Jade's got a broken leg. Tori goes to visit.
"I'm looking for a patient, Jade West?" I mumble, leaning against the nurse's desk with the stuffed animal clutched between my nervous fingers.
"You family? Actually you know what, I don't care. But if she starts screaming at you you're on your own." The nurse flags down another to fill her place at the nurses station before leading me up the stairs, "Girls been in a foul mood all day, I swear she's worse than a sailor."
I watch the doors as we walk down to the hall. Most doors are cracked if not completely open, but the last three doors on the right are closed. The nurse pauses outside Jade's room, she knocks and Jade starts screaming at her to go away. The nurse glances back at me.
"I really need to see her…" I say, "this is kinda my fault."
"You ain't one of the girls that beat her up, are you?" she spins around on me with an angry expression, I take a few steps back and shake my head no, "then how is this you're fault?"
"She was defending me…"
"Well, that ain't your fault, sweetie. Go on in, watch for flying objects." And she walks down the hall, telling a nurse in passing that 'the hellacious patient in 222 has a soft spot for a cute girl' before she disappears around the corner. I take a deep breath and push the door open.
"I told you to fuck off! Go away!" Jade screamed, I stepped out of the way as a pillow flies at me. I pick it up and ease the door shut. Jade's watching me apologetically from her bed, "Hey Vega."
"Hey, Jade." I hand her the pillow which she tucks back behind her before she leans against it, "Here. It's sort of a thank you gift." I hand her the toy sheepishly, knowing she's probably laugh at me but I didn't really care. She looks at the thing with the purple cast on its little teddy bear leg and the bandage over its head, and smiles.
"How are you feeling?" I drag a chair over to the edge of her bed and sit down with my legs tucked under me. Jade was lying in the bed with her foot in a purple cast, "why are you still in the hospital? I thought your leg was just broken."
"It's just my leg, but they're keeping me here for my head. Lane is trying to get me out of here!" her voice raised and she turned her head to the door. I chuckled, fishing around in my bag for a silver sharpie. I lean forward and doodle on her cast while telling her about something that happened today during ABC improv.
Beck punched Robbie, it was intended to be fake, but Robbie moved and Beck knocked him on his ass. Cat screamed at him for what seemed like hours, but was really only thirty minutes.
"Sikowitz is excusing you from our scene today. I had to do it with Sinjin." I pulled a face that made Jade smile and she sat up higher on her bed, making me nearly mess up on my doodle on her cast, "don't move!" I demanded.
She glared at me but sat still, "so you had to kiss Sinjin?" I swear she muttered 'lucky asshole' under her breath but I couldn't be sure. I didn't say anything, instead I inspected my artwork and capped my marker.
"Yes. And I hated every minute of it." I said, still hating the way it felt to kiss him even if it was brief, "I would have much rather it been you." I commented in an off hand manor, twirling the pen between my fingers.
"Well that makes two of us." Jade said, picking up the bear I'd given her, "Look…" she was interrupted by a knock at the door and Lane's voice telling her she got to go home. After thirty minutes of discharge papers I was walking beside the nurse who was wheeling her out the door to my car.
I skipped ahead, trying not to trip over my heels as I reached the valet. I passed him my parking slip and rock from my toes to my heels for a few moments as the guy heads off to get my car for me, "You don't have to take me home, Tori, Lane can take me."
"I don't mind." I shrug, hooking my bag higher up on my shoulder. The nurse helps Jade into the car and shoves the crutches into my backseat before taking off. I get into the car and pull on my seatbelt, checking that Jade's got hers on before I pull out of the parking lot.
At Jade's house I help her inside and into her guest room. I take things from her room and down to her guest room so she can be more comfortable and then I drop down onto the other half of her bed, "so what are we going to do?" she wonders, "I feel like pizza."
"Don't worry; it'll be here in five minutes, with everyone else." She looked at me out of the corner of her eye, wondering if maybe I'm joking her. The door bell ringing throughout the house answered her silent question.
"I hate you."
"I can't stop them." I shrugged, swinging my legs off of her bed. I opened the door and wandered back to Jade's guest room. Cat was the first to enter, bouncing onto the bed in front of me and hugging her. We sat around, Cat leading the conversation while the rest of us ate.
Nobody talked about her leg, or the fight, or anything of the sort. Nobody asked Jade why she took on those Northridge girls. Nobody even saw the fight, except for me, and nobody knew the details except for those involved. The Northridge girls had followed me after the Full Moon Jam and tried to jump me, but for some reason Jade was there, grabbed one and threw her to the ground and punched the other one square in the face after she'd swung at the back of my head.
"Vega?" I blinked and looked over at Jade, she was holding a slice of greasy dripping pizza out to me and a pepperoni fell and smacked onto my white jeans. I scowled at the grease stain as I picked the piece of meat up and tossed it at the box.
"I'm going to go clean these up.." I complain, getting out of the bed. In her bathroom I wipe at the grease the best I can and then go back into her room. She's alone when I get back, "well my pants are done for. Where's everyone else?"
"They had to go." She replied, shrugging her shoulder, "you can borrow a pair of pants from my dresser upstairs. Bottom left drawer." I nod and go up to her room, getting a pair of shorts and changing into them. I fold my pants up neatly and go back downstairs, lying down on Jade's bed again.
"I suppose I could leave…"
"Or not…." She whispered, her fingers brushed against my hand and then she grabbed my hand full on, lacing her fingers through mine. She didn't look at me, her eyes were glued to the screen where Meryl Streep was insulting Anne Hathaway. I sighed and crossed my ankles.
"Where the hell is that pizza?" she silently passes me the box, I take a piece and eat it with one hand. Jade and I finished up the movie silently; eventually I ended up curled up in her side, one arm thrown over her stomach the other tucked under me while I listened to the movie. I'd seen it enough times that it didn't matter to me what was going on, on the screen.
"Vega?" I was too lazy to move or make a sound, I took a deep breath and sighed, "as much as I love cuddling with you, I've got to pee." Groaning I rolled over, flopping back against her bed with my eyes closed.
I felt the bed dip beside me, and I assumed Jade was trying to move herself to get off the bed; I sat up as I opened my eyes and met Jade halfway in her attempt to kiss me. Her lips were soft, warm and glossed over with strawberry. She pulled back and slipped off the bed, "I was looking forward to that scene." She said, hooking her crutches under her arms.
For someone who'd gotten the crutches barely 24 hours ago she sure made her way out of the room fast. I smiled, pressing my fingers to my lips. She'd kissed me. I squealed and kicked my feet against the bed.
