Hourglass
Chapter 25
Mitchsen
Rating: T

Beca waited out in the parking lot for the redhead. She had packed up her laptop and headphones so she could work on a mix or two. She had no real idea how long Chloe's surgery was going to take. Something she probably should have asked the redhead, but the thought slipped her mind.

The freshman spotted her redheaded friend approaching her with a friendly wave. "You're chipper for someone who's going into surgery today," Beca commented. The senior just shrugged.

"Hey, might as well be happy that I'm getting it taken care of. Being sad isn't going to change that fact I have to get surgery." Beca was slightly impressed at Chloe's optimism. She followed Chloe over to the senior's car. The redhead owned a silver Honda Civic, which also looked fairly new.

"Nice car." The freshman commented.

"Thanks, Becs. My parents got it for me when I moved out here." She said as she unlocked the car.

"Oh yeah, your family lives in Florida right?" The redhead nodded.

"Yeah. I go home for Christmas and summer vacation. Sometimes spring break, but I didn't want to go all the way home just to get operated on." Beca furrowed her brow.

"So, if asking me to come along was a spur of the moment decision, who was going to take care of you?" Chloe shrugged. "You mean you didn't think about it?"

"I probably would have eventually told Aubrey." That surprised Beca even more as the redhead pulled out of the parking lot and drove into the city.

"You mean you still haven't told her about it?" Beca questioned. "You do know she's going to be both hurt and pissed at you right?" Chloe nodded, keeping her eyes on the road.

"I know she will. But I didn't want to worry her. Or stress her out more than she already is. She's got her own life to deal with. I don't want to have her deal with my problems as well." Beca frowned.

"Chloe, you're her best friend. You can't honestly believe she wouldn't want to know. Regardless of what's going on between me and her. And the thing with the Bellas." Chloe bit her lip.

"I… I know I should have told her. And it's not like I never will. She'll find out eventually. I just… Maybe I didn't think it all the way through, but I just had her best interest at heart." Chloe said, her voice quivering a little bit. Beca felt a little guilty at upsetting the redhead, but she wanted to make sure Chloe understood.

"I didn't mean to make you sad Chlo. But seriously. She needs to know. Sooner rather than later." Chloe slumped back into her seat slightly. Beca didn't know why she was pushing the redhead so hard, but she felt strongly that Aubrey deserved to know what was going on with her best friend. Rather than being left to stew about her breakup with the freshman. "I know your intentions were good Chlo. I'm not disputing that. I just think she deserves to know." Chloe nodded, not looking at Beca.

"Ok. I'll tell her when I see her next. I don't think its something I should tell her on the phone."

"So you're not going to tell her before you go under?" Chloe shook her head.

"No. I know she's going to be hurt, that I didn't trust her. But I still think she needs alone time." Beca conceded to that. Chloe seemed adamant on not telling the blonde, so the freshman respected her wishes and didn't push it further, instead, deciding to change the subject.

"So, how long are you going to be in the hospital?" Beca asked, wanting to know how many days she needed to schedule time to see the redhead. And when she might possibly be released.

"If I was a normal person, it would probably be today. But I've always had some medical history with anesthesia so they want to keep me for a few days, just to make sure I don't have a bad reaction." Beca nodded.

"Ok, so you don't really know then?" She asked for clarification. And the redhead shook her head.

"It should be before the end of the week, but I don't know for sure." Beca nodded.

"Alright. Just wanted to know how many days I was expecting to come visit you." Beca said with a smile.

"I really do appreciate you coming Becs. Especially after semis. You don't owe me anything." Chloe trailed off awkwardly. Beca sighed.

"I admit Chloe, it did hurt. But it's not your fault…" Chloe cut the freshman off.

"That's where you're wrong. It was my fault. Well, it was my fault that I was too much of a chicken to stop Bree. You know, if I could go back and do it again, I would, right?" Beca offered the redhead a sad smile.

"I know you would Chlo. But what's done is done. It happened. It's over." Beca said dejectedly.

"I swear to God you're just as stubborn as Aubrey. C'mon Becs. You two are soulmates. There's no way you can give up that easily." Beca sighed

"I just don't know anymore Chlo. Maybe this is just a sign." Beca said. The redhead huffed.

"It's a sign that you two need to work it out. Look, you two are both headstrong, stubborn females. But I've known Bree for four years. I've never seen her like this. Like she is around you. And how much she's been moping around since she blew up at you. It's seriously depressing." Beca snorted. "I'm serious here Becs."

"I'll believe it when I see it," Beca said. Chloe rolled her eyes.

"You're so stubborn. You won't believe it until you see proof, but you insist on hiding from her." Beca scoffed.

"I'm not hiding."

"Then what do you call all your avoidance techniques?" Beca shrugged.

"I just haven't been in the mood to see her." Chloe shook her head but didn't comment. They had arrived at the hospital, so the redhead pulled into an open space out front, before turning off her car.

"I ultimately can't force you to do anything Becs. But I'm begging you, at least talk to her. I assure you she's feeling horrible about it and extremely guilty." Chloe knew she was exaggerating a bit, but if it got Beca to get off her ass and talk to the senior, it would be worth it.

"We'll see Chlo. Now, let's get this over with, huh?" Chloe nodded. The pair walked into the hospital building. She'd be on the third floor, so the two got into the elevator, going up.

"Chloe Beale. I'm scheduled for vocal nodule surgery." The nurse typed in Chloe's name, confirming that she had an appointment for the day.

"Ok, Miss. Beale." She handed Chloe a clipboard of paperwork. "Just fill these out and someone will come and get you and your friend in a little bit." Chloe nodded, heading over to where Beca was sitting in the waiting area.

"I don't envy all the paperwork involved with surgery," Beca commented.

"A necessarily evil I suppose." Chloe said, going over the papers she was given. It was mostly same day information. Was she feeling ill? Did she smoke or drink? That kind of thing. Before long someone called her name.

"Chloe Beale?" The nurse called out. Both Chloe and Beca got up and followed her to the back to prep her for surgery. They put Chloe in a free space and gave her a gown.

"You'll need to strip and put this on. Here's a bag for your clothes. We'll make sure everything is put in your room when you're done. Unless you want your friend to take them?" The nurse looked over at Beca.

"I'll take your stuff if you want." The freshman offered. Chloe nodded.

"Ok," Chloe said. The nurse closed the curtains, leaving the two girls alone. Chloe proceeded to undress, obviously not caring that Beca was still there. The brunette, however, protested.

"Chloe! At least warn me before you get nude!" The redhead giggled.

"It's nothing you haven't seen before Becs," She said. Beca just groaned, averting her eyes as Chloe changed.

"Ok, it's safe you big baby." She heard Chloe say. Beca peeked and saw that it was indeed safe, so she uncovered her eyes. Chloe put her clothes in the plastic bag the nurse gave her before hopping into the hospital bed.

Chloe and Beca chatted a little bit longer before the nurse came back. "Okay, Miss. Beale, you'll be going in soon." She then turned to Beca. "Are you planning on waiting?" Beca nodded.

"I want to be here when she wakes up," Beca said. The nurse smiled.

"She did tell you that we have to keep her longer than the normal amount of time for laryngoscopies, right?" Beca nodded.

"Yeah, she told me. I'll be by to visit her until she is discharged." The nurse nodded.

"Good. Hospital stays can be rather boring. And since Chloe won't be in too much pain, beyond her voice, she'll probably be bored out of her mind." Chloe laughed though she knew it was probably true. "The waiting room is out those doors and to the left. Just check in at the desk and when she's out of surgery, the attendant will inform you." Beca nodded.

"Good luck Chlo. I'll see you when you wake up." Beca said, leaning over to give Chloe a hug. The redhead was surprised at the gesture, but she returned the hug, very tightly.

"Thanks for this Becs. Really." Chloe said with a smile. She handed her car keys to the brunette. "Here, you'll be needing these." Beca laughed.

"Thanks, Chlo. I'll see you later." Chloe nodded as Beca picked up the bag with Chloe's clothes in it and went out into the lobby to wait.

Beca broke out her laptop, putting her headphones over her ears. She was working on a new mix. So far she had picked out Price Tag by Jessie J and Tonight by Pitbull. But she wanted to pick a few more songs. But she just didn't have any inspiration. So instead she just picked a playlist and relaxed back in her seat, letting her thoughts wander. And as expected, they eventually settled on Aubrey.

On some level, Chloe was right. She shouldn't give up so easily. She had fought for Aubrey thus far. And she didn't want to just give up. Not after she had worked so hard to get where she had gotten. But it was hard. The more Beca thought about it, the more Aubrey's words had stung.

I told you she wasn't a Bella.

Out of everything that Aubrey had said, for some reason that had hurt the most. Beca had come to see the Bellas as a second family. To have the one person that she trusted more than anyone else say that… It was hard. And the worst part was that Beca would never be able to forget it. That statement was going to haunt her for the rest of her life.

Even if by some miracle she and Aubrey made up, it was always going to be there, in the back of her mind. Weighing her down. But despite what Chloe had said, she wasn't even sure if Aubrey cared to seek forgiveness. Sure, she hadn't sought out any of the Bellas, but it wasn't like Aubrey didn't know every facet of her life. She knew Beca's schedule just as well as the freshman herself.

Beca thought that if Aubrey had really wanted to work it out, she would have come after her by now. And the freshman was really going to take that cab driver's words to heart. She wasn't going to go crawling back to Aubrey. Beca knew she had been deserving of some sort of reprimand for what she did at semis, but what Aubrey had said, that was completely uncalled for. And the freshman wasn't about to go pathetically crawling back this time.

Pushing the depressing thoughts out of her mind, she just let herself loose herself in her music. And it wasn't long before the waiting room attendant approached her.

"Excuse me." Beca took off her headphones. "Your friend just got out of surgery. She's going to be in post-op for a bit, just until she wakes up. We've already prepared her room if you want to wait. It shouldn't be too long." Beca nodded, gathering up hers and Chloe's stuff before following the man to the desk. "She's going to be in room 334. It's just out the door, follow the hallway down to the end and to the right. Through the doors to the back. Just follow the signs." He said.

"Thanks," Beca said with a small, awkward smile before heading off to find Chloe's room.

Beca settled into a chair next to the empty bed, waiting for Chloe to be wheeled in. She waited for about a half an hour before the redhead got out of post-op and got settled into her room. The doctor came in to talk to Beca as well.

"Chloe made sure I knew before she went in that you'd be taking care of her." Beca nodded, looking at the redhead, who still seemed a little out of it. Beca got out of her chair to shake the doctor's hand.

"I'm Dr. Lopez. I'll be watching Chloe while she's here and I'm in charge of her care. I do need to inform you of a few things." Beca nodded again. "Chloe needs to rest to her voice for a while. Ideally recovery time is three to six months, but I think we both know Chloe is incapable of that." Beca and Lopez both laughed. The semi-lucid redhead pouted.

"I don't want her talking at all while she's here, and once she gets discharged I do want her to talk as little as possible, building up little by little. She needs to be careful with her diet. Foods that are too hot or spicy can irritate the throat." Beca nodded.

"Is there an estimated time until she's discharged?" Beca inquired.

"There isn't a set date as of yet. But as soon as we're sure the anesthesia isn't going to have any adverse effects, she'll be free to go. It shouldn't take more than a day or two. Most likely Wednesday or Thursday, she'll be free to go. I'm assuming she's staying with you afterward? Because she shouldn't be left on her own for a while."

"I'm not sure yet. She has a roommate back at Barden that she'll probably be staying with. Though she's a stupid redhead and didn't tell her roommate about the surgery, so I don't know how that's going to go." Beca said with a shrug. Lopez nodded.

"Well, it's not really any of my business, I just need to be sure she'll have someone with her." Beca nodded. If necessary, she would take care of Chloe herself.

"She will be. I just need to work things out with her roommate." Beca managed to spit out. And it hit her that the words meant more than just working out how to take care of Chloe. "At least I'll be here to take her back, for sure," Beca said. Lopez nodded.

"Okay, if you have any more questions, let me know. I'll leave you two for a while." Lopez smiled, leaving Beca and Chloe. The freshman sat next to Chloe's bed.

"Hey, Chlo." Wary that Chloe wouldn't be able to talk, she decided to keep her questions to yes and no answers only. "You feeling okay? Considering.. well.." Beca trailed off. Chloe, who was coming out of the effects of the anesthesia nodded slightly. Chloe reached out for Beca's hand weakly. Beca smiled slightly and grabbed the outstretched hand.

Chloe grasped Beca's hand, smiling at the freshman. She was about to open her mouth when Beca stopped her. "Oh no. You're not supposed to talk Chlo." The redhead shut her mouth but pouted anyways. Beca giggled at the irritation apparent in Chloe's eyes.

Beca handed Chloe her phone. "Here, type it out." Chloe accepted the device from Beca and began typing what she wanted to tell her. The redhead handed the phone back to her friend. Beca read what was written. I want pizza. Beca snorted.

"I don't know if your doctors would approve of that yet Chlo. When you get discharged we'll go get one, though." Chloe grinned, before grabbing the phone again, typing something else out.

Pinkie promise? Beca chuckled at the redhead, but Chloe was dead serious, holding out her pinkie for Beca to take. The freshman humored her friend by intertwining their pinkies. "Pinkie promise Chlo." The redhead's eyes lit up happily. Regardless of the dull pain that Chloe had ultimately caused her the other week, Beca was happy to see the redhead happy. Chloe's personality and exuberance were contagious. And it was hard to stay mad at the redhead for long.

"I need to head back to campus Chlo. Radio station to take care of and all that." The redhead nodded. "Is there anything you need me to bring you?" Chloe bit her lip, she pointed to Beca's phone and the freshman handed it to her. Chloe typed out a list of things she wanted.

Laptop, phone charger, notepad, and pencil, and for you to talk to Aubrey. My dorm key is on the ring with my car keys.

Beca narrowed her eyes at the last one. "No promises on that last one Chlo. But I'll bring the rest of it tomorrow. Chloe smiled as Beca left her room, shutting the door behind her. She approached the nurses' station. Chloe's RN, a blonde female named Ashley was sitting at one of the desks.

"I'm leaving for the night. You have my number if she needs anything, right?" Ashley looked up.

"Yup! You'll be back tomorrow, right?" Beca nodded.

"Yeah. There're a few things like her laptop she wants, so I'll be bringing those by."

"Okay great. I'll see you tomorrow then Beca." The nurse said. Beca nodded, waving goodbye to the friendly nurse before heading back to Barden.

Beca needed to come up with a way to get into Chloe's dorm room without running into Aubrey, she thought to herself as she sat in the booth for her night shift. She couldn't very well unlock the door with Aubrey still there and try to explain why she was taking Chloe's laptop. Especially when the redhead was supposedly staying with friends.

Or she could just tell Aubrey about the redhead's surgery. But she knew she wouldn't actually do that. She respected Chloe's decision to not tell the blonde, regardless of how stupid Beca thought it was not to tell her. But then again, Aubrey was bound to notice that Chloe's laptop and phone charger were just missing. So either way, Beca had to come up with some sort of excuse.

She slumped back into the chair, racking her brains. Maybe the best course of action was just get the stuff Chloe wanted while Aubrey was there and tell as much of the truth as she could without actually telling Aubrey about the surgery. She looked at the clock. It was around nine at night. She knew Aubrey would probably be in her dorm by now. She sighed. She wanted to get this over with.

Beca queued up a few playlists for the night and headed out. Locking the station door behind her, she headed for Aubrey and Chloe's dorm room.

Beca took a deep breath and knocked on the door. She heard Aubrey shuffling around, probably getting out of her bed or chair to open the door. The shocked look on the senior's face almost would have made Beca laugh. "Beca… What… What are you doing here?" The senior asked hesitantly.

The freshman got a good look at the senior for the first time in two weeks. Aubrey looked more tired than she normally did, which was saying something. "I… Chloe wanted me to get her laptop and phone charger that she.. forgot," Beca said. Aubrey frowned.

"You know where she went?" The senior was a little hurt at the fact Chloe had told Beca and not her where she was going to be.

"Uh.. yeah." Beca's lips thinned into a small line. Aubrey awkwardly stepped back to allow Beca into the room.

"Her laptop is on the desk. Phone charger is plugged into the power strip under the desk." Aubrey said awkwardly going back to her own desk. Beca gathered up the items quickly, not wanting to stay longer than she had to. But the senior seemed to have other plans. "Beca… wait." The freshman sighed. This was what she wanted to avoid.

"What is it, Aubrey?" She said a little harsher than she meant to. Aubrey flinched slightly at Beca's biting tone.

"I… I haven't seen you in weeks. How are you?" Aubrey said lamely. She hadn't been prepared to be faced with the freshman today. Beca raised an eyebrow.

"I'm good. Considering…" The freshman held her head high. She wasn't going to break down in front of Aubrey, even though she kind of wanted to. Aubrey looked at the floor, ashamed. She didn't need to inquire into what Beca was talking about.

"I figure it's probably the last thing you want to hear, but I am… sorry." Aubrey managed to choke the words out. Beca narrowed her eyes.

"And do you really think that'll make me just forgive you?" She took a shot at the senior. Aubrey sighed.

"No. I don't. I'm under no illusion that you'd even still have feelings for me Beca. But I wanted you to know that I'm sorry anyways." Beca shook her head in disbelief.

"You know, as much as I want to hate you Bree, I don't." Aubrey looked up at Beca. "I don't know if I could ever forget what you said that night. But as much as I wish I did, I don't hate you." Beca snorted. "Look, you and I need time apart. I think we both know that." Aubrey nodded dejectedly. She knew that was true.

"I…" Aubrey took a breath. "I don't deserve you," Aubrey whispered. "I don't think I ever did. You're far too good for me Beca. I just wanted you to know that I do regret what I said." Swallowing her pride to apologize to the freshman was easier than she had thought it would be. Beca, however, snorted.

"You shouldn't wallow in self-pity, Bree. It doesn't look good on you." Beca prodded at the senior.

"I.." Aubrey started, but Beca cut her off.

"Look, Bree, we both know that the shit you said was uncalled for. And I don't know if I'll forgive you for it. I know I'll never forget it." Aubrey bit her lip as she looked up at Beca. "But you need to know that are worth it. The fight for you, to become your friend, your girlfriend; it was worth it. And I wouldn't take any of that back." Beca hated to see Aubrey's self-esteem tank like it was. She always looked up and admired the confident and headstrong senior. And to see her like this was a real sobering sight. Aubrey was just as vulnerable as any other human being.

"If I could go back to the night of semis…" Aubrey said, trailing off because she truly had no idea how to phrase what she wanted to say. Thankfully for her, Beca understood.

"I know. Bree, I can't deal with this right now. I was just doing a favor for Chloe. This isn't about you and me. I accept your apology, but that doesn't mean I've forgiven you." Aubrey nodded, knowing that was the best she could have hoped for, considering.

"Where is she anyways?" Aubrey couldn't help but ask. She could see the conflict in Beca's eyes.

"She didn't want me to tell you. I'm sorry, but I'm not going to betray her trust like that." Aubrey nodded, still a little hurt that Chloe hadn't confided in her. But she supposed that she hadn't given Chloe much of a reason to as of late.

"Just.. Let her know I miss her." Beca nodded.

"I will. I'll… see you around Bree." The freshman said, looking into Aubrey light green eyes.

"Bye Becs." As the door shut, a few tears ran down Aubrey's cheeks. That whole encounter had been entirely unexpected and a lot harder than she had pictured it, which was saying something. But one good thing did come of the conversation that gave her hope. Beca didn't hate her.

A/N: Well, that didn't go as expected. So I had to take a lot of liberties with this chapter and made a lot of things up. Because if you know anything about vocal nodules and the surgery involved, it really doesn't match up timewise to the story, or even the movie. Though I believe I remember one of the writing acknowledging that they took some liberties with the recovery process. Sorry about the long author's note by the way.

Basically, with vocal nodules, typically the patient is able to leave the same day, assuming there aren't any unsafe complications, but then that comes back to the whole 'Aubrey didn't know that Chloe got her nodes out.' Which actually leads me to believe that Chloe and Aubrey weren't roommates in the movie. Because if they were living together, there would be no way that Chloe could hide her lack of voice. Plus the fact, when Aubrey finds out that they're back in the finals, Chloe is still in the hospital, during spring break. Or a break of some sort. And when they come back, she's just all of the sudden able to talk at normal volume, as well as sing decently.

But anyways, yeah. I tweaked that bit a twinge. And then when it comes to recovery time, it's supposed to take anywhere from three to six months, but obviously, timeline wise that just isn't going to happen. Just stick with me. It's necessary to make the changes I did to fit with the timeline I have in mind.

And the end confrontation between Aubrey and Beca. That was entirely unplanned, but I think I like it anyways. They're essentially back at square one, but this time they have an awkward history.

Oh and someone mentioned that Chloe never apologized. I admit that was an oversight on my part in terms of writing, but I kind of just thought that was a given. That they had worked it out.

Anyways, thanks for the support guys. We're getting towards the end here. I'm not solid on a number of chapters left, but it's probably going to land between five and seven more. I haven't really thought about a sequel for this. I've got a list of other stories I need to write after this too, so there's that. The life of a FanFiction author you know?

All mistakes are mine, leave a review should you so choose. Thanks!

A Charmed Vampire