Beca was running late to the first Bellas' practice.
She completely blamed Chloe Beale for it. After she had crawled back into Chloe's bed for a impromptu make out session and an admittance that they were into each other, Beca had to run back to her own dorm to change clothes and get the quickest shower known to man. She couldn't turn up in the same clothes as the night before, that was just tacky.
So now she was running across the quad to the practice hall as fast as she could manage. They had decided not to arrive together to not arouse suspicion. Chloe seemed to think Aubrey would blow her top if she knew that Beca and Chloe had spent most of the morning making out in their dorm room. When she reached the hall, she straightened herself up by pulling her cream shirt straight and running a hand through her hair, giving it a tousled I-don't-care look before she strode in to meet the other new members of the Barden Bellas.
The first practice was an interesting event, to say the least. Beca was something short of terrified of Aubrey when it finally came to a close. Firstly, the woman was so damn strict and controlling it was getting hard to breath in the room. Secondly, she was obsessed with winning.
Within the first 15 minutes the Bellas had lost two members and been told, quite fiercely, that they were now in a war against the other a cappella groups. Aubrey kept referring to them as "her soldiers," which Beca found unnerving. It was then that Aubrey started to make some strange noises in her throat and had to turn away, only to be comforted by Chloe, which, to Beca's surprise, she found quite angering. The redhead shouldn't have to be falling all over the blonde to make sure she was okay. Especially not after the way she talked down to her most of the time. This whole little parade by Aubrey led to them finding out about the previous year's ICCAs finals and how Aubrey had managed to cover the first two rows in projectile vomit, much to Beca's pleasure.
She couldn't help but grin to herself as the other Bellas watched the Youtube video as Aubrey fell over herself in embarrassment. Beca found herself tempted to walk when Aubrey brought out a giant white board covered in blue marker pen detailing their "journey" to the finals. It was covered in so much stuff that it was hard to take in. After that came the history about the female-only songs they sung. Beca had to point out that none were from this century.
She swore the blonde nearly threw something at her when she spoke up, but it was the redhead to her side that kept smirking and casting longing glances at her that made Beca hold her tongue more than usual. As Aubrey made them do laps of the seats, Beca couldn't help but get a good look at Chloe's ass as she ran ahead of her. The redhead seemed to make everything bearable.
It was later, when they were going through the motions of the dance routine to Ace of Base's"I "Saw The Sign" that Chloe took the chance to run her hands over Beca's arms, sides, and waist. It was just as she had done mere hours before in her bed. Beca had found it extremely difficult in bed not to turn, rip Chloe's clothes off her lithe frame, and have her way with the redhead. It wasn't getting easier, even surrounded by the other Bellas.
When Aubrey finally let them go, after telling each and everyone of them that a cardio schedule would be drawn up for them specificity, Beca headed to the door as quick as possible.
"Okay, don't forget to pick up your performance schedules. We have a gig next week. That's right, next week," Aubrey continued as a few of the girls groaned loudly.
"Guys, its Sigma Beta Theta's annual fall mixer," Chloe chimed in with her oh-so-happy tone, making Beca feel happier than she'd felt the entire practise, a smile threatening to show on her face. Chloe's voice was like smooth velvet, but Aubrey ruined the moment, of course, when she attempted to do some sort of hands in and harmonise thing. It went terribly wrong, much like the entire practice.
"Beca, a word.' She stopped in her tracks, biting her lip slightly.
"Yes, Aubrey?" She replied, turning on her heels to face the taller woman.
"You know you have to take out those ear monstrosities for the mixer, don't you?"'
"You really don't like me, do you?"
"I don't like your attitude," Aubrey replied.
"You don't even know me!"
"I know you have a toner for Jess."' Beca scoffed at the words, a little unsure what a Toner was, but still, if it was something sexual for Jesse, Aubrey was way off base. Way, way off.
"A what?" The shorter girl questioned, her eyes alight with mockery.
"A musical boner. I saw it at hood night. It's distracting," Aubrey continued, her tone was hard and angry.
"Yeah, that's not a thing and you're not the boss of me so…"
"You took an oath." Wow she's serious about that, Beca thought, resisting the urge to laugh loudly in the girl's face.
"That oath cost you two Bellas already today; I don't think you can afford to lose me too. So I think you need me and my attitude more than I need you," Beca said coldly, throwing all of her attitude into it.
"I can see your toner through those jeans!" Aubrey called out as Beca walked away, barking with laughter.
"Oh you don't know a thing do you Posen?" Beca couldn't help but continue to laugh as she walked away, heading out of the practise room and into the late afternoon.
###
Sometimes Chloe really hated Aubrey for the things she made her do. This was not one of those times. This was one of those times when Chloe was quite thankful for Aubrey's bossy ways. With Beca's reluctance to do cardio for the Bellas, Aubrey had told Chloe that it was her duty to get her doing it. True, Fat Amy had been reluctant and Chloe had to help the larger Tasmanian girl too, but the thought of time with Beca was a really, really good one.
Especially to Chloe.
She knocked thrice on Beca's dorm room and waited patiently. She was dressed in her jogging pants, black with a pink stripe down to her ankles, and one of her favourite strap tops to work out in, again, pink. Her red tendrils were pulled back into a messy bun and she wore no make-up. Not her most appealing of looks.
The dorm room door flung open and Beca's ever charming room mate stood before her. "She's still asleep," the Korean girl snapped.
"Oh." Chloe sighed and peered past the girl in the doorway. She caught sight of their room, one side looked serialized into extreme cleanness -made bed, tidy desk, white walls- while the other side was full of colour. Posters, vinyl stacks, mixing equipment, somewhat of a floordrobe going on, and a mound hidden beneath blankets on the single bed. Chloe assumed was Beca. She couldn't help but smirk; she liked Beca's side of the room a great deal because it spoke a lot about the freshman girl. As she stepped into the room past Kimmy Jin, not even waiting for an invitation, Chloe snooped at the collection of things that belong to Beca.
In her room there was vinyls from DJs to old rock bands and even some movie soundtracks, which surprised Chloe since Beca quite often expressed her dislike for movies. CDs were stacked high on the shelves while USB sticks with mix labels on them and what looked to be a huge stack of teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles graphic novels rested on the floor. Then there was her desk, covered in her PC and MAC book, the huge keyboard, cables, and headphones. Beca was seriously into this and Chloe wanted to be shown her work. Her fingers itched to slip on the smaller girl's huge headphones and listen to one of the mixes, to know what she did, what she loved, but Chloe knew that would be bad.
Probably really bad in Beca's eyes. She would show her eventually, Chloe decided. Dropping down onto the side of Beca's bed, the redhead gave her a sharp poke to the side.
"Oi,"' she said loudly and firmly, gaining no reply. Chloe did it again, nothing. The third time she slapped Beca's arm as hard as she could. The girl who hid beneath the covers grunted and snuggled farther down. Chloe frowned and stood, grabbing the edge of the duvet and it giving a sharp tug to pull it off the alt girl.
Beca let out a small sharp squeal as she was exposed, revealed to be wearing a black vest top and boy boxers covered in a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles pattern. Chloe couldn't help but smirk. She grabbed a discarded pillow from the floor and as she heard Kimmy Jin leave the dorm room, the redhead brought the pillow down fast and hard onto Beca's head. Beca cried out in annoyance and swatted her hand lazily towards Chloe, still not opening her eyes.
The redhead sighed and rolled her eyes, smacking the pillow down onto Beca again.
"Okay, okay, I'm up!" The brunette cried out, pushing herself into a sitting position, only to be smacked in the face once more with the pillow. She roared loudly and launched herself at Chloe, falling right on her face as she did, Chloe having sidestepped away as she'd seen the sleepy girl move.
"Now, if you were awake, you would have gotten me when you did that," Chloe said, her tone smug. Beca grunted in annoyance, pushing herself up and off the floor, coming into a standing position, if not a little slouched. "Come on, a 45 minute run and you're done for the day," the redhead said cheerfully, jogging on the spot.
"It's a Saturday," Beca grumbled.
"Exactly." Chloe grinned as Beca's navy eyes met hers, they were still dark with sleep and looked a little unfocused. Chloe stopped jogging and frowned, trying to figure out a way to shock the girl into more of an alert way. With a soft sigh, Chloe lent forward and kissed Beca hard on the lips, pressing her slim body up against the smaller girl's all while running her fingers through Beca's bed hair, kissing deeper until the smaller girl reacted and kissed back, wrapping her arms around the redhead's waist, hugging her against her smaller frame. Chloe broke away, grinning wildly.
"I love your boxers by the way."
###
They were jogging slowly around the library building, Beca panting harshly, trying her hardest to keep up with the stupidly fit redhead who kept jobbing back and circling her. She decided then and there that there were better ways to do cardio.
Easier ways, like lying in bed with Chloe and not trying to keep up with her in jogging bottoms and a baggy t-shirt,
"I...hate...you," Beca managed to wheeze out, stopping to lean against a tree and take a long swig from the nearly empty water bottle she had been clinging to for a good half an hour.
"Look, you have 15 minutes left. We can head back to your dorm in those 15 minutes and then you can lie down and die."
"Can't...radio...shift…" Beca's words were broken and came out with a breath each. The run had nearly killed her, in her own opinion. Cardio was really, really over rated. The brunette slumped down the tree, hitting the grass with a small noise, and closed her eyes in defeat.
"Noooo! Now you'll never get back up!" Chloe called, coming to kneel in front of Beca.
"That's...the..plan," Beca grumbled, leaning happily against the tree. It was the most comfortable she'd been all day since being woken up out of the blue. She heard Chloe sit down and opened her eyes to see the redhead sat cross legged opposite her.
"Can I ask something?" the redhead said softly and Beca nodded, her heart rate speeding up a little.
"Why ninja turtles?" Beca grinned and felt a blush rise to her cheeks.
"Best role models ever," she replied with her cheeky smirk and Chloe chuckled.
"Seriously?"
"Beats a dad who wasn't there and a mother with a drinking issue."
"So, four pizza-loving ninja turtles brought you up?"
"Who else would? Besides, if they hadn't, you wouldn't have this badass sitting opposite from you," Beca teased.
"Cocky," Chloe shot back, meeting Beca's grin.
"I thought you liked me!" Beca mocked a shocked face, trying to make her tone sound as hurt as she could.
"Oh shut up, Mitchell."