Chapter 38 - Monday
Aria's pov
We were all standing by the front doors of the school, waiting for the bell to ring. Everyone knows that Alison is coming back to school today, why she chose to come back so soon is beyond me.
"Oh my god! Alison Dilaurentis is coming!" We heard someone say and all turned towards the doors. When Alison and Hanna walked into the school, all conversations ceased. She looked around at everyone, and I knew she was looking for us. When Ali finally caught sight of us, she gave us a look that we knew all to well - she wasn't happy with us. She excused herself from Hanna and a few other classmates for a moment and came over to us.
"Thought you girls were going to wait for me? Hanna was the only one there." Alison said walking up to us.
"I couldn't, not after everything that has ever happened." I said and she looked at me, challenging me to stand up to her.
"So you can forgive Fitz, but not your best friend?" She asked and I resisted the urge to scoff. She actually believes that she's a best friend after everything that she has put us through?
"Im not just talking about recent events Alison, you've never been a real friend. Real friends don't let their stalkers target their friends, or drug them to see if said friends was the said stalker. You let us believe you were dead this whole time, only coming to see us when it was convenient for you. Maybe you did have a few moments where you really did care for us, but 99% of the time you were a bully and only cared about yourself. Ezra... he may have lied about a lot, but he never lied to me about his feelings for me. Or blackmail me into doing what he wanted me to do, and he took a bullet for all of you. So yes, I can forgive him... but I can't forgive you for anything you ever did to us or anyone else." I said and walked off.
"You'll be sorry." She called after me and I turned around.
"Get over yourself Alison, this isn't your school anymore. I've lived my life without you long enough to know that... I don't need you. I know who my real friends are, and hell will freeze over before I get close to you again." I said and walked off to class.
...
I was picking around at my salad when Spencer and Toby sat down next to me.
"Okay, what's the deal? You've pretty much avoiding having any kind of conversation with me since I picked you up Saturday. Please tell me you and Ezra actually talked about everything." She said, and I knew I had to tell her.
"We talked... and we may have had a slip." I said and she stared at me.
"What do you mean a slip?" Spencer asked and I heard a hint of judgement in her voice.
"Well technically, it was two slips. We were going over the papers and one thing led to another..." I said as Spencer stared at me.
"You couldn't sleep or eat for days after you found out! Aria, your heart was broken like a broken nesting doll. Shattered pieces all over the place, no one knew how you would be from one minute to the next!" Spencer pointed out to me like I didn't know any of that. But before either of us could say anything else, everyone else came and sat down.
"What are we talking about?" Chloe asked, noticing the staring contest between me and Spencer.
"Aria and Ezra had a slip on Saturday." Spencer said and as I was about to open my mouth, she continued.
"Ar, you know I've always been team Ezria... but he broke you bad enough that the memories made you sick, and you couldn't eat or sleep for days! Then barely a week after that night, you two just jump into bed as if none of the past few weeks didn't happen?" She said and nobody seemed to know what to do or say.
"What do you think happened when you dropped me off? That I just pushed him onto the bed and went to town with him? We talked, for a long time before and quite some time after. Especially after I was done listening to his heartbeat... that he could have lost! You know what, I'm not hungry anymore." I said and picked up my tray.
"Aria don't go." Toby said and I shook my head before walking off. I dumped my food and headed towards the library, as I made it halfway Spencer caught up to me.
"I'm sorry, I was out of line. I just don't want to see you hurt like that again, it broke me to see you the way you were." She said and I knew what she meant.
"I know you don't and I know you mean well." I said and she pulled me into a hug.
"So does this mean you two are back together?" Spencer asked and I nodded.
"Yeah... we are." I said smiling.
"When is he coming home?" She asked and I couldn't contain my happiness about him coming home to me.
"If everything stays perfect, I'll bringing him home Friday after school." I said quietly and Spencer smiled at me.