A/N: Hello all. I have been working on this for a while. This is actually based on a roleplay I started with a friend of mine, who coincidentally is my co-writer. Her name on ffnet is selimausx3. Without her, this story would be nowhere. Thanks Seli ❤ The characters in this story are not mine and all the rights go to Universal. This is for everyone who wishes Pitch Perfect 3 ended differently (or how Pitch Perfect 4 continues, perhaps). We all know Bechloe is canon. So, you're welcome.
Buzz. Buzz. Chloe's head whipped up as she heard the buzzing of her phone. The small tabby cat she was treating took his chance and jumped off the counter, hiding in a corner. She groaned and walked over to her desk, grabbing her phone. The screen was lit up with a text from Emily. The redhead's eyes widened. She hadn't talked to the brunette in months. She unlocked her phone and opened the text.
"Hey Chloe! This is your official invite for our Bella reunion! Next spring break, at Barden. You in? X Em.".
Chloe stared at her phone, her mind working overtime. A reunion….after nearly 5 years of no contact? She dropped her phone back on her desk, huffing. It would be nice to see everyone again. Especially Aubrey. The redhead really missed her blonde best friend, who now lived in LA with Jesse. But then there was also one person she didn't want to see again. Ever. Beca Mitchell.
Beca let out a frustrated sigh. Taylor Swift was getting on her nerves. No matter what the brunette did, the blonde was never satisfied. Either there was a beat missing or it went too slow or too fast. So when Beca's phone buzzed, she thankfully picked it up.
"Hey Beca! This is your official invite for our Bella reunion! Next spring break, at Barden. You in? X Em."
The girl furrowed her brows. She should be free during that time. Khaled was going on vacation and gave everybody off. However, she felt bad. She lost touch with some of the Bellas pretty quickly after the USO tour. She sometimes still talked to Cynthia Rose with whom she had created some collabs. But that was it. This reunion could rekindle their relationships. She missed her family like crazy.
Just as she was about to tell Emily that she was going to come she froze. Chloe would be there. A flash of hurt shot through her, along with images and feelings she buried 5 years ago. Was she ready to face the redhead? Everything inside her screamed at her that she wasn't. The brunette shook her head and locked her phone. She'd reply later. First, she had to try another attempt to please Taylor.
Chloe had been trying to concentrate on her patients, but was struggling. She kept thinking about Beca, and what it would mean to her if she were to see the brunette again. She hadn't spoken to her since that one day.
Nervously, Chloe grabbed her phone, typing out a message before deleting it again. "Come on, Chloe. She's probably not even coming. Too busy with being famous." She said to herself. She started typing again. "Hey Emily! Long time no see! A reunion sounds very exciting. I will be there. X Chlo". The redhead took a deep breath and pressed the send button. Nervous butterflies filled her stomach when she turned back to her patient, a rather big fluffy cat who refused to eat cat food, instead he had made a habit of breaking into the owner's pantry for food. The cat was sniffing her lunch bag, it's paw moving towards it. "No!" Chloe yelled, grabbing the bag and putting it on a high counter. She grabbed a bag of diet cat food, sprawling it's contents over the table. "This is food. It's yummy!" She said, grabbing a piece and pretending to eat it. The cat looked at her with bored eyes, and started licking his paw. Chloe groaned, dropping the cat food on the floor frustratedly.
Later that day, after doing her final rounds, Chloe took off her scrubs and put them in her locker. She slipped on the engagement ring she kept in a small box in her locker and grabbed her coat. "See you tomorrow!" She said to her colleagues, who waved to her. The redhead put in her headphones, letting out a deep breath she didn't realise she was holding when her music started playing. She felt the soft rain on her face as soon as she walked outside, and smiled. Her walk towards the subway took only 5 minutes, but it was her favorite moment of the day. Her bright blue eyes scanned the New York crowd. People of all races, sizes and personalities walked past her. The redhead felt like she could disappear inside the anonymity of the crowd, no one caring who she was and where she was going. It was one of the best feelings in the world to her. She sat on the subway in silence, checking her watch. Chicago should be home, and she really hoped he cooked her dinner this time.
When she opened the door to their apartment, all the lights were off. The redhead sighed sadly. "I'm home." She said into the empty, dark space. She dropped her bag on the table and shook off her coat. She wandered to the kitchen, turning on the lights as she went. On the fridge was a note from Chicago. "Staying at Will's tonight. Have fun.". Chloe rolled her eyes. Right, fun. She crumpled up the note and threw it in the trash.
Beca had had it. No matter what she did, Taylor whined about every little thing. So, when the blonde was about to criticize another thing, she shot up. "I'm done for today." She said coldly before storming out, ignoring Taylor who called her name. She stormed past Theo with a short "Bye" before walking into the elevator. She pressed the button for the garage and let out a huge frustrated sigh as the elevator door closed. "Stupid Taylor. Just accept the song and let us be done with it!" She huffed angrily.
When the door opened, she walked out and got to her car. She drove home, her music blasting loudly through her car speakers. This always satisfied her. She leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes for a second when she arrived at a red light. Emily's text message filled her mind again. She still had to decide if she wanted to come.
She started driving again when the light turned green. It'd just be a little reunion. A day with the Bellas, maybe a stay at the hotel for the night and then she could disappear again. Hell, she could avoid talking to Chloe. She only had to ignore her and be really invested in the other girls' lives. She could do that, right?
Chloe was curled up with a bowl of mac and cheese, flicking through Netflix to look for something she hadn't yet seen. She couldn't find anything interesting, so she changed to the Youtube. She scrolled through some of the pop hits, when a thought struck her. She got out the keyboard and typed in 'Beca Mitchell'. She clicked the first result, which was a song uploaded about 2 years ago. It opened with a soft piano melody, and the moment Chloe heard Beca's voice, she was captivated. Her eyes blurred with tears and she quickly shut off the TV, wiping her eyes. "Don't listen to your ex-crush's songs." She said out loud, being angry at herself for being so weak. She took a deep breath and got up to do the dishes, trying to forget about the thoughts running through her head.
Beca had ordered takeout and was currently watching the new season of her favorite show. She couldn't really focus on it though. She sighed and got out her phone, staring at Emily's message. She needed to make up her mind. The brunette really didn't want to disappoint the Bellas by not coming. Knowing them, everybody would make time for the reunion. Just like they did 5 years ago. When Chloe received Emily's text about the reunion she immediately cancelled her plans to go on vacation with some old highschool friends. Beca chuckled, shaking her head. She couldn't avoid the redhead forever.
"I'm coming." She simply replied and tossed her phone away, trying not to overthink it.
A few weeks later, Chloe was packing her bags for the Bellas reunion. Her thoughts had been running wild the past days. Emily had confirmed to her that all the Bellas were coming, including Beca. The redhead had wanted to cancel there and then, but somehow convinced herself to go. She needed to see the brunette, and if something went wrong she could always go home. "But to what home?" She thought sarcastically. Back when her and Chicago had just moved in together, he would surprise her with dinners and dates. But lately, he was barely home to begin with. Eating at a friend, hanging out with colleagues or just doing anything to be away from her. Chloe didn't know why he ignored her or what went wrong in their relationship. When he was home, he was silent. A ghost. The redhead wanted to talk to him about it, but was afraid bringing it up would just ruin the very little time they would spend together. So she pursed her lips and endured the silence, hoping for a day when she could talk to him about it.
She didn't have a lot of friends in New York. The Bellas were here friends, and when they went their separate ways when Chloe moved out of Beca and Amy's apartment to live with Chicago, something had changed. Chloe barely spoke to any of them. She missed them, so, so much. She didn't really fit in at work and her colleagues tolerated her at best.
The redhead was interrupted from her train of thoughts when she heard the front door open. "Chicago?" She shouted across the hallway. Not much later, his face whipped around the corner of their bedroom.
"Hey" She said softly, looking him in the eye. Chicago nodded at her.
"You're packing for the Bellas trip?" he said, coming up behind her and hugging her close.
Chloe froze a little, as this was the first time he touched her like that in a very long, long while. "Y-Yeah. It's kind of difficult. I have no idea how long it's going to be. I might be back after one day." She said, getting out of his grasp to grab the pile of t-shirts she had collected and dumping them in the suitcase.
"I'll drop you off at the airport." Chicago said, and Chloe smiled at him thankfully. He left the room, and later she heard the TV blaring. She sat down on the bed, resting her head in her hands tiredly. She could still cancel. But she wanted to see the Bellas. She missed them. All of them.
Beca paced up and down her bedroom. Her suitcase had been packed long ago. The apartment was spotless and clean. The fridge was freshly stocked, any item that would expire during the trip had been removed. She even took a long shower and gave herself a lengthy skin and hair spa treatment. But now that she had run out of things to do, her thoughts were catching up with her. She would see the Bellas again. In less than 6 hours she'd be sitting in their regular bar, chatting with the them, avoiding eye contact from a certain someone and probably drinking more than she should. Her nerves were skyrocketing and she didn't know what to do to calm herself down.
She had thought about asking Aubrey to come with her but she assumed that the blonde would probably already be on her way. Aubrey liked to be early to everything. Beca wondered if that was also the case in the bedroom but quickly pushed that thought away. She cringed and shook her head.
Deciding she had nothing better to do, she grabbed her suitcase and her jacket and left her apartment. Time to start the trip to either one of her worst or greatest nights. That depended solely on the fact on how she would hit off with Chloe. Maybe their friendship could be restored. Because deep down, the brunette had missed the redhead.
Chicago was holding Chloe's pale hand as they drove towards the airport. He knew that she was nervous to see them all again, although he probably didn't know the actual reason why. "You will be fine, Chlo. And if something goes wrong, you can be on the next flight home and I'll pick you up. " He said, reassuringly.
Chloe nodded weakly, looking outside at the afternoon sky with a set jaw. Emily had arranged for them to meet up in the karaoke bar they used to go to all the time when they were still at Barden. They were supposed to meet up at 7 pm, but Chloe wanted to make sure she was a little early so she could calm her nerves.
When they arrived at the airport, Chicago enveloped the redhead in a big hug, rubbing her back. "Have fun!" He smiled as she waved at him on her way to check in.
The plane ride was boring, and Chloe tried to read a book, but the letters danced in front of her eyes. She ended up just staring in front of her nervously, with big eyes. A few hours later, she arrived in Atlanta. She waited for her suitcase at the gate and hailed a cab outside of the airport. "To Barden, please."