A/N: Hey, guys! Thank you soooo much for the reviews! I was so excited anyone actually read it, AND you liked it! Yay! So, hopefully this is just as good for you as it was for me…. I mean… Ehm…. Read.
A/N 2.0: Okay, so reading back over this, it really isn't the best. Well… I mean, it's okay, it's just not the same voice as the previous chapter? Which makes sense considering it's been HOW long since I updated? Sorry 'bout that…. So I guess it'll do as a filler chapter because I now know where I'm going with this so I'll be uploading more frequently! Yay! And now you're sick of reading this so…. To the story!
Oh, and as always, if I were Dan Schneider or had any rights to this show/characters at all, I'd be wandering around the real LA, not writing about it from my computer.
Cat walked out of the bright yet dark in nature store with three full shopping bags in hand. Jade had always dragged Cat in here before when they had gone shopping together. But since Jade had gone, it had been months since Cat had had cause to step into the store. Until today.
She moved towards the small staircase that led to the grand floor, lost in thought. She barely registered the sayings on the stones beneath her feet as she walked through the open air mall, and only broke out of her reverie when the stray droplets from the fountain hit her skin, almost sizzling in the heat. It was only now that she could hear a voice she normally would have picked up on immediately.
"MOM! I am not going to… No! Why?" Beck stared incredulously at the slip of paper in his hands. "Mom, I am not going into," he lowered his voice, "Victoria's Secret to buy you things. I'm not!"
"Beck Oliver, I cannot believe you." Beck pulled the phone away from his ear slightly as he listened to his mom's go to spiel. "And after all I've done for you, why can't you do one little thing for me?"
"Moooommm," he pleaded, rolling his eyes. "I'm a guy. A seventeen year old guy. Seventeen year old guys should not have to buy things for their mothers!" Beck was gesturing as he spoke, getting worked up and froze as he heard a familiar giggle behind him. He turned slowly and grinned sheepishly at the redhead behind him. "Hi, Cat."
"Hi, Beck. Whatcha doi-"
"No, Mom. I'm—Okay. Okay. Fine, here." Beck shook his head in disbelief and handed the phone to Cat. "It's for you."
Cat scrunched her forehead up in confusion as she took the phone from Beck. "Hello? … Oh, hi, Mrs. Oliver! … No, I just ran into him… Just shopping… Oh? Okay…. Sure! … Mmhmmm…. Mmmhmmm… Okay! Talk to you later!... Bye!" Cat slid her finger across Beck's PearPhone, ending the call before she handed it back to him. "Your mom says you need to give me her debit card."
Beck stared at Cat in confusion. "Okay….?" He fished his wallet out of his pocket and pulled out the card. "Why does she—"
"Shh, it's okay. Now, wait here. I'll be right back." Cat took the card from him and smiled before skipping off into the pink store. Beck stared after her and shook his head. He ran a hand through his hair and looked around. There was a group of tables about ten feet away from him, and there was one empty one. He bent down to grab his shopping bags and noticed Cat had left hers with him. He rolled his eyes and gathered up hers as well and relocated to the table. He sat for a while, just waiting, before he began to get bored. He tapped his fingers on the table in an impatient gesture, drumming them around for a while. Finally he threw his head back and sighed, staring up at the sky. It was a beautiful day, though a little chilly, and he could think of at least twenty other things he would rather be doing than running his mom's errands. But since he was 'going to be at school turning in his paper anyway, it wouldn't be that difficult to run just a few errands, would it?' First, he couldn't believe that Mr. Killomann wanted him to turn in a paper on a Saturday, but he supposed it was his fault for procrastinating until the very last day. And since Mr. K was going to be leaving for Germany for a week, it did make sense to turn it in before he left, but still. It's a Saturday. Second, he couldn't believe the list his mom had left for him to do. Granted, it was mostly just shopping, but still.
He looked around, hoping Cat would be returning soon, but no such luck. He did notice, however, that almost all of the tables and benches around the plaza seemed to be full of men waiting for their wives, girlfriends, etc. to return with more shopping bags. He glanced at the multitude of bags surrounding him, and figured he should try to…condense them. If possible. A lot of the bags only had a few things in them, so they were easy to stack into each other. The bag from the Gap held most of everything, which was good. He'd hate to have a bright pink bag be the only thing he was carrying. He was basically operating on auto pilot and almost didn't realize when he grabbed a very full black bag from the pile. He studied the familiar logo and looked up in shock, expecting to see Jade sitting next to him, about to berate him for not greeting her immediately. Of course, there was no one there, but that didn't stop his confusion. He didn't think he'd been in there today… At least not yet.
He opened the bag to peek inside and saw a swirling mass of black with glints of silver shining out of the abyss. He opened the next one to find a large pink shoe box. The last was a bright and colorful mix of items. And then it dawned on him. Cat. These were Cat's bags. He closed the bag quickly, suddenly afraid of being caught snooping. He stacked all of her bags on a chair and pulled out his phone, trying to look busy. He had beaten the next level in Angry Birds when he glanced up to see Cat finally returning to him, swinging a pink bag from each arm. He smiled in relief and put his phone away.
"Hey, Beck!" Cat sang, coming to a stop in front of him. "Here you go!" she said, handing him his mom's debit card. "And here." She handed him a bag and he stared at it. "It won't bite," she giggled, glancing at him from where she was fussing with her own bags. Beck put himself to action and tried to stuff the bag into one of his other bags, missing the wince that passed over Cat's features as he did.
"What took you so long? You were in there for ages," Beck griped as he picked up all of his bags.
"I had to, um, get some stuff. It took a while," Cat said, cheeks tingeing a soft pink. Beck's eyes widened and he blushed slightly as well. He did not need to picture what kind of bright things Cat would need to purchase.
"Oh." He glanced around, trying to think of a way to change the subject, and saw a restaurant. "Hey, what are you doing today?"
"Nothing," she replied, caught off guard a little. No one had really made plans to see what she was up to lately. Now Tori spent all her time with Andre and Robbie and Trina had finally gotten over themselves and gotten together, and who knew what was up with Beck since… well. That left Cat usually all alone.
"Want to go get some food?" Beck smiled at her and Cat's heart dared to lift a little, hoping things may finally be returning to normal. She nodded, a smile spreading across her face.
"Sure! I love food! Where should we go?"
"I know a place."
*****Time Lapse*****
"This is so good." Beck looked up at her words, the first she'd spoken in a few minutes. Cat had finally let down her guard and became the Cat he had started to see the night before. The Cat who didn't need to talk to fill the void, and be happy and chipper all the time. The silence was new… but it wasn't bad, or awkward. It was just quiet.
He smiled at her and forked up another bite. "I thought you'd like it." They were sitting in a diner in Los Feliz. It was completely retro and a little worn down, but that just added to the charm. They were sitting in the booth next to the jukebox and currently listening to the songs Cat had picked out. "So…. What's new?" Cat laughed then and didn't stop for a minute. Beck smiled to hear a genuine laugh come out of her, the first in who knew how long.
"What isn't new?" She smiled, still laughing a bit and sobered up. "Um, I passed tech theatre. And I got an A on my History of Cinema exam! But I don't really do much anymore. You know, out of school." She shrugged and went back to her salad.
"That's great!" Beck was genuinely surprised. Cat had always been good in school, but she wasn't an A student. He frowned and picked at his food as she brought up the disintegration of their group. Ever since Jade… Well, Beck was always on his own now. He'd been too hurt and humiliated at first to face everyone and then once he'd been ready…. It was different. The dynamics between them all had changed. And now he felt bad. He should have realized Cat got the short end of the stick. With the others coupling up, there was no one there for Cat. "You have to do something," he said, the faint traces of a smile showing at the corner of his lips. "I mean, you pretend to smoke, at least." He smiled full out when he saw her expression lift just the tiniest bit. There.
"Yeah, well…" She opened her mouth as if to say something else before shaking her head. "Never mind. So….. where have you been?"
"Around." It was the truth. Beck hadn't really been doing anything. "I had a few auditions, and a call back, but nothing solid yet. Other than that… Without… I have too much time on my hands."
They sat in silence for a minute, the weight of what they were missing settling around them before Beck shook his head and broke the silence. "You know what? I'm sick of this. She's gone. She's gone and we're here and I'm sick of her still controlling me. Us." Cat's eyes widened in shock. "Are you done?" he asked, gesturing to her plate. She nodded and he smiled. "Good. Let's get out of here." He dropped a twenty on the table to cover the bill and held his hand out to her to pull her out of the booth. "Come on, I found something I want to show you."
"Okay," Cat answered, unsure but willing to go with it. She smiled as she took his hand and let him help her out of the booth. She had to quicken her step to keep up with his long stride as they walked the five blocks to his truck. "Beck, slow down!"
He glanced down at her and grinned, slowing his step. "Sorry, Red."
"Where are we going, anyway?" she asked as they came up to his truck. He opened the door for her and helped her in.
"Now that, my dear, is classified information." He winked at her and shut the door. The ride through Los Feliz to Hollywood was mercifully quick for LA and they arrived on Sunset in five minutes, just enough time for a full song to play on the radio and for Cat to sing along, her bright vibrato filling the truck and spilling out the windows as they drove. Beck pulled into a hidden parking lot and parked.
Cat looked around and bit her lip. "Beck… Where are we?" The lot they were in was deserted and in front of them was a decrepit lot with big machinery. The buildings behind them didn't look any more inviting.
"Trust me," was all he said, and she did. She clambered out of the truck and hurried to keep up with him. He helped her step over a chain blocking off an alleyway and led her through it. She stuck as close to his side as she could. And then they stepped out of the alleyway onto Sunset and she felt silly for worrying. They walked about ten steps down the street before Beck turned into a storefront.
"Millions of Milkshakes?" she asked, happy. Beck nodded and stepped up to the counter.
"Two medium Red Velvet shakes," he ordered, not missing Cat's surprised and happy expression. He paid and turned to her. "I found this place last week and thought about you," he said in explanation. They took their shakes from the guy and Cat's eyes lit up with the first sip.
"This is so good!"
"That's what I thought." They walked to his truck, sipping their milkshakes. Beck hopped into the back of his truck and helped Cat in, cracking jokes about her height. They sat there and watched the sun go down, and Beck listened to Cat talk.
"Why did she do it?" she asked after a while. "I thought…. I thought she liked us." Cat's voice trembled with her emotions. This was the first time she'd talked about Jade since everything had happened. "I thought we were friends, Beck. Why would she leave me?"
Beck put and arm around Cat and pulled her into his side, offering her comfort where his words could provide none. "I don't know."
Cat cuddled into Beck's side, her defenses falling like leaves at the first comfort she's been shown in months. "It doesn't make sense. She was fine, she was Jade and then…."
"I know," he said and she could still hear the hurt, the betrayal in his voice. It matched her own.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly, her voice so soft it barely carried to his ears.
"Cat, this was not your fault. No one made her do what she did… No one ever made her do anything." His arm tightened around her as he spoke and she could feel his anger, deep and unbidden but still there, in the way his muscles tensed.
"I know. But I'm still just… sorry." Her voice was heavy with the emotions she couldn't name. But they were always there. From the way her hands now shook as she curled her hair and the way that her heart never really felt like it was a part of her body anymore. It was like Jade took something that was essentially Cat with her when she left, and now Cat couldn't get it back.
Beck looked down at Cat and how she curled tighter into him now and he couldn't think of anything he could say to help her. He just lay his head against the top of hers and held her. He knew that she and Jade… She and… well, they'd been close. And he knew he should've been there for Cat, shouldn't have disappeared and deserted all of them but… he was hurt and he couldn't bear to face them all, their friends. He could barely force himself to go to school. It was too full of memories. And so was his trailer. So full that for the first month, after the anger dissipated, he did nothing at home but lie there and let the memories wash over him, dashing against him and pulling him under.
It was amazing now that, after months of avoiding everyone that had been connected with Jade and BeckandJade, Cat was popping up in his life. Not just once, but two days in a row. He'd never really believed in a higher power or anything like that, but when something like this happened…. He had to believe it was a sign.
"Beck? Can you take me home?" He lifted her head from hers and she pulled back, turning to look at him. She offered no explanation but gave him a tiny, sad smile.
"Of course," he said, standing up and jumping out of the truck bed. He helped her out and was surprised when her tiny arms wrapped around him.
"Thanks, Beck." She walked around the truck and got into the cab. He followed, belatedly, wondering just who this girl named Cat Valentine actually was.
A/N: Hope you enjoyed it! Found my wind again half way through lol. As always, Read and Review! Next Chapter is either going to be a) a continuation of the story "now" or b) What Happened With Jade. You decide! Let me know! :)