A/N: Loads of Bechloe ahead!

By the time their first match of the competition came around, everybody was whipped back into shape by Aubrey. The coaches were very pleased with the way the team had been playing. Their last match of before the winter was long forgotten and everybody was hyped for the second half of their season. Their first few matches were against some of the lower placed teams, so they would be able to build up slowly and prepare for the harder matches. Aubrey repeatedly warned them to not underestimate any opponent though, they had to approach these matches just like any other.

The coaches weren't giving Beca much pitch time during the first few matches and she couldn't shake the feeling that this was mostly Aubrey's doing. She sucked it up and tried to keep a straight face while sitting on the bench. She cheered for her team when they scored and complimented them when they returned to the bench. However, after every match she didn't feel like she had done much work and felt restless and anxious. She started exercising more outside of practice, especially on the weekend, to compensate for this, but it just didn't feel the same.

The relationship between Beca and Aubrey hadn't changed, even though Chloe had tried to talk to the both of them. Beca wasn't keen on trying to apologize to Aubrey again, she feared that it would end badly and cause more harm. Aubrey wouldn't talk to Beca either, her reasoning being that Beca would just lie to her again. Chloe was unfortunately caught in the middle.

The tension between Beca and Aubrey meant that Chloe couldn't invite Beca over to her place, and even if she did, Beca would refuse. Since Beca was still roomed with Kimmy Jin, hanging out at Beca's wasn't ideal either. Consequently the time they had together between studying, training and working, was spend in public places. Chloe and Beca both felt the strain on their relationship. It just wasn't as easy to talk freely in the library or outside on a bench where everybody could listen in. Even though Beca had been awarded some solo shifts in the radio station they couldn't talk there either, since juggling a radio show and a conversation was easier said than done.

By now their relationship had diminished to hasty kisses and superficial conversations. Both girls didn't like the way this was going and Chloe decided to take matters in her own hands a few weeks into the spring season. After the game on Sunday Beca didn't have a shift and both girls had the evening off. Since meeting in either dorm room wasn't an option, Chloe planned a date for the both of them. This would give them the opportunity to spend some quality time together and actually talk to each other.

Beca was surprised when Chloe proposed her idea, but also agreed that they needed some quality time together. She herself was extremely stressed, keeping her grades up was hard enough if she didn't have to step onto the field four times a week. The situation with Aubrey was also getting on her nerves, since the blonde had been pushing her extra hard each practice. Admittedly, she had noticed the improvement in herself, but dealing with Aubrey's bossy attitude left her mentally exhausted.

The game on Sunday went really well, they crushed their opponents, one of the lower placed teams, and everybody felt ready for the first true competition they would face next week. Everybody except for Beca. She had been allowed to play only twenty minutes this match and had a hard time finding her rhythm in the little time she was allowed on the pitch. She hadn't taken a penalty corner in a match since before the winter. She was also not too confident that she would be able to play more the next match, since Aubrey was still not really talking to her, and the coaches still shot her disappointed glances from time to time.

"I'll pick you up at six," Chloe said to her when they got back to campus. Beca nodded and made her way to her own dorm room. She didn't feel tired at all, at least not physically. When she got to her room and sat down on her bed she felt restless. The only remedy she knew for this was playing hockey, but that wasn't really an option right now. Instead, she decided to put on her running gear and go out for a run. She checked the time and saw that she still had almost two hours before Chloe would arrive, so she could do at least six miles and still have time to shower and get ready.

Running felt good. Beca was pushing hard and knew she was running faster than her usual pace. She didn't know exactly how long or far she had ran, but after a while she decided it would be time to turn around. The way back was harder, but Beca always tried to run the second half of her runs faster than the first. She was panting by the time she arrived back at her dorm room and checked her phone.

"Shit," she exclaimed before running inside. She had ran more than 10 miles and only had fifteen minutes left until Chloe would arrive. She moved as quickly as she could, gathering all her stuff and bolted towards the showers. She was wearing nothing but a towel and was looking at her closet deciding what to wear when she heard a knock on the door.

"Come in, it's open," she called. She saw Chloe enter in her peripheral. She turned around to look at her briefly, but was captured by what she saw. Chloe was wearing a little black dress that was hugging her figure. Tanned, athletic legs showed underneath it. How the girl managed to get them evenly tanned while playing hockey, Beca didn't know, but she looked amazing. Chloe was looking at her with a mix of irritation and amusement.

"I'm sorry, I got caught up, I'll be ready in five minutes," Beca told her. Chloe still wasn't looking to happy.

"You look beautiful," Beca now said. The smile she shot her girlfriend was met by an even bigger smile, and the irritation had vanished from Chloe's face. Now just the amusement was left.

"So, were you planning on going to come to dinner with me in a towel?" Chloe asked her, one eyebrow raised. She moved closer to Beca and put her hands around the girl. She looked over the brunette's shoulder at the different items of clothing in front of her. Her eyes fell on a classy black sleeveless blouse. She pulled it out and found matching skinny jeans. Beca took the items from her, nodded approvingly and started to get dressed. When she was done, she rummaged around a drawer until she pulled out a necklace that fit her outfit. She finished it off with a pair of black boots. She quickly made her way to the mirror to put on some make-up, before turning around.

"You look nice," Chloe said with a smile. She took her girlfriend's hand and led her outside. Chloe had picked out a nice little Italian restaurant just off campus. It was visited by a lot of students due to the atmosphere and the prices. It wasn't too classy, but just right. They sat at a table in the corner. After the waitress had taken their orders, silence fell. Chloe was the first to break it.

"So, how are your classes going?" She knew it was a lame question, but she didn't really know what else to talk about, and it was better than nothing, at least they were having a conversation now. After a while the question was bounced back to her and she found herself speaking about a weird teacher she had at the moment. Before she knew it, they were laughing and talking more freely than they had in weeks. It felt nice to finally have some time together again.

By the end of their meal both girls were feeling relaxed and at ease. Chloe decided that this would be a good time to ask Beca a question she had been meaning to ask her for a while now. She actually invited her girlfriend over to dinner partially for this cause.

"So, do you know what you are going to do next year?" she asked in small voice. Immediately she saw the change in Beca. The girl clenched her jaws, her body tensed and her eyes fell. She remained silent for a while before she looked up. Chloe hadn't expected to see the anger in her eyes. She immediately regretted asking the question, but knew deep down that they needed to discuss this. They hadn't talked about it since their fight.

"You know what I want to do," Beca said simply. She stared straight into Chloe's eyes, until her girlfriend averted her eyes. She looked down at the stray piece of lettuce still lying on her plate. Chloe didn't say anything.

"I don't expect my father to take me seriously, but it would be nice if you did." There, she said it. Beca has had more than enough of everybody doubting her. Her father had asked her about her plans more than once over winter break. Each time the tone was patronizing, revealing that he still thought it was just a naive dream. He couldn't break his promise as long as Beca kept playing hockey, so she luckily had that on him.

Chloe looked up at her and didn't avert her gaze this time. She thought about what she wanted to say for a moment before speaking.

"I am taking you seriously. I was just hoping that there would be an alternative. I am not asking you to stay here for me, I am just asking you to consider your options. You are young, you have the whole world at your feet. I get that you dreamed about going to LA for a long time. I am asking you to look into other options."

"Look Chloe, I love you, but you're right, I am still young and it would foolish for me to stay here just for you," Beca replied. Chloe seemed to be prepared for this response, since she didn't need any time to formulate her answer.

"Beca, although I do have very selfish reasons, I am not just saying this for myself. When I look at you, I see so much talent and potential. I know you have a hard time keeping your grades up, but that may be due to the fact that you are not really engaged in what you are studying. You are smart. You are an amazing DJ, I would know, because I listen to all your shows, yes, even the late night ones. You also have amazing potential as a hockey player. If you keep training like this, you could easily make it into the national team next year. In LA you would probably get the opportunity to produce music, but maybe you could take a few years exploring your other talents first."

Beca looked at Chloe. She hadn't expected this. She assumed that Chloe would use the same arguments her father had used, patronizing her choice. She had done exactly the opposite. She showed that she actually respected Beca's dreams, but was still looking out for her best interest as well. As she realized this, the guilt kicked in. While Chloe had thought about their future together, Beca had just been thinking about herself. Tears started welling up in her eyes. Chloe looked extremely anxious, worried that she had said the wrong thing.

"I love you so much," Beca finally said. "You're right. I have been self-obsessed, I'm so sorry!"

Chloe got up and walked around their table, crouched next to her girlfriend and put a hand in her lap. "I love you too. I know it is hard to figure out what you want. It is even harder to have figured it out and have everybody tell you that it is never going to happen."

Beca nodded and looked into bright blue eyes. "I never asked you what your plans are for next year."

Chloe nodded, gave Beca a quick kiss and returned to her side of the table. "I got offered a place in the graduate program."

"That's amazing, congratulations," Beca replied, while taking Chloe's hand in hers.

"I'm not sure if I'm going to take it. My dream is to play for Team USA. I want to give it one more shot next year. I know what I need to work on, and I feel that if I work hard I might have a shot. And if I don't make it, at least I will know that I gave it my everything."

Beca nodded, but didn't know what to say. She was confident her girlfriend would be good enough and she was going to do everything she could to help her get there.