So it's been a while since I've posted a story and this is something I came up with one night when I just needed to write. It's not my best work but I wrote it when I was pretty much heartbroken and sad. I hope you enjoy it.

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There's no getting over Chloe Beale. You know this because you've tried, on several, separate occasions. There's no forgetting the way her hair falls delicately over her face early in the morning when she's sleeping and you have to brush strands to the side just so you can kiss her cheek. And you know there's no way of erasing the trace of her lips on your skin; you could swear that sometimes when you've stared at yourself long enough in the mirror, you can still see the scars from her marks.

And you know you haven't moved on.

There was a time before you both had even started dating, when you could recall the touch of Chloe's lips against your own as if it were just a memory and not a fixture of your imagination. There was a time when you imagined her to taste of strawberries and rich cream but instead you now know for certain that she tastes of vanilla and whatever flavour of lip-gloss she chooses to wear.

And you know you'll never forget.

The first time you kissed her, you were arguing in the auditorium after a Bellas practise. You can't remember why you were arguing but to this day, you can still recall the look of passion in the other girl's eyes. It's a look that caused you to stop your end of the bickering; a look that caused you to instead close the distance between the two of you and draw Chloe's lips to your own. And no matter what, you could never really feel guilty for arguing with her because from then on, your quarrels always ended with a kiss; and most of the time, an apology.

And nothing could make you regret her.

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The first time she brought you home to meet her family, she wouldn't let go of your hand the entire car ride. She assured you the whole time that everything would be fine and no matter what, she would still be by your side at the end of the day. And if it wasn't for your innate belief that no family gathering could ever end well, you would've gone sooner; if not for the kindness shown by the Beale family then instead for the bright smile that adorned your then-girlfriend's face when she saw you talking to her older brother while bouncing his three-year-old son on your knee. You learnt what it was like to have a family and throughout the duration of your relationship, you found yourself becoming a prominent fixture in the Beale household.

You remember crying on the phone to Chloe's mother when she called you a week after the two of you had broken up to make sure you were looking after yourself. You remember her reassurances of knowing that "you'll come back to each other" and her mothers' intuition that "this isn't forever." What broke your heart even more was the confirmation that your former girlfriend was hurting just as much as you were. You knew Chloe had gone back to her childhood home for the time being and against your better judgment, you asked when she would be coming back to Barden and even though you had broken up, you had counted down the days.

Three day after she came back to Barden, you received a text message from Aubrey to go over to their apartment and talk to the redhead, the blonde dictator answering the door and allowing you to enter without hesitation. The budding friendship you had with Aubrey was a long time coming and still is one that takes a lot of patience and self-control from the both of you to maintain but you are glad that she stuck around in Barden after she graduated. The friendship you shared with Chloe however began months before you began dating and it became the foundation of your relationship; both of you scared to voice your fear of losing the company of each other if you were to ever break up.

You remember she didn't question your presence in the room as you moved to sit beside her on the lounge, handing her a plastic container of her favourite Chinese dish and telling her that your friendship was going back to the basics. You didn't question Chloe's tears an hour later and only moved closer to her so you could hold her as she cried until she fell asleep on the lounge, one arm draped over your waist and her head resting on your chest.

Despite all the love you had for her though, you knew that two ex-girlfriends waking up in the morning with their arms wrapped around each other could only guarantee an awkward situation. You remember gently extricating yourself from beneath the redhead until she was only cuddled up to the pillows and you were able to grab a blanket from the cupboard and tuck her in as best as you could. Grabbing a pillow and blanket for yourself, you set yourself up to sleep on the floor a good distance away from the couch, because you might not have been together but you still didn't want to be apart.

You remember the next morning declining her offer to stay for breakfast, ignoring the pang in your chest as you turned to leave. You recall all the times you've left her apartment in the morning, only ever saying no to food because you had an 8am class or the early shift at the station. You smiled despite yourself and despite the fact that you could hear the lump in her throat as she thanked you for being there when you didn't have to be. You remember looking at her as she mirrored your melancholic smile and you told her to always call you if she ever needed anything because you will always be her friend. And what remains unspoken is that you'll always be in love with her.

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And somehow, months later, you still manage to maintain a friendship with your beautiful ex-girlfriend. Albeit, there have been small mishaps like the time when the Bellas went out for lunch and you made the mistake of ordering food for the both of you. You should've felt embarrassed or at least looked sheepish but Chloe only chuckled and commented that no one could ever know her like you do. There was also the time when the two of you were walking to rehearsal with Stacie and Emily and she slid her hand in yours, intertwining your fingers. Not realising her mistake until the action had already occurred, you remember she quickly pulled her hand away, blushing profusely and mumbling an apology while you unsuccessfully tried to find the words to say that you didn't want her to let go. At least you could agree that not all the mistakes were your own.

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You supposed that space was an essential aspect of a relationship ending and maybe in hindsight, it was probably the reason why your break up with Chloe Beale was destined to fail. Having space in a relationship was never the downfall for the two of you; there was never a constant need to be around each other but you always created time; whether it would be you always making sure to bring her dinner the night before a big exam or Chloe always staying back after practise to help you clean up. It was more the way that your lives were so inexplicably intertwined that made maintaining a break up so difficult.

Even after being apart for months, the anxiety that came from trying to be friends and not overstepping any boundaries was as overwhelming as ever. And maybe that's why you felt grateful and immediately agreed to Fat Amy's proposal of an obligatory drunken night out to relieve stress. What made you more thankful was having Jessica and Ashley volunteer to be the designated drivers so you could drink freely knowing you had someone ready at a moment's notice to take you home.

You aren't feeling particularly grateful at the moment though; not when a jock as egotistical as any star quarterback has their hands running all over a certain Bellas' body. Tom Gray. Just the name makes you wince and having to see him flirt relentlessly with Chloe makes you want to drag him out of the club by just the skin of his teeth. You're aware of the past they shared with each other, falling into bed together when neither was in a relationship; his initial distain when you and Chloe began your relationship tarnishing any minor chance of a friendship before he began dating a slightly snobbish but still ever-so sweet girl on the cheerleading squad. You only guess that he is single now, given the way his hands inch dangerously towards Chloe's behind.

You can't deny your jealousy; not when Chloe throws her head back laughing at something he's just said. But the smile she gives him doesn't reach her eyes and it gives you a sliver of optimism. It's nothing like the smile she used to give you. The way her eyes would crinkle slightly and you would swear to her that someday, the corners of her smile would touch her ears. She used to smile at you that way a lot; if you made her pancakes in the morning or brought her coffee between classes, she always gave you a smile and a kiss in return. Your favourite was when you would tell her that she looked pretty, a shy smile complimented by a slight blush on her cheeks. Like all girls, Chloe liked being called 'beautiful' but you knew she loved it when you called her 'pretty'; such a simple word but holding such a delicately wonderful meaning.

Neither smile is like the one she's giving you now as she catches your eye from across the room. It's an all-too-knowing smirk accompanied by a wink and you know automatically that you've been caught leering. And maybe it's the alcohol in your system that causes you to grin and wink back at her just as the song ends and you see Tom walking away from her. You want to replace him; he's heading toward you, toward the bar and you start to think that you don't really have much to lose.

Because you know you'll always love her.

You could say it's the alcohol that has you pushing yourself away from the countertop and heading towards the still-moving redhead on the dance floor but you know it is not the case. You presume that it's the alcohol in her that has her squealing in delight at your unanticipated presence on the dance floor (it's Chloe though, so maybe not). She's grabbing your hand and pulling you closer so that she can turn her back and dance up against you.

You know it's the fact that you're in love with her that has you turning her back around so that you can look into her eyes as you let your hands rest on her waist and you begin to dance together. And you know from the smile on her face when she wraps her arms loosely around your neck almost instinctively that you made the right choice and you regret absolutely nothing. You spin her around occasionally – Tom, a distant thought in both of your minds – and you manage to pull her a little bit closer to your body each time until eventually, you're dancing cheek to cheek.

Eventually, you choose to create some space between you so you can ask her if what you're both doing is okay but before you even have a chance to speak, Chloe pulls you back in with a small shake of her head, placing a gentle kiss on your cheek and resting her head on your shoulder. And maybe they were right in saying that actions do speak louder than words, because if so, you might just be starting to believe that – in light of what all the Bellas' have told you – maybe, just maybe, she still loves you too.

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Well as always, please favourite or review if you enjoyed the story. If you have any ideas on a bechloe oneshot that you'd like to see, let me know xx