Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Sub-Disclaimer: First fic. Hello friends.

Look, Beca isn't a judgmental person. Well she is but she isn't and she has definitely softened on the subject over the years. She basically just subscribes by the thought of being in the unique position of not giving a shit. She gives a shit about stuff in her life these days—a lot more than freshman year, sure—but you go ahead and do you, man, and she will do her.

So she doesn't really understand why people have opinions on aspects of her life and categories to fit her in. She's not into labels. Except maybe having 'music producer' under her name one day. She especially doesn't understand opinions on her love life. But this is Fat Amy and she just sort of blurts things outs and Beca's pretty used to it by now so she's not too offended.

It starts after Fat Amy gets Beca to spill about the internship. After tackling her with tickles, Amy stands in the center of the room and Beca sits up facing her friend. "Why didn't you tell us? We're a sisterhood! Not the traveling pants type though, sorry mate but let's be honest, I'm the only one who can rock this," she gestures to herself. Beca nods because, yeah, that's true. But she mumbles out a totally lame attempt to answer the question.

"I don't want to tell the girls in case Chloe hears it from them." She shrugs. "Secondhand rumors suck and I don't want drama." Beca fidgets with the chipping dark polish on her nails.

Fat Amy tilts her head like a dog. "Right so then why haven't you just told Chloe, your other best friend besides of course me?"

"She's just really focused on Worlds right now and the Bellas are her life. She'd kill me if she thought I wasn't laser focused." Fat Amy stares and lowers herself onto her bed.

"Right," she draws out heavily accented. "Firstly, you realize this is Chloe Beale we are talking about yeah? Not, control freak Aubrey?" Beca sort of curls up into herself as she begins to explain.

"Yeah but she's thinking about the future as Worlds and I don't want to add to it, you know, because this is like the Future future and moving on for real." Beca realizes her choice of words. "Not on," Beca adds hastily. She makes a weird hand motion. Oh god what is she doing with her hands. "Just moving…out? Out of the Barden circle. Like real world. Like things are changing and she's invested in it not changing but it won't change that much even though it will a little." Amy is clearly calculating behind her wide eyes and it's terrifying. "You're not talking, say something to stop me from talking."

"Okayyyyy." Amy clears her throat and hold up two fingers. "Second thing, this is human ray of sunshine Chloe Beale. Pretty sure she'd be freaking pumped; she knows more than anyone how hard you worked for this. You guys are super close. Like…you're Bloe." Beca winces.

"I want to ask but I don't want to know."

"Beca plus Chloe it's Bloe. Together you're one, you get it." Amy gestures like it's obvious and Beca just rolls with it.

"Yeah we'll always be, uh, us. She's part of my life. So I'll always make time for her."

Amy leans back against her wall. "So who have you told other than myself?"

"Again, didn't really tell you. But…Jesse? That's about it really?" Amy crosses her arms and Beca is suddenly worried she is in a therapy session.

"By the way, completely off-topic and not related to this in any way, how are you and Jesse?"

"Working." Amy blows out a laugh. "What?"

"Oh nothing. I mean that's a good way to describe a three year relationship." But it does work though and maybe Beca is still trying to get used to that. She's never been the type to need a person around all the time. Sometimes she craves her own space. But Jesse gets it and with her late nights DJ-ing and at the radio and all sorts of things she gets very busy very often but he doesn't seem to mind. Sure there are times she can tell he is kinda disappointed if they don't hang much, well it was more so in the beginning, but he has his life too; he is still all about movies and she barely sits through a whole one, and most of the time he is totally cool with it.

"Well it's easy," Amy's eyebrows shoot up. "We are friends," Beca adds quickly, strangely feeling the need to defend herself.

"Friendship is a very good foundation for a relationship," Amy says knowingly like she is reading off a self-help website. "But," Amy rolls her bottom lip under her teeth and Beca is slightly worried to see her usually exuberant roommate clearly fighting how to appropriately say something. She gives up and coughs. "So what does Jesse think about the internship?"

"He thinks it's cool." There is a 5 second silence that feels like forever (probably because in the radio world that amount of dead air would get her fired). Beca lays on her back, head against the pillow to fill the silence.

"And how this internship relates to the future?" Beca stops.

"I, uh. I actually don't know?" Beca rests her hands on her stomach. "I was focused on LA for a long time. Super long. So, I don't know."

"So cut the bull what's he doing when he graduates?"

"I don't know!" Bec reaches up towards the ceiling. "He'll get a job. Maybe move to LA to find work scoring movies."

"And the two of you?"

"I don't know? I mean I guess we will just stay us." She can feel another long stare.

"Ok." Amy adjusts to curl under her sheets and tuck herself in to bed. "Just to make sure I have this right on what is what: in your last year of university you obtained an internship which will launch your career, and subsequently mine as your first soloist, into super stardom—"

"I mean I make coffee—" Beca mumbles but Amy continues unfazed.

"But you haven't told your 'best friend' Chloe because you're worried she will think you're moving towards a future without her in it even though you 'will make time for her'—your words mate—and will always have her in your life. Also haven't told the entire group of girls you live and chill with every day because you don't want it to get back to her and her feelings to be hurt not knowing. But you have told your 'significant other'—"

"That's such a gross phrase—"

"Jesse because he's your friend, it's easy and when we graduate he'll just get a job with whatever and you'll just be the way you are."

It's three a.m. and Beca is tired from her earlier emotional breakdown so she says "Yeah I guess?" in a way that she hopes successfully suggests that she just wants this chat to end. There is a silence again and Amy draws out a heavily accented "Interesting." punctuating it with the turning off of her lamp. Beca lays for a few moments longer.

"It's not dramatic if your light is on," Amy stage whispers so Beca indulges her and the room is plunged into darkness. "Thanks." There is a moment of dead air. "Night Bec. Official congrats on the internship though. I have some notes for my single, we'll talk." Amy mumbles out a final "Americans." and Beca is not sure what exactly just happened but she drifts off before she can put too much thought into it. She hates labels.

Okay so two weeks later she's hanging out with Jesse on the quad after actually not being with the guy in the flesh—ew, not like that—for a few days. Which, again, isn't weird and it's just the way they are. But little freshman Legacy approaches to return the notes Beca lent her and Beca almost, almost, introduces Jesse as "my friend Jesse" not "my boyfriend Jesse" and those three letters add to her stress, causing her a slight panic of the nuclear meltdown variety so she blurts out that he is Jesse. Jesse is grinning at the girl because yay, new friend. Beca is still confused as to what the hell she is doing so Jesse says it's good to see Legacy again and asks her where she's from and wishes her the best with the school year and Bellas and tells her he's looking forward to friendly competition. The girl waves at them both as she walks away, obviously feeling more at ease, and Jesse leans back against the grass with his lopsided grin.

"She's sweet. Freshes seem so young. Man, remember when we were totally new and confused as to what we were doing?" He laughs.

Beca thinks she nods but she's still lost.

Later that afternoon, Beca is drawn by emotion to her laptop to try to mix and pour all of those emotions into notes and drown them in beats. Unfortunately she's stuck in frustration quicksand as everything refuses to flow. She has two songs that should work, what is wrong?

"Hey Becs!" Chloe pops in Beca's room and the brunette jumps. "I haven't seen you yet today!" Chloe leaps up on Beca's bed gracefully, red curls flying behind a glowing smile. "What've you been up to, girl?" Chloe tucks her long legs under her body with one hand, taps Beca's knee with the other, and Beca tilts the screen of her laptop down. Anyone else would assume Chloe is being passive aggressive about the status of progress and deadlines but Beca knows Chloe and Chloe is too sweet to haggle her about the arrangement. In fact, when it comes to arrangement freak outs, Chloe is the one who calms Beca down.

"Oh you know, mixing."

"And I haven't heard any new songs yet?" Chloe exclaims, hand to her chest. "Maybe you've forgotten how this works but you mix," she points at Beca with a finger, " I listen," she points to herself, "I gush about how awesome it is. And then we dance." She puts her hands out in an 'obviously' motion. Beca laughs. It's true. Chloe is usually the first to hear new material. And it's true that the Bella House has taken to dancing out the stress from the fallout that was MuffGate. Beca thinks again about Jesse's suggestion to tell Chloe about the internship. But she looks at the other girl and Chloe's huge blue eyes are bright and shining and she just can't.

"You dance. I watch," Beca says instead. Chloe lifts her eyebrow teasingly.

"You watch me?" She's obviously feeling playful because she winks, her signature move, and before she can add a shoulder shimmy Beca laughs again.

"Ok I dance." Chloe nods, bites her lip, and wiggles her fingers out at the younger girl.

"Gimme gimme, you."

"Well I do love to be adored." Beca caves and gets up for a flash drive as giggles bubble out of Chloe from the bed. The redhead catches Beca's toss and rolls off her perch to prance out of the room.

"Aca-awesome. I'll be back in a few, do your stretches for a dance party!" Chloe calls out and Beca laughs, heading back to her mix. She enjoys this. And she's got about twenty minutes until Chloe comes back and suddenly she has an idea of how this one could work.

When it comes out that Beca does have other stuff going on such as an internship with a music studio—an actual music studio that produces music that people actually listen to on the radio or in clubs or stream on the internet with revenue— it's in the heat of the moment at the retreat (Fat Amy again mentions Bloe and that's not a thing please stop). Beca throws a barb at Chloe for not being prepared for the future and hiding—after spending months protecting her from an aspect of it, yeah it's weird, Beca doesn't really understand it either—and Chloe chucks it in her face that she needs the Bellas. It's a little more dramatic and solid of a point when Beca is hanging from a net in the trees above Chloe's smug mug but that's not really the issue.

Beca wants these nerds around, she plans on having them around—she yells out that she loves them all whilst mid-dangle, can't hide from a declaration like that—she just has other stuff too. That's the thing; that there is more to her life than the Bella Bubble. But she is spending time and effort to keep that there. To keep those people in her life. It's an untouchable space that's but in; she's just worried it won't seem that way to the Bellas. Well to Chloe. Beca is confused on what the issue is then. Does Chloe not know how important she is to her?

Beca freezes at that train of thought. She's not sure why but that seems like a revelation. It seems heavy that 1) Chloe is important and 2) she wants to make sure Chloe knows she's important. There are a lot of really big words with potentially really big meanings attached to them being thrown around in this thought process like 'want', 'need', and 'important'.

It seems like something in the movies that Jesse watches and swoons after. Like a boombox held in the air or something. Jesse has a tendency of looking at the screen anticipating these moments like they're everything and once The Moment in the film happens, he looks at her with a matching look like The Moment applies to them and she…just…doesn't quite…get it.

But this whole Chloe thing is important to her and she knows it.

With that, Beca's thought train derails.

"Thank you Skippy and all that is holy." Fat Amy nearly sobs as she plops down on her bed as though she has been in prison for years not just a few nights in a tent. "I have missed you my love," she murmurs into her pillow. Beca snorts and Amy sits up. "Becs ten bucks says Benji is outside the house right now, hands paint-free, wondering if he should walk up to say hi to Legacy."

"He's not. Jesse would have texted." Amy makes a sound of agreement. The two girls listen to the rustling throughout the house and the sounds of the rest of the Bellas unpacking and talking. Chloe's voice drifts up the staircase and down the hall.

The night of the campfire, Chloe had readily accepted the whole change/graduation/real world thing. Very readily. Scary readily after all the time and effort spent on her end to stick around for a few extra years to sing in a collegiate acapella group she's not even the captain of—but she basically does everything and Beca would be lost without her, let's be real—as opposed to moving on to other things. Maybe not moving on but adding things. Bigger things. Bellas or no Bellas, Chloe isn't the type to be afraid of the new. And Beca knows, just about more than anyone, that Chloe's confident with all this. And, well, you know, that.

And she should be.

So, just like that, Beca's thought train is back in station and something from the retreat sticks out in her mind.

"Yo, Ames, when was the last time Chloe went on a date?" Amy does an exaggerated double take. "Or I dunno 'hooked up'." Beca makes a weird hand motion and Amy rolls her eyes.

"You're her best friend, mate."

"Yeah but I'm not her keeper…" Beca trails off.

"And yes I am the all seeing Oracle." Amy nods wisely, eyes closed. "Yeah not since like," Amy opens her eyes and taps five times on the screen of her iPhone and scrolls. "Yes, 29 months since a date, 16 since a hook up." Beca leans to see what else is on the phone but Amy shields the screen from view. "Pandora's Box mate, don't try to open until you're fully ready."

"Yep, whatever, okay." Bec settles against her wrought iron headboard. After a pause Fat Amy clears her throat.

"Anything on your mind, possum?" Amy says in a high pitched 'I'm trying to be subtle but failing' voice.

"No." Bec looks over and Amy is doing something super weird with her eyebrow trying to get her to speak so Beca sighs. "Chloe said—well she mentioned something in totally casual conversation not even meaning anything and I just didn't realize you know…Time has flown by. 29 months. Didn't realize it had been that long. I just remember Tom."

Tom was the dude freshman year in the shower—which is hard to forget—and yes there were maybe three other Toms (Brad? Chad? One was definitely named Jason) but they were like Tom which means they weren't really much of anything. They seemed nice. Not Beca's type of guys but yeah, they were good-looking enough guys. Chloe was just Chloe, breezing through life. She was magnetic and like moths to a flame people came out of the woodwork to be around her. Those poor boys had it bad and Chloe just…didn't?

The Little Engine That Could chugs around Beca's head.

"Maybe," Beca is drawn from her thoughts to Amy again miserably failing at being subtle, "She's waiting, could actually have one person in mind really, you know, the right person or perhaps a partner to perhaps disguise as experimenting with but to end up actually Scott and Charlene-ing with." Beca must have a lost look on her face. "Best soap ever." Still blank. "Nothing there?" Bec shakes her head. "Seriously nothing?" Amy stares. "I'm surrounded by too many Americans," she exclaims, standing.

"You're in America, dude!"

Like a chipper Miss America contestant, Chloe pops her head in the doorway calling out "USA is a-ok!"

"Speak of the red devil!" Fat Amy nearly yells. "I'm heading down for a snack and a shower and man snack. Hashtag Bumper." Amy says with a wink and thumbs up. Chloe squeals happily and Beca winces slightly, recalling the two's romp on the Treble lawn earlier. "Beef sandwich, coming up." Amy smacks her thighs. "Later bitches, Fat Amy out!" Amy takes her leave and Chloe bounds into the room, settling on Beca's bed.

"Look, Chloe I am sorry I didn't—" Chloe puts up a hand but Beca knows it's okay because she has a sweet smile on her face.

"It doesn't matter." Chloe settles her hand onto Beca's shoulder reassuringly. "I understand…even though I wish you'd told me. But it came from a sweet place." She hugs Beca because of course she does and Beca blushes—because she was called sweet and she's not called sweet often, that's why she's blushing—and hugs back because of course she has to. "So let's just lay right here and you can tell me about all about it." Chloe crawls up, lays down fully on the bed and pats the space next to her. "I want to know everything. Are there hipsters and how tight are the hipsters' jeans?" A happy sigh and smile escapes Beca's mouth before she realizes it, because this is what she wants, and she stretches out too as excitement at being able to talk about Residual Heat bubbles in her stomach.

She's pretty sure that's what this feeling is.

Well. The best way to describe what happened between Jesse and Beca is that it fizzles out. Well it had been fizzling out. No. That's not—Beca sighs and places her hand on the table top as she leans forward. Beca isn't the best with feelings. She had been thinking about it for a while now, like about feelings, what Jesse and Beca are and then there is graduation…

So yeah, that's basically how the conversation evolves. It's stunted at best on her end but Jesse knows her so well that he is aware of what is happening. He also sighs in a way that suggests he had been thinking something along the same lines or at least isn't too surprised that this is happening. They basically communicate it silently as birds and various woodland creatures rustle around them in the park, a neutral location was key for this, and later Beca will probably describe the whole thing as 'mutual'. Jesse breaks the silent conversation.

"Dumb question but, in addition to all that, because yeah—" he pauses like he almost doesn't quite want to finish. He relaxes his fists. "It's not me right?"

"What?" Jesse shifts uncomfortably and looks at anything but his girlfriend, well girlfriend rapidly becoming ex-girlfriend, across the picnic table from him.

"I mean…someone else…"

"What? Dude, no!" Then the strangest thing happens. Jesse locks his eyes on hers like he knows something and then his gaze turns almost pityingly. He sighs and looks away.

"Okay." It's said in a placating way that suggests he's almost stopping her from getting upset. He shrugs, looks down, and mutters something that sounds suspiciously like "Duckie" under his breath and Beca is wondering what universe she has stepped into because everyone is saying weird stuff about fictional characters lately. "Okay," he says again and taps the top of the table lightly with his palms.

"This sucks and I don't want to be cliche or whatever but," he looks up at her timid twang to her voice. "You're like my best friend. And I just—can we, uh still be friends?" He smiles a little smile and she hates how even though he is taking this so incredibly well she's still hurting him.

"Ah…yeah. Yeah Becs." He nods into a groove then clears his throat. "I don't mean to be cliche but, yeah, might need some time with this one." She nods and she actually feels really sad but he smiles a little so, okay, there's some hope. "Just want ya to be happiest," he says like a total, total nerd and her heart sort of breaks.

Later that night, Benji texts her a really nice message along the lines of telling her not to worry, that Jesse will be alright and it eventually won't be weird and he hopes eventually will be soon. The magician's adorable and she almost laughs at the notion of the boys talking about the girls like the girls talk about the boys but it sobers her that it's about her and they're good guys and one is her best friend and hurting.

She hears her other best friend come home between classes, she can tell it's her from the way the front door opens with a certain swing but that's not important and probably weird that she can do that, and maybe she shouldn't be throwing around labels so much.

Word spreads fast in the AcaBubble and by the end of day Beca turns the corner to find most of the Bellas sitting in the living room looking at her expectantly.

"Okay someone tell me what I am walking into?"

"We heard." Cynthia Rose is the first to break the silence and Beca's eyes drift to Legacy who has the closest connection with a Treble at the moment. The girl looks away, and as though she is trying to make it even more obvious, she starts whistling. Beca almost rolls her eyes. Fat Amy, sitting like a queen in the center of the group, stares. "You okay, Beca?"

"Yeah do you need me to sleep with anyone?" Beca screws up her face at Stacie's suggestion.

"How does that help anything?" Ashley—or is it Jessica?—seemingly can't help but ask.

"I have an idea. We could—" Beca puts a hand up and moves to stop Flo's suggestion because even though she's nice, this will probably be off base and most likely slightly offensive.

"Guys, seriously thanks but I'm ok—" she's cut off when the front door flies open and Chloe comes running through, bursting in from the night and slamming the door behind her.

"I got your text!" She shrieks. Chloe freezes in the foyer and notices that everyone is staring at her and that Beca is there, too, standing in the middle of the room. She instantly drops her purse and takes the few steps to close the gap between them, sweeping up her friend in her arms. "Hey babe," she says nearly cooing softly like Beca is baby animal and Beca feels a little fuzzy and warm in those arms like she could actually be one.

What?

But Chloe twirls her fingers in the baby hairs at the base of Beca's neck with barely there scratches and it gets her every time so she stops thinking and relaxes into the vanilla scented embrace and she can feel Chloe's steady heartbeat and it's really nice you guys.

The room is so deafeningly silent she can hear Lilly's whisper of "I collect human hair." and the weirdness of that statement causes Beca to sober up and stiffen slightly. She tries to pull away casually like this wasn't a big deal at all and that she wasn't just standing in the middle of the room for forever in the arms of Chloe Beale and has now been transformed into a human firework. She can feel stares boring holes in her back but she looks up in big blue worried eyes and forgets about them, smirks a little and shrugs. "I'm okay," she whispers and Chloe searches her face then nods slightly. Beca's face is probably red and Chloe steps back, away from the heat, and addresses the other Bellas.

"We're good here." Chloe untangles herself fully and heads upstairs without another glance. Beca has cooled and turns around to face the blank looks of the girls in the room.

"I'm ok." Beca says again, hands on her hips. The Bella's exchange looks amongst themselves and begin to scatter. Beca ignores Fat Amy's "Yeah I'd say you're okay" and scoops up Chloe's purse to follow her up the stairs.

And yeah, Beca is starting to get clued in and maybe some others are too.

Chloe seems afraid Beca will break for about a week. Unfortunately those seven days could actually kill Beca.

Since the dawn of their friendship, Chloe's always been around just smiling and being Chloe and that hasn't changed but a layer of whatever is happening is getting stronger and Beca tries to ignore sparks that seem to erupt from looks and smiles. And she's always been touchy and that's the same, maybe a bit more because Chloe's comforting her, and Beca tries to act like it's just human skin she comes in contact with not flames licking her skin. Absolute, incinerating flames.

Chloe's still breezy and bubbly but she's always had a hint of serious and this whole breakup thing has added an unexpected shade to it. She's concerned. And it's making her more attentive than ever. Chloe can always tell in an instant how Beca feels or what she wants. So Beca is trying desperately to hide revelations of fondness because of course she's starting to discover the fondness in waves as the subject of that fondness is more in tune to her than ever. Because that's just how life works.

Then, thank God, Beca somehow convinces Chloe she isn't going to end up sobbing or pining or whatever it is Chloe's afraid of and Chloe relaxes and Beca can breathe and the fire becomes a steady glowing ember.

So that weird week is over and it has been another two and Beca is dealing with all the aspects of her life and still trying to figure out what the aca-hell is going on. Her phone goes off and she snorts at the picture of Luke that Jesse has sent with a funny caption. They've been texting again pretty solidly for a while now and Beca thinks that Benji was right about a 'soon eventually'. Chloe looks over from her desk at the girl on her bed.

"What's so funny?"

"Oh Jesse just being weird about Luke." She actually hears Chloe stiffen. Beca internally sighs, she's fine.

"You still talk to him often?"

"Oh yeah," Beca says offhandedly, trying to act overly casual to reassure Chloe that she is seriously not about to burst into a million pieces of dramatics over the boy. "We're friends." Somehow it doesn't seem to help and Chloe taps her pencil. "And totally better as just friends."

"And he knows that, right?" There's more pencil tapping.

"Yeah for sure, dude." Bec looks up from her phone. That was a weird question. "Why?" Chloe shrugs and heads back to her writing.

"Just curious."

"Okay," Beca drawls, eyebrow lifted. She types back to Jesse asking if he wants to hang out. Chloe stops writing and Beca can hear the question hanging in the air. "Just dropping a casual 'Guten Tag, Wie geht's?' to Kommissar," she says airily, barely able to hide her smile. Chloe stands and spins so quickly her chairs tips back and falls to the ground.

"What?!" Beca can't hold it in and bursts out laughing. Chloe's mouth drops open and it turns into a grin. "You little!" she exclaims and jumps on the bed, tackling Beca and Beca completely loses it.

"Dude your face!" she works out between tears of laughter. "'Vas good?!" Beca imitates the accent horribly.

"No fraternizing with the enemy!" The both collapse into giggles and snuggle up on Chloe's bed and this is so, so nice.

She meets Jesse that night on the way back from the studio.

They snag some pizza and post up in a booth and it's actually not awkward. Considering the way their relationship has evolved it's no surprise they can essentially just chill. Beca sort of lounges in the corner on one side and Jesse's on the edge of his bench.

"How's Amy?" Jesse asks, trying to stuff a loaded slice in his face.

"Crazy. Benji?"

"Crazy about Emily," Jesse fights to get the words out over various toppings and swallows. "Buddy's so distracted he can't remember where his tricks are, we'll be halfway through rehearsal and a dove will just pop out of somewhere. Gotta hand it to you, always coming up with new ways to try to sink the Treble ship." He shakes a finger at her teasingly. "Very sneaky." Beca rolls her eyes good-naturedly.

"Says the guy whose recent set included Mika? Really?" she deadpans. Jesse throws his head back and laughs and Beca smirks and they're off talking about a student film Jesse is assisting scoring ("Everyone eventually regrets student films," Jesse says. "But ya gotta start somewhere!"). That's pretty much how it goes and it's nice.

Once, only once thank god because of what happens next, Beca mentions Chloe late in the night and it's offhanded, just sort of slips out—she can't even remember what it was in reference to—and if she didn't know him so well she probably wouldn't have noticed but Jesse stiffens and deflates in the same half-second. A strained smile stretches one side of his blank face and he starts to add to her statement or ask about it because he's a good guy but she throws out something about the soundtrack to a movie that just came out and he takes the bait. He's talking about a montage and her mind drifts to thinking—if the girl's name had that effect, how had she not seen all this before?

They agree to meet up again soon because the girls head to Worlds next Wednesday morning and he hugs her goodbye and it's easy and familiar and then he gets in his car with a little wave.

"See ya BECAW!" he yells when he starts the car.

"I don't know him," she sing songs.

"Besties for life!" he sings in falsetto, eyes closed on a note quest.

She knows she's looking at him fondly, thankful for this total idiot and she lets herself be self-indulgent for a moment thinking about what could have been. He opens his eyes and smiles softly like he knows.

Then the moment is gone and he grins widely and takes off. Seeing his body slam into the seat of his own car reminds her of their first meeting and she laughs as she climbs in behind her steering wheel.

He'd told her in the beginning that they'd be best friends. He'd also then said lovers but that's beside the point.

It's just that it's full circle and everything is going to be okay.

The Bellas have only a small allotment of time for sightseeing but they giddily galavant around Copenhagen being total loser tourists. It's rainy and wet and Beca was totally wrong about a hat and a sleeveless shirt being enough protection. But the city is beautiful and Chloe's arm is warm around Beca when she welcomes her under her umbrella (she kinda begs for it with a "Chloe I'm coming for ya!" attack hug and spends the rest of the afternoon awkwardly using her arm to hover guide them through their walk).

Later, after they nail their final notes at World's, the Bellas ride the post performance adrenaline right off the stage.

"U-S-A! U-S-A!" The Bellas break their huddle at the shouted chant to turn and see two boys, quite possibly the only Team USA supporters in the acapella universe, barreling their way over wearing red, white and blue, and trailing an American flag behind them.

"Oh my gosh! What are you guys doing here?" Chloe asks. She's smiling but it turns slightly panicked when she focuses her attention to Jesse.

"Here to support our girls," Benji says goofily, staring openly at Emily who blushes.

"Supporting my best girl and collective girls." Jesse clarifies his presence with a wave of his hand at all the Bellas and bows. "As captain of the Trebles, I couldn't miss this. Trebles and Bella have been intertwined for years now! We gotta support each other. Congrats ladies!" He moves to group hug the Bellas and the girls laugh and hug him back, Beca with a punch to his arm.

Out of the corner of Beca's eye, she sees Chloe watch their exchange like she is expecting something to happen but her gaze is broken by the appearance of DSM being surprisingly good sports and congratulating them as well as the former Bellas. Kommissar sweeps her gaze over the American crew and Jesse nudges Beca so she shoves him into Fat Amy.

The two bounce off each other and lock eyes for a second until Fat Amy lifts her chin in Chloe's direction and Beca watches she and Jesse have an entire conversation in 8 seconds with lifted brows, nods, smiles and frowns. Suddenly Jesse raises a hand and Fat Amy high fives him and Beca has absolutely no idea what is happening. The two turn to look at her with matching grins and she knows she's screwed.

On the flight back, Beca is sent to the middle of a three seat row between Fat Amy and Chloe because she's, yes, tiny. She grumbles at first but she doesn't really mind because she's pulled close from her right side for excited whispers, headphone sharing, and partaking in a snack of mini pretzels. After dinner, all the excitement catches up with Chloe and the girl falls fast asleep, her head rolls to Beca's shoulder and Beca knows she's burning inside but she doesn't realize she's smiling on the outside until she sees her reflection in her laptop screen.

"Bloe." She hears a whisper from the seat to her left.

"Excuse me?" she hisses as she slowly turns to see Fat Amy staring ahead wide eyed in a terrible attempt at innocence.

"Mmm?" Fat Amy looks at the space around her like they aren't in a tiny, flying aluminum can. Beca narrows her eyes. "Oh hello," Amy says when she meets Beca's stare. "Hearing things, mate?"

Beca doesn't answer, facing forward again only to see an InFlight magazine ad for Taylor Swift's new album being slowly raised above the seat in front of Amy. Horrifically, the "1989" title has been altered to "BLOE" with black pen.

"Dude!" Beca stutters and flails to try to kick the back of the seat and she hears Jesse basically giggling and when Chloe murmurs at the movement, Beca reassures her everything is fine. She mouths "I will murder you" while motioning to Amy and Jesse, who is now peering at her from the space between seats, that she will slit their throats.

Her threat is disappointedly met with snickers.

Jesse and Amy have officially teamed up and are being absolutely insufferable about this Bloe crap. They do ridiculous stuff like motion at Chloe whenever her back is turned and Chloe is pleasant about it but getting a little frustrated with clearly being out the outskirts of something. Luckily, Beca's been working long nights with Legacy in the studio so it's rare that all four of them are together.

She does actually have one good discussion with Jesse about it though. 'Discussion' is a term used loosely, because Jesse just talks at her and she says only a few things like "What if she doesn't feel the same?" and "What if you're wrong?". Anyway, an hour later she is walking up the stairs to her room begrudgingly pumped. Because ok maybe some signs are there. And yeah, that'd be cool if it happened. Not cool, it would be really awesome. Really awesome? Why has she turned into a teenage girl? She looks up and is met with Chloe sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Yo, what's up?" Beca says slowly.

"Beca," Chloe says in greeting and Beca drops her messenger bag to the floor beside her desk.

"Well this is fun already." Beca dives to lie on the bed between Chloe and the wall. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" Chloe is still staring at Fat Amy's side of the room, hands in her lap. She bows her head and Beca dreads whatever is going on.

"Hey Becs." Chloe's voice is soft and Beca automatically softens with it. "I would hope you'd just come out and tell me on your own," Beca resists flinching at the choice of words, "but I was wondering if you could tell me what's going on? I respect your privacy but I think it has something to do with me." Beca reaches out for the older girl's arm and she turns and Beca gasps because big blue eyes are full of tears.

"Oh Chlo."

"I'm sorry, it's silly I don't know why I am so emotional." Ringlets have escaped Chloe's messy ponytail and they frame her face so beautifully that so much about this is awful.

"Hey, come here." Bec pulls her down and Chloe fits into the space below Beca's chin in the same way Beca fits into Chloe when they are standing.

"Did I do something wrong?" is muffled against Beca's neck and she suppresses a shiver.

"No, no, hey." Bec hugs her closer and cradles her head with her left arm. "Oh my gosh, no. You're perfect."

"I'm not."

"You are," Bec says softly, unable to hold back.

"But something has happened. Why are there so many secrets this year?"

She has a very strong point and Bec takes a deep breath and decides this is it. It's gone on too long now, someone will get hurt either way and if Chloe rejects her, she'd rather be the one hurting. Hey, she might even be able to get over it. Maybe. Chloe seems to be able to tell that she's about to get her answer because she rolls on her back so that the two girls lie next to each other, staring ahead at the ceiling.

"I'm sorry," Beca starts. "That I haven't had a great track record with honesty lately. You've been my best friend for a long time now and that is in itself is a feat considering I'm, you know, me." Chloe snorts. "I started thinking about the future. And you're a part of it. And that thought unraveled and I just started to notice that I've noticed things about you. A lot. More than to be expected. You were, are, my best friend but it's also just…more, Chlo." Beca actually has no clue what she just said or if it made sense but she glances out the corner of her eye and Chloe seems to be holding back a smile.

"This isn't just because of what Kommissar has been doing to you all year is it?"

"What?!" Bec huffs out a totally cool and not at all flustered laugh. "Psh, what? She hasn't been doing anything to me!"

A shadow moves into the doorway. "Ooooo naughty."

"Amy!" "Out!" Chloe and Beca exclaim at the same time, respectively, without looking and the shadow in the doorway is gone, closing the door as it leaves. Beca smiles slightly in thanks.

Chloe and Beca stare at the ceiling in silence for a few moments.

"But no, it's not a Kommissar thing. Or an experimenting thing." Beca begins again and Chloe laughs. "At least none of that has crossed my mind. It's just a you thing. And the way I," Beca breathes out and continues, "the way I feel about you." Chloe turns on her side and curls back into Beca and Beca is sure the girl can hear her heart racing. "And it's—well it's Bloe." Chloe puffs an airy laugh against the column of Beca's neck. "It's actually pretty simple." Beca murmurs, a little in shock herself. It is a simple thing, she and Chloe.

It's anti-climactic, non-cinematic, but Chloe takes her hand, intertwines their fingers and legs and there are sparks and fuzzy warmth and flushed cheeks and they breathe the same air between smiles of reassurance and they just be for a while.

And it highlights for Beca the difference between simple and easy.

So just like that Beca and Chloe become Beca and Chloe.

Sneaking around seems like the best way to avoid the Spanish Inquisition at first. 'Sneaking around' translates to study sessions in Chloe's single room and the mysterious way they keep finding reasons to go down to the basement, separately of course. Occasionally their basement projects overlap. Conveniently.

"We should really get those water pipes checked," Cynthia-Rose mentions over one of the last breakfasts as a group.

"Yeah they basically groan," Jessica/Ashley works out over a spoonful of Cheerios.

"It's almost sexy," Stacie adds and everyone is too busy casting looks at the leggy brunette to see Beca silently choking on her pancakes and Chloe's self-satisfied smirk.

"Oh you mean the ghost. That's what you're talking about." Amy winks exaggeratedly at Beca. "You know. The ghost." Beca begs her with her eyes to please stop talking. "In the basement." She winks again and Beca stabs her pancake aggressively, holding her shirt together to cover any evidence.

"Yeah you guys don't know about Henry?" Beca mumbles out. "Super weird because we talk about him a ton." Chloe is turning as red as her hair and shaking from contained laughter.

"Who brought the voodoo into our home?" Flo starts. "Because where I come from—"

"I'd do it with a ghost." At the blank looks, Stacie continues. "American Horror Story? Grey's? It's hot," she says like that explains everything.

"I have a cocoon in the basement," Lilly whispers.

Sneaking around only works for so long and people have been trying to get them together for a while now, apparently, so when mid conversation Chloe leans over and kisses Beca in a quick, habitual way and Beca reciprocates, there are murmurs of "knew it", "called that one" and "I told you so" and Beca just rolls her eyes but smiles and nestles into Chloe's side. Amy lifts her drink at Beca from across the room. Beca salutes.

They graduate and everyone's together. Yes, Chloe sticks by her campfire declaration and agrees it's high time to leave Barden ("Is exotic dancing really a career option?" Beca had asked. Chloe had laughed initially then her smile had turned wicked and she'd whispered "I need some feedback on my moves, care to judge?" but she was instantly back to innocence, giggling at the rubble remaining from the short circuiting of Beca's brain).

Beca is riding such a high on graduation day that Jesse easily talks her into a photoshoot parodying movie scenes in their grad gowns. Yes they touch fingertips like E.T. and the little girl and Jesse loves the shot of them walking away across the parking lot with their fists held high, gowns billowing, but she's pretty sure her favorite is going to be the Titanic recreation with Beca and Chloe posing arms out as a Titanic comprised of Jesse and Benji rams into iceberg Fat Amy.

They do a Reader's Digest version of the AcaInitiation for Legacy and hand her the keys to their old safe haven. Beca can't help but add "Don't go in the basement, it's haunted." and she can straight up feel Chloe's smug look next to her. Beca turns to lift an eyebrow and Chloe clears her throat and adjusts the scarf around her neck that could be considered by some to be too heavy for the warm southern spring.

Yeah. That's what she thought. You're welcome.

The group leaves and they scatter off in different directions calling out plans to meet up later or whatever. Beca's been working on some tracks with Residual Heat so she is going to be living around Atlanta for a while to see how that evolves. Chloe has been giving singing lessons through the Atlanta Music Project for weeks now and she loves the kids and the kids love her—how could they not?—and Beca still can't aca-believe how everything has aligned. Chloe takes Beca's hand with a squeeze.

They're about to walk off into the future, the Future future, together as best friends. And more.

And they're Bellas too. And a junior music producer. And an assistant music teacher. And ok maybe they're Bloe.

Whatever, they're many things, doesn't matter. Beca squeezes Chloe's hand back and grins.

She's never really been into labels anyway.