Title: The End of the Beginning

Author: poeticalramblings89 aka theresonlyonedjforme aka Kam

Pairing: Aubrey/Beca—Mitchsen.

Rating: T ( some swearing)

Disclaimer: I do not own Pitch Perfect, nor the characters. Simply borrowing.

Summary: Prompt by Alecks aka sendricamp: "The first time Beca Mitchell could have kissed Aubrey Posen, but didn't, was after the pool mashup. The second time that Beca Mitchell could have kissed Aubrey Posen, but didn't, was after their stellar performance at the finals. The third time that Beca Mitchell could have kissed Aubrey Posen, but didn't, was the night before the blonde was due to graduate from Barden. The fourth time that Beca Mitchell could have kissed Aubrey Posen, she did."

The Pool

The final notes faded into the air, and Beca glanced at Aubrey for some sort of sign, any confirmation that the normally uptight leader of the Bellas was satisfied with their sound. Her eyes lingered on the

blondes, staring, hoping, searching She was granted approval in the way of an infectious smile, as Aubrey exclaimed, "Hands in!"

For the first time time since they'd all banded together, there was no argument debating on three or after three. All of the women piled their hands in the middle of their huddle. Beca's hand laid atop Aubrey's and she found herself desperately needing the note to be sung. Finally, it was, and Chloe let out a random bass note that puzzled all of them. Cynthia Rose remarked that with her messed up vocal cords due to having her nodes surgery, she could hit the bass notes. Beca hung back as the group started away from the pool, unable to get the sparkle that she'd never seen present in Aubrey's eyes before that out of her head. She'd always been attracted to the blonde, sure, but she'd never been completely unwilling to tear her thoughts away from those perfectly shaped lips, and how they'd feel against her own. Seeing Aubrey let loose a little was messing with her head.

A hip bumped against her own, and she shook herself out of her thoughts, letting out an inward groan when she realized that the subject of them was the one who had startled her.

"Thank you." Aubrey said quietly. "I know I've been hard on you. But I really appreciate what you're doing. We sounded aca-amazing!" She let out an excited grin.

The DJ turned to face her and gazed into her sparkling blue eyes with her own, mentally chastising herself for doing so. They were so close. She'd literally just need to lean up, and brush Aubrey's lips with her own. She felt herself rising up slightly, onto the balls of her feet, and froze.

Beca swore that Aubrey's eyes darted down to her lips in that moment, but the blonde stood stock-still, barely even breathing.

The brunette's fear got the best of her and she turned and ran away, Aubrey calling her name into the night.

Finals

Their final note echoed through the auditorium, giving way to thunderous applause. Beca turned to face Aubrey, grinning widely, and saw the expression reflected back at herself. The Bellas performance had gone off seamlessly, and the adrenaline rushing through her body was making her dizzy. She'd orchestrated their setlist around apologizing to Jesse, and although she didn't feel the way he did, she didn't want to lose the movie nerd in her life. He gave her a thumbs up, and nodded vigorously as she caught his eye.

In the weeks and days that led to Lincoln Center, Beca had drowned herself in mixing at first, desperate to forget the sound of Aubrey's voice calling after her frantically. She knew that what she was doing was probably both confusing and painful for the blonde, not having spoken to her directly unless it was about the Bellas. They had at least argued on a regular basis, butting heads frequently, but never this distinct icing out on Beca's part. She couldn't bear to confront the senior, knowing that she'd be graduating, leaving her life, plus there was the very present terror of rejection.

The DJ came back to the current moment, still lost in blue eyes. Aubrey was looking directly back into her own, and pulled her in for a tight hug. Beca lost herself in it momentarily, melting into her arms, before realizing they were still on stage, and carefully extracted herself from the blonde's hold, gripping slender digits in her own, pulling her off the stage.

Amidst cheers and whistles, hooting, and yells of congratulations, Beca led her through the crowd, only stopping once they found a deserted corridor.

"I'm sorry." the brunette said simply. "I've been ignoring you and it's not fair."

Aubrey looked a bit shocked that she actually apologized. "Why?" She retorted, equally simple.

"I.." Clearly she hadn't thought this out, with the adrenaline rushing through her veins, and a slow burning fire aching inside of her, spreading and threatening to consume. "Because I did, okay?" She felt her defenses rising up, not extinguishing the burn by any means, but making it flare hotter.

"That's not good enough Beca! Why the hell can't you just be honest with me?!" The older woman backed her against the wall,faces so close they were practically touching, and there it was. The overwhelming urge, no, need, to taste the lips that were ghosting hot oxygen over her own.

Beca craned up, unconsciously nearing what she most desired.

"There you are! They're about to announce the winners!" Chloe squealed. "C'mon guys!"

Beca could have told Chloe they'd be right there, but her cowardice took over yet again, and she slipped out of Aubrey's reach, averting her eyes.

She swore that Aubrey let out a frustrated growl as she stalked past the DJ, back into the auditorium, disappearing out of sight.

The Night Before

They had done it, they had won, and now both Chloe and Aubrey were set to graduate soon, leaving Barden University in their wake. Chloe and Beca were very close, yet the redhead had did not know about her feelings for a certain best friend of hers. They weren't just sensations of lust, nor pure physical attraction, they stemmed deeper. A bond of being misunderstood, more than met the eye, and familial issues ran deep between them, though Beca had yet to voice it aloud. There was attraction as well, no doubt, it crackled like electricity between them every time they occupied the same area. One touch, and the barriers the DJ had worked so hard to build would come tumbling down, crumbling in the wake of one simple caress. She couldn't help but feel it might not be quite so lonely, if she did however. Beca decided enough was enough, and decided to tell Aubrey how she felt, fear of rejection be damned.

This particular night, the night before she was due to watch the two seniors graduate, Beca found herself stalking across campus to Aubrey and Chloe's apartment. She was intent on telling the blonde about her feelings, the emotions that had been there since the beginning, mistaken for hatred, and recognized ultimately as love.

She knocked harshly on the door and waited, shifting from side to side.

"Chloe, you'd think with us moving out in a few days, you'd have stopped losing your keys—oh!" Aubrey teased, her face quickly flitting to a look of pure shock. "Beca?" She questioned, seemingly afraid to believe it was actually the short brunette.

"Can we talk?" Beca breathed out, nervously.

"Yeah, yes, definitely!" The soon to be graduate stared directly into her eyes, both of them losing themselves momentarily. "Oh, uh, right, come in."

Beca trailed after Aubrey through the bare apartment, wishing desperately that she'd come to her senses sooner. The former Bellas leader had taken a place in her heart, hell, she had her heart, all of it, not that she was aware.

"I can't believe you guys are graduating tomorrow. It feels like I just joined the Bellas yesterday." The DJ downcast her eyes, reliving their first meeting.

Aubrey stepped closer while the nearly sophomore was lost in thought, still leaving an arm's length between them.

Beca snapped back to reality, noting that the blonde was closer than she had been.

"So...talk?" Aubrey prodded lightly, something akin to a ghost of hope in her eyes.

"Oh, right. Um.." She hesitated, and the blonde snapped.

"For fuck's sake Beca, when are you going to grow a pair and spit it out? I know what you're going to say, you know what you need to say, and yet we keep dancing around it, for fucking months now!"

Beca felt herself grow indignant, and hissed back, "How the hell do you know what I'm going to say if you're not in my head, Bree?"

"Because we're the same!" Aubrey yelled. "We're the goddamn same. We may look differently and speak differently, but when it comes down to it, we are exactly alike!"

There it was, the acknowledgment of what was between them, the unspoken bond. She felt her pride rearing its ugly head and fought to push it down, failing miserably.

She spun on her heel, stalking out of the apartment and fighting back tears.

Beca heard Aubrey exit after her, yelling her name yet again, but kept running. God, this was so fucked up.

The End of the Beginning

Beca paced back and forth in Jesse's room. She'd told him right after finals that they would never and could never be, and he'd fallen into more of a brotherly role toward her. On this particular day, Aubrey was set to leave Barden behind.

"Becs, I don't see why you don't just man the hell up and tell her. She clearly knows, and isn't running." Jesse smirked at her.

"Jes, she's not exactly coming after me either! What if this is a game to her?" the DJ whined.

"God you're pathetic" Jesse chuckled. "You'll never know if you don't take a chance. Do you really want her to leave and not have any idea whatsoever what could have been?"

"I hate it when you're right." Beca pouted. "I can't stand myself sometimes."

"What are you waiting for? Go get her before she's gone!" Jesse stood, shoving her out the door.

She paced around campus for twenty minutes or so, gathering her courage and formulating her words in her mind.

As she neared the apartment she noticed Aubrey loading things into her car, and broke into a run.

"Bree!" The blonde's head snapped up in surprise, eyebrow arching as she took in Beca's flustered state.

She panted, not being used to that much cardio, even with the Bellas, and doubled over, trying to catch her breath.

"I'm sorry, fuck I'm sorry!" the brunette pleaded.

"Beca, what are you talking about?" Aubrey was done with the games, and put a hand on her hip.

"I'm talking about my stupidity. I'm talking about how I should have just told you how I felt all along, and stopped letting my pride get in the way. I'm saying that I'm hopelessly, head over heels in love with you, and I should have just—fuck I should have just done this!" Beca wound one hand around the new lawyer's neck, and crashed her lips into the blondes, molding lips seamlessly with her own. Aubrey parted her lips slightly, and Beca's tongue met hers and they both shivered with electricity. They kissed passionately for a few long minutes before the taller woman pulled back slightly, resting her forehead against Beca's, shallow breaths dancing across swollen lips.

"What changed your mind?" Aubrey questioned thoughtfully.

"The idea of never knowing what could have been." The DJ smiled at her. "I love you." she proclaimed, pressing a chaste kiss to her cheek.

"I love you too. You should know that I'm only moving off campus...About 10 minutes away." Aubrey smirked at her.

"Well, that quells the panic...I guess I just needed a jump start." The brunette let out a laugh.

"Glad to be of service." The blonde smirked again.

Beca thought to herself, "Sometimes all it takes is a moment of panic for your heart to override your mind, and it can be the best thing you've ever done."

Smiling, she reached up, threaded her fingers through golden tresses, and pulled Aubrey's mouth to hers again.

/fin