It's late in the afternoon when Beca finally has the time to collapse on her bed and close her eyes for more than five minutes. Well, she thinks she does. But then there's a knock on her door and without waiting for an answer, someone barges into the room and hops on the bed, nuzzling into Beca's side. Of course she has to open her eyes to see her little girl looking up at her with big brown eyes.
"Hey, monkey. How was school?"
She runs her fingers through the girl's silky dark hair.
"It was okay."
"Good."
Knowing she won't be getting anything else out of her six year old tonight, she decides not to ask any more questions.
"How was work, mom?"
She raises her eyebrows, surprised by her daughter's question.
"It was good. But exhausting. My back kind of hurts."
The tiny brunette rolls her eyes and flashes a knowing smile.
"Okay, turn around mom."
Beca rolls on her stomach and tries to relax as her back is met with tiny fists. She almost falls asleep when the bed shifts a bit and the pressure on her back gets much stronger.
"Emily, be careful not to fall, okay?"
"I won't f-" she lets out a tiny shriek and falls on her behind on the bed.
Both girls fall into a fit of giggles and Beca wipes at her tears, replaying the fall in her head over and over again.
"You'll master the art of walking on my back one day. C'mon, let's get you to bed. It's late."
She gets up and pulls her daughter off the bed, carrying her over her shoulder. She changes her into pajamas and tucks her in, kissing her goodnight before turning the lights off.
"Good night, monkey."
"Night, mommy."
It's close to ten o'clock when her phone vibrates on the nightstand. She puts down the book she was reading and looks at the screen. Unknown. Frowning, she answers it.
"Hello?"
"Beca! It's me, Aubrey. Aubrey Posen. Your best friend."
She can almost smell the alcohol from the other side of the conversation.
"Aubrey, what's going on?"
"Er… I might be a little bit drunk right noww.." She slurs.
"No kidding? Where's your phone, Aubrey?"
"I'm not sure. I think it got stolen. Can you come?"
"Excuse me? Can I come where?"
"Can you come get me? I can't find my car."
She sighs.
"Aubrey, where are you?"
"Rouge."
"Rouge? The strip club? What are you doing in a strip club?"
"Having fun, duh! Come quick."
Beca rolls her eyes at her best friend's enthusiasm.
"Stay put. I'll be right there."
She hangs up and grabs her jacket and her car keys. She checks on Emily before leaving the apartment. She walks down the hall and stops, knocking on a door. She hears music coming from inside and hopes they're not having a party. The door opens shortly after.
"Beca! What's up, shorty?" A blonde woman smiles brightly at her.
"Amy. Could you keep an eye out for Emily tonight? Something just came up and I have to run. She's asleep so every half an hour would be alright? I shouldn't take long."
The taller woman nodded her head and pulled Beca in for a bone crushing hug.
"Anything for you, captain smalls. Emily's safe with me." She winks after releasing her.
Beca flashes her a grateful smile and hurries outside.
After twenty minutes, she turns into Raymer street. She parks her car a few feet away from the club and makes her way towards the entrance. She rolls her eyes when she sees Aubrey's car parked on the other side of the street. Her eyes scan the street for any sign of the tall blonde but everything is empty. She pulls her ID out of her purse and shows it to the big man at the door. She walks in and the strong smell of alcohol makes her want to throw up. The club is packed. She still doesn't see Aubrey, so she walks to the bar and orders a rum coke. She almost spills her drink when two arms wrap around her waist and a face is pressed hard against her back.
"Beca! You're here!"
The blonde kisses her cheek and sits next to her, supporting her head with her hands. Beca is taken aback by the smell coming from her best friend's mouth.
"Dude, how much have you drunk?"
"Enough to be drunk, haha. Not much. Just a few shots of tequila, a cranberry vodka and two beers."
"Aubrey! That is a lot of alcohol! What is going on with you!?"
The blonde leans back as her smile quickly fades. She stares at Beca for at least two minutes before turning away.
"Nothing. Let's go home."
"Aubrey. Is something wrong? Talk to me."
The blonde's eyes meet Beca's again, and this time they're filled with tears.
"Ben left."
Beca frowns at the short statement, not quite satisfied.
"What do you mean?"
It's Aubrey's turn to frown. Beca can see anger building up in the blonde, the way she squints her eyes and presses her lips into a tight pout.
"He left me, okay? He left, Beca! He packed his things and drove off! He left me alone!"
Beca is quick to take her hand and drag her into the bathroom. She pushes her into a stall and lock the door behind them. When she turns around, the blonde is sitting on the toilet seat with her head in her hands. The brunette squats and looks up at Aubrey, pulling her hands away from her face.
"Aubrey. Baby, look at me. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry, I didn't know."
The blonde nods her head and looks down with a sad smile.
"He's an ass. You don't deserve him. You can do so much better, Bree. I know you can. You don't need him."
"I might not… But someone else might."
Beca frowns at that. What does she mean? Who might need the man who broke her best friend's heart? And why?
She sees Aubrey looking down at her thighs, her eyes landing on her own stomach. Before Beca could process what's happening, the blonde is quick to fall from the seat, lifting it up and throwing up into the toilet. Beca holds her hair and strokes her back. When the girl is done and still leaning on the seat, Beca slowly moves her hand to rest on the blonde's stomach.
"Aubrey…"
Her best friend lets out a defeated sigh and falls back into Beca's embrace. They stay there, on the cold, dirty floor of a local strip club, Beca holding Aubrey as she cries into her shoulder, for another fifteen minutes. The brunette is the first to speak.
"Everything will be okay, Bree. You've got me. I'll help you get through this."
The taller girl lifts her head and Beca is glad when she receives a small smile and a nod. She helps Aubrey up.
"Come on, let's go home."
They step out of the stall only to be met by someone who's obviously been standing outside, listening to them. A woman. Aubrey notices her piercing blue eyes that are holding unshed tears and her long, ginger looking hair that's falling down on her shoulders. Beca notices what she's wearing. A thong and a bra. They just ran into a stripper.
The stand still, staring at each other. The stripper is first to break the silence.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I just wanted to go pee and then I heard…"
"It's okay." Aubrey cut her off.
Beca looks at her with a confused look.
"I'm sorry you had to hear that." The blonde continues.
The woman's eyes widen, if it's possible, and she's suddenly hugging her.
"I'm sorry that pig left you. Your friend's right. You can do better."
Aubrey smiles at the stranger, not even slightly taken aback by her state of undress. She knows women are supposed to stick together. And if this woman isn't judging her, then Aubrey is in no place to be judging her.
"I'm Iris." She offers both girls a hand and smiles politely.
"Aubrey."
"Beca."
"Nice meeting you. I really need to pee now."
The two girls step aside to let her in and before the woman closes the door, she looks at them.
"Hey, um… I know this is kind of weird but, would you guys maybe like to grab some coffee with me or something?"
Beca is ready to politely decline the offer, but Aubrey beats her to it.
"We would be glad to. Here's my number."
The blonde pulls out a card from her purse and gives it to the stripper. Both girls watch her put the card in her bra.
"Aubrey, I thought you lost your phone?" The brunette looks up suspiciously.
"What? It's right here." She points at the phone in her purse.
"Then who's… Never mind. Well, Iris, it was nice to meet you but we've got to go now." Beca says and smiles before pulling Aubrey towards the exit by her hand.
"Bye! I'll call you!"