Chloe moved through the crowd toward Beca, practically skipping with glee while successfully dodging beer filled plastic cups in outstretched hands, and ignoring flirtatious comments from nearly drunk aca-boys. Jesse saw her bounce by and pulled his phone out to record her. The action was unconsciously driven by the smile on Chloe's face. It was her the-world-revolves-around-Beca smile. The party was suddenly ruined for Jesse as the irritation washed over him.
Chloe slid her arm around Beca's waist as Beca turned to face her. The girls were too far away and the music too loud for Jesse to hear what Chloe said, but he could see the smile she flashed at Beca, their faces so close their noses brushed. Beca adjusted her body so that they were no longer facing, pressing her side into Chloe's front. Chloe's hand rubbed Beca's lower back as she also shifted, both of them now facing away from Jesse, their hips and shoulders touching, Chloe's hand gripping Beca's hip. Chloe put her mouth to Beca's ear and said something that made Beca shake her shoulders in laughter. With an angry jab, he pressed the red button to stop recording and walked away. He really couldn't stand Chloe Beale.
Jesse had consumed two more beers the next time he spotted Beca. She was standing with Emily near the makeshift bar. None of the other Bellas were around, specifically Chloe. Seizing the opportunity, he approached Beca and greeted her by wrapping his arm around her waist. If Chloe could do it then so could he. She appeared genuinely happy to see him, eager to tell him about Emily's Flashlight song, but after a minute she reached out to brush something from Emily's shoulder, effectively putting space between his arm and her back. He huffed in annoyance.
Beca gave him a sideways glance. He noticed the confusion in her eyes and decided he was overreacting. Perhaps the alcohol was affecting his ability to think reasonably. Turning to apologize he discovered that she had moved to a chair by the pool, away from the crowd. As he neared her new location Chloe stumbled over and plopped on the brunette's lap. Jesse stopped, feeling his anger increase. Freaking Chloe again.
"Hey, Becs!" Chloe ignored the inelegant noise Beca made as the unexpected plop knocked the air out of her body.
"You just broke my lap," Beca grumbled. She moved an arm around Chloe's hip and slung her other across the redhead's legs, clearly not truly annoyed.
"Hmm. I'm drunk." Chloe grinned as she rested her forehead against Beca's.
"Yes, you are." Beca smiled, not moving her forehead or her body away from Chloe. Jesse looked at the hand resting on Beca's ribs, much too close to his girlfriend's left breast. Beca must be drunk as well to allow such intimacy. Chloe stared into Beca's eyes, the corners of her mouth turning up in a small smile. For a brief moment, Jesse panicked that she would attempt to kiss Beca. He needed to interrupt. His step faltered as he realized Beca was returning Chloe's gaze. He unsuccessfully tried to remember Beca looking at him with the same longing.
Renewed anger made him take a photo with his phone in anticipation of speaking with Beca about Chloe's lack of respect for personal space. She would never believe that Chloe was excessive without proof. He chose to ignore Beca's willingness to touch Chloe. Beca's actions were clouded by alcohol and excusable. Chloe had no defense. She was clingy while drunk or sober. It was almost as if she were trying to steal Beca from him.
"I want to get in the pool," Chloe announced, interrupting his brooding. She squeezed Beca into a hug before pulling away and attempting to stand. Beca grabbed Chloe's hips with both hands and pulled her back to her lap, her chest pressed against Chloe's back.
"Not a good idea," Beca stated.
"Becs, stop." Chloe swatted Beca's hands. Jesse had never realized before how much the nickname Becs grated on his nerves.
Beca allowed Chloe to stand, causing the girl to release a loud "whoop" while throwing her arms up in a Paris Hilton imitation. Concern crossed Beca's face as she grabbed one of the arms and pulled it back down, gripping Chloe's hand.
"Swim with me." Chloe smiled as she tugged on Beca's hand, her face once again inches from Beca's.
"No, sweetie. It's time for you to go home." Beca used their laced fingers to pull Chloe's arm across her shoulders. Chloe instantly swung her other arm around Beca's neck and leaned against the shorter girls body. Beca yelled at Cynthia Rose to help as Chloe swayed, nearly causing them both to fall. Cynthia Rose immediately stepped away from Stacie and pulled an arm around her own shoulders, freeing Beca's neck from the scarf-like embrace. Together they walked a giggling and stumbling Chloe away from the party.
Jesse's stomach tightened and he knew it wasn't the alcohol making him queasy. Beca had called Chloe sweetie. Beca hated terms of endearment. That thought was immediately followed by the realization that Beca hadn't looked for him before she left. Her sole focus had been her embarrassingly drunk best friend.
Despite Beca's aversion to difficult conversations they were going to talk about tonight. He was tired of taking second place to Chloe. Something needed to change. He left the party soon after, full of anger, jealousy, and hatred for Chloe.
The next morning Jesse sent Beca a text asking to meet at the coffee shop. He was now regretting that invitation as they sat in awkward silence at the small outside table.
"Why are you being so weird?" Beca narrowed her eyes and studied Jesse's facial expression.
"Chloe was all over you last night." Jesse cringed at the irritation he heard in his own voice. He didn't want to fight but the bitterness he felt was overwhelming.
"That's just Chloe being Chloe." Beca shrugged.
"Chloe, yeah. Not you." She flinched at the sharpness in his tone, "You only show affectionate with her." He flipped his hand in the air to emphasize the word her.
"What? No." Beca scoffed, "Amy hugs me all the time. And you."
"That's just it! Amy hugs you. I hug you. We have to initiate it. You only hug Chloe. Plus, you move away every time I touch you!" Jesse was becoming annoyed with Beca's obtuse way of handling the conversation. It was unbelievable that she couldn't understand how abnormal her relationship with Chloe was.
"No, I don't." She creased her brows in denial.
"You do! But you lean into Chloe." Jesse took a breath and lowered his voice. Beca's eyes flicked away.
"Where is this going, Jesse? Are you jealous?" Annoyance showed in her raised voice.
"Should I be?" He snapped back. It bothered him that she denied any intimacy with Chloe but accused him of jealousy. Clearly, she thought there was something he should be jealous about. An admission that Chloe was too clingy and needed to back off would placate him for the moment but he knew she would never say it.
Beca shook her head. She spun the coffee cup in a circle with her hands, watching it move to avoid looking at her boyfriend. He assumed she was holding in her aggravation with him.
Jesse let out an exasperated sigh. "Look at this." He placed his phone in front of Beca and pushed play on the video he recorded. Beca watched with a blank expression and returned her gaze to the cup when it was over. He deleted the video and leaned back in his chair, confident that there was no way she could deny Chloe's disregard for personal boundaries. She also wouldn't be able to deny that she allowed Chloe to do so, but that wasn't what he was interested in hearing.
"That's a total creeper thing to do." She mumbled. Her face remained impassive, but she was fidgeting more, tapping her fingers against the cup.
"You had to see how it looks outside of you and Chloe's little world." He spoke softer as he saw the emotional walls growing around her. Yelling at her would only make her shut him out completely. Something he should have recognized before he started this conversation.
"To see what? That's just Chloe's personality." She looked at him now and he saw the wetness building in her eyes. It made him feel ashamed of himself for his anger. He had started this conversation believing that Chloe was a threat and Beca was naive. Beca's watery eyes contradicted that theory. Perhaps Chloe's desires were mutual and Beca just wasn't ready to admit it.
"Beca," He waited until she blinked away the tears, "You really don't know?" She ignored the opportunity to respond so he said, "Chloe is so in love with you. And I think you love her." He wasn't sure of that until he said it, but he could tell by the tension in her body that he had guessed correctly.
Tears dripped onto the lid of her cup. She angrily swiped at them with her hand and tilted her head to the sky in an attempt to hold the rest back.
"Please don't cry." He felt like a jerk and hoped to diffuse the situation. The tears caught him off guard. He expected yelling and more denials that ended with her stomping away in anger. Beca Mitchell, the self-proclaimed badass, had never been a crier before now.
"She would never love me." She snatched a napkin from the dispenser and wiped her face, then glared at her hands as though they betrayed her. "You're being jealous over nothing."
Her devastation made the last of his anger fade, replaced by a strong desire to make her feel better. Reaching across the table he touched her hand, relieved when she didn't pull away, "She totally does. It's so obvious."
"No. I'm not any different than Aubrey or Stacie or anyone." She made a fist around the napkin and jerked her hand as though she wanted to hit something.
"She doesn't sit on their laps and rub their noses. She doesn't wrap her arms around them every time they're close. She doesn't whisper in their ears. She glows whenever you are around her." Beca pinched her lips together. "You do love her, don't you?" His voice stayed gentle despite his heart pounding with fear. He knew the answer was going to hurt.
Her lips quivered. After several seconds he decided she wasn't going to answer and opened his mouth to speak again, but she interrupted with a quiet, "Yes."
He raised his eyebrows, surprised at her honesty.
"Jesse," She met his eyes as she ran the balled up napkin over her cheek, "I didn't mean for this to happen. You're such a great guy. I really wanted us to work."
He looked away from her, "I think you believe that" she sniffled but didn't respond so he continued, "but I was just a distraction, a way to deny your feelings." He ran his palms across the thighs of his jeans before picking up his cup to take a drink, "I didn't want it to be true, but I suspected it. I was never going to be your forever."
"Jesse, I..." Her voice shook, "I hate that I'm hurting you. I tried to not love her."
"I know." He felt his own tears burn his eyes.
"I'm so sorry." She said it with such sincerity that he believed her.
He nodded and stood to wrap her in a hug, pulling her face into his shoulder as he squatted by her chair. He held her while she sobbed into his shirt, forcing himself to hold back his own emotions. After she pulled away he gave her a sad smile and kissed her temple. "Talk to her. Don't let all this pain be for nothing."
He walked away, leaving her to wipe her eyes and take deep breaths until she was able to stand without shaking. At the corner he turned to watch her walk toward the Bella's house, her steps slow and her head hanging down. He used his phone to display the picture of Chloe sitting on Beca's lap. Looking at the photo for the first time without anger or jealousy he could see that he had been wrong last night. Chloe didn't deserve his hatred. She made Beca happy and for that he couldn't be mad.
He sent the picture to Beca with a text saying, "Another creeper shot. I hope this photo gives you the courage to talk to her. You two belong together."
He deleted the photo, wishing it was that simple to delete the pain from his heart.