Beca's POV

I wake with a start, jolting upright in my bed. I pant for a moment, slowly breaking down in tears. My nightmare is so vivid, it feels as if it's actually the truth. I turn my head to look down at Chloe for reassurance, exhaling in relief to find that she is still here- with me.

I sit there for a moment in our studio apartment, trying to regain sentience. Amy is out of town for now, visiting her family in Tasmania. I am so grateful that I get to share a bed with the love of my life- even if she doesn't know it.

I slowly crawl out of the bed, making my way to our small loveseat sofa. I curl up in a fetal position, recounting the terrible dream I just had.

Chloe's POV

As I become more and more conscience, reaching a state of wakefulness, I can feel that something is off. Normally, when I feel that way at night, I curl up next to Beca for comfort. I always feel a sense of safety when I'm in the arms of my best friend. Because of this, I roll over in the bed, only to find cold, empty sheets.

"Beca," I mutter tiredly, barely above a whisper. "Beca," I say a bit louder this time. I here no response, and I feel a sinking sensation in the pit of my stomach. My gut becomes tight and I fear that there is something terribly wrong.

My fight or flight instincts kick in as I feel a rush of adrenaline course through my body. I quickly swing my legs over the side of our bed, standing up. No one can hurt my Beca, I think to myself as I begin to slip my slippers on. Wait, did I just say my Beca. Crap, Chloe. Stop thinking that way. She isn't your Beca…sadly.

I turn the corner, preparing to head out the door, when I hear someone whisper behind me, "Chlo?" No one besides Beca calls me 'Chlo.'

"Beca?"

"What are you doing up?" she asks me.

"What do you mean," I respond, "I woke up and realized you weren't there, so I was getting up to look for you. I was worried."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you, and I'm sorry I worried you. But I'm okay. You can go back to sleep."

"Only if you come back to bed," I say, hoping we can sneak in some cuddle time.

"I don't know, Chlo. I think I may just want to stay here for a bit," she says, sounding slightly shaken up. I decide to sit down on the edge of the couch, placing my hand on her thigh as she sits up.

"What's wrong, Becs?"

"Oh, it's nothing."

"Clearly it's not nothing. You felt the need to get out of bed. Just tell me, I won't judge," I say with as much sincerity as I can. I want her to trust me, but I know that it's hard for her sometimes, so I don't push it.

"Chlo, it's stupid. Really."

"Becs," I say, scooting closer to her so our bodies are now touching. I look her in the eyes and say, "I would never think anything you say is stupid. Not in a million years."

She ponders for a moment, then reluctantly gives in. "Okay," she starts, "I had a nightmare."

"Aww, Becs. I'm sorry. Do you want to talk about it. It might help if you can process it out loud."

"Umm, well…" she stutters for a moment. "Promise you won't judge?" She seems like she is on the verge of tears, so I grab her hand as reassurance. I squeeze it once for encouragement, but I keep ahold of it long after.

"Okay," she says, taking a deep breath. "Well, I had a dream that, umm...shit, this is harder than I thought it'd be. So umm...I dreamt that you met this guy, and umm...you moved out and stuff. You started this beautiful family with the guy of your dreams and you had a picture perfect family with this man, and umm...I tried to be happy for you, and of course I was! I was happy that you were happy and all! I mean, you had finally found the love of your life, ya know. But, umm...I guess I was just kind of lonely in the dream, and you forgot about me and everything. So, yeah...that's it. I know, it's stupid, but I-"

"Beca, it's not stupid. Not at all," I say, trying to hold back tears. If she only knew how I really feel, I think to myself.

"So you aren't mad?"

"Mad? Why would I be mad?"

"Well, I mean...I don't know. Just, in the dream I was kind of mad at you for going off and starting a family...without me. And I know it's really selfish since I'm your best friend and I shouldn't hold you back from going off and finding a man. I don't know," she finishes, averting eye contacting and looking down at her lap. I watch her turn her attention to our hands that are still interlocked. A small smile appears on her lips, but it quickly disappears as she looks away.

"You know," I interrupt, "our hands fit really well together." I smile, looking down at our hands. She turns her attention back at me, smiling once more.

"Yeah. They really do." We both look up, staring deeply into each others eyes.

Beca's POV

I stare deeply into her eyes, getting lost in there beauty. The sense of shame slowly dissipates as I get more and more intransed.

"You have really beautiful eyes, Chlo," I accidentally blurt out. Shit. Did I just say that outloud?! Fuck, why are you so stupid Beca.

Thankfully, Chloe doesn't seem to mind. I watch as her smile grows bigger at the compliment. "Thank you, Beca." She pauses for a moment, then adds, "Have I ever told you how beautiful you are?"

I blush profusely at this, desperately trying to hold back my smile. "I think you've told me once or twice. Mostly when you're drunk."

"You remember that," she asks, sounding shocked. Now it's her turn to blush. And Chloe Beale never blushes. "You, uh...weren't supposed to remember those times…" she says, looking down at her lap.

"Oh, sorry," I say, smiling slightly at the fact that I managed to make Chloe blush.

We sit there for a little while longer, just staring at each other, when Chloe breaks the silence. "I don't know how shaken up you still are from the dream, but I think we should get back to bed. We both need some sleep. And, umm...if you want, we can cuddle…"

I smile at this. "Yeah, I'd like that," I respond.

Chloe and I both stand up, still hand in hand, and walk over to the bed. She lies down first, scooching over just enough to create a Beca-sized spot (which isn't too big). I proceed to lay down in the proper position for spooning, but Chloe has other ideas.

"How about you lay your head on my chest. That way we can hold each other closer."

"Like a couple," I laugh.

"Umm, yeah. Like a couple," she says, confidence faltering slightly.

"Okay." I lay down like Chloe suggested we lay, and I gently lay my head on her chest. We lay in silence for a few moments, when I add, "This is nice. I like this."

I listen to her heartbeat, and I realize that I love laying in this position. I feel sort of bad, but as we lay there, I pretend that we are a couple and this is how we always fall asleep. I feel Chloe kiss the top of my head lightly, resulting in a shiver that courses through my entire body. I mentally scold myself for shivering, but Chloe just laughs lightly.

As I begin to dose off, I hear Chloe's heartbeat even out. I am positive that she has fallen asleep, so I whisper, "I love you, Chlo."

I shut my eyes, feeling content with what I have just said, but my chest tightens when I hear her ask, "What?"

I freeze and feel my heart pound into my chest. Fuck! She wasn't supposed to hear that! What do I do know?!

"Did...did you just say 'I love you, Chlo'?" she asks, oddly sounding sort of happy.

"Umm...wh-what? No, why would I- no, of course not! I mean, I- umm…" Chloe shifts beneath me, and sits up on her elbow to look me in the eyes. I stop trying to defend myself because it's no use. This is it, I think. I've done it. I've ruined our friendship forever. She is probably scared of me now and wants nothing to do with me. I have managed to ruin one of the few good relationships in my life, and my most important one at that. I can't bel-

I feel something soft pressed against my lips.

Oh.

My.

God.

Chloe Beale is kissing me. Holy shit! Chloe- 'effing -Beale is kissing me!

I take advantage of this moment that I have imagined in my head so many times before. All those restless nights of me lying in my bed, imagining this moment over and over again.

Her lips are so soft against mine, and I can definitely say this is the best kiss I have ever had. Whenever I would kiss Jesse while we were still dating, it would be fine, but I would always be thinking, oh, okay. Cool. We're kissing. That's fun I guess. But this kiss? I can't focus on anything besides her warm lips pressed up against mine, and the ever prominent fireworks that are erupting inside my body. I feel her tongue brush lightly against my lower lip and I feel my entire body shake. I open my mouth, allowing her entrance. Her tongue brushes mine and I begin to tear up with joy. This is the best moment of my life, I think to myself. Our tongues dance for awhile while we continue to kiss each other tenderly. Because of the way we are currently laying, we can't really touch each other or run our fingers through each others hair, so Chloe takes it upon herself to gently roll over to where she is now stradling my body while I'm still laying down, managing to not break away from my lips. She does, however, pull away for a moment once she is on top of me, to ask, "Is this position okay? I mean, I know I didn't really ask so I want to make sure you are comfortable. And know that we can stop at anytime if you become uncomfortable. I don't want to-"

"Chlo, it's okay- perfect, actually," I say, smiling at how kind she is.

"Okay," she smiles back.

She slowly leans back down to begin kissing again. She tenderly kisses my top lip, then my bottom lip, then softly takes my bottom lip in between her teeth and sucks on it for a moment. I try to will back the moan that is threatening to come out, but I can't help it. I reach up my hands to run my fingers through her beautiful red locks. The kiss gradually becomes more and more desperate as we passionately kiss each other. It's almost as if all of the sexual tension that has built up between us over the years is finally being released. And it feels wonderful.

Chloe's kisses begin to travel as she makes her way to my cheek, then letting her kisses travel down my jawline. She stops for a moment to adjust, allowing herself access to my neck. She makes direct contact with my pulse point on the first kiss, eliciting a loud moan from deep within my being.

"Holy shit, Chloe," I moan.

After suckling on my pulse point for awhile, I'm sure leaving a mark there, she makes her way back up to my lips, gradually slowing down the kisses to soft, tender ones.

I secretly hope that Chloe has left me with a hickey, even though I have a job interview tomorrow. I want there to be a mark on my neck, signifying that I'm hers now, and my neck is now her acclaimed territory. Besides, I wouldn't want anyone else besides the beautiful woman on top of me being the person who claims me as there's. I trust my life with Chloe, because I know that she would never do anything to hurt me, and I know that she will protect me no matter what. And I can always cover it up with makeup, right?

As the kisses slow to a stop, she lightly pulls away just enough so that she can look me in the eyes. "I love you so much, Beca," she finally says back. I watch her eyes become glossed over with tears, and I realize just how much she really does love me.

We both start to cry tears of joy as we lie back down, looking into each others eyes. Our fronts are almost flush against each others, with her hand on my hip, and my hand lying softly on her cheek. Our foreheads are pressed against one anothers as we smile huge smiles at each other. I run my thumb lightly in circles on her cheek, then brushing over her lip. I give her one more light kiss on the lips, this time savoring the moment, trying to memorize the feel of her lips against mine. I don't think I will ever get tired of that feeling.

I realize, then, how badly I want this woman to be my future wife. How I want, more than anything, to get married to this woman, start a family with her, and grow old with her. I need this woman in my future.

After staring into Chloe's eyes for ages, I ask her, "So, what does this make us now?"

"Whatever you want it to make us," she smiles, tucking a stray piece of my hair behind my ear. She lets her fingertips lightly travel down my ear, then my jaw, then to brush over my lip.

"Okay, well, umm…" I start, awkwardly. Thankfully, Chloe has known me long enough to where she is used to my eminent awkwardness, and I think, finds it a cute quirk. "I, umm," I swallow, "Would you like to be my girlfriend?" I ask, sounding so incredibly awkward.

Chloe's smile turns huge. Even for someone as smiley as Chloe, I don't think I have ever seen her smile this wide in the five years I've known her.

"Yes, yes! Oh my gosh yes!" she shouts, showering my entire face with kisses. She then hugs me tightly, while continuing to kiss me wherever she can. "I love you so freaking much, and I wish there was a phrase that had even more meaning behind it, because even just saying 'I love you' doesn't explain how much I really do love you. There are no word that can describe how much I care about you."

While she continues to lay on top of me, still holding me tightly, I feel her begin to shake. I know that she is crying, and I say, "Oh, Chlo. You are so sweet. I love you so much," I say, holding her tightly. I rub her back with one of my hands, holding her tightly with my other. We remain this way for quite some time, just holding each other as we bask in each other's love.

After what feels like hours, she finally settles down and gives me one last lingering kiss before lying her head on my chest. I can feel her begin to fall asleep, noticing her heartbeat evening out once more, but this time, I am fearless when I say to her:

"I love you, Chlo."