Chapter 4

What's next?

Beca finds her way back to her room.

Beca was nervous. That didn't surprise her, really - she was naked, in the bathrooms, with no clothes in sight. Or towel, or... Anything, really.

Dammit, Chloe, you already had me on board with Acapella, I didn't need another dramatic plot twist.

The breeze of the exhaust vent felt far more pronounced now that she was nude, sucking air and fog from the room slowly. It was always on, Beca had seen it before; but now she felt the air brush against her skin, gooseflesh growing on her arms.

Beca knew she had to steel herself. She had to get back to her dorm room, couldn't stay here forever, withering away like some shower demon.

Okay. I can do this.

She'd gone past midnight, anyway, to avoid bumping into people. By now, most people were either in bed, or at one of the dive bars near campus.

Or studying, if they were a terrified senior, but Beca doubted they'd do that here.

Chloe's intrusion aside (and Beca was doing her best to not let memories of that distract her,) the idea still stood; Beca should be okay, able to return to the dorms without being seen.

Should being the operative word.

Beca stepped towards the bathroom doors, stared out. The corridor was empty - for now. She walked, the ground under her feet changing from tiles to carpet, a flush on her face from nerves. Mercifully, she was undisturbed for most of her journey - her assumption had been right.