(Experimenting with telling a little bit of this from Chloe's POV. Let me know your thoughts as I may do this in future chapters if it's well received.)
Chloe isn't sure what she is expecting here in Savannah; what she's expecting with Beca. What she does know is that after the night in Atlanta, she spent the better part of a week staring at Beca's number in her phone and writing several unsent text messages before resorting to some internet stalking and finding out how to contact Jesse instead. It took her three days after finding his Facebook for her to actually contact him, and by the end of her show the night, she was booking a ticket to Savannah for the day their tour ended.
(She books her return flight for a week later, but made sure she had the option to change it, just in case.)
-xxx-
After lunch, Chloe is realizing that it's already going better than she had hoped. Beca didn't yell or tell Chloe to go home or any of the other not so great things Chloe had been prepared for when she showed up at the rehearsal space. Lunch was slightly awkward, but a tolerable level of awkward that's to be expected when you hand out with someone new. It's a little disheartening, Chloe thinks, because she thought they'd shared some sort of connection that first night, easily opening up to each other, but she won't push it.
Beca gives her a tour of SCAD and they end up at a student art exhibit before meeting then meeting Jesse at a local pub. Chloe spends most of the time listening to the two of them banter like brother and sister and swirling her straw around in her glass, staring at Beca surreptitiously when she isn't paying attention. She's apparently not too sneaky, though, because Jesse catches her and winks, causing her to excuse herself to the restroom before either one of them can see the blush creeping up on her cheeks.
-xxx-
They make it back to Beca and Jesse's apartment well past midnight and Jesse heads straight for his bedroom. It feels strangely like their night in Atlanta, except now Beca seems even more uncertain and Chloe doesn't know how to make it better. She doesn't know much of anything really - not about Beca - but she wants to.
"Uh, my bedroom's over here," Beca says, nodding down the hall. "You can take the bed."
"Where are you going to sleep?" Chloe asks.
"Couch, I guess," Beca replies with a shrug as she opens her bedroom door.
There's this fleeting idea of offering to share, but then there's a flash of bare, sweat-slicked skin, and she knows that it's just a disaster waiting to happen. She watches, unmoving, as Beca gathers her pajamas and tosses some dirty clothes into in the hamper. Chloe pretends not to notice that the shirt on top is hers and her eyes follow Beca out the door without a word.
To Chloe's surprise, Beca returns a few moments later; she had assumed the other girl would have headed for the couch already. She watches again as Beca moves through the room, collecting a blanket and two pillows, and it's the sound of Beca's hand on the doorknob that jolts Chloe into action.
"Stay here," she blurts out, and Beca turns to look at her for the first time since they entered the room. "Not... you don't -" Chloe gestures at the bed as if to get her thoughts across. "I'll take the floor."
Beca shakes her head. "Take the bed," she insists, but then she spreads her blanket and pillows out on the floor next to the bed and Chloe figures it's a start.
-xxx-
It's nearly three-thirty in the morning and Chloe has yet to fall asleep. Beca's still awake on the floor; Chloe can hear her sighs every so often and the drum of her fingers against the carpet. There's no faint hint of music so Chloe assumes she's just drumming out the rhythm in her head. It changes up every so often and Chloe finds herself making harmonies to go along with it in her head.
Beca stops suddenly and Chloe shifts, looking over the edge of bed at the other girl.
"Hey," Beca whispers.
"Can't sleep?"
"Nope."
They lie in silence, just looking at each other in and Chloe smiles at the way Beca's eyes still manage to look bright and beautiful, even with the lack of light. Her arm is draped over the edge of the bed, drawing patterns on Beca's blanket, and when her fingers almost brush Beca's, she pauses. She hears Beca's breath hitch in her throat, but she doesn't shy away, she just looks at their and hands then back up at Chloe.
"Do you..." she starts, but Chloe shakes her head, cutting her off.
"When you're ready," she says, sensing Beca's not quite there yet.
There's a long pause and then Beca twitches her fingers, brushing her knuckles against Chloe's. "I'm glad you came."
-xxx-
In the morning, Beca's gone. Chloe sighs, dropping her head back to the pillow, mad at herself for thinking they were actually getting somewhere last night. The clinking of pots and pans in the kitchen pulls her out of her thoughts and when Beca's voice follows, she laughs at herself for instantly thinking the worse. It's not like she has much to go on, really.
Chloe pulls her jeans on and makes her way down the hall and into the kitchen, dropping into one of the chairs as she listens to Beca continue her song. She joins in at the chorus, startling Beca.
"Jesus you scared me," Beca says, clutching the counter to stabilize herself. "How long were you there?"
"Just a few seconds," Chloe says, laughing. "That's my favorite one."
"You actually listened to it?"
Chloe laughs, a deep, full-bellied laugh that makes Beca stare at her like she's crazy. "Are you serious? Of course I listened to it, Beca. I wasn't just asking about the album to be nice."
"I..."
"I asked how much, Beca. I wanted to buy it. Of course I listened to it."
"Oh," is all Beca says, going back into the kitchen to finish the breakfast she started before Chloe woke up.
Chloe takes this as her in to start getting things back to normal - whatever normal is for them. This is her chance to get rid of the elephant in the room, or at least pretend it's a nice art piece until Beca's ready to talk about it.
"Track 1," she says and Beca stops what she's doing. She turns off the stove and splits the eggs between two plates, next to the rapidly cooling toast, and leans against the counter. Chloe wants to comment on how domestic she looks - spatula still in one hand with her arms crossed over her pajamas -but she continues with her plan, Beca just watching her quietly.
"Patience of the Mind. Your vocals are brilliant. That thing you do with the vocoder in the bridge is genius. Track 2. Broken Weekend; such a great song to dance around the house to. Or your hotel room. I'd listen to it before our sets to get hyped up be-" Chloe trails off, avoiding the end of her sentence; they both already know.
"Track 3. The one you were just singing. Chasing Grace. It's absolutely beautiful; that mellow reverb on Jesse's guitar and the light sound of your keys reminds me of summers on the lake. I've probably listened to that one the most because your voice is just insane. So gorgeous and I'd kill to hear it acoustic. Which one of you wrote it?"
"Me," Beca answers quietly.
"Track 4. Dangerous Doubts. Probably the most surprising. A little more rock in it; really gives Jesse a chance to shine vocally but you come in and steal his thunder in the chorus. I love that distorted, buzzy thing you do with your keys when he goes into the solo. And track 5. Can't Teach You Everything. I love this one because it's so upbeat but when you really listen to the lyrics, it's super melancholy. I know it's only three instruments, but it feels so big... like some new form of lo-fi stadium rock. So yes. To answer your question, I have listened to that EP. More than once."
"Wow. I'm impressed. I... wasn't expecting that. Thank you," Beca stutters out, clearly uncomfortable taking compliments, especially ones that aren't generic.
Chloe smiles brightly. "It's the truth," she admits. "And now that we're even on embarrassing admissions of admiration for each other's talent, I think it's time for breakfast."
"It's probably gone cold," Beca says, looking over at the plates with a frown.
"Then I'll buy you breakfast," Chloe tells her, and when Beca smiles and nods, she thinks everything just might be okay.
-xxx-
They get breakfast Beca continues to show Chloe around town, taking her to all the places This New Thing has played, all the places she and Jesse hang out, and even a few of the studios she takes class in. Chloe is genuinely interested in it all, constantly inquiring about things to do and places to see.
"I want to see where you live," she explains to Beca, and the smile on Beca's face is so contagious, all Chloe can do is smile right back.
-xxx-
After the second day, things seem on track, like they've moved past the tension, or at least skillfully avoided it for the time being. Beca is a little more open; Chloe assumes it's because she knows she's not going to be pressured into talking about things. Chloe herself holds back, keeps her hands jammed deep into her pockets when she wants to hold Beca's hand or touch her shoulder and bites her lip when she wants to make a comment she thinks might make Beca pull back.
Other than that, it's good.
-xxx-
Despite Chloe's protests, Beca skips most of her classes for the handful of days Chloe is in town. Friday, though, she has a project to turn in, so they grab breakfast and Chloe walks her to class with promises to meet her back there in an hour.
Chloe makes her way back to the apartment, packing a blanket and a couple bottles of water in her bookbag and then grabs Beca's camera bag before heading back out. She takes her time walking back to campus but still shows up before Beca is finished and by time she exits her class, Chloe is nearly bouncing with excitement. "Come on, I want to take you somewhere."
"Okay okay," Beca laughs and allows Chloe to take her hand and drag her to a waiting cab. "Where are we going?"
"It's a surprise," Chloe says with a smile, leaning in to rest her head on Beca's shoulder. She's breaking her self-imposed touching rule, but when Beca doesn't pull away or tense up, she figures it's okay. "We'll be there soon."