Bi-Wheeling It

Chapter One

Two Weeks Earlier:

It hadn't started that way, though.
The last thing Beca Mitchell had expected was opening the door on the 13 of July to a beaming, helmeted Chloe Beale shoving a helmet and a leather jacket in her hands, squealing, "ROAD TRIP TIME, MITCHELL."
Beca, of course, has never been able to argue against the stunning ginger, who threw a helmet at her. The brunette caught it, looking flabbergasted.
"We are taking a flight to Vancouver, Canada. I have family there, and used to take road trips all the time up there as a kid. It'll be fun!" Chloe trilled, "We leave in a week!"
"Oh, fantastic." Beca said, drily.

***

Two days before leaving, Beca decided she should probably tell Jesse she was leaving. That's a responsible, adult thing to do, right?
Beca knocked on Jesse's door, studying the wooden frame she had seen thousands of times before. The swirl there, the lines here. Everything about Jesse's place was familiar, something she had struggled to find ever since attending Barden.
The door opened, and a slightly disoriented Jesse stood there, grasping a cup of a hard liquor of some kind. His eyes widened at the sight of Beca, and he smiled at her, "Hey, Becs!"
"Hey, Jess. Am I intruding, or..?"
"No! No, of course not, come on in." He back stepped out of the way, and Beca entered the threshold.
Laughter came from the living room down the hall, and Jesse motioned for Beca to follow him into the kitchen.
"Company over?" Beca asked, sitting herself on one of the barstools.
"Yeah, just a few friends." He poured some rum into a new glass, not looking up at her, "They were in town and asked to visit. I guess there are some people you can't say no to, right?" He topped up the glass with coke and handed it to Beca.
"Yeah, about that." Beca took a sip from the drink, and Jesse watched her, "Chloe has invited me to go to Canada with her for a week or two."
Jesse tilted his head to the side, "Oh?"
"Yeah, something about family up there and how beautiful the mountains are." Beca put her drink down gently on the counter, looking at Jesse, "I hope you don't mind that I agreed to go."
"Oh, no, I don't mind at all." Jesse smiled at her, "Chloe is a good girl, I'm sure you'll have a blast."
Beca smiled, "Thanks Jess. I hope so, even though road-trips aren't really my thing."
Jesse laughed airily, "I know, Beca." He stood and offered a hand to her, "C'mon, my friends have been dying to meet you."
Beca took his hand and allowed him to lead her to the living room. The pictures that hung on the walls of the hallway were the same ones that always hung there; a mixture of scenery, family and them. Beca couldn't help but smile at the one picture that was taken at grad of them in the robes.
They entered the room, and Beca saw three guys sitting around the room, all laughing and pretty drunk.
"Hey, there's Jesse!" A brawny guy on the far sofa wearing a Pink Floyd tee hooted at the entering couple.
"Yup, I'm back. Brought someone who I wanted you to meet." Jesse gestured to Beca, who gave a shy little wave.
"Dude, what a score! Hot and pocket-sized!" A black-haired man said, who was on the love seat, taking another swig from the beer can in his hand.
"Hey! Don't be an ass." Jesse snapped at him, but Beca laughed.
"Don't worry about it. I've been called worse." Beca reassured him, not bothered at all.
"And has a good sense of humour. Damn, man, how'd you get so lucky?" A ginger guy next to the black-haired one said.
"Well," Beca answered, "All he really needed to do was chase me with shitty, old movies until I finally agreed to watch them. Eventually with him in the same room."
The guys laughed, and Beca smiled at Jesse, who forced a grin.
"Well, don't be a stranger, sit down, guys!" The brawny guy said, motioning to the three seated couch.
Jesse sat down, and Beca settled herself next to him, leaning against him. Everything about him was like home, a sweet familiarity and comfort to her. Three years together had made Jesse a sort of rock for her, a solid wall to lean on in times of stress.
The brawny guy smiled, "Aren't you two so cute it's gross? My name is Brad, by the way."
"Suiting." Beca laughed.
"Ginger here is Gary, and the emo over there is Tom."
"Nice to meet you guys." Beca smiled to each of them, who raised their drinks to her.
"How long have you two been together?" Brad asked, taking a sip from his glass.
"Three years, now." Jesse said, squeezing Beca closer to him.
"Damn, I can't keep a girl for a week." Brad shook his head, "When's the wedding?"
Beca laughed before Jesse could respond, "We're not-"
"To be determined." Jesse spoke over her, meriting a laugh from the others.
"Awesome. Save me a seat, would ya?" Gary winked.
As the night went on, she began to feel more and more comfortable around the guys. Finally, around 2am, Jesse stood up, "Well, it's been great having you guys."
"Our pleasure, thank you for having us!" Tom said, burping.
"No problem." Jesse said, "I think I heard the cab pull up. So sorry you can't stay longer."
"It's alright. You don't want us sleeping on your couch anyways. Gary cries when he's hungover." Brad said, smirking.
"Not fucking true." Gary snapped, and Brad laughed, putting an arm over the litter man's shoulder.
Jesse ushered the drunk guys out the door, and Beca waited on the couch, hearing the door close.
Jesse re-entered the living room, and sat back on the couch next to Beca with a huff. Beca leaned her head on his shoulder, snuggling into him.
"They were nice." Beca eventually said, breaking the silence.
"They're a bunch of kooks, really." Jesse sighed.
"Are you okay?" Beca asked, looking up at him.
"I'm fine. Tired, s'all."
Beca allowed silence to fill the room again, and finally she noticed Jesse's breathing had slowed to a gentle, even rhythm. He must have fallen asleep, and upon a quick examination of his face, it was confirmed. Beca relaxed her head against him again, allowing herself to close her eyes.
She was leaving in two days to the great unknown, leaving everything she knew so well behind. She felt a sudden anxiety build within her chest, and she swallowed. Not that everything was going to change, per se, but it was just... What if something happened, and she never came home? What if something happened here that would change her life while she was gone?
She opened her eyes, focusing her gaze on the beer can that Tom had left.
How could she have agreed to do that? And why would Chloe ask that of her?
Still, she had said yes, and that was that.
She looked back at Jesse again, and smiled. She raised herself off of him, carefully sitting up. She raised her legs up so she was standing on her knees on the couch, and swung one leg over Jesse's lap so she was straddling him.
She leaned forward and kissed his exposed neck, causing him to stir.
Beca suddenly had a very odd, but very suiting idea. She began to sing softly into his ear.

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go, I'm standing here outside your door,
I hate to wake you up to say good-bye.
But the dawn is breaking, it's early morn, the taxi's waiting He's blowing his horn.
Already I'm so lonesome I could die.
So kiss me and smile for me, tell me that you'll wait for me, hold me like you'll never let me go.

Jesse was awake now, and his hands lifted, resting on Beca's hips, and he joined in:

'Cause I'm leaving on a jet plane, don't know when I'll be back again. Oh, babe, I hate to go.

Beca smiled as the verse finished, and she kissed him. His hands slid up her shirt, his fingertips grazing her back softly. He stopped, bunching her shirt in his hands, and breaking the kiss to pull it over her head.
Her hands lifted his shirt, and she grazed the skin on his stomach with her fingernails. He groaned, looking up at her, tossing her shirt to the floor.
She allowed herself to become lost in what they were doing, letting her doubts be stripped away from her with every article of clothing that came off.
And with every movement, the sun climbed ever so slowly into the sky, bringing with it the sweet warmth of the morning.