A/N: So, I don't know why I'm doing this to myself again. I've literally just finished a fic, and here I am, posting another one. I must be crazy or something.
I don't know how long this will be, or how regular I'll be updating, but I hope you enjoy it anyway :)
Please please pretty please review.
I do not own Pitch Perfect or any of its characters
Chloe Beale was woken up for her first day of senior year by a knock on her door.
"Time to get up, Chlo'!" her Mom said, placing a cup of coffee on her bedside table and opening the curtains.
The sky was just beginning lighten, the sun barely breaking through the dull gray clouds.
Chloe grumbled some kind of response before she rolled out of bed and started the process of getting ready.
She quickly drank her coffee before heading for the shower. She locked eyes with her older brother Johnny in the hallway and they both froze. Their eyes darting between the bathroom door and each other.
Then they ran.
Chloe was quicker, and managed to dart past him and into the bathroom, shutting and locking the door behind her.
Johnny banged on the door.
"God damn Chloe! I need to get to work!"
"My hair takes longer to dry!" She shouted back, grinning. "Sorry bro, you'll have to use the downstairs bathroom!"
"Lucy is in the downstairs bathroom!"
"That really sounds like a 'you' problem."
"You're the worst!" He shouted, hitting the door one last time, before retreating to his bedroom.
After showering, dressing, and putting on makeup, Chloe was ready for school. It was her first day of senior year, and she was a mixture of excited and anxious.
She was one year away from going to college with her best friend Aubrey, and she couldn't wait. They both had their heart set on attending Barden University, mainly because their famous all female a capella group.
She was so excited. So ready for that next stage of her life. But if her grades weren't good enough, then all the plans they'd made would have to change. Aubrey would be okay, she was a study machine and was always top of their class, but Chloe found it harder. She knew Aubrey wouldn't let her slack this year, though. Not when they were this close.
Her phone buzzed with a text, letting her know Aubrey was on her way, so Chloe made her way down the stairs and into the kitchen.
The kitchen was a cluster of energy as it always was on a morning. Come to think of it, the Beale kitchen was always a cluster of energy. It was like the heart of their home, always full of red hair and blue eyes and loud conversations.
Johnny was there, shoveling bacon and eggs into his mouth.
"I thought you were late for work?" Chloe asked, sitting beside him so she could pull on her shoes.
"Not too late for this," he said, messing up her hair with his free hand.
"Hey!" She said, elbowing him in the ribs.
"Chloe and Johnny are fighting!" Her six year old brother Robbie piped up.
"They are! I thaw it!" Aliza, Robbie's twin sister said, joining in.
"Oh you 'thaw' it, did you?" Thirteen year old Lucy said, eating a bowl of cereal while using her phone.
"Don't make fun of your sister," their mom said, trying to brush the tangles out of Aliza's hair.
Aliza stuck her tongue out at Lucy, and Lucy did the same.
"Lucy, I already have two six year olds, I don't need a third," their Mom said.
"Aubrey's here," Chloe said, checking her phone. "Luce, do you want a ride?"
She shook her head, not looking away from her phone. "I'm good."
"Okay, bye guys!" Chloe stood up from the table and headed for the door.
"Chlo', did you have breakfast?" Her mom asked, looking up from Aliza's hair.
"I'll just grab something on the way, Aubrey usually stops for coffee," Chloe said, picking up her jacket from the coat hook.
"Catch," Johnny said, throwing her an apple from the bowl in the middle of the table.
Chloe caught it, and rolled her eyes slightly, smiling as she took a bite. "Thanks."
As she walked through the front door, she bumped into her dad on the driveway, rushing to get into the house.
"Forgot my phone!" He said, almost knocking her down.
She got into Aubrey's car and pulled on her seat-belt.
"Another eventful morning at the Beale household?" Aubrey asked, smirking as she saw Chloe's dad run from the house again and into the car.
"Same as always," Chloe said, shaking her head. "Come on, we'll be late."
Aubrey pulled away from the house, as Chloe fiddled with the radio.
"God, I can't believe it's the first day of school already. I swear we broke up for summer like, yesterday," Aubrey said, when they pulled into the school parking lot fifteen minutes later. They got out and made their way through the crowds of tired and grumpy looking teenagers.
"This is it though," Chloe said, an eager smile on her face. "This time next year and we'll be college girls! Just one more year!" Their friend Stacie caught up with them as they walked.
"No one should ever look that happy on the first day of school," Stacie said, holding up a mirror and putting on lip-gloss. "Anyone would think you're actually be happy to be here."
The bell rang and there was a collective groan from the students as they began trudging into the school.
Chloe was about to join the crowd when the sound of screeching tires from the parking lot distracted her. She turned around to see a small brunette slamming the door of a shabby white pick-up truck and hurrying towards the crowd. Her arms were full of stuff that she was trying to shove into a bag, but most of it ended up spilling out of her hands and onto the ground.
She bent to pick it up, and Chloe found herself taking a step towards the girl.
"What are you doing?" Aubrey asked, pulling her along with the crowd, away from the girl.
"Huh?" Chloe asked, tearing her eyes away from the girl so she could watch where she was going.
"You just zoned out staring at that... alternative girl," Aubrey said, shooting a look of distaste over her shoulder.
"Alternative?"
"You know, all tattooed and pierced. Dark makeup. Bad attitude. Alternative," Aubrey said, as if it was obvious.
"Do you know her?" Chloe asked, turning to look again. The crowd that had formed behind her blocked the view.
"I wanna say her name is like Rachel or something," Aubrey said.
"Is she new?" Chloe asked
"No, I'm pretty sure I've seen her before. She hangs out with that Jesse kid I think," Stacie said. "You know, now that I think about it, I think her name might begin with a B."
"Is he her boyfriend?" Chloe asked. She didn't know Jesse very well, they didn't share any classes, but she had seen him around. He always spent his time with that kid Benji who was weirdly obsessed with magic. But for some reason she was struggling to remember if she'd ever seen this girl before.
"How should I know?" Stacie said with a shrug. "I don't even know the chick's name."
"Why are you so interested?" Aubrey asked.
"I'm not," Chloe said. "I just think it's weird that we know nothing about her."
"It's a big school Chlo'," Aubrey said, gesturing around at the crowded corridor. "We don't know half the seniors here."
"But we at least know their names," Chloe said.
"Rebeca!" Stacie said, suddenly triumphant as they reached their lockers. "She was in my gym class in sophomore year."
"You said her name began with a B," Chloe said, opening her locker and throwing in her heavier books.
"I was close," Stacie said, shrugging.
"Look, just forget about her, Chlo'," Aubrey said. "It's not like she's in any of our classes."
"I guess you're right," Chloe said.
The rest of the day went by without incident, and Chloe had almost forgotten about Rebeca, or Rachel, or whatever her name was.
That was, until she walked into her English class to find the small brunette sitting in the third row, swinging lazily on her chair, reading a book.
She was wearing skinny dark blue jeans that were torn at the knee, a pair of scuffed up black Doc Martens, and a loose fitting brown flannel shirt over a black top, her sleeves rolled up to her elbows.
Aubrey hadn't been wrong when she'd described her as "alternative". She was wearing dark eye make-up, and her ear was pierced in several places. Not to mention she had at least one tattoo that Chloe could see. A pair of headphones on her wrist.
Chloe once again found herself moving towards her, intending to sit next to her, only to hear Aubrey calling her from the other side of the room.
She swore the brunette's eyes flicked up at the sound of her name, before returning to her book.
"Chloe?" Aubrey said again. "Are you gonna stand there all day?"
Chloe quickly dropped into seat beside Aubrey.
"Well, at least now we'll get to learn her name," Chloe said, earning a shake of the head from Aubrey.