Chapter 13 – Findings

Tori

Jade somehow managed to find me in the janitor's closet not long after I'd ran out of Sikowitz's class. I kicked a mop angrily; the loud clatter it made against the floor masked the noise the door made as it opened up.

"Feel better?" Jade said as she shut the door and leaned against it.

"Jade?" I spun around and crossed my arms, "What're you doing here? How did you know where I was?"

She shrugged nonchalantly, "I just knew."

I looked to the floor, not able to meet her eyes. She must have seen me rehearsing the play with Beck. I wondered what she was thinking. I could feel her piercing green eyes on me, but I still couldn't look at her. Although I felt a little guilty, my heart was still soaring the way it did whenever I saw her.

"Do you want to get out of here, Tori?" she asked after a few moments of silence.

I slowly looked up to meet her eyes. "I can't, I have a few classes still to go to…" I paused, "Wait, you called me Tori."

"Well if you prefer Vega…"

"No! Tori is just fine."

She smiled; it softened her face in a way that highlighted her features.

Jade really was beautiful.

"Come on," she said, turning around and opening the door slightly. "Little Miss Perfect can stand to skip a few classes."

I knew I probably shouldn't go, Jade could be a pretty bad influence and I knew this. Though, something told me she needed to be alone, that she needed to talk. Something told me that she wanted to be alone with me.

We drove around for a while, in no direction in particular. I suspected Jade didn't even know where we were going either.

She held my hand the whole way too, squeezing it every so often as if to remind me she was still here as much as it reminded her I was too.

Jade pulled over at a park which was completely abandoned. Kids were obviously at school and mothers were probably out doing things they didn't get to do when they had their children. Like waxing their eyebrows or having long hot showers.

It was nice here, the sun was shining brightly in the middle of the sky but it was a beautiful day. I was glad that I decided to go with Jade.

We sat down on a park bench, Jade rested her head on my shoulder and sighed contentedly, she still gripped my hand tightly.

Birds were chirping in the distance and the wind chimed softly, tousling my hair slightly. Aside from the trees swaying in the wind, there was silence.

It was nice.

In fact, sitting here with Jade made me feel the happiest I have felt in a long time. She made me feel like everything might be okay.

"My stepmom had a kid this morning." Jade said quietly.

My eyes widened in shock a little. Although she didn't say it, I knew Jade was hurting even more than before. It seemed like things in her life just kept getting worse. First she and Beck break up (which I guiltily was kind of grateful for), then her mom is in hospital and now her dad is starting a new family.

I had only met her father once, but that was enough to know that they didn't have a great relationship. It seemed like he barely tolerated her, it made me cringe in horror to think that she had to deal with a father like that growing up.

Jade… how have you gotten by all these years?

I didn't know what to say. What could I say? Jade was so much stronger than I was. If I were in her shoes I probably wouldn't have survived so long on my own. It suddenly made so much sense to me why Jade was so concrete. She used her mean girl façade like a barrier, to hide what she feeling inside. She was hurting.

I'm going to fix you, Jade. Piece by piece I will make you whole again.

"How can I help you?" I said softly, afraid that if I talked any louder Jade would just magically disappear.

She looked up at me, and I looked down at her, she leaned up slightly and kissed me gently on the lips. My stomach did a few backflips and my heart threatened to jump out of my chest.

"You already are." She said when she broke the kiss and rested her head on my shoulder again.

We stayed at the park until it was long since dark, talking and laughing. Bit by bit jade opened up to me, I suspected it was the first time she had shared so much with anyone. I wondered how much she had shared with Beck.

A small wave of guilt cut through my good mood as I thought of Beck. I was going to have to kiss him eventually, and the longer I put it off the worse I knew it would be. I was due to present the play in three days on Monday, and I really was not looking forward to it. Normally I don't have any issues with remembering my lines for a play, or anything in fact, but lately I couldn't bring myself to even glance at the script let alone memorise it.

"We should probably get home," I said, pushing Jade on the swing.

"You mean, I should take you home." She replied, swinging her legs.

"Are you going back to the hospital again?"

She dug her heels into the ground, making the swing stop moving and she turned to look at me. "I took mom home this morning."

"Oh." Was all I could manage to say. "So that means…"

"She wants me to come back, I really should move home again."

Of all the emotions I felt for Jade, hearing her say that and feeling so much disappointment shocked me so much I had to put my hand on the swing set pole to steady myself.

I couldn't help but wonder if Jade going back home would change things at all. I didn't want to think about it but it was nagging in the back of my mind and I suddenly felt sick again.

"Hey," Jade said, walking to me and putting her arms around me. "This doesn't change how I feel about you."

Despite myself, I smiled. "I just don't want to lose you." I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her in close.

This felt so right, I couldn't think of anywhere else I'd rather be right now then here with Jade.

It suddenly occurred to me that I had always kind of felt this way about Jade all this time. I wondered if the same went for Jade too.

"I'm not going anywhere."

We stood together for a long time; neither one of us wanting to break the moment. Eventually though, we both let go.

"You really should get home," Jade said, taking me by the hand as we walked to her car. "You know, before I get sick of you."

I smiled, "Thanks. That really means a lot, Jade."

She grinned at me in a way that made my legs want to melt. I couldn't believe that we were actually together after all this time.

"Can I come to yours for this weekend?" she paused, "I just don't want to be with my mother any more than I have to be. I know it sounds bad but the time in the hospital is probably the most time we've ever spent together for as long as I can remember." She hesitated, taking in a sharp breath. "She just doesn't get me like you do."

We were at her car now, and she opened the door for me. "I'm not sure, Beck and I have to rehearse for the play because it's due on Monday and we really haven't done much on it. I haven't even learned all of my lines yet."

Jade shrugged, "I can help you rehearse if you like."

We were standing very close, "You'd do that for me?" I asked, not too sure why I sounded so uncertain.

"Tori…" she drew me in close, her mouth just centimetres from mine. "I'd do anything for you."

When we kissed it was like we were kissing for the first time again. She kissed me so deeply and so passionately I could only respond almost hungrily.

I never wanted to be anywhere else right now; I wanted this whole moment to just last forever.