Chapter 28
(All)
Beca was awake first the morning of the reunion. She had more than a party planned, and her nerves kept her from sleeping in. Knowing she couldn’t stay still, she carefully got up and padded to the kitchen to start the day with coffee. She paced the kitchen as the machine worked, going over things in her mind. Today had to be perfect.
Chloe came in yawning an hour later. “You’re up early,” she observed as she poured her coffee and sat.
“Yeah, too much going on today to sleep in.” Beca kept her tone casual so as not to raise any suspicions.
Chloe leaned over to kiss her cheek. “You won’t relax till the party is over, will you? Well, at least that’s tonight. You need a break, love.”
The brunette smiled. “Trust me, it will have been worth it.”
***
“Are you almost ready, love?” Aubrey called as she put the cooler with the pasta salad next to the front door. She had left their liquor contributions in the trunk the night before, and they were expected at the hall to help Chloe and Beca set up in half an hour.
Emily emerged from the bedroom as Aubrey was on her way to check on her. “I’m ready. Let’s go before I have a chance to back out and ruin things for Beca.” Her mood had been less volatile, but not what she would call good, either. She planned to get wasted as fast as she could, hoping that would loosen her up enough to at least act happy.
They arrived at the hall at the same time as Beca and Chloe. It took the four of them two trips to get everything inside, and most of an hour to set it all up. With half an hour to kill, they pulled up chairs and sat for a break, Emily opening one of the beers they had brought. Chloe glanced at Aubrey, who shook her head a bit. The blonde fully expected her partner to be drunk fairly quickly. All she could do was keep an eye on her and stay sober to drive them home.
Soon, they others started arriving, and Aubrey went to the food table to keep things organized, and Beca turned the playlist on before moving to start mixing and handing out drinks at another table. Cynthia Rose and Stacie wandered over with their own drinks in hand as Emily opened her second beer.
“Getting a head start?” Cynthia Rose asked her.
Emily gave her a dry smile. “Don’t try to keep up. You’ll hurt in the morning if you do.” Before Cynthia Rose could answer, Stacie heard a favorite song and dragged her off to dance.
Chloe looked at Emily with concern, but knew she couldn’t sit there the whole time. Standing, she found Beca still making drinks and waited till she was done. As the brunette made her a drink, she said, “Emily is gonna be in bad shape by the end of the night.”
“I’d be more surprised if she wasn’t. I’d bet this is pretty hard on her. Don’t worry, love. We’ll all keep an eye on her.”
When everyone was there and the food set up, Aubrey got them all lined up to fill their plates. Dinner was spent talking, catching up, and joking as much as eating. Chloe, sitting at the end of the table with Beca, watched as her partner fidgeted with everything in easy reach. Leaning close, she asked quietly, “You okay, Becs?”
As if that had been a signal, Beca suddenly stood, catching everyone’s attention. She cleared her throat as they all stopped talking. “First, I love you awesome nerds. Thank you for making this reunion happen.” A cheer went up, and she had to wait a moment for people to realize she wasn’t done. “Now, I hope you’ll forgive me for holding you all hostage for this part.”
Chloe, who was watching Beca in confusion, found herself gently drawn to her feet. She gave Beca a questioning look, but only got a smile in response at first.
Beca took Chloe’s hands in her own, keenly aware of the eyes on them even as she stared into her favorite sky blue. “Chloe, I have loved you since day one. You introduced me to my family.” She gestured to the other Bellas. “You believed in me when I couldn’t. The day we got together was the best of my life. It’s time to top that day.” She paused for a deep breath, Chloe’s eyes widening a bit. Beca reached in her pocket, and the ginger gasped at the little square box she pulled out. “Chloe Beale, will you do me the eternal honor of being my wife?” The box opened, revealing a beautiful diamond engagement ring.
Chloe stared at it, both hands covering her mouth. She hadn’t seen this coming. Sure, she had figured they would get around to it, maybe after Beca released an album. But apparently Beca didn’t want to wait. Raising her eyes to Beca’s, she let her hands fall away. “Beca, all I have ever wanted was to be with you. Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
Wild cheers went up from the table as Beca slid the ring on Chloe’s finger and they kissed. When they looked around, even Emily was wearing a genuine smile as she raised her glass in their direction.
Aubrey came running around the table and nearly knocked them over with her enthusiastic hug. “I am so happy for you. You two will have a long life together, overflowing with love and music. Congratulations!”
They stood patiently as the others all filed by to give them similar messages and well wishes. Jessica and Ashley insisted they would take their place cleaning up the hall, telling Beca and Chloe to go home.
Before they got in the car, Chloe pinned Beca against it for a deep, fiery kiss. “I love you so much, and I can’t wait to spend my life with you.”
Beca smiled. Her plan had gone off without a hitch, and now they were engaged. “I love you, too. And I plan to spend forever telling and showing you just how much.”