Pitch Perfect One-Shots

Chapter CL - Bechloe: My Passion

Idea by Djcali123

To be jealous is to care - to love. It is suffering because one loves so deeply. Suffering because feelings - emotions - are immeasurably maimed. It is passion. It is desire. It is need. It is want. It is infused with a plethora of emotions that can be sometimes viewed as shameful laced with a guilty conscience. Anger smothers the green-eyed monster before the dam of truth breaks. The truth being that the passion of love - jealousy - can be frowned upon. Erotic anger as Gérard Pommier, Giulia Sissa, Euripides amongst many other authors, scholars, and actors describe it. Nonetheless, it is a human emotion that we all experience - pleasant or not - it rears its ugly head and it falls upon us as to how we encroach and deal with the situation.

For Chloe Beale, suffering does not come soon enough. The passion for art flows deeply through her veins. To paint is to live. To paint is to explore, challenge, provoke, to get in touch with one's self. From Michaelangelo to Piccaso, Chloe Beale explores what it is to be an artist and in that exploration, she finds herself but only by a grave sacrifice. Deciding between her love for art and her love for the woman of her dreams was problematic and burdensome but the redhead chose the former - believing it to bring her more happiness and joy as she tried to find herself in her art - a passion Beca Mitchell could never understand.

Three years later, now having found her passion and herself, Chloe Beale is a successful painter in London. Looking upon her work beetling from the ebony walls of London's finest and renowned art museums, she grins elatedly.

"I did it," she tells herself.

People from far and wide come to examine Chloe's masterpieces. The money is prodigious, the fans are joyful, the status is resplendent, however, in the midst of all her glory and success, there is something inside Chloe that is hollow. The woman shrugs it off to begin with but as time goes on, Chloe deduces the feeling will not perish without prompt so, upon natural instinct, Chloe turns to her easel for answers but alas, none are given. Several months later, it isn't until Chloe unravels the mystery that is the emptiness inside her and that is the day Beca Mitchell arrives in London and peruses the museum as a curious cat.

Witnessing Beca's presence in her own, Chloe can't help but feel the brunette is aloof and aloof she is when the woman who just happens to be one of the world's most famous and successful music producers pretends not to recognise her. She doesn't register her. Not even when Chloe makes herself clearly visible in Beca's line of sight. The music producer shuns her and the action is a sting to Chloe's heart but the ultimate sting is when fans detach themselves from Chloe's art and turn their attention to Beca, some of which idolise the woman. The sight is similar to that of The Worship Of Mammon as the fans reach out to grasp the woman's hands. Or more appropriately, to Nicolas Poussin's Golden Calf. It is as if Beca is the Golden Calf itself - the rejection of faith clearly present once Beca bewitches her followers with her charm.

"Beca, I love you!"

Chloe hears the ripping voice from behind her and the scene of a woman with a striking resemblance to Sandro Botticelli's beautiful Venus, shoots chills down her spine. Apace, the green has surfaced but is surpassed by red. Beca continues to ignore the artist who stands in the dark corners of the background - resentful, bitter, and jealous. Adding fuel to the fire, Chloe's co-artists flock to the producer, blushing as Beca bedazzles them and Chloe notices Beca relishing in the moment. The moment is not enjoyable for the redheaded artist as it resembles Edvard Munch's The Scream where everything turns horrid as screams fill the air - this is Chloe's Hell.

Beautiful Beca is and the knowledge is not lost on Chloe nor anyone else in the museum or around the globe. London is quite the distance from Los Angeles - the place Beca dubs "home" but nonetheless, she is here on tour but now - stealing Chloe's limelight and to Chloe, that is simply unacceptable. In what feels like hours, Chloe musters up the strength within her bones to approach the brunette and extract her from her fans. Beca is resilient but Chloe forces her hand until they are alone. Endless apologies leave Chloe's mouth but Beca waves them off as if they are nothing. Hurt, Chloe continues, imploring Beca to listen, which she does.

"I should never have left you," Chloe begins, successfully grasping Beca's attention. "I should have never chosen art over you."

The statement knocks the wind out of the producer but Chloe remains silent until she speaks.

"You said this was your passion - your dream," Beca admonishes. "You made that quite clear."

"I know," the woman hangs her head in shame. "I can't tell you how sorry I am, Beca... I miss you... There's... there's something missing in my life and I had no idea what it was until now... Seeing you... here... ignoring me... I can't stand it... I... I can't do this alone..."

Hitting her like a brick, Beca realises she cannot do this - life - alone either. Chloe has always been her love and heartbreak has been both her downfall and success. Success of her music career as it gave her the push to pursue it but downfall that is her depression - the black dog that mercilessly follows her wherever she ventures.

"Why now?" Beca probes and Chloe forfeits her façde.

Confessions of jealousy, anger, resentment, melancholy, and isolation vulnerably escape Chloe's lips but fall from them ever so gracefully. Beca follows every word, every emotion, and in the end, Beca requites. No more hide and seek of emotions - the women love each other and later that night, they fall into each other - exchanging love like Cupid and Psyche, gracefully depicted by Benjamin West - beautiful, passionate, enchanting, and above all else, loving.

Clad by the satin sheets of Chloe's bed Beca sleeps as the redhead presses a tender kiss to her temple before exiting the bed. Slipping on a silk gown, Chloe returns to her easel and resumes her project, rediscovering her true passion and within the hour, a beauteous and mesmerising painting is created of the blue-eyed, brown-haired woman that is Beca, leaving Chloe satisfied and pleased beyond measure.

"What are you doing, Chlo?" Beca mumbles from the bed, peering up at the woman sitting at the end of it.

"Painting."

"What?"

Grinning contently, Chloe responds, "My passion."