Chapter Text
━ THREE YEARS LATER ━
“Isn’t it beautiful?” the girl allows CeCe to look at her ring up close, both bug-eyed and smiling.
“Holy sh━” CeCe starts, “Caleb has great taste.”
“I’ve taught him well,” Hanna beams at her fiancé who sits on a lawn chair as she snatches her hand back.
Emily smirks at the statement, lounging in an identical lawn chair nearby.
Two years after getting together for the second time, Caleb finally popped the question whilst on a European trip with Hanna. For months beforehand, he had searched high and low for the perfect piece of jewelry, practically dragging Emily into endless stores.
“Caleb, she’d say ‘yes’ even if you bought a toaster oven to propose with,” the brunette furrowed her eyebrows when she saw him slightly panicking.
“Okay,” he tilted his head, “but you and I both know that she’ll complain forever if I don’t pick out a Hanna-esque ring.”
Emily nodded in agreement, “True.”
A few days after that, Caleb found a beautiful, shiny, diamond ring that definitely screams Hanna ━ and, now that she’s seen it, the blonde agrees.
Emily’s proud that the two patched things up; for a while, after eight months of dating, Hanna and Caleb hit a rough patch when an ex-girlfriend of his showed up out of nowhere, and he ended up hanging out with her a time or two. Hanna asked why (well, she more-or-less demanded to know why he’d give her the time of day), and he only answered, “She’s been with me through a lot. She was my foundation for a while, Hanna. It’s complicated,” to which the blonde stormed out, and crashed with Emily and Alison for five days.
Coincidentally, at the same time of Caleb and Hanna’s “mutual break,” Mona and Mike had split over differences in future goals. At the time, after only several months of steady dating, Mike mentioned the idea of a permanent future together, and Mona panicked almost immediately, barging into CeCe’s house and going on a three-hour-long rant about why she just cannot commit to forever. When Mona entered, much to CeCe’s irritation, the tall blonde and Vincent were heating up on the couch ━ not that Mona, herself, cared all that much.
So, when Emily, Alison, Hanna, CeCe, and Mona went on a two-day vacation at some resort hotel an hour away, the two broken girls ended up getting severely drunk and, judging by the way CeCe walked into Mona’s hotel room with an “Oh my God” the next morning, the two somehow fell into bed together. Upon the taller blonde’s reaction, Alison had peeked into the room, only to shoot a wide-eyed look at the two covered in sheets and messy hair before shoving Emily through the doorway with a shaky “Come on, Em, let’s go get some breakfast.” The brunette furrowed her eyebrows at the nervous tone laced within her girlfriend’s words, and forced Alison to tell her what happened only moments later.
“I don’t know,” the other girl stressed.
“Well, what did you see?”
At that, Alison pursed her lips and shook her head, rubbing at her eyes as she let out a groan.
“No,” Emily finally put two and two together due to the reaction. “Are you kidding me? I told Hanna to━”
“They’re hurting, Em. I’m not exactly surprised, but…” her eyes bugged as she looked towards the floor, hoping it’d erase the image she just saw.
For days after, Emily lectured Hanna endlessly, both scolding her while simultaneously making sure that she’s okay. The blonde eventually told Caleb what happened (albeit begrudgingly), and explained that she just didn’t remember how everything came about, but that she’s sorry and it was just a drunken fling.
This created some awkward tension once Caleb and Hanna got back together, especially when everyone began going on group dates again ━ Mona included. It didn’t last, however, because Mona did her best apologizing to Caleb for what happened, and he replied, “All water under the bridge. Let’s just move on.” A few months later, Mike and Mona caught up and, after talking through their differences regarding the future, ended up getting back together.
“Em,” Alison’s irritated voice comes from somewhere near the cottage’s stairs.
The brunette turns to see her girlfriend advancing in her direction, Mona in tow with a tray of shot glasses and alcohol. Emily smiles at Alison’s rosy cheeks, most likely a result from the extreme sun they’ve been catching at the Cape Cod beach house ━ courtesy of Mona’s boss.
The blonde huffs, “It’s your turn to go get him. He’s crying somewhere over there,” she points towards the shrubs located west of where the group is sitting.
Emily furrows her eyebrows, “He was literally just right here.”
“He moves fast,” Alison shrugs while her girlfriend finally stands up.
Before moving away, the brunette leans forward and presses a kiss to the other girl’s lips, smiling when she hears a round of yuck ’s come from behind them. Alison rolls her eyes at the others, muttering an impatient “Go” to Emily who doesn’t move quick enough.
“If he eats something strange because you’re too slow, I’m making you sleep in his bed tonight.”
Emily frowns at the statement, quickly shuffling across the grass and walking into the shrubs, grunting when she repeatedly gets poked by the various protruding branches. The group sitting on the east side of the yard chuckles whenever they hear a distraught “Come on” from the girl searching the bushes but, eventually, laugh when the brunette exits the landscaping with a struggling, dirt-covered, thirty-pound dog in her arms. Alison shakes her head while smiling, more so because of the pouting look on her girlfriend’s face.
About a year ago, Emily and Alison were arriving home from a date around 9 P.M. when they heard some whining coming from the far side of their building. Quickly, the blonde searched for the source of the noise and let out an elongated “Aww” when she saw a greyish-brown puppy huddling in the corner of the brick structure. Emily, only steps behind, held her girlfriend back so she wouldn’t touch it ━ just in case.
“Well I’m not going to just leave it here, Em,” she said with a pointed tone.
At the statement, the brunette looked at the animal and found no trace of tags, so she sighed.
“Alison, it could be sick.”
“Go get a bowl of water and something for it to eat,” the blonde instructed, never taking her eyes off of the timid animal.
When the other girl exited the house, water and pieces of apple in hand, she placed the bowl and peeled fruit chunks in front of the puppy, however it didn’t come forward to eat or drink. It just sat there, sitting against the building, whining.
“Apples? Really, Em?”
“What? Vincent feeds them to Violet all the time. I'm not sure what else it can handle as a puppy.”
Knowing that they had no idea what else to do, Emily called CeCe in hopes that she’s with Vincent at the time and, thankfully, the two came over within the next ten minutes.
“I’m no vet,” Vincent crouched down and examined the small dog, only a tad bigger than the man’s foot, “but he’s not showing any signs of rabies. If anything, he likely has fleas or something he picked up on the streets.”
“So, it’s a ‘he’?” CeCe raised an eyebrow.
“Not sure, but I feel bad for calling him an ‘it’,” he explained and the couple behind him looked at one another.
“He looks like a Shepherd mix of some kind,” Vincent continued to eye the cowering animal, backing up afterwards.
After that, everyone sat on the ground (yes, even though it was 9:30 P.M.), and tried to keep to themselves as much as possible, hoping that the small dog would eat or drink something. Thankfully, the puppy wandered out of the corner and eyed the group cautiously, graciously burying his face into the bowl of water and becoming covered in the liquid before turning to the sliced fruit and eating as much as possible.
“Do you want me to hook you up with my vet’s number?” Vincent looked at Emily, who looked at Alison and earned a rapid head-nod.
CeCe chuckled nearby, knowing full well how happy the girl would be if they finally adopted a dog.
So, of course, after the puppy sat in the middle of the group and laid down in comfort, he was brought into the house while Emily barricaded him into the main living space ━ just in case he really was sick. The next day, the two brought the puppy into the vet’s office and received a ( mostly ) good report: no microchip (meaning the dog’s un-owned), no fleas (surprising everyone), a bit underweight but not too much ━ the only bad aspect being that the pup is partially blind in his left eye.
“Are you two planning on keeping the little guy?” the vet continued petting the small animal.
“So, it’s a boy?”
“Yep.”
“How big is he going to get?” Emily questioned, trying to figure out if they’d be able to handle a bigger dog.
“Maybe forty pounds,” the man looked at the puppy. “His bone structure isn’t fully Shepherd, so Vincent was pretty correct. Not sure what mix though. Something smaller, definitely.”
Emily eyed her girlfriend carefully while Alison tilted her head with a childish smile.
“Come on. He came into our lives so randomly. I’m not turning him away now,” she pouted.
“I’m not going to lie… I’d love a dog,” Emily shrugged, “but I’m not going to be the only one taking care of him, Alison.”
“I’m responsible!”
“For the most part.”
Alison raised an eyebrow and Emily smirked, “Okay, fine.”
The vet smiled at the two and handed them a few pieces of paper: things that needed to be signed, how to register a new dog in their city, and details on when he’ll need to be “fixed.” Emily’s eyes widened at the vet bill, but chuckled when Alison mumbled, “No take-backs,” in her ear as she signed some of the papers.
“I haven’t registered him yet, so technically he isn’t ours at the moment,” Emily informed while driving home, Alison in the passenger’s seat with the dog. “I have one request, Ali, and then I’ll sign.”
The blonde groaned, “What is it?”
“His name is Fluffy.”
“Are you serious right now? You’re going to be that cliché?” Alison chuckled.
“Yes,” Emily wasn’t joking.
“Okay, fine, agreed.”
Potty-training was fun ━ not ━ but the couple was successful, nevertheless, because Mike ended up extending their back yard’s fence over to the side door’s steps so they can let Fluffy outside whenever they please. On the other side of things, much to their surprise (judging by the way the dog had been afraid of them during their first day together), Fluffy became a big cuddlebug, forcing himself between the two at night. Usually, it’s adorable and Alison clings to the soft animal as much as possible but, on occasion, he’ll whine at the most inopportune times, begging to jump onto the bed while Alison straddles her girlfriend with bare skin.
“I swear, I’m going to get a gate and put it at the top of the stairs,” the blonde gritted her teeth one night, pausing all movements.
“He just wants to be loved, Ali,” Emily chuckled.
“Yeah? Well, so do I.”
Emily puts Fluffy onto the grass and makes him sit, earning a soft grunt from the animal as he gets his fur brushed off. Almost as if on cue, Vincent walks out of the cottage, Violet trotting over to Fluffy with a wagging tail.
“I thought I told you to watch him, huh?” Emily raises an eyebrow at Violet who tilts her head.
The brunette chuckles and stands up, eventually walking back over to the group who sits in a circle.
“How’d you get your boss to let the dogs come along?” Hanna directs at Mona, a curious eyebrow raised.
“That wasn’t hard,” the dark-haired girl laughs, her sunglasses covering her eyes. “He’s an animal-lover so, when I showed him a picture of the two pups, he practically shoved a list of nearby dog parks into my hands.”
While the group continues to chat, Violet and Fluffy make their way near the circle, eventually nesting and laying down together in the soft grass. Hanna makes a squeaking noise upon seeing the two cuddling, causing everyone to look and let out the same reaction. Compared to Fluffy, Violet is practically a horse, but she’s so gentle with the younger dog, allowing him to tackle her while they play.
In fact, the two dogs have brought a closer bond upon Alison, Emily, CeCe, and Vincent ━ that and the fact that, when Brixton moved to somewhere more “woodsy” with Alicia, he left No End Tattoo Parlor in the hands of both Emily and Vincent after everyone decided that a split-ownership would be a nice idea. Berlin and Antoinette were perfectly okay with the idea as well, especially since, at one point, they had gotten themselves into a spur-the-moment Vegas-wedding situation, making things a bit more complicated for everyone. It was sorted out, however, and the two are now happily married ━ though that doesn’t stop Antoinette from trying to fight him at the shop whenever he’s being annoying.
As expected, more ownership means more money, and both Emily and Alison are raking in a lot of it. A year and a half after Alison began her new job with Hanna’s company, a few of her articles made it into big-name magazines, causing more publicity to flood into the workplace which (naturally) means Alison received a big bonus from her boss, promoting her to a position higher than ever before. Hanna was proud of the other blonde, intentionally flashing Alison around while saying, “I’m the one who brought her here, don’t forget,” as Alison just shook her head with slight laughter.
“Did you remember to put sunscreen on your tattoos?” Emily leans over and whispers to her girlfriend.
“Em, the sun is already setting━”
“Did you?”
“Mhm,” Alison rolls her eyes and hums in response.
CeCe looks at Mona with an expectant expression, silently asking the same question.
“Yes, I did,” the dark-haired girl huffs. “I’m not stupid.”
The taller blonde snickers at the statement, earning a sharp kick to the side of the shin. Hanna snorts at the mild violence, earning a slap on the arm from none other than CeCe who smiles bitterly. Hanna rubs at her arm with a frown while Mike, Caleb, and Vincent laugh at the entire encounter.
Sometime between all the drama that had happened with Mona and Mike, the girl’s two blonde best friends hastily agreed to getting matching friendship tattoos on their ankles. Alison, having known of the plan for quite some time before actually following through, notified Emily who completely closed up shop on a Thursday night ━ just for the girls. Vincent was there as well (as per usual), snatching Brixton’s former schedule and making it his own while Emily’s only tweaked a bit with the move.
CeCe forced Mona to get hers done first, claiming, “This was your idea, so you go first.”
In response, the dark-haired girl threw back, “But Alison’s done this before!”
Alison frowned as her name was mentioned, not moving an inch while Emily and Vincent tried to muffle their laughter nearby.
“Rock, paper, scissors?” Mona shakily suggested, earning a “Just go!” from CeCe.
With a sharp “Fine then,” the girl sat down in the leather chair as Emily went through her preparation pattern, cleaning Mona’s skin and, eventually, dragging the cluster of needles across the same area. She let out some strange noise at the initial sensation, getting used to it soon after as CeCe crossed her arms and walked out of the room whilst trying to breathe.
“I can’t believe I agreed to this,” she shook her head as Vincent eyed her.
“You don’t have to go through with it if you don’t want to.”
“Oh, yes she does,” Mona chimed in from the curtained room.
CeCe made Alison go next, so she sat in the chair and flashed her girlfriend a “you better not hurt me” smile, earning an eyeroll from the artist. Vincent chuckled whilst standing in the doorway, his girlfriend standing in front of him as she bit her thumbnail.
Finally, the taller blonde’s turn came up, and she hastily sat in the chair and looked at Alison.
“If your girlfriend makes this painful, I’m killing her.”
Emily smirked while Alison offered a nonchalant, “I can’t control what she does.”
At the first test buzz, CeCe jumped in the chair, earning her boyfriend’s worry, “Are you sure you don’t want me to do it, babe?”
The girl, in response, shook her head, “No, but you better get your ass over here so I can hold your hand.”
“God, you’re acting like I’m going to intentionally━”
“Just do it, already!” Mona groaned from nearby, cutting Emily off.
It didn’t take long for CeCe to nearly crush Vincent’s hand, though Emily barely even touched the girl’s skin for the first three minutes. Alison and Mona snickered the entire time, each earning a sharp glare.
“You’re lucky we’re not filming this,” Mona laughed.
“No, you’re lucky you’re not filming this,” CeCe hissed, shooting daggers at the two.
Thirty more minutes passed and all three girls were finished getting tattooed, exchanging compliments regarding the work even though the pieces are exactly the same: two-inch by two-inch, grey-scaled dandelions with the letters “A,” “C,” and “M,” scattered inside the winded “poofy things” (as per Hanna’s exclamation upon seeing the tattoos).
Speaking of tattoos and Emily’s occupation, the brunette’s parents paid a visit to Emily and Alison around a year ago, only to have a surprisingly great time. At first, Mr. and Mrs. Fields were a bit cautious and awkward when stepping into the younger couple’s home, only to grow to the decor, very extraordinarly complementing Emily’s art hung upon the brick wall ━ even though they weren’t aware that it’s their daughter’s, at first.
“Those are Em’s paintings,” Alison proudly stated, grinning when she saw the looks of disbelief written across their faces.
“No kidding,” Mr. Fields breathed out.
“Impressive,” his wife smiled, and Alison looked at Emily after the usage of one of her favorite words.
They sat and talked about random things, mostly while Emily listened quietly as she faded in and out of the conversation. Alison did her best to casually comfort her girlfriend, until Emily's parents noticed the blonde girl’s collarbone tattoo.
“Ah, so you enjoy tattoos, as well?” Wayne smiled while his wife’s eyes looked around the room.
“I didn’t always,” Alison shrugged and Emily looked at her. “I never really cared for them, but I guess I never really understood why someone would permanently put something on their body. Then, after Em came into my life, I did.”
“Because of her profession?”
“No,” she shook her head and smiled, never breaking eye contact, “because she had such an impact on my life that I wanted to remember the moment she walked into it.”
Emily smiled and looked down, swallowing hard at the honesty laced in her girlfriend’s words. Pam’s eyes locked with Alison’s and they grew misty at the sentiment, smiling softly. Wayne, on the other hand, dug further for details, wanting to know how their relationship came about.
“What kind of impact did she have on you, may I ask?” his features held a knowing expression, and a smile tugged at the corner of his lips.
The younger brunette grabbed her girlfriend’s hand, silently letting her know that she doesn’t need to relive any events if she doesn’t want to, but Alison nodded to her and spoke again.
“I went through a lot with my family, and my ex-fiancé who ended up cheating on me. I was in a really, really low place when I met Em, and she helped me become so much more real. I’m not sure where I’d be if I didn’t stumble into her tattoo shop that night. Maybe I wouldn’t be here,” she smiled sadly, “but I’m happy that I am.”
“Your parents aren’t nice people, are they?” Pam broke the new-found silence with a question of her own, surprising Emily when the woman didn’t automatically go on the offensive for Alison’s family.
At the time, both Emily and Alison's minds flashed back to the most recent news of Mrs. DiLaurentis possibly having an affair with some younger man, but they were never able to figure out if it was simply a rumor ━ they didn't care to know, really. Either way, Alison's parents never tried to contact their daughter after everything was all said and done, and maybe it's better that way. Alison sure is happy, especially more so now that Emily and Jason had met months prior. They hit it off immediately, Jason breaking out some embarrassing childhood stories regarding Alison playing princess games.
“No,” Alison finally offered another sad smile after breaking out of her thoughts. “I wish things with them worked out differently, but…”
The older woman nodded, “Well that’s okay. You’ve got us now,” surprising the younger couple who sat on the couch.
“Hey,” the blonde’s voice breaks Emily out of her memories, “are you okay?”
“Oh, yeah, sorry… I drifted,” Emily leans over and presses a kiss to the girl’s cheek.
“Stop drifting. You need to keep an eye on Fluffy, remember?” she raises an eyebrow.
Emily huffs, “He’s sleeping with Violet. Leave him be.”
“He’s sneaky and you know it.”
Before the brunette can respond, Mona stands up and yells, “Alright, everyone grab a shot glass.”
Alison groans while Emily shoots her a “you know you don’t have to” look, but the blonde sashays over to the tray and takes a tiny glass, eyeing the contents and grimacing. Emily follows suit, holding onto the gulp of alcohol while she waits for everyone else. Once the rest of the group has their respective glasses, they stand there in silence while waiting for Mona to speak again.
“We’re toasting━”
“Well obviously ,” CeCe cuts in with a smirk.
“I’m going to make you stay in Mercedes for the rest of this vacation if you don’t stop taunting me.”
The tallest blonde rolls her eyes while Hanna giggles.
“As I was saying…” she side-eyes CeCe, “this is a toast to Hanna and Caleb, and their engagement. May the odds be ever in your favor,” she glances at Caleb who snickers at the reference.
Everyone laughs and downs their drink, Alison blinking heavily after it’s over with. Emily makes a face at her girlfriend, laughing harder when the blonde shakes her head with disgust.
“I’m so glad I’m over this shit,” she puts the glass back down onto the tray.
“Me too,” Emily comments, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend in a tight hug.
Hanna groans, “Get a room.”
“You’re ten times more handsy than we are,” the brunette scoffs, but the ending is muffled when Alison presses their lips together, her hands cradling Emily’s face.
“Ew,” CeCe and Mona snort.
When the blonde continues to latch herself onto her girlfriend, their dog wakes up and saunters over, jumping at Emily and whining.
“Are you fucking kidding me, dude?” Alison backs up and looks at Fluffy.
Somewhere behind them, the rest of the group is in hysterics as they watch the dog beg for attention, eventually earning it when Emily sits on the grass and pets him. Alison stands there, arms out with wide eyes as she was totally just ditched for their dog.
“Looks like someone’s not Em Em’s number one anymore,” Mona sings.
“Shut up,” Alison hisses as she plops herself back down onto the lawn chair.
The sun is close to setting, and the atmosphere looks orange, cascading upon the crashing waves down below the yard. Everyone now has their sunglasses off, especially because it’ll be getting even darker pretty soon. The air is a perfect temperature, really, and a nice breeze passes through every now and then. Mona smiles at the fact that she couldn’t have picked a better week for them to stay, and everyone seems to be having a great time ━ like every year.
“Em,” Hanna calls the other girl who remains on the grass, “come here.”
“Are you really going to make me move, Hanna?”
“Of course I am. Come here. I want to Skype Spencer and Aria. We promised we would, remember?”
Emily grunts as she gets up, “Fine, video chat them. I’ll be right there.”
She continues to brush herself off while Fluffy walks back over to Violet, curling up beside the giant dog. Alison eyes the two animals, smiling softly when her girlfriend passes her to sit next to Hanna. Caleb moves over so the brunette can sit, ending up in a chair further away. The blonde immediately brings up Skype on the iPad that she had brought outside with them (specifically for this moment), tapping on the two other girls’ names as she waits for the call to connect. It takes a few moments but, eventually, both Spencer and Aria’s faces pop up, and everyone is smiling.
“I miss you guys,” Aria pouts almost immediately. “Is Mike there?”
“Yes, Mike is here,” Mike chuckles, speaking loudly so his sister can hear.
“Lucky,” she mumbles back.
“How are you two?” Emily smiles at both of them.
Spencer shrugs, “Meh. Fine, I guess. Busy with stupid paperwork for… you know, I have no idea anymore.”
Hanna chuckles, “Yeah, I wouldn’t know either.”
“And you, Ar?”
“I’m good. I just wish I could’ve joined you guys,” she frowns.
“We’ll have to get together soon.”
“Yes please,” the short brunette whines.
“Hey,” Spencer starts laughing out of nowhere, “is that girl next door back this year?”
“Nope,” Alison happily shouts from the other side of the circle, causing both Aria and Spencer to laugh hard.
“They actually bulldozed the house next door,” Emily chuckles as she looks at the ruins sitting just behind the shrubbery.
“Not beautiful to look at but━”
“Yes it is,” Alison interrupts, and Caleb snorts.
“Are they building anything specific there?” Spencer furrows her eyebrows.
“We’re not sure yet,” Mona steals the iPad. “My boss said they have a few plans in motion but nothing solid as of now.”
“Give me that,” Hanna pulls the tablet back.
As the three continue to talk via the Skype call, Emily grows quiet (but a mellow kind of quiet) and hugs her hoodie tightly against her. She looks at the seagulls flying overhead, listening to their calls as they dive down towards the water. Suddenly, she mutters a quiet “Be right back” to everyone (mostly Hanna, Aria, and Spencer), and earns a tiny smile from her blonde best friend who goes right back to discussing whatever-it-is over the call. Alison’s forehead creases when her girlfriend bounds down the beach steps, and Fluffy’s head raises a fraction until Vincent calls both him and Violet over. Alison remains sitting, careful to give her girlfriend space because, well, she’s recently been a bit on edge for whatever reason. Really, the blonde just assumes that, maybe, it’s her parents, or possibly she’s just not feeling up to par. Whatever it is, she’s been extremely jumpy for the past two days, and kind of snappy ━ but not too much.
“Gosh, Ali, what’d you do?” CeCe leans over and whispers to her blonde best friend, chuckling with a “Just kidding” when a glare is sent her way.
“Hanna,” Alison softly calls, “do you think I should…” she nods over towards the stairs, earning slight hesitation before an actual response.
“What do you think?” Hanna turns the tables which, really, no one was expecting.
Caleb raises an eyebrow in question, and Hanna looks at him with a smile.
“What’s happening?” Aria’s confused voice comes through the speaker.
“Em went down to the beach without saying much,” Hanna explains, earning an elongated yet soft “oh” noise from the two other girls.
Alison sighs and pushes herself forward, flashing everyone a curt smile before walking down the beach stairs. Once again, their dog’s head lifts and he whines, but Vincent calls him back again, making sure Fluffy doesn’t try to escape.
The blonde sees her girlfriend staring at the waves from the middle of their strip of beach, not really moving yet seeming lost in heavy thought. Once she makes it onto the sand, she approaches her carefully, partially standing in front of the girl with a tilted head and concerned expression.
“Are you okay, Em? You’ve been a bit… off.”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” she offers a smile and brings Alison into her arms. “Just thinking.”
“About?”
“You.”
“Oh, so the normal, I see,” Alison smirks against Emily’s chest.
The brunette laughs, “I guess…”
The other girl backs up with a daring eyebrow.
“Yes, I’m always thinking about you,” Emily pulls their bodies back together as they sway.
“I love you,” comes Alison’s confession after another minute of silence.
“Do you?”
“I do.”
“Good…” Emily’s voice trails off, and the other girl backs up with a pout.
“Do you love me?”
The brunette smiles and looks down, still not answering. At this, Alison’s pout turns into an actual frown, furrowing her eyebrows at the girl who won’t answer her. She takes a step closer with curious eyes, and that’s when she walks straight into Emily’s hand which is now holding a matte black box. Her lips part but, before she can say anything, the brunette kneels down (not that they’re on a sturdy surface, she internally rolls her eyes), and smiles.
“I do love you, Ali,” her eyes are watering and she can’t exactly maintain eye contact, but that’s okay because the blonde really just wants to melt into a puddle already.
“Okay, so, you already know this is going to be cheesy…” Emily shakes her head with a sniffle and a small laugh.
She pauses before beginning, “I love you so much, and I have for such a long time now. I was always under the impression that love has a limit but, if there ever was a limit, you definitely destroyed that. You’re my idea of perfection, if I’m being honest, and, God , I’m just so captivated by you, as a whole.”
Again, she pauses and takes a deep breath before continuing, “You once asked if I could see a future with you, and I still stand by what I said… I can’t see a future with anyone but you. After, you told me that you don’t want to imagine a day without me, and I’m telling you, now, that you don’t have to… you just have to accept.”
Emily purses her lips and slams her eyes shut before looking back up towards Alison who remains standing there, lips parted.
“Alison, will you marry me?”
The blonde stands there, not exactly showing any signs of responding until a genuine, surprised smile grows on her face.
“Of course,” she shakes her head, “I mean yes.”
A few tears fall down Alison’s cheek as Emily finishes off her proposal, sliding the ring onto the other girl’s finger before jumping up and practically getting knocked over. They hug and kiss for an extended amount of time, Alison obviously understanding Emily’s recent timid vibe now that she knows why she was so finicky. The blonde pulls the other girl into a heated kiss, eventually giggling against her mouth.
“I can’t believe you actually kneeled in the sand,” Alison smirks, causing the other girl to back up an inch.
“Was I not supposed to?”
“I didn’t say that,” she rolls her blue eyes. “I just didn’t picture you kneeling. I’m not sure why.”
“So, you’ve imagined me proposing?” Emily mirrors the other girl’s previous smirk, leaning in to kiss her girlfr━ fiancée again.
Alison breathes out a laugh, “Don’t act like that surprises you.”
Before their lips can touch, they both hear (and see) Hanna leaning over the yard’s railing.
“Did she say ‘yes’?!” she yells, and the two standing in the sand can hear a round of distraught Hanna ’s come from somewhere behind her.
“She knew?” Alison directs at Emily with a pointed smile.
Emily sighs, “She made me tell her. I can’t help if my nervousness shows so much.”
“ Yeah , it does,” the blonde grins at the other girl. “Did anyone else know?”
Before Emily can answer, Hanna is raising the iPad above the fence so the two on Skype can see Emily and Alison standing on the beach. The brunette hears some distant yelling before Hanna says, “Of course she accepted.” Alison snorts while the other girl groans.
“You didn’t answer my question,” Alison raises an eyebrow.
“Hanna, Spencer, Aria, Vincent, and Caleb.”
The girl furrows her eyebrows, “Why didn’t you tell CeCe and M━ yeah, okay, nevermind.”
Emily laughs and pulls the other girl closer, kissing her gently and trying to back away, however Alison grasps at her shirt and brings their lips back together for a deeper kiss.
“Will you two stop making out and come back up here so we can toast again?” Mona shouts down from the yard, flashing Alison a big smile after.
“We have a right to make out,” Alison throws her voice back, raising her finger and waving it at the dark-haired girl who rolls her eyes and walks away from the fence.
“Come on,” Emily grabs the other girl’s hand, “Fluffy probably misses me.”
Alison scoffs loudly, causing Emily to laugh. They make it up the stairs in no time, remaining hand-in-hand, and Fluffy runs over to them right as the two step onto the yard’s surface. Surprisingly, however, he passes Emily and jumps at the other girl, causing a round of dull ooh ’s to pass through the circle when the brunette frowns. Alison smiles and bends down to kiss the dog on the nose, earning a sharp sneeze from Fluffy who runs back to Violet afterwards.
“Grab a glass,” CeCe sings and smiles big at the newly-engaged couple.
They do as they’re told, everyone else already having their own glasses in hand, and stand there afterwards. Alison makes a face at the liquid, already regretting the taste. Emily chuckles, nudging the girl’s side.
“You don’t have to do it, Ali.”
“No, it’s a special occasion and I have to.”
“I can un-propose if you want.”
“That’s not funny,” she pouts.
“You know I wouldn’t even if you asked.”
“Shut up, you two lovebirds,” Mona interrupts. “CeCe is trying to toast to you.”
“ Jeez , sorry,” the blonde huffs.
The taller blonde raises her small glass and smiles big, Hanna doing the same even though she’s still holding the iPad (facing outwards) so the two other girls can feel a part of the group as well.
“ God ,” CeCe breathes out, her eyes watering slightly as Mona raises an eyebrow, “I wasn’t prepared for this, sorry.”
Alison smiles and looks at the ground, knowing how emotional CeCe can get when thinking about what’s happened in the past ━ including Alison’s alcoholism, parents, and former fiancé.
“Just… congratulations, both of you. I’ve watched you grow so much, and I’m just so happy that you, Alison, are finally happy… with someone that I trust with my life… and skin,” she mumbles, causing everyone to chuckle.
“I wish you two the best,” CeCe finishes.
Everyone raises their glass and takes the shot, Alison’s reaction being the exact same as it was an hour ago. Emily smiles at the other girl, holding onto her empty glass while they remain standing.
“And may the odds be ever in your favor,” Caleb eventually directs at Emily, a smirk on his face as Emily laughs.
“Excuse me?” Alison cuts in, laughing.
“You and me both, Ali,” Hanna elbows her fiancé in the side.
The rest of their vacation is fantastic, overall. Everyone enjoys themselves, no obnoxious neighbors bother them, and they already begin planning next year’s trip. Alison and Emily are practically inseparable (not like they ever were beforehand), and the others are happy to see them finally solidifying a future together. Mona, CeCe, and Hanna are already bugging Alison about the wedding, but the newly-engaged blonde just brushes them off and clings to Emily as the brunette talks with the guys about some No End plans: possibly using Mike and Caleb to help expand the shop or maybe even move it to an abandoned theater down the street from where it exists now.
Each couple grows closer and, once again, the beach house constructs one, big, happy family.
X X X
━ THE EPILOGUE’S EPILOGUE ━
“See,” Alison points at the TV from where she rests on the couch, partially lying between her fiancée’s legs as the brunette is propped up against the back cushions.
Emily furrows her eyebrows and looks down.
“Draco,” the blonde deadpans, offering the explanation, “he’s just misunderstood.”
The other girl rolls her eyes. Finally, after years, they got around to watching the final Harry Potter movie. Why did it take years, you ask?
“I can’t believe you never told me there’s an eighth movie,” Emily grunts. “All this time, I thought the franchise ended with Voldemort winning.”
“I’m sorry!” Alison raises her voice and shifts, turning around with wide eyes, “I was a bit distracted during the seventh movie’s ending,” she says pointedly.
Emily blushes and smirks, remembering how quickly Alison lost track of the movie once the brunette was sliding down her body ━ out of complete nowhere (so she thinks). They both had been silent the entire film, but, while they watched, Alison’s hand was wandering as the other girl cuddled up to her, scratching up and down her back at a slow yet pressureful rate ━ not to mention the fact that it’d occasionally dip under the waistline of the brunette’s shorts ━ and it didn’t help that Emily was already frustrated to begin with. So, around thirty minutes from the end credits, Emily had enough, and she rolled onto the other girl suddenly, kissing at her neck for at least five minutes before sliding down Alison’s body whilst the blonde girl looked at her with wide eyes, and a scrunched-up shirt and bra.
Of course, they didn’t have Fluffy at the time, which is mostly the reason why this showing (the eighth and final movie) didn’t end up like the seventh ━ much to Alison’s disappointment.
“Hermione grew up to be so…” Emily begins, her voice trailing off as she shoots heart eyes at the screen.
“Don’t finish that thought.”
“Do you disagree?”
Alison shifts again, causing Emily to inhale sharply when the other girl forcefully grinds her back against the brunette’s center.
“That’s not an answer.”
“I know.”
The other girl smirks at Alison’s underlying agreement.
End credits appear on the screen and Emily forcefully whimpers.
“Now what are we supposed to do?” she groans.
“Well…”
Fluffy raises his head, sitting nearby. When Alison hears his collar jingle, she rolls her eyes and shifts again, earning another sharp inhale from the brunette. Alison smirks but stays still, leaning her head back. In response, Emily leans forward as much as she can and meets the other girl’s lips, kissing her gently.
“We could start the Hunger Games franchise,” Alison shrugs.
Emily grins, “May the odds be ever in my favor.”
At that, the other girl jumps up and attacks Emily with small jabs, causing the brunette to laugh extensively at the sensation. Within seconds, Alison stops, mostly because Fluffy is now softly growling nearby and she knows that Emily won’t hesitate to use him against her.
“Call off your guard dog, Emily,” their noses are touching and both girls are smiling.
“Why should I?”
“Because you love me.”
“Do I?”
“You do,” Alison confirms, leaning down and kissing the other girl.
Emily breaks the kiss almost immediately, nodding gently while whispering, “I do,” against Alison's lips.