Emily jumped slightly from her position on the couch as thunder rumbled loudly in the far distance. Looking out the window, she winced slightly upon seeing how hard the rain was coming down. She couldn't help but wish she was with her mom who was spending quality time overseas with her dad, alas school just had to get in the way of things. Her coach had also been calling extra mandatory practices in light of an upcoming competition with other high schools out of state.
Which is why she is all alone in the house, bundled up under piles of blankets and watching old reruns of a show she can't even remember the title of. While she wasn't exactly a fan of cold and rainy weather–much preferring warm summer nights–she had to admit that she was feeling rather warm and cozy in her current position.
After a few more minutes of mindless watching, she heard what sounded like a soft knock on the front door. Furrowing her eyebrows, and eyeing the still unpleasant weather outside, she shrugged it off, figuring that it was just a stray branch blown in by the wind. She wasn't expecting anyone at this time of the night, especially with how hard it was raining that evening.
After a few more seconds however, a series of much louder knocks resounded through the room. This time, Emily frowned, both hating the idea of having to leave her snug spot and wondering who would be insane enough to brave the storm outside to knock on her door.
Eventually, she stood up and started to head towards the main entryway. Before she could get there however, whoever was on the other side knocked even harder on her door.
Now furrowing her eyebrows in mild annoyance, she hastily twisted the knob and opened the door.
"Who–" she started, ready to chide the person for their apparent impatience. Upon registering the sight before her however, she found herself rendered speechless as she immediately recognized the figure in front of her.
There stood Alison Dilaurentis, on her front porch, completely drenched from head to toe and slightly shaking from the cold.
With wide eyes, she drank in the sight of the blonde girl. The last time that she had truly looked at the girl was about 6 months ago, that dreaded day in the locker room. After being completely rebuffed by Alison, she had suffered the suffocating silence during their ride home together. Throughout the short drive, she had repeatedly chanted don't cry in her head, using all of her willpower to prevent any tears from falling. Valiantly holding on to whatever shred of dignity she had left, she had been able to keep the tears at bay up until Alison got out of the car.
As soon as the girl had closed the passenger door, Emily had immediately sped off, not caring to wait around for Alison to get in her home. It was on that drive home, now alone with her thoughts, had she been able to release all her pent up hurt. She didn't know how, but she had been able to get home in record time, even with the unrelenting tears that blurred her vision.
She had then spent that whole night crying, wondering what she did to deserve falling in love with Alison Dilaurentis.
The following morning, she resolved to finally cut ties with Alison. She was done. Done with the girl stringing her along. Done with all the secret kisses and whispered promises. Done with playing the cruel games Ali loved so much.
For the sake of the rest of the girls, she however remained civil with the blonde. Alison, to her credit, had tried countless times to approach her. But once she realized that it was useless, she had resorted to bombarding the brunette with endless texts. After weeks of consistent silence and polite but indifferent interactions from Emily however, she had eventually given up.
Even then, despite everything, Emily knew that deep down she still felt love for the blonde. No matter how much hurt she had inflicted on her, the brunette's damned heart only beat for Alison Dilaurentis. But just because you loved someone doesn't mean that you have to accept them in your life. Which brings her back to the present, wondering why Alison was standing on her front porch like a ghost from her past.
"Alison," she started, eventually finding her voice. "Are you insane?"
"Em, I know it's been a long six months…" Alison trailed off, choosing to ignore the brunette's question. "But I can't handle another day of missing you and not being able to do anything about it."
Emily felt her traitorous heart beat faster at the blonde's words and the sincerity she could see shining in her blue eyes. She opened her mouth to reply but Alison shook her head slightly, wordlessly telling the brunette to let her finish.
"I know I was too afraid to tell you what I really wanted," she continued. "But I'm here right now, and I just wanted to let you know that I want you. There's no one else I want but you."
Emily couldn't help but let out a gasp at the girl's confession, wondering if she was in a dream because the Alison she knew would never say anything like that. The Alison she knew hid behind cryptic words that always left the brunette's head spinning. The Alison she knew never showed her true emotions, believing that only those who were weak wore their hearts on their sleeves.
But the Alison in front of her right now looked nothing like the Alison she used to know, her blue eyes soft and vulnerable instead of cold and calculating. The Alison across from her had her hand held out in front of her, patiently waiting for Emily to reach out and grasp hers.
With only a moment's hesitation, Emily placed her hand on top of the blonde's open palm. Part of her was screaming at herself for falling into Alison's tricks yet again, but another part of her couldn't help but hope that her most unattainable dream–her wildest fantasy–was really happening.
Seeing this, the brunette saw Ali's lips curve up in a slight smile. The previous nervousness in her expression fading away into relief.
"I want you, Em. For worse or for better." Ali spoke up again, this time with a more confident tone. "And I know that I broke your heart, but I would wait forever for another chance with you."
Intertwining their fingers together, Alison looked down at their joined hands. "All I want is a chance to fix things between us…piece together what I broke."
Emily, who by then still hadn't spoken a word, couldn't help but ask, "Why now, Ali? Like you said, it's been months… So why come to me now?" At this point, the rational side of her brain was in what felt like a tug of war with her heart.
Using her other hand, Ali reached into the back pocket of her jeans and brought out what looked like a folded piece of paper. Before Emily could ask about it however, she carefully untangled their fingers. Unfolding the piece of paper, she grasped Emily's still outstretched hand in between hers and gingerly placed the paper on the brunette's open palm.
Emily looked down to see that it wasn't a piece of paper like she had originally thought, but instead a printed photo of the two of them. It had been taken a few summers ago, during a day out on the lake. Emily remembered that day like it was yesterday. Could still remember Alison looking uncharacteristically nervous, asking the brunette if they could take a photo together. Originally they had only planned to put an arm around each other's waist, but just as Spencer had counted down to 1, Emily had felt the blonde shift to face her. Before she could even blink, she had felt soft lips delicately brush against her cheek.
She still looks back on that memory fondly, despite remembering how worried she had been that she was blushing too much for someone who was just kissed on the cheek by their best friend. She herself had the original copy pinned on her corkboard in her room–not having the heart to take it down even after Ali broke her heart–but she never knew that the blonde had somehow gotten her own copy of it too.
Now, she watched as Alison wistfully stared at the photo in their hands. "I have this picture of us framed on my bedside table."
"I remember how things used to be, and I know they haven't always been the most pleasant memories for you, but I treasured every moment that we had together."
"And I hate myself every day for ruining things with you," the blonde continued, finally raising her eyes to meet Emily's. "But when I looked at this picture today, I found myself wanting to run to you and tell you that I lo–" Alison suddenly cut herself off, eyes widening at the slip of tongue.
Emily could only stare at Alison with wide eyes, not quite really registering the words that had been on the tip of the girl's lips. If her suspicions were correct, Ali was just about to say that she loved her. But did she really? A part of Emily couldn't reconcile the Alison in front of her who was professing her love for the brunette with the Alison that used to kiss her senselessly under the guise of 'practice'.
Immediately sensing the brunette's hesitation, the blonde let out a defeated sigh. As Emily continued to stare into soft and expressive eyes, she was surprised to find the tears brimming at their edges. Once again intertwining their fingers, Alison's expression changed from defeated to determined.
"Em," she started, firmly gripping both of the brunette's hands. "I love you."
"I love you." Alison repeated. "More than you'll ever know, and everyday I wish I could take back every mistake I ever made, but I can't. So now I can only hope that I get the chance to show you just how much I truly care for you."
"Alison, I–" Emiily finally spoke up, feeling tears prickle in the corner of her eyes. She was torn between her fear of falling into another one of the girl's games and the hope she felt to believe that maybe this time would be different.
"You don't have to say it back." Alison gently cut her off. "Not now, or maybe not ever." Her voice breaking in emotion.
"But I'm not giving up on you Em…on us. And I'll wait forever if that's what it takes to earn your love." By then, Alison was full on crying–tears steadily slipping down her cheeks–but her voice held steady.
To finally recognize the love swirling in Ali's eyes, and seeing the girl look at Emily as if she was her whole world was what finally broke down the last of the brunette's walls.
Slowly, she let go of Alison's hands. Upon realizing what Emily was trying to do, the other girl hung her head low, unable to meet the dark eyes she was sure held nothing but contempt and maybe even hatred for her. The thought of Emily hating her made her heart crack into a million pieces, but she couldn't help but think of it as karma for all the times she had knowingly broken the other girl's heart.
Already knowing the thoughts running through the blonde's head, Emily reached out and cupped Ali's cheek. Gently urging the other girl to lift her head, she felt her heart clench when she saw the heartbroken look on Ali's face.
Knowing the feeling all too well, she couldn't help but want to take Ali's pain away. As much heartbreak as the other girl herself had caused her, she would never wish that anguish on her.
Delicately brushing her fingers over Ali's soft cheek, she watched as the other girl leaned into her touch, closing her eyes with a deep sigh. A stray tear fell from the blonde's eye, with Emily catching it and gently wiping it away.
"Ali, you have always had my heart." she spoke softly, not wanting to break the intimate bubble that they had found themselves in. "I had given it to you a long time ago, and I have never wanted it back."
Emily watched as Alison continued to keep her eyes closed, seemingly taking her time to fully register her words.
After a few more moments of silence, Alison's eyes slowly fluttered open. This time however, blue eyes were filled with hope.
Emily stared with a bated breath as Ali's eyes darted down to her lips, before coming back up to meet her own eyes. Not wanting to wait any longer, the brunette looped her arms around Alison's neck, not caring that the other girl's clothes were still wet from the rain, and pulled her in for a soft kiss.
Alison immediately returned the kiss with fervor, wrapping her arms around Emily's waist in order to pull the brunette even closer.
Emily couldn't help but compare this kiss with all the other kisses that the two have shared before. While their previous ones had been full of passion and heat, there had also been a sense of urgency that loomed over Emily, knowing that at any minute Alison would pull away and act as if nothing had happened at all.
This time however, the kiss was languid and soft, almost as if Alison was taking her sweet time exploring her. This time, she felt the blonde kiss her with reverence, her actions careful and reassuring.
As content as Emily was to continue kissing Alison forever, they eventually had to pull away to catch their breath.
"I love you." Emily whispered, resting her head against Alison's.
Alison's whole face lit up as she softly smiled at the other girl. "I love you too."
—-
After they got together, and for years to come, Alison would proudly tell the story of that fateful stormy night to anyone who would listen.
According to her, it was the best night of her life because that was when she finally got the girl.
