53 - One Day

"Hey guys," Emily smiled brightly at her friends as she sat down at her usual spot in the lunch table, placing her tray on the table.

Alison took the seat next to her, unusually silent. Emily had questioned the girl as to why she was so quiet and tired-looking that day, and Alison had merely told her she had stayed up late watching a movie with Jason. In response, Emily was planning on giving the older guy a scolding about it after school, though she was genuinely glad to hear about them spending quality time together.

Aria came bounding over from the bathroom, setting her purse on the floor. "You're not gonna believe this," she let out cryptically.

They looked at her in question, all except for Alison who only struggled to keep her eyes open. Emily handed her her own cup of coffee and Alison mustered what she hoped would be a grateful smile, kissing Emily's cheek in appreciation. She tried falling asleep, snuggling into the crook of Emily's shoulder.

Aria leaned in closer, and the rest of the group instinctively did too, as if this was the most important piece of news they were going to be receiving in their entire lives. "My parents found out their marriage license was faked," she admitted in a low voice.

A few gasps were let out, and they all looked at her in shock. "Well, what are they going to do?" Hanna asked concernedly.

"If they want to be considered a married couple in the state of Pennsylvania, they will have to get re-married," Spencer stated, knowing all about it. She had once read a law book from her mother's office about the topic of marriage licenses. Humorously, she was seven at the time.

Aria nodded in agreement, "Exactly. They want to do it as fast as possible, which means this weekend. It's probably going to be somewhere in Rosewood. And you're all invited, including your parents."

They smiled at her, agreeing to the idea. If there was one place they all needed to be together to complete their invisible group bucket list, it would be a wedding. And since they were all awfully young for marriage, this was the perfect loophole.

XXXXX

The day had come, and the group was standing at the entrance of the only wedding venue available in their small yet wealthy town. It was a rather fancy outdoor ceremony, and they were busy greeting people they knew back and forth.

Alison finished politely welcoming Noel's family when Hanna called out to her, declaring that they were starting the ceremony. The two walked into the white tent that had been set up for the service. It was nighttime and there were lights scattered all over the 'ceiling' of the tent, making it out-stand against the darkness all around.

Byron and Ella had chosen to practically re-do their whole wedding, even though they didn't really have to. They could've simply hired someone to remake their marriage license, but had decided to do this instead. Alison understood where they were coming from. She guessed that they felt that since their marriage certificate had been faked, their whole wedding ceremony was, as well.

She spotted Emily talking to Spencer in one of the very first rows, and nudged Hanna, signaling her to go there. The two blondes made it to their seats, Alison next to Emily, and Hanna next to Alison. Their parents were at the venue as well, but were sitting separately, somewhere towards the back.

The boys were all dressed in classic, elegant suits, and the girls in beautiful pastel dresses. Emily's hand found Alison's as the organ began to play. Alison turned to her, smiling lightly, and Emily returned the gesture.

They shot an encouraging look to Aria who stood in the maid of honor position, waiting for her mother. Mike stood opposite, looking handsome in his groomsman tuxedo.

Byron walked down the aisle, a white carpet covered in rose petals under his feet. He waited next to the wedding officiant, watching with a humble smile as Ella came into view in a lovely white dress.

The ceremony was very graceful; the vows were well prepared, and it even made some people cry - Hanna, and surprisingly, Spencer. Aria was more careful though, since all eyes were on her and her family, and she tried to keep her makeup in tact.

People began pouring out of the tent and heading over to the outdoor dance floor and dinner tables. Emily stood up to follow their friends, but the blonde gently pulled her in the opposite direction, to where Ella and Byron were standing just a few moments ago.

"Ali, what are you doing? We're supposed to go-"

"Em, just let me have this moment, please," Alison asked calmly.

The very last of people cleared out without so much of a glance in their direction, and Emily sighed, staying in place. She had promised her dad a dance, but she didn't want to urge Alison.

Alison grabbed both of Emily's hands, walking backwards and leading the brunette to where the newly-married couple had been standing. Their eyes locked instantly, and Emily's expression softened to match Alison's.

Alison sighed, looking at their jointed hands. Then she lifted her eyes, looking around. She pointed at the first row on the left, closer to Emily's side, "I imagine your parents sitting there." Her arm moved to gesture at the side closer to her, "And my parents and Jason sitting here."

"What?" Emily asked dumbly.

Alison chuckled a bit, turning back to Emily. "The girls will be our bridesmaids, and I can already picture us having a stupid fight about which one's which," she started, letting go of Emily's hands to sit on the edge of the wooden lifted-off-the-ground stage that was formed for the participants in the ceremony.

Emily finally caught on, moving to sit next to Alison. "And what else?" she questioned tentatively, looking at Alison with big, brown eyes.

Alison smiled softly, "We'll end up having Spencer as my maid of honor and Hanna as yours. And I could see Aria hosting the ceremony."

Emily nodded slowly in agreement. She definitely agreed that their petite friend could host the ceremony beautifully. The brunette could practically envision the whole thing forming in her head.

"Toby, Ezra and Caleb will make sure everything happens according to plan," Emily shared with a playful head shake.

Alison nodded, smiling at the thought of their goofy friends trying to keep a straight face. "And Hanna and Caleb will probably try to hook up in some equipment closet." she pointed out, sharing an eye roll with Emily. Then she smirked, "But we'll kick them out, 'cause that's our spot."

Emily gulped, her stomach churning pleasantly at the thought, "Our spot?"

"Don't you know it's good luck to hook up before the wedding?" Alison turned to her with a mischievous glint in her eye.

Emily let out a nervous laugh, feeling Alison's hand landing on top of her thigh, over the dress. Her eyes darted around anxiously, afraid that, god forbid, her mother would walk in on them... talking?

"Ali-"

"Relax, Killer, I'm not going to test it out right now," Alison chuckled tauntingly, her hand traveling to Emily's lap and grabbing one of her hands, intertwining their fingers.

Emily smiled shyly, her cheeks heating up just at the thought of what Alison had in mind.

"My point is," Alison began, waiting for Emily to turn her head so they could lock eyes. When she did, Ali continued, "I want to get there with you. One day. And even if it wouldn't go like we just described, I know it would be perfect, because I'll be marrying the love of my life."

Tears started gathering in Emily's eyes at the short yet honest statement, but she blinked them away, knowing Hanna would yell at her for ruining the make-up she had done for her. All she could do what lean forward and connect her lips with Alison's softly, her hand squeezing the blonde's tightly, showing her that she wanted nothing more than what Alison just said.

They kissed tenderly for a few moments, then Emily parted from Alison, leaving a kiss on the blonde's dimpled cheek. "One day," she repeated, at a firm yet soft voice.

Alison smiled back, leaning her head on Emily's shoulder, and Emily leaned her head on Alison's, both of them looking out at the rows of chairs, threads of overhead lights, and out of the opening of the tent, enjoying the sight of their friends and families dancing to upbeat songs.

Emily grinned, jumping from the small stage and landing on her feet, skillfully-cut grass under her shoes. She turned to Alison, holding out her hands. "Come on, beautiful," she called out playfully, "let's go dance."

Alison let out a light laugh, putting her hands on Emily's shoulders, and Emily's hands landing on her hips to help her down the stage. She jumped, reaching gracefully to the ground with the help of Emily. She laced their fingers as they jogged lightly to their friends, ready to dance the night away.

XXXXX

Soft music played in the background as Emily chatted along with Toby, who was sitting on her right. Her parents were slow-dancing on the large dance floor and she glanced at them every once in a while, smiling lightly at the sight.

Alison came back from the bathroom, straightening the back of her dress before taking a seat on Emily's left. She picked at the chocolaty dessert on her plate but didn't really want to eat it. Apparently, Aria had an aunt who was vegan, and she was a very important person to both her parents, so they had made the whole menu vegan just for her. Alison didn't mind it so much until they reached the desserts.

She set her fork down, looking around the venue. She spotted Noel standing alone by the bar, and made a quick decision to go and talk to him. She told Emily swiftly and walked over to the boy.

"Hey," she greeted once she was close enough.

He looked up from his drink, which Alison assumed was a soda rather than anything alcoholic since his parents were around. "Hi," he smiled at her.

"We haven't really talked a lot lately," she said wistfully, taking a seat at the bar. She considered asking the bartender for a gin and tonic, doubtful that he would ask of an ID, but then thought better of it. Emily would be pissed at her if Pam happened to see her in a drunk state. Instead, she asked for a similar soda as Noel's.

"You're right, I'm sorry about that," he said as he took the seat next to her. He looked around, "I wish Mona was here. She went to some cabin with her family."

Alison nodded, feeling bad for Noel. She would've been extremely bummed if Emily hadn't been there to accompany her to the wedding, too.

The bartender placed a glass in front of her and she thanked him, reaching out and taking a sip. She instantly resisted the impending urge to spit it out. This was her most hated soft drink.

"Is this Mountain Dew?" she asked in disdain, pointing at her drink.

Noel chuckled, nodding.

She punched him in the arm, only getting him to laugh harder.

"You know I hate this drink. You've known that since we were five, why didn't you warn me?" Alison demanded, pushing the cup back in the direction of the bartender.

Noel shrugged in amusement, "I wanted to see your reaction."

"Jerk," she muttered, shaking her head.

"Thank you," he said, snickering at the surprised expression Alison made when he suddenly drank both cups. He set them down on the bar. "For the compliment and the drink."

She rolled her eyes to the sky, shaking her head fondly at his stupidity. "Hey, come sit with us," she offered, turning to see her friends at the table.

Once Noel nodded, they walked over to the round table, and the guy pulled up an empty chair from a nearby table, situating it between Alison and Caleb. The two boys instantly broke into a conversation, and Alison found herself bored once again. The DJ was still playing slow songs, and she turned to Emily, who was now using her fork to test out the undecided texture of the dessert, grimacing at the brownish pastry. Apparently, she wasn't very fond of the menu, either.

Alison placed her hand softly on top of Emily's, stopping her from bitterly stabbing the dessert. The brunette turned to her innocently in question.

"Wanna go dance?" Alison offered hopefully.

They soon stood at the edge of the dance floor, opposite side of Emily's parents, since Alison had the suspicion that Emily wouldn't kiss her in front of them, and she couldn't possibly take that.

Once they were swaying along to the music, Alison's chin resting on Emily's shoulder, and the brunette couldn't help but blurt out, "What you said earlier... about the wedding - our wedding - did you really mean that?"

"Yes," Alison breathed out, nodding her head and not understanding how it wasn't obvious to Emily. "Did you?" she asked.

"Of course."

"Good," Alison was pleased, leaning back a little to look at Emily's face. "It's going to be epic, right?"

Emily chuckled, and Alison smiled cheerfully. "Right," she confirmed.

Alison grinned, burying her face in Emily's neck. "I can't wait to marry you someday, Em."

Emily smiled widely at the thoughtful comment. "I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you, Ali," she answered.

Alison sighed contently, pressing a kiss to her lover's neck.

They parted away softly and glanced around once the music faded from idle songs to cheerful dance music. The girls grinned when the rest of their friends joined them on the dance floor, laughing and dancing and having the time of their lives.

XXXXX

Hanna, Spencer and Aria sat around the Hastings kitchen, the petite brunette anxiously looking at her phone at least three times a minute as the three continued to wait. Twenty nerve-racking minutes passed until she finally snapped.

"I can't take this anymore," she said, turning to Spencer, who was currently worried about her mental state. "What time is it?"

Spencer glanced down at her expensive-looking wrist watch, "5:58."

Hanna was off by the fridge, searching for food. All this talk about time had made her realize she'd forgotten to eat lunch today. She was having so much fun doing a movie marathon with Caleb, that the time passed by before she even knew it, and her stomach was already filling up with popcorn. But popcorn couldn't keep her full forever. Aria and Spencer were seated only a few feet away on the barstools, but their conversation completely flew over her head. When she was looking for food, nothing else was on her mind.

Shortly after, Aria desperately tried again, her anxiety getting the best of her. She fidgeted with her hands, "What time is it now?"

Spencer turned to her sternly yet gently, "Aria, it's still 5:58."

The four of Aria's best friends had finally agreed to come with her to a poetry reading, even Alison, who was especially reluctant, but was begrudgingly convinced by Emily to join. They were all supposed to leave Spencer's house twenty minutes ago if they wanted to make it to the start of the show, but Emily and Alison were nowhere in sight.

"I'm sure they're just on their way," Spencer assured, trying to calm Aria down, knowing how feisty the small brunette tended to get. She placed her hand on Aria's in a supportive manner, and Aria softened somewhat, but her eyes still darted around the room, stopping on the blonde who was just now tuning in to the conversation taking place.

"Aria, I told you," Hanna started, her head still very much inside the fridge, her eyes lighting up once they landed on a packet of donuts, which was rare in the Hastings house. "They're probably just off hooking up somewhere," she finished, shrugging.

"I don't think so..." Aria trailed off. "Em told me Ali was dragging her to some shopping center downtown. Where can they hook up at a clothing store?"

Hanna and Spencer both gave her a knowing look in perfect unison.

Aria's eyes widened, and she looked away, feeling stupid all of a sudden, "Oh."

"Still, I agree with Aria. I don't think they would've gotten stalled like that. They knew this night was important for her," Spencer persuaded.

Hanna and Aria mumbled in return, "Yeah."

"Let's just watch TV until they get here, maybe there's a new episode of Freaky Foodies," Hanna suggested mischievously, taking a seat on an empty barstool with her cup of orange juice. Spencer gaped at how at home the bubbly blonde felt at her house, but it also warmed her heart a little. Same old Hanna, she mused as she shook her head.

Aria nodded, reaching for the remote. They turned on the TV in the kitchen, and, being at the Hastings house, it always opened on the news channel.

The TV came to life. Hanna gasped at the sight in front of her very eyes.

"'Two local girls save mayor from choking'?" Spencer read off the title.

"Are those..." Aria choked out, "Ali and Emily?"

A picture of both girls next to their town's mayor appeared on the screen. He was smiling widely and shaking Emily's hand with obvious enthusiasm. Emily was only grinning shyly, clearly embarrassed. Even from the bright television screen, the girls could see she was blushing. Alison was only smiling in adoration at her girlfriend, for once not stealing all the spotlight.

Hanna raised her eyebrow, "What the fu-"

"Sorry we're late!" Alison called out as soon as she and Emily were rushing inside the residence.

"Forget about that, why are you on the news?!" Aria asked, pointing at the flat screen.

Alison smirked at Emily, still trying to catch her breath. "You want to tell them?"

Emily smiled back, "Okay." She turned to the girls, taken back slightly now that the entire anticipating attention was averted to her. "Well, we were at this shopping center-"

"Yeah, yeah, Aria told us, get to the juicy stuff," Hanna burst into Emily's words in true Hanna Marin fashion, urging her to move on.

"Hanna!" Aria scolded.

"Well!" Hanna exclaimed loudly, throwing her hands in the air in a 'what do you want me to do' kind of motion.

"Em, just tell them," Alison said, shaking her head at Hanna's lack of tact.

Emily rolled her eyes lightly at her eager best friend, continuing on with her words.

"W-when we were done shopping for clothes, or when Ali was done-" she threw a pointed look at her girlfriend, who merely rolled her eyes. "-We went into a big Walmart because I still needed to buy my book for biology class."

Spencer nodded in understanding, remembering all the times when she'd had to share her book in Biology class with Emily because the brunette didn't have have the guts to tell their teacher they didn't have it in the store.

Hanna grimaced at the new information. "Is this a gay thing?" she scrunched up her nose.

Emily looked at her in exasperation, "No, it's a brain thing." She sighed, continuing, "We saw him in a nearby aisle, he was looking at some ties and his wife was yelling at him for getting his own stained from eating a hotdog."

Alison and Hanna snickered at the comment.

"He was still eating though, and then he started making these weird gagging sounds so, naturally, we went over there to see what was happening, right?" Emily turned to the exciting part of the story.

"He was holding his neck, struggling to breathe, and his wife and security guards were being utterly useless," Alison resisted the urge to roll her eyes once more at the memory of those pathetic attempts of the mayor's wife to pat his back awkwardly. Her eyes shifted to Emily, and she grabbed her hand proudly, "Then all of a sudden, Em goes marching in there like she owns the place, and performs a Heimlich on him!"

Emily blushed under the blonde's obvious praise.

"He thanked her for saving his life, and no longer than five minutes later, some paparazzis were suddenly there," Alison further explained. "You guys should've seen her," the blonde turned to Emily, her eyes beginning to rake over Emily's body shamelessly, "it was really good seeing Em take control like that."

Aria and Spencer shifted uncomfortably in their seats, noticing Alison's low tone and how this was an obvious statement about the girls' relationship that should've been directed to Emily's ears only.

Hanna chuckled, "Okay, Ali, I know it's hard when Em's your girlfriend, but you should try and keep it in your pants."

"I'm serious!" Alison stated with a sly smile, her eyes not leaving Emily. She grabbed onto Emily's bicep, suddenly in need to feel her muscles, "It's nice to know I have a knight in shining armour whenever I'm in need."

Emily blushed even further, ducking her head in attempt to hide her small pleased smirk. Alison placed a kiss on her cheek, making the brunette's smile grow twice its size.

"Em, where did you even learn how to do a Heimlich?" Aria asked in amazement.

"Yeah, even I don't know how to do that properly without choking the person even more," Spencer joked, smiling at the swimmer. The girls all turned to look at her. "What?" she asked, "they didn't teach us that in Junior Med."

Emily laughed, then shrugged. "When you grow up with a dad like mine, you learn how to do things like Heimlich and CPR before starting elementary school."

"That's really cool, Em," Aria complimented, a gleeful smile on her lips.

"Thanks, Aria," Emily smiled in return. Her smile dropped in a second, "Wait, Aria! Your poetry reading thing!"

"Do we still have to go to that?" Alison whined, toying with Emily's fingers.

"Yes," Emily, Spencer and Aria said firmly in unison.

Aria lifted Spencer's wrist to check her watch, "If we leave now, we can still make it to some acts. My favorite one always goes last, anyway."

Emily grudgingly dragged the two whining blondes out of the Hastings house, while Aria and Spencer shared a laugh and followed them.

XXXXX

"Em, I can't believe you did that!" Alison shrieked out a laugh, smacking the brunette's leg in shock.

"It's true, my dad got it all on video," Emily laughed back, biting into the gummy worm she was holding.

Emily had turned up at Alison's home when the blonde was just finishing her weekend homework, a bag of several kinds of gummy candies at hand. Alison had noticed right away how the brunette was rocking on the balls of her feet excitedly, her eyes filled with such happiness that she had only seen a few times whenever they were alone. For once, when she and Emily had stood on top of the Eiffel Tower, or when Alison had shown her the scrapbook she had made for their anniversary, and most recently, when the blonde had given her the birthday present she had for her.

Emily had explained through and through about her day with her parents in Philly, and how they had spontaneously decided to go when her mom had offered it at the breakfast table. Alison was happy for Emily, very much so, but was secretly wishing her family was more like that. With Jason gone all week with Cece in Miami, she had found her home life completely unsatisfying and depressing.

Emily was just finishing telling her a story about how her father had once challenged her to do a prank call on her cousin when she was six years old. The brunette had talked in the deepest voices she could've mustered and had convinced her eight-year-old cousin, Melvin, that she was one of the Ninja Turtles. It amazed Alison how they never stopped learning new things about each other.

They were laughing hysterically at Alison's bedroom, when the door swung open. Jessica DiLaurentis appeared at the doorway in a floral dress and her usual pearls.

"Alison, I need to speak with you." Jessica called in a firm tone, but Alison could smell the alcohol all the way from her bed. She also recognized the somewhat familiar rage in her mother's eyes. Jessica had been drinking a lot less this past year, as if Alison's transformation had somehow inspired her to do some sort of change in her behavior as well.

But as great as it was, Jessica would still drink sometimes, and when she would start, she simply couldn't stop. Alison hadn't done anything to upset her today, she had spent that entire Saturday in her room, so the blonde guessed her mother had gotten into another one of those meaningless fights with her dad where she would get drunk at the end of every single one. Then she would take out her anger on everyone and anyone around her in a true toxic nature. Alison really wished Jason was home. She really wished Emily wasn't here to see her mother like that. She just wished her family wasn't so messed up.

Alison made one of the quickest decisions in her life and stood up. "I can't, mom, Emily and I were just about to head to the movies," she said in a calm and rational voice, afraid her mother might lash on her. She would take it any other time, but not when her innocent and timid girlfriend was around. Emily turned to her in confusion, but offered no rebuffing comments to her words.

Jessica's eyes traveled to the flabbergasted girl on Alison's bed. Her eyes widened slightly, as if she just realized they had a guest in their house. "Emily, sweetie. So nice to see you again," Jessica said pleasantly, temporarily sober. As much as Alison thought she was faking her niceness like she always did, something in her mother's tone made her understand that she genuinely liked Emily, not just pretended to be happy when the brunette was around.

Emily smiled politely, "Nice to see you too, Mrs. Dilaurentis."

"It's Jessica, dear," Alison's mother corrected, her voice gleeful and a wide smile spreading across her lips. Alison marveled at how fast Jessica's anger went away when Emily was around. It certainly didn't happen with just any guest. But, of course it would happen with Emily, the beautiful brunette had that effect on everybody. She was just a ray of sunshine.

"Well, we should leave if we want to make it on time," Alison stated, turning to Emily and nodding her head to the entrance of the room in a 'let's go' motion.

Emily nodded and stood up quickly, grabbing the pack of candy.

"Come back any time, dear," Jessica called out to the brunette after the two girls cautiously walked around her and towards the stairs.

Emily gave her a smile in response, but Alison could tell it was forced. Her girlfriend might've been innocent, but not that innocent. She knew something was up. Alison just wanted to go somewhere and spill her entire guts to Emily.

Once they were finally out of the suffocating house, Alison was extremely thankful for the fact that Emily didn't blast her with questions, only wrapped a secure arm around her shoulders and gave her a long kiss on the cheek, as if simply letting her know she was there to keep her safe.

Alison led them in silence to the same place in the woods where she would come to think. A dusty, old rock. The kissing rock. Alison had forced herself not to begin crying or screaming in front of her mother, but as soon as she sat down on the big rock, the tears didn't wait a second before rushing to her eyes and she broke into a sob as she covered her face with her hands instinctively. Emily was quickly by her side, holding her softly like she was made out of fine china at first, but then tightening her arms, making Alison feel the safest in the world. She didn't ask her anything, merely waited until Alison could share something by herself.

Alison held onto Emily like her life depended on it. Her only lifeline. She cried about her mother, and the way she had to wrap up any argument with a bottle or two of wine, or something stronger. She cried about her father's cold indifference, and how he always looked like he was dying to leave this family. She didn't cry about Jason, because he had been such a good brother since this past summer. She did cry for him though, because he was as much as a part of this family as she was, so he had to suffer her parents' behavior the same way she did. She cried about the way her parents had the urge to keep up appearances, and about their perfect image to the outside world. She cried about how they weren't very close to anyone else in their family because everyone was scared of Jessica and Ken. She cried because her family was so dysfunctional, and because of what happened behind closed doors.

She sobbed at hidden feelings and distant memories, as the sound of nature and the warm feeling of Emily's embrace gradually calmed her down.

She felt her heartbeat slowly falling into the same pattern as Emily's, and she started to feel a little more at peace.

Alison couldn't but feel a bit guilty for raining all over Emily's parade of a day, but her anger at her mother at that moment felt stronger than any guilt. If the woman hadn't violently burst into her room like that, drunk out of her mind, the two of them would have continued to have a perfectly nice afternoon.

Emily didn't let go of Alison once. Her head fell on top of Alison's as the blonde rested hers in Emily's chest. She held her as tightly and warmly as she could, needing to prove to herself that Alison wasn't slipping away from her fingers.

Finally, Alison straightened herself up a little and Emily's arms relaxed, falling to her sides as she watched the blonde wipe her eyes. Alison sighed, knowing that even though Emily wasn't asking her anything yet, she was probably really curious as to what happened. Alison couldn't blame her, really. She knew she was going to have to start somewhere.

She took a deep breath, "Em-"

"We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to."

The look of determination mixed with love in Emily's eyes that Alison dwelled on, made the blonde's breath hitch.

She looked down, closing her eyes. "But I do. Want to, I mean."

Emily nodded, frowning in concern but trying to look as understanding as possible. She smiled faintly when Alison wrapped both her arms around her own arm, needing to feel Emily close as she opened up to her. The brunette placed her hand on top of both of Alison's, watching as the girl prepared herself to tell her about her home situation.

"You're probably wondering what the hell just happened in there," Alison started, her voice coming off extremely distant. She was already lost in her thoughts, there was no stopping her. "My mom getting drunk hasn't happened in at least a few weeks, but it definitely wasn't the first time."

Emily didn't know how to respond, so she didn't. She waited for Alison to continue, which looked like what she was going to do, anyway.

She looked at Emily, and the brunette barely recognized the fear of opening up and sadness over her mother's behavior that she saw in Alison's eyes. Alison was always so happy when they were together. Or angry, or jealous, or playful, or even scared. But never sad. It was almost new territory for Emily.

"I know what you're thinking," Alison resumed, sniffling slightly. She looked down in shame, "No, my mother doesn't hit me. Not anymore at least."

Emily frowned. Was that last part supposed to make her feel better? The horrified look the brunette gave her made Alison want to explain herself further.

"She never did. Not really. I mean, sure, a slap here and there but, overall..." Alison trailed off, shrugging like it was nothing.

Emily spoke for the first time, "Don't talk like that. She shouldn't raise her hand on you at all."

It occurred to Emily that maybe Alison was fine talking about this because it had always been this way in her family, as if she was used to it already. She wanted to slap some sense into both of Alison's parents. No wonder the blonde had grown up to be so ruthless and vindictive, she'd learned that from her parents.

She risked a question, speaking in a weak voice, "Did your father ever..."

Alison chuckled bitterly, shaking her head, "My father's a different story, Em. He's barely home anyway, we're lucky if he even blesses us with his presence."

Emily nodded, realizing how little she had seen of Alison's father over the years. Even her own father had been home more, and he was in the army.

The brunette gulped, "When... When was the last time this happened? W-With your mom?"

Alison looked down in embarrassment, and it stung Emily's dainty heart. "The last time she was really drunk was about a few months ago. We got into arguments over nothing for two days straight, she was drunk and hungover nonstop. It was right after she had lost some money in her company, according to what Jason told me. She didn't really get to me that time, and I just stayed out of her way and out of the house mostly. I was fine."

"Ali... When was the worst time?" Emily whispered, her voice shaking.

Alison stared at her for a moment, hot tears rushing back to her eyes. She wanted to tell Emily this, wanted Emily to know her better. But it didn't make it any less hard.

"I was thirteen," Alison started, fidgeting with her hands in her lap, wondering if she needed to sugarcoat it for Emily and spare some details, but if Emily really wanted to know, she needed to tell her everything. It would be relieving to let it all out. "My mom had just found out that my aunt, Mary, was coming to town. For some reason, she really hates her," the blonde shrugged. "In short, she got dangerously drunk, and yelled at all of us for ruining her life," Alison took a shaky breath, "then she slapped me during that day for doing nothing. Three times, and hard. I-I don't even think it was the slap that hurt me, it was the confusion."

Emily got hold of Alison's hand, but the blonde barely noticed, too invested in the story as harsh images played out in her head. She could still feel the burning and swelling on her cheek, and the stamp of her mother's impressively large wedding ring on her skin.

"Back then, Jason had decided to throw an impromptu party with all of his old beer buddies, to try and relieve some of his tension."

Emily's head quipped up hastily, "Wait."

Alison nodded, "Remember when I told you I snuck into your room?"

Emily gaped, feeling like the whole world was crashing down on her. She could've been there to comfort Alison, but instead, her nearby neighbor had called the police and the blonde had taken off. No wonder her girlfriend hated her neighbor. Alison had needed her and she wasn't there. Emily wanted to kick herself.

"Did you go back to your house?" Emily asked, her voice strained as she fought off the burning sensation in her throat from the harsh guilt weighing down on her. She could've helped Alison, could've helped her sleep through the night after she had that terrible day.

"Not exactly," Alison admitted with a small, sad smile. "I wanted to, but Jason's stupid friends were still there, and some of them were just straight up pervs. I went to sleep in the treehouse in my backyard. The next day, I put on a bit of extra make-up to cover up the bruise on my cheek. Nobody noticed it."

"Oh, my God, Ali," Emily gulped and placed her hand on top of her mouth in shock, feeling her throat dry. She wiped Alison's tears away when the blonde started breaking down again.

Alison shook her head, taking steady breaths in order to calm herself.

Emily couldn't resist and pulled her in, hugging her deeply. "I just... Oh, God, I don't think I can ever let you out of my sight again," she said, her voice cracking woefully.

Alison raveled in the warmth of Emily's hold as the brunette kept on squeezing her tighter, "Ali, just know you can always come to me. Always. Twenty four hours a day, okay?"

Tears started rushing to Emily's face before she knew it, and she let them fall into Alison's shoulder, hiccuping, "I love you so much. I don't want anything to happen to you, I wouldn't forgive myself."

They cried together, melting into each other's embraces. It was far from silent, and Alison was thankful they were in the middle of the woods. No one would ever hear them out here. That was the appeal of this place.

Emily sniffled, not bothering to wipe the tears off her face. "Stay over tonight. And tomorrow. A-And the day after that," she offered desperately, not wanting Alison to go back to her house. That horrid place. She would never look at the blonde's family the same again.

Alison chuckled despite herself. "I'll stay tonight, Em, but I can't leave my house. I've lived there my entire life, trust me, I can manage."

"I don't want you to manage, I want you to feel safe." Emily argued heatedly, her tone getting affected by the protectiveness burning inside her eyes. She would never leave Alison hanging like that again.

Alison nodded, "And I do. As long as you're only a phone call or short walk away, I'll be fine. I promise you."

Emily seemed to settle a little. "Okay," she sighed, her muscles relaxing, but only the slightest bit. "If anything like this happens again-"

"I'll be okay, Em. Jason will be back tomorrow, and I'll talk to him about what happened today. I'm sure he'll have the same opinion as you. You two can take shifts being my bodyguards," Alison chuckled slightly and thankfully, Emily cracked a small smile.

They spent the rest of their time taking a stroll through the woods, lightening up the subject one step at a time, telling each other funny stories and childhood memories, of times when everything wasn't so wrong, all while sharing a bag of gummy candies that got crushed. They discovered Alison had accidentally sat on it while they were talking.

They later went back to Emily's house, where Pam and Wayne greeted Alison warmly. It was pleasant to be welcomed like that, like she was already a part of the family, but she also felt the sharp jab to her chest, knowing her own family would never be like that. She already had a few sets of clothes in Emily's closet, as she and Emily were always prepared for this kind of situation. She spent the night in Emily's arms, almost forgetting anything bad that happened today and before today. Almost forgetting. Those horrid memories would forever be engraved in her mind, no matter how much she tried to erase them. Some things just never changed.

It took Alison two hours to finally fall asleep that night, but what she didn't know, was that Emily didn't close her eyes once, as she kept her long arms tightly around the blonde.