Author's 1st Note: Man! This took forever for me to write. Sorry for the wait! I've been really busy lately, but thankfully it's been for good reasons.
Thank you all for your amazing messages and reviews. They mean so much to me. :)
Hope you guys enjoy the chapter!
A "Turtle Cove Snorkeling Adventure" was what awaited the Bellas that afternoon. A fun, little excursion where visitors could snorkel, relax and overall, have a good time.
Once the cruise had docked in beautiful St. Thomas, the girls eagerly made their way to the Marriott Frenchman's Cove Dock to check themselves in for their boat tour. Aubrey made sure everyone was accounted for and once she was finished, she handed each Bella their ticket.
"Oh my stars," Emily exclaimed, squealing loudly as she gripped the small piece of paper with excitement. "This is going to be so much fun!"
Beca snickered as she looked down at her ticket and hoisted her bag over her shoulder. For once, Aubrey had picked an activity she was actually looking forward to. "Yeah, don't let the "Queen Bee" know this but–" Beca looked out to the catamaran that was bobbing up and down in the water, and she smiled softly. "This actually sounds pretty fun."
"Yeah, it does!" With another girlish squeal, Emily skipped away and jogged over to the dock to get in line with the rest of the girls.
There were a handful of other guests that were going to be joining them on their excursion. A cute family of four, three couples, and a party of four young ladies who were celebrating a birthday.
As Beca scanned the other participants, she couldn't help the way her eyes seemed to instinctively find their way to Chloe.
She was already in line, laughing about something Cynthia-Rose was telling her and the sight alone made Beca's breathing increase in pace. It made her want to walk over there and join them, just to be next to Chloe.
Beca could no longer ignore the fact that there was a growing need flourishing inside her. A need to constantly be around Chloe; near her, next to her. Anywhere that was close to her. It was getting harder and harder to resist and no matter how much Beca tried to push it away, that urge just kept coming back.
This wasn't right. Beca wasn't supposed to be feeling these things towards Chloe. In fact, she wasn't supposed to feel anything except resentment towards her.
So damn it, what the hell was so different lately? What was it about Chloe's smile all of a sudden that made Beca's stomach churn? What was it about the way her eyes sparkled in the sunlight or the way her nose crinkled when she laughed that made Beca want to hold her, touch her, kiss her, feelher?
What was it…?
"Oye, you just gonna stand there or you gonna get in line with us?"
The sound of Fat Amy's voice, along with a rough nudge to her shoulder, snapped Beca out of her daze.
She blinked back to reality and turned her head to find her best friend smirking at her.
"W-What?"
"What are you standin' here, gawkin' at?" Fat Amy asked. "They're gonna be boardin' us in a few minutes." She gestured towards the boat and her interjection was just the trick to ground Beca back to the present.
"Uh, n-nothing," she said. Smooth…
Fat Amy quirked a brow, "Mhmm." Beca swallowed at her suspicious tone but then Amy shrugged and looped their arms together. "Well, c'mon then."
Beca smiled tightly and quietly released a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. Her thoughts wanted to return to their previous state of trepidation, but Beca didn't want to have to waste this once-in-a-lifetime experience on her profuse and over analytical thoughts.
So as she stepped closer to the boat, Beca inhaled a deep breath and mentally prepared herself for whatever this activity was going to bring.
"Welcome everyone! My name is Sanaa." A curvy, lengthy, dark skinned woman with long, beautiful dreads was using a microphone hooked up to a large speaker to greet all of the passengers on deck. "We are very excited to have all of you here with us today. We will be taking you to Buck Island where you will have de chance to snorkel and swim with de wild turtles."
There was slight chatter of excitement amongst the passengers, but it wasn't loud enough to interrupt Sanaa's tour description.
"It will take some time to arrive at de cove, so for now–" She extended an arm out to her left in the direction of the bar and smiled. "Please enjoy some snacks and refreshments we have available as we begin our journey."
Sanaa switched off her mic and began playing music from the speaker instead. She gave the captain a thumbs up and he nodded in return, cueing two other crew members to unhook the boat from the dock.
Once it was freed, the warm winds blew against the sails and the boat began it's course.
It was about twenty minutes into the endeavor. The crew had offered their first round of complimentary drinks and some of the passengers had gotten up to explore the boat and dance to the music.
The Bellas had separated into small groups and pairs. Beca was sitting under the shaded cabin area with Fat Amy and Lily. She was looking forward to snorkeling with the turtles but wanted to make sure she limited the amount of time her poor pale skin would be exposed to the hot sun.
She definitely didn't want to suffer a bad sunburn for the rest of this trip.
Jessica and Ashley were taking pictures at the front of the boat. Flo and Cynthia-Rose were mingling with the birthday group. Aubrey was taking pictures of Emily by the boat's rear, leaving Stacie and Chloe sitting comfortably on one of the side benches, watching the light blue ocean.
Chloe hadn't been able to stop her reeling thoughts since Aubrey had confronted her at breakfast. She couldn't shake the weight that came with the realization that perhaps what Aubrey had said was right.
Could she really be in lovewith Beca? Chloe knew she had never really felt hatred towards her. Extreme annoyance and frustration, sure, but she never hated her. In fact, Chloe had always found Beca very attractive and secretly hoped that things between them would change.
But now that things had, Chloe wasn't sure she was able to control the way her feelings were continuing to grow, like a reckless snowball rolling down a steep hill.
It was terrifying.
"Okay. What's wrong?"
Chloe was ripped from her internal debate by Stacie's sudden question.
"W-What?" she stuttered.
Stacie quirked a brow at her. "We've been on this boat for, like, what? Twenty minutes? And you still haven't even touched your drink yet."
Chloe looked down at the cup she had forgotten she was holding, the ice now melted, which turned it's original red color into more of a pinkish one.
"Not to mention you've been staring at the water and chewing on your bottom lip to the point I thought you were going to start bleeding."
The moment Stacie mentioned it, Chloe instantly released her lower lip from between her teeth. Had she really been zoned out for that long?
"You only do that when you're deep in thought," Stacie continued. "So, come on, Spill," she said, sliding closer to Chloe and nudging her arm with her elbow. "What's going on?"
Chloe's brow curved as she looked at her. Stacie could very well be the only person Chloe could talk to about her dilemma, and with what she was feeling, Chloe could definitely use a good friend to talk to.
She sighed, "I don't know, Stace…" and placed her cup next to her. "I think I'm in trouble."
Stacie looked confused. "Trouble? What kind of trouble?"
Chloe started to chew on her bottom lip again. "The, uh…" She paused. Saying it out loud would definitely make it more real, but Chloe realized if Aubrey had already noticed it, then there was really no point in denying her feelings any further. "The love kind."
It wasn't a funny situation, but Chloe almost laughed at the way Stacie's jaw slowly dropped in sync with the way her eyes widened in shock.
"No… fucking… way!"
Her exclamation, though fairly overpowered by the loud dance music, still made Chloe panic and she reached forward to grab onto Stacie's wrists.
"Shh!" she cried, glancing around to make sure they hadn't gained the attention of any other Bellas. "Stacie! Please…"
"I'm sorry!" Stacie said, her eyes still wide as she quickly shook her head. "I'm sorry. I'm just–"
"Surprised?" Chloe guessed.
"Ecstatic!"
Chloe blinked. That… wasn't the answer she was expecting.
"Wait… what?"
"Chloe, that's awesome," Stacie grinned, gripping Chloe's hands tighter in excitement. "I always thought you and Beca would make a hot couple. And now you're in love with her? Like, fuck." She chuckled. "Bout time."
Chloe was still stunned by Stacie's positive reaction, but managed to voice a response.
"I– Wait… what?"
Well… somewhat.
"Have you told her yet?" Stacie asked, continuing before Chloe got a chance to answer her. "No, wait. Clearly you didn't, otherwise you wouldn't be talking to me about it." Her ongoing speech was starting to give Chloe anxiety. "How are you going to tell her? Do you want my help? We can plan something!"
"Stacie!" Chloe said, stopping the rambling before it gave her a panic attack. "Stop, please. Listen to me…"
Chloe inhaled and glanced diagonally to the other side of the boat. She spotted Beca casually sitting in the shade, watching Fat Amy tell one of her enthusiastic stories, and she felt her chest tighten.
Fuck. She really did have it bad.
"I can't tell her," Chloe finally said, looking back at Stacie. "Stacie… We're not even supposed to like each other."
Stacie rolled her eyes. "Says who?" Chloe squinted her eyes and her brow furrowed in confusion. "Oh, come on. You two have been using that bullshit excuse for years. When are you guys gonna let it go already?"
Chloe's mouth hung open in silence. She didn't really have an answer for that. Stacie may have had a point. Chloe believed she wasn't allowed to like Beca because of their history and Beca made it clear that she didn't like her.
But what if Stacie was right? What if they could learn to just… let it all go?
Chloe blinked out of her thoughts and shook her head.
"Look, Stacie even if you're right, it's not that simple. Beca and I–" Her eyes flicked over to glance at her again. "Our relationship is really complicated right now. I can't just go up to her and be like, 'Hey, Beca. Listen, I know you still hate my guts, or hey, maybe you don't, and I know we've been sneaking around and sleeping with each other every night, so not to make things more complicated, but I think I might be in love with you. Wanna go on a date?'"? Her deadpan expression added to her sarcasm, but it didn't phase Stacie.
"That's perfect actually," she grinned, equally as sarcastic. "Say that."
Chloe frowned. "Stace, this is serious. I don't know what to do."
"I told you what to do."
Chloe gritted her teeth in frustration. "Okay, well I don't want to do that," she said, growing frustrated. "I need a second option."
Stacie sighed in disappointment and shook her head as she looked at Chloe. "Alright, well how about this? This whole situation is clearly stressing you out and basically ruining the whole point of this vacation, so…" She paused. "Look, this isn't the option I think you should go with, but how about you just enjoy whatever kind of relationship it is you have with Beca for the rest of the trip and when we get back home then you can worry and figure out what it is you and Beca should do about it."
Chloe snorted. "So you're basically telling me to ignore our problems for now and cross that bridge when we're forced to?"
Stacie smiled and nodded. "Exactly."
Yeah. That definitely didn't sound like the smartest option, but… Chloe had to admit it could be her best option for now. She knew she wasn't ready to tell Beca about her true feelings, especially since she wasn't entirely sure about them in the first place.
"Chloe," Stacie said, bringing her friend's attention back to her. "We still have three days on the cruise. If what's going on between you and Beca is just a short-lived fantasy, then–" She shrugged, "Fuck, just enjoy it then. For however long it's meant to last. Okay?"
Chloe's brow curved as her gaze flicked back and forth, over her friend's eyes. After a few silent moments of mental pondering, Chloe finally made her decision.
"Okay," she said, releasing a breath. "You're right. I don't want to spoil the remainder of our trip so…" She looked over at Beca one more time and smiled. "Guess I'll just have to enjoy whatever time we've got left."
"Atta girl," Stacie grinned, still trying to cheer her up. She took her hand, "And hey, for what it's worth," she said, smiling softly. "I really hope things work out between you two."
Chloe smiled back and placed her hand on top of Stacie's. "Thanks, Stace," she said. "I hope so, too."
"Okay, ladies and gentlemen! We will be arriving at Buck Island in de next five minutes." Sanaa had switched the music off so she could use the microphone again to address everyone on the boat. "Alejandro and my son Jaheim will go over some basic snorkeling safety. Please give dem your full attention." She gestured to the two young men standing next to her and handed one of them the microphone.
"Hello, everyone! I am Jaheim." It was easy to tell he was related to Sanaa. He looked just like her except with more muscles and shorter hair. "We hope you have been enjoying yourselves so far. If we could just get your attention for de next few minutes, Alejandro and I will be explaining how to use de snorkeling equipment for those who are going to participate."
The crowd was fairly quiet as they watched intently at their instruction. By the time they finished going over everything, the boat had already anchored.
All of the Bellas were participating in the activity. Cynthia-Rose was close to refusing, claiming she didn't know how to swim, but Fat Amy promised she would stay with her in the water and that she could hang onto her while they swimmed if she wanted.
When the crew members handed out the life vests and snorkeling equipment, Beca was one of the last to receive a vest. An adult small had turned out to be too large for her, so she grudgingly waited for someone to bring her a kid's size one instead.
Once everyone who was participating was suited up and ready to go, Sanaa directed them all to line up on one side of the boat so the crew could help them into the water one by one.
Beca had kept her eyes on Chloe as the passengers began to get in line and strategically waited until she could easily slip in to stand right behind Chloe without making it look obvious.
Chloe had been talking with Emily, who was standing in front of her, and hadn't noticed when Beca had made her move. Beca took the opportunity to appreciate Chloe's choice in bathing suit; a cute aqua and green bikini with bows on the sides that hugged her hips perfectly. Not to mention the bright colors accented her glowing tan, and even though she had the ugly blue lifevest and snorkeling gear on, Beca found herself still wanting to jump her bones right then and there.
Jesus, Mitchell. Get a hold of yourself!
Beca shivered as she pushed the fiery thoughts away and focused her attention on having some fun with Chloe instead. She knew Flo, Jessica and Ashley were standing somewhere behind her in line, so Beca waited until Emily had made it into the water to cue another one of their "performances".
"Oh my God, hurry up, Princess!" she groaned. "I'd like to get in the water before I turn thirty."
Chloe tensed immediately and turned her head to stare at Beca, her jaw slacked in surprise. "What?"
Beca winked at her and smirked before she continued. "Do you not know how stairs work? I'll give you a hint–" She leaned forward, "You walk down them."
Chloe seemed to have caught on because her eyes narrowed slightly and Beca noticed the way the corner of her lips curved up.
"Really, Beca?" Chloe snapped back, playing along. "Are you always this moody, or just a straight up, Bitch?"
Beca's eyes went wide and she blinked. She knew they were just acting, but damn.
That was a good one.
Beca quickly recollected herself and shrugged as she crossed her arms. "Nah," she said, smirking. "I'm just a straight up Bitch."
Chloe focused her eyes in fake anger, "Ugh," and shook her head. "Whatever." She spun back around to face the stairs again but miscalculated her step. Her bare foot glided across the slick, wet floor and she slipped backwards with a yelp. "Woah!"
Beca was still standing closely behind her and was quick to react. She reached forward just in time and caught Chloe in her arms.
"Watch it, Clutz!" she groaned, before pressing the side of her face against Chloe's ear. "You okay?" she whispered.
The quiet, but genuine question made Chloe chuckle. "I'm okay," she whispered back, "Thanks," and tightened her grip around the railing to pull herself back up. "Get off me!"
She jerked herself away from Beca and their aggressive encounter, though fake, still attracted a small audience amongst the crew members and some of the other passengers.
Jaheim had been floating in the water, waiting for Chloe to go but climbed back on board when he saw her slip.
"Are you okay, Miss?" he asked, reaching a hand out towards her.
"I'm fine," she said, before glaring at Beca one last time and purposely flipping her red hair so it would slap Beca across her face.
Beca snickered and shook her head as she watched Jaheim escort Chloe into the water. "Bitch," she grinned, quietly.
After Chloe was safely in the water, it was finally Beca's turn. She carefully stepped down the small stairs and Jaheim smiled politely as he held out his arms towards her.
"Go ahead, Miss," he said. "De water is perfect."
Beca smiled back at the young man and nodded before bringing her goggles down over her eyes and nose and reaching her left hand out to grab his. She hopped into the ocean and was pleased to find that Jaheim had been right.
The water was perfect.
It was warm and insanely clear. Beca could see the sand and plants below her feet without even needing to put her face into the water.
Yeah. This was definitely the best activity Aubrey had planned for them so far.
"Enjoy!" Jaheim said, waving Beca off and allowing her to explore the ocean with the rest of the group.
"Thank you!" Beca responded, sticking the snorkel into her mouth and dipping her head under the water as she started to swim.
Meanwhile, after catching up with Aubrey and Stacie, Chloe found herself blissfully lost in the beautiful marine scenery. There were fish in all shapes and colors swimming within and around the tall sea grass that covered parts of the ocean floor. Intricate corals were scattered about and after a few minutes of searching, Chloe finally spotted what she had been excitedly searching for.
She smiled and raised her head up from the water. "Oh my gosh, you guys! Look!"
Aubrey and Stacie turned to see Chloe pointing under the water and looked down to see that she had spotted a few of the famous sea turtles they had come on this tour for.
"Oh, how cute!" Stacie gleed. "Check them out, Bree."
All three Bellas pressed their faces into the water and laid flat on their stomachs to follow the path of the large, enchanting sea creatures. They were big and beautiful and even with the snorkel in her mouth, Chloe couldn't help but smile.
She wondered how many more turtles she could find.
Aubrey and Stacie eventually moved on to other sights in the water, but Chloe noticed that the turtles were swimming towards a slightly hidden cove around a large rock formation, so she decided to follow them instead.
Beca had been casually exploring on her own in that same time, enjoying the magical waters and playing with some of the fish she encountered with her toes. After swimming around for a few minutes, Beca lifted her head out of the water and took her goggles off to have a look at how the other Bellas were doing.
Her timing couldn't have been more perfect, because when Beca looked over to her right, she immediately spotted Chloe and watched as she disappeared around the rocks.
Beca smirked as she slowly brought her goggles back down and dove into the water to swim after her.
By the time Beca made it into the cove, Chloe was swimming around the shoreline. Her head was in the water, so she hadn't noticed Beca approaching behind her until she suddenly felt hands grip onto her ankles.
"Boo!" Beca shouted, laughing when Chloe screamed and quickly spun around with terror written all over her face.
"Jesus, Beca!" Chloe said, yanking her goggles off and placing her hand on her chest as she caught her breath. "You scared the shit out of me."
"Yeah, that was kind of the point," Beca grinned, pushing against the water to swim closer to her. "What are you doing over here?"
"Oh, uh," Chloe smiled. "I was following a family of sea turtles," she said, shrugging bashfully. "I actually really like them."
"Yeah?" Beca said, taking a mental note. This was something else she hadn't known about Chloe. "Me too," she smiled.
Chloe smiled back, "Wait, really?" she said, suddenly narrowing her eyes. "Or are you just saying that?"
"No, I'm serious," Beca reassured. "I love the ocean. For once, this was one of Aubrey's plans that I was actually looking forward to."
"Wow," Chloe chuckled. "That's saying a lot."
Beca laughed, too. "Right?"
There was a silent moment that fell between them then that, though brief, was filled with the same warm energy they had both felt earlier that morning. Neither girl could quite understand or explain why they were feeling these things, but they still held each other's gaze and smiled.
"Well, um," Chloe eventually said, breaking the silence. "Wanna find some more turtles with me?"
Beca's smile spread into a wider grin. "Sure." She lowered her goggles back down, over her face. "Bet I can find more than you," she smirked.
Chloe lowered her goggles, too, and shook her head. "Always a competition with you," she snickered.
"Damn, right," Beca said, quickly putting the snorkel into her mouth and diving forward into the water again.
Chloe giggled before she joined Beca in the turtle search. They split off to explore different parts of the cove. It was a great spot to behold. There were more sea creatures and coral reefs to find and it didn't take long for Beca's turtle count to reach four.
When she swam the other side of the cove, Beca lifted her head out of the water and spotted Chloe swimming close to the shoreline again.
"I found four so far!" Beca shouted, getting Chloe's attention.
Chloe could hear Beca's voice and turned to face her. "I found five!," she grinned, and Beca's jaw dropped.
"No fucking way. You're lying!" she said, making Chloe laugh.
"Am not," she said, shaking her head. "Come see for yourself!" She waved for Beca to join her and Beca didn't hesitate to start swimming towards her.
The closer Beca got to the shore, the more she could feel waves forming and pushing her towards the sand. The crashing water was loud against her ears as she swam, but when she turned her head out of the water to breathe, she heard Chloe calling her.
"Beca!"
Beca stopped swimming and lifted her goggles up. "What?" she asked. Chloe's eyes were wide and she was pointing at her. "What's wrong?"
"Look out!"
Beca realized what Chloe was trying to say and turned around to see a large wave forming right in front of her. Luckily she reacted quickly and ducked into the water in time for the wave to pass over her. The force was strong enough to knock Beca's goggles off her head and even with the life vest on, she was still pushed back even further under the water.
Once the wave fully passed, Beca was able to float back to the top. Just as she pushed her hair back, out of her face and wiped the salt water off of her eyes, Beca heard Chloe cry out behind her.
"Ow!"
Beca turned in the water and found Chloe with her brow furrowed, holding her left leg closer to her.
"You okay?" Beca asked, but Chloe didn't answer. She hissed in pain instead and was struggling to keep her balance in the water as the occasional waves continued to crash onto the shore. "What's wrong?" Beca quickly swam over to Chloe until she was next to her. "Hey, you okay? What happened?"
Chloe hissed again and now that she was closer Beca could definitely tell that she was in some kind of pain.
"I cut my leg."
Beca looked down into the water and realized it was gradually getting more red around Chloe's calf.
"Oh, shit," she said. "Dude, you're bleeding!"
"Yeah," Chloe groaned, analyzing her injured leg. "Shit. I need to get this cleaned out."
"Can you swim?" Beca asked, unphased by how concerned she genuinely was.
"I'm sure I can," Chloe said, biting her lower lip as she attempted to move her leg under the water. "Mmgh…" she groaned. "It just really stings in the salt water."
"Here," Beca said, moving in front of Chloe so her back was facing her front. "Wrap your arms around me."
Chloe's brow furrowed in confusion. "What?"
"Come on," Beca said, grabbing Chloe's hands and bringing them over her shoulders and around the front of her neck. "I'm taking you back to the boat."
"Okay," Chloe said, surprised by Beca's offer, but accepting it with ease. She interlocked her fingers once Beca started to swim and she tried to use her good leg to help paddle. "Wait, what happened to your snorkel?" Chloe asked, only realizing now that it was missing.
"The wave knocked it off my head," Beca chuckled, swimming around the rock formation and back into the view of the boat and the other passengers. She didn't look around for any of their Bella sisters, her focus set on getting Chloe onto the catamaran as quickly as possible.
Jaheim had stayed close to the boat and Beca called to him just before she reached him.
"Hey!" she said, getting his attention. "You guys got a first aid kit on board?"
Jaheim's eyes widened when he noticed the way Chloe was hanging onto Beca as they approached. "Is she hurt?"
Beca stopped swimming once she made it to him, but Chloe didn't let go. "Something cut her leg."
"Oh, no. Here," he said, reaching forward. "Let's get her on de boat."
Beca grabbed Chloe's hands and carefully unhooked them, moving herself over so Jaheim could grab hold of her on the other side.
"Are you in pain?" Jaheim asked, guiding them towards the bottom of the boat stairs.
"A little," Chloe admitted.
"Okay," Jaheim said. He briefly let go of Chloe to hoist himself up onto the stairs before reaching back down and grabbing onto her wrists.
Beca placed her hands on Chloe's waist to help lift her. "Up you go, Princess," she said, wincing when Chloe's legs were fully out of the water and she could see the large, red cut more clearly. "Damn."
"Thank you," Chloe said to both of them, letting Jaheim unbuckle her vest and take her snorkel gear before placing her arm over his shoulders and carrying her back to the main deck.
Beca quickly followed behind, furrowing her brow as she watched the blood drip off of Chloe's leg and onto the white floor. Once Jaheim had lowered her down onto one of the benches, Beca sat down next to her and lifted her injured leg to lay it across her lap.
"I will be right back," Jaheim said. "I'm going to get de first aid kit."
"Thanks," Beca said, unaware of the way her thumb absentmindedly caressed Chloe's leg. Once Jaheim turned to leave, she looked at Chloe. "You okay?" she asked, not even caring that some of Chloe's blood was dripping onto her skin.
Chloe looked dazed for a moment as she stared back at Beca, but then she cleared her throat and looked down at her leg. "Uh, yeah," she said, huffing a short chuckle. "Yeah, I'm okay." She looked back up and smiled at Beca. "Thank you."
"Of course, dude," she said, still oblivious as to how soft and affectionate she was being with her.
Chloe noticed it, however, and it made her heart race.
Beca looked down at the wound to analyze it. "That looks pretty bad," she said, her face scrunching. "How did you even cut yourself?"
Chloe looked at it, too. "The wave knocked me back off of my feet," she said. "I think I cut it against one of the coral reefs."
Beca's face cringed again as she looked at her. "Ouch," she said, making Chloe chuckle.
"Yeah… ouch."
Jaheim returned quickly with his mother and a first aid kit in hand. Sanaa gasped when she saw Chloe and knelt down to get closer to her leg.
"Oh, dear," she said, looking Chloe over. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Chloe said. "It just stings."
"Okay," Sanaa said, reaching up for the first aid kit. "Well let us disinfect the wound and I will wrap it up for you." She placed the box on the floor and opened it before looking back up at her son. "Get me a bottle of water and a small towel, please."
Jaheim nodded in response and left, returning with the requested items shortly after.
Sanaa put some gloves on and reached back to grab the water bottle Jaheim had brought for her. Her brow curved as she looked at Chloe.
"This might hurt a little," she said, twisting the bottle open and holding it over the injured calf.
Chloe sighed. "It's okay. Go ahead."
Sanaa nodded and began to pour the cold liquid over Chloe's wound. Chloe hissed quietly as the blood washed away, but the pain wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be.
Once her leg and the area was cleaned off, Sanaa closed the water bottle and placed it on the ground. She dried her leg up with the towel, then took a gauze pad and small brown bottle out of the first aid kit before looking at Chloe apologetically again.
"This… is going to hurt a lot more," she said, popping the top of the brown bottle open.
Chloe's brow furrowed. She knew exactly what that was and she knew Sanaa wasn't lying when she said it was going to hurt a lot more. She grabbed Beca's hand and took in a deep breath to brace herself.
Sanaa hesitated. "Are you ready?" she asked, and Chloe nodded, her lips pressed together in anticipation. "Okay." Sanaa lowered the opening of the peroxide bottle over the wound and slowly poured some of the liquid over it.
It took a few seconds for the pain to settle in, but once it did, Chloe gasped and her leg jerked as she squeezed Beca's hand tighter.
"Ah," Chloe groaned.
"I'm sorry," Sanaa said, closing the bottle and letting the peroxide do it's job.
Chloe closed her eyes and swallowed before shaking her head. "It's okay. It's okay."
"Hang in there, Chlo," Beca said, gripping onto her hand just as tightly and watching the way hundreds of tiny bubbles formed all over her cut.
After a few more moments, the pain started to subside and Sanaa began to gently pat the wound with the gauze to soak up any remaining blood and peroxide. She applied some antibacterial cream over and around the injury and placed two fresh gauze pads over it before securing the entire area with a white wrap.
"Thank you," Chloe said, once her leg was all bandaged up.
Sanaa closed the first aid kit. "It is no problem," she smiled, handing the kit back to her son. "Please put on some gloves and use de peroxide and towel to clean up wherever her blood had landed," she instructed him.
"Okay," Jaheim said, listening to his mother and following through with her request.
Sanaa stood up and looked back down at the girls. "Would you like some drinks and snacks while you ladies wait for de snorkeling to be over?"
"Sure," Beca said, without giving Chloe a chance to answer. "Thank you."
"Okay," Sanaa grinned. "I will go grab some for you." She turned to head to the other side of the catamaran where the bar and the rest of the non-participating passengers were, leaving Beca and Chloe alone.
After watching Sanaa disappear to the other side, Beca turned her head to look out at the ocean where the other Bellas were still snorkeling.
Chloe noticed this and tilted her head. "Beca," she said, capturing her attention and smiling when she looked at her. "You don't have to stay here with me. You've already done so much. You shouldn't have to miss out on the fun just because I got hurt."
She really did feel bad about it. Sure she was grateful for Beca's help, but Chloe didn't think it was fair for Beca to have to wait the rest of the activity out with her.
Beca furrowed her brow. "What are you talking about?" she said. "I'm not leaving you here alone."
Chloe snickered. Beca was being so cute and Chloe was sure she didn't even know it.
"I'm not alone, Beca," Chloe said, trying to reassure her. "Sanaa and some of the other passengers are here."
Beca pouted slightly. Chloe had a fair point.
"Well… still," she said, readjusting Chloe's leg, which was still lying across her lap. "I don't mind."
Chloe stared at her. "But what about the turtles?" she asked, and Beca shrugged.
"Eh… it's okay," she said. "I got to see a few."
Chloe narrowed her eyes and shook her head. "Beca…" she tried again, but Beca cut her off.
"I'm not leaving, Chloe," she said. "Accept it."
Chloe stared at her again in silence for a moment. Even when Beca was being nice to her she was stubborn.
Chloe tittered to herself.
Typical.
She knew she wasn't going to win this battle, so she sighed and shook her head again. "You're impossible."
"Yeah," Beca smirked. "I know."
Sanaa reappeared then, holding a tray with two drinks and two bags of chips on it for the girls.
"Here you go, ladies," she smiled, offering them the refreshments.
"Thank you," Beca said, picking the items up and placing them next to her on the bench.
"How are you feeling?" Sanna asked Chloe.
Chloe smiled. "Better," she said. "Thanks for your help."
"Of course," Sanaa replied. "If you need anything else, please let me know."
"Will do," Chloe said, smiling as Sanaa nodded them goodbye and returned to the other passengers on the other side of the boat.
Beca had already opened one of the bags of chips and popped one into her mouth as she looked back out to the water.
Chloe watched her intensely as she replayed everything that had just happened. Beca hadn't hesitated when it came to helping Chloe and now she was refusing to leave her side. Her act of selflessness only added to Chloe's growing flame for her and it made Chloe want to kiss her right then and there.
Unfortunately, they were still in view of too many people, so… Chloe was going to have to figure out a way to properly thank Beca later.
Author's 2nd Note: My, my, my... Not all heroes wear capes, I guess! Some wear ugly life vests and cheap snorkeling gear. xD
How are you guys feeling after this chapter? What do you think is going to happen next? ;)
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