Hey guys! Just wanted to drop a note and say thanks for reading this silly little fic! I hope it hasn't been too rough to read since my betas are busy with my two other stories! Anyway, thanks so much for reading!

Chapter Three:

Beca thought that there was a good chance that this was how she was going to lose her arm. "Red! Jesus, ow! Red!" She half laughed, half moaned as Red just walked her through the courtyard and toward the car that she had decided would as of now be called 'Cherry'. "You have absolutely no chill right now. Dude! Ow!"

Red barely seemed to hear her.

She had held tight to Beca, her hand possessively in Beca's back pocket, her cheek against Beca's shoulder until, perplexed and looking unhappy, Conner and Hayden had disappeared into a nearby store. Then Red had taken off toward the car, a look of fury on her face as she pulled Beca along.

"Red! Dude!" Beca gave a little yank but they had crossed the street and were now standing next to Cherry.

Red spun on her heels and suddenly she was a breath away from Beca, her blue eyes overly large and worried, "Are you okay?"

Beca blinked, a little frazzled as Red softly brushed a strand of hair away from Beca's lips, her fingers grazing her cheek before her thumb traced her collarbone. Her eyes were so intense, trying to pick every grain of emotion from her. "Uh, yeah, yeah, I'm okay." And she was.

For fuck sake, was she kidding? She was fucking golden.

Red's eyes grew even wider, panicked as she whispered, "I could feel - I could feel what you were feeling. Don't lie to me, Beca Mitchell."

The stupid grin that had just popped to Beca's lips at the thought of exactly how she was feeling finally dropped. She frowned, wondering if Red meant that literally or not. She decided, just like the weird blue lightning and the car that magically appeared, that Red probably could. "Well," she caught Red's hand that had been lightly brushing against the back of her own, "if you can...then feel how I'm feeling now." She waited, a grin growing yet again because she couldn't fucking help it.

It took a moment of Red's eyes narrowing before suddenly she was grinning too, her lip teasingly between her teeth. "Oh really?"

"Well," and now Beca was blushing, "you did just have your hand on my butt. And not to sound like I was counting or noticed or anything but it was for like a whole minute."

"A minute?" Red mockingly gasped, "A whole minute?"

"Oh my god, shut up," Beca scoffed, tilting her head back to laugh up toward the heavens to avoid their faces being that close as the blush took over.

She heard Red giggle and then with a sudden drop of her head Red planted a kiss against Beca's stretched throat and ducked away, her eyes twinkling as she got into the opposite side of the car.

Beca took a deep breath, loving how she was feeling and glanced across to the courtyard again.

She scowled.

Of course both Hayden and Conner were standing there, watching Beca with twin looks of horror on their faces.

She stared back at them for a second, wondering what in the fuck was so interesting. Her eyebrow popped and with a shrug she gave them both of her middle fingers, her tongue sticking out like Gene Simmons and got into the car.

Beca's whole body was still tingling as they pulled back up to her house. She was trying hard not to show it, to play it off cool like she had hot women grabbing her ass and kissing her neck all of the time, but inside she was still a little giddy.

Red - had - touched - her - butt.

Red - had - kissed - her - neck.

Holy shit.

Still. As they had passed onto Hughes Lane the grope and the kiss lost a little of their weight and her spirits did begin to fall. She really didn't want them to. She just kept thinking about Hayden's stupid voice as she asked what Beca was doing there. It was like she thought Beca was a leper and therefore not safe for the public. Like she might get her gayness on something and create a pandemic of muff diving and cock sucking all through the wider Shermer area.

She got out of the car and closed the door with a sigh. The high that she had felt while standing there next to Red and listening to her politely freeze out Conner and Hayden was now beginning to fade, falling back into a semi blue state.

"Hey."

She looked up and gave Red an automatic smile. Red hadn't said much since they left the mall, seemingly lost in her on thoughts or perhaps allowing Beca to have hers. Now, however, she was standing on the curb, a smile on her face and her hand outstretched. Beca took it, liking the way it felt when their fingers intertwined, liking this new touching thing.

The house was empty but Beca barely noticed that since the house was almost always empty. Yawning, she realized suddenly that she was exhausted. She made her way up the stairs wondering how the rest of the night was going to go. Did she just go to bed? What happened to Red? Did Red sleep? Should they share a bed? Should she make Red a bed? No, she should make herself a bed on the floor and give Red the bed. That was the right thing to do.

"You tired?"

Beca gave her a small side glance, "Yeah, I am. Um, err, are - are you?"

"A little bit."

Red followed her into her bedroom and then took a seat on the bed when Beca excused herself to the bathroom.

She just wished that they hadn't run into Hayden and Conner. She was happy, she was enjoying all of this but there was a drop of sad in this too now.

She brushed her teeth, combed her hair and pulled on her ratty sleep tank and bottoms, moving tentatively out and into her bedroom. She didn't know what she had expected but there was Red sitting on her bed in a cute little cami sleep set, smiling at her like she had been waiting for forever and was so happy to see her.

Of course she slept. Beca internally rolled her eyes at herself. She was still a person, right? Um…maybe? She wasn't sure. Either way it did make sense that she slept. Then again…she also zapped things into existence with blue magic so maybe she needed to cut herself some slack.

Feeling distinctly awkward Beca shifted in place for a moment before crawling into bed beside her, wondering vaguely if Red was just going to get under the covers too.

"So."

"Hmm?"

"Will you tell me about it?" Red hedged, her voice soft as she clicked off the light and, making Beca's mind spin a little, settled down under the blankets.

"About what?" Beca asked, feigning innocence.

"Oh come on, Becs." Beca jumped when she felt fingers, invisible in the darkness, touch her face again.

Beca let out a forced sigh, pulling herself up so she could wrap her arms around her legs, her cheek resting on her knees. "It was just this stupid high school thing." She suddenly exploded. "They're just -" she shoved the blankets off of her, agitated more than adverse to their warm weight, "they're assholes."

She felt a hand close on hers and though she couldn't see her, the kiss that she suddenly felt to her fingers knocked her anger away faster than it had come.

"Come on I'm someone you can talk to," Red whispered, holding her hand in her lap. "Talk to me."

Beca cleared her throat, rolling her eyes. She was starting to adjust to the darkness and in it she could see Red watching, her eyes were so light in color that they almost shone, wide and honest. "Right. 'Kay. Um. I mean, it's all stupid. Conner, um, he was kind of my best friend. Like my best fucking best friend since my freshman year. I mean he was an idiot but he was my friend. We always fucked around together and I've never really had or wanted a bunch of friends so Conner was kind of it for me. Anyway, at the start of junior year Hayden moved here and-" she let out a long breath, speaking fast, "I don't know, she was kind of gorgeous and I had a huge thing for her. I was pretty sure I wasn't straight but I didn't really know. Conner and I used to joke about it a little bit because we both thought the same actresses were hot. But that was kind of like, all we said about it really. So anyway there was this night where his folks were out of town so he had me come over. We had a few beers from his dad's fridge and got a little drunk and I told him that I had a thing - crush - whatever on Hayden. It wasn't a big deal. He didn't really give two shits at the time. But then I got assigned to a project with Hayden in history and so I started giving Conner a hard time like haha I got her as a partner and you didn't. I mean, he was my best friend, right? I was just teasing him. Whatever. It didn't mean anything."

"Okay." Red nodded to show that she was following.

"But then like," Beca let out a dry laugh, "Hayden was so fucking nice, you know? Like, she didn't just treat me like I was the weird girl in school and then suddenly the three of us were hanging out outside of class. Like, they kept showing up at my classes as they were letting out and stuff. And then one day she and I were hanging out at her place watching a movie and she kissed me. I couldn't fucking believe it. I mean you saw Conner. He's gorgeous. I thought for sure she would go for him. I mean, they were friends too. But she didn't. She straight up chose me." She felt Red begin to stroke her fingers and a gentle calm washed over her, soothed by the touch.

"Was that your first kiss?"

Beca laughed a little and admitted, "Yeah," thankful for the darkness. "Anyway, she was my girlfriend for like four months and it was freaking great. We didn't tell anyone because, hello, this is fucking Shermer and I guess I didn't want anyone to know."

"That's totally understandable, Becs."

"Yeah well. It didn't end up so great. One day I had her over and we were making out on my bed."

"Right here?"

Beca flushed as she heard the teasing lilt to Red's voice. "Uh yeah, I guess so."

"What happened?"

"Conner came storming in, all pissed. I knew that he had asked Hayden out that morning and she had told him she was seeing someone. I was shocked she had done it. I don't know if he was coming over to tell me about it or what but he caught us and, oh my god, he was so mad. I tried talking to him after he stomped out, like I called him a bunch of times but he wouldn't pick up. The next day he told everyone at school that he had caught Hayden and me lezzing out."

"Oh no."

"Yeah. It was really freaking fun." She ran her fingers through her hair, her hand balling into a fist at her crown as she tried not to remember the look on her mother's face when Conner's mom had come over to tell her all about what her son had seen. "I got grounded for the rest of the year, which was fine because no one at school would talk to me. Like at all. I'm pretty sure that there were other gay kids there but none of them would talk to me because they were afraid of being outed too. And like, this girl started hanging out with me for a little while which was great because all of that sucked but then I found out she was just trying to get me to go with her to church so she could save me. Actually, I lied, I did have people hanging around. Guys were suddenly like super grossly into me. Which…that was fun."

"And Hayden?"

"Hayden-" she sighed, "Hayden freaked. Her family are all Baptists and she couldn't hang. She told me and anyone who would fucking listen that she wasn't gay. She told everyone that I was this huge creeper who had come on to her."

"What?"

"Yeah, like somehow my super-gay-superpowers made her lay on my bed and make out with me. It was freaking crazy, Red. I tried to talk to her because I kind of thought we had a real thing, but she just kept calling me a freak and insisting that she had just been waiting for a hot guy to become available. It was so, I don't know, it was queerballs. The whole school banded together against me. I couldn't go into the locker rooms anymore; I couldn't go into the bathrooms. People were shoving me and calling me names all of the fucking time. It - it fucking sucked. No one knew for sure if I was gay or if I had basically attacked Hayden but it really didn't matter."

Scooting a little closer Red asked, "And when did she get with Conner?"

"Like two days after he caught us. It was like she had to prove that she was super straight by sucking his dick or something, I guess."

Red let out a snort that made Beca look up, able to see her fully now despite the dark.

"What?"

"She's not."

A small smile blooming at the indignation in her voice, "What do you mean?"

"Hayden is so not straight."

"What? Do you actually know that or-"

"Oh yeah," she said, a smug little look on her face. "She's going to marry a woman named Zoe. They're going to have three kids and adopt a little boy with Down's Syndrome. Super cute too."

Beca blinked, "Really?"

"Really?"

But then the joy was gone again and her head fell back to her knees, "I lost the girl even though the girl was gay. That's great. Ugh, fuck! And she's even going to grow up to be a decent person? Really? Fucking, really?"

"Hey."

Beca blinked a few times as Red softly cupped her cheeks, staring deeply into her eyes. She took a relishing deep breath and then said, "Just wait until you see who you marry!"

"What? Really? What, wha, uh, what does she - what does she look like? Who is she? When will I meet her? What's her name?"

But Red just mimicked locking her lips and throwing away the key.

"Ugh, you're kidding me! You can't just tell me that and then not tell me!"

Red's look said that she really wasn't all of that sorry for the cliffhanger, "But," she pulled Beca so she swiveled around and was sitting in front of her, "she's so worth the wait."

"I just-" Beca spluttered and then fell backward sprawled across the bed, "Ugh." After a second of thinking she lifted her head, "Is she hot?"

"So hot."

"Yeeessss!" Beca hissed and then laughed as Red pulled her back up by the arms.

"I have a question."

"Hmm?" Beca frowned, the lighter bubble they had formed popping.

"Why did you care so much? I mean, if she didn't want to be with you then why did you want her so badly?"

Beca sighed, picking at her nails, "I kind of think I loved her."

"Did you?"

"I don't know. Maybe. I think so, yeah. I mean, she was the only girl I even kind of dated and I've never - you know - been with anyone. So, yeah I think so. God, it's so fucking good to know I'm not going to die alone because it was looking grim for a while there."

"Oh no. You're about to discover a whole bunch of things about yourself Beca, and she is part of the package."

Beca grinned, "So then, I meet her at Barden? I do, don't I? Oh, come on! You have to tell me!"

Red just shook her head, her hands falling to Beca's knees, "Beca?"

"What's up?"

"Have you ever kissed anyone else?"

Beca's mouth dropped open, hanging loose.

The truth was that she hadn't kissed anyone else. There had been a girl at a party once but that chic had been so drunk that she had puked before Beca had been able to really go for it. In fact, she had only just managed to jump out of the way in time. Which had been...yeah...that had been fucking humiliating. But like fucking hell she was going to admit that.

"What? Of course! I've totally kissed other girls! Um, three. I've kissed three...other...um, other girls."

Red gasped, "You haven't!" Her fingers closed tighter on her knees making Beca obstinately giggle and twist away from the tickle. Red only let her go so she could take her hands and hold her so she couldn't get away.

"Dude, I just said three!"

"How - are you going to get the girl if you don't know how to kiss her, Beca?"

"Oh my god!" Beca cried, falling sideways and covering her head with one of her pillows. She could still feel Red's hands on her legs, could feel the light tickle of her fingers. So she hadn't kissed another girl. So what? She would. Red had just told her that one day she would be married to a beautiful woman, right? So she had to do something correctly. No big deal. It would happen. From under her downy protector she heard Red shift. Maybe - her face scrunched as the thought occurred to her, maybe - Red would let her kiss her. She didn't know. How were you supposed to know if a girl would let you kiss them? She had pulled her into the shower and gotten very, very naked and she had kissed her neck and her fingers but she hadn't actually, you know, kissed her. Was it weird to kiss a figment of her imagination? Was she taking advantage? Did Red want her to? Was this one of those things, like, since she was the creator it kind of fell on her to make the first move? Or wait, had the getting naked thing been her version of a first move? Because if Beca hadn't been a chicken, a lot of things could have happened - so getting naked had meant that Red was okay with that, right? God, why couldn't she figure this stuff out?

The pillow disappeared and suddenly Red was leaning over her, smiling down in such a way that made Beca's limbs freeze. "This pillow is starting to smoke from how hard your brain is working."

Beca's head popped up, though nothing else moved, "Dude, can you like freaking read my thoughts or something?"

"No. But you really don't have to be a genius to figure out what was probably happening in your head."

Beca's head hit the blankets again.

"Beca?"

"What?" She asked, slightly pouty and embarrassed.

"Do you want to kiss me?"

Instantly her mind began a somersaulting panic. Did she want to kiss her? Was she fucking kidding? Oh god, should she kiss her?

She wanted to kiss her.

She hella wanted to kiss her.

Of course she did.

Look at her. She was beautiful. But more than that - she was nice to her in a way that Beca almost didn't understand. And Red looked at her sometimes like she wanted to kiss her too.

"Um. Yes. Yes please."

"Okay." And then with the softest brush of lips and in this strange angle, Red was kissing her so sweetly that it made her head spin. It was like being heavily weighed down to the earth and flying through the clouds all at once and though the kiss was only moments long it left her breathless.

She probably should say something right now. She was pretty sure it was time for that, but she had no idea what to say so she just mumbled, "Your lips are soft."

Red sat back, taking Beca's hands into her own. "Come here."

She hadn't meant to move that fast. One second she was lying on the bed and the next she was upright, sitting cross-legged in front of Red and a little embarrassed by her eagerness. Red, however, just smiled. "Kiss me."

"What?" Beca's head dropped, embarrassed, "Like, just go for it?"

"Yup. Just go for it."

Okay, the thing was...even with Hayden she hadn't done...a lot of kissing. "But I um-"

Red pulled her in by the back of the neck and Beca was kissing her again.

It only took her a second to realize that it wasn't working.

Somehow… she didn't...what was… her lips just weren't quite matching the way Red's were pressing. She tried again but it still wasn't quite right.

After a second Red very slowly pulled back, her eyebrows high and, amusement on her face, gently began massaging Beca's cheeks, trying to get them to loosen up.

"Was that bad?" Beca asked in a high panicked voice, "Oh god, that was bad!" She melted into a puddle right there on the blankets, her whole body going slack as she tried to hide her face. "Oh my god, no wonder Hayden thought she wasn't gay! She couldn't get into it because I'm a shitty shitty kisser! Oh god, I'm a meme about turning gay girls straight!"

"Hey, hey!" Red laughed, catching her and pulling her back up, "No, you're not! Relax. It just means that we're going to have to practice."

"Pra - practice?" She blinked and then her eyes shot wide, "Oh! Oooooh, you mean more kissing?"

"Mmm, yes. More kissing please."

It was hard not to be a little enthusiastic when Red sounded like that, like she actually wanted her to.

"Okay." Beca leaned forward, her heart beating in her throat and far too nervous, her lips pursed into a tight circle and tried again. Before she had even made contact Red cupped her face, her thumbs rubbing circles into the corners of Beca's mouth. "What?" She asked, it coming out strange as Red kept pressing.

"You have to relax your lips."

"What? Like this?" she asked, her mouth drooping.

"Okay, that's too much."

"Dude!" She tried to pull away, mortified but Red held her tight. "Nooo, I'm so bad! I'm an embarrassment."

"Just listen to me for a minute." Red insisted, giving her a severe you-betta-listen stare.

"'Kay."

"I'm going to teach you how I like to be kissed. What will get me going."

Beca blushed and let out a strangled, "'Kay."

"Relax your lips. Relax." It took her running her thumbs over Beca's lips, stretching them tight and releasing, stretching and releasing before they were loose. "Okay good. Now open your mouth a little. Too much. Just part your lips a little. Good. Just barely so that there's just a little room to pull in some air. Good. Now pucker like you would if you were going to kiss me."

Immediately Beca's lips closed, pushing out into the same tense pecking position, like the one you would use to kiss your grandmother's cheek.

Red let out a single giggle, "Relax again. Softer than that. Go back to how you were a minute ago. Good. You're a fast learner, Beca. It's all about the approach, right? That first moment when our lips meet."

"Uh huh," Beca mumbled, through lips that were frozen in the position that Red had shaped them. She had no idea if what Red was saying was true but she was hanging on every word, doing her best to memorize it.

"So," Red frowned thinking, "you want to kind of swoop in a little from the bottom and instead of pressing you want to kind of, um, I don't know, catch my bottom lip with yours and then mold yourself to me."

"Uh huh," Beca said again blankly. This was starting to sound complicated. Swoop? Like…what, the way a bird swoops fish from the sea? The fuck?

"Watch." Hands still cupping her cheeks, Red tilted her head and leaned in. She didn't 'swoop' as much as at the last second tilted her head up so that her lip caught on Beca's, the motion pushing her up and into the kiss.

Beca might have seen what she meant, the whole lip catching thing but she couldn't she was too dizzy. Red's lips had molded to her own alright, gently applying pressure but just barely. It was too light and the longer that Red stayed there, letting Beca get the feel for the way her lips were delicately placed, the more Beca felt her insides coiling. She pressed into her, wanting more and felt Red's lips twist up into a smile.

"Wait a minute, you."

Beca pulled away but only because she knew she was supposed to. Frustrated and a little anxious her fingers drummed lightly on Red's legs.

"You're better at this when you're inspired."

Beca huffed.

"Your turn."

"Um?"

"Come on."

Beca bit her lip, walking herself quickly through what she had just been told and then with the eagerness of a kid on Christmas morning she leaned in and caught Red's lips.

Instantly Red was nodding in approval, Beca moving with her so their bond didn't break. Soundlessly she reached for Beca's hands and slipped them on either side of her own neck. Beca cupped her, leaning forward a little to give herself better reach.

She could feel a reaction from Red, something she hadn't felt with Hayden and it was addicting. She wanted more. She released and caught her lips again and again, Red meeting her each time with growing gusto. Just as Beca was considering more, wanting to taste Red, her lips parted and Red's tongue carefully flicked her bottom lip. A jolt of centering lightning crashed through her, severing her head from her body and yet each nerve was alight. Nerves bubbled for just a moment in her stomach. It wasn't that she was scared exactly. Okay, yes, she was scared. But also, she really, really, really, really wanted to be good at this and so far she wasn't sure that she was. But damn, Red's lips felt amazing on her own and she wanted it. She imagined, all in a second, Red pulling away and telling her she sucked and to just fucking stop because she was hopeless and the nerves grew. However, just when she thought she was going to have to pull away or the nerves would overtake her, she felt Red's hand touch her cheek, reassuring as she gave a small encouraging nod, pushing into the kiss like she wanted Beca to try.

And Beca wasn't nervous anymore.

She felt safe cupped in Red's hand like that, like no matter what Red had her and would teach her with her delicate touch.

Carefully, tentatively she reached, gently touching the tip of Red's tongue with her own, feather light and found suddenly that she liked it more than she liked anything else in the world, more than puppies, or music, or Taco Bell. She pressed, running slowly along the side of Red's, feeling Red take over. Her head was swimming and in her belly she was beginning to feel a gentle pull as Red stroked her tongue, teasingly, playing with her, pulling back every time that Beca pushed for more and giving when Beca assumed she wouldn't.

And Beca learned. She learned not to move too fast, she learned not to move too slow, how to twist and how to tease. Eventually, she wasn't even sure what was happening, she took over, doing what Red had just taught her, feeling Red's breath beginning to quicken, feeling that pull in her belly strengthening. A powerful want was beginning to flood through her, an excitement and a pleasure.

"Oh god," she finally mumbled, letting her head drop to Red's shoulder so she could catch a real breath. It was embarrassing how fast it was coming. She could feel her heart beating hard and fast, could feel her palms damp and itching to move and explore. Even this close contact she liked, being on her knees, her face a breath from Red's throat. She tried to slow her breathing but the scent of her skin only made her insides grow a little more frantic.

Red only gave her five heartbeats before she was impatiently pulling her back, a little jerkily, a little too fast and Beca responded in kind, her hungry lips breaking away from Red's a little reluctantly when Red pulled her by the chin.

She let out a whine but swallowed it immediately when Red pushed her, moving her so that she was just under her jaw.

"What do I do?" She asked into her skin.

"I don't care," Red said fast, breathy with a little head shake, "Kiss, bite, lick, anything you want to do. I - I'll tell you if it's bad."

She felt like the hero of her own story right then, listening to the way Red's voice was growing husky. She carefully licked the skin, amazed by its softness, by the way her specific Red scent seemed concentrated there.

She felt Red shiver under her, "That's good. That's...that's really good, Becs. A little higher. Yeah, right there. I like...I like that."

Beca just nodded, feeling the muscle of Red's neck go tense as she ran her nose as lightly as she could behind her ear.

"Push me back."

"What?" Beca pulled back from her neck, where she had been working her way up to the ear. She tried to clear her head, a little alarmed.

Red just grinned, her lips a little plumper than they had been, "That's what's next. Come here. Climb over me like this." She pulled until Beca was straddling her lap.

Beca followed obediently, swearing in her head so loudly that she was sure Red would hear it, weirdly clairvoyant or not.

She must have felt something from Beca because she paused for only a moment, her eyebrow going high as she grinned. "There are two places that I like to be held like this, okay? Here," she moved Beca's hand to cover the opposite side of her neck from where Beca had just been, "or here," instead of moving her hands she reached around and lightly placed a hand just under Beca's bra strap.

"And just push?"

Red nodded, "Stop overthinking it all," and scooping in for a kiss...Beca did.

She pushed her back, pressing her into the pillows a bit and found that she liked that too. She liked feeling her under her.

She lost herself then. She kissed and as she did she watched and felt, noticing every way that Red twitched under her, noticing the way her breath caught and flowed and really noticing when Red's hands ran up her back to ball in her hair, pulling her body flush against hers.

"You know what I really like?" Red's voice came out gravelly as Beca carefully cupped her jaw, giving the hollow of her throat a small suck.

"Mmm?"

"The taste of your chapstick. Is it honey?"

Beca chuckled and nodded...but didn't pull away. She was pretty sure that this was it. She had moved in. She now lived right here, against Red's skin.

"You know what else?"

"Mmm?" She hummed, licking her way up her neck and sinking back into her mouth, noticing with satisfaction the way that Red's head popped off the pillow to meet her.

"Right here." She caught Beca and very lightly sucked on the side of her lip, so low and so far down that it was only the very topmost corner of her lips on Beca's.

"Right there?"

Red nodded, "It's kind of a thing for me," she admitted, her voice almost abashed.

"Like this?" She leaned down and, feeling much more confident than she had been, placed a small kiss there.

Red nodded, "It kind of rocks my sock off."

"Really?" Beca asked with a grin.

Red just nodded again, her fingers lacing around the back of Beca's neck.

And so Beca added it to her repertoire, moving down her neck, sucking and biting her way down and then back up before she gave that spot a purposeful suck.

Red's entire body gave a wanty roll before she let out a soft and high, "Ahhh" of a moan.

It was the most fucking fanfuckingtastic sound Beca had ever heard.

She froze and then pulled back, fucking gleeful. "Wait, was that real? Like, a real moan or whatever?"

Red's head hit the pillow, her chest rising and falling fast, looking openly flustered and nodded.

Beca's train of thought nearly slipped away as she grinned at Red, liking the way her hair was getting messed up from her own fingers and how her cheeks were bright and rosy, seeming slightly unsure as to why Beca had stopped. "Really? Like, you wouldn't you know, make that kind of a noise just to make me feel better or cool or something, right?"

Red let out a little giggle, but did her best to keep her face serious, "I promise, no fake moaning. You're good at this, Becs."

"Really?"

She nodded again, pushing her hair out of her face and taking a deep breath, "You listen."

"Um?"

"To how I react. That's a good thing, Bec."

"Oh!" Beca grinned, wondering if she could just attack again. She wanted to.

Red's lips curled into a smile, "I'm about to teach you the most important part. Ready?"

Beca nodded eagerly watching as Red pushed herself under the covers and reached for her hand. She wrapped her around her, tucking her arm from one shoulder to the next as she cuddled into Beca, the little spoon to Beca's big, squeezing so tight that Beca thought her arm might fall off...if her heart didn't explode from happiness first.

They didn't go to sleep though, not for hours. Once Beca settled in, with her chin crooked over Red's shoulder and her arm around the woman in her bed...they just talked.

And it was amazing.

Beca had never known it could feel like this.

She hadn't known that pressing her lips to someone else's, that touching their tongue, that listening to their breathing, could make her feel so close to a person. What's more, she had no idea that talking could do even more.

They never strayed from their position, not facing one another but also not bothered by that.

They talked about music, about tv shows, and books. Beca told her more about Conner and Hayden. She told her stories about growing up and of the strange things she liked and disliked. None of the talk was important and yet it was everything.

It was sometime around dawn when Beca realized that Red had fallen asleep in her arms, her breathing even, her hands still holding lightly to Beca's arm which had not moved.

Beca couldn't help it. She smiled as she studied Red's face in the darkness, taking in her long eyelashes, the perfectly straight bridge of her nose, the small scar on her forehead. She settled in, her nose buried in the red waves of Red's hair, wondering idly where she had gotten the scar and - if she really made her up then where had the scar come from?

She did kind of like it.

She was yawning before her eyes had even opened the next morning, groggy and heavy. Fuck, she was tired. Staying up like that had been amazing but now she was exhausted.

Hugging her pillow to her face she decided that she could just go back to sleep, that she should go back to sleep. They were going to be useless today if they didn't.

"Hey." She reached over and poked her way across the other side of the bed. She rolled over and groaned as the bright light from the window came blaring in. "Fuuuck, what the fuck?"

And then her head popped off the pillow, staring blankly at the bed next to her, at the other half which was empty, the blankets and sheets still tucked in. There was no sign that anyone at all had been there, no sign that anyone had slept there; they were still perfectly made in just the way she had done the previous morning.

They looked like they did every morning.

Crisp. And empty.

And her heart fell.

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