Emily stood at the edge of the extravagantly decorated venue. She was still awestruck at how beautiful everything looked. There were elements of the decor that reminded her of Alice in Wonderland or An Enchanted Forest seen in a Dinsey movie. The ambient lighting, canopies of floral arrangements and crystals, the live band playing acoustic versions of popular pop music, all of it worked together to make the space feel almost magical. Emily was involved with the final planning aspects of the party, but most of the early planning and decisions were made long before she was hired. Looking around the room, the thought of having to organize next year's Garden Party intimidated her, but that was a problem for another day.
She had double and triple-checked everything. The kitchen was running smoothly, hors d'oeuvres and cocktails flowed freely. Olivia was at the entrance playing hostess. Avery and the rest of the Socials team, along with a few media outlets were floating around taking pictures and videos. Most of the guests, including the New York Liberty basketball team had already arrived. Emily checked the time, Alison, Aria, and Hanna had chosen to ride together and they should have arrived already, running behind schedule would no doubt put Alison in a bad mood. Emily wrang her hands thinking about it, since Wednesday night she'd been extra careful not to piss the blonde off. Emily dropped her hands when she saw Paige coming toward her.
"These parties seem to get bigger every year,"
Still thinking about Alison's late arrival, Emily looked toward the entrance and nodded vaguely at Paige, acknowledging her.
"Everything ok?" Paige questioned, when she didn't get a response she tried again, "Is something wrong?"
Tearing her eyes away from the door Emily apologized, "Sorry, Ms DiLaurentis is running late and-"
"It'll probably end up being your fault somehow," Paige laughed lowly. "Relax, you can't control New York traffic, Emily."
"You know my name?" Emily didn't recall introducing herself when Paige came by the office for the budget meeting.
Emily's eyes were already drifting back to the entrance when Paige answered, "I may have asked around about Alison's new assistant." The words barely registered to Emily. Paige cleared her throat, "I was hoping I would see you again," Paige smiled when she had Emily's attention again, "Outside of Alison's office," she added with a laugh.
"Why outside of the office?"
"So that I could ask if you maybe wanted to grab lunch sometime?"
It took a moment but the realization hit Emily, "Oh, oh, Lunch." flattered at the offer, Emily stammered, "Like a work lunch, or…?"
A hand slid across Emily's back and rested there. Surprised, she snapped her head toward the touch and was met with a playful smile and sparkling blue eyes that held her brown ones for only a moment before they turned to Paige.
"Of course it would be a work lunch, right Paige? What else would it be?" CeCe asked sipping her cocktail. "It's not like you were asking Emily out on a date, not here, not in front of all of these people," CeCe gestured around the room with her glass, keeping her other hand on Emily's back.
Paige adjusted her collar, her discomfort was obvious.
CeCe turned her focus back to Emily, her eyes drinking her in, the playful smile she had turning flirty, "Hello Americano,"
Emily, slightly distracted by the hand on her back and how close CeCe was hadn't even noticed Spencer standing next to the blonde. "Hey CeCe, Hey Spencer," despite her best efforts the greeting was awkward. Emily watched Spencer's eyes drift to where CeCe's hand rested before returning to meet hers.
"Sorry, if we interrupted…something," Spencer said looking from Paige to Emily. "We were looking for Alison. CeCe wants to get a picture in the flower tunnel with her favorite sister," Spencer quirked a brow at Cece.
"I don't have a favorite, Spence." CeCe sighed, "If this is about the Ariana Grande concert again, we invited you and you said you were busy,"
"I was busy during the concert, neither of you asked if I could make it to dinner afterward. You had a private dinner with Ariana Grande,"
A quarrel was quickly unfolding but Emily didn't care about who had dinner with who, she was more focused on who was related to who.
"You're Alison's sister?" Emily looked into CeCe's blue eyes, how did she not see it before?
CeCe nodded as if it were no big deal, continuing to sip her cocktail. Had she purposefully withheld that information? Why didn't she say anything when they got coffee together? Questions flooded Emily's mind.
"And cousin," Paige snorted.
"Careful, Pigskin," CeCe warned.
The conversations around the four of them suddenly turned to whispers and camera flashes fired simultaneously at the entrance. It was Alison, finally making her appearance. Emily watched as she worked the pink carpet, posing for solo photos and group shots with Aria and Hanna. Magda Butrym overnighted three options, Alison decided on the lilac single-button blazer and pants, ivory heels and a matching clutch completed the look, Emily had only seen it through the clear panel of a garment bag. Alison brought it to life as she walked from the entrance in a straight line toward her, Aria, and Hanna at her sides.
Just as Spencer had noticed, Aria, Hanna, and Alison quickly acknowledged where CeCe's hand disappeared behind Emily's back. It got a slow blink from Aria and a quick brow raise from Hanna. Alison's eyes stayed affixed to where her sister's hand rested on Emily. Emily vaguely heard the exchange of greetings and pleasantries, and she managed to offer a quiet 'Thank you' to Aria when the Content Manager complimented her outfit, but she was more focused on Alison who still hadn't lifted her gaze from where CeCe held Emily.
"Spencer, CeCe,...Pigskin…" Alison greeted when she finally joined the conversation, surprised by Paige's presence.
Emily didn't allow herself to be upset about being left out of the greeting, it was better than being insulted. The name-calling didn't seem to bother Paige nearly as much as CeCe suggesting she was asking Emily on a date. Which was weird because Emily was sure Paige was about to ask her on a lunch date. She listened to Hanna and Aria explain how there had been a car accident in the tunnel on their way to the venue, no cars could get through and they didn't have any service. They had been stuck for over 30 minutes until things cleared up.
"Seems like we missed a lot," Alison's eyes returned to CeCe and Emily. As usual, Emily couldn't read her expression, couldn't tell what she was thinking.
"Maybe now you'll know what it feels like to have your time wasted," Paige retorted, and the group turned a collective glare toward her. "You missed our meeting to discuss GLOW's budget, for the second time." she confronted Alison.
"Paige, this isn't the time or place," Spencer interjected but was ignored.
"Yeah, we should really be mingling," Aria attempted to help.
"I can assure you that time wasn't wasted. Whatever number crunching you wanted to annoy me with will just have to be rescheduled," Alison's eyes flickered with something, it was the same look she had when she told Emily that Maya didn't want her.
Everyone else sensed it too, the growing tension. Aria and Spencer exchanged worried looks, and Hanna stopped one of the cocktail waitresses as she passed and plucked a drink from her tray. One of Emily's arms had wrapped around her own waist and the other rested at her collarbone, silently bracing herself for what was to come, CeCe pulled her closer. Emily wasn't the one caught in Alison's sights this time, It was Paige, but it still made her stomach turn.
"That won't be necessary Alison, we both know you wouldn't show up. It's not like you actually care about GLOW, though you do a great job pretending," Paige squared her shoulders determined to pick a fight.
Emily couldn't understand why Paige was instigating Alison, but she knew it wouldn't end well. She didn't want to hear what cruel words Alison was surely thinking up, even if they weren't directed toward her. She just wanted it to end, for both women to go back to their respective corners and act like adults. Emily took a deep breath knowing that she couldn't stop Alison but maybe she could redirect her. Before Alison could utter a word, Emily swiftly intervened.
"Have you and Hanna gotten to introduce yourselves to the New York Liberty yet?" Emily's interruption threw everyone off, including Alison. It was working. "Last I saw, they were really enjoying themselves over by the basketball hoop."
Alison's eyes shifted away from Paige and latched onto Emily, "What basketball hoop?"
As Aria had told her the day before, Alison noticed everything, so the EIC was bound to notice the floral and gold basketball hoop Emily had commissioned sooner or later, Emily was only speeding up the process. Aria gave her a distinct 'What are you doing?' look but she continued, hoping Alison would be so focused on her, that she'd forget about Paige.
"The floral basketball hoop near the tunnel, I had it commissioned by the same designer who made the canopies. Avery was taking photos of the team under it drinking their Libertinis, they might still be over there," Emily continued to throw herself under the bus.
"Libertini," Alison's gaze intensified, "You made changes to the cocktail menu,"
A fleeting thought crossed Emily's mind that she might not need to worry about planning next year's Garden Party. The intensity of Alison's gaze made her feel like she'd be out of a job by Monday. The weight of those blue eyes bore into her, making her heart race.
"Liberty…Martini…Libertini," CeCe chuckled turning Emily to face her. "That's very cute, Americano. You're clever and beautiful…that's usually a dangerous combination."
Emily looked at her boss out of the corner of her eye, she couldn't miss the way Alison winced and her clenched jaw. Instinctively Emily knew it was a bad idea to say 'Thank you', so instead she smiled politely as she struggled to find a response, "I w-wouldn't say that i-i'm clever-"
"We can agree on that," Alison said sharply before departing from the group.
… …
With the drama seemingly over and the party well underway, Emily found herself mingling amongst the crowd. The party offered a great opportunity for her to meet more of her coworkers, with her working mostly from Alison's office she still hadn't met many of them. She found herself in easy conversation with editors, models, graphic designers, photographers, and so many other people who contributed to making GLOW what it was. It wasn't just her coworkers Emily fell into conversation with, she had to hide her shock when she came face to face with Jennifer Lawrence….she was just walking around talking with one of GLOW's photo researchers about a vintage camera she'd found at the thrift.
"GLOW parties are one of a kind," Aria said when the two of them met again. "Normally you'd see staff on one side of the room, celebrities and influencers on the other, everyone keeping to themselves, but it's not like that when GLOW hosts, everyone talks to each other, and if you can't you don't get invited again."
"Another one of your transparency ideas? Getting everyone to see they're working together toward the same goal." Emily looked out at the surrounding crowd, people were talking, laughing, and engaging with each other in a way they probably didn't do every day.
Aria laughed, "No, this is all Alison. We once did a piece about Blackberry after Paris Hilton and Leslie from IT got into a discussion about mobile security. We did a whole timeline of what celebrities were using Blackberry phones, Paris, Drake, Kim Kardashian, Lindsay Lohan. Alison provided a business perspective of what happens when companies fail to adapt to change. It's one of our most popular features, the perfect balance of fun nostalgia and business commentary, and it happened because Leslie from IT felt comfortable enough to approach Paris Hilton at a party."
"You like working for her," It was more of an observation on Emily's part than a question.
"Alison is one of the most difficult people I've ever met, she's argumentative, condescending, demanding, doesn't accept anything less than perfection, and is constantly pushing me outside my comfort zone both professionally and personally," Aria sighed deeply as if she was about to make a confession. "She also used to make sure no one interrupted me while I was speaking during meetings when we worked together at Harmony, she's a great sounding board for all of my ideas, even when it meant turning the office into a fish bowl as you called it, she shows up to all of my team building exercises even though she doesn't have to, and her need for perfection has made me a better Content Manager. She trusts me, she trusts my judgment, and there are very few people who can say Alison DiLaurentis trusts them to do anything." Aria spoke almost protectively of the Editor in Chief.
Paige's earlier comments about Alison not caring about GLOW came to Emily's mind. Paige was wrong, GLOW was probably one of the only things Alison cared about. Avery came through the crowd, her phone in hand, and stopped just in front of Emily.
"Can I borrow her?" Avery asked Aria, already tugging on Emily's arm. Aria nodded and fell into conversation with a group of people nearby.
Avery led Emily to the flower tunnel and positioned her, turning her body to face a large intimidating camera.
"The cameras going to come in pretty fast, say your name and your job title, and don't forget to smile,"
"Avery, I-" Emily didn't have a chance to finish her protest.
"3, 2, 1"
"My name is Emily Fields, and I'm assistant to the Editor in Chief of GLOW Magazine," Emily didn't let the zooming of the camera scare her, she softened her eyes, smiled, and spoke in a tone that was both light and confident.
Avery clapped slowly, "You're a natural. Let Jordyn get a few still shots and we'll let you go."
Just before Emily got into her first pose she caught eyes with CeCe across the room. It made Emily blush and Jordyn turned to see what caused it, CeCe was watching intently with a supportive smile.
"You look great," Jordyn complimented before snapping the first shot.
Emly made a mental note to thank Hanna for helping her get ready. Emily was sure the process of being styled would be uncomfortable but Hanna made it easy. She let Emily roam the closet and choose pieces she liked, it took a while at first, the options seemed endless and Emily hadn't shopped in a long time, she wasn't sure what she liked anymore. She thought briefly about Maya and their shared closet and dresser, it was a bit overwhelming but Hanna was there to talk her down, and after Emily made her choices they finalized an outfit together.
A Dolce & Gabbana knotted shirt with a carnation print and a pair of Bottega Veneta low-rise flared jeans. Emily'd been paying attention during her time with Gino from Alexzander Wang and knew the flare of the jeans would balance the small shirt. The outfit showed a decent amount of midriff and despite Emily's not having worked out in a while, Hanna assured her she could pull off the look. They finished the outfit off with a pair of Dior heeled sandals, diamond studs, and a matching bracelet. Dina from Hair and Makeup was just as easy to work with, they decided to leave Emily's hair down, adding a bit of wave to frame her face, and for makeup, a light smoky eye complimented by pink lips.
It didn't take long for Jordyn to snap the photos, she too, complimented Emily on being a natural on camera. CeCe watched from the other side of the room the whole time and gave a nod toward the balcony as Emily finished. Emily weaved through groups of people until she was outside. She didn't see CeCe so she walked over to the edge, looking out at the skyline. There were fewer people outside and the air felt good against her skin, she was enjoying the party but it was a nice break.
Emily wasn't surprised this time when she felt a hand on her back, it was lower this time, settling on the exposed skin of her lower spine. She leaned into it. "You and your sister have the exact same eyes, I can't believe I didn't notice it," She laughed lightly.
"Well, they aren't exactly the same,"
Emily allowed herself to be turned around.
"Whose do you like better?"
Emily stared into blue eyes that didn't sparkle or greet her with enthusiasm. Instead, they were intense, still, baby blues that reminded Emily of the deep end of a pool. There was a depth Emily hadn't noticed before, having never seen them so close up. She felt like she was standing on the block at a long course about to take the dive, it caused an undeniable fluttering in her stomach.
"Ms DiLaurentis, s-sorry, I thought you were-"
"CeCe…I know. I saw the two of you making googly eyes at each other across the room." Alison exhaled sharply, "When did that happen? When did the two of you even meet? You have nicknames for each other already..." Alison spoke rapidly, trying to simultaneously get more information and piece together what she'd already seen.
"Uh, nothing's happened or is happening…we got coffee together Wednesday morning…and she has a nickname for me." Emily tried to answer all of the questions as best as she could, she felt compelled to put Alison at ease. "It's nothing," She said once more, with their bodies inches away from each other Alison was easier to read, and Emily didn't feel anger rolling off the blonde, it was something else.
She wasn't sure if it was subconscious or a reward for the right answer but Alison's hand stroked the skin of her lower back. Emily cleared her throat, wondering what the two of them looked like to anyone nearby, she glanced around the balcony. No one was paying them any mind.
"Whatever it is or isn't, she likes you." Alison sounded disappointed, "So do Aria and Hanna. Spencer still seems indifferent, thankfully."
Emily smiled wide, it was nice knowing the girls liked her, she liked them too, but the smile faded quickly, "You make it sound like a bad thing."
It was quiet between them for a moment and Emily felt herself settling into the warmth Alison's body emitted against her bare arms and midriff, one of her arms draped lazily around her boss' neck and Alison had pulled her closer diminishing any distance between them. Emily's body felt like it was on autopilot.
Alison's voice was lower when she broke the silence, "You went to Aria to sign off on your changes to the party."
And there it was, that chilling tone that told Emily anger was brewing, Not again, she mentally scolded herself for being lulled in by Alison.
"You went around me, in my own office."
Emily lifted her head to see the pool blue eyes that made her want to take a dive moments ago were now dark and threatened to drown her if she dared to explore their depths. She tried to pull away but it was a half-hearted attempt because despite her brain yelling at her to move, her body wanted to stay exactly where it was.
Alison felt the tug and pulled her back in, "Don't, Do that." the words were soft and low but it was still clearly a warning and it shouldn't have had the effect it did on Emily. Any efforts she made to remove herself from the blonde's hold ceased immediately.
"I thought…You weren't…Why," I thought you wouldn't care, You weren't at the office yet, Why are you holding me like this? All sentences Emily tried to form but they died in her throat. She tried again, "What you said the other night in the office, it hurt," Emily admitted. "I couldn't sleep that night, so I started thinking about the party. I was still upset about it Thursday morning so I took my ideas to Aria, I didn't want to talk to you,"
"You were eavesdropping on my personal calls,"
Emily resented the idea, "I was trying to help you," her own frustration started to build.
Alison snarked, "Like you were trying to help Paige earlier? It was brave I'll give you that,"
"Thank you," the words dripped with sarcasm, and Emily felt nails rake across the skin of her lower spine in retaliation. She swallowed the sound that almost escaped her lips and shut her eyes, it had hurt just the right amount that her body was humming but her brain screamed at her to back away.
"And stupid. Pigskin can fight her own battles," Alison placed her palm over where she'd dragged her nails, soothing it. "Look at me," Emily kept her eyes closed, as the sensation echoed through her body. "Emily, open your eyes," Reluctantly Emily did as she was told. "If you have an idea you bring it to me, if you're upset with me you tell me, you don't go around me, and you don't avoid me."
Emily nodded indistinguishably, she knew there was a good chance Alison would pull away after she gave her a response and she wasn't ready for the blonde to let her go yet.
"I'm going to need a yes or a no, Emily,"
Emily dragged it out as long as she could before she pulled back the arm she'd draped around her boss' neck, "Yes, Alison"
The hand that held Emily close was gone and Alison took a step back, not surrounded by the EIC's warmth anymore, the cool outside air washed over her midriff and back.
"Enjoy the rest of the party. I'll see you at the office on Monday." Alison's voice was firm and distant. Emily stood there still processing everything that had just happened while Alison turned on her heels and slipped back indoors.
Emily watched, transfixed, as Alison glided through the crowd, the soft lighting caressed her silhouette as she made a path to the entrance where Spencer was waiting for her, engaging in quick conversations along the way. She watched Alison whisper something to Spencer and Spencer's eyes immediately found Emily. Spencer simply nodded at her sister before the two of them disappeared through the archway.
Laughter and conversation filled the air as Emily took in her surroundings. She wanted to push her thoughts about Alison to the side and immerse herself in the party and light conversation, but she couldn't. The moment was already replaying in her mind, she had been sure her head would roll for going to Aria to sign off on her last-minute changes…but she still had her head…and her job. Alison had touched her, held her, scratched her, Emily was reminded when a breeze hit her back making the spot tingle, not that she could forget.
"What was that about?" Hanna was suddenly standing at her side, two Libertinis in hand. She held one out for Emily to take.
Emily looked at the drink and quickly decided to accept it, Alison was gone, "What?" she asked between sips.
"You and Alison…What were you two talking about?"
"Oh," Emily took a slow sip from the cocktail glass, giving herself time to think of something. "I think she liked the basketball hoop,"
Hanna's eyes called bullshit, "Really?"
"Mhm" Emily took another drink from the glass.
"She's never cuddled me for a job well done," Hanna smiled mischievously. "What was she whispering to you? Did she call you her good girl?" Hanna put on a high pitched sultry voice before breaking into laughter.
Despite it being a joke, those two little words made Emily choke, she went into a coughing fit that caused her to spit out her drink, drawing curious glances from people nearby. Embarrassed, She recovered with a sheepish smile.
Not again.
... ...
Author's Note:
Emily just can't catch a break when it comes to keeping her drinks down. Feel free to Paige slander in the reviews (or root for her if that's your thing). How are you feeling about Alison after this chapter? did she go too far, or just far enough? Emily didn't seem to mind. Looking forward to seeing your thoughts on how the story is unfolding. Hope you enjoyed the update!