Beca Mitchell hates being reminded of how short she is. Yes, she'll admit that she is, in fact, short. She'll acknowledge it. But having her friends playfully tease her about her height or meeting new people and them loudly and abruptly ask how tall she was, irks her a bit.
Being at 5'2 for the vast majority of her life, she's learned how to take advantage of it. When she can't reach cold medicine in the tallest cabinet of her little apartment in New York, most of the time she's able to maneuver herself on the counter and reach them without help.
Most of the time.
And that's how Beca found herself hopping up and down in the local grocery store like an idiot at one o'clock in the morning. Reaching desperately for some damn cold medicine, which she'd just run out of. Since it was so late, no one was really around to see it, which the brunette was thankful for. However, that also meant that no one was around to help her.
She momentarily considered scaling up the damn shelf like, like, whatever animal climbs walls super fast. She quickly ruled that one out though, remembering a couple specific The Floor is Lava challenges on Youtube.
Beca also wondered how much damage she'd realistically do if she climbed into her cart and used that as a boost. She even got one foot into the cart before she changed her mind, thinking better of the decision. After removing her foot, barely without tripping, she paused. Why in God's name did she get a grocery cart? She came here for one item. One. The DJ sighed, waving it off. "Whatever," she thought.
Now, most people would typically go ask for help from a store employee, Beca included. Especially when she was quite literally sick and tired. But she'd been trying to reach that cold medicine for a good ten minutes, and at that point she was committed. And stubborn. Very, very stubborn.
She was so focused on reaching said cold medicine, that when a fiery haired stranger walked into the aisle with an intense look of amusement on her face, Beca didn't notice. And when said stranger approached her, holding back fits of laughter, she still didn't notice.
In fact, it wasn't until the older women cleared her throat that Beca realized she wasn't alone in the Cough, Cold, & Flu section of Walmart anymore. Spinning around, the DJ was taken aback by the stranger's appearance.
She was stunning. With her ginger locks and shimmering, steel blue eyes, Beca was instantly drawn to her presence.
The stranger held in yet another giggle, noticing the dumbfounded expression on the brunette's face. "Do you, uh, need some help?," she questioned sweetly, a smile playing at her lips.
Beca's jaw dropped a little, then closed. Her mind was swirling with a million thoughts, most of which included the gorgeous stranger standing before her, the fact that she'd likely witnessed Beca jumping about like a lunatic. And of course, the cold medicine. That damn cold medicine. "This is all it's fault," the DJ thought to herself.
Snapping herself back to the question she'd been asked, she considered it for a moment. She did need help. But she absolutely hated asking for it. Which is why, after a few seconds of deliberation, she was stunned to realize that what had slipped out of her mouth ended up being, "yes."
The redhead's grin grew even bigger at Beca's response. She'd be lying is she said she expected that answer. Despite not knowing the girl before her or even anything about her, she'd doubted the brunette would agree to help. She wasn't sure why she'd assumed that. Maybe it was some sort of vibe.
Or maybe it was simply because she figured that if this woman would stand in the middle of a grocery store, hopping around, trying to reach something for as long as Beca did, she'd be unwilling to accept help.
After about thirty seconds, most of which the older woman spent reaching for the medicine, both girls realized that she too, wasn't tall enough to grab, despite being a good at least two inches taller. Beca groaned in defeat, "I'm never gonna get this fucking cold medicine."
The redhead felt her heart sink a tiny bit at the younger woman's comment, which surprised her a bit. But regardless, she decided that she was going to make sure the brunette got the medicine she, truthfully, clearly needed.
Beca was wearing grey sweatpants, and a dark blue hoodie that said "Barden University" along the front. Her hair was a bit disheveled, a beanie resting at the top of her head. She still looked absolutely beautiful though, the redhead found.
Impulsively, the older woman decided to try an idea that had popped into her head just moments before. "Stand here," she ordered the brunette.
"What, dude n-" Beca started to protest, before being dragged in front of the stranger.
"Hop on my back," the redhead continued to order.
Beca looked at her in absolute bewilderment, her eyebrows raising high on her forehead. "You've got to be joking," she sputtered, a hint of amusement in her voice.
The redhead promptly shook her head, "I'm not. Now do you want the 'this fucking cold medicine' or not?," she challenged, repeating the brunette's earlier words back to her face, using them against her.
The DJ was a little taken aback by the stranger's seriousness, and frankly, the use of the same curse word Beca had muttered not moments ago. She shook her head a little in disbelief, "I don't even know your name," she protested.
"It's Chloe. Now jump on my back," the redhead directed, bending down a bit and resting her hands on her thighs.
Beca's expression of utter incredulity sat on her face for a couple beats longer. "Fuck it," she announced, hopping onto the redhead's back as gently as she could. "I'm Beca, by the way."
The older woman let out a melodic chuckle, "it's nice to meet you, Beca." Chloe couldn't help but notice how nice it felt to say the brunette's name. It felt natural. She started grinning as those thoughts came to mind.
Meanwhile, Beca had returned her focus to getting the cold medicine she came for. She threw her hand up in the air, reaching desperately for the box that would finally bring her some relief. To her delight, her fingers closed around the package, pulling it from the top shelf that had given her so much trouble. With another thought, the brunette flipped said inanimate shelf the bird, giving it a ginormous fuck you.
"Got it!," Beca yelled in contentment. Upon hearing the brunette's announcement, Chloe slowly lowered her until she was once again standing on her own two feet.
When they both got themselves composed again, the redhead stuck both of her hands out in front of her, "high fives!"
The DJ grinned slightly, complying and smacking Chloe's hands. "Thank you," she stated with sincerity.
"You're welcome," Chloe acknowledged warmly, throwing the brunette a smile that made Beca swoon a little.
The was an empty pause between the women for a couple seconds before Beca gathered all her courage, "will you go on a date with me some time?," she blurted, eyes widening and cheeks turning a little rosy.
The redhead in front of her beamed, cheeks burning as well, ever so slightly. "I would love to," she answered truthfully. She grabbed a pen from her bag that had been left on the floor as well as Beca's hand. She quickly, but carefully jotted her number down on the brunette's light skin, wanting it to be at least legible.
"Call me sometime," Chloe instructed, capping her blue pen and throwing the brunette a wink before walking off.