Beck blinked, replaying what had just happened in his mind. He was walking to his locker to enjoy the rare free period, curtsey of Sikowitz's crazy lesson plans, and the next thing he knew he was in the janitors closet. It had happened so fast he didn't even have a chance to resist. Looking around, catching his barring, he saw his abductor standing next to him. She was nervous, and he knew something was up. This wasn't her style. Of course, since her dilemma involved his ex, she had every reason to be nervous. After all, Jade made people nervous at the best of times.

"I suppose asking 'Beck, could I speak with you for a minute' was too much work?" The Canadian asked.

"Are you kidding? I couldn't risk you saying no. Besides, I don't want Jade to know I talked to you, and you know she can get almost everyone we know to spill their guts. Usually with one glare." replied the slim Latina. Tori Vega was unusually jumpy.

"And you dragged me into the janitors closet? You could have texted." The handsome boy said.

"And risk Jade finding it, or standing next to you? No, I needed a time when she would be occupied, and when Sikowitz has decided to spend the period working on her directing skills, I took the chance to talk to you." Tori said.

"What do you need?" he relented. Beck suspected he knew, but it was safer to ask. After all, Tori could be unpredictable in these kinds of situations.

Looking around one more time "I don't know what to get Jade." Her voice was suddenly sweat. "Can you please help me think of something?"

"You want me to tell you want to get her? You know what she likes." He replied.

"But I don't want to screw up this gift. You know how important this is. Beck, will you help me, please?" Tori was pulling out all the stops, including the doe eyes and the quivering lip. Beck worried she was one step shy of baby talk.

Of course, he should have know this would happen. It was less than a week until Valentine's day, or as Cat called it, 'Me day', and Tori was desperate to find the right gift for Jade. To make things worse, the couple only got together in the middle of December. Both had agreed that they hadn't been together long enough for a couples Christmas exchange, February fourteenth became the first gifting holiday in their relationship. Plus, Tori tended to over think things anyways, so the pressure was on.

"Okay, Okay, I'll help." He said, smiling. No one wanted to upset Jade any day, but for a Tori, on her fist chance to show jade how she felt, on a nationally acknowledged holiday dedicated to romance, the Latina must have been close to pulling out her hair. And Jade liked her hair. "But first, I need some information. How far have you two, you know.." He let the question hang.

"I don't know. Beck, what does Jade like. I mean, scissors don't scream romance, and I'm not sure of her taste in jewelery. Scratch that, I'm scared of her taste in jewelery. If she was a guy, I'd give a card and some flowers, but Jade hates flowers. And the gift has to be perfect." Tori was starting to rant, a sign of her frustration. He suspected she'd missed the implications of his question.

"Have you slept with her?" Beck felt bad asking so directly. Normally, he'd assume that they didn't. As far as he knew, Tori wasn't that kind of girl. But when he was with Jade, They were together for over six months before they'd finally had sex. He understood Jade's reasons for taking things slow. Still, Jade was very different with Tori than she'd been with him. Jade was making more of an effort than he'd ever seen.

Back in November, Jade found out from Cat that Tori had admitted during one of their sleep deprived "Funny Nugget Show' that she'd previously had a crush on Jade. It was the reason they'd decided not to post that episode. Then, just before Thanksgiving, Jade finally decided to go for it and win herself a girlfriend. First, she got beck to okay it, knowing Tori wouldn't agree unless her ex was on board. Then she started pursuing Tori relentlessly. For three weeks Jade showered Tori with attention, singing up to her window until Mister Vega threatened to have her arrested. Apparently Tori didn't need Jade to act as her alarm, and 'six AM was too early for that chiz.' Jade had found other ways to show Tori she cared, including helping Trina find a guy. After the three weeks, Tori agreed to one date, just to see if they had a connection. From there, Jade had managed to win Tori's affection, as well as her parents reluctant blessing. And since Jade was the aggressor in this relationship, he had no idea how far they'd taken things.

"Beck!" Tori looked shocked. "I though you knew me better. We're waiting at least until after the hundred day kiss. And if this present doesn't rock her socks off, it may be longer." Tori sounded just a bit frustrated.

Beck suppressed a chuckle. It was rude to laugh at a friend who's this stressed out. 'Tori came to me for help' he thought, over and over. "Okay, a couple of rule's for surviving Valentine's day when dating Jade West. First, she hates Valentine's day. Convinced it's a made up holiday created just to stress out girls. I've heard her rant on it so many times. How girls with boyfriends have this obligation, and always use it to judge how much the boy loves them. Meanwhile the day makes the single girls want to hook up with any loser just so they wont end up alone. Second, get her something. Trust me, anything is better than nothing." he smiled, knowing his experience dating Jade was finally bearing fruit. "Third, she's one of the most self centered, materialistic girls I've ever met. That being said, she's a sucker for the romantic gesture over how much it cost. Show her you understand her, and she's more likely to love it. Fourth, no lingerie."

"Got it. Something from the heart, showing I understand her is better than expensive, and no lingerie." Tori repeated. "Why no lingerie?" Tori was curious why he felt he had to add that.

"I don't know. For some reason, she never liked it, no matter how nice it was." he replied. "Fifth, and this is a big one, when you do get to the point where your intimate, start thinking about going away for the presidents Day weekend. Jade loves the trip, and it's your best chance to get..." he trailed off.

"She didn't like sex for Valentine's day? I'd have thought that was her standard gift." Tori said.

"She hates the idea of sex as a gift. She was chiz at giving gifts, so don't expect anything romantic or special, but she hates the idea that sex was a gift. It's one of her only romantic ideals, sex between a couple for the sake of feeling closer." Beck said. "I'm not sure if I can think of anything else." he said, but a second later he continued. "Oh yea, she loves bunnies. Not sure how that will help, but maybe." Tori's face lit up, a smile dominating her face. For the first time, Beck understood the light bulb as a symbol of an idea.

"It helps. It more than helps. I have it, the perfect idea. I'm gonna go online to build-a-pal and order her a black bunny, probably with skulls on it. Then I'll go to the custom shirt place and get the stuffy a King's Jersey with it's name on it, and give her the gift of a friend." Tori was smiling so hard, Beck was reluctant to tell her that stuffed animals were probably a bad idea. Tori was out of the closet in a flash, racing to the library, probably intending to use the wifi and her computer to start ordering everything. Beck raced after her, wanting to warn her that Jade wasn't likely to appreciate the fuzzy gesture.

As he was moving, he had a chance to think about why the stuffed bunny was such a bad idea. 'I'd never give her a stuffed animal. I've never given her a stuffed animal. Why didn't I ever give her a stuffed animal?' he realized he was so sure she'd hate it, never having seen any stuffed friends around her room, he never tried. It always seemed more Cats type of thing. But now, the way Tori was presenting it, he started to think it was a good idea. 'Why didn't I ever try that? I would have been so much easier..." By that time he was walking, no longer rushing to catch up with Tori. Lost in his thoughts as he wandered towards the library, he was easily grabbed by his arm and hauled into an empty classroom.

He looked to see who'd grabbed him this time, noticing the black leather and lace that let him know he was once more in the presence of his Ex. He was about to speak, to find out what she wanted, when she spoke first

"Beck, I need to bounce some ideas off you. What kind of gift do you think Vega would like. And for the record, no lingerie, that was always more of a gift for you."

:}

First. Maybe third at the latest.