:)
Ch 6
The only light is from the full moon above, but even that is covered by the clouds at times.
I take a deep breath and draw my knees close to my chest. I've been waiting here for ten minutes already, and even though it's only August, it's started to get cold. I involuntarily shiver a little.
I had been about to go to sleep when I got the text. It was from an unknown number, and it wasn't signed. I had a suspicion of who it was—or rather who I wanted it to be. All the text said was:
Outside corridor by the lakehouse, bottom of the stairs—on the dock. 10 minutes.
So, of course, my dumb self automatically thinks it's Alison. For all I know, it could be someone who wants to kill me. I'm in the perfect place for a murder: right by a lake at the bottom of the steps, my feet could be skimming the black water if I had them outstretched. I'm so far away from the castle that even if I screamed, I don't think anyone would hear me.
Before my mind can wander off down such depressing trails, someone clears their throat from behind me. My heart freezes in my chest and I stop breathing for a second. Freaking out, I look over my shoulder. Thankfully, relief floods through my body when I see her figure.
Alison is at the top of the steps. She's wearing her winter uniform, the robes tightly around her. She takes the stairs down to me two at a time.
I want to make a witty remark about how she should never keep a girl waiting, but something in her face tells me that now isn't the right time. As she gets closer to me, the moon illuminates her face more.
Her makeup has been smudged all around her eyes and down her cheeks—clearly she's been not only crying, but bawling. Her lips are shaking and lack their normal vivacious lip gloss. Somehow, though, in all of this, she still manages to look absolutely beautiful. I lick my lips, anxious to know what hers taste like, and what they would feel like…
Wait, no. Stop, Emily.
"I'm sorry," she says quietly, and I shake my head of those thoughts. "I didn't know who else to talk to."
She wipes her eyes, managing to smear her makeup even more. I notice that her hair is still in perfect condition, though. It still has the typical slight, beautiful curl that flows past her shoulders.
"Well, my offer still stands," I say, surprising myself. I wasn't sure if my voice was going to work this time.
"I was hoping it would," she admits. She moves closer to me and takes a seat on the stairs beside me, facing me.
"So, what's up?" I ask casually. I'm a little nervous, I'll admit. Whatever is bothering her must be serious, since I don't think under any other circumstances would the queen of the school be this upset.
She sniffles and looks out past the water. She chews the inside of her cheek, clearly contemplating something.
"I come here whenever I want to be alone," Alison says, but she still sounds distant. She takes a deep breath and smiles bitterly at something in the distance. "I discovered it on my first night here."
"Yeah, it's, uh," I hesitate, searching for a word that won't insult her. "It's very secluded."
She finally looks back at me and nods. Her voice is soft as she whispers, "My grandmother and I are very close."
I'm so confused. But I give her a small smile, encouraging her to continue.
"She passed away the day after school started," Alison tries to clear her throat, but her voice cracks a few times anyways. Her face flushes and she looks out over the water again. "But she's been sick for a while."
"I'm so sorry," I say, and I genuinely mean it. I reach forward and place my hand on her forearm. She flinches at first, but then relaxes into my touch.
"It's been pretty difficult," she continues, hoarse.
"I can't even imagine."
She swallows thickly. When she looks back at me, her beautiful cerulean eyes are welling with tears.
"I'm sure she was a wonderful woman," I try to console her. I rub up and down on her forearm.
"She was," she agrees, her expression suddenly serious. "But it's not just that."
My hand stalls on her arm.
"She was my only friend," her voice is barely audible. "My only supporter."
I narrow my eyes and shake my head a few times.
"What about Cece and Mona?" I ask.
"You think that they're friends? Please," she scoffs. "I'd much rather be best friends with a bear who's looking for its first meal after a nice hibernation."
"Oh, that's very colorful," I joke, trying to make her smile. She doesn't, but her eyes soften.
Alison starts to become more distant; I'm not even sure if she's still with me. She lightly puts her hand on top of mine—the one I have on her arm—and holds onto it. Her eyes stare vaguely at something behind me. A hollow look envelops her face and overall demeanor.
"So, why are you friends with them, then?" I ask after a few moments, trying to get her back to reality.
"What?" her startled expression makes me think that she forgot I was with her. She looks down at her hand and quickly draws it away from mine
"I asked—" I begin, trying to ignore the fact that my hand craves her touch.
"Oh," she cuts me off. "It doesn't matter."
She stands up abruptly and looks around, attempting to wipe the smeared makeup off of her face.
"I have to go," she tells me, not making eye contact. "Thanks for your help."
"I didn't really do anything," I say, overcome with confusion. I follow her lead and slowly stand up.
"You listened, that's good enough," she assures me. "I gotta go."
And with a thumb's up and an awkward wave, she runs off up the stairs. My vision follows her retreating figure until she disappears completely within the night.
"So Emily was out really late last night," Hanna gushes in the courtyard the next day. I shove her playfully, but blush when everyone turns to look at me. I sheepishly tuck some hair behind my ear.
Our typical group is all sitting together underneath the shade of a large tree. We're pretty close to the water, which makes me think of everything with Alison last night.
Today, though, Toby and Lucas have joined the four of us. Lucas normally hangs out with us, but Toby needed to borrow my lab notes from the Potions class he missed. I have to say, I really enjoy hanging out with all of them. It's truly amazing how much we all connect; I feel like I've known them forever. (Besides Aria, whom I have known forever.)
"Oh?" Aria teases. "With a boy?"
"Well, duh, what else would it be?" Hanna rolls her eyes. It's so funny when she thinks that she's the smartest one here.
"Aw, Emily," Spencer pokes me and wiggles her eyebrows. "You've got a boyfriend!"
"Do we know him?" Lucas asks, smiling. Toby looks up from his notes and smiles at me without any teeth.
"Uhm," I laugh, feeling a little uncomfortable. I slump my shoulders, trying to seem smaller.
"Don't hide the dirty details!" Hanna exclaims.
"Actually, please do spare us that," Spencer begs. She looks at me with pleading eyes and I just laugh harder.
I bite my lip. I'm not sure if I want to tell them that I was hanging out with Alison. But then again, I can't think of some random boy I would be frolicking off at night to see.
Maybe I could say that I went for a nighttime swim? Is that weird?
"Hi, Emily."
I turn my head to see Alison walking by with Cece, Mona, and the pretty-boy (whose name I found out is Noel) in tow. The green and silver emblems on their robes sparkle in the sunlight.
"Hey, Alison," I say, trying to sound nonchalant. I clear my throat and widen my eyes at her. I've gone from completely calm to on edge in seconds.
"Hey, Toby," she smiles. "If you want notes that are easier to read, you can always borrow mine."
She winks at me to indicate that she's joking. I smile, but don't say a word. Toby does chuckle a little, which helps me loosen up a bit.
"Ew, Ali, are we done here?" Mona complains. Cece and Noel have already walked away, clearly bored.
"Just one second, Mona," Alison holds her hand up. She turns her attention to Hanna, smirking a little.
The hairs on my arms start to bristle as I wait for her to continue.
"I was just going to say," she turns back to Mona, "that you should totally take makeup tips from Hanna. She knows how to do that cat-eye look you've been trying and failing to pull off for weeks."
Hanna's jaw drops. Did Alison really just refer to her as Hanna, and not Hefty Hanna?
Mona blinks a few times and puts her hand on her chest. She takes a deep breath and attempts to recover.
"Oh," she scoffs, trying not to sound offended, "yeah, that's exactly what I was thinking. We should totally get together sometime, Han."
'Han?' Spencer mouths to Aria and me. I try to bite back my laughter, as Hanna stares incredulously at the two girls. Alison flashes me a genuine smile that makes me thankful that I'm sitting, because if not my knees would have given out.
"Come along, Mona," Alison sounds bored. She snaps her fingers over her head and indicates for Mona to follow. I'm strangely reminded of a person calling their dog.
She struts off, Mona scrambling after her to catch up.
"What the hell was that?" Aria demands when they're out of earshot.
"Hanna, don't tell me that you're leaving us for Mona," Spencer jokes. Hanna rolls her eyes and shrugs. "We can't think of clever nicknames like she can."
"Don't look at me, I have no idea," she laughs.
I smile widely and look off in the direction that Alison and Mona walked off in. They've long since disappeared from vision.
My phone buzzes. I pull it out of my robes slowly, trying not to draw attention in case it's Alison.
My smile widens when I see that it is.
You have a beautiful smile! Hope I can see that more.
-Alison
I clear my throat and try to ignore all of the butterflies in my stomach.
I'm not sure if this makes me gay or not, but I'm definitely falling head over heels for Alison DiLaurentis. It's about time that I accepted it.
yay! i hope you guys like this :) it's sorta a filler but i wanted to show that alison is like trying to be nicer.
so, side note, have any of you ever watched simgm productions on youtube? oh my god they make me cry laughing. they do the BEST glee and pll skits. geez, just thinking about them makes me die... okay that's all.
well, lemme know what you think! follow me on twitter if ya want. same username
gotta go work on The Tavern Challenge! thanks for reading guys :)