Chapter 1

Brushing her hair in the mirror, Emily Fields was getting ready for her first day of junior year... at a new school. Her mother had lost her job back in their hometown, and after months of searching, found a new job in Pennsylvania. Her dad was serving in the army, so she didn't get to see him very often. But she and her mother tried to stay strong about her dad's absence. They both loved him, and that would never change. Adjusting to her new school would be the current issue. She was afraid to start trying again— she had to meet new people, make new friends. What if they didn't like her? Today was the day of first impressions, and she knew that.

"Hey, Emmy," Pam Fields, her mother, warmly greeted, walking into her daughter's bedroom. "You look great, by the way. Are you ready for your first day of school?"

"I'm trying to be," Emily said, sighing. She glanced at herself in the mirror. "Should we leave now?"

Pam nodded her head, and motioned for her to come downstairs. First, Emily had some pancakes for breakfast, and then her mother drove her to Rosewood High School— her new school. When her mother was pulling up in the drop-off zone, Emily was stunned. She took a long look at the Pennsylvanian high school. There were students everywhere, greeting their friends. They had all known each other for so long. They were all reuniting, and she was just beginning her time here. The nervousness came back.

"Be safe, honey. Have a good first day," Pam said, pecking the top of her daughter's head. "I love you, sweetie. Be courageous, and make some new friends. I know you can do it."

"I love you, too, mom," Emily said with a smile, before getting out of the car. Before her mom could drive off, Emily also added, "Have a great day at work!"

She went to the office, picking up a copy of her class schedule. She had first period French III with Mrs. Berg. When she heard the first bell ring, she decided that it would be a good time to get going. She didn't want to be late to her first class of the year. There was almost nobody in the class when she first entered. In fact, there was only one other girl. A punctual brunette.

"You ladies are early," Mrs. Berg said with a smile. "That was the ten minute bell. There's plenty of time."

"I like to be on time. It's a Hastings' thing," the girl said, turning around to face Emily. "Are you new to this school? I don't know you. And I know like everybody. I'm Spencer, by the way."

"Emily," she introduced herself. "And yeah, I am new. It's my first year here. My mom just got a new job here, so... new school for me."

"That's rough," Spencer said, nodding her head. "I'll never know what it's like to move around from place to place, though, so I don't know exactly what you're going through. I was born and raised here. I've lived here my whole life."

"Lucky you," Emily said, sighing. "Moving around is not fun. You'd think getting a fresh start would be a good thing, but it's not. It's like you have to do everything over again. Meet new people. I mean, I want to, but it's harder than it sounds."

"Well, you've met me already. Was it that hard?" Spencer asked, laughing.

"No, but only because you made it easy," Emily responded, smiling at her. "But thank you for doing that."

"I'll make it even easier for you," Spencer said, smiling back at her. "Unless you've already found some new posse, would you like to sit with me and my friends at lunch today? They're a good group."

"I would love to!" Emily exclaimed, as more girls started to enter the classroom.

Spencer got a distraught look on her face when a certain other blonde entered the classroom.

"What's wrong?" Emily asked, noticing the look.

"That girl... steer clear from her," Spencer warned. "Her name's Alison DiLaurentis, and she practically runs this school. Think about any teen flick that you've watched, and remember the mean girl. She's that girl. Did you think those movies would never be realistic? Here's the best case of a teen flick you'll find. She likes to ruin lives. I used to be friends with her. I'm better off now."

"She's a mean girl? What did she do to you?" Emily asked, totally confused.

"A lot of things. Just don't bother with her. It's better to stay away. She makes things complicated, and you'll regret it if you mess with her," Spencer vaguely responded.

Emily eyed the blonde girl as she walked in— Alison DiLaurentis. That was a name to remember. She was beautiful, so it was no surprise that she was a popular girl at their school. Emily's chocolate eyes couldn't look away. The girl was flawless. Clear, creamy skin. Curvy body. Hot outfit. She couldn't find a flaw in that girl. The rest of the period went by, and Mrs. Berg gave her introduction to the course, but Emily couldn't take her eyes off of the blonde girl.

...

It was lunch time, finally, and Emily was sitting with Spencer's friends. They seemed like nice people. So, she already made three friends on her first day at a new school? She was pretty impressed with herself for that. She and Spencer had two morning classes together— their French class, and their chemistry class. She was thrilled to have two classes with her first friend.

"So, Emily, are you liking it here so far?" Aria Montgomery, one of Spencer's friends, asked her, as all four girls ate their lunches.

"It's pretty good so far," Emily responded. "I mean, the classes I'm taking don't seem too tough, and the people here are pretty nice. Well, I think I'm just pretty lucky. I ran into Spencer during French. That was the best part of the day. So now, I've gotten to meet three really great people already."

Aria smiled and said, "I'm really glad you're here. I hope you continue to sit with us."

"Who else am I going to sit with?" Emily laughed. "You're my first friends, and probably the best ones I could have found."

Hanna Marin raised her eyebrows and asked, "Are you just going to kill us with kindness and flattery? That's not the way to our hearts. Do you want to know how to make me love you? Buy me a cookie."

"A cookie? Ok, I'll go get one from the lunch lady—" Emily began, almost getting up, but Spencer grabbed her arm to stop her.

"Emily, don't," Spencer laughed, shaking her head. "Hanna's just being a jokester, as she always is."

"A jokester?" Hanna questioned. "Did you actually just call me that, Spence?"

"Tell me you were actually expecting her to buy you a cookie right now!" Spencer cried.

"Alright, I wasn't. But definitely brownie points for offering to get it," Hanna said, smiling with her adorable dimples. "I like you already, Fields. Do we have any classes coming up together?"

"I don't know. What do you have next period?" Emily asked.

"AP English with Mr. Fitz," Hanna responded, reading off her schedule. "I can't believe I'm taking AP English..."

"You have English with Mr. Fitz next?" Emily questioned, her eyes widening. "This must be a crazy coincidence, because I do, too!"

"Really?" Hanna said, shocked. "We have a class together, then!"

"Hey, so do I," Spencer said, laughing. "That's too much craziness. Don't tell me Aria has him next period, too..."

"The funniest thing is... I do," Aria confessed, laughing with them. But then she realized something. "Holy... crap. Guys, do you think Mr. Fitz would be a young teacher?"

"Um, yeah," Hanna said, giggling. "Everyone is talking about how hot he is. He's a hot teacher. He's young, too. I heard that he just graduated college recently. It's his first year of teaching. Why? Are you thinking about getting frisky with our teacher?"

"No! That's crazy!" Aria cried. "But, when I got back from my summer trip to Iceland, I went to a pub bar, and I met this guy, and he was an Ezra Fitz, and—"

"You think you hooked up with our English teacher!?" Hanna cried.

"Quiet down," Aria said, covering Hanna's mouth. "If it's true, nobody can know! I don't know yet. Maybe there are multiple Ezras in this town, because I couldn't have made out with a teacher. And we didn't hook up, Hanna, we just kissed for a very long time."

"You did NOT spill about this for such a long time!" Spencer cried. "Why didn't you tell us about this guy?"

"Um, I didn't think a make-out session with an older guy from a bar bathroom was a very classy topic to bring up," Aria said, raising her eyebrows. "And when, in a conversation, would I even bring that up? It doesn't flow!"

Emily was baffled. She always wanted to have a fun life like that. She wanted friends that discussed their latest make-out sessions. Back in her old school, her friends were goody-goods. Therefore, she was a goody-good, too. She would always study. She never got a boyfriend. She spent all of her time practicing swimming and studying. Her friends didn't do anything bad or crazy. They didn't drink, they didn't kiss guys, they didn't do stuff like that. She wanted to live a fun and dangerous life. Maybe now was her chance to become somebody new.