Throughout the following week at school Chloe tried to play down her feelings as much as she could. Every time Beca would look her way she'd quickly turn her gaze elsewhere. Every time the brunette made an inside joke at lunchtime in front of the group of friends, she would keep her head down and try to ignore the stare and smirk sent her way. The more and more times Chloe ignored the soccer player and instead focused on her friends and her boyfriend, the redhead soon realised that she was crushing on the wrong Mitchell. By the wrong Mitchell she means the one that she isn't in a romantic relationship with.
"But you're with Tom", Jess looked back at her shocked and confused. The two girls were sat in the middle of the library, a mountain of books laid out in front of them as they were trying to study.
"You don't think I know that Jess?!", Chloe snapped and ran her fingers through her long red hair before sighing and looking back down at her notes. "I'm sorry, I just don't know what to do"
"So you have no feelings for Tom whatsoever?"
"Tom is the sweetest guy. He cares for me, compliments me, super good-looking, star athlete, my family love him including my Dad which is a big surprise because he-"
"Chloe, Chloe", Jess reached across the table smirking as she'd grab her friend's hands to stop her rambling. "Speaking from experience, if you don't have feelings for Tom, you need to let him go"
"I'm so confused", the cheerleader put her head in her hands once more, "They're so similar but yet so different and I like them both", she'd groan. "I can't break up with Tom when I know that there is something I see in him that I could have a real future with"
"A future with? What are you talking about?"
"I mean once we leave high school, going to college, starting a career, starting a life", she'd shrug her shoulders.
"You're thinking way too far ahead of yourself. Let's just focus on the first problem here in front of you. Beca or Tom?", Jess crossed her arms while leaning on the table as she stared over at Chloe, who finally looked back up.
"I need more time to think about this to make sure I'm 100% about any decisions I make", she'd sigh again before picking up her pen and starting to write notes.
"Speak of the devil, I will leave you with one of the Mitchell's", Jess looked over the redhead's shoulder, winking at the person stood there as she'd smile and start to pack away her stuff.
"And which one have you left me with?", Chloe kept her head down, ignoring the person that had moved closer and pulled the chair out beside her.
"Obviously the more athletic, impressive, funny and charming of the two", Beca answered her question as she sat down next to Chloe, smirking at the cheerleader, whose head had snapped up to lock eyes with her own.
"Oh is that right?", Chloe would try and play her own game back with Beca, making sure she didn't get lost in the ocean blue eyes that seemed to be staring right into her soul. "Because I've heard many stories about you but none of them have impressed me"
"Well, we are going to have to definitely change that", Beca winked back at her.
"So, Mitchell what do I owe this pleasure of seeing you in a place that I'm sure you have never been in before", she'd roll her eyes, watching Beca smirk once again before moving her deep red snapback to sit backwards on top of her head.
"That's where you're wrong again about me", Beca causally crossed her arms, leaning back in her chair, "I've been in here a couple of times, but never to study, if you know what I mean"
"You're ridiculous", Chloe sighed and reached across to grab the book, placing it in front of Beca. "You can make yourself useful by finally starting to read the book"
"I thought I made it pretty clear the other night that I don't read", she'd push the book back to Chloe, feeling a slight nervousness at Chloe's persistence to get her to read in front of her.
"Come on Beca, please?", the redhead then pushed the book slowly back to Beca, locking her eyes with the soccer player as she'd playfully bat her eyelashes.
Beca groaned as she moved her SnapBack again to frustratingly run her fingers through her hair before slamming her hand down to land on top of the book. "Okay fine, but only cause those eyes of yours are very convincing", she'd look away while opening the book now to the first page.
"One of my many talents", Chloe proudly smiled and sat up straighter in her seat as she'd read over the notes she had already made. Out of the corner of her eye, while trying to concentrate, the redhead would notice Beca fidgeting and the deep focused look on the brunette's face, mixed with the creases of confusion across her forehead. "What's wrong?"
"Huh?", Beca snapped her eyes back to the beautiful cheerleader, "Oh.. nothing, I just-"
"B-Beca.. you can.. read, right?"
Beca smirked casually, shrugging her shoulders as she'd look away. "Yeah, of course, I just don't like doing work"
"Beca", she didn't believe her as Chloe crossed her arms and continued to watch Beca, who had started to chew on her bottom lip now. "I don't mean can you read, but do you have trouble with reading?"
"What if I did? Would it matter? Either way I don't like doing homework, Beale", becoming protective and hating that her secret was out in the open to the one person she didn't want to look weak in front of. "Nothing can change it"
"If you tell your teachers then they can help-"
"No, no, don't you dare tell anyone about this, I mean it", she leant in closer, resting her arm on the back of Chloe's chair.
"You haven't told anyone?", the cheerleader whispered back, locking eyes with the deep blues once again.
Beca shook her head, sighing, "The only person that knows is Stacie. I can't deal with the pity looks and being treated different by people and she knows that which is why it's not a big deal"
"But this is a big deal", Chloe growled, "You get in trouble in English all the time for not doing work, if Miss Bryce knew about it, I'm sure she'd want to help instead of putting you in detention all the time"
"Or she would just see it as another excuse for me to not do any work", she shrugged her shoulders, mentally giving up, "Face it Chlo, no one expects me to get good grades and do all of this work so why bother changing that"
"Well, at least let me help you", the redhead placed her hand on top of Beca's.
"Why would you want to do that?", she'd whisper back, embarrassed slightly but mostly relieved and feeling as if a weight had been taken off of her shoulders.
"Because I care about...", Chloe froze for a second as she let her eyes gaze back and forth between the soccer star's eyes and lips that seemed to be moving closer by the second, "about my grades", she'd clear her throat and lean back a little, increasing the distance once more between the two of them.
"Whatever you say Beale", Beca silently celebrated as she noticed the way that Chloe's breathing had slowed down, but the blush became more obvious across her neck and cheeks.
"Every time we have a study date, I'll help you with some reading and then we can vocalise our ideas for the essay", Chloe smiled and looked back at her notes, noticing the time on her phone as it would flash with a message. "I've got to head to practice, but I'll see you later?", she'd start to quickly pack away.
"You definitely will and maybe we can find some time over the weekend while we're away to do some private tutoring", Beca winked and sent over her signature smirk, noticing Chloe freeze for a split second once again before slinging her bag over her shoulder.
"W-Weekend away?"
"Yeah, the cheerleaders are coming along to the soccer team's away game against Jefferson", Beca followed Chloe by standing up, putting her hands in the pockets of her leather jacket and searching her phone.
"O-Oh right, yeah I totally knew that", the cheerleader tried to come off causal and not fazed at all as she forced a smile once more.
"I look forward to getting some alone time away from everyone with you", Beca winked once more before speeding away, not letting Chloe reply or react but instead leaving the beautiful redhead to stand there, stuttering and breathing heavily as she watched Beca walk away from her.
...
That Friday, Beca was sat at the back of the bus, headphones covering her ears, her school's soccer jumper on with the hood pulled over her head as she waited for the rest of the team to board the bus. Getting bored of scrolling through the same pictures on Instagram and ignoring the messages mainly from Jasmine but also a few other girls, the soccer star gazed out of the window to see what was taking so long.
When her eyes had finally revealed the long awaited answer, Beca felt her jaw clench and her gaze had hardened even more as she watched her brother continuously hug and kiss his girlfriend.
The way his arms were wrapped tightly around the cheerleader's waist. The way he smiled as he looked into her eyes and the corners of his mouth somehow grew even wider as she made him laugh. The way he closed his eyes when he learnt forward to place a soft kiss on her forehead. Finally, the way Chloe smiled and waved back at him before she climbed onto the bus and sat next to Aubrey.
Beca sighed and shut her own eyes as she rested her head back on the headrest of her seat. "Can you not see how happy they make each other? Why are you trying to ruin that for him?", she thought to herself. Her mind filled with the same ideas swirling around in her brain that she can't bring herself to break up something that she knows her brother has been waiting a long time for.
"Hey Becs", Stacie collapsed into the seat next to her best friend, immediately noticing the twisted and sad look on her face. "Everything... okay?"
Beca took off her headphones and paused the song playing on her phone as she moved back to staring out of the window. "I don't think I can do this Stace"
"Do what?", she probed even further, "What are we talking about here exactly?"
"At first this was all fun and games and a bit of a joke to see how flustered I could make her and how easy it was to make her interested in me, but now I...", the brunette dragged a hand down her face as she sighed once more before continuing, "I see the way they look at each other a-and I can't break them up. I mean how shitty would I be to do that to Tom, huh?", she finally turned to look at her best friend.
"Wait, Beca.. do you have any real feelings for Chloe?"
"N-No, I'm just saying that you know, for this bet, it's too risky, I can't ruin this evidently good thing he has going on with her". As if the person themselves could hear their conversation, Beca's phone buzzed in her lap and she picked it up to see a message from Chloe.
Red: I should of known that you would isolate yourself all the way to the back row, loner ;) - 17:13pm
Beca was conflicted. Normally this would be the perfect opportunity to send back a flirty and suggestive message about all of the fun the back row can be during a road trip. However, after the revelation she had just had with Stacie, she took a deep breath and started to do what she so desperately didn't want.
Me: I like to keep myself to myself on away game trips, especially against Jefferson - 17:14pm
Why did she feel so guilty about sending such a blunt and distant message? Maybe because she wanted so badly to be the opposite of those things to the one girl that she stupidly was starting to care about.
Red: I see that Stacie gets to sit with you, is it just me you're trying to avoid? Am I too much of a distraction? ;) - 17:14pm
Groaning, Beca quickly glimpsed towards the front of the bus to see those baby blue eyes staring straight back at her, a small sign of a hooded desire on display.
Me: Let's just say that Stacie isn't so much a distraction anymore since we've become "closer" - 17:15pm
"Rebecca Mitchell! What the hell do you think you are doing?!", Stacie whisper-yelled, slapping her best friend on the arm.
"Have you been spying on my messages the whole time?", Beca hissed.
"Don't even give me that, you've just crossed a very big line and let me just point out the fact that it's not true"
"Look, I need to distance myself and push her away. If she thinks I've slept with you then she'll think I'm not interested", she quickly explained herself.
"But you are interested, aren't you?", their voices had gotten a lot quieter now.
"Maybe I was but I can't be anymore", Beca turned away, the screen of her phone catching her eye as another messaged pinged through from the cheerleader.
Red: Thought you knew better than to catch feelings for your best friend - 17:18pm
Me: No-one said anything about feelings, Beale, it's purely just scratching each other's itch - 17:19pm
The rest of the journey to the hotel, Beca put her headphones back over her ears, blasted her music loud so that everyone else was drowned out and closed her eyes so she could escape her conflicting, confusing and frustrating life even if it was just for two hours.