The walk to Tori's house passed faster than Jade anticipated. It was when she realized that she was about five minutes away that Jade began to panic. She had no plan and that was terrifying. Jade stopped in her tracks and, eyes closed, lifted her head up to the sky. The early evening sun was warm on her face and the wind was light and cool.

Jade took a deep, controlled breath. She needed to focus. She slowly opened her eyes, a practiced motion from her previous attempts to control anxiety-induced panic. She found she was looking up at a tall bush outside a nearby park. Nestled in its lower branches was a kite that looked worse for the wear. Jade laughed bitterly. "Broken, like me," she thought in self-pity. Wait.

It didn't take much effort for Jade to reach the kite and pull it from the bush. It was a weak opening, but it would do.

"Ow!" Tori shouted as she fell to the ground. Trina was way too focused on video game tennis and had whacked her right in the head. Tori looked up at her sister incredulously. "I don't want to play anymore," she whined in pain. The doorbell rang as Tori pushed herself back up. Trina scoffed and walked away, leaving Tori to answer the door. Tori rolled her eyes. Why was Trina so impossible all the time?

Tori's first thought upon opening the door was that she was hallucinating. She must have hit the ground harder than she first thought.

Standing on her porch was Jade, but not a Jade Tori had ever seen. This girl looked depressed and broken, ready to burst into tears any moment – a far cry from the intimidating, visceral, dark girl that came to Tori's mind easily with Jade's name. Also, Tori only barely realized that Jade shouldn't know where she lived. In fact, no one from school other than Andre had ever been to her house.

"Jade?" Tori asked, greatly concerned and confused. Jade tried to answer but her trembling lips stopped all sound. She averted Tori's gaze and rushed forward, holding the colorful kite close to her chest as she walked into the house. Tori blinked. "And now you're in my house," she commented to herself as she closed the door. Tori slowly turned towards Jade as the home intruder whipped back around, now firmly in the building. Jade found her voice, but without the benefit of careful rehearsal she wasn't sure how she was going to present her case.

"This kite is broken," she said sadly, staring at Tori. "Please understand," she silently pleaded, hoping Tori would get it quickly and not prolong Jade's suffering. Tori placed her hands on her hips. She needed to be careful around Jade and, and it was unclear what Jade was trying to say.

"Okay," she responded. "And?" she prompted, hoping Jade would clarify her point. Jade couldn't stop the stream of incoherence that poured forth.

"I was just walking around, and I saw this kite stuck in a bush and it's broken and someone needs to fix it!" she rambled, shaking the kite for emphasis. She could tell she was losing it; she hadn't cried since her call with Cat and now she was fighting back the tears. "Come on, Tori..." Jade's thoughts continued to hope. Tori obviously had experience helping people; she had to understand what Jade was trying to say, right?

Tori was even more confused. Jade clearly was distraught. Her face was puffy, like she had been crying recently, but her words weren't making any sense. This had to be about Beck, right? But why was Jade here?

"You want me to fix your kite?" Tori asked flatly. She was sure that wasn't what Jade wanted, but the dark-clothed girl was being as clear as coal. Jade mentally cursed and grew indignant.

"Would you forget about the stupid kite?!" she shouted, her voice cracking. She threw the offending item to the ground and kicked it for good measure when it dared settle near her. The tears were coming. She wrapped her arm around her middle in self-comfort. She really did not want to cry in front of Tori, but she wasn't going to have a choice for long if Tori didn't understand soon.

"I'm sorry I brought it up?" she half-apologized, half-asked while she looked at Jade with concern. Jade reached her breaking point.

"I want Beck back!" Jade cried out as the tears began to fall. Tori didn't like seeing anyone in pain, but she tried to speak with Jade about this at lunch.

"But you broke up with Beck," Tori retorted, using Jade's own words from earlier that day.

"I know!" Jade admitted, but her emotions once again turned her into an incoherent mess of verbal garbage. Jade began to pace. "Just like when I was seven and I threw away my Potato Patch Pal, but then I realized I wanted it back, but it was too late cuz my mother already gave it away to some greedy orphans!" she fell onto the couch and covered her face with one hand. Jade hated crying.

Tori wasn't sure how to handle the situation and looked away. Jade was upset and clearly understood what she wanted, but she sounded borderline inconsolable. Tori wasn't great at handling relationship issues; she only had one friend back at Sherwood who ever came to her for this type of advice, and Tori had only dated one guy at that point. Tori hesitated. Should she really be giving advice? Had Jade even asked for it? A logical, safe approach was probably best. Tori sighed.

"Jade, if you want to get back together with Beck, then why don't you just tell him?" Tori asked, specifically choosing the word "tell" instead of "ask" - Jade was a "tell" type of person, after all, and Tori hoped that would help Jade focus. Jade's continued breakdown proved otherwise.

"I did! But he rejected me!" Jade admitted, her voice cracking. Tori looked away from Jade for a moment, conflicted with her thoughts. Jade still hadn't really asked for help, and as far as Tori knew they weren't really friends. It was bothering her why Jade was still here unless she wanted help, and Tori had to know where the lines lay.

"Um. Not to be mean, but why are you coming to me for help?" Tori asked while taking a few slow steps towards her. Jade couldn't admit that she had no friends other than Beck, and Tori was the only other person who had ever shown to care about Jade's feelings. She quickly settled on a comfortable lie, but she couldn't look at Tori directly.

"Because I don't want anyone who's cool to see me like this!" Jade exclaimed, forcing her tone to sound indignant. Tori caught the dishonest tone, but if Jade had to lie to herself, so be it. She wasn't sure what Jade was lying about, but it wouldn't help to call her out on it now. Tori focused back on the problem, but her thought was interrupted once again.

"Okay, maybe you should...Wait, are we friends? We're not even friends!" Tori said out loud. If she was going to help or offer comfort, she at least wanted to help a friend or someone who could be a friend eventually. To Jade's credit, she had seemed to take the "be nice" advice to heart, but maybe Tori could gently push her a little further.

Jade winced behind her hand at Tori's blunt comment. Jade knew she had said practically the same thing to Trina last week, but hearing Tori say it out loud hurt for some reason. Jade couldn't backtrack now, but maybe she could pivot.

"Well, yeah. But if you help me, maybe I'll like you," she pleaded, looking at Tori desperately. Tori noticed that Jade only looked at her when saying "help me" and "like you". Other than her outburst about wanting Beck back, to Tori it seemed like this was the only other honest thought Jade had shared with her since barging into Tori's house. Jade's mood wasn't improving, and Tori figured feeding Jade's depressed state wouldn't help. Jade seemed to react with anger as a distraction, so Tori decided a little sarcasm might help. Her honesty at lunch hadn't worked, after all.

"So, if I help you, I get a mean friend and a broken kite?" Tori teased, sitting down next to Jade on the couch and smiling flatly at her. As Jade looked up from her hands, Tori saw the girl's mascara had started running and realized her sarcasm wasn't helping. Jade was so upset she wasn't even getting mad. Tori's flat smile fell open in concern.

Jade needed Tori's help or else she was going to be all alone. That thought was the final straw; Jade's walls fell.

"Please! Just, please talk to Beck for me!" Jade begged before she buried her face in a decorative pillow from the couch. She began sobbing loudly, the pillow muffling her as best it could. Tori's heart broke and she briefly looked away from the crying girl. Jade's entire body was heaving as she sobbed. Tori hesitated once again before gingerly scooting closer to Jade. Tori gently reached out a hand and pat Jade on the back of her head in what she hoped was a comforting motion. Why was she so awkward around Jade? After a long few seconds, Tori reached her decision.

"Okay. Okay, okay! I'll talk to Beck!" she admitted, not entirely happy with herself. Jade mustered a muffled reply through her sobs.

"Do it soon," she tried to command, although with her crying it sounded more like further begging. Tori rolled her eyes and, feeling conflicted, looked down at Jade. With a plan of action now in place, Jade found a foothold and was able to pull herself out of the abyss. She stopped crying and lifted her head from the pillow. With a short breath and sniffle, Jade pulled her hair back over her ears and looked down at the pillow with a frown.

"I got a little make-up on your pillow," she whined and held it out for Tori to see. Tori had noticed immediately; it was a significant amount of make-up. Jade felt bad about it, but it was an accident; she had reacted and grabbed the nearest object to hide her face. Tori silently sighed and reached out for the pillow.

"It's okay," she forced herself to say in a calm tone. "I'll just ask my grandmother to make me another one," she dishonestly continued with a nervous smile and laugh. She wanted Jade to feel better, but internally she was conflicted. Jade looked up at Tori, glad to hear she hadn't ruined something else. Tori felt sick lying to Jade and looked away from her. "If she ever comes back to life," she deadpanned. Jade's mouth fell open, aghast and she turned away. They sat in a few moments of silence.

"I'm sorry I ruined your pillow," Jade said quietly, her emotions finally recovering. Jade hated apologizing, but Tori had agreed to help her and she did earnestly feel bad about destroying a present from Tori's dead grandmother. Tori was still upset, but realized that hopefully she could find out how to wash the pillow and it wouldn't be completely ruined. Tori nodded.

"Well, since I need to talk to Beck for you, where does he live? I'll go there tonight and talk with him. Maybe that way you both can sort this out tomorrow," she said, changing the subject. It was Jade's turn to nod. Jade relayed Beck's address and Tori wrote it down in her phone. They were silent again for another moment; Jade had no idea what else to say to Tori. Jade stood up and held her upper arm with one hand.

"Okay. See you at school tomorrow," she said as she walked towards the front door. She opened the door and looked back quickly at Tori, her expression between pain and recovery. "Thanks," she quickly and quietly said before she stepped outside and closed it behind her.

The entire scene was so foreign, so unexpected, that as the front door closed, Tori considered for a moment whether she had a concussion. A quick look down at the soiled pillow in her lap confirmed the event had actually transpired, and Tori let out a loud sigh.

"Why do I care about helping her?" Tori thought to herself, reflective of her friendship, or lack thereof, with the sullen actress. Tori didn't hate much, but she did hate meddling in other people's relationships. It was a source of constant drama at Sherwood and she never cared for it or about it. Yet, here she was, about to interfere just because Jade asked her to. Tori tossed the ruined pillow back on the couch and walked up to her room. She needed to clean up a bit before she went to Beck's, and she needed to figure out how she was going to get there tonight.


It wasn't a long walk to Beck's house, and the April evening air wasn't uncomfortable in Los Angeles with a light jacket. Beck's family lived in a nice ranch-style home, but Tori found herself more than a little surprised when Beck's mom turned her around at the front door and pointed her in the direction of an old tow-able RV in the driveway. "The Silver Streak" blazed a neon-red sign near the door and a tacky doorbell had been hastily installed, its wires still exposed. Tori pushed the doorbell and rolled her eyes at the querying reply.

"Who is it?" came a voice that strained to sound feminine.

"I know that's you, Beck!" Tori called back with a slight roll of her eyes. Why did boys always think they could fool someone with a higher pitched voice?

Tori's face flushed in embarrassment when an older woman, obviously a housekeeper by her equipment, opened the door and stepped out of the RV. Beck was close behind the cleaning woman and, after thanking her for her services, invited Tori into his 'room'. Beck was as confused about Tori's presence as she was about Beck's living condition. Sure, Beck found Tori attractive, but he had just broken up with Jade yesterday. Was Tori already trying to make a move? That would complicate his plans. Still, he knew it was better to let this play out and see what was really going on before jumping to conclusions.

Tori looked around the small interior of the RV, partially aware that this was the first of her friend's houses she had visited since attending Hollywood Arts. She couldn't help herself from looking around, drinking in the sights of a space that reflected its occupant. Beck watched Tori carefully, chancing a full body check of her when her back was turned.

"So, this is where you live?" she asked in a neutral tone. Beck ran a hand through his hair nervously and glanced away.

"Is that bad?" he asked back, artfully dodging a question before he understood why she was asking. Tori spun around quickly, concerned she had offended the boy.

"No!" she quickly clarified. "It's cool, it's just, you know, most high school guys don't live in an RV parked in their parent's driveway," she smoothed over, only partially lying. It was odd in a way she hadn't pinned to Beck based on his behavior; she was certain there was more to the story of how Beck came to live in like this.

Beck could tell Tori was testing him; her body language gave away that she wasn't being fully honest. Still, he had a canned answer for when this question came up with others, and it always satisfied them.

"Well, my parent's said if I lived under their roof, I gotta live by their rules," he replied with an easy shrug. Tori laughed politely as he concluded that he lived by his own rules now. Beck picked up an apple, looking to distract his hands. "So...?" he prompted, wondering why Tori was actually here. He would question how she knew his address, but that hadn't stopped a veritable army of teenage girls tracking him down over the last couple of years.

"So, you're probably wondering why I'm here," Tori started, voice pitching upwards as she entered uncomfortable territory. She was already thinking about having to bring up Jade to Beck, and it was distracting her. As she continued, she dropped the pitch of her voice to mimic a boy speaking. "Like, hey, Tori's here, what up with that?"

Beck smiled nervously. "That's how I talk?" he questioned with a tilt and lopsided grin. After Tori explained that it was just a generic boy voice, Beck replied with very dry sarcasm. "Ah. I like it. Do more," he said, taking a seat and looking up at her. Truthfully, Beck was stalling for time and avoiding committing to any answer until Tori's purpose for her visit was clear.

Tori didn't catch Beck's sarcasm and continued with her poor mimicry. "Hey man, why don't you get back together with Jade? You know what I'm saying? Yeah," she presented with a false bravado that only belonged to the generic boy whose voice she was borrowing.

Whatever Beck was expecting, that wasn't what he thought Tori would say. He looked away from Tori and sat up slowly. He heard her clearly, but he needed to buy time to think about how to handle this. After a short moment, he looked up at Tori with pursed lips and raised eyebrows.

"I should get back together with Jade?" he asked, sounding every bit as incredulous as he felt.

"Uh huh," Tori affirmed quietly with a nod.

"Why?" Beck retorted, sounding short and irritated. He placed more emphasis here than he actually felt in order to pull Tori's true motive forward. Tori and Jade weren't friends – why would Tori care about him and Jade being together? There was something going on that Beck didn't understand, and he needed to know in order to manipulate it to his benefit.

Beck's question pierced Tori like a hot knife. Why, indeed, was Tori helping Jade? She didn't know the first thing about Jade and Beck's relationship.

"Cuz, she's...you know...awesome?" Tori offered, unaware she was projecting her own thoughts about Jade on Beck in a desperate effort to fulfill her commitment to the struggling girl.

Beck sat on his couch for a moment, a plan quickly forming. Obviously Jade had blackmailed Tori to come here tonight after Beck rejected Jade's proposal to get back together earlier that day. Jade wouldn't have anyone else to turn to – the other boys wouldn't care, and Cat would be too unfocused. If Jade was looking for help, that meant her walls were crumbling, which meant there was still a chance this would all blow over soon and he'd have the chance to push Jade to change a little further. Well, if Tori had become Jade's confidante, then it was a good thing she was here. Beck leaned forward and stood up, a dangerous clean in his eye and a firm resolve in his voice that came from seemingly nowhere.

"Guess what?" he asked Tori rhetorically. Her face fell. No one ever said anything good after asking that. "I'm glad Jade and I broke up," Beck said, pushing as much conviction into his voice as he could. It wasn't the truth, but he needed Tori to think it was untainted by ulterior motives. It seemed to work because Tori looked and sounded aghast.

"Why?" she asked in disbelief.

"Cuz, I can't remember the last time she did one nice thing for me," Beck explained, his expression unreadable. Tori figured it must be exaggeration.

"Oh, c'mon, didn't you just have a birthday?" she asked, certain Beck was overlooking something. "She didn't get you anything for your birthday?" This was perfect – Beck had the best response possible, and he knew Tori would pull it right back in front of Jade because of how ridiculous it sounded. Best of all, Jade wouldn't be able to deny it, which would make everything else Beck said appear sincere.

"She got me a can of lemonade," he said quietly as he looked Tori directly in the eyes. Tori's eyes widened and Beck just nodded to assure Tori heard him correctly.

"That, uh. Wow," Tori said, deflating in front of Beck's eyes. Tori knew that Jade socialized in a very unique way, but she figured that with Beck it would be more typical. Tori wasn't sure if it was surprise or relief to hear that Jade's ability to fulfill social obligations with her boyfriend were just as screwed up as her behavior with everyone else. Tori was broken out of her thoughts by a hand on her shoulder.

"Listen, Tori. You're a good friend, but I'm good. Did you need a ride home?" Beck offered. Tori shook her head quickly.

"No, it's not far. I'll just head back, since you're good and all," Tori replied, playing unskillfully into Beck's intentional opening to make it about him. Tori wasn't sure why, but she preferred to let Beck think it was about him and not Jade. Tori was certain that Jade wouldn't want anyone, Beck included, to know that Jade had broken down at Tori's house earlier that evening.

As they said their goodbyes, Beck shut the door to his RV and sighed. The interaction with Tori had taken a lot of his energy; it was hard to pretend that he wasn't missing his girlfriend of practically two years, and the lies to Tori felt bitter on his tongue. Still, now Tori would go back to Jade and say that whatever plan Jade had forced onto Tori hadn't worked, and Jade would be forced to confront this situation in an honest way. And then she'd come crawling back to him and he'd finally have the upper hand for once in their relationship.