After dinner, Beca had gone upstairs to shower and get into her pajamas. When she returned she found Chloe looking quite comfortable on the couch. She'd also changed and Beca stared for a moment to long at her skimpy tank top and boxer shorts. She was scrolling through Netflix. "Okay so I have it narrowed down to Mean Girls, Silver Linings Playbook and Bridget Jones Diary."
Beca scrunched her nose at the options, unaware they'd decided they were watching a movie. "Well if I have to choose... then Silver Linings Playbook."
"Perfect," Chloe said, undeterred by Beca's lack of enthusiasm. "I know you don't usually like movies but I really think you're going to like this one!" She said. Beca shrugged and sat down beside Chloe.
"Plus it stars Jennifer Lawrence," she added stretching out the celebrity's name. She knew Beca knew this. It was likely why she chose it. But Chloe couldn't help but mention it anyway. All of the Bellas knew of Beca's "girl crush" on Jennifer Lawrence. But Chloe, most of all, was intrigued by it.
"Uh huh," Beca nodded, trying to appear disinterested in this fact. "And Bradley Cooper," she added, remembering he was one of Chloe's favorites.
About halfway into the movie Beca got up. Chloe paused the movie. "Dude, let it play. I'm just going to make some popcorn." Chloe glared at her but resumed the movie. "I know you must've stocked up the pantry when you got here." Beca opened the closet door and discovered she was right.
"Hurry up one of my favorite parts is coming up!"
Beca returned, bowl of popcorn in hand, just in time for the diner scene. She could see why Chloe liked it. It was serious and real but somehow a bit funny too. Beca wasn't sure why but she cringed with embarrassment when JLaw's character talked about the women she'd been with. She hoped Chloe couldn't tell. Beca became hyper aware of her surroundings.
She and Chloe were alone in the Bellas' house, cuddled up on the couch, having movie night. Suddenly she felt nervous. Chloe could sense it. "You okay?" She whispered.
Beca felt Chloe's warm breath on her ear and it sent shivers down her spine. It took all of her concentration to mutter out a simple, "yeah."
When the credits rolled, Chloe looked over at her expectantly, waiting for her review. "Okay fine. It was pretty good."
Chloe smiled, satisfied. "Well for Beca Mitchell that's as good as saying its Oscar-worthy," she teased. "You know I think the secret to getting you to watch movies is finding ones with strong, sexy women..."
Beca rolled her eyes in response. Trying not to have any visible reaction to hearing the words "strong, sexy women" roll off of Chloe's tongue.
"Should we test this theory with another movie?" Chloe proposed. "I hear Shailene Woodley was quite the badass in the Divergent trilogy..."
Beca looked at her watch and back at Chloe's excited face. She looked back apologetically. "Chlo, I've been up since 5:00, I'm pretty beat. I'm going to head to bed." She was tired, sure, but she wasn't that tired. It was the thought of spending another two hours with Chloe's head resting on her shoulder, that was more than her heart could bear.
"Okay," Chloe said with a shrug, trying to play it cool. "See you in the morning!" She chirped, flashing her signature Chloe Beale smile.
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Beca went upstairs and got ready for bed. It was so weird being back. She'd had plenty of opportunities. Her dad still worked at Barden, but even when she was in Atlanta she usually kept her distance. On the rare occasion she'd been on campus, she hadn't been at the house, with the exception of Emily's graduation. Lying there, she glanced around the room that had barely changed at all. She felt comforted by the nostalgia but somehow unsettled by it at the same time. Despite her long day, she had trouble falling asleep. She blamed the uncomfortable twin sized bed but that was only part of it. Her brain was running a mile a minute.
Just as she was drifting off to sleep, she heard her phone buzz. It was from Chloe. "Are you still up?"
Beca wanted to ignore it but curiosity got the better of her. "Yeah," she texted back. A moment later she heard steps outside her door. Then a soft knock. "Come in, Chlo." Chloe stood in the doorway sheepishly. "Yes?" Beca asked.
"My room is making this scary creaking noise. And I kept thinking about this ghost story Amy told me about this house being haunted. So I turned on the light so I'd be less scared. But then I saw a humongous spider. I tried to kill it with my boot but it escaped and now-"
Beca smiled at how adorable, embarrassed, slightly frightened Chloe looked. "And now you want to stay in here." Beca finished for her. It was nothing new. It was how about a quarter of their senior year had gone. Beca had the spare bed whenever Amy was off with Bumper.
Chloe nodded and hopped into the bed next to Beca's. "Thanks," she whispered. They were quiet for a moment. "I miss this," Chloe whispered.
Beca's heartbeat quickened. She hesitated for a moment before finally admitting it. "Me too."
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The next morning Beca woke up uncharacteristically early. Perhaps it was the jetlag. Chloe was still asleep and Beca just laid there for a while admiring how peaceful she looked. Before she could repress the thought, she found herself imagining how nice it would be to wake up to this sight every morning.
She quietly snuck out of the room and wandered downstairs. She was making coffee when she heard the door open. Cynthia Rose came in, a coffee in one hand and a dozen donuts in the other. "Had to have my Dunkin," she explained.
"Hey!" Beca said. "How have you been?"
"Pretty good, Bec. Married life is treating me well," she reported with a smile.
"Glad to hear it," Beca said with a nod.
She and Cynthia Rose sat at the kitchen table catching up for a while. Finally, Cynthia Rose decided to just come out with it and ask.
"We got in pretty late last night. I thought Chloe might still be up, you know her night owl tendencies and all..." Beca, seeing the direction this was heading, started to get nervous. But she kept quiet. "It was really weird though, I popped my head in her room and she was nowhere to be found." Cynthia Rose looked at Beca mischievously, "Did you two finally get it on?"
Beca nearly spit her coffee all over the table. After replying with an emphatic "no" she felt unable to formulate words. Finally she managed to stutter out a few, "There was a spider and a creaking noise and Chloe was scared..." Beca was finally beginning to regain her composure, "she stayed in Amy's bed."
"If you say so..." Cynthia Rose teased.
Chloe made her way into the kitchen, finding Beca still shaken up and Cynthia Rose looking smug. "What are you two talking about?"
"I heard you paid someone a special visit last night..."
"Oh yeah, you know how creeped out I get by spiders," she said, brushing it off. "Can I have a donut?" Beca would never stop being impressed with how smoothly Chloe could transition conversations. Cynthia Rose passed the box to Chloe. "Ooh strawberry!"