At least Chloe knew how to put on a brave face, even in the face of such evident heartbreak, and could carry on as if nothing mattered in the world, focusing instead on celebrating victory with her teammates. She had been, after all, their den mother, and teams always took on the characteristics of their leaders.

The Bellas' figurative father figure, however, sat out on the hotel balcony, outside the celebratory circle of Bellas, who were causing a racket inside the hotel room under Fat Amy's name. Somehow - and even Aubrey had no idea how - Fat Amy had managed to get her room upgraded to a suite on a concierge floor, but it meant everybody fit inside the room comfortably and nobody would be making noise complaints to hotel management, so Aubrey couldn't exactly protest.

"You alright?"

Aubrey turned, and smiled at Chloe, who closed the door to the balcony behind her, and sat down beside Aubrey. "I'm fine."

"Party's inside."

"Just needed some fresh air." Aubrey answered. She glanced at her best friend. "You're OK?"

"We just won the ICCAs. I'm super."

Aubrey gave her a reproachful look. "You know that's not what I'm talking about."

Chloe smiled apologetically, and shrugged. "Well, we kind of saw this coming. You more than me, but..."

Aubrey laughed softly. "I'll spare you the I-told-you-so."

Chloe smiled back.

Aubrey took a sip from her nearly-empty cup of cheap-beyond-the-telling-of-it champagne. "Have you told them you're sticking around for another year?"

Chloe shook her head. "That can wait."

"Or you can freak them out first day of school."

Chloe grinned. "That could be fun." She leaned closer to Aubrey, resting her head on the blonde's shoulder. "I'm gonna miss you."

"I'll miss you, too, Beale." Aubrey rested her head against Chloe's. "Thanks for sticking it out with me, Chloe."

"You and me, right?" Chloe smiled, hooking her arm with Aubrey's. "Chaubrey forever."

"No, not Chaubrey." Aubrey whined at the portmanteau Chloe had given them as freshmen. "I told you not to call us Chaubrey."

"Too late." Chloe laughed.

"I mean it, though. Thanks for everything." Aubrey turned to press a kiss to Chloe's hair. "Especially the past year."

"Everyone needs the occasional kick in the ass."

Aubrey laughed. "And that's you?"

"Of course it's me. Official ass-kicker."

"I'd ask if that's the title written on your card, but knowing you, it just might be."

They laughed, because it was true, before their laughter settled down.

Aubrey knew she had taken her best friend for granted, and had meant it when she'd said that Chloe was selfless to a fault, and Aubrey had unconsciously taken advantage of that for years. She'd relied on Chloe to be Barden's official Aubrey Posen apologist, to be her hand to hold and shoulder to cry on, and had appropriately returned the favor, but Aubrey knew she could have been a better best friend in general. For one, she could have been a little less brutal about all things Beca Mitchell, but it was hard to be kind when she could only sit by and watch as Chloe lost her heart to someone completely unaware of the fact.

She had never wished to be more wrong about Beca than she did at that moment. (The ICCA trophy helped.)

"You're really OK about Beca?"

"Yeah." Chloe sighed. "No. But as long as she's happy, right?"

Aubrey scoffed mildly. "I don't really care about her happiness as I do yours."

"Well, I'm happy as long as she's happy." Chloe declared.

Pause.

"She's an idiot."

"No she isn't."

Aubrey huffed petulantly.

"I know." Chloe smiled at the words Aubrey wouldn't say to describe Beca. "I still like her, though."

Silence descended between the two seniors, undercut only by Chloe playing with her phone, until:

"You should tell her."

"I can't."

"Yeah, but you should."

What neither of them mentioned was that Aubrey had tried. In her head she had worked out multiple scenarios in which she looked Stacie Conrad in the eye and told the freshman exactly how she felt, but none of those scenarios ever came to fruition, either from her own ability to self-destruct at the worst possible moment, or just an uncanny ability to talk herself out of good possibilities (and also partly-due to the nerve-induced vomit that somehow worked itself into each of those situations before Imaginary Stacie could formulate a response). Either way, Aubrey had somehow managed to never tell Stacie how she felt.

And that was unfair, because their coffee dates had been a highlight of her last year in Barden University.

Not that she'd ever called them coffee "dates" to Stacie's face, although Chloe had teased her about them since she found out about it, and it was testament to how good a friend Chloe Beale was, in never telling any of the other Bellas just how much those coffee meetings meant to Aubrey. Or how those coffee dates had evolved from Aubrey getting to know a Bella recruit, to study dates, to just Aubrey enjoying spending time with the sometimes-flighty, but surprisingly complex, freshman.

Aubrey sighed. "I'm graduating in a few weeks. Isn't that unfair to Stacie, to start something now?"

"You think you're just starting?" Chloe sat up, and the tone in her voice was a challenge in itself. "Ever since you sent in your reservation to Boston, taking Barden out as an option, you've looked like someone kidnapped your dog. You didn't even tell me your dad was making you go to Boston until Stacie gave you a Red Sox cap 'to blend in' and you had to explain to everyone the reasons why."

Aubrey exhaled. She pouted at the redhead. "I don't want to go to Boston."

"Yeah, you do." Chloe corrected. "You haven't worked this hard and wouldn't have applied there if you didn't." She grinned. "Besides, you told me freshman year you were gonna work your ass off in Barden and get there and kick ass to prove a point about Barden."

Aubrey rolled her eyes at Chloe's memory, as well as at her past self, because Freshman-Aubrey had been adamant about making the most of being in Barden University, about becoming a Barden Bella and sticking it out in the university despite Barden's lousy Business undergraduate program. (Their post-graduate program wasn't that much better, but Aubrey had needed a safety school.)

"And, take it from someone who just had to sit through faking the squee-factor of Beca and Jesse? You don't want to be stuck wondering if that could have been you." Chloe bent Aubrey's head, and kissed the top of it as she stood up. "So you'll be leaving in a few weeks. You and Stacie could have those couple of weeks, or you could beat the odds and last past that, but at least you'd know, right?"

"I don't know if you've gone blind and haven't noticed, but Stacie's beautiful, and smart, and funny, and has legs that go on for days. People line up to be with her." Aubrey reminded. "Meanwhile, I'm the girl who throws up when she's nervous at inopportune moments."

"Yeah, but isn't a girl who's willing to commit partial social suicide to have coffee with you every Friday night worth the chance?" Chloe smiled knowingly, and opened the door back to the suite to head back inside. Just inside, however, she beamed at someone just behind the door, and greeted, "Hey, Stacie."

Aubrey turned quickly, startled, and conflicted on whether or not she wanted Stacie to have heard the latter part of her conversation with Chloe.

Stacie stood at the doorway, confused, holding two cups of champagne in her hands and staring after the departing Chloe. She shrugged, as if answering an internal question, and stepped out onto the balcony, closing the door behind her. She handed Aubrey one of the cups, leaning against the railing. "Chloe said to freshen your drinks."

"Thanks." Aubrey rolled her eyes at her best friend's obvious manipulation. She regarded the brunette, who sipped her drink. "You know, legally you're not supposed to be drinking."

"Good thing I'm in the company of a responsible adult." Stacie quipped, grinning. She used her cup to gesture at the door, to where Chloe had disappeared to. "Is Chloe OK?"

"She'll be fine." Aubrey shrugged. "Beca's not subtle."

Stacie smiled weakly. "That's got to suck, though."

"She's backing off, for now." Aubrey took a sip from her cup. "But I'm getting the feeling we're gonna have to wait a long time to see what happens next."

"That resilience you were talking about?" Stacie guessed.

Aubrey tapped the side of her nose with the tip of her index finger, and pointed at Stacie. "You got it."

Stacie sat down, still against the balustrade, facing Aubrey. "Why aren't you inside?"

"Thinking."

"About?"

"Winning the ICCA championship." Aubrey smiled wryly.

"Getting what you've always wanted?" Stacie guessed, stretching out one leg to nudge Aubrey's side with her foot.

"That." Aubrey's smile grew fond. "How much I'll miss the Bellas." She rolled her eyes. "Even the hobbit. Even if she's an idiot."

"There's that heart wanting what it wants thing again, I guess." Stacie allowed.

Aubrey glanced at her. "You know, it's occurred to me we've never actually talked about what you want."

Stacie laughed. "I want what everyone wants, Aubrey." Off Aubrey's questioning look, she continued, "world peace."

"Something a little more realistic?" Aubrey prompted. "Tell me what you want."

"What, like a brand new house on an episode of Cribs?" Stacie quipped, not missing a beat. "With a bathroom I can play baseball in. And a king size tub big enough for ten plus me."

Aubrey looked genuinely confused, which only made Stacie smile.

"I want a credit card that's got no limit." Stacie continued. "And a big black jet with a bedroom in it. So I can join the mile high club at thirty-seven thousand feet."

"Wait, are you-" Aubrey's eyes widened, and she slapped Stacie's extended leg beside her. "Nickelback? You're singing Nickelback to me? I thought we were friends!"

Stacie laughed, doubling over in hilarity. "Your face-!"

"I can't believe you'd sing Nickelback to me. To my face!" Aubrey accused. She huffed, crossing her arms across her chest and looking away from the brunette. "I feel so betrayed right now."

"Aww, Aubrey," Stacie cooed, and made the necessary adjustments so she could sit beside Aubrey. She wrapped her arms around the blonde, and rest her chin on Aubrey's shoulder. "Don't say that."

Aubrey huffed again.

"So that's a no to the mile high club?"

Aubrey rolled her eyes, and turned to face the other girl to make a retort about how sex and Nickelback should never mix, but Stacie's position meant their faces were just inches apart. Their eyes met, and their play-fighting was instantly over.

Aubrey gazed wistfully at Stacie. "I didn't want to start something my senior year."

"I know."

"And I'm leaving in just a few weeks."

"I know."

"If it doesn't work out, I don't want to be someone who loved you and left you."

Stacie blinked, and jerked her head back, but didn't let go of Aubrey. "You love me?"

"Yeah, that's..." Aubrey frowned. "That surprises you? Why does that surprise you?" Her eyes widened, her breath catching. "Have I been reading too much into us?"

"Breathe." Stacie cut in, concern overriding her momentary surprise.

"I'm trying." Aubrey assured her.

"I don't understand." Stacie admitted. She intercepted Aubrey's next panicked remark. "I mean, I'm really into you, too, but we haven't had sex."

What? "What-"

"We haven't even made out! No, we've never even kissed!" Stacie exclaimed in a whisper, as if afraid that speaking any louder would get the Bellas' attention from inside the suite, and ruin the moment. "How can you know?"

Aubrey paled. "Oh my God, did I just go zero to I love you?"

"We've never gone on a date!" Stacie said accusingly. She paused, and frowned. "Wait, was our dinner a date? Or all that coffee: were we dating already? Have I been missing it?"

"What? No." Aubrey protested. "Trust me, if we were dating, you'd know."

"I would?"

"You know a part of this is me trying to ask you out, right?"

"I knew we liked each other, I didn't know we were both in 'I love you' territory!" Stacie exclaimed.

"Wait, we're 'both'...?" Aubrey was trying to grasp the conversational thread but Stacie kept making sharp turns.

Stacie gave her a look.

Aubrey blinked. Oh. "Really? When?"

"I don't know." Stacie shrugged. "But when the girl you like projectile-vomits in front of you and you think you still like her anyway, that's..." She exhaled. "If that's not love, then I don't know what is."

Aubrey rolled her eyes. "Good to know."

"So we could have been dating this whole time?" Stacie questioned, intrigued.

"Probably not, you would have hated dating me before today." Aubrey reconsidered. "Before they handed us that trophy, actually."

"Fine, but we could have been banging this whole time?"

"Let's not exaggerate."

Stacie gave her another look, this time more skeptical.

Aubrey conceded her point. "Yeah, okay, probably. Sex is easier than dating, that would probably have been likely."

Stacie, for her part, was still stuck on her point. "We could have been banging this whole time?"

"Yes, Stacie. That's not the point. Pay attention."

"Fine." Stacie pouted. "Why are you bringing this up now?"

"Because the hobbit kissed a Treblemaker."

Pause.

"...Not what I thought you'd say." Stacie admitted. "What?"

"Beca kissed a Treblemaker. My best friend had a front row seat to having her heart crushed by that hobbit." Aubrey said softly. "I don't want to leave wondering if we could have been more than just coffee buddies. I like you, Stacie Conrad. And I think you're amazing. And in a few weeks I'm going to leave Barden, but I'd really like it if in that time we can see where we can take this thing between us."

Stacie smirked. "We could be banging right now."

"Date first. Bang later." Aubrey rolled her eyes at the fact that she'd actually just said "bang" as a euphemism for sex.

"Are you serious?" Stacie gave her a look of incredulity. "We only have a few weeks, you know. You just told me we could have been banging this whole time, and you want us to keep waiting?"

"I want to do this right."

"I like you and you like me, and the word 'love' had been brought up, I don't know how much more right you want to be, you perfectionist." Stacie retorted, enjoying the flash of affectionate (and exasperated) annoyance on Aubrey's face. Seriously, though: they had been dancing around this mutual attraction long enough.

Aubrey paused to consider that point, but couldn't let it go. "We'd still have to wait until we get back to Barden since we're both sharing rooms, but I guess if we have breakfast together tomorrow, without everyone else, we could consider that a date?"

Stacie's eyes lit with mirth, and she quickly closed the gap between them, pressing a quick kiss to the other girl's lips. "Yes. Let's do that."

They grinned at each other, giddy at the prospect, before Aubrey noticed the expectant look on the younger girl's face. She rolled her eyes.

"Yes, Stacie, and then we'll bang."

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