Her flight was delayed. Well, that's what she supposed as nobody called the passengers in yet. Looking at her phone, she realizes she has been waiting for over 2 hours. That's why I never travel with public airlines, she thinks. The private jet she was supposed to take had been requisition for the use of some major finance representative. I guess the fashion industry isn't important enough, although those people wouldn't know how to dress without us. Letting out an exasperated sigh, she looks out the window. Even though it was dark outside, the lights from the airstrips reflected the snow on the ground. New York seemed so peaceful from that perspective; snowflakes slowly falling and the wind carefully blowing them away. With the alpenglow from the city lights in the background, it seemed quiet. As if the time had frozen.

Alison enjoyed the city. She craved that energy while growing up. Her hometown, Rosewood, didn't have all that vivacity, all that liveliness. It was something out of a magazine; everything was pretty and rich. Everybody knew everything about everybody. It was the reason she loved the city so much. Within the chaos of it, she could find peace, liberty.

Getting up to stretch her legs, Alison begins walking toward her gate. Her eyes stumbled over an elderly couple holding hands. Smiling, she observed them for a second. The couple acted as they fell in love, but she was sure they had been together for a long time. She knew it was the definition of true love. Looking at them, her heart ached as she hoped to someday find a love as strong as theirs. As she smiled, a voice got her out of her gaze. "Your attention, please. All the passengers for flight UA2298 must present themselves to the United Airlines front desk, mechanical problems with the plane require us to suspend the flight for tonight. Another plane will be coming to take you to your destination tomorrow morning. We are sorry for the inconvenience" said the flight attendant. Fucking great.

Because of the flight cancellation, the airlines provided the passengers with a hotel room close to the airport for the night. Sure, it wasn't a 4 stars hotel but with the week she had, Alison didn't care; she was exhausted. It was Fashion Week in New York. Working in the high-end fashion industry came with its consequences. Model management, clothes handling, contracts negotiations, design supervision, schedule planning, parties' attendance… She didn't get much sleep and time for herself this week and she couldn't wait to get home to her bed.

Just as she entered her room, her phone began to ring. Can't I have a minute for myself? Leave me the hell alone. Who is even calling me that late? Without looking at the screen, she answered.

"Hello," she said in a spiteful tone.

"Jeez, what's with the attitude"

Of course, it was Hanna. She and Alison attended together fashion week. It was one of the good sides of her job; even if she didn't work for the same company as Hanna, the two of them ran in the same circles.

"Sorry I didn't look at my phone before answering. What's up?" Alison responded.

"What's up? Girl, I have been waiting for you for over 3 hours! Where the hell are you?"

Shit. With her plane delayed and the hotel management, she had forgotten to inform Hanna that her flight was cancelled. Because both lived in Los Angeles and were attending the same event, they had decided to travel together. Unfortunately, Hanna had to come back to LA yesterday. Now, she was at the airport, waiting to pick up Alison.

"I'm sorry Han, I forgot to text you. My flight was cancelled tonight due to some mechanical problem with the plane or something. They rescheduled my flight for tomorrow morning."

"Are you serious? I paid for freaking parking! Do you know how much it cost to park at the airport even for 3h? And all these people driving around like they got their driver's license in a crackerjack bag!"

She was feeling guilty that she forgot Hanna but hey, if the girl had googled her flight number, she would have seen it had been cancelled. "I know it's my fault. Could you come to pick me up tomorrow please? I'll make it up to you."

"Yeah, okay, you're lucky that I love you. Text me your flight number and let me know at what time you should be at LAX. Goodnight, Ali."

"Goodnight, Han."

Taking down her phone, she looked at the clock. 23h43. Yeah, I need some sleep.

Waking up the next morning, Alison felt even more shitty than she did yesterday. All she wanted to do was sleep. Sleep. It was rare these days. She couldn't even remember the last decent night she had. Even when she managed to find time to sleep, something or someone would wake her up. Fortunately, she had a week off and she was planning to make the most of it.

Crawling out of bed, she forces herself to put on the same clothes she had yesterday. As she entered the bathroom, she looked at herself in the mirror. Alison was beautiful. She had always been proud of herself, and well, a little full of herself too. She was hot and she knew. She always had been gorgeous, but since she had started working out more intensively, her body had become even more tempting. Everywhere she went, people were looking at her. She always loved the attention she received, but it was starting to get overwhelming. She felt as if people were always giving her attention for her physic and not because they were interested in her. And even if her boss would never tell her, Alison knew her beauty was what made her get the job.

Running her hand through her hair, she smiled at her reflection in the mirror. Grabbing her bag, she walked out the door. As she left her hotel room and headed to the lobby to take the shuttle, she texted Hanna "My plane is leaving at 10h35 so I should be in LA around 14h. My flight changed to UA1717, and I should come out at terminal 4 xoxo".

She didn't have to wait long at the airport to get on the plane. Almost 1h after her arrival, they began calling people in. Taking place in her seat, she looked around. She didn't like public airlines. People were all squeezed up together and it smelled funny. To top it all, there wasn't enough room for the legs, except for small people. Those airplanes are made for people the size of Aria, she smirks. Suddenly, she felt something hit her. Getting out of her thoughts, she looked up; a massive man was sitting in the seat right next to her, compressing his bag on Alison's shoulder. Looking right back at her, he smiled politely. Yes, she hated public airlines. She sighed. It was going to be a long flight. As she put her earphones on, she looked at her phone one last time before putting it in airplane mode. Hanna had replied. "I'll be waiting for you xx". With that, she put her phone away.

"I fucking missed LA. I swear New York was nice, but I do prefer the heat" Alison said as she happily walked toward Hanna. "I can't wait to get in my bed".

"Hello to you too!" Hanna rolled her eyes "You seemed to enjoy yourself pretty good in the city and you know, you had a bed there too. If it wasn't for you being such a controlling freak, I'm sure you could have gotten some sleep" she giggled.

"What do you want Han, I like it my way" Alison sarcastically replied.

Fashion is a golden ticket to good money, Alison thought as she put up her bags in Hanna's car. Her friend recently bought herself a brand-new F-Pace. Not that Alison was jealous because honestly, she would have bought herself a Range Rover instead of a Jaguar. Getting up in the front seat of the car, she notices a swimsuit and some beach towels on the rear seat.

"Are you going somewhere?" Alison asked tossing away the alcohol bottles that were on the seat "or are you just a drunk?" she said with a mischievous grin.

"WE are going somewhere, and YOU are getting drunk" Hanna replied getting in the driver seat.

"What? No, I just got out of the airport, and I want to go home".

"Come on Ali, you need this. It will be good for you to enjoy yourself and to do something that is not related to work." Hanna looked up to Alison "We're going at mine; the girls are already there".

The girls. With their jobs and occupations, they couldn't see each other as much as they would love to, but they managed to stay in contact. Of course, Hanna and Alison got to see each other often as they lived in the same city, but it has been a while since she last saw Aria and Spencer. And Emily. Emily. She hasn't talked to Emily in a while. They didn't talk anymore. The last time they did, they had a horrible fight and Emily ended up walking away. Alison tried for months to contact her without response so eventually, she gave up. There is something funny about how tables turn. Like how it's Emily who walked away even if she always said Alison was the one constantly leaving. It has been 4 years since she last saw her and even if the feelings she once had felt as it had decreased, she couldn't help herself to feel like she let her go. She didn't know if Emily was going to be at Hanna's. Honestly, she didn't want to know if the girl was going to be there. She didn't even want to think about it. There were a lot of things left unsaid between them. Whatever they once had going on, it was exhausting. Just the thought of it made her head spin. Breath, Ali.

"Looks like I don't have much of a choice, you're the one driving the car" Alison commented.

Hanna smirked as she put on her sunglasses. "Stop whining, it's going to ruin your makeup." The girl knew something was off with Alison since she didn't argue at all, but it didn't feel like the right moment to ask what was on her mind. Deciding to avoid the conversation, she kept focusing on the road. It was going to be a long ride home.

Alison climbed on the inflated swan in Hanna's pool. The gin-tonics she had were starting to kick in and she was already a little bit tipsy. Her friends were sitting by the side of the pool, keeping an eye on the blonde. They had spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying themselves for the first time in a while. The night was starting to fall, and the girls just finished having dinner.

Alison approached her friends with her hands in the water on each side of the toy. "Where are you going like that" Spencer giggled. "Guess what" Alison replied, "I need another drink". Aria looked at her friend, "how many drinks have you had, Ali?" Drunkenly smiling, Alison locked her eyes into her friend's. "Four class, I know how to count" she replied confidently.

Alison was happy. It was the happiest she has felt in a long time. Looking at her three friends right now, she knew there was no other place she'd rather be. Her eyes met with Spencer's who had an innocent smile on her face. "What?" Alison asked. "Nothing" Spencer replied, "Happy suits you good". Alison smiled. She was happy that her friend forced her to come to hang out. Wiggling her hips to replace herself on the pool toy, she left out a small squeal as she almost lost balance. "That swan clearly doesn't like to be between your legs", Hanna observes amusingly. The girl always had been straightforward, consistently saying what was on her mind without hesitation. It was a thing Alison loved about her. "Shut up Han" Alison answered unlikely, "it would be the first to not appreciate it" she replied in a playful tone. Her eyes made their way to Aria's who looked at her incredulously. Alison laughs, "what, it's true!". At that moment, Spencer came back with her refill.

Taking the red cup Spencer was handling her, her thoughts went to Emily. The girl wasn't present. Even if she was appeased that the brunette was not there, Alison couldn't help herself to feel a little annoyed. Did Emily refuse to come because of her? Thinking about the girl made her heartache. She never got to have closure and it made Alison regretful. Over the years, she had kept track of the brunette, following her on social media and buying the magazines she would appear on but not once she contacted her. Sometimes, she would catch herself drunk texting or dialling Emily's number, but she never dared to do it. She didn't even know if the brunette still had the same number. She never asked the girls. She knew her friends were still in contact with Emily, but they never talked about her in front of Alison. Well, not in a while.

Alison was cut out of her thoughts as she felt cold water on her skin; Aria had jumped into the pool. God, she had missed her friends.

Waking up the next morning, it took Alison some time to recall where she was. Fuck. She did feel like shit. Slowly recognizing where she was, she wonders how she got there. She had an incredible headache. Looking around, she knew she was in Hanna's guestroom. She squeezed her eyes trying to adjust to the morning sunlight. Scanning the room, she noticed Spencer and Aria still sleeping on the floor. She truly didn't know how she managed to end up in a bed every time. As she stumbles to get up, she had to focus not to trip on her friends. Water and aspirin. Water and aspirin.

Dragging herself downstairs, she could hear music coming out of the kitchen. Walking toward the noise, she notices Hanna sitting at the lunch counter. "Morning Ali", she said with a smile. "Goodmorning Han" Alison replied, making her way to the cabinets to grab a glass. Filling up the glass with water from the sink, she looked back at her friend: "Do you have an aspirin? I feel like my head is going to explode." Hanna got up and opened a cabinet door before handling Alison a small container. Watching Alison, she pressed herself against the counter and crossed her arms. "No wonder why you have a headache, you got yourself waisted last night" Hanna laughed, "I'm surprised you did not get sick". "I rarely get sick from drinking" Alison shrugged as she put her empty glass on the counter. At the same moment, Spencer and Aria walked in. "What time did you guys get up," Spencer asked. "About twenty minutes ago" Alison replied, "but Hanna was already up". "Yeah, I got up early, I had some things to finish for work" Hanna commented. Aria opened the fridge to take out a loaf of bread and some fruits, "Does anybody want some?".

The girls were sitting at the table eating breakfast. "So, what do you want to do today?" Spencer questioned while taking a sip of her orange juice. The girls all looked at each other. "Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm on vacay for the week and I intended to do nothing" Alison spoke up, letting out a small giggle. Aria took a bite of her toast, "you won't be doing nothing" she lets out with a mischievous smile on her face, "Hanna told us you had a week off, so we all managed to get ourselves out of work too." Alison rolled her eyes. Of course, she told them. "I'm sorry girls but I don't feel like coming. I need to have some alone time, I'm exhausted" Alison groaned. Hanna shook her head, "When did you get so boring" she grinned, "anyway, it's not like you had the choice, we already rented a house for the week". Alison breathed out; she was not pleased with the conversation at the table, "girls, you can't just make up something and not inform me". "Yes, we can! And you'll like it I swear" Spencer jumped in. "It will be good for us to spend time all together" Aria chimed. Knowing she wasn't getting out of this, Alison rolled her eyes and smiled. "All right now, where are we going?" The three other girls looked at each other, and almost said at the same time "Malibu!"