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 TWELVE

Seven Months Ago...

Paige parked her father's car on a parking slot near the front entrance of a well-kept building and switched off the engine before she unbuckled her seatbelt. For a while she just sat there in silence, contemplating whether or not to head inside. She glanced at the passenger seat and a wave of sadness hit her. She wasn't supposed to be here by herself. She agreed to cover Jai's route until her friend returned from London so she was supposed to be sitting here now with Jai next to her, making plans for what to do afterwards before going in.

Coming to this place was something she never would've thought to do if not for Jai's influence when they were kids. A few months after she left the hospital, Jai introduced her to the Aid For Friends organization because her friend thought it would be a good idea for her to interact with more people. Paige decided to give it a try so she went with Jai and Logan one Sunday morning to this place. The local church near the Hayes' old house where they would pick up frozen dinners and deliver them to houses around the Philadelphia area where shut-in individuals resided. Pretty soon she found herself delivering food with Jai once a week with Logan acting as their designated driver. But once they got their own junior driver's license they did the rounds by themselves, going to various places around Philly afterwards. Going here was something she looked forward to doing with her friend again once Jai returned from London. But that's never going to happen again.

Paige could've stopped coming here after the tragedy. But she couldn't because she knew Jai wouldn't want that. The people they've been helping came first before her grief and this was her way of continuing one of her friend's philanthropies so she kept showing up on weekends. Even if she was alone.

Before Jai left for London, her friend suggested that she invite Emily to come along for this. Of course she vehemently opposed the idea. Even after things between her and Jai's girlfriend changed, Paige still didn't bother to invite Emily. Because there are just some things that she wanted to do with her best friend. No matter how much she wanted to spend time with Emily, this was her and Jai's thing. Not that it mattered now anyway. Because Jai's dead and Emily's in Miami. She was doing this by herself.

Paige took a deep breath and finally alighted from the car, locking the doors before making her way up the steps towards the church. She pulled open the heavy wooden door and made her way to the kitchen in the back of the building where the frozen foods for the shut-ins were kept. She had twice the number of people to visit ever since she covered Jai's route so she knew she had a long day ahead of her.

"Hey Claire, Nathan!" Paige called out in greeting, giving the husband and wife volunteers standing behind the kitchen counter a smile as she approached them.

"Paige." Nathan uttered, smiling in return. He looked past the girl for a second before returning his attention to Paige. "Sorry. It's been three months but I keep forgetting that she's gone."

Paige nodded. "I know the feeling." She admitted, pocketing her car keys when she stopped in front of the couple.

"I still can't believe she was taken from us at such a young age. And so tragically." Claire commented as she busied herself with preparing the meals Paige would deliver. "Jasmine was a blessing to a lot of people. I really wish that crash didn't happen so she could continue changing lives."