“Will you ever tell me where we’re going?” Spencer asked during the ride in the limousine. Toby smiled, a bright, contagious smile that made heart skip a beat.

                “We’re almost there,” he promised calmly, though he couldn’t hide his excitement.

                Spencer intensely frowned, hunching her back. “Where are the cameras?” she questioned. Glancing up at him, she recognized that Toby’s smile grew even wider. “They’re not here, are they?”

                Toby laughed. “Nope,” was all he said in response. Spencer’s body flooded with relief; they hadn’t been truly alone in over a week! Joylessly, she moved closer to him and hugged him tightly.

                “It’s a miracle!” she said happily. “How’d you manage that?”

                Toby grinned. “You wanted a nice, normal homecoming night, didn’t you?” As he spoke, the limousine came to a stop, but Spencer resisted the urge to look out the window. She simply arched a brow at him, puzzled to where this was going. He continued, “I couldn’t really talk the producers into sending us back to Rosewood for the night and there was no way the whole sophomore class would be able to fly across the country, so I got the next best thing. Spencer Hastings, would you like to go to homecoming with me?”

                Spencer giggled at his dramatic words when he extended his arms. “Always the gentleman, Mr. Cavanaugh,” she fake swooned, placing her hand on the inside of his elbow. Toby chuckled at her words and shrugged. “I thought you’d never ask!” she joked.

                The limo driver came around and opened the door for them.  His eyes fell on Spencer and she smiled kindly. “You’ve got quite the boyfriend. He’s been over here working at this all day,” he whispered, pretending it was a secret, but Toby shyly looked away. She could have sworn she saw the dimmest sign of blush on his cheeks.

                “Thank you, Alfie,” Toby said politely.

                “You kids have a nice homecoming.”

                Spencer kindly nodded and followed Toby down the path through the woods. Wordlessly, she gazed up at him, with his slicked and she decided she liked this look on him. He was so handsome that he made her stomach flutter; she felt so fortunate just to say she knew him. Everything about Toby was excellence; he was uniquely beautiful, selfless and an incredible friend above all. She just wished he could understand that.

                After a few seconds, they arrived in the clearing, lined by palm trees. Twinkling, purple lights nearby the clearing, along with light blue lamps enlightening the starry night. On the far side was a stage. A band stood on it, lightly playing music. Above the stage, written in neon lights, were the words, “Welcome to Rosewood class of 2018 Sophomore Homecoming!”

                Spencer’s jaw dropped in awe. “You set all this up for me?”

                Toby took in every little detail of her reaction, wanting to commit it to memory for the rest of his life. He loved making Spencer happy; it was one of the small pleasures in life that brought him more joy than anything else could. “There’s more,” he said softly, nodding to a small group of people now approaching them.

                Spencer’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped. She ran over to them. “Alison! Emily! Aria! Hanna! Caleb! Ezra!” Laughing and shouting, she grabbed them all and pulled them into a huge hug. “Wait a minute. What are you guys doing here?”

                “Well, Toby called us this morning,” Caleb explained. “We got on a plane and rushed over.”

                She frowned. “You should be at homecoming!”

                “We are at homecoming,” Emily smiled. “What better way to spend in than in warm weather with our two best friends, who we insanely missed?”

                Toby approached the crowd slowly. “It’s only been about two weeks.”

                “TOBY!” Emily, Aria, Alison and Hanna all shrieked his name loudly and just about tackled him into a huge hug. He stumbled back histrionically as they did this and the music started to play a little louder. The singer grabbed the mic and began to softly hum the words to some slow song.

                “Well,” Ezra said. “Are we dancing or what?”

                Emily, Aria, Alison and Hanna did a once over of Spencer. “She’s not dancing at her prom in a sundress,” Aria said sternly.

                Spencer laughed. “Well, what am I supposed to wear then? Nothing?”

                “Do you really think we came unprepared?” Hanna put her hands on her hips, shaking her head. Spencer shrugged her shoulders and grinned as Emily took her by a path down through the woods, until they were out of sight.

                Alison stood in the clearing. Her eyes firmly on Toby. “Hey Caleb, Ezra…can you guys go make sure the sound system is turned up all the way?”

                Caleb laughed. “I’m pretty sure that’s as loud as it gets, Ali.”

                “No, it’s not,” she argued. “Please go check!”

                Ezra and Caleb both sighed and left, leaving Alison and Toby in the clearing. She crossed her arms over her chest and just stared at him. “What’s the look for?” he asked after a long, uncomfortable moment.

                She rolled her eyes dramatically, unable to hide her smirk. “You know exactly what it’s for.”

                Toby averted his gaze and crossed his arms over his chest. “Maybe I should check on Ezra and Caleb. Make sure the sound system’s working…”

                Alison’s smirk turned into a look of amusement. “Don’t change the subject, Toby Cavanaugh!” Her blue eyes glimmered as she stared at him, as if they were trying to see right through him. Toby swallowed thickly. “You’re in love with Spencer!”

                His eyes went wide and he quickly hid it with a look of amused shock. “What? No, of course not! Didn’t Spencer tell you the whole reality show thing was for money to get a car….?”

                She responded quickly, her blonde hair whipping at her face as she swiftly turned her head to give him a death look. “I’ve seen the way you look at her. You kissed her, Toby and it’s so obvious that you’re freaking gazing at her constantly with that intense look of yours. I mean, if you were really faking it, you’d totally have that ‘Hey, it’s Tuesday” look on your face because, no offense, but you suck at lying. It’s believable because you actually love her, don’t you?”

                Toby, temporarily caught up in her babbling, took a moment to respond. He hadn’t expected anyone to straight up ask him that question. “NO!” he said instantly, but under the intensity of her stare, he broke down. “You can’t tell Spencer, Alison.”

                Alison’s glare turned to a wide. “Told you that you suck at lying.” Her voice was teasing and Toby couldn’t help but chuckle. “Well, why don’t you tell her?”
                He sighed deeply. “It’s not that easy.”

                She watched him curiously and smiled. “Do you want to spend the rest of your life wondering what could have been? You can do it, Toby. You don’t have to say it straight out, or at all. Just think about it. Maybe she’s closer to loving you than you think.”