Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Chloe carefully tipped up the small watering can, waiting for a trace of moisture to show up at the surface of the soil of the small English Ivy plant that lived on the windowsill by her breakfast nook. She leveled the can out as water seeped just above the surface, moving on to the last plant, Beca's prize Peace Lily. Satisfied that their little window garden was ready for their week long trip Chloe emptied the water can and glanced at the stove top clock.

"Becs, hon, you almost ready?" she called, glancing at the stairway to the second floor of their Bel Air home.

Beca's voice drifted from the stairs, "Yeah, I'll be right down, the car should be outside any minute!" Just as Beca finished speaking movement in the corner of Chloe's eye caught her attention and she saw a dark SUV that was most likely their Uber XL pull up their driveway. She walked to the front door even as she heard Beca coming down the stairs.

"Okay," Beca said as she exhaled, reaching the bottom of the stairs, "the upstairs is all locked up, Stacie will swing by when she gets off work to pick up Janus." Their border Collie trotted in, drawn as much by the commotion as hearing her name. Chloe dropped down, her hands on either side of the dog's neck, rubbing up and down with her fingertips. She placed a kiss on the dog's nose, and the dog jerked its head back, letting out a snort in response.

Chloe said, "Alright Jan, mama and mommy are gonna be back in a week, be good for Stacie!" Janus looked back at Chloe, cocking her head slightly to the side as her mouth hung open and her tongue drooped, the dog looking lazy in the afternoon warmth and happy. Chloe cooed, smiling as she always did when she saw Janus's beautiful contrasting eyes, one a ring of soft blue, like an iceberg rising from dark waters, and the other almost the same dark chocolate brown as Beca's hair. The shorter woman giggled as she watched her wife affectionately say goodbye to their dog. Beca hefted their bags and nodded to the door as she caught Chloe's eyes, then exited the house ahead of Chloe.

She walked across their walled front yard to the short driveway that led from an attached garage to the road where a black fairly new looking SUV waited. Beca saw the driver nodding, as if to confirm he saw her, and she saw the rear lift gate swing open. Beca shook her head as she settled the luggage within the rear compartment, always slightly amused by the silly technologies that car manufacturers always came out with to promote laziness, justifying their endlessly increasing price tag with a revolving door of needless gadgets. Beca glanced back at the house. Their bags were safely stowed and her wife was still nowhere to be seen.

Beca sighed, looking down at the watch that Chloe had given her for their engagement, the white face and bezel brilliant in the early morning. Beca grinned, remembering how excited Chloe had been when Beca opened the box. Beca adored diving watches, but had never owned one apart from her grandfather's Rolex Submariner because they were almost all too large for her slender wrists to not look comical and out of place. Chloe had been over the moon when Beca had casually mentioned that Blancpain had released a smaller edition of their classic 1950s design, secretly ordering one the very next week. Beca's smile faded as she noticed the time.

They were flying up to Maine to celebrate the fourth of July with Beca's family, a long tradition which sadly Beca hadn't been able to get to in longer than she cared to think about. It was the third, and there would not be many options if they missed their early morning takeoff, and a later flight would mean pulling in to their AirBNB practically at midnight, which Beca was not okay with.

Beca shouted, "Chlo, babe, we're gonna miss our flight! Janus will be fine." A few beats later Chloe appeared, closing the door behind her then hurrying to the car.

"Sorry sweetie." Chloe said smiling, planting a quick kiss on Beca's lips before sliding into the open door. Beca rolled her eyes as she sat next to her wife and let their driver know they were ready to depart.

Their flight had been uneventful, which was about the best Beca could hope for with air travel. The short woman had always hated flying, and while her success as a music producer allowed her to fly first class, Beca still wasn't impressed. She once joked to a friend that flying first class was like being water-boarded with spring water; the luxury didn't change the torture. The two women had disembarked and made their way to the luggage carousel. They waited for a few minutes, but managed to get their checked bags with minimal drama. Bags in hand the pair made their way through the terminal of Portland International Jetport toward the rental desks. Chloe eyed the shorter woman with an amused expression.

"Heya grump, how you feeling?" she asked, nudging Beca with her hip. Beca glared, her attempt at feigning offense failing as a smile snuck at the corners of her lips.

"Like I just got spit out of an aluminum paper towel tube and I still have a little more than an hour drive before we can finally rest." she deadpanned, ignoring her wife's giggles.

"Aww," Chloe comforted as she wrapped her free arm around Beca's waist, "I'll drive, and we can grab some lunch in a little bit, it's not even noon. You always feel better once you eat." Beca smiled at Chloe, nodding. They found the company they were looking for and after a few minutes and some exchanged IDs they had signed the contract and gotten the keys to their rental. Beca was the younger of the two by a few years, but they were both past their mid twenties when age seemed to stop mattering to rental companies, and Beca's record label had offered a free upgrade due to their frequent business with this company. Beca handed the cheap plastic pen back to the clerk with her left, the keys in her right, twirling the bundle awkwardly around her index finger. The clunky plastic placard with their rental car's information - make, model, license - flopped in a jerky ark after the modern key/fob combo on its braided cable ring. Beca reached her hand to Chloe and dangled the keys.

"Your chariot, m'lady." Beca said with exaggerated formality, bowing her head in jest. Chloe rolled her eyes and snatched the keys without a word, her other hand finding the handle of her rolling suitcase and pulling it after her. Beca fell into step beside the slightly taller woman, laughing at her own joke.

They didn't have much difficulty finding their vehicle once they made their way across the road leading to the terminal. The rental companies all had their real estate of the parking garage immediately after you left the crosswalk, and after spotting the signs for their company anchored to the wide concrete supports slightly to the right of where they were standing Chloe led them to the row of cars where their rental would be. Chloe looked down, criticizing the fob for a moment before repeatedly pressing the lock button. A series of repetitive chirps sounded from toward the end of the row and Chloe began walking in that direction. The chirping continued, louder as they drew closer.

Beca said, "Ok, jeez Chlo, I think we can find it!" Chloe grinned at her, holding the key up in an exaggerated fashion to show she was done, but the chirps continued for a few more seconds before finally their section of the garage fell silent. Beca rolled her eyes as they reached the car she had seen flashing its lights repeatedly. Chloe adjusted the remote and poked another button once, then a second time. The trunk uttered a deep mechanical clunk from within the car, then the lid slowly yawned open, black with the dim lighting of the garage and the bright daylight leaking in from the edges of the parking garage.

The women made quick work out of tucking their bags into the trunk, then climbed inside the car. Beca pulled a power adapter and a pair of neatly coiled cables from her purse, searching the console between the front while the driver's chair slid back and forth with a series of quiet hums as Chloe adjusted her seat. Beca let out a small celebratory hoot upon finding an accessory outlet and the audio port in the bottom of the center console. The brunette deftly plugged in the tiny adapter, sliding one of the cables into the exposed slot, and she uncoiled the second cable to plug into the tiny plug beside the charger. Beca then plugged both cables into the bottom of her smartphone, then satisfied, closed the center console. She looked up to see Chloe making the final adjustments to the center mirror, fidgeting to make sure she was happy with its angle. Finally, both women were settled, and the redheaded driver shifted the car into reverse, pulling out of their parking spot and continuing out of the garage.

Chloe could tell that Beca's mood was on the mend. It had been her idea to spend the fourth of July with her grandparents and all travel gripes aside Chloe knew the diminutive brunette was excited. Despite being married for three years and having dated since they were twenty-three Chloe had never been to Beca's home state, both of her parents having moved away after their divorce. Chloe knew that the state still held enormously important memories for her wife, and Beca had been quick to reassure her that their celebration for the fourth was worth seeing. Chloe had all too happily agreed, seeing how much it meant to Beca in the younger woman's eyes, and wanting to go for herself beside. Their rental convertible cruised easily along 295 as they slid through the endless evergreens heading north.

"What the heck is that sign?" Chloe asked, her eyes locking on a yellow road sign with a bright red stripe and block letters reading ATTENTION along the top, Next 17 miles on the bottom with some odd silhouette like a misshapen deer dominating the middle. Beca glanced up from her novel, laughing as she faced Chloe.

"Moose warning." she replied, looking amused at her wife's confusion.

"What do you mean moose warning?" Chloe pressed, perplexed. Beca sat up, raising her voice over the wind.

"So moose are a problem up here, even though they're pretty rare." she explained. "They don't have much in the way of predators, so they aren't scared of anything, least of all cars. Worse, their fur is almost black and their eyes don't reflect any light, so they're pretty much impossible to see at night, and the fuckers are giant, so if you hit one you're basically, like, dead." Chloe's eyes grew wide in shock, and Beca simply shook her head as she chuckled. "Welcome to Maine sweetie." she mused, falling back into a comfortable silence as she returned to her book and Chloe concentrated on the road.

The thruway stretched on, eventually their route branching off to a smaller state highway which occasionally gave way to surface roads for a short stretches. Commercial plazas and car dealerships lined the road in some areas, while others wound alongside or over rivers. The speed once again dropped as they came into a small town and Beca perked up, looking up at the columned white colonial pile rising in front of them, the road bending sharply out of the way, then twisting around forming a dog leg in the road. Beside Chloe Beca squealed excitedly, earning a bemused look from the older redhead as she stopped the car to let a family of pedestrians move across the road in a marked crosswalk.

"Turn right up ahead when you see a little red and white building, we're gonna stop at Sarah's for lunch!" Beca said, understanding Chloe's look without her having to voice her question. Sure enough at the bottom of the hill was a tiny red and white shack on the left side of the road, a long line of people winding around the building and down the street towards the parking areas lining the river shore. Ahead a long bridge stretched as far as Chloe could see, rising up over a wide river. Chloe hit her turn indicator as she waited for a gaudily dressed man slathered in sunscreen pushing a stroller to clear the road, then turned left onto a small side street lined on all sides with cute little buildings and houses filled with shops. Ahead Chloe noticed a long green awning speckled with white polka-dots and grime on the far side of the street. Centered on the awning was a friendly yellow seal that with a drawing of a freckled woman across the sign, and inlaid letting that read Sarah's underneath.

Chloe grinned at Beca, who was practically bouncing in her seat with excitement. Chloe rolled past the restaurant until she found an empty parking spot halfway down the road, and she nervously parallel parked the unfamiliar car. She thumbed the forward arrow behind the rearview mirror and waited for the convertible top to unfold itself from behind them as Beca stood up from her seat, pulling both arms together over her head beside the car. Chloe smiled hungrily to herself as she watched Beca stretch, the muscles in her back visible in the inch or so where her tank top had ridden up. Chloe shook off the less than chaste thoughts growing about her petite wife, twisting the convertible handle and tipping it back to lock the top in place.

A few lobster rolls, an hour, and a generous tip later the two women spilled out into the afternoon sun, Beca held the door open for her wife. Chloe glanced around looking for their car as she tried to recall their parking spot, listening for the telltale chirps as she thumbed the remote. Spotting their convertible she waved, and Beca hurried back to the car.

"How much longer?" Chloe asked as her auburn hair gleamed under the sunlight, the convertible top stowed again. Beca looked up as she reapplied sunscreen to her pale skin, a smile on her face.

"Soon baby," Beca replied, grinning broadly, "soon." They aimed the car back onto their route and continued on toward their destination, the miles falling away as they wound their way farther down the peninsula. After nearly half an hour of driving they made their way up a hill, past a sign welcoming them to another village, but Chloe smiled as she read the name of the town where they were staying. Beca's phone chirped, the fake English accent warning them to bear right at the upcoming fork, and Chloe carefully steered in that direction, slowing as the now one way road narrowed and parked cars began lining the street. To the left of the road the village sloped away, the fronts of buildings butting right up against the road and the rears of the buildings rising up on pylons at the back, or revealing a basement facing out from the hillside. Side streets cut sharply away from the road, making their way down the hill and intersecting with another road at the bottom of the hill, probably the other one way road leading back toward where they came Chloe imagined.

Beca picked her phone up from the dash and closed the GPS application. She had spent so many hours of her life roaming around this very village in her youth she didn't need help navigating, although she was slightly surprised by how many businesses and storefronts looked new to her. It had been years since she had been able to get back, and truthfully she was almost more surprised by the places she still recognized, the unlikely survivors. Beca pointed Chloe to the left as the road aimed back downhill, several roads breaking off as they passed a post office. Across the street a wide green lawn spread away like a blanket, leading up to the wide stone steps of a large old building, white Corinthian columns rising from the steps to an overhanging roof with an elegant facade. The sidewalk followed the elevation of the road, sloping down away from the lawn, and a hand stacked field stone retaining wall rose up at equal pace, leaving the lawn above them as they drove on.

Beca pointed to the large building as they passed, saying, "That's the library, we would go there on the weekends when I was a kid. The local brass band would play music at night, and people would all sit on the lawn." She looked back at Chloe as she continued her story, "They would always end with It's a Grand Old Flag, and my mom would sing it with me while I sat on her lap." Chloe smiled as her wife shared the memory. She cherished the moments of quiet openness that only she got to see. Not Beca the hotshot producer and singer, hounded by the paparazzi, or even Beca the accomplished collegiate acapella champion and Bella. This was Beca, the quiet girl from Maine, with more walls than Shawshank, who Chloe had fallen in love with practically the moment she laid eyes on the surly little brunette with too much eyeliner.

The road wound down into the more densely packed section of the village. Ice cream parlors and pizza shops and every gift store imaginable lined the sides of the street, then a hotel looming three stories stopped just shy of the road. A wide brick paved park opened, the harbor beyond. Chloe couldn't help herself, her eyes widened and her face broke into a grin as she looked out onto the scene. Lobster boats and pleasure craft bobbed peacefully on moorings spread across the black water, and on the opposite shore lines of wharfs jut out into the water. Some were piled high with tangled mesh shapes that Chloe guessed were some kind of fishing gear, but others were long and lined with boats of different sizes, including one that definitely seemed to stray into yacht territory. The view was short lived, disappearing behind another commercial building and hotel, the road climbing back up a small hill, eventually letting them see over the building on their shore. A small island lay just off the shore they were driving on, long runners stretching away from the rocky shoreline and ending at articulated runways connected to a float resting on the water. The ramps were angled down sharply with the low tide, the sea level at least ten below the limp piles of seaweed and dark stains that marked where the high tide stopped.

Their car climbed as the road once again angled up, twisting away from the harbor as the hill rose steeply. At the top they followed a sharp corner and Chloe gasped, the slender brunette beside her simply smiling. Their home for the week, an expansive colonial pile, sat nestled behind a gorgeous rambling English garden. The two story home was painted grey with white trim and a tall porch which wrapped around the front of the house and disappeared behind the harbor side of the building. Native wildflowers and tall grasses sprang up, thick and wild alongside an immaculately groomed stone path which led from the double wide parking space to the teak porch decking.

"Beca, it's beautiful!" the redhead whispered, looking up to the second story windows and the widow's walk far above. She carefully pulled the car off the road after a few moments, blushing as she realized she had simply stopped on the narrow hillside street. She put the transmission in park and turned, leaning in to catch Beca's lips in a chaste kiss, which she deepened for only a moment before pulling back. She couldn't fight the broad smile, and Beca smirked.

The shorter woman said, "Well I guess I just have a taste for beautiful things."

Beca tugged on Chloe's hand eagerly, pulling the redhead up the hill as the older woman giggled at her wife.

The brunette whined, "Chloe, come on!" Her lower lip was popped out and her eyebrows were dipped low in a furious pout, which seemed to only fuel the ginger's laughter.

"Jeez Becs, you're like a child." Chloe said, letting Beca haul her up the narrow sidewalk, the boutique's windows beside them filled with adorable clothing. The asphalt sidewalk didn't have a traditional granite curb, instead it simply rounded over to the steep one-lane road beside it. Chloe was convinced she'd found more one lane roads in this tiny village on the coast of Maine than anywhere else she had seen. The dusty blue paint of the building they were walking past ended with a narrow gap the pale yellow siding of the next building up the hill. As Chloe was maneuvered up the hill by her wife she glanced into the gap and was surprised she could see straight down into the dark green of the harbor, making it obvious the houses were all built out over the water, grimy pilings encrusted in white barnacles rising out of the murky harbor and disappearing beneath the building. "Beca, these shops are built over the harbor!" she exclaimed, gesturing towards the crack between the two buildings. Beca, who was walking backwards as she tried to urge Chloe faster, looked back with a perplexed expression.

"Yeah, I know Chlo, most of the buildings on the harbor side are. Frees up space. Now let's go!" Beca cried, her voice exasperated.

After checking in to their rental Chloe had been happy that Beca suggested they walk down into the village and look around. Beca's grandparents were occupied until Saturday, so they had the rest of the afternoon to explore the area. Beca was eager to show Chloe around, and they had already wandered through a handful of fun shops, looked at galleries filled with local artist's work, and enjoyed a short harbor cruise that ended at an island covered in lazy seals. The adorable animals sunbathed, barking their unusual vocalizations and slept on the white rock that made up the island. As they had disembarked after that cruise Beca had been poking at her phone and suddenly got very excited for some surprise she wanted to show Chloe. That was how Chloe had found herself being dragged around by Beca, as if the brunette woman was an overeager dog following its nose.

"Ta da!" Beca exclaimed, pointing to the window front of the pale yellow building they had been walking past. The front door was flanked by floor to ceiling windows, on the right Chloe could see inside the small shop inside, shelves of tiny boxes and bins of tiny wrapped objects in a rainbow of colors filling little wooden bins along the right wall, and towards the front a small wooden rowboat canted on its side. The inside of the boat was filled with a wash of the tiny parchment wrapped packages. To the left, where Beca was pointing triumphantly, was a small area separated from the shop inside by plexiglass, and behind the glass were two large stainless steel machines Chloe recognized instantly. The machines had a pair of steel rods, each on opposite ends of a long arm that rotated at the center. Between the two machines there was a mass of shiny pink goop stretched, like chewed bubble gum. It wasn't gum, however, Chloe knew. It was taffy, her absolute favorite candy. Beca had found a taffy shop, and they were stretching a batch in front of them!

"Oh my God, how did you find out about this Becs?!" Chloe burst out. The older woman dropped Becas hand and pressed against the glass as Chloe inched forward, entranced by the machine.

"Who's a child now Beale?" quipped the brunette, her excitement already replaced by a smirk, glad that her surprise had been as well taken as she had hoped. Chloe turned with a glare which softened immediately, morphing back to a smile as she turned her attention back to the machine. Beca moved closer beside her wife, her voice low, and said, "I didn't find it. I mean I did, obviously, it's just always been here. I had forgotten about it, then I found their website when we were on the boat, so I knew I had to bring you over."

Beca moved around to Chloe's right, a genuine smile at her wife's reaction on her face. She opened the door and gestured for Choe to come inside. The redhead followed, and couldn't help but close her eyes and inhale deeply. The inside of the shop was filled with the smell of all the flavors of fresh taffy, bright tropical fruits, rich and sultry chocolate, spicy combinations Chloe couldn't quite place and more. Beca had already picked up a paper box from a pile of empty boxes and bags, the largest size Chloe saw.

"Pick your own Beale, go nuts!" Beca said, handing over the folded blue and white cardboard. Chloe beamed, taking the proffered box and turning to the barrels on the wall, then began poring over the labels on them. After a few minutes of exclamations at all the flavors that looked promising, she had filled the box about half way full. She was especially eager to try the watermelon ones, and Chloe asked her wife if she wanted to put some in for herself. Beca haphazardly grabbed a handful of the assorted treats from the dory near the front door and dropped them unceremoniously in the box.

"I'm easy." Beca announced, and she nodded with apparent satisfaction, which made Chloe chuckle quietly to herself. Satisfied that they were both happy Chloe moved to the counter, where a young woman stood at the register, wearing jean shorts and a uniform tee shirt with the shop's logo and name on it. Chloe thought she looked about thirteen, which meant she was probably a high school senior or a college kid working for the summer. The girl weighed the box and gave Chloe the total, and the redhead slid her bank card into the chip reader. The machine beeped unhappily and Chloe sighed, having to give her card a light tap to seat it properly. Technology, she thought wryly, then she smiled as she realized how much Beca had rubbed off on her in tiny ways.

Once they had paid Beca led them out the door and continued up the street. They passed a long building built with smooth hewn small timbers, like a manufactured wood cabin aesthetic, painted brown. The windows were all dark, which given the approaching sunset Chloe took to mean it was closed. Beca caught her peering into the windows, trying to make out details.

"It was a bowling alley." the younger of the two said, gesturing to the building with her chin when her wife looked at her. She continued, saying, "Probably why it's still closed. Prolly not a lot of people wanting to start up a business when the town's dead seven months of the year."

Chloe nodded, unable to miss the hint of sadness in her wife's voice. Chloe wondered if this was another place where Beca had memories, maybe with her mom. They reached the top of the hill in comfortable silence, and the sidewalk departed the road, cutting ninety degrees to the right between the closed bowling alley and the next building while the road made the opposite ninety degree bend, heading back towards the one way road that left the village. The pair kept to the sidewalk, and a few moments later left the shadow between the buildings, and Chloe gasped audibly.

They were walking to the east, and the sidewalk led down to the shoreline and on to a pedestrian bridge that stretched across to the far side of the harbor. In the distance the wharves and buildings Chloe had seen earlier were beginning to turn on their lights, like tiny candles in the distance. The sun was setting behind the hill that rose away from the eastern shore, a brilliant orange orb, with the line of the horizon to the south inked in a vibrant swath of magenta pink that sank behind the pine trees. In the north it faded to a rich pink as it rose above the far off line where the sky met the water beyond the mouth of the harbor. The wind and boat traffic had died down, and the harbor water was like a sheet of glass, reflecting the gorgeous sunset and the dark shaded shapes along the shore perfectly, every mast and wharf mirrored in the still harbor. Somewhere out of sight the low bellow of a ship's horn cut over the din of the village, and Chloe felt Beca's fingers lace into her own. The brunette looked up slightly, meeting her eyes and Chloe held her gaze, not speaking for a long moment. She felt like there was an unspoken question, as if Beca was wondering if Chloe had begun to understand a bit of the deep love Beca had for this place, and Chloe knew she did. She pulled her hand to her hip, the motion causing Beca to sway toward her. Beca rose onto her toes, closing the distance and letting their lips brush together gently.

Chloe had shared many kisses with Beca during their marriage, when they were dating, and even before they had admitted they were in love with each other. Some were intimate, some had been steamy, and plenty had been playful. This one felt different than most of them. It was soft and vulnerable, and it reminded Chloe of the first gentle and tentative kiss they had shared where both knew it meant something different than all the ones they had shared before. Chloe let go of Beca's hand and brought it up to her wife's face, her fingers gently cradling the graceful curve of Beca's neck and letting her thumb brush along her ear intimately as she held the kiss. Neither of them pushed or shifted away as the seconds stretched out. Finally Beca pulled back and sank back down onto her heels, looking back at Chloe with a tiny smile as she bit her bottom lip. Yes, Chloe thought, she definitely understood a tiny bit of magic that this place had.

Chapter Text

The morning light filtered through the drapes as they waved on the salt filled breeze, diaphanous as dragonfly wings. Chloe's eyes cracked open, blinking as the sunlight hit them. She stretched, her back arching and her arms reaching out from under the warmth of the comforter only to retreat once again as she relaxed. She felt a slight sting on the skin just below her shoulders as skin shifted over muscle, and Chloe smiled at the reminder of the evening spent with Beca. Her gaze traveled over the tiny brunette beside her. Beca lay on her stomach, head turned away from Chloe and her sleep tangled hair draped beautifully over the porcelain skin of her left shoulder. Chloe wanted nothing more than to wrap her arms around Beca's waist and to snuggle close to the comforting heat of her wife, but her body had other ideas. Chloe slipped out from under the covers carefully, hoping to indulge Beca's love of sleeping in. She stood and padded into the adjoining bathroom, uttering a quiet gasp as the sensitive skin under her foot touched the cool tile. She addressed her reason for rising, flushed the toilet, and brushed her teeth over the sink. Feeling refreshed and relieved in equal measures Chloe exited the bathroom and stifled a giggle at the scene she found.

Beca had shifted some time after Chloe left, and she was now on her side facing where the older woman had been sleeping next to her. Her head was resting on her the upper half of her left arm, which bent back in an awkward angle over her own face. Her right arm was wrapped around Chloe's pillow in a fierce hug, as if she had claimed an oversized teddy bear to serve as surrogate for Chloe's presence. The tangle of hair that had been resting on her shoulder now wrapped around Beca's face, concealing her cheek and eyes before one lock disappeared into the corner of Beca's mouth, past a pair of lips set in a defiant pout, a thin trail of saliva soaking into her own pillow. Chloe beamed, a heavy warm pang radiating from her heart, as she took in the disheveled mess twisted on the bed. Beca looked as beautiful to her in that deliciously imperfect moment as she ever had in her immaculately manicured and choreographed photo shoots or red carpets, and in a deeply personal way she knew belonged to her alone. Chloe shook her head, amused and happy, and planted a gentle kiss on Beca's temple, careful not to wake the tiny brunette. She was repaid with a single snore. Chloe quickly traded her soft tank top and sleep shorts for her preferred style of running shorts and athletic top. She decided to don a thin hooded pullover too to take the edge off of the morning air as it rolled in from the water in steady breaths.

After she crept silently down the stairs Chloe took a few minutes to stretch her muscles on the softly weathered deck. The faded teak offered no sounds of protest under her soft soled running shoes. Satisfied, she snugged her earbuds into place, the quiet sounds of the world as it woke up being replaced as her current favorite workout playlist filled her ears and she walked down the steep hillside. The road came to an end at an intersection with one of the larger roads through the village. Straight ahead, about a block away, was the impressive white building from Beca's story about the brass band. Chloe thought she remembered Beca saying it was a library. To the left of her were a pair of empty parking lots, the surface stone and sand grit rather than asphalt, and just houses beyond. As the uplifting beats of one of her favorite AJR songs filled her ears Chloe decided to venture further into the village. She set off straight, starting at a jog then increasing to a run as she headed against the flow that they had driven yesterday.

Chloe allowed herself to get lost in the beauty of the morning and the tempo of her music, the soaring vocals of Adele drowning out any thoughts or worries she had as her feet rhythmically met the pavement. She followed the road down a series of curves and found evidence of the village thinning as she pressed on. The road hugged along a wide cove, making a full 180 in front of her. To her left, in the water, she could see the deep blue of the cove give way to pale green as the harbor floor rose up to the shallows and Chloe was surprised to see two large piles of black greasy looking timbers rising out of the water. The shapes were grown over with exposed seaweed but were unmistakably the oval footprints of two ships. Chloe wondered what the story was of those rotted boats and made a mental note to ask Beca about it.

Chloe ran fifteen minutes out of the village then crossed the street to double back, winding her way back into the village. She usually gave herself an hour to run, but she knew Beca would enjoy waking to a warm drink, and she wanted to pick up something in the village. The morning was beginning to warm up by this time, and the early sun had chased off any evidence of dew drops on the grass as she slowed to a walk within the heart of the village. She had seen a handful of promising shops where she thought she could get herself a coffee and picked the one at the bottom of the hill where they were staying. The warm weather and clear skies had already begun to draw the first wave of the day's crowds so Chloe idly thumbed through her social media feed as she waited in line, liking a number of posts and gushing over Stacie's most recent pictures of her daughter. When her turn came she ordered her coffee and Beca's preferred drink along with two scrumptious looking croissants. She dropped a few extra dollars into the server's tip cup with a wide smile and headed back to the house, their drinks balanced in a cardboard tray, and the pastries neatly rolled in a paper bag in her other hand.

Beca reluctantly peeled her eyes open, trying to key in to whatever sound had roused her from her sleep. Beca strained to listen, but only heard the scattered cawing of gulls, shrill and impatient. After a few seconds of silence she slowly rose, wiping her damp cheek on the back of one hand as she tried to rub the sleep from the corners of her eyes with the palm of the other. She heard a creek from downstairs, which repeated rhythmically. Chloe, she guessed; probably enjoying the rocking chair Beca had seen in the pictures on the house's listing. Chloe loved rocking chairs and Beca had been excited that the house had one in the cozy living room for her to enjoy. The living room opened up to the harbor with expansive bay windows over a built in bench, where they had sat and enjoyed the view last night. Beca yawned and sat up, the comforter pooling around her waist. She wasn't entirely convinced on the idea of getting up, but the image of her wife's face smiling at her was even more interesting than the warmth she could feel bleeding away from the bed sheets, so she quickly rose and freshened herself in the bathroom then made her out of the bedroom. As she came down the stairs and spotted Chloe sitting peacefully in the rocking chair Beca found herself watching with satisfaction , captivated by her beautiful wife sitting, eyes closed and a small smile on her face.

"Shouldn't you have a white shawl on your lap?" Beca asked, "And be sitting on a wrap around porch working on some needlepoint?"

Chloe opened her eyes and turned towards Beca's voice, her smile spreading as she saw her wife sporting her trademark smirk as usual.

"As long as it means I get to grow old with you."

Beca's smile broadened genuinely and she finished descending the stairs, crossing the room to Chloe. Beca sat gently on her wife's knee and leaned into her chest, capturing Chloe's lips lazily.

"I mean, I was just gonna leave a hundred on the dresser for last night, but I guess we can talk about it." Beca joked as she pulled back from Chloe's face.

The redhead's mouth dropped in mock anger and she shoved Beca playfully. The tiny brunette wasn't expecting it, and even though she was sure Chloe didn't mean any harm, Beca lost her balance and tumbled off of Chloe's lap with a startled squeak, landing on her butt gracelessly. Beca's pride was more injured than anything, and she looked up to see Chloe burst into laughter as she leaned over to check on her. Beca sat still, a petulant scowl on her face.

"Baby, are you OK?" Chloe asked through her laughter. Beca leveled a fierce glare at Chloe who simply rolled her eyes. She reached down towards the brunette, taking both of Beca's hands in her's and stood up, pulling the other woman to her feet. Beca nodded with a small huff, but her face softened as she met Chloe's eyes. The redhead tried to master her laughter, succeeding for the most part, then let go of Beca's hands and reached back for her tea beside the chair. Beca's eyebrows lifted, expectant and hopeful as Chloe brought the cup to her lips, rolling her eyes.

"There's a chai latte on the table." Beca bounced on her toes and hurried to the kitchen, causing Chloe to giggle again. Beca spotted the large cafe style paper cup and scooped it up, humming contentedly as she felt the warmth radiate through the sides into her palms.

"It's powdered stuff, not real, but the barista there wasn't exactly Suhkpreet." Chloe said, watching Beca. The brunette frowned at the mention of the man who worked at Beca's favorite coffee house.

"Oh, don't even mention Singh's, I'm gonna slip into withdrawal."

Beca had stumbled into the tiny hole in the wall cafe on a whim about four months after she moved to LA, even before Chloe had joined her. The cafe was a fusion joint run by a friendly Bangledeshi family, and the true treasure that Beca had discovered was that they always had a hot pot of real masala chai tea, Beca's favorite which she seldom found in LA. Since that first accidental moment she barely went a few days without stopping by for a cup and a pleasant chat with Suhkpreet.

Beca ignored her wife's warning and tipped the cup up to her lips, and gravity did the rest of the hard work. Chloe was right, it wasn't even a shadow of the rich aromatic tea she was used to, but it was warm and she still smiled as the pungent hints of clove and star anise filled her nostrils. Beca had said goodbye to her first true love, black coffee, almost a year before she moved to LA. A doctor warned her that her endless consumption of caffeine and the stress of her job put her at risk of hypertension. Teas, and eventually chai, were the less caffeinated alternatives.

"Thanks."

Chloe moved behind Beca, long, slender arms wrapping around her waist. They stood like that for a few quiet minutes, listening to the sounds of the morning, Beca enjoying the warmth of Chloe's skin. Chloe's hands slipped under Beca's tank top, her soft fingertips tracing senseless shapes onto the brunette's stomach, the light touch causing goose bumps to rise in the wake of her finger's path. Beca leaned into the embrace, closing her eyes as Chloe's fingers began ghosting imperceptibly lower.

"Sweetheart, I love you," she began, "but before you go starting chapter two of last night's festivities we should start getting ready. Grandma said we should get there for lunch by eleven-thirty, and it's -"

Beca trailed off and craned her neck to see the small digital display on the microwave, hidden by the edge of the refrigerator.

"already nine fifty-three."

Chloe huffed quietly into Beca's shoulder, and the shorter woman's breath caught as she felt her wife's lips brush lightly against her skin. She groaned quietly, wanting nothing more than to let Chloe continue tracing her lips anywhere and everywhere she wanted, but she didn't want to be late, and she knew how Chloe got if she felt rushed to get someplace. Beca squeezed her eyes as if it would somehow concentrate her will power and straightened up, which inched her slightly away from Chloe. She turned and countered Chloe's half-serious pout with the sweetest smile she could muster before 10AM.

"Why don't you go get ready while I finish my drink?" Beca asked, leaning forward and kissing Chloe's lips again gently.

"I know you like the hot water and to be honest you definitely need a shower." Beca wrinkled her nose in emphasis which earned an eye roll from Chloe who shook her head with a smile and headed for the stairs. As she made her way up them she called back over her shoulder.

"I left you a croissant in a bag on the counter." she said as she reached the top, "Your favorite, hazelnut."

Beca grinned as she raced to the counter, peering in the bag at the flaky crescent.

"You're a goddess Chlo! A goddess!" Beca shouted even as she heard the bathroom door click upstairs.

Beca flipped the visor down on her side of the car, checking her lipstick in the tiny mirror. Satisfied, she flipped the vinyl rectangle back up against the windshield frame and looked to her right. Chloe sat in the passenger seat and Beca could tell from the way the redhead held herself how tense she was.

"You alright Chlo?" the younger woman asked, her eyebrow raised in a subtle gesture of concern. Chloe glanced over for a moment, then returned her eyes forward, but Beca could see her worrying her lower lip slightly with her teeth.

Chloe answered, "Yeah, I'm fine." Beca's eyebrow twisted higher, concern traded for disbelief, and a knowing smirk spread across her features.

"You sure babe? Cause you're gnawing on your lip like a dog going after the last bone on earth." the slim brunette mused. Chloe chuckled. Beca had to have said that line a thousand times if it had been once, but the lame joke still helped break Chloe's tension. She nodded, holding Beca's eye contact this time.

"Yeah, just a little nervous meeting your grandparents." Chloe said at length, releasing her breath.

Beca nodded, knowing that pressing the point wasn't going to help Chloe relax. Beca's grandparents had not been able to come to their wedding three years earlier in Los Angeles. The older couple had an assortment of health challenges which made travel of that scale impossible and they had graciously declined the invitation to the wedding. Chloe had said she understood, and as best she could tell had never harbored any resentment, but Beca understood she was still nervous to meet the couple for the first time. Beca had encouraged her endlessly, because her grandparents were the most easy going people alive. 'They tolerated me growing up, so obviously they're not uptight.' Beca had often quipped. Chloe took one final steadying breath, seeming to realize that Beca was still looking at her, then opened the passenger door, and stood from the car.

The driveway was loose stone and it crunched under Chloe's feet as they walked to the front door. She found herself glad that she had decided to wear flats. It had been more aimed at comfort than safety, but she was relieved that she didn't have to add breaking an ankle to her list of anxieties. Although it was Chloe's first time here as her eyes took in the features of the home it all seemed familiar from the stories Beca had told her in the years they'd known one another. Beca had spent the summers in her youth in this house on the ocean until her parents moved away from the East Coast after they divorced. Chloe had heard countless stories about those years. To be honest, Chloe had always been surprised that Beca hadn't returned in so long, but Chloe had always tried to respect Beca's privacy, and that was one of the few mysteries that Beca still held. As they approached the front of the house Chloe noticed that the front door was below the level of the long driveway, the slate slate steps sinking down and around a planter filled with simple evergreen shrubs. Beca stepped in front of Chloe and moved to open the door, the chivalrous gesture earning a small smile on Chloe's lips, but the brass door handle was locked. Beca pressed the doorbell, her slender finger bending back slightly. Almost the instant the chime rang the deep rumbling bark of a large dog sounded from somewhere inside and a bernese mountain dog unhurriedly lumbered into view through the glass. It regarded them and let out another deep baying cry before it turned to look at a muted voice coming from inside, then it sat down on its haunches and quieted immediately. An older man, tall with silver hair came into view and with a click opened the door.

"Beca, darling, come in! I don't know who locked that blasted door, I'm so sorry." the man said, and Beca stepped forward through the door and hugged the man, then moved to the side to let Chloe step inside.

"Gramps, this is Chloe. Chloe, this is Jack Billings, my grandfather." Beca said, gesturing to her wife.The redhead smiled a little nervously then extended her hand to shake Jack's, which made the older man chuckle.

"I'm afraid we're not quite that formal between family here." he said, wrapping his arms around Chloe in a restrained hug. Chloe giggled in spite of herself, her nerves melting away with the warm greeting, and she wrapped her arms around Jack's back and returned the hug. Chloe reminded herself that just because Beca had been an emotional porcupine when they first met that it didn't mean her family were all moody and aloof. Out of the corner of her eye she could see her wife roll her eyes at Chloe.

Jack took a half step back and gestured for the women to follow him before walking toward the end of the hall and into the living room. The living room was a distinct shift from the dark wood paneled entrance. Two windows flanked an upright piano on her left looking out over the driveway, and the entire opposing wall was filled with a wide sliding glass door hung in a picture window that ran almost the entire length of the room, opened to a screen door to let in air. The windows let in a beautiful amount of light from both sides of the house, leaving the room feeling bright and airy as the cathedral ceiling soared to the full height of the house some twenty feet above them. A pair of exposed beams ran opposite the length of the house giving the room a rustic country cottage feeling. The expanse of the picture window looked out over a gray deck surrounded by dozens of the thin evergreens rising from below, and beyond, the breathtaking view of the bay.

Chloe couldn't remember all of the stories Beca had shared with her about this house; there were so many. She reached her hand out to Beca's and laced her fingers into her wife's as they followed Jack through the living room. The redhead imagined her wife laying on her stomach, playing Scrabble on the floor, kicking her bare feet back and forth in the air, or marveling at the drama of fog banks rolling in from the ocean; thick enough she could barely see the trees off the deck. The idea warmed Chloe's heart and stoked a pile of embers that had been warming the past few years ever since Beca had asked Chloe how she felt about children. Chloe was quickly snapped out of her reverie as she realized she was hearing the familiar voice of her wife.

"Honey? Earth to Chloe!" Beca said lightly, a grin on her face. Chloe focused on the brunette's face and blushed as she realized that Beca and her grandfather's eyes were both fixed on her.

"Sorry, I kind of got lost in the view. What did you say?" Chloe said, knowing now was not the best time to unpack that particular topic with Beca. Jack waved dismissively and shook his head.

"Oh don't be sorry Chloe, it still happens to me sometimes, even after all these years. I don't blame you."

"I can understand, it's so beautiful." Chloe answered.

Beca shook her head and leaned in to plant a kiss on Chloe's cheek.

"Gramps was just saying that Grandma and Mom ran to the store because they forgot crackers for the cheese tray."

Jack was nodding as Beca repeated what had been said for Chloe.

"Why don't you have a seat outside while we wait for them. Would you like something to drink?" Jack said, pointing to a lounge set on the deck through the screened door.

"Yes, thank you. Water would be lovely." replied, graciously.

Chloe opened the screen door and stepped outside.

"I'm going to help Gramps with the drinks, sit and enjoy the view." Beca said with a smile.

Chloe nodded her head, still embarrassed about spacing out. As Beca walked to follow Jack the taller woman, mindful of letting in bugs, slid the screen shut and turned back to the bay.The water was sparkling under the high midday sun, calm, but Chloe could still see the boats and buoys near them bobbing peacefully as small waves rolled in. Just off the shore there was a sliver of mottled green jutting out of the water, the edges of the reef looked alive as the waves tugged at the seaweed still in the water. To the right, west of them, a series of islands led out towards what Chloe knew was the mouth of the bay. Most were small, barely big enough to fit more than a shack on, but in the distance a wide formation covered in trees filled half of the mouth of the bay.

The deck, for it's part, ran the entire length of the house, and Chloe could see that it hung dramatically over the small yard at least twenty feet below. There was an immaculately groomed garden that wrapped around one half of the yard, beautiful plants and bushes set on terraces that came up to another sliver of grass that ran out of sight below. A stone stair allowed travel from the grass below the deck to the lawn further down, and on the far side, opposite the garden, the lawn fell away as the ledge dropped again to the woods that surrounded the home. Sparse but giant spruce trees shot up high overhead, offering an impressive framing to the view of the water, but still letting ample light fill the area. There were a half dozen Adirondack chairs arranged in a wide arc facing the ocean, made of a pale weathered wood Chloe guessed was cedar. She leaned against the railing. She could hear Beca and Jack's voices, but she couldn't understand what was being said from outside. Chloe leaned onto the deck railing, resting her elbows on the flat wood that ran along the top. She was still nervous about finding her place in a place that held so much memory for Beca, but between the view, and how disarming Jack had been she was beginning to relax and starting to look forward to the weekend.