Hey, guys, I hope you enjoy this chapter, sorry it took a while to post.
I have another book out called Business Manager if anyone wanted to check that out, it's much further along, I'm currently working on chapter 19, but apart from that on with the show!
Chapter 2
It was the night of the back to school bash, and the band and I were going to be performing tonight. Barden was known for the parties that they held, there was always a theme and it would be held at the school's football stadium. It was massive and the school had agreed to let them use it, as long as all rubbish would be cleared. The theme for this year was Blackout, so everyone was required to black and the only lights would be the ones on the stage for the band so they could see. It was definitely going to be an interesting night.
I had stuck to my 'no detention' rule as best as I could and just stayed quiet in most of my lessons, much to General Posen's happiness. She'd stayed captain of the soccer team, given that she kept up her behaviour, let's just say school had never been more boring. But, since the school year had started I'd already been with 5 girls, each of them going the same way they all did; a drink at the bar, then take them back to their place, a night of Beca Mitchell, then I leave before they are awake. Yet at school the next day they still end up talking to me, no matter how many times I sleep with them and leave the next day.
Me, Jesse and Chicago had been rehearsing most lunchtimes and our set list had been sorted out, with a few new songs being added along with some of the crowd favourites. Currently, I was in my car driving down to the stadium, I had my guitar and keyboard in the boot, while Jesse and Chicago were taking their guitars and drums in Chic's truck, it had a massive boot so they took the bigger instruments with them. I was just pulling in my space when I spotted a redhead walking into the stadium, from what I could see she had a short black dress and matching thigh high boots, matching the blackout theme of the night. My breath hitched when I took in what she had on, it suited her perfectly and made her ocean blue eyes pop.
I hopped out, my eyes still on her, except I noticed she had yet to go in. My phone buzzed in my jacket pocket, I pulled it out and saw the message that had appeared on the screen.
Sexy Redhead [8.01] Hey, are you guys here yet? x
Oh yeah, I managed to get her number before we left the canteen on the first day. Chicago had told me I could 'totally hit that' and who was I to turn down a girl's number, however any time I'd tried to talk to her or do anything she'd turned me down and I was getting very sexually frustrated. I've never been turned down yet, the one girl I want, I can't get. But, I always get what I want, I might just have to take my time with this one.
I went into my messages and typed out my answer, shooting her one last glance before hitting the send button.
Mystery Girl [8.02] 12 o'clock red ;)
I smirked to myself watching her turn to look at me, giving me a wave as she put her phone away and beginning to walk over. I had moved to the boot and had begun to pull my jet black guitar out, I had both an acoustic and electric, both used for certain songs that we'd be playing throughout the night.
"Hey, Red," I said with a smile.
"Hey," she said leaning up against my car.
Over the past week, we'd grown substantially close, compared to my past friendships which almost always ended up in a pit of flames and I was beginning to enjoy her company as a friend as well as wanting to sleep with her. She was really nice, the polar opposite to me but as Jesse said, we balanced each other out, she was funny and made me want to actually want to learn about her more than just be with her. It was a strange feeling but I was gradually getting used to it, and it was now becoming a nice feeling. Not to mention she was a complete flirt, constantly teasing, yet remain innocent, it confused her yet intoxicated her,
"What time are you on tonight?" Chloe said moving closer to me, I could smell the perfume radiating off of her and it was seriously muddling my senses. It took me a few seconds to respond, but when I came back to reality I was met with Chloe and her lip held between her teeth, it made my knees weak but I managed to pull myself together and respond.
"30 minutes,"
"Save a song for me," Chloe said before walking off with a wave of her hand and a sway in her hips. This girl is going to end me.
"You going to get moving Mitchell," a voice said from behind. I huffed in response and was met with a very amused Chicago and Jesse, wide grins on both their faces.
"You still haven't got that yet?" Jesse asked with a laugh knowing the answer.
"Fuck off, Jess," I said flipping him off.
"Well, get your head out of la la land, and get this show on the road," Chic said gesturing to the individual pieces of drums in his hand. I grabbed the rest of my stuff, shut the boot and walked off with the boys, guitar case in hand. We all had fairly similar outfits on, black ripped jeans, a short sleeved t-shirt and black high-top converse, the only difference being that I had on my leather jacket. Jesse claiming that I didn't even dress up and looked just like normal, in which I just flipped him off.
We had made it through the front gates and had begun to set up on stage, other students weren't allowed in yet, the party started at 8.30 so we didn't have long before hundreds of teenagers would be pilling in.
There were buckets of beer and who knows what else all across the field, something the school hadn't signed up for, what they don't know won't hurt them, and if they do, I can probably convince Uncle David to let us off. It wouldn't be a party without the alcohol.
As the opening time got closer I called Jess and Chic into a huddle and grabbed three coroners from the bucket nearby. It was our pre-performance ritual.
"Right, you guys ready?" I asked as we all popped the tops off.
"Let's go!" Jesse shouted.
We all downed our drinks in record time and stepped on the stage. In the few minutes, we'd been gone the stadium had become packed. Hundreds of high schoolers were crowded all around the makeshift stage and were all chanting our band's name.
"ATC! ATC! ATC!"
"Ready?" Chicago asked one last time before we headed out.
"Born ready," Jesse responded, we all walked out to the loud cheers that we Bly increased when they saw us. We jumped up and down getting the crowd going.
"How we all doing tonight?!" I shouted into the microphone that had been set up for us.
We received a loud cheer in response.
"Okay so let's start the night off with an old favourite of ours," I said into the mic, I heard the beginning of the electric guitar from Jesse and the drums from Chicago and sang the opening lines.
Gravity - Against the current
Do you remember feeling invincible?
When there was trouble it was us against the world
We kept running, running through the night
Chasing the sun 'til anything felt right
When the crowd realised what song it was they all began singing along. It was an amazing feeling knowing the crowd was singing the song along with me.
Can you save me now?
I get lost up in the clouds
Can you save me now?
You were my gravity
Can you save me now?
When the ground drops out I get lost in the clouds
Save me now
You were my gravity
Now my world is shattering
I turned to face Chicago and Jesse both sporting wide smiles as they continued playing, occasionally pitching in with the lyrics as the song progressed.
Ooooh, you were my gravity
Ooooh, you were my gravity
You left me out there with no one but myself
In an open field for the lightning to strike me down
I was the moon, you were the sun
I can't seem to shine now that you're gone
Now I'm out of orbit cause you left without warning
Are you somewhere better now?
Can you save me now?
I get lost up in the clouds
Can you save me now?
You were my gravity
Can you save me now?
When the ground drops out I get lost in the clouds
Save me now
You were my gravity
Now my world is shattering
The crowd was cheering and screaming our names, I could see people dancing but it was hard to see anyone in particular as it just looked like a wave of darkness from all the black clothing everyone had on, except one person, and she had fiery red hair and bright blue eyes
Ooooh, you were my gravity
Ooooh, you were my gravity
When you went away, thought I'd never be the same
Would the nightmare ever end?
If I could do it again I wouldn't change a thing 'cause it's made me who I am
And now I'm shattering
Can you save me now?
When the ground drops out I get lost in the clouds
Save me now
You were my gravity
Can you save me now?
When the ground drops out I get lost in the clouds
Save me now
You were my gravity
Now my world is shattering
Ooooh, now my world is shattering
Ooooh, you were my gravity
We finished our first song with a massive cheer from the crowd, this was going to be a good night I could already tell. I was on a high from performing and I thanked the crowd, before beginning our next song.
An hour later we were on our final song for the night, and it was an original, it was one of my newer ones that I'd recently written. Counting Stars had gone down really well and definitely got the crowd going, Chloe had been looking at me for most of the night and I found it hard to keep my eyes off her, there was something just so entrancing about the girl and it was driving her insane.
"Okay everyone, we've got one more song for tonight, this one is brand new one and we haven't performed this one to anyone yet so we hope you enjoy," I called out, there were some boos from the crowd at the news of it being our final song, but I picked up my electric guitar from its stand on stage, before nodding to the guys. I smiled when I played the first few strings the familiar melody filling my ears, I moved up close to the mic and began to sing.
Talk - Against The Current
You say you adore me,
but your eyes tell a story I've heard before.
And damn boy you must think I'm dumb
as if I didn't know about the things you've done.
I clasped the mic with one hand as the other played the strings, I was bouncing on the spot as the first verse played, knowing the music would soon pick up I readied myself for the rest for the performance.
Got a girl in every city,
but somehow you're still lonely.
I'm not the one to sit around waiting by my phone
while you're wasted telling other girls they're beautiful.
So why don't we just call it what it is?
We both know we're getting what we give.
You say you really wanna change,
but all you do is talk, talk, talk then walk the same way.
I say what you don't wanna say:
I think we better stop, stop, stop before it's too late.
When I'd written the song I'd didn't really have anything in mind, I just pictured different people going through different situations and then using it for my music, sort of like having my own world and converting it into lyrics and a melody.
Don't say you wanna stay forever.
We both know that I know you better.
You say you really wanna change,
but all you do is talk, talk, talk...
Talk, talk, talk, talk!
I say I don't want this,
but I know that I miss you when you're gone
and being tangled up in those sheets
but I know that you're not what's good for me.
So why don't we just call it what it is?
'Cause everybody knows you're full of shit.
You say you really wanna change,
but all you do is talk, talk, talk then walk the same way.
I say what you don't wanna say:
I think we better stop, stop, stop before it's too late.
Don't say you wanna stay forever.
We both know that I know you better.
You say you really wanna change,
but all you do is talk, talk, talk...
Talk, talk, talk, talk!
Baby you know all you do
is keep talking me back to you.
Your words don't mean a thing
'cause I'm done listening.
All you do is talk
All you do is talk
All you ever do is talk, talk, talk, talk
The crowd were all jumping up and down clearly enjoying the song, it made me smile knowing that everything me and the guys had down to make this night a success had paid off.
You say you really wanna change,
but all you do is talk, talk, talk then walk the same way.
I say what you don't wanna say:
I think we better stop, stop, stop before it's too late.
Don't say you wanna stay forever.
We both know that I know you better.
You say you really wanna change,
but all you do is talk, talk, talk...
Talk, talk, talk, talk!
Talk, talk, talk, yeah
We ended the night with a massive cheer from the crowd, Jesse and Chicago joined me at the front of the stage and we all took a bow.
"Thank you for all turning up tonight for the back to school bash, I hope you enjoy the rest of your night!" I said out of breath from the set we just performed, we received another loud cheer in response.
We all jogged off stage wide smiles on all our faces. "Another incredible set, Becs, well done," Chic said and clapped me on the back moving off to get another beer.
"Yeah, they really enjoyed the last song. You did a great job on it," Jesse praised.
"Thank you, it's probably one of my favourites, to be honest. Now, let's go have fun, I want to get a few drinks in me," I said as we walked in the direction of the grounds of the stadium.
We all walked out and I grabbed a beer from one of the buckets that were rapidly becoming empty, I looked at the floor and saw it littered with empty bottles and shook my head with a small laugh, whoever was due to clean this place before school began on Monday is going to have one hell of a job because the entire field was trashed, and that was only what I could see.
I managed my way through the crowds and found myself searching for a certain redhead, and I knew it was wrong. I knew I was bad for her, I knew she'd get hurt if she was with me, and I knew it was a bad idea, but I couldn't stop myself.
I clearly misjudged the number of people that were here because I felt like I'd been searching for ages. I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket, I pulled it out and smiled at the name on the screen.
Sexy Redhead [10.58] Hey Rockstar! You know you're looking too hard, turn around.
I spun around and saw a smirking redhead standing there.
"Who said I was looking for you?" I asked with a smile.
"Just a hunch," she responded with a shrug, I just laughed shaking my head. I'd never met anyone like her, she was...different. She didn't just try and flirt with me like every other girl or act a certain way around me that I knew was fake, she was just her. Flirty yet innocent, making me want to chase her, something I wasn't exactly used to.
The question was, do I give into my desires or do I bury them for her own good?
"Do you want to take a walk?" I asked, wanting to get away from the loudness and buzz of the party that I normally ended up escaping anyway.
"Sure," she agreed, we walked side by side until we reached the exit.
"So how are you finding it here?" I asked, shoving my hands into my pockets.
"It's nice, it's big that's for sure. But I'm getting used to it, and I'm trying out for cheer next week so hopefully that will go well," Chloe said excitement radiating off her, it was cool seeing her truly invested about her passion, sort of like me with music. It was nice to see every once in a while.
"Well I'm sure you'll get in, you were captain at your old school right?" I asked as we walked around the outside of the stadium, just being in each other's company.
"Yep. I loved it, it was nice being part of a team, and they were all such great girls', do you know what they are like here?"
"They are nice enough I suppose, a bit over the top on the enthusiasm scale but that's a cheerleader for you," I said remembering the many encounters I'd had with the cheer squad, both in and outside of school, if you know what I mean.
Chloe put her hand on her chest faking her hurt, "All cheerleaders?"
"Yep," I asked popping the p.
"And where do I fall on this scale of enthusiasm?" She asked with a smirk. I pretended to have a long think about it and looked her up and down as if I was analysing her.
"Hmm. Well on a scale from one to ten I'd have to say around an 8," I said pretending to be sincere.
"An 8, well we can't have that, I'm going to have to step up my game," she replied carrying on the joke. That was another thing, she was just so easy to talk to, any other girl had just been trying too hard but with her, it was like I could relax a bit and be myself. A silence fell over us for a moment, where neither of us felt the need to speak, just to be there, and it was nice. I looked up at the sky and saw all the stars that were out, sparkling under the moonlight. I tried to think back to the last time, I'd just appreciated everything around me and ended up coming short.
"So Beca Mitchell," Chloe said breaking me out of my thoughts.
"Chloe Beale," I replied looking at her as we continued walking our hands noticeably getting closer, almost touching.
"What's your story?"
"I don't have one," I answered simply.
"Bullshit," she called. I'd never heard anything so sexy as that come out of anyone's mouth before. Seeing the redhead curse, just made me even more sexually frustrated than I already was but I reminded myself that I was no good for her, she wouldn't be safe with me, and that seemed to do the trick.
"Excuse me?" I questioned
"Bullshit, we all have a story. So, Mitchell, what's yours?" She asked again, determined to find out.
"Would you believe me if I said I was just an all-around badass?" I asked with a confident smirk.
"Nope." Was all she said in response with a shake of her head.
I sighed playfully, "Well, what do you want to know?"
She thought for a while before saying, "Your music."
"Okay well, I found my love of music at a really young age probably around 5 or 6. I was bought my first guitar at 7, then a piano at 8. It was my life, well still is my life. I grew to incorporate music into everything I did, and as I got older I realised that music is all around us, from the tapping of someone's foot to the ticking of a clock, it's always there. When I was around 9 or 10 I began writing songs, they were all rubbish back then, but I kept at, perfecting every line and every note until I was satisfied and I suppose that's where a lot of the things I write nowadays come from," I said, that was probably the most I've said to the girl all at one time. Or anyone, in fact, not many people knew that I wrote songs at such a young age, it was quite a personal thing for me, but I find myself opening up to her.
"What about your band, when did all that start?"
"The first year of high school, me and Jesse had been friends in middle school and I found out he played guitar and piano like me, so we began singing together sometimes and we'd make up songs and stuff, the one day we were in the practice room and Chicago walked in, we ended up talking music and by the next day we were in a band, we began performing at small places like pizza houses and stuff like that, then we moved on to a few bigger venues then private vents then before we knew it people would come from other towns and watch us play. We perform twice a month, sometimes three and we've been a success ever since, and a few of our songs are on Itunes so that's pretty cool," I finished, taking a big breath I seemed to be an open book tonight.
"Wow, that's so cool, I never knew you've been together so long, and I might end up buying a few of your songs," She said with a wink.
"No need," I added, she turned to me confused, "I can get you a CD, if you want that is," she said nerves suddenly taking over.
"Yeah...I'd...I'd like that, thank you," she said with a smile, I nodded in response.
"So do you want to know anything else?" I found myself offering.
"What else do you do for fun other than music?"
"Well I'm the captain of the soccer team, have been for around 2 and a half years now. It was something I did as a kid a lot then when I came here I joined the team, it was something as well as music, that I was able to put everything into. I love being part of a team, with the bond and everything, I'm glad I have that. We won nationals last year and my shirt is hanging in the hall of fame, so it's nice that I have something like that here, in memory for when I leave. Sort of like a legacy."
"Well aren't you full of secrets," Chloe said with a wink.
"You have no idea," I whispered, my thoughts going back to the reason I know I needed to stay away.
I looked over to Chloe and she was rubbing her hands up and down her arms, I could see she had goosebumps and noticed the air had chilled significantly, I shook my jacket off and wrapped it over here shoulders, she looked over and smiled at me, clinging to the edges and tugging it further to cover herself.
No words were spoken yet so so much was said in that small moment.
Before they knew it they had walked the entire way around the stadium, and from the loud noise radiating from inside indicated that the party was still in full swing.
"So..." I said nervously, not really knowing what to say, something that I wasn't used to.
"So, I guess I'll see you around, huh?" Chloe said shyly.
"Yeah, I guess you will Red," Chloe moved to give my jacket back but I stopped her, "Keep it. It looks good on you." I said.
"Thank you," she said, both of us struggling to fill the air, "Well I'm going to get going," Chloe drew out.
"See you," I said with a small wave. She walked off and turned around and banged my head against the wall.
"Ughh. What the fuck was that Mitchell, good God. Get a grip," I was interrupted by my phone ringing, the caller ID was unknown and I sighed.
"What, do you want?" I said annoyed.
"We need you here in 30 minutes."
"What?! No, it's my night off,"
"I don't care, you need to get here, you know the rules."
"Fine. I'll be there in 20. I want something in return for this though," I said before cutting the call.
I stormed over to my car and started the engine. I pulled out of the car park, and raced down the freeway, my knuckles white from rage.
Where do you guys think she is going? Reviews are much appreciated!