Disclaimer: I don't own Victorious!

A/N: Okay, I know what you're thinking. Wow, it took forever for this kid to post the next chapter, geez! I know, I know. It did. I'm sorry. I had a terrible case of the writer's block blues. But I'm hoping it will be smoother sailing from now on. Alright, I'm done rambling. Continue with your fangirling/fanboying and have a swell day. :)

-Tori-

"And then my brother jumped out of the window but he was okay because he had inflatable pants on but I told him to make sure the dog moved out of the way so he wouldn't hit it with the baseball bat..." I'm trying really hard to pay attention to Cat's rambling, but after about two minutes, it's nearly hopeless. I sigh and tune out as I take a sip of my green tea.

I look around Nozu and watch all the people chattering and eating. I like hanging out here, it's pretty cool, but there's something different about today. We're all sitting quietly, with the exception of Cat, as if we're expecting something to happen. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I see a pale, dark-haired girl flash by. I turn to see Jade West taking the seat next to me at the counter with a soft sigh. I smile at her. She looks at me and raises her eyebrows in response. I'm used to Jade not putting much emotion into any conversation, so I approve of her greeting and turn back to Cat, who is now jabbering away to Andre and Beck, who are sitting beside her. Andre looks up to see Jade and waves. Robbie greets her with a chipper, "Hello there, Jade!" and even his puppet chimes in. I look at Beck. He's slowly stirring his soda around with his straw, staring into space. I shift around in my seat. He obviously saw Jade walk in. Why isn't he saying anything to her? I thought they were...'okay'. I turn to Jade, who is uncomfortably flipping through her phone. I clear my throat and she looks up.

"So.." I say to her.

She looks to the side, like she's trying to figure out why I'm interacting with her. "What?"

I scoot a litter closer to her so I can speak a little quieter. "Are you okay?"

She shifts around and bites her lip. She looks at me, then at Beck. "Yeah."

"Look, you don't have to stay. It's reall-" I'm cut off by a cold hand circling around my wrist. My skin erupts with goosebumps. I look down. Jade's hand grips tightly around my wrist. I look up to see her blue eyes watery and glowing. She bites her lip and sucks in. I can't help but notice how beautiful she is when she cries. I mean, I've seen her cry before, but somehow this was different. She's trying so hard to be strong. Even her fierce grip around my wrist seems weak. Almost desperate. I turn around to see what she's looking at and I catch Beck just in time to see him walk out the door. My heart skips a beat and I suddenly feel Jade's pain. I turn to her and feel my eyes grow wide.

She stands up and tugs forcefully at my arm. I confide and let her drag me off the bathroom. Right as the door shuts, I open my mouth to ask her what's wrong but I'm interrupted by Jade crashing into my body in a tight embrace. I stiffen with shock. Is Jade seriously...hugging me? Then I feel her chest shuttering against me and I realize she's crying. I instinctively hug her back, putting my hand on her head and the other around ribcage. She has her arms wrapped tightly around my waist. I can feel her soft sobs against my neck. I cradle her and whisper comforting things into her ear, like I would for any other friend. I have to remind myself a few times that I'm holding Jade in my arms. It seems surreal. Like the thought that someone so cold-hearted and mean could be so...broken.

I pull away from her and catch a sound emanating from her throat that almost sounds like a...whimper. I hold her shoulders as I try to meet her eyes. She slowly pulls her gaze up to mine. Her eyes are light blue and puffy. The way she looks at me almost knocks me over. So much pain and confusion stirring in those beautiful blue orbs of hers. It makes me want to tug her back into a hug again.

"Jade..." is all I can choke out. I tentatively place my hand on her cheek and almost regret taking that risk. This is Jade, of course. I have to be careful with how much affection I show her. But, to my surprise, she returns the gesture by placing her hand on mine.

She sniffles a few times before speaking. "I-I'm sorry about-"

"No, no. Don't be sorry." I tell her softly. For some reason, holding a gaze with her isn't awkward or even scary, like one might think. It's almost...calming. "It's really okay."

"No, it's not." she shoots back, the gentleness in her tone fading away with each word. Her hand slips from where my is resting on her cheek and she sighs frustratedly. "I shouldn't be standing here crying like a baby. This...this isn't me." Her voice drops. I see her lip quiver slightly. "I don't even know who I am."

I decide to take another risk and grab for her hand. I expect her to yank away, but she doesn't. I knew that the breakup with Beck had been hard on her, but I didn't know it affected her this much. I had to do something to help. Even if she is a sharp, cranky, heartless...well, maybe not completely heartless, human being, it still hurts me to see her like this. I'm not sure why it hurts, or why I even care, but I do. And that's okay, I guess. I like helping people, even if I get accused of meddling from time to time. Besides, I was the one who asked her to come here in the first place.

"Hey," I say softly, "do you wanna come crash at my place? I mean, just until you feel a little better. Well, I guess that will take a while because I know the breakup was head but I didn't mean it like that I-"

"Sure." Jade says, a smile poking through her lips. "Only if you learn to control your rambling, Vega."

I can feel my cheeks go red as I smile back. That's the Jade I know. "Deal."

I lock arms with her as we walk out of the bathroom and head for home.