Chapter 35: My Funny Valentine
Beca joined Aubrey in her room to run an idea by her for the Nationals' setlist. They had the last two mashups but were still working on a good opening number. Aubrey's speech about her dad and the military had given Beca an idea. She played the mashup she had put together with Salute by Little Mix and Boss by Fifth Harmony. Aubrey listened along and Beca could see her gears working to transform the song into acapella as well as choreography. For all the grief she gave Aubrey she really did have a knack for this sort of thing. Between them and Chloe, they really did work well together to come up with some great performances.
"You know." Aubrey mused as she sat back in her desk chair. "Sometimes I miss the old days. When we had the same routine for the whole year. Same steps, same vocals. We just had to practice it to perfection. Now having to learn new steps and new vocals throughout the year is challenging. But its a good challenge. I really think we have a shot at being repeat national champions. Its amazing."
"Yeah, its pretty awesome." Beca nodded. She was excited about it and competitive, obviously. But she had a feeling it meant something a little more to Aubrey.
"Alright. Well I'll get to work on these vocals and I'll talk to Chloe tonight about coming up with some choreography for the next bella rehearsal."
"Oh, um about tonight." Beca cleared her throat and awkwardly set her laptop to the side. "I had a favor to ask."
"Okay." Aubrey said slowly and eyed Beca suspiciously.
"As you well know me and Chloe had a bit of a rough patch. And I feel like after spring break and that drama we're finally good again. Like really good. Its just...its been awhile, a long while, since we um...you know." She started gesturing awkwardly with her hands.
"Been intimate?" Aubrey said with a smirk.
"Yes. Oh my God." Beca shook her head as she put her hands over her face in embarrassment. "Anyway...I wanted to do something special for her. Make dinner, play some music and you know…"
"Be intimate?" Aubrey said again, trying to fight off bursting out laughing.
"Dude, stop staying that. Look, will you help me or not?"
"Fine, fine. What help do you need?"
"I'd like the house to ourselves. So if you could maybe find a way to get the bellas out tonight that'd be awesome. And I want to make her dinner so if you could keep Chloe occupied while I set everything up, even better."
"Well look at you flexing your romantic muscles." Aubrey raised her eyebrows proudly at Beca.
"Will you do it or not?" Beca deadpanned, feeling her face turning redder by the second.
"How long would you like me to kick the bellas out of our own home for you?" Aubrey asked jokingly.
"Midnight?" Beca hesitated, wondering if Aubrey could keep them out that late.
"I'll do my best." Aubrey nodded. "Consider this your get out of bella bonding night use."
"Aw, come on!" Beca whined. "This can't just be a favor, captain to captain?"
"Nope." Aubrey said quickly as she patted her thighs upon standing. "Especially since I'm giving up a night to plan for Nationals. Now, shoo shoo, let me come up with a plan for your date night."
Aubrey had Stacie take Beca to the store to buy ingredients for her dinner while she took Chloe out for a girls day. It had been awhile since they've done something just the two of them, and Aubrey suggested a whole treat yourself day. She planned to take her shopping, which always lasted at least an hour, often two. And then they'd get mani-pedis. And depending on the status of Beca's prep, she would suggest getting their hair done, too if more time was needed. Aubrey was actually pretty happy with herself. She was getting a day with her best friend while doing a fairly big favor for another best friend. It was a win-win.
Stacie looked at Beca's grocery list, not knowing where any of the ingredients were. She glanced from the list toward the aisle labels and back down, trying to figure it out. Fat Amy had insisted she tag along. And she proved to be helpful as she took the list from Stacie and started leading them where to go.
"So, what's so special about this recipe?" Stacie asked as they made their way to the pasta aisle.
"Its her grandmother's recipe." Beca explained. "It was her absolute favorite meal as a kid. Her mom made it so often for her that she can recite the whole process by memory."
"Well its not like jumbo shells with chicken, broccoli, and cheese in alfredo sauce is a super complicated recipe." Amy pointed out as she grabbed a box of jumbo shells.
"For someone who doesn't cook it is." Beca said nervously.
"Don't worry, it'll be fine." Stacie nodded confidently. "We'll help you. Make sure you don't overcook the chicken or burn the alfredo sauce."
"My question is why do you want to make a meal that reminds her of her grandma when you're hoping for sexytimes at the end of the night?" Amy asked with a wiggle of her eyebrows.
"Is it weird?" Beca stopped, looking between her two friends. "Will it ruin the vibe?"
"No, Beca." Stacie put a hand on her shoulder and shot Fat Amy a disapproving scowl. "Chloe will love it. I think her soft little heart will swoon just at the gesture alone."
"Ugh, I never should have told you guys." Beca rolled her eyes and continued to the next aisle.
"So I was thinking." Aubrey flipped a page in the magazine as she and Chloe let their feet soak in the foot spa. "You and Beca got to go to a little carnival over spring break. And there's one going on a couple towns over. I thought I could take the bellas and you and Beca could have a date night or something."
"Really?" Chloe whipped her head to look at Aubrey. "I mean, I wouldn't mind going to another one. And with all the bellas, I'm sure it would be interesting."
"Oh, I'm sure too. I just figured you guys haven't had much alone time since you reconciled. I don't mind you having a date night away from the prying eyes of the bellas."
"Yeah, I just don't know exactly where Beca's head is at. I mean, we're good, but she still has stuff to deal with. I don't want to pressure her or make her feel trapped. Plus, I'd feel a little guilty ditching the bellas." Chloe shrugged, clearly oblivious to plans Beca made that Aubrey was trying to help execute.
Aubrey didn't foresee any sort of challenge in convincing Chloe to stay back with Beca for the evening. So without making it obvious, Aubrey made a low move and played the guilt card.
"No, that's fine. Of course I'd love for you guys to come too. I guess I just thought you guys were back on track and maybe wanted some quality alone time. No drama looming over you or anything. But if things are still weird…"
"No, things aren't weird!" Chloe quickly defended. "We're good. I promise." Chloe bit her lip, thinking quickly. "In fact, you're right. Date night sounds good. Maybe I'll plan a little something for her."
"Mmm." Aubrey smiled and nodded, trying not to give away her awkwardness. "She'd probably be happy if you just had sex all night."
"Aubrey!" Chloe smacked her shoulder with her magazine. But then she sat back for a moment and thought. "Although…"
"Although what?" Aubrey looked over, concerned about where this might be headed.
"Maybe I could get some nice lingerie. She's never seen me in anything super fancy." Chloe bit her lower lip, imagining Beca's face if she did wear something special.
"Oh, my God." Aubrey winced and put a hand over her eyes. "Please don't ask me to help you pick out lingerie...to seduce Beca."
"Please." Chloe did her signature pout as she leaned back in her seat. With a huff, Aubrey agreed and silently decided Beca really, really owed her for this favor. She glanced over and saw Chloe's eyes glazed over just over the top of her magazine that she still held in front of her.
"You're picturing it right now aren't you?" Aubrey asked in slight outrage.
"What? No!" Chloe blushed and quickly looked back down at the reading material with a smirk on her face.
"Please do not think about Beca like that when you're sitting right next to me."
"I can't help it. I have a hot girlfriend."
"Oh my God." Aubrey mumbled as she rolled her eyes and did her best to focus her attention back on her own magazine again.
"What kind of wine should I get? What would go well with alfredo and chicken?" Beca asked as they moved to the alcohol aisle.
"Well, Chloe really likes Chardonnay." Stacie picked up a bottle and studied it.
"We still have some wine at home." Fat Amy shrugged.
"I am not giving her an adult juice pouch on a romantic date, Amy." Beca rolled her eyes.
"Fine. Fine. Whatever." Fat Amy rolled her eyes and put two bottles of Chardonnay in the cart.
"Crap, should I get flowers?" Beca asked as they were about to make their way to the checkout. "I should get flowers…"
"What are her favorites?" Amy asked.
"Umm...I don't know. But daisies are kind of our flower you know. Secret meaning." Beca blushed, hearing how cheesy that sounded.
"You should get tulips!" Fat Amy exclaimed, clearly ignoring Beca's previous statement.
"Why?" Beca asked, fully prepared to not take the advice.
"Because you can give her the flowers and say 'i got you these beautiful tulips for you because I want to spend the rest of the night with your beautiful...two lips.' Eh?" She smiled proudly at her double entendre.
"How am I friends with you?" Beca deadpanned as she grabbed a small bouquet of assorted flowers and headed to the checkout. Fat Amy gave a questioning shrug of her shoulders wondering why her pun wasn't taken better.
"Wait, where's Stacie?" Beca looked around before she got in line. They both looked over their shoulders and down a few aisles, but no Stacie. They finally found her back in the alcohol aisle chatting up a tall brunette with arms that looked like they could lift Amy over his head with ease. He let out a laugh at something Stacie said and ran a hand through his thick and wavy brown locks.
"Now there's a tall drink of man meat." Amy ran her eyes suggestively over the strapping college boy.
"Gross." Beca mumbled while shooting Amy a look before turning to Stacie. "Stacie! Keep it in your pants, maybe?"
"What? Oh, hey!" Stacie pushed herself off from leaning on a shelf. "Sorry, yeah, I just got distracted."
"Mhm." Beca shook her head disapprovingly. "Let's go, we're on a time crunch!" She gestured for everyone to follow and started marching back to the front. Fat Amy shot the guy a wink before following Beca.
"So…" Biceps dude, as Beca had decided to refer to him in her mind, flashed his best sexy smirk. "Can I maybe get your number?"
"Um…" Stacie bit her lip. Usually she wouldn't even hesitate. Hell, usually she'd be halfway to his apartment or dorm by now. But this time felt different. She didn't really want the hunter to hunt, so to speak. "Sorry." She scrunched her face up in an apology. "I gotta meet my friends." She pointed over her shoulder before jogging to meet back up with Beca and Amy.
"But…" Biceps dude whined a little as she left and then he let an arm drop to his side in defeat.
"What about this one?" Chloe held up a matching purple lacy lingerie set, which would do very little to hide anything. Aubrey reluctantly looked it over with a sigh.
"I don't think she'll be picky about what you choose. Its been how long since you've had sex? I'm pretty sure she'll be ready to rip whatever you get off of you." Aubrey checked the price tag on what Chloe was holding. "Which brings up a good point. You might want to get something a little cheaper if all she's going to do is rip it."
"Oh please, we're not animals." Chloe rolled her eyes.
"I specifically remember Beca being grumpy one morning because her favorite purple flannel had its buttons ripped off…" Aubrey gave her a playfully accusatory look.
"Okay, that's Beca's poor quality flannel." Chloe blushed and giggled at the memory. "Plus, this isn't just for Beca. I want to feel sexy too, you know?"
"Alright, alright." Aubrey nodded and gave in. "I think this one's very sexy."
"Me too." Chloe held it up with a salacious grin. "I'm going to get some help finding the right size."
"I'll be outside." Aubrey laughed, not needing any mental images seared into her brain.
"Whip it good, shortstack." Fat Amy cheered from her seat at the kitchen island as Beca whipped the homemade alfredo sauce in a bowl. Beca just glanced up with an unamused glare. Stacie moved behind her and checked the temperature on the chicken in the oven.
"It should be ready in about twenty minutes. Do you want help shredding it?" Stacie asked as she moved to chop some broccoli.
"Yes. When are they getting back?" Beca asked, getting nervous it wouldn't be ready in time. They took far too long at the store, Fat Amy being both a help and a hindrance during the entirety of the shopping trip.
"Aubrey said they just left to get their hair done. So we have some extra time." Stacie said as she looked at her phone which pinged again. A picture of Chloe holding up two very revealing lingerie sets. Stacie snorted out an 'oh my God!' and almost dropped her phone. She quickly locked it as Beca glanced over.
"What? What's wrong?" Beca looked nervously at Stacie.
"Oh, nothing." Stacie chirped. "I just am so glad you two are going to have a really great night." Stacie gave Beca a nudge and wink, easily making the little brunette blush.
"Alright, let's move, Bellas." Stacie ushered them to the backdoor of the kitchen where Chloe's car was. She loaded up half of them in there and told them to wait till they saw Aubrey's car pull around.
"And Fat Amy?" Stacie held the door open for Fat Amy to take shotgun. "If you end up getting us kicked out of this carnival early so that we have to come back and put a damper on Bloe's date night? Be prepared to do weeks of vertical running." She gave Fat Amy her best serious glare and the blonde simply saluted her in return.
"You've been hanging out with Aubrey too much. You're taking on her dictator mannerisms." CR grinned as she took the keys from Stacie. Stacie just shrugged smugly, doing nothing to disagree with the accusation.
"Alright, the rest of you, with me. We'll wait outside for Aubrey to pick us up."
"Its so romantic." Emily swooned as she held her hands to her chest. "Can't we just stay to see the look on Chloe's face?"
"No. Now move." Stacie gave her a nudge out the door. "Good luck, Becs. And have fun!" Stacie shot her a wink as the bellas finally were gone from the house. Beca ran to the living room to make sure the lights were hanging in the right spot and the little picnic fort was still standing. The candles and rose petals were scattered about to add to the romantic atmosphere. Stacie's idea. She made sure the wine and glasses were sitting on the coffee table. She looked around frantically feeling like there was something she was missing, but she knew it was basically perfect. Chloe would love it.
She heard Aubrey's car pull up and jogged to the stairs to grab her leather hat from the banister. She took a deep breath as she waited by the door for Chloe to unlock the door.
"Hey!" Chloe said as she looked over Beca's shoulder into the living room. "What's going on?"
"Happy belated Valentine's." Beca spread out her hands and smiled with all her teeth.
"Valentine's?" Chloe looked around the room and then back at Beca.
"Yeah. We were having that stupid fight and what not during official Valentine's day. So I thought I'd give us a re-do." Beca shrugged with a confident grin on her face. "And I bribed Aubrey to give us the house to ourselves tonight. So hopefully we can make up for lost time."
"So that was your idea!" Chloe exclaimed.
"Yeah." Beca smirked and then looked at all the bags. "Damn, you really did go on a shopping spree."
"Aubrey's quite the expert in how to keep me out of the house." Chloe shrugged. "Let me go put these up and change, I'll be right back!" She gave Beca a quick kiss. "And I love that you're wearing that hat." She gave Beca a look over her shoulder before she entered her room that sent a shiver down Beca's spine.
Chloe re-emerged dressed in her pink sleeveless button up blouse with jeans and her new purchase hiding underneath as a surprise. Beca was in the kitchen pulling dinner out of the oven.
"Jumbo chicken broccoli and cheese shells!" Chloe's jaw dropped. She remembered telling Beca about how it was her favorite food as a kid and her grandma made it for them all the time. It wasn't a particular hard dish to make, but Beca was definitely not in the runnings for house chef. So it was a surprise that made Chloe beam from ear to ear.
"Don't get so excited until you try it." Beca grinned, trying to hide her satisfaction of her girlfriend's reaction as she tossed off her oven mitts and grabbed the plates.
"Its pretty sexy seeing you here in the kitchen being all...chef Beca." Chloe wrapped her arms around Beca's waist as Beca scooped them both a portion.
"Try to keep it in your pants at least until we finish dinner, Beale." Beca smiled proudly as she handed over a plate and nodded toward the living room.
"Oh my God, this is so cute." Chloe nearly bounced up and down as they walked to the little fort Beca had set up.
"Don't call it cute." Beca rolled her eyes as she shuffled in beside Chloe. "Want some wine?"
"Fancy. Yes, please." Chloe wiggled her shoulders.
"I borrowed Emily's Disney+ account. And I know you're a Disney addict so, pick out a movie." Beca handed her the little remote.
"Best date ever." Chloe snatched the remote and gave Beca another kiss.
They ate dinner, drank wine, and watched Beauty and the Beast (cartoon, not live action). Beca grinning every time Chloe would break out into song with the characters. Chloe also got multiple helpings of dinner which made Beca feel proud, knowing that it was good enough for seconds.
"The bellas remind me of the characters in the movie." Chloe said as she poured another glass of wine. "Aubrey's totally Cogsworth. Stacie's Lumier. Emily's a combo of Mrs. Potts and Chip. Fat Amy is the wardrobe. Jessica and Ashley are those girls in town. Cynthia-Rose is...the stove. And Lilly is the silent knives during the attack scene."
"Wow, you've put thought into this." Beca chuckled. "I won't be able to watch it the same ever again."
"We should totes put on a Beauty and the Beast musical for Barden!" Chloe's eyes widened with excitement.
"Okay, that's enough wine for you." Beca playfully tried to snatch the glass out of Chloe's hand. Chloe giggled as she leaned back to protect her glass but tilted her head forward and lifted Beca's hat up an inch, silently asking for a kiss. And Beca was happy to oblige. She closed the distance, softly pressing her lips to Chloe's. Without separating, Chloe blindly set her glass to the side before resting her hands on Beca's cheeks, pulling her closer. Beca sighed contentedly, giving Chloe the opportunity to slide her tongue into Beca's mouth, gently roaming and pressing. Beca let out a rough exhale, wanting to just lay Chloe down right there on the blankets and pillows and end their dry spell. But she wanted to give Chloe all the romance she had planned. So forcing every fiber of her being to stop, she pulled away, making Chloe stumble forward, clearly not ready to be done with that kiss.
"Let's dance." Beca said once she caught her breath. Chloe bit her lip. She loved dancing. And she really loved dancing with Beca. But God, there was one thing she'd rather do with Beca right now instead of dancing. But she knew they had the whole night. So she smiled and nodded as Beca stood up to take her hand.
Beca put on her "Valentine's" playlist. The first song up was "My Funny Valentine." She played the Michael Buble version because Chloe once said that his voice sounded like "sex on a chocolate stick." She may or may not have been drunk at the time of the statement. But either way, Beca knew Chloe was a little weak for Buble.
"You little romantic." Chloe grinned as she draped her arms around Beca's shoulder when she heard the first few notes play out. Beca just shrugged like it was no big deal before wrapping her own arms around Chloe's waist, interlocking her fingers. They swayed around the living room, hardly keeping their eyes off each other aside from avoiding obstacles.
As the songs went on, Beca would occasionally grab Chloe's hand and spin her around. She even attempted a dip, but they both nearly collapsed on the floor. Chloe giggled when they stood back up, holding on to Beca. As the song came to an end, Chloe reached out and turned off Beca's phone before returning her hands to Beca's neck.
"Tonight's been amazing, Becs."
"You deserve it."
"We both do." Chloe said quickly as she pecked her lips. "I love you."
"I love you too." Beca whispered back as they stopped moving altogether in the living room.
"I also have a surprise for you too." Chloe grinned as she stroked the back of Beca's neck with her fingertips.
"Oh? What's that?" Beca asked with a raise of her eyebrow.
"Follow me." Chloe winked as she stepped out of Beca's embrace and held her hand out for Beca to follow her up the stairs. Chloe slowly guided Beca up the stairs to her bedroom. She opened the door and turned around to grab Beca by both hands, stepping backwards further into the room. Beca kicked the door shut and yanked Chloe to her chest to kiss her like she'd been wanting to all night.
Chloe let out a little squeak of surprise as they exchanged slightly sloppy, needy and rough kisses that eventually made the hat Chloe loved so much fall to the floor. It had been awhile since they had had sex. A long while. 58 days. But who was counting? Chloe didn't want this to be rushed. She wanted to take their time. So she reluctantly pulled back, this time making Beca the one to stumble forward. Chloe smirked as she guided Beca to the bed and pushed on her shoulders to make her sit.
"Ready for your surprise?" Chloe stood on either side of Beca's knees, still gripping Beca's shoulders. Beca just nodded her head quickly. Chloe slowly started unbuttoning her shirt, revealing the nearly see through, lacy purple bra. Beca swallowed hard and literally ogled Chloe's breasts for a good ten seconds. Chloe tossed her shirt to the side with a cocky grin on her face as she unbuttoned her jeans and slipped them off. Now, she was able to present Beca the whole ensemble.
"Uh...w-wow." Beca's eyes raked over Chloe's body slowly.
"You like it?" Chloe did a little pose, sticking a hip out.
"Y-yeah. It…" Beca swallowed hard, literally unable to make her eyes move up to meet Chloe's but stayed in the torso region. "It's...wow."
"I love when I make you speechless." Chloe smirked as she stepped forward and slid her hands under Beca's shirt. "Your turn." She whispered against Beca's ear. Beca let out a little grunt noise as she moved to quickly rip her shirt off and wiggled out of her jeans.
Chloe leaned forward and captured Beca's lips with her own, kissing her slow and thoroughly. When Beca's hands slowly slinked around Chloe's back and traveled up and down her soft skin, Chloe couldn't control herself when her hips rolled against Beca's.
Beca inhaled sharply as she pulled Chloe closer to her. Chloe grinned against Beca's lips as she shuffled backwards to lie flat on her back, bringing Chloe with her. Whatever patience Chloe had went out the window as soon as she was hovering over a naked Beca. She left a trail of kisses down Beca's throat and between her breasts. She quickly slid her hand down Beca's stomach until she reached her throbbing core and was able to slip a finger inside with ease.
"I've missed you." Beca groaned as she rolled her hips against Chloe's hand.
"I've missed you." Chloe lifted her head up for breath before sinking her lips onto Beca's left nipple while keeping a firm and steady pace with her fingers below. She let her tongue circle around Beca's hardened nipple, making Beca's breaths come in shorter bursts with each stroke of the tongue.
She moved down kissing and treasuring every inch of Beca's body she could get her mouth or hands on. Beca hand a hand in Chloe's hair, gripping tightly as her body rolled forcefully in reaction to every touch and kiss from Chloe. Her breath became labored and her moans became louder as Chloe's mouth found her clit. Her finger was still pumping and curling inside of her and suddenly Chloe's tongue was in the mix.
"Oh, fuck!" Beca's back arched violently. She tried to control her hips so they didn't buck into Chloe's face so hard that it would knock her back. But it was hard to control anything when she was already teetering on the edge. "Shit, Chloe, right there." Beca let out a high moan, remembering she didn't have to worry about being quiet. Chloe moaned against Beca in response, the vibration against her core made her release a loud string of curses and a few erratic hips thrusts as she came hard against Chloe's mouth before collapsing back onto the bed, struggling for breath.
"Wow." Beca dropped a forearm over her head as she stared at the ceiling. Chloe smirked as she wiped her chin and mouth. She crawled forward to hover over Beca, smiling brightly as Beca calmed down.
"Hey." Chloe said when Beca finally looked at her.
"Hi." Beca grinned as she pulled Chloe down for a kiss. "That was amazing."
"Good." Chloe whispered as they exchanged slow kisses. After a few minutes of tender kisses, light fondling, and a gentle roll of the hips, Beca had regained her energy. She surprised Chloe with a quick reversal of positions and looked down at the redhead with a smug expression.
"We'll see who comes harder tonight." She winked before going down on her girlfriend. Before Chloe could get a response out she gasped at the feeling of Beca's lips and tongue on her already wet center. This is definitely a competition she was willing to have the rest of the night.
While Beca and Chloe made full use of their hours alone together, the other Bellas had a good time at the carnival. And Amy was shockingly well-behaved. Lilly had managed to win everyone some sort of prize at the booth that had the dart throwing game. No one asked questions. They just told Lilly which prize they'd like and she quickly won them one by one, while the booth operator watched her in both amazement and slight fear.
They finally returned home after they'd ridden all rides at least twice, shared an exorbitant amount of junk food, and played all the games. Unsurprisingly the rest of the bellas were terrible at playing all the games and no other prizes were won. They walked up the path to the house when Amy held out her hands, making them all stumble to a stop.
"We've left them alone for hours. We don't know what we're about to walk in on." She said while looking at the door skeptically. "Someone needs to check the sex den for the all clear."
"I'll go check." Aubrey rolled her eyes.
"I'll help!" Stacie quickly volunteered as they went inside, leaving the rest of the bellas to wait patiently. No one else was willing to potentially walk in on them, especially Emily.
"Beca freaking Mitchell." Aubrey groaned/growled when she and Stacie walked into the house just before midnight. Stacie looked around and saw no sign of Chloe or Beca, figuring they made their way up to Beca's room.
"What?" Stacie tried to hold back a chuckle.
"Look at all these candles. She could've burned the house down."
"Oh, I'm sure they burned things up all right." Stacie gave her a little nudge. Aubrey just gave her an unamused look as she aggressively blew out the rest of the candles. "Chill, Aubrey, its fine. No damage done. She was just being romantic and clearly got caught up in the moment."
"Beca Mitchell a romantic? Please." Aubrey shivered.
"Oh, and you're so much better?" Stacie folded her arms in a challenge. "I haven't seen Howie around lately."
"Where did that come from?" Aubrey actually sounded offended by the way the conversation had veered.
"I'm just saying I haven't seen you try to flex your own romantic muscles in awhile."
"And you have? Miss, he's a hunter. You haven't seemed to be out hunting lately."
"Well, I'm not the one so tightly wound that I'm getting all upset about Beca lighting a few dumb candles." Stacie waved her arm dismissively over the living room, suddenly feeling irritated.
"I'm not...tightly wound. I'm mad that she left them out and could've burned the house down. Its called being a responsible adult." Aubrey stood with her hands on her hips. "But you know since you insinuate my lack of romantic prowess. Why didn't you hook up with anyone when we went to Orlando over spring break? That's very unlike you. Its not like you didn't have ample opportunities with all the guys that were draped all over you."
"I didn't want to ditch you. I'm not that type of friend." Stacie scoffed, surprised Aubrey would think she would do that.
"I just don't think its fair to call me out on not hooking up with Howie when you haven't exactly been burning it down in the romance department either. Especially on spring break when its like expected." Aubrey rolled her eyes as she moved to gather all the diffused candles.
"I spent every night with you." Stacie said as if that were the obvious reason she didn't hook up with anyone.
"Yeah, and we weren't hooking up." Aubrey laughed somewhat bitterly.
"Disappointed?" Stacie asked, almost as a joke, but also sincerely given Aubrey's tone. Did Aubrey actually want her to try something? They stood there for a moment, studying each other's expression in slightly tense silence.
Before anything else could be said, Amy peeked her head around the door.
"Is the sex den clear or what? Are we allowed to enter?" She shouted loudly, maybe slightly tipsy.
"Yeah, they're upstairs. All clear." Aubrey said, still staring at Stacie. "I'm going to bed." She mumbled as she quickly brushed past her and hurried to her room. Stacie let out a breath and decided to clean up the rest of the living room to help distract her from her thoughts.