Here we are. The next installment in the great Bechloe babysitting saga of 2017. Loving the love for this story, so thanks everyone! The story unravels further, but I think some of you have got the idea of what's going on...
Anyway, let's go.
...
"Woah woah woah there Mitchell, calm down before you have an aneurism."
Chloe stretched an arm out, trying to reach the pacing girl whilst still keeping a hold of Squirt who was staring into space just as confused as Chloe. On the fourth run of the living room, Chloe managed to lean just a little further and grabbed ahold of the hem of Beca's t shirt, tugging it to pull her close enough to place a firm hand on her waist. The skin to skin contact of Chloe's hand just underneath her t shirt made Beca freeze in her tracks, looking down at the concerned redhead.
"Tell me what's going on. Please." Chloe demanded before adding the please, not liking how stern she sounded. She paired the request with an absent stroke of her thumb on Beca's waist, which almost made Beca shiver but she covered it up by quickly moving to sit next to Chloe on the sofa.
"He's Amy's." Beca said after a moment of silence. Chloe's jaw dropped open noiselessly. Then a string of spluttering noises came out, of which Beca didn't react, knowing the slew of questions that were to follow.
"Wha- who- I mean- WHAT?" Chloe finally got out, lifting the little boy up and back into her arms as he began to fuss being out of arms reach. He settled against her chest and instantly began to play with a strand of hair.
Beca turned to her, phone in hand and sighed.
"Well, he's not Amy's. Not like that." Beca shook her head and Chloe let a long sigh of relief that Amy had not yet reproduced because oh god what on earth would the child be like? "He's her nephew." Beca said, gesturing to him with a wave of her hand.
"Okay, but what is doing here?" Chloe asked, looking at Beca who was shaking her head again.
"I don't know!" Beca yelled, standing up again. Chloe took in a breath, steeling herself for a trademark 'Beca Mitchell is confused and frustrated about it and is now going to shout about her problems' tirade. And sure enough, Beca began to pace again.
"She rang and so I was like 'hi, where are you, by the way there's a fucking BABY in the kitchen!' " Beca threw both her hands out to point at said baby violently before continuing. "And so she was like 'oh hello to you too and oh yeah that's ma nephew he's visiting isn't he so damn cute?' " The terrible Australian accent Beca was angrily using almost made Chloe laugh, but she knew if she did then it would just anger Beca even more and they really didn't need Squirt crying again.
"And so I was like, 'yeah he's precious, we've cleaned up his shit by the way and I'm going to put it in your fucking bed and oh also quick question- if he's here just kicking with me and Chlo then WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU?'. To which she gave some bullshit answer about being with her sister in law and thinking that Jess was here- which I know was a lie because Jess is never here on a Thursday and she knows that."
Beca had done a solid ten laps of the living room as she ranted, arms flying everywhere and an angry look plastered on her face. The whole scene was actually amusing to Chloe, which was bad because she knew that she should be taking it as seriously as Beca because let's be honest leaving a baby unattended was irresponsible even for Fat Amy. But the way Beca flailed and ranted made Chloe let out a small giggle against her own will. Beca's attention snapped instantly to the sofa with a glare.
"Chloe! This is serious!" Beca said sternly, confused as to how her friend found any of this remotely funny. Chloe nodded, smothering the smile behind her hand until she sat up with a straight face.
"You're right. Sorry Becs." Chloe apologised. "Continue."
Beca glared at her for a moment more, just to check she wasn't laughing before launching back into her tirade. The pacing started instantly.
"Anyway, so she just says 'oh be a mate and just watch him until I'm home, I shouldn't be long, I'll be back at five or so, thanks Beca you're a real pal.' " There was that awful accent again, and Chloe really fought every instinct in her to laugh at the younger girl again, knowing it would do nothing except wind her up even more.
"So," Beca began, distracting Chloe from her attempts to not laugh. "Long story short, it's just me and you and Squirt for six or so hours, we've got no supplies, no information and no chance." She flopped down onto the sofa, hands over her face. "We're fucked."
Chloe chewed on her lip for a moment in thought as Beca lay next to her. Chloe looked into the small boys blue eyes and saw nothing except a harmless adorable baby. He was just a baby. She could do this. They could do this. They'd won championships. Heck, they managed to look after the Bellas, a little baby was no match for them.
"Becs, it's okay." Chloe shuffled on the sofa with the boy until they were sat facing Beca, who removed her hands from her face to reveal a frown. "He's only a baby. We can do it." Chloe smiled, lifting the boy over so he was sat in the space on the sofa between the girls, still wrapped in Beca's jumper. Chloe held onto his hand, the chubby fingers gripping onto her slender fingers. Beca looked nervously at the distracted redhead.
"I don't know… I don't know if you've noticed but I'm not exactly mothering material. I can't even keep fish alive."
Chloe couldn't help but laugh, remembering the disaster that was Beca pet sitting the Bella fish last Spring Break.
"That wasn't your fault. How were you supposed to know that that bird would fly into the kitchen?" Chloe got out after she was done laughing. Beca scowled in response.
"Anyway." She said pointedly, trying to move the conversation away from the embarrassing loss of Sharp, Flat and Fishsticks. (Names that were somehow the best out of all put forward in the Bella meeting where the fishes names had been decided.)
"You really think we can do this?" Beca asked incredulously, nodding to Squirt who was happily wrapped up in Chloe's lap making happy babbling noises and holding a strand of her hair in his fist. Chloe smiled brightly, shrugging her shoulders.
"Why not?" Chloe grinned, making Beca smile without even realising it. Damn Chloe Beale and her infectious cheerfulness. "We just need to stock up on supplies and crush this."
Beca nodded, Chloe's confidence instilling some newfound confidence of her own. She sat up straight, cracked her knuckles and held her hands out in an invitation to take the baby out of Chloe's arms. Chloe raised an eyebrow in question, not having to even ask why she was offering before Beca told her.
"Well we've got to get dressed, so I was just going to put him in his chair for a minute, give him a banana or some shit to keep him occupied whilst we're upstairs."
Chloe gasped like she'd heard someone insult her mother. She pressed a hand to Squirt's ear, covering it before stage whispering. "We can't leave him alone! He's a baby, Beca."
Beca dropped her hands.
"Well, you wait here and I'll get dressed then." Beca said as she stood from the sofa. In response, Chloe completely ignored her and stood as well.
"Don't be silly Becs, I'll get changed in your room, then he doesn't have to be alone and we can get out to the store quicker. I was just thinking that dollar store off campus?" Chloe reeled off as she walked out of the living room with Squirt sitting happily on her hip, giggling at being carried.
Beca, however, was still stood still, not even answering Chloe's question, too distracted by her friends blasé announcement of getting dressed in the same room. With a baby. What even was Beca's Thursday this time round?
At the sound of Chloe calling her name from the hallway, Beca stumbled back into life, banging her ankle on the coffee table as she hurried out of the empty living room to join Chloe, who was halfway up the stairs, chatting away to the little boy in her arms.
The three of them stopped off at the bathroom and Chloe handed Squirt over to Beca before she grabbed her toothbrush and put a blob on toothpaste onto the bristles. Beca sat on the edge of the bath, Squirt perched on her lap and clapping his hands happily as he watched Chloe brush her teeth.
"So what do we need from the dollar store, do you think?" Beca asked, tucking the jumper back round Squirt as he squirmed around, trying to reach out for Chloe's fingers that she was waving to him with as she grinned around her toothbrush. Chloe stood, thinking for a moment as she brushed before she stopped and pulled her toothbrush out of her mouth.
"I unno. Ifers, ood, ebby um oves? Ooh an oys?" Chloe garbled through her very full mouthful of toothpaste foam, Beca just watching with a confused look as Chloe dribbled and spat unflatteringly. Chloe finished her sentence and looked expectingly down at her friend.
Beca stared for a moment.
"Nope. Didn't understand a word of that."
Chloe laughed at that, trying desperately to laugh with her mouth closed lest the foam there dribble anymore than it already was. As a result, she snorted loudly into the room, hand flying to her face with wide shocked eyes. Beca mirrored the shocked reaction with a bark of laughter in disbelief before cracking up, laughing loudly into the room.
Chloe turned and spat the foam into the sink, a blush forming across her cheeks as Beca continued to laugh at the embarrassing noise. As a result of Beca laughing, Squirt had started laughing too, clapping his hands and squealing in delight on Beca's lap. Chloe turned round, attempting a glare but the sight of Beca cuddling a baby and the pair of them laughing so brightly made her smile despite her best attempts not to.
"Shut up. God, I'm so unattractive." Chloe rolled her eyes at herself as she turned back to face the mirror so she could wash her face of any remaining toothpaste foam or sleepy dust.
"No you aren't, you dumbass." Beca finished laughing, shaking her head with the ghost of her smile still on her face as she met Chloe's eyes through the mirror. Chloe smiled back.
"I think that counted as a compliment?" Chloe joked as she squinted at Beca, who just shrugged before returning her attention to the little boy to her lap. Chloe washed her face and then turned around to take Squirt from Beca so she could complete her bathroom routine.
The process was repeated, except without any embarrassing noises and with the added step of Chloe gently wiping clean Squirt's face and hands with the washcloth whilst all the while having a conversation with the baby talk he was garbling. Beca watched them as she brushed her teeth, a fond smile on her face that she didn't realise was there until she turned back to the mirror.
Thank God Chloe didn't see her smiling at her like an idiot. So what if Chloe Beale holding a baby and chatting away to him as she sat in her pyjamas with no make up and wild bed hair made her smile? It would make anyone with a heartbeat and a soul smile, Beca concluded, trying desperately to scrabble an excuse so she didn't feel bad for having the tiniest crush on her best friend.
Damn it. She had a (teeny tiny) crush on her best friend.
Good thing they didn't have to do something together all day and Beca could have some time to herself to process her own self-realisation. Not like they had to do something ridiculous and domestic as essentially acting as joint parents to a baby.
Oh wait.
They did.
Beca sighed loudly as she stared at herself in the mirror.
What was her life?