5 days later as Tori arrives in Glasgow
"ok I didn't think it'd be so cold for this" says Tori
"I can't believe you're actually here, I mean my mom has talked me up before about someone famous letting me paint them but it's always been talk to get me hyped up when Valerie couldn't text me so I'd paint her" says Adella
"may I see a painting, I'd like to know the kind of quality I'm signing up for" asks Tori
"legally I can't show you the one I should so you know what to look forward to for your special one but here's one I did of Cutie, that's what I call Valerie" says Adella as she pulls over a painting of Valerie
"uhhhhhh holy cow….. I don't think I can afford that quality" says Tori absolutely shocked
"but you're the richest pop star on the planet" says Adella
"and me saying what I said should say everything that needs to be said, I was prepared to spend five million pounds each, but if you can deliver that level of detail, that level of brush mastery I'm willing to pay seven million pounds each, only IF you can deliver that level to each painting" says Tori as Adella winces
"there's a problem with my method you might not like, see to get that level of detail I have to touch the subject I'm painting, even if it's a piece of wood or a leaf or a naked person, I need to do that, my fingers are very sensitive, if you want me to omit any details I will…. One question, why hire me, surely there are other artists worth the money your spending on" says Adella
"I pay for talent not age Adella, that picture of my cousin you showed me, it takes most people twenty years to get that good, on the hands thing, as long as you don't linger on either my chest or between my legs for longer than five seconds without asking for more time to get the detail information you need I don't have a problem with it, why are you so down about your amazing talent" says Tori
"my art teacher at school calls me a creep and a freak for doing art the way I do, he acts like I don't ask for consent first, he's failed me seven times just this semester purely because of how I do my art nothing is based on the art itself" says Adella
"how about this you paint me both paintings and I will go talk to your art teacher immediately after, I will give him a piece of my mind" says Tori
"please don't, he's hard enough on me already and he's not worth the brain power, let's just get this painting done so you can feel insanely good about yourself, that's why you're actually here right" says Adella as she leads her to he room to paint
After painting at the school behind Adella's back
"um excuse me miss why are you here, the school is closed for repairs" says the main office lady Gabrielle
"I need to speak to the principal about a teacher going out of his way to make sure a student quits her passion" says Tori
"I'm sorry miss Starlight but this school does not condone that here, it couldn't happen here" says Gabrielle
"see it most certainly does, so the principal please" says Tori forcefully
"regarding who exactly" asks Gabrielle
"Adella Maria Lopez" says Tori firmly as Gabrielle runs to get the Principal
5 minutes later
"another popstar meddling in the…" says Principal Juno as Tori flips around the painting Adella painted
"Adella Maria Lopez painted this and somehow she's failing art please explain this to me" says Tori
"I-i-I uh um have no idea, she really painted this how" stutters Principal Juno
"she has extra sensory feeling in her fingers, her teacher calls her a creep and a freak for using her hands to get information her eyes can't discern, she asks for consent before doing so, she's neither a creep nor a freak and I paid her fourteen MILLION dollars for this artwork because I was feeling a little down so here's what you're going to do, you're going to call that teacher down here right now and either he apologizes or he resigns right here right now" says Tori forcefully again
"no need for the pushy request, we have a no bullying policy, that goes for both students and teachers, if he did what you say he did then his job is as good as gone" says Principal Juno
Alexander to the principals office, Alexander to the principals office
"you know she's an amazing kid right" asks Tori
"I know she's definitely not a creep" says Juno as Alexander walks in unimpressed
"ugh another pop star thinking she can have a say in the education of our youth, what's this one want, the kids to have more food at lunch I bet" says Alexander
"I want you off the job, look at this painting who do you think painted it" says Tori twirling the painting so he can see
"crap I'm being fired aren't I, is it my fault her method seemed creepy" asks Alexander
"you forgot realize she asks for consent before she touches another human being, you broke the first rule of being a teacher here, no tearing students down based on personal beliefs, you have ten minutes to pack up your belongings and you will be escorted out by security, I doubt she was your only target" says Juno
Back at the Lopez home 45 minutes later
"I've got good news Adella" says Tori
"the bank accepted your cheque" asks Adella
"no, it's about your teacher, your mean art teacher" says Tori
"you promised not to get involved, now he's going to make my life a living hell there when school returns in person" cries Adella as Valerie hugs her tight
"actually he got fired for breaking rule number one, no tearing down students based on personal beliefs" says Tori
"but he's been there longer than most teachers, how are they going to replace him, what did you say that swayed them" asks Adella
"your picture was proof enough, I asked the principal how a student who painted this amazing painting of me could possibly be failing art, that Principal stuttered faster than I was expecting, I told her how you said he called you a freak and a creep, the art teacher was called down, I asked him who he believed painted this painting and his response was and I quote 'crap I'm being fired aren't I', as for teaching the students have chosen you as the intermediary teacher with Sarah as the supervising 'agent', given they can't pay a teenager they're paying your mom, the principal said that Valerie was welcome to join the online classes, the students apparently really want to meet her, the pay will be a livable wage" says Tori revealing the dress painting
"oh my god that might be your best work Adellia, now the world can see how talented you are" says Mark
"I wish she'd let me show you her birthday suit one, that is even better… did it help" says Adella
"quite a bit, Cat insisted we get married on Christmas eve, she managed to find a place willing to accept our money you guys are invited, Cat will insist but you can decline if you want, quick note the dress I chose to be painted in was the wedding dress I was most drawn to, what you did Adella was paint my wedding dress, seeing the details after you'd finished, my jaw would have hit the floor if it were possible, then you did my special painting and had I not been convinced I had a job to do getting you justice I'd have probably fainted right then and there and not woken up till someone called Jade" says Tori
"really, it was that good" asks Adella
"my cousin does not joke around Deli, she strives to tell the truth every chance she gets, it actually hurts her when she hides things, besides my moms like a lie detector, couldn't ever once get away with not cleaning my room, she'd have slapped Tori if she lied to you about something that big" says Valerie
"well that puts her lying to me about not disciplining my now former art teacher in a new light that I like" says Adella
"ok so I'd stopped at the bank with your bank information and tried to deposit that money after I left the school and they said they would not allow that much money to be put into any account here in Scotland so here's the deal, you give the person who you guys owe your debt to my number and I will explain it to them" says Tori
"she's actually on her way, I wasn't expecting you to come back, I was expecting you to head back to London after the painting, Mark usually works long hours trying to get as much done at his work as possible so he can make payments on our debt, I wasn't expecting him home till after, I don't drive, I was in an accident when I was six and my parents could barely afford the amputation surgery let alone the wheelchair I'd need, it was only Mark taking out a loan that got me this chair, we are at risk of losing the house to the debt, that's what she's meeting me for" says Sarah
"I don't leave till I absolutely have to, auntie Del had to fly back to LA to get Valerie a few things she loves and can't get here so I'm here for a few days at least" says Tori as Valerie almost cries
"what's the problem cutie" asks Adella hugging Valerie
"it's actually quite obvious, of all her fears that we didn't or won't understand, this one makes sense, the last time her mom left her alone was the day that evil man got to her" says Mark
"oh God, I thought I introduced you to her, Adella this is my dad, he works in construction, he's made the roads here in Glasgow ten times safer, oh and he may or may not be trans, if he'd known about how mean the teacher had been to me he'd have broken his legs so he couldn't hurt me, my dad's harmless, to us anyway Cutie, he will protect us till the day he dies" says Adella
"I didn't know you knew that about me Adella, I only came out to your mom last year" says Mark as Adella quickly runs upstairs and comes right back
"here's a picture I painted of you with more girly features, I hope it's ok momma" says Adella handing the painting to Mark
"wow, you painted me exactly how I want to look, how'd you know" says Mark absolutely dumbfounded
"a boy at school has two moms, you never really do the kinds of guy things I see most dads do so I painted what I thought you'd look like as my momma, I didn't show you before because I thought you'd be mad, you really like it momma" says Adella
"it's amazing Adellia, I feel like you looked into my soul when you painted that, anyway Brittany will be here any minute so I'm going to start taking measurements for your studio and new bedroom, you go cuddle with Valerie, leave Tori and Mom to talk this out with her" says Mark
"ok momma" says Adella as she almost carries Valerie upstairs
"give the builders my number and I'll pay for it out of her fourteen million allotment" says Tori
"I'm a construction worker Tori, what I do is build houses for families and fix roads, I can do it myself in my off time" says Mark as he heads to the basement as Brittany arrives
"hello Sarah how are we today… who is this, what we're about to discuss is very private" says Brittany
"she's Velvet Starlight, she's getting married and didn't feel good in her own skin, she paid Adella millions of dollars for a painting and part of the deal Adella made was to pay off my debt with some of that money" says Sarah
"oh my God Tori Vega yes ok, Jade West just helped hundreds of Scottish families, something about helping others before a marriage" says Brittany
"she's good like that, people think she's all scary because she's super mega rich, Cat's the only one without tons of money to help others before the wedding, I put fifty million dollars in the homeless Charity out in Ireland, on the west side" says Tori
"so this fourteen million for a painting wasn't part of that deal" asks Brittany
"no, this was a personal matter, I found a wedding dress I fell in love with and wanted for the wedding but when I put it on and looked in the mirror I thought I looked ugly, this is the painting Adella did, she did one for me personally that I'm not showing anyone here, here's the wedding dress one" says Tori turning the painting around
"I can see why you paid that much for it, she must have made you feel really pretty, so are you officially offering to pay off their debt, it's gotten to a quarter million dollars and the bank can't let her only pay a portion of it off every month anymore, it became a financial struggle for the bank yesterday" says Brittany
"yes, like Sarah said, Adella only let her paint me if I made sure her parents got enough of it to pay off the debt, what was it for" says Tori
"it was seventy-five grand for a special wheelchair for amputees that let's them live on multi floor houses, the bank had to take it from her as its policy not to let anyone owing over a hundred thousand pounds own anything expensive, they didn't realize just how much Sarah relied on it to get around, so they allowed me to return it to her with any replacement parts it needed, now let's talk transfer of funds" says Brittany
"I can pay by cheque from the account I specifically opened for paying Adella, can't ever be too cautious when paying people once they have a sliver of your banking information, the other option is you call my bank and request a withdrawal, I'll pay the amount you stated plus ten percent, they're planning to make Adella a studio and living space in the basement, which will also be paid through the money Adella earned painting me those paintings, as well as paying off the house, I'd give them the money directly but the bank won't let me, something about a security issue" says Tori
"a cheque will do fine, yes the issue is a fraud prevention measure miss Vega, the best option is to make it a dual ownership account giving Adella a bank card with a separate pin, especially given that you put the money in a separate account, doing such would allow Adella, Sarah, Mark or even Valerie access to the money" says Brittany
"so there is no way to give them and only them access to the millions I intended to pay Adella" asks Tori
"no, some dude from Russia scammed a poor family in northern Scotland for half a million dollars a few years back, he sent them the money claiming to want to help them get out of poverty in and once the money was received he charged them with theft, it was bad enough that the Scottish government put a limit on transfers of any kind, cheque, wire, cash or other internet transfer, a hundred grand is the limit, a dual account is the only legal option, you get caught with anything over a hundred grand in cash you get arrested, transporting money that way is illegal here" says Brittany as Tori writes the cheque
"here's the cheque, I have to go call my fiancé" says Tori
"let me go get your wheelchair Sarah, I'll only be a minute" says Brittany
With Tori
"Cat why are you on the app DanceTown, that's for corn stars" asks Tori
"it didn't say that, all it said is dance equals money, I've made a thousand dollars this week just being me, people don't seem to mind that I'm not half nude" says Cat
"so nobody has asked to see your kitten or boobs" asks Tori
"nope, besides I'm quite clear that I'm taken and my places are for their eyes only, people still donate, usually complimenting my smile, eyes or my dimples, they never get creepy, if you want me to stop then I will" says Cat
"why did you start doing it to begin with, I'm not mad I just want to know" asks Tori
"both you and Jade will never have to worry about money, my dads money is not my money, when he eventually dies most of it is going to Henry because he's worse off, he's never going to be able to get a job, nobody will hire a mass switch system Tori, I don't like the idea that you or Jade always pay for everything, it doesn't seem fair that I don't have to pay a dime, we're getting married, that means we'll be equals, meaning I will have to carry at least one bill, it's not fair if I let you guys pay for it all" says Cat
"your logic is solid I must admit, my only stipulation is that the moment they ask you to flash for them you bail on that ok, if they get creepy we will find another job for you, I love you and I'd hate for you to become some guys fantasy target again" says Tori
"Jade said you'd say that, you were my girlfriend first, how'd she come to understand you so well in such a short period of time" asks Cat
"the threat of Jail time terrified Jade, even as rich as she is, it terrified her, basically her mom since her dad's death has been biting at the bit to get Jade thrown in jail, mainly for being bisexual, saying its criminal and she's just trying to get close to children, which couldn't be farther from the truth, I'd managed to get Marissa to talk to Jade one on one and that's why we got house arrest, Jade broke down the moment we were sure we were alone, you and i both love her and she wasn't sure I did, in that moment where I hugged her and spoke softly to her she knew I was serious, it's hard for her to trust people Cat, getting her off serious charges and jail time was enough for her to see me differently, she's more observant than you think, because my dad's a cop she was terrified if she told me any of those things she told me that I'd have my dad arrest her" says Tori
"yeah she hides it but most of her plays involve being arrested and released by police, the ones she wrote at school were all just fronts I can't wait till you get back, what's Delores getting in LA anyway, it's a big risk for her" says Cat as Adella and Valerie eavesdrop
"a very specific ring passed down from mother to eldest daughter, my dad had three sisters, triplets really, auntie is the youngest both her sisters died and handed her the ring, Auntie Del is the last woman on the Vega side, Valerie has a big decision to make" says Tori
"what decision is that, to leave Adella, that would tear her apart" says Cat
"Auntie is nervous ok, neither Trina or I currently have any interest in having kids, all she's seeing is stop signs for this side of the Vega family tree, my grandmother married white and they don't consider any of my immediate family true Vega's, they don't speak to us" says Tori
"I have to go, Jade just got back from the dentist" says Cat hanging up as Adella and Valerie walk over to Tori
"mom's making me leave Adella isn't she" asks Valerie
"no, we're hated Vega's because our grandmother chose to follow her heart instead of caring about purity, your mother and my dad passed that trait down, this won't be a test of family faith but of faith of your chosen love, if you are dead sure your love for Adella is pure and lasting you will do what I did with mine when I started dating Cat, your mom doesn't believe in following the norms, she believes in following your heart" says Tori
"she doesn't believe Adella is the one for me does she" asks Valerie
"it's never her choice Valerie" says Tori
"I couldn't speak till the moment she hugged me, then she said it didn't matter if I was deaf, mute or paralyzed, that she'd still love me, I literally felt like I was melting from her caring gaze Tori, my short make out roll with her reversed the paralyzing effect that evil man had on me, if mom takes me away I'm not certain I'll ever be able to speak again, even now if she's not by my side I freeze when I'm asked a question, not just from Mark from anyone, that's why she always answers for me" says Valerie holding Adella tight
"ok you literally just answered every question she had, if you answer exactly like that she will give you the ring" says Tori
"how'd I answer a question I hadn't been asked" asks Valerie
"you are afraid of losing your voice, about losing your grounding source, your brain in the midst of that fear made assumptions about the situation, in this case your brain knowing your mom the way you do managed to make all the right assumptions, you assumed your age had everything to do with her fear, which is exactly what she feels, she's afraid of losing you, legally she can't just leave you here and go back to London, that's not how this works, in her heart she knows you love Adella, but she's afraid you'd push her away as a result, it terrifies her that in an instant she could lose the child she risked a loving marriage for" says Tori
"I could never, she sacrificed everything for me when I was born, a bond like that doesn't just disappear, it's because of that bond that I found love, if she has to stay here then Godspeed to Mark for making that studio basement thing" says Valerie