𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄- 𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐍𝐂𝐄𝐑 𝐑𝐄𝐈𝐃

𝐒𝐈𝐗

𝐀𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐀 𝐖𝐎𝐊𝐄 𝐔𝐏 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐋𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆. She sat up straight in her bed and ran a hand down her face with a groan. Her and Rhiannon had been up all night yesterday, and she'd only managed to shut her eyes for what felt like a few minutes before the sunlight peeking in had forced her to wake up. Between the two of them, Rhiannon had always been the more paranoid one, but it's taken a turn since she found out that Mallory Hale worked with Spencer. 

Alana doubted that the girl would even recognize her if she'd happened to run into her. 

Alana hadn't seen Mallory since she was seventeen years old, when Mallory first left town. And Alana had changed a lot since then. After the accident, Alana's face was so horrible disfigured from the beating she'd taken that she'd needed several plastic surgeries just to get her face looking somewhat normal again. That night they'd broken her nose, her jaw, and they'd given her an orbital fracture, among other things. Her face never quite looked the same again, but the one thing that had always stayed were her eyes. When Alana looked at herself in the mirror, she was reminded that once upon a time, those blue-grey eyes were filled with life. And now it was like she was just a walking shell of a person who she didn't know a thing about anymore. All because she had survived that night. She had lived, and Eva hadn't.

Alana was ashamed to admit that she'd been jealous of Mallory initially, because boys had found their own ways to pit the two of them against each other. Before Alana was hurt that night, it was Mallory that they broke. In fact, they broke her to the point where she had no choice but to leave. At that point, the Hale girl would have rather been homeless than live in that town for a minute longer. Now that Alana was older, no longer manipulated by Corey, or any of the others, she realized that her and Mallory were two sides of the same coin. Maybe in another life, they might have been friends.

Not that Mallory would ever know the truth of what happened to them. Because she'd left town before Evangeline died, and she probably never heard the truth of what really happened. She probably heard rumours of a car accident, which was the story that Corey's father told everyone in order to cover his tracks. He couldn't have people knowing what kind of a monster his son truly was. But soon enough, they'd all find out. 

Alana's phone buzzed on the nightstand, and she blindly reached for it as she saw Spencer's name on the screen. Since their dinner date, Spencer had been so caught up with work that she hadn't had time for a follow up. So, the two of them had settled for texting in the days that would eventually lead up to them seeing each other again. Alana was surprised at how much she looked forward to his texts, how much she enjoyed speaking to him. Rhiannon was her best friend, but their interests couldn't be any more different from each other. Alana could never talk to her about her favourite books, or the new studies she'd read up on in medical and psychology journals. Spencer, on the other hand, was more than eager to discuss those things. And many more. 

Spencer: Good morning. We're still stuck over here, so it looks like I won't be able to make it for coffee today. I hope you'll allow me to make it up to you.

Alana smirked at her cellphone as she typed out her response. While they'd been talking on the phone, this was the second time this week that they'd had to cancel plans to see each other again. The first time, it was because Alana was out of town scoping out Jackson's place where he'd be staying out of town. She needed to get a feel for the layout of the place, or if there was anything she needed to know so she wouldn't be surprised. She was only gone for one day, but by the time she'd gotten back, Spencer had been whisked away on another case and had yet to return. 

Alana: Make it up to me? I'll hold you to that when you return, Dr. Reid.

"Wake up, you sleepy bitch," Rhiannon shouted, barging into the bedroom. Alana sat up straight and frowned at the girl, "Oh, you are awake. Big surprise."