A/N - Man, it's been a very long time since my last update, but here I am! Thank you for continued support, especially to my cupcake ali (aliimagic), who really helped me (i've lost a lot of interest in pll, lol, especially with *cough cough* ezria) And also, I've changed the title :)

Anyway, this takes off from where last chapter ended.

Chapter Four

Realisations

"Don't touch me," Aria said as she and Jason walked back to the car. "Don't even talk to me, okay? I don't want you to do anything. Just walk. And don't talk. And don't tell her you saved me, and don't tell her Noel and-"

"Jesus bloody Christ, Aria," Jason rolled his eyes. "Do I not get any gratitude?"

Aria crossed her arms. "Nope."

"I just saved your life, you know." said Jason. "Maybe I should have just left you with Noel."

Aria's face fell, and Jason looked bad.

"Okay, I didn't meant that," Jason tried to reason with her, but she seemed genuinely hurt. She didn't answer, but only walked on. Jason tried to catch up with her, but she ignored his every word. "Aria...I swear I didn't mean that. Come on. Punch me. Kick me. Do whatever you want."

She didn't say a word.

"Okay, okay, um..." Jason was literally lost for words. Here was he, trying to complete a stupid dare that he still didn't understand why he'd taken on, and he was annoying her more and more by the second. If his priority was to sleep with her, then this wasn't going particularly well. "Why do you hate me so much?"

"I don't hate you," Aria rolled her eyes. "You just annoy me."

He knew it. This wasn't going to get him far in his dare, was it?

"I mean, you're creepy - you're Ali's older brother, and yet you kiss me? What...seven times?" Aria said. "You probably have a girlfriend as well!"

Jason looked at her. How did she even...?

"Cece and I have a very open relationship! And it wasn't..." Jason tried to think of something actually smart to say, but he'd probably end up insulting her again. Aria seemed to have taken off already. "Aria! Aria, I'm sorry! And...technically it was two kisses! Aria!"

Jason ran after her, in vain, of course, and saw that she had already walked up to Ali and her posse.

"What took you so long?" Alison asked, practically laughing at him.

Aria looked at him, and then at Ali. "Probably got distracted by the booze."

They laughed, and Jason dryly clapped - he almost, almost didn't notice the way Hanna was eyeing the two of them, Aria and Jason.

How did Jason go from being completely worried about her, to almost hating her presence? Okay, that was a bit of an overreaction - he didn't hate her or anything. He just hated the way she was acting around him.

Jason really had to sort himself out, hadn't he? He was a mess. He was a mess, because he'd agreed to this stupid dare, while, might he add, still being in a relationship (of some sorts) with Cece Drake (but he wasn't lying about the "open" thing, because they weren't exactly dating), and this dare was going to get him nowhere, because Aria positively hated his guts. She hated him almost as much as he hated himself.

"Don't stare at Hanna's chest," Alison snapped. She looked toward Jason, and then at Hanna, who seemed to be harmlessly munching on one of Noel's Halloween cookies, looking out into the horizon in front of her. She had the honour of sitting in the front seat. At least Jason was glad it wasn't Aria.

"Yeah, because I'm creepy enough to be doing that," Jason rolled his eyes and made a quick turn - this was a shortcut to his house. He turned to Hanna and gave her an apologetic look, while adding, "That's just Alison. Ignore her."

"I'm right behind you, you know," Alison said.

"Oh?" Jason raised his eyebrows. "I never figured." He pulled the car to a stop. "Ladies, you have reached your destination, bla bla bla." As the girls scrambled out of the car, Jason pulled out a packet of cigarettes, and lit one.

Seconds later, a girl with unmistakable pink streaks in her hair hurried back, opening the back seat door.

"I left my cardi," explained Aria.

"Take it," Jason said, still smoking.

"You know, if you smoke any more, your lungs will burn up and eventually explode," she said matter-of-factly. "The HDL sweeps in, creates clots, and-"

"You mean, the LDL sweeps in, creates clot by lodging in with the white blood cells," Jason raised his eyebrows. "Lungs don't just explode."

Aria peered at him carefully. "You're not as dumb as you look."

"Thank you," said Jason. "Now Buttercup, join your power puffs."

Aria nodded, and went off.

And a few seconds later, she was back.

"What the hell?" Jason said, groaning. "We're not playing 'tag'."

"Why do you hide yourself behind really...unimportant things?" she asked thoughtfully. "I mean, you're smart. And I think you're wasting your life." Aria looked at him deep in his eyes, and realised that he hadn't moved an inch. He was staring as intently at her as she him. "I think...I think you have so much...what's the word? Potential. And you're abusing that."

"That's all very flattering," started Jason. "But you don't know me. And if you're proposing to send me away to a convent, then that's not happening. And plus," he paused. "just because I know the consequences of smoking, doesn't mean I'm freaking Einstein."

"Yeah, but you wouldn't be able to go to a convent," Aria said.

Jason laughed, and threw his smoked cigarette out into the garden. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I am smart. Maybe I have the highest freaking IQ in all of Philly. But," he paused. "Maybe I'm just a dimwitted flower pot trying to get into your good books."

Aria snorted. "Maybe I'm just the one trying to get in to your good books. Maybe I don't even think of you like that at all."

Jason lit another cigarette. "The world's full of mysteries, sweetheart." He looked at her. "I think you're a very interesting girl. Now, babe, scurry off to my darling sister."

It was a strange conversation, possibly the first one where he hadn't tried to kiss her. But he knew that an understanding had been created between the two of them. He was pretty certain of that.

A/N - That was very short, but very important. I hope you liked it :)