Hey everyone, thanks for all the support. 4 favorites, 3 reviews, and 22 followers already? Madness. Madness, I say.
Tori Vega was nervous as hell. Trina had come home with Stephanie no more than five minutes after Jade left, and was a complete mess. It took nearly an hour for Tori to get Trina under control (singlehandedly – Stephanie had basically run out the door the moment Trina was put into Tori's care), and even then, she kept puking every few hours. Tori didn't get to sleep until 1 AM, and couldn't stop thinking of Jade.
Tori certainly wasn't the hungover Vega sister, but she was definitely the one contemplating her life right about now. She'd finally obtained a driver's license in July and drove herself to school every day (which totaled to two) so far. She tried to concentrate on the road ahead of her (she knew it quite well, Trina had driven her on it almost 180 times to school and almost 180 times back), but simply couldn't get the pale girl with streaks in her hair out of her head.
She's into me. How long has she been into me? I've known her for almost a full year now, and she's never really shown any interest in me – or has she? All of last year she was basically queen gank from the day I tried to rub coffee out of Beck's shirt. Even over the summer, after she and Beck broke up for good, she wouldn't spend any time alone with me. Now she's all into me – last night was a true testament to that, but when did this all start?
Tori paused for a moment.
How long have I been into Jade?
Tori pondered the thought.
I mean, I've always thought she was pretty, that much I know for sure. But I always figured my feelings were platonic; after all, I've only ever wanted to be her friend – right?
Tori was dazed, thoughts of Jade consuming her mind.
Maybe I convinced myself that I didn't like – as in like like – Jade because she was dating Beck and I didn't want to be responsible for any pain. But now Jade's single, (I think? Would she be my girlfriend? I need to ask her this.), and we like each other.
Tori's haze continued to thicken, and she was driving almost completely hypnotized, not paying attention to the road ahead.
I didn't even know Jade was into girls. I guess it makes sense, what with her attitude and her dress sense and all, but it sure as hell surprised me. I wonder if she's wondering the same thing about me. I've always been into both genders, but there's no way for her to know that, since she's only ever seen me with three people – Danny, Ryder, and Steven – all boys.
Honk Honk
"Augh!" Tori shrieked as she narrowly avoided a very large black pick-up truck. She'd swerved into the opposite lane, which was going the other direction, and sheer luck was the reason she wasn't collapsed in a heap of shredded steel and burning rubber right now.
"Stupid bitch!" the guy in the pick-up yelled out of his window at Tori as he passed her.
"Jerk." Tori mumbled.
Thoughts of Jade started to seep into her mind, but Tori resolved to go the rest of the short trip to Hollywood Arts without any more incidents.
And it looks like Lady Luck was shining on that resolution, too.
Tori arrived to school a while before the bell rang for first period. She saw no sign of Jade, nor did she see Beck, Cat, or Robbie. She did however, see André. He was standing at his locker, banging his head on his keyboard repeatedly. He looked absolutely wiped.
"Hey, tough night?"
"Oh, you have no idea." André said, sobering up a bit and ending the head-to-piano-key symphony he was making.
"Oh?"
"Yeah. Larry, you know, my grandma's bird flew away again, and I couldn't find him. Animal control found him this morning, but last night I had to crawl under her bed and pretend to be the bird again."
"That's all?" Tori asked, "You pulled it off the last time without being so obviously wiped out. Something else had to have happened."
"Well, it did. Right after my grandma fell asleep, Larry crashed through a window, squawked a bit, you know, 'Squawk squawk', and then flew out. I tried to chase him but I don't have wings, and he got away."
"Ouch. So how did your grandma react?"
"Well, I had to calm her down, which took a while. Then, after I got her back to normal, I mean, if you can call it that, the woman lost her mind years ago, she made me be the bird again. Doin' the impression once is bad enough, but it's even worse if you have to do it again, and this time promising not to break any windows."
"That sounds… awful."
"Yeah. Now you know how I feel. So how was your night?"
"Hectic. Maybe not as hectic as your night was, but hectic."
"Oh yeah? What's up?"
"Well, Trina came home drunk, and I had to get her to go to sleep, then clean up her throw up a few times. And before that, some, uh… interesting stuff happened."
"And it's interesting why?"
"Can you keep a secret?"
"Sure."
Tori grabbed André's wrist and pulled him into the Janitor's closet, shutting the door quietly but forcefully.
"Last night, Jade came over so we could work on our scene."
"And one of her pairs of scissors left a gaping stab wound in your chest." André interjected.
"No. Shut up." Tori retorted, a little bit annoyed. "This is serious." She sighed. "Last night, Jade kissed me. Then I kissed her back. We ended up making out."
"Alright, quit playin', Tori." André said, not believing her. "What really happened?"
"I'm serious, you jackass! Me and Jade made out last night and it was amazing."
"No shit, huh?" The black boy with dreads asked, awed.
"It's true. The thing is, Trina's friend Stephanie called and it cut us short. She brought Trina home, and I have to talk to Jade about… us."
"Well damn. I'd have to say I'm shocked, Tor. Shocked and aroused."
"O…K… then." Tori awkwardly smiled.
"So what are you gonna tell her?"
"I know this sounds weird with our history and all, but I think I really like Jade and I want to date her."
"And when are you gonna tell her all this?"
"After school, I think."
"Wow. Well, as your best friend, I guess I have to wish you luck, don't I?"
"Yeah…" the tan girl warmly smiled, extending her arms for a hug. He accepted the hug and they separated a few seconds later.
Suddenly, the bell rang.
André opened the door and began to head out. He stopped in the frame and turned his head to look at Tori. "I'll see you in third period. Good luck." He smiled and went on his way.
Tori smiled, too. She was glad she had André as a friend. Now, all she had to do was tell Jade exactly how she felt.
Hey, author here again. If at all possible, please leave a review! Favorites and Follows are much appreciated, but reviews are the most direct form of feedback for me.
/Yonz