ACT ONE — CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

2021

"OO! I just got the craziest case of Deja Vu!" Misty exclaimed.

Emily shot the woman a look, was she really going to continue to be all happy-go-lucky while they were actively covering up a murder?

"And here I thought the worst thing that was going to happen to me this week was losing the election," Taissa murmured as she scrubbed at the floor.

Emily sighed, wringing out the rag she held in her hands. She had thought her biggest worries were going to be over her sister's return from jail and her situation with Natalie.

Misty frowned, "Well...I voted for you. And I only registered so that I could get jury duty."

Taissa chuckled dryly and Emily shook her head, "You really haven't changed at all."

"And you have? I mean you're clearly still in love with Natalie," Misty rolled her eyes, before her gaze returned to Taissa, "When do they call the results?"

Emily was taken aback by Misty's reply and opened her mouth to shoot something back, but closed it, having not come up with a reply. Instead, an irritated look settled over her, eyebrows pulled together.

"Tomorrow," Taissa replied, with a small sigh.

Emily, let go of the formerly upset look to offer her best friend a comforting smile, or at least she hoped it came off as comforting, "I'm sure no matter what the results are everything will work out."

Taissa smiled softly at her friend's words, but did not have a chance to murmer any form of thanks before Shauna re-entered the room. The woman held a trash bag, with remnants of her former boyfriend.

"Oh, God. Is that the...?" Taissa trailed off.

"The rest is um," she pointed behind her, "Draining in the tub."

"Okay, perfect!" Misty noted, "So when that's done,  put it in a suitcase and bury it out at Hacklebarney Park. I've got a shovel in my trunk which you can borrow. I do want it back. And I took the liberty of packing up some of his clothes, some books, and toiletries and stuff. And I'll take this with me and get rid of it. That way, if anyone comes looking for him, it just looks like he went on a trip."

While Misty was on her rant of directions that Emily was ironically only half-listening to, the woman's gaze landed on Natalie. The other woman did not notice Emily's eyes right away, far too distracted by the weight of the situation.

When Natalie finally met Emily's eyes she mustered up a small, almost awkward smile. The blonde's eyebrows tugged together momentarily before she returned the look.

"And after that? I mean what if an animal digs him up?" Taissa noted, "What if a hiker's dog sniffs him out?"

Misty shrugged, "Well it won't matter. I mean torsos are useless. Duh."

A soft chuckle fell from her lips, and a concerned look crossed Emily's face,  "That's the whole point. You only have to worry about the head and the hands."

Natalie resisted the urge to shake her head, "So what's the plan with those?"

"Don't worry about it. I'll handle that." Misty noted.

When Emily got home Daisy was no where to be seen. A sticky note on the counter informed her that she was spending the night at Callie's.

A soft sigh fell from Emily's lips, she pinched the bridge of her nose, a headache brewing below the surface.

Emily dropped her purse onto the counter, grabbed a bottle of water and some ibuprofen before moving back to her bedroom.

She was completely dreading the reunion. Emily honestly, shocked that she had been talked into going in the first place.

After she was pretty much ready to go, suit jacket lying on the bed beside her, she dialed her best friend's number.

Taissa picked up almost immediately, "Em? Everything okay?"

Emily cleared her throat, "Um...I don't think I can do this Tai..."

"Em," Taissa sighed, her tone growing a bit softer, "we don't have to go...we can ditch it and go to some pizza place like the old days."

A quiet laugh escaped Emily's lips as she thought back on all the school events she and Taissa had skipped out on before the crash.

Everything was so much simpler then. The most she had to worry about was her strict parents, and keeping up her image.

The first time they had done something like that was just after she and Laura Lee had gotten into some argument at freshman homecoming. Taissa saw how upset Emily was and offered her an out.

That was the first night the two of them really talked. The day their friendship really came to be, and since then, the two of them knew more of each other's secrets than anyone else did.

"I would really, truly love that..." Emily trailed off,  pausing mid-sentence, "but I think we need to at least make an appearance. After that we can grab a pizza like old times."

Taissa laughed, "Sounds perfect. Do you want me to come and pick you up?"

Emily nodded at first, forgetting that her best friend couldn't see her, "Yeah, sounds good."

Upon the ending of the call, Emily picked up the suit jacket off of the bed, sliding her arms into it. The woman looked over her appearance in the mirror, suddenly very conscious of the fact that this was going to be the first, formal-ish event Natalie had seen her at in years.

A sudden wave of nerves washed over her. Not only did she have to deal with all of the people from high school, but she also had to deal with everything else.

Emily Jensen only knew of one thing for sure, she was totally screwed.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

HELLLOOOOOO! In honor of the season three trailer, I have a brand new chapter for you!! Sorry for disappearing!!!

We're almost through season one! Also, I didn't edit this at all, so pretend like there's no mistakes.

Anyways! Hope you enjoyed!

— Via <3