After a seemingly endless two-hour train ride, Hanna couldn't have been more grateful that the journey had come to an end. She made a mental note to herself to never take a tired toddler alone on a train again. She had hoped that, after having her skip her afternoon nap, Stella would have slept through the whole ride. The lack of sleep ended up having the opposite effect on the two-year-old; between Stella not wanting to sit in her seat, wanting a snack, or having to pee every twenty minutes, Hanna wasn't sure whether she herself would make it to the end of the ride.
Hanna got off the train with her daughter in her arms, and looked around for her mother, who was supposed to pick her up. Instead, she spotted Spencer, who was waiting to greet her with a smile. Hanna walked up to her best friend and gave her a hug. "Spencer, what are you doing here?"
"Your mom called me. She's stuck in a meeting at the hotel and asked if I could come get you," Spencer smiled, "I thought you weren't coming back until the weekend?"
Hanna cleared her throat, "Yeah, change of plans," She muttered, "I thought I'd come back a few days earlier to catch up with everyone. God, it's been forever since the four of us were all in the same place at the same time."
"It really has," Spencer agreed, "And I guess this just means that I get to spend more days with my favorite goddaughter," She added, reaching out to take Stella from Hanna.
Hanna raised her eyebrow, "I'm pretty sure that she's your only goddaughter. Plus, she's been Miss. Crankypants lately, so have fun with that."
"Stella? Cranky? Never," Spencer laughed as she bounced the toddler on her hip, which elicited a giggle from Stella, "See Han, good as new."
Hanna rolled her eyes and smiled as they headed off to collect her luggage. As they strolled away from the platform, Spencer noticed that Hanna's family was one member short.
"Where's Caleb? Did he not come with you?" She asked, a little confused.
Hanna's smile disappeared. "No. He had some big project at work that he had to complete," She mumbled. Hanna hated lying to Spencer, but she didn't feel like talking about it to anyone. "Are Aria and Em in town yet?" She questioned, trying to change the subject.
"Yeah," Spencer confirmed, "Emily's flight got in yesterday, and Aria got in this morning. I am actually supposed to be meeting them for coffee in a bit if you want to come. We can swing by your mom's house and drop off your bags, then head to The Brew."
"I'm actually not staying with my mom. She and Ted are currently doing some remodeling so the upstairs is a mess," Hanna rolled her eyes, "But she did set me up with a room at The Radley. We can just drop my bags off there later, let's go straight to The Brew to see the girls. I've missed you all so much."
"I've missed you too, Han," Spencer said with a smile on her face, wrapping her free arm around Hanna's shoulder as they reached her SUV.
The day had seemed to drag on for Caleb, at least since he'd returned to work that afternoon. No matter how hard he tried to concentrate on the task in hand, his mind kept wandering back to his relationship with Hanna. When they had first moved to New York, they had spent every moment that they could together; they were finally free from high school, their parents, and most of all, -A drama. Then, they were just high school sweethearts, ready to spend the rest of their lives together.
Most nights, he and Hanna had explored the nightlife that the city had to offer. Unsurprisingly, Hanna had loved the club scene. It helped her in her line of work; she would wear her newest creations to the parties in order to get her name out there, hoping that the right person would take notice and offer her work. Going to the clubs wasn't exactly Caleb's favorite way for them to spend time together, but he supported his girlfriend's ambitions and stood beside her, often in order to protect her from the creepy perverts at the venues. Not that Hanna couldn't take care of herself, if she needed to.
When the couple had wanted to spend quiet nights together, they would head up north to the Adirondack State Park, recreating the special moment that they had shared with each other when he had first arrived in Rosewood. One of their last fall camping trips, combined with a little too much alcohol and a forgotten condom, had resulted in a surprise pregnancy. Initially, Caleb and Hanna were scared about being young parents, and worried about how bringing a baby into the world would change their lives. Once they'd had their first sonogram, however, and seen the miracle they had created, they'd known that as long as they had each other, they would be ok.
When the doctor had revealed that they were expecting a girl, Hanna was over the moon. She had always dreamed about having a daughter, one that she could teach about fashion, make-up, and shopping. The idea of having a little girl had affected Caleb more than he'd thought it would. Sure, having a son would be easier, considering the fact that he knew more about boys, but once he imagined his daughter looking a lot like the women he fell in love with, and thought about how she would most likely have him wrapped around her little finger, Caleb couldn't think of anything better. It was no secret that his upbringing hadn't been the best, and he was determined to make sure that his child, and future children, knew what love was.
Caleb and Hanna knew right away that they wanted to ask Spencer and Toby to be Stella's godparents. Despite living two states away from each other, the couples remained close after they had graduated. When they would would visit each other's towns, the boys always liked to stay in and have a 'guys' night', which normally consisted of them drinking beer and playing video games. Hanna and Spencer liked to hit the mall or have a spa day. Even after Stella was born, the girls would take her with them and adorn her with new outfits. Caleb didn't mind them spoiling her; how could anybody resist his little girl when she was running around in cute flowery dresses with headbands to match? Caleb had no doubt in his mind that it was Hanna's mission to make Stella the cutest tot in town.
As Caleb and Hanna's lives had gradually become busier, they'd seen less and less of their friends; mostly, they stayed in touch through phone calls and texts. Between the demands of parenting, Caleb's job, and Hanna's classes, they'd begun to see less of each other as well. Caleb couldn't pinpoint the exact moment that everything had started to go south; it had seemed like everything was building up, until it finally came to a head.
Something always tended to come up to ruin their plans; for Hanna's birthday last year, Caleb had planned to surprise her by taking her out to a romantic dinner, before ending the evening by proposing to her during a moonlit walk through Central Park. He had always intended to take Hanna to Paris, her favorite city, to ask her to marry him. But with Stella only six months old at the time, it wasn't really possible. Before Caleb had even had a chance to tell Hanna about his plans, she had announced that one of her professors at FIT had invited a select few of her students to attend a huge fashion event in LA. Hanna had been so excited about going, that Caleb had stayed silent about his surprise, and she had gone to LA. He couldn't put all the blame on Hanna, though; Caleb's boss was always asking him to work on various special projects, which required working extra hours, and Caleb never said no. Being the man of the house, he wanted to make sure that he was able to provide his family with everything that they needed.
When Caleb finally left work that evening, he wasn't sure as to what he should do next. He could go home, but the apartment would be too quiet, and he would be left alone with his thoughts again. He could have gone to the bar down the street and had a beer or two, but ultimately Caleb decided against the idea when he realized that, in his current state, one or two beers could lead to more, and he didn't want to risk doing anything stupid with no one around to stop him. Instead, Caleb jumped in his jeep and pulled out his cell phone. When the screen lit up, he felt a tug at his heart; the wallpaper on his phone was a picture that was taken back in June at Stella's second birthday party. Caleb had been chasing Stella around the back yard at Hanna's mom's house – she was on a sugar high from eating too much cake and ice cream. When he had finally caught up to her, he had picked her up and placed her on his shoulders. Hanna had walked over to the two of them in order to join in on the precious moment, and had given each of them a kiss. Ashley Marin had managed to capture the moment on camera just as Caleb's lips had connected with Hanna's, Stella giggling from above. At first, Caleb had thought that it was the cheesiest picture ever, but once Hanna had made it his phone background, he couldn't stop looking at it.
As his finger hovered over his contacts, Caleb felt a strong temptation to call Hanna, just to hear her voice. He knew, however, that it would only make matters worse. She had asked him for some space, and he wanted to respect that, but the fact that he missed her really didn't help. Even though she had only been gone for a few hours, the distance between them made it feel like much longer. She would most likely be in Rosewood by now, probably catching up with Spencer, Aria, and Emily. If Caleb had joined Hanna for the trip, he probably would have been out fishing with Toby; he could have used some guy time with his best friend in order to take his mind off of missing Hanna. Spencer had once advised them to 'never underestimate the power of a good bromance', after all. Hanna and Spencer were always giving the guys a hard time about their friendship. Maybe talking to Toby wouldn't be such a bad thing; given that Spencer would be preoccupied with the Charlotte ordeal, Toby would most likely have some free time to join Caleb in New York. Anything would be better that sitting home alone, waiting for Hanna and Stella to return.
Hanna's first week in Rosewood went by very quickly – she was thankful that she had something to keep her mind occupied. As much as she missed Caleb, she knew that if she thought about him too much, she would break down. She had felt bad for walking out on him like that – they could have talked it out, but Hanna's fight or flight instincts had caused her to run. She was scared that she and Caleb were falling apart, and she wasn't ready to accept it. So when the letter from the court had arrived, it had given Hanna an out that she had willingly taken.
The four girls had met Ali first thing that Monday morning in order to discuss Charlotte's hearing. Ali had pleaded with them to tell the courts that her sister should go free, regardless as to whether it was a lie or not. She wanted the girls to say that they felt Charlotte posed no threat to them, and that they were not afraid of her anymore. Hanna couldn't believe what she had heard. No way would she agree to this. As far as Hanna was concerned, Charlotte should be locked up in that psychiatric hospital, rotting away for the rest of her miserable life. She did not want to think about a person like that being free – she could easily come after her again, or worse, her daughter. She stood firm with her decision, as did the others.
However, on the day of the hearing later that week, Hanna had frozen. As much as it had pained her to lie, Hanna had told the judge that Charlotte should be released. Spencer, Emily, and even Mona had caved as well, telling the judge that they felt Charlotte was not a danger to others anymore. Aria had been the only one to speak the truth. After the hearing, everyone had gone their separate ways – no one wanted to discuss what had happened in the courtroom. If Caleb had been there, he would have pulled Hanna into a hug, and reassured her that she had done the right thing. He had a magical way of calming her down when she was doubting herself. She missed that, she missed him. Hanna had gone back to her hotel room after parting with the girls; seeing her daughter's face and cuddling with her until she fell asleep always helped to take the stress away.
After a week of the judge deliberating, Hanna was called back to the courthouse in order to find out whether or not Charlotte would be released. She could tell when she met the others outside, that they were just as nervous to hear the verdict as she was. Even though it was just a formal hearing, the girls had promised Ali that they would be there for support. Hanna walked into the courtroom and sat in the first row of chairs behind Ali, Charlotte and Dr. Rollins, Charlotte's doctor. Spencer sat next to Hanna, with Aria and Emily on the other side of her. The four best friends linked hands as the judge arrived to announce his decision. Hanna's heart sank when the judge revealed that Charlotte was able to go free – she couldn't believe what had just happened. In front of her, the DiLaurentis sisters embraced each other and began to cry, what Hanna assumed were tears of joy.
Ali broke away from her sister and turned towards the girls. "Thank you so much for everything you've done for Charlotte and I. I don't know how I could ever repay you for giving me my sister back."
Hanna didn't know how to respond. It was amazing to her that, after seven years, they were still under Ali's spell.
"It was nothing Ali. You would have done the same for us if we had asked," Emily smiled.
Ali hugged each of the girls, and then left with Charlotte and Dr. Rollins.
"Can we just get out of here?" Hanna muttered; she was beginning to feel more and more claustrophobic the longer she stood in the room.
"Yeah, let's go," Emily nodded as she wrapped her arm around Hanna.
"So that's that," Spencer remarked as they walked outside.
"You guys wanna hear something funny?" Hanna asked, laughing a little.
"I would love to hear something funny," Emily said, needing some light relief.
Hanna pursed her lips, "I thought it wouldn't matter what we said to the judge, because I thought they would never let her out. I thought that we could lie to Ali one more time and it wouldn't matter. But it did. They let -A out," She finished, letting out a small chuckle.
"Wouldn't it just be the biggest cosmic joke ever if Charlotte gets to live happily ever after?" Aria asked
"If she can do it, so can we," Emily stated.
"How about we go to The Radley. Get a massage at the spa there, order some dinner and wine, and just hang out all night like old times," Hanna suggested.
Spencer smiled, "That sounds like a great idea," She agreed.
Hanna had hoped that the facial and massage would make her feel more relaxed, but they didn't. Emily's comment kept replaying in her head – if Charlotte could have a happy ending, why couldn't they? Hanna wished it was that easy. Being back in Rosewood made her realize how much her life had changed. What she wouldn't give to go back to a simpler time, before the -A mess and adult responsibilities, where her happy ending was still a dream in her head. But Hanna knew that without A, and all of Ali's drama that had created the monsters in the first place, she would probably never have gotten to know Caleb. And of course, without Caleb, she wouldn't have Stella either. Having both of them in her life almost made everything seem worth it.
The girls, and Stella, were currently in Hanna's hotel room; Stella was enjoying all the attention that she had been receiving lately. Emily was sitting on the floor, opposite the toddler, as they tossed a bouncy ball back and forth.
"I can't believe how big she has gotten since the last time I saw her," Aria remarked as she watched the two of them play.
Hanna raised an eyebrow at her friend, "You saw her a little over two months ago at her birthday party."
"I know, but she just seems so much more grown up now," Aria sighed, "I don't remember her talking this much before."
"Tell me about it. Caleb and I have to watch our language around her now. A few weeks ago, Caleb tripped over one of her stuffed animals in the nursery and said a few choice words," Hanna chuckled, "Stella repeated them without hesitation, it took me half an hour to get her to stop. She just kept repeating them, it was a nightmare."
"I am so sorry that I missed her birthday party, Han. I wish I could have been there," Emily frowned, looking back at the toddler as she rolled the ball towards her.
"Don't worry about it, Em," Hanna smiled, sincerely, "You live three thousand miles away. I'm just glad you're here now."
"Me too," Emily grinned at her friend, "Ok Stel, I think my legs are starting to fall asleep sitting down here. Let's go see your mommy." Emily got up off of the floor, and walked over to the couch. Stella was right on her heel, running to Hanna with the ball still in her hand.
"Momma, throw the ball!" Stella exclaimed.
"You know what baby?" Hanna said as she picked Stella up and sat her on her lap, "I think you've had enough fun for one night, it's time for b-e-d."
"No! Play!" The toddler screeched.
"Ugh. Another thing she's learned. I swear 'no' is her favorite word at the minute," Hanna groaned.
"So does that mean you and Caleb aren't talking about having another one any time soon?" Aria asked with a smirk.
"Forget about kid number two, when is he gonna propose?" Emily chimed in, "You guys have been together for like seven years. What is he waiting for?"
Spencer sensed Hanna's hesitation as they waited for her to answer the question, and attempted to change the subject. She knew from talking to Toby that something was going on between Hanna and Caleb, but she didn't want to approach her friend about it until they were alone. "Hey, Toby hasn't proposed either. It must be some kind of pact that the guys made together," She laughed, trying to lighten the mood.
"Speaking of the guys, where are they? I figured that they would both come back with you two," Emily asked.
"You know what?" Hanna said, standing up with Stella – who had long forgotten about playing and was rubbing her tired eyes – in her arms, "I'm going to go and make an attempt to put this munchkin to sleep. Why don't you guys crack open the wine? This momma could use a drink," She laughed as she left the room.
Two bottles of wine and three hours later, Hanna and Spencer were the only still awake. Aria's tiny body was curled up in the oversized sofa chair, whilst Emily had fallen asleep on the opposite end of the couch, with Spencer sitting at her feet. Spencer knew that, now they were effectively alone, it was the best time to bring up the subject of Caleb.
"So are you going to tell me what's really going on?" Spencer asked. Hanna looked back at her, confused. "Come on Hanna, I talked to Toby. He said that Caleb had that look about him."
"What look?" Hanna asking, raising an eyebrow.
"You know the look I'm talking about; you might recognize it from your reflection. He's heartbroken too, Han. What happened?" Spencer pushed her friend for an answer.
"I walked out on him ok! Are you happy now?" Hanna looked around as Emily stirred due to her loud outburst. "I don't want to talk about this Spence," Hanna murmured as she got up and made her way to the bathroom, not wanting to answer her friend's questions. Spencer knew exactly what Hanna was trying to do, and ran the door before she could, standing right in front of it.
"Hanna, don't do this. Don't shut me out too. I'm here for you and I love you. I just want to help you, so talk to me," Spencer pleaded with Hanna.
"I messed up, Spencer," Hanna mumbled quietly, "I was so focused on my career and Stella that I completely neglected our relationship. I took him for granted; he moved to New York for me, paid for my tuition, and even provided for our family whilst I was in school. And how did I repay him? By biting his head off every time I was stressed. All we've done recently is fight. I promised Stella that I wouldn't let her grow up like me, with parents who are separated, and now that's exactly what she has."
"Oh Hanna," Spencer said sadly, pulling her friend into a hug and letting her cry on her shoulder. It was funny – Toby had told her that Caleb had given him almost the exact same speech. Hanna and Caleb were stubborn as hell, and it was no surprise to anyone that they had both put the blame on themselves. Spencer released her hold on Hanna, but kept her hands on her shoulders. "Listen to me. You and Caleb are not your parents. You're not separated. You just had a little fight, and need to spend some time apart. Just call him, tell him what's going on. The love between the two of you is strong, I know that you guys will be ok."
"I can't. What if he hates me?" Hanna sighed, wiping at a tear as it slipped down her cheek, "I mean, I just walked out, with his daughter. What kind of person does that?"
"You were just upset. No relationship is perfect. He could never hate you, Han," Spencer smiled in an attempt to soothe her friend.
"What if we do talk it out and I go home and then it starts all over again? I can't keep putting Stella through that. She doesn't need to grow up in a house full of tension."
"Well you can't avoid him forever, Hanna. Just call him please," Spencer pleaded, pulling her phone out of her pocket and holding it out for Hanna.
Hanna looked down at the phone as more tears started to pour down her face, "I can't Spencer. I just can't." She turned away from her friend and walked back into the bedroom, shutting the door behind her.
Spencer didn't follow her – she knew it was a sign that Hanna was done talking. Sighing, she walked out into the hallway and unlocked her phone. She knew that if Hanna wouldn't listen to her, then she would have to take matters into her own hands. Spencer hit the number on speed dial and waited for him to pick up. Though it was late, she knew that he would still answer.
"Hey babe. Are you ok? It's late," Came a voice from the other end of the line.
"Yeah I'm fine Toby, but Hanna and Caleb aren't. We need a plan."
AN: Thanks to everyone who reviewed chapter 1. Your thought mean everything to me :) You will also be happy to know that I have decided to extend this story to 5 chapters!
And as always, thank you to Katja, Sam, Jane, Kat, Marion, and Jen. This story would not be what it is without you all.