[The next morning]

"The car will be here in 5, we overslept…" Jordan called out from the living room, as he tried to pack furiously.

I get that drive or he finds out about Emily. Tick tock. - Blocked

Hanna read the text again as she made her way into the living room. She could feel her stomach sink, knowing that she fell back into old habits when she deleted that video. She had even got her mother caught up in the whole mess. She wasn't sure her mother had the hard drive that was stolen from the security company, but the timing was suspicious.

She knew her mother would do anything for her and clearly whoever was sending these texts didn't have it. Either way, she knew she had to search her mother's place to try to find it. She couldn't have her whole life de-railed by yet another "A", or whoever the hell this was now.

"I might need to go up later, I have some calls to make." Hanna announced to Jordan as she joined him in the living room

"Isn't Claudia's charity trunk show tonight? I thought you said you were going back for that. That's why I brought a car, so we could spend more time together on the drive back into the city. Why do you have to stay here?" Jordan questioned, frustrated and hurt by Hanna's constant change of plans and mood lately.

"I just have to be near a landline. You know the cell service on the Turnpike." Hanna replied quickly trying to justify the reason she had to stay behind.

"Is this job really worth all this grunt work?" Jordan pushed back, hoping that Hanna would cave and ride back with him to the city.

"Everyone starts in the trenches. My trench is Claudia…" Hanna replied, annoyed by Jordan's persistence. "…I'm sorry, I know I keep changing things last minute. But, I'll see still you tonight." Hanna finished, trying to smooth things over, knowing her bad mood was a result of the text threat and not actually Jordan.

Jordan accepted Hanna's apology and pulled her in for a long goodbye kiss. Just as the two were kissing, Emily arrives at the loft to drop off her bags.

"Oohhh…sorry! I'm early, my mom was driving me nuts" Emily exclaimed as she quickly turned away from the kiss, embarrassed and flustered.

Jordan was surprised by Emily's arrival and by her reaction. Hanna hadn't mentioned that she was coming over, and Hanna was supposed to be leaving with him in just a few minutes. He shot Hanna a confused and inquisitive look.

"Sorry…girl stuff…" Hanna responded, knowing Emily wouldn't want Jordan to know about the procedure but unsure of what else to say to give him the answers he was looking for.

Jordan let out a soft sigh and forced a smile. "I'll leave you two to your secrets then." He finished as he grabbed his bags and headed out to the awaiting town car. Jordan was annoyed, but understood that there were parts of Hanna's life he wasn't included in. He understood what she went through and accepted that the only ones that could truly understand were the same ones that went through it too.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to start anything. I thought you would have left already for New York." Emily said apologetically.

"Don't worry about it. I have some work to get done this morning, so I decided to stay back and go up later this evening for the fashion show." Hanna lied, not wanting to tell Emily about the threatening text. She didn't want to risk starting back up their fight about how she should have told Jordan about her in the first place.

Emily could tell there was something else Hanna was not saying, but didn't push the issue. She had too much else on her mind. Instead, she dropped her bag off in the bedroom and sat quietly down on the couch.

Hanna joined Emily on the couch, but made sure to keep some space between then, out of respect for Emily, and for Paige.

"Do you want me to drive you?" Hanna asked, knowing Emily had probably been planning on Paige taking her.

"It's OK. The clinic had a service. They just want to make sure I have someone to get me settled back in bed once I'm released tomorrow. I should be fine in couple days." Emily responded, thankful that Hanna had offered. She could have asked the other girls, but then she'd have to fill them in on everything else, and the thought of that was too exhausting to deal with right now.

"Well I'll be there to mash up your Jello, just the way you like it." Hanna teased jokingly, but noticed that Emily didn't smile back at her.

"Em, you seem nervous. These are your eggs. You can still change your mind if you want to." Hanna offered quietly.

Before Emily could respond, Hanna got a phone call from her boss. It was the same ringtone as before and even after all these years, the sound still brought back many unpleasant memories for Emily. That ringtone just reminded Emily of Hanna never putting her first.

Emily was vaguely aware of Hanna talking about what sounded like gum and rebooking Asian models. Both things were meaningless and trivial to Emily, but she knew that Hanna's boss was more than a little high maintenance and borderline crazy, so she just chalked it up that. Besides, she had more important things running through her mind.

[Flashback]

Emily hadn't slept much the night after the dinner party. Her mind raced as she replayed the events of the evening, her conversation with Hanna, and Paige's mood change towards the end of the evening. Things were finally looking up in Emily's life, and the last thing she wanted was her past interfering with her future.

She had finally fallen asleep around 5am, but was soon woken by a knock at her door an hour or so later. She assumed it was her mom, but was surprised to learn it was actually Paige.

"Hey Em…I'm really sorry to wake you up, but I wanted to say goodbye before I left…" Paige explained.

"Left?" Emily responded, clearly confused and still half asleep.

"Yeah…I told you last night at dinner that I got a call from Northwestern. They want me to come out today for an interview." Paige explained.

"Northwestern? Like in Chicago?" Emily responded, still very confused.

"Evanston technically, but yeah. They have a great Med program and I was surprised to get the call… We talked about this last night at dinner…" Paige confirmed, finding herself slightly relieved that Emily hadn't been paying attention because she had been hurt the night before when Emily hadn't reacted to the news.

Paige had gotten the call when Emily was looking for wine glasses. She was going to tell Emily right away, but when Emily came out of the pantry with Hanna, it was clear that something was on mind. Paige then decided to wait until they were alone later to tell her, but the topic came up at dinner so she told everyone that she was leaving for a few days for the interview. She was excited, but she had wanted to privately gauge Emily's reaction to her possibly spending the next 3-4 years in the Midwest.

Paige knew it was soon to talk about that kind of commitment, but it was a conversation she would have liked to have with Emily privately, but hadn't yet had the chance. Knowing the Emily was more than a little confused and exhausted, Paige figured that now wasn't the right time either. So instead, she just kissed Emily and apologized for having to miss the procedure.

"…I'll be back in a few days though and will take care of you. It'll be good practice for when I'm a doctor." Paige joked, but did genuinely feel bad that she wasn't going to be there for Emily.

After Paige left, Emily couldn't fall back asleep. She was embarrassed that she didn't remember that part of the dinner conversation at all. She had been distracted most of the evening after the conversation with Hanna in the pantry and then Jordan's comments about London flustered her more than she wanted to admit. She still felt she should have remembered, because it carried so many implications and expectations.

Emily had just assumed that Paige was going to Hollis. She had gotten in and it was a great school. So there hadn't been any pressure to figure out a future. But if she went to Northwestern, they would have to figure out what that meant for them as a couple. Would Paige expect Emily to move there? Would they do the long distance thing?

All of the what-ifs were starting to stress Emily out and she knew she was already going to have a rough day, so she tried to put it out of her mind, as best she could. Paige going out of town was bad timing, because Emily had planned to stay with Paige and let her help her through the recovery, since she couldn't exactly come home and have her mom see her post-surgery.

While it was not ideal, she knew she only had one person she could ask. She pulled out her phone and texted Hanna.

Hey Hanna…I have a favor to ask. Paige has to leave town for a couple days and I need a place to crash after my procedure. Any chance I can stay at Lucas's loft while you are back in New York? – Emily

Of course! Jordan and I are heading back this morning, so come over whenever with your stuff. – Hanna

Thanks! I really appreciate it. – Emily

Do you have anyone to take care of you afterwards? I can come back early tomorrow if you need me to…– Hanna

No, but I'll figure something out. I don't want to screw up your plans. – Emily

I don't mind. And you won't be screwing up anything. – Hanna

OK…well that would be great actually. I wasn't quite sure how I was going to tell the others. – Emily

Then it's settled. I'll see you tomorrow morning at Hollis :) - Hanna

Emily put down her phone and smiled to herself. She was thankful to Hanna to let her stay at the loft and not have to worry about dealing with her mom, but she was surprised Hanna was the one to offer taking care of her.

Emily wasn't sure what it meant though. They had shared a moment the night before. There was something in Hanna's eyes when she was trying to explain how she and Jordan got together. Like she was trying to justify it to Emily, or maybe even herself. But they were finally getting back to a place of being friends. And maybe that's all this was, Hanna being a friend. Back when they were just friends, Hanna was always there for Emily and took great care of her. But it had been so long since they were only friends. Things were so much more complicated now.

Emily found herself feeling a mix of emotions. She was happy for the friendship or whatever else could be there, but at the same time, she was with Paige and there was now all this pressure to define what they were. Emily sighed herself, knowing she wasn't going to fall back asleep and she might as well get up and go have breakfast with her mother.

[End flashback]

Hanna interrupted Emily's thoughts, as she hung up the call and announced that she had a few errands to run for her boss, but that she would be back before she left for the procedure.

Hanna felt bad lying to Emily and using work as the excuse. It was the easiest excuse though since it was one she had used hundreds of times when they were together, so she knew Emily would believe it without question.

Instead of running errands though, Hanna went to childhood home to see if her mother knew anything about where that tape went. She had to get it back, and soon. She confronted her mother, but to no avail. Ashley denied knowing where the tape was or having anything to do with its disappearance.

Hanna was still less than convinced, so she enlisted Spencer's help to search the house after her mom went to work. After destroying almost every room, neither girl had found anything, except for an unhealthy amount of sample beauty products.

"I am so screwed! If I don't find this tape and turn it over, "A" or whoever this is, is going to tell Jordan that I've been lying to him about Emily." Hanna confessed, frustrated with not finding what she had convinced herself that her mom was hiding.

"Yeah, I have been wanting to ask since last night…why haven't you told him? I mean I feel like that's kind of an important detail to leave out of your life history…" Spencer responded, trying not to sound too critical even though she didn't understand or agree with the secret.

"I don't know…I know I should have, but now it's too late. How do I tell him that I've been lying to him our entire relationship? At this point, I know I need to tell him. I just don't know how. I can't very well say, 'Jordan, remember when we met and I was heartbroken because I had just broken up with the love of my life. That was because of Emily. Can you pass the wine?' Hanna answered, knowing eventually the truth would come out.

"Ugh! I can't believe I let "A" or Sarah Harvey or whoever convince me to destroy my mother's house. I just wish I had found this tape!" Hanna continued, expressing her frustration.

"Or do you just need to find a tape?" Spencer chimed in, formulating an idea that might solve the problem.

"What do you mean?" Hanna asked, not catching on to Spencer's con.

Spencer explained her plan to Hanna. They reached out to Caleb to create a fake drive, one that had a virus on it and would help them locate and figure out whoever this new tormentor was. The plan sounded like it could work. And Hanna was open to any idea that might expose their black-mailer before he/she had a chance to expose her lies.

After she got the drive from Caleb that he swore would pass for the real thing, she made plans with Sarah/A/whoever to make the drop. She left the drive in a trash can in an alley outside Rosewood.

Just as she left the package, her phone buzzed. At first she was afraid that they knew it was a trap, but she saw it was her boss, she felt a moment of relief, before she began panicking again.

Her adventures with Spencer of tearing apart her mother's house and then working with Caleb took up more time than she had realized. She was supposed to have already been on the train to New York.

She quickly answered and re-assured her boss she'd be there no later than 6:30pm and raced to the train station. Once on the train, she pulled out her phone again to text Emily to apologize.

[Across town]

Emily stayed at the loft after Hana left. She wanted to familiarize herself with the apartment, since she was going to be staying there for the next several days, but also because she didn't want to deal with her mother's questions. She had noticed Emily's change in behavior; mostly as a result of the high hormone doses she had been taking, and started to ask too many questions. Besides just being annoying, it was also hard to keep lying to her, so it was better just to keep a distance for the next couple days until it was all over.

Emily watched TV and killed time for a couple hours, hoping that Hanna would be back soon, like she had promised. She knew she only had an hour or so before she was going to be picked up by the hospital shuttle, so Hanna was cutting it close.

Eventually Emily had to give up on Hanna coming all together and started to collect her things to leave. She heard a noise in the hallway and assumed it was Hanna, so she opened the door and was surprised to find Alison standing on the other side looking like she was going to burst into tears at any moment.

"Is something wrong, come in…" Emily said, holding the door open for Alison to enter.

"Sarah Harvey came to see me today. I think she and Charlotte were closer than we thought… I think there is more to that story." Alison explained, clearly shaken by Sarah's visit.

"Why would you believe a word she says?" Emily responds, trying to keep the annoyance out of her voice as she reaches behind herself to grab her bag and finish packing up.

"Hey can I stay here for a bit? I really need someone to talk to." Alison asked.

"I actually have somewhere I need to be." Emily responded, growing in frustration because she didn't want to be late and she let herself be disappointed by Hanna, yet again.

As Emily packed the last of her things, Alison remained standing in the doorway, with a knowing look at her face.

"Great…Hanna told you didn't she? That's just like her to blow me off after she promised to be here for me and then betray my trust to ask for a stand-in? Well whatever, they are my eggs and I made the decision to do it. You can say whatever you want, just promise you won't tell my mom!" Emily rambled on, showing her full frustration.

"Hanna didn't. Honestly I had no idea. You're donating your eggs?" Alison responded quietly, not wanting to upset Emily any further.

"I'm such a jerk. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have assumed…" Emily finished, embarrassed at her outburst and annoyed to find that Hanna could still disappoint her so much after all these years.

"When is this happening?" Alison asked.

"Today." Emily replied quietly, looking down at her own feet.

"And you're going by yourself?" Alison continued.

Emily just nodded her head silently. She willed away the tears forming in her eyes, knowing that Hanna had once again chosen her boss over her.

Alison pulled Emily in for a hug and assured her that she would be there so Emily wouldn't be alone. Emily felt better knowing someone would be there for her, but still hurt that the blonde hugging her was the wrong one.

Alison pulled away from the hug to take Emily's bag from her and loaded her onto the hospital shuttle. Alison followed the van back to the hospital and stayed with Emily until right before her procedure.

As the final doctor came in to give Emily the sedative for the procedure, she heard her phone chirp from her bag. Alison went to retrieve it and held up the phone for Emily to read.

I'm so sorry I wasn't there to see you off. The procedure will go great. I'll be there late tonight after the show, promise! – Hanna

Even though Emily had been mad at Hanna only moments before, she felt her anger wash away and be replaced with a warm fuzzy feeling. It was probably from the sedative the doctor was injecting into her IV, but Emily knew it was the simple fact of just hearing from Hanna.

Emily had grown accustom to forgiving many things, as long as she was still cared about, and in this moment, she knew Hanna still cared.