Disclaimer: No. Still not mine. Damn.
Memoria
TORI'S POV
My hands were shaking. My hands were shaking so bad, I couldn't even button the blouse properly.
And this time, André wasn't there right beside me to calm me down. I had to do this on my own.
I bit my lip and focused on buttoning the blouse, checking my sober make-up in the large mirror and twisting my hair into a loose bun in the back of my neck.
This is it. I thought. This is what I've been waiting for. Today's the day. Today, we'll get them down.
I breathed in deeply and turned around as the door opened.
'Are you ready?'
I glanced into the mirror one last time.
'Yeah. I'm ready.'
TWO MONTHS EARLIER
TORI'S POV
I stared at André.
'No. They can't. Beck hasn't done anything.'
He nodded and sat down next to me. 'I know. But they won't believe us. They say they have infinite evidence that Beck was the one holding the gun.'
I looked down at my hand as he took it in his and gently squeezed it. 'We have to do something,' I whispered. André shook his head. 'We tried. We've been trying ever since we found out. There's no one but the gang and me to testify to what really happened that night.'
I bit my lip. 'But there has to be something we can do. . Maybe . . . Maybe I can say I remember, and say that Beck didn't hold the gun. That he tried to take it from that dude.' I looked at André. 'That's sort of what happened, right?'
He let his gaze meet mine, and I could see the answer there before he said it. 'You can't lie in court, Tori. That's perjury. Even Beck wouldn't have you do that.' I jumped up, feeling anger and frustration bubble up inside of me. 'They shouldn't even be looking at Beck! He didn't try to kill me! That bloody gang ruined everything!' I ran a hand through my hair. 'They gang-raped me, for god's sake. Why aren't they charging them?'
André got up too and wrapped his arms around my waist. 'I don't know, Tori. I honestly don't know.'
LA COURTHOUSE - Two days later
'So, André',' Jack Quade started, 'When you're in court, I'll just start by asking your name, where you live and why you and Tori were in that part of town that night, alright?'
André nodded slowly, rubbing his palms nervously.
Casey, a young girl with strawberry-blond curls, smiled encouragingly at him. 'Why don't we try this out for a bit?'
'What is your full name?' André bit his lip and sat up a little bit straighter. 'André Harris,' He replied.
Casey nodded and pretended to note something on the piece of paper before her. 'And you live?' '39, Gregory Way.' She nodded again, laid down the pen and looked at André.
'Tell us exactly what happened that night.' André fidgeted. 'What do you want to know?'
'Why were you there?' He looked up and smiled. 'Tori and I were on a date. I took her to see a movie and we had dinner afterward.'
Jack rubbed his palms. Things were about to get interesting.
'And what did you do after dinner?'
'We walked to my car, I'd parked it in one of those alleys, and when we were about to get in, that gang dude said something behind us, and they were all there.' Casey frowned. 'You hadn't seen them as you walked to the car?'
André smiled sheepishly. 'I wasn't exactly paying attention to the scenery. Tori has a habit of being. . . Distracting at times.'
Jack and Casey grinned and exchanged a glance. They both remembered perfectly well what it had been like to be teenagers on a date.
'So you didn't hear them first because you were being distracted by your girlfriend. And then?'
André's eyes glazed over as he dove into the memory. Jack hated this part of the job. Having to force people to remember the worst moments of their lives.
'The tall one, the leader, the one that . . . that raped,' André's voice broke, but he didn't stop, 'Tori, he said it was nice to see us again.' Casey bit her lip. 'And?' She said when André remained silent. 'I pushed Tori back. I didn't want her to be scared. I didn't want them to touch her again. He . . . He talked. Said he was going to kill us, because we shouldn't have lived through the first time.'
André continued in a dull voice, reciting the rest of the evening in detail. Casey felt slightly nauseated. Jack didn't feel all too well either, but leaned forward as André's story headed to the point where he hoped it would get to.
'He pulled a gun and would've shot us if Beck hadn't stopped him.' Jack's stomach dropped to his feet. The kid was lying. He was his best witness and he was lying. He jumped up, towering over André, and spoke in a low, threatening voice. 'Look, we know Beck was the one to hold the gun. We know he shot Tori. We don't know why you are trying to protect him. He tried to kill your girlfriend!'
André shook his head, but didn't say anything.
Jack felt frustration boil up inside of him. 'We can charge you too, you know. Your fingerprints are on the gun as well. Is that the big secret? You and your little friend conspired to shoot Tori, and when she lived, you had to pretend you were worried, didn't you?'
André was getting riled up, and Jack knew it. Just a little bit more, he thought.
'And then she lost her memory, and that was just perfect, because now there was no one left to point the finger at the pair of you, you li—' André jumped up and thumped his hand on the table. 'No!Beck would never shoot Tori! Neither of us would! I love her! He loves her!'
Jack leaned back, satisfied. 'Now we're getting somewhere. Tell us what really happened that night. What was Beck doing there and why was he holding a gun?'
André groaned and dropped himself back in the chair. He breathed in deeply a few times before he started talking.
André's house - The same night (Three PM)
TORI'S POV
I leaned to the kitchen sink and sipped from the glass of water. André had been off all night, upset about something, but he refused to tell me.
I drained the glass and refilled it, turning around in the process.
I startled and spilled the contents off the glass on the floor as I found André standing right behind me. 'Damn it, André! I told you not to sneak up on me. Now look what you've done.' I gestured at my wet shirt—that was actually his— and the wet floor. He shrugged and smiled guiltily. Slowly, I let him pull me into his arms and leaned up to kiss him.
He pushed me back against the sink and let his hands wander under the shirt. I groaned and pulled back to breathe. He was still smiling.
'Why are you smiling?' I said, brushing my lips past his. He smirked. 'You look so damn cute I might do things I'll regret later.'
And it hit. I gasped for air as images filled my head. I was barely aware of André's hands on my shoulders.
As André's hands found their way to my bra, he stopped for the shortest moment. He looked down on me, his cheeks flushed with excitement.
'Are you sure about this, Tori? If you want to stop, I can just—' I kissed him again. 'I'm sure about you, André,' I whispered. Those words seemed to take away all the self-restraint he had. His lips found mine again.
One flashback followed the other, and I felt like I was drowning. Drowning in memories.
I wanted to say something, but the way he looked at me was utterly distracting.
'Beck,' I said, 'Stop looking at me like that.' He smiled again. 'Like what?' I swallowed. 'Like you are about to kiss me.' Beck leaned closer. 'Who says I'm not?' I leaned back. 'Beck. No.' He shoved a little bit closer. 'Tori,' he whispered. My breathing was uneven. I hated it. Beck leaned closer. His face was inches from mine.
Beck's right hand stroked my cheek. I tried to remember why I shouldn't want him to kiss me. But before I reached a decision though, his lips touched mine. Just like before, I forgot how to breathe. Agonizingly slow, he crawled closer, his kisses more demanding. His hands found the hem of my shirt, and slid under it. I shivered as I remembered the tall man's hands on my skin. I pulled back, but Beck only leaned back for a split-second before he pressed his lips on mine again. This time, I didn't feel the flashback kind of thing. I pulled him closer, completely forgetting who I was kissing. Completely forgetting what I was doing. He let his lips wander from mine down to my neck, further down and he would've gone much further if my phone hadn't started ringing. I startled and realized what I was doing. I pulled back and jumped from the couch.
I breathed in sharply. 'Tori!' André's voice became more urgent.
'Tori?' André's voice trembled. 'Beck?' Jade's voice was deadly. 'What the hell is going on?' I turned to André. 'Nothing. We just got caught up in the scene. Right, Beck?'
Beck nodded, and both André and Jade seemed to relax. So did I. 'See?' I told André and wove my fingers into his. I pressed my lips on his for a short moment. 'No.' Beck's voice drifted from behind me. 'No. Nothing is alright.' I turned around, horrifed. Beck turned to Jade. 'I want to break up with you.' My mouth fell open, André gasped and Jade shrieked, 'WHAT?'
'I. Want. To. Break. Up. With. You.' Beck slowly repeated. I couldn't remember how to breathe properly. Oh my God. He won't; this isn't happening. Beck turned back to me. 'André, I'm in love with her.' 'WHAT?' André and Jade cried together. I stared at him, at a complete loss of words. Beck raised his hands. 'I wish I wasn't. I tried, I really tried not to. But . . . I love her.' 'Tori?' André whispered. I turned around.
'Tori?' Beck pleaded. My head whipped from side to side - Beck to André - ten times in that minute.
The whole thing was just so wrong. Beck or André.
Fireworks or light shows?
I shivered. These were things I didn't want to remember.
I couldn't breathe. The world around me seemed to be crashing down. I could not believe my eyes. I could not believe the event unfolding before my eyes.
My thoughts were blurred, unclear, hard to follow. Time seemed to drag itself out, making seconds lasting hours.
I squeezed André's hand so hard it must have hurt, but he didn't flinch. He was focused on keeping me behind his back. I stared at Beck, pleading without words to lower the gun. His eyes were pained. He kept his gaze focused on André's hand in mine, and I could see his eyes grow darker with rage.
I bit my lip. If anyone could get Beck to lower the gun, I knew it would be me. But I was still frozen in fear and shock. 'Please, Beck, mate, don't,' I heard André plead. 'Beck, you love her. You can't shoot her. Please. Let her go.' Beck tightened his grip on the gun, as if his hands were sweaty. The tall guy sighed. 'Come on, newbie. We don't have all night. Shoot them, or we'll do it for you.' Beck's eyes shimmered with panic. 'But,' the guy added, 'we'll have to shoot you too.'
Beck let the air escape through his teeth. Slowly, he curled his finger around the trigger. André gasped.
...
'Beck,' I said softly, 'you know what I feel for you. I never denied that. I never will. I can't.' His lower lip trembled. 'But you promised me you would never hurt me,' I said, now so close to him, the barrel of the gun was nearly touching my chest, 'And I believed you. If you shoot him, I still won't choose you.. But Beck, if you don't. . .' I took a deep breath, preparing for the worst, 'I will. I'll choose you over him. But please, let him go.' Emotions flashed through Beck's eyes as he stared at me. André was gasping for breath behind my back. I tried to ignore him, knowing exactly how much my words were hurting him. But I had to find a way to get him away. To lowered the gun another few inches. 'You wouldn't,' he whispered, but hope was growing larger in his eyes. I bit my lip and reached for his free hand. I wove my fingers into his and ignored André's gasps of pain. I had to do this. 'Yeah I would. I would.' Beck stared at our hands and then at the gun in his hand. He slowly dropped the gun by his side. 'Then go. Take him out of here.' I shook my head. 'Not without you. Beck, I promised.' He stroked my cheek. 'And I promised you. And by having you choose me, I'll be hurting you. Which is exactly what I promised not to do.' I swallowed. Beck pushed me back into André's arms.
...
Before anyone had the time to react to the struggle, the loud blast of a gunshot echoed through the street, and all three men gazed at me. André and Beck horrified, the tall guy amused. I felt numb. Why were they staring at me? I looked down at my chest and found a large bullet hole in my T-shirt and jacket, where the bullet had entered my personal space. I began to feel cold as I watched a red stain bloom on the white shirt I was wearing. I didn't feel the pain until my knees gave in and hit the pavement hard.
I remember hitting my head to the sidewalk. Then, there was nothing.
I emerged from the memories, gasping and panting. Crying.
I realized I was on the floor, and André was kneeling beside me, terrified something might be wrong with me.
'Tori,' he whispered. 'Baby, are you okay?' I realized tears were still running down my cheeks.
I looked up at André, afraid to verbalize what I knew had happened. But I had to.
His gaze met mine. I bit my lip and let my love for him fill me up.
'André,' I whispered, and he leaned closer, 'I remember.'
And that's it for this chapter! xD
I decided to give you guys a little sneak preview in the beginning of the chapter, because I . . . Well, I just love teasing you :)
The next chapter is a short one, I think, but good nevertheless xD I hope you guys enjoyed this one, so let me know what you think :)) Just click the review button!
Thanks for reading and please review!
Xx Annaelle