A/N - Where did the last week disappear to?! Thanks, as always, to my beta for their help and advice! xx
.oOo. Chapter Forty Three .oOo.
message from chloe.m to beca.m - 02.49 - I can't sleep thinking about our kiss xx
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 02.50 - me too
message from chloe.m to beca.m - 02.50 - What does this mean for us? xx
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 02.51 - dunno, guess we need to talk at some point
message from chloe.m to beca.m - 02.53 - I'm just making some grilled cheese if you want some? xx
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 02.54 - yeah, okay, be over in a minute
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 02.54 - x
Chloe was just putting half a grilled cheese sandwich onto a plate for Beca when she heard the footsteps coming up to the French door. She rounded the kitchen island and hurried to the door to unlock it for Beca.
"Hey," Chloe said softly, receiving a nod in return. "Hungry?"
"Yeah, a little bit," Beca nodded.
"Food's on the counter; take either one," Chloe locked the door behind her and watched Beca lay the pool house keys on the kitchen counter before taking a seat on one of the stools and pulling the nearest of the two plates towards her.
Chloe crossed over to the stove, picked up the frying pan and quietly placed it in the sink before taking a seat at the opposite end of the counter to Beca. She felt a little awkward and wanted some space between them.
"Think that wine went to my head a little," Beca admitted before taking a small bite on the sandwich and relaxing a little now that she had something to work on.
"It's a pretty strong one," Chloe said, tearing off a piece of her sandwich and pressing it between her fingers before slipping it into her mouth. "Do you want some juice or..."
"I'm good, thanks," Beca mumbled around a mouthful. "Drank a couple of bottles of water before I tried to go to sleep."
"I've not tried to go to bed yet," Chloe admitted. "I've got to be on set for an early shoot so I'll be in makeup by five."
"Wow," Beca gulped down her food. "Can you manage all day on no sleep?"
Chloe nodded a little awkwardly, "I'll be home by lunchtime. And that's what caffeine is for, right?"
"I guess so," Beca chuckled. "Wait, why did I not know this? I mean, with the kids? I could-"
"-Stacie will be here at four thirty; it's all sorted."
"Okay, okay..." Beca nodded, not wanting to get in the way of their established routine.
"When is your first official day at Universal?" Chloe asked.
"Um, Monday. Signed the contracts yesterday, had a meeting with Kirk, then another one with Sammy to lay out my responsibilities and begin building my client portfolio. Human Resources have to give a few changes in the terms and conditions a read through so my not starting for a couple of days is just a formality. Plus, they're assigning me a new office and they've got to get that organised. I told them I could share's Luke's office for a few weeks, or just stay there permanently but he'll be getting a new assistant so we can't do that. I also need to choose my equipment and get a new car before then too."
Chloe nodded along as Beca was talking, slightly surprised to find her so willing to share so much in one go.
"I'm thinking of requesting a car similar to yours."
"Yeah?" Chloe cocked her head towards Beca, resisting the urge to ask 'which one?'.
"It's great for my equipment and would fit all the girls in the back in their car seats."
"That would be great, we can go looking at the weekend if you like?"
"Yeah, cool. I've never bought a new car before," Beca said before lightly chuckling. "It's funny, I miss my old van. It wasn't much but it got me where I needed to go with all my stuff. But yeah, I do need a new set of wheels. Can't borrow your car forever"
Chloe smiled politely.
"How much... I mean, can I ask what yours cost?"
"My car?" Chloe asked, now needing to ask which one Beca meant.
"Yeah, your SUV."
"With modifications, I paid around ninety for it," Chloe said truthfully.
"Um, ninety thousand?"
Chloe nodded brightly.
"Oh, well... yeah, maybe I'll save up for a bit first," Beca blanched.
"It had a lot of work done to it though, to be honest, stuff that was totally unnecessary and we only got it because David wanted to talk about it at parties."
"For real?"
"Well, probably not... but only he liked people to know we had money. We can still go and look at cars at the weekend, if you like?" Chloe offered again. "There's usually deals around and didn't your contract include a car allowance."
Beca nodded as she tucked the last of her sandwich into her cheek. "Yes, it's something like five hundred dollars a month."
"Oh, we'll be able to find you something for that easily," Chloe said brightly.
"Okay, cool, well, I'd appreciate a second opinion."
"Consider it a date... I mean-"
"-I get it," Beca sighed.
Chloe stared at her plate for a moment, feeling her cheeks pink up a little.
"Are you feeling as awkward as me right now about what happened tonight?" Beca asked.
"No," Chloe breathed out, picking small bits of her sandwich. "Not awkward. Just more like there's a huge elephant in the room."
"Yeah, I think that's what this feeling is."
"Do you regret it?" Chloe was looking at the kitchen counter top this time as she spoke.
"Regret kissing you?"
"Mmm hmm."
"Not in the slightest," Beca admitted, tentatively reaching with her hand towards Chloe but withdrawing it just as quickly. "I mean, I know it changes things between us and we've got some shit to talk about for sure, but no regrets from me. Why? Do you have regrets?"
"No," Chloe shook her head vehemently.
"Have to admit, that it's weird seeing you like this," Beca said, after a few moments pause.
"Like what?"
"Shy, I guess."
Chloe finally looked up from the kitchen counter. "This is the side I don't usually let people see of me, Beca. I have to be Chloe, the actress, all the time. I let my guard down a little with you tonight, and I guess I'm scared about that."
"Please don't be," Beca slid down off of her stool and quickly moved to lay a hand over Chloe's arm. "I'm not in any sort of position to hurt you. I'm not big on the fame thing, you know that about me at least, and my time on social media is purely to follow bands I'm working with. I'm not the sort of person to run to the tabloids, waving my arms around, screaming how I've just kissed Chloe Mitchem, am I?!"
"Chloe Beale."
"Beale, sorry. Look..." Beca hooked a finger under Chloe's chin, in a similar move to earlier when Chloe kissed Beca. "... I'm as vulnerable as fuck. I've got literally nothing to offer you. Nothing. I've got no home, no car, no money, I'm not much to look at and-"
"-You're beautiful," Chloe interrupted, letting Beca lift her face up. "I know you don't see it, but you are an amazing young woman; so talented, so willing, so, so capable and unbelievably beautiful."
Beca's face began to redden but she pushed through her embarrassment and instead, linked her fingers with Chloe.
"I'm honestly nothing compared to you but that's not for getting into now. Tonight has been such a weird night for me."
"And me."
"And I don't want to wake up in a few days' time not knowing if we are on the same page."
"Me neither," Chloe nodded. "Was this just a one off? I mean, I'd like to try and see if we could make this work. I know it won't be easy... once the media finds out, it'll get really hard for a bit."
"We can cross that bridge when we come to it," Beca said, feeling braver than she had in a long time. "I've never been in a serious relationship... or any kind of relationship really. A couple of flings perhaps but yeah... I've got a lot to learn... about myself too, I guess."
"Me too. I've kissed a couple of girls before but not really dated... a junior high outing to the local Dairy Queen doesn't count... a girl before. And I honestly cannot compare what I'm feeling right now to anything I ever had with David."
"I'd like to say girls have less stubble," Beca joked, trying to lighten the mood a little, feeling weird that she was the one doing the pep talk. "But... that's not always the case."
Chloe grinned, feeling a little better than she did an hour ago. "I'd like to try, see what happens over the next few weeks and just see where we end up."
"That's a plan I can get behind," Beca nodded along.
"No need for labels or anything... and probably better if we keep it to ourselves until we figure it out."
"I agree and I don't want the girls getting caught up in any confusion," Beca said, stifling a yawn that caught her by surprise.
"You should go to bed," Chloe said, dropping Beca's hand and reaching for her plate on the other side of the counter.
"I'm too wound up to sleep. I can survive pretty good on just a couple of hours. How about you? Is it worth you trying to go to sleep for..." Beca checked her watch. "... an hour or so?"
"I'll just stay up now, I think I'll feel worse if I go to bed now as I really won't want to get up if I get comfortable in bed. I'll probably just read through my lines in the lounge."
"I'll keep you company."
"You don't have to," Chloe pulled on the dishwasher door and slipped the plates inside.
"I know, but I'd like to."
Chloe wiped her hands on the towel that was nearest to her and tossed it back onto the counter top. She held out a hand for Beca to take, "Come on then."
Beca took the hand that was offered to her and followed Chloe towards the lounge, batting the light switch in the kitchen as they left the room. She waited for Chloe to sit down first and took a seat next to her, as Chloe reached over to the coffee table and pulled the well thumbed script towards her.
Beca was used to reading through lines with Chloe by now but this time she snuggled into Chloe's side as they began to read through one of the final parts of the movie. She didn't even notice that Chloe had laid an arm around her shoulders until Beca had missed a page turn and Chloe had reached around to turn it over herself.
With the dim lighting in the room and the two bottles of wine they'd drunk earlier that evening, it wasn't long before they were both fast asleep snuggled together on the sofa. Chloe was leaning into Beca who had fallen asleep against the overly large cushion on the edge of the couch.
They both slept hard until Chloe woke up suddenly, hearing the front gate begin to roll back. She looked at her watch, completely confused about where she was and what was going on until she remembered it was Stacie coming over to look after the girls. Not wanting to wake Beca, Chloe stayed where she was. She waited for Stacie to realise that the lounge lights were on and the front door alarm wasn't set.
It didn't take long for the tall brunette to poke her head around the living room door.
"Hey," Stacie whispered, before realising that Beca was there as well. Her eyes widened a little at the closeness of the pair of them.
"Help me up," Chloe murmured, holding out a hand to Stacie, who took it and helped peel her off of Beca's body. Stacie dragged Chloe into the hallway before spinning around with her eyes gleaming.
"Chloe!" Stacie exclaimed, her voice quiet so as not to wake the whole house. "When I said to you earlier, 'sleep on it', I meant sleep on the idea of it, not sleep... sleep on Beca! Oh my God!"
"It's not what you think," Chloe groaned. "We had a couple of bottles of wine and were reading through my lines. Guess we fell asleep."
"Is that all that you were doing?" Stacie grinned, as she shrugged off her coat.
"Yes," Chloe answered, not ready to share all that had happened that night. "I'm not going to drive to the studio... I'm probably over the limit. Can you call me the car service, please? I just need a quick shower and to brush my teeth."
"And a coffee?"
"No, thanks. The noise will wake Beca. I'll just get ready, if you can order the car for ten minutes time."
"No problem Chloe," Stacie said politely, thinking there was more going on but not wanting to push for more details.
"Thanks for coming over for the early start," Chloe yawned as she began to climb the stairs to her bedroom.
.oOo.
message from chloe.m to beca.m - 13.14 - Hi, filming has overrun, I'm not going to be home until much later this evening. Are you out tonight? xx
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 13.20 - No, I'm here, I'll sort the girls out.
message from chloe.m to beca.m - 13.47 - Thanks. Stacie would be able to stay if you have plans. xx
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 13.51 - I don't, it's cool. What about tomorrow?
message from chloe.m to beca.m - 14.06 - I'll know more at the end of the day. xx
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 14.11 - That's cool, was thinking I could possibly bring the girls to visit you tomorrow if you don't see them later?
message from chloe.m to beca.m - 15.01 - That would be lovely! xx
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 15.04 - Let me know when you are on your way later, I'll order pizza
message from chloe.m to beca.m - 15.33 - My hero, that would be awesome. xx
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 15.34 - np
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 18.27 - Are you coming home soon?
message from chloe.m to beca.m - 21.47 - Just finished, long day, too tired to make it home, going to crash in my trailer tonight. Kiss the girls for me? Sorry xx
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 21.50 - np, c u tomorrow
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 22.01 - okay if I take one of the bedrooms upstairs for tonight so I can hear the kids?
message from beca.m to chloe.m - 22.18 - gonna assume that's okay and that you've already fallen asleep. night x
.oOo.
"Where's Mama?" Kate asked as Beca served them breakfast the next morning. Not wanting to start another kitchen fire like the last time she'd tried to prepare food in Chloe's kitchen, Beca had opted for cereals and fruit.
"Mama had to work late so she stayed at the studio last night," Beca explained as she placed a plate of cut up fruit in front of the girls.
"What's dat?" Alex asked, pointed with her spoon.
"Fruit," Beca declared.
"It doesn't look like how Mama makes it," Alex screwed her face up.
"It's the same stuff," Beca huffed.
"Mama cuts flowers."
"Mama is more crafty than Mommy so..." Beca rolled her eyes and turned away to get a second refill in her coffee mug, from the machine in the corner. She was feeling a bit cheeky about helping herself to Chloe's food and drink but could almost hear Chloe giving her the okay to take whatever she wanted.
"You has breakfast?" Jessie asked Beca, as she gulped down her hot drink.
"Yes, before you lazy lot were out of bed," Beca lied before she winked at them all and was met with three milky moustaches in response.
"What we doing today?" Kate asked, digging her spoon back into her bowl.
"Today, I need to run some errands and I thought we might go and visit Mama on set, if you are good girls and help me with my chores?" Beca busied herself with clearing the kitchen up, not wanting to get into a discussion of how boring chores were with the girls. She knew what their response would be.
Pulling out her phone from her back pocket, Beca leant up against the kitchen counter and began thumbing through car dealerships' websites, looking for a couple for her and Chloe to visit on Saturday. She was quietly excited about buying a newer car and was hoping that she and Chloe could find some more time to talk.
Aside from a few text messages, they'd not spoken again since Beca woke up in the lounge alone, a short and hurried written post it note stuck to her phone had been all that Chloe had left behind. Stacie had been decidedly discrete, something Beca had appreciated as she didn't want to discuss something so private with Stacie.
Beca knew Chloe was busy so didn't think there was anything to worry about and she certainly didn't want to rehash the previous evening out over and over again, and discuss their kiss to death. She liked that they both seemed on the same page.
After screenshotting four dealerships to visit when Chloe had some free time, she sent a quick message to Luke. Beca asked to meet up with him to discuss her contract signing. He responded a few minutes later, with his usual offer to meet for lunch. She explained she had the girls in tow, and would probably be visiting Chloe on set in the afternoon. In his usual gentlemanly manner, Luke said he'd love to treat the girls as well.
Smiling broadly, she accepted his invitation. She repocketed her phone while turning her attention back to the girls, and their now empty breakfast bowls. All three girls were smiling proudly.
"Right, you grubby group... let's get washed and dressed for the day!"
.oOo.
Luke was already seated in Big Jo's, one of his favourite hamburger joints that was only five minutes walk from the office, when Beca pushed open the door to the restaurant. She was leading the girls inside, who followed hand-in-hand behind her. The blonde Brit stood up and held his hand up so Beca could easily find him, which received an eye roll in response to his gesture.
The restaurant itself wasn't very big and Beca could easily see the British awkwardness from the small parking lot outside. She loved Luke with all of her heart but he never seemed to blend in with the crowd and she wasn't sure why. Deciding not to care about it at that moment, she ushered the girls over towards the table he'd grabbed at the back of the small seating area. All three girls ran forward when they saw Luke waiting for them.
He high fived Alex, who was busily climbing on to the seat next to him as Jessie threw her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. He reached out and squeezed Kate's hand as Beca plonked herself down on one of the empty chairs.
"Alright Loser?" She asked, peeling her sunglasses off of her face, folding the arms and laying them down on the table.
"Yes, fair to middling. How about you?" He said, in response as Kate and Jessie fought to get onto the same seat.
"Fair to what now?" Beca drew back a little, before waving her hand in between them. "Never mind..."
"Busy day?" Luke asked, noting she looked a little harassed.
"Yeah, we've run a few errands and-"
"-we gone ALL over everywhere," Jessie interrupted, extending her arms wide and mimicking Beca's look of exasperation perfectly. "We buyeded things for Mama and then we went to a boring store and Mommy buyeded boring things."
"Flash drives, and music sheets," Beca explained, as Luke looked over to her.
"Yeah, and den we went to look at bags for 'puters," Kate continued. "Hers wouldn't buy the pretty one."
"Mommy wouldn't buy a pretty bag?" Luke needed a little clarification.
"Uh huh," Kate looked up to Beca with a momentary disgusted look.
"I need a new laptop bag," Beca rolled her eyes for the third time in as many minutes. "They wanted me to get one with pink shit all over it."
"What's shit mean?" Alex asked, causing Beca to pale and shoot a panicked look in Luke's direction.
"It's a British word," he lied, winking at Beca. "And you shouldn't say it because people won't understand what it means."
Alex side eyed him suspiciously but accepted his explanation.
"Are you ladies hungry?" Luke asked, changing the subject and three little heads nodded back. "What would you like for lunch?"
"Don't ask dude, just order for them or you'll have forty eight choices and three unhappy tummies," Beca grinned. "Simple hamburger and milkshake sound good girls?"
"Yeah!" Three little voices chimed together.
"What are you going to have?" Luke asked Beca, nodding towards the printed menu on the table.
"I'm not hungry," Beca said truthfully.
Luke's eyes shot towards her. "You okay?"
"Hmm mmm," Beca nodded back. She'd not had much of an appetite since she'd kissed Chloe, and not in a bad way. She couldn't stop thinking about the way Chloe's lips had tasted on hers and the feel of the redhead's fingers on her skin. It was all that was on her mind and food, currently, was of no interest.
Luke's eyes narrowed a little, sensing there was something going on with his friend but not wanting to discuss it in front of the girls. Instead, he reached into his pocket for his wallet, and handed it to Beca. "You can go and order then! I'll have a cheeseburger and a coke please."
Grumbling slightly, Beca pushed her chair back slightly and stood up. "What did your last slave die of?"
"Lack of an appetite," Luke shot back, grinning in her direction. "I can't go and order, I've got to entertain my A-ladies"
Beca rolled her eyes and shook her head.
"Isn't that right girls?" Luke looked down at his three little charges. "Now, what do we need to do to get Mommy to buy the pink bag from the store? Annnnd, what are we going to do to turn this table into a Princess Party?"
As Beca strode towards the counter to place the order, she heard Alex ask, "What does shit mean for truth, Uncle Luke?!"
.oOo.
Beca pulled up to the studio parking lot, suddenly wondering if bringing the girls to see Chloe was a bad idea. They had discussed it briefly the day before, but Beca hadn't said to Chloe she was definitely coming. Beca had no idea how a day at the studios worked, or if Chloe would have the time to see them.
She was deep in thought, and also wondering where to park the car and didn't see the security guard approach the car. He tapped on the window, making her jump slightly.
"Hi," she said, as the window rolled down.
"Afternoon ma'am. Are you here to see somebody?" The security guard, whose name tag read Evan Johnson, asked.
"Uh yeah, I've got Chloe Beale's daughters in the back and they wanted to come and surprise their Mom today."
"The fans usually wait on the other side of the road for the actors to leave and-"
"-I'm not a fan. I've got Miss Beale's daughters in the car with me," Beca retorted, feeling slightly indignant that he'd assume that, before realising that, of course, he had no idea about their current situation. Evan peered through to the back seat of the car. "We're here to see Mama, aren't we girls?"
"Yes Mommy!" Three little voices chorused and Evan shot her, what could only be described as a dirty look. Beca decided it was down to the girls calling her 'Mommy' and, again, Evan not knowing their situation which she wasn't about to get into with a complete stranger.
"Do you have any identification on you ma'am?" Evan asked.
"Yep. One second," Beca reached over to her purse on the front seat, and dug around for her driver's licence. "Here you go?"
He took the licence from her and looked it over, before looking down at his clipboard. "I don't have you on the visitor list today ma'am."
"No, sorry, this is a surprise visit."
"I'm afraid this is a closed set, and I can't have you or your children walking around unaccompanied. Like I said, the fans usually wait for the actor's to leave the studio on the other side of the road. Most of the time, they'll stop for a quick autograph or photo but it can be a long wait... especially with kids."
"I can call Chloe now," Beca offered. "And if she speaks with you, would that be okay?"
The security guard sighed lightly, and eventually nodded as Beca leant forward to reach the car's console and pressed the screen to pull up the phone section of the dash. She scrolled to Chloe's number and called it, waiting a couple of seconds for it to connect.
The phone immediately went to voicemail.
"Hi, you've reached the voicemail of Chloe Beale. Sorry that-"
Beca ended the call.
"Ma'am, I'm going to have to ask you to leave if you don't have an appointment," Evan continued, a sharp, authoritative tone to his voice.
"I was just hoping to surprise her, her daughters haven't-"
"-Ma'am, I can't-"
"-Wait!" Beca called out, spying a familiar face walking a hundred yards or so in front of them. "I know him, he's Tom Hanks."
"Everyone knows Tom Hanks," Evan deadpanned.
"No, but I really do. He'll vouch for me and..." Beca looked out of the window. "... just ask him if he knows me."
"I'm not going to do that," Evan nostrils flared a little. "Ma'am, I don't want to have to call the Police, but-"
"-Okay, okay," Beca said defeatedly, gazing out of the windscreen as Tom Hanks gazed momentarily their way, not looking at her, just merely casting his eyes in her direction but Beca took her chance anyway. "Hey Tom!"
Beca reached out of the car window, almost knocking Evan on the chin as she waved across at the famous actor, completely out of character for the usually surly brunette. She withdrew her hand quickly, watching as Tom raised his hand to wave at, to him, the unknown fan. Patting his pockets, he turned suddenly and headed towards the car instead.
"Hi there," Tom began as he approached the car, clapping Evan on the shoulder as a way of greeting. He bent slightly at the waist, and looked down through the window at Beca, expecting to find an unknown fan but his face changed when it saw Beca. "Hi... Beca, isn't it?"
"Yes, hi, you do remember me?"
"Of course, I have you to thank for the paint colour on my bedroom wall," Tom chuckled, thinking back to the conversation they had at Chloe's barbecue a few months previously.
"God, I hope I made a good suggestion then," Beca laughed lightly.
"Evan," Tom said, standing upright to talk to the security guard. "... this wonderful lady is going to be a big star one day, you heard it here first. She's also a good friend of mine."
Beca looked around nervously, still surprised that the famous actor remembered her name.
"Yes sir," Evan nodded.
"Are you here to see Chloe?" Tom asked Beca.
"Yes, we thought we'd surprise her today."
"We?"
"I've got the girls in the back," Beca explained, thumbing towards the back seat of the car.
"Oh, how lovely," Tom nodded. "Trouble is, she's on location at the moment and isn't due back here until later this afternoon."
"Oh... right, sorry," Beca felt her cheeks flush, knowing that was probably the reason why Chloe hadn't responded to her messages since yesterday.
"Which is how I've got a lovely couple of hours free at the moment," Tom explained, his friendly and somewhat cheeky smile in place. "As you've made the trip all the way out here, would you and the little ladies do me the honour of allowing me to give you a guided tour of the studio?"
"I'm not going to interrupt your free time," Beca blurted out.
"You're not," Tom smiled. "I was only going to go for a quick run, then drown myself in cappuccino and probably eat too many Snickers bars. Rita will thank you for that!"
"Um?" Beca looked confused.
"My wife... she gets a little mad when I arrive home, not hungry for dinner and slightly hopped up on sugar," Tom laughed. "So, how about it?"
"Well, if it's going to save you from an angry wife..." Beca trailed off, thinking what an easy going man this actor was, then in a split second wondering why she was so surprised seeing how she also thought Chloe was so normal.
"That settles it then," Tom turned back to Evan, giving me a mock salute. "Please permit my friends onto the lot, dear sir."
Beca saw Tom dip his hand into his pocket and discreetly pull out a couple of notes, which he smoothly handed over to Evan as he shook his hand. Shaking her head slightly, she watched as Evan reached into his guard hut and pulled out a pass. He handed it to Beca.
"Please place this on your dash, and park in the right hand side of the lot," he gestured in the general direction of where he wanted Beca to go.
"Thanks," Beca said in response and slipped the car into drive, just as Tom began engaging Evan in a quick conversation. She moved the car into a parking space with ease and just as she was about to pop open the car door to get the girls out of the back, the door was opened for her and Tom held his hand out to help her down from the car.
"Remind me of the girls' names again," he asked quietly as she reached onto the front passenger seat for her purse.
"Alex, Jessie and Kate."
Tom winked at her in lieu of thanks, and pulled open the back door. "Good afternoon ladies! Are you ready to go and see where your Mom works?"
.oOo.
Beca heard the front gate rolling back and checked her phone for the time. Surprised to see it was almost midnight, she stretched out her neck and untangled herself from the sofa cushions in the living room.
After returning home from the studio, and a pretty great tour of the lot with her new best friend, as Tom proudly told everyone they met, Beca had fed the girls a simple dinner from the leftovers in the fridge, bathed them and read no less than eleven bedtime stories, before sitting with her laptop in the lounge and getting some work done for her next set at Avalon.
She was beginning to get a little weirded out that she'd heard nothing from Chloe since the day before, knowing that the redhead was excellent at keeping in touch usually. The last text she'd received from Chloe had been to say that she was staying over in her trailer at the studio, so as soon as she heard the gate rolling back, she felt a sense of relief that all was okay.
Setting her laptop down on the coffee table, she quickly folded the blanket she'd snuggled under and straightened the cushions she'd been sitting on, before standing awkwardly, waiting for Chloe to come in through the front door.
A few minutes passed by before she heard the car door close and the soft footsteps on the stairs leading up to the front door. Thinking to herself that it was a bit strange that she was just standing waiting in the living room, Beca quickly walked to the door, and pulled it open, surprised to see Chloe leaning against one of the porch supports outside.
"Oh!" Chloe mumbled, somewhat taken aback at the door opening.
"Hi."
"I thought you'd be asleep by now," Chloe pushed herself upright and stepped into the house.
"Nope, I was waiting up for you," Beca explained, stepping aside to let Chloe in.
"You didn't have to do that," Chloe reached out tentatively towards Beca but then turned and shut the door behind her instead. "Are the girls okay?"
Chloe cast her eyes up the stairs, towards the girls' bedroom.
"Yes, of course."
Chloe nodded and walked past Beca towards the kitchen. Beca stood in the hallway for a few seconds, wondering what was going on. She knew Chloe was tired; she could tell from her puffy eyes and slower speech, but she was uncharacteristically quiet. Not knowing whether to follow the redhead into the kitchen or not, she was about to collect her laptop and head over to the pool house when she heard Chloe call out from the kitchen.
"Fancy a glass of wine?"
Beca rounded the door into the kitchen, before answering. "Sure."
Chloe was already pouring wine into a large glass and reaching for a second glass from the cabinet to her right as Beca leaned against the kitchen counter.
"Rough day?" Beca asked, cocking her head slightly trying to make sense of what mood Chloe was in.
"No, just busy," Chloe answered, pushing the first glass towards Beca.
"Thanks," Beca nodded, feeling a little tension in her neck. Something was wrong but she didn't know how to ask Chloe what was going on.
"Hmm mmm," Chloe mumbled, placing the bottle back on the counter and swiping up her own glass, taking a healthy glug and swallowing loudly.
Beca took a sip of the cool drink in her hand. She didn't particularly like wine, although she had developed a taste for it since she had been living with Chloe, and wouldn't choose it normally but she gave a little chuckle remembering what happened the last time they'd shared a couple of bottles.
Chloe cocked an eyebrow in Beca's direction at the thin laugh. "Something funny?"
"No, nothing," Beca said, cradling the large glass in both hands for a second.
The awkward silence penetrated the room again as they both did a good job of not making eye contact and staring into space for a minute or two. Usually Chloe would give a running commentary on the day's events or whatever random thoughts were going through her mind and Beca found it odd, and uncomfortable, that she didn't know what to say at that moment.
"Hungry?" Chloe asked, breaking the silence.
"No, not really. I gave the girls leftovers for dinner, I hope that was okay."
"Of course," Chloe smiled. "I'm really sorry I wasn't home in time for dinner... or bedtime."
"It wasn't a problem, it was actually pretty nice spending some time with them, just us, you know?" Beca ran her fingers through her hair. "Not that it's not great when you are here too. Please don't think I-"
"-It's okay, I know what you mean." Chloe chuckled. She pulled on the fridge door and stood looking at the contents for a few moments. "I'm not even hungry, I don't know why I'm looking for something."
Pushing the door shut again, she glanced around the kitchen, avoiding looking at Beca.
"Tell me," Beca began. "... have I done something wrong or-"
"-Wrong?" Chloe's brow furrowed. "No, not at all. Why would you-"
"-Something feels off," Beca said, a little flatly.
Chloe sighed heavily, cantering her weight onto her left hip. "I'm sorry, it's not you, I promise. I'm just..."
"Is this about the other night?"
"Yes and no," Chloe smiled, finally looking at Beca.
"Is that why you didn't come home last night?" Beca asked, the worry evident in her voice.
"Oh God, no!" Chloe exclaimed. "I was working late, the movie has run into a few problems and that happens sometimes. I knew you'd look after girls, I completely trust you there but..."
"But?"
"I'm not sure I trust myself," Chloe mumbled simply.
"I'm not following," Beca looked confused.
"Okay," Chloe sighed, reaching for the nearest thing to her to give her hands something to worry. "I have to just come out and say this because the last day or so has been absolutely torture for me."
Beca gulped hard. "I'm sorry," she whispered.
"Why are you sorry? You haven't done anything wrong."
"It just feels... I mean, we kiss... and then I don't see you for a couple of days and I know you are filming and mega busy but... I guess this is where I... forget what I'm trying to say," Beca sighed, sitting down hard on the kitchen stool. She had a feeling she knew what was coming and didn't think she'd be able to handle it.
Chloe carefully laid down the towel and placed her hands on the kitchen counter.
"It's me, it's not you," she said quietly.
"Well, if that's not the biggest cliche ever..." Beca started to say, giving out a humourless chuckle as she studied her hands.
"I know how it sounds," Chloe said quietly.
Beca sighed heavily, and started to rise from her seat. "Okay, look, let's forget this started. We-"
"-Bec, please," Chloe said, in such a gentle way that Beca stopped in her tracks. "Just give me a minute to explain. I'm sorry, I'm just terrified right now that you're about to walk out the door and not come back."
"I've been thinking the same thing about you... except that it's your house and I'd be the one moving... I mean, I thought the same thing and even tried to do it a couple of days ago," Beca nodded.
"I've got myself in such a silly muddle," Chloe looked vulnerable and Beca could see she was wrestling with something.
"What is it?" Beca asked softly.
"I'm not sure how I can explain it in a delicate way, I guess."
"Well, I'm not delicate so you can just say whatever you want," Beca shrugged her shoulders. "Be as blunt-"
"-I've developed more lusty feelings for you in the last few days than I ever did with my husband," Chloe pulled a face and began to find the rim of her wine glass suddenly very interesting to look at.
"You make that sound like a bad thing," Beca said, after a moment or two.
"It's really not, in fact it's very nice to think about you in that way but I can't concentrate on anything else right now. I can't sleep, I've lost my appetite, I got everything wrong at work yesterday which is why we had to reshoot today and all I can think about is kissing you again," Chloe whispered, a pink flush creeping up her neck.
"That's-"
"-And doing more with you," Chloe gushed out.
"Oh," Beca nodded before realising what Chloe was getting at. "Oh!"
"Yeah, it would seem that I've turned into a horny teenager," Chloe groaned, folding her arms, placing them on the kitchen counter and laying her head on top. "I'm almost thirty years old and you'd have thought I'd have learned to control myself by now."
Beca couldn't help but chuckle. "Are you supposed to dry up after thirty or something?"
Chloe gave a thin laugh and lifted her head. Beca was surprised to see a look of fear pass over on Chloe's face.
"What's wrong?" Beca asked.
"It's really hard for me to explain."
"Well, just try. I'm not going anywhere."
"There's just a lot you don't know about me," Chloe admitted. "And I'm not sure you're going to like it, when you find out."
"Chloe, you took my kid away from me for a while there. Pretty sure there's not much else you can do that would piss me off."
"It's not so much something I've done, it's more how I look."
"How you look? I don't understand. I mean, have you seen you? You told me once that you were pretty confident about how you look, what's changed in the last few months?"
"I never thought we'd get to the stage where we'd kiss, so I never thought it would come up in conversation or that I'd need to tell you about it. And we still might not need to discuss it, but my head is all over the place and I just don't know what to say."
Beca huffed, not following what Chloe was saying. Instead she took a sip of wine and cocked her head to the side, studying the redhead. "You've alway been able to say what you want to me; some of it has been hurtful in the past but it didn't stop you. And yeah, I know I'm a little weird and awkward and maybe standoffish but I've come to you with my stuff in the past."
"You've been more open to talking to me since you've lived here," Chloe nodded.
"But this isn't about me, is it? So you either talk to me, or I'm going to bed as I've had a long-"
"-I love you! I mean, I properly love you." Chloe blurted out.
Beca blinked a couple of times, before it registered with her what Chloe had just said.
"Chloe! F'king heck! We kissed like twenty four hours ago, you can't love me!"
"But you see, that's where you are wrong," Chloe said, eerily calm. "It dawned on me today that I've been feeling this way about you for the last four years, so yeah, I can love you."
Beca slowly blinked at Chloe, trying to understand where the conversation was going. Chloe took the silence as something else.
"I know, I know... I shouldn't be feeling like this. Believe me when I say that my poor friends have heard little else from me recently."
"Your friends know?" Beca forced out.
"Not everyone, no. Aubrey obviously, and Stacie picked up on something the first time you came round here."
"For the girls' birthday?" Beca asked, to which Chloe nodded. "But the court case and the things that were said-"
"-And I've said sorry for that so many times, and I truly mean it. I guess... I mean... I just..." Chloe stumbled over her words, before running her hands over her face, smudging her mascara everywhere. She sighed heavily. "You were so kind to me when I was in the hospital with the girls... our girls. You care about me, and I was going through so much with David, and Pete and myself. And you just cared. And I needed someone to care, without realising. I was so far away from home, my friends and you were there, at the right time. As I said to you the other night, it was fate we met."
Beca twitched in her seat as Chloe finally looked over to her.
"I got home and thought it was my hormones; I was trying to raise two babies by myself and whenever I was feeling down, I'd think of you and it'd pick me up and I'd go on about my day. I didn't realise until recently that I'd relied on those feelings to get me through the last few years. When I saw you again, that day at the Police station, it was like what I would imagine being struck by lightning felt like. Although the matters we were dealing with at the time quickly suppressed those feelings, I've come to realise that I have been in love with you since we first met."
"I don't know what to say," Beca admitted, feeling uncomfortable.
"You don't need to say anything. I know I shouldn't have said anything just now, it kind of just fell out."
"Ain't that the truth!"
"But I wanted you to know. You've always intrigued me, I guess..." Chloe continued but Beca got lost in her own thoughts, thinking of the time when she left her hospital room to go and visit Chloe just after the accident, because something inside of her was itching to know her better. Was that the same thing that Chloe had been feeling?
Beca knew she'd never been in that type of love. She had loved Jesse with her whole being and she knew she loved Luke, more than she was able to explain, but did she love Chloe? She couldn't get her mind to settle on one single thought, especially as Chloe was still talking.
"... and that's when my thoughts turned to the future," Chloe finished off and Beca hoped she hadn't missed anything important.
"The future?" Beca needed clarification.
"Yes," Chloe nodded, her cheeks flushing again.
"Sorry, I'm not follow-"
"-I've jumped ahead, which is a horrible habit of mine," Chloe looked uneasy. "I know I have a terrible habit of going too far but I honestly can't help myself. Whether it's spending too much on a birthday present-"
"-Oh..." Beca huffed out.
"-or it's trying to plan my and my girls' entire future in one night, it's just how I am. I've tried to change but I just can't. I'm sorry," Chloe finished off, and Beca was surprised to see tears slowly falling down Chloe's cheeks, her already smudged mascara now making tracks towards her chin.
"Hey," Beca jumped off the stool and quickly made her way to Chloe's side, slipping her arm around the redhead's waist. "I'm sorry but I'm not following what is going on in that pretty head of yours."
"I guess I'm trying to explain that I've spent the last couple of days planning our future, all from a simple kiss... and then I've realised that there is so much you don't know about me."
"You don't know everything about me either," Beca gave a small laugh.
"I've got scars Beca."
"And? You think I don't have some emotional damage?"
"Not psychological scars. You'll be disgusted at my scars. And it will come between us."
"Why would they disgust me?" Beca's incredulous tone rang out across the kitchen.
"Because of the way I look," Chloe said simply.
"I've seen you in a bikini before and trust me, you've got nothing to worry about."
"I know, but I always kept my back to you before."
"Okay, sorry, but I'm not following. You have scars and you don't want people to see them, I understand that. But why would that be a problem for me and why would it come between us?"
"The scars on my back-"
"-I've already seen the scars on your back."
"The ones on my back... aren't the ones I'm talking about. I'm sorry you had to see them."
"Okay," Beca said slowly. "You've got some scars, I'm not the sort of person who gets disgusted though. We've all got stuff going on. You can tell me what's going on, or you can keep it to yourself. I'll be here whichever you choose."
"I have to be so careful at work; always have to make sure nothing is on show, my costumes have to cover everything and I'm known in the industry for not wanting to do scenes that would involve nudity or show skin. I mean, I wouldn't want my kids to see me naked on screen one day."
"I understand that," Beca nodded. "And David obviously didn't mind your scars, so why would I?"
Beca was acutely aware that Chloe inhaled sharply as she mentioned David's name.
"It's been a while since I..." Chloe mumbled, her sentence trailing off.
"Do you want to talk about it?" Beca asked and Chloe shrugged her shoulders.
"It's hard for me to say."
"So," Beca tried to lighten the mood. "We've gone from you being horny to loving me, to feeling sad about some scars. I do have to say Chloe, you keep things interesting."
Chloe gave a half smile, and picked up her glass of wine, swiftly draining the liquid. "I'll tell you what's going on, but honestly Bec, I'm so tired, I just want to have a bath and go to bed. I have to admit... I was hoping you'd be in bed, so I could try and get control of myself before I saw you again."
"If that's what you want to do, then I can pretend that this conversation didn't take place. I'll head over to the pool house and we'll just meet again in the morning."
"That would be great," Chloe replied sadly.
Beca nodded, unwrapped her arm from around Chloe's waist, scooped up her phone and slipped it into her pocket. "I'll bid you goodnight."
"Bec, I-"
"-It's okay Chloe, get some rest. We can talk tomorrow."
Chloe nodded, looking a little defeated which Beca found it strange for the usual bubbly and confident actress but she also respected Chloe's honesty in what she needed that evening.
A few minutes later, Beca was just settling into bed when her phone buzzed and a message flashed up on her lock screen.
message from chloe.m to beca.m - 00.47 - Thank you Beca. Sleep well. I love you xx
.oOo.