A/N: Thanks for the wait and all the lovely comments guys! Your support means a lot. Here is chapter 12 featuring Luke and Bechloe moments… plus a small dash of Staubrey.
Still no song in this one but there would be some snippets of songs (like a line or two) and a fully featured song in the next chapter. I do hope you enjoy it. This is part one of two back to back chapters of Bechloe moments and ~~feelings~~. It encompasses the start of their Christmas holidays, featuring the Bellas' Xmas party.
I don't own pitch perfect
Finals had come and gone like the wind.
Technically it was more like a violent storm that uprooted even the most grounded and hardworking of students. But really, what's the difference?
Beca was just glad that it was already over. That meant that the fall semester was finally done. It meant that she was halfway through getting to LA and turning her dreams into reality. For whatever reason she couldn't help but think Chloe's own voice repeating the same words to her not so long ago.
And for whatever reason it kind of made her feel sad.
It was really mostly just a bittersweet feeling. For a moment there Beca actually found herself being a Bella and doing her part to turn Chloe's – and by part, Aubrey's – dreams into reality. But she guessed it was just not meant to be. She was just glad that she still somewhat found friends in the Bellas, and that so far the friendships she's formed still stand.
She was lying on her bed in her dorm room just after her last exam. Emily had hit it off with the Bellas – no shock there – and they were currently taking her out for 'some stuff' as Amy vaguely described. Emily seemed to be excited, and more importantly she always returned in one piece, so Beca doesn't mind letting the Bellas pull her along with whatever they were up to. Even Aubrey seemed to like her. Luke, meanwhile, had been busy organizing shifts at the station. Most students were going home for the holidays but the station would continue to run its programs with a few specials planned, mostly because there would only be a few of them left to run things at the station.
Which inevitably left Beca with some time to kill before the Bellas' Christmas party that she, Emily, and Luke had also been invited to.
Which also meant that she was left alone with her own thoughts and that wasn't exactly the best thing at the moment.
At the same time, it actually was. It was a paradox, really, at least that would be her answer if anyone asked.
All because of Chloe Beale.
Beca wasn't really sure what to think of. Something was going on within her, and she doesn't know what it is, she couldn't understand. She just knows it all started with Chloe.
Like for whatever reason she just couldn't help but smile when she's around. Like for whatever reason she actually felt happy because of everything that was Chloe. The redhead was her best friend. She was…
…well… everything.
And Beca wasn't really sure what that meant. Or at least, she didn't want to think much about it scared of what it may mean.
She's never really met someone who pushed her to become better by just being there for her, by just being a friend and supporting her. Because with Chloe, for once, Beca was allowed to be who she was without the pressure of expectations and reality crushing her, without being judged or questioned, just being adored.
Because a part of Beca knew that Chloe adored her.
But what that meant as well, Beca wasn't sure of.
Beca indulged herself thinking about the future, mostly about LA, and yes even of Chloe being there for her in LA, to kill some time. She didn't really feel like doing anything else, that is, until it was about an hour before the time Chloe kept reminding her to show up.
"Party starts at eight Mitchell, and if I don't see you there, I will personally drag you out of your dorm room and into our apartment." she remembered Chloe saying the other day.
"When did I ever let you down Beale?" she had replied with a smirk.
But for the moment there was no smirk on her face. She noticed her hands were all clammy while she paced her room thinking of what to wear as she opted to change into something a little less 'zombie college student' and more 'decent human being'. After finally settling on an outfit reminiscent of the first day she met Chloe but with a red long sleeved shirt instead, she started pacing the room. Her nerves were getting to her as she made sure that her gift to Chloe was safely secure in her pocket. For the last fifteen minutes before she had to absolutely leave to be sure she would be on time, she had removed the flash drive from pocket and left it on her desk only to retrieve it again for a good four times. It was stupid really, her best idea of a gift for Chloe ended up being more of her mixes, but Beca was sure she would love it.
Besides, it may not be anything special, but it was the best of the best of her mixes. They were all songs that Chloe loved to, with some mash-ups of some of her favorites. Some songs were just ones that reminded Beca of Chloe when she heard it, and others, well others were songs that she knew Chloe had requested during her radio show. She didn't include all of them, but yeah, she dared to include some.
Needless to say, there were a lot of songs on that drive.
Here's to hoping Chloe would like it.
"You're right on time! Impressive Mitchell." Chloe said as she jumped to pull Beca in a quick hug. She couldn't help it, but then again when it came to Beca Mitchell, she really couldn't help herself. She was just happy that Beca actually came knowing full well that she might feel awkward being in a Bellas party after all that's happened. Sure it was in the past, but if anything, Chloe knew for sure that despite the strong front that Beca puts up, the girl was one who cared a lot. And Chloe could tell she still sometimes thought about the whole thing that happened between her and Aubrey. There were times when Beca seemed to have wanted to talk about something, mumbling something incomprehensible about the Bellas, that Chloe guessed that despite not really wanting to build roots to keep her at Barden for more than the year she had agreed too, Beca truly absolutely cared.
Not just about her, but also about all the other girls as her friends and the Bellas as a team.
She was just a little extra happy that the tiny brunette seemed to care about her the most.
Beca smirked, "Well, at least someone's happy to see me." she commented as Chloe stepped aside to let her in.
"Alright! Shawshank is here! Time to get this party started!" Amy then said. The Bellas were all surprisingly early, settling down and helping out Aubrey and Chloe finish some last minute preparations. Emily, who seemed to have been abducted… err… adopted by the Bellas came in with Amy and Stacie who brought some additional snacks for the party.
Luke arrived a minute after Beca started settling in, chatting up with Emily who was as ecstatic as ever and before Chloe knew it their simple party was already on its way.
He wasn't really sure how he got roped into this, but somehow he did. He did know that things, as a result, should be interesting though.
"This isn't going to work." Stacie whispered as she covered her own lips with her cup, pretending to take a sip of her drink.
"This is going to work." Amy replied in a hushed tone with such eager determination as a reply.
"I think it's absolutely adorable." Emily then mumbled. "The plan I mean."
"Of course it is Legacy, I came up with it." Amy then replied, the three of them were huddled in a corner of the living room with Luke.
"But it's too predictable and honestly transparent. If Beca won't see through it, Chloe would, and that means nothing would happen. Knowing Chlo, she'll consider how Beca would react to everything." Stacie argued. "I still think something more elaborate would be better."
"This is elaborate. Besides, at least this is much better than Jashley's idea of locking them up in a closet." Amy then said, Stacie quirked an eyebrow at her, with Emily looking a little confused. "What? I'm not sure who's who, okay?"
Luke chuckled. Yeah, he wasn't really sure how he ended up joining the Bellas with their crazy schemes.
"I still think it's a cute plan." Emily then piped up and both Stacie and Amy couldn't help but smile.
"Alright already, our Becky's gotta leave before midnight so we fairy godparents have to get things on a roll before she leaves. The rest of the Bellas ready?"
Stacie scoffed and looked at Luke as if he was asking a very obvious question. "Oh dear ol' Luke, we were born ready. Doesn't mean I don't think this might be a miss. Too many variables and all."
"Let's get things started, shall we?" Luke said with a smile.
Yep, things should definitely get interesting.
The plan was really a little insane but creative. Stacie waited for Cynthia Rose and Lilly to be ready for the set-up before distracting Aubrey with her own charms.
The Bellas were originally planning some sort of traditional Secret Santa thing going, instead they went with the good ol' white elephant. The rules were simple. Those who want to be a part of the gift giving would bring a gift. The number of gifts under the tree would then be counted and the participants would draw lots and when their number comes up, they can pick a gift and open it. Number one starts, then number two and so on. If someone doesn't like their gift, they can steal the gifts already opened. A gift can only be stolen once per turn and a gift cannot be immediately stolen back from the player who stole it. The exchange ends when the last gift is unwrapped. Number one then gets the chance to steal a gift following the same rules and starts the whole exchange process. The whole thing ends when someone chooses or is force to take the gift given up by number one.
Now what does the gift exchange thing have to do with anything?
Well, originally, nothing. The Bellas just wanted to have fun. But when they raised the idea of having mistletoes set-up, Aubrey opposed the idea profusely – much to Stacie's dismay – so they had to get slightly creative. The end result was they somewhat rigged the whole thing.
The whole rigging process was simple though that Stacie was worried that Beca, Chloe, and Aubrey would see right through it.
Hence, Stacie distracting Aubrey while Cynthia Rose grabs the pouch with the pieces of paper they were going to draw. With the help of Lilly, an alternate pouch, and some sleight of hand – care of Lilly – they made sure that neither Chloe nor Aubrey would go either first or last. Beca, thankfully, didn't want to be a part of it, which made things a little less complicated.
See, the gift Amy brought was actually one of those small remote helicopter toys with an added mistletoe tied underneath it. The Bellas wanted to make sure that the first person who gets to go won't steal any gifts, and the last gets the mistletoe helicopter.
They might have wanted to chase Beca and Chloe around with it for a little bit…
And of course the Bellas were all game for it. They all thought it was brilliant, except for Stacie who was worried the plan might backfire a little. Emily thought it was absolutely adorable and Luke just shrugged it off as something that might just be amusing.
Stacie successfully distracted Aubrey by asking her about holiday plans and something about the upcoming Regionals. When it came to Chloe's turn, Denise distracted the redhead with some random thing so she wouldn't notice the switching of pouches to the one without a number 1 or number 11 – the Bellas, Emily, and Luke had all pre-planned who goes after who, making sure to wait for Chloe and Aubrey to reveal their number and adjust accordingly. Meanwhile, Jessica and Ashley teamed up to pull Beca away briefly from Chloe under the pretense of asking her about her experience as a radio station intern and the banal art of CD stacking.
"Alright so I got two." Aubrey huffed after everyone had their turn drawing their lot. Stacie could tell she was disappointed not to get number one.
"I'm one." Luke immediately said with a grin.
Aubrey scoffed. "You don't have to rub it in."
"I'm nine. Long way to go I guess." Chloe then said.
"I got eleven." Amy then said, trying her best to hide her smile.
The exchange went smoothly. Aubrey and Chloe both bought really nice wine and champagne bottles for their gift – that with strange luck, Lilly and Emily got. Clearly the Bellas all tried to steal them. The rest were pretty much gag gifts, nothing too explicit, Lilly's gift was a pen knife which Cynthia Rose believed was best safe with her, while Luke bought chocolates which Jessica ended up trading to Emily. During both Aubrey and Chloe's turns, the Bellas did their best to convince the co-captains to get the nicely wrapped gifts and not the one simply wrapped in brown package paper as it was the one that had the mistletoe helicopter. Thankfully they caved. In the end, Aubrey got a devil faced pillow and Chloe got a box of chocolate covered strawberries – Emily's gift – that thankfully no one tried to steal.
It was mostly because the Bellas somehow silently agreed that the gift might actually be useful for Chloe.
"If no one steals this, do you want some later?" Chloe asked Beca during Denise's turn. "It's perfect with champagne."
"Are we celebrating something Beale?" Beca threw back with a casual smirk and it was at that point that Stacie felt a nudge from Amy who was trying not to stare at the two.
Stacie saw Chloe shrug. "I just thought it would be nice." she commented with an innocent smile.
Beca cleared her throat a little and looked away from Chloe. "I suppose it could." she then said in a barely audible whisper and Stacie couldn't help but smile. Beca was slightly blushing and Oh my good God those two re totally flirting with each other! Why are they so blind!?
Amy's turn came up and Stacie could barely focus on Aubrey's outburst when she saw the forsaken mistletoe bearing toy that will now with all certainty stalk them all – as Aubrey believed – especially in the hands of Amy. Her protests were only made louder when no one else seemed to argue against the gift.
"Oh you have got to be kidding me!" Aubrey shrieked.
"We could have it the easy way cap." Amy replied coolly.
"I'm calling it, you all planned this didn't you!" Aubrey argued, her face turning a slight hint of red.
Luke laughed. "What's the matter Posen, afraid you'll have to kiss me?"
"Oh you wish…" was Aubrey's reply, but Stacie wasn't able to pay much attention to it. Her eyes were on Beca and Chloe, Beca checking the time on her phone.
"I have to go Chlo." Beca said. She looked all fidgety, one hand shoved deep within her jeans pocket.
"Oh, but Beca!" Chloe started to protest. Beca was about to say something, she looked all nervous from what Stacie could tell. It was at this point that she heard Denise saying "Oh come on Aubrey, it could be fun." with Aubrey huffing even more as a response and Cynthia Rose asking Aubrey something along the lines of what her problem was with mistletoes in the first place.
Thanks to that minor distraction Stacie totally missed what Beca had said when she tried to lean in closer to Chloe to say something, not seeing what was in the hand that was shoved in her jeans pocket shove quickly into Chloe's hands. Stacie's guess was, knowing Beca, it would have been a flash drive with her mixes.
Beca looked all embarrassed as Chloe accepted the gift with a smile. Before she could take her leave, Chloe grabbed Beca's hand to pull her close, "I'll only let you go if you promise to come back. Why do you have to leave anyways?"
"I just remembered I promised to do something for… uh… a friend."
"Then I'll wait for you to get back." Chloe then said all tight-lipped. Stacie could tell that Chloe was acting her best to not be jealous, the redhead's mind probably thinking of Jesse. But Stacie knew better, she knew Beca was off to the station for her DJ gig that for whatever reason she still hasn't told Chloe.
"That won't be for a while."
"I'll wait nonetheless." Chloe said adamantly. "Promise me Mitchell."
Beca chuckled. "Fine. See you later then Beale." Beca said before standing up to leave.
"Oh come on!" Amy then whined and that was when Stacie – and Chloe – realized the helicopter making its way and eventually hovering above where Chloe was. The redhead gave Amy a look before shaking her head and excusing herself, rushing straight to her room.
"You guys are ridiculous." Aubrey huffed, excusing herself to go grab a drink. Stacie shot Amy an 'I told you so' look before following Aubrey to the kitchen to refill her own cup, totally missing the devious smile on both Amy and Luke's faces.
"I'm assuming you were in on it too?" Aubrey asked as soon as she entered the kitchen.
"I did warn them it might fail. If we didn't get derailed with the fight over those weird flavored jelly beans we might have had enough time to pull it off."
Aubrey took a deep breath before addressing Stacie again. "Chloe wouldn't have caved easily, at least not without making sure the hobbit was okay with it." she said much calmer than earlier.
"I also used that as an argument. But we couldn't help but try I guess." Stacie replied. She was about to ask Aubrey why she was so against the whole mistletoes idea when they started to hear the helicopter noise above them.
"Oh, they have got to be kidding." Aubrey said to herself before glaring at the Bellas who had by then built a fort in the living room by moving around some of the furniture – they were at least sure they would invoke Aubrey's wrath if they tried to pull of what they we retrying to pull off then. "You all are being childish." Aubrey said as she marched closer to them.
Stacie slowly made her to follow Aubrey, stopping a few feet short when she realized the mistletoe helicopter following her. She was totally game but she didn't know what Aubrey might feel and…
"Loosen up Cap. Just once in your life." Cynthia Rose said from behind the cushions.
"Yeah, what she said." Amy then said before making the helicopter circle the distance between Aubrey and Stacie.
"What do you have to lose? It's just a kiss Posen." Luke then taunted with his usual grin plastered on his face.
"Yeah, what they said." Jessica and Ashley chorused while hiding behind Cynthia Rose. Lilly muttered something that seemed to fall along the lines of everyone's arguments while Emily looked a little confused and excited and more of like an adorable lost little puppy not knowing what will happen next.
Aubrey groaned and shook her head before she harrumphed and marched towards Stacie, placing both her hands on her neck and pulling her close, totally catching her off guard as their lips crashed together for one brief but surprising moment.
It was at that point that Chloe chose to resurface back from her room squealing in surprise. Aubrey then let go of Stacie, a tinge of pink on her cheeks before turning her attention back on the Bellas leaving Stacie completely speechless.
That's a first. Stacie thought to herself, her mind going blank with any though other than Aubrey kissing her.
Her trembling hands felt for her lips while Aubrey demanded justice and punished the Bellas as she saw fit – Stacie wasn't really sure what happened, being in a daze and all – but she was sure she saw the helicopter and it's remote broken down to pieces and in the trash fifteen minutes later.
Something else had taken over her completely, something new, something she's never expected.
So yeah, it was definitely a first.
Matt was kind enough to stick around and do Beca the favor of walking her to Chloe and Aubrey's apartment just outside of campus just before four in the morning. Luke came into the station with a huge cup of coffee, still slightly inebriated, for his shift. Beca would be worried but she knew Luke, and Luke's alcohol tolerance is impeccable. She also knew that Luke wouldn't dare sabotage his own show so when he told her he was fine, she believed him.
"Thanks for the concern Becky. Aren't you the sweetest?" Luke had commented before Beca scoffed and left with Matt.
The walk back to the Bellas party – Luke very much confirmed that the girls were still going at it – was spent with idle chatter with Matt. They knew each other well enough but Beca never really hanged out with him without her step-brother that it felt a little awkward to talk about anything but music. And currently, talking about music brought up Chloe to mind. And thinking about Chloe made Beca all kinds of nervous. The redhead didn't call in for any request that night, making Beca wonder if she listened to the radio show or if she started listening to the mixes she's made. This of course opened up the whole can of worms that was her own insecurity on whether or not Chloe liked, and what would Chloe think of them, and was the whole gift even good enough.
Beca's mind at the point was one hot mess.
All thanks to the redhead.
"I'm glad to see your friends with good people though." Matt had said, snapping Beca back to the present in time to realize that they were just a few more steps away from the apartment.
"Huh… oh… yeah… the Bellas… right." Beca mumbled.
Matt laughed a little, as the two of them stopped short of their destination. "I meant Chloe Beale. Luke can't stop talking about how happy he is that you have someone like Chloe to depend on."
"He talks about me?" Beca asked a little thrown off guard. "For that matter, me and Chloe?"
"Quite fondly actually." Matt commented. "He has a heart, you know that."
"I guess you're right." Beca replied with an amused chuckle. "Thanks for walking me."
"No worries. Campus is pretty much safe at night, it's something Barden is actually really good at, but outside… you'll never know." Matt said with a shrug. "See you around Beca."
"See you around Matt." Beca called out as Matt walked away, finally turning around to head inside.
Luke wasn't kidding, the Bellas were still definitely going at it. "Legacy's in cappy's room all tucked in." Beca heard Amy say as soon as she stepped inside. The girls, sans Emily and Chloe, were all gathered in the living room. The furniture was all a mess, and everyone was on the floor, sitting in a circle around the last remaining bottles of alcohol left for consumption, except for Ashley who was already out cold on the couch. Counting the numbers of cups, Beca could tell that both Chloe had definitely joined the Bellas in their current round of drinking at some point. There were two lonely cups set around the circle no longer in use, and Beca was sure that Aubrey wouldn't have allowed Emily to join them in the drinking. Speaking off, Aubrey was currently dozing off on the floor, her head on Stacie's lap, with Stacie subconsciously playing with a loose strand of the blonde's hair. Cynthia Rose looked like she was about to go down soon with Denise leaning over to her side. Amy and Stacie were still somewhat in the running against Lilly and Jessica who surprisingly seemed to be able to be holding onto their liquor well.
"I don't even want to know what this is about." Beca found herself saying with a chuckle.
"We all agreed that whoever wins as the last gal standing gets to skip the extra cardio punishment from earlier and gets the chance to pick a dare to be carried out by everyone else in the group." Jessica replied.
Beca's eyes quirked at the mention of 'punishment' but while her curiosity wanted to know the story behind it, her desire to see Chloe was getting the best of her.
"Red's in her room Becs." Stacie then said, as if reading her mind. Beca nodded in response before awkwardly making her way to Chloe's room.
It was the moment of truth.
"Beca!" Chloe said, throwing all her weight into Beca as she enveloped her into a warm and tight hug. Beca had her arms wrapped around Chloe almost as if it was a reflex and somehow she found herself standing in the middle of Chloe's room, spinning around still locked in Chloe's embrace, the door slamming shut, and a rather euphoric redhead. For a minute or two she considered the possibility of how drunk Chloe could possibly be in comparison to the rest of their friends outside but she considering Chloe could still stand on her own and all, Beca deduced that the redhead didn't join her friends for long in their little game. "They're all amazing Beca, I couldn't stop listening to them. Seriously, all amazing!" Chloe then said, tightening her embrace and pulling Beca impossibly closer to her. Beca instinctively did the same, taking in everything that Chloe was in that moment, her warmth, her scent, the softness of the red hair touching her cheeks as she buried her face in her shoulders. She could feel her heart growing three times over just from Chloe's overjoyed reaction and Beca knew there was no way of fighting the smile growing on her lips.
Chloe didn't just like her gift, she loved it.
And Beca just couldn't resist the wave of emotions that took her over in that moment. She was happy, even more so than she thought possible, because for at least one brief second of time, she knew for sure she was the reason behind Chloe's smile.
"You're a musical genius! I love it Becs!" Chloe murmured against her own shoulders before pulling away ever so slightly, not daring to let Beca go. Their eyes meet for a brief second but Beca couldn't hold the redhead's gaze for long. Her eyes soon fell on the floor, her cheeks feeling hot like they were burning.
"Well, I do try." Beca replied as she tried so hard to keep the smile on her face restricted to her casual trademark smirk. She could feel Chloe's eyes still lingering on her face when the other girl chuckled in response. Beca took that as her cue and fought for the strength to look back into Chloe's eyes once more. She looked tired and sleepy for staying up late and waiting up for her but her eyes were still shining brightly.
"Thank you." Chloe said, her voice dropping down into a low and gentle whisper and Beca would have nodded in response but instead she stood frozen for a brief second when she felt Chloe's lips on her cheeks and the redhead dropping her head back on her shoulders, not letting Beca go for one second.
Beca cleared her throat after a minute or two, "You're tired, you should sleep."
"Only if you tuck me in and keep me warm?" Chloe asked, lifting her face and pressing her forehead against Beca's.
Beca felt her stomach do some sort of summersault – it's been doing that a lot since she met Chloe, to be honest. She caught of the scent of champagne and strawberries in her breath – so maybe she was a little bit drunker than Beca thought – and Beca couldn't help but laugh. "You ate those strawberries without me!" she said feigning indignation and Chloe laughed.
"Only just a few. You were gone for a while Becs. But seriously, stay? It's really late."
"Or really early, depends on who you ask." Beca retorted and Chloe simply shook her head and smiled.
"Please? Oh come on Becs, even Emily is tucked in Bree's room."
"Are you saying I should sleep in Posen's room too?" Beca teased making a face and Chloe snorted.
"No, silly, you're staying here with me." Chloe said, and Beca knew that's exactly what she would do.
How could she not?
They spent a good fifteen minutes arguing about why Beca shouldn't sleep on the floor – because Beca, whether she was aware of it or not, wanted to be all chivalrous and Chloe wasn't having it – before Chloe clearly won the argument and Beca was tucked in safely in Chloe's bed right next to the redhead.
Beca was trying – very hard – to keep her distance from Chloe as she watched the redhead's eyes flutter close, the other girl quickly drifting off to sleep. Her own eyes was carefully watching, etching every detail of Chloe's face into memory, before letting her dreams take her completely.
Beca hated mornings, but she woke up early the next day in Chloe's arms, her back against the redhead's chest. Something about made her heart race a little bit faster – something that also seemed to happen a lot since she met Chloe that she was getting used to it – making her a little unsure on what to do next, becoming very much conscious and aware of every bit of Chloe that was touching her, from the arms around her waist to their entangled legs. She's never let anyone close to her, not like this, never in the way that Chloe was close to her now, and normally Beca would have freaked out.
Except for the fact that right then and there, Beca never felt so safe and secure, and warm and welcomed, and happy and content in her life.
And Beca was terrified. She was terrified to feel all those things thanks to one person.
But she didn't pull away.
Instead she had let Chloe pull her in as she felt the redhead snuggle closer to her.
Beca could feel it, her mind was once again racing with different thoughts as she pushed the answer to her questions deeper and deeper into the darkest corners of her mind. No she won't… no she can't…
But won't and can't what?
Beca decided she wouldn't think of it anymore, the answer creeping closer and closer to the tip of her tongue that she was afraid the words would slip out so carelessly without any warning.
Instead she decided to simply enjoy the comfort and tenderness of the moment she was living, afraid it would slip away.
But she would never let it simply slip away, Beca decided, as the silent beating of heart lulled her back to sleep, hoping she could stay forever with Chloe the way were then.
PS: Chloe does have a gift for Beca, but… plot reasons XP… she'll give it to her in the next chapter and I think it's amazing, can you guess what it could be? :)
Also, expect shenanigans, lots of it. I was to include said scenes in this chapter too but I realized there was already too much going - I had way too much fun writing the unexpected Staubrey scene I wasn't planning - on with this one that I didn't want to push it much :P
That said, expect the next update on Thursday ;)