A/N: This is a continuation of the missed connections fic that thecousinsdangereux posted on her tumblr, because she told me I should continue it and I pretty much can't say no to her. I highly suggest you read it because it's amazing! I've marked this as complete but wouldn't be opposed to writing more short pieces in this verse...

thecousinsdangereux . tumblr .compost/44746239021

She wears her Sennheisers.

She has Beats, but she only uses those for mixing. They are flashy and overused to the point of stupidity - because half the kids don't even know what they're talking about when they say they've got a 20 to 20,000 frequency response - but they really do have a great response in the low end. They're the only headphones she's ever found that emulate the bass of a club accurately enough to allow her to mix the low end properly. (Even then, she still has to swap them out to make sure she isn't distorting the highs.)

So she wears her Sennheisers because she likes her Sennheisers, but more importantly, the other woman - the one with the red hair and the stupidly bright blue eyes and a smile that you can't help but return - liked her Sennheisers. Or at least Beca assumes that, because that's the first thing she mentioned in the ad.

Missed Connections is stupid and Beca can't even believe that she let Luke talk her into looking on the site in the first place. (Okay, so more or less he looked and found the post and made her reply.) But it's 10 am on a Monday (Why is she even awake right now?), and she's on her longboard, cruising down Sunset to hang out at Stories in hopes that the redhead saw her reply.

She's early - and by early she means she wasn't even there until almost noon last week - so she orders a coffee (Black. She doesn't understand all that ridiculous latte crap. She just needs caffeine in her bloodstream.) and a bagel and settles in to a chair on the back patio while she waits. It's not the same place from last week, but there's a hipster guy on his iPhone commandeering that place, so she keeps an eye out to snag it as soon as he leaves. She has time.

Halfway through coffee number two she can't sit still. Her hands shake and her leg jiggles more than normal - bobbing in time to absolutely nothing at all - and she checks the time on her watch 15 times in a four minute span, so she gets up and walks around. Books aren't really her thing - her comparative lit professor dad kind of ruined that when he walked out 16 years ago - but she still enjoys the quiet nature of bookstores and the way they smell. She runs her fingers along the spines as she walks the aisles, trying to remember what section she spotted the redhead in last week.

At 11:15, hipster guy leaves while she's ordering her third cup of coffee. She pays quickly and dashes over to toss her bag in the seat before anyone else can take it away. The guy cleaning off tables looks at her strangely - he hadn't even had a chance to wipe it down before she snagged it again - so she shrugs at him. "Meeting someone," is all she says as she walks back to the coffee bar to grab her drink.

Having a seat at the front of the shop turns out to be even worse for Beca's nerves, because she finds herself constantly watching the door, waiting. She doesn't even know if this girl is going to show up, and the anticipation is killing any hope of playing it cool that Beca ever had.

It's half past noon and she's antsier than ever, contemplating just bailing.

This was a stupid idea she texts Luke, grabbing her board to head out.

Give her a few, is his reply, and she sighs, dropping her board back to the floor and slipping her headphones down around her neck before heading over for another refill.

After she orders her coffee ("Another?" The barista asks, surprised), she moves to slide the headphones back up, but she hears the chime of the door and her head snaps up to see the girl she's been dreaming about - literally - all week.

"You know that girl?" Beca asks, and barista follows her eyes and nods. "Then give me one of whatever she drinks."

Beca tries not to stare as the girl scans the shop, noticing the frown on her face when she glances at Beca's empty (minus the board and her bag) table.

She's surprised when the barista hands her a second cup of straight black coffee. "You sure?"

"Every time," he says with a smile, and she hands him an extra five bucks for tip.

Beca takes a deep breath, muttering everybody be cool, it's just another day under her breath before walking toward the girl. Their eyes meet and the other girl's smile lights up instantly, knocking Beca's breath right out of her lungs. The smile had been absolutely mesmerizing before, but Beca wasn't prepared for how it felt to have it directed right at her.

"Hi," Beca finally manages when she makes it to the table. She holds out the coffee, which the other woman takes gratefully. Their fingers brush and they hold on just a second too long before pulling away. It's ridiculous and like every love story cliché written wrapped up in a 15 second interaction, but Beca fights the urge to roll her eyes.

"Hi," the woman says, taking the seat across from Beca's. "I'm Chloe."