Disclaimer: I don't own Victorious or any of it's characters.
This is the last chapter. Sorry?
:}
While spending time in Venice, Tori was able to see Jade perform. The pale girl was on a street near the beach, singing while accompanying herself on a keyboard. Some people stopped to listen, and some of them put money in her case, but most people just walked by. Still, a small crowd gathered to listen, and that was the goths audience.
Tori watched, enjoying the sight of Jade in her blue bikini and boy shorts, while performing under an awning, presumably to avoid burning her pale skin. But to Tori, and anyone who stopped to listen for a while, the performance was far better then just some attractive girl in swimwear warbling out some popular tune. Jade could sing, and each song she belted out drew attention.
After watching a while, Tori stood by as Jade took a short break, and then approached her with a smile on her face. The pale beauty kissed her, a deeper kiss then they'd been doing at school, then suggested they get something when she took her lunch break. Shortly thereafter, the two of them ate lunch together in a small beachfront cafe, where they had a view of, among other things, their friends eating a picnic on the sand. "So, what'd ya think?" Jade asked. She'd been watching the others fighting their battle to keep the sand out of their food, a useful distraction from her growing nervousness about the what Tori thought. Even though it's a necessity, it can be hard to take criticism from those you care about.
"I knew you were a hell of a performer, but wow, you put on one hell of a show. I mean, stage presence, the music, your voice, and damn, you're sexy as hell. Not happy about sharing, having people seeing you all half dressed and sexy, but I get that's the uniform around here. It's part of the act." Tori said, smiling a wide grin at her girl. "It's just, I had no idea you could make money like that?"
"Just a little here and there." Jade blew it off. "I'd make more at Malibu, but as I said earlier, they can be kinda territorial out there. So I'm spending the weekend, most of it, playing here. Then I head home in time to perform at the restaurant, race back here Monday, repeat, hit Maestro's for my Monday evening performance, and then I can go home and rest."
"How much do you expect to make?" Tori asked.
"After expenses?" Jade asked. "Maybe two hundred per day. Maybe more. It's a holiday, and I'm out here working my ass off." She huffed, her large breasts pushing the material of her top noticeably outwards. "I might make more. I just have to wait and seen. But this is my mad money." Her hand snaked across the table to slip around the Latina's. "The cash I'm gonna use to take you out on a date." Her blue eyes sparkled as her smile grew warmer. "So I'm working extra hard."
Tori had absolutely no idea what to say to that. "Be safe." She managed. "For me, okay"
"Sure, I'm playing it as safe as I can." Jade promised. Jade then raked the singers body with her eyes. "Just, I get it, this is warm, beach type weather..." Tori braced for the goth's comment, "but next time, a one piece, okay? Or maybe a water shirt. Don't need anyone burnt."
"Aww, is my girl jealous?" Tori cooed.
"Not as much as I used to be, cause I know your mine." Jade replied. "But I do worry about you. So, you wear sunscreen, okay/ Now lets finish lunch, talk about pleasant things, and just enjoy being around one another before I need to get back out there and perform.."
"I'm down with that." Tori agreed, enjoying the food.
A short while later, Tori was back to their friends, while Jade went back to work. Tori would spend the rest of the weekend with the gang, enjoying the holiday while still worrying about Jade. Tori knew that, if she was gathering that kind of cash, $200 per day, then the pale girl was a target for street crime. However, the singer didn't have to worry, as the weekend passed, and Jade texted her each night, letting the Latina know she was okay. When, after the holiday Monday shift at Maestro's was over, Jade texted to let Tori know she was safely at home, the goth included a picture she'd had taken over the weekend. It showed Jade in her bikini top and shorts singing and playing the keyboard.
Jade had written a caption for the picture. "Something to keep you warm." Despite herself, Tori smiled.
The next week, things started falling back into the normal pace of things, or at least the new normal. Jade was once again hanging out on the Vega couch, and otherwise spending time with Tori. She was also doing most of the heavy lifting as a TA, grading papers, making photocopies, and in general handling the class duties. Tori was left to work with the freshmen on their acting, and help them find characters for the parts they would be playing. Jade had called it playing to their strengths. "As in, I won't be tempted to kill these freaks if I don't deal with them that much." The goth had quipped.
Then there was jade's mantra, repeated over and over as the days slowly bled from one to the next. "I can't wait for Friday." Jade would say. "I'm taking you on a real date. The kind that's been missing from out social lives since I got kicked out of the house." It was sounding dangerously close to being the main focus of the girls life now.
Tori, for her part, found that being that close to Jade was becoming painful. 'She cares, and I love that about her.' Tori thought. 'And soon, one way or another, she'll be back to hating me. I'll just have to comfort myself with the thought that this is for the best.' The girl refused to cry, at least not in public.
But at the same time, as the days slowly crept by, the goth was starting to feel different. While they still cuddled, Jade found it easy to say some of the most cutting things, and did so with an almost instinctive speed. The dark, sarcastic side of Jade had returned with a vengeance. She was often seen playing some horrendous video on her phone, paid for by her job. Everyone was noticing that the dark angel had returned. But this Jade seemed able to live both lives, the dark sarcastic girl who hated so many things, and the supportive girlfriend who loved to cuddle.
"Tori, I've been listening to a lot of Oingo Boingo lately." Jade said that Wednesday as they were sitting in Tori's living room. "It's got me thinking. I-I need to work a few things out. Thing is, I really want this relationship to move forward. And to do that, I need to be totally honest." Jade shifted from holding her girl to looking at her, trying to make eye contact. It made Tori nervous. "I'm not crazy about Beck's girlfriend. She just feels forced to me." Jade continued to shift nervously. "I hope this doesn't cause problems between us, since Beck is my ex, but I don't think Priya is good for him." A look of concentration crossed the girls features. "I just don't trust her."
"So Oingo Boingo got you thinking of Priya?" Tori asked.
"Listen to 'Cinderella Under Cover.' I'm pretty sure that covers this nicely." Jade said. "Maybe 'Who Do You Want to be Today?' Not sure what character she's playing."
"So, about Friday?" Tori asked, suddenly wanting Jade to be thinking of anything but Beck, or his new girlfriend. "Why don't we hang out a bit before we head out. I kinda like the no pressure part of the relationship."
"I suppose…." Jade said, hesitating for a moment. "Yea, lets do that. That way, we can talk, and you and I can reconnect. I… I need to do something tomorrow, so I'm gonna miss our date time anyways." The goth sounded upset, but what caused that feeling wasn't obvious.
"Okay." Tori replied, trying not to feel sad about missing the time together. 'I mean, soon enough, I'm not gonna have her around anyways, so why does this last day feel so… Final.' She hid her pain as she continued. "So, when do you have to leave for work?"
"Not for another half hour." Jade replied. "Wish it gave us time to soak in the jacuzzi."
"Why don't we do that on Friday?" Tori suggested.
"Okay." Jade said, but there was a sad smile on her face. It bothered Tori.
'Hot tubs are one of her favorite things.' Tori worried. 'Does she think I'm planning something? Or is it she's worried, cause she can see right through me. She thinks I'm gonna dump her, and it's really the other way around. But, for her own sanity, this has to be done...' Brown coffee eyes tried to hide it as she begged forgiveness from ocean blue. They held each other, and for once, the warmth didn't make Tori feel better. All it did do was remind her how much she'd come to appreciate being held by Jade.
Thursday, after class, Trina had Cat come over, bringing the kids she was watching. Turns out that Sam was out with a friend, ignoring the kids. "Okay kiddies, this is my parents home, so best behavior." Trina said.
"So, where's Jade?" Cat asked.
"Out doing something." Tori said, trying not to mope. She had last minute preparations to go over. "Why the afternoon date?"
"I've got to work tonight." Trina replied. "My new show is filming. And get this, I play a person! A real person, with lines and everything."
"But you can't act." Tori said.
"But she can over act." Cat corrected. "It's an over the top Spanish soap opera. They need her to exaggerate everything. She's perfect." Cat bounced in excitement. "I think it's a comedy, or a drama, or something."
"It's a comedy." Trina explained. "Their making fun of how over the top soap opera's tend to be."
"So, Jade?" Cat asked, her excited mood shifting so quickly Tori was almost taken off guard.
"Kiddies, this is private, so why don't you head over there, and play. Bathrooms down that hall." Trina told the young'uns.
"She's coming over tomorrow, and we'll do the intervention then." Tori explained, even as her world felt like it was, once again, crashing down. She needed to focus on what was best for Jade, 'No mater how much it hurts.' She pushed through.. "I've even made contingency plans for if we have to lock her up. Hoping it doesn't come to that, but if we do, then I have agreed to substitute for her at her job at Maestro's, at least until she gets out of wherever they lock her up."
"Good, you could use some exposure to the real world." Trina said, and while it was probably meant as caring, it didn't sound like it.
"Whats that supposed to mean?" Tori asked. Inside, as offended as she was, part of her relished the moments that she didn't have to think about Jade. Instead, she got to be mad, and that was a very different emotion.
"Oh, nothing." Trina said, tying to sound airy.
"I think she means 'You'll see.' But I'm not sure." Cat added, even as she kept an eye on the children playing on the far side of the Vega living room.
"Great. I feel guilty enough as is, cause I'm really enjoying dating Jade." Tori lamented, her rage fading far too quickly.
"You haven't been on a real date yet." Cat pointed out.
"But we have." Tori said, energy flooding back to her as she recalled the recent past.. "Last Saturday, at the beach, we had lunch together." She pointed out, then sat back down. "It was nice."
"Oh." Cat said, not wanting t dig too deeply into their date. "Okay then, we'll be there tomorrow, to make sure the intervention goes smoothly. Also, in case it's the last time…." Trina held the petite girl as she shook with a sudden sadness.
"And now I feel even worse." Tori said, and she got up and walked past the kids and up to her room, intent on getting as much work done as she could. She needed to get her mind off Jade, and how badly things had gotten janked up. Down stairs she'd hear the sounds of Trina playing with the children, a reminded that her sister had many tallents.
Friday came, and for some reason, Jade was extra affectionate that day. From the moment they both were at school, she showered Tori with affection, so much so that people commented on it. It was obvious affection, seen in the way she kissed, frequently but always seemingly appropriate... or the soft caresses, some almost absent minded, while others lingered... or how she held Tori's hand during their shared classes. It was almost as if she were trying to make up for abandoning Tori the day before.
There had even been a touch of foreshadowing. "You know I love you." Jade said as she greeted Tori at school. "Whatever else you might think of me, I need you to know, I honestly do love you."
Those words freaked Tori out. Making everything worse was the fact that the goth was extra warm, constantly telling her girlfriend she cared. As the day wore on towards the intervention, Tori found herself feeling worse and worse. "Why can't we make this work?" She asked her sister during a short phone call at lunchtime, taking advantage of Jade needing to deal with a school based issue. "She loves me... I love her. I think, once we get past the awkward 'she's crazy' stage, it'll be all right."
"It won't work because you're using each other." Trina reminder her. "Jade's cray cray. Whats your excuse?"
"It's just, in the short time we've been kinda together, she's been a very good girlfriend. Kinda rough around the edges, but better then any guy I've ever been with. Also, even as she's come back to her old self, you know, dark and insulting, she's been sweet to me." Tori said, her mind racing. "And I just like having her around. Plus, she's fun to cuddle with."
"Which just amps up the suckatude." Trina commented. "If Jade had been sane when this started, assuming it could have started, then you two could have been very happy, if kinda broken, together."
"Broken?" Tori asked.
"I just don't see any other way for the 'Queen of Mother Fucking Darkness' to have been interested in you." Trina said.
"Why does that sound familiar?" Tori asked. "And Hay, we could have gotten over our differences, made a connection, and been together. I'll bet there are dozens of ways."
"But this isn't one of them." Trina reminded her sister. "And now it's time for the illusion to disburse, and reality to once again show it's ugly head."
For almost a second, Tori held onto the feeling, the defiance she was feeling, until she had to admit her sister was right. "You're right." Tori agreed, her face staring down, sadness having stolen her smile. A shot time later, in what was to be their last burst of school time together, she had to force herself to smile when she was around Jade, just to keep up appearances.
Tori didn't relish heading home, even as her sister came by to pick her up. Jade often rode with them, or took her own transportation, but this time was heading home to drop her things off. There, at the Vega residence with everyone present, that things started to break apart. Jade was late.
"Where is she?" David asked. "From what I've seen, she's almost always on time, if not early." He shook his head. "I don't like this."
"Relax, She's only half an hour late." Lane said. "For Jade, that's not a record."
"But in the last three weeks, she'd call if she was going to be late." The police officer pointed out. His friends, all big cops, were at the kitchen table, "pretending" to be playing poker. So far, the school counselor was "pretending" to be abound fifteen dollars up. Not bad for a game betting quarters.
"Things happen." Cat said. She was cuddling with Trina, but the two of them both looked nervous. It was like they knew something was off.
"Maybe I should call." Tori said, eyes locked on the door. Not waiting for an answer, she pulled out her phone and dialed Jade's number. The phone was answered on the second ring.
"Hey babe." Jade said. "Sorry to worry you. It's just, I've been out here, watching your house, trying to push myself to go in. I really want to do this over the phone..." she gave a deep, sad sigh, "but that's just not the way you treat someone you love. I'll be in in a minute." Her voice edged on broken, but held almost enough normal to cover.
"O-okay." Tori said. Then to the room. "She's been outside, watching the house. It sounds like, like she wants to break up with me. I-I don't understand?"
"I suggest we wait and see what happens next." David said. Lane agreed, and went back to playing poker with "The Boys."
"Just remember, this is the usual Friday poker game, and we're just early on account of a shift in schedules." Lane reminded them. They all agreed, even as some wanted to throw their piles of quarters at him.
A moment later the doorbell rang, letting them know that either Jade had arrived, or someone was trying to sell them something. Tori was quick to open the door, almost leaping from her spot on the couch.
Jade walked in, her gaze looking straight forward as she passed the singer, only to turn on her heels and address her girlfriend. "Vega, we have to talk." The goth started, her blue eyes piercing Tori. But then she looked away, just for a moment, to try and gather the thoughts that suddenly abandoned her, and the goth noticed something. "Wait, why are all these people here?"
"My dad's regular Friday poker game had to shift venues on account of a shift in someone's schedule. Lane's been playing with them for a while now. Trina and Cat are dating, and they're here on a date." Tori explained. "If we need privacy, we could use the porch."
Tori could almost feel Lane's glare. Moving to the porch was an unnecessary risk. Being alone with Jade was a risk. Tori may have been in character, trying to get them some privacy, but for the intervention, they needed to be in the living room. They needed to be where all the big cops, all four of them, including Tori's dad, could react if something went wrong. Besides, Cat, as Jade's oldest friend, was a planned part of the intervention.
"No, this is good." Jade said, taking a moment to steady herself. Tori almost felt the room let out a metaphorical breath. "I saw a therapist yesterday." A momentary smile, forced, crossed her face. "I know, kinda shocking, but after everything I've been through, I guess it's long overdue." She paused to refocus, taking another deep breath. "It's the same quack I'd seen while in the hospital, so he'd wanted to see me again anyways. But, I didn't want to see him, cause he made me feel crazy, asking about the pains in my life. Who needs to relive that chiz." She made a gesture, tossing her hand back in a causal act. "Anyways, I'd been feeling, I mean..." She took another deep breath, and gulped down the extra saliva that had gathered in her mouth. "I needed to talk to him about something, get myself straight, so I could be honest with you." She almost forced out, only to hesitate, just a breath. Sad teal eyes met coffee brown. "Tori, I-I don't know how to say this, but I know you've been lying to me."
"I have?" The singer asked. The entire room tensed. "I mean, what now?"
"You didn't have to." Jade continued. The goth looked more defeated then angry, more broken then anything else. To those who knew her, it was alien, something none of them knew how to deal with. So when Jade continued, it was almost a surprise, as her hollow voice cut through the stunned silence. "You should have been honest with me, three weeks ago, when I told you we were dating." Her eyes looked like they were watering, but she kept control, and pushed on. "I know now that I made that shit up, that you weren't there for me in my darkest hour." She sounded so hurt, like a wounded puppy. "I just needed the memory, something positive to help me move forward." She managed to hold in a shiver, like she was on the verge of crying. "I just needed a reason to keep living..."
Jade walked away from Tori, her head lowered, as she found a spot on the couch. "I do love you." She said, not looking up, just feeling her own hurt. "It's just, everything we have right now is based on a lie. Mine, I know, but you played along. I don't know why, but I'm assuming it was like everything else about you, you just wanted to help."
"We thought you could be dangerous." Cat said, breaking the silence from the others in the room. "To Tori, or yourself." Her voice was strong, as gentile as the often ditsy girl could make it. "We didn't want you doing any more damage to yourself then what your parents already did."
"Is that true?" Jade asked Tori, still more hurt then angry, but at least she was looking at Tori..
"Look around you." Tori said. Her voice hinted at compassion, even as something brewed inside her. "I wanted some big cops here if things went bad. Big and skilled enough to restraining you without physically hurting you." The singer felt the whole things rushing out. "I was gonna talk about your delusion, and I didn't need anyone doing things that you, or I, would later regret." The Latina stepped closer, her eyes breaking as she spoke. "Think, baby. Think!" She was pointing at her own head. "Do you, of all people, really believe my dad only plays poker with Lane and big cops?"
"No, I guess not." Jade replied, a smile creeping onto her face. "This was an intervention? How long you been planning it?" The cops had tensed at the smile, but relaxed at the question.
"Almost two weeks." Tori said. "I wonted to make sure you didn't lose that job of yours." The Latina walked over to stand next to where Jade was sitting. "I do care. I could even love you. But there's a lot of damage that needs to be dealt with." She took another tentative step forward. "Any chance you'll be seeing that therapist again?" There was a lot of hope in her voice.
"And again and again." Jade replied. "Social services has been on my ass to see someone, and this guy, the one I'd previously seen, they said he's the best" She reached for Tori, but pulled her hand back. "And he said I should straighten things out with you, as soon as possible." Her voice was weak, but clearly heard.
"So where does that leave us?" Tori asked, even as she stood her ground.
"Don't know." Jade replied. The pale girl looked hurt, worried, like she was expecting to be broken all over again.
"Jade, you're telling us that you are totally aware that you'd been under a delusion, and that your not dating Tori?" Lane asked.
"Yea." Jade admitted. "There were a lot of things happening that didn't add up, not to what I remembered. Things that just wouldn't, couldn't, be the way I had convinced myself they were. The biggie was Tori's parents." Her head nodded towards David. "They were never in denial. I just told myself so I had an explanation for why they didn't know about Tori and me. Only, when they did hear, it was more supportive, less judgmental. Not the action of people in denial."
"And how did you feel when you realized this was all a lie?" Lane asked.
"Hurt, angry." She admitted. "My shrink and me, we talked about it for over an hour yesterday. Hell, we talked until I didn't feel so mad any more. I… I could have hurt someone, and he knew that, so he talked to me, made me talk to him, until I wasn't mad anymore. I even had to take a sick day from work, cause I was so mad… Just, I realized I was mad at myself."
"The illusion of a happy summer fling shattered, and yet, you say you still love her." Lane continued. "Still, even now, after the delusion is gone, you claim you care about Tori. That you love her. Is that true?"
"I think I kinda had feelings for her for the longest time..." Jade admitted. "So when I spent actual time with her, even though she didn't always act like I expected her to, I just, I built on those feelings." Jade seemed to be mentally reaching for something. "I meant it when I said I love her. Not the idea of her, or the ideal of her, but the dorky girl who was there for me, despite me being more then capable of doing some serious hurt to her and the people she cares about." Jade looked almost happy, then the smile broke again, and she faced the floor. "Yes, I love her."
"Okay then, the way I see it, This was never a power relationship, was it? Never a relationship where one person dominates the other." Lane started. "Plus, you both seem to be interested, sooo," there was a dramatic pause. "I'd say, start over, and let yourself see what you have." He suggested. "Just make sure your therapist, and me, know whats going on, every step of the way. That way we can help you discern if those are real feelings, or just something you needed to get through a tough situation."
"Of course," One of the large cops said, "The goth chick said she already had feelings for Tori here. I'm thinking those feelings were already fairly developed, and that's why she chose her instead of holding out for her ex, or some other pretty boy." He nodded his head. "Yea, I bet that's what happened."
"Probably the first bet you'd win today." One of the others mumbled.
"Could we not?" Tori asked the cops. "Sorry, but I've already had an evening where a random group of strangers, at a vets office of all places, were discussing the intricacies of my dating life. Now, I think we need to deal with this ourselves. But thanks for coming by and backing me up."
A chorus of "No problems" and "Any time" echoed from the table.
"So, Lane, ever been to Reno?" One of the officers asked.
"Yea, but they have my picture on the wall now, so I'm not allowed to play." The counselor said. "Except in tournaments."
"So what do we do now?" Jade asked, shifting on the couch. She felt very nervous, unprotected and vulnerable.
"We have a date for tonight, right?' Tori asked, stepping forward and offering the other girl her hand.
"I chose a place where we could make reservations on short notice." Jade admitted. "I wasn't sure if we'd be together or not." She eyes Tori's offered hand, but made no move to take it.
"Sounds perfect for a first date." Tori said, smiling. "But one thing. I don't think I'll last a hundred days without wanting more."
"Then lets not worry about that, and focus on building a relationship." Jade said. "A real one. Then, maybe, when things feel right, we just let ourselves do what we feel comfortable with." She reached out to take her girls hand, to start over. They inched closer, each anticipating the touch.
"OH MY CHIZ!" Cat screamed, making all the people there jump.
"What is it?' Tori asked, looking across to the couch where her sister was still holding Cat. Jade had jumped back, and was now edging closer to stand in front of Tori, even as the cops had stood partially up.
"You mean Trina and I had girly sex first?" Cat asked. The officers, and Jade, relaxed
"I could have lived without knowing that." Tori groaned.
"Me too, Vega." Jade agreed, leaning into Tori. "Me too."
"Whats this about girly sex?" David asked from his place at the table.
Jade smiled at her date. "I'll make the reservations. Wanna play a game while we wait?"
"Whatever did you have in mind?" Tori asked, soundings very sexy.
"I was thinking cards, but maybe something more physical?" Jade asked. "You any good at basketball?"
"Good choice." David said from his place at the table, even as he stood up to deal with another problem. "Um, guys, deal me out. I have a daughter to talk to." He glared at his eldest.
After Jade made a call, her and Tori headed out, not wanting to hear David's lecture before it was their turn. They would play air hockey at the baby golf place before dinner. That way, neither would be all sweaty. "So what do we tell Beck?" Tori asked.
"We don't tell him anything." Jade replied. "You tell the others, one by one, as they ask. But no need for the school to think any differently. Just, lets date, and have some fun."
"And Priya?" Tori asked.
"Oh, I still don't trust her, but for now, with everything I'm dealing with, I'm gonna let her be Beck's problem." Jade said. "As I said, lets just date, have us some fun, and let things happen at their own pace."
It was the start of something beautiful.
:}
I know, not the ending we were expecting, save those of you who were. No real fireworks, no fighting, no police dragging a deranged jade out of the house, blood dripping from her scissors. Jade came back to herself, and while mad, was able to see she was the one who'd done this, so she was the one to blame. Still, I gave you a less then realistic, but plausible Jori outcome.
Sorry about Priya, but I thought she'd have more of a roll, when she just turned out to feel fake to jade. I'm wishing my muse would have filled that one in for me.
So, this was the end. Comments are welcome. So are good brownie recipes. Just saying. Thanks to everyone who reviewed.
