Everything as simple at first. We would spend our summer days laughing and talking, fingers intertwined, smiles permanently etched on our faces. We would take walks through the park and spend nights laying in my backyard under the stars, dreaming of forever. It felt as easy and normal as breathing. But nothing is forever.

"Tori, we need to talk about this!" Beck yelled, his hand on my shoulder to stop me from walking away. I whirled around, my eyes staring at him accusingly.

"What's there to talk about?" I snapped, anger evident in my voice. "You decided to kiss Jade. You decided to cheat on me. I admit, we have had are problems recently, but I have always been faithful to you, even when the opportunity presented itself." I was yelling by now, anger and hurt fueling my words. "You decide to throw away everything we've worked so hard for. You made all of these decisions without me, not even thinking about how I would feel," my voice cracked on the last word, and a tear slid down my cheek. I wiped it away roughly, and I looked down, not daring to look him in the eyes.

"Tori…" Beck whispered, walking closer to me. I wanted to scream at him not to get any closer, but instead I stayed still. When he finally reached me, he sighed, putting two fingers under my chin and lifting my head so I could look him in the eye. The big brown eyes that I had come to know so well stared back at me.

Everyone else thought that Beck's face was always like a blank canvas, wiped clean from any emotion. But I knew him, knew him enough to see the small, almost non-existent clues that told me exactly what he was feeling. Like the way his eyes shined brightly when he was happy, how his jaw would set when he was angry, the little vain on his forehead pulsating. But all I saw now was pain. Pain and sadness and regret. His hand caressed my cheek gently, and I closed my eyes and leaned into his hand, despite the small voice in my head telling me to run. I quickly closed the space between us and wrapped my arms around him tightly, afraid to let go. He was surprised at first, but then he hugged me back, his arms fitting as perfectly as if we were two pieces of the same puzzle, as if they belonged there. I breathed in his familiar scent, a spicy yet sweet scent, with a hint of orange. It was a strange combination, but intoxicating.

"Tori…" he whispered, his hand stroking my brown hair gently. "You were always good enough for me, too good in fact. I'm the one who doesn't deserve you", he whispered miserably, and my first instinct was to tell him to hush, that he was perfect for me. But I was still too hurt, too angry to say anything. So I listened. "I thought….I thought that by kissing Jade….I would be able to forget all of our problems, even if just for a second. But it didn't work, cause all I could think of was you," he murmured against my hair. I swallowed, knowing that no matter what he did, I would always love him. He was the only thing I had in my life that was always there, the only thing I knew like the back of my hand. "Beck, I-"

BZZZZZZZZZ

We jumped apart, startled by the buzzing. I looked around for the offending sound, then sighed when I realized it was his phone. Again. Beck cursed, pulling out his phone to read the text. I watched as his eyes scanned the glowing screen, then flickered back toward me. "I'm sorry. I have to go," he aid tiredly, snapping his phone shut and shoving it into his pocket. He ran his hand through his hair, and looked at me. "So….what do we do now?" He asked sadly, and I smiled wryly.

"We do what we do best….we'll talk about it later." He held my gaze for a second before sighing deeply, stepping forward to kiss my forehead. I closed my eyes, wishing that when I opened them again, Beck would be smiling at me, telling me that whatever it was could wait, that I was more important. But as I opened my eyes and saw as Beck turned away from me, I knew that wishing was a waste of time. No matter how much I wanted to forgive him, all I saw when I looked at him was Jade, wrapped around him, kissing the lips that had kissed me so many times before. And so I stood there, motionless, until I heard the door slam. My mind flashed back to a happier time. To when Beck first told me he loved me.

"I love you Tori Vega. With every fiber in my being, I love you." I heard my best friend, Beck Oliver say from behind. I turned, shock evident in my voice.

"What?" I asked in disbelief. He walked toward me until he was standing inches away from me.

"I said that I love you" he repeated, his voice no louder than a whisper. And then kissed me. It was a tender kiss, filled with love and gentleness. I closed my eyes and saw fireworks, and I breathed in his delicious scent. When I finally pulled away, I knew I had to ask.

"Why? Why do you love me? I'm a mess right now. My parents are getting a divorce, my mom is a sad drunk who feels the need to hit her children when she's smashed out of her mind, and lately even when she's sober, and my grandmother just died. I'm a mess!" My voice was becoming louder, and the tears were falling freely now. I looked away, not wanting to meet Beck's eyes, not wanting to see when he ran away. I wouldn't blame him.

"Tori, look at me" Beck whispered, putting two fingers under my chin and pulling my head up.

"Why do you love me?" I repeated softly. Beck hesitated before answering.

"Truthfully? I think it's because you're almost as messed up as I am...I can't imagine my life without you..."

I sighed and sat down on my couch, curling up into a ball. As the memory filled my head, the tears fell freely now. I tried to hold them back.

BRRRRRRR

I jumped startled. Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I read over the new text.

From: Beck 3

To: Tori Vega

I still love you...And I'm sorry.

My vision got blurry as I read the text, and I finally gave up trying to stop the tears. Throwing my phone across the couch, I lay down and cried for the first time since I started to go out with Beck. I cried for us.