[editing]
A year had passed since Alison DiLaurentis disappeared off the face of the earth, and the five ex-friends of the powerful, vindictive girl were entering their junior year of high school.
Although it was strange to be entering another year...
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It had been two days since the girls had seen Spencer in Radley, but to Ivy it felt like ages ago. A lot had happened since Spencer was emitted, and they needed to fill the girl in on the news. She was released from Radley the night before, and as a welcome home gift, Veronica Hastings invited the four girls over for breakfast before school.
Ivy was both nervous and ecstatic to see Spencer. She had missed her best friend, but she hoped Spencer was feeling a lot better than before. She hated to see her suffer like that. Spencer didn't deserve the loss and trauma she went through, and neither did any of the girls.
"She knows we're down here, right?" Hanna wondered, glancing towards the stairs to check if Spencer was approaching them.
"Maybe she's just as nervous about seeing us as we are about seeing her," Emily mumbled. Her chin was rested on her folded hands, her elbows leaning on the counter.
Ivy and Emily were struggling with the latest news of Toby's death. Their best friend was dead. They also felt bad for questioning Spencer and telling her she was wrong about Toby. She had poured her soul out to them, screaming that Toby was dead, and neither of the girls believed her.
So it was true to say that they felt worried to see Spencer. Their best friend had just been released from a mental hospital, that was bound to take a toll on her.
"Guys, she's the exact same Spencer that we saw two nights ago," Aria spoke up, her gaze bouncing between each of her friends and their expressions.
Hanna shook her head. "No, the Spencer we saw in Radley was not the Spencer I know."
"That was before..." Emily murmured, her sentence trailing off, as she wandered into thought.
Hanna peered round at the girl, reassuring her, "Em, we're not just here for her, we're for you and Ivy, too." Unable to reach Emily, Hanna just reached over to Ivy and grabbed her hand, squeezing it to comfort her.
Ivy's eyes fired form the countertop and landed on her sister, smiling at the loving gesture.
"Do we talk about him? Do we bring it up?" Aria asked, shifting the conversation. She was beginning to worry that they would run out of things to discuss. The conversation was guaranteed to be a little awkward at first and neither of the girls knew how to make it flow perfectly without a hint of awkwardness.
"I don't want to say anything that could put her back there," Noted Emily. Ivy felt the same way; She didn't want to say something by accident that would send Spencer spiralling again and be emitted back into Radley. She wanted Spencer to recover but didn't want her to go back to that place.
Breaking the silence the girls had fallen into, Hanna approached the situation with some hope, "I know the cops said they found Toby, but they sent that second body to the state coroner for a reason. I mean, maybe there's hope," She said with optimism.
