Prompt: "AU – Chloe is a masseuse and Beca is a first time customer and has a massage."

Massage Therapy

Beca was sat in the waiting room, absentmindedly twisting the ring on her thumb as her eyes remained glued to the window. The receptionist had been looking her up and down since she arrived and it was taking all of her restraint to hold back the sarcastic retort on the tip of her tongue.

So, alright, perhaps Beca wasn't the typical customer in a massage parlor but she had a doctor's note and a constant pain in her lower back and that didn't give anyone the right to judge her sat awkwardly in a chair whilst patiently waiting for her appointment.

If she was being honest, the thought of actually undergoing a massage was stressful enough for Beca. The awkwardness, the physical contact and not to mention the lingering smell; an overpowering scent of a hair salon and a hospital all mixed together – quite frankly it all made her feel rather uncomfortable.

She shook her head, letting her eyes wander back to the woman behind the desk, before offering her a pointed glare and nervously pulling at the corner of the medical form on her knee, because yes, apparently filling in a medical form was "extremely important."

All of this because of reaching the top shelf?

Beca had been ambitiously reaching for the last bag of chips on the top shelve of the cupboard in Stacie's apartment last week when she had stretched too far, causing a sound resembling a squeak to escape her lips. Much to Stacie's amusement – looking on from the other room – Beca had jolted upright before bending over slightly and holding the bottom of her back in pain. Since then, walking any faster than a shuffle sent a sharp pain down her spine and sitting down without slowly lowering into the seat first was impossible. Much to Beca's embarrassment, paired with a lot of convincing from Stacie, she had gone to doctor's hoping for a quick fix, but instead was recommended "massage therapy."

So here she is, sat awkwardly in the waiting room and dreading her name being called. Just as she was worriedly typing "what happens when you get a massage?" into the Google tab opened on her phone, the receptionist was calling her name and pointing her in the direction of one of the rooms down the hall. Beca took a deep breath before slowly dragging one foot in front of the other and trying to suppress a painful wince.

"Beca?"

A woman just a little taller than Beca was stood by the door.

"Yeah"

"Hi, I'm Chloe and I'm going to be massaging you today" she offered out her hand with a smile, as Beca shook it before following her into the room and sitting in one of the chairs by the door. Once Chloe sat down in front of her, it was then Beca actually took in her features; the piercing blue eyes, the warm smile; because of course someone this attractive would have to give Beca a massage!

Chloe began asking more medical questions (seriously, was it even necessary?!) and explained how and why massage therapy worked. If Beca was being honest, the whole conversation did nothing but make her more anxious about the inevitable of Chloe rubbing oil on her naked skin for thirty minutes.

It seemed that thought stirred more embarrassment for Beca, as well as making her feel something similar to guilt – should she really be thinking about what this woman's hands would feel like on her skin?

"So, do you mind me asking how you did it?"

Chloe's question was silencing Beca mid thought and she was actually rather thankful for it, but then she could feel the redness twinge at her cheeks, as she made eye contact with the redhead completely oblivious to Beca's almost dirty thoughts.

"Sport injury" she shrugged, ignoring every muscle in her body that told her she shouldn't and hoped the pain in her back wasn't written all over her face as she tried to remain nonchalant.

"Oh, really?"

It was then Beca was realising what drivel was leaving her mouth and suddenly she was in sheer internal panic. Perhaps being honest about her injury would have been more truthful and make her life less difficult, but Beca was never one to make things easier for herself.

"Yeah, so I really need a speedy recovery."

Alright, so that was actually true – Beca had been given a few days off work after she 'overstretched' but now she was starting to see how difficult it was to go about normal day to day life when she walked slower than a snail. Luckily, working in a recording studio allowed Beca to remain off her feet and behind a mixing board, but reaching for further buttons and sliders proved difficult – not to mention the fact she had to wake up two hours earlier than usual in order to take her time to get dressed and drive to the studio.

"Well I can't make any promises, but I'll try my best" Chloe smiled, getting to her feet, "OK, so if you get undressed and I'll be back in five?"

Suddenly the internal panic from earlier was back and Beca felt much like Chloe had pulled the pin from grenade and thrown it into her lap before making her decent and rushing out of the room.

"Undressed?" she repeated, the word sounding worried and uncertain, "Like, no clothes undressed?"

"Seen as the pain is in your lower back it would really help if I was able to access it, you know?"

There was a certain upbeat and playfulness to Chloe's tone, but the reassuring hand currently resting on Beca's forearm translated something else, "Don't worry, there are towels over there and I'll knock before I come back in."

Beca laughed nervously with the nod of her head. Since being here, Beca could recall more than three occasions she almost walked out, never to think of this experience again, but right now, the urge to run – well, shuffle to the door slowly but surely – was at its peak.

"Beca, everything will be fine" the redhead smiled before slipping out of the room, leaving Beca to continue to mentally plan her escape route. If she had the ability to anxiously pace, she would, but the thought of having a massage had created a tenseness in her body that wasn't too pleasant for her back, so she remained seated, racking her brain for an excuse to leave the minute Chloe returned.

But then she was slowly rising to her feet and pulling at the hem of her shirt. There was something in Chloe's previous words that made her want to believe them, not to mention the pain she had been trying to ignore for the last week. She had been half listening when Chloe was explaining "the positive outcomes massage therapy can have on a strained or pulled muscle in the lower back area" and honestly wanted nothing more than to walk like a normal human being again.

"OK" she sighed under her breath in an attempt to calm the tidal wave of nerves currently swirling in the pit of her stomach and delicately pulled the tee up and over her head slowly in an effort to prevent the familiar sharp pain in her spine.

There was a soft knock at the door just after Beca had carefully lowered herself onto the bed. It didn't even register to shout come in until Chloe was calling her name from the other side. After she had eventually communicated she was decent – although she felt anything but – Chloe was standing beside her as the brunette squeezed her eyes shut and pressed her face into the space for her head.

The sudden feel of warm fingers tucking the towel into the waistband of her underwear almost caused her to yelp and leap off the bed.

"Is this your first massage?" Chloe asked, a small trace of amusement in her voice.

"Um, yeah."

Beca had no idea what she was supposed to do with her hands or whether conversation and small talk were expected of her and she was suddenly regretting not leaving when she had the chance.

"I can tell…" Chloe laughed, "…just try and relax."

It was then Beca felt soft hands touch the top of her back and rub around her shoulders before dropping down to the root of her pain. She tried to clear her mind and mentally be somewhere else for the next twenty minutes, but it was proving difficult. It seemed the hands knew exactly what they were doing and where they were supposed to be and the moment they started rubbing soft circles on the small of her back, Beca was mustering up all of her restraint not to let out a satisfying hum.

If there was one thing Beca hadn't anticipated, it was how soothing it all felt. She had been walking around for the past few days with a constant stiffness and it seemed Chloe's hands were finally allowing her body to relax; which was ironic to say the least.

"Just let me know if I use too much pressure."

Beca was sure her cheeks reddened at that, causing her mind to fleet back to Stacie's words from earlier this morning; "having a massage is sensual and relaxing, and even better if you get a hottie rubbing oil on your body, Becs." Her best friend's words were causing Beca's nerves to return, as she pictured Chloe squeezing oil into her hands and rubbing it into the bottom of her back just as the redhead kneaded a particular tender spot causing a sound similar to a moan to leave her lips.

Automatically, her body was tensing on its own accord as Beca internally berated herself, the awkwardness heavily settling around her.

"Becs, relax."

The use of the nickname distracted her more than anything – Beca hated it when strangers called her that, but somehow she liked the way it sounded when Chloe said it.

"This isn't really my kind of thing" Beca announced, slightly disappointed Chloe's hands had stilled on her skin. "Having a massage, I mean. It's not something I would usually do" she added.

"It's not for everyone, but if you feel uncomfortable we can-"

"No, this is actually the least pain I've felt since I…" she trailed off, almost recalling the actual way she got the injury.

Chloe's fingers were moving again, sinking further and further into her skin, kneading and rubbing away the pain. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Beca was slowly relaxing and actually weirdly enjoying it. She was beginning to keep her mind out of the gutter and willed all focus to prevent any noises tumbling from her lips, until Chloe started talking again.

The tinge of playfulness and amusement that was almost apparent in Chloe's voice had seemed to increase the more time went on and Beca was sure this redhead would be the death of her.

"You have really soft skin."

"Do you need me to massage anywhere else?"

This was not helping, as Beca tried to keep a lid on her emotions (desires?) Although there was still a sense of professionalism to her comments, Beca was more than sure by Chloe's tone she was teasing or maybe flirting and quite frankly it was more than just distracting.

Stuttered out replies, "Um, thanks" and rushing out "no, thanks" was doing nothing but causing Chloe to talk more and Beca was dreading the moment she would have to look this woman in the eye once the session was over.

"OK, so I think we're all done" Chloe announced, as her fingers traced the tattoo imprinted on Beca's shoulder for a second too long.

"You can put your clothes back on now" her voice was just louder than a whisper, but the breath that tickled Beca's ear caught her off guard and she was lifting her head in surprise, turning to catch sight of Chloe's face much closer to hers than it perhaps should have been. There was a smug smile settling on the redhead's lips as she made no effort to move away, but in all fairness Beca made no attempt to either.

"Unless you want your happy ending?" Chloe winked.

That was it.

Beca was comically pulling the towel from her under her chest and rushing to sit up, until she was regretting the sudden movement and letting out a whimper as the sharp pain shook her spine. The soft and still oily hands were returning to the small of Beca's back once more, as Chloe rested her hand on Beca's arm in an attempt to help straighten the brunette out.

"I'm sorry, are you OK?" Chloe hurried out, looking equally concerned and guilty.

If it wasn't for her unpleasant discomfort, Beca would have been more embarrassed of the positon she was in; sat on her knees, tightly clutching a towel to her bare chest.

"I-Yeah, I'm fine" Beca spoke through gritted teeth, attempting to look more presentable and not in pain.

"Here" the redhead was grabbing a robe from the chair behind her as she threw it over Beca's shoulders just as the younger woman managed to get her legs hanging off the bed and shrugging her arms into the sleeves with an appreciative smile.

"I'm really sorry, I shouldn't have…" Chloe trailed off, the look of guilt from earlier finding its way back onto her features, "…that wasn't very professional of me."

Beca's hand was instinctively snaking behind her, as she tried to rub away the ache and stiffness that wasn't apparent less than sixty seconds ago, but couldn't help the smile that tugged at the corner of her lips as she realised the irony of it all; it seemed Chloe had the ability to both soothe and irritate her injury simultaneously.

Chloe's seductive words and the suggestive look in her eyes had more than just caught Beca off guard, undoing all of her previous hard work in order to keep her thoughts clean and pure for the most part of the session.

"Honestly, it's fine" Beca chuckled, looking down at her almost naked attire and imagining the fearful and anxious look that had been permanently sat on her face the moment she walked into the parlor.

"I mean, I'd mock me, you know?" she added, her laugher becoming more animated.

Chloe's hand was quickly resting on Beca's arm for a second time, as her eyes searched Beca's, "I wasn't mocking you" her voice was worried and regretful, "I just thought humor would lighten your mood."

Beca had stopped laughing now, seeing the genuine remorse on Chloe's face and for some reason, her hand was wrapping around Chloe's in the form of a reassuring squeeze, "Hey…" Beca waited for the redhead to look up at her, "…seriously, don't worry about it."

Chloe was offering her a small smile and it was then; in their close proximity, now hand in hand; Beca felt a magnetic pull to other woman's lips, so much so, she didn't even notice she was subconsciously leaning a fraction closer.

The sudden knock and holler behind the door caused Beca to pull back, and snatch out of Chloe's.

"Chloe, your next client is waiting!"

The almost intimate moment from a second ago was completely lost as Chloe took a step back, watching Beca struggle the rest of her way down from the bed to the floor, but the smile was still stretched across her lips.

"I'll let you get dressed" she announced, leaving Beca hugging the robe around the front of her body and feeling the most relaxed she had felt all day. Once she was dressed and opening the door, Chloe was waiting in the corridor, "I'll see you next week?" she offered, her voice sounding hopeful.

"Yeah, see you next week" Beca smiled, before attempting to walk less like a woman of ninety years of age, as she felt Chloe's eyes follow her on the way out.

For some strange reason, Beca nerves and anxiety were replaced by an uncharacteristic excitement, as she looked forward to seeing Chloe again.

XXX

A/N: So potentially this could have been hilarious, but my brain didn't cooperate, sorry.