Disclaimer: Still don't own it
Alison was becoming paranoid.
As she lay on Emily's bed, she was only half-listening to her companion; who was going on and on about the recent swimming match.
It was late at night and Alison was staying the night over at Emily's; something that was starting to become a habit of sorts. Both were dressed in simply night time shorts with Emily in a black top while the blonde was sporting a flashy pink top that showed a lot on her stomach. After having dinner with Emily's mother, the two had retreated to the bedroom for the rest of the night to gossip; or in this case, Emily listening to Alison gossip. Both Hanna and Aria had to take a rain check on the sleepover since both had family plans that they couldn't get out of; thus why it was just the two of them.
Normally, every sleepover that the blonde arranged with her friends was at Alison's house since it allowed her to be in full control. She would be the one who could comfortably tell the others what they could wear to bed as well as who would share her bed and those who would be on the floor; usually she had Emily next to her for the obvious reasons. Every aspect of the night would be under her purview with no one challenging her at all. However, with the recent taunts coming from A, she was growing increasingly concerned that she could be watched in her own house as well as her room. With the break in and other strange occurrences, she wanted to spend a little time away from possible prying eyes.
When A first went away, Alison had believed that the terror that had haunted her was finally gone. She was able to live her life the way she wanted without some mysterious stalker looking over her shoulder. Even though she had been putting up a façade at the time, there were times that she wanted to break down and tell someone what was happening. She couldn't though since at the time, Alison believed that anyone could have been A; even those who were the closest to her. She remembered back then that she would often test her friends for their loyalty and their commitment to her; often pushing them to their limits in order to see how far they were willing to go for her.
When Mona went to Radley, Alison had assumed that she had been A given that the texts had suddenly stopped. It had made sense at the time, Mona hated her given everything she had done to the loser and the shorter teen was smart enough to be A. While there was a chance that the shorter teen could have had partners, none of them ever made move against the blonde; thus Alison believed that it was over. There had been a part of Alison that had suspected that Spencer could be A; but dismissed it after finding out about her drug habit. That was one of the reasons why she was kicked out of the group; Alison took precedence over everything else.
Alison knew that Mona and Spencer were behind the new A; though she didn't have any solid proof. The two always seemed to have an alibi whenever she got an A text; especially those that commented on something that she had just done. There was a chance that the two teens had a partner and he or she was doing their dirty work for them in order to throw her off; something she considered on many occasion. The problem is that everyone she had paid to watch them stated that there was no one they associated with outside of themselves; it was always those two alone with no third wheel. While Alison suspected Toby could be involved in some way or even Jenna, there just wasn't any proof.
There were times where Alison wondered if she had made a mistake in isolating Mona and not bringing her in. It was obvious that the teen had a devious steak in her and the blonde could have used that in her group; especially since Mona had also been so enthralled with Alison. Spencer had been a waste of time and her drug habit nearly screwed up things for everyone. The fact that the brainiac had the nerve to confront Alison over Hanna was enough to prove that she wasn't reliable in the group. What Spencer didn't understand was that Alison was trying to help Hanna go from a fat loser to something better; it didn't matter how as long as it helped her popularity.
Besides, Hanna needed to lose the weight anyways.
The problem now was that Alison was lacking any real brain power in her little group. This was the reason why Spencer was chosen in the first place since the teen had always been the smart one. Though each in the group had enough to get by in grades, though Hanna was struggling, they needed someone who could match wits with her enemies. Of course, that left very few that could now take that role given that Mona and Spencer were at the top of the class. Plus Alison had screwed up slightly by alienating so many of the nerds at school that none of them would be willing to help now. There was a chance that she could charm the twins Cindy and Mindy but even their combined intelligence was dwarfed by her enemies.
"So what do you think?" Emily asked while still looking through her drawer; shaking Alison out of her inner musings.
"Go with it," Alison answered casually, having no clue what she just told Emily what to do and wondered if she should have at least listened first.
"So I should spend the week at the camp to work on my swimming then; thank you, I was concerned you would think of it as a bad idea to be away from Rosewood right now," stated the teen as she turned towards Alison with a smile on her face.
"Why wouldn't I think it's a good idea; swimming is the one thing you are actually good at," Alison said offhandedly and waved Emily off; which caused a crack in the other girl's smile and look away ashamed.
"Will you be fine; I've noticed that you seem off lately," the athletic teen said and visibly flinched when Alison narrowed her eyes at her.
"What do you mean?" demanded the blonde, a little more harshly than she would have wanted but didn't care.
"Well I've noticed that you have been distracted a lot lately and the others have noticed it too; if you need help with something, we are here for you," said Emily gently, sitting down next to the blonde on the bed.
"I'm fine Emily; it's just hard sometimes to keep you all in order," informed the blonde in a testy tone. While her friend's concern was more than genuine, Alison was too worked up to care.
"I'll go get us some ice cream," stated the other teen, appearing to be slightly angry at what Alison had said and then left suddenly without another word.
The blonde groaned and just shook her head, annoyed that she would now have to make it right with Emily in order to placate her. While the teen was docile and easy going most of the time, there were extremely rare moments when Emily lost her patience with Alison; thus moments like this happened. This usually meant that Alison would have to flirt with the teen in order to bring her around again. She knew each girl's weaknesses when things like this popped up so it wouldn't take too long to accomplish; though there were times that it felt like a chore. There was a part of her that screamed she should just tell them what is going on in order for take the fight to A.
Unfortunately, Alison just had too many secrets that she couldn't risk getting out.
While she doubted that any of the girls were working for A, she had noticed slight differences in their behavior as of late. Emily seemed to be coming out of the closet very subtly; ever since her breakup with Ben. Hanna had a slight bounce in her step and Alison knew it wasn't coming from Sean; concluding that there was a chance that her friend might be seeing someone on the side without telling anyone. Even Aria was hiding something and the blonde had absolutely no idea what it was; though it might be the same with Hanna and she had a guy on the side. The blonde had caught Aria texting someone and the way she was being giddy about it, it was definitely a guy. Her girls were keeping secrets and that bothered Alison greatly since she was the only one who was allowed to keep things hidden.
There was a noise outside her window and Alison went to see what it was. She then heard sirens and saw the fire trucks race past the Fields residence and down the street; almost if they were heading in the direction of her house. There was a feeling in the back of her neck telling her that something was wrong; which sometimes came just after she got a text from A. Immediately going to her stuff that was in the corner, Alison pilled out her phone and sent a message to her mother and asked if everything was alright. It took a few minutes, but the blonde got a text back and her eyes widened. Without thinking, she sat down on the bed and just froze at the implications of what she just read.
According to her mom, the gazebo in the backyard was torched in an apparent case of arson; which the police were now investigating. Given her close proximity to the property, Alison had no doubt that Spencer had something to do with it though her mother stated that none of the sensors had lit up. The entire outer property was littered with the lights in order to alert the household to possible intruders; which failed miserably in this case. The blonde had no doubt that her former friend knew of ways to get around that; probably learned from Mona. Alison also knew that Spencer would probably have an alibi for the deed since it was done while her parents were still at home.
Her phone suddenly beeped and Alison looked down at her phone to see if her mother had texted; her blood running cold on whom it really was.
From the Ashes of the Gazebo, the Phoenix of the Truth Shall Rise in the form of Bethany Young Kisses -A
If Alison could scream, she would but that would cause Emily to come running and ask questions that the blonde would not answer. When she read that the gazebo had been burned down, she thought that it was just another way for A to harass her; Alison never conceived that A would know about the secret that lay beneath. This meant that if Spencer and Mona really were A, then they knew more than the blonde ever would have thought. She had no doubt that the police would find out soon what was buried under the ruins of the former shelter and then things would really escalate. Before Emily could return, Alison went to her things and put on some long pants since she needed to go out and make a phone call.
"Where are you going?" a confused Emily asked as Alison entered the hall to find her friend hold two bowels of pumpkin ice cream.
"I need to talk to my mom in private; there was a fire at home and she needs to give me some instructions," answered the blonde and Emily suddenly became concerned.
"Did you need me to do anything? My mom could drive us to your house," stated the taller teen with apprehension in her voice.
"No; I just need to talk to her so I'll be back in a few minutes. I still need to brush your hair for the night anyways so get everything ready," ordered Alison and she headed downstairs with waiting for a reply. Emily always loved it when Alison brushed her hair and the blonde knew it; one of the many things she used to control her.
Once she was downstairs, Alison stepped outside onto the Fields' porch and looked around to make sure the coast was clear. The sky was dark with the some cloud cover and there was a slight chill in the air; though not enough to cause the blond any discomfort. After checking that she was out of ear shot of anyone that could hear her, Alison dialed a number that she knew by heart; not risking programing it into her phone. For some reason, the blonde was tempted to buy a new phone since she believed that this one might be compromised; though she didn't know much about spying, Alison did watch a lot of television. She waited while the phone rang a few times before the person on the other end picked up.
"Hello Alison; what's up?" asked Cece Drake on the other end of the line. She sounded buzzed and Alison concluded that she was drinking; also probably with a guy.
"We have a problem," stated the blonde, almost panicking as she looked around nervously, somewhat paranoid that A could be listening.
"What is it?" inquired her blonde friend, sensing the younger teen's worry by the tone of her voice. Cece knew Alison well and understood that the younger blonde would not call if something was not up.
"A burned down the Gazebo and sent me a text about Bethany; obviously they know," stated Alison as fear trickled into her voice.
"Are you sure?" demanded Cece and Alison could hear the trepidation in her friend's voice. The older blonde had just as much to lose as Alison did if the truth came out.
"Yes; what are we going to do? If A knows about Bethany being buried under the gazebo, then she obviously knows how she got there," Alison said adamantly.
"Don't jump the gun; we don't know how much A truly knows or we'd be seeing a lot more than a burned down gazebo. Even if the body comes to light, that doesn't mean it will be traced back to us. Every bit of evidence that could have connected us to Bethany was destroyed at the fire at Radley," said the voice on the other end with conviction. Alison had to admit that her friend was right given that the two went to great lengths to wipe out any trace of their involvement in the whole messy affair.
"You're forgetting who we are dealing with; Spencer and Mona won't stop until I am buried just as deep as Bethany is," affirmed the young blonde with venom dripping in her tone.
"If it's them; we are still not completely sure," countered Cece and she could be heard pouring herself another drink.
"It's them; I feel it in my soul," said Alison and it was ironic that she said that since many felt that the blonde lacked a soul.
"Well maybe you should have been more careful on how you treated those two in the first place; if they are A, then you are the reason why they are your enemies now," Cece chided, reminding her friend why they were in this mess in the first place.
"If you had managed to take out Mona like you were supposed to; then we would only be dealing with one of them," argued the younger teen adamantly. Alison had been enraged that Mona had survived after being hit by the car; wishing that she could have done the deed herself.
"Murder might be an easy thing for you Alison but I have more reservations," stated older blonde offhandedly.
"What I did was an accident; it was A's fault that Bethany was there in the first place," countered Alison, remembering the events of that night and shuddered at the thought of it.
"You can't blame A for everything and there was only one reason why Bethany was there. If the police find her body, just keep quiet and keep me informed. Also, act normally so A and the authorities aren't too suspicious," Cece practically ordered before hanging up; much to Alison's anger. While she counted Cece as her greatest friend and ally, there were times that the older blonde infuriated her.
The younger blonde then called her mother and asked for an update on what was happening at her home. The police were still there and would probably be still there in the morning; so Alison was to stay away from the time being. The young blonde became especially nervous when Jessica mentioned that there were police dogs mulling about the property and that they were acting strange; which prompted the police to focus their investigation on the remains of the gazebo itself. Alison had no doubt that the body of Bethany Young would be unearthed soon and things would soon begin to unravel. After hanging up, Alison went back into the house, giving Mrs. Fields a fake smile as she went back up to Emily's room.
The rest of the night went pretty standard as Alison put on a fake personality in order to hide what she was really feeling. Emily had to complain that the blonde was brushing her hair too hard and once again asked if everything was alright; which Alison answered that it was and ordered Emily to hold still. Afterwards, it was lights out and the blonde let her friend hold her close while they slept in order to make up for what happened earlier. While she would never admit it out loud, Alison liked it when Emily wrapped her arms around the blonde; feeling it as another way to hold power over the swimmer. While Alison was into boys, she liked to mess with people's heads on where her interests really lie.
After all, Alison was a Queen and only her rule mattered.
Please Read and Review; also a shout out to my friend Paraddicted for the pre-read!