Fixes

10

A/N: Hi Friends, I'm back, but just a reminder that I'm traveling over Christmas so my next updates may only come in the new year. Please remember that comments are a writer's sustenance. The more you feed us, the harder we work to earn more! Happy Christmas, if I don't see you before! Paula.


"Ready to close," Chloe said, biting her bottom lip behind her mask as she carefully dabbed blood from around the incision site. "Very nice, everyone. Thank you." She spent a few minutes sewing up the incision and then stepped back to let her nurse finish up and move the dog to a recovery kennel.

"Doctor Beale?" Aubrey said from the door as she stuck her head in. "Got a sec?"

Chloe pulled off her mask and gown, smiling as she nodded. "Sure. What's up?"

"Just thought you should see this," the blonde said as she held out a newspaper.

The vet skimmed the top of the article, eyebrows lifting. "Cat's out of the bag. Beca always tries to make out that she's not famous but..." She shrugged. "Her Oscar nominations are beginning to make it more difficult to stay anonymous, even if she never actually tells anyone about them."

"But..." Aubrey sighed. "Read further down."

Chloe kept going and after a moment, she laughed softly. "Seriously?"

The blonde shrugged. "Were you not aware that Beca was engaged to a guy called Joey Beale?"

"I can't say I was," the redhead deadpanned. "I hope he's good looking and treats her right." She rolled her eyes and shook her head before pulling out her phone and snapping a photo of the article, then sending it to Beca.

Chloe knew that her fiancée was in meetings all day, so she didn't expect to get a reaction any time soon. Her phone screen said it was just after six, so she grinned at Aubrey. "Feel like beer and pizza?"

"Definitely," the vet tech grinned back.

The redhead dropped another message to Beca, then went to her office to change into street clothes before meeting her best friend at the reception area. But when she got there, she found an elderly man sitting in a chair, holding something furry in his arms.

"Are you ok, Sir?" she asked as she approached him and crouched in front of him.

"She didn't make it," he said absently as silent tears rolled down his cheeks. "I thought she'd at least make it here."

Chloe pursed her lips and glanced over her shoulder at Aubrey, who was just coming through the door. "Can I take a look at her?" she asked the man then. He nodded and Chloe gently eased the little dog out of his arms and into her own. "Aubs," she said softly, and the vet tech nodded. Chloe waited for her to return with a stethoscope and then she listened carefully to the little dog's heart. There was nothing but silence. "I'm so sorry," she said, looking back to the man and shaking her head. "What's her name?"

"Reggie. She was very old," he replied. "Almost twenty. Oldest dog I've ever had. Kinda thought she might outlast me." A small smile lifted his lips and Chloe nodded, putting a hand on his arm.

"Would you like us to take care of her for you?"

"No, thank you, Honey," the man replied as he struggled to his feet and accepted his dog back. "I have a spot in my yard for her, next to her siblings."

Aubrey appeared again, this time with a box and a paper shroud. "Let me wrap her up for you," she said gently, opening the shroud and accepting the little dog to wrap her up and ease her into the box. She closed it and flipped the handles up to give it back to the very upset owner. "We're so sorry for your loss, Sir."

The man shrugged a little. "They're sent to bring you a little bit of happiness. Then they watch over you from the other side of the Rainbow Bridge and continue to send it to you."

A lump formed in Chloe's throat, as she thought about Duke, and she nodded. "Yes, Sir, you're right," she said. "I'm Doctor Chloe Beale. Please don't hesitate to call me if there's anything I can do for you."

"You're a good person and an excellent vet, so I've heard. My son brings Hecthare to you."

"Oh! I LOVE Hecthare!" the vet grinned. "He's an adorable bunny! Your son's name is John, right?"

"Just like me," the old man replied.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, John Senior," the redhead smiled. "And as I said, please reach out if we can do anything for you."

"Yes, Ma'am."

Chloe straightened and picked up her messenger bag to sling it over her head and settled it against her side. "Bye, John." Then she and Aubrey headed out to the bar around the corner.

"I need a damn drink now," Aubrey said, unhappily biting her cuticle. "His face was sooo sad."

"I know," Chloe replied thoughtfully. "Made me want to call my dad to check on Dukie."

"You should," the blonde replied. "I know his scans came up pretty clear but… he's getting old."

"Yeah," Chloe agreed with a sigh as she hiked her bag up higher on her shoulder. "I'll call him in the morning."

Xx

Beca was drained after her meetings over at Disney in Burbank. More than once on her long drive home in brutal traffic, she cursed herself for refusing their offer of a driver in favor of driving herself.

"Not doing THAT again," she muttered. The traffic was at a standstill, so she pulled her phone out of her bag, blinking when she saw a text from Chloe.

Chlocifer: I hope you two are very happy together 😉

Beca tapped the image and then zoomed in to read. After a moment, she snorted a laugh, slapping her hand over her mouth. "Joey Beale?" she said out loud and then collapsed into laughter again. "Oh my fucking God. Someone got that TOTALLY wrong!" Still chortling, she dialed her agent.

"Beca Mitchell, my DAAAAARLING!"

"Hi, Benji. How's the new beau?"

"His name is Todd and he's hot as hell. When are you going to come over for dinner?"

"Whenever you invite me. Can I bring my fiancée?"

Benji gasped. "Beca Mitchell, you're engaged and you're only just telling me now?"

"Well… actually," the musician chuckled. "Chloe and I only got engaged very recently. But, according to an article she sent me this morning, I'm engaged to some guy called Joey Beale. If I forward it to you, do you think you could do something about it for me, Benj?"

"Is my name Benjamin Applebaum?" he demanded. "Of COURSE I can do something. I'll rip the editor a new asshole and then stuff the reporter up it!"

Beca rolled her eyes. "Eeeaaassssyy… easy, Benji. A correction in tomorrow's edition will be just fine. No need for anything to do with assholes."

The agent sighed dramatically. "Fine. I'll make sure it's fixed."

"Come to dinner next Friday, Darling? And bring Chloe?"

Beca frowned. "Actually… I can't this week, Benj. I um… I have to go to Atlanta, and this might be something you'll need to manage too. They caught the guy who assaulted me and they're getting ready to go to trial. I volunteered to do a press conference to hopefully encourage other women who may have been attacked by him, to come forward while they're building the case."

"Oh, Honey," Benji said quietly. "I don't know what to say. You must be excited and terrified both at the same time."

Beca couldn't have said it better herself and nodded silently for a moment. "Yeah," she finally replied. "Every time I think about him, I still feel sick to my stomach." She cleared her throat then. "But anyway, Chloe's coming with me. With the Oscar nom and now this, the press might call looking for information. Keep them in the dark until I'm ready to release a statement, ok?"

"You got it, Becs."

"And in the meantime, it's business as usual with Disney. Do you think you could look at the new contract I sent to you, today? They want me for another movie that's in the planning phase."

"Epic!" Beni exclaimed excitedly.

"But for this one…" Beca felt herself grin. "They want me to score the whole movie. It's live action. And the offer is… significant."

She held the phone away from her ear as her agent squealed into his. "OMG! That's the bomb, Becs! So fetch! I'll for sure look at the contract today and have my comments back to you tonight."

Beca chuckled softly. "Alright, Regina George. Thank you. But listen, I'd better go. I have to call Chloe and give her the good news. I'll call you later in the week about Atlanta and that dinner you owe Chloe and me."

"You got it, Becs. Chat then."

Traffic still hadn't moved so Beca looked back to Chloe's message, smiling when she saw that her lover was gone for a boozy pizza with Aubrey. So rather than texting her, she just turned the radio up and sang along happily.

Xx

"You and Beccca are nausheatingly shweet together," Aubrey slurred as she almost fell off the bar stool. She was on her fifth beer and Chloe knew she'd have to help her walk home.

"What about you and…"

A hand covered her mouth instantly. "DON'T shay hish name!"

Chloe blinked and eased back from the aggressive palm. "Oh… did you guys break up?"

Aubrey's face crumpled into tears. "He sshheated on me, Cchhlo. With… with…" She hiccuped. "With a GUY!"

Light blue eyes widened. "With a GUY… are you sure?"

"He cccame home from work and told me he didn't want ush to be together anymore becaushe he wash in love with some gghuy he met at the gym three months ago."

"Fuck, Aubs." Chloe shook her head in disgust. "He's been seeing this guy the whole time?"

"I think so," the blonde sniffled.

Chloe slid down from her stool and wrapped her arms around her friend, rocking her in a long hug before easing back and taking her seat again. "That really sucks. Did you kick him out?"

"He's cccoming to get his shtuff tonight. I thought I cccould handle it, Cchhlo, but…"

"Hey, listen, stay with Beca and me tonight. We can go straight home when we're finished these drinks. I think we could both do with some rest."

"Ung… You gghuys have enough to worry about, what with gghoing to Atlanta and shtuff this week," Aubrey replied, wiping her eyes on her sleeve.

"Aubrey, you're my best friend and you're coming home with me tonight, ok? No arguments. I don't want you alone and drunk tonight."

The blonde nodded slowly. "Maybe you're right, Cchhloe. Thanks."

They finished their drinks and Aubrey began to sober up as they walked the twenty minutes back toward the apartment Chloe and Beca shared. When they got there, Beca still wasn't home, so the redhead got her friend settled into the spare room and brought her some water and painkillers. Ten minutes later, the vet tech was asleep, and Chloe slipped out to drop onto the couch in the living room, text Beca and turn on the TV.

Xx

"Awwww…" Beca said softly as she quietly dropped her coat and purse onto the armchair and stepped out of her heels. Chloe was curled up on the couch fast asleep, with her hand tucked under her cheek. There were cartoons playing quietly on the TV and the colorful character reflections danced across the redhead's skin. Bella was curled up in the crook of her knees. It was the most precious thing the musician had ever seen and the last thing she wanted was to wake her lover, but she smiled as Chloe's blue eyes blinked sleepily. Then a radiant smile stretched her face and Beca felt a thousand feet tall.

"Hi, Beautiful," the vet said, voice a little scratchy. "You look gorgeous in that suit."

"You just look gorgeous all the time," Beca grinned, leaning down to kiss her lover thoroughly. "How's Aubrey?"

"Sleeping. She was pretty drunk and still upset about Todd, so I got her straight into bed and… wait… that sounded different in my head."

Beca snickered a little. "I know what you meant. Hey, Babe? I have some news."

"Oh?" Chloe sat up a little straighter, displacing a very unamused tabby cat, and opened her arms in a snuggling invitation. Beca immediately accepted, joined a moment later by her sweet baby who curled up against her again.

"Yeah, it's… well… Disney wants me to score the entirety of their next movie."

Chloe blinked. "Seriously? Like… the WHOLE thing?"

"The whole thing," the musician grinned. "It's live action this time. Not a musical."

The redhead kissed her enthusiastically. "I am SO proud of you, Beca Mitchell."

"Thanks, Babe," Beca smiled. "Oh… and about the Joey Beale thing… my agent is going to have it fixed."

"Fixed?" Chloe was genuinely surprised. "I didn't think you'd..." She trailed off and just gazed at her lover.

Beca got it and leaned in to kiss her again. "I may be private," she said softly. "But I love you, Chloe, and I want everyone to know it. I don't want anyone to think that Joey, not Chloe, is the one who makes me happier than I've ever been in my life."

"Awwwwww…" the vet grinned. "You're very sweet, Soon-To-Be-Mrs.-Beale."

Beca blinked. "Uh…"

"Or will I be Mrs. Mitchell?" Chloe asked innocently.

The brunette swallowed. "I… um…"

The vet laughed quietly. "Let me guess, you haven't given it any thought?"

Beca lifted herself up and swung a knee over her fiancée's thighs to straddle her. Bella just got fed up with all the movement and crawled under the couch to go back to sleep. "On the contrary," the brunette replied softly. "I've thought about it a lot, Chlo, and I was kinda thinking that Mitchell-Beale has a nice ring to it."

Chloe digested that for a few seconds. "Mitchell-Beale," she murmured. "I really like that."

"And I know we talked about waiting to set a date until after the trial, but you know what?"

"What?" the redhead asked, kissing Beca's nose.

"I don't want to wait. I want to do it before I stand up in that courtroom to testify. I want to walk in there with my head held high… not as the scared and damaged Beca Mitchell but as the strong and happy Beca Mitchell-Beale." She gazed into light blue eyes to find them welling with tears. "Is… is that ok?"

"Oh, Becs…" Chloe whispered. "Nothing would make me happier." She shrugged then. "I'm free on Saturday."

Beca laughed softly. "We're going to be in Atlanta on Saturday for the press conference."

The vet nodded, her face completely serious. "I know. Let's do it anyway."

The musician caressed Chloe's face and then kissed her gently. "As much as I'd love that, I'd like both our families to be there. Jack would be so cute in a little suit and bow-tie."

"He definitely would. Ok… how about a month from now?"

Beca nodded. "But let's do it in Tampa, at your parents' place, ok?"

Red-hued eyebrows shot up. "Really?"

"Yeah, I'll pay for Aubrey, my dad and Sheila, and any of your siblings who need a plane ticket."

"But…" Chloe's mouth was open, and she shook her head a little in disbelief. "Are you sure?"

"The Beale homestead was the place we said we were in love with each other for the first time, so there's no better place to have our wedding, right? Think your folks would like that?"

"Fuck, Beca," the vet laughed. "We'll make their year!" She reached for her phone, but the musician caught her hand and squeezed gently.

"Time zone difference, Babe. It's too late to call them now."

"Shit, right," the redhead nodded. She relaxed back against the sofa back and smiled. "Want to watch cartoons with me?"

Beca smiled as she climbed back out of her fiancée's lap and snuggled against her again. "I'd love to."

Xx

For some reason, slightly astonishing to her, Beca wasn't scared. At the podium, Detective Swanson was introducing her, and she let the noise and bustle drift past her as she just closed her eyes and waited for her cue.

Then she stepped forward and up onto a box… which was slightly embarrassing… but she wanted to be sure she was seen over the microphone. Chloe was standing behind her to her right and her dad was to her left. The brunette was dressed in a navy pantsuit with a cream blouse underneath and Chloe was wearing a similar suit in a deep green.

Beca cleared her throat and camera flashes almost blinded her as she leaned into the microphone to make her statement. She felt Chloe's calming presence behind her and let a smile touch her lips.

"Friends," she began as her eyes drifted around her audience. "My name is Beca Mitchell, and I'm a survivor of sexual assault. I'm here today to ask that any woman, who has been raped in Atlanta, Georgia the past five years, and has not reported it to the police, to come forward and make a statement.

"After my assault, I was left with a sense of terror, violation…" She paused to find the words she wanted to say. "And anger that my attacker had not been brought to justice. But now that a suspect is in custody and a trial is being prepared, I want to say to those women who have not reported their assault that YOU. DESERVE. JUSTICE. TOO."

Her hand chopped the air with each final word.

"Please, PLEASE, come forward. PLEASE make a statement. PLEASE help us to put this predator away for the rest of his life. All you have to do is take that first brave step and go to your nearest police station. Thank you."

Beca waited a moment, face serious, as more camera flashes blinded her. Then she stepped down from the podium and straight into her fiancée's arms. "You did it and I'm SO fucking proud of you, Becs," Chloe whispered, kissing her temple chastely. "I love you."

Beca nodded and pressed her forehead into the redhead's shoulder, just breathing as she let the touch of anxiety roll through her and reiterating to herself that she was still her bravest self in Chloe's arms.

"Miss Mitchell!" one of the reporters yelled. "Is that your girlfriend? Will she be attending the Oscars with you?"

The brunette eased back to look into Chloe's eyes, seeking permission for something. The vet got it and nodded a tad. Beca moved back to the podium and stepped into the box again. "Actually," she said. "This is Chloe Beale, my fiancée." She held out her hand and Chloe accepted it before stepping up onto the box next to her. A flurry of camera flashes went off again. "Chloe has been my rock of strength during this pre-trial process. I say again, if you are a survivor of a sexual assault that occurred over the last five years and have no reported it, please, please do so. Thank you again."

Beca and Chloe stepped down from the box then and headed toward their car, Doctor Mitchell and Detective Swanson right behind them.

Xx

Chloe chuckled softly as Beca yawned and stretched out like… well… Bella.

"Maybe Atlanta isn't as bad as I thought," the brunette said quietly, as she wrapped her naked body around her lover's again.

"Or maybe you're healing?" the redhead suggested with raised eyebrows. She ran her fingertips down Beca's back as she waited for her to think about that.

"He's off the streets," the younger woman said. "We don't know if he'll be able to stand trial but… at least I don't have to worry about him ever finding and touching me again."

"Mmmm…" Chloe agreed with a sleepy smile. "That's pretty awesome, right?"

"Damn, right." Beca snuggled into the vet's chest. "God, I'm tired. Can we sleep now?"

Chloe's arms closed tightly around her. "Absolutely," she murmured. "Night, Baby."

"Night," the musician mumbled in return.

Xx

Beca jerked awake, her eyes going to her phone as it vibrated loudly. Chloe also stirred, frowning adorably.

"What the hell?" the vet muttered. "It's like ridiculous o'clock in the morning."

The brunette grabbed her phone and squinted at the screen. "It's Swanson," she said.

"With any luck, Meyers croaked," Chloe stated as her fiancée answered the call.

"Detective, what's wrong?" Beca asked immediately.

"Beca…" Swanson said breathlessly, his voice still sounding stricken. "I… Fuck…"

"What? What is it?" the musician demanded, sitting up in the bed and pulling the sheet around her against the chilliness of the room.

"It's Meyers," he said.

Chloe smirked.

"He escaped from the hospital."

Chloe's smirk dropped and she clapped a hand against her stomach as she immediately felt like throwing up.

"Wh… what? What did you just say?" Beca asked quietly.

"Meyers," the detective repeated slowly. "Is in the wind. He apparently woke up, managed to get out of his restraints and murdered a nurse for his scrubs. He walked right out of the hospital during shift change."

Beca couldn't speak. She couldn't think. She couldn't breathe. She just made a little whimpering sound in the back of her throat. Chloe's arms were instantly around her. "Breathe, Baby, breathe."

"I'm sending a protection detail to your hotel," Swanson went on. "Do not, under ANY circumstances leave your room or open the door to ANYONE until I get there. Do you understand?"

Beca still couldn't speak.

"We hear you, Detective," the vet answered for her.

"Good," the man said. "Everything's going to be ok. We're going to get him back."

The call ended and Chloe set Beca's phone on the nightstand before holding her even tighter. "It's ok, Becs," she said. "It's going to be ok. He doesn't know where we are and, even if he manages to find out, the police will be here before he could get here in his state."

The brunette swallowed hard. "He killed a nurse, Chloe," she said in a small voice. "He KILLED someone. What if he…"

"NO." the vet shook her head firmly. "He is NOT going to hurt you. I'm not going to let him."

"But what if he goes after you or something?" the brunette asked.

Chloe shook her head again. "I won't let ANYTHING happen to either of us. Do you hear me, Beca Mitchell?"

There was quiet for a long moment, then Beca sniffled and managed a small smile. "That's Beca Soon-to-be-Mitchell-Beale, excuse me."

A broad grin stretched the vet's face. "You got that right, Love."

"I'm ALWAYS right. You should know that by know," Beca countered.

"You're right," Chloe agreed. "I should."

They chuckled together and then after getting into a t-shirt and shorts each, lay back down together to hold each other close and wait, wide awake, for Swanson to arrive with the cavalry.