A/N - Special thanks to my beta for the dotting of the i's and crossing of the t's. Hope everyone is having a great weekend... it's raining here, as usual! xx

.oOo. Chapter Five .oOo.

"Hi."

The softly spoken word reverberated around the walls of the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Children's Healthcare of Atlanta hospital, disturbing no one but the intended recipient.

Beca turned around slowly, mindful of the wires and tubes connecting the baby in her arms to the machines on the left. They were currently having some much needed skin on skin time.

"Hi!" She said, recognising the red curls immediately.

"It's Beca, right?"

"Guilty." Beca smirked, shifting as the tiny baby squirmed in her arms.

"You look a little different than the last time I saw you?"

"You mean, with clothes on?" Beca quipped, leaning down to plant the softest of kisses on the baby's head in an attempt to keep her moving around too much.

"Oh, I didn't mean… I realise how that-"

"-It's okay Chloe! I've had time to brush my hair now and put on a little make up."

"You look great. How have you had a baby two days ago and look as good as you do?" Chloe asked. "I feel and look gross."

"You don't, at all." Beca said, glancing up at Chloe.

"Kind of you to say but I'm in desperate need of a shower, a hairbrush and a four hour nap."

Beca grinned and tucked the blanket around the baby, wondering why she was wiggling so much.

"I didn't mean to interrupt." Chloe said, looking down at the baby.

"Oh no, it's fine. We're just sitting."

"When did you get here? I haven't seen you before today."

"Just this morning. It took a little while to organise a ride."

"Your daughter is beautiful. Really beautiful." Chloe said, cocking her head to the side and narrowing her eyes. She pulled her robe around her a little tightly, feeling a sudden chill in the air.

"Really? I think she looks like a deep fried alien that got bitten by a-"

"-You can't say that!" Chloe laughed out, trying to hide her smile behind her hand.

"Well, she hates me." Beca said.

"Oh?" Chloe asked.

"The doctor explained it as my being absent for three days, but I got here as soon as I could. He says the bond will happen and then gave me a mini lecture on not trying to force everything too quickly and sometimes it just takes a little longer, especially with preemies."

"Who is your doctor?"

"Doctor Forrester. He's good, like really good but I think he's better at dealing with the babies than the adults." Beca smirked. "Who's yours?"

"Doctor Davey. She's good too." Chloe smiled. "It's nice to see you again. How are you both doing?"

"She's not doing so great."

"Oh Beca, I'm sorry-"

"-It's okay. She was okay when she was born, there wasn't anything wrong in their first checks, but they explained with early babies that anything can change or develop in a matter of minutes. In the first twenty-four hours she's managed to develop apnoea. She's taking a long breath, and then a short one then pausing for about ten seconds. She's got a slow heart rate called bradycardia hence the C-PAP into her nose."

"Wow, that's a lot. They were testing my girls for that as one of them was really struggling for breath but they… is there anything I can do?" Chloe said, her arms itching to reach out and touch Beca.

"Right now, this…" Beca nodded down herself. "… this is all I need. She's slowly getting better. She's being fed intravenously through her belly button at the moment. She's getting glucose and medicine and vitamins through the vein and then when she's a bit stronger, I think they called it gavage feeding, then she'll be tube fed for a while until she can take from me directly. She'll need oxygen for a while and maybe some medicine but whatever she needs, she'll have it. I'll find a way to get it all for her."

"Hopefully, it won't be long."

"I hope so too. We're going to stick around for a while in Atlanta. I'm going to stay with my friend until she's okay to travel."

"Travel?"

"We're heading to the West Coast. Anyway, how are you doing?" Beca said, not wanting to explain any more about herself than she had to.

"We are doing okay, thank you. Baby A is now called Katharine… Kate. She's definitely the stronger of the two. She's managed to gain a few ounces, had her very first bed bath this morning and we have a tentative leaving date of the twenty fifth of July for her. My other daughter is Alexandra, or Alex. She's doing super well as she was the one that they were worried about the most and the reason for the emergency caesarean. She's now passing all of her tests with flying colours and will be released as soon as she's gained enough weight, so maybe a week to ten days for her."

"That's amazing."

"Yeah, she's definitely stronger than they first thought. She's doing okay." Chloe said, her face twisting a little.

"What's wrong?"

"I think she hates me too." Chloe said, cantering her weight onto her hip.

"What do you mean?"

"Katharine is so much better when I'm around. She thrives when I am here during the day. Alexandra doesn't respond to me at all."

"Maybe she's a daddy's girl?" Beca said kindly.

"Maybe."

"And how is her daddy? Your husband?"

"Oh how kind of you to ask." Chloe said, nodding towards the chair opposite Beca. "Mind if I sit?"

"Please." Beca said, reaching out and tucking the blanket around the baby.

"David's got some injuries." Chloe explained as she took a seat. "Broken tibia and fibula. He's got some plates on his thigh bone and will probably be having physio until he's forty. When we get back home, we'll get him into a rehab centre for a few weeks and see how we go. His shoulder and collar bone were both broken, and he's had those pinned. They didn't operate on his spleen in the end, although there's still a chance… we just have to wait and see. My brother in law will be transferred to the Shepherd Centre after he is well enough to travel."

"Wow, you have a lot going on."

"Luckily, I have David's family around and once we're all okay to leave, we're going to stay at David's parents' lake house for a couple of months until we can get back home."

"Be nice to have them around too."

"Yes, his parents are pretty cool, but they need to concentrate their efforts on Pete. He's going to need their support."

"But your girls will give them a reason to smile." Beca said, kindly. She looked up at the monitors as one began to beep, causing a nurse's head to snap around in their direction. She began to walk over towards them.

"You're right." Chloe said, nodding gently. "They probably will need them. I didn't think of it like that. I'd better get out of the way, and let this lovely nurse see to you and your baby. Does she have a name yet?"

"Not yet. Wanted to get to know her a little bit first." Beca said, looking down at the baby as the nurse lifted the blanket to check the feeding tube. Chloe looked at her watch.

"I'd better go." She said, looking somewhat reluctant.

"I'll see you later Chloe?"

"Yes, I've got to head back to my room, it's meals and meds time but I'm sure we'll see each other later."

.oOo.

Ten Days Later

"Yoos ready to go?" Amy asked, clutching at the handles of Beca's small diaper bag. They'd arrived at the hospital early to pick up Beca's baby, having driven from Amy's small studio apartment. Beca couldn't afford to say in the hospital and had been prepared to live in her car until the hospital refused to sign her and the baby out. Amy had immediately offered her place.

"I am ready to leave this place, that's for sure." Beca said, picking up her purse and checking inside.

"Got everythin'?"

"Diaper bag, check. Change of baby clothes, check. Box and list of medications for the baby, check." Beca said, pointing to each item as she spoke. She carefully slipped her arm under her daughter and picked her up from her bassinet, made sure her clothes were straight and planted a couple of kisses on her forehead. She carried her over to the car seat and placed her in it, fumbling over the straps a little.

"Need help?" Amy asked.

"I got it, thanks." Beca replied, clicked the buckles into place. She laid the crib blanket over the baby, tucking it in to the sides. "So, that's baby, check."

"Yoos need ta give this little lady a name."

"I know. It's such a big responsibility. Kinda gone stick with her forever."

"If yoos think the name is a responsibility, wait 'til she starts walkin', talkin' and goin' ta school."

Beca grinned and cast her eyes over the tiny, sleeping little girl.

"I actually do know her name." Beca said, quietly.

"Please let it be Liberty Freedom." Amy said, making a big show of crossing her fingers.

"Um, maybe for the next one." Beca said.

"Come on then, hit me with it."

"Well…" Beca said, cantering her weight onto her hip as she turned to face Amy. "… I decided I am going to name her after Jesse. She'll be a Jessica, but I'd really like to call her Jessie. She has a great daddy and I want her to be proud to share his name."

"That's lovely, that's really nice."

"Thanks."

"Jessica Mitchell." Amy sounded out the baby's name. "I like it."

"Jessica… Amy Mitchell."

"Amy? Like me?"

"Yeah. Um, because, you know, you've-"

"-Amy, after me?"

"Don't make it weird." Beca rolled her eyes.

"Yoos naming her after…" Amy said, her eyes welling up with tears. "… nobody ever…"

"You've been a good friend and you are the closest thing, besides her, that I've got to a family, so yeah."

Beca suddenly found herself wrapped up in a pair of strong arms, her face squished into Amy's chest as her friend rattled off a string of words that sounded foreign to Beca.

"Oh see, now you made it weird." Beca grunted out, wriggling free.

"That's ripper cobber, fair dinkum, sweet as… the little ankle biter." Amy wiped her face, surprising Beca with how much this clearly meant to her. "I'll be the best Auntie ta her, I promise."

"I know you will. I need someone to teach her all the bad stuff that I'm not allowed to do."

"Like how ta throw a decent shin di' and not be a bogan?"

"What are you talking about? I don't understand." Beca said, side eying Amy sceptically.

"I love yoos too." Amy said.

"I never said that." Bea grumbled. "Come on, you weirdo. Let's get going. I'm ready to go home… well, back to your place."

"It's yoos home for now too. The place ain't big but the welcome sure is. Welcome ta stay as long as yoos need ta."

Beca nodded as she picked up the handle of the car seat, lifting Jessie gently off of the bench. She'd already been around and thanked everyone from the NICU that morning but a few of the nurses came to say goodbye again, wishing them all well and congratulating Beca on a beautiful baby. Amy took charge of the rest of Beca's belongings as they left the NICU.

"Ready?"

"Yeah, I just want to…" Beca faltered, pausing as she passed the sign for the private wing of the maternity unit. She wanted to say goodbye to Chloe, not having had the chance that day to tell her that she was leaving, Jessie's sign off from the doctor being quite late into the day.

"Forgotten somethin'?"

"There's just someone I'd like to say goodbye too. The girl from the accident? She's here too, with her twins."

"Oh right, okay."

"She seemed a bit down yesterday."

"Yoos two became friends." Amy stated.

"I wouldn't say friends." Beca said. "I mean, we spent a lot of time talking while the girls were all getting their checks. Mostly it was about food, music and the girls. I don't even know her last name."

"And yoos still don't think she looks familiar?"

"No. Are you still running with that 'I must have known her in a past life' theory?"

"I swear on me life Beca, I know her from somewhere. Where's she live?"

"Out West somewhere, I think. I never asked but I'm sure she mentioned living out that way and was just here for the holiday. She'll probably forget me as soon as she leaves here but I wanted to thank her for her company."

"Sounds fair." Amy said, eyeing up the vending machine in front of her.

"I'll be a couple of minutes, are you okay to wait here for a bit?"

"Yeah, sure."

Beca nodded her thanks and shifting the car seat into the crook of her elbow, she pushed through the doors towards the private rooms. She wasn't sure exactly where Chloe's room was but figured she could ask someone when she got there. She knew it was room 214. Walking quietly along the corridor, she heard the hushed cries of new-born babies alongside some lusty wails of the more impatient ones. She could see families gathered, a few 'smile!'s being called out as photographs were taken and more balloons than she'd ever seen in her life.

A sliver of guilt ran through her as she realised that she really only had Amy in her life and that Jessie wouldn't be growing up in a big family, surrounded by friends and loves ones. Remembering that Amy had been by her side the entire time so far, had turned up with food, clean clothes, a couple of books as well as her company, Beca reasoned that it wasn't so bad after all.

"Better to have one good friend in life than a bunch of nobodies, hey kiddo?" She whispered to the sleeping baby.

She came across Chloe's room and knocked quietly on the door. Waiting a moment, she pushed the door open to find the room filled with flowers of all colours and types. Inhaling the sweet scent, Beca noticed that the room was empty as she pushed by the curtain at the front door. She could see Chloe's purse tucked into one of the cabinets but the room was definitely empty.

Knowing she hadn't missed her in the NICU, Beca was disappointed to not find her in her room.

She'd come to enjoy their short but intense conversations as they visited their girls, keeping each other's spirits up and genuinely interested in how the little ladies were doing. They'd talked about music, seemingly a common interest and Chloe had listened with a wide smile on her face as Beca had gotten overly enthusiastic one afternoon when she was describing Twenty One Pilots new single. Chloe had asked sensible questions about how Beca knew so much about the intricate workings of a set of decks but Beca had been called away to speak with the doctor and had never given Chloe a full answer.

They discussed the weather and just how hot Georgia could be in the middle of the summer, both admitting that they were almost glad they weren't pregnant going into August. Chloe had talked about how she loved to ski in the winter and Beca had said how she'd never seen snow but it was on her bucket list to achieve.

While their conversations might have been short, Chloe found herself looking out for Beca each time she came into the NICU. She liked Beca's company, how she completely ignored the fact she was, to all intents and purposes, famous and how kind Beca was. It wasn't grand, extravagant gestures but she sometimes found a flower laid out on top of her twins' incubators or how Beca had found the comfiest blanket and pillow and saved it for Chloe so she could have skin on skin time with the girls. She even remembered that Chloe had trouble sleeping in the hospital and had gone out of her way to bring her an eye mask and ear plugs to help her get some rest.

Chloe noticed, with a little satisfaction, that Beca wasn't as open with other people. She saw on more than one occasion how Beca would actively move out of the way if too many people came passed her or she'd find a good excuse to finish up a conversation with someone else as soon as she could.

Noting that Amy had been waiting for a few minutes now and, seeing she was Beca's ride, she didn't want to keep her waiting, Beca screwed up her nose a little and decided that her time with Chloe was just meant to be as short as it had been. Despite helping her at the scene of her accident, Beca didn't feel that Chloe owed her anything and was quite grateful for her friendship while Jessie got stronger in the NICU.

She huffed out a small sigh into the room.

"Take care Chloe." She said to emptiness and left the room as quickly as she'd entered it.

Following the same path back through the hospital, she found Amy where she'd left her, and she explained she'd not been able to find Chloe.

"Did yoos leave her a note or your number?"

"And say what exactly? She's got a family to take care of her now and I'm pretty sure she mentioned several friends in our conversations, so I doubt she needed one more. Leaving my number… it just felt like a weird thing to do. Come on, let's go."

"Hooroo." Amy said, swinging Beca's bags back up onto her shoulder. "Sure yoos don't need me to carry Jessie?"

"I got her, thanks." Beca said, protectively.

"So, I got a question." Amy said as they approached the elevator.

"Okay."

"Liddle Jessie's dad, what would he have made of all of this?"

"Him being a dad?" Beca asked as she walked into the elevator. "Or life as it is now?"

"The dad part."

"He would be… I guess… amazed that it was with me. There's so much I miss about him. From his smile to his kindness, his lame ass jokes to his words of advice. He was and probably will only ever be the one man I love. While we would have had Jessie young, he'd have found a way for us to be a family. He'd have made the best girl daddy."

"Did he want a liddle girl?"

"Jesse would have wanted a boy. He was a man's man." Beca pressed the button to take them down to the first floor and the exit. "But he would have turned to mush upon seeing his daughter. She'd have gotten him wrapped around her finger. He loved kids, wanted a bunch of them."

"You talked about it with him?"

"Sure. We talked about everything."

"So yoos two had planned ta-"

"-Oh God, no. He wanted to fall in love, have the fairy tale wedding and buy a house in the 'burbs. He planned to have one of those apartments over the garage for me to live in!"

"He sounded like a great guy." Amy said, looking up as the doors opened.

"He really was. I loved him. He was more than a best friend, I guess he was like a brother." Beca said, feeling herself welling up with tears. She sniffed hard and moved the car seat to her other arm.

"Thinking about some Mexican on the way home." Amy said, seeing Beca's face and knowing she needed to change the subject. "My treat."

"You don't need to treat me to anything. You've been putting me up in your home for a few days, it should be the other way around."

"Nah, yoos got a free card right now for naming yoos kid after me. And you're staying with me until you leave for Los Angeles"

Beca genuinely smiled for the first time in ages as they left the hospital.

.oOo.

Chloe returned to her hospital room, feeling about as sad as she could be.

She was in pain and exhausted. The harsh overhead lights hurt her eyes and she batted at the wall to switch them off, much preferring the softer glow of the wall light by her bed. She walked slowly to the bathroom, dropping her phone on the bed as she passed.

Washing her face helped a little and she dipped her hands into the cool water, cupping as much as she could as she doused her face. Looking into the mirror, she wasn't surprised to see red puffy eyes and crimson cheeks.

Her shaky breaths were the only noise in the room as she left the bathroom. She carefully inched her way up onto the bed, feeling the pull of her healing wound as she made herself comfortable. She was grateful for the quiet. She'd just had the worst conversation with David and was trying to process everything he had said to her. Feeling the tears begin to form, she picked up the room phone and called the number for the NICU.

She needed a friend.

"Children's Hospital Of Atlanta, NICU, Jenny speaking. How may I help you?"

"Hi, it's Chloe. Um, Kate and Alex's mom."

"Oh hi Chloe. How are you doing?"

"Good, you?"

"Good thanks."

"I was wondering if Beca was about. I was hoping to catch her this evening, but I haven't managed to see her today."

"Beca?"

"Yes."

"There's two ladies here with that name. Do you have the last name?"

"Oh shoot, we didn't get round to exchanging last names. She had a baby girl, born on the fourth, like mine."

"Oh, yes. Right. Um, no, she's not here. Doctor Forester signed them out today. I believe she left about an hour ago."

"She left?"

"Yes."

"Did she leave a note for me or anything?"

"Um, no. Sorry."

"No, it's okay. Thanks Jenny. Good night."

"Night Chloe, sleep well."

Dropping the handset back into the cradle, Chloe shook her head, trying to ignore the tug in her heart.

'Why are you being so silly?' She said to herself. 'Beca doesn't owe you anything.'

She picked up her phone and scrolled through her contacts, looking to see if she'd put Beca's number in there and forgotten about it, reasoning to herself that maybe they were just NICU friends and nothing more. Chloe knew she'd felt a connection to the girl but unless she could get hold of her, it would be put down to a brief encounter. She knew the hospital wouldn't give her Beca's number but the more Chloe thought about it, the more she realised she hadn't seen Beca with a phone while in the NICU. Other parents had been there, taking pictures or short videos or even making calls with loved ones but Beca had just hung out, absorbing all the sights and sounds of the department.

Deciding that she would try to find her when she left the hospital, knowing she lived somewhere in or near Flintstone, Chloe resolved to spend the evening working out what she was going to do with her life going forward. Her fight with David had left her deflated and confused and she had a lot to think about. They hadn't had many fights in the past, seemingly being in tune with each other's feelings and thoughts.

She knew he was in a lot of pain and worried about his brother who had had his third operation just that morning. Chloe hadn't been able to travel to see him yet, something David was mad at her for. Chloe ignored his ugly words and tried to talk to him about the girls instead. He hadn't been able to see them yet, only the photos that Chloe had been able to share with him.

What David didn't seem to understand was that Chloe was hurting too. The first few days of her daughter's lives weren't exactly how she had planned them to be, it certainly wasn't the joyous time she'd planned. She didn't want David to be laid out flat in a hospital bed, high on pain medication and desperately angry at the two other drivers of the crash who, as suspected, had been killed at the scene. She wanted them both to be by the children's bedsides, willing them both to be strong. She was in a lot of pain from her emergency caesarean and had a second assessment due in the morning as she didn't feel she was healing properly. David had been dismissive of her pain, which was so unlike him. He had always put Chloe first before.

She was so upset about Pete and what the future meant for him. Trent and Helen had been wonderful about keeping him company and updating Chloe each time they visited. She sent them pictures of Alex, the stronger of the two girls, as she spent more time outside of her incubator than Kate. She missed her home; she was so ready to head back to California. Knowing it could be a couple of months before the girls were well enough to travel and David was able to fly was hard. As much as she liked her in-laws, she missed her friends too. None of them had been able to visit, partly due to the distance but mostly due to the health of the young babies.

Chloe wasn't a weak person, she just wasn't used to being alone.

She checked the time on her phone before decided to give her best friend a call. Aubrey was good at dishing out advice and Chloe knew she needed someone sensible to talk through all that had happened that day.

"Aubrey Posen."

"It's me. You got a minute to talk?"

"Hi!" Aubrey's tone changed when she realised it was her friend on the other end. "For you, I can spare several minutes. How are the girls?"

"Doing okay, thanks. I'll send some more pictures later."

"Excellent. I'd love to see some more. How's David?"

"That's the reason I'm calling actually." Chloe explained.

"Is he okay?"

"Yes. He's doing well. We had a fight today."

"Oh. That's not like you two. What happened?" Aubrey asked.

"He told me he wants a divorce this afternoon."

.oOo.