Chapter 16
Beca had in the meantime appeared in the doorway and witnessed the scene. She realises it’s probably best to bite the bullet, not wanting a scene later.
“Jesse, can we talk for a minute?”, she asks as she gestures for him to follow her through the kitchen unto the balcony.
On their way out she briefly kisses David and tells him to go into the living room with Chloe.
Chloe ushers David into the living room. Leading David to the sitting area, she says:
“Come David, mom will be back after she has talked to Jesse. I'll introduce you to someone in the meantime. She is is my best friend from college, and just like mom and me she was in the Bellas too. Today she has come to visit me, and …”
“Aubrey!” David interrupts Chloe.
“Wait, how do you know her?” Chloe is confused.
“She is Jesse’s girlfriend. I met her Saturday, we had burgers together.”
“So, Bree, is there something you would like to tell me?” Chloe asks as she settles on the couch with David on her lap.
“I was in Europe just working most of the time, setting up the company. When I was in London, I got an invite to a charity dinner and I ran into Jesse there. And we went out a few times, we didn't call it ‘dates’, but when I relocated to Paris we stayed in touch. And from the way I missed him, I had to conclude that he was more than a welcome familiar face in a strange land. So I flew back to London when I could, and the rest is history.” Aubrey recounts.
“How long have you two been together?”
“Eight months or so.”
“And you didn't tell me?”
“Look who's talking.”
Chloe rolls her eyes at Aubrey, admitting her defeat.
“Can I tell you about my weekend now?” David asks.
“Sure, Let's hear it.” Chloe says, setting him more upright on her lap, and Aubrey moves closer to hear him better.
And David tells all about the weekend with Jesse.
On the balcony Beca isn't sure how to start, but Jesse can't hold back.
“What's this Beca, playing happy family here, are you?”, he snaps at the brunette.
"Okay, I should probably have given you a heads up about Chloe being here..."
"Yeah, you could have given me a heads up about all of this. How do you think I feel, Beca? You preferring to do it by yourself, yet here you are playing happy family with your girlfriend.”
"She wasn't my girlfriend... We just got back to being best friends.... It was only this weekend that we admitted it was more than that.”
Jesse doesn't respond.
"Jesse, I know you've always thought there was something more.... And I don't want to hurt you, but I'm starting to see you were probably right. You must know that I never had any real friends in high school and when I came to Barden I wasn't really looking or expecting to change that. But then there were these two amazing people, who just wouldn't be pushed away. This cute dorky boy with the extreme love of movies and acapella, and this gorgeous talkative redhead with no respect for personal boundaries and a possibly bigger love of acapella. I didn't really know what to do, I had never been in love before and always assumed I was straight, so I just put the wrong label on the wrong thing. If only I'd been more open to it back then, I could maybe have saved both of you so much pain. But now, after everything…Chloe came back into my life, and I suddenly saw it so clearly…" At this point Beca is already sobbing.
Jesse’s anger lowers when he sees how torn the brunette is. "Beca, I was there too. I can't put all the blame on you. If I really knew I should have let you go. But I think I was too stubborn, I always kept hoping.… Because you're amazing, Beca."
Jesse is silent for a moment, before he adds: "And something good came of it too. Look at our boy!"
Beca starts to laugh through her tears.
"Do you want to tell him?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Did I ever tell you why he started to call me mom, instead of Beca, like I taught him?"
Jesse shakes his head.
"Well, after one of his first days of school he came home, sad and almost crying. They had just learned about families and he was confused why he didn't have a mommy. So I explained that I was his mom, since I took care of him and all that. From that day he insisted on calling me mom. And it felt so great. I probably should have asked you about it back then too."
"But why now?"
“Because of Chloe, and what just happened. Him referring to her as his mom. He applied the same principle to her. We still need to talk to him about it, and now that Chloe and I are together, I would be sort of okay with it? But I worry about you, I always told you that I wanted to do this by myself and now it seems like Chloe is taking your place, I don’t know…I don’t want you to feel hurt.”
There is a silence in which neither of them really know what to say. Jesse feels his emotions calm, further, but it is Beca who finally breaks it:
“It’s just, even when Chloe just lived here temporarily it felt so good to do it together, to share all the things that come along with raising a child. And the two of them, they are really great together, from the first time Chloe came over. The three of us, it feels, I don't know, natural?”
“I see it, Beca.” Jesse says as he looks through the window at Chloe, who is sitting on the couch with David wrapped up in her lap. “I can’t say I’m not a little jealous, but I could never be here for him like you two can. The bond between the two of you is almost tangible. Even if we had done it together from the beginning… I see more and more why you feared that we would have gone sour. The UK job is treating me well, and even though David is simply amazing, forcing ourselves to be a family would have made us all unhappy. Just as long as you promise we’ll stick to the original plan of telling him when he’s old enough and letting me see him until then.”
“I promise.”
“And promise me you will never push Chloe away again.”
“I promise that too, although you’re doing it wrong. Your my best friend remember?”
Jesse shoots her a grin. “I just think you need this speech more.”
“Don’t worry, Aubrey already gave me mine.” Beca quips back and watches Jesse grow red.
“Yes, your girlfriend is here, she admitted it and I already fulfilled my duties as best friend.”
Jesse turns to look through the window again and can now see Aubrey who moved to the same couch Chloe is sitting on.
“Look at that Beca, your girlfriend and mine, together on the couch, who would have thought that?”
“I didn’t and honestly it weirds me out. I mean, because of you, us, but also were best friends dating two girls that are best friends too. I mean you have to agree it's at least a little weird.”
“Yeah, before we know it were two old couples drinking wine on the veranda reminiscing about our glory days.”
“Dude, stop it.”
Jesse hugs her. “I'm sorry for snapping at you, I love our boy, and I miss him all the time. But it's best for him if you are happy, so I should be happy for you too. I can't expect you to be single for the rest of your life, of course someone was going to be part of your family one day. It's just…”
“The combination of everything, I know. And I should have kept you in the loop more, we’re supposed to be best friends, above all.” Beca says, squeezing Jesse tight for a moment.
“Let’s go back inside.”, Jesse says as he releases Beca.
As they step into the kitchen Beca tells Jesse to go ahead to the living room while she makes them a cup of coffee.
After a little while Beca feels two arms around her waist and a chin in her neck.
“Good talk?”
“Yeah, he is unbelievable. Aubrey is a lucky woman.”
Chloe hums in agreement.
“We discussed the mom-thing. Of course he was hurt. But he doesn’t blame you, and he is happy for us. He understands the situation.”
Chloe releases her grip on Beca’s waist so they can face each other.
“You are staying, right? I sort of assumed you were. Or do you want to go back to your own apartment and see where we go from there?” Beca asks, suddenly fearing she’s going too fast.
“We may be girlfriends now, but you realise we’ve practically been wives for the past months? So if you are sure, I’d love to stay…Hey Becs… are you having second thoughts?”
“We only went on our first date yesterday…”
“Yeah, we’ve really been ticking the relationship boxes in the wrong order. But I’m kind of glad that we can skip that awkward get-to-know-each-other dating phase.”
“And the mom-thing?”
“Honestly? It freaks me out a little, but I’m honoured he sees me that way.”
At that moment Beca’s phone rings and an unknown number shows up on the screen. Beca picks up with a shrug.
“Beca Mitchell.”
“Hi Beca, it’s Alice, from school? I’m sorry to disturb you, but there is something you need to know. It’s something I’d rather not do over the phone, and I would like to show you something too. And it’s kind of urgent…Can I maybe come by your place?”
“Uhmm, I have some visitors over, but you can come now. I’ll text you the address” Beca is dying to find out what’s going on by now.
“Okay I’ll be there soon, and another thing: Can you call Ms Beale to see if she can be there too?”
“She’s here already.”
After hanging up the phone, Beca looks at Chloe’s with a fallen face and wide eyes.
“It was Alice, she’s coming over to show us something. She said it was urgent and it concerns you too. Fuck, they can’t already have found out, can they?”