A/N: I'm sorry this is so late, but it is still technically Thursday while I am typing this. I really can't thank you enough for your patients. I will reply to your reviews shortly. (If I haven't already) I wanted to get this up first. Once again, I hope this isn't too shabby. I have only read through this completely once. The musical choice for this chapter is as follows:

Blue Eyes Blind by ZZ Ward

I hope you enjoy this chapter! I will reply to guest reviews below.

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Awesome: I really can't express how much that means to me. Thank you so much! I am glad I could be of service.

Guest (Binge reader): Thank you! I am glad you liked it so much. Well Bechloe is kind of half happening…

Guest (angst free): You are very welcome! :)

Mia: What are you confused about? Is it the flip from not wanting to do anything with Chloe to suddenly making out thing? If so, I see it as natural. They spend so much time together something is bound to happen. Chloe is naturally more physically expressive and Beca isn't super comfortable with opening up. So it is the easiest option, at least to start their relationship from.

Guest (work): Thank you! I will do my best. ;)

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Chapter 26

Things were good after their little non-declaration declaration of being in some sort of non-platonic relationship. Nothing really changed except for the added kisses and extra teasing from the Bellas. Also, thanks to Chloe and her insistence on after practice stretches, Beca's flexibility was increasing. Not only that, but her body was a lot looser than normal. Really it helped that Chloe tacked on back, shoulder, and scalp massages to their stretching routine. If their relationship lasted longer than expected, she was sure they would turn into full body massages. Beca's body was almost constantly being bombarded with some essence of Chloe whether it was the other girl's body, her smell, or just that feeling she got when Chloe was looking at her. Even that had changed some. It had evolved from a flurry of butterflies to something almost aquatic, maybe an otter, that flipped and slid until her stomach was doing little summersault whenever their eyes just met. Then it was slowly blossoming like a newly formed flower, each petal unraveling a millimeter at a time, until taken by the wind, this other feeling scattered across Beca's whole body. This feeling of being exactly where she should be, encompassed in Chloe, her purpose clearly outlined. Knowing for sure that she was wanted and believed in, maybe even loved.

No, the problems came when she was alone. When they had classes or just other things to do that required them separating. After all, they couldn't ignore Jesse and Aubrey forever. Otherwise they were bound to interrupt when they really didn't want them to. Her self-doubts hitting her one right after the other right in the head when left by herself. Her mind would puzzle over them for hours with only small breaks provided in the form of text messages from Chloe or lunch with Jesse. It was stupid. She knew it was stupid because all of her concerns could be wiped away if she just talked to Chloe. Really talked to her, not just flirted and then felt each other up, seeing how long they could explore without actually having sex before they had to stop.

All she had to do was get the courage to ask Chloe a few questions. She seemed to have so many too. Questions about everything really. About Chloe's high school years and the ones she spent at Barden that Beca had missed. She wanted to know why she sometimes got shy and why it was only with her. She wanted to know about Chloe's nodes. Why she never called her. Why she thought she wouldn't want to know. It would be so easy to ask them too, cast away her self-doubts, but she was scared. So incredibly scared because she knew her time with Chloe was finite. They only had a few months together and then Chloe would be graduating. Probably headed back to Florida. She had questions about that too. What Chloe planned to do after college. If Beca fit in anywhere in those plans. She was afraid of those answers. That they would be the opposite of what she wanted to hear. So she chose not to say anything, wanting what little time they had together to be perfect. To center around them together instead of them a part.

Her refusal to say anything didn't stop the questions from surfacing though, right on the tip of her tongue, only to be swallowed down. It became harder and harder to ignore them too. They always seemed to be there. Chloe had to have noticed because Beca sometimes found her just staring at her strangely, as if trying to work something out. Which was dangerous because when Chloe knew something was wrong or Beca wanted to say something, but was afraid to as a kid, she had a tendency of prodding the younger girl until she finally spit it out. So Beca just kissed her more often and pulled her to her, easily distracting her from whatever she was thinking. Half of it was about Beca needing the comfort provided by those actions as well. Then they would go back to doing whatever they were doing, usually wrapped up in each other somehow.

Today was no different. Chloe was lounging in Beca's arms reading a book for her Russian literature class while the younger girl carded fingers through her hair. Beca liked looking at the different highlights of red in her friend's hair, coming up with names for each one. Chloe seemed content with the action, easily making progress in the book that looked like it was half written in Russian. Which really perplexed Beca because she didn't know Chloe could speak or read Russian. Maybe she was just reading the English parts, which would explain her progress. That had to be it. Chloe was so absorbed in her work, her brow doing that adorable little thinking furrow Beca liked so much, completely unaware Beca was wrestling with one of her more frequently bothersome questions. It had been bothering for a while, always just on the tip of her tongue. Before she could stop herself, no distraction in sight, she found herself blurting it out.

"Why Tom?"

Really she thought it was a reasonable question. Chloe's relationship with him made no sense to her. When they were around each other when they were together they never really seemed together together. They always seemed to just be there together. Their only interaction outside of making out was a brief nod of acknowledgment and the usual clingy Chloe. Chloe's smile fit the part and his had too, but it never seemed… right? Then there were the pictures in Chloe's room. The whole two pictures they had together as a couple that summed up an almost three and a half year relationship. Even those pictures looked off, neither one looking like they wanted to be where ever they were at the time. It really bothered her sometimes, wondering what it was that gave Tom three years with Chloe, while she was only allowed a few months.

The older girl in her arms stiffened at the name before relaxing and then shifting so she could look up at Beca. The younger girl's hands stilled and were retracted, looking shyly away. Chloe seemed to contemplate before shrugging. "I don't know… We came from the same world."

The statement wasn't exactly comforting because Beca wasn't from that world and never would be. So her mind naturally wondered what that meant for them. That whatever was going on between them was surely destined to end sooner than later. Especially when a three year relationship left her shrugging. What would she say if people asked about their few month non-relationship relationship thing? Beca could feel herself doubts starting to surface again, but tried to push them down.

Chloe must have sensed her unease because she was shifting again so she was facing the younger Bella, drawing Beca's eyes to her. A clearly uncomfortable Chloe tried to elaborate. "It's just Tom-we…" She reached out to take Beca's hand, playing with the fingers attached. Beca was starting to notice it was a nervous habit of Chloe's to play with her own fingers or Beca's. The older Bella took a deep breath. Beca was beginning to become concerned about what was coming next. She had never seen Chloe this nervous before. So she reached out and placed a hand on Chloe's knee, giving it a soft squeeze before letting it rest there. Chloe's eyes were focused on their connected hands. "I just… In high school I was known as the pretty girl that was always happy and-and that's all anyone expected from me. If I-I wasn't they didn't want me around. I got really really good at this. Being, you know, happy, even when I… wasn't. It's just with… Tom, he already knew that. So I didn't have to change anything or explain myself. And he could still be the big football hero, even though he wasn't. It was-was convenient. I-I know it's pretty stupid."

With the confession, Beca had an intense want to pull Chloe close and somehow take away all the pain she felt. All of that rejection, the younger girl was so familiar with. So Beca interlaced their connected hands and pulled the other girl into her. Chloe had to reach out to steady herself. Their foreheads almost clunked into each other, but instead Beca sat up straighter and leaned back so her lips were pressed into Chloe's forehead. The other girl's eyes closed at the contact, a content sigh following. Then her hands were finding the other girl's calves, so she could pull the rest of her closer, until Chloe's legs were on either side of Beca. Hands were interlaced and placed in Beca's lap. The younger girl shyly looked away before meeting Chloe's eyes.

"It's-it's not stupid. I'd probably do the same thing. You know, you like mean so much more to me than that." Chloe was refusing to meet her eyes. So Beca abandoned the other girl's hands so she could push back loose strands of hair before cupping the redhead's face. "I-I like-like really adore shy Chloe and pensive or angry Chloe is like really hot. I want-want and-and like all of you."

Chloe looked so vulnerable in the moment, like Beca had the power to destroy her with one breath. Tears were starting to form at the edges of the older Bella's eyes. Beca didn't hesitate to run her thumbs under watery ceruleum eyes, taking with them unshed tears. The emotion, power revealed, in response to her words spurred Beca on. "You're the most amazing person I have ever met, Chloe Beale. Anyone who doesn't know that is an idiot." Chloe still had a hint of doubt shining through. Before she could protest the words spoken or push them away, Beca was pulling her in for a soft kiss that lingered on their lips far after they separated. Like a thin layer of chap stick. A kiss that effectively shut Chloe up, washing away any doubt for the time being. Then the older girl was falling into her arms for a long hug. Beca held Chloe just as tightly as the redhead held her. Beca knew that the words she spoke were too heavy for two friends that were just supposed to like kissing a lot but, in that moment, she didn't care. She would deal with the consequences later. Any extra heartbreak was worth helping Chloe feel better and, maybe, helping her realize just how amazing she was.

The girl in her arms shifted so she could be heard better. She still wound up talking into Beca's collar bone despite her efforts. "You know I believe in you and your music. I do really care about you… Even the snarky broody bits. I actually really like those. I was just afraid… I don't even know why anymore."

Beca really did not know where to go with that. It was everything she ever wanted to hear and she could tell, even without the older woman's face to peer into for confirmation, that Chloe's words were true. It was in the way she pulled Beca just that little bit closer, as if afraid she would go. In the way she knew to press a kiss to her skin just then for extra warmth and comfort. To confirm this was real. It was there, but the timing was wrong. It was always wrong because Chloe was graduating and their time was finite. Beca knew that, but chose to ignore it then, basking in having everything she could ever want and more. She just shoved the rest away, pulling Chloe closer.

Having no idea what to say, she just said, "I know." The importance of Chloe's admittance rung clearly in her voice. Beca wanted to elaborate more on just how much Chloe's words meant. To express how important Chloe and her words were, but the last person to have the same importance was her grandpa. It had been so long since then and even at the time she had never actually found the words to express those feelings to him or anyone really. She knew she had a small window of time to express those feelings. Chloe was already shifting into a new position, probably figuring the conversation was over. So Beca blurted out the first thing to come to mind. "You remind me of my grandpa."

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, the younger Bella's eyes went wide and she blushed with embarrassment. Chloe had paused in her movements and then was obviously trying to hold back a smile as she shoved Beca playfully in the shoulder. "That's a strange way to compliment a girl. Is that one of the famous Mitchell pickup lines?"

The comment made Beca flush deepen, but the embarrassment was worth the small amused smile Chloe wore after. Then Chloe was sitting cross legged, looking at the red faced girl fondly. It was becoming clearer each day how easy Chloe could read the younger girl when it really mattered. She seemed to get even better at it as time passed. So it wasn't surprising that Chloe knew to wait for further explanation, knowing there was more meaning behind Beca's random outburst than just the face value. The older woman wasn't wrong.

It was Beca's turn to shyly look away, playing nervously with the bracelet on Chloe's wrist. "No, um, it's just…" She took a deep breath and tried to collect her thoughts. Her mind wondered back to her conversation with Jesse. Maybe she could start in the same place. She stopped playing with the older girl's bracelet, turning her arm so the grasshopper on her forearm was on display. "You-you remember when I-I told you about the memory of catching grasshoppers with you as a kid?" She chanced a glance at the other girl, but she wasn't looking at Beca. Her eyes were trained on her own fingers that had begun to trace the outline of the grasshopper.

"How could I forget." Was her soft reply. "It's the story of how we met." The petite woman was taken a back for a moment at the honest sincerity.

It took a fond glance to spur the younger girl forward again. Then she couldn't tear her eyes away from the gorgeous creature in front of her. The same woman that had chosen her for some unknown reason. Beca wanted to watch the subtle changes in the redhead's facial expression as she continued. "Well, I, like, got it for you. I was-I was really, like, uh fucked up when I moved to Seattle. My-my dad had a- he had a new life and, uh, my-my mom couldn't- you know- cope. They were just-just… gone. And I uh was convinced- well thought I had lost you too. There was- I had a lot of-of anger and guilt and-and it was, like, one way of um keeping a part of you. Which is like super like cheesy, but… true." The last word fell tenderly from Beca's lips. She couldn't read the other girl's reaction, her hand had stilled, but she was obviously still listening. So Beca turned over her other arm, exposing the tattoo of a pair of headphones on her wrist. Almost instantly the underside was taken in Chloe's free hand and a thumb lightly brushed over the ink. "I-I got this one sophomore year for my grandpa. He-he died and he-he was my-my everything." Then Beca couldn't look at Chloe, the look of empathy to great. Instead she concentrated on the thumb lovingly stroking over her wrist. "He, um, gave me my-my first pair of headphones and-and introduced me to music. It-it like stopped all the ah anger and guilt. When I would listen to it. To his vinyls. He was-was the first person to believe in me and he-he was there when no one- no one else was. He just… You look at me the-the same way. Well minus the whole, you know, sex eyes thing you do. It was the last-last time I-I felt safe and-and worth something… Well, like, after you and the, uh, move."

Beca didn't know when she started crying, but she was definitely crying. Chloe was gently lifting her face to hers so she could wipe away the tears. Then she placed soft kisses on the younger girl's forehead, then on her nose, her cheeks, and, finally, her lips. Then Beca was being pulled into a soft warm embrace. The younger girl quickly burrowed in as close as she possibly could. Chloe just held her, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

"Thank you."Beca could feel the warm breath that made up the words sink into her scalp.

Then for whatever reason, a thought that had never occurred to the younger girl about her grandpa surfaced. It just sat there and the longer it did the more a pressure began to build. The only relief seemed to come in blurting it out, tears following immediately after. "I never told him."

What exactly Beca didn't tell her grandpa did not need to be spoken. Chloe just seemed to know, hugging her tighter. With the words came a flood of tears that had never been shed for her grandpa at the time of his death. They all came at once and, even if Beca wanted to stop them, she couldn't. It lasted a few minutes and then she was fine. She had never let herself be so vulnerable in front of someone like that before. Well, except for Jesse, but that was nothing compared to this. Naturally, she felt extremely embarrassed. She didn't know how to navigate the situation. If it was up to her, she'd never un-burrow herself from Chloe's side. Then she wouldn't have to see those concerned eyes directed at her. She wouldn't have to ever see Chloe look at her in such a way that would imply she was referencing this moment in time, checking to make sure she was okay.

Her thoughts were cut short by the redheaded woman she was wrapped up in. The same woman who was burying her nose in Beca's hair, taking in a few deep breaths.

"What shampoo do you use?"

"What…" Came Beca's muffled response, brow furrowed.

"Your hair smells aka-tastic." She took another deep inhale

Beca, forgetting about the possibility of snot running from her nose and red puffy eyes and cheeks, pulled back from her burrowed position to give Chloe a strange look. "I don't know, dude…. Shampoo?"

Chloe just beamed at her fondly, easily preening over the smaller woman until her hair was back in place and any stray tears were wiped away. "Weeell, I'm totes stealing it the next time I catch you in the showers."

"You are so weird, Beale."

"Yeah, but you love it." The small smile Beca couldn't hold back basically confirmed it, but no one mentioned it. Then Chloe's smile turned playful. "Now come here Becs so I can get a refresh."

"Eeeew, No!" Beca tried to half-heartedly put some space between them.

Chloe pouted. "But Beeeeeca."

"Don't Beca me. That's, like… really weird."

The pout lessened a little. "What If I make it worth your while?"

Beca quirked an eyebrow. "What did you have in mind?" The petite girl didn't know why she was being combative. She could already feel herself caving as soon as the older girl started pouting.

Chloe's expression changed to something downright sinful. "Why don't you come over here and find out."

The younger girl's eyes went wide, her voice strangely high pitched when she spoke. "Okay."

Then Beca was eagerly climbing back into Chloe's lap. They spent the next few minutes making out, eventually moving to a lateral position, Chloe half laying on a blissed out Beca. When they slowed down, finally stopping, they remained where they were, Chloe sinking further into Beca's side. When she asked Beca if she was okay, the brunette just nodded, Chloe pressing a soft kiss to her lips before settling again. Eventually, Chloe took up her Russian Literature book again and Beca continued running her fingers through copper locks. Only they somehow felt closer, even more comfortable, than before. Slowly they sink further and further into each other until they fell asleep, the Chloe's book shoved to the side. Both women having never felt more content in their whole lives. The last thing on Beca's mind was a thought that maybe they would be okay. They could make it.