"WE GOT SOMEONE OVER HERE!" A firefighter yells as he points to the door. The girls heads shoot up. Emily looks over to the entrance. "Ali?" Emily says. "Stay here." Spencer says as she gets up and walks over to the crowd of emergency officers. "State your name." One of the paramedics asks. "Alison DiLaurentis." Alison coughs. "Ali!" Spencer calls out. She runs over to Alison and sits down next to her. "Spencer." Alison croaks. Spencer gives Alison a hug. "Where is Sarah? She went in after you." Spencer asks. Alison doesn't answer the question. "The fire's out!" One of the firefighters yells out. The crowd of bystanders all start to cheer in appreciation. "Did everyone get out?" He asks the teachers and other paramedics. Alison tries to stand but fails. "Wait, my friend, Sarah, she is still in there. She should be out any minute." Alison says to the paramedic tending to her, denying to herself that she watched her friend die. "Wait Sarah is still in there?" Spencers asks. Alison nods. Spencer gets back up and heads over to the barricade to talk to the firefighters. "Ali?" Alison turns her and sees Emily walking toward her. Both girls burst into tears. Emily sits down next to Alison. "I thought you were dead. The explosion." Emily manages to say through her sobs. Alison hugs Emily tight. "I'm not, I'm right here. Em, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Alison cries into Emily's shoulder. Emily holds Alison as she breaks down. "I love you so much Emily." Alison murmurs into Emily's shoulder. "I love you too Ali. Please don't ever scare me like that again." Emily says in a serious tone before kissing Alison on the top of her head. The smell of smoke filled her nostrils. The girls all walk over as Emily helps Alison stand up. "Ali, thank god you're alright." Aria says as she carefully hugs her. "You smell like a bonfire." Hanna says as she hugs her also.
After a while, the girls all stand by and watch a group of firefighters wearing gas masks and oxygen tanks head into the school. Most of the crowd had disappeared. Teachers left in their own cars while students were picked up by their parents. They wait to hear if they found anything on the radio. Alison was hoping that Sarah got up and found another exit but after explaining to the other girls what happened, the others were doubtful. Aria pulled Hanna and Spencer away from Emily and Alison. "Okay, I'm not the only one who thinks that they are going to pull a body out of there am I?" Aria says to them. Spencer and Hanna both shake their heads. "Ali is clearly in denial. She is going to be devastated." Spencer says looking over to Alison and Emily. "Well, should we break the news to her now?" Hanna asks. Spencers shakes her head. She goes to speak when they hear the radio make some static. There's a voice. 'We've got a body under some of this wreckage, young female, blonde, looks like she died of internal injuries, coroners can confirm. We are going to need a bag.' The radio stops. Alison bursts into tears. Spencer turns to Aria and Hanna, the corners of her eyes teary. "No!" Alison cries out. Emily holds her upright as she sobs hysterically into Emily's chest.
No one had said a word on the ride back to Aria's house. When the girls walked into her house, they were confronted by her worried parents Ella and Byron. "Aria! We heard about the fire. Are you all okay?" Ella asked. All the girls nodded. "Yes, we are fine but…" Aria looks to the other girls before continuing. "Sarah is dead." Aria's voice cracks slightly. "Oh dear lord!" Ella says as she puts her hand to her mouth. "Do her parents know?" Byron asks. Aria shakes her head. "Her parents are dead too. She had no family." Aria hugs her mother before all the girls head upstairs. "She has no family! Really Aria?" Emily says as she closes the door behind her. The girls hear the anger in Emily's voice. "She doesn't though, not that we know of. We were probably the closest thing she had to family." Aria bites back. "Guys, just stop. Arguing about this won't help anything and it won't bring Sarah back." Spencer steps in between Emily and Aria. "Remember guys, we are all in this together. Sarah would want us to stick together." Hanna adds as she stands up from her seated position next to Alison. Alison remains silent, unable to speak. She feels her phone buzz in her pocket. She shyly reaches into her pocket and opens it with shaking hands. 'Must hurt, being the reason she is dead. Don't worry, the torture is just beginning. – A' Alison puts her phone back into her pocket and puts her head in her shaky hands. A is right, it is my fault. I should have stayed and helped her out. I should have saved her. Alison criticizes herself in her mind. She looks up and notices the girls are still arguing, anger clearly being the grief stage they are stuck on at the moment. Alison gets up and slips out the door without the others noticing, she walks out the front door and down the street. She wasn't sure where she was heading but she knew that she just needed to escape.
"Where's Ali?" Spencer finally asks when they stop arguing and calm down. "I don't know. I didn't see her leave." Hanna says as her and Aria look at each other. Emily pulls out her phone and immediately dials Alison. Her phone rings but continues to ring. 'Hi, this is Alison. Clearly I'm too busy to get to the phone right now so please leave a message after the beep.' "Ali, it's Em. Where are you? We didn't even notice you had left. Please call me back and let me know where you are. I love you." Emily leaves a message for Alison on her phone. "Where could she have gone? Her house?" Hanna asks. All the girls think and Emily has an epiphany. "Sarah's cabin!" Emily says aloud. The girls head all shoot up and look at Emily. They all grab their jackets and leave hastily, piling into Spencer's car.
Alison stands outside of Sarah's cabin. She walks up the front step and she hopes the front door isn't locked. She turns the doorknob and the door opens. Alison walks inside and notices the place still smells like Sarah used to. She smiles as she sees a photo of the 6 girls on the kitchen counter. She looks and sees another photo of her, Sarah and Emily. Alison walks into the bedroom and sits down on the side of the bed. On the bedside table next to her, Alison notices a book, 'The Great Expectations.' Alison smiles. She read it. She thinks to herself. She lifts up the book and notices another book underneath, it resembles a journal of sorts. She opens the journal and flips through the pages to the last entry. It was 2 days before, the day of Jason's funeral.
So today is Ali's older brother's funeral and to be honest, I don't want to go. The whole idea of funerals makes me queasy after Mom and Dad but Ali is my best friend and I have to be there for her. I know the pain of losing family. Besides I can't stand not to be around her. She has this radiance to her that just brightens everyone's day but every time I get close to her, I seem to want to get closer and I can't for the sake of Emily. I would never betray my friends like that. Mom would have told me that it is selfish to be in love with Alison and to stop being selfish with my feelings. I understand that now, my Mom died telling me to be the person I wanted to be and I knew that that person was unselfish, kind, protective and caring. I would do anything for Alison, same for Emily and Spencer and Aria and even Hanna. I would even put my life before theirs if I had to, my mother always told me that 'Sacrifice is Bravery and Bravery is Selfless.' Basically I translate that to, any act of sacrifice is a brave thing to do but to sacrifice so much and still be brave and keep moving on, that is the selfless part and my life is the biggest sacrifice I can give these girls. If I die so someone else can live then I will be happy wherever I end up. I just hope it's with my mom and dad.
Alison's allows the tears building up in her eyes fall onto the pages. "Oh Sarah." Alison says as she pulls her knees up to her chest and cries.