Chapter 36: Therapy
"Your doctor said that you're doing well in the therapy." Chloe said as they drove home from that session. Beca had been going for about two and a half months now to the physical therapist and was making good time. She wasn't close to walking at all yet, but the therapy was going well. "Dr. Winters says that you're a trooper, and I agree." Chloe added with a smile as she pulled into the parking lot of their apartment building.
"I've still got a really long way to go, even with all the progress that I've made in the last two months," Beca replied. "Hopefully within the next few sessions I'll be able to stand up without needing any assistance."
"Well I think you're amazing, so keep it up baby." She said smiling and leaning over to kiss Beca's cheek before turning her head back to the parking lot and parking in their spot.
Beca opened the car door and waited for Chloe to come to her side, slowly standing up and climbing out of the car while leaning on Chloe for support. Beca sat down in her wheelchair and closed the door, rolling towards the apartment building. "Do we have any plans for tonight?" The brunette asked.
"None as of right now. Did you have anything that you wanted to do?" Chloe asked gently and she wheeled Beca to the building, pushing the handicapped button and then getting both of them inside.
Beca shook her head. "I was thinking that I would take it easy tonight. I'm pretty tired from today's therapy session," she said, wheeling herself into the living room. Moving the chair next to the couch, Beca pulled herself out of the chair and onto the couch, grabbing the remote and turning on the TV.
"While you're watching TV, I'll make us some dinner. How does Mexican Lasagna sound?" Chloe said setting her purse on the table and hanging up her jacket.
"That sounds great, Chlo. Thank you," Beca said, smiling and blowing a kiss towards the redhead before she turned her attention to the TV. Chloe caught Beca's kiss and then went to make dinner. About an hour and a half later the dinner was ready. Chloe put some of the lasagna on a plate along with some fruit and rice with a glass of water.
Beca looked up when she saw Chloe had set her plate on the coffee table in front of her. "Thank you," Beca said with a smile, gesturing for Chloe to sit with her as they ate their dinner. Chloe grabbed herself some food and then sat down next to Beca.
"What's on TV right now?" Chloe asked before taking a bite of rice.
"Nothing that's very good," Beca replied, giving the remote to Chloe so she could flip through the channels. "The food is really good though, babe. I'm impressed once again."
"Good, I'm glad you are enjoying it. My dad made this for the family a lot when I was little and I always loved it. It's one of my favorite things to make and eat." Chloe said taking the remote from Beca after finishing a bite of the Mexican lasagna. She finally found something worth watching, "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon." The musical guest tonight was Beyonce, and the main guest was Lin Manuel Miranda, writer of Chloe's favorite musical ever, Hamilton. Ever since Chloe played Amber in her high school's production of Hairspray, she had been in love with broadway musicals. And Hamilton was her all time favorite.
Beca smiled a little as she saw how excited Chloe got when Lin Manuel Miranda appeared. "You know, I never pegged you as someone who likes musicals. I guess it makes sense that you do, but I never thought about it before."
"Didn't I tell you I played Amber from Hairspray my freshman year of high school." Chloe said smiling and eating some more lasagna.
"No, you've never mentioned that before. I bet you were amazing," Beca said, "I'd really like to see pictures from that show if you have any."
"I had to wear a blonde wig." Chloe said chuckling. "Since then I've been in Grease, Guys and Dolls, Legally Blonde, and Annie when I was eleven. I had fun in Annie, but Hairspray is when I really fell in love with musical's."
"Wow, you were a real theater nerd weren't you," Beca teased, earning a slap on the arm. "That's really cool though, Chlo. Why did you stop acting?"
"I joined the Bellas, and I realized that I wanted to teach choir. That also means I can start doing school musicals. If I can appeal to the school board, they'd probably let me direct school musicals." Chloe said smiling and taking a sip of water.
"You should. I bet you would be an amazing director," Beca encouraged, smiling back at her. "I believe in you. You can do anything you put your mind to."
"So can you baby," Chloe added, leaning in and kissing Beca's lip softly, lingering there for a short moment before turning back to eat her food. "You're one of, if not the most talented person I know baby."
Beca smiled and blushed at Chloe's compliment. "I mean, you do know Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars and Ariana Grande. I'd say that they're all more talented than I am or could ever be."
"Are you kidding? You can sing just like they can, you can write music like they can, and you are a really good dancer, if anything you're equally talented to them. You just choose to produce the music, not perform it." Chloe stated confidently, smiling at her wife. "You're so talented babe, don't ever think any differently."
"Thank you," Beca said with a smile, taking Chloe's hand in hers and intertwining their fingers. "It really means a lot to hear you say that. You've said that so many times, but hearing you say that always makes me feel better about myself," Beca said. Chloe smiled and kissed Beca's cheek.
"You always make me smile and feel loved, I'm just doing my best to repay you for everything you've done for me as well." Chloe stated, taking Beca's hand and kissing it.
"You don't need to repay me, Chlo. You don't need to repay me for anything," Beca said, tucking a stray piece of red hair behind Chloe's ear. "I don't want you to try to repay me."
"I know, but I love you. And like you said to me, 'I'd do anything for you to make sure you feel happy and loved,' that's how I feel about you. And I'm always going to do my best to show you how much I love you, just like you do for me." Chloe said.
Beca smiled and squeezed Chloe's hand. "I appreciate it, baby," she said, leaning forward and pecking Chloe's lips. "I'm always going to do everything I can to make you happy, and I know you'd do the same for me, but don't feel like you have to."
"I don't feel like I have to baby, I feel like I want to." She said smiling and leaning in to give Beca another soft kiss.
Beca smiled when their lips parted. "I'm gonna go lay down for a little bit and take a little nap. I could really use some cuddles right now too," Beca said.
"Well then, let me oblige to your wants baby," Chloe answered, smiling and lifting Beca into her wheelchair before pushing her to their room and laying her down on the bed. Chloe grabbed her a blanket and then lay down next to her wife, cuddling her close so the heat from their bodies added warmth as well as the blanket.
Beca smiled and put her arm around Chloe's waist, pulling the redhead closer. "If I haven't said it enough, I really like it when we cuddle," the brunette murmured with a little smile on her face.
"I really like it too baby." Chloe said as she spooned her wife in a warm embrace.
Beca yawned a little and closed her eyes, sighing with content. "I love you, Chlo. More than you'll ever know," she murmured.
"I love you too Beca, more than you'll ever know." Chloe whispered before closing her eyes as she held Beca in her arms. Beca fell asleep soon after, her head resting in the crook of Chloe's neck.
The next morning, Beca woke up first and sat up in the bed, smiling at the sleeping redhead beside her. She leaned forward and kissed her forehead before pulling herself into her wheelchair and rolling herself out of the room. Chloe stayed asleep for a while, she had watched Beca sleeping for a while before she herself fell asleep.
Besides, the redhead was dreaming about Beca doing some pretty sexy things to her, so there was no rush for Chloe to wake up at the moment.
Beca had managed to make a cup of coffee for herself and a cup for Chloe, so she carefully wheeled her chair back to the bedroom with the cups of coffee in hand. Beca raised her eyebrow when she noticed that the redhead was still asleep. Beca set the coffee cups on the bedside table, then gently nudged Chloe. "Good morning, baby." Chloe smiled in her sleep.
"Mmmm baby, that feels nice." Chloe muttered in her sleep. "I love your sweet lady kisses." She said as she continued to dream, making her wife chuckle and smile.
Beca chuckled and shook her head. "I'll let you keep sleeping, then. I made you a cup of coffee," she murmured, kissing Chloe's cheek softly. Chloe's nostrils filled with the scent of coffee and her blue eyes began to flutter open.
"Hey babe, good morning." She said as she stretched and smiled. "Did you make me some coffee?"
"I did make you some coffee," Beca said, smiling and pecking Chloe's lips. "You were having a pretty interesting dream, weren't you?" She said with a chuckle. Chloe's cheeks began to turn bright red as she took a sip of coffee.
"Yeah, yeah I was." Chloe stated setting her cup down and blushing even harder.
"You were talking in your sleep. It was pretty funny," Beca said with a smile, "You were talking about how much you love my 'sweet lady kisses.'"
"Well I do love those, I love your sweet lady kisses all over me." Chloe said smiling deviously at Beca before grabbing her coffee and taking a sip of it. She then leaned over and kissed Beca's lips. "With lips as soft as those, who wouldn't love your sweet lady kisses? I'm glad I'm the one who married you, so those kisses are all mine."
"I'm glad that I married you too. Nobody else is worthy enough for my amazing lady kisses," Beca said with a smile, lingering on Chloe's lips for a few extra seconds before pulling away. Chloe smiled and kisses Beca's lips again, holding her hand and kissing her sweetly.
"Thank you for falling in love with me, I don't know where I'd be if I didn't have you." Chloe muttered, only pulling away a little from the kiss, her forehead pressed against Beca's and her eyes were closed.
"The same goes from me to you, Chlo. I love you so, so much," the brunette murmured back, leaning in after a few moments of silence between them to connect their lips again.
Chloe placed her hands on Beca's waist and pulled her wife just a bit closer as they continued to kiss each other. The redhead knew they couldn't really go much further than this, so she remained calm and gentle with Beca in her arms.
After a few more moments, Beca slowly pulled away from the kiss. "I know that that probably wasn't going anywhere, but I still want to be careful," the brunette said apologetically.
"Yeah, of course." Chloe said nodding and tucking Beca's hair back. "We can stop." She said smiling softly. Secretly, deep down she wished that they could just keep kissing, but at the same time she knew that pushing Beca to do something she didn't want to was probably the worst thing to do.
"Thank you," Beca murmured back. "Believe me when I say that I would love to keep going, I just don't know if I can or if I'd hurt myself by doing so."
"Becs, it's alright." Chloe said. "All I want right now is for you to get better." Chloe kissed her wife's forehead and then pulled back. "I don't mind waiting however long it takes for you to get better; as long as you get better, I'll be okay with just simple little kisses." Chloe stated confidently.
"I still can't help but feel bad. I don't know when I'll get better, and I feel bad that you're going to have to wait so long," the brunette replied, looking down at the floor.
"You'd wait for me, so I'm going to wait for you." Chloe said, tucking Beca's hair back. "Sure, it's going to be a rather long wait; but I really don't care as long as you're healthy and able to walk again. So don't feel bad for me, I would wait a million years if it meant that you got to be healthy again."
Beca smiled a little and looked back up at Chloe. "I will never understand how you can be so understanding. You're an amazingly kind person, Chlo. I can't thank you enough for that," Beca said in a soft voice.
"Well my parents always told me to be kind to others. And I also learned through past 'relationships' that pushing someone to do something they don't want to do makes you look like an asshole. You remember my high school boyfriend Lewis right? I told you about him and how sexually assaulted me. From that day on, I never pushed anyone to do anything they weren't okay with doing. Because I learned the hard way." Chloe said, taking Beca's hand and holding it close to her.
Beca leaned their foreheads together for a few moments. "I love you so much, Chloe. Thank you for saying yes to me. I'm so happy with you, and I know that I will always be happy with you," the brunette whispered.
"And I'll always be unbelievably happy with you too." Chloe said smiling at Beca. "Don't you ever forget that."
A month or so passed and Chloe had appealed to the school board about do two school musicals per year. They approved it and Chloe was in the process of picking the first ever school musical at LA Academy of Performing Arts.
Within the last month, Beca had made significant progress with her physical therapy. She still had to use the wheelchair, but she had started to gain more use of her legs, and was able to stand up without needing help. She had a long ways to go before she would walk again, but her confidence started to grow and she became more hopeful and determined to reach her goal. Chloe however, didn't know Beca could stand up yet.
She had to pick the lineup for the school musical by Friday and she was having trouble trying to decide which ones she could do. Chloe went to pick Beca up from therapy and she walked into Beca's training room and smiled when she saw Beca. "How was the session today?" She asked smiling.
"Why don't you come and see," Beca's trainer said.
Beca looked at her trainer and then at Chloe, a smile on her face. She took a few deep breaths before she slowly stood up from her wheelchair. "I can stand now, baby," she said happily. Chloe covered her mouth and she teared up as she saw what was happening.
"Oh my god, oh my god." Chloe said. Her heart seemed to grow two sizes in that moment and she walked over to Beca. "You, you can stand. You can stand." She said hugging Beca close to her.
Beca smiled and wrapped her arms around Chloe's waist, holding her close. "I'm another step closer to walking, baby. It's only gonna be a matter of time before I walk again."
"I'm so happy for you baby, so happy and so proud of you." Chloe said, holding Beca for a while longer before pulling back.
Beca turned and thanked her trainer before she and Chloe went back to their apartment. "How was work today?" Beca asked. Chloe turned on the car and began to drive.
"It was pretty good, though I have to decide which two musicals I'm going to choose for this years productions. I have till Friday or they won't let me do it." Chloe said showing how much stress she was under.
"Well, which ones are you considering?" Beca asked. "I'm sure that you'll find two great shows that you want to do. You're Chloe Mitchell. You can do anything and everything."
"I have five different shows I'm considering." Chloe said as she drove along the highway. "The first one is Oklahoma, then I have Anything Goes, and then it's Peter Pan, Legally Blonde, and Fiddler on the Roof. They are all amazing musicals and I don't know which ones to choose from."
Beca thought for a few moments. "Why don't you start with the ones that you like the most, or the ones that you're most familiar with? You'd probably want to pick a show that you're familiar with so that it'll be easier to direct," she suggested. Chloe pulled into their parking lot and parked the car before wheeling Beca inside and to their apartment.
"The only problem is, I'm familiar with all of them. I was in Legally Blonde, but I've seen the others numerous times. Got any other ideas on how to pick two of them?" She asked.
Beca closed her eyes, trying to think of any other suggestions. "I'm sure that there are a lot of talented kids that are going to try out. Do you want to have a large cast or a small cast?"
"Each one of these has a good sized cast," Chloe said. She then thought for a moment as she got her key out and unlocked their door before walking in. "I thinking opening with the right one will make it or break it. So I think for the first one I'm going to go with Legally Blonde." She said. "Now all I have to do is choose a second one."
"Alright. One down and one to go," Beca said, "You might want to choose the second show with the same criteria in mind. You'll want to have a good second show so that people will feel more inclined to come see future shows, and students will be more inclined to audition," Beca told her.
Chloe thought about it for a moment, and then an imaginary light bulb appeared above her head. "Grease! I know it wasn't one of my top choices, but teenagers love that musical and their parents will know it too since it came out in the eighties." She said smiling widely. "So, the two musicals this year will be Legally Blonde and Grease!" She said excitedly.
Beca smiled at Chloe's excitement and enthusiasm. "See? I knew that you would pick two amazing shows," Beca said, squeezing Chloe's hand. "I'm confident that you'll do an incredible job directing. I can't wait to see what you guys do."
"It'll be amazing. But the real celebration for today isn't me picking the musicals. It's you, being able to stand up at therapy today. I'm so proud of you baby." Chloe said leaning in and pecking Beca's lips.
Beca smiled and blushed at Chloe's words. "Thank you. I wouldn't have been able to do it if it weren't for you always supporting me. You've done more than enough to help me with all this," she replied, smiling at the redhead. Chloe got on her knees and took Beca's hands.
"You've been through so much, and you're still standing strong." Chloe said kissing both hands. "I'm so proud of you."
Beca smiled and gazed into Chloe's eyes. "I can't believe that I've gotten this far. A few months ago, I could barely move. Now, I can stand and soon I'll start walking again. I can't believe it."
"It's amazing." Chloe said smiling and watching Beca. "You're going to walk again, and you're going to be the best walker that ever was." Chloe said.
Beca raised her eyebrow. "I probably won't be the best walker that ever was, but I'll be pretty good," she replied with a chuckle.
"Whatever suits you." Chloe said smiling and then getting onto her computer to email her school board the choices of musicals that she had made for that school year.
Beca grabbed her laptop and rolled her wheelchair towards the couch, standing up and then sitting down. Plugging in her headphones, she started to work on a mix while Chloe was writing her email. Chloe sent the lineup for the school productions and then shut off her laptop. "How about I order us some pizza?" Chloe asked, putting her laptop back in her school bag. "Does that sound good?"
Beca took off her headphones, resting them around her neck. "Pizza sounds great, baby. Thank you," Beca said, smiling at Chloe before putting her headphones back on. Chloe nodded and then got on her cell phone before ordering them some pizza and salad.
"Alright it should be here in twenty minutes. Anything you want to do until then?" Chloe asked.
"Maybe we could take Barden on a little walk? I haven't taken him on a walk since the accident, and I'd like to try to get out a little more than I do," Beca replied.
"Alright." Chloe said getting up and grabbing Barden's leash. "Barden, come here boy!" She called. The cute, four year old, black and white dog came running in excitedly. He then sat down in front of Chloe, and Chloe got on her knees and put his leash on. Barden licked her face a couple times, making the redhead laugh. "You excited to go a walk boy?"
The dog barked and jumped up, licking Chloe's face again. Beca chuckled and smiled. "I think he's pretty excited to go on his walk, but I'm not sure," she said, petting the dog's head.
"I'd say you're right, I'd say this little guy is very excited to go on a walk in this warm and sunny LA weather." Chloe stated, helping to wheel Beca out the door of the apartment before they went outside and started the walk.
While Chloe held the leash and walked Barden, Beca rolled her wheelchair alongside them, keeping a steady pace. "It's been awhile since I've been able to go out like this. It's kinda nice," Beca said.
"It is pretty nice." She said Chloe said smiling and walking Barden along the sidewalk. "I'm glad you're outside of the apartment."
"So am I. I was worried that I'd start to forget what the outside world looks like," Beca said with a laugh as they continued along the sidewalk.
"Well here we are, the outside world welcomes you." Chloe said smiling and kissing her wife's lips before they turned around and walked back to the apartment. When they got back, it was only about two minutes after they got back that the pizza guy knocked on their door. Chloe went to the door and paid for it and then brought the pizza in.
Beca wheeled herself over to the couch and sat down, Barden jumping up and laying down beside her. "I don't think Barden's gonna let me get up from the couch," she said with a chuckle as the dog laid his head in her lap.
"He loves cuddling with you." Chloe stated with a smile. "You are a great cuddle buddy. Believe me I know baby." Chloe took out her iPhone and took a picture of Beca and Barden snuggling on the couch.
"Please don't send that to anyone. I already have a wheelchair. I don't want to further damage my badass reputation," Beca said with a little smile. Chloe chuckled and put her phone back in her pocket.
"Don't worry, that picture is just for me to print, frame and keep in our room. Nobody will see it." Chloe said smiling softly. She then brought the pizza over to the table in front of the couch and brought paper plates out for herself and Beca.
Beca put a slice of pizza on her plate and sat back on the couch. "Thank you for the pizza, baby," she said to Chloe before she took a bite. "I know that I'll never get tired of eating pizza, that's for sure."
"Neither will I, pizza is just something that I'll never ever grow tired of consuming." Chloe muttered before taking another bite out of the slice of pizza on her plate. "And LA has so many good pizza places, we don't always have to choose the same one." She said.
"We really picked a great city to move to when it comes to food. There's a nice variety of places that we can go to, which is helpful since I'm not the most skilled chef," Beca said with a laugh.
"I think you're actually pretty good at cooking babe," Chloe said with a big smile on her face. "I really love your spaghetti and meatballs with garlic bread, it's absolutely delicious." Chloe stated leaning forward to grab another piece of pizza.
"I mean, I guess my cooking is alright. Nothing compares to yours, however. You're amazing, and it's hard to compare my cooking to yours when we're not on the same level," Beca replied, taking a sip of her glass of water.
"True, but that's because I spent the whole summer before college trying to perfect my mother's recipe. She is the best cook I know, I learned it all from her. If you want the best home cooked meals you've ever had, we'll have to head back to Florida soon or have my mother and father fly out here for a visit." Chloe said. Even though his tumor was terminal, Chloe's father Richard was doing rather well lately, and was able to do more than he had been able to do in a while. He and Chloe's mother Kelly had been on two trips out of the country in the last year, one to Italy and one to Mexico, and Richard had been doing really well.
"I'd love to go visit your parents again sometime, but maybe we could wait until I can walk again? I don't want to be a burden for them if they'd have to accommodate my wheelchair," Beca said.
"Babe, you'd never ever be a burden. But yes, we will wait to back until you can walk again." Chloe said smiling at her wife.
"How has your dad been lately? I haven't gotten the chance to ask about him. Is he feeling better?" Beca asked.
"He's doing really well right now actually. He and my mom have taken a couple out-of-the-country trips. One of them was to Italy in March last year and they are in Mexico right now." Chloe said smiling.
"Really? That's awesome!" Beca said with a grin on her face. "I bet they've been sending you a lot of pictures just to make you jealous."
"Well, I've been to Mexico, but they are making me jealous with their photos from Italy." Chloe said, she set her plate down and lay back against their couch. "It is nice to know my father is doing alright."
"Knowing that he's fighting back against his cancer gives me hope that I'll walk again. It's like another reason for me to keep going, you know?" Beca said.
"What else keeps you going babe?" Chloe asked curiously.
"A lot of things. My parents, because they're so strong and supportive of me. I have to keep going to make them proud. The Bellas, who have also been extremely supportive. I don't think Amy or Aubrey would let me give up," the brunette said with a chuckle. "Most of all, you keep me going."
Chloe blushed a little, taking Beca's hand in her own. "I hope you know I wouldn't let you give up either." Chloe said smiling.
Later that night Chloe and Beca were sitting out on the balcony of their apartment. Chloe was sitting there thoughtfully, then she decided to say what was on her mind. "Babe, when you're able to walk again, do you want to buy a house?"
Beca looked over towards Chloe and nodded. "I'd love to buy a house. I know we were planning to start looking after the honeymoon, but those plans kinda got derailed because of the accident," she replied. "Maybe we could start looking online? That way it wouldn't take as long once I start walking again."
"Definitely, I agree." Chloe said smiling and wrapping her arms around Beca, holding her close.
Beca smiled and relaxed into Chloe's embrace, closing her eyes. "I'm so lucky to have met you at Barden all those years ago," she murmured softly. Chloe smiled and just held Beca there in her arms, kissing the top of her head and breathing softly.
"We got together in December of 2014 and now it's 2018, which means we've now been together for four years nearly and we met seven years ago." Chloe said smiling. "Isn't that crazy?"
"It is. Seven years ago you tried to convince me to join the Bellas at the activities fair. It's hard to believe that we're married seven years later," Beca said with a chuckle.
"I know this may be hard to believe," Chloe said sarcastically. "But I heard wedding bells in my ears whenever I saw you over the first year I knew you." She said smiling.
"Oh really?" Beca said playfully. "So whenever you saw me, you heard wedding bells and imagined that we would get married?"
"Yup," Chloe said confident in herself. "From the moment I saw you, I knew you were the one for me. Even if you hadn't realized it yet, there was a part of me that knew we would end up together forever, for the rest of our lives."
"Well, I guess that belief is what caused you to wait so long for me. I don't think I could manage to wait three years just to be with you. I mean, I'd definitely try, but you're a much stronger person than I am," Beca replied, opening her eyes and looking at Chloe.
"I think if you believe that it's meant to be, then it's easier to wait." Chloe said. "At first I thought it was hopeless when we won the ICCA's and you kissed Jesse, but as the years went on there was a small hope inside of me that kept me waiting. And I am so glad that I did."
"I'm glad that you waited too. Nobody can ever compare to you," Beca murmured back, a smile on her face. "Nobody can ever compare to you, and nobody ever will be able to."
"I'm glad you think that, because you're stuck with me for the rest of your life." Chloe said smiling and laughing before kissing Beca's cheek. "Just so you know, nobody will ever compare to you either." Chloe said. The redhead always meant what she said, no matter what she was saying she was always genuine. And this was no exception.
Beca yawned a little as they continued to watch the sunset. "I think I'm gonna call it a day. Goodnight," she said, pulling her wheelchair over and standing up from her chair, sitting down in the wheelchair. "I'm so thankful for you. I hope you know that." Chloe smiled as she watched Beca roll off towards their bedroom, hope began to grow inside her and she smiled. Beca was going to walk again, and Chloe would be there along the way.
Hey guys hope you enjoyed writing this. and are going to write a few more chapters and then start a sequel since we have so much more to tell. Hope you have enjoyed the story so far.