Beca slowly opened the door to the home studio. It was nearly six in the morning and she had only slept for a couple of hours. She needed to get ready for work, she had things to do at the label, but she was scared to leave the third floor. She listened and after a few moments of silence, she stepped out and closed the door, descending the stairs to the second floor to take a shower. Aubrey wasn't due to wake up for another hour, which gave her plenty of time to get ready for work and hopefully leave before her wife even woke up.

She stopped outside their bedroom door and took a breath before carefully easing it open. Aubrey was still asleep and she let out a small breath of relief as she made her way to the closet to get an outfit. Then, she slipped out of the room and headed for the guest bathroom to shower.

She was just finishing up in the bathroom when she heard Aubrey calling for her. She froze, staring at her reflection, her hair fell in damp waves over her shoulders and she had just finished putting her outfit on. She looked toward the door as she heard her name called out again.

She couldn't ignore her. That would only make things worse. She hung up her towel before opening the door.

"Coming!" She called so Aubrey didn't have to call her a third time. She walked down the hall and found the bedroom door was already open and she could smell coffee. Aubrey must have woken up right after she left to take a shower.

She found her in their master bathroom, sitting at her vanity applying makeup.

"Yeah?" She asked, stopping in the doorway, crossing her arms protectively over her chest.

"Why didn't you shower in here? All of your stuff is in here." She asked glancing at her through the mirror as she applied her mascara. Her eyes only dropped down to look at her crossed arms for a split second before returning to her own reflection.

"I didn't want to wake you." She said and Aubrey sighed.

"Well, you failed." She said putting the mascara wand back in the tube and dropping it into her make up bag. She then stood up to face Beca.

"You woke me up, digging through the closet." She said, her voice annoyed.

Beca looked down. "I'm sorry, I was trying to be quiet."

Aubrey walked over to her and she tensed as she reached her and cupped her jaw in her hands, angling her face up to look at her. She dropped her own arms, carefully reaching up to gently grasp Aubrey's arms, unsure of what she was doing.

"I know you were, love. It's okay." She said and kissed her briefly before letting her face go and stepping back.

"I'm sorry about last night. You were right. I wasn't in the right frame of mind and I might have slipped up. You were right to not want to be around me. I wish you would have come to bed. I'm sorry and I would love to make it up to you."

Her stomach felt like it was filled with rocks. Now she was admitting to her that she would have lost her temper? And apologizing in the same breath.

"You don't have to do that. You were also right last night. I brought it up, and it was wrong. I was wrong." She said looking at Aubrey with wide hopeful, yet nervous eyes. "I'm sorry too."

She watched as a small smile curved Aubrey's lips and she stepped back toward her. Soon she found herself enveloped in a hug and Aubrey held her tightly. She nuzzled into her hair and wrapped her arms around her waist. She loved these moments. When Aubrey held her, kissed her temple. The moments she could actually forget everything.

XXXXXX

Beca was sat at her desk, in her office staring out the window, her mind stuck on that hug, hours later. She had just finished her first meeting, and it had gone well. Everyone was very welcoming and kind, and it had left her in a good mood. That's how she found herself reminiscing on the happy moment she had that morning with Aubrey. She had led her downstairs where she made her a cup pf coffee before making a quick breakfast. Beca was starving. She hadn't eaten much the day before, then Aubrey had her pate taken from the table at dinner so she didn't realize how hungry she was until a plate of toast and scrambled eggs was being set in front of her.

The incident at the restaurant wasn't brought up and Beca was glad to forget it happened. She was staring out the window of her new 16th story office, nibbling on the end of a pen as she slowly swiveled back and forth in her chair.

Aubrey hadn't seen her office yet, and she was excited to show her. She thought about calling her and asking if she would like to make a stop there that evening to see it, when there was a knock on the door and then it slowly opened.

"Mrs. Posen?"

She recognized her as the lady that worked at the front desk. "Oh, hello Emma." She smiled. "You can just call me Beca." She said as she opened the door wider.

"Beca," She smiled stepping in, "You have a visitor." She said and Beca looked to see Aubrey walking in with a large bouquet of flowers.

She stood quickly. "Thank you, Emma." She smiled hurrying around the front of her desk as Aubrey approached and she wasn't smiling.

"You're welcome." Emma said before leaving the room and closing the door.

Aubrey stepped around her and set the flowers on the desk. "Thank you, they are beautiful I was actually just think-"She started when Aubrey cut her off.

"First name basis with the secretary?" She asked folding her arms.

Beca blinked in confusion a couple of times. "I-what?"

"She isn't your friend, Beca. She is below your pay grade and she doesn't need to be calling you anything but Mrs. Posen." She said.

"Aubrey, we really aren't that formal here, I don't even know her last name." She spoke.

"Beca you are head of this label. Act like it."

She looked down, stuffing her hands into the back pockets of her jeans. "Okay. I'm sorry."

She felt Aubrey's hands on her face again, just like that morning. She lifted her face to look at her.

"You keep doing that." She said reaching up and brushing a strand of hair off of her forehead. "Avoiding my eyes." She spoke.

Beca looked back down for a second before looking back up at her. "I don't want to see the disappointment in them every time I look at you." She said quietly and felt the hands that held her face in place tense.

"Oh, Becs." Aubrey whispered before she was pulled against her. She raised her arms to wrap around her wife for the second time that day.

"I'm sorry. I'm not disappointed in you, I am so proud of you. Look at you." She said letting her go and gesturing around them. "Look at this office, this view." She smiled.

Beca looked out at the view of Atlanta. It was beautiful.

"You really mean that?" Beca asked, her voice thick, suddenly on the verge of tears. Aubrey looked at her. "You're proud of me?"

Aubrey smiled, leaning in and pressing her lips against Becas for a soft kiss. "I really do."

XXXXXX

"You should see the view from her office, it is beautiful." Aubrey spoke down the phone. She was back in her own second story office on the phone with her father.

"I know that," she said dropping her head back. "Yes, I know. She isn't even showing yet we are barely at the three-month mark."

She should have known better than to answer this phone call. He might be out of town for a few weeks but he was still persistent on keeping tabs on her and Beca.

"I really think she will be able to work through the pregnancy. She hasn't even had any sickness; she is eating normally and has only mentioned being a little more tired than usual."

She looked towards her door where her brother had just entered. He had heard what she said and had a look of shock on his face.

"Oh, Dad I'll have to call you back a client is calling. Yep, okay. Bye." She said and hung up the phone looking at him like a deer in the headlights.

"Beca is pregnant?"

Her older brother Austin was three years her senior and was happily married, though he and his wife Carrie had decided not to have kids, much to their father's dismay. He had grown up with the same strict, abusive lifestyle Aubrey had. He had done his best to protect his little sister from their father. He was genuinely surprised when she had ended up growing up to be almost just like him. Granted he didn't know exactly what had been going on between Aubrey and Beca. He had taken a liking to Beca the moment he met her and would lose his mind if he knew that Aubrey had been treating her wife the same way their dad treated their mom. He would be disappointed to see she grew up to be what they feared as children.

"Uh, yeah. We weren't going to tell anyone until she is in her second trimester." She said standing up as he leaned against the doorframe.

"Dad knows?"

She nodded, stopping a few feet from him. She squared her shoulders, hating how no matter how old they got she always felt like the little sister when she was around him. She was a few inches shorter and while he had always been a loving brother, she felt like he judged her.

"He does, yes. He found the fertility doctor and-"She was cut off by a laugh and she glared.

"What is so funny?"

He shook his head straightening up. "Of course, he did. Damn Aubrey, you don't even want kids. You have never wanted kids, you hate them." He said, then looked behind him, not wanting the receptionist to hear him. He closed the door and she folded her arms.

"Not six months after we tell him that we aren't having kids and he has Beca in stirrups getting injected with donor sperm." He shook his head. "Is she even-"

"Enough." Aubrey snapped. "Not that its any of your business, but we are happy. Beca agreed to do this, and we both want it. We are expecting twins, actually."

He looked down. "Aubrey, you can be honest. He isn't here." He said, his voice taking on a softer tone.

Aubrey was silent for a moment and he could see the tears that has started to well up in her eyes. She cleared her throat and blinked the tears away.

"We are happy. Beca is carrying our babies and we are very excited. And if you want to be in these babies' lives, I suggest you keep your unnecessary opinions to yourself. Now," She said.

"Austin. Beca and I are expecting twins. You are going to be an uncle." She said expectantly and he shook his head again.

"I'm happy for you, kid." He said pulling her in for a hug they both knew was meant to comfort her rather than congratulate her.

"Thank you." She said as she laid her head on his chest. She hated his nickname for her. Kid. It was what he had called her their whole lives. She wasn't a kid. He would argue that she would always be his uptight kid sister and they would laugh it off. They weren't laughing now.

XXXXXX

That night, Beca was laying on the couch, watching a movie when Aubrey got home. She sat up on the couch and peered across the living room into the kitchen where she could hear her setting her things down. It was late, nearly eight at night. They both tried to always be home by six at the latest and she hadn't called or answered Becas calls. This made her nervous and she didn't speak as she waited for her to make an appearance.

She heard the familiar sound of a beer bottle being opened before Aubrey rounded the corner and spotted her on the couch.

"Hey, love. Sorry I'm so late. I got hung up at the office." She said kicking her shoes off and walking over, dropping down beside her on the couch.

Beca let out a silent breath. "It's okay. Are you hungry? I can make you something?"

She shook her head taking a drink of her beer. Beca watched, knowing they hadn't had any beer so Aubrey had to have stopped on the way home to get it.

"No thank you, I hade a late lunch. Did you eat?" She asked, lifting her arm prompting Beca to curl into her, which she did without hesitation. She hadn't eaten, as she was waiting for Aubrey to get home. She nodded anyway before laying her head on Aubrey's shoulder and the older woman kissed her head as she watched what Beca had been watching on the TV. She drank her beer slowly, laughing at the show as she ran her fingers up and down Becas bare arm, lulling her to sleep. They hadn't had a night like this in months.

It was their routine, usually after work. They would arrive home, make dinner together and talk about their days before decompressing on the couch watching a show or a movie and cuddling before going to bed. She didn't realize how much she missed it, and while she laid against her side, she listened to her heartbeat and the way her laugh would vibrate through her before she took another sip pf her beer.

This was what their lives were meant to be. Happy, easy, full of love and laughter. Not what it had become. Angry words and even angrier hands.