Out of Hand

I would literally rather be anywhere else but here. Absolutely anywhere. And yes, yes I was including Jesse's eight grade poetry recital where he wrote a powerful sonnet about the merits of The Breakfast Club. The poem wasn't as bad as the film in my opinion but it was pretty close.

I had realised about an hour into sitting in the corner of a party and silently judging the crowd that Jesse was the common denominator. I really had to ditch that kid.

Had he not have been my best friend I never would have been persuaded into going to Aubrey Posen's party. One because she was a stuck up bitch and acting civil was about as much fun as shitting in your hands and clapping. And two because watching Jesse fawn over her and attempt to 'woo' her (his words) was more awkward than the aforementioned poem, especially after it became apparent it was actually about convincing the English teacher he was mature enough to date her.

New friends were definitely a good idea. Or no friends at all? Definitely the latter.

"It was hitting the hour two mark that really screwed me over however because apparently senior high school parties just have to include spin the bottle."

Super!

That was my cue to leave - my cue to slip out within the madness and disappear while no one had really paid much attention to my presence in the first place. Except I apparently had not been as invisible as I thought because a flurry of red hair and smiles found me sat down within the exact circle I had being purposely avoiding since birth.

Why hadn't I told Jesse to shove it? Or punched him? Why wasn't I punching him now as he gave me an elated thumbs up and dreamily stared at Aubrey? Why was I getting a thumbs up? I turned my head and almost scoffed. Chloe Beale. This was just getting better and better. Why couldn't Jesse seem to understand that when I said Beale annoyed me it did not mean belligerent sexual tension? He really needed to stop watching so many films, it's not like anyone was turning up to his movie club anyway.

I didn't hate Chloe. I just couldn't deal with all of the cheeriness, and my hate for Aubrey may have been partially reflected onto her best friend. But only a little. I supposed that the redhead could have been the nicest person alive but I was never going to find out because maybe, on the first day of school, Aubrey had shoved me out of the way as I attempted to talk to the nervous blue eyed beauty, or something along those lines. Maybe.

"Beca, right?" A familiar voice sounded beside my ear and I felt myself flinch at the proximity, and yet it didn't feel like it was for the same reason as it usually was. I didn't dare turn her head, simply nodding a yes.

"And you're the girl who dragged me into this ridiculous game" A small chuckle echoed through my mind, pleading for me to memorise each vibration, each wave of sound.

"That's actually my middle name, first name's Chloe" She deadpanned and the, "I know" slipped out of my mouth before I could even begin to censor my thoughts.

"Good, I like the person who's world I'm rocking to be able to tell the story properly – names and all" My turn to chuckle, a little more mockingly than the pure, unadulterated musicality of her own.

"Who says it'll land on me?" I questioned, still not looking her way.

"I take pride in the fact that you didn't question my world rocking skills" I shrugged indifferently.

"Figured I'd save your ego just this once, in return for you not scolding me when I inevitably mock Aubrey beneath my breath" I could feel her eyes darting over each inch of my face with interest.

"You'll have no world to rock if you burn holes in my brain with the intensity of that gaze, Red" I felt her arm tense before it relaxed completely. Since when was her arm touching mine? How had she gotten so close without my radar going crazy? Why didn't I want to move away?

"Red" She murmured and I finally allowed myself a quick glance. She was staring at her palms and I flung my head back around as she lifted her gaze again. "You called me that the first day we met" I turned round. She remembered. Wait, what? She remembered?

"You-"

"Alright everyone, spin the bottle time!" Aubrey cut in.

"Typical" I whispered, hearing my words echo in Chloe's hand as she gently rested it on my thigh for one, two, three, four, five – this was getting out of hand – six seconds. Thank God. I could still feel my thigh burning as the douche bag with blonde hair and a misplaced sense of entitlement went for the bottle. Let's call him… You know what 'Douche' is good enough. 'Douche' the overly friendly footballer span the bottle and grinned as it landed on an equally elated brunette that I actually knew the name of – Stacie Conrad. I didn't hate her as much as the others, maybe because she would inevitably have sex with 'Douche' and then ignore him for a few weeks while he followed her around like a puppy. She was good for them. It was good for them – getting knocked down a few pegs.

She was also hot and sometimes it's just harder to hate hot people.

Oh, and the final point for my budding adoration of Stacie Conrad – it was abhorrently obvious that Aubrey had a gargantuan crush on her. Because well, she dated 'Douche' a few years back and was very intent that she hated his guts but she still flinched when tongue was introduced to the mix. Ah, the wonders of spending years in the shadows.

"I see three people are now aware of the attraction Bree has but refuses to acknowledge" Chloe whispered against the shell of my ear, gaining only a nod of my head in response because how on earth was I supposed to create a coherent response with a scent so distinctly Her running along my skin. Why did Jesse have to be right? Why did he have to drag me to this stupid party so that I could reignite my dormant adoration for blue eyed redheads who smells like fruit and happiness and God what was wrong with me?!

The game continued on with a bunch of people I didn't know, and didn't care to, polishing each other's mouths as I did everything in my power to not focus on Chloe's breathing beside me.

I was preparing my escape when it happened.

I was so close to excusing myself to the bathroom and going home to mix whatever songs existed that had absolutely no mention of love, or lust, or slight likeness. And to possibly drown my sorrows in juice pouches because Jesse was also right when he said they were delicious at any age.

"Chloe, your turn" The words that halted my escape plan. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. She had the nerve to wink at me before she span it, and maybe my heart leapt in my chest a little bit. Maybe. And maybe I stopped breathing a little as it scraped against the carpet twisting in mimicry of my stomach. Maybe. Honestly though even as all of it happened I hadn't actually expected the bottle to land on me. I was firm in my belief that it would land on someone like Tom, who would kiss her sloppily but date her anyway because he was all charm, and smirks, and penis. Oh how wrong I was! It did in fact land on me and there that wink was again but somehow I'd actually regained some semblance of wit.

"Seriously Red" She bit her lip. Oh fuck. What was I saying? "You totally rigged th-"I definitely couldn't remember what I was saying. I don't actually think I could remember anything the moment her lips touched mine. I couldn't say that I'd ever imagined kissing Chloe Beale at a party with about forty people watching (half of them hormonal teenage boys who kept catcalling) but it definitely happened. She definitely smiled as I opened my mouth for her. Her tongue definitely drew lazy patterns on the roof of my mouth, or maybe they were less patterns and more the signing of her name so that everyone would know she'd been there. They certainly would anyway because there was no way the entire school wouldn't hear about this but there was something territorial in the way she danced around my lips. Although, in retrospect, I couldn't exactly question her motives since it was me that caught her lips between my teeth and swallowed her gasp. It was also me that ran my fingertips just below the hem of her shirt so that I could feel her skin pimple with my every move.

I don't like to think what would have happened had Posen not coughed because it was quickly becoming an afternoon special that I wasn't getting paid for.

It was Chloe's desperate pants against my lips that brought me back to reality though. The reality in which she was red faced, with her eyes screwed together so tightly she looked like she was about to pass out, and the shocked and slightly aroused looks from the other people in the room as they stared at us not daring to speak. It was also the reality in which the time had moved on a whole three minutes and the one where Jesse looked smug. Most importantly it was the reality in which my heart was hammering both because her hands were still running along my jaw and because how could I be so stupid?

Her hands were gone from my face a moment later because my whole body was gone from the party – every protest shouted at my retreating figure falling upon deaf ears.

When I said that I would literally rather be anywhere else than that party – I lied. I would rather be anywhere else than at school the next day as everyone gawked but didn't quite gather the courage to say anything because I was still Beca Mitchell and the last guy that said something still had to go to checkups about his nasal reconstruction.

I almost thought I'd get away with it until the football team strolled through the doors, late as always, and grinned at me like I was a winning lottery ticket. This was obviously going to end tremendously well for me and I was going to be made a better person because of it. Ha.

"Hey, Mitchell!"

"Thomas" I'm well aware he hates the name but I find myself saying it anyway because I'm pretty sure I already know where this is going and I might as well antagonise him from the beginning. Except once again I've miscalculated because it certainly doesn't go as expected.

"I'll let that one slide, Rebeca" I almost smile at him. "Only because you and Beale kissing will forever be my happy place" I almost punch him. "Except you probably won't run away in my head because that was a pretty dick move, and also because you can't do the do if you're not even there" His friends laugh and again I almost punch him. But I don't. I don't because he's right so you just nod.

"It was a dick move" I concede and something in his eyes softens as he replies.

"She's at her locker" He states plainly before walking away. Maybe I'll actually bother to learn his last name. Or not. I'll see. Not right now though because I'm far too busy questioning my life choices as I walk towards Chloe's locker. I shouldn't really know which direction it's in. I also shouldn't know the exact one it is. But the moment I need to get there I realise that you do. I know a lot of things about the redhead that I shouldn't and I'd never really thought about it until I couldn't think of anything else.

She stands out amongst the sea of blonde and brunette, partially because her hair is so vibrant and partially because she has a frown on her face and I can't immediately think of a time I've seen one on her before.

"Chloe" I think she must have been on the verge of getting whiplash with the speed she turns around but despite the urgency in her movements she schools her features to indifference before she sets her gaze upon me.

"Beca" She returns bluntly and I sigh. Running my fingers through my hair doesn't work like it usually does to calm my nerves because all I can think about is how much nicer hers felt tangled in its depths.

"Look I… I don't really know what to say because I didn't prepare anything, and I'm not very good at words even when you're not making me forget every piece of vocabulary in the English language. But I shouldn't have run out on you like that. It's just that apparently I have subconsciously been committing every detail about you to memory since I met you, and then you kissed me and it all kind of exploded on me. Plus I was, like, three seconds away from dragging you into a, probably meticulously cleaned, room and having my way with you. It was just… a lot to take in. Essentially I panicked because-"

"You spent every moment wondering what it would have been like if Aubrey hadn't have interrupted us" The words seem as though she is just helpfully adding in the part of the sentence I couldn't quite conjure. Except, the way they fell from her mouth makes me think that I certainly wasn't alone in this and that maybe I wasn't the only one who held a grudge against a girl because she invited a new girl to play dress up with her.

"Pretty much"

"You aren't that bad with words" Her brightness is returning and I let a small smile slip onto my face which results in a side splitting grin on her behalf. I want to kiss her. But we're in a school hallway and I'm not quite sure after only one try you guys have the whole 'don't have sex in public places with people watching' thing down so I timidly entwine our fingers instead.

"Would you like to go for coffee sometime?" The squeeze to my hand in response is enough of an answer to make me smile again. The kiss to my cheek however, is enough to keep the smile on my face as she drags me towards class.

A/N - As always sorry for any mistakes. Also, Pitch Perfect 2 - ahhhhhhhhh!