The English Teacher ➳ Emison

Chapter 4 | The Closer You Get...

Monday at lunchtime, Emily sat with her friends in the bustling cafeteria, her mood noticeably lighter than it had been all last week. None of the girls knew the reason for the shift, but the answer lingered in the back of Emily's mind, ever-present.

The weekend felt like a surreal blur, especially Friday night and the morning that followed, yet she couldn't stop replaying it. Alison had been on her mind nonstop.

Sure, she'd had pretty girls show interest in her before, but there was something intoxicating about knowing this woman in particular was into her, especially because her own feelings matched.

Emily felt somehow closer to Alison after spending the night at her house. As much as the concept had scared her last week, it was now exhilarating in a wholly-consuming way. If there was one thing the night of the party had taught her, it was that she couldn't control how she felt, especially with feelings this strong.

Her thoughts were rudely cut off when she spotted Hanna's hand sneaking into her tray and plucking out pieces of fruit one-by-one from her small bowl of fruit salad, munching on them happily.

"Hanna," Emily exclaimed in indignation.

"I'm hungry!" Hanna defended through her bite of pineapple.

Emily shot her a disbelieving look. "Then why didn't you get your own fruit salad?"

With a dismissive wave, Hanna shrugged, completely unconcerned. Rolling her eyes, Emily slid the bowl out of Hanna's reach, eating it just to spite her. Spencer looked up briefly from her phone, a chuckle escaping her as she shook her head at her friends' antics.

Undeterred, Hanna redirected her efforts, reaching over Spencer's tray to swipe a baby carrot. Spencer, engrossed in a 3D model of her future campus, remained oblivious as Hanna popped the carrot into her mouth with a triumphant grin, chewing obnoxiously in Emily's direction.

The swimmer playfully fended her off, noticing that Aria was approaching with her own tray. She half-jokingly debated whether she should put up a sign to warn off people at this table from Hanna's wandering hands toward their food.

"Hey," she greeted Aria, who slid into the seat next to her. "Where have you been? You missed most of lunch."

"I had to talk to Mr. Garrison about my English paper. He's claiming that I didn't understand the assignment, but I totally did! I was just trying to answer from a different angle." Aria sighed, twisting the cap off her water bottle. "God, I wish I was with you in English, Em. Everyone seems to really like Ms. DiLaurentis."

"Yeah, especially Em, I bet," Hanna cackled.

"Just eat your carrot, Han," Emily retorted dryly.

"Wait, that little crush you had on Ms. DiLaurentis - is that still a thing?" Aria's eyes twinkled with mischief.

"It's not a thing, okay?" Emily said, lying through her teeth.

"Yeah, right. You like, melt, when she walks into a room," Hanna teased goofily, cracking open a can of Coke. "You get that dazed look in your eye and you can't stop staring at her. Honestly, It's kind of creepy if you ask me."

"Good thing I didn't ask you," Emily shot back, annoyance creeping into her tone.

"Han, it's not creepy," Aria chimed in, giving Emily a supportive pat. "I think it's really cute. And kind of inevitable. I mean, Ms. DiLaurentis is totally Emily's type, so a crush was bound to-"

"Guys, can we not?" Emily shot them an unamused glare, her frustration bubbling just beneath the surface. "There's no 'dazed look', and definitely no melting of any kind. I don't have a crush on her, or anyone for that matter."