Content Warning: Chapter contains the same homophobic slur that showed in Chapter 75, apologies for any distress it might cause, this should be the last appearance.
Chapter 77*
Jason's POV*
"Who all interacted with Aria this evening?" Tanner asked once we had moved back into the gallery itself.
The energy was subdued in the gallery, most of the crowd had moved away from the finalist's area. Instead they were gathered in a group, at least everyone who wasn't an undercover cop it seemed. I was still amazed at the amount of plain clothes officers that had been in place tonight. It had to be a joint effort between Philly PD and Rosewood, otherwise this was at least half the Rosewood officers.
"Aria spoke with one of the coordinators when the gallery opened, and we got programs from one of the door attendants." Emily provided, she kept her back to the finalist's area, clearly avoiding whatever images were there. "After that, no one really until Jason came in, then I went outside to take a call."
Tanner hmmed before turning her attention to me. "We took a walk around the gallery, until Clark, he's one of the finalists, came up to talk to us. Then went back over to Emily, Mrs. Montgomery, Spencer, and Hanna. " I tried to think of Clark's last name, before realising that it was on the wall behind me. "Clark Wilkins, is who we talked to." I clarified.
I watched as Tanner flagged down an officer. "Anderson, make sure that any of the attendants on door duty today is kept behind for a statement, as well as Clark Wilkins, and the gallery coordinators. Everyone else can give a general statement to an officer and so long as they leave contact info they are free to go. Let's start getting people out of here."
"How are they doing that?" Hanna's voice came from over by the finalist's exhibit and I realized that she had stayed inside while I had taken Aria out to the ambulance, her attention was still riveted to the display. "Rotating through images like they're on a loop or something."
My attention turned back to the wall, where sure enough the four frames were once again moving through what must be their set program. The four girls on the autopsy slabs, turning into each of them held in a tortured moment. Lingering just long enough to see it all before turning to all images of Aria once more. As much as I didn't want them to, the images captured my attention and it was hard to pull my gaze away, taking in the horror of what Aria had suffered through. I knew that Aria wouldn't want any of us looking at these. But it didn't make it any easier to look away. They all blacked out again, slowly raising again with Spencer's image.
"They appear to be digital frames. Programmed to run through a set of images in a specific sequence before holding and restarting again." a higher pitched male voice that I didn't recognize answered Hanna's question as we all stared at the wall, watching the images change before us. "Small digital frames are quite popular, but it's interesting to see them blown up to this size. Those aren't cheap, or easy to get a hold of. Not to mention it dilutes the integrity of the display, the digital frames don't have the resolution that the printed images in the rest of the exhibit show."
I turned away from the images to look at a tall, lanky man dressed in a suit and vest, having left the blazer of his three piece suit off. He had sandy blonde hair that was down to his shoulders, as well as a gun and what looked to be a badge at his side.
"Sorry I'm late, Tanner." he acknowledged with an awkward bob of his head. "I got caught up at the office and wasn't expecting traffic to be so bad. It looks like I missed all the excitement."
A frown was settling on my face as I took in this new person. He was clearly someone in law enforcement, but unlike the rest of the officers at the gallery, didn't seem to be deferring to Tanner's judgement. Not to mention that he looked like I could crack him over my knee, he was pretty scrawny. I didn't exactly appreciate his comment about missing the excitement either, but couldn't do anything about it, just keeping my guard up. At least until I had a better feel of the situation.
"Not a problem, Dr. Reid." Tanner gave a terse response, clearly somewhat annoyed with the man, but it seemed like she wasn't going to argue with him. She turned to look at us and introduced him. "This is Doctor Spencer Reid from the FBI."
The tall man gave an awkward smile, giving nothing more than the impression of an eager but affable dog. He didn't look at all like what I expected from the FBI. Not when the previous examples had included Agent Cooper, at least that had been the last FBI agent that I had met in relation to Ali's missing person/murder case. That had been so long ago, so maybe awkward men who were maybe a few years older than me were normal in the FBI now.
"I'm a profiler with the Behavioural Analysis Unit." Dr. Reid explained, trying to get the group to relax.
"I'm sure you recognize them all the from the files, but this is Spencer Hastings, Hanna Marin, Emily Fields, and Jason DiLaurentis." Tanner explained to the agent, gesturing to each of us in turn. "Aria Montgomery is on her way to the hospital after what appears to be a fainting spell."
I could feel my teeth grit at that description of Aria collapsing. If the FBI agent was trying to get people to relax, Tanner was doing the opposite. Pointing out that he had read the files on each of wasn't the best tone to set. I knew that the profiler was here to help solve the case, but it still felt uncomfortable that he knew so much about my family, friends, and me.
"I'm sorry to meet you all under such unfortunate circumstances. I had hoped coming tonight would help you all feel a little more comfortable." the agent explained, offering his hand in greeting to me. Out of habit, I reached out and shook his.
The girl's each shook his hand, and in the quiet, without anything else to distract me. I found my attention turning back to the photos. They were just starting up again. Four girls laid out like corpses once more. It felt like something was missing though, like the words written over the images in the end of the sequence was what I was expecting. Or maybe that I was expecting something else to show up suddenly, especially if I wasn't paying attention to them.
"So Emily, you arrived at the gallery with Aria and Mrs. Montgomery. I remember seeing you all arrive." Tanner drew my attention away from the wall, turning to face her as she spoke. "Then Jason, you arrived around half an hour later."
She inclined her head in my direction, before turning her attention onto Spencer and Hanna. The blonde was still focused on the images, while Spencer was eyeing Dr. Reid, clearly appraising the man. Tanner continued on, her voice doing that slow cadence, one that was meant to sound friendly on the surface, but really was her trying to accuse or trap you. "You two, however, only arrived right before the exhibit was presented. What caused you to be so late to Aria's big night?"
"We had a meeting about a scholarship. It ran late, so we cut things a bit closer than intended tonight." Spencer explained, taking over for Hanna who was still clearly distracted, attention still riveted to the images.
"A scholarship, here in Philly? Well I hope you get it, I know there are never enough of those going around." Tanner offered with a brief smile. "What was the scholarship?"
"It's a small program, through the Carisimi group." she continued on, and I wondered if she would say just why they had gone to check it out. But remembering the threat to Sarah, with Emily shiftng her weight as a subtle reminder, I figured they wouldn't dare say anything. It made me wonder if they had managed to find anything out, that Spencer seemed so cautious about mentioning this.
"How did you learn about the scholarship to apply? Was it on a scholarship site?" Tanner had her notebook out, jotting down notes and I didn't understand why she would think it was important.
"I didn't actually apply. It was Hanna's mom who had applied for her. I was just there for moral support." Spencer explained.
"Ashley probably learned about it from my mom, actually." I interjected, only briefing realizing the awkwardness of calling Ashley by her first name in front of Hanna. The blonde didn't seem to notice, so I continued on, hoping Tanner wouldn't linger on that. "It's an investment group that my mom used to donate to. They do a number of community outreach projects."
Tanner's attention turned from staring at Hanna and Spencer over towards me. "What sort of community outreach?"
"Some internship programs, a youth camp I think, and some clean water programs overseas." I tried to remember what all my mom had talked about, there was something about an orphanage as well as medical treatment, but that could have been another charity that she donated to instead. "There might be others, but to be honest my mom donated to a lot of organizations, and it gets a little hard to keep straight."
I caught Spencer's silent look of appreciation that I had pulled the attention away from her. Her having to answer for Hanna right now couldn't be fun. And I wished that the blonde was able to pull her attention away from the images. I couldn't imagine the memories that she was reliving as she stared so fixedly. And worry mixed with eagerness for her to contribute to the discussion at hand.
"Who did you meet with at the Carisimi group?" Tanner turned back to Spencer, clearly waiting for an answer.
"What does this have to do with the gallery tonight? Or the investigation at all, actually?" I could feel my anger rising that she was fixating on Spencer right now, that instead of acknowledging that she and her friends had just had their personal traumas put on display for the world to see and that she was still managing to keep it together to try and help the cops do their job. Something that most adults wouldn't be able to do, I didn't think.
"It might not have anything to do with what happened here tonight. Or what happened to them down in the bunker." Dr. Reid interjected, pulling my attention back to him as I had somehow forgot that the profiler was still there. "The fact is though, that whoever did this has been obsessed with the girls for a long time, more likely than not he knew about their meeting. And even though we might not understand how it's connected for him just yet, we need to take in all the details to try and figure this out."
"Rhys Matthews, that's who we had a meeting with tonight." Spencer answered, spitting it out quickly, maybe hoping that we could move on from talking about that meeting.
"It doesn't stop." Hanna's voice sounded, she was quiet, still focused on the images, and almost as though she was talking to herself. But it pulled everyone's attention over to her anyway, effectively halting any other line of questioning that Tanner might be trying to pursue.
"What, Hanna?" Emily asked, reaching out and touching the blonde to get her attention.
"The pictures don't stop. They haven't stopped." Hanna repeated, as though that would clarify what she meant. And I worried that she was about to have a breakdown here. Apparently, Emily and Spencer felt the same from the way that they both reached out to hold her.
"Hanna, why don't you look away for a little bit." Spencer tried to soothe, glancing back over at me and the police. I didn't know if I could actually manage to distract them from Hanna's interruption. But I guessed that was the reason Spencer had made the moment of eye contact.
"No, it's not that." Hanna brushed their hands off her, not accepting the comfort that they were offering.
She wouldn't turn away from the frames on the wall. The tension in the room rose again. I didn't know what she was going to do. Hadn't seen her upset the way that I had seen Ali, Spencer, and Aria all freak out.
"Hanna." Emily tried again, voice still soothing, like she was talking to some scared animal.
"I'm not crazy." Hanna argued, and I let out a low breath at that. She gestured firmly at the photos though, continuing. "They've been rotating through the images non-stop, sure it pauses on the last set for about a minute. But then right back to the pattern. Again and again."
"Okay, so they don't stop." Emily continued, keeping her attention on the blonde.
Hanna turned around her face wearing a surprising smile, considering how long she had been fixating on the images. I realized that I had completely misread what was happening, she wasn't stressed and worried about the images, she was figuring something out. My eyes darted over to Spencer who was clearly working through what Hanna meant.
"So why didn't we see them before?" Hanna looked between Tanner and Reid, clearly expecting an answer. "No one knew anything was wrong until the lights came up."
"There should be a digital backlight to the images, they would be visible even without the room being lit around them." Reid considered aloud, looking at Tanner. "Can we turn off the lights in that part of the gallery again?"
"Anderson?" Tanner called out to the same officer from before, who moved away from the attendee he was talking to with what looked like an apology. "Can we get the attendants to turn off the lights in the finalist area."
"Yeah, sure." he moved off to find someone.
"So either the frames are light activated, in which case the person putting them up would have seen the rotating images, or they were activated remotely from inside the gallery." Tanner conferred with Reid, obviously not caring if we were listening.
"Couldn't they be on a timer?" Spencer asked, obviously not thinking that Charles would have shown up to the gallery tonight. "Or activated them using some sort of surveillance cameras or listening device?"
"Not likely. A timer has too high a chance of missing the right moment. I don't think anyone knew exactly how long the speaker was going to talk before the lights came up. And something distant would probably have some level of lag for the signal, maybe nothing too long but noticeable enough."
We watched the four images, currently on the sequence of the four girls mid torture, when the lights in that section of the gallery suddenly cut out. There was a little afterimage, maybe just on my eyes. But the images disappeared with the darkness. I blinked a few times, and it looked like there was still a little residual light coming from the frames. Like the moments after your tv has shut off. Enough to give them away as digital instead of prints.
"It has a light sensor then." Reid concluded. "We'll need to look at security tapes and talk to anyone who saw either blank frames or the rotating images before the exhibit opened tonight."
Tanner gave a nearby officer the directions to get the tapes and start identifying anyone who had early access to the gallery during exhibit. As well as to get the lights back on so they could start documenting that side of the crime scene. I shifted a little at the fact that it was a crime scene. It at first had just seemed like an especially unkind joke, or what the police would consider such. One that caused Aria to collapse from stress and shock. But it was good to see the police actually taking this as seriously as they were. As the lights came back on and the images of the four girls returned on the autopsy slabs, I realized that the emotional part of my brain had seemingly shut off. Instead focusing on the immediate needs of the girls and getting through this. There would be time to think about what I had seen, the images that were now burned into my brain, later.
"What do you think the significance of the words he chose to write on the photos is?" Tanner asked as the slideshow continued back through that sequence. Each word jarring against the girls' pale skin and the white sheet that covered them.
It was a cruel question. Delivered in that same easy cadence that she said everything. Her fishing line cast out to see what she could get from their reactions.
"They're just words." Emily bit out, her jaw clenched in anger, clearly already getting defensive. And playing directly into Tanner's hand.
"I don't know that I'd say that. He has been very careful about choosing things that are impactful to each of you, I think." Tanner's gaze moved slowly between the girls, lingering on each of them in turn.
"Right, cause calling me a dyke is personally impactful." the sharp bite in her voice enough of a warning for most people.
It was a harder tone than I ever remembered hearing from her, she had always been the calm one in the past. And I worried that this was pushing her too far. There was only so far they could all be pushed before someone broke. Aria was already being taken to the hospital, I didn't want to see the others pushed so far.
"I think what Lt. Tanner is trying to say is that each of those words was meant to hurt you. And given your reaction right now, Emily. It appears to have worked." Dr. Reid stepped in to soothe the situation, apparently taking up the role of good cop to Tanner's bad.
"Maybe he picked words meant to get you to ask questions. And it's less about us and more about your reaction." Spencer's voice was cold, channeling her mother a little too precisely for comfort.
"It's interesting you say that, Spencer." Tanner fixed her attention on my sister and I felt my hackles raise in defense. "Considering the image he chose of you, if his intention was just our reaction, I would think that he might have put killer on your picture."
Tanner waited for a response, nothing came. I wanted to say something, but didn't know if interfering right now was the right choice to make. That picture of her covered in blood, the obvious horror and panic on her face. If Charles was trying to frame Spencer for something, that would have been the way to do it. I watched as Tanner turned her attention over to Emily.
"Or perhaps your picture, Emily. Given your experience with Lyndon James."
It was a bit of a low blow from Tanner, given the fact that Emily had been so quickly cleared on self-defense charges. Caleb's injury, not to mention her nearly catatonic state, having been enough for the police to recognize that she was only trying to protect herself. She looked over the girls again, before asking.
"Why do you think that Charles put the word 'killer' on Aria's picture?"
The tension in the room skyrocketed, like the air went completely still, waiting for something to happen. A cold feeling slithered down my back, as I realized what Charles was talking about. That the girls didn't know about. And wouldn't be able to explain for her.
"Is that an accusation, Lieutenant? Do I need to call my mom before we continue?" Spencer asked, her voice low and even.
"It's just a question. Obviously we're going to be asking Aria as well, but as her best friends I thought maybe you would have an idea." Tanner continued, offering a smile that felt just a little too sharp to be even an attempt at kindness.
"Aria got an abortion."
The words blurted out into an absolutely silent room. And it took me a moment to realize that I hadn't been the one to speak them. They had been on the tip of my tongue, held back only by the desire to respect Aria's wishes and not share that with anyone. It was bad enough that Fitz knew about it. After the display tonight, of her at her most vulnerable, I didn't think she could take her personal information being shared. Even if it meant getting her out of questioning from Tanner, which if she was lucky wouldn't be tonight.
Everyone's eyes had turned over to Emily, who looked guilty after dropping that bomb on the room as a whole. She fidgeted slightly under the weight of everyone staring at her. And a breath of shock whooshed out. Had Aria told her? Or was this one of Charles' cruel tricks. Aria had mentioned that they didn't get to keep secrets. That if she didn't share what had happened to her with the group, it would be used against her. Tonight had been a perfect demonstration of just that. Only with the limited benefit of the other girls already knowing about the bunker. Though she hadn't gone into any level of detail around the bruises that had marred her entire body, or the absolutely haunted look that had come from her eyes in every photo.
I pulled myself out of those thoughts, hearing Emily say my name. "Jason took her earlier this week."
I blinked in surprise at that. Hoping that it was in fact Aria who had told the girl, and that Aria would forgive me for sharing this. And keeping it to just confirm what Emily was saying. "Uh, yeah. That's right. I took her to the clinic Tuesday."
"Charles was the father." Emily managed to bite out through her gritted teeth, not wanting to continue but forging on nonetheless. "That's probably why he did this tonight. He found out and ruined her display to hurt her."
I looked at the surprise on Tanner's face before she covered it up. She hadn't had any idea that was what this was about. Looking over at Spencer and Hanna I could see the shock mirrored there, along with what seemed to be hurt. Probably that Aria hadn't told them about it. I was still amazed that she had actually said something to Emily. She had been so insistent about not telling anyone, planning it when her family wouldn't be home so she wouldn't have to tell them what was going on.
"That would explain why this was so deliberately focused on her." Reid voiced, breaking the silence that had consumed us. "I had thought it might just be because it's her exhibit and name. But a specific action that he's retaliating against makes more sense."
Tanner looked like she was about to respond, but her phone began ringing and she closed her mouth, instead grabbing it from her pocket and checking the screen. "Excuse me, I need to take this." she gave a brief apology before beginning to walk away, answering the phone as she went. "This is Lt. Tanner."
"I'm sorry about that. That was a bit more intense than a typical witness statement." Reid joked, and I turned my attention to the scrawny FBI agent. Wondering if he was being serious right now. He shifted awkwardly under the collective weight of not only my stare, but I knew that the girls were also pinning him down with their gaze. "Seeing as I missed the start of the evening, would you be able to walk me through what each of your evenings looked like? Up until the exhibit reveal that is."
"Why? Haven't we already answered all your questions already?" Hanna asked, she sounded affronted at his question.
"You have, but we don't always know the right questions to ask. A lot of profiling is actually in the little details, things that you might not realize are important, but all add up to a bigger picture." he explained, turning his gaze around the group, finally settling on Spencer and Hanna. "You might have noticed something that doesn't necessarily seem strange to you, but might be part of the larger puzzle."
"And then we'll be okay to go?" Emily questioned, skeptical that we would actually be able to leave that easily.
"Yep, can we start with whoever got here first?" he looked between the girls, knowing it had been one of them to arrive with Aria.
"That's me. I got here right as the exhibit opened." Emily began.
I backed off enough to give them space as Emily walked him through her entire evening, step by step, from the moment that she had gotten to Aria's house. As she worked through the evening, Dr. Reid had her walk through the gallery, him obviously leaning on her placement in the actual scene itself to try and elicit any more memories she might have. She was quick, but thorough as she finished, stopping as she faced the looping pictures once more. Reid had her continue up to the point that Aria had been taken in the ambulance, wanting to make sure he had a good understanding of every moment until we had started talking to Tanner.
Then the FBI agent turned and faced me, the obvious next person, seeing as Emily had included when the rest of us had arrived in her retelling. I had just gotten to the point of walking through the gallery with Aria, when Lt. Tanner returned. Her face was tight, tighter than usual. Like she was controlling her anger at something. Something must have happened since we had been here, going through all our statements and answering questions.
"Dr. Reid, something has come up at the station, and I need to head back. Do you want to ride back with me?" her lips were pursed and I wondered just what had happened to upset her like this.
"That's alright, Lt. Tanner. I'll stay here and finish going through statements with them before heading over to the hospital to meet with Ms. Montgomery." Reid rebuffed lightly. "I'll get a ride over with one of your officers."
Tanner gave a nod, casting one last glance at our group, attention catching on me for a longer moment than I was comfortable with. Before she headed towards the door, clearly whatever had happened at the station was a higher priority for the detective than taking statements from us. It was a weird contrast between her and Dr. Reid, though he was an FBI Agent, and should have been higher on the law enforcement hierarchy, he seemed invested in building a good relationship with the girls. Even me, which was surprising. Though I figured that I had probably used up all my goodwill with the Rosewood PD when I had badgered them to do something looking into Ali's disappearance, so maybe it was more to do with the lack of bad blood.
"So you and Aria were walking through the exhibit." The agent prompted, getting me started in on the story again.
I explained where we had walked through, and the weird conversation with Clark and him forgetting about the award he had won previously. Then finished off with the weird choking noise I had heard from Aria before she collapsed, and getting her loaded into the ambulance. It was strange talking about knowing how to handle her panic attacks, specifically how she had freaked out when her mom had tried to touch her, but I had talked her down. It felt too much like I was bragging about our relationship, so I wrapped up the story quickly. Then Hanna and Spencer explained their evening to the agent, it was bound to be much shorter as they glossed over the meeting at the Carisimi group and even the phone call from Emily. But they moved away from Emily and me, leaving us alone, separate from the rest of the attendees and cops.
"I'm really glad you know first aid." Emily admitted, breaking the silence that had fallen between us. "I just kind of froze when Aria dropped like that."
I gave a huff of laughter, not at her expense but it was weird to see her being vulnerable when she was normally so obviously in control. She had rolled with the punch of her torture being put on display like it was just one of those things that happened. An unfortunate skill that most of the girls demonstrated, I had noticed.
"I'm just glad I was here." I tried to dismiss the role I had played. "Though I'm sure someone else would have stepped in if I wasn't."
"I don't know that anyone else could have stepped in where you did today." she admitted, locking eyes with me. "Aria really trusts you, even with things that she's not ready to share with us yet."
"I just want her to be safe." I said, awkwardly shifting where I was standing. This moment suddenly felt really intense, and I didn't know where Emily was going with this.
"Aria really cares about you." she continued, ignoring my obvious discomfort. "And it really seems like you care about her."
I had no idea how to respond to that earnest declaration. It felt like my heart was stuttering in my chest. The stirrings of hope rising up before being smashed down again. That wasn't a road that I could go down right now.
"So, do you?" she asked, clearly waiting for me to divulge my feelings.
"Look, Emily. I appreciate that you want to protect Aria. But we're just friends." I tried to make it sound authentic, even though it had felt like things had been blurring between us in the last week or so. I swallowed that down. "Besides, Aria's not ready for a relationship. She's been through enough."
She looked like she was about to respond, maybe ask me another question. But Spencer and Hanna had made their way back to us, timeline lining up with the opening of the exhibit as Reid walked with them.
"Thank you, for walking me through that. I know tonight has been hard on all of you." Reid acknowledged, looking between our group of four.
"Did you have any other questions before we go? I'd kinda like to get back home?" Emily asked, and I wondered what it was that made her want to get out of here so badly. She must want a chance to get home where she could breakdown without anyone watching, at least that was my best guess.
"I'd like to schedule some interviews with each of you this week." he explained, shifting awkwardly as though he was holding back from asking something, before continuing. "And do any of you have a good way to reach Sarah Harvey?"
"Yeah, I've got her number. Why?" Emily asked, her frown deepening and worry was clear in her voice.
"I had hoped you might. We haven't been able to contact her to set up an interview yet. Calling her mom led to social services, who said she was living in Rosewood with you, Emily, and working for Caleb Rivers."
"Oh, yeah. She's staying with her friend Claire in Courtland." Emily explained with a small smile, appearing uncomfortable with the question.
"Then I'd appreciate any contact info you have for Claire, as well as the chance to confirm Sarah's phone number." he smiled disarmingly.
"Yeah, sure." Emily pulled out her phone and quickly scrolled through her contacts.
I looked around the gallery, not feeling interested in the contact information for the 6th girl from the bunker, the completely innocent one that Charles had kidnapped and held captive for literal years. Even knowing that he wasn't someone that I wanted to get to know, it was hard to think of what he must have done to that poor girl. Especially with the images of what Aria, Spencer, and their friends had gone through fresh in my head. Some movement over to the side caught my attention, it appeared to be Clark heading out of the gallery. I felt my brow wrinkle in confusion, there wasn't any way that he was being released before us. Tanner had clearly stated that he was to be held for more questioning, and most of the regular attendees weren't even done giving their statements yet. I wrote it off as him probably heading towards a bathroom, towards the door would make sense for that. Though I wasn't familiar enough with the gallery to actually know.
"Thank you for your assistance tonight. I'll be in contact with each of you soon to set up interviews. Do you need any rides back to Rosewood, I'm sure that Aria and Ella Montgomery leaving for the hospital messed up some of your carpool plans." Dr. Reid offered, pulling my attention back.
"No, I think we'll be alright. Thank you though." Spencer assured, taking charge as she glanced over at Emily.
"And if you think of anything else, you can contact me at the Rosewood police office, I figure you already have the number." he bobbed his head. "Have a good night."
"Can I get a ride?" Emily asked, as we were heading out of the gallery. "I don't have keys to Mrs. Montgomery's car."
Leaving behind the group of attendees who were still giving their statements. It appeared that we were the first ones to be released, though I couldn't push the thought away that I hadn't seen Clark since I had seen him disappearing down the entry hallway. I checked near the coatcheck as we walked out, but didn't see a bathroom or any doors that he might have gone down.
"Yeah, no problem." Spencer assured, "Where are you parked, Jason?"
I pulled my focus away from looking where Clark might have gone and back to Spencer, who was looking a little smaller than usual. Like she was shrinking down, out of fear or uncertainty. Without really thinking about it, I put my arm out and she moved into me in a half-hug. It was more physical affection than we usually shared, but I wanted to support her. Wasn't that what a big brother was for?
"I'm down the block a little ways. But I'll walk you all back to yours." I gave her shoulder a squeeze and she leaned in slightly.
"You don't have to, you must need to get back home soon." she tried to argue.
"Don't worry about it. I won't feel alright until I know that you're all going to be safe getting back home."
End Chapter*
Hey sorry about the delay in posting. I had a work trip come up that took basically all my time. Hope ya enjoyed this chapter, let me know what ya think