'The Optimist' was one of the nicest restaurants in Atlanta. It was located in Downtown and its specialty was sea food. Gail Abernathy-McKadden was already waiting for Jesse and Beca when they arrived. She was wearing a green suit and had her blonde hair picked up in a ponytail. She welcomed them both as if they were a group of friends who hadn't seen each other in a long time.

"Beca! Jesse! It's so good to see you again!" She said, although they had only talked in a couple of occasions. Yet, Beca greeted her with the same enthusiasm.

"It's always a pleasure Gail, how are you doing?" She asked, while they all took a seat.

"Oh, working like crazy; a little here, a little there. Same stuff as always."

"I imagine you must be very busy with the Nationals coming up." Jesse said, while checking out the menu.

"Darling, didn't you hear? There's not going to be a competition this year."

Jesse and Beca looked at her, surprised.

"What? No Finals?"

"Why?" Beca asked.

In that moment a waiter came in and interrupted their conversation to take their order. Jesse and Beca ordered cornmeal crusted snapper and blackened cobia; Gail asked for a bottle of wine, scallops as entry and duck fat poached swordfish. After the waiter left, Beca resumed their conversation.

"So, why is there not going to be a competition this year?"

"You'll see, Beca, that's why I wanted to talk with you. Both of you. The ICCA is organizing a very special event for this year, and we would like you to participate."

"What kind of event?" Jesse asked, very curious.

Gail took a long sip from her glass of wine, enjoying their uncertainty. She cleaned up her lips with a napkin before saying anything.

"'The Ultimate National College a Capella Team Championship'." She finally said, with pride.

"I'm sorry, what?" Beca asked.

"'The Ultimate National College a Capella Team Championship'." She said again. Jesse and Beca looked at each other, confused.

"Wow, that's really long!" Jesse pointed out.

"I know, we are working on it to make it shorter." Gail said, while drinking more wine.

"What is it about?" Beca asked.

"That's the interesting part. Now listen up, because this is important, okay?" They both nodded and Gail continued. "We want you guys to create a group made up only by the best a Capella singers Barden has ever seen. You'll have two months to do it, because in March we are having our first knockout round. On this stage, you will face other schools from Georgia, just like you do in Locals. Three teams will advance to the next round, which is due in mid-April. On this stage, only two teams will move forward to the Finals, which are set to take place in the first week of June. Your team must have twenty two members including yourselves; the number of men and women is irrelevant. Now, Barden has four a Capella groups: The BU Harmonics, The High Notes, The Treblemakers and The Bellas. Trebles and Bellas are the best of the best, so I expect this new group to be composed mostly by them. However, rules say you must include at least two members from the BU and the Notes. In each stage of the competition, you will sing either a four-to-seven minute song or a mashup of the same length. The same rules from the ICCAs apply to this competition. You can't use any instruments, and all members must be former -or current- students at Barden University without exceptions." She stopped and took a moment to contemplate their reaction. Jesse seemed interested but Beca looked skeptic. "Now, do you have any doubts?"

"Let me see if I get this right." Beca said. "You want us to assemble some sort of Dream Team?"

"It's a way of calling it."

"'The Barden University All-Star Team'?"

"The best of the best the school has ever seen, the a Capella royalty from Barden."

"Both of us? By ourselves?"

"Well, of course you can get someone to help you with past generations."

"Can I ask a question?" Jesse said, rising his hand. "Why did you pick us to do this? Surely there's people who know more about a Capella than us."

"Because you are the most recent Trebles leader, and an excellent one if you ask me. Beca, you guided the girls to three National Championships and a World Championship; no one had ever done that before. You actually made the Bellas likeable, and that's a lot to say." Right then the waiter came with the scallops. She grabbed one and invited them both to eat too. They were delicious.

"Let's suspend reality for a second and suppose we accept. We have a tiny problem: our generation graduated seven months ago. All of us have jobs, we have different lives. What if the others don't want to be a part of an a Capella group again? I mean, have you considered that possibility? Besides, you seem to forget Trebles and Bellas hate each other. It's been a twenty-year rivalry, they are not going to cooperate with each other that easily."

"Is it a problem for you to work with a Treble? Is that what you are trying to tell me?"

Beca looked at her, angry at her assumption.

"What? No! Of course not."

Gail raised her eyebrow, as if she doubted her. Beca couldn't stop herself from laughing.

"Come on, Jesse is my boyfriend and he was a Treble. I don't care about that stupid rivalry, never had and never will. However, I would like to see you try to make Aubrey work with any Treble, especially Bumper."

Jesse, who hadn't said anything in a while, jumped into the conversation.

"Oh, so now are talking about who is going to be a member of the team?"

"Jesse, not now."

"I'm just saying-"

"No, don't say anything!"

"Enough!" Gail said. Beca mentally thanked her, as she hated arguing with Jesse in public. "So, what do you say? Are you in or out?"

Beca looked at Jesse, who seemed pretty enthusiastic. He offered his hand to Gail.

"I'm in." He finally said.

"Wonderful!" She said, as they both shook hands. She then looked at Beca. "What about you?"

Beca didn't say anything. She liked the idea more than she wanted to admit, but she had her doubts about going back to the world of a Capella. After all, there's a reason why they say it's better to leave the party while you are still having fun. And she had said goodbye to a Capella with a bang by winning the Worlds.

"Come on, Beca, you know you want it! Don't do it because Jesse said yes. Think about all the fun you had while being a Bella. Remember the competition, the choreographies, the practices, all the laughs with your friends. You said it yourself at your interview after the Worlds: 'When I look back at this I won't remember performing and competing. I'm gonna remember my girls.' Give yourself the chance of having one last gig. What do you say?"

Beca looked at her, and then looked at Jesse. Gail's words made an impact on her, and suddenly all her memories of her time as a Bella started forming in her mind. The first Riff-Off, their first National Championship, becoming World Champions…

"Okay, I'm in." She said, and also shook hands with Gail. The three of them smiled as the waiter brought over their food.

"Welcome back to the world of a Capella, kids." Gail said, as they all started eating.