Fixes
8
A/N: Sorry it's a tad shorter than usual. I needed a good stopping point before the next part.
"Oh shit!" Aubrey exclaimed as the toy dog she was holding squirmed out of her arms. Luckily Chloe was there to catch him before he hit the floor on his fully casted, right front leg. "Thanks, Chlo."
"No problem," the vet chuckled as she handed him back. "I almost dropped this rascal myself earlier. He's the squirmiest dog I've ever seen; hates being held."
"Speaking of squirmy," the blonde went on as she eased her charge into a cage and closed the door. "How's Bella doing? Paw all healed?"
"Absolutely," Chloe nodded. "She's good as new."
"Beca must be relieved."
"She is. Neither of us expected the infection to come back but, leaving the drain in a little longer, and the extended run of antibiotics seems to have cleared it for good, I think." She grimaced. "I hope."
"And… um… how are things with you and Beca?" Aubrey didn't see the affectionate eyeroll her friend shot her way.
"Everything's fine, Aubs. The past three months have been… an adjustment, I'll admit… but things are great."
"That's what happens when you slowly move in together. You should just ask her to make it official."
"We haven't moved in together," Chloe protested. "We just… we happen to sleep in the same bed sometimes."
"Every night!" the vet tech laughed.
"Not every…" Chloe paused as she rethought that. For the first month after Thanksgiving, they'd spent a few nights a week together but since Christmas, it'd become every night and they'd even stopped asking who was going where. Chloe always just ended up in Beca's bed, spooned against her with Bella curled up at their feet. Simple as that. "Huh."
"Right," Aubrey laughed. "Jeez, Chloe, just ask her already."
"Ask who what?" Beca asked as she (with her usual impeccable timing) popped her head into the Pet Hotel section of the practice. She handed over a cup each to her girlfriend and friend. "I come bearing coffee."
"Thanks, Babe," Chloe grinned. "And um… Aubrey was just… uh…"
Aubrey tilted her head and gave her best friend a pointed look. "Aubrey was wondering why Chloe seems to have no balls these days."
"Balls… about what?" Beca asked uncertainly as the redhead glared at the vet tech.
"Nothing…" Chloe said quickly. "Don't listen to her. She's crazy."
Beca shrugged as the vet shook her head in exasperation. "Ok then." She turned to leave, then stopped suddenly and turned back to lift a hand in question. "Hey, by the way, I was just thinking on the way over here… you're sleeping at my place every night anyway so... what do you think about officially moving in together?"
Chloe's eyes widened. "Uh…"
Beca nodded. "No big deal if you don't want to. I…" She nodded again as she headed back out the door. "We can talk about it later. Seeya."
Aubrey started laughing helplessly. "Now SHE has balls."
The vet shook herself out of her surprise and went after her girlfriend. "Becs, wait."
The musician paused and turned around, eyebrows raised. "Yeah?"
"Of COURSE I want to move in with you. You just caught me off-guard. Aubrey was just saying I should ask YOU."
"But… my place is bigger…"
"Right," Chloe laughed softly. "I want us to live at your place but… I didn't want to just invite myself, you know?"
Beca nodded and her eyes grew infinitely soft. "I love you, Chlo," she said. "You could've asked. I would've been thrilled."
"Good to know," the vet replied, almost shyly. "And I love you too."
"Let's talk about it this evening," the musician said then. "I have to get home for a video call with Disney-Pixar. They accepted all three songs and want to talk about next steps." She couldn't help the happy grin that stretched her lips.
Chloe hugged her hard and kissed her temple. "That's amazing, Becs! Congratulations!"
"Thanks. Gotta run, Beautiful. See you tonight."
"Later!"
Xx
Chloe was frowning, looking at a forgotten price tag on the garment in her hands. "Beca, did you pay three hundred dollars for these?"
"What?! No! Of course not!"
Light blue eyes narrowed. "Becs." The vet showed her girlfriend the tag, tilting her head in question.
Dark blue eyes lowered. "Shit... Ok… yes."
"Babe," Chloe sighed. "I know you're being an amazing girlfriend, but I really don't need you to do stuff like this for me."
Beca got up and walked to the bedroom window to gaze out as Chloe set the pair of admittedly gorgeous silk pajamas down. "I know... but..."
The vet sighed and shook her head. "Becs, they're fabulous… really… but I don't need to wear three hundred dollars of silk on my back when I'm sleeping… especially since I'd rather just sleep naked with you."
A little smile lifted Beca's lips as she nodded and moved back to the bed to sit down. "Can I tell you something, Chlo?"
Chloe nodded immediately. "Of course, you can tell me anything."
"I felt alone for a long time. Before the assault… before I graduated college… even before I went to college… I've always felt some form of alone. And now that I'm not, I want to do things like buying the woman I love nice stuff." She paused as she thought about the ring that had been tucked away in her underwear drawer for a few days. She and Chloe were together pretty much five months now, but she wanted to wait for a while… to feel Chloe out a bit more about being ready… before she…
Chloe chuckled. "Earth to Beca?"
"Sorry." The musician laughed a little. "Got caught up in my own head there for a sec. Anyway…"
"Beca… are you rich?" the vet suddenly asked.
The unexpected but honest question hovered between them, and the brunette suddenly realized it was something they'd never really touched on.
"Define… rich?" Beca asked slowly.
Chloe thought about that. "Right at this moment, I have about eight hundred dollars in my checking account and about twelve grand in savings. Do you have more than that?"
Beca nodded a little sheepishly. "I'm not sure how m... um... probably... yeah." She pulled her phone out of her pocket and logged into her banking app. She honestly didn't know how much she had in her accounts. "Well, I have about a hundred and eighteen thousand in my checking account, which is mostly royalties from my music deals… and um…" Her eyes lifted to Chloe's face, but the vet was just smiling. "I have about three million in savings and my investments are healthy too. I'd have to ask my accountant about that though."
"Ok… wait…" Chloe laughed. "You could've just said 'I have an accountant' and it would've answered my question." She kissed Beca's lips gently. "I no longer feel conflicted about the pajamas." They shared a smile, but then Chloe sobered. "But Beca, I don't want you to feel like you have to spend a lot of money on me, ok?"
"I don't feel like I HAVE to, Chloe, but… I'd like to. I've never had someone I wanted to do this for before… so please… let me?"
The redhead suddenly realized something. "Before you, I'd never had someone I wanted to bring home to meet my family," she said softly. "And before me, you'd never had someone you wanted to spend your wealth on. I toes get it."
The brunette smiled. "Good, so I guess I'm not taking the pajamas back to the store?"
Chloe just grinned and started to strip.
Xx
Beca's Dad had arrived at sunrise and now, in the early Los Angeles morning, the Mitchells sat quietly facing each other in a booth, the remnants of their breakfast bussed to one side. At the table's center, a small velvet box, with its lid open, sat sedately. The ring inside it twinkled gently in the light from the sun streaming through the restaurant window.
"It's gorgeous, Beca," John said softly. "When are you going to ask her?"
The musician snapped the box closed and put it back into a zipped pocket in her purse. "We just officially moved in together last weekend," she said. "And I know I should wait a little longer but, I love her so much, Dad. I want to marry her."
"And she feels the same way?"
"I know she loves me. I feel it every single moment we're together… but marriage… it's a big step, right? We've been together six months now and, even though I've loved her since probably our first date… it's a lot and maybe… maybe I should wait a little longer... right?" Beca was conflicted. She knew what she wanted but what if it wasn't what Chloe wanted yet? She didn't want to ruin what they had by jumping in too fast.
Her Dad was quiet for a while but then he looked down. "I wanted to propose to your mom at the end of our first date," he admitted. "But I waited three months."
"How did I not know that?" Beca asked with a smile. "I just assumed you did the whole 'wait two years' thing."
"We hadn't lived together before we got married and boy was that an adjustment, I'll tell you." The man smiled. "But we made it work and we were happy for a long time."
The musician looked down. "What changed?"
John shook his head and absently smoothed his beard down. "It was simple, Beca. I met Sheila and fell in love with her the way you love Chloe… with that all-consuming fire. Your mom and mine's spark had just gone out over the years and, while I still love her to this day, I realized I wasn't IN love with her anymore. I know I handled the whole thing badly, Becs, but all I could think about was being with Sheila."
Beca leaned back in her seat and nodded slowly. "I still don't agree with what you did, Dad," she said. "But maybe… maybe I understand WHY a little better. I can't imagine not being with Chloe."
"Well, I certainly can't wait to meet her," her dad replied. "I'm just sorry it's taken so long. I really wanted to get here sooner."
"You're here now. That's all that matters." Beca looked at her watch. "Actually, she should be finishing her night shift now. Want to go home and meet her before she has to get some sleep?"
"Absolutely," John replied with a smile. He tossed enough cash onto the table to cover their meal and a generous tip, then slid out of the booth. "If she's asleep when we get there, don't wake her though."
"Yeah, good call, Dad."
Xx
Chloe was pacing anxiously back and forth in the living room. She'd just gotten home from work and Beca had texted her that she and her dad were ten minutes away. Now, for some reason, an irrational fear that Doctor Mitchell wouldn't like her was weighing heavily on her.
"Calm down, Chlocifer," she told herself. "You know it's going to be ok. I mean… if he doesn't like you, it's not like Beca is going to leave you or…" She stopped pacing and swallowed hard as sudden uncertainty made her feel like throwing up. What if Beca DID leave her? "No, stop," she told herself firmly. "Beca loves you, Idiot." She was so busy being anxious that she didn't hear her girlfriend's key turning in the lock.
"Hey, Chlo," Beca said as she led her dad into the living room.
The vet jumped and whirled. "Hey!" she said, much too loudly. "Hi, sorry…" She laughed a little. "I… didn't hear you come in." She stepped forward quickly, hand extended. "Doctor Mitchell, it's an honor to meet you, Sir."
John looked amused for a moment. "Likewise, Doctor Beale," he said formally as he firmly shook her hand.
Beca chuckled softly. "Chlo, your energy is making me itch. Breathe, Honey."
"Sorry," the redhead said sheepishly, then blew out a long breath. "I'm ridiculously nervous for some reason."
John smiled and squeezed her hand again, gently this time. "Call me John. Honestly, Chloe, you've made my daughter happier than I've ever seen her. I already love you for that."
The vet blinked and then swallowed as unexpected tears rose in her light blue eyes. "Wow," she said softly. "Thank you, John."
The musician went to her and hugged her, dropping a chaste kiss on her lips. "How was your night, Honey?"
Chloe smiled widely. "I treated my first chinchilla in years. It was epic. His name was Clyde and he had a little eye infection."
"Poor Clyde," John said sympathetically.
"Right?!" the vet said. "But we fixed him right up with antibiotics. He was so soft. I couldn't stop rubbing his coat against my face. I think his mom thought I was a bit crazy."
"You ARE a bit crazy, Chlo," Beca teased. "Hey, you want me to make you something to eat before bed?"
"Oh, yes, thanks, Becs. I was going to stay up and visit with you both for a while, if that's ok?"
"Aren't you tired, Sweetie?" John asked.
"I'm kinda hyped up actually," Chloe deadpanned. "It's the chinchilla's fault."
Beca grinned, shaking her head. "She's actually not really kidding, Dad. Furry things make her seriously hyper."
The man chuckled softly. "Well, why don't we sit down, Chloe, while Rebeca gets your breakfast."
The brunette rolled her eyes. "You know, there isn't a single person in this world who calls me that other than you, Dad?"
"Good, 'cos there's no one other than you who calls me Dad."
Beca smiled and ambled away into the kitchen. Chloe sat in an armchair and tucked her legs up underneath her as she pulled the sleeves of her shirt down over her hands. She was still a little nervous about being alone with her girlfriend's father, but she took a deep breath and smiled. "So… you're a college professor, John?"
"That's right," John nodded. "And, just like you, I love my job…"
Xx
It was almost noon and Chloe had been up twenty-two hours. She was snuggled against Beca on the sofa and was barely able to keep her eyes open as she listened to John sharing stories about her lover as a child. Then the brunette was gently shaking her awake.
"Baby, you need to get some sleep, ok?"
"I'm sorry," the vet murmured. "I wanted…"
Beca kissed her forehead and smiled. "Don't apologize. You're a trooper, Chlo, but it's time to sleep now. I was thinking we could go out for dinner tonight, if you're up to it?"
"Definitely," the redhead smiled, perking up a little as she dragged herself up off the sofa and dropped a kiss on the top of the musician's head. "See you both later."
"Sweet dreams, Chloe," the man replied with a smile.
Ten minutes later, the vet was in bed, leaving Beca and her dad to talk alone. "She's amazing, right?" the musician said with a soft smile.
"She's even better than I'd hoped," her dad admitted. "Smart, beautiful, kind, funny… I can see why you love her so much. And she obviously loves you too. I'm just so happy for you both, Beca."
"Thanks, Dad," the brunette replied. "So much has changed in the last six months. It's…" Just then, Beca's phone rang, and she looked at the screen with a frown. "Sorry, excuse me. It might be work." She hit the answer button. "Hi, this is Beca."
"Ms. Beca Mitchell?" a voice on the other end of the line said.
"Yes, speaking."
"Beca, this is Detective Jesse Swanson. You may not remember me but…"
"Atlanta P.D." Beca interrupted softly. "I do remember you."
John sat forward in his chair as he watched his daughter listen intently. Suddenly, her face blanched and her eyes widened, then the phone fell from her suddenly nerveless fingers to bounce on the thick rug under her feet. Her Dad could hear Detective Swanson still talking and he picked up the device. "Excuse me... Detective, Beca's not able to talk right now. I'm her father. What's going on?"
Beca felt like throwing up. The anxiety in her chest was making it hurt intensely. "Chlo," she whispered. "Chloe?" she said a little louder as her vision began to skew. "Chloe?!" she called, pressing her hand against her chest and trying not to pass out as she desperately tried to pull more air into her lungs. "CHLOOEEEE!" she screamed then, blindly reaching out and a split second later, her girlfriend was kneeling in front of her, holding her close.
"I've got you," Chloe said. "Just breathe, Baby. Breathe with me. We've got this. Just breathe." She rocked Beca as she looked at John confusedly. The man was still on the phone.
"Thank you, Detective," he said calmly. "We'll get back to you."
"What the hell is going on?" the vet demanded as John kneeled next to them, his hand on his daughter's shoulder.
"That was one of the detectives from Atlanta P.D.," the man said, his voice shaking a little. "He called because… they think they've finally identified the guy who assaulted Beca."
"Oh my God," Chloe whispered, hugging her lover tighter and kissing her temple. "Oh my God, Baby."
Beca was crying softly, clutching at Chloe's shirt like a lifeline and Bella suddenly appeared from under the couch, where she'd been sleeping. She mewled unhappily as she jumped up onto it and squashed herself onto her mom's lap. Beca was still unable to speak much but at least her breathing was coming a little easier now and her hand automatically moved to rub her baby's soft, furry ears. "They want…" She sucked in a breath and tried again. "They want me to come there to try to identify him and, if it's him, they want me to testify."
Chloe nodded gently. "That's a good thing, Becs, right?"
"I… I don't know if I can… I… I don't think I can face him again. FUCK, Chlo." The anxiety was pressing down on the musician again.
"Hey," John said softly. "You don't have to decide right now, Honey. I told Detective Swanson we'd get back to him. You have time to think about it." Beca looked terrified and he rubbed her shoulder softly. "Chloe, why don't you and Beca take some time to yourselves and get some sleep. I'll just put on the game and relax here until you wake up. We can talk about this later tonight."
"Thanks, John," the vet replied with a grateful nod. "Help yourself to anything in the fridge or cupboards. There are bottles of beer and white wine chilling if you want some." She eased to her feet, bringing Beca, who was holding Bella, with her as she headed toward the bedroom.
"Sleep well, Ladies," John said and then took a seat on the couch as they shut the bedroom door behind them.
Chloe didn't even bother undressing her suddenly exhausted girlfriend and, instead, just lay them down, spooning against her as she always did. After a few moments, she felt her younger lover relax a little against her and just held her closer. "I love you," she whispered. "We'll get through this, Becs. I promise."
"Chlo," Beca whispered back. "If… if I decide to do this, I'll need you to come with me. You know I'm always my bravest self when I'm with you."
"I'm here for you," Chloe replied, eyes filling with grateful tears. "And I'm never letting you go."
Beca just nodded and closed her eyes, sighing softly. Moments later, they were both asleep.
Xx
It was almost seven when Beca wandered back into the living room with Bella in her arms. Chloe was still asleep, and she smiled as she found her dad also dozing on the sofa, a small number of empty beer bottles on the coffee table and the end of a football game playing on the TV. It was getting very close to Superbowl, and it was one of his favorite times of the year.
The musician took a seat in an armchair and rested her head against its back as her sweet orange cat curled up in her lap and went back to sleep.
"What do you think, Bella?" she murmured softly. "Do you think I should do it?" She closed her eyes. "I… I was feeling so good about things. Really making progress with my life. Would going back to Atlanta cause a setback for me emotionally? Psychologically?"
The long but restless nap had allowed her enough rest to be able to think rationally again so she just sat and let her mind drift for a while. Then she rubbed Bella's ears again, making her purr loudly.
"I think I have to do this, Bells. I have to do it for me. Because I'll always be some level of scared if he's out there. And I think I need to fight for me… for justice for myself. But I REALLY need to talk to Elise first."
John cleared his throat softly to let her know he was awake. "Hi, Honey. Sleep well?"
"On and off," the musician replied with a shrug. "I'm trying to not wake Chloe. She works so hard and was so tired, I thought it best to just get up and let her sleep."
Her dad nodded and stretched a kink out of his back. "Well, sounds like you and Chloe are going to be staying with Sheila and me?"
Beca nodded. "I have to think about this, Dad. And I need to talk to my therapist. But, if she feels like it won't set my recovery back, then... yeah... I'll do it."
John smiled proudly. "Good girl." He paused then and shook his head. "No," he added gently. "It's been a long time since you were a girl. I'm so proud of the woman you are."
"Thanks, Dad," the musician replied. Then she smiled as Chloe emerged from the bedroom, yawning sleepily and running her hands through her tousled red hair. It was so adorable, and her heart swelled with love for her girlfriend.
"Did I hear someone say dinner and alcohol?" the vet asked. "I'm starving."
"Yeah," John replied with a chuckle. "Let me take you both out tonight. Having two beautiful women on my arm can only do wonders for my reputation."
"Ok... ewww..." Beca stated, scrunching her nose.
"Alright, sounds good," Chloe grinned. "Let me just shower."
"Me too," Beca added. "Won't be long, Dad."
"Take your time," the man replied. "I'll be here."
