𝘚𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘖𝘯𝘦, 𝘌𝘱𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘥𝘦 𝘍𝘰𝘶𝘳
'𝘊𝘢𝘯 𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘏𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘔𝘦 𝘕𝘰𝘸?'

"How bad did your mom bust on you for wrecking Sean's car?" Emily asked Hanna.

Yes, Hanna had gone completely stupid last night after Aurora had left with Aria and Spencer.

"Okay I did not wreck it, I damaged it. And actually everyone's been really mature about it" Hanna answered.

"Oh"

"There's no oh. We're just being grown ups about it. That's all" She defended herself "Besides who was the one who punched Ben in the face, huh?"

Aurora shrugged "He deserved a lot more than that Han, I assure you" Hanna laughed as did the other girls.

Arriving at the bench that was going to be for Ali as they got back to the task in hand.

"Okay, so the town is gonna put in a new bench and we'll plant the flowerbeds and there's gonna be a pathway of art tiles" Aria told the girls while pointing to where the things would go.

"Art tiles?" Emily questioned as did Spencer.

"Yeah like messages, pictures, memories of Alison" Aria explained.

"Aw, like little headstones" Hanna retorted.

"Hanna!" Aria scolded while Aurora had to hold her laugh in because the only way she was getting through all of this was with humour.

"What?" Hanna exclaimed.

Aurora then decided to quickly change the subject "We should each do a tile" She suggested.

"You know, I've had Ali's bracelet since the day we found it in the woods and I don't want the responsibility anymore" Hanna said and whipped out the bracelet from her purse.

"I don't want it." Aria said before Spencer took one for the team and snatched it out of Hanna's hand.

"Look at us. Bunch of babies. There's nothing that A can say or do to get us into trouble without making trouble for herself" Spencer huffed.

"Are you sure it's a her?" Hanna asked.

"Him, her, it doesn't make any difference" She replied and started to get the laptop out of her bag.

"What are you doing?" Emily asked curiously.

Spencer was typing away on her laptop "I'm gonna block all messages from people that I don't know. IMs, texts, emails, everything. Screw A" Spencer replied with a cynical smile "There. Who's next?" She said as she finished.

They all did the same thing and just hoped for the best. As they were finishing up, Spencer spotted Mr. Fitz taking a ride on his bike.

Aurora looked at Aria "I spy with my little eye something that starts with F" Spencer smirked.

"Hey, Mr. Fitz." Hanna called out with a smile, he then waved at them.

"Looking good, Mr. Fitz." Spencer yelled.

Aurora cringed at that sentence "There are teachers that you don't wanna see on a bike and there are teachers that you do wanna see on a bike" Spencer added.

"I would not wanna see Mr. Gilardi on a bike."
Hanna spoke making Aurora internally vomit.

"I don't wanna think of Mr. Gilardi in motion of any kind" Aurora muttered with clear disgust laced in her voice.

"Ah. Mr. Fitz." Hanna let out in adorance. Aurora couldn't help but laugh at her friend.

"Hanna. Your turn" Aria abruptly spoke. Someone was clearly jealous.

Spencer turned to Emily "You talk to Ben?"

Emily shrugged "There's nothing to talk about" Aurora still wished she punched Ben a few more times that night.

"You're really done?" Aria asked her, a hint of concern in her voice for how Emily was feeling about all this.

"It's okay. I'm fine"

"Okay, if you say so" Aria replied while shrugging her shoulders.

"I wish we had a drum roll for this" Hanna said as she finished up on the laptop and turned to us "We are officially A proofed"

"Listen, all those little messages are zipping through the air all around us" Spencer let out.

"Yup, and none of them are from A" Aria smiled.

"This feels like a good thing" Emily spoke.

"Of course it's a good thing. Out of mind, out of sight" Hanna spoke and then turned to Aurora who had been quiet ever since Hanna had spoke "Rory?"

Shoving everything she was feeling about A not really being gone as she faked a smile. Something else the Hastings could prefect "Thank fucking god"

Aurora knew this was all too easy and A was harassing them for a reason. So just blocking their number wasn't going to solve anything and she was right when one of Ali's missing person fliers flew to the girls.

Where it stated in red sharpie "Ding dong the bitch is dead"

Aurora then looked over at Hanna "A proofed, huh?"

-----

The girls were now all meeting up for lunch.

"Spence, Rory, why didn't your folks take you two to New York with your sister? I mean, you both deserve some retail therapy too" Hanna asked.

"Not as much as Melissa" Spencer replied as Aurora nodded in agreement.

"And there was no way Melissa was ruining New York for me" Aurora added as the girls let out a small laugh yet still feeling bad for the siblings.

"Hot scarf, Em" Aurora then changed the subject as she saw a new scarf around Emily's neck.

She smiled "Thanks"

"Is it new?" Hanna asked.

"No" Was all she said as Aurora eyed her suspiciously.

After a second, Hanna's phone rang. She jumped but at least it wasn't A this time.

"Go on. Answer it" Spencer said when she hesitated but Hanna just stared at her phone.

"It's my dad" Hanna said. Then after a couple minutes she answered it and walked away.

"Has she even talked to her dad since he walked out on them?" Emily asked.

"I don't know" Aria replied honestly.

"Hanna and her father is one of those don't ask, don't tell situations" Spencer added.

As they were walking out Emily almost bumped into Toby.

"I wonder if we just bumped into A" Aria whispered.

But Aurora didn't think he was A and she settled on that "Does it even matter? I thought we were done with A, remember?" She asked.

"Right but I'm still staying out of Toby's way"

"Yeah and Jenna's"

After a while, Hanna then started telling the girls about her dad coming to visit and that made Rory suspicious defiantly after the thing with Sean's car.

Then Spencer and Aurora's Russian teacher came over and told Spencer he submitted her essay for an award.

While Aurora had totally forget to do the essay and didn't even get that far to write her name. Luckily her teacher loved her and let her off the hook this once instead of giving her detention.

She wasn't paying attention after that because her thoughts were still on A knowing about that 'night'

The sound of the bell brought the girl out of her thoughts as she was soon on her way to class.

Walking into chemistry when Aurora stopped in the doorway to see Toby "Hi"

"Hey" Rory replied "You gonna be in this lab?"

Toby nodded and showed the girl his form "Starting today"

Aurora nodded and sent him a smile as she walked over to her desk "You don't mind, do you?" He asked, hesitantly. 

"Why would I" She replied before the teacher walked in so Toby went to talk to the teacher as the other students piled into the classroom. It wasn't long before Toby was walking back over to were Aurora sat.

"So, I guess we're lab partners. You okay with that?"

Aurora nodded and took out her chemistry book "Yeah course"

-----

Hanna had come over to Aurora's house so the girls could help her pick out an outfit for the dinner she was going to tonight with her dad.

"I wish I had a sister smart enough to steal papers from" Hanna said as she stood in front of Spencer's mirror with many of her jackets in her hands.

"Using Melissa's paper was supposed to be a stopgap. If I asked Sheldrake to withdraw the essay, he'll know somethings wrong" Spencer sighed.

"I doubt it. I didn't even do the essay and he let me off the hook just like that" Aurora reasoned from her spot on her sisters bed.

"Cuz your like his favourite student and anyway Spencer, what makes you so sure you're going to win the competition?" Hanna asked and the two sisters looked up at her with the 'really' look "Oh, right. I forget. It's like in your DNA" She smiled.

"Here. Try this one" Aurora passed Hanna a nice, black jacket which the blonde put on immediately.

"This has to be the perfect outfit. My dad hasn't seen me since I lost the weight"

"That jackets really not you" Spencer said and even Rory agreed with her "Then it's perfect"

The three girls fell into comfortable silence before Hanna spoke "Spencer, Aurora. Have you guys peeked?"

"We blocked whoever it was and that's it" Spencer replied almost instantly "Untied front, remember?"

Rory frowned as she turned her head slightly to look at Hanna "Why'd you ask?"

"No, no, yeah. I know. I just wondered if you guys had peeked"

"No"

"Me neither" Hanna then went back to staring at herself in the mirror as Aurora got off Spencer's bed and made her way over to the blonde.

"You look really pretty Han. Have fun tonight okay?" She smiled, resting her hands on Hanna's shoulders "Now let's find you some jewellery to match"

-----

Waiting for class to start, Hanna was telling the girls about her night with her dad and she seemed happy "It was great. Incredible, really. And he wants to take me to a real dinner tonight. He said he has something to tell me. I don't know. I think he wants to spend more time with me" Hanna started talking and Aurora hoped that was true, for Hanna's sake.

The bell then rang as the girls took their seats "I'm wondering, is anyone else bothered by Atticus' hypocrisy at the end of the novel. No? Well, he's Mr Due Process when it comes to Tom Robinson then as soon as Bob Ewell gets stabbed, he's willing to buy into the sheriffs coverup" Mr Fitz rambled on.

Aurora's hand went up before speaking "He was protecting Boo Radley"

"Protecting him? From what, the justice system? Atticus is an officer of the court and he's conspiring to cover up a crime and he's willing to let his own son take the fall for something that Boo Radley did" Aurora wished she never spoke now.

"It was a trade" Aria added.

"What was a trade?"

"Mr Ewell would have killed those kids. Boo saved them. And Atticus was still feeling guilty over Tom Robinson so he offered Jem to take Boo's place, almost like a sacrifice" Aria continued.

"Oh. Very noble. Too bad Jem was unconscious. You think he might have had a different opinion?"

"No, Jem would have said yes" Aria argued.

"You're sure about that?" Mr Fitz pressed.

"He was brought up right" Aria quickly argued back and everyone could sense some tension in the room before a boy cleared his throat, clearly wanting to say something. Thank the lord, Aurora thought.

-----

"So you still talk to that boy back in the Dominican? What was his name. ." Spencer started to think.

". .Oliver and yeah we've talked" Aurora shrugged, a smile on her face as she spoke "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

Spencer went to speak when she stopped because it sounded like someone was in the house. The two then quietly walked down the stairs and approached the kitchen counter to hear more rustling.

"Hello?" Spencer asked cautiously while Aurora gripped a knife tightly in her hand. For all she knew, it could be 'A' trying to break into their house.

"Oh!" A voice that sounded like a man groaned and Aurora frowned.

"Who is it?" Spencer yelled.

"Where the hell are you?" A british accent asked and that's when they saw a man with a big flower in his hand and Spencer seemed to recognise him immediately as her face softened.

Then it clicked in Rory's head, it was Wren Kingston. Melissa's ex fiancé. The guy she had met like once. He then turned around and saw the two of them standing there, his eyes scamming from Spencer to Aurora.

"Oh. I picked this for you, from the garden" He slurred, walking towards Spencer. He was clearly intoxicated. Aurora sighed as she went and put the knife back in the drawer.

"Wren, what the hell are you doing here?" Spencer asked.

"I've come here to set things right" He then looked over at Aurora "Your beautiful by the way, Aurora isn't it?"

"You're drunk" Spencer sighed.

"One does not come unfortified to the house of Hastings" He slurred and Aurora had to hold in her laugh.

"Wren, we thought you were an axe murderer or something" Spencer huffed.

"Yeah I got that when I saw the knife in her hand" He pointed to Rory before looking back at Spencer "And I did try calling you but you were blocking my number"

As Spencer started speaking Aurora peered over to see the back door wide open "Did you break through the back door?" She asked as she walked over to and shut it.

"I had difficulty locating the front of the house. I'm sorry" He spoke with a small smile.

"Wren"

"Mm?"

"Go. Now" Spencer ordered, pointing to the door.

"I've thought of nothing but you since you came to see me. I've been a coward. But that ends tonight. I'm here to take full responsibility. Summon your father" He rambled on.

Spencer and Aurora both chuckled "I'm not summoning anybody. Our parents are in New York with Melissa" Spencer said.

"Then I shall depart" He attempted to put the potted flower on the counter but instead he dropped it causing it to shatter all over the floor. He held his hands back and moved back slightly.

"Great!" Spencer spoke sarcastically.

The three of them then bent down to the floor to try and pick up the pieces and when Aurora looked up she saw Wren staring at her with a dazed look and a soft smile "Your face. .is very fair" He let out.

Aurora frowned, what do you even say to something like that "Um. Thanks?" She then got up off the floor as she dusted off the mud from her jeans.

"How about some black coffee?" Spencer offered.

"I've been drinking scotch. I'd rather not mix my beverages" He replied as Spencer pulled him up from the floor.

It was a little while later when Wren started to sober up as the three of them sat at the kitchen counter. A cup of coffee in front of them.

"I'm sorry about the mess" He let out.

"I'll clean it up later" Spencer replied.

"I'm not talking about the geranium" He replied.

"Why do you think you had to get drunk to talk to my father?" Spencer asked him.

"For many complex psychological reasons, but mainly because he scares the vinegar out of me" He replied with a smile.

Spencer and Rory let out a laugh "He's really not that bad, once you get to know him"

"Things'll go back to normal. .eventually" Wren let out.

"Yeah, what passes for normal around here?" She spoke.

"I thought you wanted things the way they were"

"I guess I do. I don't know if I have ever known anything else. I know I never wanted to hurt Melissa. I know sometimes it looks like North and South Korea between us, but she's my sister. That still counts"

There was a moment of silence before Wren stood up "Well, I think I've imposed enough. Aurora, it was nice meeting you"

"Um, you can't drive like that" Spencer said as she stood up.

"Oh, I'm not going all the way back to Philadelphia.
I've got a room at the Edgewood Motor Court" He replied.

"You can't drive anywhere. Give me your keys"
Spencer said.

"Yeah, cmon. I'll follow behind" Aurora said, standing up too so that way Spencer had a ride back home.

Aurora gave Spencer a knowing look when she got into her car after having a quick kiss with Wren "Don't say anything" Spencer said as Rory put her hands up.

"I didn't"

"You were thinking about it" The girls smiled at each other as Aurora went to pull out the parking lot before the radio started to play.

"What the fuck? I didn't even turn it on" Aurora looked over at her sister who was equally confused.

The man on the radio then started to speak "And from the request line, this next one goes out to Spencer and Aurora from their best friend 'A'. Here you go, guys. I don't need you anymore" And with that the song started to play.

The drive back was silent and no one spoke until the two finally got back to the house "What are we going to do about A? I mean, he or she or it hasn't stopped. They're calling radio stations, making dedications, writing notes in our lockers. What do we do now?" Aurora rambled on.

"I don't know, Rory" Spencer was just as stressed out  as her sister.

"Well, it was your idea to shut her out"

"Yeah and everybody went along with it"

Aurora rolled her eyes "United we stand. Great" She spoke sarcastically and went to turn around when her eyes landed on the counter. The clean counter that now had the flowers, glass and dirt from the floor neatly sculptured into what looked like a chariot.

"Fuck" Aurora whispered. Already knowing who had been in their house.

"Somebody's been in the house" She stated nervously.

And that's when Aurora thought of something "Alison's bracelet" The two girls quickly ran upstairs and into Spencer's bedroom to check it was still in the drawer which it was but what they saw when they turned around, wasn't there when they left.

"It won't be that easy, bitches"

--A

Was written in red on the mirror which meant A had been in the one place they were supposed to feel safe in. Aurora quickly sent an S.O.S. text to the rest of the girls as they waited for them to arrive.

"Is that jungle red?" Hanna asked as she walked towards the mirror.

"Alison's colour" Emily let out. This was just the beginning.