weren't supposed to move in until the summer, so the place was bare at the time." I hug myself. "She fell in love with the view, so we just had to buy it."

"Why haven't you ever invited me over? I mean, you've slept over at my place plenty of times,' Lynn questions. "And it can't possibly be lack of intimacy. I mean, I know what your lacy bra looks like, remember?" she says with a chuckle.

I glare at her. "Don't remind me. It's just a comfort thing, I guess. The other girls don't get too many invites either," I lie.

But she reads me like a book. "You know I know you're lying, but I'll let it go this time."

I nod. I wonder what Paige would think if she saw Lynn on my couch, her shirt riding up to show her toned stomach. I'm not doing anything wrong. Lynn's a friend; she should be able to come over whenever she likes.

I know what Paige would think. She would laugh and ask why so many beautiful ladies were hanging out in her apartment. She and Lynn would get along so well. But I can't help but feel as if I'm breaking a rule.

Again, Lynn reads my mind. She jumps up from the couch and slaps my shoulder. "Come on cowgirl, let's get packing. Show me the bedroom, woman!"

I gape. Lynn stares at my expression confusedly before sighing. "I am so sorry. That came out completely wrong. How many slaps does Paige owe me now?"

I check my memory. "Seventeen, I think."

"Not bad for ten years, don't you think? Now come on princess, show me your closet and your suitcase already!"

what do you guys think? that's the longest flashback so far, i think. i was experimenting with the characters' voices, so if it sounds odd, let me know! if you liked it, let me know too! or if you want to rant about the snail's pace at which this fic is proceeding, please let me know too.

another thing...what do you guys think about Lynn? love her, hate her, no feelings? is she bothering any of you? we'll find out more of her back-story with Emily... ;)

also, i would really like to thank you for reading and supporting my writing. much love to everyone who leaves a review or messages me, as well as to y'alls out there that favorite or follow my work, and just as much love to y'alls that simply read and enjoy. i adore you all! stay tuned for the next update!