Okay, so this is definitely not my best chapter. And I know my Tandre fans aren't really going to be happy with me. First of all, I skipped over their first date simply because I didn't see how it was of any importance to the main plot with them. Second of all...well, you'll see. This chapter is sort of a filler chapter, but it also has plenty of twists and surprises, I hope. The next chapter will probably be incredibly long, if no one minds. Also, if you are reading, please leave a review, whether you like or not. It means a lot. And don't forget my friend dolldarlingcliche has a fanfiction she needs reviews on. Wrestling, of course, if you're interested. Please show her some love. She's been helpful in the writing of this story, and she needs readers. Thanks. (:
The next two weeks passed smoothly. Cat only had to stay with Robbie for one night before she got up and went to stay with Tori and Trina. She would have stayed, but she and Robbie both thought that if she did, their friends would get really suspicious. So she was with Tori and Trina until she found an apartment that was available.
Currently, they were all at a small concert that Andre's manager had organized. It was being held at a local club, and there were only about five hundred people that were going to be there. Andre said that it was just supposed to introduce his new music that he had written and to introduce Tori, who he hoped was going to be recording with him regularly. That was only if his manager and producers liked her, though.
Tori was in the girls' bathroom of the club, smoothing out her pink dress that she was wearing for the performance and making sure that she looked decent enough to go on stage. But she wasn't really paying much attention to her looks. She was pondering over the last couple of weeks that she had spent with Andre. He had taken her to dinner for their first date, and they had been together almost every night since then. For the most part, they worked on music and reminisced on their high school days. And then Andre had asked her to do this small concert with him, and she couldn't refuse. She had wanted this for so long, although she was slightly nervous about getting on stage again. What if people didn't like her?
She tried to push that feeling aside and focus on her love for performing. Yes, that made her feel better, though she did still have a few butterflies in her stomach. She thought about Andre and how perfect he was and how much she had missed him the last five years and how happy she was that they were back together. And that put a smile on her face. As she stared back at her reflection, she felt more beautiful than she had in a long time. It was the first time that she had seen a real smile on her face since she moved to New York, and she knew now that smiles really did make people prettier. She was so glad to feel like her old self again.
Meanwhile, Jade was standing in the almost deserted club staring in disgust at the picture of her ultrasound that she had gotten that afternoon. Beck was staring at it too, but more with love and affection. He had been overly ecstatic all day, and that just made Jade even sicker.
"Ugh, this thing is hideous," she said. "It looks like you."
"How can you tell? You can't even see its face. It just looks like a big blob-"
"It's still hideous, and I know it's going to end up looking like you."
"Don't say that," Beck said, wrapping his arms around her waist and laying his head on her shoulder. "You don't mean it. Because you looooooooooove me."
Jade cast a glare at him and rolled her eyes. "Not right now. This thing is pissing me off, and it's all your fault." She paused for a second, which Beck took as an advantage to fight back, but she quickly interrupted him. "What do you think this weird lump in the back is? Because it makes the baby look all deformed and stuff, like it has a watermelon for a head."
"The doctor said he thinks it's another baby," Beck said happily, tightening his grip on her and smiling wider than he already was. "He said that it's developing slower than normal with you, and it's really hard to tell."
"Yes, I know. But I refuse to believe that. Wouldn't it be more visible if it was another baby?"
"Not necessarily. See-"
Beck stopped when he saw Jade hastily stuffing the picture in her purse, and he looked up to see that Cat and Robbie were heading their way, looking rather distressed about something.
"What do you guys think about Tori and Andre's relationship?" Cat asked, her arms crossed and her brown eyes wide with curiosity.
Jade and Beck exchanged glances, and Beck shrugged. "I don't know. It's alright, I guess. They seem to be happy, so we should be happy for them. Why? Is there something wrong?"
Robbie took in a breath and let it out as he ran a hand through his hair. "Well, Cat and I have been thinking…well, I've been thinking…don't you think it's kind of strange that he started dating her two weeks after he and Chelsea got annulled?"
Beck tilted his head to the side in thought and shook his head. "No, not really. I mean, if he loves Tori, it shouldn't matter about Chelsea."
Robbie usually had no idea what he was talking about when it came to relationships, especially since the only real relationship that he had ever been in was with Cat now, and that was hardly considered a relationship. But he had been thinking about this long and hard ever since Tori had told them all about their first date. And he didn't like what he saw. "Yes, but did he ever show any sign of being in love with her when Chelsea was around?" Robbie asked, and the question made all of them go silent.
Well, no, he hadn't. He hadn't seemed to care about Tori as anything more than a friend when he was with Chelsea. Not even when Chelsea wasn't around. The question made them all wonder, and after a few seconds, they all looked up at each other again in realization.
"So you think she's a rebound?" Jade asked.
Robbie shrugged. "I don't know. But just think about it. Andre and Tori dated for five months and broke up. Andre met Chelsea, and they dated for three years before they got married. And I know that Andre said Tori's name at the wedding, but that was probably just an innocent mistake. Until Chelsea got the annulment papers, Andre didn't show any interest in getting back together with Tori."
"That's probably because he was getting married and he didn't want to cheat on his wife," Cat pointed out. "Andre would never cheat."
"But he still didn't show any signs of still being in love with her. And it's really hard to hide feelings like that."
"Robbie, he's an actor," Beck said. "Actors are able to cover up feelings like that." But then again, Andre hadn't always been the best actor at Hollywood Arts. And he was acting overly affectionate with Tori. He had never acted like that with anyone else that he had ever dated. Something definitely was strange about their new relationship. "Oh, God," he murmured. "Tori is the rebound."
Robbie nodded. "Exactly. So what are we supposed to do? Do we tell her, or what? I don't want her to end up getting hurt."
Once again, they all fell silent. It was a hard decision to make. As her friends, it really wasn't any of their business what was going on in her relationship, but then again, they didn't want her to get her feelings hurt. They exchanged a few nervous glances with each other, but before anyone could speak again, Andre walked over to them with a wide grin on his face.
"Hey, guys. What are we talking about over here?"
Once again, they all looked at each other. "Unicorns," Cat said quickly, without thinking. "We're talking about unicorns. They're so pretty, right?"
Andre laughed and patted Cat on the head. "I guess so. But not as pretty as Tori. I'm so glad I invited her to the wedding."
"Yeah, Andre, about that…" Robbie began, rubbing his neck apprehensively. "Um…you and Tori are-"
"There she is now," Andre said, not even paying attention to what Robbie was saying to him. Instead, he was looking up at the stage, where Tori had wandered up to check the mics. He waved at her like a lovesick idiot, and Tori waved back with a huge smile. "Isn't she so perfect?"
"Are you sure Chelsea was lying when she said you were on drugs?" Jade asked, and Beck gripped her arm tightly to get her to be quiet.
Andre looked confused for a second, but then he smiled again. "I'm gonna go get ready. The show starts in an hour."
By now, more people were wandering into the club and starting to buy drinks, while Tori darted off stage quickly to avoid being seen by too many of them. She was supposed to be the "special guest" for the night, and Andre had hoped that their newfound partnership could be a surprise. And as they watched Tori rush off, the group realized that they had to tell her what was going on with Andre.
…
Cat and Jade cornered her in the girls' bathroom twenty minutes before the show started. Tori was in front of the mirror making adjustments to her hair and make-up, and Cat and Jade walked in calmly and locked the door behind them. Tori looked up at them with a smile on her face, but when she heard the lock click, a look of horror appeared on her face.
"Hey, guys," she said, her voice shaking a little bit. Jade looked absolutely intimidating right now, and Tori was quickly reminded of their stage fighting class back in high school. Cat was behind Jade trying to look threatening, but she was Cat, and she couldn't do that. "What's up?"
"Nothing," Jade said, shrugging nonchalantly, though she still wore her famous smirk. "What's up with you?"
"Getting ready for the show," Tori replied, gulping. She had an overwhelming feeling that she was about to get beat up.
But instead of hitting Tori as Tori had expected, Jade merely smirked more and glanced at Cat. Cat nodded, as if they were sending some sort of message to each other that Tori couldn't read, and then Cat said, "We think you're Andre's rebound, and you should get out of the relationship right now." She then covered her mouth as if she had said something wrong, and Jade glared at her.
"What happened?" Jade said. "I thought we were going to play it cool for a while."
"I'm sorry! It was just really bothering me and-"
But Tori interrupted her. "Wait, what? You think I'm Andre's rebound? What are you talking about? Andre and I still care about each other." Why were they doing this to her? Why were they making her feel so terrible right before her first show?
"Maybe so, but we just don't think he's in the right mental or emotional state to be dating right now," Jade told her. "I mean, he dated Chelsea for three years and their marriage just ended. Don't you think you should give it some time before you two start dating?"
Tori frowned at them. Anger was boiling up inside of her, and she wanted nothing more than to yell at them right now. But right now wasn't the time to be getting upset. She had to be on stage in about ten minutes with Andre. And in the state that she was in right now, her mouth was working faster than her mind. "You guys are just jealous."
Cat gasped and placed her hand over her heart as if insulted by the statement, and Jade only glared. "Jealous?" Jade said. "Why would we be jealous-"
"I don't know!" Tori exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air exasperatedly. "I don't know at all. But I do know that I have to go on stage very, very soon, and I still need to finish my make-up." She paused. "And can you guys just not worry about me and Andre? We're fine. Honestly." She smiled to reassure them, but now that they had mentioned it, Andre was acting kind of strange. Maybe there was something she needed to talk about with him…no, they were fine. They just cared about each other a lot.
"Whatever," Jade said, shrugging as she took Cat by the arm and dragged her out of the bathroom, where Beck and Robbie were waiting for them in the hallway.
"So?" Robbie questioned. "How'd it go?"
"She told us we were jealous and that we needed to leave her alone," Jade answered, rolling her eyes. "Whatever, I don't care. Let's go before they get on stage." She took Beck's hand and led him back out front, with Cat and Robbie following close behind them.
…..
Andre was incredible at performing live, and the crowd seemed to love him, despite the recent events with his marriage. His friends had managed to push their way to the front of the stage to get a better view, and Andre looked more than grateful that they were there supporting him.
Tori, however, was a different story. When Andre announced her so that they could sing their new duet together, some people in the crowd didn't know if they should clap or not. Who was Tori Vega? They had certainly never heard of her before, unless they happened to go see Grease in New York three years ago and saw her name in the playbill. But when she walked out on stage looking stiff and nervous, her friends clapped for her, and everyone else followed. She loosened up after that and sang the song. However, her voice had changed a little and did not produce the same melodious sound that it had in high school. In fact, it was so off that she and Andre couldn't even harmonize with each other anymore. It didn't sound bad, just…different.
Andre's manager seemed to be thinking the same thing. He was in the corner of the room listening intently, but he didn't look too impressed. Maybe she was just nervous. Maybe everything would be better if he gave her a second chance. But he was in the music business, and he didn't hand out second chances. He would just have to check with the producers to make the final decision.
After Andre and Tori were off, another group that was signed under the same record company as Andre came on stage. This held no interest to any of Andre and Tori's friends, so they situated themselves in the corner of the room so that they could talk privately. Tori and Andre didn't come out after the show because Andre didn't want to be mauled by fans, so the four were left alone to talk freely.
Cat and Robbie were not participating in the conversation, though. They were texting each other from underneath the table since they were keeping their new relationship a secret. Beck and Jade ignored them for the most part, but when Cat giggled for about the fifth time with no explanation, Jade said, "Okay, who are you texting that's so funny?"
Cat's head shot up quickly, and she frowned. "Um…my assistant. She just told me a joke. About leprechauns. Hehe." She giggled again and nudged Robbie's leg. They had not been talking about leprechauns.
"And who could possibly be texting you, Robbie?" Jade asked with a small smirk.
Robbie looked up from his phone with wide eyes. There was no way he and Cat could pull off a secret relationship. He sucked at lying. "Um…my…mom?"
They both seemed to believe it, although Jade still seemed a little suspicious. Beck didn't seem to care much, though. He had been incredibly happy about something all night, and they didn't understand why.
I saw a storage closet in the back. We can go there. But what about Jade and Beck? Won't they think something is going on? Cat quickly texted to Robbie.
Just tell them we're going to go look for Tori and Andre. They'll understand that, right?
Maybe! I'll tell them! (:
Cat looked up from her phone and smiled at Jade and Beck. "Well, this has been fun. Why don't Robbie and I go look for Tori and Andre now?"
"Fine, we'll just stay here," Beck said, completely oblivious to the fact that Robbie had begun sweating now. Robbie hated lying.
"KK!" Cat exclaimed as she grabbed Robbie's hand and dragged him out of his chair.
As soon as they had lost sight of Beck and Jade, they set off at a jog until they reached the back of the building where just a couple of hours ago, Cat and Jade had confronted Tori. Cat still had a tight grip on Robbie's hand as she searched for the storage closet that she had seen back here.
"Hey. What are you guys doing back here?"
The voice made Cat jump, and she quickly released Robbie's hand and put on an innocent smile as she looked up at Andre and Tori. "We were just…looking for you guys."
"Yep," Robbie said. "Uh…found ya." He chuckled a little bit and tried to act casual, but he was finding it harder and harder to do the more he had to lie to his friends.
"Yeah, well…we're ready to leave when you guys are. We can go get something to eat-" Andre began, but Cat interrupted.
"Yeah! Let's go get something to eat! Eating sounds great! I love eating!" She laughed nervously, and Andre and Tori exchanged looks of confusion before they both decided that it was just Cat being herself. So with that, they headed out the back exit, with Cat dialing Jade's number to inform them that they were leaving.
"It went straight to voicemail," Cat told everyone as ended the call. "She must be on the phone with someone already. I'll call her back in a couple of minutes."
Jade was actually on the phone with her voicemail. The doctor that she had visited earlier today had called two hours ago, and she hadn't answered. She and Beck had gone out to the front of the club to see what kind of new information the doctor had for them. Beck was standing next to her, trying to listen in, but she kept pushing him away as her scowl grew more and more pronounced.
When she finally hung up the phone, Beck was practically jumping out of his own skin because he was so excited. "What did she say?"
Jade grimaced and crossed her arms as she looked away from him. "You better be happy now, because we're having twins."
