Two stories updated in one day. Granted, most people probably won't be too excited because they are in different fandoms - but I am excited. So I needed to share. Here is chapter 14 - I hope you enjoy. coming up next - a trip - a trial - and plenty of tribulations. Happy Reading - and as always, please let me know what you think!
Chapter 14 Sparks of Hope
"A spark of hope, in sorrow's place will shine, with such amazing grace,"
From Stronger than Before by Olivia Newton John
Saturday afternoon found Jade and Cat packing for the latter's trip back to Broadway. The redhead was particularly quiet, Jade noted as she folded clothing and placed it into the obnoxiously bright pink suitcase.
Suddenly, she spoke in a quick burst of rapid words. "I want to stay here," she said, her hands wrapped around a pink sweater she was preparing to hand to Jade. The brunette looked up in surprise.
"I thought you liked your job."
"I do," Cat answered. "But I don't want to live in New York anymore. I miss it here."
"Are you sure?" Jade asked. "You have to live in New York to be on Broadway. And you love Broadway. It's a lot to give up."
"I love it sooo much," Cat agreed. "But I don't want to be by myself in New York anymore." Jade sighed and sat on the bed, pinching the bridge of her nose as she attempted to relieve a growing stress headache. She knew Cat was lonely; she had known it since the smaller girl had moved to the east coast; but her dream was Broadway while Jade and Beck's careers depended on the LA film industry.
And despite her sometimes palpable loneliness, Cat had never before not wanted to go back to New York. This was a first. Jade feared it had to do with Cat's concern for Tori instead of clear thinking about her own life and career.
"Cat, we need to think about this," Jade informed her. "Right now, they're expecting you to star in the show Monday night. So you need to go back and do this next part of the run. But if you still feel like you want to come back to LA at the end of the next two weeks, we'll see what we can do." Cat nodded; she knew she wasn't going to get Jade to agree immediately. But now that the seed was planted, the redhead knew that she was as good as homebound.
That evening was a somber one as Cat and Robbie both prepared to leave. Tori cried tears that, for once, had nothing to do with pain or frustration. After saying goodbye and hugging both, she took the sleeping pill that she had requested and cried herself to sleep.
"She'll be fine," Jade assured them both. It might not have been the whole truth at the time, but it barely mattered. They both needed to return to New York or risk losing good jobs. Beck drove them to the airport for their redeye flight and Jade walked around the house, tidying signs of Cat. The woman certainly could change a home in a short time. She'd moved chairs and left musical instruments in a variety of odd places. There were bubble wands mixed in with utensils and a seemingly endless supply of pink and other brightly colored hair bows drifting through the house.
The next morning, Tori realized she wasn't alone. For the first time in weeks, Jade had fallen asleep in the glider pulled close to the bed. As was her strange ability, she woke as soon as she felt Tori's eyes on her. "Good morning," Jade said, her voice laced with exhaustion. "Feeling better?"
Tori nodded. She knew Robbie and Cat couldn't stay - she was even slightly surprised by her outburst from the night before. Although part of it was a desire for the two to stay (for they had a great ability to keep spirits high), another part of her was terrified for the coming week. She was having laparoscopic surgery to repair some of the damage to her uterus and fallopian tubes. In addition, the DA wanted to meet with her - and it would be the first time since she'd visited in the hospital months before.
July was not a rainy month in LA. in fact, it almost never rained during the summer months. However, on the morning of Tori's surgery, rain was falling in torrents from a rumbling sky. It was three in the morning when Jade sprang out of bed after a measly three hours of sleep and prepared herself for the day. By four, Tori and her bag were in backseat of the car and Beck was driving toward the hospital with Jade beside him.
Tori was nervous to say the least. She hadn't spoken that morning and her hands shook when they weren't grasping tightly at the bag in her lap. When they arrived at the hospital, Beck pulled up to the front door and let them out. Tori's legs didn't want to hold her and if it hadn't been for Jade, she would have ended up on the ground outside the car. She leaned heavily onto the other brunette as she tried to regain her footing. Jade tried to calm her with reassuring words as she led her toward the entrance.
Within twenty minutes, Tori was checked into a private room and being prepped for surgery. Dr. Brown entered the room just after six and smiled gently. "The nurses keep telling me about this blood pressure of yours," she said, looking down at Tori. "I know you're worried - but I promise we wouldn't be doing this right now if I thought your body couldn't handle it."
Tori bit her lip but didn't answer; she was sure she couldn't speak without crying. "The anesthesiologist will be here in a few minutes and before you know it, it will be over. If all goes according to plan, you'll be home in two days." The procedure was usually done on an outpatient basis but because of Tori's recently storied medical history, it had been decided that she needed to be put under completely - which meant staying an extra two nights in the hospital.
Twenty minutes later, Tori was asleep and on a gurney being wheeled into an operating room. It was Jade's turn to worry incessantly. She and Beck sat in the waiting room closest to the operating room and she flipped nervously through the stations on the television. Beck looked up when the flipping stopped. She had paused on a station when her picture was clearly displayed. Turning the volume up, she settled against him to watch.
"Sources indicate that Tori Vega, who has been missing for three years and recently returned to live with high school friends Jade West and Beck Oliver, has been admitted to Cedars Sinai Medical Center. A reason has not been confirmed but our cameras caught Mr. Oliver entering the facility a bit before five this morning. Oliver is best known-" She turned off the television in disgust.
"Why can't they leave us alone?"
"Because we are really pretty people," Beck told her lightly, trying for a smile. He failed, but she was calmer as she curled deeper into his arms to continue the wait.
Tori woke to a dry mouth and a sharp pain in her abdomen. She whimpered as she rolled onto her side and away from the sunlight. Carefully, her eyes blinked open and she saw that Jade and Beck were sitting on the loveseat across the room. He was reading a book and she was curled into his lap, sleeping. Her recovery was quick and before the second day was out, she was forced to go to her normal physical therapy appointments – much to her grumbling dismay. She was home by Thursday evening in her own bed but it didn't help her sleep much.
On Friday morning, Tori woke from a restless night and dressed in a pair of beige dress pants and a soft blue sweater. Dangling sapphires from her wrists, neck, and ears, she continued with her makeup and hair. When she walked into the kitchen, she realized she had taken longer than she'd expected. The district attorney was already there, sipping coffee and eating one of Jade's cinnamon rolls. Upon seeing Tori, she stood and offered her hand.
"Ms. Vega," she said, "it's great to see you. You look wonderful."
"Thanks," Tori said shyly. "And Ms. Vega is weird. You can call me Tori."
"Well, then," the woman answered. "Please call me Jenna." Tori nodded and sat at the table, accepting a cup of tea and a cinnamon roll from Jade. There was a handful of pills placed on the tea saucer that she addressed first. "As I was telling Mrs. Oliver, we are confident that we have a tight case against Mr. Kennedy. However, in order to assure he is convicted, we do need your testimony. Tori nodded; she knew there was no way the trial wouldn't involve her. She was the only surviving victim. "As your lawyer has requested, I am trying to get the judge to agree to take a taped testimony. That way, you wouldn't have to testify at the actual trial - it would be recorded ahead of time. You would still need to be in the courtroom for the trial, but it may help a bit." Tori nodded; it was better than the alternative.
"His lawyer is asking for a change in jurisdiction. He's claiming that - because of your connections to Mr. and Mrs. Oliver - a fair trial would be impossible. I don't expect the judge to go for it. But if he does, you may need to travel for the trial." After twenty minutes of discussion that Tori didn't bother to follow, the woman began to ask her questions.
"The defense attorney – whether questioning you before the trial or during – is not going to care about hurting your feelings or upsetting you. He's going to try to make it sound like your fault. That you wanted it." Tori looked simply terrified but the woman continued speaking. "But you need to remember – that is his job. And I will object as much as possible and try to keep him from attacking your story—"
"It's not a story," Tori said firmly.
"I know that," Jenna responded. "I saw you in the hospital – I've gone through the case file more times than I can count. I know that every word you're saying is true. But the defense will try to turn your words into fiction – and you need to be ready for that mentally. I need you to remember that even though he seems to be trying to discredit you, there are very few –if any – people in that court room who will doubt you. The people who matter – your friends – your family – they know the truth. And when I'm finished doing my job – the rest of the world will know. And that bastard won't have a leg to stand on." If Tori was shocked at her language, it didn't show. Jenna looked directly at Tori. "Can you help me?" She nodded; she would do her best. She hoped that was enough.
A week after the surgery and three days after her meeting with the District Attorney, Tori had a follow up appointment with Dr. Brown. The woman had taken her white coat off before entering the room in an effort to appease Tori's nerves. It didn't help much; neither did the Xanax Tori had swallowed the night before and then again that morning. Dr. Brown asked her a few rudimentary questions and then offered a tightlipped smile. "I know you don't want to hear this – but I need to do an exam to make sure the procedure worked." Tori knew that would be the case but it didn't stop the color from draining from her cheeks, leaving her stark white against her dark brown hair.
Tori did as she was asked, climbing onto the exam table and scooting down so her feet were in stirrups. She thought she might pass out when the doctor picked up her foot, bent her leg at the knee, and placed it into a knee crutch. As she did the same with her right leg, Tori turned her head to the side, tears streaming down her cheeks. Jade stood next to her, back to the doctor, focused on trying to keep Tori calm.
"Sweetheart, did you take the Xanax this morning?" the doctor asked. She could feel Tori shaking severely and knew it was going to be nearly impossible to get the exam done under the current circumstances.
"Forty milligrams this morning and forty last night," Jade answered, turning her head slightly to look at the doctor. Dr. Brown removed her legs from the crutches, pulled up the end of the table so she could rest in a normal position, and pulled a thick blanket over Tori.
"I'm going to call Dr. Greeley. We can't have you going into shock during the exam. Just try to rest for a few minutes – we'll get this figured out." The woman left the room and the damn holding back Tori's tears broke. Jade sat on the edge of the exam table and held her as she cried, offering whatever soothing words and assurances that came to mind.
Within ten minutes, Isabelle Greeley entered the small room and gently moved in beside Jade so she could make eye contact with her patient. Tori was fairly far gone at that point and refused to look at Isabelle, her eyes instead darting quickly around the room. She took vitals and tried to get Tori's attention for several minutes before turning to look at Jade.
"She's slipping into shock. I can knock her out completely for the exam – but I need your permission."
"Do it," was all Jade said. She and Tori had the conversation and discussed the possibility the night before.
Once the exam was over, a nurse helped Jade redress her friend. Once she began to stir and wasn't suffering from any nausea from the medication, an orderly helped her get Tori into the car. Luckily, Beck was at home to transfer her from the car and into her bed. A few weeks before, a panic attack of that level would have kept her in bed for days. That evening, Jade and Beck smiled without acknowledging the words when she appeared just after eight.
Tori slept well past dinner and when she trudged into the kitchen, she found Jade and Beck (both looking rather pleased with themselves) sitting at the table, bent over a laptop and an array of colorful brochures. She looked at them suspiciously as she slid into the chair next to Jade. Beck chuckled at her expression and pushed a piece of colorful paper her way. It was a brochure for Knottsberry Farm. Another sticking out from under the laptop was for Disney World and one in Beck's hand was clearly for a Mediterranean cruise.
"What's going on?" Tori asked finally, once she realized neither Jade nor Beck was paying her any attention.
"Next week Beck's movie wraps – and he has a few weeks before he needs to start promoting the first one. Your physical therapy ends and speech therapy and occupational go to once a week. It sounded like a good time to take a vacation," Jade answered, tilting her head at the computer screen as she scanned a website.
"Cat's decided to leave her job and won't start filming the new movie for three weeks, so she can come," Beck continued. He and Cat had been working in cahoots so that by the time Cat told Jade she was absolutely planning a return to LA, she already had a job – a good job – lined up. "So it seemed like an extra good time to do it."
"I don't know..." Tori said hesitantly.
"I do," Jade responded. "Sitting around here worrying about the trial isn't going to help anything. So let's do something fun. What would you prefer - Disney - or a cruise?"
Tori, realizing immediately that it was a silly thing to argue about, smiled brightly. She had never been to Disney World. She'd been to Disney Land several times and her parents had once gone to Disney World while leaving her at home with Trina, but Tori had never been to the Floridian destination.
"I think Cat would prefer Disney," she answered. Beck grinned; he had seen Tori's expression and knew that it was she who would prefer Disney. Despite the stressful beginning to the day, it ended on a positive note. After Jade decided she didn't want Beck or Tori's input into vacation planning, she put away the computer and pulled out the scrabble board. They spent the evening attempting to beat one another with words like xa and frowzily. Tori tried to claim a handicap considering she hadn't had the extra three year to grow her vocabulary, but Jade refused. And really, Tori was catching up quite nicely.
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