I was down for the count

Feeling like I've come to the end

Nothing really mattered

Nothing left for me to feel

She had stepped away from life, before he came,

She tossed away her joys until she realized that her heart skipped a beat when it heard his name,

And for some reason, she fell again,

She had fallen in love again,

He only smiled at her in the halls,

And that's all it took to make her fall,

She lived for it, she breathed for it

For him, and for his love

And then you came

And I still couldn't see

It's like casually telling a dumb fairytale. "It all started when we were children…and then this happened…and then that happened…and then oh my gosh, we kissed!" No, that's not my story. Not at all.

My story started more like this:

"So, what's up?"

"Nothing!"

My tears weren't even trying to stop falling.

Anyways, that's beside the point. Boyfriend, breakup, same old stuff. And I was trying not to cry, trying to be strong, but when in the world does that ever work? Yeah, never.

Whatever, I guess.

It's not like I cared who was looking at me when I was sitting next to my locker…basically balling my eyes out, even though it had been almost two weeks since it happened. Yes, before someone asks, let me just say that it was that bad.

Because, somewhere I had trusted him. And somewhere I knew this was going to happen. I was so confused with my (past) relationship, that it took me a while to think about what was going on.

'Till you tore down every wall in me

How you healed me with your patience

If it's all I ever do

I'll never stop loving you

"Tori!"

"Beck, can't you freaking see that I need to be left alone?"

"Get up!"

What kind of guy gets up after I say that and pulls me up with him?

"I'm taking you somewhere surprising," he said, and just gave me that super-attractive half smile as he pushed me into his car.

"Beck, I really appreciate you doing this, but I really don't think I'm in the mood to –

He leaned over to press his lips to my cheek, and started the engine. Way to listen to the crying girl! But still, there was something about the olive-skinned, lean boy that intrigued me.

Oh, and by the way, don't worry about the little kiss. Beck wasn't my…boyfriend, he was a really good friend of mine, maybe even my best friend. And kissing my cheek or forehead or hand was a pretty daily thing.

And I loved him…a lot. I just wasn't in love with him. At least, that's what my brain thought.

For some reason, he hummed a really weird song, and it instantly made me feel better. Yeah, only Beck was capable of doing that to me. No one else could. Ever.

Making me smile was a piece of cake for this boy.

Was in place full of pain

With a broken down heart in despair

He took away my feelings

And made it hard for me to care

Smiling, Beck pressed on the brakes, and only then did I realize that I had tear stains on my cheeks. Of course I did.

Way to embarrass myself, I thought. But, that's okay. Beck had seen me I every way, shape, and form.

"Now stop crying, and get down."

"Why are we in the middle of nowhere?"

I was surprised and maybe even slightly disgusted by his surprise. We were in a barren land covered with tall grass. It was weird, and just not surprise-worthy.

"Stop making that face," he said, "My dad brought me here once. It's pretty amazing."

I hadn't realized I was making the face, the face he knew meant that I wasn't happy. But, he'd seen that very rarely. There was barely ever a time I was actually unhappy around him.

But then you crashed through the door, to my soul

Put back all the pieces and made me whole

I was living in the past

Now I'm never looking back

"What are we doing?" I asked minutes later, as we marched through the tall grass.

"Shhhhh" he said, and shut my mouth quickly only to hear crumbling noises a bit farther in.

Beck was one of the only people that knew that I wasn't too much of a wuss. I liked adventures, and we'd gone on many together, like into the woods…and even on huge roller coaster rides. But, I was always clueless on what to expect, and whatever this was seemed to be interesting.

The tall boy knelt on the ground and his laced leather boots helped him keep a steady balance. He gestured me to stand behind him, and I followed his directions, placing my hands on his lower back to keep me steady.

The rustling in the far bush grew exponentially, and I had a feeling there was an animal in there. But, what could it be?

Cause I'm alive, I can breathe, I can feel, I believe

And there ain't no doubt about it

"Shh, look there," Beck mentioned again. I turned my head to see the big animal, with a dangerous look on his face.

It moved, revealing a long reddish mane, his body emitting power. The way the animal moved surprised me, it's golden fur shining in the bright sun. It moved slowly, predatorily.

And he turned his head, looking straight towards the two of us.

A lion.

Amazing was all I was capable of thinking.

I'm in love

And it's all because of you

I was fading but you pulled me through

"Wow," I whispered to him, staring at the lion that was merely two feet away from us.

"I know."

"Beck, this is amazing!"

"Shhh, I don't want him to hear us."

I nodded, and the fact that I was looking at a lion was so ideal and astonishing that it brought a real smile on my face after these past days.

I'm awake, I survived, I was hurt, thought I'd die

And there ain't no doubt about it

It's love and I have found it

Feel the beat again, stronger than before

I'm gonna give you my heart until it beats no more

"That was the best thing ever!" I was screaming during the car ride back, "Wow!"

"Chill, Tori." He said with the same calm voice he used for everything, "I knew you'd like it."

"Thank you so much!" I screamed again, pulling myself closer to him to give him a quick kiss on his cheek. That was an everyday thing, too, but the reddening of his cheeks was pretty new.

"What?" I said, and the reddening in his cheeks grew.

"Nothing," he said, "Wanna go back to school?" Yeah, Beck was great at changing the topic, and I hadn't even realized.

"No!" I whined, and he took me to his RV, since my house was totally out of question (if my parents found out, I would be pretty doomed)

Whatever you want me to

I'm gonna see you through

"So?" he asked as we sat down on his tiny bed.

"I'm fine, Beck," I told him, "Really!"

"Uh-huh." And there was the sarcastic boy that I knew so well.

"No! I'm actually perfectly fine."

"Tori, you were crying your eyes out technically four hours ago. You're not fine."

I stayed silent; puckering my lips in what I assumed was sadness. I could see Beck's eyes rise with anger.

"If I ever see him again," he said, teeth gritted, "I will make sure he lands in a hospital."

"Beck…"

"No, Tori! Don't even try to defend him. He doesn't deserve you."

"He doesn't have me, Beck. Not anymore."

"I know, but, you're my best friend, Tor. Seeing something bad happen to you makes me so angry."

I threw my arms around him, and started to cry again. My head lay under his chin, on his chest, and the comfort of his arms made me feel exponentially better.

"It's okay," he said quietly, and I could tell that the angry Beck had disappeared.

"I know, but I just can't stop crying." My eyes were filling with tears again, and I closed them tight, as though the tears would stop falling, if I just closed my eyes.

I felt a soft kiss on my forehead, as Beck raised my head to him.

"I'm sorry," he said, again very quietly, "I should have never let this happen."

"It's not your fault." I said, with my eyes still closed. He took the blame for every little thing, even when it wasn't his fault. But that's what made him my best friend.

Another kiss on my cheekbone, and I could feel my lips involuntarily turn into a smile. What was happening to me?

He pulled my head up a little closer, and surprised me with his hot lips on mine. I shuddered a bit, but he only put his arms around mine, surrounding me with his warm body.

Too quickly, he separated himself from me, and a soft breath escaped my lips as I opened my eyes. He stood up with a small smile on his face.

"I'll get us something to eat," he said, so easily, that it made me wonder whether his heart was beating just as fast as mine, or whether it was only my stomach that was burning with a hot fire.

All I ever do

I'll never stop loving you

Disclaimer: I do not own Victorious or the song used in this one-shot.

Yes, I posted two chapters for you in one day. You're welcome!

(Yeah, the first part was poetic again. Did you guys like that?)

First of all, some of you may be wondering about the lion, right? Well, I went on this trip with my school friends and there was a pretty amazing lion there. A lion is most definitely my favorite animal. Also, I wanted Beck's surprise to be an adventure…and a little different from a candlelight dinner or a bouquet of roses. So, the lion idea came to me, and I put it to work :D

Did you guys like that idea, though? I don't know, it felt different and interesting so, I used it. Plus, I know there are no lions in America, only in Asia and some parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, but let's just imagine that there is one for this story.

And the ending took a lot of thought to write. This is my first story in which Beck and Tori didn't officially get together by the end.

Thank you to bade4nevabori4eva (I love that name :P) for requesting the song Until It Beats No More by Jennifer Lopez. I had lots of fun writing this one shot. Thanks to all my readers for reading and reviewing. Keep doing what you do! Love you all!

Until next time!