When she had first proposed the idea of seeing Aubrey in New York City, Stacie had, admittedly, been drunk, and whatever consideration that had gone into the process of making that decision had been buoyed by two things: a desire to be with Aubrey, and the fact that the Bellas had a whole group of sets they had prepared for semis that they could easily adapt to the requirements of the ICCA Finals.

The latter was hampered somewhat by Beca's refusal to just reuse something she had prepared for semifinals, but they had still taken a vote on which of their backup sets would be Plan B in case of a creative emergency. Being one of the people in charge of costumes and choreography, Stacie was hoping Beca got her mix ready in time, because the Bellas were still up in arms against the grueling schedule of their rehearsals from semifinals.

The former, however. The former was complicated. Stacie had remembered Aubrey's Christmas gift while they had been in California, and while Aubrey may have bought the tickets for Stacie so she could visit Aubrey at will – and admitted as much – a part of Stacie had briefly wondered why Aubrey had never extended a more formal invitation before.

The self-doubt hadn't lasted long, though, as Stacie considered the fact that she hadn't ever asked Aubrey about visiting, either, and realized that Aubrey had technically handed Stacie the ball when she'd given her the tickets.

So now she had tickets, and a standing invitation to go see her girlfriend in New York.

Which was a good thing, because the first week of their return from California, the Bellas had something imposed as a new rule in the house.

Stacie furrowed her brow. "What do you mean, I can't have sex in the house anymore?"

"We mean, you can't have sex in the house anymore." Fat Amy said flatly.

"Where am I supposed to have sex?" Stacie asked, confused.

"The same place the rest of us have to," Cynthia Rose reminded in a matter-of-fact tone. "Anywhere else."

Stacie frowned, and glanced over at Chloe for help.

"It affects me too," Chloe shrugged, "It's a blanket rule, or something."

"It's unfair for people like me and Beca, who have to go elsewhere to have sex with Jesse or Bumper." Fat Amy added.

Beca reddened, and loudly muttered something about her preference of losing important body parts than ever having sex with Bumper.

"I don't understand," Stacie admitted. "Is this because it's Aubrey?"

"It's because it's a double standard for Aubrey, who has an open invitation to the house since she's a Bella, to get to sleep on your bed whenever she wants, when Jesse can't even spend the night with Beca." Denise explained.

Stacie furrowed her brow. "I thought that's because Beca chose the loft, that doesn't have a door…?"

"Please stop using me and Jesse as an excuse for this," Beca requested of her friends. She turned to Stacie. "I had nothing to do with this."

"I know." Stacie assured her, because for some reason, she actually did trust Beca to be one of the few to actually not be involved in any action that hindered Stacie's relationship with Aubrey. "And you all agreed on this?"

"Yes." They chorused.

"And I have no say in it?" Stacie pouted.

"It was a majority." Flo informed her, making Stacie scowl.

"It's not because it's Aubrey, specifically." Jessica attempted, trying to inject calm in the rapidly-devolving discussion. "We actually love that you guys are okay again. But you have to agree it's weird for you to be having sex in the house with everyone knowing what you're doing. And it doesn't help that Chloe's been locked out of your room for long periods of time when Aubrey is here."

"That was like one time." Stacie protested.

"Over a stretch of an entire weekend." Ashley piped in.

A point well made, and Stacie opted not to pursue that particular clause in her argument. "So, what, Aubrey can visit but we can't have sex?" Which basically ruined the whole point of Aubrey coming to visit, but whatever.

"It's not just Aubrey." Denise reminded.

"This affects me most, so it's about Aubrey." Stacie argued. "Can't I at least have a penalty jar?"

Denise was quick to acquiesce, Lilly seemed to think it over, and both Beca and Ashley slowly started to express their verbal agreement, but the rest weren't so sure.

Chloe had good reason to be doubtful on the implementation of a penalty jar as a deterrent. "Aubrey has a steady income and has a company expense account." She reminded.

Stacie rolled her eyes, and threw her hand up to express her frustration. "So how am I supposed to have sex with Aubrey when she visits?"

"She can afford a hotel room." Jessica noted.

"I can't believe this." Stacie grumbled. "What am I supposed to tell her?"

"That nobody's allowed to have sex with outsiders in the house," Fat Amy declared.

Cynthia Rose paused, perking up slightly, and tilted her head to the side thoughtfully. "So…"

"No." Denise told her.

Stacie groaned, and nodded in resignation. "Fine. But for the record, I offered to have a penalty jar."

"You'll do everyone's chores if you break the rule." Fat Amy said quickly.

Stacie blew out a breath, since there was an actual form of punishment involved now. "I officially hate all of you."

The problem, she knew, was the precarious relationship between the Bellas and Aubrey. The Bellas were warming up to their former captain and the idea and reality of Aubrey's relationship with Stacie, true, but Stacie knew that it would be easy to interpret the new rule as a reaction against Aubrey. Stacie also knew that Aubrey still had some reservations about her own relationships with the other Barden Bellas, and depending on the day, she could very well take the rule as an official statement from the Bellas about her.

Stacie knew that everything was fraught, and ridiculous to be interpreted in such blanket, general terms, but that was where things stood, and the last thing she wanted was to give Aubrey an excuse to once again distance herself from the Bellas.

Luckily, the weeks immediately following Aubrey's vacation in California was busy and full of her catching up with things that needed to be attended to, which bought Stacie some time to figure out a plan of approach.

"Aubrey Posen's phone."

Stacie rolled her eyes at Aubrey's signature greeting when answering her phone, but asked, "Are you busy?"

"Yes, but I can take a call." Aubrey assured her. "What's up?"

"Where are you right now?"

"New York."

"Will you still be there this weekend?"

"I think so?" There was a pause, which Stacie could imagine was Aubrey checking her calendar, before the blonde confirmed, "as of right now, I'm still scheduled to stay in New York for this weekend."

"So I can come and visit?"

"This weekend?"

Stacie frowned at Aubrey's tone. "What's wrong with me coming to see you this weekend?"

"Other than I've got nothing planned, nothing." Aubrey told her, oblivious to Stacie's momentary annoyance and giving Stacie relief that Aubrey was just being Aubrey. "I hope you enjoy the great indoors."

Stacie rolled her eyes, and told her, "I think we both know I have no objections over the two of us staying indoors."

"A little more warning would have earned you a fancy restaurant and good seats to a Broadway show, you know."

"Well, then, you better come up with something awesome for when we're there for Finals, won't you?" Stacie retorted.

There was a pause, and then Aubrey let out a barely muted: "Shit."

"No kidding. Expectations have been set, babe."

Aubrey established, "Fancy restaurant and a Broadway show."

"I want the full New York City Aubrey Posen Dating Experience, Aubrey." Stacie teased.

Aubrey scoffed. "That doesn't exist."

"Then I guess you'll have to come up with it by the time I get there." Stacie pointed out.

"There's no precedent." Aubrey told her, which could have been read as a warning, but Stacie understood as a remark on Aubrey's dating past in New York.

To which Stacie responded in kind, telling her softly, "And I just want to hang out with you."

Which apparently was the right approach, as Aubrey's smile was evident in her voice. "Send me details of your flight."

"You'll pick me up from the airport?"

"If it's on Saturday. Friday night, and I'll have to send someone to pick you up."

Stacie furrowed her brow. "Really?"

"Yes."

"I can get a ride."

"Let me at least do this." Aubrey insisted.

Stacie shrugged. "Okay."

"Excellent." Aubrey sounded pleased, which was a good start. "How are rehearsals?"

"Ugh."

Aubrey laughed. "That good?"

"I'm starting to miss The Sign, if it's any indication."

"Hon, nobody misses The Sign."

"If I have to listen to another round of David Guetta mixes, I'm going to strangle someone." Stacie declared. "They're not all good, and I don't know what Beca's thinking."

Aubrey huffed. "I tried to warn all of you not to encourage those mixes too much."

"Well, we didn't know there was a point where it would be too much."

"That much?"

"It's enough."

Aubrey laughed. "Stace?"

"Yeah?"

"Is enough enough?"

Stacie abruptly ended the call when Aubrey started laughing.

There was a flaw to the plan, which Stacie didn't really realize until she was on the plane Friday afternoon and it occurred to her that she had no idea how to get to Aubrey's apartment. She didn't know what her roommate's full name was, or what neighborhood it was even in. With the dawn of the technology age, Stacie came to the stark realization that she did not have Aubrey's full address, either.

She wondered if she still had clearance with the company in Philadelphia, and if she could find a way to get Aubrey's address or even their parent company's New York address, because the trip was not having the best start so far.

Except there was a man in a chauffeur uniform holding a board with her name – well, for an A. Conrad, but he'd greeted her with her name – and after he introduced himself as "Aubrey sent me," the sleek black town car he brought her to wasn't too shabby, either. And there was a bouquet of flowers.

Once they were on their way, Stacie leaned forward. "Sorry, I didn't get your name."

He glanced at her briefly through the rearview mirror, clearly amused, and offered, "I'm Dan."

"Aubrey's friend Dan?"

"On good days."

Stacie furrowed her brow.

"I piss her off a lot." He admitted, keeping his eyes on the road.

Stacie regarded the back of his head for a beat, trying to discern the statement, but he seemed like a nice enough guy and if memory served her correctly, he was the one who kept Aubrey in line when she had been coming off a previous self-described 'bad relationship'. She hazarded, "On purpose?"

He shrugged. "Somebody has to?"

Stacie had to smile. "Do you know where we're going?"

"Aubrey said to bring you to her place, but if you want to pass by and see something else first, we can do that, too."

"Won't Aubrey get mad?"

"It won't be the first time." He acknowledged.

Stacie chuckled. "Maybe some other time."

They continued the rest of the trip in relative silence, as Stacie focused on her phone while Dan occasionally mentioned a landmark and made casual recommendations, until Dan turned the car into an underground parking driveway.

Stacie glanced around, having been too preoccupied with her text messages with the Bellas to have noticed the neighborhood. But she had read a little on New York real estate, and she was pretty sure any building with a parking slot was already a big deal.

Dan took her bag despite her protests, and they stood together in an elevator with doors on two opposite sides, making Stacie frown. Dan glanced at her, and shrugged. "It's pretentious."

"A little bit." Stacie agreed.

Dan laughed, and led her to a nondescript door marked only by a letter – H – and knocked.

Aubrey was still in her work clothes sans jacket, her hair in a low ponytail, and barefoot. She smiled brightly at Stacie. "You're here!" She noted the flowers, and grinned. "You got my flowers!"

"You know you only give flowers when you've screwed up, right?" Dan teased her, placing Stacie's bags inside the apartment.

Aubrey shot him a look of loathing. "Once again, you're very wrong, and that is why you're single and my girlfriend is this pretty."

"Hot." Stacie corrected.

"And hot." Aubrey amended. She turned to Stacie, who had moved closer to her. "Did Dan treat you well?"

"I was perfect." Dan protested.

Aubrey glanced over at him. "I wasn't asking you."

Stacie raised an eyebrow at the interplay, but allowed, "He was great."

"He was respectful?"

"He was fine." Stacie assured her.

Aubrey pouted, looking reluctant, before she walked over to a nearby chair where her jacket was draped on and walked back over, handing Dan a bill. She gave him a mocking smile. "And get yourself something nice."

Dan pocketed the bill, and returned the favor by giving her a mock salute. "Pleasure doing business with you."

"Get a job." Aubrey reminded.

"I have one." Dan replied. He smiled at Stacie. "It was nice meeting you, Stacie."

Stacie waved at him as he left, and then turned to Aubrey. She wrapped her arms around Aubrey's neck, and smiled at her. "Hi."

"Hi." Aubrey replied, grinning back.

Stacie indicated the space behind her. "So this is what you call home?"

"This is the apartment, yes."

Stacie took another quick glance around, but her gaze almost immediately returned to the thing that interested her most, and instead of suggesting a tour, she just smirked suggestively at Aubrey. "Want to measure the spring constant of your mattress?"

Aubrey didn't need to be asked twice. "Yes."