A/N: I feel like I think about this story more, and make more notes about it than I actually spend time writing it. I just hope that when I actually do get the chapters written that things come across as I intended. In other words, I hope you're enjoying this story and Beca and Chloe's journey. Up until this point I've written mostly stories involving established relationships, so this is quite a bit different. As always your feedback is greatly appreciated, it really does help me to develop as a writer and figure out what is/isn't working. I love getting your comments, reviews and Tumblr messages (shesamarshmallow), so feel free to keep submitting them. For future reference this story will generally be updated every Sunday, unless for some reason I have the time to update earlier in the week or I get delayed. So look for updates on Sundays. Without further ado, here is the next chapter. Enjoy :)

Chloe was in her bedroom trying on what must have been the tenth, or was it the eleventh top that evening. She hadn't been on a date in years, and even when she was just dating Tom it had been easy. Tom never gave her butterflies, nothing like the ones in her stomach right now as she anticipated her first date with Beca. There was always a kind of safety about going out with Tom, like he loved her no matter what so it didn't matter what she did or said, she had no reason to be nervous. As much as she liked Beca, she felt anxious about this, their first real date. They had hung out plenty of times before, and in plenty of situations that most people would probably classify as a date but never as a potential couple, and not for ten years. This wasn't like showing up to Beca's dorm to watch her mix when Jesse wasn't around, or like the times Beca showed up at her apartment just to talk in between classes. This was something a lot more nerve wracking, a lot more real, this was something Chloe was willing to change her entire life for, and therefore, it needed to be perfect.

"Hey Chloe…oh sorry, I didn't realize you were changing…" Tom stumbled over his words awkwardly as he joined Chloe in the bedroom.

"It's okay, I'm done. I've exhausted my collection of nice shirts now anyway; this one will have to do."

"I've always liked that one; it brings out your eyes."

"Thanks."

"Are you going to be out late?"

"Maybe, I guess…I'm not really sure yet. We're going to dinner."

"Okay, well, just text or something if you are going to be late. Have fun."

Chloe could tell Tom had added that last part half-heartedly, but what could she expect. She knew this was hard on him, doing this to him was hard on her too. She considered cancelling a few times throughout the week. She told herself she should wait until the divorce is final, or until Tom moves out, or until she doesn't feel so incredibly awful about tearing apart their life together. That day won't be anytime soon though, and Beca is back in her life now; who knows how long she would have stayed and waited if Chloe didn't express her interest. Chloe remembers all too well how oblivious Beca seemed to her feelings the first time around. Chloe never just came out and told her how she felt, so Beca moved on. At least that's what Chloe told herself. The possibility that Beca did know and just wasn't interested back then, well, that wasn't something the red head wanted to think about. Still though, so much confusion clouded her mind when it came to Beca and their relationship. Why now, why was Beca so willing to go out with her now but never even considered her when she was making out with Jesse all those years ago? What was different now? Other than their ages Chloe was still Chloe and Beca was still Beca.

"I'm heading out now; I'll be back later. Text me if you need anything." Aubrey had yelled this from her bedroom but stopped before reaching the front door when she saw Chloe moping on the couch.

"Have a good time Bree, I'll see you tomorrow."

"What, no Beca tonight?"

"She's hanging out with Jesse," Chloe said, clearly annoyed by the thought of that particular Treble Maker.

"You know, she'll never know how you feel if you don't tell her. Why don't you just ask her out?"

"I can't."

"You always say that, but you never have a good reason for not doing it."

"I have Tom, and she has Jesse."

"Right, Tom, your boyfriend. Where is he tonight anyway?"

"He's just out with his buddies from the baseball team."

"Out with the guys huh, and you're not there? Chloe you're more like a bro to him than anything else. Friends with benefits at its finest," the blonde scoffed.

The truth in the blonde's words stung. "You just don't get it," Chloe defended.

"I get that you want Beca but instead of being with her every night you're constantly running back into Tom's arms. What am I missing here?"

"He's a good guy Aubrey and we're good together."

"It's easier to stay with him. I get it, but Chloe, sometimes life isn't about doing what's easy."

"Says the girl who is about to go off on yet another date with a stuffy lawyer type," the red head raised an eyebrow as she said this.

At this Aubrey turned back towards the front door, "see you later Chloe."

"Goodnight Bree."

They both knew the other one was right, but neither of them was willing to concede defeat. Being with Tom made sense to Chloe, the way dating men that her father may as well have picked out for her made sense to Aubrey. It was easy, it was expected and it made her at least somewhat happy, most of the time. She would be selling her relationship with Tom short if she didn't admit that she enjoyed his company, and that they had a good time together. Maybe they weren't the perfect pair, and maybe they didn't fit together like a puzzle, but they worked well enough to get by, and that was what Chloe needed right now. Trying to be with Beca meant leaving her comfort zone and as free and open as Chloe seemed, she still craved a healthy dose of security and balance in her life. She still craved the safety and peace of mind that being with Tom gave to her. Maybe Chloe just wasn't ready to take such a big leap of faith, maybe she wasn't ready to take a chance on Beca only to end up hurt. If there was one thing she could count on in life it was that Tom would never hurt her, Tom was a good guy and for now, he was her good guy.

"I'm just going to go say goodnight to the kids and then I'll be off," Chloe informed him. She knew he didn't really want to engage in any further conversation about her date.

"Okay."

As she drove towards the restaurant it began to rain hard. The water droplets pounded against the windows of her van, the wipers working overtime to keep them clear. Chloe couldn't help but wonder if this was a sign; like the universe was just like everyone else, telling her how foolish her life choices are. People just didn't understand so she avoided talking about it. Her own parents, even Aubrey couldn't help but wonder out loud why she would just decide to divorce Tom after all this time. All they saw was how happy the whole family was. Her internal struggle was something that couldn't be seen or felt by anybody else, even the people who cared about her and would try and understand if they could. Sometimes Chloe felt like the only person who did understand was Tom, but it pained her to think about what that meant. Did Tom feel so unloved and neglected by her that he couldn't help but understand why she was leaving him? She pushed that thought out of her mind when she saw the restaurant coming up on her left.

When she saw that Beca's car was already there her heart did a slight backflip. Beca had never been the most punctual person so Chloe couldn't help but feel that eagerness to see her was the culprit behind the brunette's early arrival.

"I ordered this wine, I hope you don't mind. The waiter said it was really good, and would go well with any of their specials tonight," Beca said as the red head approached the table for two.

"I don't mind at all, it looks good. I've always liked red wine."

"I uh…also got you these flowers."

Beca handed her a lovely bouquet of what Chloe couldn't help but notice were her favourite flowers. She felt a slight pang in her chest when she remembered how many times Tom had given her these flowers, but again tried to push the thoughts to the back of her mind. She wanted to enjoy this date and just not think about Tom, but she almost couldn't help it. Beca was being incredibly sweet and trying her best to make this date perfect, a trait she and Tom obviously had in common.

"Wow…, you look incredible tonight. N…not that you don't look great all the time," Tom stumbled over his words.

"I thought since we are going on our first official date tonight that I would wear this, I've been saving it for a special occasion."

"Well, I'm glad you have deemed a date with me to be a special occasion. Any time I get to hang out with you it's special."

"Someone's feeling cheesy tonight," Chloe smirked.

Tom smiled sheepishly, "I got you some flowers. I uh…hope that's not too much. These are your favourite right?"

Chloe admired the lilies that Tom placed in her arms and took a seat at the table. The restaurant was beautiful, a Greek place just off campus that Tom thought Chloe would like. She could tell now that he paid a lot of attention to her. She had only met him a few weeks prior, but since that day they had spent countless hours together, sometimes talking, sometimes doing other things with their mouths. Chloe had never known guys to actually pay attention when she went on about the things she enjoyed, but Tom did. She mentioned one afternoon when they were laying down on the grass in the quad that she loved lilies. Another time, as Tom walked her to class Chloe was telling him how much she liked to try different types of food and that Greek was her current favourite. When she looked up at him she even noticed he was wearing a bright green shirt, and must have remembered the day Chloe raved about how great he looked in green. Tom paid attention to all the little details, he wanted to make this night special for her and so far, he was doing an excellent job.

"I know we've already kissed," Tom started as they stood in the door way of Chloe's dorm room after their night out, "but I'm still kind of nervous about this one."

Before he could continue Chloe leaned forward and closed the gap between them. She pressed her lips to his, smiling internally as he melted into the kiss, returning her warmth and exuberance.

"How was that?" she asked, arms still wrapped around the back of his neck.

"Perfect, kind of like you."

"Hey," Beca's words immediately pulled Chloe out of her trance like state. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, sorry, I'm fine. I was just thinking. These flowers are beautiful, my favourite kind actually."

"I know, I remembered seeing them in your apartment all the time back at Barden."

"Right…yeah, I uh…I did keep them around a lot didn't it."

The flowers Tom always gave her, not that she would ever tell Beca that.

When Chloe managed to get her head space back to the present the conversation began to flow effortlessly as it had the other day at the coffee shop. Beca talked about her work, and her activities. Naturally she was still into music and mixing, but she also apparently had a penchant for hiking which Chloe never would have guessed. The Beca of Barden University was never the outdoorsy activity type, but a lot can change in ten years. Maybe Jesse got her into hiking, who knew. Beca didn't elaborate on the beginnings of her interest; she just talked about the trails she liked best in the area and at one point offered to take Chloe on a hike. Beca, who was normally reserved and quiet Chloe noticed was actually doing a lot of the talking. Chloe realized it was probably because she was trying to avoid any awkward silence and could sense Chloe's uncharacteristic unwillingness to speak up.

"Are you sure you're okay? You're not your usual chatty self."

"I'm fine really, I'm just listening. It's nice to hear you talk about your interests. You're cute when you're passionate."

Beca blushed. It wasn't unlike Chloe to compliment her, but it just hadn't happened like that in so long. The cherry red colour that crept up Beca's cheeks somehow worked to ease Chloe's mind. It was like old times now. Chloe was now just enjoying the company of the cute, slightly embarrassed brunette.

"Fair enough. Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, anything."

"Why now?" Beca blurted out the question that had been plaguing her mind since Chloe had asked her out.

"Why now what?"

"Why did you ask me out now?"

"Because I wanted to go out with you, duh."

"All of the sudden?" Beca raised an eyebrow.

"All of the sudden, for the last ten years, does it matter?"

"Not really. I guess I'm just kind of wondering why you didn't do it back then, I mean, if you wanted to."

Chloe considered the question for a moment. She was enjoying their date, she wasn't sure she wanted to know what would happen if she answered honestly. Bringing up the past might mean nothing, but it might change the dynamic, or alter Beca's feelings. She figured it was too late now to go back though, she had already admitted that she had wanted to go out with Beca for a long time.

"You kissed Jesse," Chloe mumbled, it was barely audible. "You kissed Jesse and you seemed happy. I wanted you to be happy. I figured you kissed him because you wanted to and if you wanted to kiss me, you could have done that instead."

Beca thought about Chloe's revelation before she came up with her response. It was true, Beca had been the one to kiss Jesse, even after all the time she had spent getting close with the red head. It was done in the heat of the moment, though at the time it was what she wanted, or at least what she thought she wanted. Jesse was there, and being with Jesse with nice, he was a good guy, and then it hit her.

"You were with Tom. I guess we thought along the same lines because I figured you were with Tom because you wanted to be and if you wanted to be with me, you would have been with me and not Tom. Tom was your good guy Chloe and Jesse was mine and maybe we both just wanted to take the easy road, you know, because it seemed like the right thing to do at the time."

"I guess so. We're here now though, together, can we just focus on that?"

"I'd like that."

The women ate their dinner largely in comfortable silence. Chloe had always liked the way Beca ate, as odd as it was. The brunette played with her food and thought about it entirely too much before actually eating it. She swirled the pasta around on her fork, popping another mouthful in. Chloe laughed and received a curious glance in return.

"Something funny?" Beca asked, her tone playful.

"Nothing, it's just, you're really cute."

The butterflies were back. All the nervous yet wonderful feelings Chloe got when she was around the brunette were back. She was thankful really, her earlier distractions and hang ups had disappeared for the moment and she was able to just enjoy Beca's company.

"Well, I'm glad you think so. It always irritated my parents that I played with my food so much."

"Nothing about you irritates me," Chloe smiled.

The sky was still dark but the rain had long since stopped when Chloe and Beca made their way back to the restaurant's parking lot. Chloe had let Beca pay for their dinner when it became clear that the brunette was not going to relent. Next time, Chloe had promised, and the glint in Beca's eye told her that she was excited about the possibility of a next time.

"I had a nice time," Beca spoke up as the two women stood next to Beca's car.

"Me too. I have to admit I was nervous about going on a date again after being married for so long, but it felt good."

Beca tried not to visibly cringe at the mention of Chloe's marriage. After tonight she couldn't help but think about how different things might be today if both of them had just had more guts back in the day. What if Beca hadn't kissed Jesse and taken the opportunity to kiss the red head any of the time she had the chance instead. Or if she had at least told Jesse after the first kiss that maybe she wasn't nearly as interested in him as she had let on. If she had just taken a chance maybe this wouldn't be her first date with Chloe, maybe she would be looking forward to their tenth anniversary instead of their second date. The thoughts crossed Beca's mind like rapid fire, and Chloe couldn't help but notice the consternation on the brunette's face.

"It's okay you know, that things turned out this way. Maybe there's a reason we are only on our first date."

"Maybe," Beca agreed, still unsure what that reason could be. The notion that the universe may have wanted them both to spend so many years apart, and with people they never really loved the way they should have seemed odd to her. Chloe had this way of comforting her though, even with words that shouldn't be comforting, or that she can't make sense of.

"In any case, I can't wait for our second date…I mean, if you want to go on a second date that is."

There was the uncertainly that Beca could relate to, the hint of nervousness in Chloe's voice that made her realize that they were feeling the exact same way. She had been fighting the butterflies in her stomach all night, and now she knew that Chloe probably had been too.

"I would love to go on a second date with you. Do you want to maybe come over to my place one night? I could cook you dinner."

Chloe resisted the urge to snort out loud at the idea of Beca making dinner. A lot had obviously changed in ten years.

"That would be nice. I'll figure out a good night and let you know."

"Sounds good," Beca agreed.

The women stood there awkwardly for a moment, both unsure exactly how to end this date. They wanted to kiss each other, they did, but there was still that uncertainly lingering in the air. Was it too soon? Does she want me to? Maybe we should wait. All of these things crossed both of their minds. Wanting to break the tension Chloe settled on leaning in for a hug. She wrapped her arms around Beca's tiny frame and breathed a sigh of relief when Beca's body relaxed into her embrace. She felt Beca's arms snake around her waist and was surprised by the feeling of soft lips touching her own. For a moment she was leaning in deeper into their embrace, enjoying the melting together of their lips. Second later though she tore herself away, the reality of her situation hitting her unpleasantly in a moment she had previously been enjoying. Technically she was still married and in this moment this was a glaring technicality Chloe's brain was seemingly unwilling to ignore. She needed to get home, to her kids, to Tom, to her life, a life that for the past ten years had been uncomplicated and void of any of the feelings swirling through her brain and tugging at her heart right now. She needed to get out of there, so she did. Chloe bolted back to her car and left the parking lot without another word.

Beca was left standing in the parking lot, questioning everything that had happened that night. Things had been going so well. In that moment she could have kicked herself for kissing Chloe. Obviously it was too soon. Whatever she had done, she hoped that she could fix it, but that would have to wait. She would wait a while and text the other woman in hopes that they were still on for that second date. For now though, Beca was left wondering, just as she had been for years. She was back at square one, back in a place where everything between her and Chloe was new, fresh and exciting but also uncertain, and uncomfortably so. Beca hated uncertainties; she hated the lack of assurance and safety. It was why she had lived her life the way she had up until now, but also why she couldn't continue on in that manner. Beca wanted to start actually living her life, not sleepwalk through it like she felt like she had been doing for so long. It was time to take a leap of faith; she just hoped that Chloe would be ready to take it with her.