Hey, here's the new chapter. As always R&R. Enjoy! :)

Five months later…

November, 2012

That night, Beca and Jesse went to the Falcons game against the Saints, in which the locals defeated their rivals from the south 23 to 13. Jesse knew Beca was an avid football fan, and he also knew she had never gone to an actual game before. They cheered, screamed and celebrated each play, and they later went for dinner at a seafood restaurant called Lure. It had been a perfect date, like the previous ones, and Beca wondered if Jesse would ever run out of ideas to keep things fresh during their dates. She arrived at the Bella house with a big smile on her face.

"Hey, I'm home," she greeted her friends, who were watching a rerun of America's Next Top Model while eating pizza in the living room.

"Hi Beca," the girls said in unison.

"Want some pizza, BM?" Fat Amy said, and offered her a slice.

"No thanks, I just ate."

"How did it go with the dreamboat?"

Only Stacie could come up with such a particular nickname for Jesse.

"Great, it was a very nice date," Beca answered, still smiling.

"Well, well, well, someone had a good time tonight!" Chloe mischievously said. All the girls stopped what they were doing and turned to face Beca.

"I can't complain."

"What happened?" Stacie asked, with excitement.

"I'm not going to discuss my date with you, that stuff is personal."

"Come on, Beca, I need to know the details!" Her friend begged her. "Tell me something dirty, please!"

"How long has it been since you had sex, Stacie?" Fat Amy asked.

"Two months."

"Ugh, it must be killing you!"

"You have no idea. I'm so desperate I actually bought this little—"

"Stacie!" Chloe interrupted her friend, "We don't really need to know the details, okay? Now, let's go back to your date," she said, while looking at Beca.

"Why the sudden interest in my love life? I never ask you about your relationships!"

"Because you don't want to. You are free to ask anything you want."

As much as Beca hated to admit it, Chloe's argument was a strong one.

"You already know how sweet and kind Jesse is. I wouldn't be telling you something new."

"We still wanna know everything."

Beca sighed.

"Okay, okay. Well, like you guys surely remember, he picked me up at 6:00 p.m. We went to the Dome, took our seats, and watched the game."

"What else?"

"Oh, and we bought ourselves a hot-dog. It was all greasy and delicious."

"What about dinner?"

"I ordered some sort of fish which name I can't pronounce. Jesse had oysters, they were good. For dessert, we had lemon pie. We drank coffee and then we left, that's it."

"'That's it'?" Her friend said, disappointed. "Where's the romance, the heat?"

"There was heat, Chloe. He held my hand and interlocked his fingers with mine, he looked at me in the eye, he complimented me without been saccharine, he paid for dinner and did all of those things that you girls consider 'romantic', but he knew I had never been to an actual game before, that's why he bought the tickets. To me, that's romance, and I prefer it over having dinner in the Space Needle or Paris or something."

The eight girls stared at Beca with suspicion, which surprised her.

"Why are you looking at me that way?" She asked them. Instead of answering her question, they whispered into each other's ears. "Hey! What is going on?"

They nodded and looked back at her. This time, Beca perceived a trace of satisfaction in their eyes.

"Beca, Beca, Beca," Chloe said, as she shook her head and put her hands on her friend's shoulders. "You have grown up."

"What is that supposed to mean? I can't understand you when you are being so damn secretive."

"Stacie, would you do the honors?"

Stacie gave Chloe a thumbs up, and stood up from her chair.

"You have fallen in love with Jesse."

"What?!" Beca exclaimed.

"Don't even try to deny it, Beca Mitchell; we can see right through you."

"What makes you think that?"

"Oh, let's see," Fat Amy said, as she counted with her fingers. "There's the way your whole face lights up whenever you talk about him, the way you blush like a schoolgirl when you two go out, you getting a sudden interest in movies—"

"It's true I have a great time whenever I'm with him," she said, trying to gain some time, "but that's only because he is funny and kind-hearted and sensible—"

"Besides you constantly complimenting him and bringing up what an amazing guy he is," Fat Amy added.

"Well, he is! Besides, he is really good in bed."

"This ain't lust, honey. This is love," Cynthia-Rose interrupted her, with a smile on her face.

Beca didn't know what to say. Eight pairs of eyes were looking at her, anxiously waiting for her response to their insinuations.

"I—"

"Well?"

"Okay," she said, after carefully thinking through her answer. "Okay, let's suppose I do love him," the girls made a sound of approval. "What's the big deal about it?"

"'What's the big deal about it?' she says," Stacie said, and took a sip from her diet Coke.

"Have you told him?" Chloe asked her.

"Ginger, she didn't even know it herself," Fat Amy pointed out.

"True that. Beca, you have to tell him."

"No, I can't do that."

"Why not?"

"I just can't."

"Saying 'I love you' for the first time is quite a milestone in any relationship," Stacie said.

"You know better, don't you Stacie?" Fat Amy said, mocking her.

"Shut up."

"There has to be a logical explanation," Chloe insisted. Beca ran her hands through her hair, visibly distressed. She didn't like talking about her feelings, even with her friends.

"What if I screw everything up?"

"Are you serious?" Chloe said. "Beca, it's already working! You are happy, everything's going on well, don't be afraid of what might happen!"

Beca crossed her arms and shook her head.

"I'm not used to things actually going well in my life. Not since my mother died, anyway."

The eight girls gasped, and Stacie and Chloe took a step back.

"Whoa!" Stacie exclaimed.

"What now?!" Beca said, annoyed.

"Your mom died?"

"Yes."

"When?" Chloe asked, with her hand on her chest.

"Two years ago."

"Oh my God," the redhead managed to say. "Why didn't you tell us before?"

"I thought you'd figured it out."

"How could we? You never talk about her," Fat Amy pointed out.

"There's a reason. She was a terrible mother."

"Does Jesse know?"

"Yes, although I didn't tell him the details."

"What happened?"

Beca sighed, with impatience.

"She was killed in a car crash. Her boyfriend was drunk, and she was high on coke. I don't really wanna talk about it, okay? Can we go back to Jesse?"

The girls, still in shock, nodded and decided to respect Beca's wishes.

"God, now because of you idiots, I feel guilty!"

"Guilty? For what?" Fat Amy asked, offended.

"Because now you all know I love Jesse, but he doesn't. If there's one person in this world who has to know, it's him. And I feel terrible because I don't even want to tell him."

"Look, Beca," Stacie said, regaining control of the situation. "I'm gonna ask you a question, and I need you to tell me truth. Okay?"

"Okay."

"Do you think your relationship with Jesse has a future? Like, one where you two last beyond college and get married and have kids and grow old together?"

"I don't know. Maybe."

"Maybe yes or maybe not?"

"I said maybe," Beca answered, annoyed. "It's too early to know. Right now everything is perfect, but who knows if it will continue to be in the future."

"Well, in my opinion, you gotta be honest with him. Only if you want the relationship to last, naturally."

"Of course I want it to last, what kind of comment is that?"

"Beca, don't be so defensive," Chloe intervened. "What Stacie means to say is that you gotta open up more to Jesse. He tells you everything, doesn't he?"

"I guess."

"In that case, it would be really nice if you shared stuff with him as well."

"What kind of stuff?"

"I don't know. Your feelings, for example."

"But how am I supposed to do it?"

"You want my advice? Let it flow. Be your natural self. Honesty is the best policy, Beca. It should come easy, weren't you two best friends before being a couple?"

Beca weighed her friend's words.

"I need to think about it," she finally said. "I'm gonna take a walk outside."

I've made up my mind,

Don't need to think it over

If I'm wrong, I am right

Don't need to look no further,

This ain't lust

I know this is love

But if I tell the world

I'll never say enough

'cause it was not said to you

And that's exactly what I need to do

If I end up with you

Should I give up?

Or should I just keep chasing pavements

Even if it leads nowhere?

Or would it be a waste

Even if I knew my place?

Should I leave it there?

Should I give up?

Or should I just keep chasing pavements

Even if it leads nowhere?

Stupid feelings. Beca said to herself as she walked down the street. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Dealing with her feelings wasn't exactly her forte. She was used to avoiding them, and having to confront them always made her uncomfortable.

Everything would be easier if I hadn't kissed him. I wouldn't be feeling this way if I hadn't been so damn impulsive.

Beca's rough exterior and constant apathy were nothing more than a defense mechanism, a wall she had built to protect herself from life's constant blows. Now, after accepting she had fallen in love with Jesse, that wall was beginning to crumble, and she had no idea how to rebuild it.

Moreover, she wasn't sure she wanted to.

I've made up my mind, I don't need to think it over. I love him. But that doesn't mean I have to tell him. It would serve no purpose whatsoever. We have only been dating for eight months, I would probably scare him the hell away. On the other hand, the girls know. It's not their damn business, but those bitches read me like a book. If they know, Jesse should know, too. What's the point of loving someone if you can't tell them? What do I do? Do I leave things the way they are, or do I give up and take a risk?

"Hey, what are you doing outside?"