The air was cold as ice; winter had gotten hard on New York City and people walked in the concurred streets clutching their umbrellas tightly, waiting for the rain to start pouring. It was three in the morning, but they didn't seem to notice, NY was the city that never sleeps after all.
Her hair was tied up in a messy bun on top of her head and she held a cup of coffee in her hands, trying to warm up her freezing fingers. It was times like this Jade West hoped the heat on their tiny Brooklyn apartment actually worked.
It had been a tough semester for Beck and Jade, only half scholarships and poorly paying waitressing jobs didn't exactly keep up with their expectations. They had moved out of Hollywood with the promise of a place in Julliard and a life to call their own. It didn't turn out as perfect as everyone seemed to think it would. Nothing ever did.
Three in the morning wasn't Beck's favorite time of the day to be up, and the fact that his girlfriend hadn't gotten any sleep in the last two days, certainly didn't help with his bad mood.
"Babe? You need to get some rest. You can finish this later." He ran a hand through his hair, a fetish he hadn't been able to get rid of, and scooted closer to Jade on their bed. "Come on, shut it down."
"I need to get this over with, Beck." Her eyes scanned her laptop's screen tiredly. She had been working on that play for two days straight, but for some reason, it didn't seem quite right.
"Just leave it there; we can go to the city tomorrow. Get you some inspiration." Beck pulled his girl closer and sighed contenly, smelling the soft lavender scent of her shampoo.
"Fine, but you are buying me a real coffee tomorrow."
"You know my homemade coffee is better than any other." He teased. His hair fell on the sides of his head evenly; as his chest rose and fell with every breath he took.
"You wish." Jade shut the laptop down and hugged her boyfriend, hoping to get some warmness from his body. "I love you."
"I love you too." He kissed her forehead and drifted in peaceful sleep.
"What about that guy?" Jade asked. She pulled her scarf tighter around her pale neck and pointed to one corner of the coffee shop. The Masen Brothers' café had become like a second home to the couple. Even though it was located in Manhattan, they made sure to stop by at least once a week.
"Thinking about breaking up with his girlfriend, he is not sure how though." Beck answered playfully. That was a game they used to play back in L.A. The gang had made it up one day when they were out eating ice cream at the mall.
It was simple.
All they had to do was point at someone and create a possible background story for them. It exercised their creativity, something Jade was in need for. "Maybe he is running from the government. See how he can't stop moving his foot under the table?"
The coffee house fell silent as the door swung open from the strong wind. They could see the rain pouring heavily outside, people running from street to street, trying to get some shelter.
"I think we should go home, babe. Classes probably will be canceled anyway." Beck left his cup on the table and took his girlfriend's hand, leading her to the exit. Under the rain, the two of them run huddled under the protection of their black and blue umbrella.
Two subways, three blocks and twenty seven steps later, Beck and Jade threw themselves on their tiny couch. The heating machine turned on itself, before turning off with a loud sound.
"We should really buy a new one." The raven haired girl whimpered, laying her legs on top of Beck's for warmth.
"Next week hopefully." He kissed her, savoring her coffee flavored lips, and hugged her, trying to reassure himself that she was there. That she was there, and she wasn't going anywhere. Not anytime soon, though.
"We have been missing the rent payment for a week now, Beck. They are going to throw us away if we don't do something about it." Her hands fumbled with the papers laying on the table, trying to figure out a way out of all the debts and unpaid checks pilled before her.
"Calm down, babe. Maybe if I talk to the-"
"Maybe we should get real jobs." She cut him off, putting her head in her hands.
"What are you talking about, Jade? We have jobs. They are not permanent; we just have to get out of college and they we will figure it out." He tried to reason with her. "You know, that was our plan."
"No, and that, right there, is the big problem, Beck." Jade yelled, standing up from her seat. "We didn't have a plan. We just left Hollywood and our friends and family because of a stupid wish to make it in America. Well guess what? We probably won't."
"Don't talk like that, babe. I know we will. You knew it too, two days ago. What happened that you suddenly don't believe in yourself anymore? You are the most confident girl I have ever met." Beck rubbed her shoulders, trying to get her to sit down. She slapped his hands from her back and rushed to the door.
"Reality happened, Beck. It always does and it always will, so stop fighting it." The door flew closed behind her, and the sound echoed through the apartment.
Maybe she was right, Beck thought; maybe they weren't going to make it.
Central Park was full of people, children laughing and screaming, girls singing, boys talking. It was one of Beck's favorite things about NYC, the way life always seemed to go on for the rest of the world, oblivious on how his own life was falling apart.
Jade hadn't come home last night, and she didn't answer any of his call, she just texted him to let him know she was alright. He couldn't take it. The uncertainty and emptiness that filled his heart every time they fought, every time he thought that maybe she would give up on him, on them.
He walked the two blocks separating him from the nearest subway, trying to enjoy the freezing air on his face, the smell of freshly baked muffins and hotdogs. It was not the same without her by his side. Nothing ever was the same when she was not there with him, Beck noticed.
It made him sick, the way he had fallen head over heels for her, after promising himself he wouldn't. People always assumed it was the other way around, that Jade was the shy, damaged one, but they were wrong. Beck had learned long ago, when his parents divorced and his sister died, that love was to destroy and to be destroyed.
But somehow Jade had managed to make him love her, with her icy blue eyes and milky skin and snarky remarks. He had fallen for her, hard. And there was no turning back.
It hurt, hell, it burned, the fact that she didn't believe in him anymore, the fact that she was starting to believe what everyone else had once told them. There's only one in a million chances you'll actually make it. They said. This is real life. They said. Dreams don't come true.
Perhaps they were right, he though bitterly.
Maybe they weren't going to make it big, to make it in America. However, somehow, he realized, that didn't mean anything to him anymore.
The shaggy haired boy climbed the familiar twenty seven steps and opened the door, sighing in relief when he was his girl curled up on the couch by the window.
"You are here." He smiled, going to sit by her side. His hands found hers instinctively, and, he noticed, she didn't pull them back.
"I am sorry, Beck." Jade mumbled, looking away from the concurred streets and into his warm brown eyes. "I don't believe what I said, I was just tired and stressed out by all the bills and-"
He cut her off with a kiss. His lips hungrily found hers and she whimpered, surprised, before kissing him back. Big hands tangled in long raven hair and for a moment, everything was right in their little world.
In that moment, Beck realized, with Jade in his arms, her lips on his and her hands on her chest, he was as happy as he would ever be.
Maybe they weren't rich and famous. Perhaps they never would be. But as long as Beck had Jade and she had him, they were going to be okay.
Because, together, they were triumphant. Together, they were victorious.
A/N: This is as cliché as it gets. I know. I hope I made justice to the prompt I was delivered, which was: They were Triumphant.
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Love
Andrea.