Disclaimer: Yes, I own absa-friggen-nothing. Sheesh. Not Pitch Perfect and not The Wanted's All Time Low.
Aubrey yawned as she rolled over and came face to face with a calm and sleeping face. Aubrey smirked at Chloe's sleeping form and reached over to tuck a loose red strand behind one of her ears. Aubrey shifted carefully out of the bed so as not to wake up the sleeping red-head and stepped gingerly over Stacie who was spooning a pillow to get to her suitcase. She stooped down to yank out an outfit out of her suitcase and cautiously made her way out towards the bathroom. As she was about to start twisting the doorknob, however, something made her pause.
Coming from the bathroom was a heavenly voice singing a song that Aubrey had never heard before. The voice was strong and haunting as it echoed around the walls of the bathroom. Aubrey was positive that she recognized the voice but she was certain that it wasn't any of the Bellas she remembered. She'd have killed to have a voice like that back in the Bellas at Barden. Aubrey wanted to see who was singing so badly she could almost understand what Chloe was thinking when she barged into Beca's shower all those years ago.
Beca.
Wow, it'd been a while since she'd thought of the little alt girl. Aubrey was instantly hit with a wave of guilt. It had taken her all of three weeks, a disastrous Bellas rehearsal, and a publicized screaming match with her best friend for Aubrey to realize what a bitch she had been. And by then it was too late. Way too late. Beca had been gone for over two weeks by the time that the Bellas had admitted that they'd been unfair to her.
That's not to say that they immediately gave up. Oh no, hell no. They'd gone through every channel possible to track Beca down. They went and harassed the admissions officers, and then Beca's assigned career advisor (who had never even seen or met the girl, shocker), and then they pulled out the big guns.
They went and asked Dr. Warren Mitchell.
Tracking down Beca's father was significantly easier than tracking down Beca. All they had to do was walk into the English building and find a directory. However, right around there was when their luck had run out. Warren Mitchell knew that his daughter was gone, he knew when she'd left, he knew why she left, and that was about it. He didn't know where she'd gone. Or, at least he hadn't been willing to divulge that information to the group of girls that had been a large factor in his daughter's departure. The Bellas had heckled and pestered the man, but over twenty years as a professor had taught Dr. Mitchell to be immune to whining and they'd made no progress with him.
So, they were forced to fall back on Plan B.
Kimmy-Jin had been annoyed at the sudden appearance of the Bellas, but truth be told she'd been expecting it. She had just been surprised it'd taken the Bellas so long. Aubrey didn't remember much of what either party said, just that the Asian had looked almost regretful and more than slightly peeved at the invasion of her privacy. The Bellas had all squished into the dorm room, much like they had after Regionals. However, in stark contrast to that night, there was nothing to signify that anyone other than Kimmy-Jin was staying here. The records were off the wall, the sheets removed from the bed, and the desk void of books or computer stuff. Honestly, with Kimmy-Jin's professional white decorum, the place looked empty.
"She's gone," Kimmy-Jin had stated bluntly when all the Bellas were standing slack-jawed in the nearly empty room.
"Where?" Aubrey remembered snapping back challengingly and Kimmy-Jin had only shrugged.
"She left this behind for you guys, though." She had rummaged around in her desk, finally withdrawing a single white envelope that was bulging slightly at one end. She'd handed it to Aubrey and left the room, leaving all of the Bellas alone with the letter. Aubrey remembered staring at it, Bellas scrawled across the front in loopy handwriting. Finally, it had been Fat Amy who mustered up the courage first to tear it open and read it out loud.
Dear Aubrey and Bellas,
So if you're reading this I'm long gone. I'm not telling you where, just in case one of you does something stupid like try and find me. For what it's worth, these past three months had been some of the best I'd had in a long while. But I've been given an opportunity and it's about time for me to move on. Don't bother with the cell phone; I'm getting a new number when I get to where I'm going.
Before I leave (or after since by the time you get this, I'll be long gone) I just wanted to say I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I was a general pain in the ass the entire year. I'm sorry I didn't say a damn supportive thing the entire year. But I'm really sorry things ended the way they did. That was a real dick move on my part. I shouldn't have changed the set list without asking you guys. So I'm sorry. I hope you girls kick some serious aca-ass (damn you Aubrey) next year.
Love you aca-nerds (even if you don't love me),
Beca Mitchell
Aubrey couldn't honestly tell you what happened after that. She distinctly remembered crying in front of people other than Chloe for the first time in years. She was just so sorry. Beca had left Barden and she'd left thinking that they hated her. And it was true, at first. But Aubrey had seen the flawed reasoning. She'd been shown a lot of flawed everything in the past however many days.
It had been exhausting, but eventually all the girls were all cried out. The only one still sniffling was Chloe, but Aubrey knew that she'd need a lot more time to cope than the others. It was just the way she was.
They'd then found out that the bulge in the envelope had been from a flash drive. It was a simple affair, a slim black stick. What was on it, however, was far from simplistic. File after file after file of music. Mashups, thoughts, voice recordings, and names. Beca had additionally included a word document that had over thirty pages of notes. Some of it had been in code, but she'd included a key that explained her never ending abbreviations. Aubrey had been shocked at the complexity of not only the music, but also the notes. Nearly every second of every song had been planned out perfectly. Beca's mashups were every bit as complex as a classical composition, every note, every lilt, and every bass drop accounted for.
On the flash drive were distinct folders, ten of them that contained specific mixes and not just general songs and notes. The first nine had the names of the individual Bellas and inside each folder were mashups after mashups. As each girl scrolled through what was downloaded under her name, they were shocked to discover that Beca had included some of their favorite songs in the songs she'd made. Under Stacie's name, an epic twelve minute combination of Lady Gaga and the Black Eye Peas. Under Chloe's was more Bruno Mars than should ever be possible. And under Aubrey's, female sung power ballads that were so intricately woven together that it honestly took her breath away.
The tenth file, the smallest actually, was labeled, Bellas Final Performance Idea. There had only been one file in there, about five minutes long. All the girls had held their breaths when they clicked on it. What had flowed out of Lily's laptop speakers was what could only be described as epic and awe-inspiring. Over ten songs, some pop and recent, others dating to the 80s in release dates; molded together in such a way that it was impossible to know when one song started and the next began.
Aubrey had been stunned. After all the shit she talked about Beca, all the times she shot down any offers of help or input, and Beca had kept creating. She'd even gone so far as to make an amazing final performance idea that if she hadn't left, Aubrey would never have even heard. That was probably one of the first times in a long time that Aubrey had felt soul-wrenching and deep-pitted regret. That feeling soon became common when associated with Beca and the Bellas.
It had taken a little tweaking and a hell of a lot of frustration that Aubrey was positive wouldn't have happened had Beca been there, but the Bellas managed to transform the music file into an actual performance. They had been spectator and revolutionary and managed to beat out the Treblemakers for the Barden Bellas' first ICCA National win.
But it could have been better. Aubrey had known it then and she knew it now. If she had loosened the reins even just a little and let Beca in, they would have been amazing. Legendary. They had kept the search for Beca, keeping an eye on all of the clubs in Atlanta and around Georgia for any mention of Beca, but they never so much as heard a rumor of a DJ of Beca's caliber.
Eventually, the Bellas had to give up. Aubrey was preparing for Law school up at Columbia University, Chloe going to the University of Chicago for medicine, and the rest of the Bellas had to focus on passing all their finals and the rest of college to come. However, Beca was never far from their minds and they did their best to incorporate her ideas as best they could for the next three years, bringing home three more national titles.
Beca Mitchell had completely changed the face of Collegiate A Cappella and no one would ever know.
Least of all Beca.
Aubrey was snapped out of her reminiscing as the voice in the bathroom trailed off, the last chord hanging in the air sweetly, and the water was turned off. Aubrey shifted slightly and straightened her posture, eagerly waiting for the moment when they would meet their host. Absently, she glanced down at her armful of clothes and saw that she was missing something. She hurried back into the bedroom to retrieve her missing piece and emerged quickly only to see that the bathroom door was wide open, warm steam still curling out from inside. It appeared she had just missed the occupant. Aubrey sighed and moved into the bathroom, depositing her clothes on the closed toilet seat and moving to start the water of the shower again. She preferred to meet their mysterious guest fresh faced, thank you very much.
As Aubrey climbed into the shower and immediately began washing her body, her mind started to wander, and she started wondering exactly whose house they were staying in. After leaving the Mexican Mafia restaurant, Benji had hailed them all taxis and taken them clear across town. The road to wherever the hell they were going to had been long and windy. Apparently Benji's 'friend' lived just outside the city in an apartment complex that overlooked the downtown LA area. It was a high end complex, easily costing a fortune to live here. However, the gate master had nodded in acknowledgement at their curly haired guide and they'd all been waved in without so much as a glance.
The ride up to the fifth floor had been cramped and awkward, with boobs shoved uncomfortably against others, but they all persevered. As all nine Bellas and Benji tumbled out of the elevator, Aubrey had taken in their surroundings. The entire hallway was posh and high quality and yet very simple and elegant. When he'd collected himself, Benji had traipsed over to door 5A and rapped sharply on the wood three times. There had been an awkward pause in which all the Bellas had congregated behind the curly haired boy, and suddenly the door had been yanked open to reveal Jesse Swanson with a shit-eating grin on his face.
"Hey guys, it's good to see you!" he had exclaimed happily.
"Jesse Swanson?" Chloe had been the one to remember the man's name first, to no one's surprise. "You live here?" Aubrey had been unable to say anything due to surprise. She never in a million years would have guessed that Jesse was Benji's mafia contact.
"Not really," Jesse said with a shrug as he'd opened up the door and motioned for all the Bellas to shuffle in, to which they had gladly complied. "My place is on the other side of town. A friend of Ben and mine is bailing me out until my apartment building is deemed livable." As they had stepped over the threshold, they all passed a dog curled up dejectedly at the door. Chloe was the only who had stopped to bend down and give the dog a gentle scratch behind his ears. The dog had whined softly but didn't move from his position.
"He's beautiful," Chloe had said to Jesse as she gave him a hug.
"I guess," the ex-Treblemaker shrugged. Looking at the dog, he was rather handsome, with thick fluffy black and white fur and knowing blue eyes like ice chips. "He's not mine though."
"Whose is he then?" Chloe asked curiously as she moved slightly to the side to give Denise room to hug Jesse.
"The homeowner's," Jesse had answered Chloe evasively. "All I know is his name's Teddy." The rest of the afternoon was spent catching up with Jesse and the rest of the Bellas. Jesse had ordered in from a pizza place around the corner, the number to the place apparently ingrained in his memory and his speed dial, under number four if Aubrey wasn't mistaken.
Throughout the course of the night, all of the Bellas had interrogated Jesse and Benji to try and see whose house they were in exactly, both individually and as a group. Stacie's questions stemmed mostly around the mafia and any connection the two might have with said mob. However, all the two men would say to both the apartment and the mob questions was that no, they were not in the mafia and that they were staying with a friend of theirs. No amount of pestering and badgering would get either of them to spill anything else and eventually the Bellas had given up.
Aubrey's questions were merely from a common courtesy standpoint. It was only natural that she thank their hostess. Perhaps a muffin basket? Aubrey was extremely interested in meeting their absent hostess to thank her for her hospitality and compliment her on the roomy three bedroom and two bath apartment. It was well furnished and styled. Aubrey was from a well off family and she could tell when others were well off as well, even when the rooms weren't flashy or over-bearing. In fact, the house was of simple tastes, decorated but not overdone.
What Aubrey was really interested in was what was behind the third door, which Jesse had informed them was nicknamed 'The Cave' and was actually the third bedroom. However, the door was locked, and if Jesse and Benji were tightlipped about whose apartment they were currently invading, they practically had no lips when it came to the Cave.
Around 11:30 the Bellas had all turned in, jet lag and the excitement of the day finally taking its toll. Jesse had helped them set up an impressive amount of air mattresses and sleeping bags (seriously, who kept four mattresses in the hall closet) and offered to crash on the couch. Benji had bid them all a good evening and left because of work the following morning. And as such, all of the Bellas were still out cold early the next morning.
She wasn't really surprised, Aubrey mused as she exited the shower and wrapped herself in a towel to blow dry her hair. She had always been a punctual and early riser, the habit actually coming in handy while dealing with 8 am classes. When her morning routine was complete and she was fully clothed, Aubrey stepped out of the bathroom with an audible exhale.
As she breathed in again (she studied her yoga class just like she studied her law books) she smelled delicious mouth-watering scents emanating from the kitchen. Aubrey was rather surprised (that seemed to be happening a lot lately). She hadn't thought Jesse could cook, he didn't really seem the type to her. But the smells coming from the kitchen certainly begged to differ.
Walking down the hallway, Aubrey heard the tail end of a conversation between Jesse and who Aubrey assumed to be the owner of the heavenly voice from earlier. The words were muffled, but Aubrey was able to make out the female voice saying, "New song they're working on down in the studio. I'm supposed to start helping out in a couple of days. The lyrics and everything are damn near complete but the new guys apparently aren't very receptive to any ideas so it's going to be a long process."
Jesse laughed slightly and said, "I can imagine." There was a beat of silence and then a teasing tone. "Trying to seduce me DJ-girl?"
The woman chuckled and responded easily, "You wish choir boy." Aubrey hesitated at the bend in the hallway, unsure if she should interrupt the two friends, if the familiarity in the two's voices was anything to go by. Although Aubrey supposed they could be romantically involved. Oh well, she was already up and eager to face the day. Going back to the bedroom to listen to Fat Amy snore wasn't really a pleasant option.
So, Aubrey took the last few steps and rounded around the corner. The first thing she saw that shocked her was that it wasn't Jesse cooking at all. Instead he was sitting at the island, watching the actual cooker. They were both still engrossed in their conversion which gave Aubrey the perfect time to appraise the chef. She, and it was obviously a woman, was small. She was nowhere near Aubrey's towering five foot eleven, probably closer to five foot four, if Aubrey was being generous. The second thing that Aubrey was inexplicably drawn to was the fact the woman was wearing a plaid shirt.
The last time Aubrey had seen someone that small wearing a plaid shirt was over five years ago.
But that wasn't possible, was it?
Aubrey caught Jesse's eye and his eyes widened comically, his end of the conversation dying on his tongue. The woman seemed not to notice at first. However, she soon trailed off with a cautious, "What?" and caught the direction of Jesse's gaze and slight nod. She seemed to brace herself, her shoulders tightening significantly, before she slowly started to turn around. When Aubrey saw the woman's face, she couldn't help it.
For the second time in as many days, she muttered in disbelief, "No way. There's just no effing way."
So when you gonna let me
When you gonna let me out, out
And if you know
How do you get up from an all-time low?
I'm in pieces
It seems like peace is
The only thing I'll never know
How do you get up?
Get up?
Ha you all thought that I was evil before didn't you? BWAHAHAHAHA! So do you like this cliffhanger any better than the last one? And fair warning, under no circumstances will the next chapter be released before either next Friday or Saturday. No exceptions.
Thoughts? Feelings? Miscellaneous threats? Drop a review!