Disclaimer: I do not own Victorious

Unexplainable Fire

Jade hummed in appreciation as she and Beck strolled in through the entrance of the open-air theatre. It's uniqueness appealed to her. The semi-circular shape of the audience seats and the starry sky above them in the place of a roof made her think of an ancient Roman theatre.

"I have to admit, I'm pleasantly surprised," she said, turning her head to look at her boyfriend beside her. He smiled at her, and she couldn't help but give back a small smile, as she was reminded of Beck's handsomeness. She could imagine the jealousy female half of the crowd must feel upon seeing them together.

They both made an impressive sight. They were a well-matched couple after all.

She was looking absolutely striking, even more so than usual, that is, and she was perfectly aware of that.

Dark hair surrounded her face in seemingly casual waves. Blue and green highlights matched her eyes, dark makeup emphasized them. Black dress fit her figure perfectly.

She could almost feel the weight of gazes of all the eyes that followed them as they ascended the stairs to take their seats.

Jade leaned back in her seat, settling in a middle of a row. Her eyes wandered across her surroundings, while her mind went to her best friend and the upcoming spectacle. Cat playing main role was primary reason why Jade wanted to see the musical so badly.

The red-haired girl must be there, behind the stage, preparing for the spectacle to start. Jade smiled internally as she recalled Cat in all those costumes she was wearing those few times Jade saw her rehearsing. She herself did not audition for a role in said musical, because she simply did not have time to take on more duties.

Jade was brought back to reality by a group of people taking seats right in front of her, all but obscuring the stage from her view. She sighed in displeasure, and sat at the edge of her seat looking for a place to move to. The seats were not assigned, so Jade was surprised to see two empty in the first row.

"I can't see a thing from here. Let's move up to the front," Before someone else takes those places, she thought to herself, jumping to her feet, not even waiting for Beck.

"Lucky, aren't we? " She happily sunk into the new seat, right in front of the stage.

"Well, it's an interactive show, not everyone is so quick to participate, I guess." Beck sat next to her.

"Oh. I forgot about that." Jade shrugged. She was fine with performing. Good performer is always ready. If she wanted, she even could have been among people starring in tonight's musical, but she was occupied with other work at school and couldn't give so much time to additional project. If she auditioned, she would have been cast, she was certain.

"I wonder if Cat is nervous…" said Jade, as the audience more or less settled and the conversations started dying out around them.

"I bet Tori must be. Preparing for her role in such short time…" If Beck wasn't looking at the stage, he wouldn't have missed the flinch Jade gave at the mention of the other girl's turned her head slowly towards her boyfriend.

" T o r i?" she asked slowly.

"Didn't you know? One of the other performers was sacked, and Tori took her place as she knew some of the part already."

Jade's cheeks became hot with a flush. Now that she thought about it, Tori did hang out a lot with the people starring in the musical, and she helped them practice. Jade witnessed only a handful of rehearsals, and everytime she was there, Tori was present as well.

Jade swallowed. Suddenly, her perfect looks didn't seem so perfect anymore, and she wished she was dressed better. She was no longer sure of her preparedness to participate on-spot either.

It was too late to move, however. The lights were being set on stage and the audience was silent as the spectacle begun. Even if she could move, Jade wouldn't want to admit to Beck, or even to herself that Tori's presence would make such a difference to her.

She found herself sinking further into the sat and hoping not to draw too much attention from a certain performer.

Following the brightening of the stage lights, the curtain went up.