The Right Time

Chapter Two

Although she wouldn't care to openly admit it, Beca was glad to be back in the Barden Bellas. It would take her mind off her fallout with Jesse and the classes she was skipping so effortlessly. Also, there was the added bonus of regularly seeing a great group of people- even if Aubrey infuriated her at times.

Out of all the members of the group, Beca found herself enjoying Chloe's company the most. There was something about being around the redhead that Beca liked. Perhaps it was her infectious laughter, or the way she was always so damn optimistic. Being optimistic was not Beca's forte, but she gained pleasure from seeing Aubrey turning red and tense when a Bella missed a note, only for Chloe to smile sweetly and whisper,

'It's okay, don't worry'

Meanwhile, Chloe was enjoying Beca's company a little too much. She knew that she should distance herself somewhat if her feelings were to have any chance of dying down, but after not seeing the brunette for spring break, she was unintentionally gravitating towards her. She thought that it might be easier for her to let her feelings die down so that she could concentrate on the group more, but she couldn't do it.
Eventually, this led to the ginger leaving lingering touches on her arms when demonstrating some choreography, and looking deeply into her eyes when they talked.

Beca was not the kind of girl who enjoyed contact. But, when Chloe hugged her at the end of rehearsals, or held her hand to guide her through choreography, it felt natural. Natural and not weird.

It wasn't long before Aubrey had noticed the chemistry brewing between the two. She saw the way that Chloe looked at Beca, and the way that Beca would respond differently to contact from others.

'Got a little crush, have we?', Aubrey confronted Chloe.

'What are you talking about?'

'It's so obvious that you have a crush on Little Miss Alternative over there', she nodded towards Beca, who was letting Cynthia Rose listen to her mix.

After denying it more than once, Chloe knew she couldn't lie to Aubrey- Aubrey knew her too well.

'What's so bad about it? I'll...get over it', Chloe said.

'What's bad is that you're not concentrating on what we're trying to achieve here. You're concentrating on getting into her pants'

A small argument broke out between the two. The argument lasted only a moment so that no unneccessary attention was brought to them. The conclusion of the argument was that Chloe would stop her attempts to make a move on Beca, because as Aubrey said,

'She's already got a toner for Jesse anyway! And we need to concentrate on the real competition, not our "looooove" competition'

The way that Aubrey emphasised the word 'love' made Chloe mad- it made her seem as if she was being a pathetic child. Ignoring what Aubrey had just told her, Chloe made a promise to herself that she wouldn't give up. She would win the nationals and get the girl.
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Beca stole a glance at Chloe. Even after all the time they had spent together, she still had a small crush on her. It was the sort of crush that originated in admiring the person- wanting their looks or personality- and then slowly simmered into something more. Beca liked her a lot; for now, as a friend.

The brunette paced over to the redhead and playfully punched her arm.

'Ouch, what was that for?'

'You didn't come over to listen to my mix like you said you would', Beca said with a sarcastic pout.

'Sorry, I was just...discussing things with Aubrey. I could listen now if you want?', Chloe offered.

'Could we go somewhere else? It's just that the back of my head feels like it's burning'

'What?'

Chloe turned around to see Aubrey giving the girls a death stare. Annoyingly for Aubrey, it only made them laugh; the two walked to the library together.
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Once seated in the library, Beca carefully placed headphones onto Chloe's ears and played her most recent track.

'Wow, this is really good!', Chloe said, a little too loudly.

Beca brought a finger to her lips as a hint, but smiled at her friend.

'Oh!', Chloe whispered, 'It's really good! I'm so glad that we're using your music in our sets now'

Beca smiled again and watched Chloe nodding her head in time to the music. She thought it was cute.

When the song ended, the redhead passed the headphones back to her DJ friend.

'So are you nervous about the finals?', Beca asked.

'I try not to let myself get too nervous. Besides, with your arrangements I'm sure we'll do great'

'Thanks, means a lot. You're always so optimistic about everything'

'You have to be optimistic if you want to do well', Chloe replied.

'Maybe that's where I'm going wrong- I'm too much of a cynical old woman'

'Woah, I'm older than you', Chloe winked, 'You should let yourself relax sometimes. Enjoy things', she added, on a more serious note.

Chloe placed a hand on Beca's and squeezed quickly before pulling it away. She didn't want to leave it there too long in case it freaked the girl out.

'I am enjoying some things'

Their eyes met.

'For example?', Chloe enquired.

'Well, I like spending time with you weirdos and Jesse is kind of fun when he's not busy being mad at you'

Chloe's face grew sadder and her voice more monotone.

'Why is he mad at you?'

'He says that I push everyone out...which is true, but I can't help it'

'Because of your parents, right?'

'How did-'

'Amy. News gets around fast with Amy here', Chloe explained.

'Oh. Well, anyway, I wanted to make it up to him...so that's why that song by Simple Minds is in our arrangement; it's from one of his favourite movies'

'He'd better appreciate that', Chloe said, with a hint of defeat in her voice.

'Hope so. Hey, I guess I'd better get back to my dorm before Kimmy Jin complains about breaking my curfew', Beca joked, 'Thanks for the chat'

Beca leant over and gave Chloe a hug, which took the redhead aback. She then paused as if she had forgotten what she was doing.

'Why don't you walk me back? You can update me on all the gossip from Fat Amy that I missed', Beca said.

Chloe couldn't restrain herself from giggling, and agreed to walk her back to her dorm. They strolled there, arm in arm like a pair of gossiping, old women.