The party was in full swing, more than half of the people there already intoxicated. A disco ball appeared out of nowhere and was being put to good use, and a table was filled with various bottles and plastic cups of alcohol, another one held Beca's equipment and one of her mixes blasting away from strategically placed speakers.
Two women stood on one side of the room, arms around each other, laughing and panting after dancing to a particularly upbeat song. Out of the corner of her eyes, Chloe Beale saw her best friend walking towards them and she smirked. She recognizes that strut, so she slowly disentangled herself from Beca's embrace. "I'll go get us drinks," she said, giving her girlfriend a quick peck on the lips before walking away. She knows she shouldn't do it, but knowing Aubrey, the blonde won't stop until she says what she has to say.
Beca was still grinning when she saw Aubrey walking towards her. Nodding towards the blonde, she was not surprised when Aubrey joined her on her corner. No one said anything as they looked towards the members of Bellas enjoying themselves after winning Semi-Finals.
"So…." Aubrey said after clearing her throat, eyes still trained at the make-shift dancefloor.
"So…." Beca knows what's coming. She really did not want to be nervous over this, so she silently cursed the part of her that was.
"You know she's my bestfriend, right?" Aubrey spoke up again when Beca didn't take the bait. The little speech she prepared for this moment didn't exactly start like this, but she knows she can still wing it.
"Really? Coz I wouldn't have guessed by the way you treated her last year." Beca had not planned to say that to her girlfriend's bestfriend. Not when Chloe had already warned her about this talk and asked her to be nice. She turned towards the blonde, apology ready to spill from her mouth.
"Yeah, well.." Aubrey had the grace to blush. Beca was right. And she doesn't think she can work her little speech into this now. She finally turned to the smaller woman. "I had issues. Chloe only knew half of it, but that's not an excuse." Aubrey faltered when she saw Beca's focus on her. "That doesn't mean I will let anyone treat her the same way, though." She wasn't sure when she started being nervous, but Aubrey is definitely nervous now. Then she remembered that Beca was supposed to be the one who should be nervous, so held back the sigh of relief when Beca nodded slightly before turning to the dance floor again.
Aubrey has known Chloe for a long time, and she had started giving this talk to Chloe's previous boyfriends their freshman year. At first it was just for fun, there is something gleeful about watching a grown man squirm as she threatened him. But Aubrey has taken on the role seriously, her purposely sweet and cheerful tone directly contradicting the words of warning for the men. She enjoys it, and she enjoys carrying out the threats when the men stray. In all those years, nobody has ever stood up to her and stood up for Chloe. She watched Beca silently for a few minutes, her respect for the young woman growing when the only sign of nerve she expressed was swallowing reflexively.
"You really like her, don't you?" The realization came to Aubrey the same moment the words did.
The smile that came to Beca's lips was answer enough for Aubrey, but Beca turned to her nonetheless. "I do," she said simply, still smiling the ridiculously sweet and giddy smile.
Aubrey nodded, smiling back at the brunette before turning to face the dance floor again. She felt Beca do the same and they stayed like that for minute.
"If I hurt her, I will let you trash my equipment and you can choose the Bella's setlist for competitions and I will hand over the Pitch Pipe to Stacie." Beca said after a while. "If I hurt her, I will let you hurt me." She added seriously.
"You can count on that, Mitchell." Aubrey replied, just as seriously. They stared at each other, and this time it was Aubrey who looked away first again. "So.. Have you told her yet?"
"Told her what?" Beca asked with a sideway glance at the tall blonde.
"You know, the L word?" Aubrey grinned.
Beca was taken aback but quickly recovered. "Hey! How do you know about the L word?"
Aubrey rolled her eyes, but determined to get at least one straight answer from Beca tonight. Chloe had other plans.
"You're still both alive! It's a miracle!" Chloe cried, handing a bottle of beer to Beca, then to Aubrey. "I was worried for a moment there." Chloe jokingly looked them over, checking for bruises or any sign of trouble at all. "Wow, all your limbs are still intact!" She giggled at her own joke while both Beca and Aubrey rolled their eyes at her. "Good, good. I'd still love you both, either way, though. Just so you know." Chloe winked at Beca and bumped hips with Aubrey.
"You love me more, right?" Beca asked before Chloe got dragged away by an excited Lily. "Chloe! You love me more, right?!" Beca cried again, feet already walking towards her girlfriend. Chloe turned to Beca, winking at her and blowing her a kiss, which made Beca move faster.
Aubrey remained standing there a few seconds longer. She broke tradition again. The talk didn't go as she planned, and her little speech was thrown out the window. She didn't even get to give one good threat. But she got her answer, and she as looked at the happy couple, she realizes that is enough for her.