Last Chapter of Meet Me at Stagedoor. Go vote in my poll if you have any other ideas for stories or you want me to continue this one in some way. Thanks, as always, for reading...
Guest: Hopefully if my teachers give me a break from homework!
She didn't know what had gotten into her. It was as if her whole 'leave me alone' vibe melted away, ever so slightly. Beca had finally given in and she could tell, she made the right decision.
She would never admit it to anyone, but she liked the way she would sit on his lap during the campfire, his arms wrapped around her. Even though she scowled when he would steal a marshmallow off her stick, it was enough to just see his eyes light up in delight. He had also gotten into the habit of kissing her as payment, something that she wasn't going to complain about.
Maybe she liked how he would throw her juice pouches before class, sometimes stuck with post-it notes of songs or movies she should check out. He would never find out that she kept each one of them, filling up a shoebox under her bed.
Beca would deny it if you ever asked her, but she was happy.
He made her happy.
The rest of the summer felt like the weeks turned to minutes and the days turned to seconds. Soon enough, it was time to start the lengthy process of packing up. Jesse watched from her bed as Beca chucked clothes into her suitcase, not even bothering to fold them.
"You remember this?" He asked, reaching up to grab a clam shell she had placed on her shelf.
It was about three days or so after his infamous performance. She was getting better at letting him put his arm around her in the mess hall, still a little jittery with all the looks she would get from her fellow campers. He was getting better at letting her sleep in the morning, slipping in to leave her a coffee and bagel on her desk for her first class.
They were in sync...totally and completely.
Even Beca couldn't deny it.
That day, Jesse had suggested that the two of them spend their free afternoon kayaking on the lake. Jesse, knowing Beca, already knew what she was going to say...and he had planned accordingly.
"You have to promise," she said, eyeing the lifejackets with a darkness in her eyes, "Jesse...promise."
"Yes, Bec. If you come with me, I will do your laundry for two weeks. Now can you get in the kayak?"
With a huff, she took his hand as he led her onto the plastic death trap. She crossed her arms, pulling the baseball cap over her eyes. Beca Mitchell was not one for sun.
He followed her, a grin present on his face. As they pulled out of the docks, he started to hum "My Girl" which made her scowl soften, ever so slightly.
It would've been a perfect afternoon if one of them could actually kayak. Instead, he rowed one way and she rowed the other. He rowed harder and she pretty much gave up. They ended up just spinning in circles, still tied to the dock, 20 feet away.
She didn't mind.
Beca enjoyed the low gurgle of the water as the oars made contact with the salty abyss. She enjoyed how the sun danced on the top of Jesse's head, lightening his chocolate locks. Beca even was okay with the threat of the snapping turtle that had caused an uproar in the camp the previous day.
He had tried to find her a pearl, but there weren't any oysters around. Also, there probably weren't pearls in the small, saltwater lake by the camp. He did find her a clam shell and she was more than happy with that.
…..
"Of course I remember," she responded, glancing at him from inside her closet. She was buried in a series of tops and shorts and jeans, covered head to toe in a tower of garments.
"How about this one?" He called out, picking up the curled guitar string from her dresser, unravelling it in his hands.
…..
"Jesse, you're tightening it too much," Beca said, shielding her face from the guitar. They had snuck away from the evening activities, finding solitude in his cabin as he promised to play her a song.
They had grown accustomed to each other's presence rather quickly. When they would first sneak away at night, Chloe almost had several panic attacks. It wasn't her fault that she thought Beca was eaten by a bear. In her defense, her friend was pretty small. Now, Chloe knew that, in fact, Beca was alive, winking at her friend when she returned to the cabin later at night.
"No, I'm not. Just you watch," he replied, strumming once before twisting the tuning peg once more. Much to his dismay, the string popped off, hitting Beca right across her face.
"Told you," she huffed, apply pressure to the reddening spot.
Jesse, unlike Beca, was not composed in the slightest.
"Beca!" He yelled, "There is no cell service here. I can't call an ambulance. Beca. Beca!"
Before she could tell him that the worst that would happen was that she would get a black and blue, she felt his arms wrap under her, picking her up bridal style. He carried her from his cabin, past the lake, and even pass the display of freshly baked cookies in the mess hall.
"Beca. Say something," his eyes were wide with desperation, "I took a CPR class last year."
He had deposited her on one of the cots in the infirmary, continuing to throw bandages here and there, searching for an eye patch.
Placing it gently on her slightly swollen eye, Jesse continued, "I've only practiced on CPR dummies, but I can save you... I think."
Watching him in such a frenzy, Beca couldn't contain the laugh that was bubbling to the surface and when she started, she couldn't stop.
Jesse just stood over her, his head tilted slightly to the side.
"Come here, you weirdo," Beca laughed as she kissed him straight on the lips.
Between kisses, she heard him mumble under his breath, "You are the sexiest pirate I've ever seen."
…..
"Oh, I remember that," Beca said, throwing a handful of jeans into her open suitcase, "You made me wear that eye patch for a week."
Jesse laughed in response. "But see, you're all better now," he kissed her head, before pulling her on top of him on her bed.
Together, they stayed, as he played with the ends of her hair and she trailed a finger over his arm.
"I don't want to go," she whispered and before she could even elaborate, he continued, "I don't want you to go."
…..
It was the day after his performance to her and they were both sitting in detention. They didn't even know they had detention at summer camp. Turns out, Miss Keener wasn't thrilled with the whole, "disgusting, inappropriate, brain cell melting lyrics" of "Ignition" and she sure did not approve of the "sex eyes" the two of them were giving each other.
So, here they were, putting away the lifejackets and kayaks in the boathouse. It was late and it was probably against camp policy to make them stay past 11 PM, but rules didn't matter to Miss Keener. She had said that they were to leave at 12 PM at the latest. She did have to teach them tomorrow morning and they needed to be wide awake.
"Beca," Jesse whined, slipping his finger under her cover up, under the ties of her black bikini.
"Jesse. No," she commanded him, returning to stacking the lifejackets on the shelf.
He was persistent. She would give him that. He came up behind her, placing little kisses on her neck, brushing her hair to the side.
She froze for a second, under the spell of his touch, before returning back to her task. She would not give him his way.
"Beca," he whispered in his ears, his voice low and his eyes clouded with desire. She turned around to look at him, the soft glow from the lantern only illuminating half his face.
"Jesse," she responded, turning around to face him, his body inches from her own.
"Beca," he said, placing his hands on her waist, letting his fingertips brush over her exposed skin.
"Jesse," Beca responded, her voice almost too soft for him to hear.
"Beca," he tried one last time, brushing the fallen strand away from her eyes.
"Oh, what the hell," she smiled, standing on her tippy toes to kiss him. The warmth of his arms folded around her, picking her up so her legs wrapped around his own.
Let's just say that they were at the boathouse for much longer than midnight.
…..
Before he fell asleep, holding her close, he whispered, his head in her hair, "I love you."
He didn't think she heard him, her breathing hushed, but in fact, she turned around, kissing him gently.
Even if she didn't say it back at the time, her actions spoke louder than words.
…..
Now, the sun shown through her window, bouncing off the two of them as they laid on her bed.
"Come to Boston with me," he said, twirling her hand on his finger, "I know you got in. I saw the acceptance letter while you were packing."
Beca looked up at him, meeting his gaze with her own.
He continued rambling, hoping that if he continued talking, she wouldn't verbalize the response that he didn't want to hear.
"Boston University is 10 minutes away. We could wear Yankees gear to Red Sox games and stuff our faces at Quincy Hall. There is even a ghost tour at the Boston Common…"
"Jess," she stopped him, "What about New York University? That was your dream." Beca propped herself up on her elbows, adjusting herself so that she was over him.
He was quiet for a second, the words still not being able to formulate from his mouth. If he said it out loud, it was real.
She understood, knowing what he would say before he could say it.
"Yes," she said, resting her face on his chest. The steady beat of his heart silenced her mind and quelled his racing dreams.
…..
"If you don't call," Chloe said, her finger pointing Beca straight in the eye, "I will personally come down to Boston, pulling the two of you out of your love shack and kick you all the way back to Portland."
Chloe's face returned back to it's less demonic looking state as she pulled Beca into a hug, "I'll miss you so much."
"I'll miss you too, Chlo," Beca laughed, her hand still holding to to Jesse's.
"And you," Chloe moved to stand in front of Jesse.
"What the hell happened this summer? The two of you wanted to rip out each other's guts and now," she motioned between the two of them, "this….whatever this is."
Beca threw her last suitcase in Jesse's car, opening the passenger door, "I've learned to just go with it."
Chloe left, waving at the two of them as she got in her own car, packed with her matching luggage.
The roar of the engine of his car broke the tender silence of chirping birds and retreating waves as the two of them made their way to The Walking City. She slapped his arm gently when he started playing "Something Stupid," changing the track to "Ignition." One thing was sure, they were ready to leave behind the summer for a new adventure.
Yes? No? What do you think? Oh and vote in the poll!