"I just feel like she'll be good for the Bellas." Chloe Beale stood next to her girlfriend on the center stage of the amphitheater, by the tables of booze. They were watching over the spread-out crowd of a cappella initiates. All around them, college students were drinking, talking, and dancing around on the tiered concrete stands. The two soulmates were surveying their work now while drinking to their success. They had a long way to go, but they had managed to recruit a group of girls to be the next generation of Bellas - with good voices at that. It took a lot of convincing on Chloe's part to get Aubrey to agree to celebrate with everyone else. But Chloe and Aubrey had been dating for two years now and Chloe knew her girlfriend - her soulmate - like the back of her hand. She was high strung, sure, but she was also dedicated and hard working. Chloe balanced her by making sure she took adequate breaks and commended herself on hard work.
The way they balanced each other out had always impressed Chloe. Even knowing they were soulmates, the two girls took their relationship slow to get to know one another. They wanted to be friends before they got into a relationship. It was in their friendship that Chloe found a way to strike a balance between them. Chloe was the friendly, social pariah and Aubrey was her steady rock. Aubrey was both stubborn and passionate about anything and everything she set her mind on. She was beautifully strong-willed and liked to have control over her situations. Chloe balanced her by being more laid back - going with the ebb and flow of situations as they arose. She calmed Aubrey when events came up that were out of her control and soothed the stress that came with a chance in her routine. Vise versa, Aubrey kept Chloe on a schedule that naturally allowed for her to stay grounded while following her dreams. Aubrey was more responsible and for that Chloe was grateful.
"I trust you," Aubrey said, but Chloe could see in her soulmate's eyes that she still wasn't convinced. "I just don't want any drama. She's so.. Alternative and we don't have time to deal with that and get these girls ready in time for competition season."
Chloe wrapped Aubrey's arm around her waist and handed her a red solo cup. While Chloe was already a little tipsy, but Aubrey hadn't had more than one drink. Aubrey apprehensively took a sip. Chloe smiled. "I just have a feeling that she can make us better." She put her head on Aubrey's shoulder and Aubrey pulled her closer. Aubrey's shoulders were still so tense. Chloe made a mental note to give her a backrub when they went back to their apartment tonight.
"And by that you mean you have a crush." Aubrey joked and Chloe looked at her with feigned disbelief. The couple had never been jealous - even long before they started dating, the two flirted and crushed on other people. Even before they were dating they were always fiercely loyal to each other - being soulmates only added to that loyalty. It was just a fun pass time and crushes were only human emotions to them. They loved one another. That was the important part.
"I do not!" Chloe laughed and bit her lip. Her eyes fell on their new brunette recruit. She was alone now, after a quick conversation with a drunk boy from another a cappella group. Chloe had to admit that she was beautiful.
"Hey, I don't blame you." Aubrey chuckled. "I mean she's gorgeous. I'm just not so sure about her attitude."
"She's just a little guarded, that's all." Chloe wiggled her nose, shifting her gaze back to her equally gorgeous girlfriend.
"Oh I see," Aubrey laughed. "You see her as a challenge. She's not all over your shower interrupting, touchy-feely personality and you think that means it's a challenge for you to get her out of her shell." Chloe didn't respond - not wanting to give Aubrey the satisfaction of being right. Though, her silence was answer enough. "Why don't you go talk to her? She's all alone now and she's not exactly a conversation starter. See if you can break that shell."
Chloe winked at her and pecked her on the cheek before heading up the stairs of the amphitheater. Somewhere in the middle, she met Beca from a row below her. Beca looked at her, expectantly - eyebrows raised in some type of judgment. Beca wasn't as drunk as Chloe probably was and didn't have a drink in her hand. Chloe made another mental note to fix that problem. "I am so glad I met you!" She grabbed Beca's hands and pulled her forward. The two of them swayed back and forth a little. Beca chuckled. "I know we're going to be fast friends."
Beca smiled in a yeah okay, sarcastic way. "Well you saw me naked so.."
"Come on, let's go get a drink. This ginger needs her jiggle juice." She pulled on Beca's hand and Beca recoiled, pulling her wrist away. Chloe frowned but didn't let it get her down. She remembered that Beca told her wasn't touchy-feely. She wondered if there was a story behind that. She danced in front of Beca, doing a little jiggle, and Beca laughed. At the bottom stage of the amphitheater, Chloe poured Beca a double - she needed to catch up.
"Thanks," Beca said awkwardly. She looked around, clearly unsure of what to say or do. Chloe couldn't help but think it was cute. Aubrey and Stacie approached them once they were settled with new drinks.
"Let's do shots!" Chloe wasn't sure who it was that even yelled it - but before any conversation could be had, the four of them were crowded with a cappella group members grabbing at and pouring themselves shots all around. Then one round turned into two, two rounds turned into three. The amphitheater was somehow less sturdy than it had been before. Chloe's vision swirled as music blasted out to the night sky and dancing ensued. The magic of harmonizing voices graced her ears and Chloe fell into the rhythm of the music, completely lost in its entrapment. She and Aubrey danced the night away with their new recruits and eventually even Beca got comfortable enough to dance with them and Stacie.
She learned a bit about Beca and Stacie that night. Stacie was in Barden's advanced PA program and Beca was majoring in Music Business at the behest of her father, a comparative literature professor in the English department. Beca didn't plan on staying longer than a year before she went to Los Angeles to pursue a dream of being a DJ. They were stepsisters, which made the most sense to Chloe, having wondered why the two girls were so close and yet so different. Stacie had a loud and boisterous personality that matched Chloe's own confidence and possibly even surpassed it. While Beca was quiet, reserved, and snarky if you listened for her small comments. Stacie told her more about Beca than Beca spoke in the four hours they spent dancing and laughing together. Before Chloe knew it, the night became the early morning hours of the next day. The amphitheater was winding down of people as they headed to their respective dorms.
"Where is your dorm?" Chloe asked as they walked out onto the dark quad lit by only a few street lights.
Stacie and Beca looked at each other for a long time without responding. Then they both started laughing. "I uh.. We can't remember." Stacie said. "Jeffers- no, that's not it. Shit. Where are we going?"
Chloe and Aubrey laughed at the two as they exchanged confused and little words about what hall their dorm was located in. "The two of you are quite the pair," Aubrey noted as Stacie and Beca laughed again. Both girls were drunk out of their minds and Chloe couldn't say she wasn't far behind them. She was glad Aubrey had sobered a bit to get them back to their apartment by car.
"I blame you two!" Beca exclaimed and the slurring words made Chloe giggle. "You're the ones who put hoods over our head. This place is huge! How do you expect me to remember when I don't even know how we ended up back there?" Beca gestured with her entire arm toward the direction of the amphitheater where they'd come.
"We'll just wander around until we make it back. We'll have to recognize something at some point." Stacie shrugged, staring up at the night sky and the bright stars above them.
Aubrey and Chloe exchanged knowing glances between themselves and Aubrey voiced Chloe's thoughts. "Why don't the two of you just come back to our apartment? I'd rather know that you're safe than let you wander campus at four in the morning. Besides, the sooner you get to sleep the better you'll be for practice in the morning."
Beca wiggled her eyebrows. "Tomorrowsss Saaaturdayyy."
Aubrey stuffed her hands in her letterman's jacket and chuckled. It was Saturday. They'd been back on campus for an entire week already and most of it was for freshman orientation, the activities fair, and then finally the first day of classes. "We practice every day but Sunday. Ten am on Saturdays." Her girlfriend explained. Beca only groaned in response.
"It's okay. We'll find our dorms.." Beca mumbled. "I don't want to put you out or anything." The apprehension didn't sound the same as Beca's other comments did. She sounded genuinely concerned about being hosted at their apartment.
In response, Chloe linked their arms together. "Don't be silly. We're your captains now. It's our job to take care of you." Beca didn't put her away this time, but she did shove her hands deeper into her jacket pockets. When Beca looked at her, Chloe could see that she was worried about the idea. Chloe couldn't tell why, but the apprehension was plastered across her face. Her shoulders were tense to Chloe's touch.
"It'll be okay. It's one night." On Beca's other side, Stacie elbowed Beca and Beca looked away from Chloe to look at her.
Stacie's reassuring smile seemed to relax Beca's shoulders. "Okay." Chloe watched them carefully. Their relationship was fierce and she could tell that it had taken years to build it up. Chloe was glad that they had one another.
The car ride back to their apartment was only five minutes and just enough time to blast Titanium on the radio. Chloe singing it at the top of her lung seemed to make Beca's tensions ease. They were at the apartment in a heartbeat later. She and Aubrey had moved in together last year. It was a ground-level apartment with an outside glass door entrance, with two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a large enough living room to house all of the Bellas if need be. They'd tried to get a house on campus for the Bellas to stay together, but they weren't quick enough and the houses on campus were gone to the sororities and fraternities before they knew it. Still, Chloe liked their apartment. It was beautifully equipped with new appliances, spacious storage, and above all, it was a little nook for them to have space for themselves. Chloe was torn between the options - a house with the Bellas seemed like fun, but any time she could get Aubrey alone was better.
Inside, the girls got some water and Chloe led Beca and Stacie to the guest bedroom. She got out some extra blankets and pillows from the closet and set it up for them. Meanwhile, Aubrey brought in some spare pajamas for them to change into. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask!" Chloe told them and Stacie thanked her. Chloe stood in the room for a half a second too long. She wanted to do something - say something, anything for the night not to end. But there was nothing she could think of to prolong it and she eventually adjourned to the master bedroom with Aubrey.
"I didn't think you would bring her home on the first date. You work fast, Beale." Aubrey joked when she came in.
Chloe got changed into a tank top and shorts, rolling her eyes at her girlfriend. "You're the one who invited them home, Posen." She crawled under the blanket that Aubrey lifted up for her to join. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were the one with the crush." She snuggled into Aubrey's side and laid her head on her girlfriend's chest. Aubrey's heartbeat always had a calming effect on her.
Aubrey gasped, "What? I invited them because you gave me a look!"
Chloe shook her head, closing her eyes. "I don't know what look you're talking about." When Aubrey didn't say anything, Chloe looked up to see that Aubrey's jaw was just dropped open and she was trying not to grin. "Goodnight baby." Chloe kissed her, soft and let her lips linger on the Blondes.
