A/N: To the anon that asked if Emily will find out soon that Ali is a trophy doll…define soon. Also, Emaya is a romantic friendship. (in other words, we just decided to take PR lessons from IMK).

I'd like to say this chapter is the calm before a storm. And Emily does find out Ali is a trophy doll, but it may not have the exact result you'd think it would. Or maybe it does. What do you guys think happens once Emily finds out? Here's a clue, it hurts.


Chapter 8

Taking a page from Spencer's book, Aria decides to take Alison out to learn how to drive. It'll be nice to have the blonde performing tasks that will make her feel more competent and useful, Aria thinks. Besides Em is forever bugging Aria for lifts and it would be nice to have someone else to shoulder the burden of the swimmer's hyperactive desire for going out around town.

"Hey, don't be nervous," Aria consoles Alison gently as the two sit together in the car in an empty, abandoned parking lot. Only this time, Alison is the one in the driver's seat and Aria is sitting calmly in the passenger seat, trying to soothe the blonde's nerves.

"S-s-orry," Alison stutters as she tries to breathe properly. She's worried about having this much responsibility and about the possibility of messing up and displeasing Aria, even if the little brunette is kind. Everyone has their limits, Alison has learned in the past.

"It's okay to be cautious," Aria quips in a calming voice. "Cars are literally killing machines. It's crazy that millions of people every day operate these things because you could literally cause so much destruction with them."

She pauses as she sees Alison nod, eyes wide and frigthened.

"But I'm gonna teach you how to do it, and you're not gonna hurt us, or anyone. You won't get in trouble, I swear. Okay?"

Alison nods hesitantly once again and Aria gives a nod of approval.

"Alright, so the keys are in the ignition already. Now turn them all the way forward," Aria instructs, and Alison does as she's told, jumping in her seat slightly as the car roars to life. It doesn't help that Emily has a high end, powerful sedan.

"Now you're gonna use your right foot to control the pedals, got it? Your left foot just stays put off to the side," Aria continues. "Push your right foot on the pedal and use your right hand to shift gears right here."

They continue through the basics of driving for a good fifteen minutes before Alison gains enough confidence to move the car forward. Aria finds it endearing how the blonde's face contorts into surprise and fear as the car moves when she steps on the gas, and the way the blonde gasps as she applies a bit too much pressure to the accelerator.

But soon enough, they're driving in circles and Alison's death grip on the wheel lightens up ever so gently.

"Good job," Aria praises knowing that the blonde needs all the assurance she can get. "It'll become easier, trust me."

Alison smiles bashfully, knowing the little brunette is just trying to make her feel better about her nervousness. But it helps all the same having Aria on her side. It's been forever since she's had a friend, and she can barely register what the word means. She was never really allowed to have friends in all her years of captivity, but she knows that this is okay with Emily.

A soft melody starts and Aria looks down at her lap to see her cell phone ringing.

"One sec, it's Em," Aria tells Alison and answers the phone. She gestures towards the ignition and Alison quickly shuts off the car. "Hey Em!...Good yeah I'm just hanging out with Alison…"

She covers the mouth piece of the phone and looks towards the blonde. "Em says hi," Aria whispers before uncovering the phone once more. "Yeah we can come get you in 10. Are you done?...Okay sweet we'll be there soon. Bye!"

Aria hangs up and looks towards the blonde in the driver's seat who stares back inquisitively.

"Alright, now drive to pick up Emily," Aria suggests lightly with a raised eyebrow and she giggles when Alison's baby blue eyes widen in shock and slight panic. "I'm just kidding, let's switch and go get her."

x-x-x

Alison listens to Aria ramble on about how she's nervous about having trusted Hanna to make dinner. The blonde is focusing so much on what the brunette is saying that when there's a loud rapping on the backseat window she jumps and turns around in her seat, startled.

"Hey Aria, Ali," Emily greets as she throws open the back door and slides in. Any instantaneous fear that Alison had about not being quick enough to open the door for Emily is quelled as the brunette bounces up happily in the back. "Let's go, I'm exhausted and I don't want to be here any longer than I have to be."

"You got it," Aria quips with a smile and glances in the mirror to see Emily smile back before putting the car in drive and exiting the parking lot.

"How was your day, Ali?" Emily asks kindly from the back seat, childishly leaning forward without wearing a seatbelt. The blonde feels a little strange sitting in the front seat while her owner is in the back of the car but she thinks that maybe Emily prefers to have the more spacious area to herself. "Did you do anything fun? I hope Aria didn't make you work too hard."

"Tell her what we did," Aria presses gently when Alison takes a moment to answer. Emily scoots over in the back seat so her arms wrap around the seat and her hands land on Alison's shoulders, gently massaging them in a friendly manner. The blonde tries to suppress her shivers at the feeling of strong fingers digging into her back.

"You're so tense all the time, you gotta relax," Emily instructs teasingly.

"We, uh, went driving," Alison tells her softly and tries to loosen up her muscles so Emily can't feel how nervous she is. "Aria taught me how to drive."

"Really?" Emily asks, immediately stopping her massaging and scooting towards the middle to see Ali's face while they talk. The brunette is beaming at her and Alison smiles shyly back. "Then you can drive me to go get milkshakes at like midnight when no one else will take me."

"What makes you think Ali wants to take you anywhere at midnight?" Aria interjects with a playful tone. Well, Ali thinks, it's not a matter of if she wants to or not. Emily pouts at Aria and turns to Alison mischief twinkling in her deep brown eyes.

"Because Ali respects all of my needs, unlike the rest of you free loaders," Emily replies jokingly as she lightly punches Aria in the arm. Alison wonders what the rest of Emily's needs include and when she has to service them.

"Without me you wouldn't be able to get anywhere," Aria fires back in a playful tone and Emily makes an indignant face as she looks around at where they are.

"Pull over into that abandoned lot," Emily instructs and Aria raises an eyebrow but does so without question. It's the same, large empty lot Alison and Aria were at earlier, oddly enough. The lot looks a lot more empty at night and extends several acres as it used to be a shopping mall. As soon as the car comes to a stop, the tan athlete hops out and moves around to the driver's door, opening it. "Out!"

Aria scoots out and stands patiently.

"Now what?" Aria asks puzzled.

"Get in the back," Emily requests stubbornly and the little brunette throws her hands up in the air, half kidding half exasperated and slides in as Emily hops in the driver's seat. "I'll show you I can drive."

"I know you can drive-" Aria protests and is cut off by Emily revving the engine. "Just not legally."

"Put your seatbelt on," Emily grins from the front seat as she revs the engine again. Aria, for the first time, seems a little frantic as she buckles in. Emily looks toward Alison who appears frazzled and confused as to the sudden turn of events. "Ever been in a car going 100 miles an hour?"

Alison shakes her head slowly.

"Emily do not-" Aria begins to really panic in the back seat.

"Relax," Emily throws out casually, her inner daredevil coming out. She turns the music on, some rock song with a solid drum beat, and turns up the volume to the max. "I'm just teaching her how to drive."

The wheels squeal as she peels the car across the asphalt and pops it to 60 mph in less than six seconds. Alison death grips her seat as they rocket along still gaining speed, Emily lets out a cheer that is barely audible over the music and Aria's frantic yelling.

"If you crash this thing it's-"

"Relax," Emily yells back, making a sharp turn that practically throws Ali into the door. "I know what I'm doing and I bought this thing."

Alison covers her face in fear as Emily straightens out and accelerates again, she can't watch this, she feels completely out of control, stuck in a machine that could easily kill them all if Emily makes one mistake. She doesn't have the capacity for this kind of trust, she's been conditioned to accept things, to do as she is ordered but she doesn't like it and this, this is terrible.

Emily sees Alison covering her face out of the corner of eye and reaches across the console to rub Ali's thigh soothingly.

"Hey," she calls, still shouting over the music. "Ali, its ok."

Alison jumps a little as Emily's hand lands on her thigh and the brunette squeezes, Alison desperately holds her legs open wanting nothing more than to snap them shut to stop Emily's hand from traveling up her thigh.

"Both hands on the wheel now!" Aria barks from the back seat and Emily retracts her hand. She slows the car to a more comfortable speed and lowers the radio volume.

"Ali look, see it's ok," Emily motions to the comfortable speed they are now traveling at, she's worried she's spooked the blonde by being a bit playfully reckless.
Alison breathes a little easier when they slow down and Aria slumps in the back seat sighing. Everyone's a little on edge and Emily pouts—she was just trying to have some fun.

"I didn't mean to scare you," Emily says petulantly, a little upset that she seems to keep making Alison uncomfortable just by being herself.

"Em she's still learning-" Aria pipes up but is quickly cut off by Alison's hushed, almost simultaneous response.

"You didn't scare me," Alison utters softly, though it's a lie. As much as Emily terrifies her, she hates seeing the brunette look sad like her fun has been stolen from her. The brunette looks at her intently and Aria does as well with a raised eyebrow. "I…just…"

"It's different when it's brand new," Emily explains, cruising around the parking lot still at a comfortable speed. "But you have to trust me—I'm not going to crash this car. And if you trust me, it can be more enjoyable."

Alison nods and Aria rolls her eyes in the back seat at the stupid speech Emily is spouting.

"Can I try it again?" Emily asks her and Aria quickly responds with a resounding "NO" from the back seat but Emily ignores her. Alison nods hesitantly and Emily this time offers her hand, palm up. She whispers quietly so that Aria can't hear her over the music. "Hold my hand. You can squeeze when you get really scared and I'll slow down. Okay?"

She waits for a nod from Alison and tries to quell the tingle in her palm as Ali delicately places her hand in the brunette's. Emily flashes her charming smile and guns the engine once more.

"Emily no more-" Aria protests but the tan swimmer grins devilishly at her in the rearview mirror.

The car accelerates, a bit slower this time—ten seconds to 60 instead of six. But soon she's doing donuts and figure 8's at high speeds, careful to slow down whenever Alison gently squeezes her hand. But the shy smile that graces the blonde's face at the newfound thrill of Emily's high-speed game, with a sense of control, makes Emily feel warm inside.

x-x-x
Late one night, just after midnight, Emily stumbles into the kitchen half asleep and turns a dim light on before she riffles through the refrigerator searching for a late night snack to munch on. Sex with Maya always makes her hungry and it felt like Maya had something to prove tonight, if the nail marks littering Emily's back are any indication. It's quiet in the house, almost too quiet, and Emily wonders why the light by the back door is still on. She sighs—Hanna was the last one in, and she was pretty tipsy so she probably just forgot to turn it off. Emily shakes her head and continues searching through the fridge.

A quick flash of lightning lights up the dim kitchen and the brunette hears a resounding boom of thunder less than a second later. She jumps, but smiles when her racing heart calms, she's always liked the sounds of thunderstorms, the howling wind, the steady heavy rain and the distant and not so distant booms of thunder. Oddly enough, its something both her and Maya (who is currently passed out upstairs) love and they've spent plenty of evenings listening to heavy thunderstorms after mindless fucking. Sure enough, rain begins to fall rapidly and she sighs, content.

Once she finds her yogurt, shoved to the very back most likely by Hanna, she shuts the fridge door and starts for the hall only to stop when she hears faint barking. Her eyebrows crease in concern—wasn't Pepe inside, like he was every night? The barking gets louder and closer and Emily suddenly hears Pepe bounding up the deck to the back door. She rushes over and opens the inside door only to find Pepe scratching at the screen door, whining incessantly.

"Pepe, what are you doing out?" Emily scolds but when she opens the door, Pepe doesn't come in but instead turns in a circle and whines in place as if waiting. Emily's brows crinkle once more, confused, until she hears fast-paced footsteps and heavy breathing. Alison appears, just visible in the dim light outside, and she is completely drenched in an old shirt of Aria's and sleeping shorts. "Ali?"

"S-s-s-sorry," Ali stutters though this time it's because her teeth are chattering and she shivers violently, still standing in the rain waiting for Emily to invite her in. The brunette is staring at her in surprise but her brown eyes widen quickly and she reaches out and pulls Alison in, Pepe running in as soon as Alison is safe inside the house.

"What are you doing out so late?" Emily asks, concerned as she shuts and locks the door behind her.

"Pepe was scratching at the door," Alison explains quietly, hanging her head expecting to be punished. "He needed to go out and then he had a lot of energy."

"Stupid Pepe, he just wanted company," Emily jokingly chastises as she turns to the wet dog. Pepe's tongue hangs out and he smiles at them before he shakes his whole body, his drenched fur effectively spraying both girls. "Pepe!"

He cheekily trots off, leaving a very cold and wet Alison shaking with her head hung low in the presence of Emily.

"Shit, you're gonna get a cold or something," Emily murmurs as she eyes the quivering blonde and examines her in the dim light. The blonde's shirt is completely soaked through, her flimsy shorts are plastered to her thighs, and her damp hair is clinging to her face. Emily feels her heart soften at the sight of Ali looking so tiny and distressed. She gestures towards Ali, causing the blonde to look up timidly. "Come on, strip."

The blonde's eyes widen and Emily sees fear in them so she laughs off her demand trying to soften the command. "I mean, let's get you out of those wet clothes so you're not freezing, yeah?"

Ali's cheeks turn bright red and she nods, still not wanting to strip but what choice does she have? She brings her hands to the hem of her shirt and realizes it's soaked through and she's not wearing a bra anyway. As she takes it off, she crosses her arms over her chest out of instinct but remembers her place and is about to drop her arms when her baby blue eyes widen—Emily is taking her own plaid flannel off and is left standing in nothing but her very revealing pair of cheeky undies. Alison notes how the brunette is completely unfazed by her own nudity and grabs the damp shirt from Ali's hand, her eyes sweeping over Alison's naked torso, accessing for injuries the brunette tells herself, before she averts her gaze politely and hands Alison her plaid shirt.

"Here, this is much cozier and warmer," Emily instructs gently with a smile and Alison forces one in return as she slips it on quickly. She's unable to keep her eyes trained on Emily's face as the athlete stands in front of her, so exposed. A shiver rips through the brunette unexpectedly and Alison realizes the cold air in the house is suddenly getting to Emily as goosebumps appear on her unblemished skin and her tan nipples harden on her perky breasts. Alison wraps the plaid around her tight and blushes deeply, unable to stop admiring Emily's perfect body.

"Come on, let's go get some fresh clothes," Emily smiles thinking about how convenient it is that Ali's currently staying in the washer room. Alison nods and Emily pauses to think. "Wait, I'm gonna heat up a kettle of water—can you bring me one of my clean shirts in the dryer when you've changed?"

"Yes," Alison replies dutifully before pausing and hesitating. "Emily?"

The brunette looks at her expectantly, her arms crossed as she shivers.

"I d-don't have any more shorts," Alison says quietly, not knowing what else to wear.

"Oh," Emily waves the concern aside as she continues towards the stove. "Just go ahead and wear anything in the dryer. That's all mine."

"T-thank you," Alison stutters out turning quickly to go get clothes before her cheeks redden any further at the sight of a practically naked Emily.

x-x-x

"Here you go," the brunette says softly as she turns to Alison, both of them fully clothed in dry comfy attire. She sets down a mug of chamomile tea and Alison nods gratefully, grasping it carefully and sipping slowly. The blonde loves the rush of warmth that flows through her as the hot liquid soothes her and stops her incessant shivering. Emily notices the look of satisfaction on Ali's face and smiles. "Better?"

Alison nods shyly and is glad that Emily is now wearing a shirt, it's much less distracting. But she can't help but wonder if the brunette was simultaneously also prepping her to be comfortable with nudity—which clearly didn't work very well. Alison sighs, conflicted. Knowing Emily wants her to be comfortable is very intimidating because she's always just let herself be subjected to horrible things—so she can do what it takes, but feeling comfort is a different story.

"Do you like the tea?" Emily asks softly, sipping her own slowly.

"Yes, it's nice," Alison replies just as quietly and the steady rain outside the window is comforting to both of them.

"My mom used to make this for me when I was little and couldn't sleep," Emily says with a distant smile. "And I put a splash of honey in there like she used to."

Ali smiles politely but a frown settles over Emily's face as she continues.

"But when I was older, she stopped making it for me and just forced me to do it myself. Which is fine, I was 15 and I should've, but I think sometimes I was just looking for an excuse to be closer to her. And she wouldn't let me be closer."

Alison quirks her head curiously, not sure how to take this new piece of information as the brunette sighs. Suddenly, a streak of lightning followed by a loud clap of thunder echoes through the air and Alison jumps almost a mile as Emily flinches.

"Fuck that's loud," Emily winces. She notices Alison shake again and her eyebrows narrow, not liking how distressed the blonde seems. "Are you okay?"

"Mhm," Ali forces out as she tries to steady herself and keep from shaking. It's a lie, Emily can tell.

"Here come on, I'll take you to your room," Emily says taking Ali's free hand and the blonde's heart does a weird sort of flip as the brunette's soft hand grasps hers. She doesn't understand the strange feelings that happen in her chest or in her tummy sometimes, and it's random, when Emily touches her. Sometimes she'll feel nothing, and other times she'll feel her whole body light up. She wonders if it's just nerves getting the better of her.

"Look who it is," Emily says in a playfully scolding voice as they enter the laundry room and find that Pepe is already curled up on a corner of the bed, still wet. "Pepe! You're gonna get Alison's bed all damp."

"It's okay," Alison protests in a small voice, not wanting to cause a fuss. Pepe looks at her with an apologetic grin, and she smiles back at him. She loves the stupid dog to death. Alison is a little unsure as to what Emily is waiting for, and so she goes and sits on the air mattress, watching Emily carefully.

"You'll be cold if you sleep on wet covers cause of the little clown," Emily insists and quickly departs from the room with a gesture that Alison should wait for her. The blonde obediently sits and waits patiently, only to see Emily come back with a thick quilt.

Emily pads over to the bed, ignoring the next flash of lightning and inevitable crack of thunder that follows. She watches Alison's body flinch slightly, and as much as she wants to stay and comfort the blonde, she can't. And she doesn't think it'd be such a good idea to bring Alison up to her bed where a naked Maya is sleeping.

"Here," Emily says opening the thick blanket and spreading it across Alison. The blonde revels in how warm it is, and she feels eons of appreciation flood her body as she lies backwards, cocooning herself. Emily lets a small giggle escape her lips as she kneels down by the air mattress.

"Thank you," Alison tells her sincerely, trying to show her honest appreciation.

"Of course," Emily says kindly, those brown eyes gazing at Alison with affection that the blonde is definitely unused to. "Don't let the thunderstorm scare you. I find it kind of comforting actually."

"How?" Alison dares to ask, in a tiny voice. She doesn't think she can ever grow accustomed to such loud, scary noises let alone find it a source of comfort.

"I don't know," Emily shrugs. "There's something very natural about it, like a passionate fight or something."

"It's so loud," Alison comments timidly, not wanting Emily to think she's weak or pathetic, although she's sure the brunette already thinks both of those things.

"Well you have Pepe here luckily," Emily offers with a small smile. "And I'm always just upstairs if you need anything."

x-x-x

Grey clouds continue to litter the sky two afternoons later as Alison sits by the back door, brushing Pepe's hair. She can hear the ongoing fight down by the pool area without straining her ears to listen.

"I don't understand what you're so mad about," Emily huffs loudly, exasperated as she pulls herself out of the pool. Cece exits the house and stands by the little blonde, arms crossed and sunglasses on as she stares down to where Alison's gaze is.

Maya and Emily stand practically nose to nose. Gone is the previously fake, sympathetic sweet Maya. Instead, Emily faces a berating and stubborn nasty force of belittlement and verbal abuse. Alison understands more than ever why the others toss around the word manipulative so much when they talk about the cruel girl.

"They're still going at it?" Cece huffs annoyed as she looks to the little blonde who she notices is very engrossed in the situation.

"Yes," Alison nods, her blue eyes watching carefully. She's telling herself it's just because she's supposed to be paying attention to Emily's needs, but she can feel a deeper fear for Emily's wellbeing driving her watchfulness.

"You told me last night you were going to come with me to the party," Maya shouts loudly. "I don't appreciate when you fucking back out of things at the last minute, especially when it makes me look bad."

"Maya doesn't need Emily to make her look bad," Cece jokes under her breath and Alison giggles ever so softly, smiling when Cece looks down at her with mischief in her eyes.

"For the hundredth time, I needed to rest!" Emily fires back pleadingly, not wanting this fight to continue. She hates fighting, especially when it is counter productive. "I pushed myself too hard—"

"Boo fuckin' hoo," Maya spits as she gets in Emily's face. "You're either good enough or you're not, Emily. You can't keep wondering and pushing yourself to unrealistic expectations."

"Does Maya know what it's like to be an athlete?" Cece snorts. She turns to Alison on the ground. "So all of this is because last night Emily stayed in after a gruelling practice?"

Alison nods. "We all ate dinner and then she went to bed."

"Looks like Maya didn't get her way for once," Cece muses as she glances at the fighting couple. Alison looks at her curiously and Cece clarifies with a victoriously smile. "Maya always expects Emily to cater to what she wants and what she needs."

"So Emily is—"

"Hopefully, Emily is going to slowly become her own person."
x-x-x

"Em?"

The sleepless brunette stirs in her bed, her body exhausted but her mind very much awake. She hears the creaking door first, before she sees a stream of light from the hallway enter the room. Emily turns over to see Alison poking her head through the open door way hesitantly.

"Ali?" Emily murmurs softly, suppressing a yawn as she props herself up on one arm. The blonde lingers in the doorway, clearly waiting for an invitation to come in. "What are you doing up here?"

"You texted me that you couldn't sleep," Alison replies quietly and Emily knows she did but that was over an hour ago. Upon closer inspection, Alison also looks like she just woke up and suddenly Emily feels guilty because it's four am and the blonde had a long day. "I…I just thought.."

Emily tilts her head in confusion before yawning and scooting over on her large bed, petting the spot next to her. Alison, still apprehensive, slides into the room and shuts the door behind her, padding over to the bed obediently.

She's a little nervous, because even though Emily has seemingly held off on using her body, the brunette could very well be trying to start now. Alison cringes involuntarily at her awful memories of being ripped out of bed at ungodly hours by her previous owners.

"I didn't mean to wake you up and make you come up here," Emily stifles a yawn and Alison sighs in relief as she crawls on the bed and lies down, facing the brunette. There's a good arm's distance between them, but the brunette doesn't seem to mind. "I just really can't fucking sleep. I've been tossing and turning for hours."

Alison nods understandingly, because if there's anything she can relate to Emily about it's sleepless nights.

"Sometimes that happens to me too," Ali murmurs softly.

"You're too cute," Emily comments fondly although sleepily and Ali can swear she can hear the grin in Emily's voice. "I think it's cause I've fallen asleep with someone in my bed every night for the last two weeks, and it just feels weird now."

"Someone?" Ali asks in confusion.

"Mostly Maya, but sometimes Hanna will fall asleep when we talk at night," Emily shrugs. "I…I think what's bothering me is that Maya didn't offer to stay tonight. And I didn't mind."

Alison listens to the brunette's sleepy rambles and inwardly cheer as Emily admits she doesn't need Maya, any reason to keep that cruel girl out of the house Ali supports.

"But I don't like being alone," Emily admits with a defeated sigh. "I don't know why. I think it's separation anxiety or some bullshit like that. Spencer and Aria and Cece and Hanna…they're always here…and they're always trying to diagnose me with some bullshit depression thing or something…"

Emily's voice trails off and in the streaming moonlight Ali can see the brunette's eyes drooping.

"But I'm fine," she says faintly, nearly asleep, and Alison smiles at the way the brunette shifts and curls up as she adjusts to get comfortable. "I'm fine…"

Alison realizes that Emily is now completely asleep, and after a few more moments she hears Emily's steady breathing and she lets herself turn over and face the outside of the bed like she's used to. She feels the slightest hint of pride, the slightest hint of self-worth—she managed to help Emily fall asleep without using her body. And it's not the most fantastic accomplishment in the world, but it's something.