Acapella

Chapter 21- Riff Off 3

Donald helped me pack as soon as I got back to Illinois. He was fully supportive of the idea, like he always was. Music played as I packed and Donald helped. I'll Make Love To You by Boyz II Men turned on and I remembered that night in college. The night of the riff-off when I stared into Donald's eyes and saw pure love as I sang.

Donald's hands ended up on my waist. He turned me around, humming with a smile as we slow-danced. He twirled me when the chorus started, pulling our hips together.

"I'll make love to you, like you want me to, and I'll hold you tight, baby, all through the night," I sang softly as I connected our foreheads.

"God, you're amazing," Donald breathed, kissing my nose. "But the fact that you're grinding isn't helping the fact that I want you laid out in front of me."

"Charming," I said sarcastically.

Donald smiled, Can't Hold Us by Macklemore drifting into the air. I went back to pack as Donald concentrated on rapping. I finished, zipping up the suitcase.

Donald kissed me goodbye before I got on the plane. I met the girls at the airport, walking like we did when we were going to the Dean's office. I felt more confident than ever.

"Hola, senoritas!" a man called.

I recognized him. He and the woman were the ones who told us we couldn't compete in national competition.

"Where'd you guys even come from?" Beca asked.

"A little town called Persistence, sweet cheeks," the woman replied.

"Look at this, ladies. All access passes. We're tall enough for all the rides," the man explained. "You can run, but you can not hide."

"This documentary is happening," the woman said determinedly. "We're gonna film this whole thing. And it's gonna be beautiful. It's going to be beautiful. Where are we gonna set up, John?"

"Papi cholos, straight ahead," Florencia announced.

"Welcome to Spain, Bellas," Walp said. "Some important things to know before we begin." We could barely hear everything over an airplane that was taking off. "I hope you all heard each and every word. 'Cause you might very well end up dead." Walp paused for a moment. "Ladies, I'm messing with you. On behalf of the Department of Defense, we would like to welcome you to the Naval Air Station of Spain. A sincere thank-you for coming out to entertain the troops and our families. We're excited for this tour. My name's Chicago, and over here to my left is Captain Bernie, who we like to call Zeke. Ladies, we're going to be with you the whole tour as your escorts and security details."

"Question. Will we all be showering together?" Amy asked.

"First off is a sound check. Then you'll be heading back to the hotel by 14:30, maybe hit the brain locker, come back here for the big show at 17:00," Chicago explained.

"17:00. Is that, like, later than the night?" Chloe asked.

"It's five, Chlo," I hissed.

"Question, question. So this is the first base. Will we be going to second base with you guys? And then, maybe a few days later, we'll go to third base?" Amy questioned.

"That's a no from me, so..." Captain Bernie trailed off.

"Wait, what's after the third base?" Amy asked.

"Why don't we get you to your first venue?" Chicago suggested.

"Lead the way," I agreed, grabbing my suitcase's handle.

"Alright, while we are really excited to have you here, right now, we're in hanger three. This is where we call all of our helicopters. Of course, now we got the big stage, built up for the tour. So on the tour, we got three bands. Over here, we got Saddle Up. This is Young Sparrow and DJ Dragon Nutz. Behind me is Evermoist."