A/N: Here we are the final chapter of Ali's Second Chance, Part Three was uploaded as a chunk so this all starts on CHAPTER 29.. go back there first.
Disclaimers: I don't own PLL.
This work includes: Violence, Mentions of Child Abuse, Murder, Suicidal Thoughts, Sex Scenes, Coarse Language. PTSD.
Caleb ushered Alison into the Marin residence with a small smile.
"Afternoon, Alison," he politely greeted.
"Caleb," Alison nodded as they stood in the foyer.
"Something I can help you with?" Caleb queried.
"Yes actually I need to speak with-"
"He's fucking with you, blondie," Hanna called from the top of the steps.
Alison turned to find Hanna glaring down at them, she turned back to Caleb raising an eyebrow and Caleb held up his hands in defence.
"I was being polite," Caleb defended.
"Well go be polite somewhere else," Hanna muttered as she descended the steps.
"Hanna-"
"Caleb," Hanna sighed tiredly. "Just go."
Caleb opened his mouth to argue but then thought better of it and headed out the front door, closing it behind him. Alison watched him go perplexed.
"I thought you two were good," Alison turned to Hanna confused.
Hanna shrugged and let out a long suffering sigh.
"He's just hovering, and I know he means well but its driving me nuts," Hanna muttered bitterly.
Hanna stormed into the kitchen and Alison followed her.
"He loves you, Hanna," Alison stressed.
Hanna rounded on her angrily.
"You think I don't know that!" Hanna shrieked.
Alison clenched her fists to her sides and willed herself not to react, Hanna obviously needed to vent and Alison adding fuel to the already burning fire was not going to help.
"This morning I swear he would have regurgitated my cereal for me like a bird if I let him," Hanna shivered.
Alison face contorted in horror and disgust at the suggestion.
"See, gross right," Hanna cried.
"He didn't do that though?" Alison asked carefully well and truly creeped.
"No," Hanna snapped. "He's not a freak he's just… he's Caleb and he's perfect but I don't…"
Alison sat down at the breakfast bar as Hanna tried to sort through what she wanted to say.
"I don't need a perfect boyfriend right now, it just makes me feel bad because I'm not a perfect girlfriend, I'm not a perfect anything," Hanna admitted defeatedly.
"Han," Alison called gently. "Caleb doesn't want you to be anything other than you."
"Do you know who is that?" Hanna asked bitterly. "Cause I sure as hell don't."
Alison felt guilt settle heavily in her stomach.
"Maybe Caleb can help you-"
"I don't need relationship advice from you, Alison," Hanna snapped. "Just tell me what you're doing here?"
"I came to tell you.. that I found out something about us," Alison hesitated, did she really want to turn Hanna's world on its head more.
"I already know," Hanna waved her off.
"What?" Alison gasped. "Since when? How?"
"My mom came clean after everything, my… Tom Marin found out, I still don't know how but he was yelling at her at the hospital," Hanna shook her head sadly. "He hasn't contacted me since."
"I'm sorry, Hanna," Alison sincerely whispered.
Tom Marin was a dickhead Alison decided, the blood of the daughter he had raised shouldn't have made a iota of difference to how much he loved her. But apparently it did.
"He's an idiot," Alison assured her friend.
"Yeah I always thought he was a shit dad but turns out he's not even that," Hanna bitterly sighed. "Who would have thought I'm the newest DiLaurentis bastard, do you think Jason will care that I stole his title?"
"Technically Jason is a Hastings bastard," Alison answered.
Hanna withered a glare at her.
"Right, not helping," Alison muttered. "This doesn't have to change anything if you don't want it to Hanna."
"Oh so you didn't come over to hold your big sister role over my head," Hanna challenged.
"No," Alison shook her head. "I'm pretty sure you don't want to be my sister."
"I don't want to be a DiLaurentis," Hanna argued. "Your family is fucked up, Alison."
"I'm not disagreeing with you and you don't have to be," Alison assured. "But my-our- Kenneth DiLaurentis has a lot of money."
"Why are you telling me this, worried I'll get written into the will?" Hanna cattily snarked.
"Worried you won't get written in at all," Alison truthful answered.
Hanna crossed her arms but stayed quiet.
"Em told me about the beauty pageant thing," Alison told Hanna.
"Of course she did," Hanna grumbled.
"What I'm saying Hanna is you shouldn't be punished by not getting to go to college because your dad-both of them are dickheads," Alison barrelled along.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, why not use Kenneth's money," Alison hedged.
"What part of I don't want to be a DiLaurentis do you not-"
"There would be no obligation, I swear, I'll make sure he knows that but Hanna you don't owe this man anything but he owes you," Alison stressed.
Hanna remained silent.
"Please let me do something right," Alison stressed.
"Is that what this is, guilt money?" Hanna fumed.
"No Hanna its about helping out family, you might not consider me yours but you're pretty much the only decent blood family I have," Alison looked down at the kitchen counter, it was a depressingly accurate statement.
"Emily thinks you've changed," Hanna muttered recrossing her arms.
"I am trying, Hanna," Alison looked to Hanna's guarded blue eyes.
Hanna's eyes roamed around the kitchen.
"Do you remember that day?" Hanna asked looking to the trash can.
Alison knew which day she was talking about, the day Ali caught Hanna binging, the day Alison made one of the worst decisions of her life.
"You were my best friend Ali and you were also my worst enemy," Hanna shuddered.
Alison looked down in shame.
"But I think I played up both of your roles," Hanna admitted softly. "I saw you as this untouchable queen bee who chose to be friends with me and deemed me worthy and then this horrible sociopath who used me as an emotional punching bag."
"Hanna I-"
Hanna held up a hand silencing Alison.
"But I missed the crucial point as my friend and as my enemy you were still human, Alison and I just… when you came back I couldn't see that, I didn't want to see that," Hanna shook her head.
"I don't blame you, Hanna, at all," Alison sighed. "What I did to you. I'll never be sorry enough for what I showed you how to do."
"I want to move past that, all of it," Hanna admitted softly. "But I don't know how."
Alison nodded sadly.
"Maybe too much has happened, I basically ruined your life and you don't owe me anything, we can share blood and leave it at that," Alison smiled sadly. "If thats what you want."
"I'm not saying we'll be best buds tomorrow but we should try to be something," Hanna muttered. "Em seems to want to keep you around so we might as well bond or whatever."
Alison cracked a small smile.
"I'd like that," she admitted shyly.
"And hey look at the bright side I already like you better than Kate," Hanna smiled genuinely and Alison chuckled.
"I'll take it," Alison nodded.
Hanna's smile fell flat as she observed Alison seriously for a moment.
"Ali don't hurt Em, ok," Hanna stressed.
Alison met Hanna's stare head on and nodded once.
"Never again, Han," Alison promised. "I swear."
It turned out that all the girls remembered bits and pieces of Ali's weird little adventure, Emily not surprisingly remembered the most and seemed to have the easiest time accepting that it was something that just couldn't really be explained. Not surprising anyone the summer after graduation Spencer made it her mission to grill everyone on what they could and couldn't remember trying to sort out some kind of timeline.
"Ok so I talked to my mom and while she won't outright admit it I think even she remembers some stuff," Spencer told the other four gathered in her living room.
Their case against Rosewood PD and Ali's personal case, for wrongful imprisonment, against the District Attorney's office were so successful that Aria had been pled out to community service for failing to report a criminal act. Needless to say everyone was incredibly thankful that Aria wouldn't have to spend any time in prison, Hanna and Alison especially, knowing what the reality would not suit Aria at all.
"Maybe because your mom just wants to forget it ever happened," Hanna grumbled from the couch, where she was trying to read the latest vogue.
"Hanna this is serious if I can crack this I will have discovered the potential for time travel," Spencer gleefully lectured.
"Can't we all just agree Alison is crazy and move on," Hanna whined. "I already relived one summer were we played super spies."
Alison covered her giggles, the others didn't seem to remember their incredible failure at staking out Mona or they chose to believe they were naturally skilled detectives, Alison didn't have the heart to correct them.
"Fine," Spencer sighed, sitting down on the couch next to Hanna. "What do you want to do?"
"I don't know you're the brains, you come up with something," Hanna quipped.
"Alright how about we watch a movie?" Aria suggested as Spencer tensed frustrated at Hanna's obvious dig.
"And have those two all over each other, no thanks," Hanna threw her head back to indicate Alison in Emily's lap at the kitchen counter.
"We're not that bad," Alison argued but Emily's hands tightened on her waist.
"Ah yeah we are, Ali," Emily giggled in her ear, nipping it lightly.
Alison squirmed happily.
"Get the hose," Hanna instructed Spencer dryly.
"We'll behave," Emily promised reluctantly tearing her lips away from Alison.
They'd already been hosed down once this summer for failing to listen to Hanna's threats, thankfully it had been outside and once again Alison maintained it was not her fault Emily looked so good in that bikini.
Hanna rolled her eyes at the couple but no one made a move for the hose.
"I'm starving why don't we get something to eat?" Spencer suggested when no one else offered an alternative.
"I could eat," Hanna nodded.
"Same," Aria agreed.
Alison stood from Emily's lap stretching out her back as she groaned.
"Sounds good to me," Alison smiled at the others before looking over her shoulder. "Em what do you want to eat?"
Emily's eyes were dark and endless as she stared at Ali.
"No, no, no," Hanna cried throwing a pillow at Emily's head. "Keep it in your pants, Fields!"
"I'm with Hanna keep it in the bedroom guys," Aria teased gently.
"No innuendos, no allusions to 'eating', on second thought lets go out in public," Spencer stressed. "Were these two have to behave."
Hanna and Aria agreed as Spencer scooped up her car keys and headed for the door.
"We'll just have to sit close together," Alison whispered with a saucy smirk when the others were out of sight.
"You two are not sitting next to each other," Hanna yelled from foyer.
"I take it back," Alison whined. "I hate them all."
Emily laughed slowly getting to her feet, she pulled Alison's into her arms and kissed her forehead deeply.
"No you don't," Emily smiled into her girlfriend's hair.
"Five seconds Emily or I'm getting the hose!" Hanna yelled from the front door.
Alison groaned and buried her head in Emily's neck as Emily just laughed.
Alison was drying the last of the dishes from dinner when she felt strong arms wrap around her middle, Emily leaning over her shoulder softly.
"Baby your parents-" Alison started as Emily kissed at her neck.
"Already went to bed," Emily answered, as her lips slid against Ali's warm skin.
Alison moaned softly as Emily started to suck on her neck.
"You're neck is really sensitive, Ali," Emily smiled as she kissed it again.
"Don't act like you didn't figure that out ages ago," Alison quipped.
"Mmm," Emily mumbled into her heated skin. "I do have a lot of experience."
Alison giggled then moaned as Emily lavished the blonde's neck, Alison put down the tea towel and last plate to hold her girlfriend's arms that tightened around her middle.
"I still can't believe I thought you slept with Cece," Emily chuckled as she pulled her lips away. "Not that you ever denied it."
"Well I couldn't exactly tell you the truth," Alison argued, titling her neck and trying to get Emily to keep kissing her.
"I could see how you'd have trouble telling me I was jealous of myself," Emily smiled rubbing her nose along the expanse of skin. "Not that I should have been jealous anyway the amount of times you let me have you, Ali."
"What can I say we were kind of nymphos," Alison smirked deviously, spinning in Emily's arms so she could face her lover.
"Kind of, I don't know if you had control of everything or what but hell Ali we were sexing each other everyday," Emily chuckled.
"Are you complaining?" Alison smirked sliding her hands up Emily's arms till she hooked them around the brunette's neck.
Emily shook her head.
"Do I look stupid, I just think its a little unrealistic," Emily admitted.
"Unrealistic?" Alison's smile dropped and Emily squeezed her tighter.
"Well yeah, I think we can do better," Emily smirked.
"Oh I love the way your mind works," Alison leaned up and seized Emily's lips, the brunette met her full force and then slowed their kisses before she pulled away with a regretful sigh.
"Before we start breaking records though," Emily interrupted. "Can we talk about college?"
Alison nodded smiling up at her lover and tightening her hold.
"Where do you wanna go?" Alison asked.
"Where do you wanna go?" Emily retorted.
Alison could see this was getting them nowhere.
"I don't care where you want to go to school Emily I survived death three times to be with you, we can study on the moon for all I care," Alison answered honestly.
"But what if we don't both get in or-"
Alison kissed Emily quickly to stop her negatives thought the brunette hummed as Alison pulled away.
"I'm gonna get my GED online and take some extra courses," Alison explained, she'd been giving this a lot of thought. "It doesn't matter where I am as long as you're there mermaid because I am never letting you go."
Emily smiled.
"Good cause I don't want you to," Emily admitted.
"I love you," Alison promised.
"I love you too, Ali," Emily beamed. "If you're sure?"
"I've never been surer of anything in my life," Alison vowed. "We are the only sure thing in my life."
Emily smiled drawing Ali in for a sweet kiss, she pulled back all too soon for Alison's liking though, who pouted till Emily kissed her again.
"I've been thinking though," Emily started when she finally got her lips free from Ali.
"Always dangerous," Alison sniggered but looked properly chastised when Emily glared at her.
"I'm sorry, baby," Alison murmured pressing another kiss to Emily's lips.
Emily squeezed Alison tighter for a second before she pulled back.
"You were saying?" Alison prompted when Emily stayed silent staring at Ali's lips.
"Right," Emily came back to herself with a little chuckle.
Alison giggled at her adorable girlfriend.
"I really wanna travel actually," Emily admitted. "Just take a gap year and find myself I guess,"
Alison titled her head.
"The money from the settlement would cover some expenses and Mom loves Pepe-"
Alison kissed her again.
"You don't need to convince me, baby," Alison smiled when they parted, a trip away sounded amazing.
"Europe," Emily suggested with a hopeful smile.
"Paris?" Alison felt giddy.
"Of course," Emily smirked. "How else am I going see how good you look on top of the Eiffel tower."
Alison pulled her arms tighter around Emily's neck.
"You have a terrible memory, mermaid," Alison playfully teased. "Its how good you'll look on top of the Eiffel tower."
"We'll see," Emily promised pressing a kiss to Alison's lips.
Alison tightened her hold on her mermaid when Emily tried to pull away again, they could work out the logistics later, right now Alison wanted to just bask in the affection of her lover. This right here, Ali decided, this was her second chance and maybe she took the scenic route getting here but she sure as hell wasn't giving it up now.
The End. For real this time.
I hope you guys enjoyed it :)