***Chapter 64***

**Aria's POV**

I felt like crap. Most of the night had been spent drifting between quasi-consciousness and dozing. I couldn't pin down exactly when I had managed to fall asleep, only that the sun started coming in the room far sooner than I had anticipated. I almost regretted the lazy, half sleepy day that Jason and I had spent at the movies, the amount that I had slept curled up on that couch made it harder for me to get anything close to a full night of sleep. My body was achy, and I wanted to curl back beneath the warm comforter, hiding away from the rest of the world.

But that wasn't actually an option. Not today at least. I had agreed to coffee with Clark at Hollis after his work program ended for the day, and before that I needed to check in with the girls to make sure that I hadn't missed anything important last night.

Aria: Anything new?

The text went to Spencer, knowing that she would be the quickest to cut through any extraneous detail to hone in on the core of the issue. I cracked my neck, trying to get my neck to stop hurting. Whether it was just stress, some leftover pain from the chip being removed, or I had slept on it wrong, it felt just on the edge of relief. Maybe I'd do some yoga, there was a class that I had gone to a few times with Spencer at a community center, I could check what time that was. And maybe see if she wanted to go with me. I couldn't be the only one that needed some stress relief. With that in mind, I headed towards the bathroom, Mike was seemingly already gone for the day. I checked the time on my phone, I still had almost two hours before I was set to meet up with Clark. It took a little bit for the water to heat enough for the steam to start rising above the shower curtain. I double checked that the door was locked, before stepping into the shower. The water was hot enough that it made me tense for a moment as I moved under the spray. Steam clotted the air, making it thick in my mouth and lungs as I breathed it in.

Closing my eyes helped the small room feel more like a sauna. The heat seeping into my core as I rotated under the water. The oppressive heat almost made me feel like I was choking, it was thick and hard to breath. But I tipped my head back, letting the water soak into my hair as I embraced the sensation, the closeness that I felt. Strangely, the closeness of the air, smothering in its intensity, was comforting. After a few moments of basking in the sensation, I reached out to my shampoo. Working through the familiar process and letting that be the only thing I was focused on. My thoughts fuzzing out in the fog of steam.

It wasn't until I was scrubbing down with the loofah that I came back to the moment. I glanced down as the soap swirled over my stomach. I had to have been imagining the bump the night before. Looking down, it didn't seem like there was anything there. My stomach was actually flatter than it had been in the past, now that I was paying attention to it. Probably from the weeks of near starvation. I felt a rumble in my stomach, hunger making itself known.

I hadn't really eaten yesterday, I realized. The vitamins that I was taking definitely not enough to make up for a whole day of eating candy, popcorn, and a couple ginger cookies. Rinsing off the soap, I squeezed my hair to get water out before turning the knob off.

I quickly pulled on a pair of leggings and my bra, before wiping away at the steam condensed on the mirror. I was sure that I had imagined it, but still I turned in front of the mirror, getting a front and side view of what my stomach looked like. Was it a little bigger? I bit my lip, unsure exactly if I was imagining things or not. With a shake of my hair, I pulled my tunic on, hiding my stomach from view. I did a quick check over that there weren't any marks still visible on my skin. The bruises had faded, though the ones where Charles and Jason had grabbed my wrists had been visible yesterday. My hair covered the stitches and covering bandage on the back of my neck. I didn't bother with foundation, just some highlighter and eye makeup. I worked through drying my hair before heading downstairs.

Silence greeted me as I made my way into the kitchen, no one in sight. I had almost expected Mike to still be around, or my dad. Neither tended to get up and moving too quickly on Saturdays. I grabbed a glass of water before moving over to where the family calendar rested on the fridge, apparently Mike was at Lacrosse. It didn't explain where my dad was. I checked my phone, seeing that Spencer had gotten back to me.

Spencer: Not much, we'll talk later.

I frowned at the message. Wondering exactly what it was that had happened for her to respond like that. I could read between the lines. Whatever the update really was, she didn't want to share over text. Which either meant they had learned something massive, but not time sensitive, or that Spencer had gotten way more paranoid in the last 24 hours. Rubbing at the back of my neck, where my muscles felt strained, I decided to kill two birds with one stone.

Aria: Would you be up for yoga today?

Downing the rest of the water, I moved to make myself a cup of coffee. There was at least some still warm, so I wasn't too far behind everyone else today. My stomach growled again, hunger gnawing at me. I grabbed a banana from the fruit basket, knowing it would be better not to have coffee on a completely empty stomach. Once that was down and I had started sipping on my coffee I could focus on having something for breakfast. I made toast on autopilot, checking through my phone for anything else that had happened while I was out of touch the previous day.

I'm not sure when it had happened, when I had started to get more comfortable not being accessible all the time. Ignoring my phone, maybe it was because I wanted to avoid whatever A harassment was looming, if only to delay it by a few minutes. I knew it never worked to avoid the messages entirey, but since I had been back from the bunker, I didn't have the same urgency to keep it close. Other than Ali apparently having to go into the police station again over the home videos, and Hanna sending a picture asking for opinions on a dress she was considering on a shopping trip yesterday, there didn't seem to be anything news worthy.

So instead, I settled down at the counter with my laptop, starting in on one of my lit essays. I set a timer before looking over my notes from the reading. I had a good idea of what I wanted to cover, so my toast was quickly forgotten as I slipped into writing mode, fixated on the screen.

An hour and three pages of writing on Frankenstein later, my phone sounded with a tingling chorus of bells. I jumped in my seat as the alarm I set to make sure that I could leave on time for my coffee date with Clark sounded. I tapped the screen really quickly, silencing the noise and finishing the last of the sentence that had been abruptly interrupted by the alarm. It wasn't completely done, but I was down to my last key point and conclusion. I could easily get it done in the next half hour, but looking at the time I knew that if I didn't stop now, I would completely miss the meeting. I took one last drink from my cold coffee, finishing off the dregs, before closing my laptop.

Standing up, I arched my back to release the tension. It hurt now, almost as much as my neck. I reached up towards the ceiling, but it didn't help anything. It was enough of a bother that when I went to take my morning round of pills, I grabbed a pain pill as well. Feeling my stomach twist a little, remembering that the doctor had suggested I stop taking them unless I really needed them. I hesitated for a moment, pills resting in my palm. It felt like a bigger decision than just whether or not it would be safe to drive on a painkiller. 'Your health is important'. Dr. Edmonds voice sounded again in my head.

With a gulp of water, I swallowed the pills. Along with any guilt or regret I might feel.

Then I grabbed my purse, jacket, and keys and headed for the door. I let the officer at the curb know where I was headed, and Hollis had always been a safe location for me to go to. So the officer didn't even blink when I told him I was headed there on a Saturday morning, when my dad wasn't working. The drive to campus was quick, traffic beyond mild considering it wasn't even noon yet. I didn't think I had ever seen the Hollis parking lot this empty, at least not in daylight. The coffee shop wasn't actually on campus, but it was on the next street over, where parking even on a Saturday morning might be more difficult. Plus, I already had a Hollis parking pass, so I could park here for free and not have to pay at the meter.

There was a slight breeze, but the sun was shining as I walked quickly off campus. It felt nice, the faint smell of flowers that were blooming on the Hollis campus lingering in the air. Between my leather jacket and sneakers, I was comfortable enough. There were a few college aged people outside, some with backpacks slung over their shoulders. I tried to think if it was an exam week that they were heading to the library on a Saturday. Didn't college kids normally drink on Friday nights and subsequently sleep in? I'd have to ask Clark, as my dad definitely hadn't mentioned anything. Though he tended to use the same curriculum from year to year, so he only really needed to plan out time for grading at the end of the term.

The coffee shop nearer to Hollis wasn't as chic as the Brew, though that might have been because the Brew doubled as a bookstore. And Campus Jitters was more intended for the college crowd, there were more tables crammed in the little space, mostly larger tables that could be sat at communally. Clark was already sat in one of the booths tucked over by the window, back against the wall and facing the door. He smiled and waved as soon as he saw me.

"Hey, Aria!" he called, as though I wouldn't be able to find him in the half filled shop.

I couldn't help the reflexive smile back at him. Clark weirdly felt uncomplicated, even though I didn't know him well. He was someone easy to talk to about art and photography, occasionally he would complain about his courseload, and it made me look forward to that life. The normal college experience, where I had to worry about eating too many ramen noodles instead of real food, and how I was possible going to handle the workload.

"Hey Clark, have you already ordered?" I slid into the seat across from him, glancing down at the table which was devoid of any dishes.

"No, I was waiting for you. Do you know what you want?"

"Oh, I can order for myself." I tried to brush off what seemed like an offer.

"No way. This is my treat. We need to celebrate you getting selected." he was moving to stand up and I mirrored the motion. "Why don't you save the table? Don't want to lose our spot."

"You also were selected as a finalist, we both need to celebrate." I tried to insist, gently pushing back.

"I got this time. You can take me out for coffee next time." he offered with an easy smile. "So what are you drinking?"

I wanted to object more, but knew it wouldn't do any good to argue. Clark was going to get this one, I could accept that. It would likely make a bigger scene, and I really didn't want that attention.

"I'll take a caramel latte, with almond milk." I conceded finally.

He smiled at his success, before heading over to the counter to order. I rationalized that it wasn't any different to how Jason and I handled morning coffee and lunches. We traded off easily enough, so I could do the same with Clark. Settling more comfortably into my seat, I pulled a small sketchbook out of my purse, flipping open to an open page so I could doodle something while I waited for him to come back over to the table. I glanced around the coffee shop, looking for something to sketch. After a quick glance over what was in my range of vision, which admittedly wasn't too much given I was facing a grey wall with limited decorations and the window looking out on the street. I finally settled on the flower vase that was on the table, it was small enough to only hold a couple flower stems, but there was a large crack running down from the rim, the exposed pottery beneath slightly stained.

"I didn't know you drew." Clark's voice sounded after a little while, and I nearly jumped in my seat.

I had completely spaced out, so fixated on my sketch to distract myself. I started to move to cover my work, but realized how silly it was to be embarrassed about it. Clark had seen my photos, he knew my style. It wasn't really that different for him to see this as well.

"Oh yeah, I like to sketch. It keeps my hands busy." I justified, moving the sketch pad over to the side as he set our coffees down on the table.

I didn't tell him that sketching when I was sitting waiting anywhere had taken over the need to keep a small journal, so I could jot down ideas any time they cropped up. I had a few old journals that took up space in my room, filled with random sentences that struck me once as insightful or inspired. Along with more than a few terrible poems that never quite worked out the way that I wanted them to.

"Can I see?" he motioned towards my sketch book once he had taken his seat.

"Sure." I accepted, bringing my latte to my mouth.

There was a different taste to the caramel here, a bit deeper in flavor than I was used to getting at the Brew, or the occasional trip to Dunkin when I went into Philly. I liked it, and it made me want to come back here more often. I licked at the foam that was clinging to my upper lip as I set the cup back down interested in his feedback.

"It looks good. Even if it was quick." he acknowledge that the sketch was only partly completed.

"So how was your work program this morning?" I questioned, wanting to turn the topic away from my art abilities.

He seemed to accept the change and slid the sketchbook back over to me. I flipped the cover shut, knowing it would mean not finishing the sketch. It wasn't a big deal, there were several unfinished sketches that sat in the book that I moved on from. The practice of working through even the start of one and choosing what my composition would look like was enough.

"Busy, we're coming up on the last couple of weeks of term, so more people are coming in for tutoring."

"I was wondering about that. I don't normally see that many students heading to the library this early in the day. At least not on a weekend."

"Are you normally up this early on a weekend?" he joked, smiling as he took a drink.

"When I feel like it, yes." I defended myself, knowing it was lighthearted. "So what photos did you submit for the contest?"

"You'll have to wait and see."

"Well that's hardly fair." I scoffed, keeping my tone light so he wouldn't take it too seriously. "After all, you helped me pick out my selections."

He had been strangely tight lipped about his work. Not even sharing if he was going to use any of his stuff from the junkyard trip, including the ones that I had given back to him after removing the ones that I couldn't let him have. But he had helped me pare down my portfolio to a couple images, that presented a cohesive collection while still being unique. It hadn't been easy, but he had talked me through the process.

"They'll look better blown up, give a better impression." he brushed me off again. "Speaking of photos, are you still spending some time outside? Or have you been buried beneath schoolwork?"

"I am almost done with my work for the record. So will be able to spend more time taking pictures very soon." I sounded almost smug as I took a sip. "Why do you have a trip planned?"

"Not planned exactly. But I want to check out some old buildings maybe, get more of a creepy vibe going."

I felt a little anxious at the idea of creepy old buildings. It felt more dangerous for some reason than the relative safety offered by the junkyard. And that had gone wrong enough with A showing up both times I went.

"What do you think?" he asked after a moment.

"I don't know that I would be up for that. At least not for a while." I had tried to avoid talking with Clark about the Charles situation. He had tried to reassure me in the past that he would be here to listen if I wanted to talk, but I really didn't. He was more my window into what normal life looked like, without all the A drama.

"Right, sorry." he looked down into his coffee, not meeting my eyes.

The air was thick with tension, standing on the edge of the things we didn't talk about. That I wasn't able to talk about. It was a painful reminder that my life wasn't normal, even in these moments when I tried to forget about it.

"Have you heard of Ravenswood?" I asked, thinking that might help back away from the uncomfortable zone. When he shook his head I continued. "It definitely has a creepy vibe. The whole town."

He raised an eyebrow, clearly confused by my statement. At the look on his face I pressed on. "There's a graveyard in the middle of the town, and it all feels very strange. Like stepping back in time."

I didn't necessarily want to get into what made Ravenswood so creeptastic. There were too many memories held there. But it was absolutely the right vibe for photography, that town was soaked in secrets. Ali's secret hideout as Vivian Darkbloom, Ezra's secret writing lair, even whatever had happened to Caleb there, that pulled him so far from Hanna and broke her heart. I never wanted to step foot in Ravenswood again, but Clark might want to check it out.

"Sounds interesting."

The conversation lulled for a moment, as we both sipped at our drinks. Before Clark broke the silence. "Are they any closer to catching him? I saw something on the news about an incident at an arcade."

My heart stopped beating, body completely freezing as my lungs shut against any chance of breath, any noise that could bring danger. The moment passed, my mouth opening slightly to breathe again. I forced my muscles to relax. What had been shared on the news? I didn't know if they had said anything about Jason or me being there.

"I'm not sure. I think they're getting closer." I tried my best not to show my discomfort at the topic. "They have a name at least now."

I gave an abrupt shrug, as though that could end this conversation where it was. He leaned in towards me over the table, not too close, but just enough that I could see he was interested. He wanted to know more. He's just trying to take care of me, I tried to reassure myself. It was what friends did after all.

"They said that there were girls there, from the bunker." he didn't direclty ask, but my heart sunk into my stomach all the same. That they had shared that much on the news, it was uncomfortable. Left me feeling vulnerable. Exposed.

"Yeah, I was there." I tried not to shft in my seat, but knew I failed to hide my reaction. I didnt want to talk about this.

"That must have been scary, seeing him like that." he continued, apparently blind to my discomfort.

"We didn't actually see him." which was true, we never actually saw him, he always had a mask on, or some other way to hide who he was. My gaze darted down to my wrist, where I was grateful that the bruises no longer showed from where he had grabbed me.

"How did you know he was going to be there?" he kept pressing. "On the news they didn't say if there had been a note or anything."

"It was scary and I don't want to talk about it." I finally shut down the line of inquiry, not willing to get into it with him.

"Right, sorry. I don't mean to press." he leaned back, like that was enough to show he was backing off.

I took a long drink from my latte, finishing the last of the cup. I had drank it fast enough that the foam still clung to the bottom. I set it back on the table, the sound gave a ring of finality. And I put my sketchbook back into my bag, a clear end to the conversation. I needed to get home, not be out in public where I had to keep everything together.

"I've got an assignment due Monday, so I need to head to the library." he gave me a clear out, where we didn't have to acknowledge how far out of the comfort zone we had strayed.

"Right, let's do coffee again later this week. Maybe after you check out Ravenswood." I offered an olive branch, that we could meet again, just after I had some space.

"Absolutely, let me know when works for you." he gave another smile, trying to recapture the ease from before.

"Yeah, I will. See you later." I grabbed my purse, leaving the empty mug on the table and heading out the door.

The day that had felt so bright before had changed, the wind had picked up a little, blowing my hair into my face. And I tugged my jacket tighter against me. Some clouds passed overhead, blocking out the sun. I could feel the scowl settling on my face as I made my way back to my car. It wasn't as nice of a walk this time. There were more people wandering now, especially as I crossed back onto the campus. Students were moving between buildings, most heading towards the library, some heading to the gym or labs. The sun came out from behind the clouds for a moment, the light shining brightly and catching on a blonde head.

A smile broke across my face as I saw a tall, blonde man in jeans and a button down walking away from me, headed towards the photo lab. It had to be Jason. Did he think I had lab time today? I opened my mouth to call out to him when my phone chirped loudly in my purse. I glanced down at it, seeing a message from Spencer.

Spencer: There isn't a class today, but we could put on a video and practice in the backyard. Maybe hit the hot tub after?

I looked back to where I had seen Jason, but he was gone. So instead of calling out, or seeing what he was doing. I texted Spencer back, Jason would reach out when he realized I wasn't in the lab. I wasn't worried about that, even if it might ruin whatever surprise had him showing up unexpectedly.

Aria: That sounds amazing. My neck and back are killing me.

I climbed into my car, trying to contain the shiver that came over me as the clouds moved back to cover the sun. My phone chirped again and I opened the message as I turned the car on, making sure the heat was blasting.

Spencer: See you at 2?

Aria: Perfect

**End Chapter**

Hey all, hope you enjoyed this one. Let me know what ya think.