I'm still overwhelmed with all your kind words! Thank you for reading this story and reviewing so much! It makes me want to keep this going :)
I'm so excited every time someone reviews this story and you always make me feel a little proud! Thank all of you for that! :)
Hope you enjoy this chapter. And I know a lot of you (if not 90% haha) are Sparia - but Aria still is very confused with this whole Alex thing, so give her some time :) Hope is never lost!
Here it goes...
...
Spencer's heartbeat sped up rapidly, her breathing short and her head was spinning. Ezra's words had hit her hard but before she could say anything, she saw Aria sprinting into the bedroom, Ezra close behind. Spencer couldn't move. It was as if she was frozen to the spot. Suddenly she was scared to face Alex. She knew she had no reason. Aria had told her that she unable to move. And still, the smart girl couldn't get her feed moving.
"What did you do to me? Aria?! Shit, I trusted you!", she heard Alex shout and she listened to the clashing of metal, as she was probably wiggling with her chains to try to get free.
Spencer took a deep breath, preparing herself to face the sister she wished she never had, but before she could even move herself, Caleb came out with a worried look and pulled her inside the room.
"You fuckin' assholes! Let me go!"
Spencer had to admit, as much as she had been anxious to face Alex, she found it quite refreshing to see AD struggle with chains around her wrists and ankles. Somehow it was still a fun sight to witness.
"It's your fucking fault! You selfish little bitch!", Alex had seen her come in and was now furiously yelling out at Spencer.
"I'm the selfish bitch? You are pathetic if you thought you could have pulled that stunt of yours longer than you did! I told you my friends were going to find out the truth!"
"If it wasn't for your little friend here, you would have rotted in that place! Shit, Aria! I thought we had something that night! You cannot tell me it was all fake! I swear those moans were not pretended at all! You're just too scared to fucking admit it!"
Spencer felt her stomach drop at the mention of her and Aria together in bed. She trusted Aria with all her heart, and she believed her when she had said that they didn't sleep together – but she still felt something pull at her heart at just the thought of Aria liking the way Alex would touch her – kiss her – it made her sick.
She looked at Ezra then, who was probably wondering the same thing, as his eyes were glued to Aria and he looked like he was going to explode any minute.
"What the heck is she talking about?", Ezra had turned to Aria now, his words cold and Spencer could see the rage in his eyes. She heard Aria sigh, and it seemed as if she wanted to touch his arm, but she withdrew her hand quickly, avoiding his glance, and sparking a fire she had rarely seen Aria in.
"I let her kiss me, so I knew she would trust me and so she would not be suspicious at all. I needed to do something to get answers, and I knew she liked me – so this was the only way to get you guys out! Both of you! Why does nobody freaking believe me? All I did was so I could get some information out of her! And I did! I risk my life for you morons and all you do is lashing out on me! Pull yourselves together! This isn't Disneyland! So shut the hell up and just be happy to be out of there – Please?"
Spencer's eyes filled with worry when she saw the tears in her best friend's eyes and she felt a pang of guilt, so she slowly reached for the smaller girl's hand and squeezed it affectionately. There were still some things that bothered Spencer about this whole weird thing between her so called twin sister and Aria, but she also understood where Aria was coming from. She felt Aria squeeze back then, but her gaze was back on Ezra, waiting for any reaction.
"We will talk later.", was all Ezra said and Aria rolled her eyes in response, clearly not satisfied with his lack of talking. For a long time no one spoke, no one except for Alex who was still shouting out curse words Spencer had never heard of in her entire life and screaming at them to let her go, promising revenge.
"What do we do with her?"
It was Caleb who asked the question and the first thing that came to Spencer's mind was to drag Alex to her own secret underground, put her in one of those cells, and let her rot there until she would starve to death. She knew though, that this wasn't how normal people handled this situation. Not that they were normal people of course. Then again, Spencer felt like she should at least try and talk to her before they would decide what to do. After all, it might be the last time she would ever speak to her and there were still things out in the open that she wanted to understand, so her mind could finally rest.
"Can I talk to her for a second?"
Spencer was shocked when it weren't her words that filled the room, but Aria's and she dropped her friend's hand like it was fire.
"Absolutely not!", Ezra ranted and for the first time in what felt like years Spencer actually agreed with him.
"Yeah. There is no freaking way you are going to talk to her by yourself!"
Spencer backed up Ezra, not liking at all the idea of Aria and Alex alone in a room – she couldn't even handle the looks Alex was giving Aria with her around and she sure as hell would not let Aria alone with this psycho. She turned to Aria again.
Aria seemed conflicted and she tried to convince them that she would only need a minute to understand, to talk to her about what happened. But there was no way Spencer could bare the thought of Alex hurting Aria in any way possible ever again, and the only way for it not to happen was to be there with her so she could protect her.
"I'm not going to leave you alone in this room with this monster, Aria! Who knows what she's up to! She is a freaking psychotic witch and you're not going to be in the same room as her by yourself - And that's final!" It was Ezra, who spoke again and by the time he finished his rant, he grabbed Aria harshly by her elbow, and tried to pull her out of the room. Spencer could see Aria wince for a second, as Ezra was probably a bit too forceful on her, having his hand wrapped tightly around Aria's arm. In the corner of the eye, Spencer could see Alex wearing an amused look on her face.
"You're hurting me, Ezra!", Aria screamed at him and tried to yank his hand away, but he wouldn't budge and he continued to try drag her out of the room.
"You're not going to be in there any second longer, Aria! That bitch will not lay a finger or even an eye on you ever again, do you hear me?!" His words held a venom, Spencer hadn't seen since the day they about two years ago when their group had accused him of Charlotte's death and his screams made Spencer flinch in fear. Ezra had finally achieved to drag Aria towards the door, even though the tiny girl struggled against his strong hold and Spencer could only witness the desperation and distress in her best friend's face.
"Let her go!", she heard Caleb yell out then and when Ezra didn't obey his orders, and Aria cried out in pain once again, Caleb swung his fist towards the older men's face. Ezra stumbled backwards, losing his balance while releasing his strong hold on Aria, who slumped down to the floor, holding her arm in pain. Spencer could see tears streaming down her face. In one fast step she was by her side, forgetting all about her anger towards her, drawing her into an embrace, careful not to crush her, as Aria winced in pain. Spencer observed the dark mark that formed on Aria's arm. It looked painful, but not too serious. She listened to her quiet sobs and felt Aria's heart beat unevenly fast. Seeing her so upset, Spencer's eyes filled with her own tears and when she felt Alex watching them, she drew Aria closer into her, shielding her from the peering eyes. She spotted Ezra in the corner of the room as he wearily got off the floor, and for a minute Spencer thought he would lash out again - at Caleb perhaps, or even at them, so she held Aria protectively – hoping he wouldn't try to hurt her - but all Ezra did was throw his arms over his head, and letting out a groan, followed by a gasp.
"Shit, Aria. I'm sorry – baby – I'm so sorry." Ezra turned to her and Aria, stepping closer, when suddenly Aria buried her body deeper into her and Spencer looked up at Ezra, anger probably flickering in her eyes.
"Ezra, she is scared. Please, just give her some time.", Spencer was surprised how calmly she had spoken those words when all she wanted was to rant at Ezra for frightening her friend.
"Okay. I should - I'm leaving.", Ezra announced, holding his bloody nose, and he watched Aria as she continued to cry into her best friend's chest. Spencer felt Aria stir under her arms and peek up at Ezra, giving him a small smile and a nod – the gesture baffled Spencer but she didn't say anything - glad Aria wasn't moving out of her arms and relieved that Ezra would leave after what had just happened.
"I'm – I'm really sorry, Aria. I – I will call, okay? We should talk. I will call you. Bye. I love you. I love you so much." Spencer saw Ezra still watching Aria and she felt her move slightly. "Okay. I know, me too.", the small girl answered with a nod and smiled sadly all while Spencer couldn't help the small pull at her heart.
"Take care of her, okay?", Ezra's eyes were on her then and she nodded briefly, promising herself that she would. A second later, Ezra was out of sight.
…
The three of them that were left, looked warily at each other. Aria had thanked Spencer for calming her down, but moved out of her arms when she saw Ezra leaving the room. She stood up and glanced down on the girl in her bed, who had stopped screaming and was now looking intensively at the small group. Aria desperately wanted to talk to her alone, and she knew she had hurt Ezra and she knew she was hurting Spencer – but she just needed some time to comprehend what this all was about – she didn't get why they couldn't understand where she was coming from.
"Guys?", she spoke, turning to Spencer and Caleb and Spencer's head began to shake uncontrollably.
"No way, Aria! I'm with Ezra on this one! I don't think he was right to hurt you but he was a hundred percent right, when he said you should not be left alone in this room with her!" Aria knew Spencer had a point, but she wasn't about to give up on this. She looked at Caleb then, hoping that at least he would try to understand and she knew he was on her side, when sighed softly.
"Spencer.", he began, touching her arm slightly so she would listen.
"I think we should let Aria have some time. Give her five minutes. No more. And then you can come bursting into the room again, okay? Just five minutes. She needs this. And I know you do, too, afterwards."
Aria saw something change in Spencer's eyes and she was glad Caleb had found a way to open her eyes – She knew she had made the right decision by calling him to help her – she still felt horrible when she thought how Hanna would find out and probably hate her, but she hoped Hanna would eventually understand that she had never put Caleb into real danger and that it was so Hanna wouldn't be dragged into it and stay safe.
"Five minutes." Aria felt Spencer's eyes burn into her and she gave her a thankful nod. Reluctantly, Spencer left the room with Caleb leading the way, but not before sending Alex a glare that, if looks could kill, would have decapitated her on the spot.
"If you wanted to talk to me so you could give me some kind of lecture - you can leave. I don't need to hear it."
"I'm not here to give you a lecture."
Aria tipped nervously from right to left. Now that she was alone with Alex, she didn't really know what to say. Maybe this was a mistake.
"So - what are you here for then?"
Aria saw Alex raising an eyebrow - even though she was chained to the bed on the ground, her self-confident level was still up in the sky.
"Why?" The question hung in the air and Aria wondered if Alex knew what she was referring to, until she heard her start talking.
"Just because." And Aria wanted to swipe that stupid smug look Alex wore off her face.
"Cut the crap, Alex. Just tell me."
She twitched her lips in thinking.
"You answer my question, I answer yours."
"In all honesty?" If this would bring Aria some answers, she could handle some stupid questions.
"Yes. In all honesty."
And even though it was wrong on so many levels to trust her, she believed her. It was odd, really. But something just told Aria that Alex wasn't lying. That she was actually telling the truth for once.
"Okay, Deal."
The room met with silence again, and Aria waited for Alex to ask her question.
"Why did you go along with this? I mean, why kiss me? You didn't have to do that. You could have just waited until we were ready to sleep and hand me that water - without all this kissing and touching and moaning."
Aria was surprised when she heard Alex ask about their kiss. She wasn't prepared for that. Those thoughts were like some forbidden area, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to enter that. She debated lying to her face, but something inside her told her to go with the truth and Alex probably could spy a lie anyway which would just crush all her chances at having the answers she needed.
"I -", Aria started and looked Alex in the eye again. She saw how the cocky grin had left her face, and all Aria could see was the anticipation and the tension that Alex's face portrayed so vividly. She didn't want to lie any longer.
"Part of me wanted to go along because I knew I could earn your trust by being closer to you. I knew from that first kiss that you weren't Spencer."
Alex's eyes widened then, and it was almost as if she wanted to say something, but she bit her lip and stayed silent - indicating for Aria to continue.
"The day before – it was just a day or two after the wedding - when you spent the night. You were having troubles sleeping and you stirred in your sleep, so in order to calm you down - to calm who I thought was Spencer down - I took your hand and traced it with my fingers. Anyways, Spencer has this tiny scar just between her thumb and forefinger, it's so small you barely see it. But you notice it. So when I didn't feel it on your hand I got suspicious and then I started to notice more little things, like a mole, or like the difference in the shapes of your eye color.. I didn't know who you were but I had figured out that you weren't Spencer but that you pretended to be her, so I had to find a way to get answers. I wanted to know where Spencer really was, and I wanted to understand why you would take over someone else's life and how you could be so alike and different at the same time. I didn't know at first how I would handle this, if I could handle it. However, I knew the only chance to get information was for you to confide in me. So I kissed you back then, because I knew this was a way for you to trust me fully, so you wouldn't suspect I knew something was up."
She sighed then, and Alex still hadn't said anything. She hadn't interrupted her and Aria knew she was waiting for the other reason to come.
"The other part. I don't know how to explain it."
She paused then, and when her eyes moved to Alex, she wondered if she really was as vulnerable in that moment as she appeared to be.
"I'm not going to tell anyone Aria. I promise. I just want to know."
Her voice had changed then. And Aria couldn't believe how soft and sad it sounded.
"A Part of me wanted to kiss you, Alex. There was even a part of me that didn't want to stop.", she had whispered that last part so quietly that for a moment she thought Alex hadn't heard her - but judging by the surprised look on the girl's face - she had. Aria felt almost ashamed to utter those words out loud, but she also felt a little relieved that they were finally in the open.
"You did? I - Wow. You know I never meant to harm you - in any way. I know I did and I'm sorry for that. I dragged you into this mess. My hatred for Spencer made me lose my mind. I really am sorry. You have to believe that."
Aria exhaled sharply, knowing that five minutes had long passed and she hoped that they wouldn't be interrupted any time soon. She needed this.
"I don't know what to believe, to be honest. I do want to believe it's true, though. I just don't know if I can trust the words you say. It's my turn, by the way. I answered your question. So I want an answer to mine."
When she saw Alex nod in agreement, she directed her question to her.
"Why me? Why did you choose me? Why not Toby, or Caleb or even one of the other girls?"
"Aria.", and Aria's eyelids briefly closed at the sound of her name being said in Alex's British accent.
"I fell in love with you the minute I saw you. And that's not a lie."
Surprise washed over Aria's features and her mouth hung open, but Alex ignored her startled face and went on with her story:
"I thought I loved Wren, I thought what I had with him was the kind of love that conquered all. That was before I knew about you. Charlotte showed me some pictures one night in London, told me about her games and that's when I saw you in one of them. I asked her who you were, and she told me everything she knew about you. I was hooked, but I never thought I would ever meet you in person. I forgot about you after that, not really forget, but I started to think less about you. Wren and I were happy for a while, until the Charlotte died when my heart broke into pieces. She was the only real family I ever had. She was everything I had left. She loved me. She was the sister I always wished for. So when I found out that she died, and that Spencer and all of you were back in Rosewood, I became angry. I believed that you guys killed her, so I wanted revenge. I never truly understood why Charlotte loved the games and the torture so much until I was the one controlling it. Having you on my side was a bonus. As soon as I saw you again, I felt so conflicted. I was still captivated by you and I wanted to get to know you, but I feared you were the one killing Charlotte. And then there was Wren. I realized after a while you weren't responsible for her death and when I found that file later on it was my chance to get you on my team. I really did enjoy you having to work for me, and I really did wanted to meet you, but I was scared. When I found out Mona was behind it all I asked Wren to take care of her, but she promised us she would help us with our plan. It was around the time that you and Ezra decided on a day for the wedding, that I knew this was the perfect time for me to kidnap both of them. It was perfect. You would think Ezra would have left you, and then you would fall for me - as the loving and caring best friend. I took care of Wren, I didn't actually wanted him to die, but he left me no choice. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you, but once again you were the extraordinary and smart woman I started to fall for, and you figured it out, you found a way to trick me."
Aria wanted to say something then. Alex's confession made her feel dizzy and Aria was too confused to place her emotions right. She hesitantly whipped a lonely tear from her face, not believing the words that were spoken. This girl loved her and it seemed like Alex was actually coming clean, laying all her cards on the table, for only Aria to see. She felt the need to say something, but she was overwhelmed with emotions and she didn't know what to answer. It was all so much. The desire to speak was too much to handle though, so she took a step closer and gave Alex a shy, but warm smile.
"Alex -", she began, her voice soft - but before she could say anything further, the door blasted open, a hectic Spencer rushing through it. Caleb rushed behind her, holding onto her arm in an attempt to stop her, but she was already standing next to Aria.
"Thank god you're okay!", Spencer breathed out in relief, eyes narrowed at Alex.
"Five minutes are up. About four times up actually. So this conversation is over now."
Aria stood still. She didn't move, and she didn't turn to Spencer when her friend called out her name, twice. All Aria was able to do, was stare into the affectionate eyes that flashed right back at her, inside a fire so bright she was blinded by – still Aria refused to look away, knowing this could possibly be the last moment she could express to Alex the emotions that were swirling inside of her. At the time she promised herself to come up with some sort of plan to see her again. Somehow the thought of Alex disappearing forever didn't quite sit well with Aria at all.
…
So, Alex confessed her love – and Aria? She is still confused, but somehow charmed and dazzled by Alex's feelings towards her, so she wants to keep an eye on her - What do you think Aria's plan might be? Any ideas?
Please leave some feedback. Much love!