Disclaimer: Still don't own it
This chapter is a little shorter than my usual ones but that is because I had to break it up slightly given the timeframe. The next one should be longer and meatier since this chapter is more of a setup for the next one. Once again, I like to thank Paraddicted for the Beta.
It turned out that she did get sick after all.
It was some time in the middle of the night when she had woke up coughing and sneezing; which prompted Mona to her side.
Spencer was burning up and Mona immediately sprang into action, grabbing some medicine from her bathroom cabinet behind the mirror. After making sure to that Spencer drank the orange liquid, she grabbed a cold wash cloth and placed in on the taller teen's forehead to cool her down. She then sat by the side of the bed and watched as Spencer fell back to sleep.
Mona fell back asleep herself, her head resting on the side of the bed with her still in the chair. Her mother had slipped in after hearing the commotion earlier; finding her daughter's sleeping form next to their guest. Giving Mona a motherly smile, she grabbed a blanket from the cot and put over her sleeping daughter. She then left the room quietly and headed downstairs, closing the door softly behind her.
Walking into the kitchen, Leona turned on the lights and figured that she would get an early start on breakfast. She often got up early to make breakfast for herself and Mona; a tradition that was quite common with the two. It would be interesting when Mona left for college and Leona was glad for her other activities in Rosewood since it would be a little lonely without her daughter. Truthfully, Leona would be a little glad when Mona got out of Rosewood given what happened over the summer.
Outside, the storm seemed to be getting worse, and Leona could hear the damage being reported on the radio. Once again, the weatherman was caught by surprise and the simple night of rain had become a lot worse than predicted. This of course meant that downtown would be flooded by morning, thus people's commute would not be fun. Leona was happy that she had the sense to do all of her shopping the other day.
There was now a chance that Spencer's parents might not be able to take her home today; especially if they have trouble getting here. The last time there was a flood, her residence had been cut off for a day or so until the roads were reopened. It had not happened in a while but from what she was hearing, things were starting to look that way. It was good that this would not affect school since it was the weekend.
Having Spencer over for the weekend wasn't a bother, and it was nice to have the company for a change. It was a shame though that it was under bad circumstances; Spencer was a nice girl and didn't deserve what had happened last night. While she cut the potatoes, Leona became angry at the thought of what Alison had done. Just by the look of Spencer when she had arrived, it was obvious that the blond had done something horrible at the dance.
Knowing how the town worked, it was a good chance that Alison would find a way to weasel her way out of being punished; even find a way to make someone else the fall guy. Her family was one of the richest and there was very little anyone could do about her. Kenneth might have been able to understand that his daughter was a monster but as long as Jessica handled the family, Alison would continue to do what she wants.
Leona had through the grapevine that the oldest sibling, Jason, had left town over the summer; possibly for good. Though it was supposedly for academic reasons, she had heard that Jason had developed a problem with drugs, and had checked himself into a rehab center. The rift between him and Kenneth had been so great that Jason swore that he would never come back.
Which was a shame since she actually liked him; unlike Alison, Jason had a heart.
As she was about to put the potatoes on the stove to be fried, her phone started to ring and she went to see who it was. The sounds of the wind outside continued to howl and there was the occasional banging against the house walls; which she wasn't too concerned about. At least the roof had just been fixed so there wasn't a worry about leaks. Seeing that it was Peter Hastings, she picked up the phone.
"Hello Peter," Leona greeted as she sat down on the chair.
"Hello Leona; sorry if I woke you up," Peter said on the other end, sounding like he meant to be sorry.
"I was already awake; there was some problem with Spencer earlier," Leona stated and she could hear the hiss on the other end.
"Is she alright?" asked a very concerned father and someone could be heard in the background.
"Yes; it was a small fever from her being in the rain last night. Mona gave her some medicine, and she is now resting comfortably," informed the woman.
"Good; thank you for taking care of her, but I need a favor," Peter said and from what Leona could tell, he sounded like it was hard for him to admit that he wanted something from her.
"You need me to keep Spencer for the weekend," Leona stated before Peter could ask.
"How did you know?" asked a confused father.
"I am seeing what the storm is doing; I don't think it is a good idea for Spencer to come home either," said Mona's mother and she meant it.
"It's not just that; a part of a tree fell in front of the house so we are trapped inside right now," Peter informed, sounding very annoyed.
"I understand and am sorry that you can't get to your daughter. Don't worry though, Spencer is in safe hands," Leona assured him.
"Just thank you for taking care of her and be careful; Spencer is a bit fragile right now," Peter said in a tired tone.
"It is not a problem Peter; Spencer is not Alison's only victim," said Mona's mother.
"What do you mean?" asked Peter and it seemed to Leona that he didn't know what had fully happened.
"I meant the prank that happened to Spencer was Alison's doing," stated Leona. A heavy sigh could be heard on the other end.
"I guess Melissa was right after all; unfortunately, Noel Kahn has copped to the entire thing and will be suspended for a few weeks," Peter informed, sounding angry. It was understandable; despite his many flaws, Leona knew that he truly loved his children.
"Well we both know who was that guiding hand," said Leona testily.
"Yes we do," Peter said, agreeing with the woman.
"When do you expect to pick her up?" asked Leona as she looked at the time. It was almost seven and there was now no need to rush breakfast.
"Sunday though I am not sure when," Peter said and more talking could be heard in the background.
"Well again, it's not a problem," Leona stated. To be honest, Leona felt that Spencer deserved a break from her parents anyways.
"Thank you; I have to go but tell Spencer we love her and we will talk about what happened when she gets home," Peter said and Leona nodded.
"I will Peter; talk to you later," and with that, the two parents said their goodbyes and Leona hung up the phone, heading back to cooking breakfast.
It was another hour when Mona emerged from upstairs and into the kitchen; her mother watching as the small girl went straight to the refrigerator. There was no hello from her daughter, but that was expected by the tired look that Mona was displaying currently. As Mona grabbed the jug of handmade green tea from the refrigerator, Leona grabbed a clean glass and handed it to her daughter with a smile.
"How is Spencer?" Leona asked as Mona chugged her drink. Her daughter was still in her black pajamas, which she was not fond of since it reminded her of the black hoodie from that night several months ago.
"Her fever is almost gone and she is pretty out of it. I don't think she should be going home in this weather," Mona said as she just slumped against the counter. It was a rare sight to see her like this except when it came to exams.
"Well Spencer is in luck because her father called earlier and said that they can't make it to pick Spencer up because of the weather. So they asked that she stay until Sunday and I said yes," Leona said and Mona looked pleased at that.
"Thank you; you're the best," Mona said sweetly, kissing her mother on the cheek.
"So after last night, I think we should let Spencer rest up. I found more of your cousin's clothes so hopefully Spencer can use those for the time being," Leona said and her daughter nodded.
"We can't do much with the weather the way it is anyways," Mona stated and her mother nodded in agreement.
"Which is why we should get out the candles just in case the power goes out since it might get worse. Also make sure your cell phone is charged and check to see if all of the windows are locked," her mother kindly ordered, and Mona complied with a smile. Finishing her tea, she headed out of the kitchen to the storage closet.
Inwardly, Mona was celebrating right now since Spencer was going to stay another night. This meant that she had a whole 24 hours to work her magic with her new friend and she couldn't waste them. As she opened the door to the closet and grabbed the box of candle, Mona contemplated her next move. Her plan was to do what her mother asked and then head back to Spencer's side.
Spencer stirred awake and realized that she really needed to use the bathroom. Getting up, she unconsciously walked into Mona's bathroom and did her business. After finishing and washing her hands, it was only when she had exited the bathroom that Spencer realized that she was not home. She was starting to panic when the memories of last night came back into her head; remembering that she had fled to Mona's in the aftermath of fleeing the dance.
The first thing she noticed was that she was no longer in the dress from the night before; instead, she was in some sort of shorts and t-shirt. Spencer had vague memories of Mona helping her change and shower as well as her friend brushing her hair. She wondered where the smaller girl was since it was still early in the morning and a Saturday. When she had stayed the night a weekend ago, Mona had mentioned that she had liked to sleep in on Saturdays.
The sound of the wind and rain could be heard, making Spencer glad that she was not out in it. She was surprised that the town was experiencing a storm since the weather report had called for only a light rain. There was a chill in the air and the darkness outside was a little unsettling given that the sun should be up right now.
Sitting back down on the bed, Spencer yawned as she noticed the made up cot that was next to the bed. She felt a little guilty about taking up Mona's bed and hoped that her friend hadn't minded. If she had been coherent, Spencer would have taken the cot so that the smaller girl could have her bed. She was grateful enough that Mona had brought her in.
If on cue, Mona appeared in the doorway with a cup of coffee in her hand.
"Good morning," Mona said sweetly, handing Spencer the steaming cup which she gladly accepted. As she drank the refreshing liquid, Spencer noted Mona's black attire which she found a little strange since Mona usually wore more colorful clothing.
"Thank you for letting me stay the night; I am sorry that I caused a mess when I showed up," Spencer said quietly as she struggled to clear the cobwebs from her mind. She was caught by surprise when Mona sat next to her, a little closer than Spencer would have liked.
"It's okay Spencer; you are my friend and you are safe here," Mona declared, putting her hand on Spencer's. The taller girl wasn't sure what to say and just drank her coffee.
"So with the storm outside, your parents can't come and pick you up until tomorrow," Mona informed, in a bubbly tone in Spencer's opinion.
"My parents know I am here?" asked Spencer, a little fearful about them knowing where she was.
Spencer knew she should have gone home, but just couldn't face her parents after what had happened at the dance. She had done nothing wrong and it was because of Alison that the prank had happened. But when it came to her parents, Spencer was never sure of anything and had feared that they would have blamed her for the stained dress given her history with substance abuse.
"Of course; they were worried sick but I assured them that you were okay and they were only going to let you stay one night, but the storm is pretty big right now so they will pick you up tomorrow," Mona stated, hiding the glee from her voice.
"Yeah," Spencer said with a somewhat fake smile as she sipped more of her drink. Truthfully, she was happy to be away from her parents for another day.
"So, since the weather is bad; we can just kick back and rest for the day," Mona said as she smiled at her guest.
"That does sound nice," Spencer admitted even though she wasn't sure what there was to do. The last time she had spent the night, she had had her books and other stuff from home. When she had arrived at Mona's place, it was with only a ruined dress and nothing else.
"Also, my mother found some clothes from when my cousin last visited so we have something for you to wear," Mona informed the taller teen.
"Thank you; I'll thank your mother when I see her," Spencer said and Mona nodded.
"So what happened?" Mona asked, pushing the conversation to a more serious subject. Spencer was reluctant but in the end, told Mona everything that had happened.
"You were right; Noel was playing me," Spencer said and there was a mixture of anger as well as hurt in her voice.
"Well, I didn't want to be; you deserved to have a good time," Mona said, lying about not being right.
"I hate her so much," Spencer said with her voice full of venom. Mona nodded in agreement and gave Spencer a sad smile.
"I know; I hate her too and wish she was gone," Mona stated and for the first time, Spencer could sense a little anger in her voice.
"But you know what really makes me mad? That it took me to be out of her posse to see how evil she really is," Spencer told her friend.
"When it comes to Alison, many people had blinders on. I am just glad that you now understand that she is a monster," Mona said as if she understood that for a while now.
"She has to be stopped," Spencer announced and she fully meant it. This was the breaking point and she knew there was no going back after today; Alison had gone too far and it was up to her make sure nothing like this would ever happen again.
"I agree and there are some things you should know," Mona said as she smiled evilly.
Please R&R!