AN/ AN ABSOLUTELY MASSIVE THANK
YOU FOR THE REVIEWS AND PMs I RECEIVED ON THE LAST CHAPTER. I CAN'T BELIEVE THE AMOUNT OF SUPPORT THIS FIC HAS GOTTEN, IT MEANS SO MUCH TO ME GUYS!
OKAY, FOLLOWING ON FROM THE RUMOURS THAT HAVE BEEN SPREAD ABOUT ME, I'VE REALISED SOMETHING I WANT TO TELL YOU ALL. THE OPINIONS OF LOWLIFE HATERS DON'T MATTER. THEY'RE BITTER AND RUDE, AND JUST THRIVE OFF OF ANY NEGATIVITY THEY CAN. YOU DON'T NEED TO PUT UP WITH THOSE TYPES OF PEOPLE, AND THEIR WORDS REALLY MEAN NOTHING.
I SEND UNCONDITIONAL LOVE AND SUPPORT TO ANYONE ELSE WHO HAS HAD TO DEAL WITH THIS KIND OF THING, BECAUSE I KNOW FIRSTHAND HOW DAMAGING THE WORDS OF BITTER PEOPLE CAN BE. I SAY THAT, AND HOPE YOU MIGHT CONSIDER DOING WHAT I'M DOING, BECAUSE IT WILL HELP TO MAKE IT ALL BETTER.
AS OF TODAY, I'M DECIDING (NO, PROMISING MYSELF) TO STOP GIVING INTO THE HATERS. THEY DON'T DESERVE MY ATTENTION, THEY DON'T DESERVE THE ATTENTION OF ANYONE. NOBODY IS PERFECT, AND THAT'S A LESSON I'M LEARNING. THAT SAID, I'M ABANDONING THE PURSUIT OF PERFECTION I'VE FOLLOWED FOR YEARS, AND I'M CHOOSING TO SEE WHAT'S GOING RIGHT RATHER THAN WORRYING ABOUT WHAT WILL GO WRONG. IT'S SCARY, BUT I HAVE NO REGRETS ABOUT IT: NONE WHATSOEVER. IT'S TIME TO LET GO OF EVERYTHING THAT'S HOLIDNG ME BACK, STARTING WITH THE BITTER HATERS. THE ONLY PLACE I CAN GO IS UP, AND THAT'S WHERE I WANT TO BE. SO, HAPPY NEW LIFE'S EVE EVERYBODY!
IN CELEBRATION OF NEW LIFE'S EVE, HAVE A NEW CHAPTER OF TMYLM. WE'RE STILL IN DISNEYLAND, AND I BELIEVE WE WERE WAITING ON A REPLY FROM A CERTAIN BRUNETTE. ANYWAY, HERE WE GO AGAIN*...
(*NO PUN INTENDED, COMPLETELY HAPPY ACCIDENT.)
Slightly taken aback, Beca replied, "uh, yeah, I guess… if that's what you want to do." She paused for a few seconds, deep in thought, before adding, "Are you sure about that? Or do you maybes want to talk later when the others aren't around or-"
"No," Chloe stated, her voice serious and flooded with intensity. Seeing the shocked expression on Beca's face, she then added, "It needs to be now, come on."
"Chlo, I'm not trying to say no in any shape, way or form, but are you sure you want to do this in public?"
"You mean, am I sure I want to have this conversation around the others?"
"Well, yeah, I guess."
"Come on," Chloe said, grabbing Beca gently by the wrist and tugging her towards her. "I'm following your advice."
"What advice?" Beca asked, confused and concerned by how Chloe was acting.
"That coffee helps with everything. We're going for Starbucks."
"Wait, Chlo, what?"
"You heard me, grab your bag and come on."
"Chlo, I'm not sure I want to, not without telling Demi."
"She already knows," Chloe blurted out, "It was her idea. Let's go."
"Chlo…" Beca groaned, silently trying to catch Lauren's eye. Demi wanted this? Demi wouldn't have done this. This was weird and out of the blue. That intensity in Chloe's eyes, it was almost as if it was… jealousy?
Suddenly, the way Chloe was acting made so much more sense. It was just like in Copenhagen three years ago, when she'd passionately kissed Beca in front of Kommisar just to prove whose girl 'Tiny Maus' was. Beca recognised the intensity from work parties where Chloe would stand just that bit closer to Beca when Big Wigs would try and flirt with her, just to prove Beca was taken, and that to get to Beca they'd have to get through her. Thinking on it, Beca realised how touchy-feely Demi had been that day, and realised that was just one of her ways of trying to get her and Chloe back together. She would bet Aubrey and Stacie were in on it too. Trying to get a reaction out of jealous Chloe was easy. They knew full well that if another woman had her hands on Beca, Chloe wouldn't deal well. She smiled at that, and then smiled at Chloe.
"You know what?" Beca said, "Let's go get a coffee – all this lovey dovey shit from Lauremi and Staubrey is annoying."
"Staubrey?"
"Stacie plus Aubrey equals Staubrey? Thought it made a cute ship name."
"But Aubrey's with Jesse Swanson."
"I'm sure she is," Beca said with a knowing smirk.
"Care to enlighten me?"
"He always seems to fall for the gay ones."
Chloe laughed at that. "But Aubrey isn't gay…"
"She's uptight as hell." Beca stated, making Chloe giggle at how Beca used to point that out all the time. "She's bi – at least."
"Why do you sound so sure?"
"Just the way she's checking out Stacie's ass."
"So eloquent Beca."
"Well, what can I say, I learned from the best."
"Want to translate?"
"Five years in a relationship with you taught me to trust my instincts."
"Well, I suppose you learnt pretty quick how to be good in bed."
"Please don't talk like that Chlo," Beca said blushing as they entered Starbucks. "Do you mind if we get the coffees to go?" Beca asked.
"No, why?"
"Well, I'm amazed that between it being me, Legacy, Demi and Lauren all together today there haven't been any fans asking for photos."
"They probably don't know you guys are here."
"Let's keep it that way then – it's always when you eat in a public café or restaurant that you get spotted."
"Should I order then?"
"Do you mind?"
"Not at all – Caramel Latte for you?"
"Perfect. I'll just wait somewhere around here," Beca said, pointing to the general area.
"Cool, see you in five?"
"Definitely."
"Good. This ginger needs her jiggle juice!" Chloe giggled, turning around and slapping her butt like she did on Beca's first Hood Night. "See you later!"
Beca smiled as Chloe walked off, feeling as if some of the tension between two of them had been lifted. She felt as if they were friends again when they walked to Starbucks. It was as if there was no pressure for them to be lovers, or anything more than friends, and that's why it was so much easier. She knew this, being friends again, was the first step they needed to take if she ever wanted them to grow back together again. Right now, Beca would rather have Chloe as a friend than not at all.
She stood by a fountain at the end of Main Street, waiting for Chloe to arrive with their coffees. It was weird, to have a minute to herself on a day out with the Bellas. Heck, a day out with the Bellas was weird enough if she was truly honest. It felt like it was ages since they'd all seen one another, let alone done something like this. It hadn't been as long since the last Bellas' reunion for the others as it had been for Beca. She realised that when she remembered how often she'd bail because she'd gotten called away for work.
Thinking of work made her start to stress over the meeting she would have tomorrow. She hated the Big Wigs with a passion. They were all about the money and couldn't care less about the music. For all Soundproof Studios claimed that they loved their producers, they were the biggest liars in the industry. The label treated the producers like dirt. The producers of Soundproof Studios were amongst the best in the industry, but that didn't stop the Big Wigs taking advantage of them. Beca had learned the hard way the consequences of not reading the small print, and part of the label's game was to have masses of small print at the bottom of your contract. Like many producers, she signed the contract blindly, and had now paid the price for it.
But the thing about being a multiple Grammy award winning producer, it was that it meant that she had a tiny bit of influence now. She had a fan base, as well as multiple open offers from other labels promising a job if she ever wanted to jump ship. The label themselves knew that, and Beca made sure it was at the front of their mind when she'd spent 5 bucks printing those labels' application forms from online on the printer in the main office. Thinking about the meeting tomorrow was draining, because she truly had no idea what the Big Wigs would say to her. And then there was the ordeal of wearing the slutty pantsuit, and the makeup, and the heels…
"Your resting bitch face is actually the funniest," Chloe declared handing Beca her cup of coffee.
"Thanks," Beca replied, then gestured to the coffee, "How much do I owe you?"
"I'm paying, don't worry about that."
"You know I like to pay my own way."
"Take it as a treat."
"Chlo-"
"Beca, just drink the damn coffee, I'm not taking any money."
Beca frowned at how forcefully Chloe had spoken; it was very out of character. Chloe looked almost sheepishly at Beca.
"Sorry," she apologised, "I didn't mean to snap there."
"I didn't mean to be a bitch, I just-"
"It's fine Becs – consider the coffee a peace offering."
The two stood drinking their coffees in comfortable silence, both deep in thought.
"So, Ginger," Beca began, "You said you wanted to talk?"
"Yeah, I did. I do."
"Well talk away then."
"Okay then Beca. I don't really know how to say this, which is why I will probably sound like a crazy person right now. Thinking about what I said to you last week makes me feel like crap right now, and honestly, I feel guilty about it."
"You shouldn't feel guilty about what you said, it needed to be said. It might have been long overdue, but you've done it now, and I'm grateful that you did say it." Beca paused to collect her thoughts, cradling the coffee cup in her lap. "If you hadn't said it, I think we'd both still be desperately unhappy, and would probably go on like we did for those three months just ignoring each other. I gotta admit Chlo – I was upset by what you said, I won't lie, but you've made me see that I can't live like what I have been forever. I know it sounds like a hollow promise, but I want you to know that I've confronted the label over my contract, and if they don't meet my demands, I'm quitting."
"Becs, that's pretty drastic-"
"They only listen when people make big threats, and they know that if I say stuff like that, I mean it."
"But what will you do?"
"If I quit? Well, there are multiple labels who would welcome me with open arms, but I think I'm tired of the general producer life. I want to take my dream one step further. If they don't do what I want, me, Demi and Lauren are establishing our own label together."
"So you really mean it then?"
"Yep, I want a more stable life again, and to find the people I love, and hopefully bring them back to me."
Chloe smiled at Beca, and the way she had spoken so softly.
"Chlo, I know it's hard, but I was wondering, if, maybe, could we start over?"
"Like what, just friends?" Chloe asked, trying and failing to keep the disappointed edge out of her voice.
"As whatever you want. You'll always be the one for me, so I'm prepared to do whatever you want."
"Then let's do it." Chloe said.
"I thought you'd say no." Beca replied, slightly shocked that Chloe had actually agreed with her.
Watching Chloe stand up, Beca couldn't mask the confusion on her face as the ginger made her way over to one of those empty market booths on Main Street you can take a photo behind. Chloe plastered her mega-watt smile on her face, and gestured for Beca to come see her.
Rolling her eyes, Beca wandered over to where Chloe was stood. The redhead beamed at her, and mimed holding out a flyer.
"Hi! Any interest in joining our acapella group?" She chimed, smiling at Beca and doing that thing she used to do in college when she tried to recruit new Bellas. Beca smirked so hard when she realised Chloe was trying to recreate the conversation they had when they first met.
"Oh, right, this is like, a thing now." Beca replied, rolling her eyes at how cheesy this was.
"Oh, totes! We sing covers of songs, but we do it without any instruments. It's all from our mouths!" Chloe beamed, winking as she spoke and pointing to her mouth.
"Yikes." Beca deadpanned.
"So, are you interested?"
Beca knew that this was the moment when Aubrey would butt in after her sarcastic reply, and smirked at the memory.
"Sorry, it's just… it's pretty lame."
Chloe grinned at how Beca had caught on to what she was doing, and the two both stood for a moment in comfortable silence, reminiscing about what happened after, and both remembering the incident in the shower.
"Listen," Beca said, "Singing just really isn't my thing. But redheads are. Can I buy you a coffee?" She asked, extending her hand to the redhead.
Chloe grinned at Beca's invite, and nodded at the brunette, taking her hand.
"Straying from tradition Mitchell?"
"You know I don't like to do what's expected. "
"Makes dating you fun I guess."
"Well, prepare for some boredom, because I intend on living a 9-5 life."
"I suppose we will just have to fill those empty hours with plenty of fun then." Chloe mused suggestively.
Beca smiled at Chloe, and squeezed the hand she was holding.
"I'm glad we've had this conversation."
"I'm glad Demi told me to get my head out of my ass and talk to you."
"I'm glad Demi was civil and didn't try to kill you – believe me, after you left she only saw red when she thought about you."
"Well, I'm ginger, so I'd be disappointed if she saw any other colour. And don't be too complacent about Lovato – the threat is still there."
"Really? God, I need to talk to her about toning it down."
"No you don't Becs, she's your best friend. She's got your back."
"There was never anything going on between us Chlo, you know that, right?"
"Oh, I know," Chloe replied with a knowing grin.
"By the look on your face, I can tell you know something I don't. Tell me."
Chloe shook her head, and mimed zipping her lips.
"Please, Chloe."
"It's not my secret to tell. If you want to know, you'll have to ask Demi."
"Oh, I'll ask her, but she won't tell me." Beca pouted, "Not if she doesn't want to."
Chloe observed her now-again-girlfriend, and felt slightly guilty. She pondered on telling Beca for a minute, but knew she couldn't betray Demi by saying it outright.
"Okay Beca, I'll give you a hint. When we go join the others, see if you can find Demi's flannel shirt."
"Her shirt – the one she gave to – wait a second: are you saying what I think you are. Chlo, is Lauremi a thing?"
"I can neither confirm nor deny that statement." Chloe said, barely keeping her face straight.
"That means they are, just wait till I see Demi…"
"Beca," Chloe breathed, her voice almost holding a warning tone, "Give them some space, you wouldn't want people to meddle with our relationship…"
"I have a feeling our friends already have," Beca said with a smirk. "I'm just thinking about how Staubrey kept watching us earlier, how Aubrey kept pushing us together, how affectionate Demi was…"
"Can you blame them? We do make an impossibly cute couple Beca."
"Yes, but still. I think it would be fun to mess with them for a while."
"So what, should we pretend to be mad at each other or something?"
"No, that would only make them try to set us up more. I was thinking that we should pretend we've just decided to be friends, at least for a while."
"Beca, that's… genius."
"Seriously, let's see how long we can keep us two being back together a secret. It'd be funny to see how long it takes them to find out."
"It would," Chloe said wistfully. "But that means we can't hold hands anymore today," she added dejectedly.
"But Chloe," Beca mused, "we're buddies for the day, and I'd hate for you to get lost."
Chloe grinned at that.
"Honestly Chlo, if Aubrey has something to say about abusing the buddy rule, I'll just mention how checking out your buddy's ass is abusing it."
Chloe laughed hysterically, knowing every word Beca said was true.
The pair wandered aimlessly holding hands to find where the others were.
"Oh man…" Beca groaned when they found the others. "They did the princesses without us…"
"Well then Beca, I guess you'll just have to take a picture with another redheaded princess instead of Ariel."
"Have you seen Merida anywhere?" Beca teased, "Or Anna?"
"I was kinda hinting at myself, but I forgive you for not thinking of me."
"Well, you're a queen after all." Beca said smoothly.
"There's the secret romantic I fell in love with," Chloe smiled, holding her phone up in front of them. "Selfie?"
"You know I hate selfies with a passion Chlo."
"Yes, but you love me."
"Do we have to?"
"Hey, just look at me," Chloe breathed, and Beca obliged, turning to look at the redhead stood next to her.
Looking into Chloe's eyes, she felt the wave of safety she always felt around Chloe wash over her, and her worries about what was yet to come vanished. Those blue eyes never changed, and Beca felt herself be sucked back to that morning in the showers at Barden, where she found herself questioning her entire life except on single thing. Immediately, she felt her thoughts about the other Bellas, the meeting tomorrow, the fact that Chloe might leave her again, the album, she felt them all go silent, even if just for a second. They weren't important. All that mattered was what was happening right now, and the girl that was standing next to her.
"Told you!" Chloe chimed as the phone clicked to say she'd taken a photo. "Honestly Mitchell, I don't get why you hate selfies so much."
With a grudging sense of reluctance, Beca turned to look at the photo on Chloe's phone. In all honesty, the photo, it wasn't that bad. For what felt like the first time in forever, Beca Mitchell looked semi decent in a photo. She looked relaxed and carefree, her eyes shining with happiness as she looked at the girl she loved. And, she was smiling. Not the fixed, forced smile she'd worn mercilessly for the last few months, it was a real one. It was the smile she reserved only for Chloe. The way she was looking at Chloe was with so much love, and she realised now that this, this was what she wanted.
"Hey, Mitchell!" a voice yelled, and both Beca and Chloe snapped out of their little bubble to look over at Demi, who was arm in arm with Lauren. "You two finally get your heads out of your asses?"
Both Beca and Chloe blushed at that, and Beca yelled back, "We've made up. I'm so happy we're friends again." Chloe smiled in agreement, and Demi's face fell.
"You mean, you two haven't gotten back together?" Demi said as they walked over, her voice filled with disappointment.
"Nope," Chloe replied, popping the 'p', "a romantic relationship isn't what we want right now, and we go well as friends."
Demi stared at the pair in disbelief, because just a moment ago, when they were stood taking a selfie under the tree, it truly looked like they were a couple again. She shook her head quizzically, beyond shocked at that revelation.
"Anyway Demi," Beca began, swiftly changing the subject, "where are the others?"
"Oh, they're over there. We're going to go on the Toy Story ride next I think."
"Let's go join them," Beca said, beginning to walk over to the group.
She winked at Chloe, her smiled back at her. Nobody saw, and nobody knew about the secret the pair shared. They were back together, they were happy and most importantly, they were both convinced they were going to make it work.
As they joined the rest of the group, the pair shared a smile at seeing Aubrey's crestfallen face when they told her they were just 'friends'. They both knew this was going to be fun.
They both knew things were going to be okay.
AN/ OKAY THEN, WE'VE GOT BECHLOE BACK TOGETHER, STAUBREY IN THE MAKING AND LAUREMI TRYING TO HIDE THE RELATIONSHIP WE ALL KNOW IS HAPPENING.
IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S NEW LIFE'S EVE FOR EVERYONE, NOT JUST ME TODAY.
10 REVIEWS, AND WE'LL SEE HOW BECHLOE MAKE THEIR NEW RELATIONSHIP WORK.
THANKS FOR READING GUYS!
DON'T FORGET TO REVIEW!