A/N: Greetings, fellow pitches. I have returned, resurfacing from… well… whatever the hell 2020 was…
I'm writing this because I miss pitch perfect and Bechloe in general and I wanted to course-correct the ending of PP3 because let's face it, Bechloe should have been canon since the first movie (even if that's not how it ended, I enjoyed pp3 but have issues with the plot and will note it later on). Anyways, this is what I came up with to make them canon and improve upon pp3 in the still imaginary fourth movie.
I hope you all enjoy. Comments and reviews are always welcome. Like, seriously. It motivates me to finish chapters faster.
I don't own pitch perfect.
Beca tightened her scarf as she walked around central park. She let out a chuckle as her playlist started the next song on queue; timed perfectly as she actually entered the park's premises. The universe felt like it was trying to tell her something.
Staring down an endless avenue
The sun lasting the night, the end of June
Even in the crowds I find I'm always looking out for you
She had just finished recording an interview for a late night show about her upcoming projects as well promote the last single on her last album that was about to be released. Behind her, she was being shadowed by her bodyguard, Rob. He's been with her the last three years but she was still getting used to the fact that she's gotten that much famous. For a while back, having Rob around her was a necessity to stop her fans from mobbing her everywhere she went. She's been on a crazy roller coaster ride ever since, possibly even before that.
One man band still playing by the lights
This time around something just don't feel right
Heart-shaped bulb above my head
The things I should've said, you never knew
It's been five years. Five years since she last saw the Bellas in person. Five years since that fateful night on a world tour with her found family. Five years since her life had changed. All the dreams she's ever wished for when she was little and more came true. It's been a crazy five years of album recordings, launches, parties, interviews, dinners with executives, and meetings for collaborations. It's also been five years since she's last been to New York and had time to just roam around the city and reminisce, think back to the times that she last visited the park.
So much has changed since then. Of the Bellas, she only ever got to see Amy, and that's mostly due to her embracing her heiress lifestyle. But even that was rare. She's been so busy with work, and all the changes in her life that it was too late when she noticed the time passing her by. The last she actually had the chance to speak with the Bellas was two years ago during lockdown. Her PR agent encouraged her idea of doing a collaboration video with her friends as a fundraiser for UNICEF, what with the virus that swept the world turning everything upside down and all. Before that, the texts, the video messages, the group chats and all had already started to die down. The video was a hit, and Beca found the perfect excuse to summon her friends and re-establish that line of communication. She managed to wrangle control of her social media accounts from her PR agent and for a while, it was like the old days again.
But nothing was perfect. Real life happened. They all tried to stay in touch, and as much as Beca hated it, she was the first to get consumed by the busy life and times of a famous artist and music producer. Businesses grew, projects demanded their time, and of course, love lives kept the girls busy too. The eye roll that accompanied that thought was mostly due to a certain Bella's, but Beca buried the thought deep down in the darkest recesses of her mind, not wanting to even be reminded by it. Sure there were still season's greetings and happy birthday messages, but they came in less and less.
They grew further apart with each passing month, each passing year, and Beca feared that the family she had found were now nothing but a cherished memory. It was to no one's fault at all, she knew that but she feared that because of it, she was also now further away from the one thing that she let slip from her hands. She misses the Bellas, and yes the video was a silver-lining to her crappy year back then, but the real reason was painfully obvious. She misses Chloe.
You're burned onto my mind like a tattoo
I'll shoot an arrow straight down Fifth Avenue
The fortune teller says, "Let go of the road but sail across the blue"
Amy manages to check in with their pals more than she could, and she would sometimes give Beca updates about them, their former roommate. Last she heard from Amy, Chloe settled down in Atlanta where Aubrey and Stacie were. Beca couldn't bare ask more, just the mere thought of what's-his-face, the guy she caught Chloe kissing, made her stomach churn. She wasn't even sure if they were still together. She wanted Chloe to be happy, but Beca wasn't sure she could ever handle hearing the confirmation that she found happiness with a guy she just met on their tour with the military. It was partially her pride that's to blame their, she knew that.
She wished she tried harder to change how things went down. Sometimes she'd think back and wish Beca just built the courage to grab Chloe away and kissed her instead.
She wished she didn't let the fear of getting hurt stop her from trying to stay in touch harder, or that the jealousy that took over her didn't let her re-establish some of her walls. It was easier to just let herself be consumed by the prospects of the bright future she faced, and to let her new life consume her.
She also wished they had a more proper goodbye back then. She was swept of her feet with the promise of a bigger and brighter future, and Beca couldn't do much but go along with the ride. As soon as they arrived back from their trip, Beca was asked to pack her bags by her manager and she was jetted of to LA, where she has lived since then. The last thing she said to Chloe in person was promise of catching dinner again, and going on one of their long walks around the park.
That broken promise, one still left unfulfilled, was pretty much what's at the forefront of Beca's mind, every time she had the time to breathe.
I got half that photograph
The Empire State above the stars
You've still got yours, let's put them back together
And let's stay here forever
She has everything she could ever want now. But somehow none of them compared to living in a dingy apartment with Chloe, sharing a bed together when Amy moved in. Those long nights when her mind won't let her sleep because Chloe likes to cuddle, and she's so close that Beca couldn't help feel the things she felt back then. Or those moments when they'd just meet up at the park, waiting for Amy, and they would just talk – about their worries and fears for the future, complaining about their jobs, bosses, and clients. Or those moments when it felt like their budget was spread thin because living in the city was ridiculously expensive.
Beca found soon herself standing in front of the Bethesda Fountain, imagining those days she spent having nothing but Chloe's company keeping her sane and giving her the strength to face the uncertainties of tomorrow. It's like her feet had a mind of its own, wanting to revisit the places she frequented with Chloe, her soul searching for the redhead in the sea of strangers she's ran into.
Yes, she's got it all now. Yet somehow, Beca knows she'd give it all up. All so she could relive those simple days.
I see you standing in a sea of sparks
We'll find our way back to the start, oh
Because everything without Chloe?
Without the person you love?
Oh, I'll make my way back to Central Park
Trace the pieces of my broken heart
I'm chasing down a falling star
To where you are
I'm held together by your memory
Baby, won't you just come back to me?
I'll trace the pieces of my broken heart
Back to Central Park
Beca will never stop cursing the day she woke up with the clarity of the truth in her heart. Why did it take her so long to realize? How was she so blind? How did she not see what was right in front of her all this time, right within her grasps back then? Why did she realize the truth of what she felt for her best friend now that her chances had gone and slipped away?
"Beca," Theo, her manager, called her. The only reason she really heard him was because the song was coming to its end. For minute or two, Beca mulled over whether or not she'd pretend to not have heard him. She didn't to leave just yet.
But Theo persisted, and Beca takes off her earbuds and places them in the pockets of her blazer. "We need to leave soon," he then said.
Beca nodded, looking over to young woman, playing a song with her guitar, busking at the corner of the fountain. "Gimme' a sec," she replied, nodding over to the young artist, wanting to have an excuse to linger for even just a minute longer.
If only wishes could be dreams
And all my dreams could come true
There would be two of us standing here in front of you
If you could show me that someone that I used to be
Bring back my baby, my baby to me (my baby to me)
Beca's phone buzzed and she saw the message from Amy reminding her that she better not be leaving New York soon. Amy was getting married in a few days, and Beca's already missed her bachelorette party because of work commitments. She jotted down a quick reply, promising she wouldn't miss this for the world.
Mirror, Mirror hanging on the wall
You don't have to tell me
Who's the biggest fool of al
Mirror, Mirror I wish you could lie to me
And bring my baby back,
Bring my baby back to me
After all, she had to set a few things right.
Love, take me by the arm
Fly with me in this night
Run to me through the stars
Lay softly in this light
Chloe sighed, sitting by the window pain as she watched rain leave droplets on the glass. She was hoping the weather would clear up in time for their flight to New York tomorrow afternoon.
Love, love, love
Let's be bold
Let's be daring at the ball
So, so, so
They will stare
It's never bothered me before.
A lot of things weighed heavily on her mind. Listening to Beca's latest song as it finished playing on the radio wasn't exactly help her get the clarity she needed either. If anything, it only drove her crazy.
Run with me
Follow me into this dream
Where our dance will blind them all...
To their doubts, to my faults
Run with me
It's been five years. Five long years since Beca left New York for good, and since the Bellas had one final moment together. So many things have changed since then. Some good, like Chloe finding her calling as a vet. Some bad, like how the Bellas mostly lost touch. It wasn't for the lack of trying, and while still check in on each other once every couple of months or so, but it just wasn't the same anymore. Sure, they caught up during Amy's bachelorette party, but that doesn't really count since no one actually remembered anything that happened that night. Besides, Beca wasn't even in attendance then. She was still in touch of Aubrey, of course that would never change. They've been through a lot together, best friends for life. After a year of trying to actually make something of her failed relationship with Chicago and Chloe found herself awkwardly living with an ex-boyfriend for an extra month, moving back to Atlanta with Aubrey was almost a no-brainer. Her best friend warmly welcomed her in her humble home, one that she was shockingly sharing with Stacie and her daughter without telling anyone. Chloe has since moved into her own apartment across the hall, all while the two former-Bellas were still playing house with each other.
She was happy for Aubrey and Stacie, of course she was, but their whole situation made her miss a certain Beca Mitchell even more than she did before. Beca who slowly stopped responding to group messages. Beca who couldn't even keep promises to see the Bellas because of her work engagements. The last time she's seen Beca was during a video call to arrange her plan for a fundraiser video during COVID. Even then, one of her agents took control of the conversation while Theo, who became her manager, kept distracting her, reminding her of other things that required her attention. She even missed Amy's bachelorette party a few months back in Atlanta because something came up. All the Bellas somehow managed to make it despite the lack of constant communication. All except the one she cared about the most.
It bothered Chloe more than she cared to admit it.
Because seeing how Aubrey and Stacie's relationship blossomed constantly reminded her of Beca the lie they've shared in New York both before and Amy joined them. It reminded her of something she never had. Something she almost had and missed out on.
Now all that's left was an ache that won't go away. An empty place in her heart where she thought Beca would always be. And the universe was most definitely not helping. It almost felt cruel the way she couldn't escape her. Because Beca Mitchell was everywhere. On the radio, on the TV, on freaking podcasts. Even in other songs, the ones she'd listen to or absent-mindedly sing. Chloe just couldn't escape her.
You say you're leaving as you look away
I know there's really nothin' left to say
Just know I'm here
Whenever you need me
I'll wait for you
The thought of seeing her again soon for Amy's wedding made Chloe feel anxious. It felt like there was a great distance between them now that she wasn't sure how to cross. She wasn't even sure which she would hate more, Beca bailing out again or finding out just how much Beca has changed. Was she even still her best friend? Does she even still matter to Beca?
Chloe wasn't sure if she's ready to find out the answers. Life decided to take them on a separate journey just when things started getting better for them. Chloe thought they'd still be in each other's lives no matter what, she found it rather disappointing that it was not the case.
Or maybe it's because of a stupid decision she made, all stemming from the lack of control she felt over her life. The frustrations she felt of being stuck with Beca in a safe place were neither one of them seemed to want to cross the line. In Chloe's defense, it wasn't like she didn't try. She just wasn't sure if Beca even understood her attempts in the first place.
Now she's found her place in a world without acapella, without the Bellas keeping close to each other, and without Beca.
Take your time I won't go anywhere
Picture you with the wind in your hair
I'll keep your things right where you left 'em
I'll be here for you
Chloe bit her lip and closed her eyes remembering that final shining shimmering moments under the stage lights after Beca invited them on stage. She was proud of her, of Beca finally living the dream. But it came with such a bittersweet feeling. She felt like she was slipping away, and Chloe was afraid she would be left behind. When Beca pulled her in for a hug, she wished she had the courage that Jesse had back then. She wished she just kissed her and let her know the way Beca made her feel. But she didn't, and when Beca let her go, it felt like a silent goodbye, intended or not.
Maybe that's why she clung onto her pursuit of their military security detail. She didn't want Beca to leave her behind, that's why she took the first step towards something new. She got tired of waiting, of trying to figure out what the stolen glances meant, or those quiet moments where they run out of words and they just stare into each other's eyes, a silent understanding of what the other was thinking.
I'll set you free
And when you see what you need to see
When you find you
Come back to me
The trip they took felt like a final tour, their last hurrah before grew up and left Barden behind.
Chloe wiped away the tears she felt silently running down her cheeks. Why does she always have to be the one who cries?
She hated how different things were now. Sure, she still doesn't know how to feel about what was to come after Amy's wedding, but she told herself she shouldn't let the lingering sadness get to her. She was going to see her Bellas again. And maybe right now, apart is how things should be, but Chloe knew that one day, when push comes to shove, they would all come together for each other again.
The problem though was that every one of the Bellas took a piece of Chloe's heart with them. Beca taking the biggest one of them all.
So I'll let you go
And all that's left now is the growing presence of Beca's absence in her life.
And I hope you find everything that you need
I'll be right here waiting to see
You find you
Come back to me
Chloe smiled softly to herself. It was also raining when she moved with Beca to New York, reminding her of the humble beginnings of their life in the city. Those seemingly carefree days felt so far away now and all she has left were countless of photographs that always got her so emotional to look at. That and the lingering questions of what if's and maybe's between her and her best friend that she never did find an answer to.
The lingering question of if she, maybe, loved her too.
When you find you come back to me.
Chloe chuckled as she heard the next song on the radio. Her trip down memory lane taking her back to the start. The sweet promise of a new beginning back then. A fateful encounter that changed her life forever. One whose memory made her make a new promise to herself.
You shout it out, but
I can't hear a word you say
She may not know what was going to happen next, but Chloe doesn't want to live with the ghosts of missed chances, lost opportunities, and unanswered what if's and maybe's anymore.
She was going to get the answers she was looking for.
A/N Pt 2: Of course songs were included. Can I ever write a fic without songs? Songs used in the chapter include Central Park (by Union J), Mirror Mirror (by M2M), A Story of Us (by Chris Lind),Come Back to Me (by David Cook), and Titanium (by David Guetta ft. Sia). I decided to use the song by Chris Lind for the sake of this fic as a single by Beca. I wrote poems, and maybe I can throw that in, but I'd rather point out to a song already on YouTube so you guys can give it a listen to (kinda like how Flashlight ended up being a song released by Jessie J). The song was used in Smallville years ago. It's also the title of this fic ;3
How have all of you been, dearly beloved readers? I've been busy writing my own OG story the past year and decided to take a break (I finished book one, it's in the editing process, and I plan to start book two soon). While organizing a playlist for the final chapters of the first book of my OG series, I figured out the pitch perfect plot for PP4 (they should seriously consider hiring me, how do I apply to write it? Someone wanna give me a hand here and point me in the right direction – or point them in the right fic? I kid of course… or maybe not?)
I do hope you enjoy this. I missed fic writing and the plot of this story has been in my head the past year. I just finally found the missing pieces to make things work over the last week… so… yes, this is a spontaneous decision. For now, updates will be every Sundays, Mondays, and Tuesdays, except when otherwise noted (it works best for my work sched). As a bonus treat, chapter 2 will be up in a little while. The fic should be around my usual 25 chapters.
PS: Yes, they live in a post-COVID world (this is set during 2022). Let me be hopeful here.