"Honey, I'm home!" Jesse called, as he slung his backpack into the corner of the room, kicking off his shoes. "Beca?"

"Upstairs!"

Her voice floated down and Jesse frowned, because it sounded much further away than just upstairs. But he set up the carpet, keeping his ears out to where she would be.

Upstairs was slightly chillier than it was downstairs- and seeing the attic door open made him understand why.

"Hey Bec, what are you doing?" he popped up and Beca jumped slightly.

The tiny brunette was surrounded by old photographs. Barden old photographs.

"Looking", she said simply, motioning around her.

"Aren't you cold?" he pressed. Whilst it wasn't cold outside, the attic was chilly and he saw the goosebumps on Beca's skin.

"No". She shoved a photograph at him, grinning. "I was looking for this, remember?"

(He didn't remember, but it was best just to agree with her.)

"Hey, I haven't seen this in forever!" he laughed. "Didn't we used to have this on the wall in the apartment?"

She nodded, smiling even wider. "I found a bunch of others, too".

Jesse grinned down at the photo in his hands, memories flooding back to him like it was yesterday.

The night of the ICCAs in their freshman year, where Beca helped the Barden Bellas win at Lincoln Centre and redeem Aubrey's title. The two aca pella groups had gathered in the hotel, ordering pizza and arguing and laughing and joking all at the same time. Chloe had snapped the photo on her phone when neither of them were looking- Beca was settled in Jesse's lap, a paper plate of pizza in her lap, Jesse's arms wrapped around her waist protectively.

Her head was turned and she was looking at him with adoration in her eyes (although for anyone who was there while the photo was taken, she was telling him off for stealing bites of her pizza), and Jesse was grinning cheekily back at her, eyes shining (arguing that if she ate his popcorn, he could eat her pizza- and Fat Amy had stared at them in shock, before demanding to know whether that was a euphemism for something).

(Fat Amy's comment alone was almost enough for Aubrey to blow chunks. Chloe had comfortingly patted the blonde's shoulder as she tried to pull herself together, Amy simply shrugging and biting into another piece of pizza, as Stacie and Cynthia Rose tittered in amusement.)

"How long have you been up here?"

"What's the time?" she questioned back.

"Just after five".

"Probably three hours". She shrugged.

"You've had to pee for like two and a half, right?"

She shrugged, and he rested a hand on the swell of her four and a half month pregnant belly. "I wanted to find these photos".

"What else did you find?"

Her whole face lit up and she moved to retrieve another stack that she had set aside.

"You want to hang them all downstairs?"

"No, I just wanted to show you", she corrected. "But some of them".

"A lot of them".

"Most of them, actually". She shrugged and he bit back a laugh.

(Who would have thought that Beca would be the sentimental one? Not his eighteen year old self, that was for sure.)

"We'll get some frames when we go shopping tomorrow- we're still going shopping, right?"

"Yep. The baby warehouse place, that's gonna be a fun expedition".

"I'm kinda excited". His eyes sparkled and she grinned sheepishly.

"I am too".

He kissed the top of her head, pulling her closer towards him. He didn't know how he got that lucky, but he did. He had a gorgeous wife (who was as sarcastic as she was when they were eighteen) and a beautiful, healthy baby boy or girl on the way. At that point, he didn't think his life could get any better.

"Hey, hey, look at this". Beca pulled another photo out of the pile, showing it to him. "The last riff-off before graduation".

"And Aubrey and Donald and Chloe came back for it", he remembered. "So did Bumper, that douche".

They had gathered for the last time before they all left Barden in the empty pool, the night dark and their spirits high. Chloe and the rest of the previous Barden graduates had come to see their babies (Chloe and Aubrey's words, not Donald's) graduate, and they were not missing out on the riff-off. And at the end of the night, the original Treblemakers and the original Barden Bellas gathered for a group photo, Beca and Jesse- their captains and star couple- in the middle. Fat Amy was sprawled out in front of them and they had been frozen mid-laugh at something she had said. Jesse's arms were around Beca and Beca was looking at him with a sparkle in her eyes that had never been seen before.

"Why didn't we put this up?" Beca wanted to know, grinning at the memories it brought back. "We had it up at the apartment".

"We'll frame it and hang it downstairs- we've got a copy on the computer, anyway", Jesse told her, setting the photograph aside and scattering a new pile around. "God, why didn't we put any of these in albums or something? Are seriously going to be that couple who store monumental moments in their lives in freaking shoeboxes?"

"Apparently so". Beca shrugged, setting the riff off photo aside.

The downstairs of their house was littered with photos, taken over the years. Their wedding photo hanging in their living room, their graduation photo hanging in the kitchen and dining area. Photos from Barden and beyond sitting on shelves and cabinets all throughout the house, all bookmarking important events that had taken place. But somehow, all the moments that they had forgotten, had wound up in the attic.

"Hey Bec, look at this one!" Jesse almost laughed, reaching for another stack of photos and flipping through them. "Remember this night? We have to frame this one!"

Beca almost groaned. "How could I forget? You serenaded me with Adam Sandler and dropped to your knees at my feet and proposed. That's not a night I'll be forgetting anytime soon!"

"I asked Chloe before I did it", he confessed. "I thought the girl was going to have an aneurism".

Beca laughed. "It's a wonder the poor girl didn't explode!"

Jesse just laughed. "I don't care that there's an almost identical photo in our bedroom, this is going in the lounge room. This is going on the coffee table".

*Flashback*

"Hey Chlo, where did Jesse go?" Beca asked curiously, glancing around the room. Her boyfriend and disappeared twenty minutes earlier and was yet to be sighted, and Jesse going missing was never a good sign.

"Dunno". Chloe shrugged, unwilling to elaborate, a huge grin plastered across her face.

"Fat Amy!" Beca turned around, almost crashing into the Australian. "Have you seen Jesse?"

"You want to get it on in the bathroom", she accused, and Beca flushed as red as Chloe's hair.

"What is wrong with you people?" she accused.

"if I had a man like that I'd totally do him in the bathroom", Stacie said cheerfully, and Beca put her head in her hands (like she had done in so many Bellas rehearsals where Stacie's stories ran off track and they heard so much more than they ever needed to hear).

"What the hell?" Beca heard Aubrey say, and she lifted her head out of her hands.

"What the hell's going on?" Beca wanted to know, as the lights suddenly dimmed. "And where the hell is Jesse?"

Chloe bounced on the balls of his feet, as Jesse advanced towards her, an ear to ear grin on his face.

Oh dear God.

The boy had a microphone.

"I wanna make you smile whenever you're sad, carry you around when your arthritis is bad. Oh all I wanna do is grow old with you", he sang directly at her, Donald and Benji humming along. "I'll get you medicine when your tummy aches; build you a fire if the furnace breaks. Oh it could be so nice, growing old with you".

Tears filled her eyes, as she debated whether to kiss him or kill him. She didn't know whether to run or stay.

(When Jesse first decided how he was going to propose to the girl, he knew it could either go one or two ways. She could run and leave him stranded- what the old Beca would do- or she could stay, accept his proposal and leave him the happiest man in the world.)

"I'll miss you, kiss you, give you my coat when you are cold", Jesse said and Chloe let out a little squeal, slapping her hands to her mouth. "Need you, feed you, even let ya hold the remote control". He winked at her and Beca choked out a laugh, biting her lip.

"You're an idiot", she whispered, a tear leaking down her cheek.

"So let me do the dishes in our kitchen sink; put you to bed when you've had too much to drink. I could be the man who grows old with you… I wanna grow old with you". He knelt down in front of her, holding out a velvet box. "Beca Mitchell, will you marry me?"

She nodded wordlessly and Jesse slipped the ring onto her finger, wrapping her arms around him.

"I'm going to kill you", she whispered, as Jesse lifted her off the ground. "But I love you so, so much".

"I love you Bec". He pressed his lips to her and she grinned against his mouth. "Grow old with me?"

"I wouldn't want to grow old with anyone else". She deepened the kiss, making Fat Amy whoop.

"Yeah, Shawshank!"

Beca rolled her eyes, pulling away from Jesse's lips. Jesse kept his arms around her; spinning her around and making her squeal (Beca Mitchell- Beca soon to be Swanson- actually squealed).

"She said yes!" he whooped to Benji and the other boy ran forward to smack his palm against Jesse's.

"We're getting married!"

*End flashback*

"I can't believe you did that". She shook her head in amusement. "Out of all the nerdy things to do, you serenaded me with Adam Sandler".

"Hey, it was gonna be Bruno Mars but Donald told me not to".

"Check this one out", Jesse said to Beca, holding out another photo.

"Oh my God, I saw this one earlier!" Beca started to giggle. "How is it that they managed to pull the exact same poses in both photos? Its like, put them next to each other and essentially we have two copies of the same photograph".

Their wedding was the best day of their life. Jesse knew it would be, he knew the day he got married would be amazing, but meeting Beca confirmed it.

*Flashback*

"Bec, you look beautiful", Chloe said genuinely, and Stacie nodded enthusiastically.

"You look hot", Stacie confirmed. "I would totally do you".

"That's unnecessary", Fat Amy coughed.

Beca grinned shyly, looking into the mirror. Beca Mitchell was never going to be the girl who stood in front of all her friends wearing a white gown. But Jesse Swanson had changed her, and she was almost Beca Swanson.

"What do you think Jesse's gonna say?" she said shyly.

Chloe looked at the small brunette, before taking her in her arms. "Beca, if Jesse doesn't jump you on the spot, I'll eat Benji's hat".

"Yeah, you'll re-enact the ICCAs", Cynthia Rose said brightly. "In front of God and all your relatives".

(The fact that Beca Mitchell was getting married in a church, wearing a dress- a white dress- was what surprised them the most. Fat Amy and Stacie were betting that the two were going to elope in Vegas.)

Chloe knew there was more to Beca's worries. "Beca, I promise you, Jesse's going to be standing at the end of that aisle when you walk out there. He's gonna be standing there and you're gonna marry him and the two of you are going to have the happily ever after all his movies have predicted. You trust me, right?"

Beca nodded. "But-"

"You aren't your parents", Aubrey spoke up.

(Beca Mitchell NEVER thought that Aubrey Posen would be one of her bridesmaids. Aubrey Posen, out of all the people in the world.)

(Fat Amy had also tried to convince Beca and Jesse to allow her to marry them, because apparently she could legally do that or something.)

"But-"

"You aren't your parents", Chloe said firmly. "The two of you are going to get married and have the aca-children that Jesse predicted on aca-initiation night, right?"

"Aca-scuse me?" Aubrey's voice was shrill, because clearly that piece of information had never been shared with her.

(For good reason, Beca might not have gotten on with the blonde, but she didn't want to give her an aneurism).

"Aubrey, this day isn't about you", Stacie scolded. "Although Jesse's groomsman… oh my God"! She fanned herself and Aubrey smacked her arm.

"No, no, no. you are not defiling Jesse's cousins at my wedding!"

"I wasn't talking about Jesse's cousins".

Beca jabbed her finger at Stacie. "If you go near Benji or Donald, I will kill you with my bare hands. No sex at my wedding".

"Party pooper", Stacie grumbled.

"You're gonna grow old together", Chloe said comfortingly, dabbing at Beca's face with a tissue. "You're gonna get your fairy tale wedding and give me little nieces and nephews, mini Becas and mini Jesses- and live happily ever after".

"how-"

"Beca, I know you, and I know Jesse. You aren't your mother and he's not your father. Trust me, promise". She kissed Beca's forehead gently and rubbed her back. "You trust me, don't you?"

Beca nodded shakily; letting her insecurities show for the first time the Bellas could remember. "Yep".

"Let's get going!" Fat Amy said, looking at the clock. "You ready to go, Shawshank?"

"Um…"

"She is", Lily whispered.

"Mitchell, get your bouquet".

"Stop threatening the bride, Jesus Christ!" Beca snatched up her bouquet, standing up and straightening her dress.

"You look gorgeous", Fat Amy told her. "You really do".

"Jesse's gonna drop dead", Lily whispered to her, and Beca looked at her.

"I love you awesome nerds", she said, choosing to ignore Lily.

The car ride to the church was the longest and the shortest ride of Beca's life.

(Jesse had laughed and suggested that maybe she should take a taxi to the church, he could serenade her from his car. She had chuckled appreciatively, before shooting his idea down. "No".)

"Ready to do this, Bec?" Chloe wanted to know, as her father came to take her arm.

She swallowed hard. "Yep".

"Jesse's a lucky guy, Bec", her father told her. "You look absolutely beautiful".

As Fat Amy set off down the aisle, Beca stood at the doors, taking a deep breath.

"This is the start of the best adventure of your life", her father told her, squeezing her hand. She just nodded, knowing that if she tried to speak she'd either cry or throw up.

"Let's go". He squeezed her hand and Beca stepped forward, a thousand and one thoughts flying through her head.

(What if she tripped? What happened if she pulled an Aubrey and threw up everywhere? What if Jesse decided he didn't want to marry her? What if someone objected?)

"Wow", Jesse breathed, as he set sight on his bride. "Oh my God… wow".

"She scrubs up good", Donald said quietly, and he just nodded wordlessly.

Beca's father kissed her cheek gently, and she stepped up to stand opposite her soon to be husband.

"You look gorgeous", he whispered to her.

"You don't look so bad yourself, nerd". Her eyes sparkled and Jesse's grin grew even wider.

"Beca and Jesse have decided to write their own vows", the minister told them, and Jesse nodded. "Jesse?"

"I'm gonna keep my vows short and sweet- just like you Bec", Jesse said brightly, making their wedding party titter and Beca frown. "From the day I first saw you, from the day I serenaded you from my parents' car, I knew that you were something special. Meeting you at the radio station confirmed that, and I made it my mission to be best friends and or lovers".

(Beca flushed scarlet, and yet he kept talking.)

"It took a year, but I wore you down. You're so passionate, about everything. Your music- I love the way your face lights up when you get a mix just right. I was the first person you showed your unfinished work to, and I feel so incredibly honoured. You put your whole heart into everything you do, and I'm so glad you do. We've had five years together, and I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you. I can't wait to grow old with you".

"You're such a nerd", she laughed shakily. "You're so persistent. You didn't let it go, when we met at the station. No matter how hard I pushed you away, you stayed. You weaselled your way into my heart and you've been there ever since. I love everything about you. I love your eyes. I love your smile. I love the way you make me smile. I made you work for a smile, but now I'm always smiling around you- and it's not just because you look funny".

She crinkled her nose at him and Jesse bit back a chuckle, grinning at her.

"Even after five years, you're that nerd that I met at Barden. And you're always going to be that nerd from Barden. And I'm going to be there the whole time, because we're going to grow old together".

He squeezed her hands tight, a lump rising in his throat. The Beca he had met at the station would have never done something like that, and yet, she was still exactly the same. She was the same, with her incredibly scary earspike (and no amount of pressure from Aubrey Posen was going to get her to remove it) and the big headphones (although .she wasn't wearing them, she said it would clash with her dress) and the makeup outlining her eyes.

Exchanging rings, the words that Jesse and Beca had been waiting to hear were uttered.

"You may kiss the bride".

Beca pulled him towards her with as much passion as the ICCA finals in their freshman year, not caring that her father and all their friends and relatives (because Jesse was insistent that they couldn't invite one relative without inviting another) were watching.

"I love you weirdo", she whispered against his mouth.

Jesse had predicted it. Best friends and or lovers.

(She never thought they'd be both.)

*End flashback*

Beca uncrossed her legs, stretching out as best as she could from her position, leaning against Jesse.

"You right?" he checked, and she nodded.

"Just stiff from sitting in the same position for so long".

"We'll head downstairs", he decided, stretching out himself before getting to his feet. Holding out a hand for his wife, Beca gratefully accepted it, heaving herself to her feet.

"We need to put some of these photos in the baby's room", Jesse decided, as he pulled Beca up.

"We will". She nodded, stretching up to kiss him quickly. "Let's go, I have to pee".

(Jesse chuckled, because Beca trotted off to the bathroom every ten minutes. How she'd been sitting up there for the good part of four hours without exploding was so far beyond Jesse's comprehension it wasn't funny.)

"You know what?" she said conversationally, as she came out of the bathroom.

"What?"

"I'm glad my father forced me to go to Barden".

He raised an eyebrow at her (knowing that she might be able to say it to him, but there was no way in hell that Beca was going to let William Mitchell know that).

"Yeah?"

"Because I wouldn't have met you". She leaned up to press a kiss against his mouth, before frowning.

"What was that for?" he asked defensively.

"I've obviously been spending too much time with you, I've never sounded that cheesy before. Urgh".

"Aw, Becs!" he wrapped his arms around her, squeezing her tight and making her squeal. "You've always been a cheese. You were a softie from the day I met you".

"What?" she gasped. "I was not! I'm a badass!"

(She was a total softie, she cried in The Breakfast Club. She freaking cried like a girl, and that apparently made Jesse's whole year when he found that one out. He'd never let her forget it.)

"You were! And don't worry, we would have found each other".

"What?"

"It's inevitable. Did I not call it? Best friends and or lovers? Aca-children? I've been predicting our future since the day we met". His eyes sparkled and Beca felt herself melt a little, feeling like she was eighteen again. "I love you, weirdo".

And she loved him too.