Beca steps up to the counter and purchases two tickets, thankful for the excuse to cut Chloe off mid-sentence. Chloe reaches out to pluck a ticket from her hand, but Beca holds it out of reach. "I'm only giving you the ticket if you promise never to talk about kids ever again." She says.
Chloe grins mischievously. "Ever again? What if we get married?"
Beca stops mid-stride and raises her eyebrows. "What?"
Chloe winks lasciviously. "If," She says, plucking a ticket from Beca's hands as the smaller woman stands there, trying and failing to get her short-circuited brain to work again. Beca follows behind her, handing her ticket over to be stamped, mumbling something about cruelty.
They enter the Hall of North American Mammals first, because it's the closest to the entrance and also because Chloe is freakishly excited about the Ice Age diorama. They wander around from exhibit to exhibit – Chloe occasionally reads out interesting facts from the plaques and Beca abandons all attempts at disguising her interest about ten seconds into the tour. "Holy shit," Beca says, scanning the plaque next to the Alaskan Moose diorama. "This thing has antlers that're 6.8 feet long! The heck? That's like, sticking Lebron James on your head or something."
Chloe laughs and raises her eyebrows. "You watch basketball?"
"No," Beca admits. "He's the only one I know, apart from Michael Jordan." They make their way around the museum, skipping some of the halls that sound boring. Chloe is, as ever, an excited bunny, and Beca finds herself getting equally involved. Chloe is just fun to be with, and her optimism is infectious – and Beca really likes spending time with her.
By the time they finish the Dinosaur Wing on the fourth floor, they're both kind of tired, so Beca sits down at a bench and takes out her water bottle. "Man, I never knew this place was so interesting," She says, taking a swig. "My dad tried to bring me here when I was eight, but I threw such a huge tantrum that he gave up and brought me to watch a movie instead."
Chloe raises an eyebrow. "That sounds pretty much like how you almost refused to set foot in Barden," She says.
Beca laughs. "I'm glad he won that argument though. Or I'll never have... I'll never have met you," She finishes softly, her voice cracking a little at the end.
Chloe lifts her eyes so that her gaze meets Beca's. Time seems to slow down a little, and Chloe feels herself falling into those deep grey eyes, trapped there and drowning like a fly stuck in thick, viscous honey. The moment stretches on for what feels like an eternity before Beca finally blinks and looks away. Chloe lays a gentle hand on Beca's shoulder and says, "I'm glad I met you too."
Beca smiles, then remembers that she's supposed to be maintaining her tough-girl persona and tugs her lips downwards so it becomes a half-grin, half-grimace. "Quit being so damn sappy, Beale. Lunch?"
Chloe laughs and gets up. "You were the one being all sappy, Beca Mitchell, don't pull this on me." They make their way down to the first floor, and Chloe approaches a large, thickset man sitting at the counter by the museum entrance. "Hey," She flashes him a winning smile and Beca shakes her head, inadvertently charmed. "What's good for lunch around here?" She asks.
He's clearly the right person to ask, because at the mention of food, he perks up and straightens in his seat as though someone has just offered him a thousand dollars. He pulls out a map of the area and starts rattling off recommendations and Beca feels a little like a tourist but Chloe just nods and grins and takes the map. Once they're out of the museum, they exchange glances and burst out laughing. "Apparently there are five thousand great restaurants 'within walking distance' of this place and I have no clue how to get to any of them," Chloe says.
Beca laughs and takes the map from her. She traces her finger along the lines and scrunches up her face in deep concentration. "You're not fooling me for a second," Chloe says, rolling her eyes. "You have no idea how to read a map."
"I so do," Beca says, sticking out her tongue at Chloe. She jabs her index finger on a random spot on the map. "Let's eat here," She proclaims loudly, showing the map to Chloe.
Chloe shakes her head. She leans over Beca's shoulder and peers down at the map, pausing to push Beca's finger away from the spot so that she can read the street number. "Uh, you do know that's like thirty streets down, right?" Chloe asks, raising her eyebrows.
Beca glares at her and puts on her best no-nonsense-Captain-of-the-Bellas, I-am-worse-than-Aubrey-Posen face. "So what?" She growls. "A little cardio before lunch never hurt anyone." Chloe bursts out laughing in spite of herself, because fierce Beca is adorable. Beca scowls back at her, which only makes the redhead laugh harder. "What's so funny?" Beca demands.
With great difficulty, Chloe swallows her laughter and forces her expression into something that looks appropriately contrite. "Nothing, I think cardio is good," Chloe says. "Except... Why are we going to 49th street in particular?"
Beca shrugs nonchalantly. "'Cause I say so," She says. "Any complaints?"
Chloe bites back a smile. "Nope," She says. Beca grins at her, all the warmth and goofiness returning to her face, and starts walking.
...
It actually doesn't take them that long to arrive on 49th street. Chloe shoots an amused sideways glance at Beca and can't resist making a jibe about her surprisingly fast walking speed despite her... leg-length limitations. Beca laughs and smacks her on the arm. "That's it, Beale, you're paying for lunch."
Chloe peers down at the row of shops and does not see any restaurant in sight. "Which is going to be... where exactly?" Beca falters, uncertain. She looks rather guilty at having suggested eating here on a whim because it seems like there really aren't any eateries nearby. Chloe chuckles and grabs her arm. "C'mon, I was joking. There's got to be something. And even if there isn't, there's always another street, right?" Beca returns Chloe's cheerful smile and allows herself to be towed along the street. They pause outside a shop front with a maroon awning that reads "Gazala place".
Beca and Chloe exchange glances and take a few steps forward. Upon closer inspection, "Gazala place" does in fact sell food and claims to be the first and only Druse-Israeli restaurant in New York. They scan the menu, but it's full of exotic-sounding names. "Uh, looks kinda okay-priced...?" Beca says, peering at the picture on the menu. "Although that's assuming babaganush and moshakal are possible meal options and aren't like, cups of ice water or a slice of cake or something. I can't tell if this picture is of unbaked yeast or a legitimate dish."
"Sounds awesome," Chloe says, pushing the door open. She takes a bold step in and is greeted by an exotic mix of spices, curry, and something vaguely Mediterranean. She shrugs and nods approvingly. "Smells pretty good," She says to Beca. They get a seat by the window facing the street and make a second attempt at deciphering the menu.
In the end they just give up and tell the waiter to get them whatever he thinks is appropriate for lunch and settle back in their chairs to talk. "This is fun," Chloe says, looking around the restaurant in slack-jawed appreciation. "I feel like I'm in Israel or something. I mean, if I squint my eyes and try not to look out of the window, that is. The wall tiles are so pretty. And I'm not sure what exactly they're hanging from the ceilings but I'd totally hang some in my apartment, too, if I knew where to get them." Beca raises her eyebrows. Chloe takes a few seconds to get it, but when she does, her face breaks out into a huge goofy smile. "Our apartment," She says, correcting herself. "... Although I thought someone's real adamant about moving out once she finds some place else..."
Beca makes a face. "I will," She says. "I just haven't found anything else yet."
There's a short pause, and when Chloe speaks again, her voice is soft. "You don't have to leave, you know." A few seconds pass. Beca blinks and lifts her eyes to meet Chloe's. They are clear, and very, very blue – more blue than Beca has ever remembered, and she feels her breath catch in her throat. "I don't want you to leave," Chloe breathes.
Beca's heart stills, and the moment drags on into infinity in her mind.