Hope you guys enjoy this next chapter! I wrote it a lot faster than I thought I would.

Chapter 11

Chloe's POV

I don't know why I'm here, but I find myself staring at Mitchell's door when I finally stop walking. I groan in annoyance and confusion and immediately turn around with every intention to leave, until I hear a voice. "Beale? What's wrong?"

I sigh, then turn to face her. "Nothing. I don't even know why I'm here, sorry." I'm too upset to even come up with a good lie at this point, which is a very bad thing.

"Well, come in." She says almost as if it's an order, and she opens the door wider.

"Thanks." I say in slight shock, my mind recognizing that this may be the chance I've been waiting for for a long time. Maybe I'll finally figure out what this "terrible thing" she did is. "Sorry to just show up."

She gives me a sympathetic smile and starts putting away her mixing stuff. "It's fine. I was bored shitless anyway." With a sigh, she flops onto her bed.

"Oh." I walk over and sit on the couch from across her bed. "Nice dorm." I look around as if I've never been in here.

"Thanks." She chuckles awkwardly. "My side's a mess."

"I can tell." I laugh at the dirty clothes and books lying literally all over the place. She doesn't respond to this, and we sit in awkward silence for what feels like an eternity before she breaks the silence.

"So why were you crying?"I stiffen at her question, and she notices. "You don't have to answer that."

I give a soft laugh, desperate to keep the conversation flowing. "It's fine, really. I, uh, was on the phone with my brother." The lie shocks myself, even. I'm an only child, for crying out loud.

"Did you guys get into a fight?" She leans forward with a soft expression on her face.

"No, no." I decide to give her part of the truth, to make it more realistic. "My mom passed away when we were little. Ovarian cancer, it took over her whole body. We were just reminiscing."

"I'm sorry to hear that." She says softly. "Were you close?"

I nod. "I was her only little girl. She used to call me her ladybug, hence the tattoo." I show her the ladybug tattoo on my wrist, and she chuckles.

"And here I thought you had a thing for bugs."

"Eww." I shudder. It suddenly occurs to me that I feel comfortable around her for the first time. "Hey, thanks."

"For what?" She tilts her head in slight confusion.

"For making me feel better." I respond lightly. My heart races when she blushes, and I mentally thank the Gods up above for giving me this opportunity to get closer to her. "Can I ask a question?"

"Umm…" She hesitates. "I guess." After a beat, she adds, "No promises I'll answer though."

"I totes understand." I give her what I hope is a reassuring smile. "Why have you shut me out lately?"

"Uhh…" She sighs. "I haven't meant to, I'm sorry. I don't want to make roots here."

"Why not?" My curiosity isn't even false at this point, but it's probably for a different reason than she thinks. LA, I suddenly realize, but I allow her to talk.

"I have no intention of staying." She admits with an easy shrug, but I can see the desire in her eyes.

"Oh." I shrug with a smile of my own. "So I would be a root? It's my senior year, Beca. I won't be here after you anyway." It's not a lie, technically. I almost feel guilty, but then I think of the fact that she killed my dad, and it brings me back to reality.

"Yeah, I know." Her voice brings me back to the present. "That's exactly why I don't care."

"Ouch." I mock offense; truly, I could care less whether or not she'll miss me after college- or if she thinks she will, that is.

She just shrugs, but I see a flash of something in her eye that almost looks like regret. "It's life. I learned at a young age not to get attached to people."

"Then why did you invite me in?" I ask before thinking, and the question takes us both off guard. I'm grateful though that the fear I would've felt two weeks ago is gone.

"I don't know." She whispers, her eyes locking on mine. "You just seemed like you needed someone, and you've been nothing but nice to me."

"Oh." I blink in shock again. "Thank you."

She gives me another rare, soft smile. "You're welcome. But you can't tell anyone about this, it'll ruin my rep."

At this, I can't help but laugh (which I choose not to yell at myself for at the moment). "What, a dark hermit?"

"Hey!" She laughs and whacks my arm, then leans backward when I attempt to retaliate. "I'm not a hermit. I'm a badass."

"Keep telling yourself that, Mitchell."

"Oh, I will." She gives me a cocky smirk.

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I walk back into the apartment to see Aubrey on the couch, her laptop on her lap and her reading glasses on. As soon as I close the door, she looks up at me. "Where have you been?"

"With Beca." I announce lightly and walk into the kitchen. There, I start fixing myself a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I hear Aubrey walk in, but I stay focused on the butter knife in my hand.

"Since when do you call her Beca?" She asks, and my stomach flips. I've never called my target by their first name. Never. Sure, maybe a side piece like Stacie, but never the main target.

"Since now." I shrug it off, but I know she doesn't buy it from the way she huffs.

"Ok. And what are you now, best friends?" She asks, and I turn around to see a false smile on her face. "Because you seem to get attached pretty easily."

"Ok, for God's sake, will you let it go already!" I scream, and she flinches back in shock. "I fell in love with Asher, yes. Did I kill him because he caught on? Also a yes. And it kills me. Every day, Bree." I lean against the counter and drop the knife in order to hold my head in my hands.

Immediately, Aubrey wraps her arms around my shoulders, and I lean into her for support. "I'm sorry, Chlo."

"I know."I whisper, my voice suddenly very sore due to the nodes. "I just…"

"Just what?" She pulls away enough to look at me with a soft expression.

I sigh. "I'm just still unsure if I'm the right person for this."

"Chloe Beale, look at me." She grabs either side of my face and forces me to look into her eyes. "There is no one better for this job than you."

Right as I'm about to say something, my phone starts ringing. Not recognizing the number, I answer it with a confused "Hello?"

"Chloe." Mitchell's voice floats through my ear. "I need your help."

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"This is a terrible idea." I whisper for the umpteenth time to Mitchell, who rolls her eyes at me in the dark.

"Then why did you agree to come?" She whispers back, and I throw my hands up in the air.

"I don't know. I guess I owe you for earlier."

Little does she know. Aubrey chuckles lightly through the ear com.

Turns out, Mitchell called because she wanted my help sneaking into her dad's office. She wants to steal the key to tomorrow's test.

"Damn straight." Mitchell laughs softly and grabs a paperclip from out of her pocket.

"Why do you know how to pick a lock?" I ask conversationally, trying to gently pry for information without making it seem obvious.

She laughs again and sticks the now bent piece of metal into the lock on the door. "Long story Beale. Not the time."

Dammit! Aubrey says. So close.

"Someday." I say nonchalantly, and she makes a sound that sounds close to a hum. After a beat of silence, we hear a small click, and Mitchell grins.

"And that, Beale, is how you pick a lock." She swings the door open and walks in.

"Impressive." I lie as I enter the room after her and close the door softly, making sure to keep the handle turned the whole time so it doesn't click. She notices and stares at me for a second, but seems to just accept it and nods appreciatively in my direction.

Mitchell starts rummaging quickly through the drawers of his desk, and I find myself noting how quick her hands are fiddling through the papers while making minimal sound. I make a mental note to tell Aubrey later.

"Ah ha!" Mitchell exclaims, holding up a packet. I squint my eyes and read 'UNIT 1 TEST KEY' on the top of the first page.

"Can we go now?"

She laughs. "Yeah, let's go." We make our way out of the classroom, closing and locking the door behind us.

"Why didn't you ask Jesse to help you?" I blurt out once we're outside, and she hesitates a second before shrugging.

"I dunno. Logically, he might have told my dad." At the falsely confused look on my face, she adds, "Jesse's my cousin."

"Oh."More false shock colors my face. "I'll have to let Aubrey know, so she's not on your case."

"I think it's sort of funny, watching the way she gets so worked up." At this, I frown.

Bitch. Aubrey hisses in my ear.

Noticing my frown, Mitchell says, "She's so easy. I know she's your best friend or whatever, but haven't you noticed she sort of takes you for granted?"

"What does that mean?" I ask, this time truly shocked. Aubrey hisses again.

"Like, you're both captains of the Bellas, but she makes all of the decisions. Don't you get a say, too?"

I sigh and shake my head. Knowing anything here could be dangerous to say, I say nothing.

When I get to my car and Mitchell her motorcycle, she says, "Do you want the answers?"

"I'm good." With a small wave, I get in the car and drive back to the apartment. Even after seeing this side of Mitchell, I can't help thinking about the softness to her this morning, and how I had accidentally called her Beca…

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"Good job, Chlo." Aubrey congratulates me as I walk back into the apartment. "You got closer to Mitchell. This is good!"

"Yeah. It's great." I mutter, my train of thoughts from earlier having dampened my mood. She frowns at my bitter tone. Apologetically, I add, "I'm in a funk right now."

"Is this about what she said? About you not getting a say in the Bellas?"

I shake my head. "No, that's just part of our cover." I can't deny though that I'm growing attached to those girls, and I know Bree is too.

I also see the way she looks at Stacie, and I can't get their interaction from this morning out of my head. I know it's smart for the mission, but the way she looks at Stacie is the same way I used to look at Asher.

"Go for it with Stacie." I blurt out before I can think about it harder.

"Oh?" Aubrey looks shocked, and rightfully so after earlier.

"We need to get as close to her as possible, especially if she is who your dad thinks she is." After a small pause, Aubrey nods.

"I'll work on getting close to Stacie, you work on Mitchell."

I can tell she doesn't like working on the smaller part of the mission, but she relents with a sigh. "You're probably the best person to get to her anyway." She raises an eyebrow mockingly.

I snort in confusion. "What does that mean?"

"Oh come on, Chlo!" She lets out an amazed laugh. "She's obviously into you."

"WHAT?" I shriek, my stomach plummeting at the mere thought. "Aubrey, that means I could be her next victim!"

Aubrey's eyes widen as she takes in my words. "We'll just be extra careful. She doesn't know who she's messing with."

Later that night, as I lay in bed, I can't help thinking about Mitchell potentially liking me… And it scares the living shit out of me.

A/N: Until next time, dear friends...