Liar 11

WHY IS IT I ALWAYS HAVE TO DO THE HEAVY LIFTING? - A

The message was another puzzle. Paige was getting sick of puzzles, and games, and being afraid. With no idea what she was supposed to have done or not done and not understanding what heavy lifting referred to, she wanted to scream.

Spencer was holding back. Jenna was convinced any friendship with her would lead to making Emily and her friends angry. Due to someone trying to run her down with a car, for reasons that were at best unknown and at worst completely terrifying, Paige hadn't slept in days. When piled onto the taunting from all the mysterious messages, she was over it.

Standing at her locker, Paige had two choices. Choice one was to throw out the note and just ignore the taunt. Choice two was to face it head on. Neither seemed all that effective. One option made her feel, even if it was a lie, that she was in control.

"What is it you want from me?" Paige asked in a text to the number that had been reaching out to her before now. She considered that the paper message might be someone else trying to torment her but at least this felt pro-active.

The words seemed to fall on deaf ears. As students hurried by, the phone, clutched in Paige's hand, did nothing. Paige moved to throw the phone in her locker when it suddenly vibrated. Startled she slowly turned it over to read the screen.

"Impressive that you asked but I'm not telling." - A

"What the hell?" Paige said loud enough to get the attention of some people standing nearby. The judgment was clear on the faces of her peers but Paige didn't care. What was going on was ludicrous and she had enough.

There were her final few classes of the day to consider but Paige was done. With what was happening there was no way her education was going to be improved upon while her mind swirled over the mystery that was gripping her life. The school had a very flexible policy when it came to leaving school grounds and she was about to exercise it. The rest of the school day be damned; enough was enough. If her teachers wanted to toss her in detention for skipping class she would drum up a doctor's note. It couldn't be too difficult considering a car had hit her. Shoving her phone and the note in her pant's pocket and tossing her books back into her locker, Paige grabbed her jacket and then slammed the door shut.

Moving her way through the nearly empty corridors Paige weaved around a pair of students who seemed more inclined to be smoking in the courtyard then going to class. One of them was at least polite enough to apologize as he nearly backed into her while laughing with his friend.

"No worries." Paige offered with a glance back as she continued down the corridor.

As she turned back to look where she was going Paige didn't have time to avoid a collision which sent a shock wave of pain up her arm and into her shoulder. It was so intense she felt tears well in her eyes.

"Paige, are you okay?" Emily Fields said as she wrapped her arms around Paige keeping the both of them from toppling over. The books Emily had been carrying weren't so lucky as they crashed to the ground.

"No." Paige somehow managed to say though the pain, the frustration, and the exhaustion. Reaching up, she gently rubbed her damaged shoulder in a gesture that was more about comfort than pain relief.

"I'm so sorry. Your arm."

"It was my fault. I should have been watching where I was going." Paige managed to say while unsuccessfully holding back tears for a limb that had managed only a small amount of damage during the hit and run. "Damn it."

"What's going on?"

"It's nothing, Emily."

"It's not nothing. Where were you going?"

Paige pulled away from Emily's grasp. "I just need to get out of here."

"Okay, something has happened cause you were fine when I saw you last period."

"Emily, look, thank you. I'm sorry about the books but I have to go."

Not waiting for Emily to protest any further Paige continued down the hallway towards the exit.

"Paige, wait up." Yelled a persistent Emily as she made her way at a run down the tree-lined street. "What is going on?"

Paige wanted to be invisible in that moment, an ironic wish considering how long she felt invisible while a student at Rosewood. She wanted to keep going, ignore the question, but this was Emily and Paige was powerless where she was concerned. Stopping at the street corner she took a deep breath and turned. "I needed to get out of there."

"Something happened."

"Yes. Something has been happening for days now."

"Is this about the accident?"

"And about A. Texts, notes in my locker, and you being so deeply sad." The last part she hadn't intended to say.

"A?" Emily's face went white. "What do you mean, A?"

"Crap." Paige thought as she realized what she had done. "Nothing, it's nothing."

"It's not nothing. What do you know of A?"

She was trapped so she figured she might as well share. "I've been getting messages since the accident. Like someone is trying to motivate me to do something but they won't tell me what it is."

Emily seemed to force herself to calm down. "I understand." She was keeping the secret that she didn't know Paige was already in on thanks to the others.

"But you shouldn't have to, that's the point."

"What's happened since I saw you earlier?"

It was going to be a race to see which of them got to the other girls first so Paige pulled the note from her pocket. It was crumbled but Emily carefully pulled it apart. Her eyes scanned across the page and she took a very deep breath.

"Yeah," Paige said as she slowly started to head further down the street. It wasn't as if she was leaving Emily behind, Paige just couldn't stand still.

Without missing a beat Emily picked up the hint and began walking to catch up. "Look Paige, I promise you we will figure this out."

"I promised myself I wouldn't be manipulated by anyone anymore. Now here I am, a chess piece again." The floodgates were opening and Paige was helpless to stop the honesty.

"Spencer would probably say, that even a pawn could help capture the king."

"But who are we after; this A person, or the person that hit me, or the person who took Maya from you, or are they all the same. I'm sorry I haven't slept in days. Maybe this is just exhaustion talking."

A hand slowly took Paige's and warmth rose from her palms, up her wrist, along her arm, and gripped her heart. Emily was holding her hand and suddenly nothing else mattered. Paige could have, and maybe should have, left it alone but she didn't. "How do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Always know exactly what to do. No doubts. You just do it."

Emily laughed that soft, shy, laugh which Paige adored. "I have doubts all the time."

"But you still leap."

"Maybe life is too short to do otherwise."

The wisdom of her words was startling considering Maya's murder. Paige gave Emily's hand a gently squeeze and the pair walked the remaining distance to Aria's mother's house silently holding hands.

The house was empty; a given considering the school day wasn't over. Going to the kitchen Paige got them both a glass of water and headed back to the living room after taking the pain medication the doctor's had prescribed after the accident. The collision in the hallway had taken its toll on her.

When she walked in she saw Emily putting her phone back in her pocket. It was likely that someone in their group, maybe all of them, now knew that Emily was aware of Paige's messages from A. The wrath of Spencer Hastings was imminent.

Handing over one of the glasses to Emily, Paige took a deep breath. As she took a seat on the sofa many subjects crossed Paige's mind but she decided to be brave and go for the direct approach. "Your friends are worried about you and so am I especially after last night."

Emily drank from the glass, seemingly taking in the statement. "I'm okay. People grieve in different ways."

"We all get that but lately..."

"I've scared everybody. Hell, I scared myself a little, but there is no reason to worry. I just needed to go through some things."

"And I get that, Emily. I just wish you could go through those things with your friends by your side or with a doctor."

"I thought about what you said and I'm going to try and pull back a little with Nate. You were right. His mourning is only twisting up mine."

"I'm glad I could help. Just promise me if you ever need a friend you'll call me. No matter what."

Emily smiled and placed the glass on the coffee table. "How is it you were having a meltdown not ten minutes ago and now you're the one busy worrying about me?"

"It's how I cope."

"We are a pair, huh?"

The words struck Paige like an arrow. "If only," she thought but had the self-control not to say out loud. Staying silent wasn't enough to keep Paige from revealing as much as her words would have done. A lone tear started to form and then slowly fall. Reaching up to brush it aside, Paige's hand was stopped by Emily's.

Instead a gentle brush of Emily's thumb captured the tear and then her hand held Paige's face. Thousands of words swam in Paige's mind but speaking any of them might have broken the spell. Their eyes were locked on one another. Their energy with one another the night before was coursing through Paige. The previous evening she had the self-control to keep things from getting serious. Today Paige could only manage to look away.

The averting didn't last long as soft lips met hers in a tentative kiss. "Emily is mourning Maya," hammered in Paige's brain but her heart forced her to go along with what was happening.

When the kiss ended Emily's hand remained on Paige's cheek. An already complicated situation was now worse but Paige decided now wasn't the time to think.

The shy smile returned to Emily's face and Paige felt herself blush. "Just no words," she told herself.

Fighting off a yawn, which was far from romantic, Paige then felt Emily's gentle nudge for her to rest. Taking the silent suggestion Paige shifted on the sofa and laid her head in Emily's lap.

As if of the same mind, Emily said nothing. Instead she adjusted herself slightly, allowing Paige a better surface to rest. The second Paige grew comfortable Emily began to softly caress her hair.

Her mind should have been racing so hard it made sleep impossible but before Paige knew it exhaustion took over.

...

The voice of Emily Fields invaded Paige's mind as she began to stir. "She's exhausted."

"Understandable," whispered Ms. Montgomery. Under different circumstances being found asleep in Emily's lap would have caused Paige embarrassment but with recent events, Aria's mom had to understand what was going on. "Do you need anything?"

Emily must have shaken her head as Paige heard footsteps head out of the room.

Despite wanting to remain right where she was, Paige opened her eyes. Words were now in order and the simplest seemed the most obvious. "Thank you."

"Feeling a little better?" Emily asked.

"Much." Paige said sitting up carefully to avoid any more pain in her shoulder.

"Good. Shoulder still hurt?"

"It aches some but my medication seems to have helped a little. Did I hear Ms. Montgomery?"

"She just got home."

"Time to face the music."

"It will be fine. I think she was worried about you."

"She's a kind person."

"She is," Emily said with a smile as her eyes looked anywhere but at Paige.

"Whatever, you think you need to say, you don't."

"I do."

"Emily, it's probably best if we just pretend it didn't happen." Paige had no idea where the courage to say the words came from but she was proud of herself for saying them.

"I don't want to pretend," Emily said with soulful eyes. "I also don't want to lead you on."

"You're not ready."

"I'm not ready yet but I also can't pretend I don't want to be. Nor can I possibly hold you back."

"Emily, it's okay."

"I wish that were true."

"Okay, it's not exactly great but I would never ask you to move towards anything until you were certain. I don't want to be something you try to force on yourself."

"I need time."

"Maya died, Emily. She didn't leave you, or cheat on you. She died. I might not understand the pain but I absolutely understand you need time. I'm not going anywhere."

"How can you possibly say that?"

"Cause it's how I feel."

Emily smiled, weakly. "Thank you."

It was always the hardest response for Paige to give someone. "You're welcome."

A buzzing in Paige's pocket drew her attention to her phone. Carefully reaching in and grabbing it she saw a phone number she didn't know and so she placed it down on the coffee table.

Emily glanced at the phone. "What do you think Spencer wants?"

The phone buzzed again from it's place on the table.

"Spencer?"

"That's her home number."

Paige picked up the phone and answered it on before the call could be sent to voicemail. "Hello. Spencer?"

"Yeah."

"Everything okay?"

"That's why I was calling. Aria said you bailed out of school today and Emily texted us about you getting messages from A. What happened?"

"Nothing. I just needed some space."

"You skipped classes and you told Emily. You need to reevaluate that statement. What aren't you tell me?" Concern peppered with annoyance filled Spencer's tone.

There would be time for all of this later. An easy solution came to mind. "Look, Spencer, can I call you back? Emily's still here and..."

"Emily's there. Why didn't you just say so?"

"So can I call you later?"

"Yes. I've got some more information. Call me as soon as she leaves."

"Okay," Something in Spencer's tone actually made Paige wish Emily wasn't with her. The information she must have dug up sounded urgent. "Talk to you soon."

"Everything okay with Spencer?" Emily asked in a way that seemed to indicate she was suspicious of the call.

"She was looking into something for me."

"And?"

"I'll call her later."

"Paige?"

"Whatever answers she has about what might have happened to me aren't likely to change in a few hours. I need to turn my brain off for a little while longer."

"I don't have to be anywhere until dinner. We could hang out. Watch a movie?"

"You wouldn't mind sticking around?"

"I would love that."

"Movie it is. Let me go ask Ms. Montgomery what she might have to choose from."

With her cellphone in her pocket, Paige got up from the sofa and headed towards the kitchen. Before she reached Aria's mother she pulled her phone out and sent a text to Spencer.

- The message from A upset me and I ran into Emily. I didn't mean to spill to her. Maybe it's better she knows I'm being toyed with so she can focus on something other than Maya.

After only a moment a reply came back.

- Major information but it's better she's with you right now. Text me as soon as she leaves. And I will send one of the others to go and spend time with her.

Paige grew immediately concerned.

- What aren't you able to tell me?

The reply from Spencer was almost instant.

- It can wait. Just text me when she leaves.