A/N: I started this fic because it's going to literally kill me to wait until April for 7B. Let me know what you think!

I was finally at home, laying face down on my childhood bed. My dad's funeral was over. My mom wasn't around, she was visiting friends. I couldn't blame her, she was a wreck. I wanted her to find any peace she could. But I didn't want to join her. I had nothing to do and hated the thought of being alone, but being with my mom and her friends just didn't seem appealing. Too many "let me know what I can dos" and "how are you holding ups." It was unbearable.

I thought about texting Alison, she was the only one I knew who was still in Rosewood. But honestly I didn't know if I could keep it together in front of her. It had been awhile since we'd even spoken. Alison was always a little distant when I talked about California or my life with Paige. Not uninterested necessarily, just not engaged. I also didn't want to think about the face Alison would make when I told her about my dad. I hated telling anyone, honestly, what had happened.

I ultimately decided against it and resigned myself to a night of binge watching meaningless videos in my dark, quiet house.

Just as I was about to change for the night, I heard a buzz on my bed side table.

Hanna TO Emily, Alison: HEY! I heard you were in town, Em! Your mom told my mom. When are you leaving? I'm in from New York and thought you and Ali may want to go out, paint the town red. It's not a school night after all :)

I read the text, it didn't seem like Hanna knew about my dad, but maybe she did. Everyone in this town knew everything. Well, at least she didn't say anything about it or mention it to Ali on the group text.

Emily TO Alison, Hanna: I am in town! But I leave tomorrow, would love to see you both though.

Alison TO Hanna, Emily: This beats Netflix and a bottle of wine, I'm in.

Hanna TO Alison, Emily: I've heard teachers are wild partiers. Is that true, Ali?
Alison TO Hanna, Emily: Like you wouldn't believe.
Hanna TO Emily, Alison: I'll have to see it in person! We can stay at my house. Meet over here at 9, and we'll head out.

Hanna TO Emily, Alison: Also, we're going to a cowboy place. So dress appropriately.

Great. That meant I had several hours to waste trying to decide what to wear. I didn't bring much, I'd packed in less than 5 minutes, but I eventually settled on some skinny jeans, a pair of boots with higher heels, and one of my favorite flannel shirts. I rolled the sleeves up. That would have to be cowboy enough. After padding my stomach with some food to fight the eventual flood of alcohol, I decided to walk and headed over to Hanna's.

Alison pulled up at the same time. As she got out of her car, I saw she was wearing a pink halter, an acid washed light blue jean skirt with frayed edges, and short, cute cowboy boots. Her hair was down in its usual blonde curls, her lips touched with pink gloss. She looked beautiful as ever.

She hadn't seen me coming down the side walk yet, so I called out, "Ms. DiLaurentis, I have a question about my homework."

Her head jerked over to me, and it made me laugh that she'd actually thought I might be a student for a moment.

"Emily," she said excited. She quickly closed the distance between us, the clop clop of her boots ringing out on the concrete, and drew me into a hug. It was a long one. And even when I finally pulled back, but she kept hold of my elbows. "I'm so happy you're here." She moved her hands up, cupping my face in her hands.

"Me too," I said, but a little less enthusiastically. I wondered if she was going to ask me why I didn't call her.

"It's been so long since I've seen you." She said, linking her arm with mine, walking me up to Hanna's house. "You look great," she added, eyeing my outfit.

Sometimes I was envious at how easy it seemed for her to give compliments.

"You do too. Very California."

"You think?" she said smiling, making me wonder if it hadn't been a bit intentional.

"Are you ready for tonight?" I asked, wanting to shift the conversation.

"I don't think my liver is," she sighed.

"Yeah, Hanna seems ready to tear it up."

"She's a New Yorker now, every day is probably a party. Though, what am I saying, California must be like that too," she said leaning into me.

"More of a smoke a joint on the beach kind of party every day. Not my thing."

She smiled, and I stared into her blue eyes.

As we walked up the steps, I moved to knock on the door.

"Hey," Ali said, grabbing my arm to hold me back. "Before we go in, I wanted to say..."

I instantly recognized that face and looked away. I didn't want to hear it. It was a feeling I'd felt a lot lately; like I wanted to exist somewhere outside of my body. That some other version of Emily Fields could go on living, dealing with conversations like these, while I could just get away from everything, fade into the sunset.

"I'm sorry for what happened," she said. "With your dad."

"You knew?" I asked, a little accusatorily. For a moment, I felt a flash of anger. Why didn't Alison reach out to me if she knew?

She nodded. Of course she knew, she was Alison DiLaurentis.

"I called you. I looked for you at the funeral," she said simply.

I suddenly did remember getting a call from her, but it was during the stress of the day's events, during what felt like hundreds of strangers giving their consolation, shaking my hand, watching my every reaction. I could've been expelled from school that day, and I wouldn't have noticed.

"I'm sorry. I..." But I trailed off. I didn't want to tell her I'd flown in as late as possible, left as early as possible. And the way I'd been self-sabotaging lately, I'd probably even avoided her call on purpose. Dad's death had been the source of my latest relationship ending argument with Paige. Things were "off", maybe forever. And I didn't want to have a fight about it with Alison, too. I sighed deeply.

"Look, you don't have to say anything. I know what it's like to lose a parent," she said taking my hand.

I glanced back up at her. Alison moved forward, wrapping her arms around my waist and back, hugging me close. I felt her fingers dig in through the fabric of my shirt. I felt Alison's cheek, warm against mine.

"I just wanted to tell you, I'm here," she said, moving her face into my neck. This had always been her spot, the place she nestled into when she hugged me. I was comforted that Ali was there again, always there.

"Thanks, Ali," I said, feeling the tears forming. No. Not right now.

I pulled away hastily, shielding my face.

"Can we just get drunk already?" I said with a laugh, wiping my nose.

Ali smiled. "Absolutely."

She turned and knocked. I heard quick foot steps and the door flew open, Hanna screaming.

"Emily!"

She said as she jumped on me, crushing me in a hug. She grabbed my cheeks. "God, you only get more beautiful, it's not fair."

"That hurts, Han."

Hanna let me go and moved to Alison.

"Ali!"

They hugged, and I watched Ali smile over Hanna's shoulder, closing her eyes.

"My girls!" she yelled again, pulling us both into a three way hug.

"Have you already been drinking?" I asked, laughing.

"Just one or two," Hanna said, shaking her hand.

"Or three," her mom said behind her.

"Ms. Marin, it's so good to see you!" and another round of hugs. Ashley gripped my upper arm a little harder than I expected. She knew. She smiled at me sadly, but she turned to the group.

"I called you girls a cab," as she said it, a car horn blew outside. "Don't let Hanna get into too much trouble, Emily. You're the responsible one."

"I won't, I'll see you later!"

"Let's go!" Hanna begged, grabbing both Ali and my arm and pulling us outside.

The bar was just outside of town, and it must've been a new place because I'd never heard of it. It was weird how so many things I'd grown up with changed so quickly over just a few years. It made me kind of angry, but also glad Rosewood wasn't just a one bar town any more. I hadn't been to The Radley yet, and I wasn't eager to try it out tonight.

We walked in. It was VERY western. People were line dancing and dancing normally, but there were lots of cowboy hats and boots. At least it seemed busy. It might've been depressing if it was empty.

We got a pitcher of beer, Alison a tall vodka and cranberry, and we pushed through the crowd. We found a small round table in front of a booth. Hanna and I slid into the booth and Ali sat across from me in one of the chairs. Her legs were touching mine, my left leg between her two knees, her skin flush against my jeans. It felt natural yet unnatural at the same time. Ali's touch, no matter how old we were, seemed to always have that effect on me.

Hanna had somehow already finished her beer and leaned in, her elbows propped on the table, to pour herself another one. I think I'd only taken three sips of mine. Wine was more my style these days, but beer felt appropriate for this venue. Ali took a sip of her drink, glancing up at me.

"What have you been up to, Em?"

It felt open ended, I wasn't really sure how to answer.

"Bartending lately."

"Barista to bartender. Makes sense," she said, still watching me.

"How's fashion school, Hanna?" I said, wanting to shift the conversation away from my life.

"To be honest, kind of a lot of bitches. Sometimes I feel like I don't even belong there."

"Of course you do," Alison said. "I've seen your stuff, it's really cute."

"Some of these girls have just been sowing and making their own clothes since they could walk."

"I don't even know why you need school," Ali continued.

"Ironic coming from a teacher," I said.

She made a face and ignored me.

"If you opened your own shop today, I'd buy everything you had."

"You want to back me?"

"I would back you, Hanna. Just tell me when." Ali lifted her glass to toast with her and then with me.

"To Hanna's future boutique," Ali said.

"To telling your merchandising professor to go fuck herself," Hanna added.

They both looked at me. But I couldn't think of anything worth cheering about.

"Wait, I've got an idea." Hanna sprung up from the table, vanishing into the crowd.

"What is she doing now?" I pleaded to Alison, who had turned in her seat, eyes scanning over the crowd. I wondered if she really did drink a lot, like Hanna suggested teachers did.

"Have you been here before?"

Alison turned back and looked at me.

"I've heard of it, but I honestly don't go out much. I'm more of a house party girl."

"Look at you, Alison. So tame now."

She smiled, recognizing my tease. I felt her knees press against mine under the table for a moment. Then she shrugged.

"These kinds of places are just so loud, the men so drunk, it's hard to actually have a real conversation."

"I don't know," I said back, looking down into my beer. "Sometimes it's nice not to have to talk."

Alison regarded me with an uncertain expression, like she was trying to figure out what I needed and how to give it to me. It was odd. I felt like I had always been that person in our friendship.

"Look what I've got," Hanna shouted towards their table, dancing up to them with three double shots of tequila, limes, and salt.

"Hanna!" I pleaded.

Hanna ignored me completely, setting up the shots on the table.

"Ladies," she said lifting her tequila shot. I reluctantly raised mine, gazing at the clear gold liquid. Tequila always had a potent effect on me, and I was afraid where the night would take me after.

Ali clinked hers in the middle, smiling and shaking her head with mock disapproval at Hanna. Her dimples were showing.

"This is for Wayne Fields. Without him, we wouldn't have the wonderful best friend we have here with us today."

I was surprised, but it felt appropriate, so I threw my shot back with the two of them. Hanna shifted back into the booth and put her arm around me, squeezing my shoulder.

It was nice that that was all we needed to say. Paige had been relentless with questions, constantly goading me to talk about it. It was so nice to have friends who just let me be and supported me and when I did come to them.

"You realize you have to finish that right," Ali said to me, gesturing towards my glass.

I looked down, noticing it was still almost half way full.

"It's a double," I protested.

"That's the point!" Hanna said, moving the glass towards me again.

I sighed and took the rest, without a lime.

"Oh my God, it burns."

"Are you a light weight, Em?" Ali teased.

I nodded. "Definitely."

"These are a lot better with a pineapple back," she suggested, making me wonder the depth of her expertise surrounding tequila shot taking. Hanna looked at her too.

"I teach high schoolers, guys, I know what I'm doing around a bottle of tequila."

"Those must be some house parties," I said, taking one of the limes and biting into it, anything to get that taste out of my mouth.

"Fair enough," Hanna said.

"It's actually been awhile since I've gone out," I found myself saying, discarding the lime on the table. I felt looser with the liquor coursing through me. "Paige isn't much of a drinker."

"Why not?" Hanna asked. "I thought that's what college was for."

"She's trying to get into the Olympic trials."

It must've been the way I said it, or the way I looked down and away, kicking some trash across the floor, but Hanna watched me closely.

"How are things with Paige?" Hanna asked.

"Not so good right now." I responded after a pause, pushing my finger around the edge of my pint glass. "We broke up. I think I'm pretty much homeless when I get back."

Ali made a face, "Unbelievable. I mean, your dad."

"Yeah, I know. To be fair, I haven't been great about it."

Ali continued to look offended, but it was true. I'd been an absolute head case since my dad died. But I'd felt strangely not guilty about it. Like I owed her nothing. There were other contributing factors, of course, but something was just broken about our relationship.

"That sucks," Hanna said glumly, averting her eyes to the floor. "Caleb and I did, too. Not that long ago."

"I didn't know," I said, glad to have something else to talk about. I took her hand and squeezed it. "I'm sorry."

Hanna squeezed it back for a moment, before pulling it away.

"Yeah, he moved out. It's whatever," she said waving her hand. "He's in Europe right now, probably checking out Italian women in leather skirts." She looked miserable.

"No way, Hanna," Alison said encouragingly. "Nobody likes Italians."

Hanna laughed at that.

"Everyone likes Italians," she argued.

"I'm not against them," Emily added, trying to lighten the mood. Hanna slapped her in the shoulder.

"But you'd like to be," Ali said back. She lifted an eye brow, a smirk playing across her lips.

"I mean, I could go and save him from them if you'd like, Hanna. I'm willing to do that for you," I said, ignoring Ali's suggestive comment.

"Real sweet, Em." Hanna said, rolling her eyes. She turned to Alison.

"What about you, Ali? Any lucky guy in your life? Any sad break ups you can one up us with here?"

She just shook her head no, as ever the mysterious answer, and finished her drink.

"Well, we're all young, single," Hanna said, suddenly slapping the table. "And it sounds like all our love lives are absolute shit," she continued, jumping up. "And there's only one cure for that: another round of shots!"

As Hanna moved out of the booth, I noticed Ali's eyes flicker behind her. I followed her gaze to a guy approaching our table, having come from a group close by.

"I'll buy the next round," he said to Hanna. "If you agree to dance with me."

The guy was cute, tall, well dressed. Hanna looked at us, lifting her eyebrows, and then said, "I'm not a great line dancer, so that sounds like a deal to me!"

"And a vodka cranberry too," Ali yelled after them.

They headed to the bar, where I watched them take their shots. Bringing ours back, Hanna pushed the shots and Ali's drink towards us.

"You ready?" he said to Hanna, extending his hand and motioning towards the dance floor. She grabbed it.

"Hell yes."

He led her away from the table, and I finished my beer. Probably best not to mix at this point.

"All that guy's friends are watching you," Alison said over the top of her glass, taking a drink as she glanced over at them.

"No, they aren't," I said. "They're probably looking at you." I felt her knees move again. "Do you want to talk to them?"

Alison's expression was of purest disgust. "Absolutely not. And, of course they're looking at you, you're the prettiest girl in this place," she added with a twinkle.

I felt a bit awkward. I'd forgotten what it was like to get this kind of attention from Alison. It had been a long time since she'd done it, maybe even since before she'd gone missing. Back then, it had always seemed like a joke, like teasing. Nothing more. Maybe Ali was just feeling the alcohol and old habits were resurfacing.

"Do guys still hit on you a lot?" she asked casually.

I rolled my eyes.

"Non stop. Sometimes I think about wearing a ring, just so I don't have to deal with it."

"Well, how about for tonight, I can be your girlfriend," she said, moving her hand, touching my fingers lightly, just grazing the tips with hers.

My tongue felt dry, my throat constricted. I glanced at her empty cocktail glass and the new, full one.

"How many of those have you had, Ali?"

"Give me your hand," she said, ignoring me. "These shots are going to get hot."

I paused reluctantly. She grabbed my hand anyway, taking the salt shaker in the other. Not taking her eyes from mine, she licked the curve of my palm between my thumb and index finger and shook the salt over it. So, that's what kind of night it was going to be.

I glanced back at the table of guys.

"Well, thanks, Ali, they're definitely watching now."

"I'm not sorry," she said, as she pulled my hand up to her mouth. I felt her tongue again, velvety and wet, slide over my skin. She looked at me the entire time she did it, an unspoken dare to make her stop. It was hot.

She then grabbed the shot, threw it back, and quickly sucked on the lime, her face contorting.

"Oh my God," she shouted. "Delicious. That's exactly what I needed."

I laughed at her. "That is NOT what your face said."

"You're right, I think I took it wrong."

"I thought you were an expert!"

"Your turn," she said expectantly.

Back in high school, I might've said no. I might've avoided her implications, her flirting. But now that I was older, I didn't feel as intimidated. This was not my first rodeo. I worked at a bar, for Christ's sake. Male, female, everyone hits on you for a free drink. But this was still Alison, and my heartbeat was still rising.

"Okay, Alison," I said, lifting up her wrist, splaying out her fingers, desperately trying to play it cool. "You're my girlfriend for the night." I licked her hand, and I felt her heel push into my calf below the table, her knees push toward mine.

"And as my girlfriend," I said as I shook the salt over her palm, "I fully expect you to keep me safe from guys. And maybe if I'm lucky..." I said suggestively, dropping my eyes to her lips, my tongue pressing against her hand.

Ali looked both surprised and a little flustered. I felt satisfied. I sucked the salt off of her hand, hard, and then took the shot.

The rest of the guys were at our table before I even had time to the glass down.

"What is happening here," one of them said. "And how can we help?"

"Well, you can take us to dance, for one," I said, taking one of the guys hands, letting him pull me out of the booth.

We moved to the line dance floor. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing, but it was still fun. As we finished, the guy who had pulled me out of the booth, started to dance with me. He actually wasn't bad. However, before he could accomplish much, I saw two fingers tap his shoulder.

"Hey, hands off cowboy," Ali said, cutting in on the guy. "She's mine for the night."

He looked confused, but stood back. Ali took my hand, and I pulled her in close, our shoulder touching, before sending her immediately into a twirl.

"Wow, you're so butch, Ali," I said as she came back towards me.

"I am not," she balked. "I just know what I want," and there it was again, that smirk. Those eyes.

I pushed her back and brought her close again, it was hard not to laugh. It was fun.

"We never really got a chance to do this, did we?"

I'm confused for a moment. Dance together? Be together?

"What do you mean?" I say, pushing her into another quick twirl.

"Go to a dance?" she says back. "I think I only went to one in high school before..." she trailed off.

"Yeah," I said, dismally. "They banned us from prom. We did have that Christmas ball you threw."

Ali smiled, looking embarrassed. "Right," she said. "What a mess. But that dress you wore, the white one."

I laughed.

"It was stunning," she continued. "I wish I could've told you at the time."

"I can't believe you remember that."

"I remember everything, sweet Emily," she said back. I could feel the color rise in my cheeks as she looked at me.

"We actually had another one," I added. "Kind of like this. It was a hoedown."

"Oh my God, a hoedown? Who did you go with?" she said, a flicker of something I didn't recognize crossing her face. Jealousy?

"Paige," I said flatly.

She carefully controlled her expression, like usual.

"What did you wear?" she said more evocatively, raking her eyes over my current outfit.

"A bandana, blue boots, short shorts."

"My god, I missed everything good," she said with a whimsical sigh. "Not these boots, right? Those heels are so high, Em, they make me feel like an elf. You're already 7 feet tall."

"Ha, they're totally fine. They're all the rage in California. Plus, I like being able to lord over all of you."

"I bet you would fall right down if I jumped on you."

"I'm pretty athletic," I sparred back.

"So, you think you could catch me?"

"Absolutely."

"Want to bet?"

"Yes. But why?"

She shrugged. "It's a dance move."

"No, it-"

But without much warning, I felt her hands press hard down on my shoulders, and she jumped up, all of her momentum moving forward and onto me. Instinctually, I wrapped my hands under her legs, taking several steps backwards to catch my balance. But I had her, like I knew I would.

Her hair fell in a curtain around her face, I could smell her shampoo, I could feel the curls on my neck. Her arms hung comfortably around my neck.

"I told you," I said, a little breathlessly.

"I guess I owe you," she said back, shifting, my hands moving to accomodate, gripping her backside.

There's a moment where I think she's going to kiss me, right here, in the middle of this cowboy bar, as her eyes dart to my lips.

"What are you guys doing?" Hanna shouted out. "Come over here! It's shot time!"

Ali uncurls her legs from around my waist and slides down the front of my body. She adjusts her skirt, still looking at me.

"Shot time!" Hanna says again more insistently.

She sighed, walking towards Hanna, but looked back at me and winked.