Entertainment

Ali & Charlotte May Have A Big 'PLL' Secret

by Kaitlin Reilly

The Liars are convinced that they know who killed Charlotte on Pretty Little Liars and their top suspect is none other than the former queen bee turned Rosewood High School teacher, Alison DiLaurentis. The Season 7 premiere had the Liars racing against the clock to find out who really killed their former tormentor, and after some serious sleuthing, the girls discovered that Alison was giving away the red sweater she wore to see Charlotte the night of her murder. When Emily went to confront Alison about Charlotte in the mental hospital, Alison immediately began begging for forgiveness — but was she really sorry about killing Charlotte? Alison never actually said she was the one who murdered Charlotte, but her behavior indicates she did something terrible — it just might not have been recently. Alison may have killed someone on PLL, but I'm not so sure it was Charlotte — in fact, I think Charlotte could have helped Alison commit the crime she's so sorry for.

If there's one thing that we should all have learned from six seasons of Pretty Little Liars, it's that the show really wants you to "wait for it" when it comes to answers. I'm not convinced we have the identity of Charlotte's murderer just yet, but the show may be unpacking something big by showing Alison's guilt. PLL showrunner I. Marlene King told E! Online that there will be a "very very very big Alison twist," and I think it will finally answer a question fans have had on their minds for years. What happened during the summer that Alison spent with Charlotte (then known as CeCe) in Cape May? I think Ali's guilt stems from a crime she committed with Charlotte that summer.

Cape May was a pivotal point in Charlotte and Alison's friendship. According to Charlotte, that summer was really "intense" for both of them, and for a while, we assumed it was because Alison had a pregnancy scare with a guy we only know as "Beach Hottie." Though it was implied that Beach Hottie was Detective Wilden, that was never confirmed and all we really know about Beach Hottie is that Alison thought he would kill her if he found out she was pregnant.

What if Beach Hottie did find out that Alison had a pregnancy scare? If he really was as volatile as Alison claimed he was in the Cape May flashback, perhaps he attacked Alison, which caused her to defend herself against him. Alison could have killed her mysterious Beach Hottie, and gone to Charlotte for help covering up the crime. It would certainly have made their summer together all the more intense, and would have bonded them for life. Why else would Alison be so willing to protect Charlotte and get her out of the country when she learned about Wilden's murder, well before Alison knew that she and Charlotte were related? Perhaps the reason is simple: she owed Charlotte a favor.

This could line up with the reason why Dr. Rollins pretended to be Wilden in order to torture Alison. Maybe the person Alison killed was a friend of Wilden's, or even a relative. After all, we know that Charlotte, Alison, and Wilden spent some time together at the vacation spot, so it's very possible that Wilden suspected Alison of the crime. Maybe Alison thought that A — who turned out to be Mona — was actually someone seeking revenge on her for the death of Beach Hottie, which is why she knew she couldn't come back to Rosewood until A was found.

Alison being responsible for someone's death would finally give us an answer to what she was really hiding all of those years ago. Hopefully, the Liars will figure out what Alison is really apologizing for, because if it isn't Charlotte's death, the wrong person is dangerously close to paying for this crime.

Images: Freeform (2)