December 31st 2018

It was New Year's Eve once again at the Bellas house. Unlike last year, everyone chose to stay on campus over winter break. That meant a totally jam-packed house, full of chaos and laughter. All the girls were busy putting the finishing touches on the house decorations and getting ready for the holiday party they were hosting that night.

The Bellas went through a lot of changes in a year, and they were all excited to see what the future holds for them. One thing that they knew wouldn't change though, was Beca and Chloe. If anything, the two just grew stronger and stronger each day. The co-captains were dubbed the "Aca-Parents" of the group and the rest of the Bellas wouldn't have it any other way. Beca was currently upstairs, with the youngest member of the family, while Chloe directed traffic downstairs in the so-called 'haunted' basement.

"Come on Em," Beca said, "We gotta go now if we want to be back in time."

Beca was trying to get Emily to hurry so they could run to the grocery store, so they could pick up some last-minute food. Fat Amy already ate all of the appetizers they had prepared, and everyone knows that a party without food isn't really a party. No food, combined with Stacie turning everything around her into something sexual and Aubrey- who had returned for the holiday- bossing everyone around, meant that Beca was about to lose it. When the question came up as to who was going to get more food, Beca volunteered before Aubrey even open her mouth to order someone to do it.

Emily, to her credit, was running around, gathering her coat, shoes and purse as fast as she could. "Beca, why can't you just go without me? I'm not ready for the party yet!"

"You look fine. Besides, you can always finish up when we get back," Beca said quickly. "It's not even noon. You've got at least 8 hours before the party."

The younger girl was torn. She loved Beca, and looked up to her in many ways, and usually jumped at the chance to spend one-on-one time with her, but Emily was also really hoping to make herself look really nice for a special someone. Maybe she could kill two birds with one stone and ask Beca what she thought about her plan.

"READY," panted Emily, as she skidded to a halt in front of Beca. "Let's go. I call shotgun!"

"Dude. It's just us two, Legacy. You don't have to call shotgun."

"Oh. Right." Emily said sheepishly. "Can I still sit in the front seat though?"

Beca looked at her strangely. "Yeah… why wouldn't you be able to?"

"I don't know…" the younger girl trailed off.

"You can sit next to me," Beca reassured her. "You don't have to sit in the back. You're not 5 years old. Just don't get my car dirty with your grubby little hands."

"Wait. We're taking your car?" Emily's eyes bulged. She'd never been in Beca's baby before. The junior music producer had received her car from her father as an "I'm proud of you for going to college, and getting a job, and having a number 1 single on American Top 40, and oh by the way, I'm sorry I sucked as a father for 20 years, let's call it even" gift.

"I'm the only one out of the 2 of us who has a car on campus, so unless you propose we walk to the grocery store and carry everything home, then yes." Beca failed to see what the big deal was.

"But you neverlet anyone ride in your car." It was true. Beca refused to let any of the Bellas except Chloe ride in her car, ever since she had to get it professionally cleaned after a particularly wild night out with the girls. If the Bellas went somewhere, it was a mutual understanding that Beca was in charge of the music in Chloe's car load, and one of the other girls would drive the other half of the group.

"Emily. Are you coming or not? I haven't got all day."

"Yesmom." Emily teased.

The girls quickly went to the store, and got what they needed, plus extra, just in case. While browsing the aisles, Emily used Beca as a sounding board, to bounce off her idea for Benji and Beca was very supportive.

"That sounds incredibly cool, Em!" Beca said as the taller brunette finished her rambling.

"Really? You think he'll like it?"

"Wouldn't say it if I didn't believe it," she responded. Which was true. Beca was not known for dishing out compliments and praise, but when she did, you know it was sincere.

"Would you maybe help me with it?" Emily asked. "I don't know if I can do it on my own."

"You can, but if you still want me to, I will. It'll only take me a little bit of time to figure out a backing track," Beca said.

"Would you please? I'd feel so much better!"

"Sure, but you have to carry all of the groceries in."

"DEAL."

A few hours and a lot of cuss words later, Beca had finished a version of Emily's song that she was finally pleased with. Emily thought it was fine at least 90 minutes ago, but she knew better than to question Beca's process. After all, Beca was one of the main reasons that Flashlight made it as big as it did. Beca completed it just in time for Chloe to come bursting into their shared attic loft.

"Beca! I'm sorry to interrupt. I know you said not to. But for real. The girls are all having a squabble and I need you to talk some sense in to them. Can you please just—." Chloe seemed stressed beyond belief and Beca was not going to be told twice, lest she not sleep in a bed tonight. Turning around, she stared at Emily. "What are you wearing?"

Emily squeaked, looking down at her outfit. "Om my stars! Beca! I still need to change! I need to look my best and this is definitely not it."

"It's alright, we're done here. Go make yourself pretty," Beca said, pointing her finger towards the door.

"Chloe would you…?" Chloe's eyes lit up.

"Of course, I can! I would love to help you Emily!"

Beca met Chloe's gaze and they exchanged a look.

Go easy on her. She's nervous about tonight.

What? Why?

I'll tell you later. Now go! Beca produced a small cough and it startled to the girls in to action.

"Ok Em, what kind of look are we going for?" Chloe began, as she and Emily descended down the stairs to Emily's room.

Beca smiled to herself, as her girlfriend took their aca-child to get ready for New Year's Eve. Beca and Emily had spent the afternoon perfecting a song she had written for her boyfriend Benji. He was a sweet kid, and Beca knew that something special was blossoming between them. She shook her head to regain reality and then headed downstairs herself, to see what the Bellas were fighting over this time.

It turns out that it wasn't as big of a deal as Beca was envisioning from the way Chloe made it seem, so once everyone was placated, Beca went up to check on Chloe and Emily. Emily's room was a mess. The usually put together girl was surrounded by practically every item of clothing in her closet. In the middle of it all, sat a very patient Chloe. "Em, I don't see why you're so nervous. It's just an Acapella party, with the Bellas and the Trebles. You know everyone and it's going to be fun! There will be singing and dancing and food and games. And everyone will be staying up until midnight. You're going to look fine, no matter what you wear."

"But I have to look perfect! You don't understand."

"You don't have to impress anyone, all of us already love you," Chloe said, missing the point. Looking up, she was relieved to see Beca hovering in the doorway.

"Oh look, Bec's here. Can she come in?"

Upon seeing the tiny brunette, Emily dropped the dress she had in her hand and lunged at the smaller girl. "Beca!" she wailed, on the verge of a panic attack. "It's impossible!" Giving her girlfriend a bewildered look, Beca gently patted Emily on the back and guided her to the bed.

"Beca, care to try and help?" Chloe whispered, desperately. "Everything was fine until I jokingly mentioned looking nice for Benji and then she freaked out."

Beca rolled her eyes, "I got this." Beca was not known as being a person who was very good at dealing with emotions and feelings, but in this case, Beca knew what kind of boat Emily was currently riding in. "Hey Em? Why don't we talk, while Chloe picks out some options for us to go through. Does that sound okay to you?

While Chloe picked up everything off the floor and sorted through the clothes, Beca calmed Emily down by talking about random things that had happened in the studio while she was recording Snoop Dogg's Christmas Album which had just debuted a few weeks ago.

"Okay," Chloe said after a while, "Here's what I've got."

Together, the 3 girls looked at Chloe's choices. Chloe had picked her top 5 favorite outfits, and Beca eliminated 2 more. That way, Emily was left to choose between the remaining 3. It made it easier on her anxiety, to know that her aca-parents were so understanding about how overwhelmed she was, and that no matter what she picked, they would love it. Going from an entire wardrobe to 3 perfectly paired selections was a game changer. Combined with a more relaxed attitude Emily was ready to move on with her evening. She ended up preferring the sparkly cream colored top combined with a pair of tight-fitting black pants.

"Good, now go try it on, so we can see how it looks," Chloe said, "and then if you want me to, I'll do your hair and makeup."

"Okay," Emily agreed happily, and she disappeared to the bathroom to change.

"What was that all about?" Chloe asked, as soon as the girl was gone.

"Emily wrote a song she wants to sing for Benji tonight." Beca stated. "I think she's scared he won't like it."

"They're already dating. Why wouldn't he like it?"

"Because sometimes even though you logically know it will probably be fine, there's always a part of your brain that goes, 'but what if it doesn't?'" Beca said. "You don't get it, which is fine, but I understand where she's coming from, and it's awful."

"Well—"

"Okay, I'm back! What do you think?" Emily said, as she entered the room, wearing the outfit that she had picked out.

"Oh Emily, you look gorgeous," Chloe breathed.

"Not bad Legacy," Beca added, nodding her approval. "You clean up real nice."

"I'm gonna go get ready for the party too, gotta keep this one on her toes," Beca said, pointing at her girlfriend. "Chlo, you got it from here?"

"Yep! We're aca-awesome," she chirped back.

"I'm good, thanks Beca," said Emily, as she hugged her gently, knowing that Beca usually hates all forms of physical contact unless it's from Chloe.

Surprisingly, Beca reciprocated the hug, and whispered in Emily's ear, "You'll be fine. And if he doesn't like it, I'll kick his ass for you."

The party was still going strong at 11:30 pm, and Emily was getting more and more nervous as the clock counted down to midnight. By the time it got to be 11:45, she'd had enough, and excused herself to find Beca.

"Um, Bec," Emily said, seeing Beca sitting curled up on the couch with Chloe, talking with a few of their friends, "Can I steal you for a bit?"

"Sure," Beca said, stretching as she got up off the couch. "I'm all yours."

"I think I'm ready."

"Okay, let me go stop the playlist and get ready then."

As soon as the music stopped, the entire basement full of party goers turned to look at the source of the disruption. There, by the piano next to the makeshift karaoke stage, stood Emily and Beca.

Seeing Emily make no movement at all, Beca decided to take the lead on the introduction for the performance.

"Hi guys. How's everyone's evening going?" she asked in her usual DJ voice, treating this like any time she'd spun at a club. If the resounding response was any indication of the night's level of enjoyment, everyone was having a wonderful time.

"Good, good. Okay, so we all know that it wouldn't be a party without music, and it definitely wouldn't be a Bella's party if it didn't involve some originalmusic. So, I need you to all not be dicks about it and show your support for your very own Emily Junk!"

Beca sat down, as the cheering and applause died down. Once it was completely silent, she played the opening chord on the piano and nodded at Emily.

Another year you made a promise
Another chance to turn it all around
And do not save this for tomorrow
Embrace the past and you can live for now
And I will give the world to you

Speak louder than the words before you
And give them meaning no one else has found
The role we play is so important
We are the voices of the underground
And I will give the world to you

Say everything you've always wanted
Be not afraid of who you really are
'Cause in the end we have each other
And that's at least one thing worth living for
And I will give the world to you

A million suns that shine upon me
A million eyes you are the brightest blue
Let's tear the walls down that divide us
And build a statue strong enough for two

I pass it back to you
And I will wait for you
'Cause I would give the world
And I would give the world
And I would give the world to you

This is the new year
A new beginning
You made a promise
You are the brightest
We are the voices
This is the new year
We are the voices
This is the new year

The large crowd in the basement seemed to be waiting with baited breath as Beca played the final notes to the song, and Emily stood with her eyes screwed shut, bracing for the negative reception. Finally, as Beca sat her hands in her lap and turned to face the audience, they erupted in cheers. Emily's eyes flew open at the sound, and she stood there smiling as she soaked up the love from her fellow acapella people.

Searching for her boyfriend in the crowd, Emily's smile dropped when she didn't find Benji in the crowd at all. Suddenly she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned around, and there stood Benji, who looked like he couldn't be more proud of her if his life depended on it.

"That. Was. So. Wonderful." Benji managed to get out while being squeezed to death by his girlfriend. "Did you really write that?"

"Yeah," Emily replied, trying to play it cool. "It was just something I was working on for a little bit. Did you like it?"

"Yes. You did great. I loved it," Benji praised Emily sincerely, connecting their foreheads together. "You are so talented it's insane. I am in awe of everything you do."

Benji and Emily continued to embrace on the stage, as Beca just sat there awkwardly.

"Hate to break this up, but it's getting close to midnight, and I'd like to spend it with Chloe please."

Emily jumped back as if she'd been electrocuted, obviously having forgotten Beca was still there.

"Beca, OMG thank you for helping me. You're the best. I love you. Happy New Year." Emily hugged Beca gently and kissed her on the cheek before grabbing Benji's hand and dragging him off to who knows where.

"Make good choices!" Beca called after them.

Beca found Chloe once again, and they made their way up the stairs to the kitchen on the first floor. It was getting hot in the basement, and they wanted more food anyway.

"What you did for Emily tonight was really nice," Chloe said to Beca, as they sat on the swing on the front porch of the Bellas house.

"She's a good kid. Besides, you helped too. Her outfit was amazing. And don't think I didn't notice all the sparkles on that girl's face."

"I can't wait til we have our own kid that we can do that for," Chloe said offhandedly.

"Yeah, me too." Beca found herself saying, surprising even herself.

"You mean that?" Chloe asked.

"Yeah. Let's finish school and get married and stuff first. But eventually that's what I want with you." Beca said honestly. "I want to give you the world."

"I want all of that too," Chloe replied. "You're my forever."

As the party goers around them all counted down to the new year, all Beca could do was think about how amazing 2018 was, and how with Chloe by her side, she could take on anything 2019 had in store.