Disclaimer: Still don't own it
Sorry, meant to release this the other day but was having some issues with and my computer. The next few chapters will be pretty fast pace as we approach the end of the road. Anyways, thanks for reading and your patience as well as a shout out to Paraddicted for the pre-read!
Spencer waited while Mona changed into the dress.
As she sat outside the changing room and checked her phone, she noticed as another teen from their class had arrived.
It was the night before the biggest of day of their lives; the school dance that would finally end their war with Alison for good. To prepare for the event, the two teens were out shopping for dresses which Mona seemed to be enjoying more than Spencer. Truthfully the taller teen didn't see the point in buying a fancy dress, which her parents were more than happy to pay for, due to the fact that it could get ruined during the coming operation. Mona however had insisted that they dress to kill, pun intended, and that they take a few hours off of all the planning to get the best attire possible. For over an hour Mona had forced her friend to try on dresses that the shorter ten had picked out for her; almost as if she was a doll. It was a little uncomfortable since it brought Spencer back to the days of her mother doing the exact same thing for events at the club and other family gatherings. Though this time, Spencer didn't have a problem with her friend checking out her in the buff.
While they had seen more than a few of their classmates shopping for attire for the event, the two had yet to see Alison or any other member of the posse. This was a bit unusual given that Alison had always dragged the girls to the clothing stores right before events like this; whether they had the money for a dress or not. While Alison, Hanna, and Spencer usually had the cash to spring for a new dress, the other two girls usually had to borrow or buy something really cheap; which sometimes earned them ridicule from the blonde leader. Spencer was the one who sometimes loaned the cash to her friends, which never bothered her, and made sure to let them know that there was no rush to pay her back. If her friend's pride wasn't a factor, the teen would have let them off the hook easily for the cost but they always insisted on paying her back no matter what; which Spencer could understand. The one thing that never really came up during their friendship was the money factor though they were all in different economic classes.
The two had decided to spend the rest of the day in Philadelphia after school since everything was more or less ready for tomorrow night. Normally, Spencer would have just pulled something out of her closet and gone with that but Mona wanted to go shopping; citing that they needed to go to this thing in style. Truthfully, this was the first time ever that the two teens had engaged in this sort of thing; especially since Spencer was never a shopping kind of girl. Sure, she always went with the rest of the posse when Alison dragged them to the mall but always faked the smiles as well as that she was having a good time. This wasn't so bad though despite the fact that Mona was pushing dresses on her to try on; at least she was asking her opinion and how comfortable the garment was. Alison usually just forced the group to try on whatever she picked out and then ridiculed them when it looked ugly; or swiped it for herself if it actually looked good on them. Mona wasn't behaving like that at all and Spencer was slightly starting to enjoy herself since the other teen was acting like a true friend.
While not seeing Alison was a surprise and somewhat a relief, it was still kind of unusual as well. She had heard from Mona that her plan to take down Charlotte had been successful; which had not made the gossip rounds in Rosewood. This was understandable given that Charlotte DiLaurentis was not known to exist; thus her current condition was only acknowledged by a current few. The last thing that the two had heard was that the blonde was in a coma in a Philadelphia hospital due to an intense allergic reaction to the wrong medicine she had been prescribed. Radley was in the middle of a full blown investigation into what had happened, pressured by Jessica, and that heads were to roll somehow. Already, the head pharmacist had to resign though she still would receive her full pension; courtesy of a lack of evidence that she did any wrong doing in the first place as well as the fact that she had a Union-backed contract. Thus her friend didn't feel too guilty at what she had done.
Both Mona and Spencer wondered if Alison had known the truth about Cece being really Charlotte and was in mourning. While the blonde teen had yet to make an appearance at the hospital unlike her mother, it was still believed that Alison had to feel sad that her only real friend now was fighting for her life. They hadn't seen her the last few days and were only going by her actions through the phone so they weren't completely sure. What they did know was that the blonde was starting to notice that her friends were being deliberately distant and had called them out on that; which they adamantly denied. Alison though didn't seem to believe them and was now spreading out to communicate with other teen women in their grade; almost as if she was going to actively replace Aria, Emily, and Hanna. While Spencer could see that happening given what had occurred with her, Mona wasn't so quick to think that the blonde was going that far. Despite her recent actions, Alison was still quite the intelligent person and was not prone to rash actions without calculation; though she had never been pushed into a corner like this ever before.
"So what do you think?" Mona asked her friend happily as she opened the changing room door and showed Spencer the dress she had picked out. It was a long scarlet-colored dress that went to her feet and covered up her chest area though it left little to the imagination for her cleavage.
"It looks great," Spencer answered honestly as she checked her friend out as Mona walked a few paces to get a better feel of it. There was a matching colored cloak that went along with it though her friend wasn't wearing it.
"Well this is definitely my dress; though I hope no one else thinks of wearing it as well," stated the teen as she looked at herself in the mirror a bit more. It felt a little tight on the bottom where her butt was though she didn't mind that much.
"Should I change the color of my attire? I don't think my pure white dress goes well with your crimson one," the taller teen said as she peeked inside the bag she was holding. Spencer's pick, or the one that Mona actually picked out for her, was held on the body through a pair of straps on the shoulders and went to her knees; showing a bit more skin than her friend.
"It's fine; just makes us more unique to the other couples that are going," stated her friend as she waved the suggestion off. Mona had gone to great lengths to pick out what her friend was going to wear and was happy with the choice.
"Are we going as a couple? I thought we were waiting until after everything was resolved before coming out?" Spencer inquired, wondering if her friend had changed the game plan without telling her. Once Alison was dealt with, the two had decided to come out to everyone about their relationship.
"We're going as friends because we don't have dates to the dance; which works since we have a lot to do tomorrow night. Next dance though we will show the school that we are the hottest couple there is," stated the teen with a somewhat sultry tone. She had yet to tell her friend about how they were going to celebrate their victory tomorrow night as well as the fact that she had rented a private room at the lodge.
"I am curious to see how Alison will react when Hanna brings Caleb while she doesn't have a date," commented the other teen as Mona slipped back into the changing room; so that she could change back into her street clothes. While Spencer was in a black skirt that went to her knees and a white blouse to go with it, Mona wore a light blue pantsuit with heels.
"She will probably be too distracted to even notice; our first A text will be sent once she arrives at the dance so we can lure the bitch away from her friends," stated Mona quietly as they made their way to the checkout desk. Their dresses were on hangers since they didn't want to ruin them through folding.
"Well Aria is still planning to break into Alison's locker so we are on target with that aspect of the plan; especially since our fake correspondents are found," continued Spencer in almost a whisper since they were now in a line. The two teens had planted a burner phone containing fake text messages between Alison and Charlotte; some of which subtly indicated that the blondes were acting as A.
"And our fake evidence indicating Alison as Bethany's murderer should be found today by Detective Wilden; thus our nemesis will be panicked and fall into our trap," finished the other teen with a whisper of her own. She had been following Wilden's progress and knew he finally got the search warrant for Radley early this morning.
"So I guess we are set then; I am kind of giddy and nervous given what we are about to do," admitted Spencer as she handed the cashier her credit card. She had finally gotten it back after months of rebuilding her trust with her parents; though the card was still being monitored just in case she strayed.
"So am I; though we have both agreed that this needs to be done. This isn't a crime we are committing, this is justice," assured Mona adamantly as she watched her friend receive her receipt and move aside so that she could pay. Mona pulled out her own credit card to pay for the dress and didn't have to worry about her mother tracking it; Leona didn't know about this particular card.
"I understand that; I really do and I have full intension of going through with this because it does need to be done. But she is still someone's daughter, sister, and friend in the end. I think we still have to recognize that to some degree and be prepared for mourning when it comes to her family," the other teen gently countered; walking out of the store. They then headed towards the food court in order to get something to eat.
"I do understand that as well; but you have to remember that the DiLaurentis Family have not been the upstanding model family that they pretend to be. Jessica and Kenneth are just as bad as their daughter when it comes to bullying; especially against those parents who speak up against their daughter. While I understand that she is someone's daughter, she and them have brought this upon themselves. Alison had the choice to change her ways and she chose not to; instead she doubled down and made your life hell. There will be more people happy in this town when she is gone than mourning her," Mona pointed out in an effort to promote the idea that this was necessary; though she knew that her friend was fully on board. The morality of the issue had come up in Mona's mind on a number of occasions but has always been stifled by the memories of the blonde's bad acts.
In fact, Mona could never recall a single moment when the blonde had been genuinely nice to anyone in this town that didn't suit her interests.
"I know that too; though I disagree with you when it comes to Jason. I like to think that he is the only good apple of the lot," commented Spencer as they stood and tried to decide on what to eat since there was a variety of choices. It was actually pretty empty and there were very few people in lines as well as a good number of free tables.
"I often wonder if he is even Kenneth's to begin with; it would explain why he is the good one and Alison is the bad," remarked the other teen as she debated whether to go with a chicken bowl or a fish sandwich. Though she had forgo her diet some time ago, she was still concerned about eating healthy.
"Maybe we should look into it once everything is resolved tomorrow. I kind of want to find out if that is true," Spencer suggested as she walked over to grab a hamburger. When it came to fatty foods, she couldn't care less about her weight.
"We could though it would be in our best interest to lay low for a while given all the craziness that is definitely about to happen. I think we might have to chuck it up as a remaining mystery we might never get to in all honesty," Mona stated once the two rejoined at an isolated table to eat their food. It was starting to get late and they needed to leave soon to make curfew for the night as well as get enough rest for what was to come.
"I suppose you are right; though I am going to miss playing the game since there is no point after the grand plan is concluded. At least we get the joy of watching the other girls squirm when they think that Alison is still alive and still out there to haunt them," said the taller teen with an evil smirk. Mona nodded in agreement and started to pick at her chicken bowl while Spencer bit into her fries.
"I was still surprised to see that Emily is working at The Brew and maybe we should start going somewhere else. I swear my drink tasted a little bitter the last time I ordered something and she was the one who made it," the other teen told her friend after they were done eating and threw their trash into the bin. Spencer could tell that her friend sounded annoyed about the whole ordeal and was slightly put off.
"Emily is capable of many things but I doubt she would sabotage your drink. Besides, I don't think she really focused on us being the enemy anymore given her newfound suspicion of Alison," Spencer pointed out to her friend while they walked slowly to the parking garage so that they could leave. The mall was emptying with people leaving so there was very little traffic to deal with; though the teens saw a few people from their class heading into the still open shops.
"I suppose you are right though I still think we need to watch ourselves around her and the other girls for the foreseeable future. While they may not be our enemies now and maybe in the future, we still have a dark history," Mona countered and Spencer was slightly surprised by her attitude given that she had wanted Hanna back as her friend. She was tempted to ask about the sudden change of attitude but decided to stay silent.
They conversed as Spencer drove Mona home, her being the chaperone for the day, and she dropped the teen off at her house as the sun just set. While driving back to her house, the taller teen noticed that there seemed to be quite a few more cops on the road than usual. Mona had taught her how to spot plainclothes police officers on stakeouts as well as their unmarked police vehicles; just in case she needed to dodge them during an operation. They were all located in the darker parts of her neighborhood and she saw that they seemed to face in the direction of her area of residence as if they were watching out for something. When she turned the corner onto her block, which was when she saw Detective Wilden in his car facing Alison's house; though she did her best to pretend that she hadn't spotted him. It seemed that the older man was now watching the DiLaurentis House and she hoped it was because of the evidence they had planted earlier.
She needed to send Mona a text informing her about it as soon as possible.
"I'm home," Spencer called out as she opened the door to her house and went inside. She was greeted by the sight of her father and Wren sitting on the couch watching the game.
"Hey Sport; how was school and shopping?" her father asked from the couch. He was still in his work clothes while Wren was dressed a little more casually; though he looked nervous and bored as if he were forced to be with her dad.
"Good; found a dress that was reasonably priced which Mona helped me pick out. She is picking me up tomorrow night," informed the teen as she held up her bag for the two men to see. Her father simply nodded while Wren looked confused.
"You don't have a date?" the man asked as if Spencer was supposed to have one. The way he said it, it sounded like she was supposed to be going with another guy.
"Do I need a date?" Spencer asked Wren as if she were offended; which she slightly was. She didn't need a date to attend the dance since she had done it before.
"No you don't. Wren was just being old fashioned," Melissa said as she emerged from the kitchen. While she looked angry, Spencer could tell her sister was faking it.
"By the way, your sister has good news," Peter said to his younger daughter with a smile on his face; though Spencer noted that her sister had a blank expression on her face.
And that it wasn't good news.
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