A/N. (I don't own most of the characters and certain parts of the plot. Courtesy goes to the creative team behind the movie Pitch Perfect.) So here goes my first shot at a Pitch Perfect fanfic! Hope you guys like it! R+R please! =) SPECIAL THANKS TO your-arms-around-me FOR ALL THE HELPFUL CRITIQUE AND ALSO TO TheFlameRose FOR OFFICIALLY BETA-ING THIS CHAPTER.
With One Note: Part I
Chapter 1-1: The Notorious Bastard
Chloe sat at the bar to hit on some cocktail. It was the last Sunday before school started, and everyone else was having a final blast at a party in this resort Aubrey dragged Chloe to. The night was young, but the redhead was bored stiff with herself. Apparently, this wasn't her idea of a final blast.
"What can I get you, pretty lady? Tequila? Or are you the Rye Malt type?" The bartender perked up in front of Chloe.
Chloe checked her mood to decide which drink might match it."Oh, uh, well I, uh-,"
"Hey, McDowell. What's rockin'?" A petite brown-haired girl asked, sitting on the stool beside Chloe.
The bartender greeted back with enthusiasm. "Hey there, Deejay! You up for some Bourbon Lancer?"
"Yep. Make that two," the brunette chuckled, gesturing to Chloe.
"Oh. I didn't realize she's your company," the bartender said, retreating to go make their drinks.
The odd brunette held out a hand, ready to shake Chloe's. "Name's Beca."
"Chloe." She accepted the handshake.
"Wow Chloe, you're rocking that blue bikini!"
"You can actually see it through this?" Chloe asked, gesturing to the black lace beach tunic that she wore over Aubrey's bikini. The redhead wasn't really feeling comfortable with it. The only reason the bikini incidentally got transferred into her possession was that her best friend was a fashion Nazi, who threatened to send Chloe to concentration camp if she didn't lose the tank top and denim shorts.
"Well, it's black, and basically the electric blue under it kind of highlights itself out so, yes. I can."
"Wow Beca, that's some fashion eye you got there." Chloe winked. By first look at Beca, she had assumed that the girl was some natural introvert; that through the thick eyeliner hides a mysterious girl with a sad story. Well, Beca barged in, buying her a drink before introducing herself and had criticized Aubrey's bikini out loud, so Chloe definitely had her cards messed up.
"Shhhh!" Beca leaned in a little to Chloe. "That's just between us. They refer to me as a Notorious Bastard around here." She chuckled.
"Badass, huh? Well, I say you're adorable," Chloe mocked.
Beca wrinkled her nose while holding a smile - something Chloe found so cute. "Sorry, I already had some shots earlier. Some tall blondie tried to talk me out of something by bribing me with alcohol." She chuckled. "It won't surprise me if I go back to the stage walking tipsy after the Lancer… Speaking of the devil…"
The bartender returned with the drinks. "Two Bourbon kicks right here," he announced, placing the glasses before the ladies.
"Thanks, McDowell." Beca reached out for her pocket and paid the man for both drinks.
"So Beca, you're a deejay, huh?" Chloe said before sipping from her glass.
"Not exactly the perfect label, but yeah, you could say that. I just do simple gigs though. I mean, I'm a fresh shit who just left high school and is currently enrolled at a hell barn around so the deejay thing will have to be official some time other than today." She frowned and then shook her head, trying to regain her sanity. "God! My words don't even make sense anymore. I'm sorry Chloe I'm just - tired." She slammed her head to the counter.
Chloe smiled at Beca's comical mannerism. "No, it's okay. I actually kinda enjoy your company."
"Good." She raised up her head and looked at the redhead, her eyelids drooping. "But you'll like me less when I'm sober."
She raised an eyebrow at her. "Oh yeah? Why is that?"
"Because the real me is a big-time bitch." Beca chuckled at the thought. "People don't really like me for my inability to feel, so I just don't really like them back." She kept a smile, apparently displaying pride at her own confession.
"Wow. That was so - so straightforward." Chloe couldn't tell if it's the truth or it was just the alcohol speaking. In any case, she found herself gripped to Beca's mysteriousness.
A ringtone went off. Beca immediately reached for the pockets of her jeans, locating her phone.
She held it to her ear as soon as she successfully grappled it out of her pants. "It's Beca, bitch. What's up?" Beca's eyes widened right after. "Oh, hi Dad!"
Chloe spit her drink a little at the blooper.
"Dad, calm down. I'm still at the resort. I still owe Jackson and the guys another 45 minutes so I won't take off 'till then... Uh, no I haven't been drinking." She glanced sideways at Chloe who shot both her eyebrows skyward at her silly lie. "I know, dad. I told you - not one sip... Okay, bye." Beca hung up and indiscriminately tossed her phone to the counter.
"Your dad actually bought that?" Chloe giggled.
"I doubt it. He knew he was speaking to the alcohol that is already all over my system. I guess he's just too tired from work to actually care." Beca quaffed on her Lancer, deepening the irony on purpose.
A man's voice came up out of thin air. "Hey, sexy." As he approached, he propped his elbows at the counter, just beside Beca. McDowell attended to him as he ordered a drink.
Beca rolled her eyes upon realizing who it was. "Come on, Chloe. Let's get out of here."
She was about to stand up when the guy sardonically spoke. "Hey babe, don't leave me here all alone. Where are you going?"
Beca glared at him. "What do you want, Haull? Want me to introduce you to my fist?!"
"Woah there, deejay sleazebag. I'm not here to grab the spotlight again when you go on a date with the clinic." Haull's face was met by Beca's left hook, making his last two words barely audible. He dropped to floor, knocking along two other guys and a waiter with his tray.
Chloe gasped; she totally didn't see it coming. The little brawl has already drawn attention from the club crowd. Seeing Haull's nose starting to bleed profusely, Chloe placed a hand over her shocked expression. Who knew that Beca could take down such a big guy with her tiny frame?
Beca got down to Haull and clutched the collar of his now blood-stained shirt - pulling him up a little. "You know what, punk?!..." She said with conviction. "I can do this all night!"
"Beca!" Chloe called from her stance, afraid to touch the brunette. She will literally just fly off with one backward swing of Beca's resistant arm if even she tried to restrain her.
Beca ignored Chloe's voice. She let go her grip on Haull, dropping him back flat on the floor. With her fist still clenched, Beca raised her left arm, positioning herself ready to throw a crisper hook. She was about to swing it when another guy gripped Beca by her arm and grappled her neck - finally restraining her, and pulled her away from Haull.
"Beca, calm down!" The guy spoke low to Beca's ear, apparently bridling the urge to indiscriminately scold the drunk girl.
Beca struggled to free herself from the guy's arm which was locked around her neck. "Fuck it! Let me go, Jesse!" But he was determined in his grip. People were pooling more and more around them, but Beca didn't seem to care. She just kept on making a larger scene.
Jesse looked to the bleeding man that Beca had knocked over. "Haull, just go!"
Without hesitation, Haull got up weakly and ran away from the scene. Right after that, Jesse freed Beca, who panted as she tried to calm herself down from her rage.
"Show's over!" Jesse yelled over to the curious crowd. They shrugged and dispersed, like they were disappointed more hadn't come of the fight. Chloe stayed - hoping to be able to comfort her new-found friend.
"What the hell, Jesse?!" Beca reproached, glaring at him.
Jesse ran a hand to his hair, holding in another impulse to say something that might trigger Beca's inner fury again. "That's it, Becs; we're leaving."
"Who said I'm obliged to listen to you, huh? I'm staying 'till this whole party is fucking over." Beca arrogantly argued.
"Do it, and I'm telling your father all about this mess." Jesse said, speaking in the alpha tone.
Beca, still glaring at him, took a deep breath. She hated Jesse's ability to manipulate her so easily. Caving in, she rolled her eyes and walked away, already heading for the parking lot.
"Beca," Chloe began, but the brunette simply walked past her. Jesse followed shortly.
"Hey!" Chloe called out to Jesse, who stopped and turned to face her. "Jesse, right?"
He nodded.
Chloe held out Beca's phone, which had been tossed at the counter just before Haull charged in. "Beca left this." She handed it to Jesse.
"Oh thanks."
"Um, Jesse? Can you tell Beca to text me when she gets home? I um, just want to make sure that she'll be okay. I saved my number in it." Chloe sheepishly said - trying to avoid any awkwardness as she thought of Jesse as Beca's boyfriend or something.
"Yeah, sure." Jesse smiled at her before taking off.
"Hey, Red. Who was that guy?" Aubrey appeared suddenly, causing Chloe to jump.
"Gosh, Bree!" She placed a hand over her heart as she let out a sigh. "Next time, send a warning."
"You haven't answered my question yet!" Aubrey squirmed enthusiastically.
"No one! He was I think the boyfriend of the girl I was talking to earlier."
"Oh." Aubrey puffed her cheeks playfully. "You know for a second there, I was about to call Tom and tell him that you've found a new mate." She winked.
"Hey," Chloe raised a hand, signalling Aubrey to slow down and back off of the lies. "Tom and I aren't dating. We're just good friends. And that guy I was talking to, he's nothing."
"Ten bucks, says you got allured to something interesting tonight." Aubrey bet, doubting Chloe by her defences. Chloe rolled her eyes at Aubrey's drunken dare.
But she must admit, Aubrey had already won the ten bucks. She did find herself allured to something interesting, just not anything equating to Jesse - as Aubrey apparently thought. It was Beca. Something about her captured Chloe. May it be Beca's smooth left hook on Haull, or her unexpected fashion eye, Chloe didn't know. She was sure of one thing, though; Beca poses behind a mask. She definitely sees the brunette as something much more than the 'badass' behavior she sported tonight.
That notorious bastard... Chloe thought once more.
Beca woke up the next day with dry mouth and a throbbing headache. She squinted and looked at the time, grunting in vexation when the little green numbers came into focus. After taking a shower, she went to the kitchen to grab herself a cold glass of water.
"You went home early last night," Sebastian grunted, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes as he approached the kitchen.
"Jackson changed his mind at the last minute," Beca lied. She opened the cupboard to get her cereal box and walked to the dining area.
Sebastian followed behind his daughter. "You also just missed a class, Bec."
Beca rolled her eyes. "Uh, no. The clock reads 9:44 in the morning. Technically, I still have sixteen minutes before Psychology 101 starts."
She sat at the table and poured corn flakes and milk into her bowl. Sebastian sat across her.
"I thought you said you love that class." He watched her eat.
Beca spoke with her mouth full. "I do, dad. And I wouldn't be missing it if I actually live in a dormitory inside campus instead of this stupid house which is, like, forty minutes away from Barden."
Sebastian let out a sigh. "Beca, we've talked about this."
"Yeah," she sighed, "I know, Dad. You don't feel comfortable with no one watching over me. Well, in case you didn't know, Barden's dorms allow roommates. I won't really be alone. Plus I got 911 and your number on speed dial, so I don't get why you feel the need to worry over me all the time," she explained.
Sebastian couldn't find the words to say back. Her daughter was right. He was simply playing the overprotective dad card. Just like he always has.
This brought Sebastian to another topic. "I know you drank shots last night."
"Dad, we've talked about this." Beca mockingly imitated her father's expression. She definitely loathes her alcohol restraints.
"Yeah, but you know - I'm just concerned." Sebastian said.
"You're always concerned," she replied, her voice full of sarcasm.
Sebastian smiled; it was good to know that she noticed - somehow. "Well, I have a lot of reasons to be."
"Beca!" Someone called out as the sound of the front door shutting echoed through the room.
Sebastian squinted in confusion. "Is that Jesse?"
"Yep." Beca smiled. "Over here, Jess!"
Jesse walked to the dining area, "Beca, you'll never believe what Jackson told me last n-," He stopped upon seeing Sebastian. "Mr. Mitchell! I'm so sorry. I didn't realize-,"
"No, it's okay, Jesse." Sebastian stood from his seat. "I was just leaving."
"Why are you home? I thought you're teaching Comparative Literature every Monday morning," Jesse inquired.
Sebastian sighed, "I am, but the seniors have this three-day leadership training thing so, I'm off for the day." He gave Jesse a pat on his back upon walking by him. "T'was so cool that you realized that." He chuckled before walking away.
Jesse sat across Beca, who is still eating. "Guess you're still a little drunk since you didn't remember your dad's schedule, huh?"
Beca didn't answer; she kept on chewing silently. The last thing she'd want to do at this hour is to contemplate on how she totally missed the fact that her dad is at home at this time of the day.
Damn, this is the worst hangover ever, she moaned mentally.
Beca nurtures the habit of memorizing who leaves the house at what times so that she'll know which mornings she gets the house all to herself, and the afternoons to avoid when Sheila, her stepmother, breathes the same air as her (apparently, something that Beca finds so unbearably unpleasant just by knowing so).
"Jackson called last night," Jesse stated, breaking the silence. "He told me to get your pay from last night's gig, which I did earlier today, by the way - knowing you'll be sleeping in. Plus! He told me that he got you six more gigs lined up for the next two months!" He grinned, centering pride at himself. "How awesome am I?!"
Beca smirked in amusement at Jesse's announcement. "Very awesome!" She raised a hand, seeking a high-five which Jesse happily gave. "Dude thanks for referring me to the man!"
"No prob, weirdo," he mocked.
Jesse has always been the sole supporter of Beca's passion for deejay-ing ever since they met, considering that Sebastian has always pointed out how it is only a hobby and not a profession. It was through Jesse that Jackson learned of Beca's impressive mixing skills (leading him to hire the young girl in one of his client's events – thus, the resort gig yesterday).
Beca continued gormandizing her beloved corn flakes - this time, doing it enthusiastically.
"God, Becs, you passed out last night just as I helped you get into your room." Jesse said.
"Ugh, tell me about it."
"Which is why, I forgot to tell you that someone returned your phone last night." He placed Beca's phone on the desk.
Beca threw a hand to her forehead in embarrassment. "Damn it! Oh man, Jess, I guess I may still be a little drunk right now. I didn't even notice that my phone was missing!" She sighed. "And it was with you the whole time?"
"How do you think I learned about your pay and lined up gigs from Jackson? He knows I'm not your talent manager or something. He called your phone; I picked up. That's all." He then reached out and, faster than Beca could react, seized her cherished cornflakes without warning.
"What the hell, dude?! I'm eating!" She angrily said, standing up from her seat to reach across the table for her bowl.
"Calm down, Becs! I'm gonna return it. Hear me out for now, will ya?" Jesse knew that his best friend hated it when she's interrupted while eating, but this blackmail was the only way he can force out serious answers from her at the moment.
Beca reluctantly retreated to her chair. "Fine."
"Who was the redhead last night? The one who, by the way, asked me to tell you to text her when you get home so she could check up on you." Jesse asked, grinning excitedly while waiting for Beca to answer.
She raised an eyebrow upon getting baffled by Jesse's words. "Redhead? What redhead?"
He rolled his eyes, "You know, the one who returned your phone to me last night? Look I know you were too drunk at the party, but you were never the 'too-wasted-to-remember' type."
"Oh, the redhead," Beca said as the memory finally resurfaced. "Her name was Chelsea something; I forgot." She shook her head digging deeper into memory. "Wait, she told you that?"
Jesse chuckled at the brunette's silly hangover peculiarities. "Yes, she did. She also said that she saved her number in your phone."
Beca reached for her phone which lay on the table and checked her contacts. "It's not her name. I have a 'Chelsea, The Slut' in here, so unless she's my blonde cousin from Nevada-," She chuckled upon bringing up her cousin to the surface.
"Anyway, it's not like I would ever contact her, even if I did know her number," she said. Beca is very much aware of her friendly alternate persona when she's intoxicated so she supposed this redhead as just another shock absorber of her flirty attacks. Once sober, she uses this excuse to cut off bonds she accidentally made under the influence of alcohol.
Jesse didn't seem to content with her response, but he knew very well that she was sincere in her words. For Pete's sake, her bowl of corn flakes was at stake! He thought.
Sebastian returned to the dining area to have a glass of water.
"Ashley keeps asking about you, Becs. It's been going on for almost a week," Jesse said, pushing back Beca's bowl to her. "I kept dismissing her by saying that I would look into it, but I kept forgetting to tell you about it. This morning, she followed me around the quad just to remind me.
"Ugh, I hate how I got transferred to Professor Qwell's class for Math 600! Ashley attends it too. It just gave her more opportunities to inquire to me about your contact info," Jesse whined.
"Why didn't you give her my number, anyway?"
"Well I wanted to get your blessing first. I mean, if she's really grown to be that annoying, you might be hiding from her on purpose to escape the misery," Jesse explained.
Beca chuckled. "Well she can get on people's nerves sometimes. If she kept bugging you on how to reach me, the matter must really be important. Ash-Ash always has her reasons for things."
"Except when she's being annoying," Jesse added. "That would be her - plainly being annoying."
Beca chuckled. "It's okay, Jess. I'll talk to her, if she really wants me to."
"Okay then! I know now what to tell Ash-Ash," Jesse said.
"Ash-Ash? Beca's cousin Ash-Ash?" Sebastian chimed in, acting as though he hadn't been paying attention to the rest of their conversation.
Beca rolled her eyes on her father. "Yes, dad. Ashley - your sister's daughter, AKA your niece. She also just started at Barden."
It's been a while since Sebastian heard from his sister and her family. It wasn't because of rivalry or unhealthy relationships of any kind; his sister moved out of Georgia when she re-married. For some unknown reason then, all contacts were cut off. "Sissie didn't tell me they've moved back here."
Not being a big fan of cute and girly stuff, Beca sighed heavily at the name her father calls her aunt. "They didn't. Ashley is the only one here in Georgia; she's staying in one of Barden's dorms."
"Well, why didn't you say so?" Sebastian sat with Beca and Jesse. His daughter gave him a 'What are you saying?' look complete with one raised eyebrow. He continued speaking, hoping to knock the sense into Beca. "You've always wanted to be in a dorm, right?" But instead of answering him, she only threw back a face that urged him to get straight to the point. "Okay, okay. Fine." He sighed. "I hereby allow you to stay at a dormitory, provided that Ash-Ash will live with you."
Beca grinned and stood up, clutching Sebastian in a tight hug. Jesse and Sebastian exchanged looks, confused by her sudden hug-attack. They knew the brunette to be so much respectful of her own private space and has not let anyone in for a long time since The Divorce.
This could mean only one thing:
Sebastian had undervalued Beca's intense desire of staying at a dorm. For now, though, he's just glad to have earned a hug from her.