A/N: Hey guys, here's the fifth chapter. Thanks so much for the reviews, favs and follows, they really mean a lot, so keep them coming! I'm sorry if some of the characters in this chapter are a bit OOC, I tried my best to keep them true to the films but yeah, they might stray from their usual characteristics a bit.
This chapter's song is 'Saving Us a Riot' by Phoria, hope you enjoy :)
The next couple of weeks pasted by uneventfully. Chloe went through two chemo sessions, and was able to manage her sickness better each time. She got slightly less tired and slightly less sick after each one, and although the pain in her body was still unbearable, the progress put her in better spirits.
She was almost the old Chloe again, greeting everyone with a happy smile, asking how Beca's day was every time she returned home from work, doing the washing and making delicious meals that left Beca and Amys' mouths-watering for hours.
The best part of those two weeks for Chloe were the occasional days Beca would take off work to stay at home with Chloe. They would spend the day watching crappy TV shows, baking and generally basking in the joy of each other's company. Every now and then, Aubrey would come over for an evening to spend time with Chloe, for the blonde's own peace of mind. Aubrey needed to see that Chloe was okay. She needed to look past Chloe's bruised, thinning body and see that her best friend was smiling and happy, and that was what she always saw.
Things seemed to be getting better. Chloe seemed to be getting better. The only issue was hiding it from the other Bellas, especially Amy. It was difficult to hide the fact that Chloe wasn't working, it was difficult to hide the fact that Chloe was pale and constantly tired, it was difficult to hide all of Chloe's medication and cancer help leaflets. It was difficult to hide the fact that Beca was sleeping in Chloe's bed every night, snuggled right up close to the redhead, afraid that if she let go, Chloe would slip from her grasp forever.
Eventually, the odd looks from Amy and the curious texts from the Bellas asking why they hadn't met up in weeks became too much, and Beca confronted Chloe.
"We need to tell the Bellas about your cancer. It's not fair to keep lying to them, especially Amy." Beca said forcefully, standing over Chloe who had been falling asleep on the sofa.
"We?" was Chloe's only reply, silently grateful that Beca had chosen to use that pronoun.
"Of course, I'd never make you tell them on your own, we're in this together." Beca said, sitting beside Chloe and taking her hands without a second thought, surprising herself at how natural it felt.
Chloe smiled at Beca and nodded slightly.
"Tell them all to come over tonight. I want to tell them as soon as possible, before I lose my nerve."
Chloe spent the rest of the day pulling herself together. She used makeup to hide some of the bruising and the dark circles under her eyes. She got properly dressed, as opposed to just wearing cotton shorts and a hoodie, and rehearsed the conversation with the Bellas over and over in the mirror.
Eventually, the time came to tell the Bellas. They arrived in small bunches – Jessica and Ashley were first, then Aubrey. Next came Cynthia Rose, Stacey and Amy. Amy had spent the day with the other two Bellas and looked sceptically at Beca and Chloe when she came in. Finally came Emily, Lilly and Flo.
No-one seemed to notice Chloe's slightly different, fatigued appearance, they were just all excited to hear how Beca's big record label was going. She lied, saying that it was great and that she was making some really great music. The truth was her bosses where getting annoyed at how much time she was spending off work and she found that she really couldn't make any good music. There were no genius musical melodies or backing tracks flying around her brain, because they only thing on her mind was Chloe. The Bellas bought her lies, and continued catching up amongst themselves as Chloe built herself up to tell them about her cancer. The radio bumbled quietly in the corner, playing songs that people would hum along to in unison, creating a pleasant and nostalgic atmosphere. After about half an hour, Aubrey, who knew that tonight was the night Chloe was going to tell the girls about her condition, rounded the Bellas up, and got them all sitting in a circle around the living room.
"Alright, so some of you might remember a few years ago, back at college, we all sat in a circle and told everyone something that no-one knew about themselves so that we could sort out all our problems? Well, I know that we don't exactly have any 'problems' that we need to overcome as a group, but I think we should try it again, only this time say something that's happened to you since leaving college. It will be a nice way to catch up with each other, and I know there are people here who have things they want to get off their chests." Aubrey said, glancing round the group, her gaze ending up on Chloe's pale face.
"I'll go first." Beca said, hoping it would help Chloe settle in and build up the nerve to tell everyone. "Since college, I've spoken a lot more to 'the stepmonster'. I found that she wasn't really as bad as I thought, and she makes my dad happy so…you know… I guess that's okay. I can live with that." Beca mumbled, still not really comfortable with sharing things that personal with the Bellas; Chloe offered Beca a small smile as they waited for the next person to speak up. Stacey went next, she revealed how she'd managed to cut down the amount of sex she had each month, and had taken up life-coaching as a replacement pass-time. Everyone congratulated her and slowly they moved round the circle, each Bella talking about something they had accomplished or experienced since college. Finally, it was Chloe's turn. She clenched her hands in her lap to try and hide the fact that they were violently shaking and ignored the blush that heated her cheeks. She took heaved a sigh and opened her eyes, looking at all the Bellas patiently waiting for her to talk about life after college. She noticed Beca giving her a reassuring smile and took a deep breath.
"I have… cancer. Since college, I've contracted leukaemia. That's why we haven't met up in ages; and sorry Amy, that's why things have been weird here at home. Beca's been taking care of me. I've had a few chemo sessions and… yeah. That's what's happened since college." Chloe said, not taking her eyes off Beca as she said this, soaking up the reassurance that poured from Beca's stormy eyes.
There was a moment of silence before an avalanche of noise exploded from the Bellas. Jessica and Ashley offered Chloe comfort, saying how they'd always be there if she needed her. Cynthia Rose just blurted how she couldn't believe Chloe was having to face something that heavy barely a few years out of college. Stacey started crying and Emily looked on the verge of tears. They both started preaching about how amazing Chloe was and how she didn't deserve this. The most noise came from Amy.
Amy wanted to offer her support to the redhead, however she couldn't help but feel hurt that Beca had known and she hadn't.
"We live together, for acca-god's sake. I knew something was going on, why didn't you just tell me? I could've helped! How come Beca knew before me? How come you told Aubrey but not me, she doesn't even live in the same city as us!" Amy exclaimed, her accent getting thicker as she got more worked up.
Aubrey then started explaining how her and Chloe had been friends for years, and that it was completely fair that she knew before Amy. This only made the large blonde more agitated. She started getting annoyed about how close Chloe and Beca had been getting, explaining how she felt left out. The other Bellas raised their voices in order to be heard over Amy and the noise level just rose and rose. Chloe was about to break down in tears when a song started playing on the radio, shutting all the Bellas up.
The song playing was one that all the Bellas recognised, even Emily and Flo. It was one Beca had sung during her first performance with the Bellas.
Paying quietly on the radio was non-other than the song 'Eternal Flame' by The Bangles. The Bellas listened to it all the way through, no-one saying a word as they were reminded of their earliest performances at Barden. They all thought how much better it sounded when it was sung by their favourite redhead who was sat, leaning into Beca and trying to hold in tears that so badly wanted to fall. Amy was the first to break the peaceful silence once the song had finished,
"I'm sorry. I'm just upset. Now that I know, I'll always be here to help. And if you and Beca ever need space, just let me know and I can spend the night at Stacey's or something. I only want to help you get better, Chloe." Amy said solemnly, directly addressing the weak redhead. Chloe nodded her thanks, giving everyone a sad smile.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell all you guys earlier. I just wasn't ready and I didn't want to bog you guys down. Don't be worrying about me all the time, I'm fine. Thanks to Beca, and Aubrey, I'm fine."
The Bellas all comforted Chloe, bidding their goodbyes and one by one departing the flat. Aubrey stayed behind to help tidy up before following the rest of the Bellas and heading home, gently squeezing Chloe's shoulders as she left.
Amy went straight to bed, clearly still hurt about not being told sooner, leaving Beca and Chloe still sat curled up on the floor.
"You did it." Beca whispered, pulling Chloe into a tight embrace. "And thank god for 'Eternal Flame', it certainly shut everyone up pretty fast."
Chloe chuckled quietly. "Thank you, Beca. There was no-way I would have been able to do that without you next to me." The redhead said, putting her forehead against Beca's. They sat like that for a while, foreheads gently touching, hand in hand, for a while. They eventually broke up to go to bed, where the lay curled around one another, letting each other's heartbeats lull them gently to sleep.
'There's a lullaby, saving us a riot,
Giving back the time, stilling my desire'