Thanks for the support last chapter!

Chapter 17

In the first few years following their parents' accident, Beca dreaded anything and everything that had to do with holidays. Those days – whether it be Easter, or Christmas, or Thanksgiving – always seemed to bring about an unnecessary reminder that Beca's already small family, had dwindled down to two people. She struggled to maintain a sense of normalcy for Macy, and it was never easy feeling like they were infringing on the plans and traditions of their foster parents. But this year, even with Jack going away for his hunting trip, both Macy and Beca are excited for Thanksgiving.

Macy walks beside her sister as they navigate the hall of Cynthia Rose's apartment building, both girls scanning the numbers on the door, looking for the right one. She's not running, but there's definitely a slight pep in Macy's step, the excitement of a normal Thanksgiving dinner radiating off of her. She hasn't stopped smiling since she woke up this morning.

"Which one is it, again?"

"15C. She said it would be on the left." When Beca had told CR that Jack wasn't going to be around for Thanksgiving, she automatically extended an invitation for her and Macy to come over for dinner at her place. CR's parents are going to her sister's house for Thanksgiving this year, and Cynthia Rose herself didn't feel like traveling to Chicago.

Macy spots the door before Beca does, her grin widening. It was painful waiting around until two in the afternoon to leave Jack's house, Macy practically bouncing off the walls in anticipation. She brings her fist to the door, knocking loudly a few times, before stepping back to wait for it to swing open.

"Dude – Roxy, no – get back, Roxy –" CR opens the door with a groan, using one leg and an arm to keep some sort of animal from coming to the door. She looks relieved as soon as she sees the Mitchell sisters in the hallway. "Okay, come in quick before she gets out."

Macy and Beca quickly step into the apartment, Beca clutching the tray of store-bought brownies against her chest (the grocery store was all out of pies last night when they went), and both of them inhaling the delicious smelling aromas that are swirling around the apartment. Macy's eyes seem to widen even more once they are safely behind the closed door, "You have a dog?!"

The dog, which is practically fighting to get at the twelve-year-old, especially after her exclamation, is panting and jumping up and down, waiting for her mother to release the grip she has on her collar. Once Macy kneels down to the floor, though, all efforts are lost and CR's dog escapes her grip, launching herself on Macy and drenching her in slobber and kisses. Macy's laughs of contentment fill the apartment, causing both CR and Beca to watch her fondly.

After a few moments of watching Macy, CR turns to Beca, gathering her in a brief hug. "Hi! Happy Thanksgiving!"

Beca laughs along with her older friend, returning the embrace and saying the same. "How did I not know that you have a dog?"

CR waves her hand in the general direction of her dog, who is still giving Macy a bath and whose tail hasn't stopped wagging since they arrived. "Because she's a pain in the ass." Beca rolls her eyes, already knowing full well that that dog has a special spot in CR's heart. "Her name's Roxy."

Upon hearing this, Macy takes Roxy's face in her hands. "Well, aren't you just adorable? Yes, Roxy, yes you are," she coos, continuing to scratch in between her ears. The dog really is adorable; her dark gray coat is almost blue, while her chest and up the inside of her neck is white. Her ears are slightly floppy and she's a good size dog – she looks like a Pitbull of some sort – but seems like she would be a good cuddle buddy.

"I guess I'm chopped liver compared to the dog, huh Mace?"

Macy turns her head to CR and grins. She pushes herself back into a standing position (much to Roxy's disappointment), before wrapping her arms around CR's waist. "Happy Thanksgiving."

CR holds her tight, running her fingers through Macy's loose curls. "That's more like it. Happy Thanksgiving, kid."

With Macy still wrapped up in CR's embrace, Roxy discovers that there's another new person that she has yet to greet. She wags her tail even faster, getting a slight running start before launching herself up on Beca, who widens her eyes and tries her best to remain calm, especially when the kisses start to come. CR and Macy laugh as Beca squirms, trying her best to get the dog off of her and to avoid any more drool from connecting with her skin.

Eventually, after seeing Beca suffer enough, Cynthia Rose calls to her. "Roxy, come on, leave Beca alone." She tugs gently on her collar, bringing her attention back to Macy, who is waiting to give her more love. "Okay, let's take this party out of the front hallway."

Leading the Mitchell sisters and Roxy, who is still walking giddily in between her new house guests, CR brings them to the main space of her apartment. There's a decent size kitchen, pans and various ingredients spread out across the counter for dinner, with a table for four tucked in the corner. The kitchen and the living room are connected, where a leather couch sits facing the television. To the left, there is a bedroom, which must be CR's, and to the right, there is a small hallway with, what looks like, one or two more rooms stemming off of it.

Beca places the brownies on the counter, moving to pull off the light-weight jacket that she threw on just before leaving, while her eyes still wander around the apartment. "Nice place."

CR takes the jacket, in addition to Macy's, who practically has to be cajoled out of it because she's so focused on the dog. "Thanks, I like it. Did you guys find it alright?"

Keeping her focus on Roxy, Macy scoffs. "Beca kept taking us down the wrong street."

"Okay, in my defense, the bus dropped us off at a different stop than I was expecting."

Macy looks to CR, "I told her like five times that the stop right outside your building was closed because of the holiday."

Beca waves her hand at Macy, "Yeah, yeah, whatever you're a genius we get it."

Through a light chuckle at the sisters' banter, CR says, "Mace, there's a basket of toys over by the television. If you start throwing one for her, she'll be your best friend for the rest of the night."

Macy doesn't hesitate, making her way over to the basket and grabbing some sort of knotted rope. Roxy barks in excitement, hopping up and down a little bit more, and fully occupying her attention.

CR gestures to one of the stools tucked into the counter, sitting in one herself as Beca slides in beside her. She juts her chin in the direction of Macy, who is completely absorbed with playing with Roxy. CR keeps her voice low. "She seems really good, Bec."

Beca smiles to herself. "Yeah, she's been doing better."

"What about you?"

Beca shrugs, giving her the same answer that she gave CR yesterday at work. "I'm good."

It's not exactly a lie. Beca has been doing good, more so than normal. Having Chloe in her corner has been amazing, even if Beca has to continually ignore the feelings that surface within her when she's around the redhead. Chloe makes her laugh more than anyone ever has, and there's something about being around her and spending time with her, that makes Beca forget about everything else that she normally would be focusing on. It's always painful to leave her side after a few hours. Chloe just makes everything feel lighter.

CR looks at her in surprise. The manager knows that Beca and Chloe have still been hanging out, and even Macy has been spending time with her; if she had to guess, Red has something to do with how 'good' Beca is claiming to be. She has tried her hardest not to bring up the redhead in conversation, especially after Beca's reaction a few weeks ago. But she still thinks something is going on with the two of them – especially since both Beca and Macy have been in better moods ever since Chloe started hanging around more. "Yeah?"

At the slight disbelief in CR's question, Beca's mind drifts back to what happened with Jack on Tuesday night, just like it has pretty regularly since it happened. No matter what Beca does, she can't seem to convince herself that it isn't a big deal. She just keeps feeling his hand on her, and how close he had stood to her in the darkness of the kitchen. It freaked her out, and while she hasn't told anyone about it – and fully intends not to – she just wants it to go away and out of her mind forever.

Beca nods, affirming her previous statement. "Yeah. And, I'm even more excited to eat whatever you have cooking in there. Can I help with anything?"

A little over two hours later, after Macy practically ran Roxy into the ground and CR (with some help from Beca) finished the cooking, all three of them take a seat at the dinner table. A small turkey sits in front of them, with bowls of mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, stuffing, rolls, gravy, and caramelized carrots surrounding it. Macy takes a seat in between her sister and Cynthia Rose, looking between the two of them with a genuine smile on her face – something that both of the older girls have missed more than they can put into words.

When both CR and Beca's stares linger on the twelve-year-old, Macy laughs hesitantly. "What? Do I have something on my face?"

Beca shakes her head, trying to keep the tears from swelling in her eyes. "No, you just look happy."

Macy nods, keeping her gaze on her sister while she pets Roxy with her feet underneath the table. "I am. This is our first normal Thanksgiving in years."

CR tries to ignore the wave of sadness that seems to wash over Beca. She's heard the stories of their past holidays; some, where foster parents sent them to a group home within days of the occasion so that they didn't have to include them; some, where they felt like they were on display for the extended family members of their placements. According to Beca, the most 'normal' holiday season they had, was when they were living with Camille and Tyler Barry, as messed up as it is, considering what happened. CR had told her parents that she didn't want to travel for this Thanksgiving, specifically so she could spend it with Beca and Macy, the two girls who quickly found a place in the older girl's heart. "Well, I, for one, am thrilled that you two are here."

Beca gives both of the girls a sad smile while Macy nods in agreement. "Me too."

CR lifts her glass, waiting for the Mitchell sisters to do the same, before turning to Macy, whose glass of milk is raised. "What're we toasting tonight, Mace?"

Macy thinks for a moment, but the words quickly appear on the tip of her tongue. "To family." Still struggling to hold back her tears, Beca clinks her own glass with that of her friend's and her sister's, before taking a sip, all the while thinking how wildly appropriate Macy's toast is.

Dinner, and the conversation that comes along with it, starts relatively quickly following the toast. CR and Beca take turns loading food onto Macy's plate, before helping themselves to the various dishes as well. They eat in silence for a short while, the only words being passed back and forth being compliments to Cynthia Rose on the taste of the food (which then leads to jokes about Beca's inability to cook).

They talk about school and Macy shares a story with them surrounding Benji's obsession with Star Wars action figures, to which CR says there are worse things to collect. They talk about Roxy and what she was like as a puppy, and about CR's sister and how the turkey that she made for today probably burned in the oven. There's an air of jubilation in the apartment as the three girls talk and enjoy each other's company. Like none of them have any worries in the world. It's an amazing change of pace, and Beca can't imagine being anywhere else.

As she finishes her last bite of mashed potato, Macy leans back in her chair, looking around the apartment. "How much does your apartment cost, CR?"

Cynthia Rose almost chokes on her water, the topic of conversation having quickly changed from her favorite type of pop tarts to her rent. "Um, it's a little over fifteen-hundred a month. Why, you in the market?"

Macy shrugs, turning her attention to Beca. This whole day has been absolutely amazing, and Macy would be thrilled if this became her life in the future. "Maybe we can get an apartment here when you age out, Bec."

Beca smirks, glad to see that her sister thinks that she's rolling in the dough. "Don't get your hopes up, kid, CR makes a little bit more than I do." She actually has talked to Cynthia Rose about other apartments in her building and knows that there are cheaper ones on the lower levels. She'll need a two-bedroom because DCF won't let her and Macy share a room, but Beca also figures she can keep the cost of furniture low and save some money there.

CR rolls her eyes at Beca's comment. It's not like she's Ms. Money Bags either. "Is that still the plan? You don't think anything will come of this Jack dude?"

Macy shakes her head, answering before Beca even has a chance to. "Nah. But it's okay, we just have to stay there until Beca's birthday. Then we'll be free, right, Bec?"

Beca lays her hand on her sister's, nodding with a small smile. She doesn't even want to think about what will happen if they have to move before next August (they've definitely had shorter stays before). The thought of leaving Chloe and CR and for Macy to leave Benji is something she can't even imagine. Not after everything they've been through. "That's right, munch."

"That's exciting." Cynthia Rose has heard this plan before – both from Beca and Macy. It amazes her every time to think about Beca raising a twelve-year-old on her own, but then CR has to remind herself that she's been doing that same thing since their parents died. Beca is probably more capable of raising Macy than many adult-aged parents. "Maybe Beca will let you guys get a dog."

As soon as the words come out of CR's mouth, Macy's face lights up. The manager gets a glare from Beca instead. "Thank you. So much."

In comparison to Beca and Macy's quiet Thanksgiving dinner with Cynthia Rose, by the time dessert rolls around at almost eight at night, Chloe is struggling to keep her sanity with all of her family at the Beale household.

She loves her family. She loves her brothers and their wives and kids more than anything. But that doesn't mean that twelve people (including an eight-year-old, a toddler, and a newborn) can't be overwhelming. Especially when the majority of them are Beale's who all have naturally exuberant personalities.

Across the table, Chloe watches as her oldest brother, Bryan, engages in a light-hearted debate with her youngest brother, Caleb, about some player that's on the Atlanta Falcons' team. She has no idea who they're talking about, but she enjoys watching their debate. Chloe always loves when they're all home; even though they live in Georgia, they don't come to visit as often as they used to.

Feeling a small tap on her arm, Chloe pulls her attention away from the conversation and looks down at where her nephew is standing next to her chair. She leans down so that they're face-to-face. "Hi, JJ."

The three-year-old grins. He holds his arms up to her, waiting to be picked up. Chloe instantly obliges, plopping him down on her lap and pressing five, rapid-fire kisses into his cheek until he erupts into laughter. "Auntie Chlo!"

Chloe giggles, holding her nephew close. This has to be the best part about having her brothers be so much older than her. She has two nieces and a nephew, and she can't wait to have more. Ella is the oldest; she's eight and is Bryan and his wife, Kelly's, daughter. Then Christian and his wife Natalie have two: JJ, who's three, and Mia, who was born at the end of August. Dominic and his wife Jaimee have been married for a few years, but Jaimee has been struggling to get pregnant and is going through IVF treatments at the moment, and her brother Caleb is currently living the bachelor lifestyle after breaking up with his long-term girlfriend of three years.

The little boy looks up at his aunt. His hair is short and curly and is a strawberry blonde – the perfect combination of his father's red locks and his mom's much lighter ones. But he definitely got his eyes from his dad, that much is certain. "Come play with me."

Chloe shakes her head, gesturing to the piece of pie that she has yet to finish. She knows full well that if she is pulled away now, she's not going to be able to escape until Christian decides it's time for them to go. "I will in a little. I'm going to finish my dessert first."

JJ eyes the piece of pie; it's the peanut butter kind as opposed to the chocolate one he got to have. "Can I have a bite?"

Chloe doesn't hesitate, sitting up straighter in her chair with one arm wrapped around JJ, before picking up her fork. She cuts off a piece of the pie, and guides the larger utensil into his mouth, smirking at her mom who is watching the exchange from her position at the table, which just so happens to be right next to her daughter. If there's one thing that Lisa loves more than having all of her kids together under one roof, it's having her kids and her grandkids all together.

Allowing her hand to be guided back to the pie so JJ can get another bite, Chloe takes the time to look around at her family gathered at the dinner table. She's been thinking a lot about her family and how lucky she is to be growing up in such a loving and supportive household. Ever since she started becoming closer with Beca, she's found herself making comparisons between her life, and Beca and Macy's life. It's so different, and Chloe still can't wrap her mind around how Beca handles it with such grace.

Since having the conversation with her mom, Chloe hasn't exactly acted on her feelings for Beca. She's been spending more and more time with the brunette and her little sister – which Chloe has thoroughly enjoyed – and they've been calling and texting more often than not. Chloe isn't sure if they've gradually moved into the pre-relationship stage or if this is just their way of staying friends, but she's hesitant to make any further moves. She doesn't want to scare Beca away.

"Auntie Chlo?"

Chloe looks back down at her nephew. "What's up, bud?"

He shifts on her lap. "Can we go play now?"

Chloe can't help but laugh. As much as she loves JJ, she is full to the point of bursting and doesn't want to really leave the dinner table, to go lay on the floor and push matchbox cars around. "I think Ella is in the living room. Why don't you go see if she wants to play?"

JJ considers this for a moment, before a grin breaks out on his face, sliding off of Chloe's lap and running in the direction of his older cousin. "Okay!"

The exclamation causes the attention to be drawn in Chloe's direction, earning many smiles and a few laughs as they see JJ waddle off in search of Ella. She locks eyes with Christian. "Your son is persistent."

Christian shrugs, leaning back to rest his arm of the back of his wife's chair. "Are you complaining?"

Chloe shakes her head, "Not in the slightest."

The conversation resumes down at the other end of the table, while Lisa leans into her daughter. She keeps her voice low, so as not to draw attention to her question. "Have you talked to Beca at all today?"

Chloe can't help it as a smile spreads across her face at the mention of Beca's name. "Yeah, I texted her this morning to wish her a happy Thanksgiving. I'm going to call her later tonight."

"Good. What are her and Macy up to today?"

Chloe leans back in her chair, the other conversations rising in volume and creating perfect coverage. "They're having dinner at their friend Cynthia Rose's apartment. Their foster father is up north on a hunting trip." When Beca had first told her about Jack's trip, Chloe had been pissed. What kind of person just leaves two kids – that they're supposed to be taking care of – alone for something like Thanksgiving? A time where you are supposed to be spending time with family. But, after Beca had explained what some of their Thanksgivings had been like, Chloe quickly became thrilled that they were spending it with CR instead.

Lisa's face scrunches in disbelief. "They were going to spend Thanksgiving by themselves?"

"Well, Beca was actually pretty happy about the fact that Jack wasn't going to be there. They're really close with Cynthia Rose so I think they were excited."

Next to her, Caleb leans over into Chloe's space, just now noticing that his sister and his mother seemed to be having a very secretive conversation. "Who's excited for what?"

Chloe lightly pushes him away, not wanting to get into this with everyone sitting around the table. It's not that she thinks her brothers and their significant others will care if it somehow comes out that Chloe may or may not have a major crush on the brunette that started at Barden almost two months ago, it's just that she doesn't want to make it a 'thing' until she figures it out for herself. Lisa is the only one – unless she's talked with her dad – that knows about the possibility. "Stop butting in."

Caleb rolls his eyes – which aren't as bright as his sisters, but definitely have a blue tint to them. "Secrets, secrets are no fun, unless –"

Dominic perks up at the sound of his brother teasing Chloe, which in turn, gets the attention of everyone else at the table. "Who is keeping a secret?"

Chloe groans, covering her face with her hands as heat rises to her cheeks. This is exactly what she wanted to avoid, and now, all four of her brothers are watching her like a hawk. She used to have to endure the same taunt when she was younger when they knew she wasn't telling them something – it didn't matter what it was. She could have been asking her mom for a tampon and they still would've wanted to know, and then forced her to tell them.

Lisa shoots her daughter an apologetic glance, which goes unnoticed because of how Chloe is covering her eyes. "Boys, leave your sister alone."

Bryan raises an eyebrow. Even if he is in his mid-thirties, he, too, gets a kick out of giving his baby sister a hard time. "Oh, come on, what's going on? It's not very nice to keep secrets on a holiday, Chlo."

The youngest Beale daughter keeps one hand on her face, blocking Caleb or anyone sitting to her right from seeing her, while she glares at her mom. She quickly lifts her phone, the screen lighting up and showing her that is a little after eight. Although she didn't want to leave the table five minutes prior, now she can't think of anything better. Chloe pushes herself from the chair, and whispers, in passing to Lisa. "I'm going to go call her." She slips into her father's study, closing the door behind her, as groans of protest erupt from her family members.

"Not fair!" Caleb calls after her, which results in a glare from his mother, while everyone else simply looks to Lisa for an explanation.

Natalie, who is a few years younger than her thirty-three-year-old husband and has always enjoyed spending time with Chloe, leans into the table. She catches Lisa's eye, "Was it about a boy?"

Christian crinkles his nose in disgust; he doesn't matter how old Chloe is, she is always going to be his baby sister and he knows that his brothers agree. "It better not have been."

Lisa can't help but smirk, simply shaking her head at her family. "Nope. It was not about a boy."

Safely inside her father's study, Chloe makes her way over to one of the armchairs, knowing that, in the likely event that one of her brothers has their ear pressed up against the door trying to listen to her conversation, they won't be able to hear anything.

Unlocking her phone, Chloe ignores a few unread text messages from her group chat with Aubrey and Stacie, and instead, clicks on Beca's contact, the dial tone instantly filling her ears. It takes a moment for Beca to answer, and the greeting comes out as a whisper. "Hello?"

Chloe grins as soon as she hears Beca's voice. "Hey, you."

Back at CR's apartment, Beca pushes herself up from where she is sitting in the corner of the couch. They finished dinner a while ago, and Macy made a comment about wanting to watch some movie on Netflix, so after dessert and a quick game of 'Clue', they made their way into the living room. Right now, although Macy is technically sitting in between Beca and CR, she is curled into Cynthia Rose's side, who is absentmindedly running her fingers through Macy's hair. Roxy is laying on the ottoman at their feet.

Beca hurries past the TV, before going down the hall and slipping into one of the guest bedrooms, closing the door behind her. "Hey yourself. How was your dinner?"

Chloe leans back in the armchair, sinking into its cushions. "It was good. They're all still here, but I had to sneak away for a little while. I'm not used to dealing with all four of my brothers at the same time anymore."

Beca chuckles on the other end of the line, the sound of which practically makes Chloe's heart sing. "Oh, come on, you were looking forward to this all last week."

"I know, I know. I'm so glad they're here, trust me, but I wanted to talk to you anyway, so it was a win-win." Chloe pauses for a moment, letting her statement settle in, before saying, "How was your dinner? How's CR? Macy?"

"Dinner was great, and CR and Macy are currently cuddled up together on the couch so they're living the dream." Beca tucks her lip in between her teeth, trying to control the fluttery feeling in her stomach that comes along with Chloe telling her that she wanted to talk to her.

Chloe smiles to herself, imaging Macy all curled up with Cynthia Rose. While she and Macy have been getting closer, what they have is nowhere near what Macy and CR have. Chloe can't wait until the younger Mitchell sister trusts her as much as she trusts the older woman. "It's amazing how close they are. CR really seems to care for you guys."

"Yeah, I'm really grateful that Macy has her, too. It wasn't always like this." The words slip out of her mouth before she can stop them; proving, yet again, that, for Beca, Chloe is by far the easiest person in the world to talk to.

"What happened?"

Beca stays silent for a minute, trying to phrase her answer in the vaguest way possible. "Our last placement had kind of a shitty ending. CR was there for it all; she did everything there was to do for us. She was pretty amazing." Her words hang in the air for a moment, before she starts again. "Anyways… your nieces and nephew are adorable. Thank you for sending that picture."

Chloe, once again, finds herself grinning into the phone (even though she tucks Beca's answer into the back of her mind, filed under 'Little Pieces of Information that Beca Has Revealed About Her Past Foster Homes'). "Aren't they? Ella's getting older now, so she doesn't like me as much, but JJ has been following me around basically all night."

"JJ is the little boy, right?"

"Yeah, he's Christian's son. I wouldn't be surprised if he is crashing right now. He had a lot of sugar for dessert."

Beca lays down on the bed of the guest room, simply relishing in the fact that she had an amazing day with Macy and CR, and now she's talking to Chloe Beale on the phone. "And I'm sure you had nothing to do with it, right?"

Chloe scoffs. "No, of course not."

Switching her phone from one ear to the other, Beca says, "Mhmm… I think you're lying to me, Chlo."

Chloe's heart swells at the use of her nickname. It doesn't matter that her entire family uses it more often than her full name; there's something so special about hearing it come from Beca's mouth. "Nah, I would never lie to you." She pauses again, using her fingernail to draw designs into the fabric of her dress. "You're going to have to come over one time while they're all here so that you can meet them. The brothers, the sisters-in-law, the nieces and nephews… I'll make them wear name tags."

Beca barks out a short laugh, "Yeah, right! I barely made it through the dinner with your parents and you want me to meet all four of your brothers at the same time? No thanks."

"Oh, come on! You did great with my parents, and they loved you." Chloe still can't believe that Macy has continued to accept books that her father has recommended. It amazes her. "And my brothers are big softies… they'll act like a whole bunch of hard-asses but once you get them talking, they'll fall in love with you, too."

"I don't know, I might have to meet them one at a time just so that they don't gang up on me."

Chloe suppresses yet another smile, listening as Beca is agreeing to meet more of her family members. "I guess that can be arranged." Chloe takes a deep breath, "Hey, Bec?"

"Hm?"

"You know how it's Thanksgiving?"

Another laugh comes through the phone, and Chloe can practically see the way Beca's eyes scrunch up, and the way a grin spreads across her face. She loves seeing Beca laugh and has practically memorized her expression because of it. "Yes, I am aware of that fun fact."

Chloe runs a hand through her curls, her heart pounding as she starts to speak again. "Well, I'm really thankful that you're a part of my life. You… you mean a lot to me and I wish we could've met each other sooner."

A small smile stretches across Beca's lips, the fluttering in her stomach over powering the nerves. Her answer comes out at a volume just above a whisper. "You mean a lot to me, too, Chloe."

More than you know.

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