A/N: This is my gift to Victoriousjadefan for the Bade Gift Exchange! Yay, merry christmas to you! :D

Beta'd by my friend from LJ (cause I trust no one else to do my beta-ing for me)

I really wanted to explore the idea of Jade being the one to comfort Beck for a change, so that's where this came from. It also came from one of Victoriousjadefan's prompts aka 'Beck's only fear'. Enjoy!

When Josh Davies woke up that morning, he was sure of three things. One, he was about to have cinnamon pancakes and a glass of milk for breakfast. Two, he was going fail his History on Modern Theater exam because he spent all of last night talking to his girlfriend instead of studying. Lastly, Three, Sikowitz was putting up the cast list for Hollywood Arts' biggest production of the year, all the talent scouts and college scouts would be there and to be chosen meant a guarantee at some semblance of a stable future outside of Hollywood Arts. And even though he auditioned really hard for it he knew he wouldn't get one of the leads. So when the exact opposite happens, the entire class is quiet and Josh starts looking around waiting for some obscure celebrity to come out in order to explain that he just got punk'd.

The entirety of Sikowitz's class is standing frozen in front of the cast list for Jay Crisostomo's 'Of Gods and Machines'. It was no surprise that Tori Vega and most of her friends had gotten majority of the big roles, but everyone was stunned to note that the male lead, and star of the show, went to-

"Me?"

Josh had been going to Hollywood Arts all his life, and he knew he was no one special, just like his audition. So when he watched Beck Oliver try-out for the lead in 'Of Gods and Machines' he knew Beck would get it. The whole school knew. Beck was Hollywood Arts' golden boy and there was no way he wasn't getting it but for some reason here he was, with his name next to the male lead's and Beck's nowhere to be found. Not even on the understudy's list.

There was a brief, five-second window where Josh allowed the news to sink in and pure, unbridled joy began to fill his gut. The moment was cut short however, when he felt a pair of cold hands grip the collar of his shirt, suddenly he was up against the wall with a pair of icy, blue eyes glaring at him.

Tori, André, Robbie and Cat grabbed Jade from behind and pulled her off of him but as quickly as it had happened, she had shoved them off and was on him again in an instant. She whipped her head around long enough to glare at them as well, as if daring them to try again. Then she turned her attention back to him.

"Give up the role."

Jade West had various states of anger, the one most of the school was used to was her loud, shrill state of anger where she screamed and snarled and glared everything and everyone into submission. This, however, was one state Josh had never seen. Jade's voice was low and soft, her grip was tight and her signature pair of scissors were aimed at his jugular. What scared Josh the most though, were her eyes, with a single glare Jade had managed to convey everything she couldn't say out loud. That she didn't think he deserved the role. That he was a sub-par actor compared to her boyfriend. That if he didn't give up the role to Beck she would do everything in her power to make sure his life for the next few years would be a living hell. Oh, and that she was perfectly capable of murder if the need arose.

Just as Josh was about to lose control of his urinary glands, another voice broke through the desperate cries of their classmates as they pleaded with Jade not to kill him.

"Jade."

From way at the back, Beck had one hand on the strap of the backpack slung over his shoulder while both eyes were focused on the back of his girlfriend's head. Josh couldn't see him very well since Jade was blocking most of his view but he was praying to whoever was listening that Beck could reign Jade in long enough for him to make a run for it.

Sure enough, he felt her hand loosen its grip on his collar just as the cold steel of her scissors withdrew from his neck. He watched as she stuffed the scissors back into her left boot and gracefully pivoted around to grab Beck's hand and lead him out the door. Her curls slapping him across the face in the process. Heaving a sigh of relief he rubbed at the spot on his neck where Jade's scissors had been just a moment ago. Josh caught Beck's eye and meant to mouth a thank you until he saw the look on Beck's face and felt the grateful smile melt off his face.

Normally there were only either two expressions on Beck Oliver's face. One was exasperation, for when he and Jade were having a fight in the hallways. The other was his passive, indifference expression, which he used the rest of the time. This one was neither.

Beck Oliver looked completely and utterly defeated, his eyes were dull and there was a downward set to his mouth. Until that moment, Josh had never known how much Beck had actually wanted the part. As he watched Hollywood Arts' it couple walk out the door of the classroom he felt an uneasy feeling settle in his stomach.

He kind of wished he had given up the role.

/./././

The drive from the school to the RV was a quick one. In her outrage, Jade had insisted on skipping the rest of their classes for the day and without question, Beck simply nodded his head and guided them back to his truck. As he drove she kept on ranting while he stayed silent beside her. A normal drive.

She kept on going even as Beck opened the RV door and sat himself down on his bed while she kept on pacing.

"—I'm telling you that Sikowitz probably had another bad coconut or something during the auditions, I mean how else do you explain this kind of chizz happening? And that Davies guy? I mean come on! He sits in the back row with all those silent freaks and all of a sudden he gets the role? Over you? And another thing—"

Despite the heaviness in his chest, Beck couldn't help the offhanded grin that ghosted over his face for a moment. The only time he'd ever seen Jade this angry was when Tori was given a role that she wanted. He never, in a million years, would've thought that Jade would act this way over a part that he didn't get.

He didn't get the role. The rest of his friends had gotten parts except him.

The realization washed over him again and left a cold feeling down his chest all the way to the tips of his toes. This wasn't like the times he was passed over because Sikowitz just so happened to have pulled someone else's name out of a random shoe box. This was the role, the one that would gain him attention from all those talent scouts and college representatives. His future. How could he not have gotten it? As a matter of fact, he couldn't remember the last time he didn't get a role he auditioned for.

The irony of it all made him wince. He went to Hollywood Arts to learn how to be an actor, yet for all the praise and credit he received for his undeniable talent, the school failed to teach him the one thing actors were supposed to be well versed in. Handling rejection. All of a sudden the possibility of no career and no future outside of high school became all too real and the thought made his mouth dry and left his hands cold.

From where she was pacing, Jade was already gaining momentum. She had already gone past cursing Sikowitz and Josh Davies and was already half-way through plotting how to ruin the play via a tub of blood courtesy of Cat's brother and some old footage of cemeteries she had lying around. Glancing at Beck for a second to ask for his opinion she was about to barrel on when something about his expression made her stop.

"Hey," her voice lost its shrillness for the moment but still sounded sharp and harsh to her ears. Wincing, she knelt in front of him and tried to make it softer. "You okay?"

For some reason, seeing her boyfriend like this scared her, whenever she had an emotional and mental breakdown, he was usually the one who kept calm for the both of them and rubbed calming circles on her back until she quieted down. Jade wasn't sure how to act now that she was on the other end of the stick.

Shifting in place for a moment, she placed both hands on his knees, palms cupping the joints, and tilted her head until she caught his eye.

"Talk to me Beck."

He let out a breathy chuckle, shaking his head to himself for a moment before finally turning to meet her gaze. He gave her a sad smile.

"I'm scared."

She felt her brow furrow, of all the things she expected him to say, that wasn't it. Standing up, she placed all her weight on one hip and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "What?" she snapped, not entirely sure whether she should slap him out of it or let him talk it out.

Folding his hands together, he leaned forward and balanced his elbows on his knees. Beck kept his eyes glued to Jade's polished leather boots instead of looking her in the eye. "I'm scared." He repeated, louder this time, clenching both hands into fists until his knuckles turned white.

For all his boasting of being unafraid of anything, there had always been something tugging at the back of Beck's mind. The ultimate fear of anyone hoping to make it in the business. He remembered something from one of Jade's videos, about their chances of making it being one in ninety-thousand. What if…?

"I can't read your mind you know, you wanna elaborate?"

He looked up to see Jade raising a pierced brow at him, her mouth set in an impatient line even though genuine concern burned in her eyes. Averting his gaze, he turned to look at his own hands as he mulled his words over.

"I didn't get the role Jade."

"That's it?"

Tilting his head back up to look at Jade, Beck was surprised to see her rolling her eyes as she shifted her weight from one hip to the other. He felt a sudden surge of anger at that.

"This is serious!" He said, "This was supposed to be the role! I've always gotten every role I worked for in this school, and I worked extra hard on this one!"

"So what?"

Once again, Jade's response shocked him and he was starting to wonder if she got some sick kind of pleasure from seeing him so depressed. He was about to argue back when she cut him off.

"You've been passed up for roles before! What makes this one so different huh?"

"Because!" He was standing up now, and his voice raising by the second, "this play is the biggest event Hollywood Arts is throwing this year and my girlfriend and all my friends got parts except me! How do you think I feel?"

"Oh you think I don't know how it feels to get passed up huh? Is that it Beck?" Jade's voice was turning shrill again and her eyes were blazing, "You think you're the only one Sikowitz has screwed over? You think I don't know the feeling of someone else getting a role that I spent nights losing sleep over? A role that I deserve?"

He felt his anger ebb away at her words. Sitting back down on his bed, he raked a hand through his hair and tried to look at anything and everything except Jade. He hated being so vulnerable in front of her. Before he realized it, she was kneeling in front of him again.

"Tell me why you're scared." Her tone was challenging and still had a harsh edge to it. There were a lot of things Jade West wouldn't do, and one of those things was to coddle her clearly depressed boyfriend. If she could get over losing role after role to little Ms. Perfect Vega then she'd be damned if she didn't make sure that any boy she was dating was strong enough to handle the same kind of rejection as well.

"What if this is all I'm ever gonna be?" Beck's voice grew soft and almost fragile, "Some hotshot in high school? You know the chances of making it out there. What if, after all of this, I end up being some nobody after all; I mean what was the point of-"

He was promptly cut off by a pillow hitting his face. Hard. He had been so caught up in his confession that he hadn't noticed Jade roll her eyes and reach for the pillow behind him. He stared at her, eyes wide, unsure whether to get mad at her for hitting him with a pillow, or be irritated at the fact that she wasn't taking his problems seriously. Before he could voice either, she placed both hands on his face and kissed him pretty hard as well. Now he was really stumped.

"Babe," Jade's face was dead serious when she pulled away, and her hands were still holding his head in place. "Don't be such a pansy."

He rolled his eyes and sighed exasperatedly at that but felt his mouth quirk up into a sad smile anyway.

"This is one role." She went on, making sure he heard every word, "Just cause a couple of big time college reps won't get to see you perform doesn't mean you'll turn into some jobless nobody. Besides, there'll be other performances. This is not the end of the world okay? You gotta toughen up and stop acting like Vega whenever you don't get something you want. The world screws you over? Fine, you get your ass back up and prove to the world that you can do better anyway."

He turned to look at her with nothing short of wonder filling his eyes. Taking her hands in his, he could already feel his misery lifting. When he turned to look back at her, there was a smirk on his lips and his tone was considerably lighter. "How're you so sure I won't be a nobody?"

She rolled her eyes playfully at that comment, "Well duh, I'm dating you aren't I?" she said, as if it were the most obvious reason in the world. She moved to sit on his lap. "I wouldn't have dated you if I had thought for even a second that you'd end up a nobody."

Beck chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed a kiss to her cheek. Pulling away for a second, he raised both eyebrows, "is that the only reason you're dating me?" His tone had grown teasing now and there was a feigned innocence in the way he widened his eyes.

Jade scoffed at his expression despite the smile that was spreading across her face. "One of the reasons," she replied, her tone growing teasing as well, "I mean, your hair's not too bad."

He chuckled as he hugged her closer to him.

"So," Jade began, placing both arms around his neck, her expression turning serious again. "Are you gonna help me sabotage this Davies kid and his understudy so you can get the role or what?"

Shaking his head as he laughed, he instead pressed his lips against hers, holding them there for a moment before pulling away long enough to whisper, "Love ya babe."

Jade smirked in response.

"I know."

A/N: I'm kinda worried that they ended up being too OOC at some parts so please review so that I can better myself. Yeah.