Emily hung onto every word that the dean was saying. She took in his defeated stance. It was evident that he was down too.

They were at the auditorium in the Arts and Science building – where a large gathering of students was taking place.

"The other day we received sad news about the tragic death of Michael Hansen, a pupil in his third year. The loss of this diligent member of our school community is a very difficult time for us all."

The swimmer shifted in her seat, trying to get comfortable even when she knew that she wouldn't be able to relax even if she finished a whole joint (not that she did that anyway). At the corner of her eye, she saw Paula sitting a few seats away, next to the rest of the nursing department, sending her knowing glances.

Emily placed her attention back to the dean.

"In response to this disastrous incident, the school has teamed up with state police to shed light on those who mourn. According to the reports, the fire was brought on by burdened electrical connections that ultimately led to the rapid spread of the flames and the smoke that asphyxiated Michael before his body was recovered. A line from the fluorescents sent…."

She thought she had heard enough and tuned out the rest of the dean's statement. Emily closed her eyes and laid her head back, trying to at least not throw up to what she was hearing.

"But what do you think, Dean Adamson?" Paula's voice echoed antagonistically through the auditorium, turning heads towards her direction. The brunette's eyes flew open as she looked to Paula as well, unsure as to where the redhead was taking this.

"Excuse me, miss Avery?" the dean uttered.

"Sure, they say it was electrical. I'll take their word for it. But doesn't it take more than just a day to investigate whether or not there was foul play?"

The room buzzed as many whispered among themselves. Paula was playing a scandalous game. The brunette could only stare at what seemed to be an awkward exchange between the dean and her roommate as Dean Anderson failed to provide answers. He was after all, just as in the dark as the students were. The investigation was still on-going as he had stated, but Paula only seemed to push further.

"I mean who isn't here right now? Let's see, the librarian, who's probably down at the precinct being questioned," Paula scoffed before continuing her venom-filled rant, "I say, maybe they should question people who were at the scene but weren't in the library."

Emily's jaw dropped when she realized that Paula was referring to the blonde. Alison wasn't at the auditorium, thankfully. Chaos would definitely ensue had she decided to attend. Oddly enough, Alison texted Emily earlier that day that she had just flown back to the States – just seconds after Paula came barging into their shared room. She then went on texting Emily about how her father wanted her to draft designs for their new branch in Rankin Inlet. Because it was logical to fly two thousand miles to another country on a school day (and it was a Monday) to oversee the structure of their new café branch. Emily rolled her eyes at the blatant lies.

The explanations were just a little too sloppy for Emily to trust. Things happened too frequently to still be labeled a coincidence. At this point she knew better than to ask either girls what was going on. From the day of the fire she decided that maybe silently prying information out of both of them would work for now. Both girls seemed to be in a bubble that left Emily watching from the outside. Were they maybe exes? Or did their families feud over property? Did Paula's family of doctors have something against Alison's family of business moguls?

The brunette's thoughts were shaken when the dean bore his weight on his ankles, discomfort visible, "Miss Avery, if you have something to say about the incident, it would be smart to not disclose it here."

What a stressful meeting, Emily thought as she stood and walked towards the exit.

She was sitting this one out, letting Paula give the dean a hard time. If that was her way of expressing grief, then Emily wouldn't hold her against it.

She stepped out into the hall, thankful that the temperature outside was slightly warmer than the air-conditioned room she was just in. She couldn't stand being in there any longer anyway.

Now what?

The meeting was technically set during school hours, which meant that it accounted for one unit of attendance in her morning class. Since she left, she had nothing else to do. She considered to walk around campus to clear her head but quickly decided against it when the auditorium doors swung open and a very disgruntled redhead walked through the doorway. No one in her clique seemed to follow her probably due to her apparent irritation.

The redhead's eyes landed on Emily who still had not moved from where she stood. They were a few feet away from one another, Paula being closer to the door and Emily just standing there, watching her. The hall was quiet, which gave the air a thick and awkward feel.

Emily watched her roommate with tired eyes and sighed, turning the other way to walk back to their room. She had nothing to say, and no obvious made-up story would convince her that Paula and Ali didn't clash on every single opportunity. Unless of course the redhead would tell all right there and then.

"If you're wondering, the answer is yes," Paula admitted. Emily was unsure about what she meant and so turned to face her roommate.

"Yes?" she inquired.

"I firmly believe that Ken Dilaurentis' daughter had something to do with that fire," the other girl informed with a stern face, leaving Emily in a state of disbelief.

"That's a heavy accusation," Emily countered, her anger not reaching her eyes. At the back of her mind she did heavily wonder why Alison was there when she hadn't seen her inside the library. She clutched no books, no bag, literally not a visual cue to prove that she was indeed just there to study.

"I stand by it. And judging by the look on your face, I bet you're questioning her reason for being there that morning." Paula said with spite before striding towards the brunette and continuing, "Just ask me, Emily. We both know you're too intrigued."

"Fine," the swimmer muttered, taking in the sight of Paula's unusually thick sweater that wrapped around her waist. Emily looked her in the eye, "What do you have against Alison?"

Paula closed her eyes and smiled smugly.

And Emily braced herself for what she would hear.

A/N: Hi, guys. The next chapter may or may not reveal what categorizes this story as a fantasy. We're getting there.