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The emotions Chloe felt looking at generations of Bellas was overwhelming and she'd be lying if she said she didn't wipe away a few tears over the course of the night. Talking to one retired Bella, Marge, as she sat proudly in her electric wheelchair, tattered and faded Bella scarf tied around her neck, sent such a course of respect and gratitude through Chloe. She had to take a moment to collect herself outside after their chat. Then there was the younger ones, kids, really to Chloe now. It made her heart swell to see the new sparkle in each of their eyes and the energy they had in keeping the Bella legacy alive. It was a night Chloe would remember for a very long time.
Although they had their tiffs with the a cappella association over the years she felt all was forgotten for the gift of this night. The current Bellas had just won their 10th consecutive national title and the ACA added an additional prize of renting out a very expensive hotel ballroom for a Bella reunion. Chloe had never booked a plane ticket faster when she received the email invitation.
What was strange was having Bellas from her beginning years with Alice as captain in the same room as the Bellas from the ending years. The relationships there were like night and day. With Beca, Amy, Stacie, and everyone else from their team the re-connection was so natural. She had effectively crushed them each in a famous Chloe hug and had to remind herself not to spend all night sitting in their group.
So as not to say she wasn't close to her older teammates. Although she and Alice never got far past the fake niceties, she had been a bridesmaid for more than one of the other girls over the years and each received Chloe's annual Christmas card. A couple had helped her make professional connections and one, who had became a realtor, had sold her her forever home a few years ago.
And then there was Aubrey; Aubrey who was the only other person in this crowded room who had this same experience and it's largely in part of that Chloe feels so understood by her. She feels like Aubrey understands her roots and growth in a way no one else ever could. And she absolutely feels like she's able to be that person for Aubrey as well.
Chloe finds herself alone at the hotel ballroom's bar as the night starts to settle thinking the night and her gratitude over. While she waits for the bar tender to deliver her cocktail her eyes settle on Aubrey. She watches her laughing with Beca and Jessica and some other Bella alumni she doesn't recognize. It's when she throws her arm around Beca and grabs Jessica's hand as they all continue to talk in their corner of the floor that Chloe giggles because it's a sure sign that Aubrey's had just the right amount of scotch to bring out her the cuddly habits she's picked up from Chloe over the years.
She watches her drop her grip from the two women as one of the older Bellas walks past, reaching out to stop her and enveloping her in a hug, another learned Chloe trait. She watches as Aubrey and her seem to catch up and Chloe can't get over the lump in her throat seeing the smile on the blonde's face. She's happy, so happy, that Aubrey is happy. Something Aubrey wasn't always comfortable letting herself be, especially in her college days.
Truthfully Chloe didn't know how Aubrey would handle the night given it might bring up old painful memories. But she's proud to see that Aubrey's grown past that all and is enjoying tonight as much as Chloe is. She almost feels silly thinking of her own doubt.
It's not long before Aubrey catches Chloe staring. At first her eyes flicker back to the girl she's talking to but then she blinks and her green eyes find Chloe's own blue eyes again. Chloe offers a smile shamelessly.
A moment later Aubrey is excusing herself and walking Chloe's way.
"Here you go, ma'am." Chloe hears behind her causing her to swivel back toward the bar. She finds a new pink cocktail with one lime on a toothpick balanced on top of the glass sitting in front of her on a square thin napkin. She plucks the lime from the top and sets it on the napkin away from her. She never was a fan of every cocktail coming with this citrus but usually forgot to order it without.
"Can I buy you that drink ma'am?" Chloe hears to her right and she looks up to see Aubrey leaning on the bar next to her. She let's out a short laugh.
"It's an open bar, you know that right?" Chloe winks at her, and take a sip.
Aubrey's mouth pulls up and she pushes her blonde hair behind her ear. "Right, maybe next time." She winks back and bumps Chloe's hip with her own.
"Deal." Chloe smiles into her drink.
Aubrey waves over the bar tender. "Can I get a scotch on the rocks and another one of those? No lime this time please." She nods toward the drink in Chloe's hand.
"Is that for me?" Chloe asks, tone only a little urgent.
"Do you see another pretty girl around that I would be ordering a drink for?" Aubrey asks confidently.
Chloe cocks her head and lets her smile grow in her amusement but shakes her head, deciding to ignore the question and play along. "You're going to get me drunk you know."
"Well how else am I going to get you to say yes to dinner with me tomorrow night?" Aubrey takes a step closer.
"Dinner with you? Tomorrow night? Sounds like you're asking me on a date." Chloe says it soft enough that she's sure no one around them could hear.
"If I was, would you say yes?" Aubrey asks, face serious now as she reaches up and brushes Chloe's own hair out of her face and tucks it behind her ear.
Chloe pauses as she becomes aware of the touch and watches as Aubrey takes her hand back and sets it back on the bar. She can't help the small laugh that comes out of her and she shakes her head at the ground as she realizes what's happening. "Aubrey Posen," she says, looking up to find Aubrey's eyes again.
"Hm?" Aubrey asks, smiling softly.
"Are you hitting on me?" Chloe says, feigning shock.
"Is that not obvious?" Aubrey retorts.
"Well, my bad, it's been awhile since anyone has tried to pick me up at a bar." Chloe insists.
"Well," Aubrey steps closer and rests her hand on Chloe's hip, "I never got the chance to back when you were single in college."
"That is true." Chloe took another step forward, officially closing the space between their fronts. "But I should tell you," she whispers now, "I'm not single now either."
"No?" Aubrey asks.
Chloe sets her drink down and holds up her left hand, wiggling her fingers in the air. "Kind of locked down life, actually." She nods toward the diamond on her ring finger.
"No kidding," Aubrey raises her own left hand, mimicking Chloe's motions, "me too!" She points to her ring finger with her right hand.
Chloe giggles and grabs Aubrey's wrists, pulling them back around her waist and once in their rightfully returned place she grabs Aubrey's face and pulls it back in closer to her own. "I won't tell if you won't tell," she whispers before she closes the distance between their lips.
"Deal," Aubrey says in a brief breath, before leaning back in.
It's not long before Amy passes by and tells them to get a room and they decide that maybe that's not a bad idea. As they ascend the hotel elevator, their new drinks in one hand and their other hands intertwined, Aubrey asks again. "So, dinner tomorrow night?"
Chloes eyebrows knit together. "You were serious? What about the Bellas? They all leave Monday."
Aubrey shakes Chloe's hand, "Common, when's the last time we had a fancy date without getting a call from a babysitter? With your mom having them all weekend, there's nothing for us to worry about."
Chloe bites her lip in contemplation. She couldn't deny that these moments were few and far between but she wasn't about to let Aubrey know she's an easy catch. The elevator doors open and Chloe releases the blonde's hand and begins her tread backwards through the passage. "I'll consider, depending on how the rest of tonight goes," she says in a low voice, pulling the strap of her dress of her shoulder with a wink that causes Aubrey to rush forward to grab her. Chloe's laugh is loud now until their mouths find each other's again and they're stumbling backwards into their hotel door.