Locum Tenens

PART TWO: "Sic Infit"

~ So it begins. ~ 

DISCLAIMER: Pretty Little Liars and all its characters is the intellectual property of others. Some characters used in the writing of this fic belong to PLL. Events that transpire, will transpire and have transpired in this story are entirely of my own creation.

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CHAPTER ONE

Four Years Ago...

Paige sat in her usual seat at the back of the class, growing restless as the seconds ticked away. She began fidgeting on the edge of her seat again, feeling like she's about to either pass out or hurl at the mere thought of having to stand in front of the class and show everyone her work. She's the last student who had to present for the day and she had no idea how to go about explaining the contents of the vision board she made. She didn't know what she wanted years from now and she felt pressured when she saw the works of her classmates who presented before her. Theirs seemed so certain. Their vision boards were filled with things that represented what they want to achieve and have years from now that there was no space left. Paige bit her bottom lip and focused her attention on the illustration board she was trying to hide in plain sight on top of her desk. She studied the vision board she made, feeling more nervous than ever. Hers had more spaces in them than magazine cutouts and she couldn't help but feel embarrassed.

"So this is the vision board I made." Paige looked up when she heard Emily's voice at the front of the room. She had been so lost in her own thoughts that she almost forgot that Jai's girlfriend of three weeks is in the same class as her and that Emily is the student who has to present her vision board before her. Jai's girlfriend being in this class made things worse for Paige. It was bad enough that her board was almost bare. Having Emily see it was humiliating. Of all the classes we could have together... why does it have to be Social Studies?!

Paige studied Emily's vision board, her eyes involuntarily drifting to the girl whose eyes suddenly met hers. Like clockwork, she narrowed her eyes menacingly and smirked before looking away; forcing herself to pretend that she wasn't paying attention to what Emily was saying. Paige was getting so used to hating the girl now that she could barely remember how she felt when she first laid eyes on Emily. She heard the girl's voice falter but Emily recovered quickly and went on with her presentation. As Paige continued to listen to Emily tell the class about her dreams, she couldn't help but be amazed. The girl animatedly explained what she wanted to be years from now, what she envisioned for herself and how she would reach those dreams. There isn't any doubt that Emily is a dreamer just like the rest of their classmates and Paige felt even more embarrassed knowing that when it was finally her turn, Emily would see what she made and cement what the girl already thought of her. That she had no ambition.

"I know that my board isn't as compact as the previous vision boards but I chose to leave spaces for my other dreams that I haven't thought of yet. I'd like to think that this is a vision in my board. That I still have things I could want tomorrow or years from now. I don't ever want to stop dreaming so I'm leaving spaces for it." Emily explained earnestly, making Paige look up and study the girl's vision board again. Unlike their classmates' boards, Emily's had spaces like hers. But hers were bigger. And unlike Emily's, it was because she couldn't think of what she wanted right now. She wasn't leaving spaces for her other dreams... she had no other dreams. Or maybe she did, she just didn't think of it the way Emily did. The girl wasn't ashamed to admit that she still hasn't figured out everything that she wanted. Unlike their other classmates who filled their boards with various cutouts just to impress their teacher, Emily was being real. And because of that Paige felt comforted. That maybe it wasn't so bad that her vision board wasn't as compact as the others'. That she's allowed to not have everything figured out right now.