Hi Guys. So, it took me months to complete this and I'm sorry, I had alot of crap happen the last 6 months. My father passed away and I wasn't able to get right back into this. I hope you understand. Thanks for still sticking with the story, I thought of it last week and read my reviews and requests and I wanted to make sure you guys knew why an update hadn't been made.
"How did you feel about that one, John? A little Macklemore for ya!" Gail made a face as the Symphonic Seven exited the stage.
"Well Gail...I'm going to pop some tags, and I only got twenty dollars in my pocket..." He went to pull out a twenty from his wallet, but grimaced at the fact he only had crisp hundred dollar bills. "Nevermind, need change first. Times are hard, Gail."
"That's unfortunate. It's the economy, John."
"Yes, we're all suffering," John counted his hundreds as the Symphonic Seven exited the stage. "But not as bad as the Symphonic Seven that last round."
"Now John, they weren't that bad. They are in the finals. They were in the top five."
"I've heard helicopter engines with better range."
As the group exited to backstage, the Bellas sidestepped and smiled as they passed.
Amy leaned over to Beca and whispered, "I would tell them 'good job', but that just seems cruel, don't you think?"
Beca held her smile and nodded. "I don't think they will be a problem."
When the group was out of sight, the Bellas exhaled and looked at each other expectantly. Nervously, she yanked at the hem of her skater dress as she turned to her girls, she needed them to come together for a pep talk. The teams were really good this year, frightfully so. As if the ass kicking the Bellas delivered last year struck some chords and got people to really bring their asses. Well, challenge fucking accepted, she thought. But as the Bellas gathered in a circle, the Trebles rounded the corner, nearly colliding into them.
As usual, Benji's hands sprung out in front of him to keep from causing injury, only to brush up against Stacie's boobs.
"Oh my god!" he yelped. "I am so sorry Stacie! I didn't mean...!"
"It's okay," Stacie adjusted her shirt like it was nothing. "You have warm hands."
Benji shoved his fists into his pockets and turned beet red. Jesse gave him a supportive pat on the back to calm his nerves, more likely from touching Stacie's erect nipples than being on stage soon.
"Why do I always run directly into their chests?" he asked softly.
Kolio shrugged. "Because you're a lucky bastard."
If that wasn't awkward enough, the creepy staring from Bumper wasn't helping things between the groups. Since the elevator, Amy had calmed down, but Beca felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand at attention. Several times she turned to see Bumper staring at Fat Amy. Hard. He'd just stand there staring at the back of her head as she practiced her steps with the other girls. He'd only stop when he noticed Beca glaring at him. He was up to something, she was sure. The tension backstage between the two groups was palpable, like the climatic scene in Beat It by Michael Jackson. She half expected someone to break out a knife and a choreographed dance number.
Beca took a chance to glance in Jesse's direction and he was leaning against a speaker watching The BeaTechs as they butchered Adele's Set Fire to the Rain. He was completely oblivious of her taking account of how his grey vest and burgundy skinny tie was fitting his nicely defined chest. They'd barely been able to speak since they arrived, both cornered off with their groups, except that one time he accosted her by the ice machine.
He was crushing her up against the wall, the hum of the ice machine sent vibrations up her spine. But she didn't concentrate on that. Just the feel of his plump lips as they caressed their way down her neck. She told the girls she was just going to get some ice, not get felt up by her boyfriend.
She sighed...no, moaned heavily, knowing that she had to break contact. She promised the girls that all her attention would be on them. But damn, his hands were kneading their way up her sides and she was supposed to get ice...she thinks...she forgets now...
"I have to go," she finally hissed out, his hand way too close to the snaps of her bra.
"Umph..." was the only reply.
She wasn't going to fuck him by the ice machine. She wasn't going to fuck him by the ice machine. She wasn't going to...
She was totally going to fuck him by the ice machine.
"Jesse, I have to get back," her persistence was irritating, but she made promises and they could resume this activity another time, in a more appropriate place.
Suddenly they heard a clearing of someone's throat, and his lips ripped away from her neck as they both slowly turned to the source of the sound. A woman and her small child stood there, harsh looks on their faces. Jesse lowered Beca back down to the ground and she tried her best to gather herself as they shuffled past the two.
"Oh my god," Jesse whimpered, embarrassed and aroused.
As they walked past the irritated woman, she muttered, "You might need to put some ice in your pants."
Jesse and Beca could barely contain their laughter as they scurried back around the corner towards their rooms.
"Cock blocked at the ice machine," he sighed dramatically. "I was trying to release some of this nervous energy tonight. And ya know, it is our anniversary."
"What are you talking about?" Beca looked confused for a moment.
"The first time we... ya know...did the deluxe package. Right here in this hotel..." he pulled her close to him even though she feigned annoyance.
"The deluxe package?"
"That's what I call it now."
"Please stop."
He just smiled wider and caressed her back. Beca took a moment to revel in his arms before she ruined it by asking, "Speaking of deluxe packages...um...is there...anything crazy you guys have planned for tomorrow?"
"That was a horrible segway and..." Jesse pulled back and gave her a side eye. "Why? What have you heard?"
"Just wondering..."
"You know I can't tell you that."
She settled a serious look at him. "You know how I feel about you guys and your surprises."
Jesse nodded in understanding. "I know too well. But seriously, Beca, I can't tell you anything. There isn't really anything to tell. We're just a group of guys singing covers of pop songs."
Beca wagged her pointer finger at, tossing him a sarcastic and unamused smile, "That's a load of bullshit."
"Acca-cuse me?" he looked shocked, but then scratched his chin and regarded her for a moment. "Look, how about I promise you this? Whatever it is, if it is anything at all, no one's gonna die. Or get hurt."
She cocked her head. What were they planning? "What does that even mean?"
"It means..." Jesse stepped forward, and leaned in slowly, descending down on her lips with a deep but soft kiss before he whispered, "Goodnight Beca."
"You're gonna pay for that," Beca warned. "I want to know! Don't walk away from me."
He backed away from her smiling, going towards his room.
Now she wished she could walk up to him, grab his tie and kiss his senseless, especially with all this pent up frustration. But, it wouldn't be fair. She'd suck all the oxygen from his beautiful lungs and she'd miss hearing his beautiful voice tonight. It wouldn't be fair to anyone if she robbed them of that. She needed to concentrate on winning. Of course at that moment of clarity, Jesse put his hands in the pockets of his well fitted Levis and bobbed his head to the bass of the song bringing focus to how nicely his jeans clung to his thighs. God... she chastised herself. Concentrate.
Ripping her eyes from her boyfriend, Beca caught Bumper's stare at Fat Amy again. What the actual fuck was he finding so interesting about the back of her neck?
Beca wasn't sure but she saw a flash of something in his eyes before Hat came over to talk to the group, which effectively blocked Bumper's view. Beca's nerves were beginning to unravel. She didn't know if she needed to be worried. Chloe's warning still haunted her in the back of her mind.
Fat Amy turned her head, for the first time sensing Bumper in proximity to the group and she gave him a glare Beca envied before turning back to the other Bellas. Beca was proud of Fat Amy for standing up for herself, but Beca found herself wavering a bit on Bumper. He seemed lost, hurt almost, as if he was aching for Fat Amy. Which was ridiculous because he did this to himself. But, in a way, she felt like he was genuinely missing her.
He looked as if he was about to give up the charade and go talk to her again when a stage hand walked between the groups, muttering something into his head piece.
"I got them. They're right here. Barden? Both groups from Barden. It's time for the coin flip."
The groups stood on either side of the lanky guy who was probably just doing this for some side money. He barely looked up at the two groups who were staring daggers at each other. In Beca's opinion, the coin flip was the stupid way they came up with the final two teams competing. Last year, the Bellas won and opted to go last, which worked for them. Hopefully, this year would be a repeat.
Beca stepped out in front as the boy produced a silver dollar. There's got to be a better way to do this, she thought, but right now was not the time to complain.
The stagehand listened to his ear piece and scribbled something on his clipboard, while asking, "Heads or tails? Champions pick."
Beca crossed her arms and picked, "Tails."
"So you're heads," the uninterested stagehand said as he pointed at Bumper.
Bumper shrugged. "That's cool. Nothing like good head."
The gross chuckles that emitted from his merry band of douches annoyed Beca. Jesse almost laughed but stopped after seeing Beca's unamused stagehand flipped the coin and everyone waited with bated breath as the coin came down in slow motion.
Heads. Shit.
Well played, she acknowledged to Jesse with a small head nod. His grin grew wider.
The Bellas groaned at the prospect of going first. True to form the Trebles chose them to go first.
"Ladies first," Bumper announced smugly. "I insist."
Beca went to say something cutting, preferably with a few curse words when she heard Fat Amy say, "That's new, you've never been able to accomplish that before."
Bumper frowned as everyone snorted at her comment.
That landed a smile on Beca's face as she turned to her group. " Whatever. Going first? No problem. We can go first."
Jessica nodded. "It'll just make them look even more pathetic for performing after us."
"Hey, don't you think Benji looks good in that blazer?" Stacie sighed, not even paying attention to the group. She was biting her lip and staring salaciously at Benji. "Like a math geek that needs a spanking."
Beca squinted her face. "Wait, what? No...stop."
"Focus," Cynthia Rose snapped her fingers at Stacie, who slapped her hand away.
Beca shook her head to clear her thoughts. "Okay, Chloe's out there wishing us luck. Aubrey's with us in spirit. We've gotten this far. We're going to do this and do it well..." Beca took a deep breath and looked at her girls. "Marty, Fat Amy, Cynthia Rose, you better sing your asses off. Lily...where's Lily?"
Lily suddenly stepped forward from behind a backstage curtain, holding a thick electrical wire that looked a little too worse for wear.
"What's this go to?" Lily asked.
"I think you need to leave that alone," Beca frowned at the gnawed wire in Lily's hand.
Why she had it, Beca didn't want to know. "Okay...Lily, um...you're amazing at what you do. Reagan, Jessica, Ashley, Stacie...I'm so proud of you, all of you. No matter what. You've worked so hard. Just remember that, okay?"
" In other words, kick their asses." Fat Amy smiled.
"Oh yeah, and there's that," Beca said. Before she could say anything else, the stagehand suddenly appeared in front of Beca like a genie, causing her to jump back and yelp.
"Oh my god!"
"Sorry," he actually looking more irritated than before as he said, "You're up next."
He disappeared just as suddenly. Beca let out a deep breath and straightened her back. "Alright aca bitches, it's time."
Beca doesn't remember the stage being so bright. Or so big. It seemed expansive, like it took her forever to walk to her mark on stage. She doesn't remember the hollow sound of heels clicking against the wood as they take center stage being so loud either. Everything seemed amplified at this moment. Her skin prickled on her arms, her cheeks flushed. The spotlight was almost blinding. She couldn't see the crowd, or the judges. Her eyes were shut as she looked down at her high top Converses, counting softly and putting the pitch pipe to her lips.
She doesn't remember if it sounded like this last year. That deafening calm before the storm. She heard the opening harmony of Ashley, Reagan, and Jessica; beautiful harmonies like butterflies flittering in the air and landing on her shoulders.
Ummm whaaaa
Ummm whaaa
Ummmm whaaa
Ummmmmwhaaaaaaaaaaaaa...
Memories of last year were fading at this moment. Instead, they were being replaced with Jessica's impressive range sprang forth from microphone at that very moment. Hey, wanna win the ICCAs? Here's Beyonce bitches.
Every night I rush to my bed...
With hopes that maybe I'll get a chance to see you...
When I close my eyes, I'm going out of my head...
Lost in a fairytale,
can you hold my hands and be my guide...
Marty's suprano joined her in the second chorus, blending beautifully, almost chilling.
Clouds filled with stars cover your skies...
and I hope it rains...
You're the perfect lullaby...
You can be my sweet dream or a beautiful nightmare...
Either way I don't want to wake up...
My guilty pleasure, I ain't going nowhere Baby 'long as you're here, I'll be floating on air 'Cause you're my sweet dream or a beautiful nightmare
Either way I don't wanna wake up from you...
The compilation had been difficult to piece together at first, but she made it work, and they moved fluidly across the stage, hearing the crowd cheer as they hit notes even Beca wasn't sure they could hit. Lily switched the beat and transitioned flawlessly to Taylor Swift's I Knew You were Trouble. Beca backed up Amy on this one, a song that she begged to sing for the last few weeks.
'Cause I knew you were trouble when you walked in
So shame on me now
Flew me to places I'd never been
'Til you put me down, oh
I knew you were trouble when you walked in
So shame on me now
Flew me to places I'd never been
Now I'm lying on the cold hard ground
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble
Oh, oh, trouble, trouble, trouble
Maybe it was therapeutic for Fat Amy, maybe she got some sort of weird catharsis from pouring her heart out on the microphone; whatever she was doing, Fat Amy sounded amazing.
"Come on, I can do it," Fat Amy replied during a practice, reaching to take the microphone from Beca.
"I know you can..." Beca had hesitated, her fingers were slow to release the microphone as she looked at her friend, concerned with the hurt that still lingered behind her eyes. Bumper did a number on her. She was slowly crawling out of that hole, but still..."I know you can do this. But should you?"
"It's either this, or punch a hole in the wall."
Beca definitely decided it was best to hand off the mic.
And now, Fat Amy was singing her heart out, all the pain Bumper caused her, laid bare on the stage. Beca understand the need to use it, she'd done that with Jesse last year, for different results, but she understood nevertheless. They brought all three songs in harmony with each other, something that took Beca weeks to perfect, but it was everything she hoped it would be. Lily dropped the beat and the girls just sang their hearts out. The mashup must have worked as people leapt out of their seats and clapped thunderously. Or at least she imagined they leapt. Kind of hard to see with the spotlight right in your face.
"I think we have a team to beat John. I mean, the Bellas didn't drop the ball once during that medley."
"Don't count the boys out yet, Gail. We're experts at dropping balls."
They walked off stage, rightfully smug.
Finally, Jessica got her group hug as the girls giggled and jumped, ecstatic at their performance and the audience response. Fat Amy couldn't wipe the smile off of her face. That was the room mate Beca missed. As they walked down to the audience, Beca felt incredibly light. She searched the crowd and saw a red head that looked like Chloe jump up and down holding a foam finger. Everyone could move the fuck out of the way after that. She couldn't see Jesse from the section they were told to sit in with the crowd to watch the Trebles perform.
The smugness within her was out of control. The Trebles stood no chance as far as she was concerned.
She sat back in her velvet chair and watched as her man walked on stage. He was smiling, and shaking his head as he hit his spot. Suddenly, her eyes drifted to Bumper who took center stage. He looked around for a moment, his hand over his eyes, as if he was scanning for something. Kolio pointed toward where the Bellas, and Bumper nodded before laying the most concentrated stare on Fat Amy. Like directly at her. As if there wasn't anyone else in the room.
"This is for someone special," he said, into the mic. "I hope she knows that she's my mirror."
The crowd awed and Fat Amy nudged Beca hard in the side. "What the fuck is he doing?"
"I have no idea," Beca muttered as remembered Chloe overhearing the Trebles having a plan. Her eyes darkened slightly."I swear to god..."
"Maybe we should leave?" Stacie whispered from down the aisle.
Beca looked at Fat Amy and back at Bumper. Jesse promised her no one would cry. He better hope so.
The girls began to stand up but Beca commanded them back. "No. Sit down. I want to see this train wreck."
She tried to seem unfazed as the lights dimmed and the boys hit some strange harmony, combined with a deep bass that sent chills up her spin. Uni hit the beat with such effectiveness, Lily tightened her grip on the arms of her chair. A soft light landed on Bumper and he took a deep sigh, his eyes never leaving Fat Amy as he began...
Aren't you somethin' to admire?
'Cause your shine is somethin' like a mirror
And I can't help but notice
You reflect in this heart of mine
If you ever feel alone and
The glare makes me hard to find
Just know that I'm always
Parallel on the other side
Of course. All her hard work and trash talk would so easily unraveled with a beautifully performed Justin Timberlake Mashup. Beca felt her heart rip out of her chest as her security in their win slipped away from her. She hoped whatever Bumper was doing was seriously for Fat Amy and not just for the win, because she swore to god she would rip his fucking head off. Jesse and Benji backed Bumper, up causing a few of the Bellas to twitch in their seats.
'Cause with your hand in my hand and a pocket full of soul
I can tell you there's no place we couldn't go
Just put your hand on the glass
I'll be tryin' to pull you through
You just gotta be strong...
'Cause I don't wanna lose you now
I'm lookin' right at the other half of me
The vacancy that sat in my heart
Is a space that now you hold
Show me how to fight for now
And I'll tell you, baby, it was easy
Comin' back here to you once I figured it out
You were right here all along
What the holy fuck was he doing? Beca turned her head slowly to see Fat Amy staring back wide eyed at the stage as all of the Trebles stood and looked directly to her as if no one else was in the room.
"Fuck me..." Fat Amy practically moaned out.
"I think that's the whole point of this," Marty whimpered.
Cynthia Rose and the others couldn't take their eyes off of Amy, awaiting a bigger reaction. She just closed her eyes slowly, gulped hard, and opened them as the Trebles continued to rip the stage. Beca was conflicted. She knew all too well what he was doing, the little troll stole it right out of her "fix my relationship" play book. Surely, he was mimicking her own attempt last year to regain favor with Jesse. She remembered standing right where he was, her soul bare- laid on stage for not only her intended to see. Her eyes were directly on Jesse, as she sung the hell out of Simple Minds like it was their personal theme song. That was her opus to Jesse. But here Bumper was, pouring himself into fucking Justin Timberlake like he was about to cry and ball up like a small child. God, she hated him so much, she was almost impressed.
The Bellas looked at each other and back at the stage, in awe, shock, envy and a bevy of other emotions yet to be determined.
Ohhhhhhhhhhhh oh ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Ohhhhhhhhhhhh oh ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Ohhhhhhhhhhhh oh ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Beca's trained ear caught it, the subtle way their voices blended the harmonies to a melody she struggled to place.
Ohhhh Ohhhh Ohhhhh
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh oh
Ahhhh Ahhhh Ahhhhh
Then of course, like a wave of raw sound, the beat switched and a new harmony transitioned the song, introducing Jesse's solo voice. Now this wasn't fair at all. She was still reeling from Bumper's part to Fat Amy and here Jesse was, his voice practically caressing the ears (and thighs) of every women in the room. His voice was haunting, almost painful in a beautiful way, and in exact opposition, Beca's eyes went wide as he closed his to concentrate on his part and hit those notes that made her burn inside.
And baby, it's amazing I'm in this maze with you
I just can't crack your code
One day you screaming you love me loud
The next day you're so cold...
One day you're here, one day you're there, one day you care
You're so unfair, sipping from your cup 'til it runneth over
Holy Grail...
Hat switched up the tone,as Benji and Bumper moved to the edge of the stage and continued to look at Fat Amy, only serenading her as they merged to the two songs together in a way Beca truly envied.
'Cause with your hand in my hand and a pocket full of soul
I can tell you there's no place we couldn't go
Just put your hand on the glass
I'll be tryin' to pull you through
You just gotta be strong
Jesse continued with his overlay with a continuance of chorus to Holy Grail by Jay Z and Justin Timberlake.
You get the air out my lungs whenever you need it
And you take the blade right out my heart, just so you can watch me bleed
And I still don't know why, why I love you so much, yeah
And you play this game in spite to drive me insane
I got it tattooed on my sleeve forever in ink with guess whose name
But I still don't know why, why our love is so much
The beat dropped and the Trebles moved to the front of the stage and sung pure unadulterated acapella, effectively turning Beca and every other person in there with an attraction to aca-boys into a seat of mush.
'Cause I don't wanna lose you now
I'm lookin' right at the other half of me
The vacancy that sat in my heart
Is a space that now you hold
Show me how to fight for now
And I'll tell you, baby, it was easy
Comin' back here to you once I figured it out
You were right here all along...
And right as they hit that last perfect note and Beca was ready to burst into tears at her inevitable lost, the crowd cheered and the Bellas slumped defeated in their seats. Somewhere off in the distance, maybe back stage, someone screamed "Oh my god!"
Then oddly, someone else screamed "Fire!"
Before Beca or anyone could ascertain what that meant, the sprinklers above opened, pouring cold water onto the crowd as the fire alarm blared.
The crowd went crazy, people began pushing other people out the way and yelling. Beca looked to see Jesse stop abruptly, panic clear on his face, and he seemed to scan the crowd for her before being ushered off stage by security.
Chloe's voice rang out from nowhere. "Beca!"
She felt Chloe tug on her arm to leave as she looked up and felt the water hit her face as the crowd scurried to exit around her. Fucking perfect.
****Writer's Note: I know Holy Grail might not have been released when the ICCA Finals were supposed to take place, but let's suspend that belief because I liked the song. Thanks.
Sweet Dreams by Beyoncé as sung by Pentatonix
I Knew You were Trouble when You Walked In Taylor Swift
Mirrors by Justin Timberlake
Holy Grail by Jay Z and Justin Timberlake