[9:30 p.m.] Hey. This is Chloe. Sam just went to bed. Just wanted to let you know.

Beca didn't look at her phone until ten. "Shit."

She had gotten lost in a mix. She usually did. They were her escape. Her reprieve. This wasn't really a surprise to anyone. They had always been like this, but after. Well after the was a desperate air in her desire to mix. Her songs she produced and created got darker, but there was a deepness that had been lost before. Some of her biggest hits had only come after. Beca hated this fact. Laurie had made her better. A better person, a better producer, a better everything. This was a fact she clung to. So beca had shrugged off her new found fame after. She retreated into a mysterious shadow on the edges of her songs. This just made her more popular. More desirable. Beca wanted none of it.

Beca made her way to the house. She already felt bad. She had gotten used to taking Jesse for granted. When he didn't have to work a night shift Sam usually just stayed at his house, but this woman was not Jesse. Beca had been surprised when Chloe had offered to watch Sam. That wasn't something people just did, but Beca was almost glad. Maybe Sam could have a mother figure in her life after all.

Beca opened the door and immediately saw Chloe sitting in the living room reading.

"I am so so sorry. I got really caught up in my work. I completely forgot."

"It's not a big deal really. To me. Sam lent me this book. It's one of her favorites."

Beca could hear the slight accusatory tone in Chloe's voice. To me. She collapsed onto the nearby couch and dropped her head in her hands.

"Are you ok?"

"Um. Yeah. Yeah I think so."

"Ok." A beat later Chloe asked, "Do you always come home this late?"

Who was this woman? "Do you always ask personal questions when you barely know someone?"

Chloe chuckled. "Sorry. It's part of my job. I'm a psychologist."

Beca finally looked up at Chloe. At those eyes. Her slight smile. What was wrong with her?

"Yeah. that job fits you."

"How can you tell?"

"Well for one all the questions. And two, I dunno, you just kinda have this caring air about. I mean not many people would just offer to watch a kid they barely know."

"Well Sam is a one of a kind kid. I throughly enjoyed my day with her."

"She really is great isn't she?"

"You really love her. What happened?"

Beca stared at Chloe. "It's getting pretty late."

Chloe really hadn't expected Beca to answer her. She also didn't really know why she had asked that question. Chloe was a very open person, but she had grown used to the privacy that people placed around themselves. So she wasn't sure where this had come from. Chloe only knew that there was something about Beca. Something about her made Chloe want to understand, to know. Obviously this was going to take some time.

"I'm sorry. That question was way too forward. I don't even know why I asked that."

Beca sighed. While she hadn't answered the question she hadn't really minded it. There was no way in hell that she was going to talk about...that, but there was something about Chloe. Beca had no idea what it was. She didn't know if she wanted to know what it was, but she had a feeling she was going to figure it out.

"It's really ok. I'm not going to answer you, but it's ok."

Chloe smiled with relief. Beca couldn't help but smile back.

"I have a felling we're going to be really fast friends, Beca."

"I guess I have no say in the matter?" Beca couldn't help but laugh.

Chloe's smile widened. "Oh yeah. You're feelings are absolutely irrelevant."

They bother laughed together. It was nice. Neither had laughed like this in a while.

"Do you work tomorrow?"

"Not usually, but I could always get called in to tweak a song or something."

"Well don't get called in. Tomorrow you and Sam are coming over to dinner."

"Yet another thing I have no say in. I don't know how I feel about this new friendship.

This set off another round of giggles in Chloe. Beca couldn't help but smile. Chloe had an infectious personality. That was for sure.

"Ok. We'll come. I could use a real day off anyway."

Beca couldn't believe that she had just said that. A day off from the only thing that kept her sane. She had barely known this woman for a day. What was happening to her?

"And maybe after Sam goes to bed we could plan a party for her birthday. If you don't already have something planned."

Shit. Shit. How could she have forgotten her birthday. What a fuck up she had become.

"Oh. Yeah sure that sounds great. Yeah ok."

"Ok tomorrow at seven. Don't be late."

As Chloe walked out the front door, Beca's head fell into her hands again. How could she have forgotten something this big? It's not like Beca hadn't realized before what a horrible mom she had been to Sam. There were times in the past years that Beca had forgotten important dates, events that she had been absent for, and hints that Jesse had dropped. But nothing like this. Nothing this big. When had this happened?

She slowly rose and wandered upstairs to her bedroom. She had to change something. But could she? Was she too late?

I promise the next update will be longer. Thank you guys for reading!