Genre: Romance/Drama/Family

Summary: AU. Who would have thought that the 'new girl' could just come into his private life and prove everything he thought was true to be wrong? She's slowly consuming his mind and body and threatening to warm his lonely heart in the process.

Rating: T

They had moved six times in the last twelve years because of her father's career. She didn't know much more about the situation than that, even now at almost 18 years old. Her family had been fortunate to have a parent that could provide for them no matter the circumstances over the years, even if it meant not staying in one place for too long.

When she was four it was Massachusetts, home of the Mayflower. When she was six, they moved to good old Connecticut where she met her first love Tommy Dean, who proceeded to break her heart by pushing her into a puddle of mud not too long after she had decided that it was okay to like boys.

After Connecticut they moved right on down to Bedford, Pennsylvania, she was seven. Then there was Michigan, where they stayed until she was a preteen. It was the longest that her family stayed anywhere, five years. They were the most exciting years of her young life.

Then they relocated to desolate Wyoming when she was fourteen, the population making up less than one percent of the entire United States. Her sister hated Wyoming and she had to admit that she wasn't too fond of the small town life either. Less than four years after settling in, her parents decided that they would make one last move. After a substantial amount of begging from Trina, they agreed to move to California—'home of the stars'.

Now here she was, standing in an office once again, waiting for the school secretary to finish filling out her schedule, before she was led down the hall to her first class. One would think that she would be used to this by now, but she never failed to get nervous on her first day. It just seemed so much harder, the older she became. She wasn't in elementary school anymore. Kids were less interested in making new friends. The further she got in her education, the more she began to realize how ruthless kids could be. When transitioning from elementary school she was tall and lanky, and didn't seem to fit well in the clothes her mother bought for her. She was on receiving end of more than enough cruel taunts during her awkward phase in middle school. By the time she got to high school her confidence was shot.

The summer before her freshman year in high school introduced the onslaught of many changes in her young body. She had begun to blossom into the slender woman that stood before her first period class that moment. She was lucky enough to only have to introduce herself in two other classes so far. No one spoke to her during her classes though; she found herself dazing off in Statistics, counting down the number of weeks she had until she was done with high school for good. She tried to convince herself that seven months would pass by fast enough, but as she sat alone in the back of the classroom, she couldn't help but feel like she wouldn't fit in at Westchester High.

As if he could hear her self-pitying thoughts, he spoke to her, bringing her out of her thoughts in an instant. She looked around her, checking to see if he was speaking to someone else, but quickly realized that he was surely talking to her.

"Hello, is somebody in there?" He waved his large hand in front of her face as he chuckled lightly. She instantly took in his features. His skin was dark and smooth, and his face seemed manly with his hair pulled back casually into a rubber-band.

'Dreadlocks?'

"Hey," she managed to muster out after a moment, clearing her throat when she noticed how dry her voice sounded from lack of using it throughout the day.

"I'm Andre," he stated, waiting for her to respond with her own introduction. He held out his hand, signaling that he expected to greet her formally, like a gentleman. She smiled at the gesture.

"I'm Victoria," she reached for his outstretched hand and shook it firmly, before twisting back in her seat when the teacher called for the class's attention. Tori heaved a sigh when the old woman announced a group project. That was another downside to switching schools during the year; she had to struggle to catch up with the curriculum since it varied from state to state and people had already secured their groups, being close friends throughout school together. She had to start at the bottom of the totem pole and work her way up.

Gaining people's trust and friendship never proved a hard task for Victoria, but she felt at odds for some reason. When class was dismissed and she walked out into the bustling hall, she decided to blame it on the size of the place. There had to be at least four thousand students attending this school. She knew that there were over seven hundred students in the senior class alone, a fact that she learned from the school's secretary.

She stood rooted beside a water fountain, concentrating on the numbers and letters on her schedule that made up her next destination.

'H426, four-twenty-six…four…there are four levels in this school?' She frowned when she remembered that she was currently on the first floor in the building. Before she reached the stair way, someone grasped her shoulder from behind.

"Hey, so about that project,"

'Andre,'

"Seeing as you're new and all, I thought maybe you'd need a partner and I'm here to offer you my services." His offer was genuine, like his smile. He didn't seem to be coming on to her in any way, he just seemed to be offering her something she needed—a friend.

"I think I'll take you up on that," she smiled warmly back at him before he jogged up the flight of stairs before her, mumbling something incoherent about being late and crazy teachers. She instantly berated herself for not asking him where her classroom was. She trudged up the flights begrudgingly, silently cursing her sister for begging her parents to move to Los Angeles. Four years in Wyoming had not prepared her for this.

22 minutes. It had taken her twenty-two minutes after the bell to find her last class. But when she did, she stood in front of the door triumphant, as though it had been trying to hide from her the entire time, but she had finally found it.

"H426," she read aloud to herself, before turning the handle and entering the classroom. It was smaller than her others, there may have been less than twenty students in the entire class. It seemed like the teacher was in the middle of a lecture, but no one appeared to be paying attention. Some were sitting in small clusters; their desks seemed out of place as they formed an 'L' shape together. More than a few others were isolated in rows, as she assumed they were meant to be. She tried to glance around quickly for an open seat to sit in but she couldn't spot one.

She decided that she couldn't just stand around, so she interrupted him as politely as she could.

"Excuse me, sir…" She spoke quietly, trying not to draw too much attention to herself. He was short and balding. A pair glasses bigger than she'd ever seen before rested on the bridge of his nose. He pushed them up with his index finger and they fell back down instantly, taunting him.

"And you are?" He asked in a nasally voice.

"Uh, I'm Victoria Vega. I'm a new st—"

"Oh yes, yes. Why don't you introduce yourself to the class then?" He ushered her further forward before clearing his throat, not seemingly bothered by the lack of attention the students displayed.

"May I have everyone's attention please," He spoke in a more official manner than she expected from the shorter man before he stuttered into her introduction. "This is, ah, Miss… ah, Vee..." he trailed off, looking to her for help with her name.

"Victoria," she answered for him, waving half-heartedly to the other students. She took the time to look at each and every one of them, starting from the left side of the classroom. No one waved back, most seemed uninterested, but she did receive a few nods of acknowledgment.

He instructed her to take a seat, calling out a guy's name and asking him to raise his hand. She looked around expectantly but no hand was raised. She waited a few moments before following the eyes of the rest of the students. He was looking at her…

'Why isn't he saying anything?' she frowned, watching him as his gaze finally met hers. 'What the…is this guy serious?' her face contorted as she tried to decide whether or not she should be offended. The teacher cleared his throat once again and she quickly strode towards the empty seat next to him, mentally challenging him as she never took her eyes off him before settling down in the seat beside him.

She rested her bag on the floor beside her, and kept her eyes trained forward after she pulled out a pen and notebook. She could still feel his eyes on her, and it was unnerving.

'What the heck is he looking at?' She tried her hardest to keep from turning around and asking him what exactly his problem was.

'Finally,' she breathed, noticing that he had finally stopped studying her. The rest of the period went by in a blur. She had tuned out the lecture and found herself glancing at the clock every few minutes. She only had seven minutes to go before the last bell and she grew more anxious as each minute slowly ticked by.

'Come on, come on, come on….'

When the bell finally rang, it seemed like the entire class bolted up at the same time. She was almost caught off guard by the urgency in their strides. She gathered up her things as quickly as she could, ready to follow suit after the rest of her peers. She had to turn slightly in her seat to grab her bag and she could see him turning towards her, twisting his mouth as if he was trying to find something to say to her and she panicked. She didn't know why, but she could feel her nerves shoot straight through her body. She maneuvered out of the desk, trying to push her things into her bag as she moved but she dropped it in the process.

He was beside her in an instant, bending down at the same time trying to help her with her things. When his hand touched hers, she briefly considered just leaving the offending bag and running from the room to avoid any interaction, but she recoiled her hand and began to rise. He held her bag out to her and she managed to say 'thanks' as gratefully as she could before rushing into the hallway.

'Smooth Vega,' she sighed, wondering why she had lost her cool. She retreated down the stairs surrounded by people coming from all sides of the building. When she reached the parking lot she texted her sister who arrived less than five minutes later. That was a first and she was grateful. The top was down on Trina's 1994 BMW convertible and she sported a pair of dark shades, quickly getting used to the California sun. Victoria spoke briefly to her sister as she buckled herself in, before she leaned back in her seat and let herself relax, finally feeling normal again.

312 La Cienega Avenue.

This was her new home. The standard single family house overlooked Westchester and Inglewood. It was bigger than their last home. There was barely a front yard but the space in the back made up for it. The living room was average as well as the kitchen where her mother currently resided. Mrs. Vega had taken to interior decorating, non-employed. She wanted to make sure her family felt 'at home', considering how much they moved around. She was strategically placing quirky magnets and family photos on the fridge when her daughters entered.

"Hey Mom," they two girls spoke in unison. Tori placed her belongings on the kitchen table before grabbing an apple out of the fruit-bowl. She took large bites and listened while Trina told her mother about her day. Having graduated from high school two years ago and deciding not to attend college off the back, she had free time on her hands. Her father suggested that she find a job, to help support the 'sophisticated' lifestyle she planned to have when they moved here. With her father being the sole provider in their household, he decided that he just couldn't afford to keep letting his eldest daughter spend hundreds of dollars on shoes and clothes, especially if she wasn't going to school at least part-time.

So to compromise, he bought her a used car and if she agreed to get a job that allowed her to work at least forty hours a week, then she could do what she wanted with her money, aside from having to pay for gas and saving at least fifty dollars from each check, then he would agree to pay the car note for her. They had a deal, and today Trina went out to search for her first job and from the sound of it, she had found one.

"…and then they offered me the job mom!" She shrieked jumping up and into her mother's outstretched arms.

"I'm so proud of you, Trina!" She held her daughter for a moment longer and announced that she would be making a celebratory dinner in light of such exciting news. Tori congratulated her sister as well before heading up to her bedroom, leaving her mom and Trina to talk between themselves.

She was tired. She didn't rest well the night before, dealing with the time change. She kicked off her shoes, and took off each article of jewelry. When she reached down, her fingers grasped the ends of her blouse and she pulled it up and over her head, throwing it to the side of her room before retrieving an old rolling stones T-shirt from her dresser. It was a couple sizes too big and she slipped into it easily. She didn't bother to take off her jeans before she sprawled out on her bed, unable to keep her eyes open, replaying the day in her mind before she fell asleep.

The next day was easier than the first. It seemed a lot longer though, but she assumed it was because she was on time for all of her classes today. She decided that she could like her Statistics class, as long as Andre attended. He made jokes and she laughed, enjoying his company and light hearted humor. He introduced her to Robby Shapiro, who was funny in a weird way, but nice enough. Andre informed her that he would be working with them on the group project, but he assured her that he wasn't as nutty as he seemed and they could depend on him. They exchanged numbers at the end of class and agreed to meet up over the weekend to work on the project together.

It wasn't until she approached room H426, that she could feel her stomach dropping, and her hands began to clam up in anticipation. She didn't know why she was nervous…no, she did. She didn't know how she was going to manage to sit in class beside the dark haired young man and not lose her cool. It was strange, she had barely spoken three words to him, and he managed to unnerve her with just a look. She sucked in a deep breath before entering the class. The room was still fairly empty when she entered; she considered taking a seat somewhere else but thought better of it, considering that they had probably had the same seats since the beginning of the school year.

She counted the rows, trying to remember where she was sitting the day before. After finding her seat, she sat down and waited for the class to fill in, watching the door and all of the people that strode in one by one. The teacher was gearing up to begin the day's lecture when he walked in, running his hand through his hair coolly as he approached his desk. He locked eyes with her briefly and if she wasn't mistaken he had smiled at her. She wiggled in her seat a little, and ran her hand through her hair, playing with her soft curls. He shrugged off his leather jacket and sat in the desk beside her, leaning back in his seat as the teacher started the class.

She shook her head slightly, wondering why she had been so worried in the first place. She pushed her previous worries aside and waited for instruction from Mr. Morgan.

"I hope you all brought your books to class today," he started, walking around his desk to stand in front of the class. Victoria looked around the room as the students slowly pulled out their textbooks, and she began to raise her hand slowly.

"Ah, Miss Vega, until we can get you a textbook, you'll have to share with someone next to you," he answered, noticing her dilemma. With that said he returned to his desk and began sifting through his notes, instructing the class to turn to page two-hundred and forty-three in their books. She was at a loss, confused at what she should do. When she turned to her left the girl that sat beside her paid her no attention, not once looking up from her book. She slowly turned to her right and he was already looking at her expectantly.

She didn't know how long they stared at each other, before his arm shot out gripping the side of her desk and dragging it towards him with no effort. The sound of the desk screeching across the floor caused everyone to turn instantly towards them. Their desks were now perfectly aligned together and he placed his book between them, never looking up to acknowledge his peers or their curious stares. He flipped to the desired page before he acknowledged her

"It's Victoria, right?" he questioned, gazing at her, his expression unreadable. She forced herself to not look away from him.

"Uh, yeah Tori…" She nodded her head and there was a pause between them. Feeling the need to fill the silence, they both began to speak at the same time

"I'm Beck—"

"What's your—"

They both smiled and Tori began to speak again at once.

"Sorry," she exclaimed, instantly realizing that she was apologizing for more than one thing. She felt silly for acting the way she had, she had been freaking out for no reason. She had reacted irrationally, and if he hadn't broken the ice between them she would have avoided him like the plague. He seemed nice enough as he turned the pages between them, making small comments here and there and a joke at her teacher's expense.

She laughed a little too loudly and a few students turned to look at them, and Beck couldn't help but to laugh himself when she tried to cough as a cover up. She looked at him, clearly embarrassed and he couldn't stop the grin that formed on his face.

'Handsome...' She thought briefly and quickly felt her cheeks heat up, as if he could hear her thoughts. It didn't help that his eyes lingered on her face a few moments longer than needed.

They spent the rest of the period in silence, the sound of the pages turning were the only things filling the silence. When the bell rang, she scooted her desk back to its rightful position and gathered her things, looking to her book-mate.

"Thanks," she managed to say, a lot smoother than the first time.

"No problem," they both walked out of the room, casually falling in step with each other as they moved towards the stair way.

"So where are you from?" He asked, making small talk.

"Everywhere, we just moved here from Wyoming though." She decided to say, she didn't think he really wanted to hear about all of the places she had lived.

"Oh, wow. Wyoming? I didn't know people actually lived there," he chuckled as they reached the third floor.

"Yep, there's not much out there for anyone. Unless you like the mountains," she joked lightly, descending further down the stairs, feeling comfortable with the casual conversation. When they reached the parking lot they paused briefly before saying their goodbyes and going their separate ways.

Victoria didn't have to wait long for her sister to arrive. She buckled herself in and relaxed in her seat. She smiled quietly to herself, reflecting on her second day at Westchester…

'I could get use to this.'

A/N: I'd like to give big thanks to 'Ayamas4Ever', 'becksgirl', 'whiskeyhands', 'Jeremy Shane', 'SarahC20' and 'EisleyGirl' for your encouraging reviews! I hope you'll enjoy reading my story as much as I have enjoyed writing it!