#and i have an audition this week. and two choir concerts | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

eggtoasties · 4 years ago

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Chapter One: I. Allegro

Pairing: Kuroo Tetsuro x Reader

Rating: G

Word Count: 3.2k

Summary: Kuroo used to think the best sound in the world was a volleyball hitting the court on the other side of the net. Now, he has other things on his repertoire.

Counter point: Good counterpoint requires two qualities: (1) a meaningful or harmonious relationship between the lines (a “vertical” consideration—i.e., dealing with harmony) and (2) some degree of independence or individuality within the lines themselves (a “horizontal” consideration, dealing with melody).

It was illogical really, Kuroo thought to himself, having to take a mandatory arts class. He was an athlete. He would probably major in STEM or business the next year if he didn’t go pro. But here he was, staring at the course catalogue, deciding between different bands, choirs, art classes, and orchestra. Irritatingly, Kenma had finished his arts requirement last year, taking a video editing class which Kuroo thought was definitely cheating since he figured Kenma already knew the basics. Plus, he not-so-secretly believed that Kenma would benefit from another non-electronic hobby.

Sighing, he assessed each class. He knew he was tone deaf and did not want others listening to him sing. Plus, he’s seen the red cummerbunds and bow ties the choir had to wear for concerts and refused to give his teammates the blackmail fodder even if Yaku thought it looked “refined.”

To be honest, Kuroo didn’t know much about the arts. He only had the vaguest understanding of the differences between Watercolor 101, Figure drawing 101, and Oil Painting 101. While he thought of himself in the studio, palette in hand with an apron tied around him, working intently at the easel on the next generational masterpiece, he remembered when Kenma threw his pencil-drawn mockups of promotional posters in the trash and told him not to show the rest of the team.

While maybe he could try digital media, he couldn’t help but imagine himself against the romanticized backdrop of more traditional arts.

He had to choose between the several band electives and orchestra. He couldn’t do marching band—he wouldn’t be caught dead in those uniforms, wind ensemble had auditions he surely wouldn’t pass, jazz band had mandatory solos, but symphonic band was for rookies. ‘Beginners welcome,’ was typed out with an asterisk under the listing. But, so did orchestra. Doing a quick search to figure out the difference between band and orchestra, Kuroo weighed his options.

He took piano lessons from ages four through ten before finally convincing his parents to let him quit—wearing them down by crying every week and throwing a mini tantrum at daily practice—not that he intentionally did it as an elementary school student. But, even from an early age, he knew volleyball was it for him.

While he wasn’t well acquainted with classical music, he had grown up with it from his parents. Well, when they were irritated with the bickering matches between him and his older sister, their parents would crank up the car radio, drowning their yelling. His mom would tell him she used to play Mozart for him when he was a baby which is why he grew so tall—which he would always say makes no sense—and occasionally, a film score would make the hairs on his arms rise even when he was trying to focus on the scene.

So he decided. He’d enroll in orchestra for the year, make himself unnoticeable in the back, and fulfill his arts requirement so he could graduate high school and maybe apply to university. Plus, he figured, as he ticked the box next to orchestra, he’d finally be able to wear his suit his parents bought him, saying that he’d need it eventually.

Folding the course registration paper and sliding it into an envelope to be sent to Nekoma High, he stood up from his seat at the low dining room table and decided to go to Kenma’s, figuring they could squeeze some volleyball practice before summer vacation ended.

The first day of his third year was unextraordinary. He woke up tired, coaxed his bed head into something manageable, and started his commute to school, picking Kenma up on the way. Double and triple checking his course schedule on his phone and reminding his teammates that they all had to help out in advertising the volleyball club—well, maybe except Yaku—he tapped his toes with a mix of nervousness and anticipation.

His classes were nothing special, most of them a continuation of the year before or courses he carefully picked with the advice of his seniors. But, walking towards the orchestra room at the far side of the building where all the music classes were, he felt a familiar rush of nervous adrenaline spike—not unlike the nerves before a big match. But this time, he couldn’t be confident in his own skills or rely on a team to back him up. Counting the room numbers until it matched the one on his registration, he found the room with its double doors propped open.

Striding in, the large open space was in various states of organized chaos. Other students were already moving chairs in uniform columns, two to a row, and were pulling instruments out of cases. Unsure of what to do, he immediately found the teacher.

“Hi Jouda-sensei, I’m Kuroo Tetsuro,” he introduced. “I’m new—where should I sit?”

“Hi Tetsuro-kun, it’s nice to meet you,” she said warmly. “Ah, yes I see you enrolled as a beginner.” Flipping through the pages on her clipboard she hummed, “Is there a particular instrument you’d like to play?” sweeping a hand across the room. “We could always use more violas, we have enough cellos, weirdly too many basses, but we could also stick you with the second violins?”

Kuroo didn’t quite know the difference between violas and violins but figured ‘second’ violins implied that there was also a ‘first’ violins group and that he’d be more likely to be able to hide in the back in a bigger group.

“Yeah,” he drawled out confidently, “I actually wanted to learn violin.”

“Okay, perfect. Here—” she motioned another student over. “Tetsuro-kun, meet Daisuke-kun.” Daisuke greeted Kuroo with a shallow bow and Kuroo responded with a head nod, mentally rolling his eyes at Daisuke’s subtle disapproval.

“He’s first chair of the second violins,” Jouda-sensei continued, “he’ll get you set up. Daisuke-kun, have him take one of the rentals and teach him the ropes. Today’s mostly getting people set up if they don’t have their own instruments and playing through potential setlists,” she explained while twirling her pen in her right hand. “Testsuro-kun, you’re our only new violin which means everyone can help you learn—take today to be comfortable with an instrument in your hands and observe your classmates!” she finished, walking away.

“I’m Sato Daisuke, a second year,” Daisuke reintroduced, emphasizing his year.

“Kuroo Tetsuro, third year,” he said smugly.

“Ah—okay,” Daisuke said standing straighter, “Kuroo-san, follow me,” turning towards the back of the room.

Chuckling Kuroo said, “Just Kuroo’s fine—you’re technically my senior here since I’ve never played violin before.”

Stuttering a bit and covering it with a cough, Daisuke nodded once. He stood in front of a wall of neatly labelled cubbies and pulling a black rectangular case out, he handed it to Kuroo. Explaining the rules of the rental and making him sign a form, Daisuke taught Kuroo how to properly tighten the bow, use rosin, clean the instrument, and taught him simple exercises to practice posture.

Fiddling a bit with the shoulder rest as Daisuke excused himself for a second, Kuroo ran through the exercises to get himself acquainted with the feel of the violin under his chin and a bow in his right hand. It was uncomfortable, he noted. His left shoulder wanted to scrunch up towards his face, his left wrist wanted to press towards the neck of the violin, and he couldn’t comfortably hold his bow. For the first time in a while, Kuroo felt out of his element—he felt as though his body couldn’t do what he wanted it to do. He felt awkward and unsure and the back of his neck prickled as he caught other students look his way.

Finally, Daisuke came back. Holding a thin blue book in his hand he explained, “This’ll teach you the basics of reading music. The thickest string on the left is G, followed by D, A, and E. Notes go in order of A through G and it just repeats.” Making sure Kuroo was following along, he continued. “So, If we start on the G string and put a finger down,” he moved over to place Kuroo’s index finger on the first tape, “what note is this?”

“A?”

“Yup, great. Follow the tapes for where you should put your fingers, I taught you how to tune and you need to study and practice every night so you’ll be able to partially follow along in class.”

Head a little dizzy with the new information but also proud to have understood some of the basics, Kuroo nodded. Daisuke took Kuroo to the back of the group, explained to a student who Kuroo was, then took his place towards the front.

Kuroo’s stand partner was a first year—Hayato. He’d been doing orchestra since middle school, didn’t take private lessons like many of the other students, but enjoyed orchestra enough to continue in high school as a hobby. Although a little awkward, Hayato was patient when giving Kuroo a more detailed explanation of reading music, since six years of piano lessons had completely left him, and set him up with basic exercises.

“You need to make sure your left wrist is down and relaxed,” Hayato said, tapping a pencil to Kuroo’s inner wrist. “Also, your bow grip is atrocious, but that’s one of the hardest things for a beginner.” He showed Kuroo how the bow was supposed to be held, stressing how it should look relaxed and curved.

Making small adjustments while Kuroo shakily moved the bow across the strings, Hayato said, “Sensei will probably have you come during study hall to practice, but you need to practice at home too or Sato-san and the concertmaster will probably chew you out.”

Bow stuttering crookedly across the strings, making Sato tut at him, Kuroo paused. “The concertmaster,” he asked disbelievingly. “What is that?” imagining some despotic conductor in long tuxedo trails and a clipboard.

Laughing at his confusion, Hayato explained. “The concertmaster is the first chair violinist. In orchestra they’re like the leader of the group. They tune the group, come out second to last before the conductor during concerts, make decisions on bowings, and everyone kinda follows their lead.”

Nodding to himself Kuroo said, “Okay, so he’s like,” he trailed off, “the captain of the team?”

“Exactly. Except she’s a third year like you and pretty well known in the music scene in our area, y’know.”

Frowning at his assumption he admitted, “Ah, okay so,” he trailed off, “concertmistress? I play volleyball, I don’t really know music.”

Hayato laughed and Kuroo raised a brow. “I mean obviously—you don’t really look like a violinist.”

Affronted Kuroo said, “Oi, what does that mean?”

“Kuroo-san, you’re like, huge,” Hayato squeaked out.

Trying not to preen, Kuroo waved his hand and turned his head towards the front of the class.

Jouda-sensei stood on her podium and tapped her baton on the raised stand in front of her. “Hi everyone, good to see all of you again. We have a few new faces so make sure to welcome them and help them out. I’m super excited for our potential set list this year, but before I pass out the folders, let’s a hear a few words from our concertmistress!”

With scattered applause and stomping, a girl rose to the podium as Jouda-sensei stepped off. Holding her violin and bow in her left hand she beamed at the class. Briefly introducing herself and sharing her excitement for the year to make music with everyone, Jouda-sensei interrupted her return to her seat.

“For the first rehearsal, how about you formally tune us?” Jouda-sensei offered.

“Aw, no it’s okay—some people are beginners and all the section leaders already took care of it right?”

Next to her, her stand partner threw an eraser at the podium making her scowl. “Just do it, her stand partner complained,” drawing laughter from the class.

Giving her partner the finger, hidden from their sensei’s view, she laughed good naturedly and straightened her shoulders.

All of a sudden, Kuroo noted, the atmosphere in the room changed. Students were no longer whispering to each other, playing random tunes, or shuffling in their seats. Everyone’s eyes were on her at the podium. She offered an open palm and nodded towards the back of the room. A single note penetrated the silence.

She swept her hand towards the back and Kuroo was suddenly flooded with the sound of the deep and rich brass section. After a few seconds, she repeated the process and the woodwind instruments close to Kuroo in the back began to tune.

Hayato leaned towards Kuroo. “Before concerts and rehearsals everyone should’ve tuned beforehand. This more for last minute checks and also a show for the audience. The order and how many sections tune at once is usually decided between the concertmaster and the conductor—Kuroo-san, we’ll tune last.”

Nodding in appreciation, Kuroo turned his attention back to the podium. The woodwinds trailed off and after a beat of silence, she nodded once again for the tuning note to be played and she waved her hand towards the cellos and basses at her right. The gravelly resonance of the strings filled Kuroo with a strange sense of full contentment and marveled at the size of the basses, whose strings seemed to be quadruple the thickness of his own.

Finally, the concertmaster gave one last nod and tucked her violin under her chin. Hearing the drone of the pitch, everyone around Kuroo began to tune. Unsure of what to do, he stumbled to mimic Hayato who was adjusting his tuners. Since Sato Daisuke already tuned his instrument, Kuroo just played open strings and waited for the rest of his section to stop. Glancing to his left at Kuroo’s right hand, Hayato whispered sharply, “Keep your pinky curved!”

After tuning, folders were passed out to each student, filed with sheet music. Hayato organized the sheets on their stand.

“Since you’re on the inside—the left hand side of the stand—your job is to turn my pages,” he explained. “It’ll be good practice to see if you can follow along even if you can’t read, but no worries if you want to spend today just watching and listening.”

Thanking Hayato and teasing when he fumbled in embarrassment, Kuroo spent the rest of class in awe. Although the group was seeing the pieces for the first time, he couldn’t help the goosebumps on his arms as the orchestra came together. Even when he heard Hayato miss a note, noticed when the conductor would glare at a section, or when they had to stop and regroup, listening to individual instruments try come together as one left Kuroo wanting to be a part of it. From the inside, he watched as bows moved in unison and fingers slid up and down the necks of stringed instruments. He was hyper aware of the instruments behind him providing support to the main melody, and leaned towards them to catch their individual parts.

He set his gaze towards the front of the room and watched the concertmaster. Powerful yet graceful, her bow made sure movements across the strings, fingers moving quickly and accurately. Her body swayed with the music and her face, unlike Hayato’s, was not one of extreme concentration. She seemed focused as she watched the conductor and indicated entrances to her section through her body, but despite the multi-tasking, it was clear to Kuroo that she was having fun.

She trusted her section to follow along, for her stand partner to flip the pages at the right times, and for the rest of the orchestra to do their parts. When Jouda-sensei made the class begin again, she would lean towards her stand partner and share whispered giggles and Kuroo caught the glint of shiny pink polish and traced the way her hair fell across her shoulders.

He knew what being a captain was like—he had been captain since he was voted in at the end of his second year and he wondered how long she’d been playing for, how much she practices, and how she encourages her section. He wondered what the differences and similarities were between leading a team and an orchestra were—the differences and similarities between them, even.

At the end of class Kuroo promised to himself to practice a little every day to be able to play with the group and hold his own. For the rest of the school day, he idly hummed the melodies they had played in class and replayed images of bows and hands moving in unison.

In the club room before practice, Kuroo came in with his violin case. Greeting his teammates, he started to change.

Loosening his tie and pulling his sweater over his head, Kuroo heard Lev ask about his case. Swapping his school top for his practice one, Kenma responded.

“Kuroo’s taking orchestra for his arts credit.”

“Why would you take a band credit, you should’ve taken sculpture like I did,” Yamamoto exclaimed proudly.

“Your sculptures were ugly,” Kenma said evenly, over the sounds of his video game.

Before Yamamoto could respond, Fukunaga menacingly shook his water bottle at the two of them causing Kenma to turn his back and hunch defensively over his game.

Narrowing his eyes at Kenma, Yamamoto turned his attention back to Kuroo who was idly flipping through the practice book Daisuke had given him.

“Yeah Kuroo, band classes are so much work when you’ve gotta learn the instrument, why’d you enroll?”

Before Kuroo could respond Yaku jumped to Yamamoto’s side and jabbed him. “Band and orchestra are two different things you uncultured swine!”

Doubled over and grasping his stomach, Yamamoto glared tearfully at his senior, then directed his glare towards Lev who was slapping his knee in laughter.

“Kuroo-san,” Lev shouted, “can you play us something?” he asked excitedly.

Gaining the interest of the rest of the team, everyone crowded around Kuroo, nodding in unison. He rubbed the back of his head in uncertainty.

“I’ve literally just learned how to play. I don’t know if you’d really want me to.”

“We really want you to!” Lev said, encouraging him to open his case.

Begrudgingly, Kuroo went to his violin and briefly explained how to setup and tune, to the amazement of some of his teammates. Even Kenma peered curiously over his video game in the corner. He tucked the instrument under his chin, carefully held his bow and placed the hair on the A string and played. Kuroo focused intently on ensuring that his bow grip was loose, but secure, that his pinky and thumb were curved and that his bow was making straight lines across the string.

As Kuroo looked over to his teammates, he noticed Yaku’s shoulders starting to shake while he pointed a finger at him.

“I-Is that the best you can do?” Yaku nearly screamed, howling in laughter. “You’re not even moving your f-fingers!”

To Kuroo’s embarrassment, the rest of the team tried desperately to hold in their laughter and Lev deadpanned, “That kinda sucked, senpai.”

Stuttering out an indignant scoff, Kuroo’s brow furrowed, “I told you I just learned this today! A-and posture is important you heathens!” shaking his bow at Lev and Yaku.

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justinunlocd · 4 years ago

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STORY TIME!!!

When I was in the sixth grade, I started playing in band. We had two days to look at the band and orchestra instruments, and for some reason percussion chose me; probably because of the few years before playing in Mr. Kevin Downie’s Orff Ensemble. If my memory serves me correct, Mrs. Carolyn Valiquette, my band director at the time, assigned us the task of writing a short piece for our band with a classmate; I was partnered with John Case. We wrote this piece called “Immortal,” and she liked it so much, we were able to play it at the last sixth grade band concert. I remember my older brother and grandmother being there to watch me play...

Later in middle school, eight grade year actually, I played a little solo at contest and got a “I” rating on it. It was a Handel violin sonata in F and Mrs. Celeste Smith gave me the opportunity to play it during the last band concert. I remember distinctly saying, right before I was about to play, “you ain’t gon say something?” She chuckled and obliged me a short introduction about me working on that piece and how proud she was of me. I was elated...

Ninth grade was the start of high school, which meant marching band, and I was playing snare drum with Amy, Drew, Pauline and Collin. That was the same year I started working on four-mallet technique and went to play in the front ensemble the next year. Sophomore year was also the same year the Derby High School Wind Ensemble was severed to play at KMEA. That year, I made it into the top band and was one of the four percussionists featured on our performance of David R. Gillingham’s “Concertino for Four Percussion and Wind Ensemble.” That was such a fun piece! I got to play this chromatic xylophone part in unison with Jason Lord. Glenn Woolard and Pauline Kennedy were the other feature soloists. That was probably the highlight of my high school music experience honestly, at least on the concert percussion side...

Then we get to Twelve Grade, I audition for the solo competition with the Wichita Youth Symphony. Unfortunately I only get a runner-up spot because [redacted] although I had the better performance of the excerpt I chose, Ney Rosauro’s “Concerto for Marimba and Orchestra No. 2.” However, it would only be a few years later I would be able to play the piece’s first movement, and cutting in the cadenza from the third, with the WSU Symphony Orchestra as a soloist for their Concerto-Aria Competition. That was Junior Year, and don’t we love a good vindication story?...

But I’m getting ahead of myself, sophomore year of college was the year I had a realignment of my purpose, and for the first time, chose to purposefully and intentionally move in that direction. It was November 22, 2010. We had a percussion ensemble concert that night, with guest artist, the one and only, and Wichita State University School of Music Alum, Kevin Bobo! We played his piece “Boboland,” where I got to play on the same marimba as him for a moment, it was hilarious and I still remember that moment fondly...

Funny enough, I was still an engineering major Sophomore year. At the same time, I was leaving my Physics class early to go to steel band rehearsal, and skipping Statics altogether to hang out with Patrick, Da’Kneisha and Sparkle LOL. It wasn’t until the end of that concert, where my mom sent me a text message that said something to the effect of, “if you change your major to music, we support you,” and so I decided to change my major to music, and also choose to put my pursuit of happiness above everything else...

Oh yeah, and then the percussion ensemble I was in, Impulse Percussion Group, won second place in the Konrad Wolff-Ilse Bing Chamber Music Competition to a bit of controversy à la “is percussion a chamber group/instrument...” yup, even in 2013, that was a scandal that we even participated, let alone placed...

Then for my second senior year, I finally played my senior recital and graduated college with my music degree. I already had a job setup at my church that I went into full-time one week after I graduated. (I do NOT recommend jumping from college immediately into job, it was a horrible mistake, but life happens fast.) I worked as the music director for the church for only three years before I realized my mental health was taking a toll. I became less of myself when I was at the office, I despised having to appear busy when I already completed my daily tasks (especially when I asked my supervisor for work to do, because according to him, “no one here has down time,” and he had nothing for me to do...) anyway, while on Facebook, I saw a post for an emergency percussion GTA position at WSU and I immediately contacted my old percussion professor, Jerry Scholl, on what I needed to submit to apply. Within a few weeks, I worked up the excerpts, recorded them all, and was accepted to begin my masters degree at WSU. And yes, I was fleeing a toxic work environment...

Cut to August 13, 2020. I’ve graduated with my Masters in Music. I’m a year and some change out of school and still only working gigs as to not get into a 9-5/M-F job. I’ve started modeling seriously and got signed to not one, but two agencies. But my focus wasn’t honed in with music, what do I seriously do with this degree and the accomplishments I’ve earned and worked for after college? And then I reconnected with my old best friend Da’Kneisha Nikoyle Blount. We had a conversation the day before and also on the day of our friend’s wedding. We talked about how we should do music again, we just talked about it, almost in jest, but also in a reminiscence. Who knew what we got ourselves into...

Our first music video.

Then a few articles here and there.

An inauguration.

Then a billboard.

An MLK event.

Contacted for a premiere piece.

Then our first concert.

A benefit concert.

A church service.

Recording in the studio.

A fundraising event.

A video shoot...

And now, as of May 5, 2021, I’ve performed and premiered my first wind symphony piece as a member of @tupacmeetsbach with @dnikoyle. The piece is called, “Stained with Beauty - for Solo Soprano, Solo Marimba, Wind Ensemble and Choir” and is an elaboration and development of the original song written by Da’Kneisha. The piece comprises of four movements, and is roughly 25 minutes in length. This piece is our baby and as Renee would say, “one of the most honest and innovative music projects.” I’m so thankful to all the musicians who rehearsed for months to make this performance happen!

Thank you to Dr. Timothy Shade for reaching out to us and providing us an ensemble to realize this piece. Thank you to the choir who became a nice supportive background for Da’Kneisha. Thank you to the stage techs and sound engineers for filming and recording this premiere. Thank you to my parents for financially supporting me during the pandemic to allow me to sustain while working fervently on this piece. And a special thank you to my best friend and partner in rhyme, Da’Kneisha, for your heart, your mind, and your friendship!❤️❤️❤️

Y’all have really made my dreams come true and I can’t wait to start working on the next piece already!!!

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cultofbeatles · 5 years ago

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facts about the beatles that i like

ringo

was actually the most popular member when they first arrived in america.

was considered the best drummer in liverpool when he joined the beatles

worlds richest drummer

the storyteller for thomas the tank

was the first member to try weed

was also the first member to leave the group during the white album sessions (he came back though..obviously)

in 1961 he wanted to move to america with a friend but decided not to since there was a lot of paperwork involved

when george had an affair with��ring’s wife he said; “better you than someone I don't know”

was with his first wife when she was on her deathbed

set up his own furniture company in 1971

he would record his drum parts in one take

is left handed but plays with a right handed kit

still runs on stage for performances bc he’s nervous

when performing live he would watch john’s ass to keep up with time

Rolling Stones ranked him the fifth best drummer in rock history

he hated drum solos

when John was killed he was the only beatle to fly to new york and comfort yoko

never had pizza or onions before

john

enjoyed playing monopoly

the first instrument he learned to play was the harmonica

he enjoyed drawing and acting

kept a light on whenever he slept

later in his life found out he was dyslexic

he would make lunches for his entire staff

growing up he was self conscious about his nose

he wanted jesus and adolf on the sgt pepper’s cover

the only beatles not to became a vegetarian

called paul’s music “granny music”

took paul to paris with his birthday money and bought him all the banana milkshakes he wanted

in 1965 a reporter called him the “fat beatle” and he started to eat less after that

didn't talk to cynthia for weeks when she cut her hair short

referred to paul as “an old estranged fiance of mine”

was the one to quit the band officially

he was invested by the fbi when he moved to America bc he was “influencing the nations youth”

around the time he died he wanted to start touring again

when he was younger, a friend dared him to masturbate ten times. he made it to nine.

bought an island in 1967

made a fifteen minute motion shot with yoko of his penis going from flaccid to erect

hated his voice and often tried to fix it on the records

paul

failed choir boy auditions twice

when he first met john and played for him his voice kept cracking from nerves

made his first girlfriend’s mom comb his leg hairs

arrested in 1960 for lighting a condom on fire in germany

the first instrument he learned to play was the trumpet

him and Linda appeared on an episode of the simpsons

once made a live web video about making mashed potatoes

very jealous of anyone who got near John

from past one nightstands apparently the smallest dick, but was the best in bed

was the main reason why the beatles got as much done as they did

once took lsd with john so that he wouldn't go through it alone

was made an honorary detective by nypd after giving a charity concert for 9/11

once told a reporter that yoko looked like a gigantic swollen chopstick with black chia pet hair

helped julian buy john’s letters from yoko

on the day that john told the band he was leaving them for good paul was trying to convince them to start touring again

wrote his song here today as a poem first bc he didn't think he’d be able to sing it

for the eight days a week movie premiere he wore the same suit he wore for the hard days night premiere and was super happy about it

george

first beatle to travel to america and play there as well

organized the 1971 concert for Bangladesh with Indian musician ravi shankar

rolling stones ranked him #11 on their list of “100 greatest guitarists of all time”

two time rock and roll hall of fame inductee

one time walked into a girls dressing room and asked if he could just look at them while masturbating

offered to come with ringo to see his sick daughter even though he was dying from cancer

got a black eye once for defending ringo

would make paul and john share rooms with ringo so they could make him feel more welcomed in the group

once said he had an eight hour long erection

lost his virginity to a german hooker with john, pete, and paul in the room

a car enthusiast

yoko once ate his biscuits at the studio and he called her a bitch for it

he played violin in “all you need is love”

composed a soundtrack for a movie (wonderwall)

for most of his life he thought his birthday was feb. 25. but later on discovered it was feb. 24. he was born at 11:50 pm.

he went to the same elementary school as john but they never met

voted best actor out of the four

helped broaden the beatles sound later on

he was the first beatle to have a solo act hit #1

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princessofguineapigs · 4 years ago

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A Straight Line to You | Harry Holland Chapter 1

What person is this? First? Second? Third? Who knows? Prepare to know some of Y/N’s thoughts and some of Harry’s. But I’m still telling the story to you about you so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Also, I’m taking suggestions for how this story should progress.

University AU

The sound of voices singing let you know that you were getting close to the choir room at last. You kept getting lost in this large university building. All the buildings on campus were hard to navigate, but the music building was a true labyrinth.

You reached the doors of the classroom and tried to slide in discreetly, slowly shutting them behind you to keep from making noise. With the cacophony of voices, you don’t think anyone heard you come in. Certainly, no one saw you. You were used to being invisible.

You slipped in at the middle row of sopranos. The choir never stopped their song, even as you pulled out the packet of music you received the day prior. Being a transfer student, you weren’t sure of the protocol, but you were quick to identify which song they were on and began sight reading the music and singing softly. Thank god it was a song without many accidentals.

When the song finished, the director cleared his throat.

“As you all know, in a few months, it will be time for our winter concert. This year’s performance has the potential to be a great one, especially with the orchestra accompanying us,” he said.

There were a few twitters of excitement in the group.

He continued on, “That’s why, I want to start the audition process for the Laudate Dominum solo next week. Any of you who wish to have a shot should start preparing. Now, let’s get back to it.”

With a nod to the pianist, the class went on to the next song.

Harry noticed her right away. The choir crescendoed in unison right before she entered the room, but the second she walked through the door, Harry’s voice faltered and all he heard was deafening silence. Everyone around him continued with the song, but it was as if all his senses left him except his sight. The miraculous vision before him was lovelier than any girl he’d seen before.

He craned his neck and watched this angel make her way unobtrusively to the other side of the risers. He knew then that he had to hear her sing. But there were too many voices for him to ever make out her voice like this.

When Dr. Cieber announced the solo audition, he prayed she would try out. He told himself he would introduce himself to her, so he spent the rest of rehearsal gathering the courage.

When it ended, Harry gathered up his things and strode over to her.

“Hey,” he said, lamely, kicking himself. Damn. He didn’t have a line. He didn’t even know what to say. He was so not smooth.

You felt surprised that someone was talking to you. You were notoriously shy and didn’t know why this super attractive guy had come over to you. Nervous, you tucked a piece of hair behind your ear.

You didn’t know why your heart was suddenly thumping out of your chest.

“I’m Harry,” he said, tucking his hands into his jean pockets. He was wearing a red jumper that made his ginger curls look even redder.

You wrapped your arms around yourself, still feeling unsure.

“I’m Y/N,” you introduced yourself.

“Are you...are you new?” he asked. He seemed nervous too. And so adorable. Wait, what?

“Yeah, I’m a transfer,” you answered.

“I’m glad you joined choir,” Harry said, “What class have you got next?”

“Chemistry, it’s my last class of the day.”

“Hey, that’s great. My next class is in the same building. I can walk you there,” said Harry, “ y’know, if you want,” he amended shyly.

You’d gotten lost so many times today, you decided to take him up on it. Plus, you wanted to get to know at least one person at this school.

You put your bag over your shoulder and Harry picked up the books you’d been carrying that didn’t fit.

“You don’t have to do that,” you protested. You weren’t used to people doing things for you.

“What kind of gentleman would I be if I let you carry these heavy things yourself?”

You smiled gratefully.

“Let’s go then,” you said.

The next day, you were on your way to morning classes when you got a text from Harry. You had exchanged numbers after he walked you to class. When you read it you got butterflies.

Harry had asked you to meet up for lunch. Your morning was a blur of note-taking as your mind reeled ahead to when you’d see him next. Ugh, you had it bad and you’d only known him for a day.

When you reached the cafeteria, Harry was waiting for you.

“Let’s grab a table,” he said. In an old-fashioned gesture, he pulled out a chair for you.

“How have your first few classes been?” he asked.

“It’s beginning to shape into a tough workload already,” you laughed, “but I think I can handle it. I always liked school when I was a kid.”

“Nerd,” he quipped.

“And you’re not?” you cocked an eyebrow.

“Well, I’m not the smartest of my brothers,” responded.

“Your brothers? How many?”

“There’s four of us,” Harry said, “My younger brother Paddy, my twin Sam, and my older brother Tom.”

“So who is the smartest?”

Harry thought for a moment, “Sam.” he decided.

“So you’re saying you’re the stupid twin?” you joked.

“Hey, that’s not what I said!” Harry shouted a bit too loudly, but there was a smile on his face.

“So, do you think you’ll go out for the choir solo?” Harry asked, changing the subject.

You nearly spit out your tea. Where had that question come from?

“I don’t think so. I’m not confident enough to sing a solo,” you answered.

“Aw, I’m sure you sing beautifully. You’re so pretty with a speaking voice to match. I bet your singing voice is just as lovely.”

You blushed all the way to your ears. Meanwhile, Harry couldn’t believe he’d said that out loud.

As you and Harry talked, you found yourself staring into his eyes more. His irises were unusually detailed. They were brown and warm, but like a thick molasses with flecks of light caught in it.

Eventually, you did have to leave. This time, your classes weren’t in the same building. Harry offered to walk you anyway, but you declined. You didn’t want to make him late for this own class.

With your red jacket zipped up tight against the wind, you made your way back to your dorm, bag over your shoulder and books in hand. As you walked alone, you thought to yourself that you should probably make an effort to get to know some other people. Maybe some other girls.

You had seen a flyer for a forensic science study group. You could use some study partners and the girls in your class seemed nice. Maybe it would be fun. You had an hour to decide. In either case, you wanted to freshen up in your room first.

Once you were ready (you had settled on going) you took a deep breath. You could do this. There was nothing to worry about. Just a study group. No big deal. You might even make a friend. Plus you needed to think about something other than Harry. You’d see him tomorrow at choir.

At the study session, you were greeted by a girl you recognized sat in the front row of your class.

“Hey, Y/N, right?” she beamed at you.

“Yeah, and you’re Briana?”

She nodded.

“We just got started. No one wants to study alone,” she said.

You sat down with the other girls.

“I’ve been so lost on this assignment,” you admitted.

“Let me take a look at what you’ve done so far,” Briana said. She skimmed over your work and the notes that accompanied it.

“I think we can work through this together,” said announced.

You felt relieved. She was being so nice.

After a few hours of homework and studying, the conversation dissolved into girl talk.

“I know you’ve only been on campus for a few days, but tell me, have you spotted any guys you’re interested in,” Briana questioned.

It was a bit nosy, but you hadn’t had anyone to talk to about your love life in a long time. Plus you felt like you could trust her.

“Well, there’s a guy I met the other day. I know it’s early, but I think I’m falling for him,” you said quietly.

“Oooo, what’s he like?”

You sighed, “He’s like a dream, honestly. He’s the first person I met here and we connected so easily. I feel at peace when I’m with him, though I’ve only known him two days.”

Briana giggled, “What’s his name?”

You shook your head, “Sorry, not today. I’m not sure I want to tell people yet. I don’t want him to know.”

“Aw, I won’t tell,” she pouted.

You stood up, “I should get back to my dorm.”

“See you in class!” Briana yelled after you.

The moonlight cast shadows on the walkway as you scurried through the dark streets. You had no reason to feel unsafe, but you were paranoid anyway. The stars sparkled brightly above you. It could have been a romantic walk if you had someone to walk with.

Just then you paused. Were there footsteps behind you? Surely not. You were almost to the end of the street where you needed to turn. Your dorm was at the beginning of the next one.

You glanced back. You didn’t see anyone behind you. You must have imagined it. Taking faster steps now, you carried on. Your own footsteps were light. The ones in your imagination were heavy. Funny, how our minds could do that.

You moved to round the corner. And time slowed down. Hands grabbed you from behind and you screamed as you were dragged backwards. You could feel your sneakers scraping helplessly over the pavement. You twisted and struggled against the arms. You felt the hardness of the back of your head smacking into something brick or stone. Your vision blurred and you felt darkness take over your senses.

End of Chapter 1

#harry holland

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lovemesomesurveys · 5 years ago

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Ready to answer 151 Questions? 1. When was the last time you swam in a pool? Like 6/7 years ago. 2. Do you like to party? My idea of a party is a small get together with friends just chillin’ with food and music. Maybe play some boardgames. Just super laid back. Crazy party scenes with a shitload of people I don’t even know is not my thing at all. That all being said, I haven’t been to a party in like 3 years. 3. If your ex suddenly kissed you right now, what would you do? I can’t even imagine a scenario where that would happen now. We haven’t talked or seen each other in almost 5 years. For that to happen, that would mean we were talking and hanging out again and yeah, don’t see that happening. Plus, SO much has changed for the both of us. Our ship sailed a longggg time ago. 4. Are you a virgin? Yes. 5. What are your parents views on your relationships? Ty and I never dated, but my parents really liked him. My mom definitely thought something was going on and she was rooting for us, ha.

6. If you ran into your current boyfriend/crush in 10 years, would you marry them? I don’t have a boyfriend or a crush right now. But also, I wouldn’t just marry someone I bumped into 10 years later. Like, a LOT would have changed in that amount of time. Just because I dated or was interested in someone doesn’t mean things would be the same seeing each other that many years later. Would the feelings come back? Would we still vibe? What are we doing in our life at that time? Are we both single? 7. Is your best friend dating anyone? My mom has been with my dad for over 30 years. 8. Describe the shirt you’re wearing? It’s a tie-shirt with pastel colors. 9. Do people who wear Hollister and Abrerbrombie every day bother you? I really don’t care. 10. Could you go out in public without wearing make-up? I’ve been doing that for the past few years. To think that there was a time I would have never done that... 11. What is one feature that you don’t like? On me? I mean, everything, but my smile/teeth for one. 12. Would people describe you as happy? No. 13. Are you single? Yep. 14. Does it bother you that pretty much every survey you take asks if you’re single? Yes or questions about relationships. 15. Do you have Tumblr? Duhhh.

16. What about Xanga? Aww, RIP Xanga. 17. Have you ever babysat before? Yeah, my younger brother and a couple of my cousins when they were kids. 18. Is there a teacher who you absolutely hate? I had two awful math professors in community college. Like, they were horrible. 19. Ever shopped at Sephora? Yeah. 20. If your current boyfriend/crush suddenly moved away, what would you do? 21. Do you have any university plans? I graduated with my BA five years ago. I’m not going any further. 22. If your best friend revealed she was a homosexual, what would you do? I mean, it would definitely come as a huge shock if my mom came out now. Of course it wouldn’t change anything between us, but things would be different for awhile. Like, it would take time to get used to a new normal, one where she’s not with my dad who she’s been with for over 30 years and one where she’s with a woman. 23. What are your views on sex? Be safe. If you’re an adult and it’s consensual then I don’t see an issue. 24. Do sexual questions bother you? No. I just don’t have much to say on the matter. 25. Would you rather have sex with your boyfriend or break up? Wth. 26. Have you ever dreamed about your wedding? Nope. 27. Does it bother you when people TYpe 1yk dis’? Omg. I’m so glad I don’t see that anymore. That seemed to die when Myspace did. 28. Do you delete pictures of you and your exes off of Facebook? There’s still photos of Joseph and I. *shrug* 29. Would you ever date a friends Ex? No. 30. What’s the last book you read? The Girl and the Hunt by AJ Rivers. 31. Ready for 10 simple questions? Sure. 32. What is your last name? Stephanie. 33. What grade are you in? I graduated college 5 years ago, I’m done. 34. What school do you go to? 35. Summer, Fall, Winter or Spring? Fall and winter. 36. Favorite Color? Pastels, rose gold, yellow, coral, mint green. 37. Are your parents together? Yes. 38. Any siblings? I have two brothers. 39. Favorite subject? Psychology.

40. Least favorite subject? Math. 41. Favorite song? I could never just choose one. 42. Okay. Simple questions are over. Happy? I don’t care. 43. How many friends do you have on Facebook? 150ish. 44. Ever been requested by some old guy from another country? They weren’t old, but yeah I’ve had several requests from men from other countries. 45. Have you ever googled yourself? Yeah. 46. Have a Formspring? I used to. I suppose it still exists out there since I never deleted it. I haven’t been on there in several years, though. 47. You’re offered free tickets to a Justin Bieber concert. What do you do? Probably decline the offer. I actually do like both his current and previous album, but I don’t know if I’d want to go to his concert. *shrug* I also don’t know anyone who would go with me and I wouldn’t go alone. 48. Would you rather spend the day at an amusement park or a water park? Amusement park. I don’t do water slides and whatnot. 49. Been to Disney world? Nope, but I’d love to go. I’ve been to Disneyland several times, though. 50. If someone posts their status “9 Inches :(” do you know what they mean? Sounds like one of those things where people post a random status from a list of things that will likely get people’s attention and whoever comments on it is privately sent said list of thing and they then choose something to post as their status and so on. That was a popular game thing on Facebook years ago. 51. Ever had a boyfriend? Yes.

52. Ever had a huge crush on someone who still doesn’t know? I’ve had crushes on guys who never knew, but the really serious ones (there were 5) all knew. 53. Have you done something in the last week that you regret? Yes. 54. Ever drank alcohol? Yeah. I drank in my early 20s until I was 24. 55. Know anyone who’s currently doing drugs? Yeah. 56. Ever watched The Hills? Yeah, the OG one and the reboot that came out last year. 57. What about Jersey Shore? No, I never got into that one. 58. Ever called someone a slut? I’ve said that jokingly to friends. 59. What do you think of short shorts? I don’t wear them. Or any length of shorts. 60. Does it bother you if people swear around you? No. I think it’s funny because my dad is still weird about cussing in front of me and so is our family friend. She always apologizes to me if she does it. 61. Have you ever gotten an A in a subject? I mostly got A’s and B’s throughout school with some C’s because of stupid math. 62. What about a B? ^^^ 63. And a C? ^^^ 64. How about a D? No. 65. Ever skived? What’s that? 66. Would you consider yourself popular and outcast or somewhere in the middle? I’d say I was the outcast. I mean, I had some friends, but I really just didn’t stand out or fit in. 67. Are most of your friends older or younger than you? My friends were my age or a year younger. Ty was the only one who was older than me (just by a year). 68. Ever been stabbed in the back by a close friend? Yes. 69. Do you think it’s immature when people laugh at the number 69? I have my immature moments, too. That one doesn’t do it for me, though. 70. Ever watched porn? I’ve seen it, but it wasn’t for my viewing pleasure or anything. I just personally don’t get the appeal. 71. How many laws do you think you’ve broken in the past month? I don’t think I’ve broken any. I don’t do anything or go anywhere, ha. 72. Do you wake up with an alarm clock? Yeah. I’d sleep later than 3PM if I didn’t and I don’t know, for some reason I don’t want to. Not like I have anything better to do, but *shrug* 73. Do you prefer Wednesdays or Thursdays? Makes no difference to me. 74. If your school had a Glee Club would you join? No. I can’t sing. I’m surprised I did choir for a few years in elementary school. 75. Ever performed in a talent show? My 2nd grade class did. We did “This Little Light of Mine” with a few very simple hand movements that went along with it. 76. Have you ever cried in public? Yeah. For the most part it’s only been at funerals and doctor appointments, but there have been a few other times in public where I felt the tears coming and tried to fight them back, but they started coming out anyway. I’m definitely someone who doesn’t like to cry in front of other people, so when it happens then you know it’s bad. 77. Do you have a favorite between your Mom and your Dad? I love both of my parents, but my mom and I have a closer relationship. She’s my best friend. I truly don’t know what I’d do without her. 78. Would you audition for a reality talent competition? Nooo. I have zero talent. 79. How many celebrity crushes have you had? A lot. 80. How many non-celebrity crushes have you had? A lot. 81. Name 5 male celebrities who you think are attractive. Alexander Skarsgard, Henry Cavill, Chris Evans, Matt Bomer, and Chris Pratt. 82. Name 5 female celebrities who you think are attractive. Margot Robbie, Jennifer Lopez, Ariana Grande, Hailey Baldwin, and Natalie Portman. 83. Ever been compared to a celebrity? Ha, no. 84. Have any embarrassing pictures on Facebook? If someone uploads a photo of me that I don’t approve of it gets deleted asap. 85. Do you think spending £20 on Lip Gloss is a waste of money? That’s too much to me. 86. Are you opinionated? I do have my opinions I feel strongly about, but I also consider myself to be openminded. I’m open to hearing different sides of things. I want to. And it’s certainly possible for my opinion to change. 87. Do you have a favorite store? BoxLunch, Hot Topic, Kohl’s, Target, and Bath & Body Works. 88. Would you ever wear Flare Jeans? No. 89. Do you own jeans that aren’t skinny? Nope. 90. Have you ever worn the same outfit twice in one week? Yeah. *gasp* Call the fashion police! 91. What’s the longest period of time you’ve been away from school? Well, I graduated college 5 years ago if that counts. But if you mean like while I was still going to school, then a few months. I had to miss school 3 times for a few months because I had to have surgery. One of the times was when I was supposed to start UC, but ended up having to start the following semester instead. 92. Do you google abbreviations you don’t understand? Yeah. 93. Does it bother you when people have cats as their profile picture? I don’t care? 94. Own a pair of converse? Yes. 95. Is there a teacher at your school who has obvious favorites? 96. If yes, are you one of them? 97. Do you text in class? I never did that. I was a goody-goody lol. 98. What brand of jeans do you wear the most? I haven’t worn jeans at all in like 3 years, ha, but anyway most of my jeans are the Arizona brand from JCP. They’re the perfect fit for me and they’re reasonably priced. 99. At what point do you think sizes are “Plus Sized?” According to Google, it starts at size 16. 100. Do you want to lose weight? Nooo. I’m too underweight as it is. I need to gain weight. 101. Ever seen a therapist? No, but I should. 102. Ever watched porn? Yeah, I’ve seen some of it. I didn’t watch out of enjoyment, though. I don’t get the appeal, personally. 103. Ever purposely ignored a text? Yes. 104. A facebook message? Yes. 105. A poke? I always ignored those. That was a dumb feature Facebook had. 106. A friend request? Yeah. I don’t accept a request from anyone I don’t know. 107. Would you say you read into things too much? Yepppp. 108. Is your best friend more likely to be the one suggesting something stupid or refusing to do something stupid? Refusing. 109. Do you have a “fun friend?” (A friend who you have tons of fun with but you never really have deep conversations?) No. 110. Ever been called a bully? No. 111. Ever purposely hurt yourself? Yes. 112. Ever gone to church? Yes. I used to go sometimes with both sets of grandparents when I was a kid. They were of different religions, so that began my complicated and non-existent relationship with religion. That changed a few years ago, though, and now I’m a Christian. For over a year I’ve only been listening to the audio version a local church uploaded to their website every Sunday until they started uploading video earlier this year. The past few months they’ve been doing live streams because of the quarantine/lockdown, but they’ll be continuing that going forward for those like me who aren’t able to physically attend. I plan to when I’m able, though. 113. Would you call either of your parents screw ups? Absolutely not! 114. If you turned out exactly like your mom would you be pleased? Yes. 115. What do you want to do with your life? I don’t know. That’s the problem.

116. Let me guess… You have brown hair? Naturally, yes, but not currently. 117. Already know what you’re being for Halloween? I don’t dress up or do anything for Halloween anymore. The past few years I’ve just stayed home and watched scary movies. I do for the whole month of October, though. 118. Do you still go Trick or Treating? Uh, no. I’m going to be 31 years old this year. 119. Ever liked someone WAY older than you? Celebrities, but not anyone “in real life.” 120. Does it bother you when people have really loud conversations on the bus? It didn’t really bother me back when I had to take the bus sometimes in college. 121. When you have sunglasses on, do you stare at people? I don’t wear sunglasses. Also, staring is rude. I’ve had to deal with people staring at me, mostly kids, all my life. Not cool. 122. Ever had a credit card denied? No. 123. What’s the last movie you watched? Parts of James and the Giant Peach yesterday. 124. Last TV Show? The Golden Girls. 125. You see your Ex making out with one of your friends. What do you do? I don’t have any friends, but I imagine I wouldn’t like seeing that. 126. Ever been called a whore? Jokingly. 127. Are you american? Yes. 128. Ever made yourself throw up? No. 129. Have you ever kissed someone who wasn’t your boyfriend? Yes. Joseph and I did that for the entire time of whatever it was we had going on. 130. Are you Cute or Gross? I’m trash. 131. Does it bother you when people say “LOOK HOW MUCH YOU’VE GROWN!”? No one has said that to me in a very long time. I don’t recall being bothered by it, though. 132. Can you say intelligent things around the guy you like? I don’t like anyone, currently. 133. Ever had the lead in a play? Nope. Never tried out for a play either. 134. What about a solo in a concert? Ha, no. I was in choir in elementary school for a few years, but there definitely weren’t any solo parts for me. 135. What kind of a student are you? I did well. 136. Worst subject? It was always math. 137. Best subject? English. 138. Ever had a crush on a teacher? No. 139. Would it bother you if you found out that your mother was pregnant? She had a hysterectomy several years ago. 140. How late do you sleep in? Until like 230 or 3ish. 141. Do you edit your profile pictures before posting them? I use a filter. 142. Be 100% honest. Do you have any friends who are uglier than you? I was the ugly friend. 143. Do you believe in love? Well, yeah. It exists. I just feel like I’ll never experience romantic love. I’ve been in love twice, but both times were unrequited. I can’t imagine finding love in return and someone who actually wants to be with me. 144. Would you consider yourself a good student? Didn’t you ask this? 145. Does it bother you when Surveys ask “Did you like this survey?” It just seems kinda pointless cause they likely won’t see it. 146. Salty, Sweet, Sour or Spicy? Salty and sweet. I would have said spicy back in the day, but I can’t eat spicy food anymore. Haven’t been able to for the past few years. D: 147. Are you going into High School this year? Nooooo. Thank goodness. I did my time and graduated over 10 years ago. 148. What about Junior High? Omg, no. I’m old. 149. What is one thing someone could say to you right now that would make you cry? Let’s not try and make me cry. It’s almost 7AM, I should be asleep. 150. Where did you find this note? LiveJournal. 151. Last question. How many unread messages are in your phone? I don’t leave any unread text messages.

#personal #text #survey #surveys

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becasbelt · 5 years ago

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Chapters: 7/12 Fandom: Pitch Perfect (Movies) Rating: T Relationships: Chloe Beale/Beca Mitchell

* * *

CHAPTER 7

The sound of clustered piano notes rings through the empty rehearsal hall as Beca is pushed up against the piano. She moans at the feeling and fumbles behind her to find the fallboard, bringing it down to cover the keys. Chloe’s hands bracket her hips where they rest on the lid, and Beca brings her own hands up to tangle in Chloe’s hair.

They really hadn’t meant to start this in the rehearsal hall. It’s just, Chloe had borrowed a t-shirt with the sleeves cut off from Beca, and she looked really good in it. And Beca maybe hadn’t been able to tear her eyes away from the way Chloe’s ass looked in the leggings she was wearing, which Chloe had definitely noticed and used to her advantage. And when all the other girls cleared out pretty quickly after Aubrey called it a day, Beca just couldn’t help herself from stealing a kiss before heading back to her room….

Except one kiss had led to many kisses, and now Beca was seriously questioning why she ever thought leaving Chloe to go home was ever a good idea.

Beca bites down lightly on Chloe’s bottom lip, to which she is rewarded with a small whimper. Chloe separates from Beca with a gasp to catch her breath, and Beca takes advantage of the moment of weakness to flip their positioning, pushing Chloe’s hips into the piano with her own. She smirks at the surprise on the other girl’s face and starts on the task of kissing Chloe’s neck.

Chloe’s still breathing heavily as she brings her hands up to hold the back of Beca’s head to keep her close. Beca doesn’t mind one bit and nips at Chloe’s thudding pulse point. Chloe inhales sharply and tilts her head farther to the side.

Beca can’t help but smile against smooth skin for a moment because she can’t believe that this is actually her reality right now. For the last two weeks, they’ve been doing this- this being making out whenever they got the chance. They hadn’t put a label on what they were yet, which Beca was fine with; she knew that she liked Chloe, and that Chloe liked her, and that’s she really needed at this point in time.

Plus, if they put a label on it they would probably have to start telling people that they were together, and Beca didn’t want to pop the bubble they were in just yet.

“Bec,” Chloe breathes out, and Beca feels the hands in her hair pull slightly to direct her back into another kiss. Beca grins into the kiss, and soon the two of them are essentially just pressing their smiles against each other. Chloe pulls back with a giggle. “What prompted that?”

Beca raises an eyebrow at Chloe’s coy tone of voice. “Don’t pretend like you don’t know, Beale,” she tells her, reaching down to rest a hand over the swell of Chloe’s butt. Chloe gasps in fake surprise.

“I would never use my feminine figure for my own personal benefit,” Chloe claims teasingly. Beca just hums in reply and leans in to steal a few more kisses before pulling back altogether, sitting down on the piano bench.

Chloe pushes away from the piano to join her on the bench and Beca uncovers the keys once more. She puts her foot on the pedal and tinkers around on the instrument, not really playing anything in particular; just letting her fingers take her wherever they want to go.

“How can you just play without having any sort of music like that?” Chloe asks beside her after a moment, sounding amazed. Beca glances at her out of the corner of her eye.

“I dunno,” she shrugs, shifting her left hand down an octave. “It’s something that I’ve always just been able to do, I guess.” Beca arpeggiates up the piano, crossing her left hand over her right a couple times to play in the upper register of the piano. She smirks at Chloe. “Years of practice helps, too.”

Chloe shakes her head a little with a chuckle. “Show off,” she admonishes good-naturedly while she continues to watch Beca play.

They remain silent for a couple minutes while Beca makes up with a soft melody. Chloe is the first one to speak again. “I wish you could make us a new set list,” she whispers, almost as if she doesn’t want Beca to hear.

Beca hears her loud and clear, though, and immediately stops playing. She turns to look straight on at Chloe, who’s biting her lip with uncertainty. “Do you really mean that?”

Chloe hesitates for a moment before nodding. “What we’re doing now isn’t working, and I feel like you could come up with something way better.”

“Well, I mean, I definitely can,” Beca snorts. “It’s not hard to come up with something better than ‘The Sign’.” Chloe squints at her slightly, and Beca flushes and hurries to amend herself. “Which, you sound great in, by the way, but you have to admit it’s a little dated.”

Chloe’s fake glare dissipates and she lets out a chuckle. “No, you’re definitely not wrong,” she sighs, looking down and reaching out to poke at the piano keys in front of her. “I just wish there was something we could do to make us better.”

“There is, you know,” Beca says, and Chloe turns to look at her again with curiosity in her eyes. “You’re a captain, too, Chlo. You could get Aubrey to change the set.”

Chloe shakes her head. “I couldn’t do that to her,” she says quickly. “That would-”

“Stress her out, I know,” Beca finishes for her, rolling her eyes. “I still think it’s worth a shot, but you can do what you think is best, I guess. If you ever do decide that you want to challenge Aubrey, just know that I’ll be in your corner.”

Chloe seems to soften at this. “Thank you, that means a lot, actually,” she says gently. “And hey,” she nudges Beca’s shoulder, “I’ll always have your back, too.”

Beca smiles at her in gratitude for a moment before turning forward to start pecking at the piano again. She glances over at Chloe when she feels her eyes still on her. “What?”

“Since when do you care about the Bellas so much?” Chloe asks, a teasing lilt to her voice.

Beca scoffs and looks back at the piano. “I don’t.”

Chloe’s hands reach out to take Beca’s hands, stilling them. “Oh, but you totally do!” Chloe says excitedly, a wide grin stretching across her lips.

“I don’t care about anything,” Beca grumbles, pouting.

Chloe giggles and places a quick peck on Beca’s cheek. “Sure you don’t, grumpy.”

Beca doesn’t want to tell her that she actually doesn’t care about the Bellas all that much. Sure, they’ve somehow become some of her closest friends, but she still isn’t invested in them enough to care if they move on after semi-finals or not. Yet, Beca does want them to be better, because Chloe wants them to. Beca couldn’t care less what happened to the Bellas for herself, but deep down she knew that they had to do well for Chloe’s sake.

But that would be too cheesy to say out loud.

“Whatever,” she says instead, ignoring the victorious look in Chloe’s eyes. “Want to learn how to play a song?”

The loud, excited noise that Chloe responds with is enough to make Beca flinch, but she can’t help but smile at the other girl’s enthusiasm. She helps Chloe place her hands where they’re supposed to go and slowly begins to teach her an easy song, ignoring the fact that she’s pretty much already completely head over heels for the girl sitting next to her.

* * *

Beca looks out hopefully into the audience. It’s her first concert as a freshman in high school, and to say that she was excited would be an understatement. Her choir teacher had been so impressed when she auditioned that he put her in the top choir- a feat nearly unheard of. When Beca had told her parents, they had been ecstatic for her, telling her over and over again how proud they were of her. Her dad had taken them all out for ice cream, which is the first time they had done something as a family in months.

Now, as Beca searches the large audience, she can’t help but wonder if her dad had ever actually been excited about her accomplishment at all. Her mom sits all alone amidst the mass of people, a jacket draped over the empty seat next to her reserving the space for her absent husband.

Beca’s heart plummets when she sees that her dad isn’t here, and her mom catches her eye. She gives Beca a sympathetic look, which makes Beca quickly avert her gaze. Beca didn’t want her pity.

Besides, she had been looking forward to this concert since school started, so she had to try and ignore the disappointment she felt growing in her gut. Beca forces a smile on her face as the director cues them to start and loses herself in the music and the familiar rush that singing always brought to her.

When the final notes of their performance ring out through the auditorium and the audience starts cheering their praises to the choir, Beca can’t help but let her eyes slide back over to where her mom is sitting- well standing, now, along with the rest of the audience. The seat reserved for her dad is still empty.

The thundering of applause doesn’t feel quite as satisfying as it did moments ago.

Later that night, Beca sits alone at the piano. The rest of the house is quiet; her mom had gone to get ready for bed fifteen minutes ago, leaving Beca to entertain herself for the rest of the night.

Their front room that houses the piano is dark, save for the lamp in the corner that illuminates the room just enough to see the keys of the piano.

Beca is sits in front of the piano with her hands in her lap, trying her best to control the emotions raging inside. There are so many of them that she doesn’t even know what she’s feeling- sadness, disappointment, anger, all swirling around in her mind and taunting her to lose control.

She wants to scream, to cry, to hurt something so that she won’t feel so hurt herself. Beca had gone to the piano in hopes that she could soothe the pain by playing for a little bit, but now she finds that she has no desire to even set her hands on the keys.

So now she sits alone, fighting a war inside that is ultimately leaving her feeling empty. Hollow.

Numb.

Numb is a good way to think of it. Beca figures that numbess is a good way to cope with out of control emotions. Why feel too much when you can just feel nothing at all?

Beca is so disconnected that she only barely registers the sound of the garage door opening. She only becomes aware of what's going on around her when soft footsteps approach her, stopping beside the piano bench. “Hey, Bug,” her dad says quietly. Beca doesn’t look at him, just continues to stare at the keys in front of her in a daze. Out of the corner of her eye she sees a bouquet of flowers being set on the lid of the piano.

Beca chooses to remain silent.

Her dad sighs. “Listen, I’m sorry I didn’t make it to your concert. I know you were really looking forward to it. I got busy grading some papers at the school, and then I got busy making some revisions on my thesis, and then my coworker needed help with…”

He continues talking, making excuse after excuse as to why he wasn’t there, but Beca drones him out. She didn’t want to hear his reasons, and she didn’t know if she wanted to forgive him quite yet. He had said he was sorry, which meant that she should tell him that it was okay, but honestly? Beca didn’t know if it was. He had made her a promise that he would be there, no matter what, and he broke that promise. So it really wasn’t okay that he missed the concert, not really.

Still, Beca knew that she needed to forgive him. He was her father, after all, and Beca knew that he always tried to do what was best for her, even if he wasn’t successful all the time. There would be other concerts, ones that he would for sure make it to.

Plus, Beca knew that her mom was probably going to chew him out later, so it might be better if both of them weren’t mad at him.

“It’s okay,” Beca says after he’s done talking, tearing her eyes away from the piano to look up at him. She pretends it doesn’t bother her how he doesn’t actually look all that apologetic. “You’re a busy guy, I get it.” Beca shrugs her shoulders and looks down at her hands. “There’ll be other concerts.”

Her dad pats her on the shoulder. Places a kiss on top of her head. Beca fights the unfamiliar urge to pull away. “Thank you for understanding, Bec. I don’t know what I did to deserve a kid as good as you.”

Beca forces a stiff laugh out of her mouth. “I do what I can,” she attempts to say lightly. Her dad chuckles in reply and starts making his way out of the room, but Beca spins around on the bench to stop him at the last second. “Do you want to play piano for a little bit before going to bed?” she asks him quickly with wide eyes, causing him to stop and turn to look at her. “It’s been a while since we’ve played together.”

He brings up a hand to scratch at the back of his head. “I don’t think I’m up for playing right now. I’m kind of worn out,” he tells her, avoiding eye contact. “I think I’m just going to head to bed.”

“Oh,” Beca says in a soft voice, feeling her heart sink again. “Yeah, okay. Sounds good.”

“Maybe later,” her dad says noncommittally.

“Maybe later,” Beca echoes unbelievingly.

“Goodnight, Bec.”

“Night, Dad.”

He walks out of the room and Beca hears the sounds of his footsteps on the stairs shortly after, which Beca knows is a prelude to the shouting. She squeezes her eyes shut and breathes deeply; trying to reach that blissful numbness she had felt before.

Beca turns on the bench to face the piano once more and opens her eyes. The keys stare back at her, just asking to be played. Beca reaches out a hand and gently lowers the fallboard, covering the keys for the first time she can remember.

A lone tear rolls down Beca’s cheek, but she hardly notices through the uncomfortable hollowness swallowing her up from the inside.

* * *

Beca stares out the window of the bus, watching the scenery pass by, yet not actually processing any of it. There’s a warm weight resting against her right arm that belongs to Chloe, who’s been leaning against her for the better part of half an hour now. Beca’s unsure if the surprisingly quiet senior is asleep, so she focuses all her energy into holding as still as possible so she doesn’t disrupt her.

The bus had been fairly quiet ever since Fat Amy had been by Bumper’s burrito, as if they were all mourning the loss of Amy’s dignity. Amy, however, has held her head high since the incident, seemingly unbothered by the attack. Beca isn’t sure whether that’s due to pride or ignorance, but either way it’s kind of admirable.

Aubrey calls Chloe’s name from a couple rows back, and Chloe sits up to face her, answering Beca’s question as to whether she was asleep or not. Chloe pulls out an earbud to engage in conversation with Aubrey, and Beca watches her for a second before looking forward. She glances at Amy, who is in the driver’s seat in front of her, and notices a splotch of leftover burrito fillings behind her ear.

Beca quickly looks around to see if anyone’s watching before leaning forward in her seat slightly. “You got yourself a little something there,” she informs the Aussie, gesturing to her ear.

“Just leave it,” Amy tells her seriously. “It fuels my hate fire.”

Beca grins a little before leaning back to sit in her seat again. Chloe is facing forward now, both headphones in and humming along quietly to her music. Beca huffs a small sigh and resists the urge to lean over and press her lips against the ginger’s cheek. She goes back to staring out the window instead.

“I hopped off the plane at LAX with a dream and my cardigan,” Chloe suddenly starts singing beside Beca, causing her to look over at the other girl.

Cynthia-Rose joins in with a higher harmony. “Welcome to the land of fame excess.” Chloe looks back at Cynthia-Rose and smiles. “Am I gonna fit in?”

The rest of the Bellas join in on the next line, adding in background parts and additional harmonies. Even Aubrey, who Beca would have thought had never heard the song before, started singing along, though she was obviously trying to act more proper about it.

Beca rolls her eyes and fights to keep the smile off her face, keeping her eyes focused straight ahead of her. The volume rises when the girls start on the first “And the Jay-Z song was on” and Beca glances over to see Chloe, Aubrey, and the rest of the Bellas all closing in on her. She lets out a startled noise, laughing a little.

They all pause in their singing, staring at Beca expectantly. Stacie wiggles her fingers. Aubrey gives her a playfully stern look. Chloe, who’s taken out one earbud at this point, nods her head in encouragement and pokes her side lightly with a grin on her face.

And honestly, Beca really can’t say no to these girls. Not after everything they’ve been through this year.

So Beca rolls her eyes a little, smiles, and starts belting out the words along with the rest of the Bellas.

Beca allows herself to let go all the way and completely jam out to the dumb pop song, which she only feels slightly dumb for doing, but the huge smile overtaking Chloe’s face and the happy look in her eyes is enough to make any embarrassment Beca may feel vanish.

They sing together for all of about twenty seconds before the bus starts making clunking noises, causing all of them to slowly stop their jamming in confusion.

“It’s a… It’s… uhhh…” Amy trials off in her singing, looking down at the gas gauge. “Whoa.”

“What the hell?” Aubrey asks.

“Umm it’s pretty cool, actually,” Amy says lightly. “I think we’re just runnin’ out of gas.”

“No, that can’t be!” Aubrey insists. “You just filled the tank.”

“Yeah, I did,” Amy replies. “And, yet, maybe I didn’t… because I got hit by flying Mexican food.” The rest of the girls shoot worried glances at each other while Amy slowly pulls the bus over. “Aaaand we’re out.”

“Aca-scuse me?” Aubrey asks in disbelief.

“Aca-believe it,” Fat Amy tells her. “Man, what are we gonna do?”

Besides Beca, Chloe closes her eyes and puts her head in her hands, taking deep breaths in an attempt to stay calm. Beca rubs a hand soothingly up and down her back. Chloe speaks up softly after a moment. “Maybe we could call-”

“No!” Aubrey immediately cuts her off. “Don’t even say it, Chloe. How dare you.”

Beca narrows her eyes at Aubrey.

“No, actually that is a really good idea,” Amy innocently says from the front. “I’ve got Bumper’s number.”

“Why do you have Bumper’s number?” Aubrey asks, exasperated.

Amy starts trying to come up with an explanation, and Beca takes the opportunity of everyone’s attention being focused on that to reach down and take one of Chloe’s hands. Chloe looks up at her gratefully, and Beca squeezes her hand reassuringly before bringing their joined hands up to her lips to brush a quick kiss across Chloe’s knuckles.

And if anyone saw her do that, Beca honestly doesn’t think that would be the worst thing in the world.

* * *

The worst thing in the world, as it turns out, is an hour long bus ride with the Treblemakers.

Beca spent the ride wedged between Chloe and Jessica, listening to Bumper and Amy’s banter while becoming increasingly more and more agitated the whole time. When they finally arrived at their destination, Beca was just about ready to kiss the ground outside the bus.

About an hour later, the Bellas ready themselves for performance and gather backstage. The group going before them, the Footnotes, is good- like, really good. Their lead singer looks about 14, and the way he keeps shooting flirtatious looks at Beca indicates that he acts 14 as well.

Beca hates them.

The longer the Footnotes perform, the more anxious the Bellas seem to get. Most of the girls alternate between pacing, making flustered comments, and nervously watching their set.

A guy comes up to tell Aubrey that they have five minutes, and Stacie whirls on the blonde. “Where’d he come?” she asks worriedly.

Aubrey just shushes her.

Behind her, Beca can hear Amy whispering to Chloe. “It’s over. There’s no way we can beat the Footnotes and the Trebles.”

The Footnotes finish up their set and the audience reacts with thunderous applause. Aubrey beckons them all into a huddle. “We will be fine as long as we do the set list exactly as we rehearsed,” she says sternly, looking right at Fat Amy. “Okay? Exactly.”

Amy nods her head a little and averts her eyes. Beca shakes her head at the bullshittery of it all.

“Hands in,” Aubrey orders, glaring daggers at Beca.

“On three or after three?” Stacie asks.

Aubrey’s nostrils flare. “Screw it, let’s just do it.”

The announcer on stage introduces them and the Bellas walk out to polite applause, (forced) smiles on their faces. Aubrey blows into the pitch pipe, counts them off, and then they’re off on their boring old set.

Beca briefly wonders if it’s possible to throw up just from the thought of going through their set again.

She bets Aubrey could do it.

Beca’s actions go on autopilot as she lets her eyes look out into the audience. Their faces are unexcited, uninterested, and all around unimpressed. The DJ pulls out his phone and starts swiping through it, head propped up against his hand. She glances to her left to see the Footnotes dancing mockingly to their arrangement.

Anger and embarrassment overtakes Beca, and a terrible idea flashes through her head. It’s honestly a horrid thing to think of, but Beca has just enough angry adrenaline coursing through her body to be spontaneous and go through with it.

As soon as Chloe’s done with her solo, Beca quickly wets her lip in preparation and starts to sing at the same time Aubrey’s solo starts. “Bulletproof” may not be the easiest song to lay over the top of Ace of Base, but Beca thinks she pulls it off pretty well.

Chloe shoots a shocked – but delighted – expression over her shoulder, and it encourages Beca to keep going, despite the way Aubrey turns fully around to glare right at her.

Actually, maybe the glare is enough by itself. Beca grins cockily at Aubrey and sings even louder.

She sees Amy stumble a little on the choreography next to her, but the other girls don’t seem phased at all by Beca’s addition. Out in the audience the judges are nodding their heads in approval, which gives Beca all the validation she needs to know that she made the right decision.

Beca stops singing the mashup when they switch into “Eternal Flame” and side eyes Aubrey when she feels the blonde staring harshly at her. Beca can’t keep the pleased expression off her face, but continues on with the rest of the set as planned.

As soon as their performance is done, Beca quickly makes her way backstage, already anticipating Aubrey’s wrath. She and Amy exchange goofy looks with each other as they speed walk away, Chloe not far behind them. Soon enough Aubrey comes storming up to Beca through the rest of the Bellas.

“What the hell, Beca?” she demands, pushing her way through Stacie and Cynthia-Rose. “Were you trying to screw us up?”

Beca is immediately on the defensive. “Are you serious?” she asks, a small amount of bite to her tone.

“News flash, this isn’t the Beca show,” Aubrey fires back.

Beca recoils. “Okay, I’m sorry that I messed you up, but in case you hadn’t noticed, everybody pretty much dozed off during our set.”

“It’s not your job to decide what we do and when we do it,” Aubrey tells her haughtily. “Why don’t you ask the rest of the group how they felt about your little improvisation?”

Beca has no comeback for that. Her eyes immediately shoot to Chloe, only to see that their so-called “Co-Captain” was pointedly avoiding her gaze. Hurt flares through Beca, because Chloe had promised her that she would always have her back. Yet now, at the moment of truth, it appeared that all Chloe was full of was empty words. Beca turns her attention towards Fat Amy instead, hoping the bold Australian will be brave enough to speak up.

“Amy?” she implores desperately.

Amy looks at her uncertainly. “It was cool,” she starts timidly. “But, it did take us a little bit by surprise.”

“Yeah, a lot by surprise!” Aubrey immediately jumps in. Beca only glares at her in response. Aubrey straightens her uniform. “I told you she wasn’t Bella.”

“Aubrey, don’t,” Chloe tries to counter weakly, and anger bursts inside Beca.

“No, that’s okay,” Beca says before Chloe or Aubrey can say anything, causing the redhead to look over at her. “You don’t have to pretend you’re allowed to have a say in the group, right?”

Beca can see the way her words affect Chloe, but she can’t find it in herself to feel bad about it. Chloe looks down at her feet and she visibly deflates, sinking in on herself.

Aubrey wasn’t quite done yet. “Your attitude sucks, you’re a grade-A pain in my ass, and I know you’re hooking up with Chloe and I don’t like it.”

Usually these words coming from Aubrey didn’t cut through Beca as much as they were right now, but they hit differently after everything that’s happened in the last minute or so.

“You don’t have to worry about Chloe, Aubrey,” Beca says through gritted teeth. She stares blankly at Chloe, and the other girl looks up to meet her eyes. “Because there is definitely nothing going on there.”

Chloe’s eyes fall away again.

Footsteps approach from behind her, and a familiar voice speaks up. “Hey, is everything alright here?”

Jesse.

Beca whirls on him. “Can you back off?” she snaps.

Jesse holds up his hands in surrender and takes a few steps backwards with wide, concerned eyes. Beca turns back to face the Bellas, resisting the urge to punch Aubrey’s smug face.

“If this is what I get for trying,” Beca says dejectedly, though she doesn’t finish the thought. She spares one last glance at Chloe’s crestfallen expression before pushing through the Trebles and out the backstage door.

The sting of tears threatens her eyes, but Beca only hardens her expression and swallows down the urge to cry. Nobody she’d just left behind was worth any of her time or emotions, and she doesn’t know how they ever tricked her into believing otherwise.

#fanfic #pitch perfect #bechloe #beca mitchell #chloe beale #life is not a love song #the angst is upon us folks #v sorry

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livingmybestfictionallife · 5 years ago

Text

Live Wire --The Dirt--(5)

Summary: Wren Ledden, Tommy’s best friend from high school has had a rough life and she intends to keep the nitty gritty details of her suffrage to herself until the day she dies. Only Tommy has gotten her to open up about a small portion of her troubles, and it’s only Tommy who she trusts with her life. That is until her life gets turned around sneaking into a concert one night...the same night Motley Crue is born.

@triplehaitches, @prettyyoungandbored, @oskea93, @hot-young-runningfree, @crue-sixx, @dancergirl5527

Previous Chapters:

Live Wire --The Dirt-- Live Wire --The Dirt--(2) Live Wire --The Dirt--(3) Live Wire --The Dirt (4)

Mick returned home about an hour or two after practicing some of the band’s songs, and Tommy and Wren decided to crash at Nikki’s, something they had done plenty of times before, only now it felt different. That night would be the first night the three spent together as roommates, which would become a ride crazier than any of the three could imagine.

“Are you going to sleep on the floor every night then?” Nikki asked as he stood in the doorway of what would soon become either Wren or Tommy’s room. The bed was clear of everything besides Wren’s jeans and t-shirt, and Tommy laid stretched out across the dingy carpet.

“Where else is there in here?” he retorted.

“You both don’t have to sleep in here,” Nikki commented as he tried to hide some sort of ugly tone he couldn’t quite identify. “One of you can take the couch.” Tommy sat up and shrugged his shoulders.

“I’ll do that once we’re moved in and all, but I don’t mind chilling with her.”

“You’re not even going to consider making her take the couch?” Nikki asked. The question came out rude and arrogant, but he intended his tone to be more of impression. He didn’t know anyone who cared for their friends as much as Tommy and Wren cared for one another.

“She’s tough and strong and doesn’t take shit from anyone, but she only got that way by having everything taken from her. She doesn’t trust easily and she sure as shit doesn’t trust open spaces or strangers. She’s like a dog in the sense that if she likes someone, you know that’s a solid dude because her judgement isn’t something you’ll ever need to question.” Tommy had stood during this small spiel and was looking at Nikki from a downward angle.

“What happened?” Nikki asked as he glanced up at Tommy, making sure to look past the small tears that formed in his new friend’s eyes at the mere thought of his best friend’s suffering.

“That’s something she has to tell you, not me.” Tommy glanced down to Nikki’s hands and noticed the clothes he held in a wadded-up ball. “Those for her?” Nikki nodded and then shoved the black band shirt and tattered old sweat pants against Tommy’s chest. Tommy wandered into the apartment’s single bathroom and laid the clothes on the counter, because Tommy had the freedom to do so, because Tommy is the one Wren met as a kid and Tommy was the one she trusted with her life. Nikki tried to ignore the simmering resentment within his core as he reminded himself that he can’t change not meeting Wren sooner.

“At least you know her now,” he sighed to himself and took a step back from Tommy and Wren’s temporarily shared room and into the living room. The tall, lanky kid lingered in the living room and held an old pair of borrowed shorts in his hand as he waited outside of the bathroom. Wren and Tommy quickly traded places, and before Nikki knew it, the brunette babe he’d been experiencing so many conflicting emotions toward had joined him on the couch. Her legs were covered with his old pants and he silently cursed himself for even offering them up to her. Then again, he had a respect for her that kept him from actively indulging in an attempt to violate the trust she supposedly had in him, according to Tommy.

“Look,” she sighed as she sat down on the opposite end of the couch as him and stretched her legs out across the cushions. “I know this doesn’t need to be said, and honestly knowing us, we probably don’t want some sort of deep conversation to happen at all, so I’m just going to say thanks.”

“It’s nothing,” Nikki muttered, “you two spend enough time here anyway, just thought it’d be easier if you lived here.” Wren nodded her head slightly as Nikki misunderstood her thankfulness.

“I meant for including me with the band,” she said as she absentmindedly buried her feet under Nikki’s legs, a habitual act she’d done with Tommy for years. Instead of giving her a smirk and wiggling his eyebrows at her initiation of physical contact, Nikki simply adjusted himself on the couch so that she could comfortably position her feet below him; a subconscious action that took both of them by surprise.

“Why are you thanking me?” he asked. With his hair gone flat, black leather abandoned, and dressed in a rather soft looking shirt with equally soft pants covering her toes, Wren saw a different side of Nikki. She didn’t know him well—the ins and outs of his life were as much of a mystery to her as hers were to him—but in that moment, wearing his clothes, hair dripping onto the collar of a cigarette and cologne scented shirt, both of their rigid exteriors had vanished. “Do you really think Tommy or Mick are thanking me?”

“They auditioned and earned their spot,” Wren commented. “I just wandered into the diner and sat down with Tommy.” Nikki tipped his head back and sighed before turning back to face Wren.

“No, you didn’t,” he scoffed as he took in the gentle features of Wren’s face he’d so frequently overlooked due to her sharp jaw and piercing eyes. “You wandered into a men’s room, confident enough to assert dominance over the biggest asshole in the room just to see a show. You picked out Mick’s ad before anyone else and had the follow through to fucking call him. If tomorrow goes well, you will have also found our singer. I don’t give a fuck about if you ever pick up an instrument with us, you’re as important to the band as Mick, Tommy, or even me. Understand?” Wren nodded lightly and fluffed her wet hair with her fingers as Nikki’s hand rested gently on her shin. “Good, now tell me about this Vince guy. Why did Tommy ask if you were okay with him? You two didn’t used to—”

“Fuck, Nikki, why do you always assume I’m trying to fuck the rest of your band? I’m not your damn groupie.”

“That’s not—” upon seeing the smirk falling over Wren’s lips and hearing the soft and intoxicating laugh that left her lungs, Nikki shook his head and changed his tone away from its initially defensive nature. “Fuck off, Wren,” he laughed as she wriggled her feet from underneath him and he reached for her hand to pull her closer toward him. He hated how he felt compelled to hold her close in certain moments, to smell the gentle scent of coconuts and mint that wafted from her hair and skin, but damn it, he didn’t want to ever forget what that combination smelled like.

“You fuck off, Sixx,” she muttered in response as he put an arm around her and she leaned lightly into his embrace, just as she had earlier that day. “Vince got into singing when he transferred to our high school. He was a prick, surfer kid who didn’t give a damn about anything. Once he and his band had this huge house party at his house and when his parents came home in the middle of it and saw him performing, they sat and watched him perform. My parents on the other hand would verbally abuse me anyone even came close to taking first chair away from me in choir.” Nikki’s silence lingered long enough for Wren to decide to continue her story. “I never told Tommy this, but I used to sing in a rock band on the house party circuit. When my parents figured out, they scolded me in a way that kept me from being able to sit for a week. Vince and I ran into one another on the circuit a few times and he always hated me for the comments he got. Sure everyone loved him, but the only criticism he received was ‘You should model your sound after Wren!’ Being someone who was always loved, he didn’t really like hearing that, but I had to be better than him...than everyone if I didn’t want to face a beating.”

“Did you ever explain to him?” Nikki asked as a lump rose into his throat. He’d resented his parents for their neglect and abandonment, and although he had considered how much worse his childhood could have been had his parents whipped him around, they would have been doing it out of anger and spite, not to psychologically associate failure with abuse as Wren’s family clearly did.

“Vince?” she asked with a scoff in her voice. “If you’re a girl, Vince doesn’t acknowledge your existence unless there’s something he can get for giving you attention.”

“And you wouldn’t give him anything?” Nikki asked with a moderate look of pride on his face that fell when Wren shook her head.

“I would never stoop to that level, but it didn’t matter because he never wanted anything from me,” she admitted. Wren’s appearance, both her beauty and edge, took dedication and patience. She’d experienced bullying for the majority of her time in school, was never one of the stereotypical, pretty girls with their petite frames and Barbie like features—she was tall, curved like a woman, not a girl, and for quite a long time wore baggy clothes to hide the fact that she was starving at home, bruised, and scarred. Tommy was the first to break down her walls, which explained why she was so close to him than the rest of the world. Then there was Nikki, sitting here holding her as if they’d known one another forever.

“His fucking loss,” Nikki said softly against the side of her head, his voice getting lost in her damp hair as he once again breathed in the minty coconut smell. Both Wren and Nikki could have stayed wrapped together on the couch all night long, his arm around her shoulders, her resting gently against his chest, two broken souls trying to mend through the other without either knowing what was truly going on; but the sound of Tommy slipping in the tub as the water shut off shocked both parties back to reality. She was a part of the band, she was close to Tommy, she found Mick and quickly bonded with him, and she knows the potential lead singer. Nikki couldn’t risk a Yoko Ono situation, regardless of how high his heart felt when she was pressed against him.

“I’m going to go to bed,” Wren said softly as she adjusted how his shirt fell around her body. “See you in the morning, Nikki.” She only took two soft steps across the carpet, before Nikki’s fingers were wrapped around Wren’s hand—his thumb pressed into her palm and his fingers tracing the bones of her knuckles. That damned curious expression that sent Nikki’s heart jumping to his throat crossed her face. Her eyes danced between their intertwined hands and Nikki’s gentle face, her lips were tense as she tried to keep them from curling into a smile, and Nikki loosened his tender grasp on her hand with a subtle laugh as he smiled at the ground.

“Stick with me tomorrow, when we go to check out Vince,” Nikki stated.

“What? Why?” Wren asked, skeptical of his words and intentions.

“Oh come on, Wren,” Nikki huffed. The sound of Tommy tripping once again alerted them both to the urgency of which they needed to finish their conversation. “Don’t pretend like you don’t want that asshole to eat shit for never looking at you in high school.”

“Thanks for the offer, Nikki, but I never cared about it then; why would I give a shit now?” Nikki’s shoulders raised and then fell quickly as his head rolled from one shoulder to the other.

“Let me know if you change your mind,” Nikki replied as he flashed his teeth through such a sweet smile at Wren. A smile crossed her face as she turned toward the guest room, but Nikki had called her attention to him once more. “Take my room tonight. I’m going to sleep on the couch,” he stated as he paced past her to grab one of the extra pillows from the guest room. Seeing as there was no use in arguing, Wren nodded sleepily and gave a weary smile as she disappeared down the hall and beyond the door to Nikki’s room. With the door closed, Wren curled up in his bed. It was a simple room that was mostly bare, with the exception of dark bedding and posters or fliers from all of Nikki’s old bands. She tried to ignore the smile that crept onto her face as she smelt Nikki on the shirt she wore and the pillows her head rested on, but for some reason, that damned boy was impossible to get out of her head. Wren drifted to sleep with Nikki’s words repeating in her head as she buried herself beneath the warmth of blankets that were strewn across his bed.

When Tommy exited the shower, he couldn’t ignore the expression on Nikki’s face that seemed to tango between a smile and a smirk. He decided against going to sleep right away, and made his way into the kitchen to drink one last beer before bed. “What’s got you in a smile?” he teased Nikki as he joined in him the living room. Nikki laid out across the couch and rested his feet on the arm rest as he turned his head to face Tommy. Words couldn’t leave Nikki’s mouth because his mind was too preoccupied with his conversation with Wren. He couldn’t stop thinking about what she’d said earlier when Mick was around, and now he couldn’t look past how negatively she viewed herself.

“Wren was just telling me about Vince,” Nikki stated, a hiss strung out across the man’s name.

“Yeah, she’s pretty bitter about him,” Tommy explained. “Did she mention her folks?” Nikki nodded his head slightly and pursed his lips in aggravation. “Yeah,” Tommy sighed as pain engulfed him yet again.

“Fuck them,” Nikki said in an attempt to keep Tommy from dwelling too much on the negative aspects of their friend’s life. “Right?” Tommy nodded in agreement to keep the tears that normally fell in regards to his memories of Wren and her parents. “Also, Vince?”

“What about him?” Tommy asked as he picked up his sticks and began to twirl them to keep himself from getting too jittery before bed.

“Why did you ask Wren if she was okay with him being apart of the band?” Nikki prompted in hopes of uncovering the full story. Tommy’s eyes flicked from one side of the room to the other, hesitant to speak in case Wren randomly appeared. Upon realizing she was sleeping soundly in the next room, Tommy spoke again.

“Wren’s been brash and bold for years, but before that, she was a pushover. A lot of people took advantage of her because she was so nice, and Vince was one of those people. She was so sweet and kind for someone who listened to such heavy music and wearing such dark clothes and makeup—and that kindness is still there, but it’s not as readily available. As you could imagine, she’s always been a knock-out,” Tommy quickly noticed the uneasy look that spread across Nikki’s face as he brought up Wren’s appearance. “She’s always been fit, big tits, nice ass, but she never gave it up. Vince was a popular guy, I always liked him and we hung out at parties and shit, but we drifted ways after he started a rumor that would gain his reputation. Well, when we were sixteen, he told everyone he’d shacked up with Wren, which led to a lot of girls dragging her for being a slut, and a lot of guys trying to fuck her.”

“Did she?” Nikki’s voice was weak, and Tommy pretended not to notice this change.

“Fuck no!” Tommy puffed as he kept his voice low. “But that’s a different story,” he again sighed. Tommy stared out across the room at Nikki as he lied on his back, eyes locked on the ceiling, and his hands draped over his chest. Tommy could see the tension spreading across Nikki’s chest, he knew the smile that slipped over his face whenever Wren spouted a snarky response, the way Nikki loosened up around her, the way he’d pull her closer sometimes, but more importantly, he noticed the way Wren acted with Nikki, how she’d lightly lean into him, how she didn’t flinch or harden her expression whenever he looked at her the way she did with every other man besides himself. “Hey, keep an eye on her tomorrow, would ya?”

“Excuse me?” Nikki grunted as his hazel eyes glanced at Tommy below his dark eyebrows.

“We both know she can handle herself with some drunk assholes, but with these people, I dunno man, I can never tell what’s going to happen. There’s gonna be a lot of people from our old school there, and she wasn’t very friendly with many of them. I’ll do all the talking with Vince, just make sure she’s not uncomfortable there, okay?” A knot formed in Nikki’s core, but at the same time, his heart fluttered within his chest. “If someone’s a dick just, scare them off. You’re okay with that right? I mean, it seems like you’ve gotten kind of close, and you’re both assholes, so just be assholes together and tell everyone to go fuck themselves if you have to. I just don’t want to have to bring her back from darkness again, okay?” Upon seeing the melancholy look that fell over Tommy’s face, Nikki could nearly feel the sinking feeling within his friend’s soul.

“I’ll keep her safe for you, bud,” Nikki agreed. “She’s crashing in my room so you can have the bed one last time before you’re exiled to the couch.” With a chuckle on his lips, Tommy smiled back at his friend as he stood to make his way toward the guest room once more.

“Thanks man, I appreciate it, and I know she will too.” As Tommy disappeared into what would become Wren’s room in a matter of hours, Nikki reflected on his parting words and wondered, What the hell does that mean? However, sleep claimed its victory over him before his mind could wander down the rabbit hole reserved for he and Wren.

He’d seen her in his dreams nightly since their meeting. She was never the focal point of his subconscious fantasies, rather she appeared in glimpses as a fleeting figure that filled his soul with regret and guilt. Tonight, however, was different. He could see her before him, clear as day, as she stood defiantly in front of him. The setting of this dream was unstable and seemed to morph around the pair—from the location of their meeting, staring across the diner booth at one another, or simply standing in the living room with instruments slung around their necks--it was always somewhere familiar to them both. Nothing ever happened, just her fiery light shining through his dark, closed off exterior, and him resisting the urge to lean down and taste the peppermint Chapstick on her lips for himself, rather than as some second-hand flavor of her he sampled while sharing a drink.

Continued Reading:

Live Wire --The Dirt--(6)

Live Wire --The Dirt--(7)

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nuitarius · 4 years ago

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Doubt is fuel

Sometimes we encounter obstacles. Failures. We are not good enough, not competent enough, not gifted enough. It is already difficult when these diagnoses are made by oneself, but it is even more difficult when the others decide that for us.

Right now, it's a bit tough. It's not much, but I wanted to take a harp exam. It was too early, I suspected, but my teacher thought that my level would be sufficient. I failed. It's nothing, basically, I can try it again next year. Besides, it was not to take exams that I wanted to learn to play the harp. I wanted to learn to play a beautiful instrument that made me dream. I wanted to have fun. I wanted to create beauty. But the preparation for the exam took precedence over the fun. And that stupid exam hurt me. When I returned from the audition, I wanted to leave my harp in its case. To forget it. But that wasn't fair to this pretty harp that didn't do anything wrong. So the poor thing is waiting in my music room for me to touch it again, like a little mourning animal. It will get better. I just need to do something different with it.

Right now, it's a bit tough. I needed success in my field, because I always need to prove to myself that I can be successful in this strange career that I have chosen. Among other things, I sing in a duet with a guitarist. Two weeks ago, we had our first set, in a private concert. It wasn't that bad, but it wasn't good either.

Right now, it's a bit tough. I don't know what I'm worth as a composer. If I listen to myself in bad times, I'm worthless and uninteresting, and those who listen to me do so out of pity. There were some good times last year. Creating the soundtrack for the podcast was a great challenge and the project participants seemed excited. But I can't help but doubt their sincerity when I’m feeling like this. Today, I struggle to compose. The fleeting moments of inspiration are quickly blown away by everyday life, by fatigue.

And my voice. Am I a good teacher? Am I a good singer? What about my job as director? I often have the impression that the choir singers or the musicians are just patient with me, because they have not found better yet.

It is as if I were a ruined house perched on a hill. It only takes a little wind to make me tremble, to shake my foundations. I can't stand bad weather. The rain rushes through my windows. The shutters slam. There are cracks in the walls.

Right now, it's a bit tough. I hope better days are ahead. Doubt is fuel, I say it often enough to end up believing it. So I refuel. The road remains beautiful, even in the rain.

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stars-and-rose · 5 years ago

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marching/concert band! au: boys with crushes

basically,, I just went through band camp and gained inspiration for this au! also i just love it. so i wrote some cute little shippy scenes,, but it’s basically admitting they have crushs,, not a confession scene. yet. so have some band au! prinxiety and logicality minifics!! note, these take place in their junior year, so patton isn’t drum major yet- he’s drum captain,, and roman and logan aren’t heads yet!

----

Virgil adjusted the pin on his strap, glaring up at the sun as if he could prevent it from admitting heat. As much as he loved band, marching the same sets over and over in the burning sun wasn't his favorite pastime. He could practically feel his eyeshadow melting off, and his arms felt gross from the sunscreen he'd piled on. His water bottle was thankfully cool. It wasn't as cold as he would have liked, but it would do. Virgil took off the cap and chugged the water. Around him, the rest of tenors sat in the grass, enjoying the short water break before Thomas would order them all back into set zero. The band was getting the show down quicky. Sound-wise, there were some issues, but the marching was going nicely. Maybe that was because the tenor section had only gained two freshmen. Patton and Roman had complained at lunch about the ridiculous amounts of percussionists and flutists that had joined this year, but Virgil's section had gotten lucky. Speaking of the two freshmen, they were sitting next to him, talking loudly about cute guys. Virgil listened idly, deciding the girls had a decent taste in boys. Then, he heard, "You know the flute's assistant section leader? "Oh man, he's hot." "I know right? He's got really pretty eyes. I heard he plays lacrosse and is in choir too!" Alright, the girls had great taste, but that wasn't going to work. "Back off." Both girls whipped their heads around to look at him, confusion glowing in their eyes. "Huh?" "He doesn't know it yet, but Roman? He's mine." Virgil allowed himself to feel smug for a few seconds before he heard a familiar voice yell. "Yes! Virgil Tempest you amazing boy you just earned me twenty bucks!" It was Virgil's time to whip his head around. The head section leader of the tenor's, a boy named Joey, was grinning like a manic. "Cathy is going to lose her mind knowing you admitted it first!" "What? What are you talking about- did you make a bet on me? About what?" Virgil demanded. Ignoring the raging equipment manager, Joey yelled across the field, "Cat, I want my twenty!" There was silence for a few seconds before the flute's head section leader let out a groan. "Damn it Roman I had my faith in you, you shit!" ------- Logan slammed down the top of the printer, clicking the go button as he spun around. The other librarians were running around the library. It was the last game of the year- yet it seemed half of the band managed to lose their music. They had to leave for a neighboring high school in less than an hour, and Logan had arrived early to start the copying process. Even with the early start, they had only begun to make a dent. This year's head librarian, a girl named Leah, groaned from her spot at the paper cutter. "I've got an idea. We kill the entire band." The other assistant, a clarinetist named Theo, nodded their head from their position on the floor. "Perfect. You get brass, I'll get woodwinds, we'll team up to get percussion, and Logan will keep us out of jail." "Of course you make me the brains of your half-hazard homicide plots. Besides, you are afraid of blood Leah." She rolled her eyes, turning away from the paper cutter and almost knocking over the plant sitting on the edge of the table. Theo gasped. "You almost killed Roger! You'd break Patton's heart!" Speak of the devil. The drum captain entered the library, holding a bag from Lottie's. "Why are we breaking my heart?" "Leah almost knocked over the plant you bought," Logan explained with a small smile. Patton gasped. "I trusted you with Roger. Don't make me take him off you!" Theo snorted. "Is there a reason you're here, Pat? Love you, but hell is breaking loose in here." "Oh! Now I feel bad. I brought Logan some Crofter's cookies from Lottie's and some made him some coffee." As he spoke, Patton handed Logan the bag he was holding. Logan opened it, revealing wrapped jam cookies and his favorite galaxy coffee mug, warm to the touch. Leah and Theo shared a look. "Oh, it's okay, Pat." "We promise we're fine." "Oh, okay! If you say so. I gotta round up drumline." As soon as Patton was out of sight, Logan pulled a flashcard out of his pocket, cheeks burning. "I guess you would say I have a 'crush'." --------- "Oh man, I can't believe that was real." Patton smiled at the sophomore next to him. Michael still had a dreamlike look on his face, even though they had left All-State Orchestra four hours ago. In the front seat, Thomas chuckled. "You both did incredibly. I can't believe I got to take two kids to All States. Then, I get to take three to All-State Jazz, and Millie has two she's taking to All-State Choir." Patton nodded. "Virgil and Roman have been talking about it. I don't think I've seen Virgil without him humming his audition piece, and Roman's drunk before green tea in the past week than he has his entire life." Michael nodded. "I bet. How you'd like All States?" "Oh, it was so much fun! Though, my arm hurts." Thomas snorted. "That's to be expected. Your solo sounded amazing, Pat." Patton winced. "I almost missed the Director cueing me in." "It happens." Thomas turned the car onto a familiar street. "We're almost at the school. I love you guys but please make sure you have rides ready, and get your bags. We've got school tomorrow and we all need to be well-rested. "My dad told me he's already at the school," Michael replied. "What about you, Pat?" "My older sister told me I'd have a ride waiting for me." "Which Lark child will I be seeing tonight?" Thomas asked. "No idea!" After Thomas pulled into the school, Micheal giggled. "None. Look, Patton." Patton glanced out the window, and a grin formed on his face. Logan, wrapped in a blue overcoat held a sign reading, "Congratulation, Patton, ' in his beautiful cursive. His cheeks were flushed from the night, and when he met Patton's gaze, he offered a soft smile. "Boys." Patton breathed. "I think I'm in love." ------- "Huh. All of your notes are right." Evelyn practically chucked her flute into her lap. "This is hopeless! It's the end of me. I'm buying a plane ticket and flying to Idaho and becoming a potato farmer." Roman rolled his eyes. "Hey, I'm the drama queen of this section. You'll get it, Eve. Thomas wouldn't have given you the solo if he didn't think you could." "Can you play it again?" She asked, glaring at the sheet music. Roman raised his flute to his lips, closing his eyes. He'd played these measures multiple times with Evelyn, and playing was easier if he wasn't staring at his music. The soft melody filled the air. Then, Evelyn groaned. "You play it much better." Roman lower his instrument. "Maybe you're not putting enough feeling into it?" "What?" "Well, it's a ballad. A love story. A song about lovers who have finally reunited after a long war and are falling into each other's arms." "Yeah, Mr. Sanders told us that when he passed out the piece." "Pretend you're playing it for your girlfriend," Roman suggested. "Put all the passion into the piece, as if you were the soldier returning to their love." "Huh." Evelyn nodded. "Is that what you do?" "Yeah." "You're single though, right? Then who are you playing it for?" "Mmm. I imagine I'm seeing Virgil after he's been gone for years. I play it for him." "So, you finally admit you have the hots for Virgil? Took you long enough! Cathy is going to rage that she wasn't around to hear it." "Wait, huh? Eve you bitch! Get back here!"

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