The Right Time

Chapter Four

It was the morning after.

Chloe had collapsed from exhaustion the night before, so hadn't had the time to text Aubrey. She woke up to numerous messages.

-Come to my dorm. Be quiet though-
-Tell me what's wrong-
-Please-
-What's going on with you? Is it me?-
-Waaaaaait. It's your crush, isn't it?-
-CHLOE ANSWER ME-
-'Please'-

Chloe stifled a yawn and then headed over to Aubrey's dorm once she was dressed.

'And she kissed him, Aubrey'. She had been explaining what was wrong for a few minutes.

'I'd hate to say I told you so'

The redhead gave the blonde a mean look.

'Sorry. Hang on a minute, you said that Beca wanted advice from you today'

Chloe furrowed her eyebrows.

'So?'

'So, maybe she wishes she hadn't done it- kissed him I mean'

'That's a bit of a reach to say the least', Chloe said, her voice tinged with slight annoyance.

Except, Aubrey was exactly correct.
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Beca woke up feeling groggy, but she felt even worse when she remembered a certain moment from the night before.

A message from Jesse came through on her phone.

-So when are you coming over to watch movies with me? X-

'Uggggh, no', she groaned.

She shot a text to Chloe.

-Could you meet me for a coffee? I'll buy x-
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Chloe left Aubrey's with one piece of advice from her best friend,

'Be her friend until he starts being an idiot. Then, be her shoulder to cry on and eventually, you can start to move in on her'

Beca and Chloe met at the café on campus. The alt girl had already picked out a table that was tucked away in a corner. Happy to see her, (despite the situation), Chloe gave her a big hug before sitting down.

'I ordered coffee and cake. I got you a slice of plain with buttercream icing because you said something about it a while ago', Beca said as she gestured towards the cake.

'Wow, well remembered!'

Both girls took a bite from their slices.

'So, what was it you wanted my advice about?', Chloe ventured.

'Promise not to make a big deal?'

'Promise'.

She'd try.

'I kissed Jesse last night...'

Chloe bit her lip.

Beca added, 'And I kind of wish I hadn't...'

Chloe met the girl's eyes.

'Then why did you do it?'

'I don't know. I guess I got carried away in the moment. I only wanted to be friends with him again', Beca took a sip of coffee, 'But I think he wants more'

'I'm not surprised. Wouldn't you want more if someone kissed you?'

'It would depend on who's kissing me', Beca said, eyes still locked onto Chloe's.

'You should tell him now that you didn't mean to take it that far- before he gets hurt'

'I'm good at pushing people away, so that should be easy', Beca replied.

'You haven't pushed me away'

'I have a feeling that even if I tried to push you away, you wouldn't take no for an answer'

Chloe laughed, 'You know me too well'

After finishing their cake and coffee, the girls left the cafe; Beca headed to Jesse's dorm.

As soon as he saw Beca, Jesse moved in for a hug and a kiss on the cheek. She pulled away quickly.

'What's up?', he said, as he noticed how tense she looked.

'I...I...Last night-

'Was great', Jesse interrupted.

Beca shuffled her feet.

'Shouldn't have happened. I shouldn't have...kissed you'

The boy's face grew sullen.

'I see how it is. Let me know when you've stopped pushing people away', Jesse said as he slammed the door in Beca's face.

'Shit', she muttered to herself.

Neither of the girls made it to Fat Amy's party that night. They both stayed in and studied seperately.
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Chloe was ecstatic when she heard that Beca and Jesse were no longer talking to each other.

However, this happiness didn't last long.

Beca's father talked to her a few weeks after the fallout, and persuaded her to give the boy another chance. Beca just wanted to feel like she was normal. By having a boyfriend, she was closer to being a regular teenager. A regular teenager that didn't push people away.

The two dated for just over three more years.

Chloe meanwhile, flitted between Tom and another frat boy. She felt nothing for either of them, but it gave her some distraction from Beca. The girls were still extremely close to each other- more so than before- but were kept apart by the guys they were seeing.

Then, after three years of dating, Beca knew that she couldn't stay with Jesse any longer.

'You haven't done anything with each other in three years?', Chloe asked, shocked at what she was hearing.

'I don't fancy him, Chlo. He's just been a good friend all this time', Beca explained.

'You probably have a world record for leading a guy on, you know that?', Chloe joked.

'I can't keep rejecting him though. These three years have flown by, and I don't want to end up marrying him before I know it'

Chloe couldn't believe what Beca was saying. Because even after all this time, she still felt something for her deep down.

'This is going to sound weird, but I feel more of a connection with you than I do with him. What does that mean?', the brunette continued.

'We've been best friends for years. It's no wonder that we have a connection', Chloe reached for Beca's hand, and squeezed. She kept holding it.

'As my best friend, do you think I should break up with him before we start getting ready for the president's gala?'

The birthday gala was a little over half a year away, and the Bella rehearsals were set to get even more strict.

'I think that you should do what you feel like doing'

So, that evening, Beca broke up with Jesse for the last time.

A weight felt like it had been lifted from her shoulders. Beca enjoyed Jesse's friendship, there was no doubt about that, but there was something missing. She had no desire for him; she didn't want him. For three years, she felt like she was dragging him along whilst thinking of excuses to put off sex.

'I've got rehearsals all day tomorrow'

'Please, Beca? I'm getting made fun of by my guy friends'

'Maybe you should ask one of your guy friends to hook you up with someone else'

There would be no more of that. No more pushing her into things, no more rushing her.
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-I did it. Feel weirdly elated. Am I a bad person?x-

-You mean a bad person in general, or just for dumping him?x-

-Oh haha. See you in rehearsals, red x-