A/N: Hey guys here's chapter 14! Short update, and I might not be able to upload another one tonight, but I think I can update everyday this week except for Saturday, so there's that to look forward to.
Comments, reviews, and reactions are always welcome. That said, to the guest who's worried about Beca being the bad guy, don't worry! She's not. She's just in a difficult situation, and she's trying her best. She loves Chloe, no doubt about that. There's just a lot of things to consider. It's gonna' be a bumpy ride, but I promise to make it worth it.
We've got Lilly and Flo here :)
I don't own pitch perfect
The Bellas took on the dancefloor with as much poise and confidence they could muster. Aubrey tried to negotiate for some more time, but the judges turned them down. They expected punctuality, and no amount of superstar status could sway them. Chloe looked disappointed, and to be honest a little bit angry, but she sucked it up and gave the Bellas the pep talk they needed to get out there. Beca's absence and the lack of an actual training and practice session shouldn't stop them at all. They were still the Bellas after all.
The crowd looked to be just excited to watch them as they did with DSM. Lilly took the lead with the simple beats, allowing Chloe, Aubrey, Stacie, and Flo to start of their first song, each singing a line of their own.
All around me are familiar faces
Worn out places, worn out faces
Bright and early for the daily races
Going nowhere, going nowhere
The Bellas stuck to standing in the middle of the dance floor, starting of simple with their attempt of a haunting but solemn rendition of the song. Jessica and Ashley jumped in to provide the melodies as the rest of the Bellas joined the chorus.
And I find it kind of funny, I find it kind of sad
The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I've ever had
I find it hard to tell you, I find it hard to take
When people run in circles it's a very, very
Mad world, mad world
That's when Lilly started livening things up. Jessica and Ashley maintain the melody while she switched over to lay the ground work for the next song. Flo and Cynthia Rose start the song, with Stacie and Aubrey providing additional vocals, and Amy throwing in the adlibs.
Boys and girls of every age
Wouldn't you like to see something strange?
Come with us and you will see
This, our town of Halloween
Lilly was thankful that Pentatonix didn't choose to sing the same song from "The Nightmare before Chirstmas" during their performance. She wasn't sure if the Bellas would have met the same kind of performance. They had simple choreography thrown into the mix, but nothing as show-stopping as DSM's with their set from earlier.
This is Halloween, this is Halloween
Pumpkins scream in the dead of night
This is Halloween, everybody make a scene
Trick or treat 'til the neighbors gonna die of fright
It's our town, everybody (scream)
Lilly smirks a little as Amy actually shrieks while the Bellas' voice fade into a whisper towards the end of the last line. It was Chloe, however, who got the final words of the song.
In this town of Halloween
The Bellas then quickly spaced themselves out on the dancefloor, providing the transition, ending "This is Halloween" to move onto the next song. If Beca had made it in time, she was supposed to start "Ghost Town" by the Specials. The Bellas talked about having Emily cover for Beca and potentially take over her solo, but the Legacy had no chance to practice this, and missed her cue. Lilly glanced over to Aubrey, who quickly signed directions to the Bellas. This led to an abrupt transition into their last song for their set.
Flo jumped in to take the lead for the first line.
Thriller, thriller night
The Bellas quickly scrambled to figure out where they needed to be. Having skipped Beca's solo, some of them were far from where they needed to be. Amy tried to make up for it, injecting as much energy to her performance as she could with her solo.
It's close to midnight
Something evil's lurkin' in the dark
Under the moonlight
You see a sight that almost stops your heart
You try to scream
But terror takes the sound before you make it
You start to freeze
As horror looks you right between the eyes
You're paralyzed
But the damage was done. Lilly could tell from the confused reaction among the crowd. Her memory of some of the things that happened during her possession were a little bit hazy, but somehow, the performance they managed to scrape up together with all the last minute changes reminded her of some of the Bellas' earlier performances.
'Cause this is thriller
Thriller night
And no one's gonna save you
From the beast about to strike
It's not that they were bad, they were just disjointed. They were all sorts of out of sync with each other as they danced throughout the rest of "Thriller."
You know it's thriller
Thriller night
You're fighting for your life
Inside a killer, thriller tonight, yeah
The mixed reception of their performance after they finished was the definitive proof of it.
It was short, not as spectacular but wasn't bad either, just lukewarm.
But by then, it was clear who won the round.
Flo had her chin resting on her hand as she nursed her drink at the bar, surrounded by the rest of the Bellas. How Stacie found the only dive bar not packed with people on Halloween is beyond her. The Bellas left the Halloween Bash earlier and soon headed towards the place for a drink after their disappointing loss. They didn't exactly want to be in the same room where DSM celebrated their win, especially after they found out that the surprise bonus prize for their second round face-off was a bonus prize cash of 2 million dollars.
They've been there for maybe about an hour already. Stacie and Aubrey had just left to head home early and check in on Bella and their babysitter. Chloe was sitting on a stool next to her, brows practically stitched together. She already snapped at Amy who was trying to provide explanations and defenses in behalf of Beca who wasn't answering her phone. So far, only Lilly seemed to be able to have a conversation with the former Bellas captain while she considered her options for the night. Flo guessed she probably wanted to see if Beca was still going to show up or not, maybe give her a piece of her mind. The Bellas had taken bets on it earlier.
Cynthia Rose, on the other hand, was on her phone as well, texting her wife with updates. She came to support the Bellas with Benji but went on ahead back to their hotel when the Bellas left the Event Center. Benji and Emily were talking in one of the booths, the former Treble doing his best to cheer up his girlfriend with some simple magic tricks. Jessica and Ashley went to check the music selection of the old jukebox by the corner of the bar. Amy was nervously eyeing the bar door, also constantly texting someone. She guessed it was Beca but it may as well have just been Bumper who didn't come on the trip with her. She was worried he'd get Aubrey all riled up and go on full Aca-Nazi mode.
Flo sighed. Their lukewarm performance was a sad way to lose out on the perks they very nearly won. Flo couldn't help but wonder how things would have gone if they managed to deal with DSM back in the prelims. It would have still been disappointing to give an unpolished set during the Halloween Bash but it would have sucked less than losing to their archrivals.
Flo finished up her drink, considering whether she should get back to her hotel room herself and ask if any of the other girls would like to head on back with her – they were all staying at the same hotel. Cynthia Rose at the very least looked like she was about ready to go. She ultimately decided to stick around for a few more minutes.
"There you are!" she heard Beca exclaim as she marched into the dive bar. Flo wasn't sure if she meant the group or Chloe, but she looked frantic, apologetic even. Right behind her were her team, all scuttling towards one side of the joint, trying to minimize their presence.
Beca looked absolutely fantastic in her costume. Flo didn't have the faintest idea of what she was, but she looked good nonetheless, every detail professionally done. But none of the girls threw any compliments her way. They still felt disappointed about the outcome of their one-versus-one with DSM, not to mention they could feel Chloe's displeasure about the entire thing bubbling underneath the surface. Amy put away her phone as Beca made made her way inside. The Bellas all started exchanging looks before stealing glances from Chloe, who looked unyielding.
Flo waved her hand towards the bartender, signaling for another drink.
She could tell, the evening was far from over.
A/N Pt 2: Well, there goes the perks…
We'll have some conversations in the next chapter. The Bella's Halloween Mash-up were based on The Spell's Halloween Medley sans the Harry Potter theme intro. Songs included are Mad World (by Michael Andrews), This is Halloween (from The Nightmare Before Christmas), and of course, Thriller (by Michael Jackson). Check it out at the link below:
www dot youtube dot com slash playlist?list=PLEbWZQ6nwYXxFjX9z3vft3leEz7dN9K_5
For the sake of imagining what Beca's song would have been, I added Ghost Town (by The Specials) in the playlist. The lyrics below would have been what Beca sang before the Bellas made the transition into the last song of the medley (just to let you guys have an idea on how it could have gone). The song (and music video) kinda gives off some 2020 vibes, if you know what I mean.
This town (town) is coming like a ghost town
All the clubs have been closed down
This place (town) is coming like a ghost town
Bands won't play no more
Too much fighting on the dance floor
Do you remember the good old days before the ghost town?
We danced and sang, and the music played in a de boomtown
