*insert obligatory comment about how Beck and Jade origin stories have been done many times before* BUT! I have not found a single story in these archives themed after "You Don't Know Me" by Elizabeth Gilles, which I find surprising considering that song is a perfect summary of Beck and Jade's relationship. And while I do think that song describes the entirety of their relationship, I think it also works for their origin story.

Most of the "How Beck and Jade Met" stories I read start with one (usually Beck) being infatuated with the other. And while I have nothing against those stories, I wanted to take a different angle. This isn't quite slow burn, because it won't be a ridiculously long story (I hope), but it will take a bit more for them to really fall in love. But (spoiler alert!) it'll happen eventually, I promise. Their relationship in the show is so realistic, and I thought they deserved a realistic backstory.

I don't know how long this story will be. A couple chapters, for sure. And to be honest, I'm not totally sure where it's going to end. (Which isn't a good thing, but . . . oh well? o.o) I just don't know exactly when I'll wind up cutting it off, but I'm guessing it'll come to a natural end at some point. I do know I want an epilogue set a few years later! But as for the final actual chapter, we'll see!

There shouldn't be much content in this story that wouldn't be in the show, so I'm rating it a K plus. Jade'll be mean and there will be kissing, but again, nothing that wouldn't be on the show. I don't own Victorious. Any OCs are mine, as is the plot. Enjoy!

Chapter 1: First Kisses and Four Lunches

"Attention! Attention, everyone! Hey! Be quiet!" The backstage buzz died down, and Mr. Turton nodded. "Excellent. I have bad news. I just got off the phone with Melissa's mom, and apparently she's in the hospital getting an emergency appendectomy today. I'm sorry to spring this on all of you so quickly, but that's the way theater is sometimes. Melissa's part will be played by her understudy, Jade West. Thank you. As you were. Hey, Jade!" Mr. Turton pulled Jade aside. "Do you think you're ready for this?"

"What, you think I'm not?"

"That's not what I said. This is the first big play of the year. This'll be your Hollywood Arts debut, and it's on fairly short notice."

"So?"

Mr. Turton sighed. "Well, I'm glad you're confident. Amy'll get you into makeup and costume. We're on in thirty minutes."

Jade walked over to the makeup chair, her heart beating faster than she cared to admit. She hadn't been expecting to actually be in the play this time. She'd practiced all the lines in and out, but she had assumed that her only audience would be her mirror. Now, in a few minutes, all her dreams would come true.

"Are you excited?" Amy, a tenth grader, asked as Jade sat down.

"I don't like excitement. It makes me feel nauseous."

"That's the best part! I remember when I did makeup for my first play. Your Hollywood Arts debut is always exciting, and I'm sure it's even better for actors!"

"Whatever."

Amy ignored her and began to remove Jade's makeup while chattering obnoxiously. She applied the new makeup for the role and eventually moved on to her hair. Amy twisted her brown locks up into a bun and secured them under a hairnet. She slipped the black curly wig over Jade's head and began to secure it with pins.

"Not a bad look," Jade muttered while fingering the faux hair.

"By the way, can I just say that I'm so totally jealous of you?"

"You can say it, but I'll still think you sound stupid."

"You get to kiss Beck Oliver!"

Shoot. She'd forgotten about that part. Stage kissing always made her want to gag. "The kiss is just one scene."

"I know, but Beck Oliver! He's totally the hottest guy in school."

"Whatever."

"You don't care?"

"Nope."

"I'm still jealous of you. I hear he's single, but I don't know how that can be when every single girl is fawning over him." She caught sight of Jade's face in the mirror. "Well, almost every girl." She secured the last pin. "That's it! You look perfectly dirty and helpless. Now for the costume!"

Jade slipped on the light brown dress and pulled the ends of her wig out of the collar. She looked at herself in the mirror and squinted. She appeared quite different with so little makeup, but with Amy's smudgy streaks and contouring, Jade certainly looked the part of pathetic orphan girl. Amy came up behind her and patted her shoulders.

"You look amazing!"

"Don't touch me."Jade wandered to the other side of backstage to retrieve her script. Yes, she knew the part, but a little review never hurt anyone. She thumbed through the pages and glanced over the blue highlighting her cues and the green highlighting her lines. She paced around and practiced a few lines, toying around with her British accent. She started to read through the first scene again when someone tapped her shoulder.

"What?" she yelled as she spun around.

The boy behind her put his hands up and grinned at her. "Whoa, hey!" He paused for a moment, then he stuck out his hand and said, "I'm Beck."

"I know." She didn't reach to shake it.

"I'm playing the part of William."

"Are you planning on giving me new information soon? Because you're boring me."

Beck looked bewildered, but he also looked . . . amused? "I just wanted to tell you to break a leg."

"Mine or someone else's?"

He laughed. He laughed as if she'd been trying to be funny instead of serious. She narrowed her eyes.

"I've seen you in class. Your skits are good. I think you'll do great."

"I don't need your encouragement."

"Well, you got it anyway. Congrats." He smiled again. "I'll let you get back to practicing. See you out there, Elizabeth." He walked away, and she glared after him.

"Ten minutes till showtime!" Mr. Turton shouted. "Last chance to review your lines, get a drink, throw up, whatever you need to do! If you're in the first scene, I want you in the left wing in five minutes!"

Jade shook herself out, drank some water, ran through a few vocal exercises, and headed over to her spot. Beck flashed an obnoxiously white smile as she walked up beside him. She stared at him, expressionless, until he turned away.

Jade had been involved in community theater for years, but never had she seen anything like the quality Hollywood Arts put out. Sets and costumes were made by students, but they looked professional. The musical score had been recorded by one of the high-level music classes, and it could've been a real movie soundtrack for all anyone knew. Even the script had been written by a former student a few years back. Jade didn't have to worry about technical mishaps or poor performances by her fellow actors, because everyone had worked hard to be here. This wasn't a day camp theater anymore. This was real, and she . . . didn't hate it.

The first and second acts went well. The story followed her character, an orphan in the streets of Victorian London, as she befriended and eventually fell in love with the son of a wealthy American bureaucrat. She pushed all of Jade away to become Elizabeth. She was going to pull this roll off perfectly and prove that she deserved to be here.

The third act came upon her quickly. In it, William found out that his family was moving back to America. Elizabeth had found out, and they were struggling to figure out what that meant for their budding relationship. The stagehands moved the props and created the most realistic cardboard bridge Jade had ever seen. She stood in the left wing, and she could see Beck preparing himself on the other side of the stage.

The music came on, and they both ran out onto the bridge and embraced each other. "I don't want you to go," she said as they pulled apart.

"Then I'll stay."

"How? Where?"

"I'll stay with you."

"You can't do that."

"Why not?"

"Because I sleep in the mud!" she sobbed. "Because I could never be so cruel as to drag you down to my level!"

"Elizabeth—"

"You have to go." She took his hands in hers and rubbed his knuckles. "Staying with me isn't an option. Your father would never allow it, and . . . I could never allow it. I love you enough to let you go."

"And I love you enough to let go of everything else. I'll give up my friends, my family, my money, my home. Whatever it takes. All I want is you."

"That's not how it works. And you wouldn't be happy."

"I'll be happy as long as you're in my arms."

"Trust me, William, it doesn't matter who you have around you. When life becomes too hard, love turns out to be nothing but a farce." She looked up at him. "I want what we have to stay real, forever."

He looked at her pleadingly, and she stared at him until he glanced at the ground. "Then I must go."

"Yes. But I'll always love you. Forever."

He put his hands on her hips, and she stepped closer. He leaned down and kissed her, softly, slowly. They drew apart after a few seconds, and someone in the audience whistled. They both turned to walk away, each keeping their eyes straight ahead. Then he turned and called, "I'll come back!"

She started and spun around to look at him.

"I'll come back one day! I'm going to get rich in my own right, and then I'll come back and buy you a mansion and we'll live there together. I promise, Elizabeth. I'll come back."

He ran off. She stood there a moment, took a few steps in his direction, then turned back and ran offstage with her face in her hands.

Jade marched down the steps with a smirk. She felt immensely proud of the scene she'd done. She could see some of the other actors high-fiving Beck on the other side of the stage. Amy was the only one who came up to her.

"Wow! You did it! I could tell that was an amazing kiss, even from here."

"It was just a stage kiss."

"But it was a stage kiss with Beck Oliver! Oh, I wish I was an actor."

Jade stared at her for a moment, then loudly proclaimed, "Bye!" and walked away.

She still had a few more scenes, but the rest of Beck's performance was done backstage via microphone in order to read the letters William sent Elizabeth, including the final one about returning to London. The curtain fell at the end of the scene, and Jade stood from her chair in center stage. All the rest of the actors came out to join her.

Beck took her left hand in his, and Mara, the actress who played Elizabeth's best friend, took her right one. The curtain rose. Jade plastered an uncomfortable smile on her lips. The actors raised their hands together and bowed as the audience applauded. Groups of actors stepped out to take their individual bows and leave, and finally only Beck and Jade were left. They stepped forward. Jade curtseyed (ugh) and Beck bowed from the waist. They walked offstage in opposite directions as the house lights came up.

Jade pulled off her wig and cap and scratched violently at her head. She'd done it. Her first Hollywood Arts starring role. She took a deep breath and went back into the dressing room to pull off her dress and get back into a comfortable pair of jeans.

People congratulated her at every turn, but she either ignored them or said a curt, "Thanks." She knew she had done well, and she didn't require other people to tell her. She shouldered her bag and walked out into the hall. As she pushed her way through the throng of parents and friends meeting other actors, someone tapped her arm.

"What?" she yelled as she turned around.

Beck stood there, this time in a hoodie and ripped jeans instead of a Victorian-era costume. He had that stupid smile again. Why was he so weird? "You did a great job."

"Ugh, will you ever stop saying obvious things?"

Beck shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged. "I'm just saying. I thought you were better than Melissa."

"Duh. She spits too much when she talks."

Beck made a face. "You're telling me." He glanced around the room. "So, is anyone here to congratulate you?"

"No."

"Me neither." He paused for a moment. "Well, congrats on your Hollywood Arts debut."

"You too, I guess."

"So, I was wondering if—"

"I'm bored and I'm leaving now." She said it loudly before sauntering out the door. She'd played the part. She'd filled her role. Nothing else would make her want to stay in that school a second longer, especially not a conversation with a weird, stuck-up pretty boy.

Jade had promised herself at that she wouldn't get distracted. Her parents had barely even let her attend Hollywood Arts, and her main goal at the school was to convince them they hadn't made a mistake. She would focus on acting and music. She would not get distracted by anything, including friends, and especially including boys.

Scaring people off proved to be no hard task for her. She decorated her locker with scissors, wore all black, and made credible physical threats at every turn. Of course, she would've done those things anyway, but now it came with the added benefit of giving her focus on the things she really cared about. She'd never had more than three conversations with the same person. She didn't want to. She was not at that school to make friends.

She "accidentally" threw a rock at the first boy who asked her out. (He asked her out on a dare anyway, so he deserved it.) Every kind soul who made an attempt to break through her scary girl exterior found an equally scary girl underneath. She'd perfected her death glare well enough that mere glances could send people running. She never let a conversation go the way the other person wanted. She twisted and challenged and sarcastically defeated every point they made. She found a strange kind of pleasure in it, though from time to time she did wish for friends.

Friends. She'd never made friends at school. Her only friends had come from community theater where freaks and outcast were equal and far too strange to not love. She had made good friends there, but even then "friendship" for her meant something different to her than it did for most people. Mostly it just meant that she'd found someone to tolerate her.

Jade didn't come to Hollywood Arts for friends. She didn't come looking for love or acceptance. She came for hard work and passion pursued. That came easily enough when everyone was too afraid to approach her.

So why on earth did he sit down next to her at lunch?

Jade sent Beck a death glare. That usually sent them running. He bit a French fry and met her gaze.

"What are you doing?" she said, crinkling her nose as if she smelled something rotten.

"Eating."

"Why here?"

Beck shrugged. "You eat alone. I eat alone. I thought we could eat alone together."

"That's the stupidest thing I've heard all week."

He shrugged again. "Fair enough."

Wait, Beck Oliver ate alone? Then it struck her that he did. She'd seen him a few times in passing. He always sat in a corner of the Asphalt Cafe with his back to the rest of the world. Oh, poor little pretty loner boy. She sneered at him and took a bit of her salad.

"Move before I stab you with a fork."

"You wouldn't do that."

"Are you new here?" She shifted her grip on her fork for an optimal stabbing position.

"Nope. Been going here for as long as you."

"Oh, so you're just dense."

"No. I'm just not afraid of you."

Jade had never heard those words before. Not once in her entire life. They made her immensely angry.

She swung her fork out and aimed for his face. With reflexes much quicker than she'd expected, he grabbed her wrist and held it up above her head. He met her gaze and smirked. A challenge danced in his eyes.

Challenge accepted.

Jade pulled her other fist back and punched him in the chest. He gasped and let go of her. She stood up before he could recover, grabbed her salad, and stormed away.

What did she know about Beck Oliver, exactly? She knew that girls in the bathroom liked to giggle and talk about him. She hated giggling, so naturally she tuned out those discussions. She knew he walked around with confidence, which usually either meant an inflated ego or a seriously low amount of self-confidence covered up with an artificial inflated ego. Neither of those interested her.

Did she think Beck Oliver was hot?

Well . . . duh. Jade might be intimidating and entirely uninterested in dating, but she was still a female with eyes. Of course she thought he was hot, but that only strengthened her disdain for him.

Beck sat down with her again the next day. She reached down into her boots and pulled out her favorite pair of scissors, pointing them at him.

"If you try to speak to me, the locks are the first things to go."

He seemed to take her threat more credibly this time, because he didn't say a word during the whole meal. They ate together in silence as she tried not to look at him. He didn't smile at her this time. Mostly he observed the world around them. Girls waved at him, but he hardly waved back.

Jade didn't put her scissors away until after he'd left. She frowned and her face flushed with this new situation. He's probably playing some kind of trick on you, she thought. Don't trust him.

Beck Oliver. A mystery. And, in her opinion, a freak. He was a great actor, one of the best in class. Not that she ever cared what he did, but she did remember holding a begrudging respect for his talent.

But she didn't know him, and he didn't know her.

She didn't want to know the freaky, stuck-up, mysterious, pretty little loner boy.

Third day's the charm. He sat across from her again. She threw an olive at him, but he merely dodged it and opened his food.

"Yesterday, I played by your rules," he said. "Today, you play by mine."

She snorted. "Fat chance."

"It's only fair."

"I don't play fair. Dude, why we you even here? You don't know me."

"That's what I'm trying to fix. I want to ask you some questions."

"Go. Away."

"What got you into acting?"

"Shut up."

"Do you have any siblings?"

"I'm plotting your demise, and it's glorious."

"What do you like to do for fun?"

"Cut things up with scissors."

"Anything in particular?"

"Flowers. Clothes. Pretty boys' fingers."

"Sounds fun. Do you like to read?"

"Obituaries, yeah."

"What's your favorite class here?"

"Any you're not in."

"Are you single?"

Jade choked on her lettuce. She coughed several times and downed her water. Beck stared at her the whole time, his facial expression entirely passive. She sent him the best glare she could muster, and the most she got in response was a slightly raised eyebrow.

"Why would you ask that?" she hissed, coughing one more time into her fist.

He shrugged. "Just curious."

"Uh-huh." She stood, leaning over the table so her hair dangled in front of his face. "Look, I don't know what kind of game you're playing, pretty boy, but I hate games, so you better back off before you get hurt."

He grinned for the first time that day. "Dude, it was just a question."

"Fine. Yeah, I'm single, and that's the way I like it. I'm not at this school to fall in love."

"Same."

She squinted and leaned back. "What?"

"There. We have something in common now." He folded her arms and smiled at her. "I'm here to learn about acting. I'm not interested in a relationship."

She sat down again and took a bite of salad. "But . . . why . . ."

He raised his eyebrows, prompting her to answer. When she continued to splutter, he laughed. "Did . . . did I just make you speechless?"

"No!"

"Look, I'm not trying to ask you out or something, if that's what you think. I'm just trying to get to know you better."

She took a deep breath to compose herself. He'd caught her off-guard, and she hated being caught off-guard. "Why?"

"You're interesting."

She frowned. "Was that an insult, pretty boy?"

He shrugged. Man, he did that a lot. "Wasn't meant to be."

"Well, I suggest you leave me alone before you learn just how 'interesting' I can be."

"I'm not afraid of you."

He said it again. Never had words infuriated her as much as those. Her fury must've slipped into her expression, because he began to smirk again.

"You hate it when I say that, don't you?"

"Shut up or I'll—"

"What? Threaten me with scissors, or do you want to go back to the fork?"

She gritted her teeth. "I can't even begin to tell you how much I hate you."

"Fine, I'll shut up. I guess that's the most I'm going to learn about you today."

They spent the rest of lunch in silence. She glared at him for its entirety. He either ignored it or met it head-on. They both continued to eat until the bell rang, at which point they stood up and he spoke again.

"Want to walk to class together?"

She walked past without looking at him. "Screw you."

"No need to be rude." He had a humorous tone.

She turned around and said while walking backward, "Still don't know me, pretty boy!" She marched off without bothering to catch a second glimpse of his smile.

Not afraid of her? Not afraid of her?! How could he not be afraid of her? Her fearsome personality was something she prided herself on. A single snap of her scissors could send any boy running. She never made an empty threat. She frequently talked about the most foreboding things in her mind—genuine interests that served to frighten anyone who stayed to listen. If Jade embodied herself in one personality trait, it was her scariness.

So what was she to do with the one person on planet earth who wouldn't realize that?

She showed up late for lunch the next day because she had a conversation with her English teacher about an assignment. When she arrived at the Asphalt Cafe, Beck had gotten his food and was sitting off by himself. Two girls came up to talk to him, but he dismissed them. Jade grabbed her food and walked over.

"Hey, pretty boy. It's my rules again today."

He smiled at her. "I'll be quiet."

"Actually, it's my turn to ask questions."

"Oh?"

"Don't read too much into it. If you're going to bother me this much, I might as well know some things about you."

"Ask away."

"Snakes or spiders?"

"Uh, snakes, I guess."

She chuckled and took a sip of her drink. "Wrong answer."

"Well, I just think snakes are—"

"If you had to die by either stabbing or drowning, which would you pick?"

He looked confused for a moment, but it passed into a contemplative look before she could enjoy it. "I guess drowning."

"Oh, wrong again!"

"I gave you my answer. How is it wrong?"

"Because it's my rules today."

He smiled. Would he ever stop doing that? She rested her chin on her hand and looked him over. She had had a plan about engaging him, but it was slipping away before her eyes. Her questionable questions seemed to be inspiring him. Time to be unpredictable.

"What are your interests?"

He looked genuinely taken aback. "Are you asking me a normal question?"

"My turn to ask, pretty boy. Interests. What are they?"

"Well, acting, obviously. I like reading, yoga, watching drag racing, dancing sometimes. But mostly I love acting."

"Uh-huh." Jade had another question forming in her mind, a much more personal one. She mulled it over for a second before vocalizing it. "Last week, after the play, you said you had no one there to congratulate you. Why didn't you have someone?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

"Not today you can't."

He smiled again, but it didn't seem as happy this time. "My parents were both gone on business trips. Besides, theater's not really their thing."

"Okay, that's your family. But why doesn't a pretty boy like you have friends? Why do you sit alone at lunch?"

He shrugged. Smile and shrug. He could at least be a little more emotive. "I have friends, just not any close friends. I'm working on it. I like knowing the deeper stuff, you know? More than just the superficial. I like to take my time getting to know someone."

"You sure moved in on me fast."

"Because you're interesting."

"So I've heard." She narrowed her eyes. "Why aren't you afraid of me?"

He—you guessed it—shrugged. "I'm just not afraid of anything, really."

She snorted. "So I was right the first time. You are dense."

He chuckled. "Nah, I'm just—"

"I changed my mind. I want you to be quiet now."

He squinted. "Why do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Cut people off."

"Because I get bored of listening to them. Like now. My rules, pretty boy. Shh."

"Fine, I'll be quiet." He drew an invisible zipper across his lips and smirked at her.

Again, silence, but she didn't enjoy it as much as she thought she would. She couldn't understand this boy. She didn't think she wanted to. Interesting? He only liked her because she was interesting? She was wasting far too much mental power trying to figure him out.

Beck finished his lunch before she finished hers. He nodded at her and got up without a word, just as she'd requested. She threw a crouton at his retreating back, but she missed and swore at herself.

After most of the other students had left, Jade buried her head in her arms. She was not at this school to make friends. She was not at this school to have ridiculously handsome loner boys eating lunch with her. She was not at this school for him, or for anyone else. She was at this school to make her dreams come true, and after thirty more seconds of running mysterious pretty boy run through her mind, she kicked him out for good and sought focus on bigger and better goals.

The whole story will be from Jade's perspective, by the way. (Except for the epilogue, probably. I have special plans for that.) Other characters will come in eventually (obviously no Tori), but Beck and Jade will be the focus here.

By the way, I love that this is a "slow burn" fic and I have them kiss on page four. XD Yeah, I feel like them being slightly more antagonistic toward each other is more realistic. Certainly Jade is. And Beck's the one pursuing her, not the other way around, because that also makes sense. But for now, he's pursuing her for reasons that aren't romantic. ("For now," she said. ;))

Hope I got the theater terms right! I have a bit of experience myself from a class or two, my BFF has been a drama kid for years, and another friend of mine has been in the ensemble of some professional plays that I had the pleasure of seeing. Writing it reminds me how much I love it. I always wish I could've been involved in theater more, but it is HARD when you can't sing. ;-;

For anyone who read Precipice, I do plan to release a sequel. Soon. Eventually. I have ideas, I just need to get writing! But it will be here! (And if you haven't read Precipice, go do so now, because you're probably already a Bade fan and you'll love it!)

Reviews are appreciated but not required. I see you, silent readers! I just can't read your minds! If anyone has ideas for something they would like to see in this story, I'm taking suggestions. (Maybe ways you'd like to see Andre, Cat, and Robbie incorporated, or some conflicts that could occur with Beck and Jade.) Detailed reviews are the best. Tell me what you liked, didn't liked, what lines you enjoyed, etc. Jade's snappy attitude was fun to write, so tell me what you think!

Hope you enjoyed the chapter! See you all soon on chapter two! Bye!

~ Rosie