Tori meets her favorite youtuber one night. One shot. Rated T. Tumblr Request.
"Tori! Tori look!" Cat bursts through the door to my bedroom, I scramble to pull my shirt back down as Cat jumps onto my bed, her laptop clutched in her hands, "Jade put up a new video!"
I spun and dropped on the bed, leaning over to get a full view of the screen as Jade's face appeared, her makeup was done darkly and her hair pulled back away from her face with curls rolling down her back, "so I forgot to do a video last week because I'm on set filming my first movie, and I can't really make a good one this week since-." She pauses and turns her head from the camera, looking somewhere in the back of whatever set she was on and raises her voice, "some idiots broke my camera!" God she was so gorgeous.
She scowls in the direction the 'idiots' must be in and then turns back to the camera, "so I decided to make a quick video singing a song you guys picked off of twitter." She makes a face, "and you picked One and Only by Adele. So here you go." It fades to black and then cuts to Jade sitting a piano. My breath caught in my throat when the camera focused on her. She was so beautiful.
She's in a long black strapless dress with huge flowing skirts that make her look like she's from another century. Her long black hair is curled and pinned in an intricate way, at the top of her head and long thick curls loop down her bare, pale back. Wherever she was, I assume on set, everything looked centuries old. She raised her arms and set them in position over the piano, she shook her head as if she couldn't believe she was playing the song, and then straightened her back, beginning to play.
"You've been on my mind, I grow fonder every day. Lose myself in time just thinking of your face God only knows why it's taken me so long to let my doubts go you're the only one that I want." Her voice is amazing, and every single cover she'd posted I'd probably watched a hundred times each.
My phone rang, a text message coming through, alarmed I looked at the time, "out Cat!" I screamed, grabbing her arm and pulling her off my bed, she looked annoyed and I watched her restart the video. I didn't care; I was going to be late for work!
I pulled off my shirt and traded it for a lighter tank top and a sweater and shimmied of my shorts and into some dark wash jeans. Digging through my closet I found my most comfortable heels and shoved them on, running from room to room to collect things I needed.
My wallet, house keys, phone, car keys, shop keys, purse, name tag, and my book. When I had everything I thought I needed I went into the bathroom, made quick work of re-curling my hair and put on some mascara, eyeliner and dark purple eye shadow that matched my tank top before I ran out the door, "see you tonight, Cat!"
"Bye!" she yelled after me.
The cold winter air smacked me in the face as I stepped out the door. I'd never been a fan of the cold and it almost made me turn around for my jacket, but I didn't have time. I ran to the car and got inside, starting it before my door was closed and flipping on the heater.
It took awhile for the thing to work anyways, but something was better than nothing. Once I was buckled in I backed out of my driveway and went on my way, cursing each and every red light I hit. It was nearly noon, I couldn't believe I'd slept that long.
When I reached the little strip that housed the bar I pulled around back and parked as close to the back door as I could, grabbing my purse and rummaging through it while the heat was still trapped in my car. I found the door keys and pulled them out, tossing the car keys back in I threw open the door, slammed my hand down on the lock and flung the door shut, moving quickly for the door. I scrambled to unlock it and stepped inside, blissfully happy for the heat inside.
I was the first one at work, as usual, and that meant I got the fun chore of setting up. Assholes. I unlocked the door to my dads office and locked my bag in the file cabinet after putting my phone into my pocket. Out front I turned on the lights, not that they were too helpful, and unlocked the pool hall doors and then started flipping chairs down and cleaning off the tables.
I was almost done when Beck, Robbie and Andre casually strolled in. I turned and fixed them with a glare, "really? You couldn't have shown up on time?" they silently start taking down the rest of the chairs, Andre going to wiping down the bar. I sighed, shaking my head silently as I walked over to the piano, sitting down on the bench and unlocking the cover, flipping it open to see the worn ivory keys.
"Sorry we were late, Tor." Robbie said, coming up beside me. I shrug my shoulders, "gunna play us something?" I glance at the keys reaching toward them, but I pause and let my hand fall to my lap, "I'm sorry, I'll stay 'til close, tonight."
"Thanks, Rob." I tell him. He rests his hand on my shoulder and gives it a gentle squeeze. Half an hour later people start showing up to play pool or throw darts or watch what ever game is on. They order some food and beers. It doesn't get too loud, just a dull roar that calms me down enough to be here.
My dad had run this bar since I was young, and living in a small town like we did, most people that came through here were in small groups. Locals, everyone knew everyone, and sometimes it could really get loud. The bar was called Vega, and everyone loved to hang out here after time. Eventually we went from calling it a bar to calling it a Grill, because families started showing up and it just became a local hang out.
Behind the bar I felt calm, pouring drinks and listening to stories was what I liked to do best. There actually wasn't a thing I didn't do in this bar. Bar tending, cooking, paying the bills, cleaning tables, even performing. Well, at least back when my parents were still alive.
They'd passed away a few years ago after a bad car accident, leaving me to run this place with my sister, Trina, who'd ran off the second I was old enough to run this place by myself. So now it was just me. All by myself. I held my head in my hands and leaned against the bar.
"You alright there, Tori?" I looked up at Seamus and smiled, he was holding a beer in his hands and smiling at me warmly.
"I'm alright, thanks. Just been a long day."
"We all 'ave those once in awhile." He flashed another smile, "mind if I take a spin on the piano?"
"Go for it." I told him, walking over and silencing the sound system. The thing about small towns is that gossip and news travels fast, and it was known that people filming a movie were in town, what movie and what people we didn't know.
But it hadn't taken long for everyone to know and wait anxiously to see if they'd stumble into the bar from the hotel they were staying at, so every time the door opened someone would look over at it with held breath and sigh when it was just another towns person entering. I stared at the door now as my neighbor walked in with Cat tucked under her arm, grinning and laughing madly as she stared up at him with wide trusting eyes.
"Tori." Beck said, walking up beside me, "You need to clock out and get a drink. You look pathetic tonight. I'll help Robbie close tonight and keep an eye on everything. I'll get you a beer."
A pointed look from Andre was all it took for me to agree, I clocked myself out and took the offered beer, heading to the booth by the piano so all I could hear was Seamus playing some up beat song. Every once in awhile one of the guys would come take my beer and bring me a new one. It didn't really take much to get me drunk, I really should have stopped a three, but I didn't.
Which is how I ended up in front of the piano, my fingers moving over the keys with a practiced memory. My eyes were closed and I swayed a little as the song filled the bar, now almost empty with only a few people actually still lingering. Seamus was somewhere behind me with his brother Farris, they were listening silently, their conversation at stopped when I'd hit the first key.
"Chance are when said and done who'll be the lucky ones who make it all the way? Though you say I could be your answer nothing lasts forever no matter how it feels today." My eyes snapped open but my fingers kept playing as the voice sung somewhere off to my left.
The voice didn't sing again, however. I kept playing; maybe I was going crazy and hearing things. "Chances are the fascinations, chances won't escape from me, chances are only what we make them and all I need." The voice sang again, still in the same spot it was before. I finished the song with my eyes closed and then turned slowly, opening them to find Jade West sitting a table nursing a glass, head ducked.
"Tori, come on, keep playing." Seamus urged. Jade's head lifted long enough so she could take a drink, "or turn on the damn music." I obliged and went around to turn the music back on, getting myself a drink from Robbie before I went back to my booth in the dark corner, but now instead and sulking I was watch my favorite Youtuber sulk over her drink.
Her hair still looked like it did from the video this morning but she was wearing a pair of jeans and a dark leather jacket with a pair of combat boots. I thought about texting Cat that she was here, but I had a feeling the bar would fill back up and I really didn't want to deal with them, and she obviously didn't either, if she was in here after midnight. She was just so attractive, and I couldn't force myself to look away, no matter how rude it was to stare.
"You know, staring is mighty fucking rude." She told me, lifting her head and staring at me. Her blue eyes were like daggers that froze me in place.
"S-so is startling someone playing a song." I stutter, inwardly smacking myself for talking to her like that. She laughs, but it's not a happy laugh, and picks up her glass, standing up from her table and walking over to my booth. Without asking she sets her glass down and slides in across from me.
Even though its dark in my corner light splashes across her face, orange that makes her skin seem to have a golden glow and her eyes look freaky, "sorry about the song. I'm Jade."
"I know. I'm Tori." a warm feeling comes over my cheeks and I look down at my hands embarraed.
"I know." She responds, taking a sip of her drink, "Tori Vega, right? You own the bar." I blink slowly and then nod, "your sister told me I should come by here since I wanted to get away from the hotel." She shrugged and looked around, "nice place."
"Trina? Is she in town?" I sit up, leaning toward Jade.
"No. She said she'd never come back here." Jade shrugged one shoulder and then looked at me to see my reaction. Maybe she wanted to see if it hurt me or something? From what I'd seen on Youtube she really wasn't the most pleasant person. But whatever she was looking for she didn't seem to get because she looked disappointed.
"Well, sounds just like her." I said, picking up my beer bottle, "nice to meet you, Jade." I stood up and made my way out of the booth, feeling upset and tired. I didn't even have it in me to care that I'd just met Jade freaking West.
"Hey, Tori!" she called, I paused and turned to look at her, "can I play a song?"
"Sure." I turn around and smile, going to shut off the sound system again. Maybe this would cheer me up, and even if it didn't oh well. I sat down at the nearest table and kicked my feet up onto an extra chair. Seamus and Farris had left, and Robbie and Beck were in back getting ready to close up.
The notes of the song she was playing sounded familiar, but I couldn't quite place the song. It was sad, beautiful, but sad. I closed my eyes and let my head fall back, listening to her playing in silence until the song suddenly hit me, "Near far, wherever you are, I believe that the heart does go on. Once more you open the door and you're here in my heart and my heart will go on." I sing softly. In the quiet bar it sounds like an explosion of noise.
"Keep singing." She says. So we sing together, my heart aching as I sing the familiar song. The one my parents used to sing to each other, and the one that played during my favorite movie, and the song I listened to a million times after my parents died. As I sang I moved closer, eventually sitting down on a stool beside the piano. She watched me as we sang and her fingers moved with grace, as if they were dancing over the keys.
We stayed like that for awhile, and I found myself less sad and more content to listen to her play piano and to sing. I told Robbie and Beck to leave and that I'd close up and we just sat played music. It was strange to think just this morning I was freaking out over her having a new song that I couldn't listen to and now here I was sitting and listening to her play music in front of me.
We were sitting side by side playing a song she'd written and was attempting to teach me. She reached around me to grab her drink off of the floor and when she sat back up she was so close to me I could feel her breath fan across my face. My hands froze on the keys and I just stared at her, "Keep playing." She whispered. I obliged, not looking away from her.
I felt like I must've been dreaming, and it didn't help that I was pretty drunk and felt completely out of it, because she leaned forward and kissed me slowly. It was nice, but tasted like whiskey and peppermint gum. She pulled away and I kept playing, she turned her eyes back to the piano and so did I.
Later she left and I closed up, walking the short 10 minutes to my house. When I got home Cat was gone, it was well after three am, and part of me was worried, the other part just assumed she was next door. I went to my room, crawled in my bed and passed out with a stupid grin on my face.
I'd met Jade West. She taught me one of her songs and she'd kissed me. Best. Day. Ever.