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Jesse POV
When news of an open mic night at the campus 'haunt' spread like a wildfire across campus the next morning, most of the residents of the dorm jumped at the chance of scoping out their competition and showing off the talent they claimed. I didn't fight these claims, as Shelby had handpicked every one of us and she wouldn't pick a talentless idiot out of three hundred other applicants. However not everyone seemed as exciting as others, Mike and Brittany quickly straightened out any delusions they would be singing, claiming that whilst they had been picked for their dancing skills and in Mike's case, acting skills, neither of them were very confident with their singing voices yet. A couple sessions with Shelby would straighten that out I imagined. So as Sunday began to draw to a close, people quickly declared themselves in or out of the group that would performing on the group's outing to the alcohol-less bar later that night after the dorm meeting.
"Just for an hour or two, I suppose. I'm not singing though." Tina reasoned as the girls lounged around the living room on the couches and beanbags whilst MTV blared, I listened (*cough*eavesdropped*cough*) to their conversations from my game of pool against Puck.
"I'm going be up there, bringing the noise hard," Mercedes announced with a sassy grin "Come on, you know you want to," She sang at Tina, who squirmed with a meek smile as her roommate tickled her sides. Obviously the girls were getting along well, the twelve of us tended to stick here our roommates or in a large group. Mike and Brittany sat in the corner discussing a knee injury Brittany had sustained a couple years whilst practising for a cheerleading routine at her school. I watched Puck pot his last shot, beating me. He smiled triumphantly, swooping to snatch a 10 dollar bill I'd laid on the table earlier as a wager. He folded it and tucked it into his pocket.
"Don't worry, man," He chuckled "Maybe you can win it back one day," He smirked, leaning his stick against the wall before strutting out the room with a new string in his step. I chuckled at his obvious trait of being a sore winner and leant over to finish the game, potting a bright yellow ball.
"Did he beat you?" A female voice came from behind me with a chuckle. I straightened bolt upright to see Rachel leaning against the wall next to the door, the sight of her taking my breath away. All her hair is pushed over one shoulder messily, she is wearing a rose pink v neck T-shirt with Rock Chic splattered like an artful paint spill on the front and some loose fitting black jeans. Her feet are bare.
"Looks like I need that quarter after all," I joked, she smiled warmly, going to reach into her pocket. She pulled out a quarter, one side is coloured in blue marker pen. She threw it over, I caught it.
"There you go, you can have my extra." She chuckled, pulling another quarter out, holding it between her thumb and forefinger proudly "I got the last blueberry muffin at the coffee shop this morning, all thanks to this." She assured me.
"You're welcome." I smiled.
"Yes, that blueberry muffin was the difference between life and death for me." She told me theatrically, slowly meandering over to the table, hopping to sit on the edge, her feet dangling inches from the floor; she rakes her hands through her hair and smiles.
"Are you going to the open mic?" I asked curiously, praying she says yes.
"I am." She replied "I intend to find out who my competition is for the next two years." You can see just looking at her that she cares a whole lot about this career, being at this school.
"Well I'll see you there." I assured her, returning my pool stick to its place.
"Until then." She beamed as I left the room, walking backwards until the last couple of steps where I twist my body around artfully and continue down the hall.
The grandfather clock in the entrance hallway struck 10pm in what seemed like a minute later, in reality two hours but soon, the entire dorm is sitting around in the parlour. Everyone is already in their outfits for the night ahead, most casual and smart, hoping to give off a good first impression. Shelby strolled in one minute late to the meeting but no one calls her out on this, terrified of the consequences that he or she may face. She stood in her usual spot.
"So bringing the meeting to order," She announced, looking at the clipboard she was holding. She clicked her tongue a few times "Our first lesson tomorrow will be in music hall 2A. And tomorrow they will be serving Chilli in the canteen." She droned the words out in a drab, bored tone. Everyone stared at her, waiting for the go ahead to rush across campus to bulldozer the competition before they even hatch delusions that they match our talents. Well, that's what I was thinking.
"I suppose that's all for tonight, don't overdo it tonight." She warned. Santana rolled her eyes, barely escaping Shelby's gaze. I glared at her warningly, as if to say cut that bitchiness out before she eats you.
"Dismissed." Shelby told us, already half way out the door before anyone could react to the words. I pushed myself up as everyone began to wander out in groups of three or pairs. I joined Puck as we left the large house into the cold September air, walking down the stone steps that led to the grand red brick building behind the twelve students descending on campus.
The place we arrived at 10 minutes later was called 'Livewire', it's got the same Victorian structure, the overlooking balcony circling the main dance floor and small stage, a winding staircase in the corner that would take you to the upper tier seats of the night and old wooden rafters. White fairy lights are almost strangling the rafters, balcony rails and pillars supporting the platform. It's like a cross between a night club and bar in the day. There's about seventy people in the sizeable building, two girls on a stage singing an upbeat rendition of 'Your Love is My Drug'. Puck, Sam and I grab one of the small rounded tables dotted around the room as the twelve of us split up and begin to mingle with our fellow classmates. Quinn approached us gingerly.
"Quinn, what's wrong? You looking for a dance partner?" Puck teased. She rolled her eyes.
"With you? Ugh, no!" She retorted jokingly. I can already see the brotherly sisterly relationship forming between these two. She placed her hands firmly on her hips.
"I'll dance with you." Sam managed to stutter out nervously. Her smile became warm in a heartbeat and she nodded, Sam rose and taking her hand in his, pulled her towards the dance floor as the two girls are getting off. An MC announced the next performer, our very own Mercedes. All twelve stop what we're doing at that point and applaud as she strolled onto stage.
"Hey Y'all!" She greeted the crowd "Ready to bring the house down?" She asked loudly. The whooping and cheering continued as the music started up and soon Mercedes is belting out Mercy, met by huge applause throughout the room. I smiled; appraising the girl's velvety smooth voice filled the room.
"She's good." I turned to see Rachel, once more, leaning against the wall next to me. I inhaled sharply at seeing her once more, so close to me. I shook my head at the repetition of history.
"Stop doing that or I'll press charges." I chuckled. She giggled and ducked her head to unsuccessfully hide the blush of crimson in her perfectly angelic face.
"What's up, Berry?" Noah catcalled.
"Rachel." She groaned.
"I know, but I just want to push your buttons." He smirked. Rachel rolled her eyes.
"You gonna have a go?" I asked Puck.
"Maybe," He mused "You can't just expect us to pluck a performance from thin air. I'm an artist." He explained dramatically as another girl got onto stage. The opening chords of Bad Romance fill the hall.
"So am I. But I bet I can do it." Rachel challenged "You're just too chicken." She added.
"Watch it, Berry," Puck warned jokingly "Fine, do it then." He added.
"I will." She huffed, accepting the challenge, pushing herself off the wall and towards the stage where the MC was waiting for another volunteer. She stopped a couple feet from the table, turning to face us, her hand dripping into her black jacket pocket. Something glinted in the light as she held it up for us to see. I smiled. The Quarter.
"I'll do fine." She assured us "I have my lucky penny." She chuckled before strolling towards the stage.
Obviously you guys are very resistant to poking. So here's an annoying song.
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Okay, I ran out of rhymes but you get what I mean. Please?