Careful, Ali ➳ Emison

Chapter 19 | EndgAme

A/n: this is the VERY LAST chapter of the fanfic. Enjoy!

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"What's taking Spencer so long?" Aria muttered as she peeped through her binoculars down at The Lost Woods Resort.

"She's taking the longest possible way here, Aria. She's bound to take longer than us," Alison answered as she checked her burner phone for the time. The screen displayed;

11:53 PM

The entourage, which consisted of the girls – minus Spencer – along with Toby and Caleb, were located up high, overlooking The Lost Woods Resort. It had been hard to find a building near the dubious establishment when they were scouting for one using Google Maps, but they found a water tower that was just close enough and just hidden enough for them to watch guard while Spencer "met up" with A.

They were using the binoculars that they took from the bird-watching shed to keep watch on the ground below, and the boys were beside them, looking in Caleb's computer at the running footage of cameras they'd set up around the place, also courtesy of the same shed. Their black hoodies and attires made them blend perfectly into the nightly blackness in a way that made them feel secure that A couldn't spot them at the moment of truth.

"Yeah, well, I'm getting hungry," Hanna uttered impatiently, taking out a small bag of Cheetos from her hoodie pocket. She started munching on them, and the cracks from the bag combined with the sound of her crunching soon made everyone turn in her direction. She slowed down her chewing. "What?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, not bothering to finish her bite.

"Can you be any louder?" Emily asked in dismay.

"Yeah, Han, maybe you shouldn't eat it now," Aria suggested cautiously.

"Fine," Hanna answered grumpily, stuffing the bag back into her pocket irritably, "but it'll be on you if I mess up this mission because I'm too hungry."

"How about this, once this is all over, we'll go grab the biggest dinner at The Grille and you won't be hungry for a week," Aria suggested optimistically and Hanna smiled at the offer, pleased.

Emily was between Alison and Toby, where she felt the safest, especially at a time like this. It was the blackest night she had ever witnessed, in more ways than one.

Alison noticed the brunette rubbing her hands over her upper arms. "Are you cold, babe?" she asked quietly, but judging by the puzzled looks on Toby and Caleb's faces at the pet name, they heard her. She didn't even really care at this point, she was just worried for Emily.

Emily seemed to notice that they'd heard it as well, since her cheeks tinted red. "I'm fine, just nervous," she answered, giving Alison a shaky smile.

"It's all going to be over soon. I promise," Alison said solemnly. She really did mean it. Her biggest regret in life was getting to a point where Emily and the rest of her friends got dragged into the A-story with her. If she hadn't been such a bitch to certain people, maybe this whole group wouldn't be sitting on top of a water tower at midnight, waiting for one of their friends to arrive at a rendezvous with the devil.

On a different note, she had to admit, it was pretty refreshing not being in the middle of the action, not being A's prey. This time, it was Spencer, her own family, her best friend, who took on the challenge. Sure, even though the rest of them were right behind Spencer mentally, having her all alone down there was a terrifying thought, but Alison knew the witty brunette was strong enough to handle it. She was sharp and quick on her feet. After these past few weeks, they all were. That's how Alison knew that together, they were finally powerful enough to beat A.