Hey! So, this is a Jandre oneshot! I've never done anything like this before, and it was a lot of fun to write. Disclaimer: I don't own Victorious or any of its characters.
Title: Falling Away
Summary: Jade and Andre begin a messy relationship when Andre's grandmother is admitted into a mental institution, but will it last even if they love each other? Jandre! Oneshot.
Language: English
Word Count: 1,441
"Andre? Come over, I need you."
The words were spoken sharply, almost angrily, but there was desperation in them too.
"Okay."
He agreed to it quickly, too quickly. Whatever they had was wrong, almost unhealthy, and they knew it, but they still took advantage of that connection.
"I'm on my way, Jade."
"'Kay."
"Don't worry."
"Who said I was?"
There was the silence of longing after she hung up.
The knock on the door was urgent, although that urge did not come from fear or anger. It was passionate, nearly.
It opened.
"Andre."
"Jade."
And he kissed her.
Where to begin?
How did this happen?
When did she begin to love him?
Had he always loved her?
Did it mean something?
Would it last?
No, it would not.
The answer to the last question was known by both parties of the twisted relationship, although it was never acknowledged.
Jade put it best once: "I need you, and you need me. That's why we're doing this. We might love each other, but that's not why we're together. We just kinda fell together, after we both broke."
Andre's grandmother was committed to a mental institution, and that had begun the relationship, or so everyone at Hollywood Arts speculated.
Supposedly, when Andre had been out with Beck and Robbie at the movies, Andre's grandmother had spotted a spider in the kitchen. Naturally, she began screaming and throwing objects at it, including the television and Andre's single picture of his parent before their fatal car accident. Their next-door neighbor, Mr. Anderson, had been rather suspicious of his grandma's ailment for a while, and he called 9-1-1 when he heard the commotion. By the time Andre had returned home, his grandmother was gone and he found two police officers sitting in his living room, looking through his house. There were questions about her, many questions. And then, they told him.
His grandmother was in a mental institution.
"How old are you?" asked the police officers.
"Eighteen," he mumbled, staring blankly at the floor.
"And how long are you going to be in school?"
"I graduate at the end of May."
"How long has your grandmother been like this?"
"As long as I can remember. My parents died when I was three, and after that I moved in with her. Something about their deaths changed her. It made her paranoid."
"I'm sorry, son," said the older, more sympathetic one. "We're going to get going. We can't tell you very much right now, but someone should call you tomorrow."
He nodded absently and showed them out, numb to the world.
It was not as if it was the biggest shock. Andre had known there was something wrong with her grandmother, and that he needed to do something. He had been planning to have her visit a therapist after he graduated from Hollywood Arts and got a part time job or something to pay for the price. But having her so suddenly ripped from his life…it killed him.
So, he called the only other person he knew who had felt anything even close to his pain. Right now, he did not want Tori's rambling sympathies or Cat's spaciness or Beck's stoic silence. If only for this moment, he needed someone filled with as much pain and anger as him.
So, he called her.
Andre did not explain what was wrong or why his voice sounded thick with tears. All he said was, "Come," and she did.
And when he opened the door and saw her blue eyes wide with worry and confusion, he leaned in and kissed her, for all that it was worth.
And Jade kissed him back.
And they remained together all night long, and she held his hand when he heard that his grandmother was to remain at the mental hospital for an undetermined amount of time.
Love had always been something foreign to Jade. What love had she experienced?
There was the "love" of her parents, if you could call it that. The false affection and angry words behind closed doors that had led to her terrible personality.
There was the love Beck had given her, or at least tried to, before succumbing to the pressures of society and the pent up pressures from their relationship. She could at least forgive him, he had actually tried to heal her.
There was the love Cat and Tori had offered, and that she somewhat reciprocated. Admittedly, she still pushed them away more often than she let them in, but it was progress, at least for her.
And then there was the love that Andre gave willingly, even happily. Jade did not know what his love meant to her, but she did understand that it was something rarely experienced, especially for people like her. And knowing how much she could hurt him if she wanted to (that was what made him different from Beck, Beck was never hurt by her actions because he did not care enough), she loved him in return.
The love did not add to the meaningfulness of their flimsy but weighted relationship, but it did make her a better person, in a way.
Love brought them together, even if it did not keep them together.
They were only together out of necessity.
Andre had always loved Jade, but it had not been enough to do anything. It was only when he needed her that he went to her.
Love was useless in that sense.
But it did make her smile.
So, sometimes, when she was with Andre late at night, kissing him with all of her being, she would pull away for a second and whisper, "I love you, Andre," because it felt nice to say those words and mean them.
Their friends' reactions to their newfound relationship would have been hilarious, if the circumstances had been lighter.
Beck's eyes widened in horror, and he mouthed, "Good luck," to Andre before kissing Tori on the cheek and saying, "C'mon, babe, we have to go if we're going to catch that movie."
Tori followed him, but looked fearfully at Jade and Andre's linked hands the whole time.
Robbie was stunned speechless, and walked away slowly, shaking his head and muttering to himself, "What has the world come to?"
Only Cat was happy and excited for them, "Oh, goody! You guys will be so happy!" She hugged them both and kissed Andre's cheek, before running after Robbie.
"Wow," chuckled Jade, and Andre echoed the sentiment.
Late one night, Jade pulled away from Andre and asked, "What happens two weeks from now, when we graduate? I mean, I know I love you, I know we're breaking up, but still…I'm gonna need you even after you're gone."
"It's the same for me. I just don't know."
"But we have to decide something. What are we gonna do, just ignore everything like it isn't coming, and then part ways at graduation? Andre, you know how messed up I'm gonna be."
"I'm going to be worse, Jade. Why don't we do that? Just ignore everything like it's a million years away, and hide up here. Together."
"Okay."
"Okay."
"Kiss me again."
He did so, only very, very tenderly, because he felt her trembling against him.
The next days played out just as Jade had described them. They spent every night together, trying to bury the sadness in each other, even though they knew each other's presence was only like a drug to numb the pain.
On graduation day, Andre approached Jade before the start of the ceremony. "Have you heard from Yale yet?"
"Yeah, I've actually known for a couple of months. I wanted to, um, keep it a secret. Partial scholarship for their drama department."
"That's incredible."
"And what 'bout you? Have you heard from UCLA?"
Andre shrugged. "They turned me down."
"Andre…"
"We're not talking 'bout this. We're breaking up at the end of the ceremony, I have enough other stuff to think about."
Jade studied his face for a second, and then walked away.
"Quitter," he could have sworn she muttered.
"Congratulations to our 2012 graduates!"
Red polyester hats flew in the air. Andre sought Jade out through the crowd, and spotted her hugging Cat in a moment.
He did not have to yell to get her attention despite the pandemonium that surrounded them. Jade suddenly withdrew from Cat, as if she sensed his presence. She walked slowly towards him, each step composed, controlled.
"So, are we broken up?"
Andre nodded. "I love you." He leaned in and hugged her tightly. "You'll be amazing at Yale."
They pulled apart, and then she leaned up and kissed him.
Author's Note: Well, that was something different than what I usually write! I don't really ship Jandre, but I wanted to write something different and unusual like that. What did you think? Please leave me a review to let me know. I appreciate any and all feedback I can get. I doubt I will do a sequel to this, simply because there's not much left to say. Jade and Andre needed each other for a time because no one else was there for them, but now that they're graduating and going into separate worlds, they have to let go, even if they still needed each other. I know the ending is kinda open ended, but think: Just because she kissed him, does that mean they'll stay together?
Please leave a review!