There was something about that shade of painfully bright red that made a lasting impact on Beca's mind; that piercing blue that seemed to send her whole world grinding to a halt. And oh GOD that ridiculously high pitched peppy voice- it annoyed the shit out of her but at the same time twinkled over her ears like a wind chime. What was her name? Chloe
Chloe
There had been a girl in Beca's 3rd grade class named Chloe. That's why she remembered the name- Chloe had frizzy black hair, a lisp, and always used to share her PB&J's with Beca. But this Chloe was so different. This wasn't the 3rd grade and what passed between them in those couple of minutes on the quad wasn't as simple as PB&J. That short conversation didn't seem like much at the time- some overenthusiastic little "aca-weirdos" trying to recruit some new voices. It was how she felt after; it was the stupid smile that crept across Beca's face without her even noticing. It was the way she couldn't stop thinking about her perfectly mascaraed eyes and perfectly glossed lips.
Chloe was a ray of sunshine, a sparkling smile on a sparkling face. Even her hair sparkled a fiery red. Beca had spent four years of high school mocking girls like her. She used to sit in the corner of the Caf with her best guyfriends and talk shit about the cheerleaders and football players and theater kids. They used to mix CDs and compare tattoos and laugh at the "cool kids" with their sparkling personalities and BMW convertibles that shined as brightly as their unnaturally white teeth. Why, then, was she so inexplicably drawn to Chloe?
Beca put her headphones in and cranked up the volume to drown out the painful silence echoing across the hostile expanse of her dorm room. The last thing she needed to worry about was making friends- especially with someone whose favorite pastime was singing their way through Gloria Estefan's greatest hits. Her roommate was a stone-cold bitch so there was no danger of a friendship blooming there. She would just survive the term and then get the fuck out of town.
What she needed right now was to find herself a job mixing somewhere, get her dad off her back, and take a long, hot shower.
Chloe sighed.
The response they had received on the quad today was… less than spectacular to put it nicely. Out of the maybe 10 girls who would stop and listen probably 5 will show at auditions- and who the hell knows if they even have any talent? A few had shone potential- that one girl in the combat boots, Beca, seemed… interesting. Her giant headphones meant she MUST be into music, right? That's a start! She's not quite the image Aubrey was looking for on the Bellas, but maybe they needed a new image.
Beca
What was it about her that lingered in Chloe's mind? Her hair hung around her in that carelessly perfect way; her eyes had a sparkle in them that no amount of sarcasm or sass could hide; but no, it was something else. Something Chloe couldn't quite place… The tattoos floated over her skin light as a butterfly's wings yet seemed to carry a weight, a significance that Chloe was intrigued by.
It took so much self-control for Chloe not to reach out right there on the quad and run her fingers over the patterns, feel the warmth of her porcelain skin...
As she pounded away the day's stress on the treadmill Chloe found herself thinking about those tattoos. God, there was something so exciting about Beca's offhand remarks and "I-don't-care" attitude. She oozed bad-assery. Chloe had spent most of her life avoiding those shady guys with the tattoos and piercings. She was clean cut- the singer, the cheerleader. Beca was the exact opposite. She was all studs and leather and so not the Bella type- but some little aca-inkling deep down inside Chloe was telling her, screaming at her that there was more to Beca than just her hardcore exterior.
The work-out playlist on her iPod ended and Chloe stepped off the treadmill. She mopped her face with a towel and turned to leave the gym.
"Hey, Red"
Chloe spun to face the free weights in the corner. Her eyes met toned abs, bulging biceps. "Tom, hey. I didn't notice you were in here" She walked over to him, reaching up to feel his arms. "Ooh someone's been lifting" She winked. This was what she needed. A good, hard flirt.
He smiled down at her, tucking a sweaty strand of hair behind her ear. "You're not too bad yourself, Red"
She pressed her body against his with a grin. "I was thinking about hitting the showers… you feeling up to join me?"