Happy new year you all! I hope you had a great time with all your loved ones and you started this year with some good new year's resolutions! Here is mine: To write more! So last chapter kind of ended with Aria being missing? Who could be behind it? Alex? Maybe there is more to the story … Anyway: Enjoy the first chapter of Aftermaths in 2018!

...

Hearing the loud knocking on her door, Alex put the book she was reading aside and smiled when she saw Dean enter the room.

"Alex, you have visitors. They say they are Spencer's friends and want to talk to you. I can send them away if you are not ready."

Her forehead wrinkled in confusion. "Is Aria with them?", she asked but Dean shook his head. However, she was curious enough to know the reasons for this strange visit.

"Let them in. I will call you if I need to."

"All right."

A few minutes after she saw Hanna and Emily enter the room. They smiled at her for a second but when Dean left, Emily pushed the door close, turning around to glare at Alex.

"Where the hell is she?!", Hanna yelled at her and Emily put a hand on her arm to stop her from lashing out.

"Calm down, Hanna. Or she will kick us out again!", Alex heard Emily scold in a whisper.

"Who are you talking about?", she asked, a little confused as to what was going on.

"Don't you dare mock me! You took Aria and now you are going to tell us where she is or I swear - " She was already halfway to the bed, when Emily held her back. "Hanna, stop!"

Alex's mind raced. "Aria is missing?" She asked and couldn't help but feel worried. It didn't matter that she was still furious and felt betrayed – she just hoped Aria was okay.

"That's enough!", it was now Emily's turn to shout at her. "Listen, we know about your crazy obsession with her! No point in pretending, Alex. What did you do to her?"

If it wasn't for the situation she might have actually found it funny how the two women burned with anger, but she still couldn't shake off the concern she felt for the tiny woman she had grown to love so much.

"How long has she been missing?", she asked again, her words laced with fear.

The confused look on Emily's features showed her that maybe they started to understand that this time she wasn't the one playing the game.

"Four hours, maybe five. She was supposed to meet Spencer at a restaurant but she never showed up.", the swimmer answered and Alex squinted her eyes.

"That's not that long. Have you called her? Tracked her car?", the ideas were racing inside her brain, trying to find an answer.

"Of course we have! You are still trying to play us, huh? Listen, Alex - "

"I have nothing to do with this!", she finally yelled, needing to put this war between them to rest so they could focus on the real issue – Aria was missing.

Hanna still looked at her with disbelief, so Alex sighed and started to explain.

"Look, I know you hate me for what I did to you. And I know you don't believe me when I say I am sorry I hurt you. I never wanted it to escalate this way. And I really don't care if you forgive me or not, I don't. But I swear I would never do anything to hurt Aria. She is the only person who has ever cared about me. She is the reason why I am still here, trying to get better, to prove her I am worth being her friend. I love her."

She saw Emily and Hanna sharing a nervous look. That's when she knew they still didn't believe her. Alex's brain still couldn't stop from working, looking for hints, searching for possibilities – when suddenly something popped up in her head. She turned to Aria's friends.

"I might have an idea where she is. But if I tell you, you have to promise me to let me finish. And you have to promise me to never tell Aria about it. Or Spencer."

Hanna opened her mouth, and Alex was sure she would protest but once again Emily stepped in and spoke first. "Deal."

"What? No! We can't just make promises like that! What if something happens to Spencer, too?"

Alex rolled her eyes. "I am not really able to do a lot, am I? I just don't want them to know about this as it might prolong my treatment because – It doesn't matter. I just don't need people to think I am not getting better."

"Just say what you wanted to say Alex. If it's true and you care about Aria, you owe it to her."

Emily was right in a way, she did care about Aria and now that she knew she was missing she had to collaborate with them so she could stay informed. If she wanted to or not.

"A few weeks back, Mona came by."

"Mona?", Hanna's eyes widened in surprise and Alex almost fell sorry for the betray she spotted in her eyes.

"She wanted to make sure I would leave her alone. I told her not to worry, because I was done playing the game. But then she started provoking me, saying it was ridiculous how I fell in love with Aria. And when she was about to leave, I couldn't help but ask." She hung her head, almost ashamed that she had failed Aria and went behind her back, even if it was just spying on her, she knew it was wrong.

"What did you ask her?", Emily had moved to sit on the floor and Hanna had taken the chair.

Alex sighed, knowing she had to come clean, hoping those girls would stick to their promise not to tell Aria. "I asked Mona if she could find out why Aria was ignoring me."

"You forced Mona to spy on Aria? And you say you have changed!", exclaimed Hanna and it wasn't helping how Alex felt.

"I didn't force her! She just agreed! Mona is not the victim here! Anyway, I know it was wrong. I shouldn't have asked. God, just please – don't tell her. She would hate me and I can't – I can't handle that. She is the only one I have left."

Hanna rolled her eyes, but Emily's features softened. Maybe she was thinking about Ali's behavior so long ago and she could actually understand where Alex was coming from.

"We promised. Go on. We are losing time."

Alex nodded. "Right. So Mona came back with news. And that's when I found out." Her jaw clenched subconsciously and she tried not to show her real emotions. "She told me about Aria and Spencer. That they were dating. I was losing it. I felt betrayed and hurt. And then Mona made this proposition."

The other two looked intently at her, wanting her to continue and Alex was glad she wasn't being yelled at again.

"She said she could fix it. She said she could make Spencer realize that she couldn't be best at everything. I told her that I didn't want anyone to get hurt! I told her to not touch Aria! I just wanted - "

"Revenge! You wanted revenge! You wanted to hurt Spencer for dating Aria!", it was Hanna again but somehow this time her words hurt more than before. She sighed, wanting to explain, but Hanna didn't stop.

"You are pathetic! Don't you understand that Aria does not want you? She loves Spencer and she would do anything for her. And even though she did visit you I am sure it was not because she took a like on you but because she wanted to be sure you stayed away from her girlfriend! You. are. pathetic! And on top of everything you are telling us this lie about Mona, too! I don't believe you! You wanted to hurt Spencer, so you kidnaped Aria and now you are telling us where the hell you are hiding her!"

Alex closed her eyes, trying not to let those words get to her. She tried to concentrate on breathing normally, not wanting to slip into yet another panic attack, and not wanting them to know how broken she was inside. She wondered if Hanna's words were true and if Aria had ever genuinely cared for her. She didn't know if she could handle it if she didn't.

"I am not lying about Mona, Hanna." Her voice was calm, and she felt a tear make its way down her cheek. "I don't know if she has Aria or not, but I am not lying about her planning something. Maybe we should call her. Maybe you should call her."

Hanna held a hand to her forehead. "Maybe that is not a bad idea." Her eyes drifted to Emily then, clearly wanting a second opinion.

"Let me call Spencer and Ali first. Maybe they have found Aria by now. Are you okay to stay here, alone?"

Hanna looked at her then, as if to reflect on the idea, but ultimately she nodded, her eyes staying on Alex. Emily stood up then, shooting Alex a glaring look before moving to the door. "Don't you dare hurt Hanna." And the door clicked closed.

Both of them stayed silent, until Hanna spoke. "Was it really Mona's idea to sabotage Spencer and Aria's relationship?"

Alex couldn't help but look at her with sympathy despite all the horrible things the blonde had thrown at her. "I am sorry you found out this way, Hanna. I know she is your friend."

"Yeah, whatever. Let's focus on finding Aria."

"Okay.", Alex replied in a whisper.

Hanna sighed. "I hope she is okay."

Alex closed her eyes, envisioning Aria's smile and trying not to let fear overtake her emotions.

"Me too."

…

"Can't you drive any faster?", Spencer urged as they were driving to the location where Caleb had located Aria's car.

"I am driving as fast as I can, Spencer. I know you are worried and so am I, but it won't do any good having us in an accident, so please, just let me drive."

Spencer sighed, silently agreeing and moving her head to rest against the window. She couldn't help but let a lonely tear fall at the thought of the possibility that something horrible happened to her girlfriend. As the minutes passed and she still hadn't heard from her, she wished she had neglected her idea to meet her out of Rosewood. Back then, when they were still teenagers hiding from A they were so much more careful but the years of surviving A's tortures somehow made them lose that sense of fear. And after Alex had been caught they had slipped back into the state of normal, where they thought they didn't have to fear every step they took.

She was lost in her thoughts when suddenly the car stopped and a second later she spotted Aria's car right in front of them. Ignoring Caleb's protests to just go over there, she jumped out of the car, running towards the other vehicle. As it was already dark, she flipped on her phone's flashlight and looked inside. She closed her eyes when she disappointingly realized that the car was empty. Holding back new tears, she tried to keep a cool mind. Caleb joined her then and put a comforting hand on her shoulder, squeezing it softly. "I am sorry, Spence. Let's look for something that can help us find her okay?" Spencer nodded briefly, but she couldn't help but remain in her position, starring at the empty car. She observed Caleb opening the car looking for clues that could tell them what happened and why Aria had stopped at the side of the road.

"This is so weird. It looks like she wanted to stop here. There are no skid marks, she put on the hand brake, the headlights are shut and the key missing. The only thing weird is that the car is open. That means she most likely did not leave her car on purpose. Someone must have made her stop the car and then - "

"And then taken her? Is that what you are saying?", Spencer's eyes brimmed with tears and she shook her head. "How is this happening again?"

Caleb closed his own eyes and sighed. "I don't know. I really don't. But I swear to you, we will find her, okay? I promise you."

He was about to step closer to Spencer to comfort her, when he suddenly felt something beneath his shoe. He bend down to pick it up, raising his eyebrows at the sight of a phone.

"That's Aria's phone!", Spencer exclaimed, snatching it away and looking at the broken screen. She was about to put it in her pocket when Caleb took it from her. He clicked on one of the buttons to light it up. His eyes widened and Spencer looked at him questioning.

"What?"

"Shit!", he yelled, giving the phone back to Spencer and he ran back to his car. "Do not touch the phone, Spencer!"

She looked at the phone again, confused as to what Caleb had seen and why he was looking for something in his car. It didn't take long though for Caleb to return with what looked like a phone charger. Plugging it into the phone, Caleb sighed with relief.

Still not understanding Spencer gave him a baffled look. "What are you doing?"

"Look." He showed her the phone, pointing to the right corner of the phone where Spencer could spot a blinking red microphone. "It's recording! The phone is recording!"

Spencer's eyes widened, slowly realizing what that meant.

"Do you know Aria's code?" And before Caleb could finish his sentence, Spencer had unlocked Aria's phone, silently thanking Aria for not changing it. She quickly saved the recording and handled the phone back to Caleb.

"I don't know if I want to know.", her voice trembled and a millions thoughts swam in her mind as to what could have happened.

"We need to find her Spencer, focus. This is big. This could lead us to the person who has Aria." Caleb tried to reasons with her. She nodded then, wiping away new tears that had fallen from her red eyes.

"Okay. Play it.", she said, waiting for what was to come, and silently praying that whatever it was they found on that recording it meant that there was a possibility of finding Aria and having her back. She couldn't help but blame herself for what was happening. Maybe, if she had never left Rosewood in the first place, if she had stayed, she could have protected her, maybe she could have prevented this from happening. She swore to herself that when she found Aria she would never leave her alone again. Suddenly, Washington didn't matter anymore, all that mattered was her.

...

There you have it. First chapter of 2018. I know, I know. It's yet another cliffhanger. But I am curious about who do you think is behind it? Do you think it's really Mona?

Please leave a review and tell me what you think. I am also debating how long this story should continue so feedback means a lot to me. I know there are a lot of secret readers out there, but it is always nice to know that people like the writing and that people want me to continue.

Until next time!