A/N: wow, so I know I haven't been updated or published anything in over half a year but...yeah. No excuses really.

ANYWAY! This came about while I was watching TFB&J (duh) that scene when Tori chased after Beck when he walked out of the janitor's closet really intrigued me since I felt like the conversation they had was probably SUPER interesting. Enjoy!

"You know what? I don't care"

Beck turned to look at Jade and felt his chest tighten guiltily. There it was, the thing he was trying to avoid in the first place. Beneath the cold sneer and indifferent tone, Jade's eyes betrayed the hurt and jealousy she was feeling. He thought about saying something else to make her feel better but felt his throat close around the words as she shoved her way past him.

Damn it.

"Enjoy her cupcakes."

As he watched her walk out the door, he felt the guilt give way to something a little stronger. Irritation. He knew he shouldn't have let Tori go through with that little plan of hers. Huffing out a sigh, he leant back against the ladder in the janitor's closet and threw a glare at Tori and Andre, silently daring them to try and explain their way out of this one.

André seemed to sense his frustration because instead of reiterating that he was only 'dragged into this', he instead grabbed one of the rolls of tissue in his hand and held it up. "How can she kill you with it?"

He felt his annoyance flare at that. Gritting his teeth, he resisted the urge to let out a scathing remark and instead walked past Tori and made to exit the janitor's closet. From his peripheral vision he could see the guilt flash across Tori's face. He decided to ignore her when she called out his name as he wrenched the door open. As he walked, he could hear Tori's sneakers squeaking after him and the meaner, part of his mind entertained the notion of letting her chase after him all afternoon until her feet got tired.

But he wouldn't do that.

A few feet away from the janitor's closet, he rounded on her again and raised his eyebrows expectantly, foregoing the glare for a more passive expression.

She hesitated for a beat, opening and closing her mouth while simultaneously scratching at the back of her head. Staring at him pleadingly, she fidgeted in place for a moment taking a few more steps closer. "Look Beck—"

"You paid a guy to date her? Really Tori? REALLY?" He hadn't meant for that to come out so harshly, but the look on Jade's face when she told him was coming back to the forefront of his mind and honestly, he hadn't thought that Tori of all people would stoop that low. He couldn't even imagine the hurt and fury that Jade must have felt when she found out what Tori and André did.

He watched as the guilt etched itself deeper into Tori's face and raked his hand through his hair to let out some of the frustration. This was one of the things about Tori that he used to always agree with Jade about: her plans were usually terrible.

"Why did you do that Tori?" he said a little more softly.

"I don't know!" she finally exclaimed, tossing her hands up in the air as her mouth formed a small pout. "I just couldn't think of any other way to get a guy to ask her out and if no one asked her out you wouldn't ask Meredith out!"

"Okay, why is it so important that I ask Meredith out?"

"Because!" Tori's eyes widened, and her eyebrows raised eagerly as if she were trying to make him see a very obvious piece of information. "You've been saying for months now how you were totally 'over Jade'" at that, Tori raised her hands and did quotation marks in the air, "but I've never seen you go out on a real date once! The only time you got close was with me and that wasn't even a real date!" As if to punctuate her point she spread her arms out wide and stomped her foot indignantly. Ah Tori.

Beck heaved an exasperated sigh, but admittedly what Tori said did strike a nerve. True, now that he was single he was more attentive of the girls flirting with him as opposed to when he was still with Jade and all he did was spare them a passing glance (that to Jade seemed to signify he was flirting back) but despite that he never actually felt any real attraction toward any of them.

He always told himself it was because he wasn't in any rush to be in a relationship again so soon but lately (and this was something he only shared with himself during the early mornings in his RV when his bed felt particularly spacious) he was beginning to wonder if there was something more to it.

"Come on," Tori pleaded, taking his silence as hesitation instead of contemplation. "Meredith is nice and pretty and Jade said she was fine with it!"

Again, that struck a nerve. Beck wasn't sure he could ever get used to Jade being okay with him hanging out with other girls, and even though he was glad that she seemed to be getting over her jealousy issues, he wasn't exactly sure he liked her cold indifference either.

"Fine!" he said, lifting his hands up in surrender as Tori bounced up and down and clapped her hands with glee, "I'll ask Meredith out if…"

"If?" Tori's face turned cautious and sometimes Beck was glad he had a good reign on his feelings because at the rate some people burned through their emotions (take his entire group of friends for example) it quite honestly seemed exhausting.

"If," he began, "you promise to never again pay someone to date Jade. Okay?"

Again, in an instant Tori went from suspicious and cautious to bright and happy. Nodding eagerly, she made a show of crossing her heart and nodding as solemnly as she could. "I promise."

Beck sighed.

"Okay, I'll ask Meredith out."

"Cause it's not easy," he shrugged his shoulders offhandedly before continuing, "easy is boring." With that he brought the plastic cup to his lips and took a drink of the punch. Saying that was so therapeutic if he was honest with himself. Now he knew why none of those girls who flirted with him ever seemed to hold his attention for more than a few seconds. Why he could acknowledge their presence, flirt back if he felt like it, but walk away without feeling a thing. Because it would have been too easy, he could've smiled and they would've done anything he wanted without a fuss and he didn't want that.

He never wanted that.

Beside him, he could see Tori nodding in understanding, "Okay, I get that." There was a pause and he turned to look at her, expecting her to say something else. She did. "So, who's not boring?"

He meant to shrug his shoulders and give her a vague answer like, 'I don't know' but just then the high-pitched feedback from the stage mic distracted him and he and Tori turned their attention to André onstage.

"Okay people, let's heat things up with Jade West! Let's go!"

As the audience broke into applause, Beck felt a wry grin turn up the corners of his lips. The thrill of being onstage was something he knew Jade loved as much as he did, and as she sauntered onstage with the bright lights bringing out her pale skin and the purple streaks in her hair, she had never looked lovelier to him. Beside him, Tori was clapping and a bright smile was on her face.

As the first few guitar riffs played out, he put his cup down and stuffed his hands into his pockets. When Jade started to sing he felt a familiar ache deep in his chest. He missed hearing her sing, back when they were still dating, if he pestered her enough and tickled her stomach long enough she would give in and sing him something. Now he always had to wait for some big production she was a part of.

Before he realized it, he had already taken a few steps closer to the stage and from his peripheral vision he could see Tori eyeing him knowingly.

He wanted to turn around and raise a single eyebrow at her but Jade's performance kept his eyes glued to the stage and despite himself he began clapping along to the beat. And then…

Oh.

Oh.

God, he was stupid.

It wasn't one of those realizations that hit him like a ton of bricks. No, it was more like remembering a forgotten memory, something he had always known that was only now coming back to him again. From the stage, he could see Jade smirking at him as she sang and he felt a chuckle escape his lips as he clapped along.

It took a few seconds for him to notice that her lyrics were hitting a little close to home and when she threw what was probably her fifth glance at him he smirked to himself and stared at his shoes. Leave it to Jade to choose the biggest opportunity possible to remind him just why their relationship was the only relationship that could ever work for him.

He smiled as she hit her big note in the refrain and nodded back at her when her eyes sought him out again.

He didn't notice that he was walking up the stage until he heard the gasps from the audiences and felt the heat from the spotlights glaring at him. All he saw was her, fiddling with her skirt and looking more nervous than when she had first walked out in front of the whole school. When they were a little less than two feet apart, he took a moment to just look at her, something he hadn't done in a long while really.

Just like every time he looked at her, he was floored by how beautiful she really was. All curves and pale skin and dark hair and blue eyes that were so bright from the adrenaline of performing. There were a hundred things he wanted to say, like how great her performance was and how he felt like a total idiot for everything (he still did) but instead he settled for something simpler.

"I've missed you."

"So what're you going to do about it?" she replied, with a smirk and an elegant tilt of her head. Of course, because even he was the one coming back to her, she still wouldn't make it easy for him. Because Jade West was difficult like that. And she was never easy.

And that's why he loved her.

He didn't even bother to hesitate. Just like that he was pressed up against her and her arms were around his neck again and they were kissing to the applause of the entire school and god it felt like everything was right in the world again.

When they both pulled back for air, he took a moment to see their friends' smiling faces and from where he had left her, Tori had a knowing smile on her face as she cheered them on. Something in the back of his mind told him that maybe she knew this was going to happen all along.

Beck would have to thank Tori later.

Much later, because at that moment Jade was nuzzling her nose against his cheek and he just had to turn his head to kiss her again, harder this time.

He never wanted to stop.

A/N: yaaayyy! bade is canon again! :D Celebrate with me! :D