If she were being honest, or more likely be forced to admit things under duress, she could say that if this had happened before Christmas – hell, before Thanksgiving – Aubrey would have bailed on this visit, and come up with some flimsy excuse not to show up. But she knew she would be putting Stacie in a tough spot, and for all her apprehensions and uncertainty, she knew she didn't want to do that to Stacie. Not to mention the fact that she knew just how good Chloe Beale was at peer pressure, and if given enough reason, Chloe would try to talk Stacie out of the relationship, because Stacie deserved better than to have such a flake for a significant other, and Aubrey knew more than anyone that Stacie deserved better, full stop.
But Stacie liked her, so she would just have to earn that distinction.
It did not make it any easier to look up at the Barden Bella house and wonder how the weekend would go, a tiny voice in the back of her mind – that sounded a lot like her high-strung, high-pitched self two years ago – pointing out just how unworthy she was to be in her current position.
And the irony that the girl who put so much value in being a Barden Bella was feeling a sense of dread at the prospect of entering the Bella House.
When her freshman self had first gazed upon the house that belonged to the Barden Bellas, Aubrey had been in awe, amazed at the concept that there would be a place that all Bellas belonged to, a haven for each and every one of them, somewhere that they would and could always belong.
But their numbers had been nearing two dozen heads, and freshmen were advised to stay in their dorms for their first year. And the next year, their captain had recruited her friends to fill the places of those who had graduated, and the lowerclassmen still couldn't move in. Aubrey and Chloe hadn't been stupid enough to think they would find a moment's rest if they had stayed there while Alice and her friends had occupied the house the year after that, and then Aubrey had lost her lunch at the Lincoln Center during the ICCA Finals.
Alice had been livid, and once she had Aubrey alone, away from her friends and definitely away from Chloe who was foolhardy enough to step in for her best friend, had verbally ripped into Aubrey, pretty much telling her just how lacking she was, to be called a Barden Bella, much less to be the captain, and how hard Aubrey was going to have to work to earn that prestige back.
On one hand Aubrey was grateful that Alice never told her she shouldn't have been a Bella in the first place, but then one tenet of the Barden Bellas had always been that it was for life (despite the fact that not a few of Aubrey's peers had left and sworn off a cappella, or at least collegiate a cappella, under Alice's rule). But on the other hand Alice's verbal onslaught had been enough for Aubrey to feel undeserving of the sanctuary that the Barden Bellas' House offered, and opted not to move in for her senior year.
And Chloe, being the best friend that she was, stayed with Aubrey despite the fact that they could have had a whole house to themselves (well, maybe including Denise, who had been a sophomore at the time, but she doubted it) for what should have been their last year in Barden.
But the house still stood, and despite previous threats from Barden's school administration to have it revoked, it still belonged to the Barden Bellas.
Aubrey just wondered if she had ever been meant to know what it was like to live in it.
Because at that moment, standing at its doorstep, she realized that she was, honestly, an outsider in this situation. Yes, she knew most of the residents of the house, a few of whom she could actually honestly call her friends, but she'd been a Barden Bella, she was a Barden Bella, and she knew from experience that the Bellas protected their own, and in this case, ironically, she knew that they would close ranks around Stacie and try to protect her from Aubrey.
So while she had pretty much figured she would be earning the privilege to be the person Stacie Conrad loved for as long as Stacie let her, she knew convincing Stacie's friends – the very people she had inflicted a lot of fear and terror upon for the better part of a year – would be a battle in itself, and while maybe not imperative to her relationship with Stacie, it was probably, at least, a major factor. She would just need to suck it up and win them over.
One significant step of which was to ring the doorbell and start what Chloe had declared to be Galentine's Weekend.
After doing that, though, the door opened, on the other side of which was a girl of Latin descent, smaller than even Beca, and she looked at Aubrey from head to toe with not a small amount of wariness.
Aubrey smiled. "Hi, I—"
"Sorry, we're not buying religion today, thank you!" She declared, and then promptly shut the door.
Aubrey stared at the closed door, blinking. What?
Aubrey looked down at her outfit – she had gone to the airport straight from work, so she'd had to coordinate her corporate suit with more travel- and winter-friendly items, so her navy blue minidress, black skinny jeans and knee-high boots probably came off a little harsh, but she thought her cream-colored coat softened the effect of the ensemble and had to help her look at least a little more friendly, but maybe the overall effect came off too strong? Maybe too corporate? She doubted it was too evangelical (and she would know) but clearly it was too something – and then looked back up, once again ringing the doorbell.
There was a longer wait, but when the door opened, Ashley took one look at her, widened her eyes, and then immediately slammed the door back shut.
Okay, that shit's just not funny anymore. Before Aubrey could press the button for the doorbell a third time, the door opened once more, and this time Ashley was joined by Jessica, and they both gave her wide-eyed stares.
Aubrey sighed, because she had obviously underestimated her former teammates' highly-stressful emotional response when it came to her. "Can I come in?"
The two wordlessly stepped aside, allowing Aubrey to enter, but they still only stared at her.
Aubrey glanced around briefly, taking note of the lack of activity in the house, and turned back to look at the two girls. "Where's—"
"Hey, who's at the door?" Chloe asked, interrupting, as she emerged from the living room and joining the people at the entryway.
Only to stop short when she recognized their guest.
Her face broke into a wide smile, and she immediately launched herself upon the other girl, throwing her arms around Aubrey's neck in a tight hug. "Aubrey!"
Despite the trepidation, the questions, the hesitation and the guilt of everything left unspoken between them, they still had a bond of friendship forged over four years, and Chloe still gave the best hugs on the planet. Having dropped her bag right before Chloe made contact, Aubrey hugged Chloe just as tightly, because despite whatever hesitation she might feel about how she had drifted away from Chloe over the past year, and her own concerns about Chloe's continued stay in Barden, Aubrey could never deny that Chloe was the best friend she had.
Chloe squeezed Aubrey one last time, and then pulled back. "What are you doing here?"
"Stacie said you-"
"Whoa, is that tequila?" Chloe asked, cutting off Aubrey's answer to take the bottle in Aubrey's hand and examining it.
Aubrey shrugged. "I was going to bring wine, but—"
"Oh my god, I can't believe you're here!" Chloe smiled broadly, grabbing Aubrey's wrist and pulling her away from the door. "You're actually here! Seriously, what are you doing here? We have so much to catch up on, I can't even begin to tell you. But look at you! Who knew 'working girl' was your look? You're fine, right? Good? Work's okay? God, when was the last time we even had a phone conversation!" Chloe laughed lightly. "But good timing, we're having Galentine's Day Weekend! I know, I know, it's supposed to be the day before Valentine's Day, but why have one day when you can have the whole weekend! How long are you staying, 'cause you should totes stay this whole time. Oh! Did you fly in? Do you have a place to stay? We're pretty packed, but someone's bound to crash on the couch, or you can stay with me, if you don't mind some friendly groping. I have to tell you, though, I'm kinda rooming with Stacie this year, so if that's—"
"Actually, that's—"
"Oh! Have I told you about Regionals?"
The front door swung open at that moment, drowning out Aubrey's answer, and Denise, Lilly, and Stacie stomped inside.
"We bought enough food to feed an army last week, how did we already run out for this weekend?" Denise complained, ignorant of Jessica and Ashley standing by the doorway staring in the direction of the living room, as she immediately turned to walk towards the kitchen. Behind her, Lilly was about to follow, but stopped short when she saw her two teammates, following their gazes to see who was with Chloe, standing right by the living room.
Lilly's gasp was overruled by Stacie's own incredulous exclamation.
"Holy shit."
Aubrey and Chloe turned, having heard that expletive, and upon seeing Stacie, Aubrey immediately smiled. A smile which was matched by Stacie's own buoyant grin as she made eye contact with Aubrey.
Blindly shoving the paper bags in her arms towards Jessica and Ashley, Stacie walked up to Aubrey and once she was within reach, without further preamble, she took hold of the front of Aubrey's coat and pulled the older girl towards herself, crashing their lips together, with Aubrey immediately responding in kind, her arms wrapping around Stacie and pulling her closer.
Six weeks was entirely too long to be apart.
Behind them, Ashley and Jessica were nudging each other, as if to ensure that they were both seeing the exact same thing, while Lilly tilted her head in curiosity, wondering how much of a surprise the scene really was.
To the side, Chloe stared blankly at her best friend and roommate kissing as if their lives depended on it, and then wordlessly twisted open the bottle in her hands to take a long hard drink from it.
Smooth, a little smoky, but she liked the sweet, nutty vanilla taste.
Aubrey and Stacie were making out.
Chloe turned to the rest of her friends. "You're seeing this, right?"
Ashley, Jessica and Lilly all nodded mutely, all of them knowing it was rude to stare but unable to look away.
Oblivious of their stunned audience, Stacie placed a playful bite on Aubrey's bottom lip, and grinned into their next kiss. "You were supposed to call first."
"Flight came in early." Aubrey told her, pulling her in close and not yet willing to let go.
Stacie lifted an eyebrow. "And phones don't work?"
"I forgot." Aubrey admitted, kissing Stacie again. "I've missed you."
Stacie released her grip on the front Aubrey's coat, splaying out her fingers across the fabric and moving. "And I've missed—"
"Hands!" Denise exclaimed in complete surprise, entering the room just as Stacie was about to reacquaint her hands with Aubrey's chest. "Hands in new places!"
It was a lousy interruption, but it was enough for the two lovers to snap out of their haze and remember where they were. And that they had an audience. An audience who didn't know, until a few seconds ago, about their relationship.
An audience that included Chloe.
Aubrey turned to Chloe, immediately in explanation mode, hoping to talk some things out with her best friend after being momentarily sidetracked. "Chloe—"
"I'm not nearly drunk enough for this." Chloe declared flatly, ignoring Aubrey's obvious plea and taking another drink from the bottle. She spun on her heel, trudging into the living room and sank onto the couch with her bottled new best friend.
Chloe looked perturbed enough that Aubrey didn't have the heart to tell her that the bottle was a premium brand of tequila and had an 80 ABV. But she was completely on board with the belief that the news would be better received if everyone was at least a little inebriated.
Except Chloe probably wasn't sharing, and the missing members of the group – Beca, Cynthia Rose, and Fat Amy – were still in the process of getting more alcohol, which left everyone stuck at sober, because the Bellas had donated all their alcohol to the most recent party thrown by The Treblemakers to celebrate the a cappella groups' respective Regionals victories.
Aubrey hesitated, wanting to follow Chloe but unsure if she or even Chloe were ready for that confrontation, while Ashley, Denise, Jessica and Lilly only continued to stare.
Stacie bit her lip nervously, her gaze flicking back and forth between the room in which Chloe had disappeared to and her friends who had stayed but gaped silently. Finally, Stacie turned to the four who stayed, and hesitantly offered: "Surprise?"
"No kidding." Lilly mused.
They all turned to stare at her, startled by the audible response, but almost immediately turned back to the matter at hand.
"What…" Jessica began, then stopped. She turned, clueless, to look at Ashley, who still only stood staring at Aubrey and Stacie; at the fact that Aubrey still had one arm wrapped behind Stacie's waist, and Stacie had slung an arm around Aubrey's shoulders.
Denise fared a little better, making some quick connections and asking, "Restaurant receipt?"
Ashley and Jessica turned to stare at her incredulously. All the questions in the world, and that was the question she had about the scene in front of them?
Except Stacie nodded in confirmation, seemingly understanding the weird question Denise had voiced. "Restaurant receipt."
"Huh." Denise tilted her head, and considered that point as understanding dawned. The thought that it could be Aubrey, their former Barden Bellas team captain, had never occurred to her, but ever since that night in the coaster van, having seen how torqued Stacie had been emotionally about the relationship she was unwittingly a part of, and witnessed Stacie's relief when her unnamed partner had sent a picture of a restaurant receipt, Denise knew the relationship was more serious than Stacie just not knowing she was in one. And seeing her now, obviously happy in that relationship, made Denise glad someone could bring that kind of happiness to someone who used to claim she wasn't really relationship material.
She would have to learn to set aside her complete and utter fear of Aubrey, but still, she was happy for Stacie. And Aubrey.
Hopefully being in love and in a happy relationship made Aubrey a lot (like, a lot) less terrifying.
(And damn she should have taken that bet when Cynthia Rose tried to bet her that only a guy would have Stacie so off-center.)
"Can we go to the kitchen? I think one of those bags has the ice cream." Stacie pointed to the bags still in Ashley and Jessica's arms. She glanced at Aubrey as the other girls went in that direction. "Kitchen, or Chloe?"
Aubrey sighed, because she knew it would be difficult, but she really needed to talk to Chloe. "I think I should—"
"I'm still irrational!" Chloe yelled out, possibly in warning, and obviously having heard them.
A warning that made Aubrey wince, but heeded, as she smiled faintly at Stacie. "Kitchen sounds good."
Stacie nodded sympathetically, and taking hold of Aubrey's hand, led her to the kitchen.
Although Aubrey had no idea why the change in venue mattered, since the dining area part of the kitchen was adjacent to the living room, and from where she and Stacie sat down, she could see Chloe helping herself to the tequila.
Aubrey couldn't help but wince, because that bottle had an 80 alcohol by volume content, and she knew from experience that Chloe was a lightweight with hard liquor. Chloe freely drinking from that bottle had the potential to get really interesting, or really ugly.
"Chloe doesn't know." Was Ashley's insightful contribution, when Aubrey and Stacie had joined them in the kitchen, and once her brain-to-mouth nervous system finally regained function.
"No." Aubrey admitted guiltily, glancing briefly towards the living room.
"We didn't really know if there was anything to tell." Stacie followed up. "We've kind of been winging this as we went along."
"'Went along'?" Jessica repeated.
"How long have you been—" Chloe demanded, drawing everyone's attention, before she cut her own question short, shaking her head. "Nope. Still not ready to hear it."
"It's not like we set out to be in a relationship," Stacie admitted. She glanced at Aubrey briefly, and gave her a bright smile before turning back to her friends. "It just kind of happened that way."
"Did she trip and fall face-first on the hunter?" Chloe snapped.
Aubrey turned, and questioned, "you know I've liked her since auditions, why is this even a surprise to you?"
Since Aubrey was facing the living room where Chloe was, she missed the looks of surprise on the faces of the girls in the kitchen. They all knew Aubrey and Stacie had had a mild flirtation going back then, and Stacie hadn't made a secret of her year-long crush on their then-captain, but Aubrey liking Stacie back since auditions was an all-around surprise.
Stacie smiled smugly at the looks of surprise on her friends' faces, because, that's right, beneath Aubrey's hard-as-nails exterior two years ago had been a girl with wants and needs, and she had wanted Stacie.
Whatever Chloe was about in response, however, got lost in the chaos that was the entrance of the remaining Barden Bellas, primarily that of Fat Amy, who made her presence known whenever she entered a room.
"The party – also known as the alcohol – has arrived!" Fat Amy announced, and headed to the living room while Beca and Cynthia Rose went to the kitchen. She took note of Chloe, and the bottle in her hand, and stopped short. "You started early."
"Oh, you'd be drinking, too." Chloe told her.
Beca first noticed the difference in room population, between the lone figure of Chloe in the living room, and the crowded kitchen, and frowned. "Why are you all in here?"
When nobody answered, everyone instead waiting for the shoe to drop for the newcomers, Cynthia Rose sidled up to Denise by the kitchen island. "What's going on?"
Denise turned to look at her, held her gaze pointedly, and wordlessly motioned with her eyes towards the small table that acted as their dining area. More specifically, the people seated on it.
Cynthia Rose followed her gaze, examined the table, and then her eyes widened. She turned back to Denise, mouth open.
"Look again." Denise said immediately, cutting her off.
Cynthia Rose did. And noticed what she had missed previously, the fact that Stacie and Aubrey not only sat together, but sat closely together, and Stacie held one of Aubrey's hands in both of hers. Cynthia Rose turned back to Denise, jaw dropped.
"Restaurant receipt." Denise filled in.
Cynthia Rose gaped. "Drill Master Former Captain is Restaurant Receipt?"
Denise nodded.
Beca frowned at the lack of response to her earlier question, and glanced over at Fat Amy, who was obliviously removing bottles of liquor from their bag and onto the shelves in the living room, and then gazed over at Chloe, who was petulantly looking at the fireplace.
And noticed something weird.
Mentally doing a head count, she noticed there were ten girls in the room, but was missing Flo. Puzzled, she checked again, and still came up with the same number.
Fat Amy saved her the trouble. "So did Stacie's mystery boyfriend show up, or—"
"Oh, it's not a boyfriend." Chloe announced for the newcomers. "It's so not a boyfriend, but it's totally safe to say it's a mystery."
"Go home, Chloe, you're drunk." Fat Amy quipped.
"Not nearly enough." Chloe retorted.
"Whaaaat…" Fat Amy frowned at her, and turned to look toward the kitchen to search for clarification among her teammates, but abruptly froze when her gaze landed on one of the people looking into the living room. She clutched her hands to her chest, and stumbled back slightly. "I think I'm having a stroke."
"Stacie's dating Aubrey!" Chloe exclaimed, as if to explain why Fat Amy would be having a stroke.
"What?" Beca exclaimed, startled. She checked the heads, and, oh, that was another blond head. "Aubrey!"
Aubrey turned, and smiled faintly at Beca. "Beca."
"Wait," Beca took in Aubrey and Stacie's close proximity, and their entwined hands, and what Chloe had just said, and blinked stupidly. "Chloe's not kidding?"
"She's really not," Stacie answered.
"This must be what going mad feels like." Fat Amy mused, glancing around dazedly.
Aubrey sighed, and turned to Stacie. "I hope you had a Plan B."
"No!" Chloe exclaimed, suddenly jumping up off the couch and approaching the dining table. She forcefully slammed the bottle of tequila on the table, and with a sharp and biting tone, declared, "We're having Galentine's Weekend, just as we planned."
The Bellas glanced at each other, mouthing 'we?' with absolute confusion.
Chloe turned to Aubrey, defiant, and practically daring Aubrey to declare otherwise. "You're staying. This being a Bellas-only party and by-laws state you're still a Bella."
"Are you drunk already?" Beca asked Chloe worriedly. She glanced between the two older girls, unsure of just what, exactly, the tense undercurrent between them was about, but knowing instinctively that it couldn't be anything good.
Chloe accusingly pointed at the half-empty tequila bottle, as if her already-inebriated state was entirely the alcohol's fault. "That's very strong tequila."
Jessica, who sat closest to the bottle, checked the label and her eyes widened when she saw the alcohol content. She stared at Aubrey. "80 ABV?"
"In my defense, I brought that for sharing." Aubrey said quickly.
"Super." Chloe turned back to her friends. "Let's order pizza and get this party started!"
The group glanced at each other, unsure, but nonetheless started moving from their places, preparing drinking cups and moving things off flat surfaces to accommodate drinks, and the coming pizza.
After a moment of watching the operation, Stacie turned to Aubrey, and realized for the first time just how tightly Aubrey was holding her hand. "Bree."
Aubrey glanced at her questioningly, and in response Stacie used her right hand, which wasn't in Aubrey's grip, and gently pat their entwined hands. Aubrey jerked, and relaxed her grip. "Sorry."
Stacie smiled. "That went better than expected."
"Nobody's in tears, so I'll have to agree," Aubrey concurred.
Stacie leaned in close, and kissed her gently, trying to convey just how much she appreciated Aubrey's presence at that moment. When she pulled back, she noted softly, "I was worried this was going to be too much for you."
"Yeah," Aubrey sighed, but smiled faintly. "But it was this or worry about things out of my control, and at least this lets me hang out with you."
Stacie smiled, kissing Aubrey again. "When you say stuff like that you make me want to ditch this whole thing and just find a hotel room."
"You wanted to stay with your friends," Aubrey reminded, in between kisses.
"A deep regret." Stacie replied. "Maybe we—"
"Ahem."
Both women paused, and turned to face Chloe, who had apparently decided she would be policing her best friend and roommate from getting carried away.
Stacie, who was already a little irked that her weekend getaway with Aubrey had been shunned in favor of hanging out with the Bellas for Galentine's Weekend, allowed her annoyance at being interrupted from kissing Aubrey to show. "What?"
"What do you want on your pizza?"
Both Aubrey and Stacie narrowed their eyes at her, being how Chloe had lived with Aubrey for four years and Stacie for nearly two, and probably knew their pizza order without any doubt, so this interruption was largely unwarranted.
But Aubrey wanted to keep the peace, and answered "ch—"
"Pepperoni." Stacie interrupted. Aubrey glanced at her, amused, while Chloe frowned.
"That's not your pizza order." Chloe noted, glancing from one girl to the other, also proving that she had interrupted them on purpose.
Aubrey shrugged. She didn't really care, and at least it wasn't going to be overloaded with toppings that fell off with each bite.
"She'll order cheese – boring – and she won't eat pizza with too many toppings, so pepperoni, please." Stacie answered Chloe. "We'll share."
Chloe glanced at her, and then at Aubrey, who merely shrugged again, and turned back to collecting pizza orders from the rest of the Bellas.
Before Stacie could turn back to Aubrey and pick up before they had been interrupted, however, Cynthia Rose occupied the seat on the bench opposite them, and grinned at them both.
After a full beat in which Cynthia Rose only grinned at them, Aubrey had to ask, "What?"
Cynthia Rose motioned to the two of them. "This is for real?"
Aubrey sighed in exasperation. "Yes."
"I thought so." Cynthia Rose shook her head, fully amused, and raised her hand for a high five.
Aubrey only stared at her.
Stacie released Aubrey's hand, taking hold of her wrist and lifting it, holding Aubrey's palm out and taking Cynthia Rose's high five with Aubrey's hand before receiving one of her own.
Cynthia Rose cackled, leaving her seat. "Didn't know you had it in you, cap."
Stacie grinned at her friend, watching her leave, before she turned back to Aubrey, leaning close to press kisses from her jaw to the back of her ear, whispering quietly, "I can think of a few things I'd like to have in you."
Aubrey's eyelids fluttered shut at the attention, at the feeling of Stacie's breath against her skin, reveling in it for a moment before she opened her eyes, turning her head to meet Stacie's gaze and gave her a knowing smile. "I could have," she held up her hand not in Stacie's grip and splayed out her fingers, "two to three things in you right now, but you wanted to meet here and told me not to book a hotel room." She leaned forward, and kissed the slightly-stunned Stacie quickly before standing up. "I have to check my inbox. You go and help your friends set up."