ENEMIES

Barden High was home to two top-rated acapella groups, The Barden BAs, and The Barden Bellas. The teams hated each other with a passion. What happens when the BAs Captain, Beca Mitchell, and the Bellas' Co-Captains, Aubrey Posen and Chloe Beale, are notified that one of the groups will have to be disbanded due to budget cuts. Find out how they decide who stays and who goes.

It was the first Friday of the first week of the new school year, and the students of Barden High were excited about the weekend. They sat in Homeroom, listening to the school Secretary drone on about tryouts and club meetings.

Beca Mitchell was talking with her friends Stacie and Fat Amy when the final announcement made her look up.

"Did they just call my name to go to the Principal's Office?"

"They did indeed, Miss Mitchell," Mr. Crawford said. "You, too, Miss Beale."

Beca groaned as she gathered her book bag and made her way to the front of the room. She scoffed when Chloe pushed her aside as she exited the room.

"Bitch," Beca muttered.

Beca followed behind Chloe to the office. She saw Aubrey Posen standing outside the door.

"Brey, what's going on?" Chloe asked as she approached Aubrey. "And why was Mitchell called in as well?"

"I don't know, Chloe," Aubrey said. "Hopefully, it's to kick her out of school."

Having heard the exchange, Beca laughed loudly as she pushed between Aubrey and Chloe and went into the office.

"She needs to be taken down a peg or two," Aubrey mumbled.

"Have a seat, ladies," Mrs. Abernathy said as Beca walked in with Aubrey and Chloe behind her.

Aubrey and Chloe sat next to each other; Beca took the seat to their right.

"Gee, Posen," Beca said. "Did you push that stick further up your ass because you look a little more constipated than normal?"

"Leave her alone, Mitchell!" Chloe said, glaring at Beca.

"Aw, look at you sticking up for your girlfriend," Beca said.

Chloe's face turned beet red as she glared at Beca. Beca was unphased and put her headphones on, leaning her head back and closing her eyes. Mr. Smith came out of his office and looked at the three. He let out a sigh and walked over to remove Beca's headphones.

Beca jumped up to protest until she noticed Mr. Smith.

"Mr. Smith," Beca said. "Always a pleasure."

"My office," Mr. Smith said. "All three of you ladies."

Mr. Smith handed Beca her headphones and walked toward his office. Beca followed while Aubrey and Chloe remained seated. They looked at each other for a moment before following. Beca saw only two chairs in front of Mr. Smith's desk, so she leaned against the cabinet just behind the chairs. Chloe and Aubrey entered and sat in the chairs.

"I don't have much time," Mr. Smith said. "So, I'll get straight to the point. The school district has had to make budget cuts, which means that certain clubs or programs will be eliminated."

"They can't do that," Aubrey said.

"They can and have," Mr. Smith said.

"So, what does that have to do with the three of us?" Chloe asked.

"It's not hard to figure out, Einstein," Beca said. "The acapella groups won't have any funding for going to competitions. But, I'm sure the sports teams are well funded, so you'll have someone to shake your pom-poms for."

Chloe frowned and looked at Beca and then to Mr. Smith.

"Is that true, Mr. Smith?"

"Only partially," Mr. Smith said. "We have funding for only one acapella group. The other will have to be disbanded."

"Which group stays and which gets disbanded?" Beca asked.

"It has been determined that since the Barden BAs won last year's State competition," Mr. Smith said. "They will remain."

"Yes!" Beca yelled, raising both hands in the air.

"That's not fair!" Chloe said.

"You can't do that!" Aubrey said.

"Sorry, girls," Mr. Smith said. "It's done."

"We are so much better than the BAs," Aubrey said. "They got lucky last year."

"They don't even take the competitions seriously," Chloe whined.

"You think you're better than us?" Beca asked. "Seriously?"

"We don't think we're better," Aubrey said. "We know we're better."

"Fine," Beca said. "Mr. Smith, can we decide whose group should be disbanded?"

"What do you have in mind?" Mr. Smith asked.

Beca looked at Chloe and Aubrey with a mischievous grin on her face. They both were looking back at her with furrowed brows.

"What are you up to, Mitchell?" Chloe asked.

"I suggest we have a riff-off," Beca said. "The BAs versus the Bellas. We have a school assembly in two weeks. We can do the riff-off then, and the winning team will get to be the only acapella group at Barden."

"That does sound fair," Mr. Smith said. "Miss Posen? Miss Beale? Do you accept the challenge Ms. Mitchell has presented? Keep in mind that if you don't, the Bellas will have to disband."

Aubrey and Chloe whispered to each other. They both let out a heavy sigh and stood, turning toward Beca.

"We have no choice, so we'll accept the challenge," Aubrey said.

"Great," Beca said. "We can set up the ground rules at lunch. Always a pleasure, Mr. Smith."

With that, Beca left Mr. Smith's office. Chloe and Aubrey thanked Mr. Smith and left the office.

"May I get a pass to my next class, Mrs. Abernathy?" Beca asked as she stood in front of the counter.

Beca smiled smugly and winked at Chloe and Aubrey as they moved to the counter for passes as well. Beca got her pass and left the office.

"We need to win that riff-off," Aubrey said. "And knock that smug smile off her face."

"I'm with you," Chloe said. "We'll beat Mitchell and her team and show everyone that they're not the badasses they think they are."

*** Enemies ***

When the bell rang, signifying the end of the class, Beca hurried to the cafeteria to meet up with the other members of the Barden BAs. She wanted to tell them about the 'meeting' she attended with the principal and Co-Captains of the Bellas.

Beca walked in and saw that Stacie, Jessica, and Fat Amy were already seated at their table. She made her way over.

"Hey," Beca said as she sat down. "I've got big news."

"What's up, Beca?" Stacie asked.

"I need to wait for CR and Lily to get here," Beca said.

"What are you waiting for me for?" CR said from behind Beca.

"We need to wait for-" Beca stopped when she realized that Lily was sitting next to Fat Amy. "Hey, Lily."

"So, what's up?" Fat Amy asked.

Beca proceeded to tell them about the budget cuts and only having one acapella group at Barden. She then told them about suggesting a riff-off so the better group would represent the school.

"Beca!" Fat Amy yelled, throwing up her hands. "We already won, and you decide to throw us to the wolves."

"I'm with Amy on this," Stacie said. "We already proved we're better by winning the State Acapella Championships last year."

"I wanted it to be fair," Beca said. "Posen and Beale are walking around, saying we got lucky. I want to prove to them and everyone else that we are the better group. And what better way than to beat them in a riff-off?"

"Beca makes sense," CR said. "So, when is this going to happen?"

"Two weeks," Beca said. "At the School Assembly. We're supposed to hash the general rules today at lunch."

"All of us?" Jessica asked.

"Yes, I want all of us to be there," Beca said. "I wrote down a few ideas. Take a look and see what you think."

Beca handed Stacie a piece of paper, and the others gathered around to read it.

"These sound good," CR commented.

"I agree," Stacie and Jessica said.

Fat Amy and Lily both nodded in agreement.

"Okay, great," Beca said, looking at something over Stacie's shoulder. "There they are. I'll get them and bring them over."

Beca stood and made her way over to Aubrey and Chloe.

"Beale," Beca said, stopping in front of the redhead. "The BAs are together and waiting for you so we can go over the rules."

"You have your whole team for this?" Aubrey asked.

"Yes, I do," Beca said, glancing at the blonde. "We're not a dictatorship. We take everyone's opinion into account. That's probably why we are better than the Bellas."

"Look, Mitchell," Chloe said, getting in Beca's face. "The Bellas do just fine under Aubrey's leadership. She doesn't need any advice on how things should be done."

"Not even advice from her Co-Captain?" Beca asked, smirking. "She's the very definition of a dictator."

"Fuck you, Mitchell," Aubrey said.

"Oooh, nice talk," Beca said. "Do you kiss Chloe with that mouth?"

"What? We never, I don't," Chloe sputtered. "Argh!"

"We're not gay like you are Mitchell," Aubrey said.

"Did I strike a nerve?" Beca asked innocently. "Don't worry. I won't run around telling everyone you're gay for each other. I'm not you."

"Let's just get this over with," Aubrey said.

Chloe and Beca stood glaring at each other. Beca smiled and looked at Aubrey.

"Let's do it," Beca said and walked away.

"God, she is so infuriating," Chloe said.

"Relax, Chloe," Aubrey said. "We got this."

"You're right," Chloe said, taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly.

The two walked over to Beca's table and sat down.

"Hey, Aubrey," Stacie said, winking at the blonde.

"Stop flirting with her," Chloe said. "She's not interested."

"Oh, that's right," Stacie said. "I forget you two are a thing."

"We are not!" Aubrey yelled. "Why does everybody keep saying that?"

"Brey," Chloe said, placing a calming hand on her arm. "Ignore them. They are trying to get under our skin. Don't let them."

"Fine," Aubrey spat out. "Give them the list."

Chloe handed a sheet of paper over to Beca. Beca looked at it and saw that it was a list of 'rules' the Bellas wanted.

"We have a list, too," Beca said. "Who should I give it to?"

"I'll take it," Aubrey said, and Beca handed it to her.

*** Enemies ***

"These seem fair," Aubrey said as they made their way down the lists.

"Wait," Beca said, furrowing her brow. "How is it fair that there are three judges of your choosing?"

"It needs to be an odd number, so there is no tie on anything," Aubrey explained.

"Nice try," Beca said. "But, it's the 'of your choosing' I have a problem with. I suggest we each choose someone to be a judge, and we let Principal Smith choose a neutral third judge."

"That sounds fair," CR said.

"I hate to say this," Chloe said. "But, I agree with Beca."

"Fine," Aubrey said, editing the list to reflect the change. "Anything else."

"Girls?" Beca said, looking at her team.

"We're good," Stacie said. The rest of the team agreed.

"Okay, that's it then," Beca said. "I'll copy your list onto ours, and we're all set."

"We'll need to copy your list onto ours as well," Aubrey said. "Chloe, can you do that? I have to see Mr. Camp before class."

"Sure," Chloe said.

Aubrey left, and Beca pulled out a pen. She and Chloe were sitting close so they could both look at the other's list to copy what was needed.

"What does this say?" Beca asked, pointing to some scribbled words.

Chloe looked to Beca and found her face inches from her own. She pulled back slightly and couldn't help gazing down at Beca's lips. She had a sudden urge to kiss Beca; she mentally shook herself and turned to look where Beca was pointing.

"It, um, says," Chloe said. "The riff-off will be called after half an hour if there is no clear winner. Then the judges will pick the team they think was best."

"Thanks," Beca said and wrote down what Chloe had said. "Are you done?"

"Uh, yeah," Chloe said.

"Good," Beca said, folding her list and putting in her back pocket. As she stood, she looked at her group and said, "Don't forget we have practice after school today. Later, Beale."

With that, Beca left. Chloe watched her, chewing on her lip.

I wanted to kiss Beca. Chloe thought. What the hell was that?

"Are you okay, Chloe?" Stacie asked.

"What?" Chloe said. "Oh, yeah. I'm fine. I need to go, so I have some time to eat something. I'll see you later."

Chloe gathered her stuff and left the table. Stacie watched her go.

"I think Chloe might like Beca," Stacie said.

"What?" CR asked with a laugh.

"Didn't you see the way Chloe was staring at Beca?" Stacie said. "She definitely likes Beca."

"Too bad for her," CR said. "Beca hates her and Posen with a passion."

"Do any of you know why?" Stacie asked.

"I'm not sure," Jessica said. "I know back in Middle School, Beca and Chloe were really close. Then Aubrey came along, and suddenly Chloe and Beca were enemies. She's never really talked about it."

"I wonder what happened?" Stacie mused.

*** Enemies ***

A few days later, Beca was at her locker, getting what she needed for her next class.

"Um, hey, Beca?"

Beca turned to see who had called her name.

"Hey, Emily," Beca said. "What can I do for you?"

"I was, uh, wondering if the Barden BAs were taking any new singers?"

"I'm sorry, Emily," Beca said. "The budget has been cut, and we may have to disband. We are going to hold a riff-off at the school assembly next week to see which acapella group gets to stay together. So, I don't want to add any new members if there is the slightest chance we'll have to break up the group."

"I understand," Emily said. "Maybe after the riff-thingy?"

"Riff-off," Beca said with a chuckle. "I'd love to have you because I'm positive we'll win, but I don't want to make any promises I can't keep."

"Thanks, Beca," Emily said. "For being upfront with me. I appreciate it."

"You're welcome," Beca said. "Come see me again if the BAs win the riff-off if you're still interested in joining."

"I will," Emily said. "I'll see you around."

"Yeah," Beca said and walked away.

Aubrey had been listening from around the corner and surprised Emily when she walked up to her.

"Hi," Aubrey said. "Emily, right?"

"Yeah, that's right," Emily said.

"I'm Aubrey Posen, Captain of the Bells," Aubrey said, introducing herself.

"I know who you are," Emily said.

"Oh, okay. Well, I heard you talking to Beca," Aubrey said. "Would you be interested in joining the Bellas? We are confident we're going to beat the BAs, so we have no problem recruiting new members."

"Really?" Emily gushed. "I had my heart set on being a BA, but I'd love to be a Bella. I just want to sing."

"Great," Aubrey said with a smile. "Come with me."

Emily let Aubrey her to one of the music rooms. They entered, and Emily saw several girls standing around.

"Chloe, this is Emily," Aubrey said, walking over to the redhead. "She wants to be a Bella."

"Actually, I wanted to be a BA," Emily said, causing Chloe to look at Aubrey with a raised eyebrow. "But, Beca said they weren't recruiting any new members until after the riff-off."

"Beca's not as confident as she pretends to be," Aubrey said with a smug smile. "We are confident we will win. We just need to hear you sing before I can agree to let you join."

"That seems fair," Emily said. "What should I sing?"

"Our go-to audition song is Kelly Clarkson's Since You Been Gone," Chloe said. "Do you know it?"

"Yes," Emily said.

"Okay, then," Aubrey said, clapping her hands. "Ladies, pay attention. This is Emily, uh?"

"Junk," Emily said. "Emily Junk."

"Right," Aubrey said. "Emily wants to be a Bella, so we're holding an impromptu audition for her. Go ahead, Emily."

*** Enemies ***

It was finally the day of the school assembly, and the riff-off between the Barden BAs and the Barden Bellas was about to start. The two teams were pumped and ready to get to it.

"Just remember," Beca said, looking around at her team. "We already won State,s so this should be a walk in the park. Let's do this."

"Yeah!" the BAs all exclaimed, cheering loudly.

"God, they are infuriating," Aubrey said, watching the other team.

"Don't worry, Brey," Chloe said. "We got this."

"Right," Aubrey said, turning to the Bellas. "Do it exactly as I told you, and we will win this. Got it?"

The Bellas nodded in agreement and stood, waiting for the riff-off to start.

"Everybody settle down," Principal Smith said, addressing the crowd. "As you all know, we have two acapella teams and need to narrow it down to just one. This riff-off will be the decision-maker. First, I'd like to introduce the teams. To my right are the Barden BAs, led by Beca Mitchell."

The crowd yelled and cheered.

"And to my left, we have the Barden Bellas, led by Co-Captains Aubrey Posen and Chloe Beale."

There were some cheers and a few boos from the crowd. Aubrey glared at the crowd before gathering her team around her.

Principal Smith quieted down the crowd. "It was decided by each team that there will be three judges. Ms. Posen, who have you chosen as a judge?"

"We want this to be a clean and fair competition, so we have chosen Barden's own music teacher, Ms. Elliott," Aubrey said.

Beca frowned as she watched Ms. Elliott walk over and join Principal Smith.

"It figures," Beca said to her team. "Ms. Elliott hates me because I showed her up during class."

"Don't worry about it, Beca," Stacie said. "We have our own secret weapon."

"Yeah, we do," Beca said with a grin.

Aubrey gave a smug grin toward Beca before handing the mic back to Principal Smith. Beca folded her arms over her chest and winked at Aubrey.

"Beca, please tell us who the BAs have chosen as a judge," Principal Smith.

Beca walked over and took the mic. "My pleasure," she said. "Our judge is a highly decorated officer in the United States Army and none other than Aubrey's father, General Robert Posen."

The General walked out and over to stand next to Principal Smith and Ms. Elliott. Aubrey's eyes widened, and her mouth dropped.

"How dare she," Aubrey snarled.

"Calm down, Brey," Chloe said. "You can't be mad because she did the same thing you did and picked someone she knows will get under your skin."

Aubrey huffed and said, "Whatever."

"Thank you, General Posen and Ms. Elliott," Principal Smith said. "Now, I have been asked to choose the third judge to avoid any ties in the event something is questioned. I have chosen a former acapella singer, and current co-commentator on Let's Talk Acapella, Ms. Abernathy, our School Secretary."

Beca nodded, thinking that was actually a good choice. Aubrey and Chloe seemed to agree, as well.

"Let's get this thing started," Principal Smith said.

The two groups stood facing each other. Mrs. Abernathy addressed everyone.

"I will pick a category from the hat," Mrs. Abernathy said. "You have five minutes to get in as many songs as you can. After five minutes, I will stop that round, and we will give the count for each team. There will be three rounds total, so if one team wins the first two rounds, the competition is over and they will be crowned the winner. If during any round, a team finishes an entire song without being interrupted, the competition is over, and that team will be declared the winner. Everyone understand?"

"We do," Beca called out.

"We understand," Aubrey said.

Mrs. Abernathy reached in and pulled out a slip of paper. "Okay, the first category is, Ladies of the 80s."

Aubrey was the first to jump forward and started singing Pat Benatar's Hit Me With Your Best Shot. The crowd started cheering as each team went back and forth.

The teams were evenly matched and managed to get seven songs within the five minutes allotted.

Mrs. Abernathy halted the singing. "Time is up for this round. We have the Bellas with four and the BAs with three. The Bellas win this round."

The Bellas started jumping up and down. The crowd cheered, and Beca stood with a grin on her face. She knew there was plenty of time to beat the Bellas.

"The next category is Songs about Sex."

CR, of the Barden BAs, was first out of the gate with Rihanna's song, S&M. The BAs dominated and won the round.

Round 3 had the two teams tied. The crowd was really into it now and were cheering and clapping.

"This is the deciding round," Mrs. Abernathy said. "The category is Country Songs."

Aubrey laughed. "We are so going to dominate this category. Beca hates Country music."

Chloe didn't look so sure. She knows Beca is a walking encyclopedia of most music genres. She wasn't feeling as confident as Aubrey sounded.

The Bellas were the first out when Ashley stepped forward and started singing Carrie Underwood's Before He Cheats.

They were four songs in, and Aubrey had a smug look on her face as she sang, Been Thinking About You. It was an older song by Trisha Yearwood, but Beca knew it.

Aubrey continued singing.

The look in your eyes
When you smile that way
The sound of your voice
Saying my name
I've -

Aubrey's eyes widened comically when Beca jumped in with Patsy Cline's She's Got You.

I've got your picture
That you gave to me
And it's signed with love

The Bellas were in shock. None of them knew the song, so they weren't sure where they could jump in. Beca, with the Bellas backing her up, made it all the way through the entire song without interruption, and the Bellas knew they had been beaten.

The crowd went wild as the BAs jumped up and down, cheering and hugging each other. They had won, and they knew it.

Aubrey's face was red with anger. Chloe tried to comfort her but didn't really have it in her. If she were honest with herself, she wasn't surprised that Beca managed to find a song that none of them knew.

The judges were conferring, and finally, all nodded in agreement. Mrs. Abernathy quieted the two teams and the audience.

"Since the BAs finished an entire song without interruption, they are the winners. Congratulations!"

The crowd cheered. Principal Smith told everyone the show was over, and they should all leave. The only ones left were the Bellas and the BAs.

The BAs grabbed Beca and had a group hug. The Bellas stood to the side and watched.

Aubrey turned and started walking off the stage; the Bellas slowly followed her. Beca looked up and saw them. She quickly pushed off from her team and called out to Aubrey.

"Posen!" Beca yelled. "Wait!"

Aubrey stopped and turned to face Beca.

"Did you come to gloat, Mitchell?" Aubrey asked as the Bellas gathered around her to hear what Beca had to say.

"No, I didn't come to gloat," Beca said. "I came to offer any of the Bellas a spot with the BAs if they want it. The two teams apart are good, but if we join together, we could be great. What do you say?"

"I'd like that," Emily said with a smile, causing Aubrey to turn and glare at her.

"That's great, Emily," Beca said. "Anyone else."

Ashley and Denise stepped forward, and Beca welcomed them. Kori and Mary Elise declined because they both wanted off the team, but Aubrey convinced them to stay for the riff-off. They both left.

"That just leaves you and Chloe," Beca said, looking at Aubrey. "Do either of you care to join us?"

Chloe chewed her lower lip and looked at Aubrey. Aubrey stared down at the ground and wouldn't meet her eye. Chloe looked at Beca.

"Why are you doing this?" Chloe asked.

"I would have suggested it before, but you two were so dead set on beating us, that I let my competitiveness cloud my judgment."

"What do you expect our roles to be?" Chloe asked.

"I'll still be the Captain," Beca said, grinning as she added, "I did put together the winning team after all."

Chloe rolled her eyes but couldn't help the small smile that came to her lips.

Beca turned and mumbled something to Stacie and CR. They both shrugged and nodded, agreeing to what Beca was saying to them. Beca turned back to Chloe.

"I do the music for the team, that's non-negotiable," Beca said. "And I'd ask that you be Co-Captain and help Stacie and CR with choreography."

"What about Brey?" Chloe asked.

"That's up to her," Beca said. "She can be a Co-Captain and help with organizing our trips and fundraising if she wants."

"Brey?" Chloe said, getting Aubrey's attention. "What do you say? This all sounds fair, and we can still be a part of an acapella group."

Aubrey sighed and looked at Beca. "You hate us, so why are you offering for us to be Co-Captains?"

"You know why I hate you both," Beca said. "I forgave you both a long time ago, but I won't ever forget what you did. Let's just say it's more of the whole, keeping your friends close and your enemies closer kind of thing."

"I'm sorry about all that, Beca," Chloe said sincerely.

"What did they do, Beca?" Stacie asked.

Beca sighed and turned to Stacie. "It doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does," Stacie said. "You want us to allow them into our group. We need to know who and what we're dealing with."

"She's right, Beca," Jessica said. "Being on a team requires you to trust your teammates. How can we trust them if we don't know what they did and whether it's something they'll do again."

Beca furrowed her brows and looked around at both groups. Her gaze stopped at Chloe, who had an apologetic look on her face. She then looked at Aubrey, who immediately looked away.

"Just tell them, Beca," Chloe said. "Jessica's right. You have to be able to trust your team."

Beca let out a breath and started talking.

"It happened in eighth grade," Beca said. "Chloe and I were best friends, and we did everything together. I came out to Chloe during the summer before eighth grade. She said she was okay with it, and that was it. When eighth grade started, Aubrey showed up. She was the new girl, and Chloe being Chloe, took Aubrey under her wing, and they became friends. Best friends. Aubrey and I didn't become friends. We clashed from the start."

Aubrey swallowed and looked around as everyone looked at her.

"Aubrey and Chloe had been friends for about a month when rumors started at school about me being gay. I was surprised because I hadn't told anyone but Chloe I was gay, and I knew she would never do that to me. That's also when I started getting bullied. Called every name in the book, beaten up, that sort of thing. During this time, Chloe stopped talking to me, calling me, hanging around with me, so I thought maybe she did tell someone, so I confronted her. She tried to deny it, of course, but I knew she was lying. Just as I was going to tell I didn't believe her, Aubrey walked up as we were talking and said, Why are you talking to this dyke, Chloe? People are going to think you're one, too."

Everyone gasped and glared at Aubrey.

"It was eighth grade," Aubrey said defensively. "I was young."

"Doesn't make it okay," CR said.

"I got upset because Chloe stood there and didn't say anything to Aubrey about calling me a dyke," Beca said. "It was then that I one-hundred percent knew that Chloe had told Aubrey and Aubrey had spread the word around the school." Beca looked Chloe in the eye as she continued. "My best friend. The one person I trusted with my biggest secret had told it to the one person who didn't like me. She and her new bestie was the cause for the beatings and name callings I had to suffer through."

Beca sniffled and wiped her eyes.

"You can stop, Beca," CR said. "We don't need to hear anymore."

"No," Beca said. "I need to get this off my chest and start trying to heal from it. Maybe it will bring me closure, and I can think about the friends Chloe and I were without hating her."

"Can you be friends with her again?" Stacie asked.

"No," Beca said. "I don't know, but if I can, I'm not anywhere close to that yet."

Chloe let out a small sob as tears came to her eyes.

Beca looked at Chloe again.

"I had such a crush on you," Beca said, shaking her head. "But, I would never have done anything about it because you weren't gay. I was more than content with being your best friend. I guess having a gay best friend didn't look good on you, so you pushed me away. I get why Aubrey did it. She's a straight-up bitch and has been from the beginning. But, you? You were one of the best people I knew. I don't know how you let her turn you into the bitch she is, and at this point, I don't care. So, to answer the initial question, I'm offering to have you join the BAs because it's the right thing to do. If you accept being on the team, don't expect me to immediately be your friend again. We'll be teammates, and that's it for now. That goes for you, too, Posen."

"What if we don't want them on the team?" Jessica asked.

"I've never seen or heard them say or do anything mean or derogatory to or about any of you," Beca said, looking at Jessica. "Don't let what happened to me turn you against them. It shouldn't. I'm over what happened; I'm just not over who did it. Besides, I did egg them on sometimes just to get a rise out of them." Beca gave a wry grin before she continued. "But, seriously, I'm okay with them being on the team. The Bellas are good, and they will all be a good addition for us."

"Okay," Jessica said. "Chloe, Aubrey. Since Beca is okay with it, then I'm okay with you guys joining our team."

"Me, too," Lily said.

Fat Amy, who had been uncustomarily quiet throughout the entire exchange, agreed. "Just watch what you say or do to Beca, and we'll be fine."

Stacie and CR were more hesitant but gave their approval as well.

"Thank you all," Chloe said. "I'd love to be on the team with all of you."

"Thank you, but no," Aubrey said and walked off.

"Brey?" Chloe called out.

"Let her go, Chloe," Ashley said. "I think she needs some time to herself."

Chloe nodded and glanced once more in the direction Aubrey walked off.

"Okay, then," Beca said, getting everyone's attention. "Welcome to the Barden BAs Emily, Ashley, Denise, and Chloe."

The 'original' Barden BAs smile and clapped, welcoming their new teammates. Beca watched with a small smile on her face.

After a few minutes, the girls started leaving in small groups. Chloe hung back, and soon she and Beca were alone.

"Did you want something, Beale?" Beca asked, looking at Chloe.

"I want to apologize," Chloe said. "I know it's not much after what I did, but I am sorry and will do everything in my power to be your friend again."

"As I said, I've forgiven the act," Beca said. "I just don't forgive your part in it. It's been almost four years, and I still can't seem to get past how much you hurt me."

"I really am sorry, Beca," Chloe said.

"Thanks for that," Beca said. "I'm sorry for some of the things I said over the past few years, too."

Chloe smiled and nodded.

"We have practice on Monday after school," Beca said. "I'll see you then."

"I'll be there," Chloe said. "Have a good weekend, Beca."

"You too, Chloe," Beca said and left the redhead standing there.