Author's Note
First of I apologize for my lack knowledge of musical terms in how I try describing instrument playing. Otherwise I hope you enjoy this pilot.
Listen to the music
Out on the open road hundreds of miles from any city a fancy limo drives through the night, until it comes to an abrupt stop. A door is opened and a woman being pushed out with an instrument case following her. Said woman got up and dusted herself off and yelled out to the leaving limo. "Fine! I never liked working for you anyway!" This woman was Octavia Melody, she wore a gray dress suit with pink bow tie and had dark gray hair and her case contained her cello. She let a huff and picked up her instrument case and started walking off in the direction she was coming from.
Another a number of miles in the windy weather she came across what she was looking for, a club she spotted while she was in the limo. It was a well-sized establishment featuring neon signs of a man and woman posing and the name of it "Paradise Beat"
"Must be a dating club. Long way for one, but I can't complain right now." Octavia entered the club and was met with the kind of music she excepted for this kind of place, dubstep full of wubs and record scratching. Octavia groaned, she didn't understand how anyone could listen to this stuff let alone enjoy it. She looked to see a man with a black hair in a short ponytail behind a counter next to a set of twin doors leaving to rest of the club.
"Excuse me sir." Octavia approached the man. "I need to use a phone, I'm kinda stranded out here and I need to call taxi."
"Phone's in the club and for paying customers." The man said.
"If I must." Octavia took out her wallet and paid the entrance fee. The man took the money and pulled out a necklace with a numbered key and small capped tube. "What's this for?"
"Key's for your locker and the tube's to hold your money."
"Why do I need a locker or something to hold my money? I have my wallet."
"Go in here and see for yourself."
Octavia confused walked past the twin doors to see an in-between room with lockers all across the walls. She reacted the second set of doors at the end and opened one to get a brief glimpse of the club area and it's patrons before letting go in shock. She ran back to the counter man with her face red. "WHAT'S GOING HERE?!! THE PEOPLE IN THIS CLUB ARE NAKED!!"
"Surprise. Paradise Beat is a nudist club."
"NUDIST CLUB?!?!
"Yeah, a place for people to take their clothes off and just party. Why you think a place like this is far away from the city."
"I! I!" Octavia's brain was having a hard time processing the information. The idea of so many people indulging in such perverted and shameless actions mortified her. "There's no way I'm going in there! Just looking at those people sicken me much less the idea of joining them in their sick activities! I'd rather walk back to the city on foot!" Just then the sound of thunder could be heard amongst the dubstep. Octavia turned towards the front door and opened it to see rain pouring down hard. "OH COME ON!"
"I doubt you'll make it in that weather."
"D-Don't you have cell phone I could borrow?"
"Sorry, it's getting fixed. You?"
"Same" Octavia was starting to get desperate. "Can I stay dressed in there?"
"Sorry, in there it's the reverse of no shirts, no shoes, no service."
Octavia hung her head in defeat, took her necklace off the counter and went through the double doors a second time. In the hallway she approached the locker with the same number as her key, put her cello case down, and unlocked it. 'Hopefully no one I know is in there, just the thought of being recognized is terrible.' Octavia thought as her face grew redder as she started taking off her high heels. 'And with a place like this I doubt there's any news on it listed on paper or the internet.' She put her heels in the locker and took off her jacket and folded it up placing it with the heels, her bow tie following. 'If anyone takes any pictures of me nude here who knows who could see them.' She pondered as she finished unbuttoning her shirt and placing it in the locker, she then unzipped her shirt and pulled down slowly lifting one leg after another and put it with her other clothes. 'Any word or picture of me here would destroy my career, I doubt anyone would let me play for them or worse someone could blackmail me.' She then stood here for moment looking down at herself in her underwear, seeing her bear feet on the carpet keeping them warm. "If there's any consolation to this place it's at least well insulated so I won't get cold. (Sign) Come on Octavia, let's get this over with." She unclasped her bra and worked her arms out of the straps thus freeing her breasts, while holding the bra she gripped the sides of her panties and slid them down and pulled her legs out of them and put her underwear in the locker. She then put her necklace on and reached into her locker to get her wallet to get some money for the case, and closed up her locker. She then swallowed the lump in her throat, and just then remembered she had her cello. "He said I couldn't get any service wearing clothes, but he didn't say a thing about covering myself." She grabbed her case and hugged it around her front covering her breasts and crotch, sadly leaving her rear exposed but it was better than nothing. She then faced the doors to the club area, steeled herself up and walked through them.
She was now in club area, surrounded by flashing lights, loud music, and a lot of naked people. Some were dancing in the center, others were enjoying refreshments or serving them, there was several people flirting or making out, all the things she'd normally see in a club just minus clothing, and here were people giving her looks for hiding her front behind her cello but she ignored them and went for the bar.
"Excuse me." She said to the barkeep, a woman with straight shoulder length green hair with yellow streaks at the bottom, while she was mixing a drink. "Can I use your phone?"
The barkeep finished making the drink and got the phone off the hook and handed to her. "Here ya go."
After few minutes Octavia handed the phone back and signed. "My cab won't be here for half an hour, meaning half an hour of being here, being naked."
"I guess this place isn't in your comfort zone?" The barkeep asked.
"Yes." Octavia took her cello back up for cover and looking around to see if people are stilling looking at her.
"Come on take a seat, it's an easier way to cover all your (ahem) bases and I'll give ya drink on the house."
Octavia considered her situation and accepted the offer. She placed her cello next to an empty seat and took it, quickly put her arms in a v formation to cover her breasts and crotch. "If you have any wine that would be nice."
The barkeep made her drink and before Octavia could enjoy any of it...
"YO! Lime Mix, Appletini!"
Octavia turned to see who is yelling. It was a woman who rather well-endowed in the chest and the hips, she had short and messy cobalt and cyan hair , wore black rimmed sunglasses with magenta lens and had a pair of headphones around her neck. And just noticing that the dubstep had stopped played it was save to assume this woman was the DJ. Particularly when she noticed the hair in her crotch was shaven to look like a music note.
"You got it Vinyl!" The barkeep now known as Lime Mix replied.
This Vinyl woman approached the counter and Octavia noticed she was breathing heavy and her body was covered was in sweat. 'Looks like she's been busy tonight.'
Vinyl run her hand through her hair and beads of sweat were brushed off. She then noticed Octavia. "Hey! You're a new face here. What's up?"
"Um, hello." Octavia meekly responded and looked down, she really didn't want to talk to anyone here that wasn't an employee.
"Why are you acting so shy? You're at Paradise Beat, you can let loose all you want!"
"I-I'd rather not."
Vinyl then noticed the instrument case. "You nervous about playing open mic night?"
'This place has open mic night?' Octavi thought.
"Gonna give the peeps some guitar action?"
"Guitar?!" Vinyl unintentionally set off one of Octavia's pet peeves. "If you must know it's cello! Honestly, does no one know the difference between the two instruments and their cases?! Then I doubt you know any kind of music that doesn't involve blasting people eardrums with wubs!" Octavia paused for a second and then covered my mouth realizing what she just said as Vinyl and Lime looked at her. "I'M SORRY!" She blurted out. "Ididn'tmeantosnapatyouit'sjustIhatewhenpeoplecconfusemycelloandImstuckatthisnudecluband-" Vinyl puts her palm over Octavi's mouth.
"Dude chill! It's okay really."
"Um, right."
Lime Mix finished Vinyl's drink and set it on the table. Vinyl took out her headphones and sunglasses, set them next to her drink and took a seat. "So, wanna talk?"
Octavia looked down and focused on her drink. "I suppose so."
"Why ya here?"
"I'm here because I broke off with my manager. I was about to play a show when he told me it was off, while we driving off I asked why and he said it was because they couldn't get him the fancy baguettes he wanted. So then I found out he was running shows by threatening the people running the gigs I was playing that he would cancel if he didn't get his special perks. Of course I wasn't happy about this at and he just said he's getting the things he deserves for running my career. So we argued until I said I was done working for him and he then proceeded to kick me out of the limo in the middle of nowhere. I came here to call a ride and now I'm stuck in this place, in my birthday suit." Octavia drunk her wine in a single gulp before covering her front assets again.
"Sounds rough." Vinyl sipped from her drink. "That's why I' freelance."
"Even if it means playing in the nude?"
Vinyl just laugh. "Girl, I get nude at my place all the time! And with a place like this, as long as they ain't doing any illegal junk or treat me like crap, any place is good to play at."
"Sounds like a decent policy."
"By the way, name's Vinyl, Vinyl Scratch." Vinyl held her hand out for shaking.
Octavia was hesitant but returned the gesture. "Octavia Melody."
Vinyl saw that Octavia was still uncomfortable at this place then she spotted something on the music stage.
The owner Petal Breeze, a woman with long pink wavy hair and had flower petal tattoos all over her body, came up on stage with a mike. "Alright folks, its open mic night, anyone wanna give our DJ Vinyl Scratch a break and come up on stage?"
An idea then went off in Vinyl's head, she jumped out of her chair. "Hey! Petal! This girl right here!" She pointed to Octavia.
"WHA?!" Octavia responded.
Vinyl then picked up Octavia's cello and then Octavia and gave her the cello "Come on Tavi, You didn't get to play your show tonight so here's a chance to make up for that." She went behind Octavia and grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her towards the stage.
"Tavi?" But Octavia could argue Vinyl smacked her in the butt. "Eeee!!!" She stepped forward in reaction and was on stage.
"Welcome Octavia!" Petal Breeze said. "What are you gonna play for us tonight?"
Octavia froze up clutching her cello. Everyone had their eyes on her. She remembered how people would say picturing the audience in their underwear or birthday suits took the edge off stage fright, well this time they all really were naked and so was she and this case stage fright wasn't going away.
"Miss Octavia? What are you going to play?"
'Well, no way of getting out of this.' Octavia swallowed the biggest lump she's ever had in her throat. "I- I'm gonna p-play the cello tonight."
"Oh, that's an interesting change of pace of us here."
"Can I get a chair to sit on?"
"Of course!" Petal gestured for someone to bring a chair, and an employee brought one and set it on stage. Petal then proceeded to get off stage and join Vinyl.
'Alright Octavia, you've done this a hundred times over, it's just one little change compared to the rest, no big deal.' Octavia at down and opened the instrument case to take out her cello and bow, she put her instrument in position and placed her bow on the strings. She proceeded to pull the bow along the strings to her solo, but what started off sounding pleasant ended with a screech. Octavia stopped and looked to the crowd noticing the looks she was getting. She tried again but she got another screech. 'Come on, so we're all naked, it's no big deal.' However she kept choking and noise was getting worse. 'IT IS A BIG DEAL!!'
Vinyl and Petal were cringing big time. "It wasn't what I was hoping for." Petal said.
Another choked note played. "It's worst than I thought." Vinyl said. She turned and grabbed her sunglasses and headphones. "I'm going in."
As she listened to her bad playing Octavia closed her eyes to hold back her tears. 'This night can't get any worse.' Just then some record scratching could be heard. Octavia opened her eyes to see Vinyl on playing on her turntable. 'What is she doing? Is she trying to kick me off stage?' She kept looking at Vinyl and noticed the rather serious look on the DJ's face. 'Is she trying to sync with me?' Vinyl then pressed her foot on the turntable pedal for soft drumbeat and Octavia pulled her bow again to tried following and got a successful note. The two musicians looked at each other. Vinyl pressed on the pedal again and Octavia followed and got it right a second time. Octavia started to strum her bow across the strings in constant motion with Vinyl stepping on the pedal in a rhythm. Vinyl went back record scratching while trying different settings and Octavia picked up her pace and started playing more complex notes.
Vinyl and Octavia each other looks of confidence and they started playing full composition combining classical and dubstep. Vinyl was using the various parts of her turntable and while Octavia was playing her cello with all her passion removing any memories of her choking up a few minutes ago, she was fully swept into the atmosphere as she bobbed her head, her long swaying with beads of sweat flying off.
Soon after they concluded their duet and the audience burst into applause. Octavia set down instrument and stood up to take a bow. Afterwards she looked on to the crowd, the naked crowd looking at her naked body and for the first time since joining this club she didn't mind.
A few minutes later, the two musicians were back at the bar Octavia was sitting back in her chair catching her breath from the performance and the heat from the lights, having her covered in sweat like Vinyl was earlier. Meanwhile Vinyl was receiving her paycheck.
"Was just.... Wow!" Petal Breeze said. "You girls make quite a team."
"I guess we are." Vinyl responded and turned back to Octavia. "How you feeling Tavi?"
"Amazing." Octavia wiped her forehead. "That was one of the best performances I've made in a while. Thank you for that Vinyl."
"No prob. So I'm heading out, need a lift?"
"Actually my cab should be here any minute."
"Then we should heading out."
The two left the club into the locker room and got dressed. When Octavia finished adjusting her bow tie she turned to Vinyl wearing a dark blue tank, blue jeans, white sneakers, and slinging a white jacket over her shoulder.
"Well, Miss Scratch, it's been pleasure."
"Same here Tavi." She dug into he pocket and pulled out a card to handed to Octavia featuring a phone number and e-mail address. "If you ever wanna jam again here or somewhere else, or just hang."
Octavia looked at the card before putting in her pocket. "I'll think about it." She grabbed her cello and walked off towards the front and to the exit. But before she went to the door she turned head. "Oh! If you could, don't call me Tavi."
