A/N: Well, here it is... my mid-week update. It's a little late in the day but I still made it! Hope y'all enjoy it.
Corinne, This chapter would never have come together or been ready to post without you. You've got to be so sick of me asking for 'just one more once over before posting'. Thank you for always believing in me and holding my feet to the fire so that I make the crazy deadlines I set for myself. Your constant love, support and dedication mean the world to me. Thank you for always being you. xx
o~O~o
Chapter 8
o~O~o
"Yes she's my best friend and yes, sometimes we have problems, sometimes we fight. Sometimes we laugh, sometimes we cry. I know everything about her, and she knows everything about me. And even though we have defects, we love each other and we always will."
o~O~o
Luke Donovan was born and raised in a leafy suburb on the outskirts of the city of London, England until he was almost eight years old. Wandsworth was a pleasant area to live and still prided itself on its community spirit and culture despite it's close proximity to the city. Luke loved his school; the small and independently run Lockwood Manor. Luke worked hard in school and achieved decent grades although it was clear from the get go, he was not a scholar. His passion lay in sports and music and the school supported his desires as he did maintain a passable GPA in the classroom. Luke was studious and paid attention to the smaller details in life, noticing things like a small dent in his parent's car or how a neighbor's mail had started to build up which prompted a visit from his Dad to check on old Mr. Foster.
He played on the school football team and ran track for a local youth club. He was always begging his Mum and Dad to let him learn the piano, so for his sixth birthday, they bought him a second hand, worn and slightly battered upright piano. It had a basic set of 88 keys, a sluggish damper pedal and a small dent in the lid but Luke loved it and true to his word, he practiced for two hours every night. Within a month, he had passed his first exam and he lovingly propped up his certificate on top of the piano for all to see.
For Christmas that year, he got a small set of drums which his mother put in the attic so he could practice without disturbing everyone else in the house. The smile he wore on his face for the remainder of Christmas that year was magical and he was truly happy and content.
Spencer and Claire Donovan had prided themselves on raising their boys right. Luke was the eldest of their two boys and took his responsibilities as older brother quite seriously. Jake, who was two years younger, was always in Luke's field of vision. When they went to the park, Luke tried hard to keep Jake from getting into fights and avoid messing up his pretty boy face.
They were trusted to walk to the corner shop with their pocket money every Saturday and were allowed to each buy a new comic book and a bag of sweets. Luke carefully saved his candy and made it last the entire week whereas Jake had finished his by the time they arrived back home. Luke carefully saved every spare penny he had, hiding the jar in the far back corner of his closet. He was forever counting his fortune which amounted to no more than a few pounds but to him, it was everything.
Luke was quite sensible and took pride in not only the way he looked but in the way he presented himself. He always dressed neatly in jeans with a belt, a clean polo or button up shirt, which was always tucked in and polished shoes. He cleaned his football cleats after every game and took pride in his school uniform. Jake, on the other hand, couldn't care less what he looked like and usually just wore his favourite worn hoodie everywhere, if he wasn't wearing it properly, you could be guaranteed that he was either wearing it as a cape or tied around his waist. It served as padding for his many falls as he practiced his skills on his BMX bike or when he tried, and failed, to teach his American friends the fine art of English football.
When the boys were 8 and 6, Spencer accepted a new position with an American law firm based in Los Angeles and within six weeks, the family had moved to California. The boys were excited by the thought of a new adventure but cried when they had to leave both sets of Grandparents behind. Luke made his Grandad promise that he take care of his piano and his Grandma promised to send them comics and English sweets a few times a month.
Sitting on the plane, young Luke made a decision that he was going to keep his nose clean, stay out of trouble and keep to himself. He wasn't old enough to have formed a lifelong friendship with anyone but he knew he would miss his old school friends. He decided he would work hard in school and do all the chores so he could to save up for a new piano and drum kit. He didn't need any friends or so he thought. That plan worked well for the first five hours of him being on American soil. Hours after arriving, his mother took him and Jake to the local park and that's when he met Beca Mitchell.
Looking back on his younger years, Luke would readily admit, he actually loved Beca from the moment he first saw her, swinging her little legs on the bench in the park. It was never a childish crush or unfounded infatuation, he just knew they would be friends forever. And Beca had said the same thing; telling him that he was her best friend on the third day they knew each other. Within weeks of the two meeting, they were inseparable; never spending more than a few hours apart. From the very start, they were fiercely protective of one another and would pine, feel lost and out of sorts until they were reunited again.
Their families became extremely close because of their little friendship. Anne introduced Claire to all of her friends and would regularly suggest shopping trips to the mall on Saturdays or offer a glass of wine in the den when either of them had had a bad day or simply 'just because'. William asked Spencer to join his golf game and the men's club at the kids school. William also introduced Spencer to American football, tailgating and racketball.
There wasn't a birthday, Thanksgiving or Christmas that the families didn't share with each other at some point. The Mitchell's got used to Luke turning up just before dinner on Thanksgiving; an American tradition that his English family never got into. He had an open invitation to join them as William and Anne enjoyed watching the two youngsters wrestle over the turkey's wishbone.
In turn, Luke always expected Beca to be at his house when his mother painfully went through putting on a huge show for St George's Day; even extending invites to most of the neighbors for tea and crumpets to celebrate their English heritage. Luke found the whole thing quite embarrassing so he would steal a few sweet treats and escape to his tree house which is where Beca always found him. She climbed up the tree as well as any boy, her sleeping bag in a backpack and her pillow jammed in her hoodie. She gave the special knock on the old pallet that served as a door and Luke would take her things and stow them away quickly so they could play.
Their adventures had them sailing the seven seas as pirates, they were intrepid explorers and, as soon as Beca found out Luke liked to run track, they became Olympic gold medalists; running a special course between their two houses and the woods behind them. Luke knew he liked Beca because every now and then he would let her beat him. Jake teased them relentlessly, making silly kissing noises whenever they walked past. He would shout out of his bedroom window that Beca and Luke were boyfriend and girlfriend right before he started singing 'Beca and Luke sittin' in a tree K-I-S-S-I-N-G'. Beca and Luke never gave Jake the time of day and eventually he found some new friends and left them alone.
As the years passed and the need to sleep on logs and under the night sky to look for shooting stars faded away, Luke would regularly stay over at Beca's house. He found himself sleeping on a pile of blankets and pillows on her bedroom floor. Beca would often take his picture as he fell asleep clutching a small stuffed dog named Pip that only Beca knew that he took to bed.
Most mornings after he stayed the night, Luke woke to find Beca curled up around his body on the floor, despite her excessively cosy bed just feet away. He never wanted to wake her and while he always had the urge to kiss her cherry red lips or even touch one of her breasts, he never acted on it. He knew doing that would ruin what they had. In turn, Beca would sigh when Luke changed his shirt in front of her, the definition of his chest developing as they aged through their teenage years. She awoke one morning when she was fourteen desperate to know what he looked like naked. That was the first time there had been an awkwardness about them.
As they entered their teenage years, Beca struggled with monthly cramps and Luke was always there with cupcakes and music to help take her mind off of how she was feeling. She'd lay in his lap as they played video games and he'd sit with his arm around her at cinema. He felt lost without her and she missed him terribly when he'd go England for a month every summer to visit family.
They had found a soul mate in each other.
They'd been best friends for as long as they could remember, and while they'd come close a couple of times, neither of them took their relationship past the friend zone. At Ben Tucker's 16th birthday party, a keg of beer had gone down quicker than a whore's drawers and they somehow ended up in a corner with Luke's hand traveling under Beca's shirt and heading towards her right breast. They laughed it off the next morning with a snarky comments and nervous giggles.
Another time, they'd gone to a party and had ended up watching a porno that had been left in the DVD player. Beca didn't really know what to make of the look on Luke's face that night. She had to snap her fingers in front of his face several times to stop the pained expression. He had looked longingly at her as she told him not to get any funny ideas. A couple of hours later, as Luke stripped down to his underwear to get ready for bed, Beca had seen a definitive outline in his shorts that made her wonder what it would be like if they slept together. By the next day, everything was back to normal as they finished off a music mash up for Jake's birthday party.
Luke and Beca both casually dated a little throughout high school. Nothing ever went past a couple of dates and they both admitted to each other that first base was as far as they got. Everyone had assumed that they would become a couple, get engaged and marry right out of school. They had their first uncomfortable conversation about whether marriage and family was something either of them wanted together. They both agreed their friendship was much more important but made a pact that if they weren't married by the time they were 30, they would consider it.
Going their separate ways in the real world meant finding new friends and interests. Luke was always texting Beca with new Americanisms and Beca would get excited about being the coffee runner at her internship which they both knew that it was a joke, seeing how Beca rose through the ranks quicker than anyone in many years.
Like Beca, Luke was a Music Producer. He'd been hired at Universal Music Group after a three year internship and because he and Beca were just as competitive as they were protective, it made their careers interesting. They were in constant competition to see who could sign 'the next big thing' and when they did, no matter what time it was they had to rub it in the other's face.
"You know how you wanted Pharrell to add vocals on the latest Jesse J single?"
"Bec… It's 1am."
"Sack up, dude. Pharrell just signed to Warner. BOOM!"
"Go away. It's late."
"You snooze, you lose Brit Boy. PS: It's early!"
"I hate you."
"Coffee at 10?"
"See you then."
"Sweet dreams my Sleeping Beauty. XO"
Despite not seeing each other daily, Luke was always there for Beca and she was there for him. Beca called Luke when her car died on the way back from a late night talent search in Anaheim. She knew that even though it was 2:30 in the morning Luke would come get her. She didn't know exactly where she was when she called, so Luke used his 'Find My Friend' app to ping her phone and found her location. While pulling a tee shirt over his head as he talked, he told her to find somewhere safe to wait.
She texted him a few minutes later and told him that she was going to close her eyes for a few minutes and asked that he hurry up because she had to pee. When he got there she was knocked smooth out so he scooped her up carefully, placed her on the back seat of his car and drove back to her apartment. He carried her up three flights of stairs and struggled with the front door before dumping her on her bed. He heard a whispered 'thank you' before he left to call a tow truck to get Beca's car brought back to LA.
A few months later, Luke was at a training seminar in San Francisco when he lost his wallet somewhere on the boat back from a quick tourist visit to Alcatraz Island. He didn't realize it was gone until he got to the airport the next morning. Although he left the hotel in plenty of time, traffic caused him to cut it close and he reached the departures counter just in time. After noticing his wallet was lost, Luke thought he dropped it somewhere in the airport and spent over half an hour pacing back and forth. He phoned Beca to tell her what happened but before he could tell her everything his phone died.
Luke searched his luggage frantically for his phone charger. Once he was plugged in, he received several messages from Beca. She told him she was leaving work and headed to his apartment to find his English passport and that she would fax a copy of it to airport security and email a copy to the airline.
By the time he reached home, 12 hours later than planned, she had already called his boss to explain, canceled all of his credit cards, and picked up forms for him to replace his missing American passport and driver's licence. She also picked up a six pack of beer, Chinese food and some M&M's.
It was just what they did for each other.
o~O~o
Luke met Ryan Harris through work. Luke's office was being refurbished and Universal had hired Ryan's firm for the job. The two clicked well and Ryan immediately recognized the soft lilt of an English accent in Luke's dialect and struck up a conversation as to where he was from. Ryan had family in the north of England and while the pronunciation was different, he noticed that Luke was using words like 'trousers', 'bloody hell' and 'wanker'.
Luke took him out for a beer after work at the end of his first week. Ryan was a couple of years older than him but he was very interesting and easy to talk to. He found out that Ryan was taking on a few small jobs before beginning work on the large expansion at Disney World, then tackling Disneyland after that. As they sat at the bar, Luke received a text from Beca who was desperate for a drink after a gruelling day. Luke immediately asked Ryan if he minded if his best friend joined them.
Luke smiled when he saw Ryan's reaction to Beca. She was wearing a short black skirt and a bright red low cut top and Ryan couldn't take his eyes off her chest as she leaned forward to plant a noisy kiss on Luke's cheek. Snatching Luke's bottle of beer up from him, she took a healthy swig before noticing Ryan. The instant their eyes locked, Luke felt the tension shift in the room and he wasn't quite sure what to make of it. He watched as Beca held out her hand to the stranger, Ryan couldn't jump out his seat fast enough to return the gesture. At 6'4", he towered over Beca but he looked down shyly at her as she introduced herself. Offering her his chair, Ryan looked confused as Beca took the seat next to Luke.
"Are you two ..." He asked, not sure how to phrase the question. Luke and Beca looked at each other before they sniggered, both explaining at the same time that they had been friends their entire lives and were more like brother and sister than anything else.
Luke, however, remained a little quiet for the rest of the evening as he watched Beca flirt with Ryan. He couldn't quite entertain the idea of dating his best friend but, at the same time, couldn't imagine her being someone else's girlfriend. They had both fooled around a little with other people at parties and he'd walked in on Beca playing tonsil hockey with Evan Johnson after high school prom. He was all but dry humping her leg when Luke bellowed that their ride was about to leave. Beca had laughed when Luke told her about the time that Kirsten Killian's dad had interrupted them thirty seconds after they rounded third base.
Luke felt something stick in his throat as he watched Beca relax in Ryan's company but he also really wanted her to be happy.
"It's not like I expect her to sit at home all night knitting or anything?" Luke complained to Aubrey that night over the phone. "I mean, we're 23 and she's not really played the field all that much."
"Well, you know Bec. She isn't one to just shack up with a random guy, is she?"
"No, no she's not. It just feels weird."
"It's bound to be. Have some faith in her. She's usually a pretty good judge of character." Aubrey reminded him. "It's about time you two spread your wings a little anyway. But Luke, you've got to know that Beca isn't going anywhere. You two are inseparable."
Luke was glad he decided to speak to Aubrey despite him feeling like a big girl about the whole thing but his protective nature towards Beca was stronger than ever. He couldn't help it. He burned his excess energy and bad mood for an extra hour at the gym the next day as he thought about Aubrey's words. He knew she was right. When he got home, he called building maintenance after finding a roof leak. 'When it rains it pours.' He told himself. After showering, he was preparing dinner when Beca called.
"So... thought I'd let you know..." Beca began as soon as he said hello. "... Ryan asked for my number last night and texted me about twenty minutes ago. We're going to dinner on Friday night."
Luke swallowed hard before responding, remembering the promise he'd made to himself that he'd be happy for her. "That's great Bec!" He said, hoping he sounded sincere enough. "He seems like a nice guy."
"Yeah, he does. I'm certainly not letting my guard down right now but he seems decent. You know?"
"I do."
"I thought about him all day today." Beca admitted.
"Did you?" Luke asked, swallowing thickly.
"Yeah, dude got under my skin. Anyway, whatcha doing?" Beca asked.
"Cooking some pasta."
"Nice." Beca said and paused for just a moment too long.
"You still there?" Luke asked.
"Sure am. Listen, I want to make sure you are ok with me going out with Ryan?"
"Me?"
"No, dumbass… the FBI agents listening in on our calls."
"Why wouldn't I be ok with it?" Luke said, as he stirred his pasta.
"Because it's just been you and me for so long. We rarely go an hour without speaking and I just wanted you to know that-"
"-I know. Save the speech! It's ok. One of us had to jump ship first."
"I'm not jumping ship Luke!"
"Yeah… ok."
"Don't go all British on me. What's wrong?"
"I swear all…" Luke paused as there was a knock at the door. Thinking it was maintenance supervisor, he turned down the heat on the stove. "... Bec, there's someone at the door. I'll call you back in-"
"-I'll wait."
Luke unlocked the door as he tucked the phone under his chin and pulled on the handle.
"Hi." Beca said, grinning at Luke's surprised face.
"Why are you-"
"-I've got garlic bread, homemade pasta sauce, salad and a bottle of something cold." Beca said as she handed Luke a cloth bag brimming with goodies.
"What are you doing here?" Luke said, taking the phone from his ear and ending the call.
"I'm here for dinner."
"Why?"
"Are you going to let me in?" Beca asked pushing past Luke and not waiting for a response. She walked into the kitchen, shrugging her jacket off as she went, tossing it somewhere on the floor. Picking up the spoon, she stirred Luke's almost cooked pasta. "I'm not sure how anyone can ruin pasta but you manage it every time."
"Screw you." Luke said, trying not to laugh. He felt his heart lift in his chest as he grabbed at the tea towel on the side.
"You wish!" Beca said, as she fished out a piece of pasta to test, grimacing as she put the noodle into her mouth. "Luke, buddy, you gotta learn about herbs."
"Nah, why bother when you can cook all my meals. That's the only reason I keep you around!"
"Fuck you!"
"Fuck you!" Luke snarled but the wide smile belied his words. They both fell into a comfortable silence for a moment or two before Luke spoke again. "Why are you here anyway? It's Tuesday."
"And?"
"Shouldn't you be out with Aubrey at pilates?" Luke asked.
"Stalker much." Beca said, casting him a playful eye.
"Yeah, well ... I just know that it went from Tutu Tuesday to Pilates."
"Wow, you do listen occasionally! Listen, I'm only gonna say this once." Beca said, turning around and wiping her hands on Luke's clean tee shirt.
"Mate, I've got a tea towel in my hand and-"
"-You and that effing tea towel. God, sometimes it's like the Queen of 'bloody' England showed up. It's just towel. Ok?"
"What crawled up your arse?" Luke asked as he leaned around Beca to turn the stove off.
"Sixteen midgets with handguns. Now will you listen?" Beca said, smacking his hand with the cooking spoon.
"Yes ma'am." Luke said, spinning her around and placing both hands on her shoulders. He looked down, directly into her eyes.
"You and me." Beca said, wrapping her arms around his waist. "You are the butter to my bread. The sun to my moon. The ying to my yang. You are my person. Dude, why the fuck are you laughing right now? I'm oozing with gushiness and you're making fun."
"I'm sorry." Luke laughed out loudly. "'The sun to my moon!' Why Beca Mitchell, I do believe you have mellowed-"
"-Fuck off!" She barked as she turned around. "Get the plates out."
"Sorry! C'mon, tell me… what were you going to say?" Luke asked as Beca wrestled to get away from him.
"Nope. You lost your chance. Eat shit and die."
Luke bent down and kissed her cheek, leaving his lips by her ear a moment too long. "Thank you for coming over. Means a lot. I love you too."
"Plates!" Beca said. "Asshole."
"Troll." Luke bit back as he reached into one of the cabinets for a couple of dinner plates. He set them down near Beca and stood back a little as she turned around and busied herself in the bag of food she brought.
"Pompous twat."
"Tinkerbell."
"Wanker!" Beca remarked as she emptied food out of their containers.
"Shrimp."
"Limey."
"Oompa Loompa."
"Hey! I'm not fat!"
"No, but you're short!"
"Fuckin' Nancy boy."
"Fanny Ann Fanackapan." Luke said, twisting the towel in his hands. He whipped it at Beca's legs making her squeal.
"You are so gonna pay for that!" Beca shouted as she picked up the serving fork she'd been using, brandishing it towards Luke's junk. He put his hands up in mock surrender. She rolled her eyes at him and nodded towards the bottle in her bag. "That shit doesn't pour itself."
"I'm on it! But aren't you driving?" Luke asked and inwardly smiled as he rooted around in the utensil drawer for the corkscrew. Beca motioned towards the duffle bag by the door which meant she was staying over. He was pleased there was nothing weird about their friendship and everything seemed as normal as ever. Even though she was potentially going to be busy with Ryan if things worked out for them and he had a feeling that they would, he knew deep down that they were solid. He glanced over at the flower tattoo on her shoulder; the ultimate symbol of their friendship.
"Dude, you're staring." Beca growled as she picked up the dinner plates. "You're so weird."
The rest of the evening passed just the same as any other night. Luke began falling asleep around 11 and by midnight, he was passed out on the couch. Beca threw a blanket over him before she headed off to Luke's bedroom. She paused at the door, turned off the light and took one last look at a sleeping Luke.
"You'll always be my first love." She whispered.
Luke heard what she said as the door closed behind her and he felt an ache in his belly that took four days to subside as he listened to her brushing her teeth. He never told her he had heard what she said.
o~O~o
Six months later, four couples sat around a large round table at Beca's favorite restaurant, celebrating her 24th birthday.
Beca had been seeing Ryan for a while and anyone who watched them could see that they were really happy together. Aubrey, smitten to pieces with Ben Applebaum, sat opposite Beca watching her all night with a wide smile on her face. Amy, the ever present best friend had brought along her latest beau, a slightly eccentric and obviously nerdy fellow Aussie named Malcolm Thomas. Luke was there, tucked into Beca's left side while Ryan was on her right. He'd brought along his girlfriend, Megan, who he'd been dating for a couple of months. Beca wasn't sure if she liked her; she was far too polite and sweet but as Luke only had eyes for her, Beca wasn't about to burst his bubble.
The evening went well with copious amounts of wine and stories shared among the group. As always, it was Beca and Luke who were the ones left at the table at the end of the night. They sat, almost cheek to cheek, as they messed around playing a stupid game where they tried to slap each others hands. Ryan had gone to pay the tab and Megan was talking with Aubrey at the bar.
"You seem happy Becs." Luke said, picking up her hand and entwining their fingers.
"I am. He makes me happy."
"He's good for you." Luke stated plainly.
"Yeah." Beca said simply, looking down at their hands. "It's just..."
"Just what?" Luke asked after a moment. He could see that Beca was itching to tell him something.
"Ugh, I dunno. I hate that he's away so much with work." Beca said, looking up to see where Ryan was and making sure he wasn't listening. "I could handle it at the beginning, when I wasn't so invested in the relationship. I'd really like to make it work, but he's away so much. I've only seen him twice this month."
"Have you talked to him about it?"
"No." She said quietly.
"Why not?"
"Cuz he takes off his shirt, kisses me and I forget what I was about to say."
"You tramp!" Luke laughed. "You're just in it for the sex."
"Shut up!" Beca said, her face flushing. "I mean, yeah, that part's ok. More than ok, actually. He's pretty good where that is concerned and always makes sure I am taken care of. But with my schedule and him being in Florida more and more, it's just... Oh hey Ryan!"
"Hey you. Ready to go?." Ryan asked, offering his hand out to Beca. She unwrapped herself from Luke and took Ryan's hand. Luke stood up and nodded to Megan who motioned that she was going to the ladies room. Ryan held out his hand to Luke. "Good to see you Luke. Great evening."
"It was indeed." Luke said, shaking Ryan's hand vigorously. "You take care of my girl now. I mean, your girl. I mean… yeah, um, goodnight."
Ryan raised an eyebrow but nodded to Luke before getting Beca's jacket off the back of her chair. He held it open and she clumsily slipped her arms in through the sleeves. Spinning around, she reached up to peck Luke's cheek.
"Thanks for coming. I love you."
"Love you too Munchkin."
"You are still an asshole."
"Always."
"Come on Bec. Time to go." Ryan said as he guided her away from the table. He nodded once more to Luke before wrapping his arm around Beca's shoulders. Beca waved quietly as she passed by Aubrey and Ben and followed the path out to the waiting cab. Luke watched the whole time from his spot by the table without moving.
"You know, you should just tell her."
"Wait, what?" Luke said as he snapped his head around and saw Megan standing next to him.
"You're a really great guy Luke, you really are. And we've had some fun. But your heart is with her. You should tell her."
"Oh no, wait, you've got the wrong idea. She's my best friend and-"
"-It's ok. I get it." Megan said, smiling. "I do. But no one will ever compare to her."
"It's not that at all." Luke said, as he fished for Megan's hand. "I'm just protective and she get's into so many scrapes and..."
"This has been fun but I know it's not going anywhere. If you ever need a date to something important, give me a call."
"Are you breaking up with me?" Luke asked.
"This never really started, did it?" Megan responded as she kissed his cheek. "Take care of yourself."
Luke watched as she walked away, stopping to say goodbye to Aubrey on her way past. Luke watched Aubrey's face as Megan obviously told her what had just happened and he squirmed under her beady eye.
He went home alone that night. He really tried to move on with his life and had been out on a few dates in the last few months but he had found himself comparing every girl he met to Beca. He knew he needed to get laid and fast. Swigging the chilled bottle of wine that he'd been saving to share with Megan, he called Allie, his friend with benefits. He liked her anyway, she was good company and if he was honest, he wouldn't mind taking things further with her; in a way she reminded him a lot of Beca with her 'take no shit' attitude and sense of humor. She was relationship material and had definite potential but she kept saying she didn't want to be tied down to anyone or anything.
Allie showed up half an hour later wearing one of Luke's dress shirts that she'd stolen previously and nothing but a lacy bra and barely there panties underneath. Allie liked Luke and she'd actually spent most of the day thinking about him as she'd seen lots of commercials on the local television promoting a small talent contest. Allie knew Luke attended those sort of things with work and she was going to see if he wanted some company. She turned up at his apartment, knowing the reason why he'd called her and took him straight to bed.
He was sleeping off a marathon sex session and a massive hangover when his phone rang. Sitting up in bed too quickly, he saw the room begin to sway as he grabbed at the phone on his night stand. Swiping at the phone clumsily, he didn't even check the name as he put the phone to his ear.
"'lo." He said as he swallowed down the burn in his throat.
"It's me."
"Becs?"
"Yeah dumbass, who else calls you in the middle of the night."
"Sup?"
"Clearly, not you."
"Whadyouwant?" Luke hissed out.
"Can you talk? Is Megan there?"
"She's gone."
"Really? She didn't stay over?" Beca questioned.
"Nope." Luke grumbled.
"Then whose car is in your spare parking spot?"
"What? Where are you?" The answer to Luke's question came quickly as his doorbell sounded louder than a fog horn. It resonated throughout his loft apartment and he held his hand over his ears. "Whatthefuck?"
"Let me in."
"Who's that?" Allie murmured from underneath the blankets. "What the fuck time is it?"
"It's Beca."
"Tell her to go away." Allie said, regretting opening the third bottle of wine. She turned over in bed and pulled the covers over her head.
"Hang on." Luke slipped out of bed and slowly stumbled his way to the front door, using the wall to steady himself. He tried to pull on the door to open it but it didn't move.
"You idiot, you have to unlock it first." Beca deadpanned through the keyhole.
"Fuck." Luke said as he unlocked the door, looking at her like she was as rare as hen's teeth.
"Um, Luke?" Beca said as she came face to face with her very naked friend. She pointed to his junk as she ended the call on her phone. Luke looked down and shrugged his shoulders.
"Don't care." Luke said, squinting at the light in the hallway with one eye still closed. "Go'way."
"Let me in." Beca said and Luke stood aside to welcome her in, despite what he just said. Beca headed into the living room and Luke followed her after closing the door.
"Drink?" Luke grumbled, thinking how hair of the dog might cure all.
"No, I'm fine. Although..." Beca looked around at the living room and the evidence of someone drowning their sorrows in several bottles of wine. "... it looks like you had a few when you got home." Beca picked up a bottle of something expensive and drained the last few sips out of it.
"Why're you here?" Luke asked, scratching an ass cheek.
"Ryan and I had a fight." Beca made a face. "Dude, stop doing that."
"Why?" Luke fought to clear the fog from his brain as her words registered.
"It's nothing."
"You wouldn't be here if it was..." Luke stifled a yawn. "... nothing."
"Doesn't matter. We had words and I wanted out of there."
"Beca?"
"It's nothing. Really."
"You're lying." Luke said, blinking a couple of times then wiping his eyes.
"I know."
"Talk to me."
"It was about you." Beca said quietly.
"Me?"
"Yes."
"What do I have to do with anything?" Luke asked.
"He doesn't really understand 'us'."
"Well, in his defense, who does?"
"True."
"I'm sorry Becs." Luke said, completely understanding what has being said and thinking that if he wasn't naked he would have pulled her into a hug.
"Yeah well. We were cuddling in bed after... you know? And he asked me if we'd ever slept together." Beca said, making a face as she spoke.
"Nice timing. What did you say?"
"Well... no, of course."
"Course." Luke twisted his mouth in agreement.
"Anyway, he was acting like a dick. It was our first real fight and I walked out without my keys. Then I remembered that you had my spare set." Beca said. "If I'd known you'd be sleeping off a drunken stupor, I'd have called my Dad and bore the brunt of one of his 'you should be more responsible' conversations."
"You want your keys?"
"Yeah, just my house key. I don't need my car keys." Beca said grabbing her head. "Whoa, why is the room spinning?"
"Did you call a cab?"
"No, I'm just gonna walk."
"It's miles."
"And?"
"You've had too much to drink, it's the middle of the damn night and those stupid heels will kill you."
"I'll walk barefoot."
"That's not an option and you know it." Luke said as he walked to the other side of the room, pulled open the top right hand drawer of his desk and took out a small bunch of keys that Beca recognized immediately.
"Here." Luke said, holding out the keys to her. "Call a cab. Now."
"You have a cute ass." Beca said, her lip curling upward slightly as she took in his naked form.
"Um, thanks?"
"Hearing what Ry had to say... it got me thinking." Beca said as she wobbled slightly.
"'bout what?" Luke asked.
"You and me."
"What about us?" Luke said, reaching out a hand to steady Beca as she began to sway.
"I've never really thought about you and me being intimate before."
"Huh?" Luke said, his senses quickly coming together. "Let's not do this right now."
"Why not?"
"You're drunk and not making much sense."
"I'm making perfect sense. Well… your ass is making perfect sense to me right now."
"Beca!"
"Luke!"
"Let's not do anything that either one of us will regret?" Luke said. "You can stay on the couch if you want."
"Only if you promise to stay with me."
"What do you mean?"
"Haven't you ever wondered what it'd be like?"
"What what would be like?"
"Us." Beca said, running her hands over her face. Luke took in her bloodshot eyes. "Having sex."
"Sleep." Luke said, adamant that, despite the thought crossing his mind several dozen times over the years, now was so not the time to be talking about this. "I'm going back to bed. I've had a lot to drink tonight. So have you."
"Kiss me."
"No."
"Don't you want me?" Beca said, shrugging off her jacket and letting it fall to the floor. She began to unbutton her shirt. Luke gritted his teeth and looked away as Beca shimmied out of her clothes. The pile of clothes around her feet grew. "We've wasted years. Years in which we could have been fucking each others brains out."
"Just so you know..." Luke said, keeping his voice even as Beca began to fumble with her bra strap, running her hands around her back to undo the clasp. "... in another time, and another place, this might happen. But I am not prepared to gamble our friendship on a mistake. You are not a cheater. You're with Ryan and you'll wake up in the morning full of regrets if you take any more clothes off right now."
"You're naked."
"That's different."
Beca kicked off her heels and tried to walk seductively towards Luke. Forgetting that her clothes were pooled around her ankles, her foot caught up in the hem of her pants and she tripped up, falling into Luke's arms.
"What's gotten into you?" Luke said crossly, his arms straining with the effort of keeping her upright. "I'm putting you to bed. And I don't want to hear another peep."
The fall seemed to break whatever spell had come over Beca. She blinked several times as if coming to her senses and nodded, trying to avoid the realization that her mouth was very close to Luke's junk. As Luke helped her back onto her feet, she looked like she was going to be sick.
"You. Couch." He said, pointing at the couch that could easily sleep three people. Beca nodded as she walked towards her bed for the night. "I'm going back to Allie."
At the mention of her name, Beca spun around.
"Shit! Luke, I'm sorry. I-"
"-No apologies necessary. G'nite."
Beca watched as Luke walked back to his bedroom, stumbling slightly as the level of alcohol in his system hadn't diminished at all. She reached over to turn off the small lamp on the coffee table when a tee shirt came flying out of Luke's room, hitting her square in the face. She held it in her hands and sniffed, noting immediately that it was Luke's favorite one from High School. Slipping it over her head, she relaxed into the cushions and was asleep in seconds.
A few hours later Luke woke with a start and an unquenchable thirst. Coughing slightly, he rolled over and found Allie still passed out on the other side of the bed. He gathered her sleeping form up in his arms and kissed her cheek before brushing the hair out of her face.
"Coffee?" He whispered and she nodded.
He slipped out of bed and collected a pair of boxers on the way towards the bathroom. He flipped the light on and remembered that Beca had turned up in the middle of the night. He was too desperate for a pee to check if she was ok but as soon as he was done, he made his way to the living room. The small blanket that he always kept on the back of the couch was folded neatly on the coffee table along with his Van Halen tee shirt perched on the top. There was no sign of Beca or her pile of clothes.
Not worried in the slightest that she had left without saying goodbye, he was about to fill up the coffee maker when he noticed a large, white bakery box on the counter. He lifted the lid to find a dozen assorted muffins from the bakery across the street. Confused, he closed the lid and noticed the loopy, cursive writing on the top.
"Mornin' Stud Muffin... forgive me? ~xo B xo~"
Grinning to himself, Luke found the coffee filters and the Colombian coffee that he saved for special occasions. Within a couple of minutes, he was heading back to his bedroom armed with two large mugs of coffee and the box of muffins. Setting everything down on his nightstand, he noticed his phone flashing with a message.
"Dude, I borrowed your car. Did you know your Mercedes Benz? Yeah, still can't drive a stick. Anyway, it's 'parked' in a hedge by the Exxon on Freemont. Send me the bill for the damage. Love you. XO"
"What are you laughing about?" Allie asked, stretching out as the aroma of coffee invaded her nostrils.
"Just a text from Bec." Luke answered honestly, setting his phone back down. He looked over towards Allie. "You ok this morning?"
"Feeling sore, thanks to you Mr. Five Times."
"Oh yeah?" Luke said, winking at her.
"I should totally hate you right now. But I'm too comfortable and happy."
"Happy huh?"
"Yes. This is nice."
"I'm glad you're enjoying this." Luke said, picking up one of the mugs and taking a mouthful before holding it out to Allie. She sat up in bed, letting the sheets fall from her breasts. "Damn, that's good."
"The coffee or these?" Allie laughed, pointing to her boobs.
"Hmmm." Luke pondered. "Both."
"Are you always like this?" Allie asked, taking in Luke's relaxed manner. She'd never stayed the night before. They had always had quick hook-ups and she would leave shortly after because staying over was a level of intimacy that until now, neither one of them wanted to explore.
"Pretty much." Luke smiled as he pulled the box of muffins onto his lap. "Why?"
"I like this side of you." Allie mused as she handed Luke back the coffee before she dipped her fingers into the bakery box and selected a double chocolate muffin. "You free tomorrow night?"
"Sure." Luke nodded and took a sip from his mug. "I'm gonna go jump in the shower."
Luke picked up his phone as he got up off the bed and started reading emails. He was just reading through the second message when his phone lit up with a message from Beca.
"Are we ok?"
"Absolutely."
"Are you sure?"
"Swear on the Queen of England's fourth corgi. Listen, are you up for a club tonight? OHM has a cool new DJ."
"Really dude?! You're sacrificing the Queen's corgi? You ain't right!"
"Ha! You in?"
"Yes!"
"Pick you up at 9."
That night's bad behavior was one more thing that was squirreled away and forgotten about.
o~O~o
Six months later, Luke was there to pick up the pieces when Beca and Ryan decided to end their relationship. Beca had cried as she told him that they'd tried to make it work but hadn't managed to see each other for a whole month. Ryan apologized more times than was necessary as they both admitted that it just wasn't meant to be. They'd talked over a late dinner and while it wasn't horrible, it was still awkward. Heading back to Beca's temporary apartment while her home was undergoing renovations, they'd ended up in bed together and Beca had wept as Ryan packed his things afterwards. The charmless promises of remaining friends hung in the air, sticking to the walls like an unwanted cobweb but they both needed the false, empty comment to hold on to.
Beca had mourned for Ryan; she'd gotten used to having him around after dating for just over a year. Aubrey, confused by Beca's obvious showing of emotion, organized a night out for them all but everyone could see that Beca's heart wasn't in it, despite her trying. In the end, Luke snuck her out of the back door of the bar, gave her a piggyback to his car and drove her down to the beach where they talked on the hood of his car until the sun came up. She seemed brighter after that night and remembered to thank Aubrey for getting her out of the house in something other than stained pajama pants.
Since Ryan was off the scene, Luke had been around to help Beca move into her newly refurbed home a few weeks after the break up. Luke was impressed with the changes and claimed one of the bedrooms for his own use which made Beca laugh for the first time in a month. He also offered to take her furniture shopping over the weekend. While Beca had some nice pieces already, she had a large home to fill and no one else to go with as her parents were out of town for another month. Typically, Luke wasn't a shopper but he did quite like the idea of helping Beca furnish and fill her home with cool things. He'd picked out the new bedroom set and insisted she buy the overstuffed couch for the den. As a housewarming gift, he chose a charming mirror that perfectly matched the Tiffany Lamp he'd found in an antique shop back in London for her 21st birthday. Beca had been really touched by the gesture, promising to hang it in the foyer.
Allie was now officially Luke's girlfriend. It wasn't long before she began to complain about the amount of time that he spent with Beca and her family. She hated the way she whined to Luke when he called her to say he'd be a few minutes late because he'd been out with Beca but she actually couldn't help it. Luke tried to explain that Beca was important to him and while she knew that, deep down it still irked her; she felt like she was always second fiddle to Beca. She tried to talk to Amy about it over drinks one night. Amy turned it around on her by asking Allie if she'd feel the same way if Luke's best friend was a guy. The questions definitely gave Allie a lot of food for thought.
At the beginning of January, Beca texted Luke about the up and coming Battle of the Bands competition due to take place later that month. Luke had replied straight away that he thought he might be working that night at a similar talent show in San Diego. Beca, thinking that the reason that Luke said he was busy was because of Allie, immediately offered her a ticket to join them. Luke sent his reply on his work email so Beca could see his prior engagement. He never mentioned the invitation to Allie because he didn't want the hassle that he knew he'd get. Luke wondered if he could find cover for his gig but not long after he started asking people, Beca text back to say she'd asked Aubrey and her boyfriend Ben to go.
Feeling guilty, Luke sent a limousine to take them all to the House of Blues where the contest was taking place. He liked doing little things to cheer Beca up. While she was no longer moping around the house, he knew she still missed Ryan judging by the amount of packages he received at work filled with homemade candy and treats; a result of Beca's boredom or her lack of sex life as he snarkily texted her after the sixth package arrived.
"You seriously need to get laid mate."
"Shut up and eat your brownies."
On the night of Battle of the Bands, Beca sent a text thanking Luke for the limousine as she got herself ready. He was just finishing up some paperwork when he received a picture message. Thumbing the screen, he nearly had heart failure when he saw what she was wearing that night and wondered if he should text her back and demand fair warning next time. He sent a message immediately with, 'Damn girl, put those things away! Have fun!'. He could just imagine her giggle when she'd received the text back and knew that the overly flattering boob shot had been to make him jealous he wasn't there, rather than the thought of her breasts themselves. Not expecting to hear from her for the rest of the night, knowing she was with Aubrey and Ben, he turned off his phone to save his low battery and headed out to his gig.
He had a good time with his coworkers but there was absolutely no prospective talent so he was quite disappointed not only with the wasted trip but because he turned Beca down. She usually had all the luck and probably had her pick of talent to choose from and he knew he'd never hear the end of it.
As soon as he got home, he plugged his phone in and got a beer from the fridge. Settling down on the couch to unwind and allow his ears a chance to rest, he turned on the television but muted the sound. He picked up his phone and scrolled quickly through the messages from Allie as it was just chit chat about what she'd had for dinner. Luke was surprised that Beca hadn't messaged him but didn't dwell on it too long. He gave up trying to watch a movie without sound at around 2am and headed to bed, sending Allie a quick "good night" message knowing he wouldn't hear the end of it if he didn't.
The next morning, he awoke earlier than he wanted too and went out for a five mile run to clear his head before he showered and shaved. Spooning cereal into his mouth, he checked his voicemail. The message was from Bernie, the limo driver from the night before. He'd used Bernie many times for all sorts of corporate events because he was always reliable. Thinking that Bernie was calling him to let him know that Beca had left something in the back of the limo, he was surprised when Bernie told him that Beca had tipped him handsomely but that the young man she'd taken home seemed a little odd. Bernie continued to say that he thought the chap had a cold or something as he kept sniffing all the way home and commented a few times at just how unsavoury the guy looked. Luke deleted the voicemail and immediately called Beca.
He felt a rush of relief as soon as he heard her voice and was initially happy that she had picked up her phone; he'd had a mad minute or so believing she might have been murdered or abducted or something else crazy. They'd talked for a few minutes and he could hear forks being dragged across plates so he knew that whoever this guy was had stayed over.
For the first time in years, Beca refused to give Luke all the details about something that had happened in her life and he was pissed to say the least. Trying to get a rise out of her, and to see if she had slept with the 'unsavoury character', Luke spat out the comment about them using protection. He felt his heart drop a little as Beca admitted she'd been shagging him all night long. Luke couldn't shake the bad feeling he got about the guy. It didn't help that Beca was being so cagey about telling him who the guy was. He pushed her for details, threatening to run a background check on him but Beca ended the call and cut him off.
Using the only other person he knew would be as angry as he was, he texted Aubrey and asked her to go check up on Beca. He hated the feeling he was having but what was worse was that Aubrey didn't reply to him for several hours after her message to say she'd arrived. He pulled out his laptop and tried to concentrate on some emails but his mind kept wandering to a living nightmare where he saw Beca at his door in the middle of the night, running away from the dirtbag.
Later that night Beca called him and skirted around the issue as if it was nothing. Luke sensed something was different and eventually Beca fessed up to being completely infatuated with the guy from the moment she saw him.
"Are you going to see him again?" He asked.
"We didn't make plans. Aubrey and Amy showed up and he skedaddled."
"Maybe that's a good thing." Luke said hopefully, inwardly laughing at how some of his British words had imprinted into Beca's vocabulary.
"Dude has a tongue piercing; if you wanted to talk about a good thing." Beca remarked playfully, aware of the tone in Luke's voice.
"I'd rather not."
"What's up your ass?" Beca asked.
"You don't know the first thing about this guy Becs."
"You didn't know Allie when you found her in that weird 'pub' place you go to."
"That's different." Luke said quickly.
"Ha! Because I'm a girl? I can't pick up a guy, is that what you are saying?"
"No, not at all."
"Double standards much."
"I said..." Luke began but realized he wasn't going to win the argument because she was actually right. "... are you ok?"
"Tired but yeah, I'm good. You?"
"Bored."
"You can come over if you want. Hot tub's on." Beca said, changing the channel on the television.
"Did you and... whatever his name is, you know, in there?"
"Yeah, but I cleaned it out and refilled it after he left."
"Thank God for that."
"You wanna come over though?" Beca asked again, leaning back into her couch cushions and resting her head.
"Yeah, ok."
"Cool. Pick up dinner, ok? I've only got sausage defrosted and right now, trust me, I'm not sure I want anything else phallic shaped near my mouth for a while."
"I hate you."
"I know. See you in thirty."
o~O~o
A few weeks later, Luke was running out of excuses to meet Beca's new man; Jesse Swanson. He'd heard all about him from Aubrey who was resolute in telling Jesse all of the bad things she felt he needed to know about. She told him how she'd walked in on them while they were doing the nasty in the shallow end of her pool and Luke knew he could have lived the rest of his life without knowing that. Amy on the other hand couldn't stop singing Jesse's praises and hinted quite vocally that she was rather impressed with the size of his manhood, having snuck a photograph of 'little Jesse' while pretending to fiddle with her boobs.
Luke met up with Beca almost every other day since the night of Battle of the Bands and he'd had his ears bent over how wonderfully talented Jesse's band was. Luke snuck out a copy of The Riff's demo from the 'Prospective Talents' pigeon hole when he was in the mail room at work. He'd listened to it as he drove home from work and had to admit that the band wasn't bad.
Beca went from being coy and quiet about Jesse to revealing everything and anything about him and for about the fourth time in his life, Luke wished Beca didn't treat him like a girl friend. He really didn't want to be discussing another guy's junk over tacos.
Eventually, he couldn't put it off any longer as Beca had started to get suspicious as to why he was blatantly avoiding meeting Jesse.
"I'm just busy Becs." Luke said down the phone as he took a late morning break from working.
"Yeah, I get it but this is important to me Luke. I really like this guy. I want you to meet him."
"I'll free up some time next week." Luke rolled his eyes as he typed Jesse's name into Google for the tenth time that week. He opened up the page of images and flipped the 'wooly woofter' the bird. He turned his chair around, facing away from his door.
"You said that last week." Beca said. Luke half closed his eyes as he knew she was right. "What are you doing right now?"
"I'm just in the office, going through some expenses. Then I have to make an appointment with Doug who is looking to offload some prospects before he retires. I've seen the list, it ain't all that." Luke said honestly.
"Dull."
"I know but I heard some clever dick over at Warner is signing new talent left, right and center so I've gotta up my game, you know?"
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah, some feisty foul mouthed little diva who stopped sending me cake and brownies because some wanker is keeping her occupied in the evenings."
"Aww, Allie not giving it up, huh?"
"We're fine, thank you."
"Of course you are! How is she, by the way?"
"She was fine... when I spoke to her last night."
"You haven't called her today?" Beca asked incredulously.
"Nope, I spend all my day bothering you."
"Ha, that's because I'm the most important girl in your life!"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, Right behind my mother and my great Aunt Esmerelda. And yes, before you ask, she's the one that looks like a horse." Luke said, laughing. He heard the sounds of outside in the background. "Where are you anyway?" He asked.
"Just running a couple of errands out of the office. I've got Jesse with me." Beca said. Luke scrunched up his face and curled his lip at the mention of his name.
"Oh well, won't keep you then." Luke said, as he heard a soft tap on his office door. "Gotta go, someone needs my signature."
Luke ended the call before Beca could say anything else and beckoned his assistant Flo in. She had worked for Luke for a few months now and had settled in well, despite the slight bizarreness of her character. Placing some papers down on his desk, she stood back while he looked through them.
"I'm real sorry Mr. Luke but there's a package down at reception that you have to sign for."
"You have authority to sign on my behalf Flo. Reception knows that."
"The FBI has my fingerprints on file, I cannot hold a pen that has been touched by others."
"What?" Luke said, looking at her in confusion. She smiled sweetly at him. "Flo... please just go get the-"
"-Mr. Luke, before I came to Universal, I had diarrhea for seven years."
"Flo?"
"Please don't make me do this terrible thing."
Luke placed his pen down on the desk, rested his elbows on the table and interlocked his fingers. He looked up at Flo who squirmed slightly under the penetrating gaze.
"Ok, but if I get deported, locked in a shipping container for three months and die because I only had gas receipts to eat, I'm coming back to haunt you." Flo pulled on one of her braids before marching out of the office and heading towards the elevators.
"Heaven help me." Luke said as he began tackling the list of documents that he needed to sign. He spent a good few minutes going through the pile that Flo had left him before he heard a shuffling outside his door. Thinking it was Flo coming back with the package she seemed to be adverse to collecting, he didn't look up from the paperwork. "All sorted?"
When she didn't answer, Luke looked up to see where she'd gone to and looked straight up into Beca's chest.
"You were supposed to come downstairs so we could steal you away for lunch." She said, pretending to huff as she set down a picnic basket on his desk. She leaned down to peck his cheek.
"What are you doing here?" Luke asked, looking straight at her and completely ignoring the guy who he assumed was Jesse who was loitering by his office door as he tossed his pen onto the desk.
"Running errands like I told you." Beca said, twisting around and fiddling with the small photo frame on his desk. "You wouldn't come down stairs, so we brought the food up to you. Luke, I'd like you to meet Jesse Swanson." Beca stood back slightly and held her arm out to beckon Jesse towards the desk. "Jesse, this is my best friend Luke Donovan."
Jesse moved forward quickly with his hand stretched out. Luke knew he had no option but to shake it. 'Well, he's got a firm handshake so perhaps he's not the limp dick I thought he was', Luke thought as he looked at Jesse for the first time. He wasn't quite what he had been expecting and he immediately noticed his new threads and shoes as he gave him a casual glance over as he pretended to shuffle the papers on his desk, before suddenly remembering he had dozens of pictures of Jesse up on his screen. He couldn't close his laptop fast enough.
"Good to meet you finally." Jesse said. Luke took delight in the way his Adam's Apple bobbed up and down nervously. "How you are you today?"
"I'm good thank you." Luke said and caught Beca looking at him strangely. He knew he was acting stiff so took a deep breath, swallowed his feelings and smiled. "It's good to meet you too."
"Dude, you're standing like you've got a pole up your ass." Beca said to Luke as she began to unpack the plastic boxes from the basket. "Relax, he doesn't bite."
"Well, only if you ask nicely." Jesse said, trying to make a joke. Luke felt his lip curl again.
"Oh right, cuz..." Beca said, before looking at Luke's face. She could see the strain written clearly around his eyes and decided not to be crass. "Hope you are hungry."
"Starving." Luke said, counting out the containers as she unpacked them.
"Jesse, the blanket." Beca said.
"Oh, yes. Sorry." Jesse rushed out, as he swung the small backpack from his shoulder and placed it on the floor. Unzipping it, he pulled out a brightly colored checkered blanket and shook it out, laying it out onto the office floor. Luke tried to hide his surprise.
"She's a really good cook." Jesse said absentmindedly as he took the plates and cutlery from Beca as she passed him things and laid them out neatly.
"Yep. I know." Luke said, trying hard not to grit his teeth. 'I've been friends with her for over fifteen years, you piece of shit.' He thought, wondering how long he was going to have to suffer this guy's company.
"Yeah, I guess you do." Jesse said, as he raised his eyebrows at Luke's tone.
"Boys. Play nice." Beca said lightly, handing over food to both of them. "Sit. Eat. Talk. Make friends."
"This looks good." Luke said honestly, as he joined them on the blanket. "Thank you."
"You're welcome."
The next hour was spent with Luke firing questions at Jesse. Now that he'd met Jesse, Luke was certain that his gut instincts were right on the money. The guy even looked bad news with his misspelled tattoo that Beca just kept on touching the whole time and the scars on his neck that showed he'd been in more than one fight in his life. But he'd also never seen Beca happier, even when she was with Ryan in the peak of their relationship, so he really felt caught in the trick bag.
Now that he knew Jesse's first and last name, he could have his Dad run a background check on him. He knew his Dad would be discrete but if Beca ever found out, she wouldn't forgive him for not trusting her. The wanker was putting him in a bad place and Luke wanted to squash the homemade spinach and feta cheese quiche that Jesse was currently teasing Beca with, into his face. Luke had a choice to make; protect Beca at all costs and risk losing their lifelong friendship or standby and watch as she got destroyed.
Luke decided it was best to just take the ride with Beca. She was happy after all and he hoped that he was wrong about Jesse. There seemed to be unspoken agreement between the men which allowed each of them time with Beca while staying out of each other's way. That arrangement seemed to work… for a little while.
o~O~o
Beca texted Luke when she found out she was going to Oahu as she had to cancel a pre-planned dinner date she had with him. Luke obviously understood and said she'd better bring him back something tacky from Hawaii as a consolation prize, and warned that it better not be one of those dashboard hula girls.
Luke was thinking about her going away for a week when he stepped out of the office that afternoon. Walking towards his car, he decided he didn't feel like going home or heading over to Allie's to watch her paint her nails and complain about her mother so he decided to take a drive somewhere for a couple of hours. He knew that the two of them had been getting on pretty well over the last few weeks but he had also had noticed her subtle hints about taking things to the next level. She'd left a magazine open on his coffee table, conveniently showing a page full of engagement rings. She constantly talked about her friends who were getting engaged and hinted how her cousin's best friend was a wedding planner. Luke had no plans to go anywhere but he certainly didn't want to think about settling down until he knew Beca was happy.
He sent a quick message to Allie to let her know he'd not be around that evening and turned his phone off so he didn't have to listen to her make a fuss about where he was going. Lowering the top on his convertible, he headed down the I-10, driving faster than he should have.
He was just heading into Los Angeles from Santa Monica, when he decided to stop for a drink. Pulling his car into the parking lot of Caveman's Kitchen, he killed the engine and rolled his shoulders a few times, wondering if going for a long run up through the Hills would have been a better idea. He hadn't noticed how tense he was and realized that while he'd been driving, he'd also been thinking about Beca and Jesse.
'Speak of the Devil.' Luke mused as he looked across the parking lot. Luke knew Jesse hadn't seen him, he was, after all, quite far from home or his office but he still sunk a little lower in his seat as he watched Jesse step out of Beca's Audi TTS Coupe. His lip curled again as he watched Jesse kick the door shut with his foot, angry and annoyed that he was treating Beca's car in such a way. He clucked his tongue as Jesse was laughing along with a boy who looked a little like him and vaguely remembered Beca telling him that Jesse had a brother.
Luke watched them as they entered the restaurant and slid into a booth where they were joined by a third guy a minute or so later. Luke pulled out his phone as the three men looked to be in cahoots about something and he wanted to record the evidence. He turned his phone on, cleared the five messages from Allie and was about to press record when he had an idea.
'He's probably a member of the band.' Luke thought to himself and quietly berated himself for thinking badly of him. He wanted Jesse to be a fuck up and he knew the area he was in was known for it's drug crime but that didn't mean that Jesse was doing drugs himself. Luke decided he didn't want to know what was going on and if he snapped a picture and Beca found it, she would probably think he was tailing Jesse, searching and waiting for something to go wrong.
Feeling a ball in the pit of his stomach, he started the engine and pulled away without looking back. He continued to drive for another couple of hours, thinking all the while that Beca was her own person and she had a right to make mistakes. He then chided himself that she was a grown woman and while he wanted to keep her safe, she wasn't his property to worry about. Conflictingly, he had a flashback of all the times she'd cried on his shoulder and he'd held her tight to his chest and promised her everything would be ok.
He was so invested in his thoughts, he didn't hear his phone ring until the Bluetooth in the car picked it up.
"Luke? You there?" Beca's slightly muffled voice filtered through the car speakers.
"Yep. You ok?"
"I've been trying to get hold of Jesse for the last hour. He borrowed my car tonight and I'm stranded without it."
"Oh." Luke said, keeping his eyes firmly on the road.
"Yeah, he had to help a friend's Grandmother move or something. He was gonna pick me up afterwards but I guess he got delayed."
"Right."
"Luke? He's a good guy."
"Sure, ok." Luke grumbled. "What's up anyway?"
"I was over in Inglewood. Anyway, there is not a cab in sight."
"You need a ride?"
"I know it's far to come but would you mind-"
"-I'm not that far actually."
"What are you doing way out here?"
"Just took a drive. I'm on 105. Where are you?"
"I'm at The Forum."
"Oh, high society tonight, huh?"
"Yeah, Sawyer wanted some classical shit on Snoop Dogg's new album and got wind of some kid who plays the flute with his ass or something. I dunno anymore."
"Sit tight. I'll be there in a few."
Puffing out his chest slightly at the thought of rescuing his damsel in distress, Luke turned the car around and headed towards Inglewood to collect Beca. She was waiting by the side of the road as he approached and he flashed his lights a couple of times to let her know it was him pulling up. She opened the door with gusto and jumped into the front seat.
"There's some crazy ass people around here." She said as she buckled her seatbelt. "There's a dude who's using his skateboard as a pillow and some whackjob licking the pavement."
"You fit in quite well then."
"Screw you."
"No news from Jesse then?" Luke asked as he pulled up to the traffic light.
"I'm sure he's got a reasonable excuse for being late."
"Late, yes. Ignoring the phone, no."
"Don't start, ok?"
"K."
They drove the rest of the journey in a comfortable silence and as Luke pulled up outside the gates to Beca's home, he nodded towards her driveway.
"Hope he's got a good explanation for that."
"What?" Beca said, twisting in her seat to look at her car, which had been parked up towards the garage.
"The large ding in the bumper."
"Oh for fucks sake." Beca muttered as she shook her head. "Thanks for the ride. As always, you saved my bacon. I'd better go and deal with this." She said motioning toward her wrecked car.
"Sure thing. Night."
"Night."
Beca slipped out of the car and Luke watched as she approached the door, turning as she put her key in the lock to give him a wave. He headed home, shaking his head most of the way. Pulling in, he noticed Allie's Camaro in his visitors spot and was actually pleased she'd come over. He was heading towards a bad mood and knew she would distract him. He'd even take her inane chatter about nail polish over the darkening thoughts he had about Jesse Swanson. Entering his apartment, he looked at his watch and was surprised to see it was way past 11.
"Hey!" Allie called out from the living room. "Where've you been?"
"Took a drive." Luke said, kicking his shoes off into the hallway closet. He braced himself before he continued. "Ended up in Inglewood. Picked Beca up."
"Oh."
"Have you eaten?" Luke asked as he poked his head around the corner wall. He was expecting a face like a slapped ass but she actually looked quite content.
"Yeah, I put something for you in the microwave if you are hungry." She said. Luke was quite touched at the gesture until he saw that she'd cooked him something green which smelled suspiciously of grass.
"I'm good but thanks." He lied. "I'm pretty tired. You fancy an early night?"
o~O~o
A few weeks later, Luke was having a lazy morning at home when he received a flurry of text messages. He hadn't expected to hear from Beca while she was in Oahu, though she had sent a few messages letting him know she'd arrived safely. He was making a grilled cheese sandwich when his phone lit up like a beacon. He couldn't get a word in edgewise so just let her go until she ran out of steam.
"So, Jesse threw a party."
"Invited 100 people."
"He fucked up my house."
"You there?"
"I know it's early but I really need to rant."
"He got carted off to the clink."
"He threw a fucking party! At my house!"
"Dad says there's minimal damage but there's enough weed left in the house to keep 1000 pot heads happy for a month."
"Someone took a shit in the pool."
"A shit! God knows what else happened in it!"
"Fucks sake, he's trying to get me to bail him out of jail now."
"He wants money."
"What the actual fuck?"
"It's illegal to put a hit out on him… right?"
"I'm just ranting."
"Call me… Please?"
It took Luke an hour to calm her down and he promised her faithfully that he'd check in with her parents and see if there was anything he could do to help. Knowing Anne and William for as long as he had done, he knew they'd have it under control before the sun was up. He called anyway and Anne filled him in quickly about the damage. She estimated that it would take $25,000 to have everything returned to it's previous state. He thought was an exaggerated amount but then he still has heard what the actual damages were yet.
The guest house was in desperate need of a thorough cleaning. There was vomit and trash everywhere. The pool needed to be drained, scrubbed clean and refilled before Beca could even think about using it again. The teak patio furniture was thrown around the back yard and in the pool. The back yard would need new sod and plants since what was there had been trampled beyond recognition. Several of the slate tiles on the morning porch had been ruined and the cushions on the chairs had been intentionally burned with cigarettes. There was a deep gouge in the hardwood floor in the foyer that needed to be repaired and the downstairs toilet was blocked with a foreign object. Luke winced as he heard what had happened and offered to speak with Jesse himself. Anne asked him not to, reminding him that it was Beca's decision on which was she was going to go.
Luke agreed and was secretly enjoying the fact that Jesse had no one to bail him out. He agreed with Beca that he should sit on his ass in jail until the court arraignment. He kept his head down at work and willed the week away until he knew Beca was back home.
He was trying to avoid eating any of Allie's cooking as she had decided to stay over at his apartment for the weekend Beca was due home. He couldn't be sure but he had a feeling that she had done it on purpose. Trying to keep his head in check, he was trying to subtly glance at his phone when she wasn't looking, waiting for the message from Beca to say she was home.
"For God's sake!" Allie cried out. "Just check the damn thing and see if the little Princess has called."
"Hey, that's a bit unfair. She's traveling and I-"
"-Save it, ok. You'll always defend her."
"I don't always defend her."
"You're doing it now."
"Fine, whatever." Luke knew she had a point but was worried as he hadn't heard from Beca since she'd landed hours before. He was drumming his fingers on the side of the couch when he felt the vibration in his pocket. Snatching up the phone faster than John Wayne could take a gun out of a holster, he answered the call.
"Hey Becs!"
"Hey, you home?"
"Yeah, what's wrong?"
"Come get me?"
"What's up?"
"Just come get me, ok?"
"I'm on my way." Luke said and cleared the call.
"Are you for fucking real?" Allie asked as Luke stood up and straightened his pants.
"What now?"
"After everything I've been saying about how you run off after Beca at every available opportunity, you're gonna just leave and go... now?"
"She needs me."
"I need you."
"Allie, can we not do this now?" Luke said, looking around for his car keys as he pushed his feet into a pair of sneakers.
"Yes, we are doing this now."
"I'm going." He said as he walked towards the door, swiping up his keys from the dish on the shelf by the entrance.
"It's me or her Luke. Make a choice. Me or her?"
Luke walked back into the living room and up to where Allie was sitting on the sofa, looking defiantly at him.
"Me or her?" She repeated.
Luke placed his hands on the couch behind her head and leaned down. Allie automatically pursed her lips, expecting a kiss. He put his mouth near to her ear and whispered.
"Her."
"What?"
"Pack your shit and get out." Luke said, lifting himself away from her. He walked back to the front door and called out over his shoulder. "I don't want you to be here when I get back."
"What just happened?"
"I choose her, every time."
o~O~o
Luke pulled into the driveway of Beca's home and found her sitting on the front step. She looked really little as she hugged her knees to her chest. He didn't bother turning the engine off as he got out of the car and jogged over to her.
"What's happened?" He asked kneeling down in front of her. "Are you hurt?"
"He did it again." Beca told Luke without so much as a hello. She sniffed loudly a few times and wiped the back of her hand over her nose.
"What did he do?"
"Threw another party."
"What?"
"I think this one was worse than the first."
"You're fucking kidding me right now?" Luke barked. "Where is he? Is he inside?"
"I got left at the airport and had to call Uber for a car to take me home. When I got here my house will full of half nekkid crack heads. He was upstairs, passed out in my bed."
"Alone?"
"Yeah."
"Thank God."
"Yeah, I guess."
"What's the damage?"
"I don't know but…" Beca's voice cracked. "... my Tiffany lamp is broken and the mirror you gave me when I moved in was use to cut lines."
"Let me take a look."
"I don't want you to see my house like that." Beca said sniffling. "Silvana's working her magic in there."
"Where's the douchebag now?" Luke asked as he sat next to Beca.
"I kicked him out."
"Good."
"He left without a fight Luke."
Luke put his arms around Beca and pulled her close to him. She turned into his shoulder, burying her face into the fabric of his shirt. He could feel her sobbing as he kissed the top of her head.
"Sssh, it's going to be ok. Come on, up you get." Luke said, nudging her with his elbow.
"Where are we going?"
"You're coming home with me."
"What about-"
"-Allie's gone, if that's what you are asking."
"Both single again, huh?"
"We've got each other and we don't need anything else tonight. Come on, there's a bottle of wine at my apartment with your name on it."
"Thank you."
"What for?"
"Everything."