Disclaimer: Characters don't belong to me. Sadly. Just having some fun.
A/N: A totally random idea I wrote down at work today. Comments appreciated. Coveted even.
"Chloe can you buzz me in?" The redhead frowned at the intercom for a half second before hitting the button.
"Did you forget your key?" There was a pause on the other end.
"No, I just-" a scuffle, "I have my hands full. Please?" Chloe smiled.
"Since you asked so nicely." She hit the button and heard the tinny echo of the entry buzz, then moved over to unlock the door. She headed back into the little kitchen to pull the casserole she'd been cooking out of the oven and set it atop the burners to cool. After a minute or so she heard a dull thump and the scratch of the door handle and moved back into the hallway. Beca had her back to her and was using her elbow to push the door closed. Chloe laughed and walked over. "What on earth did you-" Her sentence trailed off, ending abruptly in a high pitched squeak as Beca turned around.
In the petite brunette's arms, bundled in a thin blanket, was the tiniest ball of fluff that Chloe had ever seen. Eyes that were too big for the rest of it peered at her from beneath tan-coloured bangs and a small pink tongue flicked out to lick at a little black nose.
Beca barely had time to inhale before Chloe erupted into a flurry of motion. Her arms went out towards her and then flew back towards her body, hands covering her mouth as she squealed again. Her bright blue eyes were wide as they stared at Beca over her fingers and the brunette had the distinct impression that her mouth was moving without sound behind her hands. Beca's own expression was something caught squarely between anticipation and apprehension, and she watched Chloe carefully as the redhead stepped closer.
"Beca." She whispered, tone low and wondering as her fingers reached out to brush soft fur. "I sent you out for milk!" Beca smiled, sheepish, and gave a half shrug.
"This was way cuter than a milk carton." Carefully, she handed the puppy over into Chloe's eager hands and chuckled as the redhead made yet another high pitched noise. She cooed at the animal, making a host of comforting though entirely nonsensical sounds as she wandered into the sitting room and sat down on the little two-seater love chair. Beca dropped down beside her and watched as Chloe lifted back the blanket to get a better look at the puppy. It was about as small as she'd initially thought, black and tan in colour, and it was in possession of the largest ears Chloe had ever seen on a puppy. Its tail wagged so fast that they were both a little surprised it didn't propel itself right off her lap.
"You are just the cutest little..." She glanced over at Beca.
"Boy." She supplied with a smile and Chloe turned her attention back to the puppy.
"You are just the cutest little guy." She cooed, scratching him behind his ear enough to make his leg thump. Her hand shot out and gripped Beca's forearm. "Did you see that?!" Beca grinned at her.
"I do have eyes, Chlo." She teased, receiving a good natured swat for her efforts before her expression turned hesitant again. "Is this... Was it okay that I did this?" Chloe blinked at her.
"Are you seriously asking me if it's okay that you brought me home a puppy?" Beca scratched the back of her neck and Chloe saw it for the nervous tick that it was. And she fell silent, knowing there was something more here that she wasn't privy to yet.
"Well yeah," Beca began, "but I mean..." And then trailed off, twisting her lips as she tried to find the right words. "A puppy is a big deal, right? I don't mean like, how kids get a puppy once they prove they're responsible and stuff or how couples sometimes get one before they decide to have kids." She paused and Chloe could practically see the cogs in her brain whirring and sparking. "Not that I don't someday want... Kids, okay. Do you have *any* idea what I'm trying to say here or-" Chloe cut her off with a kiss.
"It's a step." She murmured against Beca's lips.
"Yes." Another kiss pressed to soft lips.
"A big step." And as loathe to move as she was, Beca gave a small nod.
"Right." She felt Chloe smile into the last kiss before pulling back.
"And you want to make sure it isn't too big a step for me. For us."
"Yes." She drew the word out, low and uncertain. Chloe was just smiling at her, a little dazedly, fondly. It made Beca's insides squirm, a not entirely unpleasant feeling.
"I'm pretty sure if your little legs can make it there, mine can too." Beca's mouth opened, jaw dropping and then closing with an audible pop.
"I just bought you a puppy. You really want to take a shot at my height, because I can take him back." Chloe laughed and leaned in again, stealing another kiss that was freely given. Below them the puppy wiggled on Chloe's lap and they broke away to look down at him. He was tugging at the edge of the blanket with his teeth, working himself backwards until his bottom was hanging in midair and Beca had to catch his back end with her hand.
"Oh my god," Chloe laughed, "you might have to. If we keep him I'm probably going to die from an overload of cute."
They spent a few moments just looking at him, petting him, alternating ends and brushing their hands together.
"What do you want to call him?" Beca asked after a short bout of silence. Chloe's brow furrowed as she mulled over the question.
"I think..." Chloe started to laugh again. "I think Jesse." Beca stared at her.
"Chloe, I'm not naming a dog after my ex-boyfriend!" Chloe made a face at the term but persisted.
"But Beca! Look at this face!" She scooped the puppy up and held him close to Beca. "Doesn't it just scream Jesse? He has the same puppy dog eyes!" The puppy let out a bark and licked Beca's nose.
"Has the same manners too." She said, wiping the wet spot with the back of her hand.
"See! It's perfect!" Beca looked from the puppy to Chloe and then back again, before heaving a sigh. An act that apparently signaled defeat to Chloe, who put the puppy back in her lap and did a victory dance with her upper body as she stroked along the length of the dog.
"Who's a good boy, huh? Who's a good little Jesse?" Beca groaned.
"Oh my god, he's never going to let me live this down." Chloe arched an eyebrow, lips curving into a smirk.
"That you named your dog after him or that you're secretly all kinds of sappy and bought me a puppy?" Beca narrowed her eyes at her girlfriend.
"Okay, one? I didn't name shit. That's all you and I'll make sure everyone knows that." Chloe chuckled. "And two, I bought *us* a puppy."
"Yeah that isn't exactly a great defence for you being any less sappy." Beca rolled her eyes, another show of apparent defeatism.
"Whatever." They lapsed into silence for a short while again, watching the puppy as he wagged his tail and tried to nip at Chloe's waggling fingers. Beca watched it all with a fond smile and a pleasant swelling in her chest. She hadn't exactly planned this, though she had been thinking about it for a while. Chloe loved animals like moths loved bright lights and Beca wanted something that was theirs. Something they could love together. Something that could mean something for them. Plus, puppies were cute and she'd always wanted a dog. But seeing Chloe with him was even more wonderful than she'd anticipated. The redhead held an abnormal 'adorable to non-adorable' ratio on most days, but this was beyond anything Beca had seen so far. Something she'd previously thought impossible. It made her feel warm all over.
"I love you." And then Chloe was looking at her and taking the words right out of her mouth. Waking butterflies that never really went to sleep when she was around, and that Beca couldn't ever recall feeling prior to her. She wasn't exactly a butterflies kind of girl, or so she'd thought. But Chloe was... Chloe. Capable of bringing things out in people that they didn't even know they were in possession of.
"I love you too." Beca said, with a smile that had been proven ten times over was reserved for Chloe and Chloe alone. Soft and shy around the edges. Chloe's smile. The redhead leaned in again and pressed a lingering kiss to Beca's lips.
Jesse yipped at them and Beca pulled back with a start, staring down at the puppy.
"Oh no, I will not have a cock-block in this house." She tapped his nose and he licked her finger.
"Also kind of fits the name." Chloe mused aloud with a sly grin and Beca grunted her disapproval.
"You shush. We don't talk about that, remember?" Chloe put on her faux-serious face and nodded.
"Of course. Sorry." Beca just shook her head. Then, after a moment, "Beca?"
"Hmm?"
"Did you ever get milk?"
"Crap."
And just like puppy love should be - because they aren't just for Christmas - Beca knew that theirs wouldn't wane over time.
So, it all kind of fit in the end.