Beca's mouth about hit the ground. She was as shocked as Chloe was angry. "They got married?"

"How else could have Stacie gotten insurance so quickly? My friend said her insurance went into effect yesterday. When I asked him how this happened, he said that newly married employees can add their spouse to their insurance immediately. I asked the woman who does our insurance billing, and she said the same thing. Typically, it will go into effect after the employee's first pay period."

"We got paid last week." Beca got up and poured them both shots. "Wow, they got married." She and Chloe both downed their whiskey and the project manager poured one more.

"This all sucks. First, she doesn't tell me Stacie moved in with her. Now she doesn't tell me she got married. Why?" The shots which had been take in short succession were giving Chloe a buzz and headache. "Does she not love me anymore?" The redhead's doubts were quickly flooding in.

Beca put her arm around her girlfriend but wasn't quite sure what to say because she felt the same betrayal with Stacie. "I'm positive it's not that Chlo. You know Aubrey loves you. Maybe they both have just gotten wrapped up in what's going on in their own lives, tunnel vision."

"Do we say anything?"

"I don't know Chloe. I'm not sure I even need to be talking to either of them anytime soon. I'm afraid of what I'll say. Too stunned. Angry. I'm not just mad at how I'm feeling but also for what this is doing to you."

The couple decided to work their emotions out for themselves first before confronting either of their friends. Beca even put in a request to telecommute so she wouldn't run into Aubrey at work.

As the next week passed, both Beca and Chloe ignored messages and voicemails from their respective best friends. Stacie had come to Beca's apartment a few times, but Beca had her door double locked and refused to answer. Aubrey's e-mails were ignored, consequences be damned. Beca had let Jessica know that if an absolute emergency came up that she could call but not Aubrey. She had a feeling Jessica knew what was up and would respect her request.

The next Saturday, Chloe opened up to Beca about how she'd been feeling. "I've done a great deal of processing this week. I think I know where some of my bitterness is coming from. One thing for certain is that I'm jealous. All through college, Aubrey and I would talk about our dream weddings."

"I'm jealous not only that Aubrey didn't tell me but that I didn't even get to be a part of it. Even if it had been at the courthouse, I could have been there, stood next to her. You could have stood next to Stacie. I feel cheated."

Beca let her girlfriend rant and get rid of her anger. She knew the redhead needed to get it out; she just didn't know how to fix the situation. All she knew was Chloe without Aubrey was about as uncomfortable and herself without Stacie.

As Chloe went to shower, Beca read a week's of ignored texts and listened to a slew of voice mails. By the time her girlfriend emerged, the project manager had a better understanding of why her best friend had gotten married with nary a word.

"I still am not sure I understand Becs." Chloe was struggling with even the consideration of forgiveness. "I still can't wrap my mind around all of this. And then there's work. I'm just frustrated, exhausted, and my mind won't seem to let me land on a reasonable explanation."

"I feel the same Chloe. But I miss the hell out of Stacie. Don't you miss Bree?" Chloe nodded. "We are going to keep missing them unless we give them a chance to apologize, or at least to explain."

Chloe couldn't quite bring herself to listen to her best friend expound on something as important as getting married without letting her know. The redhead was beyond busy with her residency and had fallen into a pattern of complacency in regards to her friendship with Aubrey.

Frustration was building with the blonde because she could not get through the walls that Chloe had built. Eventually Aubrey stopped putting pressure on her best friend to truly listen to her explanation. As difficult as it was, she hoped Chloe would come around sooner than later.

Stacie and Beca's relationship was fairing better although not back to perfect. They had decided, for their personal well-being, to keep neutral in regards to their respective loves. Beca did, however, tell Stacie how busy Chloe was at work in hopes she'd let Aubrey know that some of the angst might be related to the stresses of residency.

The Guam solar project was moving along well. Originally planned to bring cost-effective energy to low-income residents, this phase was almost complete – well ahead of schedule. Now the project could move into money generating phases – businesses then moving into the military installments.

Soon Beca would close out her involvement in the project and let it run on its own. The project manager knew she'd soon have to pick up another project so decided to return to the office to do her work.

Aubrey made a point of not making Beca feel like she was being put in the middle of her and Chloe's disagreement for which the project manager was grateful.

Slowly Chloe's issues faded, and she found herself missing her best friend more than she thought she would. Somehow though, she couldn't allow herself to fall back into the easy pattern of simply allowing the blonde to be her friend. As much as she wanted to, she just couldn't. Something was holding her back.

Every night of every week, Chloe would fall into bed exhausted from either an extra long day at work or a weekend full of studying for her exam. The advantages were that it kept her mind off missing Aubrey.

Her relationship with Beca was stronger than ever. She knew Beca saw Aubrey during the week at work and sometimes saw Stacie as well. But the project manager was wise enough to not bring up either of them to Chloe.

One Friday as Chloe was on the train back into the city, her phone buzzed with a surprising message.

[Aubrey: Chloe?]
[Aubrey: I miss you.]

Tears immediately sprung to the redhead's eyes as she realized that her college friend might be nudging them towards rebuilding their relationship.

[Chloe: I miss you, too, Bree.]
[Aubrey: I want to see you. Would you be willing to have brunch with us tomorrow?]
[Chloe: All of us? Beca and Stacie, too?]
[Chloe: I'd need to talk with Beca.]
[Aubrey: She hasn't left work yet. If I talk to her and she agrees, will you be there?]

Chloe thought for a moment then remembered this was Aubrey, her friend who had always been there for her no matter what, through thick and thin. She was tired of being miserable.

[Chloe: Of course. This has gone on far too long.]
[Aubrey: I love you Chloe.]
[Chloe: I love you, too.]

Because the weekend had arrived, Chloe went directly to Beca's apartment. While she hadn't moved in with the project manager, Beca had cleared her out a drawer and closet space to make weekends more comfortable.

Beca hadn't been home long when Chloe came into the door. "Hi babe." The brunette was sitting on the couch fiddling with her computer, answering e-mail when her girlfriend came in.

They shared how each other's day went and made general conversation. Finally, Beca cautiously asked Chloe if she had heard from Aubrey. Chloe said she had. "And?" Beca asked.

"She said she was going to talk to you about going to brunch tomorrow."

"How do you feel about seeing them?"

Chloe sighed. "Honestly Becs, I miss my best friend. I think I miss her more than I am mad at her. Being angry or upset or holding a grudge doesn't do anyone any good. I'd like to go. If that's okay with you, of course."

The project manager smiled. "You know I support any decision you make."

"And that's why I love you."

When Beca and Chloe got to the restaurant the next day, Stacie and Aubrey were already at the table. Stacie leaped up and hugged them both. Aubrey looked a bit cautious and kept her seat. Chloe decided to overlook this and wrapped her arms around her best friend's shoulders. "Hi," she whispered into Aubrey's ear.

Aubrey reached up and clasped her hands around Chloe's arms. "Hi back." She craned her head around and kissed Chloe's cheek. "I missed you," she whispered.

Stacie and Aubrey already had drinks, so Chloe and Beca ordered mimosas. As the server came with their drinks, he offered to top off Stacie and Aubrey's who both put their hands on top of their glasses. "We are okay," Stacie told him.

The conversation was light as Chloe caught Aubrey up on her residency and how things were going. "I have a feeling they are going to offer me a position once I get my specialty license. There are rumors of expansion which would require at least two more therapists." Beca was delighted to see how attentive Aubrey was being to Chloe, showing her that what was going on in Chloe's life mattered.

After they had eaten, Aubrey put her elbows on the table and leaned forward towards her friend. "Chloe, I have missed you horribly." The redhead tried to stop her, insisting that they were beyond that, but Aubrey insisted on talking. "Never in a million years would have I intentionally hurt you, yet I did. You are my oldest and dearest friend; I hope you know that." She reached over and grasped Chloe's hand and held on to it like a lifeline in a rough sea.

"Our marriage," she motioned to Stacie, "was honestly spur of the moment. Stacie was injured with no way to get medical assistance. I was frantic, and this was the only way I could see out."

Chloe's eyes were tearing up. "You could have at least told me so I could be there for you." Her voice was soft, barely audible.

"Stacie told me the same thing. But you had only just started in your residency, and I didn't want to ask you to take off work. I know I messed up Chloe. I'm sorry." She squeezed her best friend's hand. "I've missed you so much these last ten months. I can only hope you will find it in your heart to forgive me. To forgive us."

"I already have Bree. I already have. But don't you ever do anything like this to me again." She playfully shook her finger at the blonde as she jokingly chided her.

Stacie looked at Aubrey and grinned. "And this brings us to another reason we're glad you came out to brunch with us." The taller brunette slide envelopes containing a card to each of the other two women. "Please… together."

Beca looked at her friend confused. She and Chloe both opened the envelope and slid out a thick piece of paper. "We can't do this shit alone." The shorter brunette chuckled. There was a golden heart that said, "Scratch Me." Both women grabbed their knives and began to scrape off the heart.

Chloe immediately let out a shrill squeal. She jumped out of her chair and ran over to Aubrey, pulling her up. "Really?" Aubrey nodded. "Yes, yes, yes, yes."

Beca was fighting her tears as she grinned and came around the table to shake Stacie's hands. "Congrats bud."

After the initial excitement died down and the couples both sat back down, Stacie asked Chloe, "So Chlo did you actually read the cards?"

"Yes," she replied indignantly. "Will you be Katherine's Godmother?"

"What?" Beca snatched Chloe's card from her hand. "That's not what mine says. Mine says 'Will you be Kenneth's Godmother?'" She held the two cards side by side and looked back and forth between them and then between Stacie and Aubrey. "No? Seriously?"

Chloe stared at Aubrey who had just stood up. Her eyes moved down to her stomach which was showing faint signs of a baby bump. "Twins? You are having twins?"

"And we want you there every step of the way Chloe. You and Beca both. And before you ask, nobody but our doctor knows. Not even our parents. I will never ever make that mistake again."

Stacie pulled out two boxes – one wrapped in baby pink and another in baby blue. "Yeah, sexist and traditional. I know but we haven't decided on colors yet. We want our godmothers to help." She handed the gifts to Beca and Chloe.

Beca's was a black t-shirt with white print and logo and said 'The Godmother'. She laughed at gave Stacie a high-five. "I love it."

Chloe's was a gray t-shirt with black print and various type faces. It said 'Only Best Friends Get Promoted to Godmother'. This, of course, sent the redhead on another crying jag. Chloe threw her arms around Aubrey. "I've missed you so much Bree. I'm so happy for you two."

The women ordered another round of drinks – mimosas for Beca and Chloe and orange juice for Stacie and Aubrey, of course. "You guys have to hear what happened this morning." Stacie was laughing so hard she could hardly get the story out. Aubrey was finishing up getting ready in the bathroom and called out to me, 'Stacie, we really are pregnant. I can't see my toes anymore.' So I said, 'five pregnancy tests, two ultrasounds, hearing their heartbeats, and three months of nausea didn't convince you? But your toes do?'"

Finally, all was right with the world.

.

Epilogue

The plane touched down in San Juan, Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Chloe pulled her hair back with a tie as she grabbed Beca's hand and trotted down the stairs of the aircraft. After looking around, the redhead started pulling Beca towards the terminal to pick up their bags.

"I can't believe this island was flattened by Hurricane Maria."

"That's why I'm here Chlo. We are going to try to duplicate the Sustainable Development course solar project from NYU. Despite the hurricane being almost two years ago, there are many homes and businesses in more rural areas still without power. Can you believe it? Two years."

"We are bringing in people to do the work while the government and our grant partners fund the project. Once 100% of the island is up and running, we can expand the solar projects to businesses and more lucrative land-owners such as the resorts to recoup some of the costs and to push Puerto Rico to be more self-sustainable from fossil fuel energy sources, much like we've done in Guam."

Beca and Chloe stayed about a week while Beca finalized the selection of the island team to run the day to day program. She was afraid she wouldn't be able to get together a crew as solid as the one in Guam because they had set a high bar. But once she had hired the staff, she felt pretty good about things.

Kurihi and Tasi were scheduled to fly to the island in a week's time to get the project running. Beca had given them about a month to stay there because of the dismal shape of the island's overall infrastructure. But if anyone could get the things on the right track, the brothers could.

Chloe successfully completed her residency and passed her certification with flying colors. The rumors about the clinic expansion were true, and Chloe was indeed offered a therapist position which she immediately accepted.

Aubrey's pregnancy went without complication, and Chloe was with her every step of the way – making up for time missed in other milestones in Aubrey's life. When Katherine and Kenneth arrived, they were welcomed into the world by not only their two mothers but also their two godmothers, four grandparents, and more aunts and uncles than one could shake a stick at – both honorary and related.

Beca sat on her couch, arm flung around her girlfriend's shoulder. The redhead was leaned into her, relaxed and enjoying the closeness. "Chloe?" The project manager wanted to make sure her girlfriend was awake. "Are you happy?"

She felt Chloe squirm closer into her. "Beca, you know I'm happy. What makes you ask that question?"

"I mean really happy?"

"Yes Beca, I'm really happy." Chloe leaned forward and turned to look at Beca. "You aren't going to leave me, are you? That would change my answer to I'm not happy." She didn't think this was a possibility but had no idea where Beca was going with her question.

"I'm tired of the city, the hustle and bustle. Aren't you tired of the commute?"

"It's not that bad Becs. Remember, I'm going opposite of rush hour."

"Would you consider moving to the 'burbs, closer to your work?"

This question really made Chloe turn so she could see Beca. "Then you'd have to commute. And be in the middle of rush hour."

Beca explained how she could propose a work at home schedule which would allow her to telecommute most days, only going into the city for major meetings. "There's very little I can't do from a home office."

"What about Kenneth and Katherine? We promised to help Aubrey and Stacie with them."

"We would only be a quick train ride away. And think of how much more space we could get. The kids would have a yard to play in, and maybe we could even get a dog."

"Wait, slow down Becs. There's a lot of moving parts here. You keep saying we. Are you wanting us to get a place?"

Beca chuckled as she blushed. "I guess I should have led with that, huh? Chloe Beale, will you move in with me?"

"Only if we get to tell Aubrey and Stacie first!"