I'm Sorry for Your Loss--Haria
Hanna Marin had vowed to never step foot in Rosewood again. After everything with Charlotte in high school, and then again five years later, she had sworn she would never return to this stupid town. Her friends understood that the town held too many bad memories, memories of being kidnapped and tortured, of killing Rollins, of everything. Her mother didn't understand, but had stopped questioning her and accepted that she had to be the one to visit her daughter. But there was only one person who knew the full reason she left town so quickly. That person, and in fact that reason, was Aria.
The last time Hanna had been in Rosewood had been for Aria's wedding. No matter how much time passed, she couldn’t get the memory out of her head.
“How do I look?” Aria asked, nervously running her hands over the bodice of her dress. Hanna stared at her best friend, who by all accounts looked gorgeous. She opened her mouth to say so, but the compliment didn’t come out.
“Don’t marry him,” she whispered instead. Aria’s smile dropped.
“What?”
“Please, Aria. Don’t do this. Don’t marry him,” Hanna begged. Aria’s eyes turned to ice.
“Excuse me?”
Instead of answering, Hanna stepped forward and kissed Aria. The brunette’s eyes widened in surprise. Then, without a word, she walked out the door.
After Aria walked out of the back room and said "I do", Hanna had left town and never looked back.
In the years since, she'd seen her friends often. They'd all realized that being away from each other was too painful to repeat. So she'd seen Aria, but only in the company of their friends. Never, ever alone. And certainly not in the exact same church where her friend had once broken her heart.
Hanna didn't get a chance to talk to Aria until the service was over. Or maybe she had, and she'd just avoided it. After all, she'd been sitting three seats away from the woman. Unable to come up with a reason to avoid her, Hanna steeled herself and took a deep breath, preparing to go over to her friend. To her surprise, Aria beat her to it.
"Hey. Can I sit?" the brunette asked quietly. Her eyes were rimmed red. Hanna nodded and scooted over to make room.
"I'm sorry for your loss," Hanna replied sincerely. And she was, terribly, terribly sorry. She never would have wished for Ezra to die from a heart attack at thirty-five, leaving behind a six month pregnant wife.
"I wasn't sure if you'd come," Aria said, her voice hoarse from crying. Hanna frowned. Did her friend truly think she was spiteful enough to skip something this important?
"I meant because I know how much you hate Rosewood," Aria clarified, noticing the look on Hanna's face. The blonde sighed.
"Of course I'm here, Ar. I’m always here for you," she said, even though she knew she hadn’t been there for Aria in years.
"I don't know what I'm going to do," Aria whispered. Hanna's eyebrows furrowed together.
"About what?" she asked. Aria sighed and wiped away tears.
"I can't go back to the apartment. I've been staying with my parents since it happened, but I have to get out. They keep treating me like I’m made out of glass, and I can’t stand it anymore. I just don't know where to go," she admitted. Hanna waited, sensing there was more to come.
"Spencer offered to let me come stay with her, but she has Toby and the twins to think about. She doesn't need me and a baby getting in the way."
"So come stay with me in New York. I have the space," Hanna offered. Aria shook her head quickly.
"I couldn't ask you for that," she said. Hanna reached out and took her friend's hand.
"You’re not asking, I’m offering. You're right, Spencer and Toby have the twins, Emily and Paige live in a shoebox, and you can't stay with your parents forever. I'm alone in an apartment big enough for five. Just think about," she said. Aria hesitated.
"I promise I won't make things weird. I know I haven't been the greatest friend the last few years..." Hanna trailed off, mistaking the reason for Aria’s hesitation.
"Neither have I," Aria cut her off.
"But that's in the past. You need a place to stay and I could use some company. Besides, this little one is going to be so spoiled by her Auntie Hanna, we might as well start now," she said, putting a hand on Aria's stomach. On cue, the baby kicked. Aria smiled for the first time since she came home to her husband's body.
"She hasn’t kicked since Ezra died. How can I say no when this one is saying yes?" she asked. Hanna smiled back.
"It's settled then. You'll come live with me,” Hanna said. Aria nodded.
“Han?” Aria started quietly.
“Yeah?”
“The things you said… What you did… You should know it wasn’t unreciprocated,” Aria whispered, admitting the truth aloud for the first time. Hanna’s heart clenched. How many times had she longed to hear those words? It had been all she wanted.
“But I can’t think about that right now,” Aria finished. Hanna nodded.
“Ar, I’d never ask you to. You’re my best friend, above everything else. I promise,” Hanna said. Aria offered her a small smile.
“Thank you. Will you come… Do you think you could help me pack?” she asked.
“Of course I will,” she said. Standing up, she offered Aria her hand. Without hesitation, Aria accepted.