"I'm A Monster"
(Written by: Kimberlee T.) (Recommended, listen with this to fully submerge in the environment of the story and all that yada: /TFXK3c3SYvU)
Platinum Music Awards had just ended around 12 AM as a red car, pelted with rain, drove up to the driveway of the Vega household.
Out came Tori Vega, wearing her plastic-ish black pants and dark magenta shirt, still with the makeup from her performance of Make It In America. As Tori turned away to see Jade West, still with the poofy pink dress, drive her drenched red car away from the house. Tori opened up the door to her house as the metal hinge creaked across the slightly elevated flooring.
She took a small breath before jumping onto the couch like a little bean, bouncing on impact and then finally rolling on her side to face the TV on the soft red cushions. As she grabbed the TV Remote, a knock on the door was heard.
"Huh.. strange.." Tori said to herself.
It was literally 12 AM, who would be at her door at this time? She went up to the door and grabbed the silver, metal, door handle as she opened it to her surprise. In the heavy thunder and rain stood Jade West. The girl was illuminated by the flashes of thunder and lighting behind her. Jade was soaking wet, still in her poofy pink dress with exaggerated makeup and hid an expression that her makeup concealed, staring at Tori through the doorway.
"Hi..?"
Jade said nothing,
"You're soaking wet, come in," Tori continued.
She was concerned as she let Jade into the dry house as the drops coming from her jacket and dress formed a mini trail and puddle.
"Do you have a towel?"
Jade asked quickly, her tone caught Tori's attention. As if Jade was trying to hide something from her. Ah, so the usual, Tori would think to herself.
"There's a spare towel up in my room. My bedroom is-"
"No, I know, I've been in your room before."
"Oh yeah…"
-X-
As 1 AM rolled around in Los Angeles, the heavy rain continued to pelt down onto the roof of the Vega house.
Jade and Tori sat on the soft purple bed, the soft blanket covering Tori. The two gazed at each other as Jade finished drying herself off. Jade got up to stare at the bright white moon that illuminated the stormy clouds. Jade pulled up her glossy red pearphone, seeing a missed call from her father. She stared at it, a frown across her pale face. Tori spotted the expression, which began to grow her concern.
"Are you okay?"
Tori asked, preparing to go to sleep as she opened the soft covers to lay in bed. But no response came from Jade. Instead, she continued to stare and swipe the her shaky finger across the plastic screen, the grip on it tightening the longer she scrolled. Eventually, Jade turned to see the concerned Tori stare at her.
"My bad… I just had a moment…"
"What kind of moment?"
"I-" Jade stuttered, then took a small breath. Turning away from Vega, she muttered,
"It's best if you don't know."
Tori got from the bed, the bed creaked a little as she pulled the covers away, walk across the carpet floor and up to the clearly broken girl, sitting against the window, asking once again,
"What's wrong?"
"The reason why I came back to the house was not because I wanted to… be better friends.."
Tori's face frowned a little.
"Go on?"
"Imagine living a life where you have it all, a rich parent, a decent looking house and a good wad of cash stored in your bank.. And yet, with having it all, you seem to have nothing."
"I- I- don't understand?"
"My whole life, I lived under my dad's… strict rules. Everything that was under his roof, you go by his rules. Sound familiar?"
"Beck…" Tori suddenly remembered her conversation with him so many years back.
"Yeah. But even judging by Beck and Cat's lives, it makes them look like angels… Then there's me. I couldn't have fun like the other kids in the playground, I couldn't enjoy going to see a movie until I was 16, I couldn't even watch a simple show like The WaggaFuffles until I was 10 years old…"
"Wow… Jade…"
"It was horrible. Everyday, I sat in my room, trying to make my dad proud so he can give me a chance to waz off with those stupid restrictions, but.. He just makes my life more and more miserable. I couldn't take it. I couldn't contain my frustration. I-"
Jade sniffed, her childhood coming back to her, she suddenly heard her Dad's voice, the scoldings… and… the belt. Jade shivered as she rubbed her shoulder through the soft purple pajama tee, shaking off the trauma.
"Is that.. how you turned into who you are now?"
"More or less. One day, I was at the playground and the thoughts of my dad's alcoholic rage towards my mom just… came out. And then I grabbed a toy hammer and just beat a poor kid with it… I ran to my grandma's, crying."
"But… why would you continue to act so mean to everybody?"
"Because everyone else had better lives, and it wasn't fair that I had to suffer." Jade gripped her pants as she muttered.
Tori looked down. "Is that why you ran away?"
Jade nodded. "I did go home before I went back," she admitted, shifting in her seat. Tori knew that whatever was about to come next wouldn't be good.
"As soon as I went up to the driveway, I looked through the window of my home and saw the lights on in the dining room. I stepped out in the rain, with the poofy pink dress and a bunch of makeup smearing down my face. A-and I see-" she cuts off, swallowing the lump in her throat. Tears prick her eyes, but she makes no move to stop them; she's cried enough already.
Tori shifts a bit closer. "Keep going, it's okay," she assures Jade.
"I see my parents and my little brother, having a regular conversation. For once, a regular one. Nothing out of the ordinary. Dad was sober, Mom was happy and my little brother didn't look so… quiet.
"But before anyone could notice, a small puff of steam came from my warm breath, and I saw myself. Nothing but a gothic teenage freak who treats everyone like crap. All those years, I spent my life thinking I was the victim...
"But no, not after that. I ran, as fast as I could in those stupid heels, tripping onto the hood of my car, and then finally, driving away and I knew I couldn't come back. I can't."
Jade's eyes began to water, the bright reflection of the window appearing in her eyes as it flowed down the pale cheek. She wiped the flowing tear away as one soon dropped to the floor, staining the white carpet.
Tori saw the hurt in Jade's eyes and softened, sighing sympathetically. This wasn't the Jade West she always talked about.
This wasn't the mean girl who always treated her like a stain on the rug. The gothic grunch who always thought of her as a lesser or a wild animal, chewing in the garbage. The girl who always wanted to be better than her.
All of that, gone. All that remained was a lost girl who lost her grip on reality. A girl who had given up on her wish to make her family proud. A girl whose insecurities had gotten the best of her.
Tori tried to touch Jade's shoulder, but she rejected it, finally letting out a cry.
"You were right about me, Vega…"
Jade choked up as a hoarse voice let out the words,
"I'm a monster.."
-X-
Those three words… they hurt Tori more than it hurt Jade. All those years, why was she so blind? She can't bear to see the suffering Jade had gone through as a child and now, as a young adult. The fact that her family is happy without her, it sickened Tori.
"You're not a monster, Jade." Tori let out. A firm, stern, voice came out of her mouth.
Jade suddenly gave Tori her usual, confused, expression that everyone fell in love with.
"Nobody deserves to be considered a monster…"
"Easy for you to say, Vega. You're living a perfect life!"
"You- I- I know how it feels to try and impress parents too, Lyn."
Jade's pale face soon went light pink. A little embarrassed to hear half of her full first name, Jadelyn.
"I can tell you a little story. There was a mom who forced her second daughter to take voice lessons. She couldn't talk the mom out of it because she wanted her newest child to be something big… to- make it shine, I guess."
"Wh- what happened to the daughter?" Jade was intrigued, as if she heard a story like this before.
"The daughter, despite her reluctance, enjoyed her lessons and became the talented one of the family, eventually going to a school for the gifted and talented- meeting cool people, finally breaking her mentality of her being just normal-
"But in the back of her mind, she always thought she wasn't good enough, and always thought the worst. Her anxiety attacks worsened and sometimes, it felt like her life was just a dream waiting to be awoken from- Sound familiar?"
"You?" Jade asked.
Tori nodded, closing her eyes as her head sank, letting out the small burden she had on someone she'd least expected to listen.
Both Jade and Tori looked at one another, the two holding each other's hand. From Jade's pale blue eyes to Tori's dark brown's, the two cried on each other's shoulders, letting out all the sadness they had felt for years, to finally come to an understanding.
Jade then wiped a tear, wanting to hug Tori even more. As if something was attracting her to the latter.
A feeling she had felt before. A feeling she had felt when Tori gracefully celebrated when she was asked to be part of the Platinum Music Awards. Jade put her hand on her temple, trying to shake it off.
"What's wrong, now?"
Tori asked Jade, breaking the silence in the bedroom.
"It's… I don't know what it is, but… After our 'date', something changed. I couldn't stop thinking about…"
"About what?"
"You."
"Me? Is that in a negative way-"
"Depends.. I was thinking about you... romantically."
Tori's eyes widened, pointing to herself, completely shook. Jade felt an embarrassing blush as she got up and turned away saying,
"Yeah, I know… it's stupid and- and you're into guys so-"
"No… no… It's just that… I'm not into guys…"
"What do you mean?"
"Remember my last relationship, Ryder Daniels?"
"Yeah, you wrote a song about him and he eventually left the school out of humiliation.."
"After realizing he was just using me, I just grew sick of dating boys. I just… I don't want my heart to be broken again. Then I just thought… maybe I just…"
Tori got up from the window seat and went silent, the thunderclaps flashing through her mind as she remembered her relationship with Daniel, and how her jealousy got the best of her.
The poor naivety that clouded her mind when dating the player, Steven Carson
And the one who got away, Ryder Daniels, the one who made her realize she's no more than a toy to him.
Tori rubbed her head, trying to get the memories out of her mind. Tori finished her sentence with,
"Maybe I just don't like guys as I thought I did. Sorry, I had a little bit of a moment,"
"You're good… Ve- Tori…"
Jade replied, refraining from using Tori's last name, for once. Jade then added,
"At least people like you…"
"What?"
"Tori, am I really that unlovable?"
Jade asked, she looked down at herself, the tone of her voice softly saying such self-degrading words. Tori looked at Jade and then looked at her closet, having the courage to say,
"You're not. You're just missing something… or… someone."
Jade turned and looked at Tori, the two locking their eyes once again.
Both felt something that they had felt before. Their playdate, the sensation they felt.
Jade lost herself in Tori's hazel-brown eyes. Tori and Jade began to lean towards each other, then meeting at both ends with their lips, coming into contact.
The rain began to soothe, as if it passed by. The thunder's orchestral claps softened.
Tori caressed Jade's cheek, closing her eyes, she never felt Jade in such a soft manner.
Jade wrapped her arms around Tori, the jacket coming into contact with the cotton pajama shirt. They then separated their lips, the heat filling their faces, followed by a small smile from Jade and a little giggle from Tori.
"That felt…"
"Intense?"
Jade asked Tori, cutting her sentence off.
"Yeah.. a combination of soft and intense."
The two went back to the bed, sitting down and eventually laying on top of the rocky mattress.
"You think his box has predicted this moment?"
Jade asked.
"Sikowitz's box?"
"Yeah."
"I- I guess so.. If not indirectly."
Tori took this moment to look at the girl she had kissed, her black hair flowing across the bedding, beautifully waved with the mix of teal highlights. Jade turned to look at Tori, the pale skin made Tori feel warm. Tori shut her eyes, saying to herself,
"Yeah.."
"Yeah, what?"
"Remember when you said you have some feelings for me… romantically?"
"...yes.."
Tori then put her hand on Jade's, holding it, then lifted her elbow up to neck, smiling as she asked,
"Do you want to be my... girlfriend?"
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR:
Hi guys! Kimbers here, I hope you enjoyed my first public Jori fanfiction. This is my first ever oneshot so yeeee! Special thanks to haystack for improving the original document.