Disclaimer: I do not own Pretty Little Liars or any of its characters

***8 Years Ago***

It was barely audible, but Paige allowed her curiosity to get the best of her. Slowly closing the heavy locker room door from behind her, the auburn girl slightly raised her eyebrows in hope as she began making her way toward the shower area. The brown eye beauty could have sworn it was the piping system acting up yet again, however refused to have that wavering feeling remain on her conscious later on. Gripping the bouquet of daffodils and gardenias tighter, Paige readjusted the dark leather anchor bracelet being used as ribbon around them before slightly biting her lower lip in anticipation of finding the brunette she's been longing for.

Taking in a deep breath, the auburn girl hoped the chlorine filled air would somehow miraculously calm her nerves; give her the courage she's been searching for in the past few weeks to finally come clean about her true intentions for a certain bronze beauty. Silently praying today would be the day she'd remember for years on end, Paige didn't quite realize how precise she was about to be.

It was the drop in her chest she felt first; followed instantly by the sudden feeling of her throat constricting. As much as she wanted to, the brown eye beauty couldn't move. She couldn't speak. She couldn't breathe. All she was able to do was watch. Watch in agony. Watch in humility. Watch in duplicity. Everything happened as though it was in slow motion, yet she couldn't do anything to stop it.

There had seemed to be some hesitancy at first; but that quickly changed. Paige watched as Emily broke the kiss briefly before lightly grazing the shorter woman's lips. Watching as the tanned beauty shifted her gaze from the girl's pink lips toward her cerulean eyes; Paige parted her lips in agony as the brunette leaned in to fully devour the girl's mouth yet again.

Clenching her jaw, the sound Paige had heard earlier suddenly became more apparent. It wasn't the drain. It was their moans. Outwardly emotionless, pools of tears began forming in the auburn girl's eyes; though she was too stubborn to allow them to fall. Instead of turning away, she watched. She watched as Emily dug her hands into the girl's dirty blonde hair before pinning her against the hard metal of lockers behind them. She watched as Emily hips held the blue eye beauty in place just as the brunette's hands began exploring the shorter woman's curves. She watched as Emily lightly grazed the hem of the lighter brunette's rose camisole before fully imbedding her hands under the paler woman's top.

Despite trying to use all her willpower to look away, Paige couldn't. It wasn't until Paige saw the blonde beauty's fingers trail downward toward the hem of the brunette's shorts did the auburn girl allow a tear to finally fall. Feeling her gut tighten, a shot of shivers instantly swept across her body. Taking in a shaky breath, Paige finally closed her eyes as she turned away. Trying to gain back some of her composure, the auburn girl looked up for some relief.

Finding herself somehow moving toward the exit, Paige couldn't help but look at the pair one last time through the full length mirror right by the door. Shifting her gaze away, the auburn girl then looked directly at herself before shakenly swallowing to hold back her pain.

She really was a joke to the universe wasn't she? With her out of date bob haircut and straight bangs; Emily Fields would never find a girl like her remotely attractive. Her mother's hand me downs that hid away her insecure teenage body definitely didn't help along with her black plastic Arabella glasses which were a size too big for the frame of her face.

Paige really did think she had a shot to be with Emily. She knew she didn't have the "right" looks, but she had the personality. The brown eye beauty was definitely a rarity among her friends. Paige found herself connecting with practically anyone. However, there were two ends of that spectrum. On one end she had Emily. They didn't have the typical friendship she had shared with everyone else. When she and Emily were together, it was as though everything made sense even though they were too young to even know what that meant. The two had the ability to just know what the other was thinking and be able to comfort the other without even asking. They were always in sync no matter if they were in the same room or complete opposite ends of the hallway. On the other end of the spectrum was Alison Dilaurentis, the girl who made her life a living hell for the last few months; the girl who had driven her to hate herself for being who she was. Alison wasn't just a bully. Bully was far too good of a word for what Alison was to Paige; the girl was a monster.

Throughout senior year of high school, Alison knew how Paige felt for Emily. The blue eye beauty knew what Paige felt for Emily before Paige even knew what she was feeling. But instead of helping her, Alison made Paige feel as though Emily would resent her; feel disgusted toward her. So Paige did what anyone would do her situation, she hid.

Forcefully masking every emotion she had for the brunette, Paige had figured maybe she could remain Emily's friend then nothing at all. Every time she felt like she was going to lean in to kiss the girl, Paige stopped herself before physically reprimanding herself for even thinking of touching the girl. Every time she felt elated when Emily asked for them to just hangout one on one, Paige looked at herself in the mirror before realizing a girl like Emily would never want her.

Paige always suppressed her hatred toward Alison for the sake of Emily, but the brunette knew of their history. What she didn't know, was the extent of that hatred. It wasn't until Paige confided in Emily one evening of how far Alison managed to push her to hate herself for being who she was did Emily really realize Paige's side of things; or so the auburn girl thought. Paige knew Alison was Emily's first love. She never understood it, but you never really have any control over the person you tend to fall for. So Paige did what every other friend would do. She listened and understood the turmoil the brunette had.

Yet before her stood the two ends of that spectrum; in each other arms. Glancing over at the pair once more, Paige pushed herself against the locker room door as she tossed the bouquet of flowers in the nearest black garbage bin and finally walked away.

***Present Day***

"Memories are a fickle little thing, aren't they?"

Easing her grip she currently sported on metal handrail, Paige lightly cleared her throat as the sound of a familiar voice broke her train of thought. Keeping her focus on the Olympic size swimming pool before her, the brown eye beauty didn't need to turn around to acknowledge the sudden appearance of her team member.

"I mean, during an exam, we hope to recall our past classes to secure our futures. Throughout a debate we have this confidence to elicit past circumstances to make a persuasive argument. Even during an evening out we somehow recall a past memory by just a mere taste…or smell" the voice continued as it came closer toward Paige. Feeling her comrade's presence now to her right, the auburn girl straightened her back as she continued listening without making eye contact.

"One of the most fascinating factors about memories is that they are easily triggered by practically anything. Like the smell of chlorine" the tall brunette stated before leaning her right arm against the handrail and readjusting her body to finally focus on Paige. "One day McCullers. I'm going to find out why you keep coming here and put yourself through this painful memory of yours".

Finally turning to acknowledge the hazel eye brunette, Paige responded. "Maybe, but that won't be today. What's going on? The only time I've ever seen you in this room was when you trying to get a sneak peek of the physical delights Nick had a few months back."

Letting out a laugh, Skyler couldn't disagree with the accusation made against her. Nodding her head in agreement, the beauty agreed. "I will not deny that. Director Adams is asking for us to meet in the conference hall ASAP. I think we're getting another assignment".

"Already?" Paige asked confused. "We literally just wrapped up the Hepner case an hour ago."

Putting her hands up in defeat, Sklyer began walking backwards toward the exit. "I don't make the rules, I just follow. The guys are on their way as we speak. But it looks like it's really important to him since he asked for us specifically".

Nodding her head in acknowledgement, Paige pushed herself off the railing and began following suit. "Well good thing we didn't leave grounds just yet".

"Tell that to the guys. I think they were about 40 minutes out of Scranton. And with the holiday weekend, I'm pretty positive they're going to be crankier then the Soup Nazi during lunch rush hour" Skylar stated as Paige laughed at how probable it was the brunette was in fact correct.

"Thank you for joining me this evening" the fair grey hair man began as he stood before the team. "I know, it was promised to you that you could take a week off without any disturbance since the last case took an unusual turn. However, you were personally requested to take charge of this particular case" he continued in a deep tone. "In front of you, you each will find a file with the incident details and the victim that is currently priority".

"Montgomery. Is she the daughter of a senator or representative?" Aiden asked as he opened the vanilla file in front of him.

"No. She is the daughter of a Professor at Hollis College and a teacher at Rosewood High School" Director Adams answered as he turned to flip on the projector.

"Rosewood High School? P- didn't you go there?" David asked as the rest of the team turned to face the auburn girl.

Feeling the gaze of her team members on her, Paige focused even harder on the file in front of her; she knew exactly who the missing victim was before even opening the file. Paige instantly felt the small blood vessels in her ears beat harder as her heart rate increased when it became more and more apparent she was about to have a blast from the past. Finally opening the folder, the auburn girl simply responded, "yes". Swallowing to help ease the sudden pressure in her throat, Paige knew if one of the girls were involved the other three were not far behind.

"And it says she's 26. Do you know Ms. Montgomery?" Dylan followed up as he focused on the file before him.

Arching an eyebrow as she finally looked up from the file, Paige looked at her team. "Yes, I did. Director, who exactly requested us? We normally don't focus our attention on a missing person's case" Paige asked as she looked at the sturdy older man in the eyes. The brown eye beauty knew exactly who requested her, but she needed to verify her assumptions rather than simply presume.

"Commander Fields, Officer McCullers" the middle aged man replied. Turning his attention back toward the front, Director Adams projected a picture of the Montgomery residence. A residence Paige was all too familiar with. "Aria Montgomery was taken while she was visiting her parents for her mother's 50th birthday two days ago". Flipping to the next picture of the family's living room after the incident took place, the well-built man continued. "The attacked happened after majority of the guests left for the evening. Given the fact that the doors were unlocked for the invitees, there is no evidence that was retrieved from the scene of who it could possibly be. There has been no direct contact from the kidnapper or demands at the moment. I will need the five of you to visit the Montgomery residence and begin your search from there".

"Sir, we've been highly trained with weaponry, hand to hand combat and by some of the top intelligence units out there. Why were we chosen to do a missing persons case?" Aiden asked confused.

"Because of this" the director stated as he clicked to the next picture. "I assume you all remember this symbol" the experienced man asked as he looked onto the unit. The team watched in shock as a simple blue triangle appeared before them. "It was spray painted on Ms. Montgomery's bedroom window."

"There's always more to the story" Dylan responded as he continued watching the picture.

"Do you think it's retaliation from the Caminiti Cartel?" Paige asked as she looked on in curiosity.

"By kidnapping a seemingly random girl from her mother's 50th birthday party?" Skylar asked. "I doubt it. But it does look like they had been planning the attack for some time given the fact that they knew when the party was, what time to attack and what to leave behind".

Shutting down the projector, Director Adams focused his attention back on the unit before him. "Whatever the case may be, I need you to start as soon as possible. Rosewood PD has been informed you are coming to take over the case. Espinoza will be your point person for all communication needed in Rosewood and Commander Mahoney will be you're commanding officer. If this is related to the Caminiti Cartel, you know it will extend far beyond Pennsylvania. On your command, we will oblige with any of the necessary tools and weaponry you may need. Any questions?"

Closing their folders, the unit replied as one. "No, sir" as they all stood up.

"Very well. Good luck to you all. Know this is a time sensitive matter. Be swift but diligent" the director stated before leaving the unit amongst themselves.

As the team gathered their belongings, Skylar looked to her left at the auburn girl. "So did you know Aria well?"

Paige knew the team was going to hound her with questions. High School wasn't her biggest achievement in life. If anything, she wanted to erase it from her history. But this was her team, it was her family. They knew basically everything about each other. She couldn't hide this from them, especially since the case revolved around one of her old classmates. "I didn't know her really well, but we did hang out with the same crowd. Aria was part of a clique back in High School. There were 4 girls in total." Paige responded as she looked to her team. Grabbing their attention she continued as she leaned against the conference room table. "The other three girls are Spencer Hastings, Hanna Marin and Emily Fields. Since Aria is missing, you can guarantee those girls are going to try to get involved to find her".

"Or they may be the reason why she's missing" David stated.

"No, never. Those girls love each more than anything" Paige quickly retorted as she pushed herself off the table. "I mean, I don't know their history past high school, but from what I remember those girls are practically family".

"You said Emily Fields before" Dylan realized. "In relation to Commander Fields?"

"Yes" Paige nodded. "She's his daughter".

"Are you the reason why he asked for us to be on this case?" Aiden asked as the group began making their way to the exit.

"I'm honestly not sure. I had lost contact with him once I left Rosewood" Paige answered truthfully.

"Maybe his daughter asked for you" Skylar replied.

Feeling a familiar tension in her stomach, Paige took in a deep breath to cover it. "I doubt it. The girls don't know about my whereabouts after high school. I left in the middle of senior year with no intention of going back there".

"Why?" Skylar asked as she opened the door to exit the large state office building.

Exiting along with her team, Paige knew the question was coming. "I wasn't exactly your typical popular high school teen. I definitely didn't look like one of those girls, but I was their friend; most of them anyway. I wanted to get out of high school as fast as possible. So I did".

"Uh huh" Skylar responded as she looked at Paige with a side glance. She knew the auburn girl was hiding something, but she didn't know what. With time she'd find out.

Closing her arched panel dark grey door from behind her, Paige discarded her olive green Filson messenger bag from around her as she placed on the Wilsonart Calcutta marble textured kitchen island before heading inside the kitchen. Not bothering to put on the lights, the auburn girl knew the illuminations coming through the floor to ceiling windows were enough to allow her to move around without worries. Opening the black wooden cabinet next to the fridge, Paige pulled out one of her whiskey glasses before walking over to her stainless steel side by side fridge and pulling out a few whiskey stones; placing them in her glass. After today's events, anyone would want a much needed drink. Walking toward the cabinet to the right of the stove, Paige pulled out a bottle Bulleit. Pouring a generous amount into her glass, the auburn closed back the bottle before walking over to the living room area.

Silence. With Paige's current occupation, having something as simple as quietness was just a scarcity. Combing back her long wavy highlighted auburn hair with her left hand, Paige finally took a sip of her whiskey neat. Slowly swallowing the liquid relaxer, the brown eye beauty licked her lips in satisfaction before placing the glass down on the nearest oasis end table.

One of the affirmative effects of being among perfect silence is not only can you hear yourself think, but you could hear practically anything; even the faint of breath of someone sitting a few feet away from you. Picking up one of the whiskey stones from her glass, Paige grazed it along her lips. Biting her bottom lip lightly, the auburn girl then tossed the stone in the air as she walked toward the center of the window before tossing the stone up once again.

But instead of catching it this time, the brown eye beauty did a midair 360 kick with it as it shot toward the intruders Corona beer bottle; ultimately shattering it in his hands. As the man sprang out of his seat, Paige used the opportunity to rush over to him and use the heel of her palm to strike him below the chin before grabbing the man's wrist on his right hand and applying pressure to bring him toward the ground.

The lack of resistance shown by the raven hair intruder, gave off the vibe he wasn't there to cause any harm; which ultimately allowed Paige loosen her grip. As she did, a certain familiarity began coming to play; yet Paige remained silent. Watching as the man slowly turn his head, Paige instantly got off him realizing it who it was.

"So besides the fact that you look like you could completely kick my ass, you really can actually kick my ass. With a pebble no less" the raven hair man stated as he slowly got to his feet.

Allowing a small smirk to dance across her lips, Paige couldn't hide the overwhelming feeling of content that surged throughout her body as finally made eye contact with the familiar face. "I won't deny that"

The moment a smile tugged at their lips, the two couldn't help but just engulf each other in an overdue hug. Paige would never refute missing the man before her. He was her rock in high school. He was the reason why she even made it through majority of her freshman and sophomore year. But she became selfish and cowardly; running from everything that ever meant anything to her.

"Geez, how long has it been?" Caleb asked as he broke the hug yet continued holding Paige's shoulders.

"8 years" Paige answered as she nodded her in agreement. Feeling a sudden wave of self-loathing take over, Paige broke contact with her old friend as made her way back into the kitchen.

Knowing full well how long it's been, Caleb nodded his head as he repeated the auburn girl. "8 years. And it's taken Aria to be kidnapped for me to actually see you".

"Caleb" Paige stated as she turned around to look him in the eyes before continuing back to the kitchen. Grabbing another cup from her cabinet, Paige grabbed a few more whiskey stones from the freezer before pouring a generous amount of whiskey into the glass.

"You didn't just walk away from her" the raven hair man simply responded as he looked down. "You walked away from all of us. You walked away from me"

Taking in a deep breath, Paige closed her eyes to compose herself. Letting it out, Paige made her way back toward the living room where she handed over the glass to her distressed friend before moving swiftly to the area where she shattered the Corona bottle. "I know" Paige began as she began cleaning up the mess she made earlier. "I acted as every other heartbroken 17 year old would act. But it's done. I can't change the past."

Caleb knew the sudden reappearance of the beauty's past was probably taking a toll on the auburn girl's conscious at that moment, so he decided to change the subject back to why he was there. "The girls don't know you're involved in the case just yet"

"No?" Paige asked as she finished cleaning and stood up to face her lean friend. "Well that's surprising" Paige continued as she walked to the kitchen to throw out the fragments of shattered glass.

Taking a sip of his whiskey, Caleb answered. "I'm pretty positive they'll find out in no time. They found out a special ops team was going to take over the case so Hanna asked me to infiltrate the system to find out who exactly will be handling the incident". Walking toward the seat he was in earlier, Caleb sat down as he continued. "Of course the girls were all together by time I got my findings so when I got to your file, I had to lie and say there wasn't a lot of information on you just yet"

"Because saying there's not a lot of information on someone dealing with their missing friend's case won't raise any red flags right?" Paige asked as she took a seat on the matching Orrin loveseat near Caleb. "But thank you. My team is one of the best teams out there. We're going to find Aria and bring her back.

"Do you guys have any leads?" Caleb asked.

"Not yet. We were only handed the case a few hours ago" Paige answered truthfully. "We're still reading up on all the facts we have but we're going to head over to Rosewood around noon to check out the scene for ourselves. We'll try and take it from there"

A comfortable silence fell upon the two. It began feeling as though they were back to being the same Paige and Caleb everyone knew. Swallowing the lump that currently formed in Caleb's throat, he needed to confide in his friend. "You should have seen Hanna. You should have seen the girls Paige" Caleb began as he took another sip of his drink. "I have never seen them like that. If anything happens-"

"Hey" Paige quietly said as she interrupted Caleb. Grabbing his forearm, she held on to her friend; searching his teary eyes before she continued. "We are going to find Aria okay? I promise you. We are going to bring her home"