Tutor Girl (Emison)

Chapter 22

Alison POV

I wipe down the last table and sigh, turning to Spencer, "done. I'm gonna head-" A knock at the door breaks my sentence and I see Emily standing there, in her varsity jacket, hands in her pockets uncomfortably.

"Out," I finish and step outside with a sigh, "what are you doing here?"

Her eyebrows pull together in a confused furrow, "didn't Aria tell you I was going to come?" I roll my eyes at her and shrug, "I try to block out everything that Aria says so whatever you guys are up to I'm just not in the mood."

She frowns, "I'm not up to anything. Look, I apologized and I told you the truth. The rest is Aria. She set up this whole serial date thing. One card leads to the next."

I stare at the card in her hand and raise my eyebrows, crossing my arms over my chest, "well, what does the first one say?" She grins at me, "convince Alison to go. How am I doing so far?" She bites her bottom lip and I want to just run into her arms and hug her but I hold back. "I don't know. It depends on what the second card says."

"Go to 1423 River Street and find your next envelope. On the way, tell three things you like about each other."

I groan and close my eyes, rubbing my face stressfully, "I don't know..." "look, I'll go first. You're the most patient person I know. You don't go postal on me during tutoring and you don't treat me like some kind of a moron. I really appreciate that. I know I have no right to say, but we never do anything just fun together. And plus, this is Aria. I mean, you can bet it's not gonna be boring." 

I stare at her with a still angry glare as I raise my chin up, "I'm free to bail whenever?"

"Absolutely. Trust me." She holds her hand out to me and grins ear to ear.

"Uh-huh...I close my eyes and smile, "okay, what the hell." I slap my hand into hers and she squeezes mine warmly. I instantly take note of how perfect our fingers fit together and how soft her skin is against mine.

Emily rubs the back of my hand as we walk and I don't look but I can feel her staring at me.

After a few relaxing seconds I speak up, "number three."

She raises her eyebrows at me and I smile, "you never told me the third thing you like about me. Go on."

Emily lips pull up into a smile as she nods, "okay...your loyalty. To CeCe. I know I'm not always wild about how it plays out, but it's cool. You're a good friend to her. I've never known what a good friend really feels like."

I stare at her eyes, feeling so drawn in and so utterly mesmerized by every inch of her. God that was amazing.

I break out of my daze and think, "okay, uh, three things I like about you."

"My good looks." Emily nudges me and I laugh. Genuinely, too.

I think for another moment and glance up at her, "I like the way you let me in, past all the bluster you give everybody else. And I like your smile when you solve a problem. And... you're not horrible to look at." I wink at Emily who only laughs in response but I can see the blush on her cheeks.

After a few more seconds Emily stops walking and we stare at the store in shock.

"This is where we're going?"

It's a lingerie store.

Really, Aria?

Emily laughs heartily and takes her hand away from mine, making me instantly miss the warmth of her touch. She crosses her arms over her chest in amusement and raises an eyebrow, "nice work, Aria."