I'm so sorry I haven't uploaded recently! I've been on vacation and wi-fi has been limited, but I'll make it up to you. I finished the story, I may go back and re-upload a couple of the chapters if I see something I want to change. That being said, enjoy the ending! I've got something special planned that you will hopefully like at the end. :)
Chapter 7: Nicknames
Beca's POV
The group split off and everyone headed to their dorms. "Beca!" she heard Jesse call. She ignored him and kept walking. "Beca!" He apparently wasn't going to let it go.
"What Jesse?" she replied, stopping and turning to face him.
When he caught up with her, he said, "It's too late for you to walk around by yourself. Let me walk you to your dorm."
"I can take care of myself, don't you have some party to celebrate your win?"
"This is more important that some party."
She looked over at him to see if he was being serious. Apparently, he was. "Fine."
They walked in silence for a bit. Jesse was the one to break the silence, "You did really good tonight, Beca."
"Thanks."
"I'm serious, you did."
"I know I did, but we didn't win. I messed up."
"Who cares about the win, everyone there seemed to love your performance."
She smiled, "Yeah, it was pretty awesome."
"It was..."
They walked in silence a little longer. She lead the way to her dorm. "This my dorm ," she said, standing in front of her doorway.
"Alright, well, see you tomorrow," he said and smiled at her. He turned turned to go.
"Jesse?"
"Hmm?" He looked over his shoulder at her.
"Goodnight."
He smiled widely at her, "Goodnight, Becs." She watched him walk away from her down the hallway, ignoring how her pulse had increased speed. She walked into her dorm and sat down at her computer to wok on mixes. She saw Jesse walking outside. She couldn't help herself from watching him. When he disappeared from view, her attention snapped back to the computer. There was something about him, Beca didn't know what, but there was something very...familiar...about him.
The next day, Beca was sitting in the quad with her laptop. She saw Jesse pass, but he didn't seem to notice her. "Hey, nerd!" she called. She didn't even mean to call him that, it just sort of came out. Nerd was her name for Jackson, so why did she call Jesse that. Much to Beca's surprise, he looked over at her and stopped when he realized it was her, he seemed worried about something.
"Hey, weirdo."
"What's wrong?"
"Umm, I have a speech in my next class, and haven't even started writing it. I completely forgot about it until Benji mentioned his speech," he said.
"Oh, okay I'll see you later," she said. He was about to walk off, "Wait, Jesse. Quick question."
"Yeah?" he turned back to her.
"You asked me last week if you could listen to one of my mixes. Did you still want to?"
"Yeah, I'd love to, but, I can't until later this evening."
"That's fine. If you want to come by later today, I'm not doing anything aside from Bellas rehearsals at 3, but we'll be done by 6 or so," she said. She really did want him to hear her work. She was certain he'd like them.
"Alright, I will, but I need to go to class. See ya later, weirdo."
"Bye, nerd," she called as he walked off to class.
Jesse's POV
"Bye, nerd," he heard her call. He smiled at this, the old Beca is still in there, and she was, slowly but surely, coming back to him. She had always called him that off and on in high school. She had called him that for the first time fall of their senior year. Four months or so after they had started dating.
"Hey, nerd!" she said when he answered the door. She had decided to just show up.
"Nerd?" he asked, letting her inside.
"Yes, nerd. You're a nerd."
"If I'm a nerd, then you're a weirdo."
"I'm not a weirdo."
"Yes, you are."
"Fine, nerd. I'm a weirdo." They sat down on the living room couch. "So, my dad called. He said I was officially registered to attend Barden University next year."
"That's great, Becs."
"Something like that."
"What's wrong?"
"If I'm going to go to college, I don't want to go alone. What if you don't get accepted?"
"Beca, it's fine. There's another college not far Barden and it that has a lot of the same music programs, and I'll go there instead."
Obviously, Beca hadn't liked that plan. "I'll ask my dad if he can put a good word in for you."
"I doubt your dad has any control over who is accepted and who isn't."
"He must have some control. He is a teacher, and he did get me in."
He was surprised Beca was making this such a big deal. "Beca, what's really bothering you? It isn't like you to let something silly like this stress you out."
"My dad told me that going to LA was a dumb decision and that I should find a real career choice."
"What?"
"He said he 'D-J-ing' was just something you do for fun. Not a career." He could tell from her voice, she was really hurt by this. Beca and her dad had never been very close, especially after he left, but Jesse knew she really wanted his approval. He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in for a hug. She took it willingly, her arms going around his neck. She pressed her face into his shoulder, and he felt a tear hit his shoulder.
He kissed her cheek and said, "It's okay, Bec. Everything will be fine." He started humming "Keep Your Head Up" by Andy Grammer. He felt a smile grow on her face. "You gotta keep your head up, oh oh. I don't know the words, but it's okay," he sang, making her start laugh.
He let go of her and looked at her offended. "Are you laughing at my singing, weirdo?"
"Most definitely, nerd," she laughed.
By the time Jesse snapped back to reality, he was sitting in his class room. This isn't going to go well, he thought.
Beca's POV
Later that night, Beca was sitting in her dorm, waiting for Jesse. It was 8:30 and it was getting dark out. She was starting to think he wasn't coming.
A knock came on her door. She walked to it and opened it. "Hey, weirdo. Sorry it's so late. I had Trebles rehearsal. You mind if I come in."
"Yeah, come in," she opened the door wider and moved out of his way.
"This is...nice," he said, looking at Kimmy Jin's side of the room. "Not very you, though."
"That's my roommate's half. Kimmy Jin. She hates me, so don't touch anything. This is my half," she said Jesse looked over at it.
"This makes more sense," he said, slipping his jacket off and setting it on her bed.
"How did your speech go?"
"Terrible, I'd really like to just forget about it." He sat down on the edge of her bed and watched her as she explained how it the mix creator worked. She pulled on her headphones.
"So, I uh just find songs that have the same chord progressions and create a track that blends them together. So like, this is the new bass line, and this is matching up downbeats," she takes off her headphones. "I'm talking really loud."
Jesse nods with a smile.
She holds the headphones out to him. "Um..that's me singing."
He takes them from her and puts on them on. "This is really good. Now I'm the one yelling, right?" He pulls the off his head and smiles. "That is amazing, Beca."
"Thanks."
"So, I brought this over," he says, pulling out The Breakfast Club that he'd had shoved in his jacket pocket. "Because I wanna watch you watch the end of this movie. And then I can die a hero." He moves back and puts the disc in her laptop that was sitting open on the bed.
"You have a habit of making yourself at home, did you know that?"
"Yeah," he said and motions for her to come sit by him, she does so. "Okay. The Breakfast Club. 1985. Greatest ending to any movie ever. This song launched Simple Minds in the US. Could have been a Billy Idol song, but he turned it down. Idiot. Perfectly sums up the movie. It's equally beautiful and sad."
"That is fascinating," she said, sarcastically.
"Right?"
"Tell me. What does Judd Nelson eat for breakfast?"
"Well, like all misunderstood rebels, he feeds on hypocrisy."
"Sure."
"And black coffee, to help him with his morning dumps."
"You're an idiot," Beca replied to his stupid comment, a smile growing on her face.
"It's true. I'm full of fun facts."
"You should let other people tell you they're fun."
"And an athlete.
And a basket case.
A princess.
And a criminal.
Does that answer your question? Sincerely yours, the Breakfast Club."
Jesse puts if fist up with the movie. She smiles slightly at him, thinking it was cute, though she'd never admit it to anyone. He quickly realizes that Beca isn't watching the movie. "You're missing the ending."
"Sorry," she looks back at the screen, but realizes he's watching her, and looks back over at him.
She sees his eyes flick to her lips quick before looking back up to her eyes. He leans in towards her a bit, and she soon realizes that she's leaning in too, but catches herself and straightens up. She clears her throat and pauses the movie. "It's good. I'm sure the beginning is…"
Kimmy Jin and a couple of her friends walk in. "The white girl is back..."
Jesse gets up, awkwardly. "And I'm out," he walks to the door. "A pleasure, Kimmy Jin. Excuse me," he says to the three in the doorway before glancing back over at Beca. She really did feel bad. He'd put himself out there, and she blew him off.
She stood up from her bed and sat at her computer chair. She glances out her dorm window to see Jesse walking away. She watches him as he kicks a pop can that rolled towards him.
Jesse's POV
Damnit, Jesse. Why did you do that? he thought once he was out of her dorm building. He noticed a can roll towards him, and he kicked it hard out of his way. He glanced over his shoulder and saw Beca sitting at her computer. She was watching him, but she looked away when she noticed him smile up at her. He made his way across the quad to his dorm.
