Rosewood, April 2011
The last week has been hell for Hanna: her dad moved back in town with his fiancée Isobel and that soulless bitch of her daughter, Kate. Just her name gave her chills, making her shiver in rage and – she hated to admit this – fear. Because she knew that her soon-to-be stepsister was onto something; she had made that perfectly clear the last time they met, when during what seemed a normal dinner her father proposed to Kate's mom just like that, completely out of the blue and without any care in the world, in what his daughter could have possibly thought. And in that moment it was like some sort of cutthroat competition between the two of them had started. The mutual dislike gradually, almost naturally became something similar to hatred. Maybe it had something to do with Hanna's never-ending insecurities, her issues with her father, her feelings of inadequacy that he never failed to brought back whenever he drop back in her life just to tell her how wonderful, smart, beautiful, perfect, Kate is. Maybe. Doesn't mean Kate Randall (Marin?) wasn't a Death Eater, like Spencer eloquently called her once.
Spencer. Now, she was another reason for Hanna's restless nights. After the whole fiasco at that club in Philadelphia and the almost kiss, things were awkward between them. Tense. They didn't see much of each other these days; in fact, it looked like they were carefully avoiding each other whenever they had an occasion. It was childish and painful, but they both needed it in some, different ways. The blonde needed the space to regain some sort of control over her feelings. Even if distance make the heart grow fonder, they say.
Luckily she had grandma Marin and her lovely little cousin Grace to distract her, if only for a while, from her problems. With Tom's wedding coming up, Regina Marin decided to show up a bit earlier in order to persuade Ashley to take her ex-husband back – she was too fond of the redhead, after all she considered her more of a daughter than her own son. Her begging however was to no avail, of course, but the incessant bickering between the two equally stubborn women was just too fun to watch; it provided a certain sense of lightness in a context that was otherwise oppressive. Sprawled on the couch with the little girl observing her mother and grandmother fight over furniture rearrangement, Hanna let out a genuine, carefree laugh for the first time in a week or so. But their hysterical giggles abruptly stopped when she realized that the weekend was over and on the next day she had to confront Kate at school. And Spencer. Suddenly she felt like there was no air in the room.
Monday came and in spite of Hanna's expectations things seemed to go smoothly enough. She was even able to make small talk with Spencer – they still had to make eye contact but the very same fact they were able to exchange a few words was a huge progress in itself. She was currently sitting with her three best friends at their usual table having lunch when she heard a familiar voice calling her name;
"Hanna…" It was Kate, who had approached them a little hesitant.
"Hey. Welcome to Rosewood High" Hanna replied tentatively. "If you want you can sit with us" she offered.
"Thanks" the other blonde smiled brightly, then turned toward the others "Hi, I'm Kate. We haven't officially met yet" she gave them another big smile.
Aria and Emily politely introduced themselves, while Spencer was eyeing her somewhat suspiciously. She only broke her stare when Emily, not so discretely, nudged her.
"Oh sorry, I'm Spencer" the brunette finally acknowledged. Then she returned to her musing.
While Aria was giving some advice to the new girl about their teachers, Emily and Hanna exchanged wary glances; one of them was puzzled about Spencer's behavior, the other just pissed. Things were getting too weird, even for their brainiac friend's standards.
"Kate, uhm, have we actually met before?" Spencer asked abruptly.
"Sorry, I don't think so" Kate answered promptly. Too quickly, actually. "I would remember" she added in a slightly flirtatious tone. Hanna froze. If only she could have killed her with a glare... 'Interesting', Kate smirked to herself, noticing the blonde's reaction.
"Are you sure? Do you have any family in Maine by any chance?" Spencer insisted. She was like a dog with a bone, everybody knew that.
"Nope, no…" Kate shook her head thoughtfully.
Aria cleared her throat and Emily tried to change subject but the other brunette just wouldn't drop it. She had her eyebrows furrowed in concentration, trying to remember where she could have possibly met this girl.
"Debate!" she exclaimed, snapping her fingers.
"Uhm no, I was actually thinking to join the Orchestra" she chuckled, but she was starting to get really annoyed.
"Sorry, I thought I must've seen you at a debate"
"Look, I'm positive I never saw you before, though we can always fix that" Kate grinned. "But for now, I'm gonna head to class. I'll see you all soon" she said, looking at Spencer and fluttering her eyelashes. And with that she left, content with herself for having successfully dodged that troublesome brunette. She didn't think the young Hastings would have remembered her from that time they spent together at that camp.
"What are you doing?" Hanna hissed a moment later, when she was sure Kate couldn't hear them.
"I know her. I know I know her, I just don't know where I know her from" Spencer whispered like she was revealing some sort of conspiracy. Aria and Emily just couldn't hold their laughers anymore at their friend's antics.
"Can you back off? I'm not gonna let her complain to my dad that my friends are giving her the fourth degree" Hanna, on the other hand, was not so amused.
"…"
"…It's the third degree" Spencer informed her when she noticed that neither Emily nor Aria bothered to do so.
"Whatever! Just stop giving her degrees" Hanna snapped.
Then the bell rung and they all parted ways.
Spencer ran into Kate again in the locker room. They were getting ready for their PE class when all their classmates ran off to the gym, leaving the two girls alone.
"I knew I'd eventually get it" the athletic brunette smirked, standing up from the bench she was sitting on and making her way toward the other girl. "Shekomeko horse ranch, summer of 2009" she easily stated. Kate stiffened just that much for Spencer to notice.
"My sister Melissa was a junior counselor that year and you were in her bunk"
"Fine, you win. We went to camp together and yes, I'm exactly who you think I am" the bitchy blonde surrendered. "So what are you gonna do now?" Kate challenged. She wasn't scared of her, not when she had some card herself up her sleeve to play. Not that she was going to tell Spencer that right away…
"I'm not gonna tell anyone" the young Hastings reassured, turning her back on her. "But just so you know, Melissa sent me a bunk photo that year. So if you being nice to Hanna is just an act, you'd better keep it up"
"Wow, protective much are we?"
"You have no idea" Spencer asserted, then walked away.
Kate stared after her, pondering if it was the right time for her to show her game; "You know, I wonder how is doing Lauren. Do you remember her, too? Or you were too wasted at the time that you've forgotten about her?" Apparently, it was.
Spencer visibly tensed at her words, but she kept walking ahead without bothering to reply. She knew from the beginning that there was a high chance that Kate knew about her and what happened at the ranch that summer. Besides, it wasn't like she had something to hide; since the whole –A thing she was more than accustomed to have her life on public display. Privacy was a luxury these days. And she was more than fine to pay any price if it was for Hanna's sake.
When Spencer got home she was glad to find her sister in the barn. 'Perfect timing, really'.
"Hey Mel" she greeted her with a small smile. Things were still complicated between them, especially after the whole Ian fiasco. But they were trying to get along better now that their family was bound to be expanded in a few months. It seemed like Melissa's pregnancy brought a newfound sense of family among the Hastings; even if, at first, Spencer took the news pretty badly - mostly because of the baby's father. Now, instead, she was beyond excited to the prospect of becoming an aunt. She decided she was going to be the very best one to her niece.
"Hey Spence" the eldest Hastings smiled back. "Are you ok?" she asked as soon as she took in Spencer's disheveled attire.
"Ugh, I'm beat! Field hockey practice" the younger sister replied. While that was certainly true, it was not the only reason behind Spencer's tiredness. Like Hanna, she spent the last week replaying over and over in her mind the events of that night when she went to the blonde's rescue. The feeling of the blonde's lips on her cheek - or rather on the corner of her mouth - left a burning sensation on her skin for days. Whenever she closed her eyes, she saw her friend dancing seductively for her; she could feel the blonde's arms wrapping around her neck, her fingers lightly scraping her nape. She couldn't stop herself from thinking how it would be to kiss Hanna. To have her in her arms. To…
On more nights that she cared to admit, she had to get up from her bed and go outside for a run in order to suppress that train of thoughts. Arousal and guilt plagued her. She wasn't able to look Hanna in the eyes anymore, let alone Toby. Her boyfriend, Toby. Thus, she ended up isolating herself, trying to put in check her emotions. If Melissa noticed something, she didn't show it.
"Go take a shower, I'll make dinner" her sister's voice brought her back from her thoughts.
"Yeah, I really need that" she chuckled. She was about to go when she remembered what she wanted to ask her.
"Hey, do you remember that girl in your bunk at Shekomeko's ranch, when you were counselor? You still have her picture, right?"
"Oh yeah! That was some nasty case of bug bites" Melissa laughed. "Yes, I should still have some photos, why?"
"Well… uhm... You see, she happens to be Hanna's stepsister, well almost; and she's a bitch to her so I may have threatened her with this…" Spencer sheepishly admitted.
"Old habits die hard" Melissa sighed.
"What do you mean?" the younger brunette frowned. That comment in some way stung.
"Just that when it comes to Hanna you can be a tad… zealous? Hyper-protective?"
"I don't know how many times I heard that just today" Spencer rolled her eyes. "It's just the way I am. I'd do that for any of my friends. Or my family" she countered back.
"Mmm, whatever you say Spence" Melissa trailed off. "Go take your shower, I'm going to make a salad" she tried to put an end on their conversation, knowing her sister's short temper could flare any minute. She really didn't want to start an argument with her. Unluckily for her, Spencer wasn't have it.
"Wait! Again, what's that supposed to mean?" Spencer asked, subconsciously crossing her arms over her chest, assuming a defensive stance.
Melissa sighed anew: "Look, I was there when it started". Noticing the look of confusion on her sister's face, she went on explaining herself; "That day in the courtyard, when we moved here and you started third grade. There was this guy picking on Hanna and something in you snapped. You went to her aid without hesitation, and that was actually the first time I ever so you take interest in something other than your books. You didn't have many friends back then, you didn't care about it either. But for some reason something pushed you to help that girl, and nothing has changed through the years. Yes, you do that for your friends too but we both know that your behavior towards Hanna is… different".
They stayed in silence for some minutes after that speech. Spencer was carefully considering those words while, at the same time, reminiscing her first encounter with Hanna and Aria and Emily. And every day to follow. Every time she defended the blonde from the other kids bullying her; every time she comforted her when her parents were having a fight. Every time she stood up for her when Alison was being a bitch. Every time they spent their days hanging out, studying, watching a movie or simply being, together. Every time they hugged, cuddled, laughed or cried together. Her sister was right: each and every moment she spent with Hanna had just a different taste to her.
All of a sudden she felt herself wrapped in a warm, soothing embrace, and only when she rested her head on her sister's shoulder she noticed she was crying. She didn't felt this safe in her sister presence since when she was five, maybe six years old.
"Shh, it's going to be alright" Melissa whispered softly, holding her closely. "It's okay Spence, whatever you feel it's okay. All mom, dad and I want for you is to be happy, you don't have to worry. I'm on your side. I've always been"
Spencer cried even harder. Hearing those words from her sister, realizing the true nature of her feelings for her best friend; the fact that she didn't know how to deal with them, it was just too overwhelming. Then something struck her and she gasped.
"Oh my God, Toby! How… how could have I not thought about him?" Spencer managed to say between hiccups.
Melissa only tightened her grip in response. Sadly, she couldn't do much about that. Dealing with the boy was something that her little sister had to do on her own. In the meantime, she was there for her, telling her that everything was going to be just fine. Of that, she was sure.