When the driver she'd hired to pick Stacie up at her hotel sent her a text message saying she should start thinking about changing her plans, Aubrey briefly wondered what was wrong with the guy Dan had recommended in his stead, but didn't have time to really ponder over it until the car arrived and she understood.
Because crammed into the car were ten Barden Bellas, making Aubrey frown.
Stacie turned to her friends, ordering them to "stay in the car" as she got out of the vehicle, closing the door behind her and quickly attempted to broker a truce with her easily-irate girlfriend. "I can explain."
Aubrey speechlessly turned to face her, confused as to why their date suddenly included the other Bellas.
"It's just, we haven't really gotten to go around the City, and we're leaving tomorrow, but now there's a car, and you live here, and they liked hanging out with you last night, plus we're celebrating a third straight win…" Stacie let her voice trail off, biting her lower lip and looking at Aubrey hopefully.
Aubrey sighed in resignation, nodding to indicate her understanding and acceptance of what Stacie was telling her. But she also kind of wanted to cry, because getting a reservation at the restaurant she'd chosen was near-impossible but she had managed it, and she had been lucky to see Lisa the night before, and had been able to call in a favor to get a good table.
Not for nothing, but she'd planned a pretty awesome date.
All for naught, apparently, because the Bellas were a tight-knit group.
She loved the Bellas, really, but not so much at the moment.
When Aubrey didn't say anything right away, Stacie looked to the side, hoping to find the words to make it up to Aubrey, and her eyes widened when she saw the upscale restaurant they were standing in front of. "Holy shit." She turned back to Aubrey, still wide-eyed. She tilted her head to the side, indicating the restaurant. "Holy shit." She took a beat, and offered: "I'll get rid of them."
"No," Aubrey said quickly, because she was disappointed, but she wasn't a jerk. Or, probably, not that much of one. "No, I'll…" She sighed. "I can change our plans."
"Are you sure? Because you kinda look like you want to cry." Stacie said softly.
She was, on both counts, and Aubrey could only smile weakly. "It's fine."
"It's not." Stacie said sadly, feeling the disappointment coming off Aubrey in waves, but she didn't know what to do. After all, she had been the one to demand this very date, and now she was also the one who couldn't say no to the Bellas, not after Chloe had given her a full-impact gaze Stacie could only define as "Disney eyes" – wide and full of hope.
Aubrey sighed again, and motioned to the restaurant host. "I'm just going to go, cancel our reservation."
"Aubrey…"
"Stace, it's fine. I get it." Aubrey assured her.
Stacie was sure Aubrey understood, she just wasn't sure it was fine.
"They like Italian, right?" Aubrey asked, phone already in hand and searching through her contacts as she turned towards the restaurant doors. "Everyone eats pizza, so they're obviously not allergic to gluten or dairy."
"Aubrey."
Aubrey looked up at her, and Stacie took the opportunity to kiss her softly.
"I'm sorry." Stacie whispered, gently tucking a lock of hair behind Aubrey's ear. She bit her lip, realizing Aubrey had her hair tied in an intricate braid, indicating she hadn't been spending the entire time since they separated that morning finishing up things at the office. "I promise to make it up to you."
Aubrey gave her a wan smile. "You're gonna pay for dinner?"
"Baby, you know I can't do that for you yet." Stacie returned, falling into step with Aubrey as they walked towards the restaurant. "It'll probably be through sex."
Aubrey's smile grew more genuine at that one. "I was probably gonna get that, anyway."
Stacie smiled back, feeling a little less guilty with the sight of Aubrey's smile. "You don't know. Maybe it'll be pretty awesome sex."
Aubrey gave her a look, as if to say, she still didn't see how it would be anything different from their usual.
"Let me think about it." Stacie said, stopping a few steps away from the entrance while Aubrey went to talk to the girl at the host's podium.
The Barden Bellas, to their credit, seemed to catch on quickly (but not soon enough) that they had crashed Stacie's date with Aubrey, and were on their best behavior in the car, speaking in subdued voices (for them), not saying anything when the tight fit in the car made Stacie practically sit on Aubrey's lap, and even falling silent when Aubrey took a call to coordinate with someone their change of venue. Since Aubrey wasn't inclined to talk to any of the Bellas at the moment, staying focused on her phone, Stacie preoccupied herself by idly playing with the different buttons on a panel by their seat.
Stacie felt her phone buzz, and she checked it to find a message from Beca, asking: Is she mad?
Stacie glanced up to meet Beca's gaze, and she could only smile weakly, because maybe Aubrey wasn't necessarily angry, but she wasn't about to push her luck with Aubrey's disappointment.
Beca bit her lip, and glanced around the car, obviously trying to come up with a way to keep Aubrey from being completely annoyed.
The restaurant they ended up in wasn't nearly at the same level as the one they had left, but there was a more relaxed, even homey, feel to the environment and interior. Very few of the tables were occupied, though, making Stacie look questioningly at Aubrey.
"Technically, they're not open yet," Aubrey admitted. "They did a soft opening a month ago, but they retooled their menu; the past few weeks Teddy's just been inviting people over to check out the food."
"Who's Teddy?"
'Teddy', it turned out, was a cheerful man who greeted Aubrey and a loud exclamation of "My love! You have returned to me!"
Aubrey rolled her eyes, but grinned as she walked up to him and returned his exuberant hug. "Theodore."
He grinned back, and smiled at the girls behind his friend. "Aubrey friends! Hello!"
Aubrey frowned at him. "Are you drunk?"
"My uncle sent me a few cases from his vineyard." He admitted. "We've been having a wine tasting."
"And you didn't invite me?" Aubrey asked in mock offense.
"I'm sorry, was I your first choice for tonight's dining experience?" He retorted haughtily. "You're lucky I'm letting you join the wine tasting."
Amy raised her hand, "I'd like to—"
"No." Aubrey, Beca and Stacie all told her, making Amy frown.
Teddy indicated a long table nearby. "Sit. We'll be serving tonight's meal in a few minutes."
"You said to hurry!" Aubrey accused, stepping aside to let the Bellas take their seats.
"I will limit your garlic bread, Posen, I swear to God." He shot back. He gave each Bella a cursory glance, as if placing names to faces, until he got to Stacie. He pointed at her as he asked Aubrey, "this is the one who stole you from me?"
Aubrey smiled at him as she pulled Stacie to her side. "Isn't she pretty?"
Teddy smiled at Stacie, holding out his hand. "I'm Teddy. I once taught Aubrey in a culinary class."
"I was wondering." Stacie admitted.
"I hope you don't mind the jokes, it used to be the easiest way to annoy her." Teddy said.
Stacie smiled at him. "As long as we're clear that she's mine."
"As if anyone would be mistaken otherwise." Teddy replied. He turned to Aubrey. "Red?"
"Please."
He glanced at Stacie.
"No." Aubrey told him.
Stacie pouted.
"Minor." Aubrey informed Teddy.
"Ignore her." Stacie requested.
"You're beautiful, but I can't go against the wishes of an investor." Teddy told Stacie. "Have a seat, ladies, and please don't forget to compliment the chef."
"Tip the servers." Aubrey corrected.
"Whatever." He quipped, before he disappeared back behind the kitchen doors.
"Did he just say you're an investor?" Chloe asked as Aubrey and Stacie took their seats.
"Yes." Aubrey replied. "It's not a big deal, there's a lot of us."
"Yeah, but that's fancy adult stuff." Jessica noted.
Aubrey shrugged. "He's a friend and his business plan was good. Plus, this way I can get a table for good food anytime I want."
Stacie quirked an eyebrow at her. "Did you write his business plan?"
"Of course I did." Aubrey said breezily.
"Does everyone who work for your company get made out of money?" Cynthia Rose asked. She turned and gave Denise what was supposed to be a seductive grin. "Because girl, you're looking fine tonight."
Denise pretended to be enamored for all of a second before she dropped the pretense and glared at her. "No."
There was a shared round of laughter, but Chloe suddenly stopped short and frowned. "Wait, what?"
"Garlic bread!" Beca yelled out suddenly, with far more enthusiasm than was absolutely necessary for pastry. To her credit, though, two people had emerged from the kitchen carrying baskets of bread, and between finally getting to eat and placing their drink orders, it was just about all the distraction the Bellas needed.
Aubrey was trying her hardest not to let her disappointment over her planned date affect her happiness at hanging out with the Bellas, but in one unguarded moment, she noticed what Stacie was wearing, taking in the choker top that called attention to her neck and the low neckline that teased more than what would be commonly deemed appropriate, and almost wanted to start crying again.
When Stacie took her hand under the table and away from prying eyes, it took all of her self-control to resist the way Stacie led her hand, and pull her wrist away from the hemline of Stacie's short skirt.
And made it a point to keep their joined hands on top of the table.
At one point, Aubrey excused herself from the table, purportedly to join Teddy in the kitchen for the supposed wine-tasting, but when Beca went outside to take a phone call from Jesse – apparently the Trebles wanted to go out again and he was wondering where the Bellas were hanging out – she found Aubrey on the phone, telling someone to give something up for lottery.
Beca hesitated, unsure on just how Aubrey would react to her at any given moment and surely having her date ruined by the Bellas would put Aubrey in a bad mood, but before she could decide either way, Aubrey turned, and saw her. Beca smiled weakly. "Hey."
Aubrey glanced at her, furrowed her brow, and glanced in the direction of the door of the restaurant. "Are they serving dessert already?"
"No, I," Beca lifted her phone, "I took a call."
Aubrey nodded, looking down at her phone and sighing, shoulders sagging.
"Look, I'm sorry about this whole crashing-your-date thing," Beca said quickly. "I guess we just assumed… Actually, I don't know what we assumed, but I didn't realize it would be uncool to just…"
Aubrey waved her hand, dismissing the apology. "Don't worry about it."
Beca shrugged. "Comes with the territory of being captain, right? The worrying?"
Aubrey chuckled wryly. "At least nobody's being a thorn in your side about your song selection."
Beca rolled her eyes. "I know; I'm sorry, OK? But you were your own brand of pain in the ass, too."
Aubrey smiled, letting the rejoinder pass without remark, and focused on the discussion at hand. "It's the Bellas, though. And according to Stacie, it was Amy and Chloe who insisted, and-"
"Nobody says no to Chloe," Beca finished with her, conceding that point.
Aubrey nodded. "And it's not like Stacie and I would have been above ditching the Bellas if we really wanted to get rid of you tonight." She blew out a breath. "It sucks, but plans get changed for a reason, right?"
As someone who had originally planned to ditch the Bellas at the first opportunity in favor of abandoning college to pursue her dreams of moving to Los Angeles, Beca could concede that sometimes, plans changing ultimately worked out for the best.
She just wasn't sure if that applied to their current situation.
She pointed at Aubrey's phone. "More changed plans, I guess?"
Aubrey smiled wryly. "She told me that when she's here for the ICCAs I should set her up with dinner and a show."
Beca sucked in a breath, wincing. She'd noticed Aubrey checking her watch and phone through most of dinner, but it hadn't even occurred to her that there had been more to Aubrey and Stacie's date than just the meal. "Shit, I'm sorry."
"It's done," Aubrey replied. She shrugged. "But since this date's a bust, was there anything the Bellas wanted to see in New York? It's short notice, but a few people owe me favors."
Beca opened her mouth, as if she had an answer ready to go, but instead she snapped her mouth shut, and looked down briefly before looking back up at Aubrey. "You got Denise a job?"
"Yes." Aubrey blew out a breath. "She didn't tell you?"
"She's been extra-obvious about graduation, but she didn't say anything."
"She wasn't going to tell Chloe until after the ICCAs."
Beca closed her eyes briefly, nodding to indicate her understanding of Denise's logic, as conveyed by Aubrey. She also knew why the few people who were aware of this development kept it under wraps. "Chloe's going to have a fit."
"And before you ask, Denise asked me to." Aubrey said defensively.
"And you just happened to know how to make that happen?" Beca asked skeptically.
Aubrey looked at her, confused. "That's kind of part of my job…?"
Beca paused, and smiled weakly. "Oh. I didn't know that."
Aubrey looked away briefly, and then turned back to Beca. "What are we going to do about Chloe?"
Beca grimaced, which wasn't a very good start in terms of coming up with a plan.
By the time they were all piling back into the car, two things were immediately obvious to Stacie: one, the Bellas showed no signs of leaving her and Aubrey alone; and two, Aubrey had indulged in the wine tasting Teddy had invited her to, the redness to her cheeks the most telltale sign.
Aubrey didn't get drunk easily, and she tried to limit her intake to one glass when she was out with Stacie, so Stacie could only surmise that the Bellas crashing their date had contributed to the amount of wine Aubrey had imbibed.
Stacie frowned at Aubrey. "Are you drunk?"
"Not enough." Aubrey admitted, sipping from a bottle of water Teddy had given her as they had left the restaurant. At Stacie's raised eyebrow, Aubrey explained her answer: "Didn't you hear? We're meeting the Trebles at the same club we went to last night."
No, Stacie had heard that. She'd also heard Teddy asking Aubrey why the Bellas didn't know better than to show up at the same club for two straight nights, but that was neither here nor there.
But Stacie was worried that Aubrey, already disappointed by how the night had turned out, would evolve into full-blown disgruntlement, and, well, aca-dictator Aubrey Posen still sometimes haunted Stacie's nightmares when she knew she was being belligerent about something.
When they got to the club – the black town car definitely helped dispel some of the questionable nature inherent in going to the same club for two straight nights – Stacie held Aubrey back to let the other Bellas out first, telling her to finish drinking water.
When the last of them stepped out, Stacie promptly closed the door behind Ashley and pressed the button to lock all the doors. She ignored the look of confusion she could see on her friends' faces through the tinted windows, and told the driver to go.
"What—"
Stacie cut off Aubrey's confused inquiry by straddling her lap and kissing her deeply.
When they parted, Aubrey blinked up at her.
Stacie smiled at her, and called over her shoulder, "Hey, dude? I'll give you an extra fifty bucks to drive slowly."
"Yes, ma'am."
Stacie smiled triumphantly, finding the button that raised the blackout partition between the driver and the back of the car.
Aubrey furrowed her brow. "You know New York traffic is notorious for a reason."
Stacie rolled her eyes, and kissed her again. "Thank you for letting the Bellas crash our date."
"Just so we're clear, next time they crash our date, they're paying for their meal." Aubrey grumbled.
Stacie laughed. "Deal."