"I was beginning to think you were never going to wake up."

I poked my tongue out at Spence as I shuffled into the kitchen. He had brewed a pot of coffee and the intoxicating scent wafted throughout the house. Mom was staying with Beth, Ben, and Ethan in their hotel room for the night, which left us the house for a decent chunk of the morning. Knowing them, they would wake up in an hour or two and get brunch. Meanwhile, Spencer had slept over. His hair was mussed and he wore only his boxers and a white undershirt as he sipped a mug of coffee.

"I think that was the most exercise I've gotten in like, two months," I teased, pouring myself a cup. I glanced at his mug, which was filled with a light brown liquid. "What the fuck is that?"

He shrugged, blushing slightly. "Coffee...with a little cream and sugar."

"A little?" I exclaimed, incredulous. "More like cream and sugar with a little coffee." I raised my eyebrows at him and his blush deepened. I crossed over and kissed him. He tasted like overly sweet coffee. I pulled away and made a face, giggling.

"I should probably leave soon," he murmured, our gazes locking momentarily. His eyes darted around. "Where's my phone?" I pursed my lips, gulping down some coffee to disguise my disappointment. I didn't want him to leave, but he had a job to do. He was here to solve a case. I couldn't keep him forever.

I licked my lips, looking down into my mug. "Check your pants." Suddenly, a song pierced the air. We looked at each other in surprise. The tune was familiar but I couldn't place it.

"Is that you or me?" I asked.

He scrunched his face up at me. "Why would I have a Kim Possible ringtone?" I turned bright pink and ran to my room where my phone was buzzing incessantly in its bright yellow pineapple case with red heart sunglasses. I scrambled to pick it up. It was an unknown caller, but I answered anyway, figuring it was Mom calling from the hotel room.

"Hey," I greeted cheerily. "What's up?"

"Hello, I'm calling from St. Mercy's..." The strange voice faded in and out as my heart plummeted to my bare feet. No, no, this wasn't happening! "I understand you're Ashley Aragon's emergency contact?"

I felt cold. "Y-yeah, she's my mom. Is she okay? Did something happen?"

"I'm afraid so, ma'am," the voice continued, sounding very nonchalant about the whole matter. "She and your brother-in-law Ben Fera were the victims of attempted double homicide." A nightmare. This had to be a nightmare. Life couldn't truly be so cruel, could it? I fell to the floor, pulling my knees towards my chest.

I kept my eyes trained on my feet. "How are they?"

"Your mother is entering surgery-"

"I'll be there," I interrupted. I jumped up and rushed to get dressed. I shoved my feet into sneakers. I ran to the door. Spencer was on the phone. He tried to stop me as I scooped up my purse and car keys.

Spencer looked panicked. "Wait, Emma, there's-"

"I have to go, I'm sorry!" I called behind me. I hurried to my car and drove to the hospital. I could barely breathe. This couldn't be happening. This shit happens in TV shows, not to Ben. Not to my mother. 

She used to be a brilliant scientist. She was working towards curing lung cancer. Just as she was really making progress, she began to experience killer headaches. Finally, Beth and I forced her to go to the doctor. The doctor recommended going to the hospital and the hospital found the first tumor. That one could be shrunk and removed.

Three years passed and that's when the new tumor was found. This one was inoperable. She was slowly dying. The tumor would grow until it suffocated her brain or something. I didn't want to know the details. How ironic was it that the biochemist researching cancer was taken down by a brain tumor.

She was able to function by herself for a while, but when it got really bad, I moved down to take care of her. It was supposed to be Beth, Ben, and Ethan, but Beth suddenly decided she was too busy. Her life was too important to put on hold, even for our ailing mother. Beth and I always fought, but that had been the breaking point for me. I never understood how she was able to dismiss Mom so easily. I'd stopped talking to her altogether and thus I never found out.

I arrived at the hospital in record time. My palms were sweating as I sprinted into the emergency room. I looked like a mess. My hair was unkempt, my shirt wrinkled, my shorts hanging low because I forgot a belt. One of my shoes was untied as I searched frantically for Beth. She was standing in front of a room, looking anxious. Her face was pale, her eyes ringed red from crying.

"Beth!" I cried out, rushing to embrace her. I buried my face in my shoulder. She smelled like blood and flowers. I had a feeling the blood wasn't part of her new perfume. I rubbed her back, peeking into the room behind her. Ben was lying on a bed, asleep. Ethan was sat next to him, holding his hand.

She pulled away, crying once again. "Em...there was so much blood." I noticed crimson spattered on her cheek. I had to swallow the bile rising in the back of my throat. God. This was so fucked up. Who would try to kill Ben and Mom? Sure, Ben was a piece of shit in my eyes, but he didn't deserve to die.

"How is Mom, do you know?" I questioned. My hands were shaking frantically. I needed to know that Mom was okay. Before she could answer, a voice rung out.

"Ma'am?"

I turned around. A dark-skinned man and a woman with brown hair stood behind us. Their stances were guarded, their attire professional. I furrowed my brow.

"Yeah?" I folded my arms over my chest, sniffling.

The man glanced at Beth. "Emma Aragon, you're under arrest for the attempted murder of Ashley Aragon, Ben Fera, and the murders of Jennifer Hawkins, Mila Grey, Paige DiLaurentis, and Kristen Miller."

*

a/n: I'M SO SORRY FOR THE UPDATE I HAVE NO GOOD EXCUSE I JUST KEPT FORGETTING I'VE BEEN SO BUSY LATELY

um so I'm out of school rn and in this therapy program and that's kind of taking up all of my time so I guess that's my excuse :(

also, appreciate the gif I made!!!!

anyway, thanks for reading. chapter thirteen is absolutely insane and I might skip a week after I post it. until next time my loves!