Hey look I'm updating yay. This chapter is for my fellow Andre's Angels - Megan and Laura, just because they appreciate Andre as much as I do, which makes them perf.
A week had passed since Andre's 'date' with Jade. He had spoken to her like always and it was safe to say that their friendship had returned to where it was before, unharmed; and with no awkwardness, which was definitely a bonus.
Speaking of the devil, Jade was the first person Andre came across when he pushed through the front double doors of Hollywood Arts.
"Hey." Jade said amicably as she closed the door of her scissor embossed locker.
"What's up?" Andre returned, rubbing his hands together.
"Not much," Jade replied, feeling around the inside of her school bag, "I'm feeling a little bit nervous if I'm honest." Andre raised his eyebrows in question.
"Jade West, nervous?" He asked incredulously. "What on Earth do you have to be nervous about?"
Jade sighed and leant against Robbie's bottle nipple covered locker. "I'm gonna talk to Beck today." Whilst she was speaking, Andre tried to lean against Jade's locker, but his attempt failed as the protruding scissors dug into his arm, "And watch my scissors!" She snapped.
"You mean like, talk to him, talk to him?" Andre questioned as he rubbed his arm.
"Yes, Andre. By talking to him, I will be talking to him. I'm glad your brain can comprehend that." Jade said with her usual sark, but also with a hint of laughter letting Andre know she was just teasing.
"You know what I mean, Jade." Andre replied seriously. "Are you gonna sort out all your chiz?"
"Eventually I hope to, yes." Jade looked at the floor. "But first I want to confront him about what he did. I just texted him, so he should be here soon."
"What exactly did he do that you won't tell me-"
"Shut up there he is." Jade hit Andre repeatedly in the chest as she saw Beck walking down the main steps in the hallway, PearPhone in hand. "Go talk to Vega or something!" She pointed over in the direction of Tori's locker where the Latina was tiredly shoving books in her locker.
"Okay, I'll see you later then. Good luck!" Andre said with a wink as Jade literally shoved him in the back to push him across the hall before Beck reached her.
"Hey there, Tor-ay!" Andre sing-songed as he reached the Make It Shine locker.
"Andre, can you please help me?" She begged as soon as he arrived.
"Sure thing," He answered, "Wait, with what?" He wondered.
"This folder won't fit in my locker!" She exclaimed motioning to her purple ring binder while blowing her hair of her face.
"Chill down." Andre laughed as he pinched the folder from Tori's grasp and easily placed it inside her locker. "What's up with you?" He asked with a smile.
"Well, I have gotten no sleep in the last 48 hours and it's really getting to me now." She sighed as she leant back against the lockers and ran her hand through her slightly greasy hair. "All because someone has a new 'singing pillow'".
"Need I ask who?" Andre joked. "And a 'singing pillow'?" His eyebrows rose in question.
"Yes of course it's Trina, and yes you heard me right. It's some new invention from the same company that created the vibrating hairbrush."
"What does it do?"
"It… sings."
"Actual words?"
"Actual words." She confirmed.
"But… why?"
Tori threw her arms up in frustration, "I don't know, okay? All I know is that Trina has had it playing all night long the past 2 days, and I just can't sleep with that noise blaring through my wall." Tori's anger rose during her speech and she ended up about 5 inches closer to Andre, who stepped back with wariness.
"Maybe you should go home and take a nap." Andre suggested cautiously.
"I would, but Trina drove me and I am not walking home."
"I'll take you." Andre said pointing towards the door.
"Really?" Tori's face brightened as Andre nodded.
"Thank you for driving me home." Tori said sincerely as she clambered out the back of Andre's car. His grandma had previously spilt some milk on the front seat, so Tori refused to occupy it.
Andre shook his head. "That's no problem, Tori."
"You can come over later, if you want?" Tori offered, "After I've finally got enough sleep." She added with a laugh.
"Sure thing." He smiled as he put his car into reverse to back out of the Vega's driveway.
"What can I get you, buddy?" Festus pulled Andre from a daydream with his sharp accent. It was lunch and he was standing right outside the Grub Truck.
"I'll take a taco, thanks."
"Oh, me too." A smooth voice spoke from behind Andre, who turned sharply to see the origin. It was Beck. As soon as Andre registered his face, he got nervous; he was afraid that Jade had told him everything that happened between them at Nozu. Not that Beck knew Andre knew he still loved her; but whatever.
"Two tacos for the buddies!" Festus shouted back inside the Grub Truck. Even after 3 years at Hollywood Arts- seeing Festus for lunch everyday, Andre still had no idea who he was shouting to.
"You okay man?" Beck asked as he patted him on the back.
"Yeah I'm good."
Once they both had their tacos in hand, they walked swiftly over to a plastic lunch table and sat down.
"I heard about your date with Jade." Shit, Andre thought, Beck didn't take long to cut to the chase.
"I'm sorry, Beck. I just-"
"It's cool." Beck held his hands up. "Jade told me everything." Andre's eyebrows rose in surprise.
"She did?" Beck nodded.
"So how did that talk with Jade actually go?" Andre asked tentatively.
Beck looked at his watch. "Oh God, sorry Andre, I've gotta run; I was supposed to meet Sikowitz." Andre just looked on as Beck grabbed his taco from the table and walked off into the school.
The 5 bells rang out to signal the end of class at 3pm. Andre was sat in theater history with Jade to his right and Robbie to his left. He had spent a majority of the lesson trying to get Jade's attention to ask how things went with Beck, but -to many people's surprise- she was an attentive student who rarely spoke out of turn in any classes bar Sikowitz's, and therefore trying to communicate with her was tough.
Andre watched Jade carefully as she packed her books away in her back and walked towards the door.
"Hey, Jade!" He called out before she crossed the threshold. Her head whipped around upon hearing her name, giving Robbie a face-full of her hair in the process.
"Jade, you got hair in my mouth." Robbie whined.
"Shut up."
"Okay then." Robbie replied as he exited the classroom.
"How did things go with Beck earlier?" Andre asked carefully.
Jade just smiled a tiny smile and walked out, leaving Andre by himself.
"Alright then." He said to no one as he retrieved his PearPhone from his back pocket.
He had a text message from Tori:
Hey aNDRE, I've has that nap and I'm myxh better now (I think), you coiming over after school?
Andre chuckled softly at his phone; there was no way Tori was better, based on her typos. She was ridiculously adorable when she was tired, he had to admit. So he thought going to see her would do no harm.
Sure, I've got to take my grandma to bingo first, but I'll be with you at around 5.
Andre walked up to the Vega's front door and rang the bell twice. He considered his trip to the bingo hall a success as his grandma managed not to spill any form of liquid on his car seats; she did, however, shout at a passer by and his dog on the journey, though.
The front door to the house swung wide open to reveal Trina on the other side. She rolled her eyes and moved to the side to let Andre in.
"Tori!" Trina yelled. "Come down here!"
"I am not helping you calibrate your singing pillow!" A muffled voice came from upstairs.
"That's not what I was asking!" Trina yelled back. "And why not?"
Andre looked to his left and saw Tori trudging down the stairs in her purple sweatpants. "Because- oh hey Andre." Tori smiled when she noticed his presence.
Her hair was slightly matted, but in a cute way, Andre thought and she was wearing her glasses which somehow highlighted her cheekbones even more. Andre caught himself staring; it wasn't like he'd never seen Tori look this way before, but maybe he'd developed a new appreciation of her since his 'date' with Jade. That logic made sense in his head, anyway.
"You okay?" Tori asked him as she reached the bottom of her stairs and walked across the room.
"Yeah I'm okay - are you sure you've had enough sleep?" Andre asked, looking Tori up and down.
"Yes I am sure!" She snappped back.
"Okay." Andre replied motioning for her to calm down, "Maybe we'll have some Belgian hot cocoa." He suggested as he made is way to the kitchen.
"Ugh, okay." Tori droned as she rolled over the back of the couch onto the cushions. Andre chuckled and shook his head.
Once Andre had made the hot cocoa, he brought the two mugs over to Tori as she sat up from her laying position.
"Here," Andre said as he handed her the steaming beverage, "I even put a little whipped cream on the top; from the goodness of my heart."
"Thanks," Tori smiled, and then frowned, "If it's out of my fridge, how is it from the goodness of your heart?"
"The gesture was, anyway; even if the cream wasn't." They both laughed.
"Oh hey little sister." Trina's voice came from behind Tori as she made her way around the couch and threw herself dramatically onto it.
"Upstairs?" Andre asked Tori.
"Upstairs." Tori confirmed as she jumped up as carefully as she could considering the drink in her hand.
"Bye then." Trina said dramatically.
Andre lead the way up the stairs towards Tori's bedroom; he had never been in there before, but she once pointed it out to him.
"You're letting me in your bedroom?" Andre asked teasingly.
"Yes, it's not like I didn't let you before- we just never had a reason to go in." She pushed at the door handle. "Ignore the mess, please."
Andre walked in and assessed the room. Of course there was not a single item out of place; or so he thought. Well, that was until he saw a pink bra hanging from the headboard of her double bed. Tori noticed his gaze and leapt across the room to retrieve said bra and hide it from Andre's view, but the damage was done.
"Nice colour." He joked.
"Shut up." Tori said sharply. Andre supposed the cocoa hadn't worked its magic yet.
He took another moment to survey the room - her double bed had a purple cover on, of which the pattern matched her curtains. There was a large photo frame occupying the white bed side table, inside was a pictures of Tori and each member of their 'gang', even Jade. In the centre of the frame was a group shot they had taken before going to Maestro's when they were all in their ping pong uniforms.
"Cool pics." Andre stated as he walked over to the table and picked up the frame.
"I know." Tori smiled as she sat down on the edge of her bed, blowing on her hot cocoa.
"Why do you have no pictures of your friends from Sherwood here?" Andre enquired, taking a seat next to Tori, looking around the room.
"I didn't have many friends at Sherwood." Tori replied looking down sorrowfully at her lap.
"What?" Andre asked incredulously, "That doesn't make any sense, you're the nicest, friendliest, funniest person I know." Tori merely shrugged. Andre took a deep breath, "And you're easily one of the most beautiful girls I've ever seen; not that that should define a friendship."
Tori looked up at him. "You really think that? You're not just saying it?" Andre shook his head 'no'.
"Thanks." She said sincerely. Andre looked into Tori's eyes and felt something inside of him click, a powerful urge; but he shrugged it off before he could act upon it. It must have been nothing, he thought.
Tori took a sip of her drink and when she resurfaced from the mug Andre let out a relaxed laugh.
"What?" Tori asked agitated.
"You got a little-" Andre motioned to his nose, "stuff on your nose." He leaned across to grab her mug as sat it down on the bedside table before using his fore finger to wipe away the cream from her nose. He looked up at her face and his heart skipped a beat when he saw Tori's deep brown eyes boring straight into his.
Before either of them could understand what was happening, Tori was lying on top of Andre as their lips collided fiercely. It felt wrong, but at the same time it felt so right.
Andre's hands were roaming all over Tori's body, it wasn't like he'd never touched a girl like this before, but it was Tori. Her hands were equally active as one hand knotted in his dreads and the other wrapped around his neck - she was clearly just as into this as he was.
Andre's hands reached the hem of Tori's lose shirt and he slowly started to pull it upwards; Tori's lips tore away from his own and he immediately stopped his actions.
"Oh God, I'm really sor-" Andre's apology was cut off by Tori's lips once again on his own, he took this as a green light; so he continued to lift her top up with one hand. His other one was placed on the small of her now bare back.
Andre tugged on the shirt as it reached Tori's neck, but in the process his elbow flew outwards and the mug of hot cocoa on the side spilt over the table and bed.
"Oh woah." Andre exclaimed as he was splashed with the warm liquid.
"Shit!" Tori whisper-shouted as she jumped half way across the room; her top still hiked up around her collar bone. Upon noticing this she pulled it straight down, covering her purple bra - her cheeks flushing pink.
"I'm so sorry Tori, look I've got Belgian hot cocoa and whipped cream all over your bed. That'll leave a stain!" Andre said, his voice laced with panic and wonkiness . Tori walked over towards him and slapped him hard on the chest with every word she spoke.
"How can you worry about that?" Tori asked exasperatedly. "If you hadn't of done that," she pointed to the chocolatey mess, "who knows what we," she flapped her arms between herself and Andre, "would have done?"
Andre sighed heavily and covered his face with both of his hands before rubbing his eyes and sitting back down on Tori's bed, as far away from the spillage as possible.
"You're right," He began, "What were we thinking?"
"I've just been so frustrated in the," She paused, "male department ever since Steven," She said sitting back down on the bed too, "And it took all of my will power to reject Beck the other day, so I guess I had none left."
"Wait, what?"
"What, what?"
"Beck?" Andre questioned. Tori simply nodded. "That explains so much."
Tori looked up confused. "What does it explain?"
"Why Jade was so convinced Beck had moved on," He sighed, "Even though we all know he hasn't. Wait, you and him didn't do anything, did you?" He asked.
"No way, I couldn't do that to Jade, she's my friend." Andre looked at the floor guiltily; it turns out he and Tori had been in similar situations with Jade and Beck respectively, only Tori seemed to handle it better than he.
"So about what we just did…" Tori trailed off. "That was impulsive right? A mistake of sorts?" Andre nodded in agreement. Not that he actually agreed 100 percent. "Well then let's just put that miles behind us; you're my best friend, anything more or less isn't right for me." She slapped him on the thigh. "Come on, let's clean up my bed."
"I love having you for my best friend, Tori." Andre spoke sincerely. "Nothing more, nothing less." He confirmed.
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