"Halloween Reloaded"
Please remember this story throws sarcasm at the careless storytelling on PLL. It's all in fun! It's all in fairness to Emaya!
Will Emily and Maya find out the truth before it's too late?
Let's find out…
Rated M for Mature Content.
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Meanwhile, Paige is at home still planning her future with Emily. She opens her closet door pushing her clothes to either side revealing a hidden panel. She removes this panel revealing some kind of display. There are pictures upon pictures of Emily doing everything from swimming to drinking from the water fountain to walking down the hallway at school to eating ice cream to laughing in class to being lost in thought. Paige has selfied photos with all of these shots of Emily. She really believes that they have been dating all of this time and that they are in love. She reaches for one of the pictures removing it from the display. She looks at Emily with a sparkle in her eye and a smile on her face until she unfolds the photo. Her eyes grow dark and sinister as she looks at Maya snuggling against Emily. Her face heats up with rage as she rips Maya from the photo. She gently places Emily's half next to her own photo and puts back the panel. She arranges her clothes to hide her secret and closes her closet door…
Paige places Maya's half of the photo on her desk while she searches for matches in her desk drawer. She strikes the match becoming mesmerized by the fire in her hand. She then picks up Maya's half of the photo holding it over her wastebasket and with her other hand she lights it with the flaming match. The picture burns slowly at first but then turns all ablaze forcing her to drop it into the basket smiling as she watches Maya burn away from Emily's life for good…
It's Marlene who created this monster known as Paige and now poor Emily has become her victim while Maya has become a target for her madness...
Chapter 11: Paige, Back in the Closet
Thanksgiving…
As the days grow shorter and the nights grow longer, it only intensifies the need to peak over one's shoulder for something lurking in the darkness, that something being –A. There's another darkness that the liars need to contend with and that's the delusions and secrets of Paige McCullers, not to mention Marlene King and her band of inconsistent writers bringing disappointment and uncertainty to every page they write…
It's a long Thanksgiving weekend which Emily and Maya are grateful for as they are afforded some time off from being bothered by Paige and her black eyes waiting to make their next move. It's a time of thankfulness which is exactly what the St. Germains need after having gotten their daughter back safe and sound. In celebration of this reunion, they join the Fields for a lovely dinner together. Emily and Maya spend most of the evening gazing at one another trying to keep up with the many conversations around them. They even spend the next morning with their own families but their parents can sense their need to see each other.
The girls are given permission by their parents to spend the rest of their Friday together so they decide to head over to The Grind for a caffeine boost and figure out what they want to do for the rest of the day…
In the meantime, Shana is spending time with the McCullers who so eagerly invited her over wanting a real friend to spend time with their daughter not her troop of Pailys who her parents aren't particularly fond of…
"Are you upset that your parents insisted that I come over today?" Shana asks hoping the opposite is true.
"No, not at all. I like hanging out with you."
"I was afraid you were going to try to hang out with Emily and I wouldn't be able see you," Shana says shyly.
"Oh, we'll hang out at some point this weekend. I'm still working out the details," Paige devises.
"Details?"
"Yeah, I need Emily to come over so we can be like we were when Maya was gone. Maya, I really hate that word!"
"How do you plan on doing that?"
"I'm not sure. Do you have any ideas?"
"Seriously, you're asking me?" Shana asks kind of shocked by her blatant request.
"Well, what would you do to get someone up to your room?"
"I don't think it would be difficult to get anyone up to your room unless her name happens to be Emily," Shana snidely replies.
"Shana, she loves me! I know she does! I just need to show her something that I know will convince her we're meant for each other," Paige says rather excitedly.
But before Shana can dig any deeper Paige's mom calls for her up the stairs, "Paige, honey, your grandmother's calling from Maine! Come downstairs and talk to her!"
"Okay, I'll be right there!"
"I should go."
"No stay. Try to think of ways to get Emily over here, okay?"
Shana does not want to be a part of any of this but she agrees.
"Okay."
Paige bounds down the stairs while Shana wonders what it is that Paige wants to show Emily so she decides to snoop around hoping to find whatever that something is…
"Alright Paige, what is it that you want Emily to see?" Shana wonders out loud.
She begins rifling through her desk drawers being as quiet as she can, trying to find anything that would be worthy of Emily's attention, but nothing.
She looks under the bed and the mattress but still nothing. She checks the end tables and her shelves but still nothing and she knows she's running out of time to look.
"The closet!" she quietly rejoices. "It's the only other place it could be."
She carefully approaches where she has yet to search through. Her hands wrap around the knobs as she pushes the doors to fold open. There's really nothing spectacular to look at kind of making her feel defeated but she gives it a go. She looks through shoeboxes on the floor and bags hanging on hooks. She shoves the hangers mounted with clothes to one side and nothing. She's about to give up until she shoves the hangers back in place and hears something fall to the floor behind them. Her heart races, her breaths quicken as she slowly moves the clothes back out of the way! There, on the floor, is a wooden panel that came loose from the force of sliding the clothes back and forth on the rack!
She spies something partially hidden by another panel. She digs her fingers behind it and pulls. It pops out easily into her hand. She places it over to the side and stares in shock as to what she has discovered! Her hand covers her mouth for fear that she might let out a scream at the pictures upon pictures upon pictures of Emily & Paige! But it's not real! They're all faked! Shana can't believe what stares back at her! All these made up dates and poses to make it look like they're a real couple!
Now she's terrified! She has to put everything back quickly before Paige finds out that she knows her secret! But her fear makes her clumsy as she hears the stairs creak with every step Paige takes back up to her room! One panel pops back in easily but the one that fell is giving her trouble! She only has seconds to make everything as it was before Paige finds her truth exposed!
She fumbles with it trying desperately to make it stay! She's panicking but with one final effort it pops back! She moves the clothes to block her secret and quickly closes the doors as noiselessly as possible! The footsteps have stopped! She's afraid to turn around! She's never felt afraid of her in her life until this very moment! She's shaking with fear as she turns to face Paige!
At The Grind…
"So, what are you thinking Em?"
"I'm thinking how lucky I am to have you back in my life and how," she lowers her voice, "stupid –A is to think that he, she, it could break us apart."
"I'm so glad you're thinking like that. No more letting your brain cast doubts on what you know in your heart to be true or false."
"You're right. My heart knows better."
They smile before giving one another a sweet teenage kiss in a public place. A kiss that lasts long enough for anyone who might see them to know that they are in love and belong to each other something Marlene still doesn't seem to get.
"So, what should we do?"
"I don't know, it's not going to be light out that much longer and I kinda just wanna block everything and everyone out but you."
"Oh really. What did you have in mind?"
"Can we go to your house and watch a movie in your basement guest room?"
"Watch a movie? Just watch a movie?"
"For starters," she smiles wickedly.
"I love the way you think my beautiful. Let's get outta here."
"I'm right behind you."
At the McCullers…
"What are you doing?" Paige asks an ashen Shana.
"Nothing. I, I was feeling cold so I was just going to check your closet for a sweatshirt or something when I heard someone behind me."
"Oh, well take whatever you want," Paige believes her.
Shana lets out the breath she was holding that whole time. She keeps telling herself to keep it together.
"Thanks," she says opening the closet door praying that panel doesn't fall.
"Please don't fall! Please don't fall! Please don't fall!"
She very delicately removes one from a hanger and closes the doors again. Her breathing begins to relax as she has seemingly gotten away with it.
Shana puts on the sweatshirt and sits on the edge of Paige's bed.
"So how's your grandmother?"
"She's great. She's the one person I can always count on."
"Are you like her favorite?"
She smiles, "I don't know. Maybe."
"It's a nice feeling though knowing that she loves you for who you are right?"
"I guess. She's never doubted me and believes in me."
"Do you believe in you?"
"Enough to get Emily back? Absolutely!"
"No, enough to give her up."
"Where's this coming from?"
"I'm just worried if she rejects you then…"
"Rejects me!" Paige is shocked that Shana would even suggest such a thing!
"Paige, I…"
"Ya know what Shana, just go!"
"But…"
"Leave!"
She gets up brushing passed Paige with her head down and tears in her eyes. She rushes down the stairs and out the door grabbing her coat and bag on the way. She was only trying to stop Paige from doing something she'll never be able to take back, to keep her safe because she loves her.
However, unbeknownst to Shana, the thudding of her running causes something to make a noise behind the closet door. Paige opens the doors to investigate. She moves her clothes and sees one of the panels has fallen from its place but something's not quite right. The panel is upside down!
Her eyes fill with fury because she knows Shana lied to her and she knows Shana saw her secret!
Shana drives straight over to Maya's house hoping she'll be home. She sees her car and races to her door ringing the bell incessantly! Now she's banging desperate for someone to answer!
Emily and Maya were just getting cozy downstairs when they hear the ringing. They choose to ignore it until they hear the banging.
"What the fuck?"
"Seriously, what's their problem?"
"Come on Em, let's go check."
They rush up the stairs, checking through the window first to see who it is. But when they see how panic stricken Shana is they quickly open the door to let her in.
"Shana, oh my god, what happened?" Emily asks very concerned.
She tries desperately to catch her breath so she can tell them what she's learned.
"It was awful, just awful! She really is crazy!"
"I'm guessing we're talking about Paige?" Maya snarks.
Emily gives her a look, "Shana, what are you talking about?"
"I was over her house. She had to do something so I was left alone in her room. And I started searching…"
"Searching? Searching for what?" Emily interrupts.
"She said she wants to get you up in her room so she can show you something."
"Well, we all know it's not her pussy."
"Maya! Shhh," Emily scolds.
"I found her secret."
Now she has Maya's undivided attention, "What secret?"
"In her closet, there's a removable panel. It fell down while I was searching in there. When I moved her clothes I saw something but couldn't make it out so I pulled another panel off."
"And?"
"And, there are pictures of you Emily! It's like a shrine! It looks like they're pictures of you and Maya but Maya's not in them, Paige is!"
"What do you mean, Paige is?" Maya sounds pissed now.
"She cut your picture out and put her picture in its place! They're everywhere!"
"I don't like this Emily."
"I don't either. What the hell is she thinking?"
"She's thinking she still has a chance with you."
"Does she know you found it?" Emily asks concerned for Shana.
"No. I put everything back and came straight here."
"Should we call the police?" Maya wonders.
"And say what, 'Paige is crazy!' They already know that!"
"Emily, you can't go anywhere or be anywhere by yourself."
"I know that but what do we do about Paige?"
"We draw her out."
"How?"
"You need to SOS Spencer, Aria and Hanna right now and Shana, you're staying here tonight, call your parents."
Paige drives to Shana's but her car isn't there so she tries Emily's but she's not there either so she drives straight over to Maya's. There, in the driveway, she sees Shana's car. She slams her hands on the steering wheel just as she receives a text message…
Poor Paige.
No one likes you.
Except Marlene and Lucy.
And a handful of writers who don't know their ass from their elbow.
Tell them to meet you at the Rosewood High swimming pool tomorrow at midnight.
The school will be open.
Tell them you have something that will expose me.
If they don't come then you'll destroy what you have.
Leave the rest to me.
-A
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To Be Continued…
The basis of this story is sarcasm. I think you can handle it!