A/N: So the shops in this chapter are based on the shops in Savannah, GA. I used to live out there and it was always a fun time walking around even if you didn't get anything. If you've never been, go to Savannah, its fun!
Anyway...This was tough to write. Let me know how y'all feel about it! Happier times are coming soon.
Chapter 33: Out
Beca and Chloe woke up to the smell of bacon and other delicious smells. Chloe stirred and gave Beca a little nudge.
"Smells like he made us breakfast."
"I'd rather just sleep in." Beca furrowed into her pillow, trying to pull the covers over her head.
"Nope. Come on." Chloe quickly yanked them down to the grumbling of her girlfriend. "You don't want him walking in here to get us and see us cuddling do you?"
"Low move." Beca narrowed her eyes as she slowly let her legs swing around to land on the floor. She stretched dramatically and yawned while Chloe put on slightly more appropriate clothes than her tank top and short shorts.
They were greeted with a cheery good morning as Cal flipped another pancake. Beca slumped into a chair at the island while Chloe went to make coffee, asking Beca what flavor she wanted over her shoulder.
"Ah, you're a good friend." Cal chuckled. "This one has never been a morning person."
Chloe just giggled softly as she started pressing buttons on the machine. She wasn't sure what to say to that. That yeah she knows Beca is grumpy in the mornings? Since they spend so many mornings waking up together? No. But they do live in the bella house, so its not a red flag or anything. Before she could over analyze everything in her mind, Cal moved to Beca.
"I made your favorite. Blueberry pancakes, eggs, and lots of bacon." He set a plate in front of his daughter. Beca smiled gratefully at the plate of food before digging in. "Chloe? You a blueberry pancake type girl? I could make something else."
"She likes chocolate chip pancakes." Beca said with a mouthful.
"Perfect! I have some chocolate chips in the pantry." Cal spun around.
"No! That's fine! Totally fine. Blueberry are a close second." Chloe quickly stopped him. She felt somehow guilty for making him do anything extra on her behalf.
"You sure? I don't mind." Cal stayed frozen, halfway to the pantry. When Chloe convinced him to let it be, she moved to Beca with her mug of coffee and gave her a little swat on the thigh for saying anything. Beca just stuck her tongue out briefly while Cal's back was turned.
"I see you're a fancy coffee drinker like me." Cal grinned as he fixed Chloe's plate.
"Oh, yeah, totes." Chloe smiled as she worked with the latte attachment.
"Totes." Cal shook his head as he laughed. "It always amuses me the lingo you kids use."
"Don't rope me into that." Beca swallowed quickly to defend herself. "Only she uses unnecessary abbreviations."
Chloe almost responded with something flirty, but was quickly able to stop herself as she poured the steaming milk over her coffee.
"So, I know its not hip to be seen with your old man-" Cal started with a sly grin at Beca.
"Don't say hip. That's weird." Beca shook her head and sipped from her mug.
"But I'd love to do something with you today or this evening. There's an art gallery downtown. We could go to all those little shops by the beach and wonder around. Or we could do painting with a twist. Or an escape room?" He was getting more excited with each suggested activity.
"Painting with a twist?" Beca chuckled. "Isn't that a little...worldly for you?"
"Even Jesus drank wine, Beca." Cal smirked as he gave Beca a little nudge in the arm. "I also heard there's a little live music going on at the square. I know how much you love your music. So what do you say? Anything sound good? Suggestions?"
Chloe looked at Beca who looked like she was struggling for a response. She couldn't handle Beca's dad basically pleading with them to include him in at least one activity so of course she caved. She picked what would hopefully be the safest option.
"I think some shopping on the beach sounds fun. There's lots of little shops and you never know what you mind find." She shrugged optimistically at Beca, who knew they weren't getting out of it. Beca reluctantly agreed much to the glee of her father and satisfaction of her girlfriend. This would be an awkward afternoon, she knew it, but somewhere in her mind she thought gratefully at least it would put off that ugly elephant in the room of coming out to her dad.
Everyone was dressed and ready for a trip to the waterfront shops; no one was more excited than Mr. Mitchell. He didn't get out a whole lot for fun since he was wrapped up in a lot of duties with church. And he enjoyed feeling young with his college daughter. He literally took them to see inside every single store. There were antique shops, hippie shops (as Beca liked to call them), homemade jewelry stores, a couple cute coffee shops, a candy store that Chloe got super excited about. She was going to get to watch certain candy get made, and for her it was pretty thrilling. There was plenty to do to keep them occupied without having too much awkward socializing.
Cal bought Chloe and Beca each their own assorted candy bag, much to Chloe's delight. Beca secretly bought Chloe some matching jewelry when she snuck away for a moment, even though she felt guilty leaving Chloe alone with her dad. Chloe bought Beca a record at a cute little music store. They spent a good 20 minutes in a Salt Shop. Yes, a salt shop. They sold nothing but salt and salt related products. Beca was completely entranced by the amount of different salt flavors there were, and that there could be an entire store devoted to just salt. She and Chloe walked through the whole store tasting different salts on the provided plain popcorn.
"Dude I wish we had this back home. The girls would love this stuff for cooking." Beca shook her head in wonderment at the tall shelves going for aisles.
"We should buy a few to take back to them. At least for the ones who are good cooks." Chloe smirked as she suggested and was surprised at how eagerly Beca agreed. Cal bought a few flavors for himself, laughing at how impressed Beca was.
They split up when Beca and Chloe went into boutique that sold bath products and Mr. Mitchell went to a bookstore across the street. Beca sniffed each unique soap and oil that were made on site. She picked out a few soaps, bath bombs, and oils to share with the bellas. They moved next door and Chloe got some incense and candles to bring back too. Beca rolled her eyes all through the "hippie store" but secretly enjoyed when Chloe would burn her candles or incense.
They finally settled down for lunch, lugging all their bags and a hole in Mr. Mitchell's wallet. It was easier for Beca to be generous with gifts for the bellas when she had free use of her dad's credit card at his insistence.
"So, did you girls have a fun shopping spree?" Mr. Mitchell grinned as he perused his menu.
"Oh, totes. And we got some stuff to bring back to the other bellas. They would have loved some of these shops." Chloe gushed, feeling excited to see how the bellas would react to their gifts.
"The bellas seem like a tight nit group of girls. I'm glad Beca found some friends in college. I was worried you weren't even going to give it a try."
"Yeah, well, the bellas can be very persuasive when it comes to socializing." Beca acted annoyed with her acapella team, but her grin towards Chloe gave her away immediately.
"You know, I've watched a few of your performances. You guys are really quite talented. And I read that a lot of that has to do with you, Beca." Cal said proudly as he sipped from his water. Beca was shocked, to say the least. Her dad had been following the bellas? He read news or articles or whatever that gave enough insight to show that she had an impact on the now famous acapella group.
"Oh, its totally a group effort." Beca mumbled, trying to redirect the praise.
"Nonsense. I'd like to toast to my daughter, who brought the Barden Bellas to the forefront of acapella." He held up his glass and Chloe gladly, yet somewhat reluctantly, held hers up as well. "God has blessed you with a musical gift. And I'm so proud you get to share it with the world. You're doing wonderful things, Beca. And I'm so glad you decided to stay in college for your education. I see great things on the horizon for you. Even in the unstable world of music, I can see you succeeding."
"Wow...thanks, dad." Beca weakly clinked her glass against his. She had never heard him say such positive things about her before. She could hardly believe. She even gave Chloe a look of shock as they sipped their water. Her dad was actually proud of her. She never thought that would happen.
Despite paying for all their trinkets and gifts throughout the day, Cal still tried to pay for lunch. Chloe, however, feeling guilty, demanded that she pay for lunch since Mr. Mitchell had done so much already. And it was a good lunch started off by the great toast Cal gave Beca. The weather was perfect. The food was great. And conversation flowed easily. Beca was almost disappointed with how well her dad and Chloe got along. It almost felt like he was actually getting to know her girlfriend and not just some friend at school. And she was sad that the afternoon excursion was over. Because it was a nice day; a great day really. And with every good moment that happened this vacation she felt that nagging black cloud over her shoulder.
"So what do you girls have planned for this evening?" Cal asked as they sat in front of the TV to watch an old movie. He leaned back comfortably in his armchair as he looked across the coffee table at the girls. "I'm spent from today so I'm just going to stay in and read the new book I got."
"I don't know, we don't really have anything planned. I'm kind of tired myself." Beca shrugged as she propped her feet up on the coffee table, consciously telling herself not to put an arm around Chloe or hold her hand as she sat next to her.
"You girls could go to the fair that's in town." Cal suggested. Beca almost said how they just went last night when he continued on. "Although, I'm not so sure about that anymore."
"Why?" Beca asked, genuinely confused.
"You know Mrs. Rollins? She said she saw a same-sex couple there last night. She was really disturbed with how...affectionate they were being. Just flaunting their sin. And in front of kids too. Shameful, really." He shook his head disapprovingly.
Beca and Chloe exchanged glances. Chloe just looked down to study her hands while Beca seemed to be frantically thinking over a response.
"Oh and get this." Cal scoffed when neither girl had offered a response. "She said one of the girls looked a lot like you, Beca. She had the nerve to ask if you had become a lesbian. Don't worry, I put her in her place. She has no right even hinting at that kind of behavior from you."
Chloe thought back to their night at the fair. Yes, they held hands. But they hadn't been overly affectionate. They exchanged a chaste peck here and there other than the privacy of their ferris wheel booth. And Chloe was upset. She felt shamed. And she had nothing to be ashamed of.
"We were at the fair last night, dad." Beca said and Chloe quickly turned to look at her in surprise. She knew that tone. It was stubborn determination. And suddenly this was the moment. Chloe could sense it and she wished she had prepared herself more.
"Oh? Did you see them? I hope that didn't put a damper on your experience." Cal shrugged nonchalantly.
"Our experience was just fine." Beca clenched her jaw and stared hard at her dad who seemed distracted by the TV. "And Mrs. Rollins wasn't wrong." Beca leaned forward to grab the remote and turn the TV off.
"Oh, so you did see them." Cal looked up. "I'm sorry, sweetie, I hope that didn't make you uncomfortable."
"I wasn't uncomfortable!" Beca's voice rose, and Chloe watched helplessly as Beca lost any pretense of hiding who she was from her dad. "It was me and Chloe. Mrs. Rollins saw me and Chloe."
"I don't...I don't understand." Cal smiled nervously between the two girls.
"We were at the fair last night...on a date. Like a romantic date. We kissed. I won her a stuffed animal. We rode the ferris wheel, and kissed some more." Beca listed off the activities sarcastically, hoping her dad would get it.
The silence in the air was thick. Chloe reached over and rested her hand on top of Beca's which was trembling. Anxious glances were exchanged by all of them when suddenly Cal started laughing. Chloe looked at Beca in utter confusion; Beca's facial expression not being much different.
"Beca, that is a terrible joke to play on your old man. And I shouldn't laugh, because its not funny." Cal wiped his eyes as he shook his head.
"I'm not joking. Dad..I'm..I'm gay." Beca breathed out. Her firm voice was gone. A small and scared voice had replaced it and Chloe could only squeeze her hand tighter to give her a measure of comfort and confidence. "Chloe's...my girlfriend. We're dating."
"Stop joking, Beca. You're taking it too far." Cal's smile had faded and he looked seriously at Beca.
"I'm not joking." Beca took another deep breath. "The whole purpose of this trip for us was to come out to you."
"No." Cal shook his head. "No, you're not. You can't. We can work through this."
"There's nothing to work through. I'm gay. You need to accept it or not." Beca said simply, expecting a simple end to this admission.
"I don't accept it. You can't...Beca, you're confused."
"I'm not confused!" Beca shouted, getting frustrated at her dad's unwillingness to believe this. "I am in a committed relationship with a woman. We love each other."
"I defended you." Cal shook his head in shock and disappointment. "I defended you to Mrs. Rollins and multiple people. How could you do this to me?"
"I'm not doing anything to you, dad!" Beca scoffed. "I'm living my life. Just hoping that you can put your pride aside and still love me."
"Its not about my pride." Cal looked sternly at her. "This is about the truth, what's right and honorable. Come with me to talk to Pastor Fletcher. We can get you counseling. There is always hope for your soul if you confess your sins and repent and turn from these ways."
"I'm not getting counseling." Beca took a deep breath, trying to control her anger.
"Then I can't let you stay here if you're going to undermine all I believe in. I lead fellow believers. I can't let you stay in my home knowing that you are living in sin as if its tolerable or acceptable."
"You're kicking me out?" Beca asked, knowing she shouldn't be surprised, but felt like she was kicked in the gut just the same.
"I cannot, as a self-respecting man of God and the church, let you stay under my roof knowing that you are willfully disobeying the desires of God and ignoring the truth of the Bible."
"You're kicking me out." Beca said again, not so much a question, but rather she was convincing herself that it was really happening.
"Are you willing to talk about this and let me help you overcome this?" He challenged.
"No because I don't need to overcome anything other than having a homophobic father." Beca replied obstinately.
"Then yes, I'm asking you to leave." Cal looked at Beca with a wounded expression. "I will still help you with college, because you are my daughter and I believe education is valuable. But until you come clean, repent, and stop living in sin, I can't support your lifestyle. I can't let you stay under this roof and flaunting your sin to my friends and congregation. I can't have a congregation who looks to me to guide them in their faith see that I'm supporting homosexuality."
"You'll help me with college, but you can't let me be in your house? Because of hypocritical people who aren't even your family?"
"Why don't you give our camp a try?" Cal eagerly grabbed a pamphlet for their anti-gay camp from a drawer and handed it across to Beca. "They can help you realize that you aren't lost. They can give you advice and counseling on how to deal with this. They can give you tips to deal with the temptation."
"Fuck no." Beca scoffed, slapping the pamphlet out of his hand.
"Please don't use that language in this house." Cal sighed as he set the pamphlet on the coffee table, doing his best to control his emotions.
"Oh you have a problem with fuck?" Beca laughed sardonically. "Do you have a problem that I've been fucking my girlfriend...who's a girl?"
"Beca." Chloe tried to admonish, blushing at Beca's language, knowing it would do nothing good for this conversation.
"Is this because of the bellas? Have they pressured you into being gay?" He asked harshly, unappreciative of Beca's previous comment.
"No one made her gay. Its who she is; what she feels." Chloe spoke up through gritted teeth.
"It is not how God intended people to be together." Cal said firmly.
"Really? Then why did I beg and plead with him night after night in that bed!" Beca felt tears pooling in her eyes as she pointed up the stairs. "I asked him. I asked him to make it stop. I prayed to make it go away. And you know what, dad? I couldn't pray the gay away. Its who I am. If it was so terrible and so horrific, why didn't God let me be straight when I begged him. Why?!"
"That's not a question that can just be answered simply, Becs. But we all have sinful feelings and urges. We have to trust God to help us not give in to them. You don't have to give in to this, Beca." Cal reached for her but she quickly retreated. "I wish you had come to me sooner. We could've worked through this before you went down this path."
"This isn't some dark and evil path I'm following, dad. Its who I am. Its what makes me happy. Being with Chloe is the first thing that's given me reason to wake up excited in the morning. For the first time I feel loved and accepted."
"This isn't natural, Beca. Just because it makes you happy doesn't mean its acceptable. God made man to be with a woman so they could create life and children. I mean, biologically you can't reproduce together, that should be your first clue you shouldn't be with a woman." Cal tried to reason, thinking he was being logical.
"Seriously?" Beca nearly burst out laughing. "That's the big clue why I shouldn't be with a woman? I tried to be with guys, dad. I tried to be straight, I really did. And you know the two I got closest to? One called me a dyke and spread rumors around the Christian school you made me go to. The other one? He tried to sexually assault me, dad. When I didn't have sex with him, he hit me so hard I need stitches. Is that better for you? For your daughter to get assaulted with a man than to be loved and appreciated by a woman?"
"Those are terrible things that happened. But not all men are going to be like that. There is a godly man out there-"
"No! I am in love with Chloe. I'm not debating this. I'm telling you. I am gay. And I am in love with Chloe. You can't change it." Beca held onto Chloe's hand tightly as she spoke the words confidently.
"Beca, please...let me help you. And Chloe." He pleaded, trying not to escalate the situation, with a glance toward Chloe.
"We don't need your help." Chloe answered coldly, staring at Mr. Mitchell. Beca had never heard Chloe's voice sound that way and it was a little scary.
"Beca, please...Your mother would be so disappointed…" Cal shook his head as he put a hand over his eyes.
"Don't you fucking dare bring up mom!" Beca shouted as she clenched her fists, rising to her feet. "She would have still loved me and accepted who I am."
"Don't disrespect her memory like that." Cal looked up, with rage in his eyes. "She was a good and honorable Christian woman. She would not support what you are doing right now. And don't fool yourself to think otherwise."
"She was more loving than you ever were! And all you did was keep her prisoner in this house to your rules and your beliefs." Beca spat back, shaking her head remembering the times she saw her mother silence herself because she thought she had to obey every little thing her husband said.
"I want you out of my house. Now." Cal clenched his jaw, pushed over the edge with talk about his wife. He had enough of this back and forth, staring at Beca in a standstill.
"Oh we're leaving, don't worry. But just know this." Beca paused to point a finger in his direction. "One day if we ever do have kids, you will never, ever meet your grandchildren. Unless you get help for yourself." Beca turned to walk for the stairs, feeling like she had the last word. Chloe was a little shocked by the statement. Beca freaked when Chloe had accidentally said the word marriage and now she was mentioning kids? But Chloe was pretty certain she was only saying that to try and hurt her father any way she could after the way he was treating her.
"They wouldn't be my real grandchildren." Cal responded with a lack of emotion. The pause created a tense moment of silence. "They would be an abomination in the eyes of God." Cal finished with a stone cold face, making both Chloe and Beca freeze. Chloe felt a heat boiling in her stomach, rapidly spreading through her body. How dare someone call her babies, who weren't even born yet, an abomination. How could someone be so cruel and heartless?
Before Chloe's rage could boil up, Beca's erupted. She spun around and lunged at her dad, Chloe thankfully snatching her in her arms before any physical violence could be done.
"You fucking asshole! My kids will never be an abomination!" Beca lunged again in Chloe's arms that were working hard to keep Beca in place. "I'll love them more than you ever loved me! Fuck you!"
"Get out of my house!" Cal's deep voice echoed through the house. Beca had never heard him yell like that, but wasn't going to be scared. She fidgeted in Chloe's arms, nearly foaming at the mouth.
"Beca, let's go pack." Chloe whispered, not wanting this situation to escalate any further. She wanted to get out of there and somewhere alone with Beca away from hate and ignorance as fast as possible. Beca's nostrils flared, her breath was heavy as she stared her father down. She reluctantly relaxed her body against Chloe and turned to march up the stairs.
"Chloe, please." Cal begged, gathering himself. He had tears now forming in his eyes. "Please consider it. I can't let you two leave without knowing I did everything I could to help you." He held out the pamphlet once more. Chloe looked at the paper that was decorated with smiling kids and outdoor activities like it was just a fun summer camp in disgust.
"You're the one who needs help." Chloe snatched the paper angrily out of his hand, crumpling it as she shook her head. "What Beca needed was to have someone in her life accept her when she was going through this as a teenager. She needs a family to not be homophobic. She obviously can't get that here. But she has my family and the Bellas. And she doesn't need you and your hate."
"Its not hate, Chloe. I don't hate my daughter. I love her and that's why I want to help-"
"Stop saying she needs help!" Chloe glared at him. "Just stop. We're respecting your wishes and we're leaving your house. But don't you dare try to tell her anymore that something is wrong with her." She spun around before he could respond and jogged upstairs after Beca.
She rushed into the room to see Beca frantically throwing random items in a box that had once held some old school books, which were now crumpled in a pile after being dumped out. She saw a few pictures of young Beca and her mom, some random artwork and sculptures that were clearly made by a young Beca, a couple notebooks and notepads, and a smaller box that Chloe was certain contained something important. Chloe thought for a second how she was excited to go through that box with Beca. Because those were obviously the good things, the good memories. And Chloe hoped Beca could focus on those soon. But at that moment, Beca was pacing around the room in a blind rage, trying to figure out what was worth bringing with her.
"Fuck them." Beca sniffed as she ripped down pictures from her wall of the so-called friends Chloe assumed had been the stars in the homophobic stories. But Beca made sure to save the ones with Megan and toss them in the box. "Fuck him." Beca smashed a frame on her desk of her and her dad at her high school graduation. "Fuck this house." She then picked up a small trophy with a musical note on it and hurled it at the wall, immediately making a small hole.
"Beca." Chloe reached out nervously. She had seen Beca angry before, but not like this. Beca looked like she was out of control, as if she couldn't even control where her legs and arms moved. She could very well be seconds away from completely tearing the room apart. "Beca, please." Chloe felt her voice waver, as she bit back her own tears to reach out for the brunette. "Please calm down. You're scaring me."
"I'm sorry." Beca took a deep breath as she continued pacing. "I'm sorry. I'm just so...angry. I can't-I can't believe he just so easily kicked me out. I knew he wouldn't support me. I knew. But yet I'm still disappointed and hurt. And I'm pissed at myself for even having an ounce of hope that maybe things would be different. I'm pissed for thinking he could still love me." She sat down on her bed and put her head in her hands.
"I'm so sorry, baby." Chloe quickly rushed to sit by her and reached to put a hand on her back. But Beca quickly sprang to her feet.
"No. No. I'm not giving him the satisfaction of breaking down here. I just need to get my shit and leave." Beca sniffed as she started packing the rest of the little things she wanted to keep. Her anger had settled and she was moving on auto-pilot, forcing herself not to cry.
"Can I do anything to help?" Chloe asked, feeling so small and helpless.
"Could you get my record player to the car?" Beca pointed at the vinyl player on the opposite side of the room on a stand above the records. "It closes on itself so its its own box too."
Chloe nodded and quickly went over to grab the player and stack the records on top. She hurried downstairs and out to the car, avoiding any eye contact with Mr. Mitchell. A few minutes later Beca hurried out to put the box and a duffel bag from her room into Chloe's trunk. She jogged back upstairs, not saying a word to Mr. Mitchell as he stood silently against the back of the couch, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"Got everything?" Chloe zipped up her suitcase and looked around the room which didn't really look much different than when they first arrived.
"I think so." Beca said quietly as she scanned the room one more time as if she was saying goodbye and shut the light as she left.
They were on their way out the door when Mr. Mitchell made one last attempt.
"Beca, I will welcome you with open arms if you just turn from this sinful life. Please, let me be there for you." He said as tears ran down his cheeks. "Let me save you from the consequences that this life can lead you to."
"I don't need you." Beca kept her back to him, staring straight ahead at the car. "I have the Beale's for family now." And without another word or glance back she slammed the door and followed Chloe to the car.
"What did I do wrong?" Cal broke into sobs and slowly fell to the floor covering his face in his hands. "What did I do wrong?"
Chloe pulled into the closest motel she could find from Beca's house. Beca had been silent, just staring out the window. It didn't even seem to register to her that they had stopped outside a motel.
"Becs?" Chloe cautiously put a hand on the brunette's knee, still not getting a response. "I'm just going to go check us in. I think we're both too drained to make that drive back right now, okay?"
Silence.
"Beca? Please say something."
"Okay." Beca's voice sounded scratchy as she nodded her head slightly. "Okay."
Chloe took a deep breath and hurried to the front desk. She hated leaving Beca alone even for a moment. She quickly got them checked in and their keys. Beca seemed to be sleepwalking while she drug her suitcase into the room. She sat down on one of the beds and slouched just staring blankly ahead. Chloe put some of her things aside and got situated, glancing at Beca every few seconds.
"Chloe?" Beca finally spoke, sounding tired and small. Chloe immediately spun around, ready to hear anything Beca had to say. "Could you...I'm not mad at you. But...could I just have some time alone. You didn't do anything wrong, I just...want to be alone for a bit. If that's okay?"
"Yeah." Chloe nodded weakly. She hated that there seemed to be nothing she could do right now for Beca. But if she needed some alone time, Chloe would give it to her. "I'll, um, I'll go get us some food? And call my mom and Aubrey. I'll be back in an hour or so?" She asked, hoping that was enough time, because it felt like too much to her. Beca just nodded her head weakly. Chloe stepped closer and put her hands on the side of Beca's face and kissed her head for a lingering moment before turning to leave so Beca could be alone.
"Hey, Chlo?" Beca asked softly and Chloe immediately turned around. "I love you, you know?"
"I love you too." Chloe sighed with a measure of relief. "So much."
Chloe got in the car and dialed her mom as fast as she could. She felt the tears already pooling in her eyes. She heard the ringer go off and hoped that her mom would answer and luckily she did.
"Hey Chloe-Bee! What do I owe this surprise call?"
"Is dad there? Could you put me on speaker?" Chloe asked quickly as she felt herself getting choked up.
"He's here, honey. Is something wrong? What's going on?" Her mother's worry was evident in her voice.
"We told Beca's dad. We told him about us." Chloe gulped, trying to keep herself composed. Before her mom or dad could say anything Chloe kept going as she started breaking down. "I love you guys. Thank you for accepting me. And for loving me...and Beca. I love you...so much. Thank you." And then Chloe fully broke down into sobs as her parents listened patiently on the other line.
"Of course, Chloe. We love you both. That's not even something to question." Her mom spoke softly.
"What happened, Chloe?" Her dad spoke a little gruffly.
"He said terrible things. And he wouldn't accept it."
"What did he say? Did he do anything to you?" Carl's anger was rising to the surface out of protection for his daughter.
"He didn't do anything violent. But he…" Chloe took a breath. "He kicked her out. Kicked us out. He said she was living in sin. He said her mom would be ashamed of her. And...he...he said our kids would...they'd be an abomination." She started sobbing again, almost feeling like she was about to choke, wishing her parents were there to hug her and Beca.
"Give me his address." Mr. Beale said firmly. "Carl...that's not necessary." Mrs. Beale tried to reason. "No one tells my baby girl that her children would be an abomination. Who says that?! Chloe, give me his address. What, Caroline? I just want to have a conversation with this sorry excuse of a man."
"Daddy, please, that won't help." Chloe sniffed, feeling both happy that her father was so intent on defending her and Beca, but also worried about what he would actually do. Carl had a solid five inches on Cal and probably 20-30 pounds of extra muscle than him too. "Can Beca stay with us over breaks and holidays? She's not welcome back home and she shouldn't stay in the Bella house alone."
"Of course, hon." Caroline said immediately. "She is welcome here like our own children. And you tell her that. I'm so sorry you had to go through that."
"Not as sorry as he would be if I paid him a visit." Carl Beale's voice was heard mumbling followed immediately by a shushing sound.
"I love you, mom and dad." Chloe said quietly. "I can't wait to see you."
"We can't wait to see y'all either, Chlo. Even if its just a weekend, don't hesitate to come visit. Give Beca a big hug from me, okay?"
"I will, Mom. I'll talk to you guys later. Love you."
Chloe drove around a bit after talking to her parents and then called Aubrey once she had composed herself more. She and Stacie had apparently just gone out and they were tipsy but not drunk.
"Chloeee!" Aubrey exclaimed over the phone.
"Hey Aubs." Chloe smiled, hearing the inebriated state her friend was in.
"Chloe! How did it go?!" She then heard Stacie's voice.
"Um...not great."
"What happened?" Stacie asked, sounding like she was sobering up.
"He was terrible. He kicked Beca out. And…" Chloe wasn't sure she could go over the whole scene again without sobbing.
"And what?" Aubrey asked, her tone sounding similar to her father's.
"He said if we had kids they wouldn't be his real grandchildren and that Beca wasn't welcome back because she was living in sin." Chloe said softly, trying not to get emotional.
"What the FUCK?!" Stacie shrieked.
"I know people, Chloe." Aubrey said stoically. "I know people who could hurt him. Just say the word."
"Aubrey!" Stacie admonished, but still sounded like she was almost on the verge of giggles.
"I don't want to talk about him." Chloe said firmly. "How's your vacation going? Has Stacie loosened you up?"
"Oh, still working on it." Stacie said in a low voice followed by what sounded like gentle swats from Aubrey's hands.
"We're having fun, Chlo." Aubrey stated.
"Tell me about it." Chloe smiled as she pulled into a parking lot of a restaurant to listen to Aubrey and Stacie tell her about their trip.
After a little over the hour that Chloe promised, she returned to the hotel room with some Chinese food. Her reasoning was that if Beca wasn't hungry, cold Chinese food was better than cold any other food. She put the bags down on the table and saw Beca curled up in a little ball on the bed, still wearing the clothes they arrived in on top of the sheets.
"I got Chinese." Chloe said hopefully, but got no response. "I'm going to eat, but just let me know if you get hungry, okay? I can bring it over. I also got some drinks. Some sprite, waters, and the beer you like depending on your mood. But you can just sleep or lay there, I won't force you to do anything." Chloe said quickly as she set aside the drinks, and grabbed a bottle of water for herself. She was unsure how to navigate this situation and wanted to be there for Beca but not be overbearing. She had just taken a bite of an egg roll when she heard Beca's soft voice nearly whisper her name.
"What do you need?" Chloe asked quickly, almost too eagerly.
"Could you…" Beca sniffed. "Ugh, its stupid."
"Beca. What is it? What can I do?" Chloe set her box down on the night stand and sat on the edge of the other bed.
"Could you...um...could you like...hold me?" Beca asked so timidly and Chloe could hear her voice breaking at the end of the question. Without hesitation Chloe nearly flew to the other bed and curled up next to Beca. She wrapped her arm around Beca's stomach and buried her nose into the back of Beca's neck. She scooted as close as possible and held as tightly as possible. And she felt Beca relax into her touch and put her hand over Chloe's. Chloe took a deep breath and sighed against Beca.
And then the dam burst. Beca broke into nearly uncontrollable sobs. And Chloe's tears fell from her eyes as she held onto Beca tighter. Beca gasped for air as she tried to compose herself.
"I don't understand…" Beca cried. "I don't understand. And I'm mad at him. But I just want him to tell me that I'm okay. I want him to tell me that I'm not damaged. I want my dad to not hate me."
"He doesn't hate you." Chloe whispered, not sure what else to say.
"He hates who I am. He hates the only thing I can't change about myself." Beca took a couple deep breaths, trying not to hyperventilate from crying so hard. "I'm not being fair to you either. There's a part of me that still wishes I were straight. There's part of me that still hates myself for being gay. And you deserve so much better. You don't deserve the damaged piece of shit that I am. And I don't know if I'll ever stop feeling that. I'm so fucked up."
"Stop." Chloe leaned forward and stroked a hand along Beca's tear-stained cheek. "Stop it right now. Do not call yourself damaged. And do not call yourself a piece of shit. You want your dad to love you and I can't blame you or be mad about that at all. But don't for one second, Beca Mitchell, think you are anything less than what I deserve. You had experiences that were fucked up." Chloe continued, not budging to Beca's self-hatred. "You are not your experiences. You are not your past. And you are such an amazing person. To get through what you've gone through and to be who you are now? Its amazing. And you are amazing. Look at me." Chloe pushed herself up on her elbow to hover over Beca slightly. Beca reluctantly wiped her eyes and turned to face Chloe.
"I don't know how to not hate me, Chlo." Beca whispered.
"I won't let you." Chloe grabbed both her cheeks. "I love you so fucking much. And I will tell you everyday how you are so worthy of love. And there are so many other people who agree with me. Just please don't shut me out; don't push me away. Let me be here for you."
Beca sniffled, wiped her tears, and held on to Chloe. And they laid there quietly. Chloe willing to hold her as long as necessary to give her any measure of comfort. Chloe sighed and pulled Beca close, hoping that somehow her arms and her warmth could chase away the horrible things that had happened and that were said that day. And she could only think of a simple thing to say before drifting off.
"I love you, Beca."