Chloe was nervous and a bit distracted. She got the character voices wrong during Bella's bedtime story, earning herself a scowl and a pout from her precocious daughter, then managed to put her t-shirt on backwards, only catching it as she was walking to the door to answer it.

Beca was standing on the porch, looking just as nervous as Chloe felt. "Um... hi," she said, unable to keep the sheepish look off her face.

"Hi," the redhead replied, hating the hesitation between them. "Come on in."

The brunette ducked her head in a nod and stepped in, about to walk past Chloe when the actress suddenly caught her arm to stop her dead. Their eyes met and then they were both moving into a hug, holding each other almost painfully tightly.

"I'm sorry I made things weird," Beca said. "I was confused... I... I'm sorry I put you in the position of having to stop me like that."

"It's ok," the actress replied, smiling against her friend's shoulder. "I was confused too. Besides, the whole situation is weird, Becs. Making a porn movie is not exactly a normal thing to do with someone and I didn't... I DON'T... want to lose you to its bullshit."

"Me neither," Beca nodded. "But... I really need to talk to you, Chloe. There are some things I need to understand, and I need us to be honest with each other. Can we do that?"

"I'll be as honest as possible," Chloe promised. Then she led her friend toward the kitchen. "Did you eat?"

"No, I was too nervous," the brunette admitted with a little grimace.

"Come on, let's see what Mom has stashed away," the redhead grinned and a few minutes later, they had quite the collection of snacks to choose from. Beca opened two beers and then glanced out the patio door.

"Mind if we sit outside?"

"Not at all," Chloe agreed and a few moments later, they were seated together on a small sofa, gazing out over the waves. "I know you have stuff you want to talk about but..." Chloe looked to Beca, pale eyes reflecting the setting sun. "I just wanted to say something first, if that's ok?"

The brunette nodded. "Of course."

Chloe turned her body, lifting one knee onto the couch as she made eye contact with her friend. "I just want you to know that... I didn't stop you yesterday because I didn't want you to..." She looked down. "You already know that I'm attracted to you, so it wasn't that I was averse to your kissing me... assuming that was what you were going to do."

Beca picked at the label on her beer bottle and nodded. "I know," she replied. "You were trying to stop me doing something inappropriate."

Chloe snorted self-deprecatingly. "You think too highly of me. As turned on as I was in that moment, it took everything in me to stop myself from just letting you do whatever you wanted to me."

"Then..." Beca began, then stopped herself. She wanted to let Chloe speak.

"I wanted you to see ME," the redhead answered anyway. "Not her. I was taking someone's good advice to not let lines blur."

The brunette nodded again, then popped an olive into her mouth to chew thoughtfully. "I was in the shower this evening," she began slowly. "And I was thinking about you, trying to work stuff out in my head, and essentially asking myself why my supposedly straight ass walked its way into your dressing room yesterday."

Chloe shrugged. "I do a lot of thinking in the shower too," she interjected.

"Right," Beca nodded. "And I... I think it was because.… I thought you wanted me to. When you were looking at me during the scene... I felt like you wanted..." She trailed off as the redhead got up and paced slowly to the fence, leaning on it for a long moment before turning around and shaking her head.

"Maybe I did," she admitted. "I'm lonely, Becs, and the orgasm made me feel close to you. Maybe I was sending you fucked up signals." She pinched the bridge of her nose, sighing tiredly. "Maybe I let my guard down."

Beca got up and moved to join her, enjoying the ocean breeze on her face for a moment. "Thing is," she said then. "I don't want you to feel guarded around me."

"I'm guarded around everyone," Chloe said somewhat sheepishly. "But you, less than most people. What I do... it... it makes me feel vulnerable, and I know I come across as confident and experienced, Becs, but I'm trying to find my way in this world like everyone else."

"I get it," Beca nodded. "And I can't imagine how much of yourself you have to give to this career."

"It's why I created Elektra," the actress said. "I can hide behind that façade and lose myself."

"Hide?" Beca repeated softly. "From what?" And Chloe found her voice stolen. She looked away, swallowing hard, but the brunette moved closer to her and caressed her cheek, bringing her eyes back. "From what?" she asked again.

"Pain," the actress murmured. "Judgement, fear of people finding out who I really am outside of Elektra and being disappointed. I chose this life, Beca, but I'm starting to realize it's taken more from me than it's given. The last couple of weeks have really put some of that under the spotlight."

"How?"

Sudden fear clenched Chloe's chest and she shook her head. "I... I can't... talk about that."

"Chlo..."

"Please, I'm scared, Beca."

"Chloe," Beca smiled, pushing a little more. "We promised each other honesty. What are you afraid of?"

Tear-filled blue eyes gazed back, and the redhead's chest ached as she swallowed hard. "I'm afraid of... of falling in love with a straight girl... and fucking things up between us. I don't want to lose your friendship."

The brunette nodded slowly, then did the only thing she could. She wrapped her arms around her friend and hugged her gently, caressing her back. "Chloe," she murmured. "I want to be brutally honest with you because I'm totally fucking confused about all this. I... I don't think I know what I am anymore. I told you I was thinking about you in the shower? Well, I was thinking about YOU, not her. And I wanted to touch myself." She cleared her throat softly then. "I did touch myself."

"Oh..." Chloe said on a bare whisper, arms tightening around the smaller woman's waist.

"And I'm hugging you like this, partly because I can't look you in the eye right now. Because I think... I think... I'm attracted to you too… and I don't know what that means."

"What are you feeling right now?" the actress asked.

"Fear. I'm afraid that I'll hurt you."

Chloe pulled back in surprise to look at her friend as her heart melted. "You're going through something confusing and scary but you're worrying about ME getting hurt?"

Beca nodded. "You mean so much more to me than an experimental roll in the hay, Chlo. Plus, everything with Luke... I don't know what..."

The redhead knew she shouldn't do it; knew there was still more to talk about, but the brunette's eyes were so soft and worried that she couldn't stop herself. She took Beca's face between her hands and leaned in to kiss her softly on the lips.

The brunette's eyes fluttered closed, and she sighed. Chloe froze, an apology stuck in her throat, but Beca's hands came up to grasp her hips. "Can... can you do that again please?" she whispered.

The actress's lips upturned into a tiny smile, and she did as she was asked. "Mmm…"

"So soft," Beca murmured absently as they eased apart. She licked her lips then. "You taste like strawberries."

"Lip balm," Chloe whispered, giving her friend space to just be there in the moment.

But then Beca lifted a little onto her toes to kiss Chloe this time, easing herself closer so their bodies could come together. It felt so different from their hugs, she hummed softly in surprise. "How…why…" Her throat bobbed as her eyes opened to meet Chloe's. "How are you everything I've ever wanted in a man?"

The actress's little laugh made her grin. "You know, it's not black and white, Beca. Sexuality, I mean. Maybe, for you, it's the person, not the gender. Maybe you're pan or demisexual."

"I need a glossary," the brunette muttered, rolling her eyes good-naturedly.

But Chloe shook her head. "Why does it even matter though?" she smiled. "You feel what you feel, period. You don't have to pick a label today… or ever, Honey."

Beca nodded and then just leaned into her friend, hand coming up to press against Chloe's chest. "Would it be ok to um…?"

"What do you need, Becs?" Chloe voice was soft, as if speaking any louder would scare her friend away.

"Could we lie together in the hammock again? I just want to be close to you but, if that's weird after…"

"I'd love that," the actress interrupted softly. She took the brunette's hand and led her to the hammock, then eased into it and opened her arms for Beca to crawl in with her. The younger woman snuggled close to her and after a few moments of quiet her fingertips began tracing little patterns over Chloe's abs through her shirt.

"Is this ok?" Beca asked softly. "I don't really know what's ok to do."

"You're doing pretty great so far. It feels good," the actress breathed.

"I kinda love touching you," the brunette whispered, a little edge of embarrassment surfacing at the admission as she curled her hand around her friend's hip.

"Ditto," Chloe replied simply. The honesty thing was really working for them, she mused, eyes closed.

"Chloe?" Light blue eyes opened to find dark blue at close range.

"Mmmm?"

And then Beca was kissing her, gentle lips moving in tentative exploration. Chloe hummed softly into the kiss, letting the brunette set the pace, but bringing her hand to Beca's cheek in tender encouragement. It was warm and unhurried, but it suddenly ignited a flame in the brunette's body that made her shiver and shyly reach out with her tongue. Chloe's moan deepened as she parted her lips and slid her tongue against Beca's in return. After a few more moments, the brunette eased back then, waiting as slightly dazed eyes opened to look at her. A lazy smirk lifted Chloe's lips and Beca thought it was pretty damn sexy, so she brushed their lips together again.

"This isn't how I envisioned tonight playing out," the brunette said then, resting her head on the actress's shoulder.

"Me neither," Chloe chuckled. "But I'm certainly not complaining." Night had fallen at some unnoticed point, and the stars were twinkling in the inky blackness above them. "Beca," she said then. "We should probably talk about the movie."

"Mmmm…" Beca agreed.

"You're going to have to watch more scenes of Elektra being… um…"

"Mmmm…" the brunette agreed again. "But, Chloe," she said softly, offering the redhead's words back to her. "You're not Elektra."

And Chloe just smiled.

Xx

Monday came and went in a whirlwind of production tasks. Armie was back and after a scene where he didn't listen when Chloe asked him to stop, Beca did a very good job of managing his future expectations by explaining to him that if he ever treated his co-star inappropriately again, she'd go full Lorena Bobbitt on him. He'd googled that and ended up just staring at her as his face blanched and his hand moved to protect his junk.

Chloe had rolled her eyes at her friend but couldn't help the little pleased grin that lifted her lips.

"How about you take me out tonight?" the actress said casually, as she met Beca outside the soundstage at the end of the day and pressed a brief kiss to her lips. "Bella's with her dad."

"Like... on a date?" the brunette asked, hands automatically moving to the redhead's hips and squeezing gently.

Chloe frowned and pulled back. "Is that not... I mean... God, I never even asked you if you wanted us to date... I'm sorry... never mind."

"Chlo," Beca chuckled. "Breathe."

"Ugh." The redhead shook her head, rubbing between her eyebrows. "I'm so bad at this."

"No, you're really not," the DP smiled. "And yes, I'd love to take you out on a date. Anywhere special you'd like to go?"

"Just somewhere fun so I can forget Armie's paws," Chloe shivered, making a disgusted face.

"I think I know just the place," Beca said, grasping her friend's hand and lacing their fingers together. "Do you trust me?" she asked then, tone serious.

"Indubitably," the actress replied, just as seriously as she let herself be tugged to Beca's car.

The drive was short, and the redhead's face lit up as her friend turned into the parking lot at a pier she'd never visited before. There were colorful lights along the wooden walkway and a small section of rides with a Ferris Wheel made her grin like a little kid.

"You're not afraid of heights, right?" Beca asked. "I was thinking we could start with a beer and a really great view from the top of the wheel."

Chloe took Beca's hand and brought it to her lips. The physical contact was still new to them both and they were feeling their way along... literally. "I can't wait."

Hands joined again, they made their way to the Ferris Wheel and Beca stopped at a refreshment stand for two beers and a soft pretzel with beer cheese for them to share. Then she got a couple of tickets for the wheel, and they waited for their turn to come up.

"I shouldn't be eating this," Chloe sighed as she dipped a piece of pretzel into the cheese and popped it into her mouth.

"Why?"

"I'm only five-four. All I have to do is smell stuff like this and I gain like five pounds. Not ideal for someone who makes a living off their looks."

"You go running at insane hours of the morning and go to the gym four times a week. I think you'll be ok," Beca grinned. "Besides..." She hooked her finger into a belt loop on Chloe's jeans and tugged a little as she looked into her eyes. "You're pretty fucking gorgeous."

"God," Chloe replied in a low voice, a blush caressing her cheeks. "You make it really difficult to not kiss you, Becs."

Beca's face fell a little and she looked down. "We didn't talk about public stuff, did we?"

"No," the actress smiled. "But I..."

"HOLY SHIT!" Chloe startled and looked behind her. "You're Elektra King!" Chloe blinked. "That porn star! I'd know those eyes and that hair anywhere!"

The man was bouncing excitedly on the tips of his toes. Chloe looked at Beca and swallowed, eyes wide. It wasn't the first time she'd been recognized but most people kept it on the down low and didn't exclaim it like this guy just did.

Then the actress took a breath and turned to him, smiling brightly. "You're a fan? How sweet!"

"Fuck YEAH, I'm a fan!" the guy grinned, elbowing his buddy, who looked mortified. "You're soooo hot. Your tits are off the h..."

"Excuse me," Beca stepped in smoothly. "Elektra, we're up next."

"Oh, let me and Josh ride with you!" the man exclaimed, looking at his friend for support.

"John, stop," Josh hissed.

"Thank you, no," Chloe replied.

"Seriously, we could show you ladies a good time up there," the man pushed. "I've always wanted to fuck a porn star."

Beca smiled sweetly and leaned closer to him. "Elektra already told you the answer's no, John. Don't make me nut punch you."

"Who are you? Her midget bodyguard or something?" John pouted.

"It's little person... and yes, I AM her bodyguard actually." She touched Chloe's arm then as the car eased into place in front of them. "After you, Elektra."

Chloe just shrugged at the two men and moved ahead of Beca to take a seat. The brunette slid in beside her, grumbling to herself and scowling as the car lifted away from the platform.

"Beca?" the redhead said softly.

"What?" Beca grumped.

Then Chloe was kissing her, and things suddenly felt a whole lot better. "Thanks for having my back," the actress murmured, nuzzling their noses together and smiling as she let her hand roam across the younger woman's ribs. "Luckily that doesn't happen very often."

"You're welcome," Beca replied somewhat hazily as she licked her lips.

"But, Honey... nut punch? Really?"

The brunette shrugged. "I'm really not that tall," she deadpanned. "They were at eye level."

The actress laughed and shook her head. "You're hilarious, Becs."

"Glad someone thinks so," Beca chuckled. "So anyway... public stuff. Obviously, I shouldn't use your real name when you're around fans. And I guess we shouldn't let anyone see you're not straight... bursting the bubble, right?"

"I... I don't... shit," Chloe thought about it for a moment. "You know what? I don't care about that. I'm not going to hide you away. People can think whatever the hell they want."

"Me?" Beca squeaked.

The actress frowned. "Yeah... I mean... we ARE dating, right?" She paused. "Oooorr... is that on the down low?"

The brunette swallowed, looking away for a moment. "Can we... maybe keep it on the down low until I have a chance to... um...?" She shook her head. "Sorry... I'm just still processing all this."

"Of course," Chloe smiled, eyes understanding. "I know this is a lot in a short amount of time."

"Thanks, Chloe," Beca nodded, then grinned as the redhead's arms came around her and held her, chest pressed against her back, as they gazed out over the sparkling ocean.

Xx

"Ugh…" Beca looked a bit green. "Whose idea was it to ride that?"

Chloe laughed softly as she looked back over her shoulder at the Waltzer. Her hand was aching a little from her friend's death grip. "Um… pretty sure it wasn't mine."

It was dark now, but the pier was still bustling with people and lights and carousel music. They'd sat on a bench on the boardwalk to share hot dogs and some more beer, then tried a few more rides before deciding to throw the towel in for the night. Now they were strolling hand-in-hand back to the mostly dark parking lot. It was after midnight and the redhead yawned as her super-early morning caught up with her.

"Tired?" Beca asked softly as they reached the car and she gently eased Chloe back against it, holding her by the hips.

"Mmmm…" the actress replied, wrapping her arms loosely around her date's neck. "But I had a great time, Becs."

"Me too," the brunette nodded. "Even though it wasn't fancy. Sorry about that, Chlo."

Chloe leaned in and pecked Beca's lips. "I don't need fancy, Honey. Tonight, was absolutely perfect because I was with you."

"You… um… you want to come back to my place for a nightcap?" the brunette asked shyly. "I have… a spare room you could crash in?"

The actress smiled as she nodded. She was delighted at the tentative step forward her date was suggesting. "I'd love to."

Beca was distracted all the way to her house by Chloe's fingertips caressing up and down her inner arm, but she managed to get them there in one piece. She pulled into the driveway but stopped suddenly when she realized there was another car there already. Then she gasped as Luke stepped into the path of her headlights.

"I take it that's…" the actress began.

"Luke, yeah," Beca finished with a nod as she put the car in park and killed the engine. Then she opened her door and stepped out, face angry. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

Luke held up his hands in a soothing motion. "I'm sorry, Beca. I want… I NEED you to take me back… because I love you so much and I was a total idiot to do what I did to you. I know that… but I want to work on us. I want to be with you. I want to marry you, Beca." He took a small, black box out of his pocket and dropped to one knee. "Will you marry me?"

In the car, Chloe let her head fall back against the headrest, tears welling in her eyes. She closed them and the drops trickled down her cheeks as her heart clenched in her chest.

"Chloe," Beca said softly, and the actress opened her eyes to find her door open and her friend crouched beside her, holding out her hand.

Their hands joined and the brunette eased the redhead out of the car, keeping her close as she moved them back to where Luke was still on one knee, blinking like a deer in headlights… almost literally. Chloe looked at Beca, unsure of what was happening.

"Who's this?" Luke asked as he got up, a hard tone to his voice.

"This is Chloe," Beca replied. "We're dating and she makes me feel like I'm worth something… unlike you."

Luke's eyes narrowed. "What? You're fucking HER? Seriously?"

The brunette ignored his words. "I've learned a lot from Chloe over the past few weeks. I've learned that people, who truly care about you, don't go behind your back to be with other people. Instead, they're honest in their communication and HAVE your back, no matter what. I've also learned that sexuality is more fluid than I could've ever imagined. And honestly, her abs are SO much hotter than yours."

Chloe couldn't help but smirk, but she didn't say anything.

Luke's eyes were wide, and he stammered a little as he tried to come up with something. "You ARE fucking her!" he accused.

"I'm not sleeping with her," Beca replied. She glanced at Chloe then and grinned a little. "Yet. But that's what a relationship is to you, Luke, right? It's all about how much sex you can get. I don't know why I didn't see that before." Beca paused a moment to gather her thoughts. "But my friendship with Chloe and now, dating her, has made me realize that being with you wasn't what I thought it was." She shook her head. "I know now that I was just settling for you because we've dated since I was eighteen and I didn't know any better. So no, Luke. Chloe or no Chloe, I won't take you back, I won't marry you and I want you out of my life. So… here's the deal. I'm putting the house on the market. I'll pay off the mortgage and split what's left with you. Then we never have to see each other again. I suggest you move the rest of your stuff out as soon as possible or I'll just trash it."

Luke just stood there for a moment, then his face twisted into a sneer. "Well, good luck with her boring, vanilla ass," he said, glaring at Chloe.

But the actress just squeezed the brunette's hand. "You have no idea who Beca really is. I don't need nor want your luck, thanks."

Then without another word, Beca tugged gently on Chloe's hand and led her up onto the porch of the house. Her hands were shaking, and she fumbled her keys a little, but she got them inside and closed the door behind them, taking a moment to make sure her car was securely locked. Chloe paused a moment to gauge the situation, then wrapped her arms around her to hug her tightly. "You were so fucking amazing out there, Becs," she murmured into the smaller woman's ear. "I'm SO proud of you."

"Thanks, Chlo." It took a while for the younger woman to stop shaking, but when she felt more centered, she shook her head. "That sucked."

"Yeah," Chloe agreed. "Let's get some rest, ok?"

The brunette just nodded, and she led Chloe to the spare room. "Sorry things got derailed." She pushed open the door and was about to turn on the light when the redhead caught her hand and stopped her.

Chloe caressed Beca's cheek and then kissed her chastely. "Let me hold you?" she asked. For a long moment, the brunette gazed at her. Then she nodded again and led her friend to her own room, where she didn't bother with the lights. She just changed into pajamas and pulled back the covers to climb into the bed. Chloe shimmied out of her bra and pants then joined her friend, spooning against her back and draping one arm around Beca's waist. "I know it hurts," the redhead whispered. "But I promise It'll get better."

She felt Beca shudder and then the younger woman was turning and snuggling against her chest, hand resting comfortably on her hip and caressing gently.

"Did you really mean what you said out there, Chlo?"

Chloe ducked her head, her pale eyes gazing into the brunette's. "I meant every word."

"I…"

But the actress smiled and pressed her lips gently to her friend's. "Let's talk about it tomorrow. We both need some rest."

"Ok," Beca replied. "Night, Chloe."

"Night," the redhead replied but, even as Beca was falling into a restless sleep, Chloe lay awake just savoring the time she had with her friend like this because she didn't know how long it might last.