Tori fled the café, dropping her lunch into the trash on her way out. She'd lost her appetite. Seeing Jade had made her entire system freeze, pressure building as those deep, desperate eyes bored into hers from across the lot.

God, Jade… what am I supposed to- I don't even… what am I, I mean…

Groaning in frustration, she rushed through the doors and immediately headed for the janitor's closet… but then the memories of all the times she'd been alone in there with Jade came creeping into her head so she changed directions at the last second. Her feet carried her instead to the Black Box Theater, which was Thank God empty.

Dropping down into an empty seat, Tori immediately slumped over, head dropping down into waiting hands. A heavy sigh escaped her as her eyes screwed shut, tight as they would go.

How was she supposed to handle this? Jade had… Jade had confessed that she had "feelings" for her… but she'd just broken up with her boyfriend of two years and up until that break-up Jade had treated her like dirt. Tori was happy that Jade had finally started to open up to her, but all of this made her wonder... was it real? Beck had asked her out too, so soon after the break-up… and Jade had known he was going to!

That's the weird part! Yesterday at the restaurant she'd asked me who it was that had texted, but it almost felt like she'd known it was going to be Beck even before I did! And then outside she told me that he wanted to go out with me...

So, should I be worried that this is all some kind of sick love game? Does Jade even care about me at all, or is just this her way of getting back at Beck?

It almost seemed like a plausible thought, until Tori remembered those miserable green eyes, staring at her, begging her to come over and sit so they could just talk things out…

…and then her body bean to remember what had happened yesterday. Her heart began to pound and heat raced to her cheeks. Her lips began to tingle of their own accord, eyes opening to stare at the floor as the feel of Jade's lips pressing against hers, hungry and desperate and yet so incredibly soft came back to her. The feel of Jade's warmth pressed against her… the heat that had flared deep in the pit of her stomach at first contact…

"This wouldn't have to do anything with Jade, would it?"

Eyes snapping open, Tori looked over her shoulder and screamed, lunging forward to get away and ending up sprawled on the floor, pain shooting across her side. Groaning in pain, Tori decided against getting up and just let herself marinate there on the carpet. Shooting a glare up at the person that had put her in this predicament, she couldn't help but feel irrevocably irritated.

"Sinjin, don't do that!"

The lanky, creepy young man stared down at her with pity in his eyes, magnified by the spectacles that always sat a bit too high on his nose. His thin arms dangled down at his sides like always, unoccupied and awkward. Everything about him was awkward if you got right down to it, but the fact that he never seemed to be doing anything with himself unless he was working the stage lights or sound booth was just weird. Tori didn't think she'd ever even seen the boy make a phone call, or fool around with an iPod like any normal teenager would.

She held out a hand, hoping that Sinjin would take the hint and help her up, but he just continued to stare. If Tori hadn't been used to his weird behavior, she probably would have high-tailed it out of there, afraid for her life. Instead, she just rolled her eyes and sat up. She met his gaze after brushing some lint off of her shirt and saw that the pity in his eyes was mixed with some bizarre sort of chastising glare, like a mentor would give to a pupil. "What do you want, Sinjin?"

"What'd you do to Jade?"

Eyebrow rising, Tori fixed him with a curious (yet slightly nervous) stare. "Uh… what do you mean? I didn't do anything to J-Jade…" Angry at herself for not even having the courage to say her name without flinching, Tori crossed her arms and dropped her eyes down to glare at Sinjin's shoes.

"Well, this morning she was stalking the halls like the Plague incarnated, glaring at anyone and everyone that got too close like she could shoot gamma rays with her eyes and fry their brains like that dude in 'The Last House on the Left' when the other guy shoved his head in that microwave and-"

"Sinjin. Ew. Back to…" Again, her throat caught around Jade's name, "Back to the story."

"Right. Sorry. So, anyway… she was probably the angriest I've ever seen her, and well… I see a lot of Jade." Tori shivered, the memory of Sinjin web chatting them from within Jade's very house when she wasn't home jumping to mind. "But then at lunch when she saw you, she was looking at you like you'd just told her you were diagnosed with leukemia or something, and she desperately didn't want it to be true. You were all the way on other side of the café though, so I don't know how well that metaphor works, but you get the point. And now, after running away from said look, I find you here, cowering away in the Black Box Theater with your head in your hands. So… what'd you do?"

Tori's face had fallen with every word, and with a sigh she slumped back against the floor, itchy carpet brushing up against her skin. She threw an arm over her eyes, hiding away from the rest of the world. "I didn't do anything! I don't… I can't… ugh! Just go away, Sinjin! You're not helping!"

The strange young man cocked his head at her, eyeing her curiously. Somehow, Tori had the strangest feeling that he knew what was going on, if only in pieces and guesses. "Okay, but if you decide to talk to her… I think she said she was going to go to the ping pong room."

Moaning in response, Tori waited until the sound of retreating footsteps was ended by the bang of a door to roll over onto her stomach.

The ping pong room… why would she go there? Guess maybe she didn't want to go to the janitor's closet either. Should I go talk to her? I haven't exactly… well, actually I did have plenty of time to think about things and Jade's just… her being a girl isn't really the problem, neither is the fact that she's a bit of a psycho. I actually think that part's kinda… cute. She's interesting, and I've already admitted to her face that she's gorgeous… even though those weren't the exact words I used.

When Tori realized she was biting her nails she stopped and stared down at her hands, the feel of Jade's holding her own at every possible turn ghosting over her skin, clutching her fiercely but never once hurting her .

Maybe I should go talk to her… she deserves at least that much. If even Sinjin noticed that something was weird in the way she was acting today then this is serious. But how could Beck and Jade both possibly want me, of all people? I mean, what are the chances? Beck could've gotten any girl he wanted, and Jade… I hate to say it, but Jade could probably do the same, girls and guys both. Plus, Jade's hated me for so long… what changed? She told me she tried to keep me away, but…

…I need to talk to her.

Tori's eyes narrowed in determination and she rose, grabbing her bag and heading for the door.

I don't need to give her an answer right now, because I'm not even sure what I would say… but I do need to talk to her. I need to see how she acts, I need to look her in the eye and see what she does… and I need to see how I'll feel when I do it. Those eyes have given me shivers before, but knowing what I know now, will I feel any different?

She was fully prepared to find out, and with the image of Jade smiling that gentle, tender smile in her head she pounded through the doors…

…right into a busy hallway filled with the sound of the lunch bell ringing like mad. Lunch was over, and she'd missed her chance. Tori stamped her foot, beyond frustrated. "Now how am I going to talk to her?!"

"Talk to who?"

People really needed to stop sneaking up on her. True, this time she didn't end up falling out of a chair when she jumped, but still. All this surprise was bound to mess with her heart, or at least give her a sever case of angina. She turned around and was surprised to see Cat standing behind her, head cocked and eyes bright.

"Cat, please don't sneak up on me like that; one of these days I'm gonna have a heart attack."

Cat immediately looked concerned, eyes widening in fear and mouth popping open in a gasp. "I'm sorry! Please don't have a heart attack!" She lunged, wrapping Tori in a hug and apologizing continuously as Tori fought for air.

"Cat! Cat, stop! It's okay! I'm not gonna have a heart attack!" The crazy redhead pulled away, asking for a promise that Tori was telling the truth. Tori sighed, trying one last time to pry the other girl off of her before giving up. "Yes, Cat. I promise, I'm not really going to have a heart attack."

Cat smiled and pulled away. "So who did you need to talk to?"

"Well… I wanted to talk to Jade because-"

"Oh I wouldn't do that… Jade's really mad today. Like, really mad. I tried to sit with her at lunch 'cuz she was alone and no one should never sit alone unless they're Sinjin, but when I got to the table she told me to go away! And when I tried to sit down anyway 'cuz Jade usually always tells me to go away but doesn't really mean it she pulled out her scissors and pointed them at me! Then she said that if I didn't go away she'd stick them where the sun don't shine… so I went away."

"Jade threatened you?! You?! You're like her best friend!"

Cat shrugged, seemingly unconcerned. "Even a best friend can't fix everything."

Tori pursed her lips, mulling that over for a moment. Cat had this weird habit of speaking intelligently every now and then, but there was so much nonsense in between those moments that made each time it happened a near-magical experience.

Suddenly Tori was reminded of yesterday, when Jade had put her head on her shoulder and tried to keep back tears. Tori had told her something similar, 'Sometimes things just suck,' and it was ironic that now Cat was saying pretty much the same thing. She immediately felt awful and thought back to the hours she'd spent last night screaming at herself for being so insensitive. There were a number of different ways she could have handled Jade's confession, and instead of doing any she'd just high-tailed it out of there and left Jade alone with her feelings… and probably a near-overwhelming sense of hopelessness.

I wouldn't have even come to school today if I was the one in her situation…

And the fact that she had in fact skipped this morning's classes (all of the classes she had with Jade) came back to her, and she felt like a coward. She put a hand to her forehead, sighing miserably. "Look, Cat… do you have any idea why she's mad?"

"Nope. She's mad a lot, so I can never keep track."

"Do you want me to try and find out?"

Cat gasped, staring up at her in wonder as her hands came together just under her chin. "Could you? I like it when Jade's happy! She's pretty when she's happy! If you could make her happy, that'd be so great! But if she pulls her scissors out, well…" Big brown eyes grew sad as they dropped down to the floor. "It's not worth it if you're gonna get hurt. So be careful, okay?"

Tori's eyes grew fond as they stared down at the bubbly little redhead. Cat was so precious, like a little kid, really. If Jade was the negative in their group then Cat was the positive, always happy, even when she was upset about something. "Aww, don't worry. Jade doesn't scare me." Cat looked up at her skeptically, and Tori laughed as she pulled her in for a hug. "Okay, maybe she does, but seriously, don't worry! I'll find out why she's mad, and once I've made it all better I'll come and find you and I'll tell you all about it."

Cat hugged her back and soon enough she was skipping away down the hall, red hair bouncing all over the place. Tori watched her go, shaking her head even as a smile spread across her face.

The bell signaling the start of class rang and even though she was already late she hurried to her first class of the day, hoping that maybe if she was only a minute or so late her teacher would be more forgiving.

As she hurried, she thought about her situation.

Okay… so Beck, who I like as a person and is obviously attractive, is attracted to me. He's over his girlfriend, who is also over him, and he wants to be something more than friends. He's sweet, funny, and charming, plus he obviously cares about me. We have fun when we're together, and I have to admit on the first day of school I was very curious to know if he had a girlfriend.

And Jade, who I really haven't had a chance to get to know but for some reason always end up being in weird, intimate situations with and is also very attractive, told me that she has feelings for me. Obviously "more than friends" feelings, considering she kissed me yesterday. She's scary, cruel but, I'll admit, sexy when she wants to be, and even though her sense of humor is… not normal… being with her is nothing if not entertaining. Despite everything nasty thing we've said or done to each other… we're still with each other every day and now that I think about it I've probably spent more time with Jade than I have with Robbie… or even Cat.

Her inner monologue had to be put on pause so she could duck into class and find a seat towards the back of the room, but once she was settled it immediately started back up again.

So… who am I supposed to pick? Ugh, that sounds so awful! They're my friends, if I choose one I hurt the other! Oh my God, these are people, this is so unbelievably horrible; they're people, not puppies! Why I ever thought love triangles were romantic is beyond me… I'm stuck in the middle of one and it's the worst thing ever! It absolutely stinks! I can't… even just using the word 'choose' has me feeling like the worst person ever! How am I even supposed to know which one I want to be with? How do I even know if I could ever see Jade that way?

Because you were staring at her ass yesterday, Tori.

Whoa. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Where did that even… I don't… what?

And when you saw her today your heart nearly snapped in two.

Where are these thoughts even coming from?! This is weird! My mind is being used against my will!

…alright. According to my head, or… whatever was just talking, I'm physically attracted to Jade. The heart thing can be explained by just having one in the first place. No one could see that look and not want to cry. Beck's hot too though…and how am I even supposed to compare them? One's a dude, one's a girl! They don't exactly have the same… assets.

…I can't believe I just used the word assets. I feel so dirty.

Hello, all! Told ya that this chapter wouldn't take nearly as long as the first one ;)

This chapter's a bit more light-hearted than the last one; It's been feeling a bit angsty lately so I thought I'd try and lighten things up with Tori's inner monologue. Tell me what you think!