BEALE INDUSTRIES, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

"Hey. Did you get it?" She smiled as she faced the California sunset.

It was indeed, breathtaking. If only everything was perfect.

If only everything seemed to fall into place.

"You didn't have to get me something, you know. What if I don't win it?"

"There you go again with all the anxieties." She could hear the giggle on the other end of the line. "Trust me, you'll get that award. I know it. You already had 5 Grammy awards, this is going to be the 6th."

"Okay, Miss Know-it-All. If I don't, I will have to return this, okay? It's too much."

"You don't have to. It's a gift. It's been a while anyway." She continued to whisper, doing her best to be cautious just in case someone walks in on her and catches her on the phone.

"Chlo…" There it is again, the sigh that Chloe Beale knew too well. But, she was stubborn to insist on the gift. "Listen, I can't…"

"Take it, Becs. Please. I want to give that to you." Chloe pleaded. "I have to hung up now."

"Wait. Why? We haven't seen each other for a month." Beca protested.

No matter how hard it is to end the conversation, Chloe had to.

She knew that her boyfriend, Tom Smith- the son of the business tycoon Richard Smith, would go into a fit if ever he catches her.

Thankfully enough, he doesn't know a thing at all.

Sad to say that, Chloe Beale-an actress, and at the same time, the only daughter of James Beale, another business tycoon, doesn't have her complete freedom.

Currently, in order to dominate the business world, James Beale and Tom Smith is planning on a merger. And to do it effectively, they had to start by making Tom and Chloe date each other-for the good of the company, mostly.

Chloe didn't agree to this. She never did.

However, her father expected her to do so, and being the obedient daughter she is, she did it.

She had no choice anyway.

She went on with it. And as much as she tried to avoid it, she and Tom started to be exclusive.

Thanks to the intrusion brought by her own father, and of course, Tom's, their plan was working perfectly.


FLASHBACK

"Beca, I have to talk to you…" Chloe was nervous. They were having the perfect date since Beca got the job in a recording company.

"About what? You look worried." Beca noticed the uneasiness that Chloe was showing. It weirded her out. "Look Chloe, nothing's going to happen, okay? I'm still starting small, but we'll get there. We'll get the biggest mansion, travel the world while you go on different auditions…" Beca couldn't stop herself from smiling. "This is it, Chloe. This is it."

Chloe could feel herself crumbling slowly. She wanted that-she wanted all of it, all with Beca.

"Hey. Hey. What's wrong?" Beca turned herself to the redhead who was wiping her tears away. "Did I say something?" The brunette panicked.

"No. No. I'm happy for you." Chloe wiped her tears away. "Really."

"Then what is it? Tell me. Look at me." Beca tilted Chloe's face so she could meet her in the eye.

"We have to stop this… Us…" Chloe sobbed.

Beca was shocked to hear those words. "What? It's been a year, Chlo. You can't throw that all away. Not now, we're all starting to live our dreams."

"My dad… He wants me to meet the son of Richard Smith… They plan to do business together and he wants me to…" Chloe choked but still tried hard to explain the situation. "…he wants me to be friends with him and all, and maybe see if we can hit it off."

"That's ridiculous! Your life isn't a business, Chloe!" Beca immediately released her hold on Chloe's hand. She got up from the picnic blanket and started pacing around. "And then what? You'll be dating some dude just so your dad and that dude's dad can make their companies bigger?!"

"Beca… Please…" Chloe tried to calm the brunette down but it doesn't seem to work. "It'll be done as soon as the planned merger is over. I haven't event hung out with the guy yet. It might not even work. My dad just wants to be on Mr. Smith's good side."

"How can you be so sure about that?!"

"I want to be sure of it." Chloe calmly replied. "You know that I love you, Becs. But, I have to do this."

"What about yourself, Chlo? What about us?" Beca started to cry. "Are we just going to forget that we happened?"

"I'm not saying that." Chloe swallowed hard. "But, I still want you in my life, Beca. I couldn't let you go. We could make it work… still, you and I." She brushed away some of the hair from Beca's face.

"Like what? Like I'm your secret when you two start to hit it off and get lovey dovey?" Beca scoffed. "You're crazy."

"Yes." Chloe bit her lower lip. "It's crazy. But, no one will know. That way, we could still see each other." Chloe reached into her back pocket and brought out a tiny jewelry box.

"What's that?" Beca asked.

Chloe held it out to the brunette, and revealed a ring inside. She slipped the ring into Beca's ring finger. "This is a promise ring, Beca. I promise you that when this will all be over, I will come back to you. We are endgame, remember?" Chloe kissed the brunette's forehead. "For now, we'll just have to wait for the right time. Until the merger. Let's just give what my father wants. Can we do that? Can you do that with me?"


PRESENT

"We'll figure it out, Becs. I'm sorry. We still have to keep this on the down low. Paparazzi follow us all over, you know how they follow us, celebrities around." Chloe explained. "I'll call you, Jesse or Aubrey tomorrow, I'll see if I can see you after the awards night. Okay? Don't call me. I promise, I'll be the one who calls."

Beca made a name of her own in the music industry. She managed to do it and Chloe believed in her ever since day one.

Everything hurt. But, Aubrey and Jesse was always there for her.

Aubrey Posen, Beca's older half-sister, and at the same time, manager was with her the whole time.

She tried her best to oppose knowing that it's wrong but her sister's stubbornness always gets in the way.

Jesse, on the other hand, despite being an almost-lover back in Barden still managed to pave his way into the brunette's life. He was her best friend, after all.

Only Aubrey and Jesse, aside from Beca and Chloe themselves know about the secret.

The brunette knew it was wrong, difficult and painful to be watching everything from the sidelines, but she couldn't help it. She went through it because Beca loved Chloe. She really did.

"Chloe…"

"I really have to go." Chloe's voice became softer this time.

"Why? It's just a phone call. We can pretend I'm your agent or something…" Beca tried to save the conversation just so she could talk to the redhead much longer.

"I can't…" Chloe sighed. "He's here. Tom's already here."


MITCHELL RECORDS, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA

The phone was still clutched in her hand. Beca still held it close to her chest, her right hand absent-mindedly playing with the promise ring Chloe gave her.

"Let me guess, you were just on the phone with her." Aubrey closed the door gently. "She can't keep you hanging around, Beca. What did she send you this time?"

"Don't act like you don't know anything, Bree. You know what the situation is." Beca defended the redhead. "She sent me this…" Beca held out the diamond necklace for Aubrey to see.

"Yes, I opposed to it from the start. But, you're my sister and you light up whenever you see her even just for the sake of stolen moments. It makes you happy. But you see, you're hurting at the same time. I'm trying to be patient about it all, but that doesn't mean that it's perfectly fine..." Aubrey replied while she examined the necklace Beca held out for her. "…even if she's my best friend."

"It will all be over. This is until the merger of Beale and Smith Industries. This is temporary." Beca repeated to herself. She then looked at Aubrey's eyes to search for an answer. "Temporary. Until the merger. Right, Bree? Please say yes?"

"C'mere." Aubrey pulled her sister closer to give her a hug. "I, too, would like to believe that. But, always remember that no matter what happens, I'll be here."


A/N: Tadaaa! There we go. I know that this is a different Chloe Beale right here, not the usual bubbly and perky Chloe we used to know. But, I hope it works. I kept the 1st chapter short to check how it would go. So, What do you think? Should I continue this or not? Let me know. x

Disclaimer: I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters.

Shameless plug: If you haven't checked out my other stories, I Promise and The Politician's Daughter, please do pay them a visit. I'm still working out Chapter 45 of the Politician's Daughter, but I'll put it up once I'm done with it.