Hello again!
First off, sorry this took so long to post, I had zero motivation to write this chapter. It's more of a filler, but it is a necessary evil. But fear not, next chapter will be better and likely a lot longer.
Also, I would like to throw a huge thanks out to my new beta, AgentVector! So there should no longer be any "u's" in here because I was too lazy to read the chapter over.
As always, f/f and review! I love to hear from you , prompts/suggestions are welcome...not even just for this story! I'm open anything.
P.S. If you haven't already, go check out my new fic Red Hot!
Chapter 7
The next morning Beca has to be at the radio station bright and early. Apparently that's just one of the joys of being an intern: opening the damn place while your manager gets to sleep in. God, she doesn't even wake up this early for school.
For the first few hours of her shift it's just her, stacking CD's and working on her mixes while the pre-set playlist for the morning runs in the background. She's honestly not sure what the point of her being there is, the music is pre-set for God's sake. Plus, it's not like any college kids are actually awake and listening to the station at 8:30 in the morning. But whatever, maybe if she sticks it out long enough Luke will finally cave and play some of her stuff on the air.
Its 10am when Jesse finally shows up for his shift, skipping through the door and humming a happy tune to himself.
Beca doesn't even notice her friend coming through the door, eyes fixed on her computer screen and headphones firmly planted over her ears as she works on her latest mix.
Never missing an opportunity to mess with his little friend, Jesse quietly stalks up behind Beca, grabbing her left earphone from it's snug spot and screeching in her ear, "Becaw!"
"Motherfu—" Beca jumps, recoiling away from the intruder as she rubs at her throbbing eardrum. "Dude, you fucking suck", she grumbles to Jesse, who leans on the table next to Beca with an amused grin.
The boy shrugs his backpack off, throwing it on the floor under the table, as he shifts to get more comfortable in his position perched atop the wooden table. "Sooo, how did the date go?" he asks eagerly, patting his hands repeatedly on his thighs like an impatient toddler.
Beca softens, because as annoying as Jesse can be, he did really help her out in planning the best date ever for Chloe. The least she could do is indulge his questions.
"I think it went pretty well," she says back, though keeping her eyes locked on her computer screen. "She even said she wants to go out again," Beca cracks a small smile, more to herself than to Jesse, "So that's good right?"
"Aw Bec!" Jesse coos. "I feel like a mama bird who just saw her baby bird learn to fly. Except this is bigger than that, because flying is in a bird's nature! This…this is huge Beca. Oh my God, I think I might cry," the boy gushes.
"Okay, you blew it. I'm done with this conversation now," Beca replies dryly, spinning her chair back to her mix.
Jesse's not done with the conversation though. He did help plan the damn thing after all…he needs details!
Grabbing the back of her chair, Jesse spins the girl back around so she's now staring directly into his big brown eyes. "Did you kiss?" he inquires with a cheeky smile, but there is a distinct softness to his tone.
Beca just shoots the boy a dry glare and turns back to her laptop, refusing to acknowledge his question. She said she'd answer his questions about the date, she didn't agree to eighth grade slumber party gossip. She didn't even do that when she was actually in eighth grade.
"Oh my God, you totally did!"
"Dude, we've kissed before. That's not a new development," Beca replies with a sideways glance. "Are you finally starting to lose it?" she teases.
Jesse just rolls his eyes at his friend's classic mocking. "Did you do more than just kiss…?"
"No. You told me to drop her off at her place and then leave like a gentleman…or gentlewoman? Whatever. So that's what I did" Beca states very matter of factly. "Plus, I'm trying to do this right, okay? Sex on the first date doesn't exactly scream 'serious', ya know?" she adds more softly, clearly uncomfortable with such a revelation.
That's all it takes for Jesse to melt. "Okay, are you trying to make me cry right now?"
Beca whacks him lightly, trying to divert from the boys sentimental gushing. "Okay, okay, okay. Sorry." He grumbles, rubbing his freshly stricken arm. "But seriously Bec, that is very mature of you. I'm proud of you for going outside of your comfort zone. I'm sure it's not easy", he adds with a compassionate smile. He knows that even if she doesn't acknowledge his comment, it means a lot to her and it's exactly what she needs to hear.
"Thanks, I guess," she mumbles back. Yep, classic Beca.
"So, does Chloe know about your tattoo?", Jesse asks tentatively.
"No," she sighs, "and I thought it wouldn't be an issue. But now I feel like she deserves to know. I just don't want to blow this…Even if it is only temporary, I don't want this to end just yet."
"Has she said anything about hers at all? Because it it's some guy name Dave or something—sorry, or girl name Danielle—its not like she's expecting this to be forever either."
"No, she hasn't said anything about it. That's kind of heavy first date material though, don't ya think? It's like announcing what your kid's names should be or something; it's just too much. But she has one," Beca slumps in her chair, "I saw a piece of it when she ambushed me in the shower. I don't know what it says, but its definitely there. Of course she has one, she's Chloe freaking Beale for God's sake."
"I'm sorry Becs", Jesse says sympathetically, reaching over to place a soothing hand to his friend's shoulder.
"Its whatever", Beca says dismissively. "I'll just bite my tongue for a bit longer. "Now", she says clapping her hands together in mock enthusiasm, "we have a shit load of CD's to stack."
XXX
Beca goes straight to Bella's rehearsal from the station, bursting through the auditorium doors with only seconds to spare.
"Well now that Beca has so kindly decided to join us", Aubrey bites out, throwing a judgmental glare at the out-of-breath brunette, "we can finally begin."
"Aubrey…" Chloe warns lightly, jumping in as peace keeper.
"Fine, let's just start", the blonde huffs, turning back to the rest of the group. "We are going to start with some vocal warm-ups, scales, and then finish with some arpeggios before we run through our routine in full. Any questions?"
"Yeah, uhm…you said something about spaghettios?" Amy jumps in.
"Arpeggios, Amy. God help me," Aubrey rolls her eyes in aggravation, motioning for Chloe to step in before she blows her stack.
"Okay, girls," Chloe quickly jumps in, "Grab a partner and let's get started on some warm ups," she adds with a cheery clap of her hands.
"No, seriously Red, when's lunch? Cuz this bitch has gots to eat. I'm feeding a joey in this pouch," Amy interjects, with swift slap to her stomach.
"I can swallow an entire apple whole," Lily whispers too quietly for anyone to actually hear her, earning a chorus of "huh's" and "what's" from the rest of the girls.
"Enough! We don't have time for this nonsense. We have our first performance in a week! We need to get to work now!" Aubrey interjects, running her hands through her hair in frustration.
"Shh. It's okay, Bree. Just breathe," Stacie steps up to run a soothing hand across her girlfriends back.
"God is testing me, Stace", the blonde grumbles, turning to bury her face in her girlfriend's shoulder.
"You heard her, girl's," Chloe says, taking over for the blonde in a desperate attempt to relieve some of her stress. "Let's get going!"
From that point on, rehearsal is business as usual: singing, dancing, Aubrey yelling, Amy's usual antics, and Chloe and Beca's subtle—not too subtle—flirting.
"Alight. I think that's enough for today", Aubrey announces, finally signaling an end to their seemingly endless practice. While Chloe and Stacie appear completely unfazed by the strenuous rehearsal, the other girls drop in a series of grunts and groans, eager to run—or rather, crawl—home and flop into bed.
Tiredly grabbing her own bag from the floor, Beca gingerly approaches Aubrey, who's currently gathering her own belongings whilst mumbling to herself about the utter incompetence of this year's Bella's. "Hey Aubrey, are you planning on having us perform the same routine you guys did last year all this season too?" Beca asks with caution.
Ignoring the small brunette altogether, Aubrey simply turns to the rest of the Bella's and clears her throat to gain everyone's attention. "Alright ladies, don't forget to pick up your performance schedules and uniforms from the front. We have our first gig next week at Sigma Beta Theta's annual Fall Mixer. I expect you all to be prepared", Aubrey ends with a stern glare.
"Aubrey?" Beca tries again. "Listen, I know we're going with your routine for SBT, but don't you think we would be better off trying something new for Regionals?"
At this point, the only ones left in the auditorium are Aubrey, Beca, Chloe and Stacie, the other girl's having been too exhausted to stick around for another Aubrey/Beca face off.
"You know, maybe Beca's right Aubrey," Chloe chimes in, treading carefully as to not rock the boat with Aubrey further. Beca was doing a great job of that all on her own. "Beca makes these amazing mixes. Maybe we could try one of tho—"
"No Chloe", the blonde bites back with such ferocity that Chloe actually has to take a step back from her friend. "We are going with the routine I have planned, and we are going to win with it. End of story," Aubrey forcefully shoves a stack of sheet music into her bag and throws the strap over her shoulder with a huff.
Chloe sends Beca a sympathetic look. Aubrey is captain after all, what she says goes.
Fearing for all all out bitch brawl, Stacie steps up to position herself between her girlfriend and an equally stubborn Beca. "Okay, it was just a suggestion, Bree. You are captain, it's your decision. Beca was just trying to help."
"Whatever. You can do whatever you want, Aubrey. It's not like I give a flying fuck anyways," Beca snaps, turning to storm out of the auditorium. "I'll text you later," she says stopping for a moment to tell Chloe in a much softer tone. Chloe nods in acknowledgment, aware that Beca needs her space right now, but equally obligated to stay and support Aubrey.
Scoffing as the little brunette stops out of the room, Aubrey turns to Chloe with a poignant glare. "We had better have our shit together for SBT."
"Don't worry. I'm sure we'll be aca-awesome," Chloe says, playfully bumping her shoulder with Aubrey's, secretly praying her words hold true.
XXX
Chloe couldn't have been any more wrong about SBT if she had tried.
Their performance was a complete and utter disaster. They were off key, out of sync, and a total embarrassment to the formerly pristine—disregarding puke-gate—Bella's name. In fact, they were so out of sync that even Chloe and Stacie—who had performed and practiced this routine dozens of times since last year's ICCA's—were even struggling to keep up with their respective parts.
It was obvious to all watching that this bunch of misfits was nowhere near competition ready, with one guy even referring to the bunch as a "barnyard explosion"—and to be honest, a chorus of farm animals probably would have sounded better than the Bella's terrible performance.
It ultimately ended with the Bella's being shooed off before they could even finish their first song, Aubrey groveling for a second chance, and Amy refusing to leave the stage until she had a proper chance to demonstrate her 'vocal magic'.
The girls followed Aubrey's lead, having finally given up on her desperate pleas, as she walked the rest of the Bella's away from the party, with heads hung low and enough embarrassment to last a lifetime.
Beca could see Stacie at the front of the line, whispering soothing words in Aubrey's ear as the group walked out. The blonde seemed to be having none of it, instead shrugging off the brunette's calming words and reassuring hand with tensed shoulders and a clenched jaw.
When the group reached the edge of the frat house's walk, Aubrey—having decided she'd held her tongue long enough—came to an abrupt stop, turning on her heal to look over the rest of the Bella's in aggravation. "I hope you all remember the way you feel right now so you will never want to feel this way again," she barked. "And Cloe," she said, shifting her attention to her redheaded co-captain, "your voice didn't sound Aguilerian at all."
Chloe however seemed to be elsewhere, staring off into distance and she fumbling with her fingers in front of her.
Beca had noticed Chloe was off during the performance—as well as during the past few practices to be honest—lacking her usual enthusiasm and often failing to hit her notes properly. But up until this point, Beca had simply chalked it up to the groups overall lack of organization and cohesiveness mixed with possible other school obligations. They were in college after all…the Bella's weren't the only thing on everyone's minds—well, except for Aubrey maybe.
"Chloe. For serious! What is wrong with you?"
"I HAVE NODES!" the redhead cried, her usually vibrant blue eyes now swimming with anguish, as she fights back tears.
Chloe looked truly heartbroken, and it broke Beca's heart just as much to see the older girl so full of fear and sadness. And even worse, she had no idea what to do to help…she didn't even know what nodes were for that matter.
"What? Oh my God…" Aubrey gasps, stumbling slightly, only for Stacie to quickly grab onto her waist to keep the blonde from collapsing completely.
"What are nodes?" Beca asks, her voice laced with concern.
"Vocal nodules!" Aubrey says as if it's the most obvious thing in the world. "The rubbing together of your vocal cords at above-average rates without proper lubrication."
"They sit on your windpipe and crush your dreams," Chloe chokes out, tears threatening to spill out at any moment.
"Isn't that painful? Why would you keep performing?" Beca adds, pushing out from the rest of the Bella's.
"Because I love to sing," Chloe says sadly.
"It's like when my lady doctor told me not to have sex for six weeks and I did it anyway," Stacie offers casually.
"You should really listen to your doctor," Amy advises with a raised brow.
"Wait", Aubrey jumps in, turning to look at her girlfriend. "When was this?" she asks hysterically.
"Don't worry about it babe. I pushed through," Stacie pats Aubrey lightly on the back, brushing off her girlfriend's panic.
"I bet you did," Cynthia Rose cheers from behind Amy, earning a round of giggles from the rest of the girls.
"Alright, that's enough!" the blonde interjects. God it's like she's dealing with a bunch of toddlers. "In the midst of this tragedy", she motions to a forlorn Chloe, "I think we all just need to take some time to cool off and refocus. We will regroup at our next rehearsal. Okay? Okay." When she's finished with her speech, Aubrey allows Stacie to latch onto her hand and steer her off in the direction of her apartment, the other Bella's eventually following suite too and dispersing from the lawn, leaving Beca alone with a despondent looking Chloe.
Never having been good with comforting others, Beca awkwardly ambles up beside Chloe, debating whether on not she too should leave. Deciding against that, she finally settles for a soothing hand on the older girl's back. Beca knows she's made the right decision when Chloe doesn't retreat or stiffen under her touch, instead crumbling further into the smaller girl's embrace, clearly desperate for some kind of comfort. She did just drop a pretty big bombshell on the entire Bella's group, only for the rest of the girls to just up and leave. Regardless of their itnentions, they still left. So now it's only right that Beca be there for Chloe…Beca wants to be there for Chloe.
"Do you uhm…want to go grab a coffee or something?" Beca asks tentatively, feeling the redhead nod against her.
When Chloe pulls back, Beca can see a stray tear trickling down from the redhead's crystal eyes, and her stomach drops all over again. Shit, she's already in way too deep.
XXX
The two stopped at a coffee shop just around the corner from the SBT house, nestling themselves in a quiet booth at the back away from the other patrons.
Beca had ordered a straight black coffee, while Chloe nursed a cup of herbal tea. "It's good for the throat", she had said meekly, when Beca shot her a disgusted look over her order.
"So nodes huh…" Beca offered, unsure of how to brace the subject.
"Yeah, I just found out."
"…and they hurt?"
"Yeah," Chloe sighs. "But really only when I sing. They make it hard to hit the high notes or hold notes for a long time. Sometimes their sore at the end of the day from just talking, but its mostly a singing thing", she said blowing on her tea.
"So what does that mean for you and the Bella's? Are you going to have to quit? Because I really don't know if I can survive the rest of the season with Aubrey if you're not there to body block," the brunette smirks, hoping some sarcasm will lighten the mood.
"No," Chloe says adamantly. "No way. I'm willing to suffer through a little pain to be a Bella. No. That's not an option."
Beca can see the determination in the redhead's eyes. She knows how much the Bella's means to Chloe, she did barge into Beca's shower naked to simply recruit her to the group. But this is something more than just Chloe's love of singing. Chloe looks as if she would rather die than so much as consider quitting the Bella's…and Beca's not quite sure why.
"If it hurts so much though, why would you keep performing?"
"I love the Bella's. I love to sing," she shrugs simply. "…I'm good at it," she whispers into her mug."
"Chloe…" Beca sighs sympathetically. So that's what this is about.
Beca happens to know a thing or two about feeling like you don't belong; unsure of where you fit in the world. And Chloe's look right now screams just that.
"The Bella's is like home for me. If I'm not a Bella, I don't know who I am. I'm just not willing to give that up," the usually so chipper girl says sadly.
"Is there anything you can do…you know, besides that God awful crap you call tea?" Beca jokes lightly.
Chloe's lips curve up into a soft smile, appreciative of the smaller girl's concern—as lighthearted as it may be. "Vocal rest is the main one, but that's not going to happen with Regionals coming up. The doctor said I could try antibiotics and herbal remedies, but the only way to really get rid of them is with surgery."
"So do that then," Beca perks up, jostling her cup too fast and spilling hot coffee on her hand. "Shit!" she cursed, waving her hand frantically in an attempt to sooth the stinging burn.
"Its not that simple," Chloe reaches across the table to help Beca wipe up the split liquid. "Once you do it, there's no going back. Surgery could do even more damage to my vocal range, and then I'd never be able to sing the same again."
"Well for the record, I'd still like you even if you couldn't sing at all", Beca offered, leaning back to toss the wet napkins into a nearby trash can. "In fact, it might even make you more tolerable", the brunette taunted, earning her a swift kick in the shin from under the table.
"I would be like a real life Ariel then," Chloe mused.
"Oh yeah? Then what does that make me, Prince Eric?", Beca scoffed, downing some more of her drink.
"No, you're more of a Sebastian; little and crabby," Chloe giggles, ignoring Beca's deadly glare. "Ooh! I know what we're going as for Halloween!" the redhead wiggles in her seat.
"Do it and die, Beale."
XXX
After downing their bodyweights in caffeine, Chloe and Beca walk hand-in-hand back to Beca's dorm. Chloe's apartment is on the exact opposite side of campus from the coffee shop they had stopped in, so it wasn't an inconvenience to walk the younger girl back—she would be passing Baker Hall anyways. Plus, the extra time with the brunette was always appreciated.
By now it's almost dinner time—the SBT party having been a mid-day barbeque—so Beca's pretty eager at this point to just get back to her room, order some take out, and flop in bed for the remainder of the evening. It's been a damn long day.
What she wasn't expecting though, was to walk into her room with Chloe in tow and see another person sitting patiently on her bed waiting for her.
"Mom…what are you doing here?"