Emily reached behind her to grab the bottle of whiskey and fill the glass in front of her. She slid the now full drink towards the end of the bar and then made change for another customer. Accepting a generous tip, Emily bent down to put the cash into her bag and saw the envelope again. She pulled it out of her purse and opened it. She had read it many times, but every time she did, she hoped it would somehow say something different.
She stopped about halfway through, knowing that it the end result was still the same. She needed to return to Rosewood. Even just thinking about going "home" made her feel sick. Rosewood was special, it was the place she grew up and discovered who she really was. But those memories were tainted because Rosewood was also the place she lived in fear of A and then later returned to bury her father.
Her mother still lived there, and they kept in touch, but mostly by phone, email, and text. They saw each other briefly on holidays at various relatives' homes throughout the country, but Emily never came back to Rosewood. She had plenty of excuses over the years, like school, practice, work, etc. but none of them were ever true. Her trip to Rosewood needed to be brief, so that her secrets wouldn't be exposed to her mother, her friends, or Hanna.
"…Hanna…" She thought to herself as she sighed deeply.
She had been included on Hanna's group text when she had gotten engaged to Jordan. She replied with the obligatory "Congratulations!" but they hadn't really interacted much since. She was sure that Hanna probably gushed over the story in separate texts with the girls, not wanting to create any awkwardness for Emily or the others. She knew she should be happy for Hanna, but she couldn't help thinking about the past.
[Flashback]
Emily and Hanna arrived in New York and had spent the day apartment hunting. Each apartment they saw seemed to be smaller than the next, but they finally found one in Chelsea that they both agreed on and they signed the lease on the spot. In true Hanna fashion, she immediately wanted to start thinking about how to decorate their home together.
Hanna dragged Emily to a hundred furniture shops, but Emily didn't mind. She was excited to start this next chapter of their lives and knew this was Hanna's way to being excited as well. Finally at one of the last stores they were in, Hanna fell in love with a modern, yet beautiful, kitchen/dining room table. It was wildly expensive, but she insisted she had to have it. After begging and pleading, Emily finally gave in, but insisted they buy the version with the expansion leaf. She explained that it was more practical then because when they got married and eventually had a bigger place, they could fit their whole family around the table.
Hanna blushed but kept her gaze open and vulnerable as she looked at her beautiful girlfriend. They often discussed their future, but rarely so openly or in such a specific manner as marriage and children. Emily wrapped Hanna into a tight embrace in the middle of the store and whispered in her ear "I love you Hanna Marin, and I always will."
[End flashback]
Emily shook the memory from her thoughts almost as quickly as it had entered. That part of her life was over, and had been for a long time. At the end of the day, Emily cared about Hanna and wanted her to be happy. She was happy to see that Hanna had been able to create the life that she had always wanted for herself. Even if it was a life that Hanna had chosen over her, many years before.