Hello everyone. Welcome to this chapter; I hope you are all well.
Thanks as always go to those of you who read and, especially, reviewed Chapter 8. Your feedback is always most welcome.
Challenge King – yes, she may be the good twin but that doesn't mean Tori's not worried about a Puckett being after her man. Of course Melanie being the 'good twin', Sam still having feelings for Freddie and a multitude of other reasons mean that she shouldn't make a play for him, but she is a Puckett after all (as pbow pointed out on PM).
Agent-M – yes Jade sees Tori having more success and it frustrates her. She is talented enough, though, that it should all work for her too in time.
Fanfic-Reader-88 – Tori making adult movies… well Freddie did make a little joke about it. If only they had a housemate who could hold the camera for them… As I said earlier, things will all work out for Jade too and Tori's keeping an eye on Melanie. Cat can undoubtedly try anybody's patience so it's not surprising that she annoyed Melanie a little in the end with her rehearsals.
OneHorseShay – I can't think where I got that name or who inspired the character. No really I can't…
Jade getting a Teddie cuddle? Well Beck's back now so it's a bit less pressing for them to cheer her up; he'll be doing that job himself for now.
As for not trusting a Puckett, well I've commented on that above; we'll see how trustworthy or otherwise she turns out to be over time.
Pbow – hopefully some of the frivolous or otherwise questions will be answered in the coming chapters.
As you may have seen Freddie has been added to the character filter for this story so a huge thank you to the site admin for enabling me to do this.
Additional disclaimer: I don't own the musical Wicked or any of the songs in it.
Chapter 9
430 Dalehurst Avenue, Los Angeles, CA
Monday, 10th December 2012.
The four teenagers were relaxing in front of the television in the living room; as the only one of them not at college (and finally awake again after sleeping for most of the day) Beck had prepared dinner by the time the others arrived home and, having eaten, the college kids were discussing their respective days while plying Beck with questions about his life on set.
"I'm just about used to it now," he admitted, "the early call times, long hours. There's definitely more to it than just the glamour of being a celebrity – and I'm not even able to enjoy that yet; I pass people in the street up there and they don't recognise me."
"They will once it airs," Jade encouraged him, snuggling close to him and resting her head on his upper arm. He tilted his head to one side, bringing it to rest on top of hers as she closed her eyes contentedly.
"Probably, I mean plenty recognised you," he addressed Tori, "after your performance at the PMAs."
"Yeah," she agreed, "they were queuing up to duet with me in singing class."
"Speaking of which," the former iCarly tech producer joined the conversation, "how are you two girls getting on with your song for Friday's class?"
"We decided on Defying Gravity," his girlfriend replied with a smile, "I'm going to dress as Glinda and take her part though; we just felt Elphaba's part suited Jade better."
"Yeah, me being a West had nothing to do with it," Jade sighed with a grin and without bothering to open her eyes.
"How about your penchant for black?" Freddie grinned.
"That helps too," she conceded with a shrug and a grin.
A rapping on the door drew the quartet's attention. "You answer it Tori," Jade ordered lazily; neither she nor Beck particularly wanted to move from their current location, enjoying the chance to be together again after such a long time with limited contact. Tori shook her head a little but rose from the couch and made her way to the front door.
"Oh hey Shaun," she greeted the owner of her record label, Shaun Quincy from RPX Records.
"Tori, hi, can I come in?"
"Yeah, sure," she stepped aside allowing him to enter the house; she shut the door behind him and gestured in the direction of the living room.
"I was hoping to have a quick word with you about a couple of things…" he began, taking a seat in an armchair.
"That's our queue to go," Beck noted, rising to his feet and bringing Jade up with him.
"You don't have to…" the music mogul apologised.
"No, we're going to head upstairs for a while," Jade backed up her boy and the couple headed eagerly for the Master bedroom to make up for some of the lost time owing to Beck's lengthy absence.
Freddie wasn't sure whether he should stay or not; Tori took the decision out of his hands by sitting back next to him on the love seat and taking his hand softly.
"So, what's up?" she prompted.
"Well, we have the second album and tour to start really planning."
"I thought the album was planned," Freddie commented, "I thought that you were going to be recording for most of the Christmas break."
"We are," Quincy confirmed, "and most of the songs are written – there's two more you need to finish?" Tori nodded. "The main problem is what we're hearing from Universal, that you're not going to be acting under the name Tori Vega."
"No I'm not," Tori went into details about why she couldn't use that name; Shaun nodded his understanding before continuing,
"That does give me a problem though; your music fans know you as Tori Vega and now you'll be acting under another name. You can't really have two names in the business, one for music and one for acting, and I don't want your sales to take a hit because people don't immediately associate you under the new name."
Tori frowned; it was something that she knew she needed to figure out but hadn't yet managed to work on.
"How about releasing this album as Tori Vega-Benson?" Freddie suggested. "That way you should still get the name recognition but start to lay the groundwork for all your future stuff under Tori Benson, starting – hopefully – with the third album?"
"That's what I was wondering; it should work," Quincy noted thoughtfully, "we'll have to do some creative promotion for it but yeah, it should be fine."
The singer and her producer talked a while longer about the plans for the weekend; Freddie felt left out of the conversation but was happy to sit and support his girl. Finally Quincy left and Freddie glanced at his watch.
"It's getting late, you want to turn in?"
"Sure, but it's not too late is it?" she asked with an impish grin. His own smile broadened and he seized his girl's hand again, leading her swiftly up the stairs. The couple paused at the threshold to their room; hearing the tell-tale groans emanating from Beck and Jade's room Tori turned to her man. "I'm glad that he's back; she's been so lonely without him," the brunette whispered, "even though we try to keep her involved in our lives while Beck's away, it's obviously not the same."
Freddie nodded and, again, counted his blessings that his girl's schedule meant that they didn't have the troubles that their friends were contending with; he felt that being apart from her for a few days over Christmas would be bad enough. Thankfully he wouldn't get to brood over this as he found himself in his girlfriend's arms the moment she had closed the bedroom door. Between a barrage of kisses the couple navigated their way to their bed; Tori giggled as she pushed her boy down onto it and assaulted his lips again.
University of California Los Angeles
675 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA
Friday, 14th December 2012.
Freddie, to his immense relief, was done with lectures and labs until after Christmas; he and Andy had finished their projects so he had a nice break to look forward to before the end of semester finals in the early part of the New Year. He was, therefore, taking advantage of a free Friday afternoon to watch his girl's (or, as he sometimes thought, girls') performance this afternoon for their music class.
To his mild annoyance he had, like everyone else, had to surrender his phone and any other recording equipment on entering the theatre; the teacher did not want the performances being recorded by "unofficial" means, only by some accredited UCLA staff, recording it for future review to assist with grading – and to promote the course and its students.
The tech genius had been joined in the auditorium by his friend Andy and the other boy's girlfriend; outside of class it seemed that the two were quickly becoming inseparable. The girl, Allie, had briefly met Tori and Jade during the recent pool party but, having seen Tori at the PMAs and been told by Andy (from seeing one of their plays at Hollywood Arts the previous year) that Jade was equally talented, she was really looking forward to seeing the two girls perform on stage. Another teen snuck into the seat on Freddie's other side, grinning as the short-haired sophomore turned to him.
"Hey Beck," Freddie smiled, "come to see the girls in action?"
"Yeah, I figured I'd head by; my ID still works even if I'm not really a student here at the moment so they let me in."
The quartet sat in polite silence during the performances before applauding enthusiastically as Tori and Jade took the stage; Tori wore a pink sequined pink top, pink jeans with pink shawls tied to a belt loop on either side of her hips, brown nearly knee high boots, pink fluffy shoulders and a large tiara setting on top of her head. Jade, on the other hand, had painted her face green and was dressed completely in black, topped off with a witch's hat. The watching teenagers grew silent as the spotlights fell on the two entertainers.
"Elphaba," the lighter haired girl began in a speaking voice, "why couldn't you have stayed calm for once, instead of flying off the handle!" She then began to sing, "I hope you're happy! I hope you're happy now. I hope you're happy how you hurt your cause forever. I hope you think you're clever!"
Jade took up the tune, "I hope you're happy, I hope you're happy, too. I hope you're proud how you would grovel in submission to feed your own ambition."
Both girls sang together, "So though I can't imagine how, I hope you're happy right now."
Tori spoke again, "Elphie, listen to me. Just say you're sorry:" then sang, "You can still be with the Wizard; what you've worked and waited for, you can have all you ever wanted:"
"I know," Jade said, before singing, "But I don't want it - No - I can't want it anymore:
Something has changed within me , something is not the same.
I'm through with playing by the rules of someone else's game.
Too late for second-guessing, too late to go back to sleep
It's time to trust my instincts, close my eyes – and leap!
It's time to try defying gravity.
I think I'll try defying gravity.
And you can't pull me down!"
"Can't I make you understand?" Tori took up, "You're having delusions of grandeur."
"I'm through accepting limits," Jade replied in song, "'Cos someone says they're so
Some things I cannot change but till I try, I'll never know!
Too long I've been afraid of losing love I guess I've lost
Well, if that's love it comes at much too high a cost!
I'd sooner buy defying gravity
Kiss me goodbye, I'm defying gravity
And you can't pull me down."
She dropped her voice to speak softly, "Glinda - come with me. Think of what we could
do: together," before continuing in song, "Unlimited. Together we're unlimited.
Together we'll be the greatest team there's ever been.
Glinda - Dreams, the way we planned 'em,"
Tori took up, "If we work in tandem," before Jade joined in a duet,
"There's no fight we cannot win, just you and I.
Defying gravity, with you and I defying gravity."
"They'll never bring us down!" Jade sang before asking in a speaking voice, "Well? Are you coming?"
"I hope you're happy, now that you're choosing this," Tori sang.
Jade said, "you too," and continued in song, "I hope it brings you bliss."
"I really hope you get it and you don't live to regret it.
I hope you're happy in the end, I hope you're happy, my friend," the two girls sang together.
"So if you care to find me," Jade sang, "Look to the western sky!
As someone told me lately: 'Ev'ryone deserves the chance to fly!'
And if I'm flying solo at least I'm flying free,
To those who'd ground me take a message back from me.
Tell them how I am, defying gravity,
I'm flying high, defying gravity.
And soon I'll match them in renown and nobody in all of Oz,
No Wizard that there is or was is ever gonna bring me down!"
"I hope you're happy!" Tori repeated sadly.
"Bring me down!" Jade repeated to conclude.
The audience rose to their feet giving the girls a huge standing ovation; they smiled broadly at one another from the adrenaline rush of a successful performance before standing side-by-side in the middle of the stage; Tori's left hand found Jade's right and they took their bow before separating and waving to the crowd, in particular seeking out their significant others, both of whom were applauding and cheering wildly.
The two brunettes dashed backstage enjoying their adrenaline high as they sat down.
"That was awesome," one of their classmates praised them, clearly amazed by the quality of their performance. Their colleagues had, of course, seen some of their earlier work on Splash Face but to actually see them work together, and in a live performance, took it to a whole new level. As they had been the final performance of the show, Freddie and Beck hurried to find them and warmly embraced their girlfriends, adding their own platitudes.
The class's teacher was the final person to join the group; she too gave her congratulations to the girls, and the rest of the class, for their performances and informed them that they would receive their grades after the Christmas holidays.
"So what now?" Tori asked as she and Freddie led the other couple out of the building and towards the car park (Andy and Allie had left after the performance for their own celebration of the end of the term).
"I say we celebrate," Beck enthused, "my treat to celebrate the end of your first term at college, a successful first season of filming for me and uh," he glanced at the shorter-haired male, "Freddie doing well too."
The tech producer smiled; he knew it was a little more awkward given that he was in his sophomore year and still something of a newcomer to the group, despite having been with Tori – and in Los Angeles – for around eighteen months now. Tori leaned closer to her man and spoke up,
"Freddie's had a great first term of this year too; he can celebrate that with us – along with his 4.0 GPA," she finished in a proud yet teasing tone as she ruffled his short hair.
"Where do you want to go?" Jade asked her boy before the couples went separately to their cars (Beck had arrived just before the show so he had driven himself onto campus; Freddie had driven himself and the girls in earlier in the day).
Maestro's restaurant
"Now this is celebrating in style," Jade commended as they were greeted at the door of the fancy restaurant. The maître d' led them to a table where a waitress would take their drinks order; the teenagers had briefly returned home to change into more formal attire, worthy of the surroundings. Beck wore a white dress shirt, grey slacks with a matching jacket while Freddie wore black dress pants and a blue dress shirt. Tori wore a red, low-cut dress which slightly frilled at the bottom; it was short, finishing about half-way down the girl's thighs. Jade, for once eschewing her traditional black, wore a blue-green dress a little higher cut than Tori's and one that finished around her knees. The girls certainly had the attention of the (mostly middle-aged) male patrons of the restaurant as they walked through it. Some of the ladies, generally younger (and likely 'trophy' wives/girlfriends) cast envious eyes in the direction of the two boys. Both Tori and Jade subconsciously tightened their grips on their man's hand as they observed this. The two boys shared a quick grin as they reached the table.
Their sodas arrived and the menus were returned to the staff member; appetisers were ordered (both couples opting to share a dish) and the four conversed amiably as they continued to discuss some of the things (mostly for Beck's benefit) that had been going on over the months since they became housemates.
"You missed a great pool party," Freddie observed, bringing the conversation round to their evening at the Vega family home. Beck had been a little jealous when told about the evening, regretting that his filming had kept him away from such an event.
"Let me guess," he playfully nudged Jade with his elbow, "you pretended you were being turned into soup?"
"Of course," she confirmed with a grin. "It would have been a shame to waste such a nice, big hot tub by not using it."
"You didn't have to not use it," he clarified, "just not pretend you were soup – which is a little odd."
"Where's the harm in honing her acting skills?" Freddie amiably defended his friend.
"Thank you Freddie," Jade smiled and raised her glass towards him; he matched her grin and brought his glass to hers for a brief toast. Beck just shrugged, knowing he had lost this round.
Their entrees arrived shortly after the appetisers were finished; Freddie enjoying a nice steak and garden salad. Tori playfully stole a bite to complement her pork chop (Freddie retaliated in kind and in the end they decided to just share) while Jade passed on a taste of Beck's steak, preferring her own chicken dinner but not putting up too much of a fight when Beck moved for a taste of it.
Dessert (chocolate cake shared by Beck and Jade, New York cheesecake by the other couple) followed and four thoroughly full and sated teens slouched back on their chairs finishing their sodas as they savoured the memory of the meals they had just shared. The check arrived and Beck paid it without flinching; the waitress looked slightly surprised that a teenage boy could be so nonchalant about such a sum but didn't press the issue; she vaguely remembered him from the Hollywood Arts 'ping pong team' along with Jade and Tori who, of course, she also recognised from the PMAs.
The server wasn't alone in remembering Tori; the establishment's manager approached the table informing them that the evening's live music act was running late (the pianist had arrived but the singer wouldn't be there for another half-hour) and begged her to provide a couple of songs to fill in the gap. Jade gritted her teeth at being overlooked again; she was more than happy to let Tori sing for their supper when it came to paying the bill a couple of years earlier but for an actual paid performance she would have liked to have been considered (though her own bank balance looked reasonably healthy now that she had completed filming for a few episodes of her sitcom). She applauded politely with the other patrons, though, when her friend completed each of the songs and smiled as the group left the restaurant.
"Another gig then?" she teased.
"Yeah, not an expected one," Tori conceded, "but it's all exposure and profile."
"And a few bucks," Freddie pointed out with a laugh.
"Yeah, it comes in handy," she agreed; they had paid her $50 for the mini-performance, not a fortune compared to her income from her gigs and record sales but a nice little bit of spending money, given that her parents had insisted that she invest most of her money in a long-term savings account. It was wise advice but she did regret that it meant that she couldn't go on a crazy little spending spree now and again.
430 Dalehurst Avenue
"So when is it you fly to Seattle?" Jade asked Freddie over coffee when the four returned home.
"Not for another week yet," he explained, "we fly up next Thursday and back the following Thursday, so plenty of time before New Year – but it is a shame that I won't be here on Christmas Day," he looked to his girl with some regret in his eyes.
"So you and Melanie are flying together both ways?" Beck prompted.
"Yeah, she wants to fly up and visit her mom, sister and Carly; I don't think she's seen them really since she moved to LA."
"Does Sam know she's here?" Jade asked incredulously, knowing that the blonde had visited the city a couple of times over the last year.
"Melanie says so but she obviously didn't want to visit her. I guess I'll find out while I'm up there how she feels about having her around."
"It's a shame they're not close," Tori mused, "she drives me nuts but I'm looking forward to seeing Trina a little more over the next few weeks – and mom and dad, of course."
"You live in the same city," Jade pointed out, "you can see her any time you want to."
"I know, it's just… different now that we're not under the same roof."
The darker brunette nodded; she could see the girl's point as she felt the same way regarding her own mother, reminding herself that she needed to make a little more time to go and visit her more often. A thought occurred to her and she stood up quickly, drawing curious looks from the others as she took her almost-empty cup with her to the kitchen; while refilling it she called her mother to make sure that she'd be around the following day so that she and Beck could visit sometime.
"So are you looking forward to your trip home?" Beck asked Freddie while Jade was in the kitchen.
"Home…" he mused, glancing at Tori and wondering just where he considered his home to be these days. "It'll be nice to see mom, Sam and the Shays, sure but… I'm going to miss you guys – especially you," he grinned at his girl, "while I'm up there. It's a shame work's getting in the way for Tori but… yeah it'll be nice to be back in Seattle for a little while."
"Well don't get too used to being up there," Tori joked.
"Don't worry; I know what I have waiting for me down here; I'll definitely be back by New Year's," he promised, sealing it with a kiss.
AN: Thanks for reading everyone and an extra thanks to One Horse Shay for the song recommendation. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter; please let me know what you thought and come back soon for the next one. PD.
