A person of interest.
Spencer knocked on the door anxiously, swapping the bag to her left hand. She could feel a fluttering in her stomach as Toby opened the door, but she ignored it.
"Hey Spencer," he smiled warmly, taking the bag out of her hands and placing it on the bed. Spencer grinned, "Thanks, Toby. So...seen anyone go into room 214 while I was at school?"
He motioned for her to sit on the bed beside him, "Just the cleaner," he sighed raising his eyebrows. Spencer pulled her eyes away from his, what had come over her? Why was she acting so...unsteady around him? She noticed he was still studying her face with his eyes, a hot blush swept over her face.
"I guess this was a stupid idea, i'm sorry for making you come here, it's just...I though there might be some connection." She could of slapped herself, it all came out in such a rush, she sounded like a bumbling idiot. Toby didn't seem to notice, or if he did, he ignored it.
"I needed to get away from...from her. Living in the same house as her is hell, if I could live here permanently I would." he stated, Spencer noticed the mixture of hurt and anger that seeped through. She don't know what possesed her to do it, but she placed her hand over his, as soon as their skin touched Spencer could feel electricity shoot up her arm.
Toby took a sharp breath in, glancing down at her hand, wrapping his thumb around hers. Spencer couldn't believe how gentle he was, how could she of ever thought he had killed Alison? He had a heart of gold, truth be told he had made mistakes, but what position was she in to judge?
"Spencer..." he started, but shook his head, sighing, she made him feel like he might have a shot at a second chance, she made him feel...warm inside, but how could he tell her this? He felt she was so out of his league, he couldn't bare to be this close to her and not tell her. Spencer looked up at him, his eyes softened, she could feel her heart beating against her shirt.
Suddenly there was a bang against the wall, the pair jumped up hastily, running out of the room as fast as their legs would carry them. Spencer looked around, there wasn't a soul around. "Spencer, it's open," She swung around to see Toby pushing open the door.
"No, wait." she rushed up to the door, half standing in front of him, "It might be dangerous, i'll go in first," Toby snorted, half amused, half amazed at how brave she was. "Spencer, I think if they are dangerous I think i'd have more chance of protecting us, don't you?" he lay his large hand on her shoulder, pulling her back and walking into the room first. Picking up the brown bag that lay on the bed, not even looking in it he handed it to Spencer.
"Here, boss. Thought you might like to do a bomb check." he teased, she tried to shoot him a sarcastic look, but he had this cute half smile plastered on his face so she just grabbed the bag out of his hand, looking inside. She looked up, her face blank.
"It's not really a bomb is it?" He grabbed the bag off her, looking into it. Cocking his head to the side, and asking the one question she didn't know the answer to.
"Who's A?"
Spencer shrugged, "No idea," strictly this wasn't a lie, Toby seemed to accept it as a valid answer, he made for the door, turning to look back at Spencer. "Coming?" he asked, she nodded following him quickly, not wanting to be alone in this room.
"So, what's in the bag?" he asked curiously. Spencer closed the door, walking over and unzipping the oversized beige bag, pulling out scrabble, a bag of chips and caffiene. Toby frowned, picking up a can, "Isn't it a little late to be drinking this stuff? How do you sleep?"
"It's never too late for coffee," she grabbed the can out of his hand, he looked amused, but grabbed it back. "You'll thank me later, believe me," he laughed as she folded her arms across her chest. "No. I won't. I'll get moody and irritable," she stated, he just laughed, shrugging. "I can take moody and irritable," he retaliated.
Spencer couldn't help but smile, she opened the box of scrabble, unfolding the board onto the bed, and picking out seven letters before handing him the bag of plastic squares.
After about an hour or so, the game was getting pretty heated. "83 points for me," Spencer smiled, smugly. Toby nodded, arranging his letters on the board. "107 points for me," he replied, deviously. Spencer swung around to look at the board, "Count it if you don't believe me." he laughed.
"No it's fine, well done." she said bitterly, causing him to laugh even more.
"You're a sore loser Spencer," he smiled, "You're not used to losing are you? I can tell."
"Winning is the only way I can get my parents attention," she sighed, pulling out a few more letters. "You shouldn't have to win, to get attention." he swallowed, "You're an incredible person, whether you lose or win. You should loosen up, stop trying to be the best and just enjoy yourself once in a while. Let go."
At 10:30pm, Spencer swung off the bed. "I guess it's time to go back to the house of Hastings," she sighed, running her fingers through her hair, Toby glanced up from where he was packing the game back into the box.
"You know...you don't have to go, I mean if you'd feel better not going home, you can always stay here. I don't have any plans." he said, his heart beating a hundred times faster. Spencer looked at him, narrowing her eyes. "Are you sure? That would be great, but do you really want me here? I can be a bitch in the morning,"
The sides of his mouth turned up as he tried to stifle a laugh, shaking his head. "You're always welcome to stay with me," Spencer smiled, running her hand up and down her jacket sleeve a little nervously. "Okay, I'll stay if you're sure."
"I'm sure," Toby grinned reassuringly, "Just one thing, you can't sleep in that," he pointed at her outfit, she looked down. He jumped off the bed, pulling a tshirt out of his bag and throwing it at her, she caught it, noticing it's softness, and smell. It smelt like him. He walked through into the bathroom, this place was so cheap the bathroom and bedroom were seperated by a curtain, one that didn't even cover the whole of the opening. She sat back down on the bed, sending her mom a text to say she was studying late and would stay at Aria's tonight. When she looked up, she caught Toby pulling his shirt off, running her eyes down his body, her eyes lingered at his tattoo, knowing the real meaning of it put her at ease. He looked over at her and she quickly pointed her eyes towards the floor, pushing back the curtain and sitting on the bed, he pointed his thumb to the bathroom.
"All yours." he said, pulling himself onto the bed so his back was flat against the headboard. Spencer hurried into the bathroom, and pulling the curtain as far as it would go, leaning against the cold tiled walls, it was only then did she realize how hot her skin was, she had no idea what was happening, no idea why she felt a little dizzy, and certainly no idea why Toby made her heart beat that much faster. Pulling off her shirt and jeans she slipped his t-shirt over her head, it just covered enough to keep her decent, whatever it was about wearing his shirt, it made her feel warm inside. Gathering her clothes and walking out of the bathroom, she set them down on a chair, smiling at how consumed he seemed to be by the television, taking one more chance to run her eyes over his body. Who would of known all that was hiding underneath those dark clothes, he was taut and toned, tanned evenly with huge biceps. She climbed onto the bed beside him, mirroring the way he was sitting, he passed her the remote.
"You can choose what we watch," he grinned, sweetly. She was feeling a little michievous so she changed the channel. "Good because there's an interesting documentary about African snails on, right about now," she replied, keeping her composure. "Nooo," he pleaded, gently prying the remote control out of her hands and changing it back to a program about cops. "I thought you hated the police," she asked, alarm bells rang in her head. Toby looked down at the blanket, "I do. They never did anything for me," he bit his lip, "You don't like them either right?"
"You're right there," she replied, letting her head rest back, sitting up abruptly and turning to face him she continued to speak, "I wanted to say i'm sorry. Sorry for ever thinking you were capable of murder and sorry for thinking you'd ever hurt Emily, I should of known better than to listen to Alison's version of you. I-I-I just-" her eyes had gone blurry with tears, he reached out to take her small hand in his large own. "You don't need to be sorry, everyone thought that. Alison had a way of...manipulating people. I know that, and I know you four girls are all good people, trying to move on with your lives." Hearing this just made Spencer well up even more, how could she of doubted such an incredible guy, a tear rolled down her cheek, Toby reached out and wiped it away with his thumb, letting it linger on her cheek longer than he probably should of.
Spencer moved closer, with him pushing his head closer, she gently pressed her lips against his, he kissed her back softly, as soon as she moved her hand to his shoulder he tensed and pulled away. Her face was a mixture of confusion and hurt, it felt like her stomach had just dropped. Toby looked away, slightly ashamed.
"I'm sorry I just thought..." she started to speak, feeling her self blushing. He looked back at her, "No, it's not...it's not anything to do with you. It's me." He threw his head back, blinking back tears. "No one has ever," he gulped, "Touched me so gently before, I just don't know how to act with this." Spencer's heart sunk, squeezing his hand reassuringly. "You just have to go with it," she whispered gently.
It was right then that something in Toby changed, it was like, his past with Jenna didn't matter, he wanted Spencer so badly, and before now he had thought she was out of his league, but she seemed to like him, really like him and he wasn't going to ignore this oppurtunity go to waste. Leaning in once again, grazing his lips against hers lightly, before kissing her, feeling her kissing him back was the best feeling in the world, he moved his finger tips to the back of her neck, pulling her closer.
Spencer was hesitant when placing her hand on his bare shoulder, not wanting to over do things, his skin was warm and soft, it made her feel at ease, he made her feel at ease. Like it didn't matter what was happening on the outside world, all that mattered was here and now. As the kiss went on, she ran her hands down his chest gently, she could feel his muscles tense, Spencer dropped her hand even lower, playing with the drawstrings on his pajama pants.
"Spencer." Toby mumbled cautiously, she looked up at him, not moving her mouth too far from his. "We can't do this," he said, nodding down towards her hand. "Why not?" she whispered.
"Because I don't want to take advantage of you, it wouldn't be right," he replied softly, "You wouldn't be taking advantage," she insisted. "Have you ever, done it before?" he asked, not trying to intrude. She shook her head, feeling slightly ashamed. He tucked his finger and thumb under her chin, pulling her face back towards him. "It's nothing to be embarassed about," he spoke gently, noticing the blush covering her fair skin, before leaning in to kiss her again.
She pulled away this time, "I guess no one's ever wanted to do it with me, and now you've joined that list," she snapped, a little hurt. "Spencer, I want to be with you like that so badly, but you'll regret it in the morning. I know you will," She shook her head, "I won't, I know what I want."
He ran his hand over his face, contemplating what to do. Toby placed his arm around her waist pulling her closer, "I really don't think this is a good idea, not right now anyway," Spencer let out a sigh, leaning her head on his shoulder without even thinking, Toby couldn't help but smile at this gesture.
"Was it hard? In reform school?" she asked, knowing it was a touchy subject. He cleared his throat, "There was a lot of bad people in there Spencer, I was one of them. I got in with the wrong crowd for a while, it was pretty tough, but I got out of there. Now you've asked me a question, I should get to ask you one in return,"
"Go for it," she replied, shifting on the bed to get comfier. "Why do you freeze up anytime someone mentions your parents?" he asked, keeping his voice soft. Spencer rolled her eyes, playing with her hands. "My parents...are perfectionists, they want everything to go to plan, they want me to be the best at everything. It's hard, sometimes I just want to do something for fun, and have a laugh. They're the reason people think i'm so uptight."
"I don't think you're uptight." he said simply, she turned her head to smile at him. "Why don't you hate me?" Spencer asked, Toby turned his head, looking at her as if she was crazy. "What?" he choked. "Why don't you hate me, I mean I was a part of what ruined your life,"
"I could never hate you, you didn't do anything to me. Alison did. In some ways it helped, getting away from Jenna. It just sucks that my parents still think it was me, that house doesn't feel like home, it feels like i'm a lodger, an unwanted one at that." his voice cracked, Spencer reached over and stroked his arm gently.
"Sometimes, I wish...I wish it would all just be over. My life that is. If I wasn't here, people in this town would feel a lot safer. I'm just a nuisance here."
Spencer looked alarmed, "No, no you're not a nuisance. You're a great person, people just have to realize that."
"When are they going to realize it? When they're crossing the street to avoid me or when i'm making their kids cry? There's no need for me in this town." a small tear ran down his left cheek, Spencer could feel a lump in her throat, what had she done? Why did she have to ask that question? "I need you." she mumbled quietly, thinking about the words that had just come out of her mouth. Toby pulled one of his knees up, resting his head in his hands, trying to hide the fact that he was crying, but also trying to make sense of what she had just said.
"I know someone tried to frame you, i'm just trying to figure out what the connection between us is. I mean why are we the two people being framed?" she said, feeling slightly awkward. Toby shrugged, lifting his head out of his hands. "Maybe someone just has it out for us?"
"But why us? Why not Emily or Aria?" she persisted, "If I knew, i'd tell you," he said gently. A few moments of silence passed.
"Spencer?"
"Mhm,"
"Did you mean that? About needing me?"
Spencer dragged her eyes away from her hands, "You're the only one who's said the thought of me killing Ali was crazy, you're the only one who has offered to help, no matter what the consequences. Yes, I need you."
With that Toby leaned in to kiss her, leaning his hand the other side of her body on the bed. Everytime Toby came that close Spencer's skin felt like fire, kissing along her jaw he started to place small butterfly kisses down her kneck. She ran her fingers up through his hair, he wrapped his arms around her waist, flipping over so she was straddling him, but he never broke the connection between his mouth and her neck. He slipped his hand under the hem of her...his shirt, tracing his thumb up and down her spine. Spencer pushed her body against his chest, he pulled her closer. Toby moved his mouth from her neck, looking at her in the eye.
"Are you really sure you want to do this...with me?" he questioned, he was terrified. Terrified of making one wrong move, terrified of hurting her and terrified she'd regret it in the morning.
Spencer nodded, "Do you have...protection?" Toby pointed to his bag on the chair, Spencer pulled herself off of him allowing him to get up and get to his bag. He started to speak, "You're positive? It might hurt a little..." he didn't want to scare her, but he didn't want to make false promises either. Spencer walked over to him, "If I wasn't sure, I wouldn't be here." she wrapped her arms around his neck, he nodded. Placing his hand on the small of her back, he picked her up and lay her onto the bed. Kneeling in between her legs he started to push the tshirt she was wearing up, she lifted her hands so he could get it off completely. Toby nearly started tearing up again when he saw the way she was looking up at him, so trusting, so beautiful. Spencer reached out to stroke the side of his face, he leaned down brushing his lips against hers. She ran her fingertips lightly over his chiseled torso.
"Tell me if it hurts too much," he whispered into her ear. "Ok," she replied, even though she knew for sure she wasn't going to stop in the middle of it.
After a while Toby dragged his body off of Spencer's, lying down beside her, she was sore, and they were both covered in sweat. He reached his arm out, pulling her head onto his chest. "How do you feel?" he asked meekly. "Different, but in a good way." she smiled weakly up at him. "I hope it didn't hurt too much," "It was worth it," she replied, before Toby leaned in to kiss her on the nose.
And that was how they fell asleep, no blankets and no clothes.
Just each others arms.