Author: khay
Category: Victorious
Rating: T because of Jade's potty mouth.
Disclaimer: Victorious and all related characters do not belong to me.
Summary: Beck thought she was the quintessential Hollywood socialite who had too much: money, booze, drugs, free time. Jade thought he was the typical struggling actor: perpetually broke, undependable, always looking for then next big break that never comes. Boy, were they wrong about each other.
Continuity: Alternate Universe.
Author's Notes: For Lari's 22nd birthday! Lol. Lari, I'm sorry I missed your birthday, but this fic is still for you :)
Proud and Prejudiced
Chapter 4
The PearPhone's shrill ringing interrupted Beck Oliver's pleasant dream of long limbs, pale skin and silky hair. As he woke up inch by hard-won inch, the dream gradually disappeared, as they were wont to do in the harsh light of day.
"Hello?"
"Beck, my boy!" A voice which Beck tried to frantically identify, boomed. "I must admit, I had my doubts about sending you out with Jade, but let me just say that you went above and beyond the call of duty."
"David?" Desperately trying to shakeout the cobwebs of sleep, Beck sat up in his bed.
"I think this is the first time I turned on the early morning talk shows and heard positive things about my Jade," David Vega continued on. "Well, not really positive, but she did not cause a scene, she did not drive home drunk, she did not pour coffee on an innocent bystander. Gad, Beck, she was even photographed talking amicably with her big sister."
"Uh, David? It's—" Beck removed the phone from his ear to check the time. "Seven in the morning. Why are you up so early?"
"What do you mean just woke up?" David demanded. "I haven't even slept yet."
Which would explain the hyperactivity. Beck had no doubt that David was slushed.
"I don't know how you do it, but I want you to keep doing it!"
"Yeah, it was—" Beck tried to tell David that he enjoyed his daughter's company, save for one incident at around one-thirty in the morning.
Beck had just excused himself for a second to go to the restroom. On his way back, he saw a waiter hand Jade a white pill. Before Beck can make his way to the table to confiscate the drug, Jade had swallowed it and washed it down with a huge gulp of water. Beck pretended he didn't see the pill but watched her like a hawk, ready to intervene if Jade's behavior turned erratic. Instead of being wild and uninhibited, however, the pill made Jade turn quiet and sleepy. Soon, Beck found himself insisting that the two of them go home so she could get some rest.
"Tell you what," David talked over Beck, uninterested on what the boy was going to say about Jade. "Take the girl out to lunch today at Maestro's. My treat. Just keep doing what you're doing to keep her from trouble. I don't want another reporter calling me for a comment on my youngest daughter's latest escapade."
"David, wait!" Beck tried to get the director's attention in vain. "David, there's no need—" too late, his only reply was the angry sound of the phone's dial tone.
With an angry groan, Beck threw his phone back at his bedside table before falling back down in bed.
What had just happened?
…
Contrary to popular belief, Jade West did not sleep the day away. She also did not drink blood for sustenance, sleep in a coffin, or spontaneously combust when exposed to sunlight.
Jade's day begins at six in the morning, everyday, no matter how late she had slept the night before. She's not coherent, though, until she had a cup of strong, black coffee. It was only then that she actually wakes up. After another cup of coffee, this time with two sugars, Jade feels human enough to eat a banana, another fruit (whichever is in season) and a vegan-friendly bagel (you know, instead of any person who dared cross her that early in the morning). That rarely changed (because with her life as chaotic as it was, she treasured routine when she can have it).
After breakfast, she checks her mail (and answers, if she feels like it). She then looks over the schedule Sinjin painstakingly prepares for her daily.
At seven in the morning, she runs.
Nothing, not rain, snow, wind, late nights, hangover—nothing!—can keep Jade West from running at seven in the morning. She was convinced that it was the only thing keeping her sane in her crazy world. Even if running provided the paps the most opportunity to take the candid shots of her she so loathed, she never stopped, because it was the only way her too-active mind can quiet down. She had tried a lot of things to get her peace and calm: meditation, drugs, alcohol, religion, exhaustion, to no avail. Running was the only thing that worked. (She would forever be thankful for the nuns at St. Joseph's Boarding School who encouraged her to try running at age sixteen. She had been running ever since.)
She preferred to run outside, to pit herself against nature's roughest terrain or the toughest tracks made by men. Unfortunately, she was in Hollywood at the moment, so running outside with all the paps running after her was out of the question.
She made do with a treadmill at the hotel gym. At seven in the morning, only her and a few health nuts were inside, she preferred to be alone, but who said she can't be flexible? The television was turned on to the morning news was on but its volume was unobtrusive.
Jade, not interested at world events, or even about news about her own person, put on her headphones and imagined herself running away from a rabid wild boar in the middle of a dark, isolated forest.
Twenty minutes into her run, the wild board was just about to reach her and take her life when a huntsman with a huge axe placed himself between her and certain death; a huntsman who was tall and lithe, with olive skin and too fluffy hair.
Jade almost stumbled off her treadmill at that.
Never, in all her years of running, did thoughts of a person invade her run.
Now, unbidden and unwelcome, thoughts of Beck Oliver had disturbed her alone time.
Was her subconscious trying to tell her something?
…
"How does anyone expect me to work my magic in the middle of this anarchy?" The artist only known as Trina (no last name, thank you very much) screamed in frustration.
The five-man crew who was slowly turning Trina's living room/photography studio into a mini-jungle paid her no mind. The men were used to screeches, mini-rants and melt downs. There were, after all, working in Hollywood and were no strangers to artistic temperaments. (Additionally, they were much more afraid of the star of the show than the artist behind the camera.)
Trina gave a small scream when her doorbell rang. "Somebody get that! Hey you! Get the door! I said get the door! Argh!"
Frustrated that her orders were being ignored by mere mortals, Trina stalked to the entrance and wrenched the front door open. "WHAT?" She snarled, then took an involuntary step back when she saw the person on the other side. Her voice softened and her eyes twinkled in interest. "Holy chiz, who's this?"
Beck Oliver, impossibly handsome with his gravity-defying hair, was leaning casually against the door frame, his jean jacket slung over one shoulder. "Hi." He said, giving her his most charming smile. "It's Beck Oliver. I'm looking for Jade? I was told she's gonna be here."
"What do you need Jade for when I'm here?" Trina breathed with a flirty toss of her hair. "Trina: actress, singer, model, photographer." She offered a hand. "What can I say? I'm a jack of all trades. Wanna stick around to witness my genius?"
"Thanks, but I'm really here for Jade." Beck's grin widened as he took her hand in his (to soften the blow of his implied rejection).
Trina gave out a groan that originated from the tips of her toes. "Jade!" She shouted over the din that was her workshop. "There's a dude here to see you. You better get a move on or he'll move on to me!"
"We're in the middle of something!" A masculine voice, which Beck immediately recognized as Sinjin's, hollered back.
Trina shrugged at Beck, as if to say, 'Well, I tried.'
"I got it," Beck told her with a wink. "Thanks, Trina." He gave her hand a squeeze before releasing it.
"Anytime." Trina sighed as she watched Beck make his way to her kitchen where Jade and Sinjin were staying. Why did untalented rich girls get all the cute guys?
In the kitchen, Beck immediately saw Jade and Sinjin deep in discussion.
"Jade, I can't!" Sinjin was saying. "You know I'll do anything for you, anything but this! You know how much Regina hates me."
"Regina doesn't hate you," Jade murmured, trying to stay as still as possible as she was having her makeup done. "She's just misunderstood."
After taking the time to admire how Jade looked, Beck made his presence known. "Hey."
"Beck!" Sinjin exclaimed with joy. "You're here!"
Jade waved her makeup artist off. "Why are you here?" She asked suspiciously once the woman had left. "Are you stalking me?"
"No, no." Beck denied. "I was just in the neighborhood and thought maybe you guys would like to have lunch with me."
"Trina lives in the middle of nowhere," Jade said, her suspicion not abated a bit. "You can't just be in the neighborhood."
"I told him where we'd be today." Sinjin interjected.
"Why?"
"Maybe I like spending time with interesting women." Beck replied.
Jade rolled her eyes before a slow smirk adorned her face, a smirk that sent all sorts of warning signs in Beck's head.
Beck, of course, ignored it, as he was wont to do when a beautiful woman that makes his head spin was involved.
"Sinjin, maybe you could ask Beck to help you bring Regina in. After all, she's already here. I don't want to stress her out by cancelling the photo shoot and rescheduling for another day. Plus, that will totally unprofessional of us."
Sinjin blanched.
"Regina?"
"My cat. She's in her cage out back. Usually, her trainer is with her and would bring her in, but the trainer caught something viral, so it's up to Sinjin to wrangle her inside." Jade smiled warmly at Beck. "I'd have lunch with you if you do me this teeny favor."
"Sure." Beck replied, not minding the frantic shaking of Sinjin's head from behind Jade.
"Great. The crew's almost done. See you in five minutes." Jade rose from her chair. She reached out and cupped Beck's cheek for a moment before she walked away. "I'm counting on you guys." She called out after them.
"Let's go get Regina." Beck told Sinjin as he gently pushed the downtrodden boy along the way.
Sinjin just let out a dying groan.
Once outside, a loud roar made Beck jump. "That doesn't sound like a cat."
"Oh, it's a cat, alright." Sinjin told him with a grimace. "But you should have asked Jade what kind of cat it was."
"I'm almost afraid to ask." Beck muttered as they approached a trailer covered in back cloth.
Sinjin whipped down the cloth in flourish. "Beck Oliver, meet Regina West. Reg, Beck."
For the second time in his life, Beck was mesmerized by a pair of deep, soulful eyes. While the first pair that entranced him so was deep blue and mysterious, this time, the eyes he was gazing upon were yellow and hinted at the secrets of the universe.
"Holy chiz." Beck breathed reverently.
To say that Regina was a cat was an understatement.
Regina was aptly named, as her bearing was regal and proud. From her lounging position, Regina sat up and eyed the two men standing before her as a ruler would her peasants. She orange coat striped with black gleamed under the bright California sun.
She yawned.
"Yep. Jade's punishing me for agreeing to launch her perfume line." Sinjin sighed as he eyed the majestic tiger as if it was going to take a bite off him any second. "I don't know what you did to earn Regina-duty, but here we are."
"Where'd she come from?" Beck asked as he walked around the tiger's cage.
"Jade adopted her three years ago." Sinjin explained. "She was a traveling circus tiger whose trainer had suddenly died from a heart attack. Reg was de-clawed so releasing her back to the wild was out of the question. She's becoming quite advanced in years and the circus owner didn't know what to do with her. She was neglected and her health was failing when Jade saw her. Jade tried keeping her, but realized that she would be happier with her own kind, so she donated her to the local zoo here in California. Jade makes it a point to visit her at least once a month, though."
"She's beautiful." Beck always had a weak spot for beautiful women. He approached the cage but, just as he was about to touch its railing, the tiger roared.
Both men jumped back in fear.
"Oh, yeah. The most important thing to remember about Regina: she doesn't like males very much." Sinjin said.
...
It took them almost a quarter of an hour instead of five minutes, but somehow, Beck and Sinjin was able to open Regina's cage, put a collar around her neck, and coax her inside the makeshift studio.
Jade, decked in a comfortable, fluffy blue robe, rose from Trina's sofa when she heard her baby enter the room.
"That cat better not destroy my stuff." Trina warned Jade before leading most of the tech crew out of her house.
"Regina!" Jade grinned as she opened her arms.
Regina, who was at that time docilely walking between Beck and Sinjin, suddenly snapped at her captors. It was only the men's quick movements that saved them from losing a limb or two. She bit her leash and jerked it out from her captors' hands before she joyfully bounded into Jade's outstretched arms.
The remaining crew (mostly lighting and makeup) screamed in fear, but it was obvious a few seconds thereafter that there was no need to panic. Jade was in no danger from the beast, who gave a rumbling purr when its master crouched down to scratch its fur.
"I missed you," Jade murmured as she buried her face on Regina's neck.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm touched, now, let's get to work, people." Trina shouted as she readied her camera. "Keep your pet under control, West!"
Jade, too happy snap back at Trina, ignored the other woman and removed Regina's leash.
The crew collectively stepped away from girl and beast.
"Let's go," Sinjin began tugging on Beck.
"What?"
"Let's get out of here."
"Why? I was invited to watch."
"Because Sinjin is a prude." Jade replied as she tossed the leash to Sinjin who fumbled at catching it.
"I'm not a prude." Sinjin mumbled. "I'm just being respectful."
"I don't get what that has to do with anything." Beck told the two.
With an evil grin, Jade stood up, untied the sash of her robe and shrugged it off, revealing miles and miles of smooth, silky skin unblemished by any stitch of clothing.
Beck smiled in appreciation for a second before everything turned blue.
Jade laughed when she saw Sinjin snatch the discarded robe from the floor and flung it over Beck's head.
"We'll be back later!" Sinjin called out as he tried not to look at his naked boss while pushing a protesting Beck out of the door. "Bye!"
...
"What you are, Jade West, is a show off." Sinjin grumbled as he opened a drawer from Jade's kitchen hours later.
The photography session went on smoothly, Regina was safely delivered to the zoo and the trio was back inside the penthouse suite of West Hotel.
"The naked body is a natural thing, Sinjin," Jade replied as she sat down on the counter. "Plus, I work hard to maintain my body, so it's a sin to hide it behind clothes, right, Oliver?"
Beck Oliver, who was the last to enter the spacious hotel room, help up his hands in mock surrender. "Don't get me involved in this. I already got a long lecture from Van Cleef about how to respect women."
Jade rolled her eyes even as she accepted a white pill and a glass of water from Sinjin.
Beck frowned as he watched her drink it.
"So," Beck said. "I think someone promised me lunch?"
Jade shook her head. "The deal was if lunch if you're able to bring out Regina in five minutes." She said. "It took you an hour."
"A deal's a deal, West." Beck said.
"I don't feel like going out." Jade almost whined. "I don't like dealing with the lunch crowd. They're stupid and rude."
"I've got lunch covered." Sinjin said as he brought out a pink, frilly apron and snapped it with with all the flair of a master chef, before putting it on.
After being shooed out of the kitchen, Beck and Jade made their way to the living room.
Jade laid down the sofa while Beck, who won the battle for the remote control, sat of the floor. Beck found a B-rated scary movie that Jade didn't object to (much).
Minutes later, Beck felt fingers tunneling through his hair (reminiscent of how the same fingers stroked through Regina's fur).
"Jade?" Beck turned to Jade and saw her half-asleep.
"Mmhmm?"
"So Trina, huh?"
Beck heard a lot about Trina from Sinjin while they were waiting for the photo shoot to finish.
Trina was another statistic in Hollywood. She ran away from home at age fifteen, determined to make it big as an actress. In California, however, she was just one of the many beautiful women trying to get noticed by the bigwigs and the public. Instead of taking the world by storm as planned, Hollywood ate her whole and spat her out.
Trina, however, was nothing if not persistent. If she couldn't be famous for being an actress, she could try being a singer. Failing that, she tried being a model. She had posed for catalogs while augmenting her income with waitressing. She still went from one audition to another in her free time, sustained by her unwavering belief in her talent. Trina may be down, but her dreams could never be broken.
One day she received mail that she won a scholarship for photography classes (which was weird because she didn't remember joining any contest). Thinking it was an opportunity for her to rub shoulders with Hollywood's up-and-coming photographers, Trina took it.
She met Sinjin Van Cleef there who was also taking lessons, trying to perfect his craft. Sinjin taught her the basics, lent her an expensive camera (he bought a more recent model, he told her) and introduced her to who's who in Hollywood.
Trina found that she had talent in taking pictures and soon, she outstripped Sinjin's capabilities. She also learned that while her first love would always be working in front of a camera, working behind one paid the bills.
And the rest, as they say, is history.
Jade sighed but didn't immediately reply. "What about Trina?"
"I figured, a girl like you could command the most famous and most talented photographers in the world. So why Trina?"
"Maybe the magazine wanted Trina."
Beck snorted. "A control freak like you? I have no doubt that not only did you insist that Trina be the one to photograph you, you also handpicked all the crew that was involved in the photo shoot."
The fingers on Beck's hair stilled. Just as Beck was ready to take back his words (anything to feel her hands through his hair again), her fingers moved again.
"Why not Trina Vega?" Jade shrugged and closed her eyes. "She's family, after all."
Did she say Trina Vega? Beck's eyes widened in shock. Trina was family? He asked for a clarification, but none came: Jade West has finally fallen asleep.
"Well, it's confirmed." Beck whispered as he removed her hand from his head and entwined it with his. "The wicked witch does have a heart."
He just wished she wasn't so dependent on those tiny white pills she took all the time.
...
To be continued.