Marisol Nichols as Kelsey Fitzgerald (Alison and Eric's mother)

Grab a snack, sit back and enjoy this chapter

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Alison's P.O.V

I woke up abruptly, wiping the beads of sweat off my forehead. It was a nightmare. Just a nightmare. I kept reminding myself but sometimes dreams felt so real. I had dreamt of meeting Eric. Instead of his charming face, I saw a face full of scars and blood. It was the same as how I remembered it to be when the paramedics took his body.

Shaking away the horrifying image, I got up and checked the time on my alarm clock which I had accidentally dropped beside my bed. It read half past five.

All the sleepiness was gone and I knew I wasn't going to fall asleep anytime soon so I headed for a shower. A hot bath was the best remedy to get my mind off of things.

I hopped out of the bathroom, drying my hair with the pink floral towel my mom gave me. My mom. I hope she's alright wherever she is. I always knew she loved Eric more but never knew that she'd leave me after Eric left us.

I checked the time on my phone and it was past eight thirty. How the hell did time pass by so fast? I checked my alarm clock again and it still read half past five. I made a mental note to get new batteries. Grabbing a white hoodie, I ran downstairs to check on my dad and uncle before leaving for school, which had already started. Instead of my dad, I found my uncle laying on the sofa. Doesn't this man have a job to get to?
"Hey Alison. How's...wait why aren't you at school yet?" My uncle asked, noticing my presence.

"Thank you for noticing. I am late so I better get going. You know...you can wake me up when I get late okay?" I said. My uncle threw his arms up in exasperation.

"Hey...don't blame me. I heard the front door open so I thought you'd already left."

"Yeah, whatever. Gotta go bye." I waved and left, hoping to get to school before second period started.

School went by really slow. It's like when you want time to fly, it slows down and when you want time to slow down, it flies by.
Only Tris came to school today. Apparently, Walter didn't come because he wasn't feeling well and he had to watch over Jennith. The rest of my crew? Well... I don't know.

I got home around four pm which meant that I had only two hours to get ready for the Gala. The blue silk dress lay on my bed, neatly. I clearly remembered hiding it beneath my bed.

All of a sudden, my dad appeared in the doorway, wearing his usual 100 dollar smile. I smiled back, relieved that he was back home and not running errands again.

"Hey dad. Welcome back home." My dad smiled back.

"Hey..I wasn't gone that long." My dad plopped beside me on the bed, gently playing with the silk.

"Yeah...You're errands took more than a day to complete." I remarked. I heard my dad sigh.

"It was something important. My boss asked me to do it so I couldn't say no. Now enough about me, what about you?"

I turned towards him. "What about me?"

"Well... I found this dress lying in a box under your bed so I decided to iron it and lay it down on your bed. Are you going to that Gala?"

I groaned. "Yes dad, but don't you dare try to stop me. I know you hate that Gala because it is hosted by your ex-best friend."

My dad chuckled. "It's okay. You need to go. It's about time you start focusing on your life rather than sticking your nose in your books all day." I laughed at that.

"Oh and that reminds me. Are you going with your friends?"

I shook my head. "Remember that no friends policy that Mr. White made?" I reminded him.

"In my opinion, I think that's stupid. If you guys did nothing wrong then why hide from the police like some scared cats." I shrugged.

That's the thing, dad. We may have not killed her but we did play a part in it. I didn't bother responding. My dad just sat there for a few seconds then left.

The dress was so pretty. The silk felt so clean and pure under my touch. I went to the bathroom to clean up before getting into the dress.

The same clean and pure dress weighed more than a ton. I could barely walk in it. I wonder where Eric got this dress from.

Lifting my feet one by one, I walked towards the mirror and stared at my reflection. I could see Eric's eyes staring back at me. His nose and cheeks exactly like mine. I still couldn't register the fact that I was about to meet my brother who faked his own death. What if he's actually dead? What if this is someone else playing a prank on me?

I shook my head, dismissing these negative thoughts. I had to be strong and find out for myself.

I lifted my dress as I walked down the stairs. I saw my uncle and dad in the kitchen but it seemed like they were arguing. I took off my heels and tiptoed towards the kitchen to get a better look.

"What am I supposed to do? He's back." My dad said.

"Stop panicking, I'm sure he doesn't know that it was you. Besides, you weren't the only one in this mess. Why aren't the others helping you?" My uncle replied.

Who could they be talking about?

"Because the others don't know yet. I haven't told them." I saw my dad pace back and forth. My uncle went towards him and put his hand on my dad's shoulder.

"You have to tell them, sooner rather than later. At least just tell Henry. He is in the police force. He may be able to help you."

I thought about Henry. Which Henry is my uncle talking about. As far as I know, the only Henry that works in the police force is Kennedy's father, Mr. White. But, if they really need someone in the police force, that must mean that my dad did something illegal.

"I will.." I entered the room, cutting my dad in mid-sentence.

"Who may be able to help whom?" I asked. I felt the color drain out of my father's face as he nervously laughed.

"Oh, I was talking about...my friend. He may be able to help me with...the problem with the pipes. They need repairing." My dad let out a nervous laugh again.

Liar. My eyes fell on the clock which read quarter to six. I decided to confront my dad later, when I had some real information.

"Okay. I need to get going. Can one of you guys drop me off at the Gala?" My uncle nodded, grabbing his keys.

"Let's go."

I followed him to the car and sat down in the passenger seat. My uncle started the car as it roared back to life.

"So is it near the old park?" My uncle asked, taking the car out of the driveway.

"No, this time it's being held in Willow Street." As soon as I said that, my uncle turned off the engine.

"There's no way your going there." I stared at him in disbelief.

"Umm...why?" I asked.

"Because haven't you heard of the place. It's known for all sorts of crimes like drug dealing and robbery. The crime rate increased by 35% since last year."

"Uncle, I'm going to a party. It will be perfectly safe. I'm sure I won't get robbed or kidnapped at a party full of people." My uncle didn't seem convinced.

"Come on. I'm gonna be late." My uncle started the engine again.

"Okay but promise to come back by 10 o'clock and call us at 8 pm to confirm that you are safe. If you don't call us, we are filing for a police report."

I nodded, silently laughing at my paranoid uncle. Don't worry uncle. I'm just going to a party. Not to meet my dead-not-so-dead brother.

The party was pretty boring at first. I got a text from unknown saying that at 7pm, a guard will escort me to a building where I will meet Eric. That made me very anxious and excited.

I grabbed a fruit punch and went to a corner, silently sipping on the juice sent from heaven. What? I love fruit punch. I felt a tap on my shoulder. Thinking, it was the guard, I eagerly spun around, only to come face to face with Nathaniel. The new kid from school.

"Hey Alison. What are you doing here?" Nathaniel asked.

"I'm doing the same thing you're doing. I'm partying." Nathaniel was dancing to some song.

"Then come on to the dance floor. Why are standing here, alone?" I shook my head.

"It's okay. You go ahe..." I was interrupted by Nathaniel as he pulled me away.

"No excuses." He said. I checked the time on my watch and there were only five minutes to 7pm. I let myself be pulled away to the dance floor.

I was moving my arms here and there while thinking of excuses to leave the dance floor and look for the guard.

I felt a lightning bulb go on in my brain. Finally, I had thought of the perfect excuse. Bathroom. No one can stop someone from going to the bathroom.

"I need to go to the bathroom." I yelled over the blaring music.

"WHAT?" Nathaniel yelled, motioning me to come nearer so that he can hear me better. I repeated myself.

"Should I walk you there?" Ugh...seriously? I don't need to be walked to the bathroom. Why is it so hard to get away from this guy.

"No, I'm fine." He nodded and waved me goodbye. Finally. Now that I was free, I could look for the guard. Just then, I saw a man in a black suit searching for someone in the crowd of people. That's probably him. So, I went nearer and asked him if he was looking for someone.

He nodded yes and as soon as he saw my face clearly he said, "You're Alison?"

I nodded.

"Follow me." As soon as he said that, my heart raced. I was actually going to meet my brother. Oh my God! I wasn't just freaking out, I was hyperventilating.

I know this was risky. Following a random guard into what looked like an abandoned building. This could probably be a death trap but the old me was in there somewhere. The fearless, daredevil Alison Fitzgerald was in there somewhere and she was the one who had the courage to follow that guard.

"Are you alright, Ms. Fitz." The guard asked in his deep australian accent , probably noticing my nervous face.

"I'm just nervous." I said then regretted it. What if he doesn't know about Eric?

"I'm not surprised. I mean, you're about to meet your brother who you thought was murdered a year ago." I felt myself release a breath of relief.

"So how do you know Eric?" I asked. I was still following the guard as he led me through twists and turns.

"Your brother stayed with me during the investigation." He replied.

"Investigation? You mean the investigation on Eric's murder?" The guard nodded. We didn't talk any further. At last, the guard opened a door and asked me to go in.

"Aren't you coming?" I asked, not wanting to be alone.

"You aren't alone." He replied. Huh? Did I say that out loud? The guard motioned me to go in to which I reluctantly agreed. As soon as I went in, the door closed and the lights came on. I blinked a few times, adjusting my eyes to the light.

In front me was an office chair. The chair turned around and there sat my brother. The same brother who I spent 17 years old my life with. There, in front of me, sat Eric. Eric Fitzgerald.

Before I could say anything, I heard the voice that I had missed so much.

"Allie, I've been expecting you."

But along with my brother, there was someone else. I saw that person step into the light. As soon as I saw the person's face clearly, I gasped.

"MOM?!" My mom smiled at me.

"Hey honey."

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Hey guyssss. Yes, I know I took more than a month to update. Maybe even two.

Sorry about that. From now on, I will try to update regularly.

-Love Amy