Authors note: Well it's been 5 years. I thought that after all this time that the story was done. But 5 years later people are still favouriting and reviewing my old work and I can't tell you how deeply thankful I am that there are those out there, still appreciating my writing and my story. Because of this, the Jori bug has struck me once again and I now present to you: part 2. I really hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it.
I want to give you a disclaimer though, my writing style has changed and I've had a lot of time to refine it. Due to this I have switched from first person, to third person. I really hope that this isn't too much of a bother for anyone, but I promise that you will still enjoy it, perhaps more than part 1. These chapters will be much longer and much more deeper than part 1, and due to this they will be uploaded sporadically. I want you all to know however, that I won't leave any of you hanging, part 2 WILL be completed eventually, I only ask for a little patience :)
With that said, please brace yourselves and remember to keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times. This is one emotional rollercoaster you're not going to want to leave.
Denial and Consequences - Part 2
Chapter 1 - "Stupid Tori"
Jade
The room was deathly quiet, save for a few sobbing women who sniffed and tried to blow their noses quietly, albeit unsuccessfully. There was a palpable sense of longing that filled the audience, their attentions enraptured by the scene that played out before them.
There was a stench of five thousand people that hung heavy in the air, a sweaty and tantalizing mixture of perfumes and colognes all mingled together to form a unique smell that Jade had come to appreciate over the months; associating it with her success.
She watched the dark hardwood stage intently from behind a purple curtain to the left of the stage, slightly nervous and incredibly excited as the final act came to a close. Two performers stood center stage, their faces contorted with pain and desire.
One of them was an actress, playing the main role of Cory; a girl way over her head in this tragic love story. Her beauty was only magnified by the makeup she wore; the bright pink lipstick standing out against the paleness of her face, and the fake lashes and eye makeup made her gaze all the more powerful. She wore a frilly pink dress that seemed to fit her figure so well that it only served to extenuate the curves of her body. It also revealed a lot of cleavage- too much in Jade's opinion, but the set designer had insisted on it. Jade felt a rush of affection and appreciation for the actress portraying Cory, she had really made the role her own and propelled the theater performance into an overnight success.
From her vantage point to the side of the stage, Jade stole another glance at the audience; every head was fixed to the stage, every gaze locked onto the performers and they all shared a similar expression, one of anticipation. She smiled to herself, allowing just a moment of intense satisfaction and pride, before she looked back to the actors with anticipation.
"But Chet!" Cory said, her voice cracking and tears rolling down her pale cheeks. "I… I love you!"
There was a gasp in the audience, their muffled whispers rose for a moment, before they died down as Chet froze and then turned to look at Cory.
Chet wore an old army uniform; it was dark green, crisp and tucked in at all the right places, which served to highlight his muscly frame. He had a stern look on his handsome face, but it softened as the woman drew nearer. His dark and long hair was slicked back and he held a hat under his burly arm, which fell to the ground with a low thunk, as Cory walked to stand before him.
Jade allowed herself another satisfactory smile, the performer portraying Chet really was perfect for the role. He was gorgeous -even Jade could see that. But there was more to him than just that. Even though he had never acted in anything more serious than college theater productions, he was an astoundingly good actor and brought Chet to life more than Jade could have ever imagined.
"Cory…" Chet said, his husky voice now also cracking.
"Shh." Cory ushered and raised a tentative finger to his lips.
The audience oohed and ahhed as Cory leaned up to kiss him -which was quite a feat for the actress, seeing how the actor was taller than she was.
Cory and Chet hesitated a moment, their lips brushing one anothers as they played to the audience's anticipation. Chet gently placed two hands on each of Cory's cheeks and drew her in to a long and deep kiss; their bodies now pressed tightly together in a lingering embrace. Jade felt a sudden twinge of jealously and annoyance. She watched Cory intently and was sure that there was some tongue action going on. A possessive fire had swelled inside Jade as she watched and she balled her fists tightly in an attempt to quench the raging inferno.
Jade tried to remind herself that they were just actors and that it didn't mean anything, but it was hard to watch her lover in the arms of another. Harder still, to watch her lover kissing another person so passionately. But that was why she had hired them afterall.
It's just acting, it's not real. Jade told herself sternly, willing herself to believe it and closing her eyes.
The room was so quiet that she could hear the muffled slurping and sickeningly wet sounds that the performer's lips were making against one another. She squeezed her eyes shut even more, as if doing so would make her deaf as well as blind.
"Cory!?" A voice had shouted in confusion and anger, slicing through the silence like a knife and breaking the almost picture perfect scene like the sting of a whip.
Jade's eyes flickered open and she felt a rush of relief to find another actress walking haughtily onto stage, boots clicking with every step.
This actress wore a bright green dress, the sequins dazzled in the spotlight and her beauty was also evident despite the makeup she wore; blood red lipstick and dark mascara done in a catseye effect. The black wig she wore had been styled so that hair cascaded down her back in shoulders in lazy curls. The black of her hair only serving to project the beauty of her pale face, which was contorted into a mixture of shock horror and burning anger, her fists balling tightly by her sides, practically mimicking Jades very temperament not moments ago.
Jade congratulated herself once more on the choice of talent she had acquired for this theater performance, this actress was portraying Emerald- the victim of this sordid love triangle.
"Emerald!?" Cory and Chet said together in surprise. The audience let out a simultaneous groan; a few gasps could be heard amongst the rabble as well as a few exclamations of excitement.
The two actors then froze in their positions, their bodies becoming rigid and motionless. Emerald remained unfrozen however, as she stared first at Cory, and then at Chet with a pained expression that spoke volumes of the raging battle going on inside her.
Jade could see that the two frozen performers were breathing slightly, but that was only due to how close she was to them from her vantage point at side stage. To the audience, it would appear as if both were stopped motionless in time. Jade had worked on this routine with them tirelessly for months until they'd been able to do it on cue, perfectly.
Emerald's hands were pressed together at her chest like she was praying as she walked to the front of the stage. Her face was twisted into a look of the utmost betrayal; Jade could almost hear the heartbreak in her voice as she spoke.
"The love of my life… and my best friend…" she began, pausing to wipe a tear from her cheek, "words cannot express my sorrow." Emerald looked to the ceiling, pressing her hands tighter together. "Dear God who art in Heaven, smite me now! For I will never breathe once more without this pain- this agony- in my heart. Free me from my hurt and break the bonds that bind me. My lover…." She glanced towards the actors, tears now welling in her eyes. "And my dearest friend, have betrayed me. O Lord, if you will not free me, then I will free myself!" She let out a long sob, tears trickling freely down her face.
Emerald then let out a gut wrenching, ear-splitting scream that echoed and bounced around in the deathly silent amphitheater. The audience gasped at the pitch of it, a few of them even covered their ears. Emerald dropped to the floor, surprising the audience, and revealed a pair of scissors that had been concealed in her hand. The audience gasped yet again as she drew them to her arm. With one quiet but audible snick, she opened the scissors deftly and then with careful precision, they bit her flesh deeply as she drew it down her wrist- first the left and then the right. Blood poured out almost instantly, drenching her dress and pooling around her in a gruesome puddle.
The actress pretended to fumble the scissors as she raised them to her neck, before slicing it open as well and promptly showering the front row with blood. It was almost comical in a way and Jade had to stifle a laugh as the audience in the seats closest to the stage raised their arms in an attempt to shield themselves from the onslaught. A few people yelled in surprise and more tried to sink further into their chairs, as if hoping that it would protect them. However, the noise died down almost instantly when the actress crumpled to the floor as she pretended to bleed out, choking and sputtering all the while.
Cory and Chet came to life at once; their faces, which had been frozen in shock and shame, were simultaneously replaced with confusion and then fear.
"Em!" Cory shouted, falling to her knees and attempting to stem the flow of blood still spraying out from Emerald's neck. "Oh Em… oh my sweet Em!"
Jade laughed again, a little louder this time, as the blood squirted first Cory in the face and then all down the crisp army uniform of Chet- who had knelt down to place two tentative fingers on the side of Emerald's bloodied neck.
Without breaking character and as the blood dripped from his clothes, he let his hand drop slowly. His face was crestfallen and he drew in a deep breath. Chet's concerned eyes found Cory's desperate ones as she grasped Emerald's limp hand in desperation, as if holding it would bring her back to life.
The blood had slowly come to a halt now, only letting out a little squirt every few seconds as the performers stared at each other in horror.
"Cory…" Chet said in a cracking voice, "she-" he gulped and drew in another shaky breath, "she's gone."
"EMERALD!" Cory shouted long and hard, her bloodied fists raised to the ceiling. "NOOOOO!"
They all froze again -although the image was shattered somewhat after a few seconds due to one last pathetic squirt of blood, which splashed Chet's chin and Jade could see him fighting hard not to blink or flinch as a few stray flecks headed straight for his eyes.
Jade let out a giggle as she watched gleefully, the curtains had begun descending now. There was an instant and tumultuous round of applause, a thunderous cacophony of cheering and whistling, and Jade saw that the whole room was on their feet- a standing ovation.
A standing-fucking-ovation! She thought to herself, her heart swelling with pride, like a balloon rising and fit to bursting in her chest.
And then the curtains fell, but that did little to quieten the boisterous crowd.
The actors came to life again, dropping their facades instantly and laughing as they stood up. Jade hurried over with a large grin on her face, and tears welling in her eyes.
"You were incredible, Steph!" Jade said to the actress who had portrayed Emerald, taking her bloodied hand and helping her to her feet.
Stephanie beamed and giggled as she looked down at the mess of blood covering her clothes and all around them. "Went a bit over the top with the fake blood though, didn't they?"
"I don't think it was nearly enough." Jade replied, hugging Stephanie tightly and not caring that her clothes were now covered in fake blood as well. "The front row didn't get sprayed anywhere close to as much as last time!"
They all shared a laugh and Jade turned to the actress portraying Cory, grabbing her hands and smiling warmly at her. "You were unbelievable, Elle."
Elle flicked the hair of the brown wavy wig behind her shoulder and shrugged, "I was, wasn't I?"
With one swift motion she had pulled Jade into a deep kiss, Elle's hands trailing up Jade's back and giving her goosebumps. Jade kissed her back, although less forcefully as she was dimly aware of all the eyes in the room fixated on them.
"Get a room!" Said the actor portraying Chet as he feigned a long and drawn out sigh.
"Leave them alone, Ben." Stephanie said, and Jade heard the unmistakable sound of a shoulder being punched playfully. "I think it's totes adorbs!"
Jade used this as an excuse to break away from the kiss, tasting Ben on her girlfriend's lips and wanting to gag, or at the very least rinse her mouth out. Jade caught Elle's glance and she wore a satisfied smirk, they shared a look and both shook their heads slightly; they had often complained about Stephanie's excessive use of millennial text speak, but did so in an affectionate and caring way.
A little red in the face and feeling very heated, Jade turned around. "Curtain call!" She shouted over the top of the applause that was still ringing from the audience.
All at once, a stream of performers filed out from behind the side curtains of the stage, looking immensely pleased and excited as they chatted amongst themselves and laughed. Jade could feel a giddy rush of overwhelming emotion filling her, like a cannon that was seconds away from exploding.
Together they all joined hands and formed a line as the curtains were lifted once more.
"And now, ladies and gentlemen," a cool deep voice announced over the loudspeakers, barely audible as the crowd grew louder now that they could see everyone on stage. "Please give it up for the cast and crew who have brought you tonight's production, Fading to Black!"
As one, they all took several bows, raising their hands up high in the air as they dipped down together, and then swinging them as they straightened up. Jade couldn't even hear herself think, the crowd was so deafeningly loud that she could feel the stage vibrating with their cheering, applauding, and whistling.
Slowly the curtains fell again, but the noise didn't stop there. It carried all the way backstage and it wasn't until Jade had made it into the hallway leading to the dressing room, could she finally hear anything again- but even then there was a deafening ringing in her ears. She found she didn't mind it at all, instead she welcomed this bizzare screeching like a warm hug.
Jade had just barely made it half way to the dressing room when she felt a hand slide down her back and then grab one of her buttocks tightly, a surprise noise escaped her throat unbidden. It was Elle and she was visibly overjoyed, grinning widely.
"That went really well!" She said happily, pecking Jade on the cheek and leading her forwards with a skip in her step. "I nearly forgot my lines in the middle there -you probably noticed- although Ben saved me. But…" Elle paused to give Jade an accusing look, before she smirked and continued. "It was only because you kept looking at me in that way." Elle sighed and stopped outside the door, turning to face her. Jade felt a sudden sense of panic, worried that Elle would kiss her again, but found relief within seconds as she merely continued. "You wrote this so brilliantly, Jay. I'll be amazed if you're not famous by the end of tonight!"
Jade allowed herself a small satisfactory smile and she eyed Elle up and down. "Being famous is-"
"Did someone say famous?" Ben interrupted from behind them, he jogged the last few paces to catch up, an ear splitting grin on his face too. "Because I'll have you know that my fiancée-"
"Is a famous singer slash actress, we know, Ben." Elle finished in exasperation. "Where is she, anyway? You said she was going to come backstage, I thought she'd be here by now. If she doesn't hurry up we'll miss the afterparty!"
Ben slapped a hand to his forehead, "I was meant to meet her out there when we finished. I'll be right back!"
Elle laughed after him and rolled her eyes again. "You've met his fiancée, haven't you, Jay?"
Jade frowned and her eyes squinted as she thought. "I don't think so. Although he does talk about her a lot so I guess I have in some way."
Elle raised a hand to the ceiling in mock salute. "Ain't that the truth!"
"Do you know what his fiancée's name even is? I don't think I've ever heard him say it."
Elle shrugged and opened the door, motioning her arm forward and bowing slightly. "Beats me. Ladies first!"
"Oh my," Jade said in a highly embellished accent, placing a hand over her heart and curtsying in an over-the-top way. "A gentleman after my own heart!"
Jade entered the dressing room and was immediately hit with the smell of many different perfumes and hairsprays, and a heady aroma of sweat and excitement. There was a buzzing ambiance of passion in the room, and Jade could feel it overcoming her. It sent a pleasant tingling all around her body, her mind whirring with thoughts of the final act.
"It's like an orgasm." Ben had once drunkenly said to her, "a 'performance orgasm'. It's better than a normal orgasm!"
Jade was similarly drunk also and she had snorted with laughter, punching him on the arm affectionately. "A 'performance orgasm'? I don't know what kind of sex you're having, but nothing is better than an actual orgasm!"
"It actually is," Ben had nodded sagely as he spoke, "because- get this- after performing you feel insanely good, right? And exhausted after all that work too. Just like a normal orgasm." He paused a moment for dramatic effect, "but unlike normal orgasms, I get to have multiple!"
"How does that even work?" Jade had said between gasps of air and through the tears streaming down her face.
"Well." Ben feigned seriousness and lifted a hand, three fingers raised. "You have one when the curtains close after the final act." He lowered a finger, "one during or after curtain call, or both." He winked and another finger was lowered, "and the last one in the dressing room, when you get to change out of those stupidly tight outfits!"
Jade smirked as she remembered this, and couldn't help but agree with him now. Recalling how she felt during those instances- barring the latter- it all suddenly made sense. She wouldn't tell him that of course; the last time she'd admitted he was right about something, he'd tried to convince her that the earth was flat and lizard people were secretly controlling the world.
"I'm going to get changed, Jay." Elle said, kissing Jade's cheek and breaking the trance she had slipped into. "Be right back!"
Jade nodded after her and walked to a bench, retrieving some wipes and trying to minimalize the damage that the fake blood had wreaked on her favorite shirt. She was in the middle of cussing out a particularly stubborn stain -which had only smudged more as she attacked it with a wipe- when she heard what sounded like her name being called.
"Ooh Jadey-Wadey-Poo!" It was Ben, and he was waving to her over the sea of performers now crowding the room.
Ben had taken to nicknaming her Jadey-Wadey-Poo, after he'd found out that her nickname Jay was short for Jade. After he'd received the reaction he'd wanted from her then, he'd repeatedly called her that name whenever he had the chance, knowing full well how much it annoyed her. If it had been anyone else, she probably would have several felonies charged against her, and more than likely been imprisoned by now.
Jade could see that he was leading someone behind him, their hands locked together as the performers all around them had formed a kind of human traffic jam. She assumed that it was his fiancée, racking her brain to remember if she'd ever heard him mention a name before, but came up short. Ever since she'd known Ben, he had always referred to his other half as my fiancée.
After a few moments of audible swearing and apologies, they'd managed to squeeze through and popped out unexpectedly beside her.
Jade's heart plummeted instantly. Her smile faded into a tight scowl, her entire body going rigid with an overwhelming emotion that was a mixture of confusion, anger and rage. Her stomach squirmed with fire and an unpleasantly hot feeling crept up to her face. As if on reflex, she crossed her arms and held them protectively and tightly against her chest.
"Jay," Ben said- not noticing the fierce battle raging inside Jade- gesturing his free hand to the woman at his side, as if to say ta-da! "I'd like you to meet my amazing- my gorgeous- my extremely talented… fiancée!"
There was an awkward silence in which Ben's cheeky grin faded slightly, his eyes moved from Jade, to his fiancée, then back to Jade again.
"If you want an autograph…" he began.
"Tori." Jade tried to say coolly, but it had come out like a bark instead.
Tori's expression went from confusion, to shock, and then finally with a visible effort, to cheerful. "Hey, Jade!" She'd said the words with a kind of confidence that was a little too confident to be believable, but it seemed to fool Ben; who smiled and relaxed.
"Vicky, you never told me that you knew Jay…" He said in bewilderment, rounding on Tori with a puzzled expression.
Jade eyed Tori, who had really gone all out tonight. She wore a tight, silky bright red dress that (Jade had noticed with a sense of smug satisfaction) was sprayed heavily with fake blood. Her face was similarly flecked with blood as well, and there was evidence that she had tried to wipe it away, but had only succeeded in smudging it along with her makeup. Despite all this however, she still looked beautiful and Jade hated her even more for that.
"We…" Tori started hesitantly, breaking eye contact with Jade to smile up at Ben. "We go way back."
Ben grinned, revealing his perfectly white, perfectly straight teeth. "Why didn't you say anything sooner? We could have met up and had a few laughs about the good ol' days!"
Jade let out an involuntary scoff, which she managed to disguise as a cough. Her mouth felt unnaturally dry and there was an annoying lump in her throat that no amount of gulping would push down.
The silence had become awkward again and Ben looked around, his gaze casting over the sea of people who were now mostly locked in conversations about the nights performance. "Where's Elle?"
"Diiiiiid someone say my name?" Elle said, jumping out from seemingly nowhere and jabbing her fingers into Ben's sides, laughing at him as he staggered and let out a cry of shock.
"Ow!" He yelled and rubbed his ribs gingerly with one hand, and raised a finger to wag it in her face. "Dammit Elle, don't make me put you in the naughty corner for that childish behavior!"
"Ooh." Elle cooed with a sultry smile. "Is that a threat or a promise?"
"It'll be both if you're not careful."
Jade's piercing gaze hadn't left Tori as she stood there throughout the exchange not sure what to do. Jade had been around Ben and Elle long enough to know how their friendship worked and wasn't bothered by their pretend flirting. However, Tori had clearly never been in this position before and evidently wasn't sure whether to say something or remain silent.
Tori's dilemma was resolved when Elle turned to Jade and placed a hand on her lower back. "Hey, babe." Elle said, pecking Jade on the cheek. "Are you going to introduce me to this fine looking stranger?"
Blushing, Tori looked to the ground in obvious embarrassment.
Jade had to grit her teeth and bite her tongue to keep herself from retorting. The anger she felt was becoming harder and harder to contain, she felt as though she were about to burst with the effort.
"This is my wonderful famous singer slash actress-" Ben started, but was cut off by Elle who had thrust out a hand to shake Tori's vigorously.
"-Fiancée." Elle finished for him with a smirk. "With the way he talks about you, anyone would think that your name is actually Fiancée." She strained the word in a fake posh accent. "I'm Lillith. But everyone calls me Elle. Unless I'm being punished..." she glanced at Jade with a sardonic smile, "or unless it's Ben trying to be funny." Her gaze fell upon Ben who grinned sheepishly.
"I'm Victoria." Tori said and brushed a stray hair behind her ear, face still flushed with a brilliant pink. "Most people just call me Vicky, but Jade..." she paused in hesitation, stealing a quick look at Jade and looking away swiftly when she saw the expression on Jade's face. "But some people call me Tori."
There was another lull in the conversation, Jade still glowered at Tori and refused to break eye contact with her.
Just when it had started to get awkward again, Ben drew in a deep breath. "Whelp, I think we're going to head off and... we'll meet you at the afterparty?"
Elle nodded, seemingly unaware of the silent battle of wills between Jade and Tori. "We'll be there soon. I think Jay will want to change too…?" She looked to Jade who nodded slowly, still glaring at Tori who, by now had begun shuffling uncomfortably, her eyes fixed firmly on the carpet.
"Great!" Ben said a little too loudly, stepping to the side and heading for the door. "See you in a few, then."
Jade glared daggers at the back of Tori's head as her and Ben made their way to the door, attempting to avoid people and bumping into a few along the way. Although she couldn't see them anymore, she watched as the door opened and then slammed shut after a few seconds.
Elle turned to Jade, who was now glaring at the door as if it had said something very rude to her.
"Babe?" Elle asked tentatively, "you okay?"
"I'm fine." Jade replied a little too hastily, finally looking away and staring up at her girlfriend, who was a good foot and a half taller than her.
Elle had changed her clothes and now wore a leather jacket and ripped jeans. A printed t-shirt of her favourite band hung loosely on her figure, but it suited her. She had removed her brown wig to reveal her long and straight blonde hair. Although she had kept her performance makeup on, it only succeeded in making her more attractive.
While she could tell that Elle didn't believe her, thankfully Elle merely shrugged and jerked her head to the exit door. "You want to leave now too?"
Jade nodded curtly and together they made their way through the crowd, having an easier time then Ben and Tori; probably due to the fact that Jade was the director and Elle; the starring role.
Once in the car, Jade remained silent for a long time. She was mulling over the events of the night, annoyed by how marred it had become all because of stupid Tori.
Stupid fucking Tori.
Jade kept her eyes focused intently on the road, her foot locking into position on the accelerator in an almost a robotic trance, her hands squeezed the steering wheel so tight that her knuckles turned white.
As she thought about it more, she only ended up making herself feel angrier as an unbidden and startling thought occurred to her: during the play (and many times before that in practice) Ben had kissed Elle… who had then kissed Jade.
By proxy… Jade mused to herself, gritting her teeth and gripping the steering wheel more tightly. I've been making out with Tori this whole time, all over again.
The thought struck a chord deep within her soul where it vibrated and rung with a furious resentment. All this time, Jade had thought she'd put her past behind her, buried it deep within the recesses of her mind and stamped it with a HIGHLY CONTAMINATED sticker; never to be opened again.
But here it was now, Pandora's Box, opened like a can of worms. All the thoughts and feelings she'd been forcing herself not to feel, even shying and at times, running away from, for these past few years, had resurfaced like an angry bubbling broth of hot lava. She felt like a volcano, ready to burst with an almighty fury, and rain destruction down onto the unsuspecting landscape; spewing volatile magma to envelop everything she'd ever known and loved into a red hot and fiery doom.
"That Tori girl is kind of pretty," Elle said, completely oblivious the raging battle going on inside Jade's heart and mind. "Don't you think?"
Jade hit the brakes hard as the traffic light ahead of her flicked to red and the cars in front slowed to a halt. She heard a strangled gasp from beside her as Elle was flung forward slightly in her chair, the seatbelt locking and throwing her back into place against the seat.
"My bad." Jade muttered in an apology through gritted teeth.
They rode in silence the rest of the way home, all the while Jade's hands grew whiter and whiter and she was only dimly aware of a faint aching sensation coming from them.
As soon as Jade had pulled into her driveway and stopped, Elle was out the door before the seatbelt even had time to retract.
Jade mulishly sat there for a few minutes, hands still clenched on the steering wheel. Gradually they had began to ache more and more as the minutes drew on, with a reluctant growl she slowly released them. Suppressing a cry of pain, she flexed the fingers gingerly and rubbed at the knuckles, which had started to reclaim some of their original color.
After the pain had subsided somewhat, Jade pulled the keys from the ignition. She felt around in the back seat, smacking the cushion a little too forcefully, until her hand found her bag.
Once inside the darkened house, she stroked the wall blindly until she found the switch which illuminated the house at once.
A tidy kitchen greeted her to the left, where she walked up to the island counter and dropped her keys next to her bag upon it. Clean dishes waited patiently to be put away in the dish rack, and the counter tops gleamed with a sparkling sheen in the light. The fridge could be heard humming quietly in the corner, and the ceiling light that dangled in the middle of the kitchen swayed slightly like a pendulum with the breeze that wafted in through an open window.
To her right sat a comfy looking black leather sofa, two recliners matched it and were perched next to the sofa, all positioned to face a large widescreen TV which reflected Jade as she stared at it.
In front of her was a dimly lit hallway and Jade started toward it hesitantly as the blinding anger began to ebb away. Now that she was far away from stupid Tori, she realized how unfair she'd been to her girlfriend, realized that it wasn't her fault that Tori had shown up. That it wasn't her fault that stupid Tori had broken Jade's heart all those years ago.
Defeated, she slumped down the hallway and turned right into a large bedroom. Inside and dead center was a neatly made king sized bed, on which sat Elle. Her back was to Jade, she was staring at the wall and her body was rigid. Jade approached her with caution, taking only two hesitant steps into the room.
A walk in closet stood on the far wall, adjacent to that was a black desk which perched Jade's laptop. A screensaver slideshow of selfies taken with Elle and Jade, and several of those included Ben also, grinned up at her as they faded from one photo to the next.
Jade side stepped through the piles of dirty clothes that littered the floor, the carpet itself had been hidden for several days now while the production of Jade's play had neared its head.
"Elle?" Jade said softly as she approached the bed.
Visibly tensing when Jade spoke, Elle remained silent, but forced herself to relax somewhat which made it look like she'd half-spasmed-half-shrugged all at once.
"Elle… look." Jade began, walking forward to the bed and crawling over it to sit beside her girlfriend. "I'm sorry."
Elle still remained silent, her gazed fixed on their closet now, which was open slightly and the sleeve of a shirt could be seen poking out, as if to say, "Hello! Please wear me!"
"Baby…" Jade hesitated, raising an arm to put around her, but thinking better of it and let it fall instead and it made a soft thud as it hit the sheets. Jade sighed dejectedly and made to stand up and leave when she heard Elle draw in a sharp breath.
"You never talk to me anymore." Elle said, fighting back the bitterness in her voice but only succeeding in sounding like a monotone robot.
Jade sat back down on the bed and turned to her, biting her lip a little too hard and drawing blood. The metallic taste was tangy on her tongue and she licked her lips as if trying to buy time.
"Yes I do..." Jade began, searching her brain for examples to prove her point. When she drew short, she changed tactics quickly and hastened on. "I mean, there's not much to say, really. You never ask-"
Elle scoffed and turned to look at Jade, her brows were furrowed and her mouth was a thin line. "I asked you if you were okay in the theater, remember?"
Jade opened her mouth to retort but then closed it again, her mouth making a slight pop as it snapped shut.
"And it's not even just tonight," Elle continued, "it's all those other time's I've asked about you and how you're feeling and you just shut off completely until I'm forced to change the subject and or drop it. I'm so sick of it, Jade. Sometimes it feels like I barely even know you, I don't even know a thing about your past! I don't know where you grew up, or where you went to school. Fuck, Jade I don't even know who your parents are!" She paused, as if trying to find the right words. "But there is one thing I do know. I know that you're not okay but you never want to talk about it. I never know how you're feeling because you never tell me, even when I ask. And if I press it then you end up snapping at me and we're right back where we started!"
Elle slumped forwards, her head in her hands as she sighed. Jade was speechless, words were failing to form coherent sentences in her mind and every time she tried to speak, those words were caught in her throat, stuck behind that annoying lump that had formed in her throat again and made it feel thick and heavy. With a hard swallow she tried to force it down.
"Imsrry." Jade managed to say at last, the words coming out all jumbled in her haste to say something in the swelling silence. She coughed once, hoping to dislodge the lump, and when it didn't budge, she cleared her throat and tried again. "I'm sorry."
Elle remained silent for a time, the apology seeming to slide off her as she shrugged half heartedly. "What about Ben's fiancée?"
"Tori?" Jade said a little too hastily. "What about her?"
Elle rolled her eyes and sighed. "What about her? What about you? What about both of you?!"
"What are you even talking about, Elle?"
"I'm talking about the fact that you knew her. I'm not blind, Jade. I could see that there was history between you two. How do you even know her? What does she mean to you?"
"Mean to me? Are you serious?" Jade fought hard to keep her voice steady, but the anger was already rising within her like hot air trying to find a way to escape out of a cramped space. "She means absolutely nothing to me."
And that was the truth. For five years, Tori had meant absolutely nothing to Jade, hadn't even been worth a second thought. For five blissfully short years, Tori had been but a memory. Jade had hoped with an almost ignorant stubbornness that she would remain that way for the rest of their lives.
"Okay, yes." Jade said, deciding to surrender to the partial truth. "We knew each other once. We went to the same school. And then we… we went our separate ways after graduation. That's it. That's all there is to it."
Elle eyed her skeptically and took in a deep breath. "That's it, really? You expect me to believe that? You just went your separate ways and never saw each other again? Why? What hapened?"
The memories of the last time Jade had seen Tori bubbled to the surface, and for a moment she had been transported back in time. For a moment, she had felt everything she felt on that night, every ounce of anger and sadness and betrayal. For a moment, she felt weak and vulnerable, unable to comprehend the wrong that Tori had done by her.
Forcing herself back to the present, Jade found that she entered into a kind of numb trance, she was staring at her girlfriend without actually seeing her. Thoughts had left her and now all she was left with was a fuzzy, dulled and dumbed down feeling. Her brain felt like it'd been wrapped in a woolly blanket and her tongue felt like loose carpet in her mouth. She decidedly remained silent, incapable of thinking and then forming words.
Jade had been running from her past, fighting desperately to not think or feel anything about it for so long and now it felt as if everything was on fast forward; rushing to catch up to her, and drowning her under the weight of five years worth of emotions and memories.
As if flicking a switch in her brain, she snapped out of the trance at once. Deciding to shove all of those thoughts and feelings back into the box labeled HIGHLY CONTAMINATED, and forcing herself to relax and smile weakly.
"She did something serious and I knew that I'd never be able to trust her again. I knew that I couldn't involve myself with someone like that, so we went our separate ways." Jade closed her eyes for a moment and sighed heavily, searching for a way to end this conversation as fast as possible. They were treading on thin ice and the surface had already begun to crack. Any further and they would both be swallowed in the frigid waters of the cold and harsh reality. "Look, can we not do this now? The afterparty began like, twenty minutes ago, and I want to be there to support my cast and crew. Without them I wouldn't be where I am now, and I need to be there to show my appreciation to them for that."
Elle nodded reproachfully, although Jade could tell that she wanted to press the issue, thankfully she did not. Instead she got to her feet and headed for the bathroom with a towel in hand. "Are you going to join me?"
Jade nodded but remained where she was for a few moments, processing everything that had happened, her brain felt like it was spiraling in overdrive and she couldn't work out how to stop it.
For five years things had been good for her. Too good in fact. She had finally moved up in the world, worked hard to become a writer and director of a successful play, had a home of her own and had met an amazingly wonderful girlfriend who made her more happy than Tori ever had or could.
Even though Tori's presence tonight had ruined the elation of the play, had caused a fight between herself and her girlfriend, and had now made her remember why she'd left Hollywood in the first place… she couldn't stop thinking about Tori. Couldn't stop that little part of her that longed to see Tori once more, to hold her, to talk it out… to maybe even kiss her one last time…
Jade shook her head vigorously. No. She was with Elle now. And she wouldn't do to Elle what Tori had done to her. Never in a million years. Tori had broken her heart, shattered her trust and destroyed any chance of them ever being together all those years ago. Tori had made her bed, and she can fucking sleep in it for all Jade cared.
Shaking her head again, as if doing so would dislodge these unwanted and unbidden thoughts and feelings, she stood up and headed for the bathroom.
Stupid Tori.