The Morning After
Children's Ward of Rosewood Memorial Hospital, Room 204
The thick smell of alcohol wipes and rubber latex gloves were enough to make anyone a little nauseous, perhaps uneasy, and Hanna Marin was no exception. It was all she could smell. Loud sobs, sporadic breathing, and the constant beeps of various machines swirled around in her brain, soon forming into a single, almost melodic-like rhythm. She hadn't been hurt in the shooting, at least not physically. But she did have a breakdown and was admitted her own safety.
After what seemed like hours, Mona and Aria's rampage had ended, with the loud echo of two final gunshots. And then it was quiet. So quiet, in fact, that Hanna could swear she heard her own blood sloshing through her veins. Several thoughts had hit her at once: did Mona and/or Aria kill themselves? Who had shot whom during their path of destruction? Had the police taken either one of them out? Most importantly - were her friends alive? Were they dead?
She couldn't bear the thought. And now, a day llater as she stared at the TV in her hospital room, none of her questions had answered. She didn't know who had been shot. Who had died. And who was still alive. Well, no. She did know one of her friends had survived - Spencer.
The minute she had been admitted, Ashley had not left Hanna's side. Understandably, her mother was distraught. The halls and lounges of the hospital were packed with frantic parents, and hysterical kids. Ashley had run into Spencer's mother in the elevator, and Veronica had informed her that Spencer had been shot twice. She had life-saving surgery and was currently asleep, recovering.
Hanna couldn't believe it. Spencer had been shot. Miraculously, she had pulled through. Hanna was so relieved she had cried. Spencer Hastings was a goddamn fighter, that much was clear. Hanna had wanted to visit her, but Veronica wouldn't let allow it. Hanna understood of course, but she was still slightly annoyed. Spencer was one of her best freakin' friends.
And yet…
The fates of Alison and Emily were not yet known. Everything was so chaotic it was hard to tell who had been reunited with their children, and who were still waiting for...well, news.
Hanna shifted in her bed. Outside, her father was on the phone with her grandma. Grandma Marin was flying in, along with several other of her family members. Every so often, she could hear her father's voice crack just so. Apparently it took a tragedy for her dad to step the fuck up, but that was neither here nor there.
"Hanna…" Her mom's voice pulled her from her thoughts, her eyes flittered up from her blankets.
"What?"
"Do...do you want to talk about it?" Ashley asked hesitantly.
Hanna's eyes filled with tears and she shut her eyes to prevent them from slipping out. Though it was no use, because she burst into sobs.
"I-I don't understand what happened," she wailed. "I just don't…."
It was all she could say, really. How do you talk about your best friend blowing out her friends' and classmates' brains? How could she fathom that Aria was laughing while doing so? How could she put into words, the sounds of her peers' screams and anguished cries of terror?
What's more...how could she not feel guilty? Guilty that she had lived, while others had died. Their lives were tragically cut short by the hand of one of her dearest, most treasured friends. A girl with whom Hanna had shared everything. Aria and Hanna were a team. They did everything together, when they weren't with Spencer and Emily.
Emily.
Hanna didn't know if her girlfriend had made it. Was Emily lying in a hospital bed somewhere? Was she hurt? Or maybe she was stuck in the school, too afraid to come out of her hiding place?
Though in the very back of her mind, the in the depths of her heart, Hanna supposed she knew. She knew that Emily was most likely dead. Surely she would have heard something by now if Emily were alive, right?
And that thought right there, was the one that broke Hanna further, if that were possible. She screamed, she wailed, she cried and yelled. Shots of frustration, unintelligible murmurs, and more than one pillowcase torn in half.
No matter how hard her parents tried, they couldn't get Hanna to calm down, to relax. To breathe. So when Hanna's nurses rushed in with a sedative, it was a welcomed relief, for everyone.
The liquid worked fast through her IV, and Hanna found herself relaxing almost as soon as the needle had been inserted. Her eyes were starting to flutter open and shut. The voices of those around her faded into an incomprehensible blur, and Hanna felt like her entire body was shutting down to rest.
But her mind was still firing neurons. Questions whirled through her brain, names of those she cared about most.
Emily.
Spencer
Alison
Why had Aria done this? Why? The last thought that crossed Hanna's mind was that Mona had let her live. Mona could have killed her. Mona could have let Aria kill her. And yet, Hanna was alive. She was alive because of Mona, and she knew exactly why Mona had spared her life. But if Hanna hadn't done what she did just a few weeks ago, maybe none of this would have happened.
Because Hanna had saved Mona's life.