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"WHOSE IDEA WAS THIS, AGAIN?" An irritated Hanna asked as the five girls trekked through the woods, swatting bugs and branches away.
"Emily's mom." Spencer replied.
"The shed was me." Emily corrected. "My mom just said we should do something for us."
"Can we do something without mosquitoes?" Josie suggested, covering her head so it wouldn't hit a branch.
"They're not mosquitoes, they're gnats." Aria corrected, glancing back at her as they walked over a small hill, all stumbling a bit.
"OK, whatever." Hanna said. "But they're small and annoying and they're flying up my nose."
"Well, they're attracted to your perfume." Spencer told her smugly. "And your hair product, and your lipgloss."
Hanna looked back at her over her shoulder. "So, what are you saying, I attract flies?"
"Gnats." Aria corrected again.
"Why do I feel like this is the wrong way?" Emily spoke up, coming to a halt as she looked around in confusion.
"No, this is it. I remember that tree." Spencer pointed up at it. "This is the halfway point. There's 136 steps left to the shed."
Josie raised her eyebrows at the girl. "Have you been out here since... Alison?"
"Me?" She asked. "No. No way."
"But you remember that tree?" Aria questioned.
"You guys, it's not that weird." Hanna came to Spencer's defense. "I mean, we came out here in eighth grade, like, everyday... even after."
"I think this is totally the wrong place to do this," Spencer changed the topic, "whatever you call it—shrine."
"It's not a shrine." Emily defended. "It's just a place to remember Alison, what's wrong with that?"
"Doing it way out here makes it look like we have something to hide." Spencer said quietly.
"You're worried what other people think?"
"Well, aren't you?"
"Yeah, I mean, do you really want to give that creepy detective more reasons to question us?" Josie asked, agreeing with Spencer. But Josie also knew that deep down, she didn't want to make this... shrine or whatever it was for Alison. She didn't deserve it.
There was a moment of silence before Hanna began walking again.
"Hanna, why are you so quiet?" Emily asked as the rest of the girls followed the blonde.
"I'm trying to keep the bugs in my nose and out of my mouth." She answered with an irritated tone.
"You're allowed to have an opinion on this." Emily told her.
