Disclaimer: I do not own Victorious.
A/N: So apparently a couple of seriously crazy girls think that I'm fascinated with crime (which I am. Didn't take 2 criminal justice classes and studied the majority of the well known serial killers for no reason, did I?) and have been distracting me in the 20 minutes since I uploaded this fic. I know I said I was going to stick with Jade's POV, but I felt the need for Tori in this one because Jade's kinda...messed up after the last chapter. I just have to say, this chapter was hell on wheels to write.
I am not responsible for anyone who was traumatized by the unfortunate event that ended the previous chapter. If I had added to it...I would have been responsible, but I didn't, and therefore I am not.
Enjoy.
Chapter 12
"Beck, what are you doing here?"
"Jade needs you."
My heart stops. Please tell me she isn't hurt. God, what if something happened to her while I was gone? Then again, she hadn't answered my texts or calls last night, and both Cat and Beck said they saw her last night and she was doing fine. Cat told me she'd gone home after a movie they had watched and she had gotten a text from Jade saying she had made it home and even that was late last night, but…What if something happened after Jade got home? Why else would Beck be here, saying that Jade needs me? It wouldn't make sense otherwise.
Dad's phone rings and he goes toward the front lawn to answer it, far away enough that we can't hear what the conversation is about, and Mom and Trina carry the bags inside. Yeah, Trina's doing something helpful. The world's going to end. I look at Beck, and his eyes are pleading me to go with him. I nod and climb into the passenger seat of his truck, and he speeds toward Jade's house. There's yellow tape everywhere, and Cat's sitting on the curb with a sick Jade. She looks as though she's been up all night crying. She's a total mess.
I sit beside her and she leans against me, my arms going around her while she cries into my shoulder. I've only seen her cry once in my life, but that was nothing compared to this mess in my arms. She's seriously torn up about something, and if there's yellow tape…Something bad happened. I stroke her hair and kiss the side of her head, murmuring something, anything that might comfort her. Beck and Cat stand off to the side, talking about something, and I can't help but wonder if they know at all why Jade's destroyed. Why wasn't I called? Did this just happen?
A familiar car pulls up and Dad gets out, glancing at me before walking over to the other officers on the scene. They speak in hushed tones about what's going on, or what went on, and Cat and Beck leave Jade and me on the curb to go and talk to them. Jade pulls away from me long enough to be sick and I don't even complain when she automatically hugs me, her face buried in my chest as she continues crying. This isn't right. There's something seriously wrong. But I can't ask her about it, and I don't think she's going to let go of me anytime soon.
Beck notices that I want to know what happened, but he just shakes his head. Someone will tell me what happened later, but right now I don't care, as long as I'm here to comfort Jade. I need to be here for her because I've never seen her so broken in all the time I've known her. I watch as Dad comes over to us. "Jade, do you want to come home with us?" Jade doesn't answer, but I feel her hold onto me tighter and I try to stand while carrying her weight in the process. Dad helps, but Jade flinches when he touches her, and I remember that not even Cat was touching her when Beck brought me here. She only wants me.
I glance apologetically at my father and he nods, leaving me to move Jade to the car on my own. It isn't like Jade's a dead weight; she actually is walking on her own, but she's leaning on me and it's making things a little difficult. She holds onto me like I'm going to disappear, and while I'm curious, I can't think about it too much. I need to make sure Jade's going to be fine, and right now I don't think she's going to be for a while. Dad drives home and I half-drag Jade up to my room to lie down. Normally when Jade's over, the bedroom door has to stay open, now that they know, but I think this is different. Once Jade's in my bed, I close my bedroom door and return to my bed, holding her while she cries into my chest.
This isn't like Jade. Usually she acts tough, like nothing in the world bothers her, but this is…She's really shaken. Did someone try to hurt her?
What feels like hours pass before Jade finally stops crying, and I realize she's asleep. She must not have slept all night last night, especially how she looked when I got to her house with Beck. I hold her close and murmur "I love you" into her hair before I drift off to sleep.
My obnoxious, ringing phone wakes me up and I groan, pushing talk. "Look, if this isn't important, I'm hanging up." Jade stirs next to me, her eyes red and swollen from crying for so long. She glances at the phone in confusion and I shrug.
"Is Jade alright?" It's Beck. Of course it would be Beck, wondering how Jade is, since looking at the clock, I realize we've been sleeping for probably close to eight hours. I decide to calm his worried mind, examining Jade's face for confirmation or any sign that she isn't doing well. He deserves to know; he was the one to bring me to her and they're both still really good friends.
"She isn't crying anymore, and we had a pretty nice nap, so I'd say she's doing a little better. Do you want to talk to her?" Jade shakes her head and I frown. "Never mind, Beck, she's not in the talking mood. We'll call you back in the morning, alright? That way we can both get something to eat and just not worry about anything right now." And even though I sound like I know what's going on, I honestly don't and I'm pretty sure he knows that.
"Yeah, alright, I'll talk to you both then. Keep her close, Tori. She's going to be torn up for a while. It's not good when she's like that…She'll end up doing something stupid." I want to ask him what happened, but Jade might not like that, or it might upset her again, and she'd never stop crying. And the last thing I'd want is an upset Jade.
"I'll do my best." I hang up and set my phone on my bedside table. Jade is cuddled close to me, her face inches from mine, and she forces a weak smile. "Jade, I'm not going to…say anything…but I love you. And I'm not going anywhere. My parents aren't going to mind you staying here for…" And she bursts into tears. Shit, what did I say? "Jade, I'm sorry…I didn't mean to…"
My door opens, and Trina pokes her head in. "God, will you guys keep it down? I'm trying to rehearse." She looks at Jade and frowns. "What'd you do to the girl, Tori? Did you beat her or something? I mean, you think I don't know about that mean streak of yours, but Dad is a cop, and I don't think even that would save you if Jade charges you with abuse…"
"Trina, go away." Trina rolls her eyes but leaves anyway. I glance at Jade, who's giving me a watery smile, but it's so false. "Sometimes, I just think she does that to annoy the hell out of me." She just laughs an empty laugh and shakes her head. She isn't completely there, but I'll get her back. I'll figure out what's wrong and I'll make her happy again. There's a knock on my door, and I open my mouth to yell at Trina, but my mother in my doorway stops me before my voice reacts.
"Jade, honey, I talked to Cat's parents, and you're more than welcome to move in with them," she says. I stare at Mom, ready to make a comment, but Jade's hand is against my bare stomach under my shirt, and I can't say anything. Why would she be moving in with Cat? Why couldn't she just stay here? After all, she was my girlfriend, not Cat's. This didn't make any sense. Jade nods and I watch as Mom leaves the room, wondering what the hell is going on.
"Why are you going to live with Cat?" I blurt out and she stares at me for a minute before burying her face in my chest. Her hand is still under my shirt, warm against my skin, and I'm hoping my mother didn't see it, considering we aren't under the blanket. But with Jade hiding, I know she doesn't want to talk about it, and I'm not going to force her to.