A/N: Hi! So I stayed up writing this while waiting for the special edition soundtrack to drop on iTunes. This is just some fluff on how I imagined Beca got inspired in mixing this Pimp Lo's club-bangin' hit. Lol enjoy!
Beca grunts in frustration, just with enough volume, but considering their tiny apartment space, it comes out more audible. Not that she's any distance away from another human being. Her roommate is literally just standing in the kitchen located in front of the bed she's currently sitting at.
"What's wrong, Becs?" Chloe's query makes her snap her head towards the redhead's direction and catch her stare. She sees her take a sip of her hot chocolate as she waits for a response.
The brunette heaves a sigh. She's just been tired lately and work is getting too much for her. "Nothing really," she starts.
Chloe, however, is still looking at her and so she continues. "It's this track. It's… His mix is really just garbage. I can't… How am I supposed to save this? This is crap. This is the worst. Why is this even music? There's literally nothing artistic or poetic about this piece. My boss reminded me today about this and she's not gonna be happy if I tell her I can't do this. I just can't, Chlo. This isn't even music. What am I even doing? This is thrash!"
It's not a surprise anymore when Beca does this. She has learned how to become open (a little bit better than when they were at Barden) and voice out her inner thoughts but she's working on delivery. These strings of words come out of her mouth non-stop and none of her two roommates have tried interrupting her in the middle.
Well, Fat Amy did attempt once and it didn't go well. It's a good thing she's not home right now.
"Oh, Beca, honey." Chloe approaches her with such delicate softness in her tone. "Take a deep breath first."
They both do.
"And exhale." Chloe simultaneously draws her hand in front of Beca to motion her to release what she's been holding in. "Now, I'm here. Okay, so is there anything I can help you with this one?"
Her ginger friend lays a hand on her shoulder.
The DJ bites her lower lip. She doesn't want to cry. It's not like she's sad, she doesn't want to worry Chloe. She's feeling mad and overwhelmed and stressed from work and life and mix them all up, now she's on the brink of breaking down. This isn't really what she expected from her career choice.
"Thanks, Chlo. But you know I can't let you hear this. Technically, this is BFD and the artist's property. I can't let you listen to this yet." She takes the hand that's on her shoulder and gives it a squeeze. "Those are the rules. I'm sorry."
"Of course! I understand. I'm just letting you know. If you need anything, and I mean anything, tell me. Okay?" Chloe reassures her and Beca knows she means it.
She hangs her head down and mutters softly, "Distraction. I need a distraction."
Not soft enough because Chloe hears her anyway.
"We should go out. Should we text Amy where she's at so we can meet up with her?" The redhead suggests.
"Nah, it's a work day tomorrow. Besides, I think Amy is hooking up with that guy who complimented her at one of her street shows." Beca shakes her head more aggressively than necessary. "Nah-uh. I'll pass."
Chloe giggles and reaches for Beca's arm to pull her up. "Get on your feet, Mitchell. I have an idea. Help me push this table to the side so we can have more space."
Although the brunette doesn't really know what's up, she goes along with it. "More space for what exactly?"
"Our dance floor."
"Riiight."
It's enough space for both of them to do a cha-cha slide but not for anything more. Funny how it resembles club dancing when everybody's personal space is violated in a full crowd.
Chloe snaps her fingers and smiles. "Can you drop us a beat, DJ?"
Beca sprints to her laptop and quickly navigates to some random folder. "I do have something in here. Just sort of a loop but it's groovy enough."
True to her statement, the music soon fills their room and the two girls stand in front of each other, head nodding in harmony with the rhythm.
"Hey," Chloe grabs Beca's arms and says, "This reminds me of our convention performance!" She then proceeds to do their choreography albeit a little rusty with her steps and routine. It's an attempt and she's really not getting it right the first few tries.
Listen, it's been 3 years.
But Chloe is right. Beca doesn't even realize how she can sing Problem along with her loop. Suddenly, it feels so hot as she involuntarily sways her hips to the movement of the ginger.
It's nothing she's never seen before. Their dance steps to that convention show was really sensual in a way, with a lot of twerking and bending, and bold moves.
Chloe starts singing to the beat. "Sweat, drippin' down your chest." Beca is too rooted to do her part on that line and just watches the redhead go low in front of her. There's an accidental grinding because they're both facing the same way.
Beca gulps down hard as she awkwardly flails her arms around in an effort to actually dance. But Chloe's already dancing along to "My hips rocking as we keep lip locking."
She just watches the girl bend over in front of her, the latter completely unaware of Beca's bamboo-like state.
The brunette grabs Chloe's waist with both her hands when she's back up. "You're on fire tonight, lady! What did you have?"
The redhead's flushed face goes unnoticed even when she faces Beca and steadies herself by putting her arms around the shorter girl's neck. "Chocolate. It's sugar rush I need to burn off," she pants in her ear.
For an hour straight, both of them manage to bust their groove. Eventually though, they have to stop and Chloe excuses herself to shower for the night.
While her roommate is in the tub, Beca goes back to her laptop and layers a similar loop to Pimp Lo's track. It doesn't sound like a song yet but it's a start. The hi-hat hits the right beat to the sampled song and for the first time since she got that project, she's actually leading to somewhere.
In that 15 minutes that she's alone with her headphones on, she has added some bass and a few kicks and snares here and there. She hums to herself and thinks of back-up vocals. It sucks that her equipments are in the office and what she has in the apartment can't do justice. Not that she has any words in mind yet.
The shower has turned off, indicating that it's almost her turn to use it. Chloe steps out with a towel wrapped around her body and another one around her locks.
"Any progress?" She asks Beca, who at that time, can't keep a straight look at her but nods in response. This makes her giddy, for some reasons. "See? I think that distraction really helped." And of course, she has to end that with a wink.
"Y-yeah… I guess." The blush creeps up her cheeks and she jolts out of the bed, gathers her toiletries, and heads to the tub, before Chloe can say anything else.
Even with the cold water dripping down her face, all that Beca can picture in her mind is the dancing, from what she can remember in the convention one and in their kitchen space one. Chloe really did that, going all out with her sexy moves, down low and booty shakes.
"All I want to see you do is get on your feet." She imagines the ginger bending over, not that she doesn't like it, but she just can't handle it when it's ever public. She shakes the thought off upon realizing that she's getting possessive of Chloe's dance moves. The girl can do whatever she wants.
Unconsciously, she begins to hum. "Come on, do it for me. Get on your feet. You know what I mean." She has associated a tune to those words, as if she's telling Chloe that and at the same time, singing it. The cold water really doesn't help her right now. After finishing off, she quickly dries herself with a towel and changes behind the clothing rack.
When she emerges, she notices that Chloe has already fallen asleep on her side of the bed. Her bathroom use didn't take long. She doesn't know how the girl does it, just lie down and immediately fall asleep.
Beca takes her laptop with her on her side of the shared bed. She wants to do a little bit more to the track, feeling inspired and all, but keeping the volume to a minimum because of Chloe next to her. She slips on her headphones and plays the track she mixed so far.
She plays it on repeat, she loses count. Her words come back to her and she catches on the idea that it's a contrast between Pimp Lo's phenomenal lyrics "bend down, yes Lord!"
"Stand up, bend it over boy. All I want to see you do, get on your feet." She records it along with the track and it really goes well. As the original sample plays on, she also keeps going, "Come on, do it for me. Get on your feet."
The girl beside her stirs and when Beca feels her moving, she puts her work on mute. "Mmmm Becs? You sound really good," comes a sleepy remark from Chloe.
"Sorry, did I wake you? I'll stop now." She feels bad that she's working right beside a sleeping person. It didn't even occur to her that Amy's bed is available at the time being. But knowing the Australian, she'll be home at 3am and just plop down on her bed. She can't risk being squished in her sleep. Sure, that's the reason. It's nothing to do with familiarity with the warmth of a friend.
"No no. Just finish up. Don't worry about me. I can still sleep." The redhead absentmindedly places a sweet kiss to Beca's arm and then turns to the other side so that her back is on Beca.
Beca quickly types words that come to her mind on her notes so she don't forget the next morning and puts her laptop away. The studio has better equipment she can use tomorrow. For now, she needs to sleep.
When everything is gone, she scoots down and turns to face Chloe's back. "Night, Chlo," she whispers and kisses the girl's shoulder, the only body part that is accessible to her, at the same time, boundary-safe.
Chloe tosses to her side and Beca checks if she's awake again. The redhead still has her eyes closed but her left hand reaches Beca's right cheek. Her lips then touch the brunette's forehead briefly and they both smile at the contact. "G'night," she hears her whisper.
She knows she's going to produce this steaming pile of crap and make it better because there's always that one person who believes in her. No matter what happens, Chloe can inspire her to make it better. Even a song called Bend Over.