Acapella

Chapter 23- TAPS

For the first part of the tour, we decided to sing Cheap Thrills by Sia. We curled our hair and put on red lipstick, along with some thick mascara. We dressed up in tank tops that were striped red and white, and our jeans were blue with a white belt.

I stared at myself in the mirror, fixing any flaw in my makeup. Florencia backed me away from the mirror slowly.

"You're gorgeous, (Y/n)," Cynthia-Rose assured me.

"Thanks," I said, smiling. "I'm just really nervous."

"You shouldn't be," Florencia said.

We watched Evermoist play. We were next. They had the crowd cheering. It made my stomach churn with anxiety. I looked down at my growing stomach, wondering if anybody would notice.

I helped Lilly beatbox during the set. Everyone clapped along with our song. We felt confident. We were almost at the end. Almost there.

Then TAPS went off.

I immediately saluted. We looked foolish to everyone as the girls scrambled around in confusion.

What a great way to start off the tour.

We sat in my room that night. Chloe and Beca were laying on my bed, Lily was reading a book on the floor, and the rest were lounging.

"Should we be considering using instruments? Is that crazy?" Beca asked.

Aubrey laughed. "Oh, that's so funny! You know, I'm gonna pretend you didn't just say that so we can still be friends."

"If we had drums, then we wouldn't need Lilly and (Y/n). If we had bass, then we wouldn't need me. I still don't understand why Jessica and Ashley are even here," Chloe reasoned.

"You know what? I have an idea. We just need to show DJ Khaled that we are different and better than all of those other bands. You know?" Aubrey asked.

"I think we did great. I just think the horn killed our vibe," Cynthia-Rose reasoned.

"True that," Aubrey said, clicking her tongue against her teeth with a smile.

Emily walked into the room wearing a party dress. "All right, ladies. Pick up your tits. We're going out."

"What do you mean, going out?" Beca questioned.

"What do you mean, what do I mean? We just sucked balls in front of DJ Khaled," Emily said grimly.

Amy sat up slightly. "Listening."

"He's staying at that fancy casino across the street, okay? And I say we all get up, we get dressed, we go over there, and we show him that we are not a joke," Emily decided.

"Emily, I can't believe a half-decent idea came out of your dumb mouth," Amy joked.

"Thank you," Emily whispered.

"Okay? Now let's get tarted up-"

"Tatted?"

"Tarted up."

"It sounds like tatted up."

"Tarted up. She's a caramel tart, she's a chocolate tart, (Y/n)'s an apple tart, you're a vanilla tart."

"Thanks, babe," Beca replied.

"Oh, tarted."

"Oh, tarted!"

"It's easier if we just say slutty," Amy reasoned.

I wore a navy blue dress with some gold heels and accessories. We cheered as we walked into the casino. It tightened around the waist, but didn't show off the slightest of my pregnant stomach.

"Okay, ladies. I think we should split up. Divide and conquer. Are you ready?" Aubrey asked. "Let's rock it."

I started walking around the casino with Emily. She stuck with me, since we were the most alike.

"Thank you for sticking with me. Getting in a dress gives me bad luck at points," I said gratefully.

"Aren't you married, though?" Emily asked, confused.

"Men don't take the hint," I replied.

"How far along are you?" Emily asked, eyeing my stomach.

I sighed. "Seven weeks," I admitted.

"Don't worry. The girls don't care. Well, they do care, but they're not making a big deal out of it," Emily explained.

We followed the guy Beca was talking to. I stood next to her with Emily. We went up an elevator and the doors opened. A party appeared in front of us. I trailed behind Beca.

The man led us behind a curtain. I marveled at the technology. Beca and I sat down, putting on headphones. A beat played, and I started singing randomly. Beca experimented with the controls, making a beautiful song.

Beca cut it and moved to another file. I started singing the song Andy, and I wrote. I got halfway through when I smelled smoke.