The sounds gradually returned. Footsteps echoed. Voices indecipherable but deafening. The light presented itself. Too early and too lively, much too lively.

Chloe tried to shield herself with her hands but they didn't move. Her throat itched. She was thirsty. Chloe wanted to grab her neck. Only her left arm obeyed. She touched but she felt nothing. Her eyes finally opened to the moon which invaded the room with its blinding ray. She hissed in pain. Her retinas weren't ready yet. She slowly sank into new abysses.

A nurse came in, in a hurry, and startled her. At the movement, the nurse immediately approached to take Chloe's hand.

"Chloe, can you hear me? If you can hear me, try pressing my hand." Chloe belatedly understood the words of the lady who was speaking to her. She nevertheless squeezed her hand and leaned her head very heavily towards her. The nurse smiled and grabbed the emergency call button to warn her colleagues.

"Everything will be fine now. You're out of trouble" The nurse said instinctively, patting Chloe's hand.

"So you have a daughter." Lily said looked at her, completely one ever understood what Lily Flo seemed lost at the reaction of the girls around didn't know Lily well enough yet to be had spoken but now she was eating her ice cream with the handle of her spoon, absent from the discussion.

Beca cleared her throat and the spell was broken, all eyes were on her. She felt her skin shrinking inside herself. She felt her walls rebuild, erect to protect her. She closed her eyes. She couldn't give in to her usual defenses. The words were out. Her friends were going to have lots of questions, she suspected it, but that didn't stop her from anticipating their judgment. Beca couldn't stand to see her friends' gaze change towards her.

"Everything is fine, Becs." Beca opened her disturbed blue eyes to Stacie who was holding her hand. They smiled at each other. Beca found herself thinking that her gaze hadn't changed. Maria Olivarez was right, she had to trust.

Beca grabbed the box that had been sitting in the middle of the island, untouched. She removed the lid and rummaged for the ultrasound.

"This is the box that Chloe searched the morning we had the fight. And that's what she found." The ultrasound passed through everyone's hands. The girls were ecstatic in front of the small, well-formed and orange body in the photo.

"And what else is in the box?" Amy asked, well aware of what it contained. Beca gave her a pointed look. She knew what Amy was trying to do but she decided it wasn't going to work that night. She pushed the box into the center of the island.

"Go for it. Everything you need to know about me is in there. Memories, photos. Did you want to know what's going on in my head? Welcome to the jungle."

The Bellas looked at her, had all wanted to open the doors to Beca's world, destroy her walls, get to know opportunity was too good to , they pounced on the box as if it were Ryan Gosling's rolled her eyes and crossed her braced herself for the taunts.

"Oh, look at this one!"

"What are all these USB keys?"

"How many concerts have you gone to, Beca, honestly?"

The barrage of questions continued and Beca leaned back against the kitchen counter. She watched her friends tear apart her memories, her past, photograph by photograph, ticket by ticket. She already regretted her decision. After this evening, she would have nothing more to hide. Or almost.

"There are practically only photos of Chloe and you in there!" Cynthia said. "I bet the USB sticks only contain mashups you made for Chloe" Stacie added, mockingly. Eight pairs of eyes looked up at Beca who blushed furiously. "No that's not true. There are also the mashups that we danced to."

"We only danced to one mashup, Beca," Aubrey retorted, laughing. "Okay ! There's a lot for Chloe! So what ?"

Beca admitted, throwing her arms up in the air. She really didn't see what was weird about that.

"So what ?"

"It's never happened to you to make one for one of us," Cynthia retorted.

"Of course I did !" Faced with her friends' expectations, Beca was losing her temper. She searched her memory but found nothing.

"I made the mashup of Bruno Mars and Nelly for you."

"No, it was also for Chloe" Stacie retorted, tired of seeing her friend mired in denial. "Whatever," Beca huffed. The Bellas looked at each other playfully.

Stacie grabbed a photo of Chloe where her eyes were particularly transfixing thanks to the light.

"Oh, her eyes, her eyes, make the stars look like they're not shining." Stacie sang as she held the photo in front of Beca's eyes and she swatted her hands away.

"Her hair, her hair, falls perfectly without her trying", Cynthia continued, ostentatiously stroking Amy's blonde hair.

"She's so beautiful, and I tell her every day."

The Bellas finished in hearts and spread out different photos which always showed Chloe and Beca hugging, smiling and looking in love. Beca analyzed the photos but couldn't understand. She looked up questioningly. She was used to the girls teasing her about her potential relationship with Chloe but she always thought it was because they spent a lot of time together.

As co-captains of the Bellas, Beca and Chloe had to prepare for practices together, organize outings, manage roommates. They had the role of parents of the group. Also, they lived together and shared classes in the same building most of the time so they crossed paths often.

"I don't understand what you want to tell me" She frowned. "Please don't make yourself any more stupid than you are," Aubrey snapped, her eyes narrowing.

"Hey, that's not nice, Captain Putin!" Amy said. "No, Aubrey is right. Beca, we know you're not stupid and you're not blind. You don't have all these photos of Chloe for nothing."

Stacie was right. Beca had an idea but she didn't want to say it. Because admitting what she felt made it real again and it was one thing too many that could make her suffer. Beca avoided all eyes with her arms crossed again.

"I just find them nice. These are good memories." Stacie threw her arms up to the sky in annoyance. Cynthia rubbed her face quickly. Amy swore like the Australian Aborigines. Everyone's exasperation was palpable in the kitchen. "You're even more in denial than Madonna about her age!" Amy exclaimed. "But what denial are you talking about?" Beca was offended. Stacie grumbled, completely tense to see Chloe and Beca circling each other for a year already. "What the hell, Beca, we're talking about your feelings for Chloe!"

Lily's spoon fell to the ground. We could hear a pin drop. Beca looked for an escape. She needed one, very quickly. "And you want to talk about YOUR feelings, Stacie?"

"Oh, is that all you found?" Stacie smirked. The two girls looked at each other. No one dared to intervene. Beca let go first. "Pfff, anyway, when she knows everything I've hidden from her, she won't want to talk to me anymore."

"Yes, all of us" Stacie replied full of looked surprised at her all looked at her with smiles on their faces, as if they were in possession of information that Beca hadn't discovered yet.

"Come on, we should go to sleep. To be well rested to go see Chloe as soon as possible" Aubrey suddenly said, wanting to spare Beca. The musician returned a smile of relief. She gathers the photos spread out on the table to put them away. The room had emptied, only Aubrey remained. She brought her a photo that she had kept in her hands all along.

"You see, they say that love makes you blind but sometimes, it can also make us open our eyes." Aubrey placed the photo in front of Beca and left.

The image showed Beca and Chloe in the university park. They were below the great weeping willow. Beca remembered perfectly how this photo was taken. It was in March. She'd had a bad day and rejected Chloe's invitation for coffee. She preferred to stay in her corner and take refuge in her music. But Chloe had found her in the park and immediately guessed that she wasn't well. She told her that after a bad day, she would lie down in the grass and look at the clouds. It reminded her how the world was so much bigger than her and her worries suddenly became very small.

Chloe had taken several photos that day but Beca had only had this one printed. At the time, she just told herself that she had something special, without knowing what exactly. Now she saw it. In the photo, Chloe watched her laugh at her joke about the weird shape of the cloud with tender, disinterested eyes. Her face was focused but conveyed ease. Chloe looked happy and intrigued. Beca spent the rest of the evening sifting through each photo. On each one, she found the same type of expression. She was looking at Chloe with particular attention. She saw herself smiling with emotion when Chloe made a face at the camera. She saw her cheeks blush when Chloe placed a kiss on her cheek. She saw her smile light up the photos when Chloe was with her. Slowly, Beca realized what her friends were trying to say. She hadn't been as subtle as she thought, after all. She had feelings for Chloe for a very long time but couldn't bring herself to act. Fear paralyzed her. Chloe would be furious to learn that she had kept so much from her. And then, she hadn't been the only one to hide things. Chloe had only one kidney left, had health problems and a special family situation to the point that she hadn't told anyone. For sure, the first discussion they would have would not be easy.

But, for that, Chloe had to wake up. Beca shook her head to clear her thoughts.

She had to focus on Lucy first, anyway. It was her priority. Love and friendship would always come second.

Chloe watched the doctor check her constants for the second time she woke up, blood had been taken, a full scan had been done and Doctor Vitto had come to see her a car accident, she thought she was pretty well taken care kind of attention was expected for people with serious illnesses, or who were missing a found all these exams was in pain, almost everywhere, when the morphine no longer took effect, but she was the choice had been hers alone, she would already be in her bedroom, her headphones screwed into her ears.

"Well, Miss Beale, according to the scan, your brain is intact and you seem to have your whole head, that's lucky!" Chloe nodded her head in agreement.

She had undergone detailed questioning about her memories of the accident, what day and what time of day it had happened. She was asked to tell where she was born and on what date. What her mother and father's names were. What subjects she was studying. Then the fateful question: what she remembered about her brother. The question hit home. Chloe took a while to respond before saying that she remembered very well that he had died a few years ago.

"We will keep you under observation until your renal symptoms stagnate and we are sure that your lungs will hold up over time. If all goes well, you will be able to return home in a few days. Three, at most." Once again, Chloe barely moved her head to show that she had heard him. She didn't like hospitals or doctors who only saw facts and statistics instead of their patients' faces.

"You know, on the other hand, that you will have medication to take. To help your respiratory system recover but also for your renal system."

"I'll do whatever it takes to get out of here" Chloe finally assured him in a hoarse voice.

"Good."

Without another word and looking contrite, the doctor left the room.

Chloe had already turned her head towards the window where daylight had been peeking out for at least three hours already. She couldn't wait to get out of there! Feel the air on her face, hear the birds sing. See her friends. Chloe wondered when they would arrive and what they knew about her condition. She didn't feel able to explain everything to them. Despite her impatience, she had to admit that she was exhausted. The nurses explained to her that the fatigue was the direct result of her punctured lung. She had lacked oxygen and her body would take a few more months to recover. She would also have lifelong aftereffects. As if Chloe didn't already have enough things to watch out for.

The bedroom door opened her misty had fallen asleep without really feeling tilted her head slowly in time to see Stacie and Aubrey enter in front of all the other joy the girls felt was immediately evident on their faces and Aubrey ran to Chloe's bedside to hug her.

"Oh, careful" Chloe laughed and was engulfed in the protective arms of her best friend. Someone clapped loudly in excitement and soon Chloe's bed was surrounded by ear-to-ear smiles and sparkling eyes.

"You scared us so much" Ashley declared. "It's over now" Chloe said, trying to reassure them, still in her role as mother of the group. Even though hospitals tended to bring out the worst in her, Chloe couldn't pretend with her friends.

Her instincts still came through. She couldn't wait to get home even more now. Beca chose that moment to burst in, loud and unaware of what was going on in the room.

"Sorry, Amy, there's no honey in the coffee machine.

I got you a macchiato instead."

She placed the tray filled with steaming paper cups on the small dresser that adorned the back wall and turned quickly, putting her cup to her mouth but her action was of finding Chloe's sleeping face, she found her two large azure blue eyes that had never looked so open, cup hanging, eyes like saucers, Beca looked like a dead goldfish in its bowl.

"Hey, Becs," Chloe greeted, her voice cracking. Beca blinked and took the time to slowly place her coffee on the dresser.

She approached the end of the bed and grabbed the protective railing to prevent herself from falling. Chloe was awake and she remembered! Her mind still didn't know if that was a good or bad thing. She cleared her throat and looked down guiltily.

"How are you feeling ?" The brunette asked.

"Just like after two intensive training sessions from Aubrey" The redhead said. There was a beat and then everyone laughed. Aubrey crossed her arms and smiled. "Not so bad then?" Aubrey teased with a knowing wink thrown to her former co-captain.

"No, I'm in pain but I'm happy to still be with you.I can't wait to go out." A shadow passed over Chloe's face. Beca saw very well that she was overplaying her state. She was in more pain than she admitted.

"Did they tell you when you could get out?" Cynthia asked. She was to the left of the bed and Chloe had to turn a little more to talk to her.

She grunted in pain. Her leg reminded her that she couldn't move as she wanted. "Are you okay?" Beca asked. Chloe turned a surprised but painful look towards her.

"Yes, yes, I turned my leg too quickly" Chloe explained a little dryly before answering Cynthia that she would come out in three days if everything went well. Beca scowled.

Since all the attention was on Chloe, no one saw her move back from the bed and lean against the wall with her arms crossed.

She listened to the girls tell Chloe what she had missed but her mind was elsewhere. She took out her phone to check the time. It was almost noon already and she was supposed to meet Mrs Olivarez and Lucy at the park around 2 p.m. Her father was joining her to finally meet his granddaughter. A whole program in perspective.

Beca looked up at her group of friends and met Chloe's eyes who, despite all the eyes and questions turned towards her, was only interested in Beca.

The redhead observed the gestures of her musician friend and looked at her with a hard but sad look. Beca understood that Chloe remembered absolutely every words she had thrown in her face during their very last discussion and that she was especially angry with her for that.

"Ladies, I have to ask you to leave, it's time for treatment for your friend" A nurse who had just entered. The young women groaned but still went out, saying their goodbyes to the injured girl. Beca left the last, after taking one last look at Chloe.

"I don't want to go back to class" Amy pouted.

"Too bad because if you don't go back to class, you won't be able to be part of the Bellas anymore" Aubrey said. Amy sized her up as if to make sure she was serious.

The discussion was about how they all needed to get on with their lives, starting with going back to school, now that Chloe was awake.

"You can come see Chloe after class, she won't disappear."

"She'll need some rest anyway, and in three days she'll be home," Stacie added to support Aubrey.

The two young women shared a knowing smile that didn't escape Beca.

For her part, studying was the least of her worries, but she had to be diligent and stable if she wanted Lucy back. So she would put up with Mr. Crawford's speeches on Nietzsche's philosophy if it could help her win points with the family court judge.

"Becasaurus, are you coming?" Amy asked. She had stayed behind to wait for her.

Beca rushed to follow the girls out of the hospital. Her mood changed as soon as she got into her car, heading to the park.

"Quinn, you can't go back to work now, it's too early" Rachel persisted.

The blonde in question rolled her eyes then turned off the water and grabbed the bottle of shampoo.

"I'm not made of sugar, dammit." The tone was annoyed and muffled by the shower glass but Rachel heard it anyway.

Rare were the moments when Quinn Fabray swore, but Rachel had to admit that they had been on the same discussion for two days now, and even she was starting to feel the frustration building.

The brunette, already ready, looked at her could lose a few more undressed and stepped into the shower, her eyes full of mischief.

"What are you doing?" Quinn questioned quickly, turning around.

"What do you say we make a deal? If you can keep up, you can go back to work." The blonde laughed out loud then turned a challenging look on her companion.

"Challenge accepted."

When Beca arrived at the park, her father was waiting for her, sitting on a weren't many people in the park so it was easy to find joined him and he stood up to greet her.

"I'll tell you that you've grown up, but not really since yesterday" Her father teased.

"Very funny." Father and daughter remained seated on the bench in silence, their gazes straight.

David Mitchell heard his daughter hold her breath. A lady with a stroller had just entered the playground.

"It's her," Beca confirmed. They stood up when Maria Olivarez arrived in front of them.

"Mr. Mitchell, nice to meet you. Beca" The social worker smiled. They shook hands and Maria stepped aside. Beca crouched straight down to unhook the child from the stroller and it was David's turn to hold his breath. He saw his daughter placing full kisses on the cheeks of the little girl who was laughing.

"I feel like I'm seeing you again, 20 years ago", he whispered. Beca smiled and walked over to make introductions.

"Lucy, this is your grandfather. Dad, it's Lucy." David smiled just like Beca and his eyes watered.

"I didn't expect to be this happy." Beca rolled her eyes but remained cheerful nonetheless.

It was time for her family to be reunited.

Quinn saw Beca enter the cafe accompanied by a man older and a lot more traditionnal than hastened to welcome them herself.

"Beca! How are you doing ?"

"Quinn! I didn't expect to see you." The blonde glanced behind her, towards the desk, where she knew Rachel was.

"I earned the right to go back to work early", she explained mischievously.

"What can I get for you?"

Beca glanced at her father who smiled at her. They had an old ritual that they hadn't practiced for too long.

"Two chocolate milkshakes and two cheeseburgers, please."

"No problem. Sit wherever you want. I'll come with your drinks." Father and daughter took their seats face to face on a bench.

"Do you come here often?" David asked. "Yes, we often come with the Bellas and Quinn is a friend." The professor nodded then watched the blonde prepare the drinks at the bar.

He leaned over the table conspiratorially. "A friend or a girlfriend?" He whispered the end. Beca rolled her eyes and gave a disgusted pout.

"Dad ! She's just a friend!"

"Okay, okay, I'll shut up." David kept a smirk on his hated but loved it when he did relationship with her father had visibly improved since she had been openly honest with him, as if he had known all this time that she was lying to him so he had kept his distance, waiting for her to open upherself.

"Here are your drinks. The dishes are arriving," Quinn announced. She was going to leave but Beca invited her to join them.

"Chloe is awake."

"Oh, that's great news! Rachel will be relieved. You will be able to talk then."

David saw his daughter withdraw into herself. Chloe was always a big topic.

"By the way, here is the number of my lawyer friend. I explained your situation to her vaguely. She said you could call her whenever you wanted."

"Okay thank you so much."

"Don't mention it. Keep me informed. Well I'm leaving you enjoy your food !"

A waiter set down their plates and then David and Beca were back to just the two of them. David tried to start the discussion.

"So, how's Chloe?"

"She's in pain but she seems fine." Beca spoke without conviction.

David had seen for a long time how his daughter had changed thanks to the Bellas and thanks to Chloe. Motherhood had made her grow up but her group of friends had made her open up to the world and he was very happy about it. Soon she would have her daughter back. All she would need now was to find the love of her life and David would no longer have to worry about her. His daddy heart would be totally filled.

"She's strong, she'll get over it," David tried to reassure. Beca shrugged and popped a fry into her mouth.

Usually when they talked about Chloe, Beca's eyes lit up. David knew something was bothering Beca. This had become obvious when she had spent a few nights at his house.

"Do you want to talk about it, Becs?" The brunette looked at her father as if he had three heads.

"Talking about what ?"

"About Chloe. I can see that it's not going well." Beca huffed and took a big bite of her burger. She spoke with her mouth full. "There is nothing to say. We argued, she had her accident because of me. End of the story."

The father analyzed his daughter in silence. He chewed quietly, thinking about the best way to get Beca to talk. "It's rare that you argue with Chloe" David finally commented. He hadn't tried to find out what was going on while Beca had stayed at his house because he knew his daughter was as closed as an oyster. But now he saw an opportunity to make her empty her bag.

"It's the first time."

"Why did you argue?"

Beca stopped all movement then took a sip of her milkshake. "She went through my things and found Lucy's ultrasound."

Beca's father wiped his mouth. "I see. And you didn't tell her you were a mom." Beca nodded.

"They all know now. Except Chloe. I told them everything."

"That's very good." David was happy to hear that Beca trusted other people. "And Quinn and Rachel too." Beca gestured toward the bar and kitchen.

"Quinn also had a daughter at a very young age." David nodded.

The maturity of the blonde he had barely seen hit him in the face. Her daughter was well looked after. "You'll have to tell Chloe."

"Yes, but it's not that easy. She hid things from us, too." David tilted his head full of questions to show his daughter that she could elaborate. "She only has one kidney left. She donated one of her kidneys to her brother when he was young. She has to take medication every day, normally."

David frowned. Chloe had been his student but he didn't remember knowing about this kind of problem. "How did you know that?"

"It was the doctor who asked Chloe's parents for explanations while we were all there. She was no longer taking her medication, apparently." David nodded eagerly. Surgeons knew how to circumvent medical confidentiality when it suited them. "She probably had a good reason not to talk about it. Like you for Lucy."

"You know why. If I didn't talk about Lucy, it was out of shame and because it hurts to tell each time how I lost custody of my daughter."

"Think about it, probably has the same reasons as you." He saw Beca thinking about what he had just saw consciousness take hold on her crestfallen face.

"You're right. I'm in a bad position to blame her." The father nodded and they resumed their meal in silence for a few minutes. It had been many years since the two of them had been together over a cheeseburger and a milkshake.

"You see, one day we'll do that with Lucy."

"This will be our new tradition." They smiled at each other.

Both were in their thoughts. One was thinking of his daughter whom he wanted to see happy above all else. The other thought of the little brunette she couldn't wait to tuck in in the evening.

"By the way, you had the number of a lawyer, if I understood correctly."

"Yes ! She's a friend of Quinn's who specializes in family rights. I'm going to call her this evening to ask her advice."

"It's very good. Everything's falling out in line. We'll get her back soon, Bec." David placed a warm and protective hand on Beca's fingers. She smiled at him. "Thank you, Dad."

They had finished their meal so they left the cafe after paying.

"I have to go back to the hospital to drop off Chloe's suitcase that I've been carrying around for two days.

See you later this week." "Okay. Take care of yourself and don't miss classes."

"Yes Dad." David took his daughter in his arms then released her to see her get into her car.

He admired the young woman she was becoming. She was growing so fast.

Chloe was already finding the time sun began its descent furiously and she had nothing to do but watch it taunt Bellas had left since 1 p. and Cynthia had come by around 3 o'clock after their class, to drop off some magazines and Chloe's then, she had only been flipping through the TV channels in search of an interesting program, but she had trouble keeping her concentration on the screen for too eyes stung quite had also learned that her phone was had been crushed in the she couldn't contact her friends to even chat and pass the time.

There was a discreet knock on the door of her room and then the person entered without waiting for a response.

A squeak of wheels fills the room. Chloe saw Beca's figure struggling with the suitcase she was dragging to finally manage to place it in a corner without it falling or making any more noise. The brunette turned quickly towards the bed, hands on her hips, out of breath.

"Hi," Chloe said without moving."Hey," Beca said."Sorry for the noise, I hope I didn't wake you.I brought you some clothes and the medicine the doctor told us to get." Chloe watched Beca string together sentences very quickly, nervous as she was to find herself in the same room as knew Beca too well not to see how embarrassed the brunette was, with her hands that were twisting and her eye sockets that never stayed still.

"I also brought you my old phone as yours no longer exists. It's old but it can still be used and you can contact us if you need anything. Then you can install games to pass the time..."

"Beca." The brunette stopped talking immediately, her gaze fixed on her black Converse.

Chloe rolled her eyes. Her friend sometimes got so shy. They had said bad words but they were still Beca and Chloe.

"Sorry, I'm sorry, you must want to rest and I'm here talking a mile a minute..."

"Beca! It's only me." The musician finally looked up to see her friend looking annoyed.

"Come closer," Chloe asked, holding out her hand. Beca approached slowly and took Chloe's hand in hers. It was soft and a little cold.

"Thank you for everything. I thought Aubrey would be the one to think of bringing all this back to me." Chloe smiled when she saw Beca shrug. "I beat her to it."

The silence invades them, weren't used to having this much difficulty talking to each topics of conversation usually flowed was saddened to see how their relationship was tainted by what was left cleared her throat.

"I met Quinn."

"Yes, I know. She and Rachel came to see you yesterday. They are happy to know that you are doing well."

Again, silence. Chloe was starting to hate this. She who was always in the noise between life with the Bellas, classes, training. She didn't like silence. Her house had always been too quiet since her brother left. She needed noise. Chloe grabbed her music player and headphones. Beca watched her squirm so she only occupied one part of the bed and patted the other half. The brunette took off her shoes and sat down very delicately on the bed, her hands crossed on her stomach. Chloe handed her an earpiece, which Beca placed in her ear, and Chloe rested her head on her shoulder. She slipped a hand under Beca's arm to cup one of her own on her abdomen.

The music started. It was Billie Eilish. Beca recognized the tune and started singing along. They remained quiet for the duration of the song. Chloe had closed her eyes and was enjoying the moment. She missed Beca's voice. The brunette was intoxicated by the contact with Chloe. She would take every possible minute. Because she didn't know if she would still have the chance to do it once Chloe knew everything.

"We need to talk," Beca said after a moment. "Between the two of us, I never thought it would be you who would initiate the conversation." Beca giggled nervously.

Chloe was right, she spent her time avoiding this kind of discussion. But not anymore. "I'm tired of hiding," The brunette shrugged.

Chloe stood up abruptly, her eyes face quickly tensed up at the pain caused by her movement.

"Damn it."

"You'll have to calm down on the movements, Beale." Chloe made a face at her then slowly positioned herself so she could see Beca as she spoke to her.

She was no longer holding her hand and she noticed how she immediately missed it.

"There's been a lot of changes in recent days, apparently."

"Yes, let's just say that seeing my best friend on a hospital bed because of me made me open my eyes" Beca replied put a hand under her chin to look her in the needed it so that her words would not go unnoticed.

"You are absolutely not responsible, Beca Mitchell. And I forbid you from continuing to hurt yourself for this any longer." Beca nodded hard, tears in her eyes. The young women didn't look away from each other. Beca looked down first, sniffling.

"I apologize for the way I spoke to you when you found the box. I didn't mean what I said at all."

"Don't worry, I know. I'm sorry too for digging around. Amy told me about the photos but not about the rest."

"She talks a lot without knowing..." The two young women remained silent for a while to absorb the conversation.

As Chloe moved, her blouse moved and Beca could see a bandage on her chest, under her arm. Chloe followed her friend's gaze and put her blouse back in place.

"We know about your brother's kidney transplant" Beca had contained herself until now but the fact that Chloe needed care or assistance without her knowing it tortured her had replayed over and over the training sessions, the evenings where Chloe drank recklessly, and all the moments where her health could have worsened without her knowing watched as Chloe ran a hand over her once, it was the redhead who seemed to want to escape the discussion.

"We don't have to talk about it. But I just want you to promise to take your medication correctly and to let me know when you have tests. I want to know how you are doing." The musician took her friend's hand. Chloe was surprised at Beca's frankness. She wasn't used to hearing the brunette talk about what she was thinking or feeling without having to push her to do so.

"Okay. We have a lot to talk about, Becs. But I promise." Chloe squeezed Beca's hand in hers, as if to seal her promise.

"Stacie and Cynthia came by earlier and they didn't give me a choice either. I scared all of you, it seems."

"You are very you, the team isn't really the same." Chloe smiled couldn't imagine her life without the Bellas, anyway.

"The surgeon told me that I would probably have trouble keeping notes like before." Beca looked at the woman in front of her for a while who looked sad at not being able to sing like she used to.

"We'll help you when we get there. You are a hard worker. We'll see that when the time comes. For now, your job is to rest."

"Woah, so much compassion coming from Beca Mitchell, I'm hallucinating, the morphine may still be taking effect." The two young women laughed and Beca nudged Chloe lightly with her shoulder.

Chloe feigned pain before bursting out laughing. Beca told herself that nothing was lost. She had found her best friend. One day, she would work to be more than that but for now, Chloe's friendship was enough for her.

Suddenly, Chloe yawned bluntly. Beca watched her rub her eyes, full of tenderness.

"Come on, Beale, time to go to bed." Beca got up from the bed but Chloe grabbed her elbow. "No, stay. Please." Beca saw real panic in Chloe's eyes.

"I hate hospitals and the last night I spent in the hospital... My brother, he..." Beca instantly softened.

She understood. "Okay, I'll stay. I'm here, you won't be alone." The musician went to unfold the camp bed for her second night in the hospital with, this time, Chloe more awake than ever."

"Where did this mattress come from?" Chloe asked. She had never seen anything like this in a hospital.

Beca replied while setting up the sheets. "The nurses brought it to me to sleep here the first night." Chloe frowned. Something was missing.

"I had my accident two days ago, right?"

"Yes." Beca turned around to see Chloe. She wondered where all these questions were coming from.

"Stacie said my parents came." Beca nodded, hands on hips, head tilted to the side in question.

"When did they arrive?" Beca was starting to understand.

"They arrived yesterday morning."

"They've already left, right?"

"Yes, last night."

"That's what I thought." Chloe shook her head, resigned, with tears in her eyes.

She was starting to get used to her parents' reactions. It even surprised her that they had came to see her. But that didn't mean it wasn't just as hurtful. Beca was torn between hugging her or running out of the room to call Chloe's parents and tell them what she thought about their lack of interest in their daughter. She opted for the first solution and took her place with the person she wanted to protect the most after her daughter. She wrapped her arms around Chloe and the redhead came to hide her face in her neck.

"They don't know that they're missing the healing of the most fantastic person in the world." Chloe laughed softly against Beca.

The sound created vibrations on the brunette's neck that made her shiver.

"It's starting to be a lot of positivity, even for me." Beca laughed too. Chloe yawned again. An idea came to her.

"You know what ? Put yourself comfortable. We're going to play whoever finds the worst show until you fall asleep." Chloe smiled, shaking her head. She reluctantly extricated herself from Beca to go a little deeper under the sheets. She pressed the button to administer the painkiller attached to her arm without complaint. The brunette sank a little deeper into the bed and put an arm around Chloe who didn't hesitate for a second to come closer.

Beca grabbed the remote. She saw Chloe already fighting against sleep. She knew she wouldn't dare move for fear of waking her up and that she would probably be stiff the next morning but it didn't matter, Chloe needed her. The television switched to a reality show. Beca placed the remote and her other hand on Chloe's. She kissed her forehead and felt Chloe's body sink a little more against her. At least she could take care of her now.