Covenant of Liars (Part 1)
Covenant of Liars
by tenshinrtaiga
Disclaimer: I don't own the Covenant or Pretty Little Liars
Primary Characters: Alison DiLaurentis, Spencer Hastings, Aria Montgomery, Emily Fields, Hanna Marin, Chase Collins, Caleb Danvers, Pogue Parry, Reid Garwin, Tyler Simms.
Secondary Characters: Ezra Fitz, Wren Kingston, Samara Cook, Sarah Wenham, Kate Tunney, Caleb Rivers and more.
Pairings: canon pairings plus some Caleb D./Spencer, Aria/Reid, Alison/Chase
Author's Note - Much thanks to my artist dhfreak for the awesome art.
Summary: No one really knows how the Power came to be. Not even the Book of Damnation recorded its beginning. But those who mastered it have always been hunted. In the middle of the 17th Century, many escaped the brutal Witch-hunting in England and France by coming to America. As the brutal persecution of those with the Power spread throughout Massachusetts, the ten families of Ipswich (Danvers, Hastings, DiLaurentis, Putnam, Parry, Fields, Montgomery, Garwin, Simms and Marin) formed a Covenant of silence. And for 300 years it has kept them safe. Until now.
Alison, Caleb, Spencer, Pogue, Reid, Aria, Emily, Hanna and Tyler have to deal not only with their own high school drama, but the strange supernatural ones that keep popping up. And it doesn't help that the Covenant of silence is splitting at the seams as Spencer deals with her family, Caleb finds himself in love with someone else and Aria falls for her new teacher. And of course, further splitting the group, there's Alison and the girls as they try and secretly deal with That Jenna Thing.
“What’s up, guys?” Hanna greeted with a grin as she and Reid snuck up behind the others.
“Where were you?” Tyler asked the two blondes with a scowl. “Stopped by to give you both a lift.”
“Had things to do,” Reid answered as he peered over the rock cliff, looking down on the raging party occurring below them. “How’s the party?” he asked curiously.
“Dunno,” Pogue muttered. “Just got here.”
Reid smirked, “Well, hell, boys-” Spencer gave a loud, meaningful cough. “and girls,” Reid saved. “Let’s drop in,” he grinned as he kicked some rocks over the edge, his eyes flaring with power as he summoned his magic and nonchalantly stepped over the edge of the cliff.
“Oh, hell yeah!” Hanna cheered with a grin, following him over.
“Hanna!” Caleb yelled loudly down at her disappearing form.
Alison sauntered over with a smug grin. “Oh, let them do what they want, Caleb. It’s not like it’s gonna kill us… yet.” And with those words, she too descended from the cliff face.
With an apologetic look on her face, Aria followed and then Pogue and Emily, leaving only Spencer and Caleb alone at the top. With a sigh and a shared look of annoyance, the two locked hands, intertwining their fingers, and jumped over the edge.
Once they landed, they looked up to realize that the Covenant had already paired off. Reid had an arm slung over Aria’s shoulders as the two gazed around at all of the party goers, their head already beginning to bob to the intense beat of the music. Pogue and Hanna were next to them searching the crowds, presumably for Kate: Pogue’s girlfriend and one of Hanna’s best friends. Behind them loitered Emily and Tyler who were quietly talking and not paying an ounce of attention to the party going on in front of them. Lastly, stood Alison: alone and slightly away from the others, just the way she liked it. She always acted like she was better than everyone else; even her own siblings.
“I’ll catch up to you later,” Alison spoke, already heading towards the party without a second glance back.
Well used to this, the others barely blinked as the blonde abandoned them in search of her own brand of fun. “Let’s go,” Caleb spoke as he wrapped an arm around Spencer’s waist and led the group into the heart of the festivities.
The eight of them drew stares as they got closer to the party-goers. Pogue spotted Kate and got Caleb’s attention, nodding his head towards her. Caleb automatically shifted slightly so that they could head towards the mocha skinned girl, his eyes trailing the form of her blonde friend before determinately looking away. He had a girlfriend. A very hot, very smart, very athletic girlfriend named Spencer Hastings. He should not be looking at the new girl.
“The Children of Ipswich,” they heard Kate say to her friend.
“Hey, Kate,” Caleb greeted as he came upon the two.
Kate looked up at him with a slightly flirtatious grin, “Caleb,” before running up to her boyfriend and giving him a quick kiss. “Mmm. You’re late,” she pouted up at Pogue before giving Hanna a quick hug in hello.
“I had a thing with the family,” Pogue explained as he slipped his arms around her waist. “Who’s this?” he asked looking at her friend.
“My new roommate,” Kate turned to face the blonde as she began giving introductions. ”Sarah, this is Pogue Parry, Hanna Marin, Tyler Simms, Emily Fields, Aria Montgomery, Reid-“
“Garwin,” the blond interrupted to shake Sarah’s hand. “Good evening,” he flirted, ignoring Aria who was still tucked into his side.
Aria rolled her eyes but gave the boy a fond grin, clearly used to her boyfriend’s flirtatious ways. “Ignore him,” she said. “He’s an idiot.” Reid protested this loudly but it was drowned out by his friends’ laughter.
“Caleb Danvers.” Caleb stuck out his hand, continuing Kate’s introductions. His brown eyes locked on Sarah’s blue ones and for a moment, he could think of nothing but how beautiful they were. Thankfully, that moment passed too quickly for anyone to notice. “And my girlfriend Spencer Hastings.” He motioned to the tall brunette at his side.
“Hey, Caleb,” a high pitched voice interrupted.
“Mona,” Caleb replied with a hint of a sigh in his words. Around him, the others all gave rolls of their eyes, already seeing how this conversation was going to end.
“How was your summer?” she asked flirtatiously, totally ignoring the scoff Spencer gave.
Caleb looked behind Mona at Sarah, self-conscious of what he should do. “Uhm.”
Mona took his distraction as an opportunity and whirled around to face the new girl. “I’m Mona.”
“Sarah,” she replied with a guarded smile.
“Oh, right. From the Boston public. Tell me, how does one go about getting into Spencer from a public?” Mona asked cruelly.
“Mona!” Hanna yelled, walking up to the girl who also happened to be one of her best friends. “Knock it off,” she growled before smiling awkwardly at Sarah.
“Problems?” Noel asked as he came up to the group under the guise of rescuing his girlfriend.
Caleb gave the boy a caustic smile already knowing where this was heading. “I don’t want any trouble, Noel.”
“I’m sure you don’t,” Noel responded, but instead of looking at Caleb, he was leering at Aria. Feeling his girlfriend shift uncomfortably under his arm, Reid snarled at the boy causing her discomfort.
“Posers make me wanna puke,” Aaron sneered next to his best friend.
“Is that right?” Reid jumped in, happy to get in the guy’s face.
Caleb shoved an arm out just in time to stop Reid from starting a fight. “Hey, hey. Let it go.”
“I think you owe Mona an apology,” Noel spoke.
“Actually, I think Mona owes Sarah the apology,” Caleb responded firmly, not backing down. Noel lashed out, shoving Caleb a few steps back, but before any of the boys could start throwing punches, the new boy showed up.
“You were being kinda bitchy,” he addressed Mona as he got in between the two fighting boys.
While the others were distracted, Reid allowed his eyes to flash and a moment later, Aaron was throwing up on Noel. The girls were all making disgusted sounds, but Caleb immediately glared at Reid, stopping the boy’s snickers.
“Guys! Gil just called. He said he saw three cop cars heading this way on old Dell Road!” a boy announced from the music area causing the crowd to quickly disperse. Not having enough time to make it up to the Mustang and BMW on the cliff, the Covenant made their way to the nearby woods.
“Need a ride?” Caleb tossed over his shoulder as he quickly walked through the dense trees.
“No, Sarah drove us out here,” Kate replied as she snuggled up to Pogue’s buff body in the chilly weather.
“See you back at the dorms?” the boy asked flicking a long piece of hair out of his face.
“It’s getting late. I’m just gonna crash,” she replied regretfully as she leaned up for a quick kiss. “Call me in the morning?”
“I could use a lift,” the new boy interrupted from where he was hanging back slightly.
“No problem!” Kate smiled over her shoulder at him.
“Hey, nice going back there,” Caleb smiled. “Caleb.”
“Chase,” he introduced. “I thought that guy and I were about to go at it. His friend’s puking sure came at an opportune time.”
“Didn’t it though?” Reid asked, smirking down at Aria who rolled her eyes but grinned at the prank.
The group began splitting up. Sarah, Kate and Chase headed toward Sarah’s beat up car, Reid, Aria, Tyler and Caleb headed toward Tyler’s Hummer and lastly Hanna, Pogue, Emily and Spencer headed toward Emily’s Corolla. “Wait a second,” Spencer cried out drawing everyone’s attention. “Where’s Ali?”
This caused the other children of Ispwich to look around as if the blonde girl was just going to pop out of the woodwork. “Maybe she already left,” Emily suggested. The others warily agreed, but slowly got into their cars; a complete turn about to the speed they were going earlier.
“My car won’t start!” Sarah yelled as the other two cars were about to pull out.
“I can fix it for you,” Reid offered with a smirk, getting out of the Hummer.
“Reid,” Caleb muttered in annoyance, but said nothing more. Aria and Reid’s relationship puzzled the rest of the school since they were obviously together and yet the two continued to flirt and hook up with other people. It seemed to make no sense. Only their siblings knew that while the two cared a lot about each other, they were casual.
“We can’t all be the It-Couple,” Reid muttered as he passed by Caleb’s window, jerking his head toward Spencer who was sitting in the other car. And it was true. The school seemed to worship the ground Caleb and Spencer walked on. The two had been dating for two years and never so much as had a real fight. They were both top of their class. He was captain of the swim team and her the field hockey team. They both came from the richest families in town and their families (along with the other eight) founded the town they lived in. They seemed like the perfect pair.
Reid popped the hood and used his magic. He waited a beat before calling out “Try it again” to the blonde behind the wheel.
Sarah did as told and squealed when the engine purred. “Thank you!” she yelled out the window as Reid made his way back to the Hummer. Sarah pealed out, but Emily waited for the others.
Hearing the sirens, Reid opened the front door. “Gotta bolt. Move over.”
“It’s my car!” Tyler protested.
Caleb spoke up from the back seat, “Move over, Baby Boy. Now!”
Tyler sighed, but did as told, unwilling to argue with their leader. Reid stuck his head out of the window. “We’ll take care of the cops. You guys meet us at the cliffs.” Emily nodded and raced out of the forest, Reid not far behind.
Reid, driving extremely recklessly, immediately caught the cops’ attention. Caleb peered behind him and groaned when he saw how close the cops were getting to them. “Ah. Gotta pull over.”
“Oh, you wanna stop? That’ll impress Harvard,” Reid smirked from the driver’s seat.
Once more, Caleb peered behind him to take a good look at the cops. “Alright, what the hell. Let’s lose ‘em.” He leaned forward to see where they were. He and the others grew up in these woods since these were the very woods that surrounded the old Putnam barn and the original Ipswich colony. Immediately recognizing his surroundings, he gestured to the left. “Hey, cut across Marblehead. Might as well have some fun while we’re at it.”
A particularly jarring jump earned a scream from Aria and a whoop from Tyler. In the fog, they could just barely make out the Marblehead cliffs in the distance. “Alright, guys. You ready?” Reid asked as he continued driving straight ahead.
“So ready,” Aria agreed with a smile as her eyes went black with Power. It had been a while since she last Used and she was looking forward to the little prank.
“Harry Potter can kiss my ASS!” Reid shouted as he drove the car over the edge of the cliffs, eyes black the entire time. This wasn’t the first time they’d pulled something like this and it was unlikely to be the last. They free fell through the air for several seconds, plunging toward the Atlantic before Caleb finally shaped their power and began controlling the car. He lifted the vehicle high into the sky, thankful for the foggy night as he positioned the Hummer behind the cop car and let it drop.
Once again, the high of free falling, this time in addition to the looks on the police officers’ faces caused all four to laugh hysterically as Reid shifted into reverse and drove out of the area before the cops could collect themselves enough to chase after them.
This time, with no worries about who was chasing them, they made their way back to the Ole Dell cliffs. At the top, Emily’s Corolla was parked next to Caleb’s Mustang and Hanna’s BMW. Reid, Caleb, Tyler and Aria got out of the car to meet up with the other four.
“Hey, everything go okay?” Pogue asked.
Reid smirked. “It went great. We cut across Marblehead. Gave the cops a real scare,” he laughed.
Pogue raised an eyebrow at Caleb, surprised that the man would go along with that since Caleb was usually the one saying not to Use their magic. Caleb opted not to disclose that it had been his idea. Even he needed to let loose and have some fun once and a while. “Still no sign of Ali?” Caleb asked, changing the subject.
Emily, Pogue, Hanna and Spencer’s face all turned solemn. “No.” Spencer shook her head. “I hope she didn’t get into trouble.”
“You hope who didn’t get into trouble?” a voice asked behind them causing all of them to whirl around. Ali sauntered up to them, a wide smirk on her face.
“Where have you been?” Caleb growled out angrily, his frustration and worry getting the better of him.
Ali sneered at the older boy. “Don’t get your panties in a twist, Dad. I’m fine. Now, let’s get out of here,” she demanded, sliding into Emily’s car with no hesitation.
Caleb shook his head, but turned his back on the blonde and entered his car anyway. Spencer crawled into the back seat and Pogue into the passenger’s side. He waved to Tyler, Aria and Reid as they left in the Hummer and to Emily and Hanna in the Corolla as they all left for the dorms, but studiously ignored Alison who was ignoring him right back.
The drive back was silent as Caleb continued to stew in anger at the blatant disrespect Ali continued to show him. He wasn’t asking for much, but he was the oldest and the leader of the Covenant. Even Reid respected Caleb’s authority more than Alison and that was saying something.
Caleb dropped Pogue off at the boy’s apartment and waited for Spencer to climb into the front seat before taking off. Unable to take the silence any longer, Spencer spoke up, “So, are you coming to lunch tomorrow? I could really use you.”
“Lunch?” Caleb asked in confusion as he parked in front of Spencer’s apartment.
“We’re meeting Melissa’s fiancé tomorrow, remember?” she asked, turning in her seat to face him seeing that she now had his full attention.
Caleb mentally went through his calendar before wincing. “I can’t. I promised my mom I’d pick up dad’s medicine.”
Spencer nodded in understanding. She couldn’t imagine what it must feel like for Caleb, to have to face his decrepit father. Sure, all the witches in the family aged when they Used, but William Danvers was the only one of them to get so addicted that he looked like he was over a hundred when he was only forty. Of the female witches, Hanna’s mom looked the oldest, but she was so beautiful that no one really commented on the lines around her eyes and face.
“Okay,” she nodded. “I’ll tell mom and dad you say hello.” Caleb nodded in agreement before leaning in for a goodbye kiss. As their lips met, Spencer automatically sank her hand into Caleb’s thick dark hair as Caleb’s hand reached up to cup her cheek. As their tongue met in a familiar dance, Spencer couldn’t help but think, and not for the first time, that if she had a brother, this would probably be what it felt like to kiss him.
~
Sarah cautiously crept down the dark hallways of the dormitory, still feeling like there were eyes boring into her back. She turned to take another look behind her as she turned the corner. Seeing nothing, she faced back around but gave a small, startled gasp.
Hearing the sound, Reid and Aria pulled away from each other as they dazedly turned to see who had interrupted their steadily progressing make-out session. “Oh, Sarah,” Aria said with a smile.
“Hi,” the blonde returned weakly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
“It’s okay.” Aria untangled herself from Reid. “Are you alright? You look kinda freaked.”
“I just came back from the showers,” the blonde stated obviously seeing as how she was wearing nothing but a towel. “It felt like someone was watching me.”
Reid moved forward from where he had been leaning against the wall and began to move toward Sarah, Aria not far behind him. “Let’s take a look, shall we?” he spoke as he passed the blonde by. Sarah had little choice but to follow. Coming into the still warm room, Reid and Aria both took a good look around and other than a broken light bulb, saw nothing. “Don’t see anyone,” Reid muttered, tapping his chin. The three moved back into the hallway.
“Sorry I’m being crazy,” Sarah laughed, though it sounded a little forced.
Aria shrugged easily. “It’s cool. Better safe than sorry. Especially in a dorm where both Aaron and Noel live.”
“You guys don’t really get along with them, huh?” Sarah asked in curiosity, remembering the fight from earlier.
“That’s putting it mildly,” Reid sneered as they came to an intersection.
Sarah automatically turned right before realizing she was the only one. “Oh, Aria? Where are your rooms?” she asked. She had thought that all the girls were roomed in the right wing and all of the boys in the left.
Reid gave a smirk but Aria gave her an indulgent smile. “I don’t live in the dorms,” Aria replied.
The blonde looked at her in confusion for a moment. “Then why are you- Oh. Right, sorry.” Sarah blushed lightly. “Okay, I guess I’ll see you guys later?”
“Sure,” Aria smiled. “Maybe tomorrow? I heard Kate’s dragging Hanna shopping and Hanna will probably ask me to tag along.”
Sarah smiled. “Yeah, me too. I’ll see you then.” She turned and gave both of them a wave in goodbye as she headed back to her dorm room.
She quietly slipped into her room, relieved when Kate was still awake. “Hey,” she greeted, mostly to let the other girl know she was back. “I have a question,” Sarah spoke in a muffled voice as she began putting on her pajamas. “What’s up with Reid and Aria? I mean, they’re together, right? But he was hitting on me and right in front of her too, but she didn’t seem to mind.”
Kate let out a laugh as she snuggled into her bed. “That’s a good question. One the entire school would like an answer to. No one really knows for sure, but as far as anyone can tell, they’re casual. He’s slept with other girls and she’s slept with other guys.”
“But they hang on to each other like they’re a couple,” Sarah said in confusion, quickly running a brush through her hair.
Kate shrugged. “Yeah, and sometimes they even get jealous and overprotective. Like I said, no one really gets it. Except the other Children of Ipswich, obviously. Those guys tell each other everything. Well, except for Ali.”
“Who’s Ali?” Sarah asked in confusion, not recalling that name in the introductions from earlier.
“Alison DiLaurentis. She’s a Daughter of Ipswich. I only know this because I’m with Pogue.” Kate leaned forward, speaking in a gossiping tone, “But she sort of thinks she’s better than everyone else. The other Children of Ipswich are cool. They don’t throw around their money or reputation - anymore than the rest of us do, anyway - but Ali is a whole other level. Even with her friends, she always has to be separate. Always has to be Queen Bitch.”
“That’s harsh,” Sarah said as she snuggled into her own bed.
“Mhmm,” Kate replied sleepily. “You know, Reid wasn’t the only one checking you out tonight.” Seeing that she had Sarah’s full attention, Kate smirked. “I’m pretty sure Caleb was too.”
Sarah immediately shook her head. “He has a girlfriend. A very beautiful girlfriend.”
Kate let out a scoff. “Spencer Hastings is more than just a pretty face. She and Caleb are tied for number one in our class and also for richest in this town. She’s Student Body President and on the debate team, the chess team and the literary club. She’s also captain of the field hockey team and has brought this school to Nationals three years in a row.”
“Wow,” Sarah said, more than a little surprised and impressed. “You know a lot about her.”
“It’s hard not to at this school,” Kate admitted easily. “She and Caleb run everything. They’re like the Power Couple of Spencer. Of Ipswich. Of Massachusetts.”
“And you think Caleb was hitting on me?” Sarah laughed.
Kate paused in thought for a minute. “Yeah, you’re probably right. No offense or anything. I was probably just reading too much into Caleb being friendly.” The two girls smiled at each other in good night and simultaneously reached out to turn off the lamps.
In the dark, Sarah’s mind conjured up that creepy feeling of being watched again. She let out a shaky breath before closing her eyes and making herself go to sleep.
~
Caleb jerked awake as he felt a strong tug of magic. He lay in bed gasping for a minute before turning around and lightly waking Spencer up. “Spence,” he whispered, tugging on her shoulder lightly.
“Cay?” she asked blearily. “What is it?”
“Did you feel that?” he asked.
Spencer turned around to face him, “Feel what?”
Caleb hesitated for a minute before relaxing. “Never mind. It was nothing,” he smiled. “Sorry for waking you. Go back to sleep.” Spencer gave him an odd look but closed her eyes none-the-less.
The next morning, Spencer slipped on a pair of sweatpants and tied her hair up into a high ponytail. She hooked her iPod nano onto the shoulder of her tank top before reaching over and waking her boyfriend.
Spencer gave Caleb a swift kiss on the mouth once he woke before leaving for her run, fully trusting him in her apartment alone. After a quick shower, Caleb pulled on an extra set of clothes he kept at Spencer’s before leaving, locking the door behind him. He was about to get into his car when the headlines of the local paper caught his attention. He dropped a few quarters in to retrieve the paper and quickly scanned the article after he hopped into the Mustang. With a frown, he reluctantly put the paper down and began to head into town to get started on his errands. He was barely a block away when he pulled out his phone to call Pogue. “Hey,” he greeted. “Did you feel anything last night?”
“What?” Pogue asked in confusion, turning away from where he had been carefully watching the mechanic work on his motorcycle. “Like what?”
“I felt someone Using last night. Pretty hardcore too,” Caleb admitted. “It must have been Reid.”
“What makes you think it was Reid?” Pogue asked in confusion, though the answer was obvious.
Caleb barely kept from rolling his eyes. “It’s always him, but I’ve never felt it when one of us has Used the Power before, have you?”
“No,” Pogue admitted, moving away from the loud machinery. “I dunno. Maybe it’s because you’re so close to Ascending.”
Caleb internally winced at yet another reminder of his eighteenth birthday; the birthday that would change his life. He would be getting his full powers and with them, an increasing addiction that could one day lead to his death. “I dunno. Maybe. I’m telling you, it was strong enough to wake me out of a dead sleep.”
Pogue looked around suspiciously before lowering his voice. “You know he’s only using his Powers to piss you off ‘cause he’s jealous you’re Ascending first.”
“I’m telling you- Jesus!” Caleb swore as he looked to his right to find a Darkling in his passenger’s seat. His arm jerked and he swerved into the oncoming lane. The loud honking of a horn was the only warning he got as he quickly Used. The car crashed into the large sixteen wheeler and exploded in a shower of car parts before quickly reforming. Caleb stepped on the brakes the minute he had finished Using his Powers to save his life.
“What’s going on? Caleb! Pick up the phone, man!” Pogue shouted in worry.
Caleb reached down to grab his phone from where it fell to the floor. “I just saw a Darkling. It was in the form of that dead kid they found at the Dells,” he whispered hoarsely, body coated in sweat and still high from adrenaline.
Pogue paused in shock. “Yeah, I saw his picture this morning in the newspaper. But who would send you a Darkling?”
“I have no idea. Something’s wrong, I can feel it,” Caleb replied.
The long haired boy began to worry. Caleb had good instincts about this kind of thing. “Look, we gotta talk to Reid tonight. He’ll probably be at Nicky’s so we’ll see him then.”
“Definitely,” Caleb agreed before hanging up and, more cautiously this time, heading into the center of town. He had just picked up his father’s prescription medicine when he heard a familiar voice calling his name. He turned and quickly spotted the speaker. “Oh, hey, Kate. What are you up to?”
“Oh, I’m just stocking up our room,” she explained nonchalantly before leaning in more seriously. “Did you hear about the dead kid?” she whispered.
Caleb paused awkwardly as he thought about the darkling he had just seen. “Yeah. Yeah, I did.”
“Did you know him?” Kate asked. Caleb was the most popular guy at school; he tended to know everybody.
“No. No he, uh, just transferred in,” Caleb explained, wanting to end the conversation as soon as possible.
Kate nodded seriously. “Yeah, I heard he lived on Reid and Tyler’s floor.”
Caleb felt a presence come up behind him and turned around. He blinked in surprise at Sarah, but he suppose he shouldn’t have. Sarah was Kate’s roommate. If Kate was stocking up on supplies then so was Sarah. He nodded his head and greeted the blonde girl back before turning back to the discussion.
~
“I still can’t believe your mom would do that,” Aria spoke as she munched on a twizzler.
Emily looked at her friend like she was crazy. True to form, Emily asked, “Are you crazy? That’s exactly something my mom would do.” She shook her head in anger, tension simmering under her skin.
“Maybe your mom is just looking out for you,” Hanna offered as she crunched on her own chosen snack of carrots as the three girls walked down Main St.
Emily turned to face the blonde. “Or maybe my mom can’t handle the fact that I’m gay and is trying to ruin my relationship with Maya.”
Aria hesitantly broke in. “Well, Maya’s going away to that camp so are you two still…” she asked hesitantly.
Emily reached out for one of Hanna’s carrots and angrily chomped. “I don’t know,” she finally admitted. “She left so suddenly, we didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye.”
Aria and Hanna simultaneously wrapped an arm around their friend. “It’ll be okay, Em,” Aria comforted. “You’ll figure things out. And if you and Maya can’t be together then you’ll find someone else. Someone better.”
“Someone not a drug addict,” Hanna helpfully put in causing the other two to let out small laughs as they walked into the drug store.
“Caleb!” Aria smiled brightly as she saw him standing with Kate, Sarah and Chase. The group gave a round of greetings as they all congregated in the middle of the shop.
Hanna looked around in search of something. “Where’s Spence?” she finally asked.
“Lunch with the family,” Caleb explained. “She’s meeting the fiancé.”
“Oooh,” all the girls minus Sarah said simultaneously.
Sarah looked on confused, her expression mirrored on Chase. “Wait, what?” she asked.
“Melissa,” Hanna explained with emphasis before remembering that she was talking to new students. “Melissa is Spencer’s crazy older sister. She’s a perfectionist to the extreme. In the eyes of the Hastings family, she can do no wrong. Which is crazy because she’s a complete bitch and yet somehow she always makes Spencer look like the bad guy.”
“Her fiancé is probably just as crazy,” Kate realized, “if he’s managed to capture Melissa’s attention.” The entire group shuddered at the thought of two Melissas. That was clearly the stuff of nightmares.
“You’re not there?” Aria asked Caleb in curiosity. “You’re practically part of the family.” She smiled in amusement.
Caleb shook his head. “No, I had errands to run for my mother.” He shook his pharmacy bag. “Thank God,” he muttered lowly. Even Caleb disliked Melissa and he could put up with most anybody.
A low ring grabbed their attention as they noticed a male figure leave the pharmacy. None of them had realized there had been someone else in the store with them. “Who was that?” Sarah asked in curiosity, realizing that everyone was staring at the figure.
“I don’t know. Another new guy?” Emily offered.
“Hot new guy,” Hanna smirked as she eyed the figure up and down. “Who is he talking to?” she wondered. Suddenly, the boy they were all staring at shifted, allowing them to see the girl he had stopped to chat with.
“Oh my god!” Emily, Hanna and Aria muttered all together.
Caleb raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Hey, isn’t that Jenna Marshall? I didn’t know she was back.”
The three witches exchanged terrified looks. It had been two years and they still had never spoken of The Jenna Thing. Ali had said that she’d taken care of it, but here Jenna was, back in town. Alison was going to be pissed.
Next