A Special Kind of Crazy

Chapter One

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this fic!

The front door of the school was thrown open with undeniable authority. Beck glanced up from his locker, well used to the dramatic entrance by now. After all, there had been two months to become accustomed to it. Sure enough, the girl who the students still dubbed as new breezed her way in, completely unconcerned with the open-mouthed stares coming her way. If anything, she seemed to find it amusing as a little smirk played across her lips. She gave a tiny flick of her dark hair, streaked through with blue, and took a nonchalant sip of her morning coffee on her way to her locker. Pausing, she arched a pierced eyebrow at a few students who had the misfortune to be in her path, causing them to stumble out an apology and scramble swiftly out of her way.

"Man, you would think she would've learned how to open a door by now," Andre muttered under his breath with a sarcastic roll of his eyes. Even though it had happened every day since their junior year had commenced, the loud noise of the door opening always got to him. It was just too early in the damn morning for him. In the complete opposite of the way she had entered the school, he closed his locker with a soft, muted click.

Beck merely shook his head, ran a hand through his hair, and chuckled good-naturedly. He caught her out of the corner of his eyes, standing near her locker, painted black and oddly decorated with scissors in various positions. Jade West had made quite an impression on the student body of Hollywood Arts since her arrival on the first day of school, two months ago. Not many people knew much about her…a fact which he figured she clearly preferred. Her demeanor didn't exactly invite people to get close to her, with the lone exception of Cat Valentine. Somehow, the sweet, petite bottled redhead had managed to battle through her defenses and befriend her. But Jade's strong personality didn't prevent people from staring at her. He was honest enough with himself to admit that he was one who genuinely liked to look at her. There was just something…startling about her. Something he couldn't help but find interesting. Intriguing, even. Not that he figured anything would ever come of his slight interest in her. After all, the only words she had ever uttered at him, not to him but at him, were "Get out of my way." And that was nearly a month ago. He obviously wasn't even a blip on her radar. But that knowledge didn't squelch his interest in her. Not by a long shot.

Even though he knew she didn't share the same interest in him as he had for her, he couldn't help but study her, mainly side glances he sent her way during the lone class they shared. He was honest enough with himself to admit that he spent a good portion of the class staring at her. Andre would poke him in the arm or kick him in the shin when he stared for too long. He didn't think she noticed. At least, he hoped she hadn't. He figured if she had noticed, she would have let him know by now. One thing that was crystal clear to the entire school about her was that she had no problem venting her frustrations or sharing her strong opinions. If she didn't like something, anyone within a five mile radius knew about it.

"Heeeey!" a familiar and friendly voice called out from behind them, a huge brown purse tucked off to her side. Tori joined them with a welcoming grin on her face, her long brown flowing in gentle waves down her back as she walked towards them. "You guys ready for the "twisted monologue" for Sikowitz's class today?"

Beck shook away his thoughts of the new student and smiled at one of his best friends. He was rather proud of his monologue and looking forward to sharing it with the class. "Yup, all ready for it! You?"

She nervously played with the strap of her purse and let out a long sigh, her soft doe eyes growing larger. "I hope so. This was a harder assignment than I expected, though. A three to five minute monologue, with the premise being changing a well-known character into something that they aren't? Good to evil; happy to sad. Serious to funny or vice versa. I mean, that's just difficult!"

"I hear you, Tori." Andre agreed with a little groan. He found it much easier writing lyrics than creating a twisted introspection, even if they were allowed to choose their own characters from any entertainment genre. "It should be entertaining, though. I'm curious to see how everyone handled the assignment. There should be some really cool performances today."

She let out a small breath, her pretty brown eyes shining brightly. "Anyway, we don't have to worry about it until after lunch. That alone sounds good to me!" She turned to Beck, tapped him on the shoulder and changed the subject. "Hey, Beck! How's the casting for the play you're in coming along? Did that senior dude, Justin, find you a leading lady yet?"

Beck let out a low sigh and leaned against his locker, shaking his head. "Not yet. Justin's holding second auditions today after school. He picked three girls to come back and try again for the female lead. Who knows? Maybe one of them will really spark his interest this time." He shrugged a shoulder, wondering who would end up being cast against him in the lead role. Unfortunately, he hadn't been particularly impressed with any of the final three candidates the first time around and didn't have much hope for the second time. He rather hoped Justin found someone else to star opposite him.

"He's running out of time," Andre put in warningly, shaking his head a little. "Don't practices for that play start next week?"

"Yup. Next Monday, right after school." He ran a hand through his hair, hoping that Justin finally made up his mind on his cast list. Andre was right. Time was swiftly running out. Beck could understand why Justin was being a little picky, though. The play was truly his baby, his senior project, and a very important grade for the semester. Everything had to go just right.

The bell pealed out its sudden warning, letting them know that the first class was about to start. Immediately, people started scurrying around. The small group turned as one and starting walking down the hall, chatting away about the play and other thoughts for the day on their way to their first class.

At lunch...

As usual, the morning flew by. Jade would never admit it to anyone except herself but she loved her new school. So much better than the regular old high school she'd attended for the past two years. Her eyes took on a bitter glint as she sat down at her usual table in the back. If only her parents had put her needs first instead of their own messed up lives, she would have been enrolled here a year or two ago. Nope, not the Wests'. They couldn't be bothered with their daughter's happiness. She knew that all too well.

She dropped her backpack on top of the table and glared at a few students who had the audacity to attempt to sit down across from her, causing them to nervously apologize for bothering her and scatter away like leaves in a strong wind. Amused, she leaned against the stone pillar behind her and stretched her long legs out on the bench, making herself as comfortable as the wrought iron of the bench would allow her to. The late morning sun was warm on her pale skin. This was her favorite table at the Asphalt Café. Tucked in the back, exactly where she liked to be. She pulled out her phone, slipped her pearbuds in her ears, and called up her favorite playlist. Before long, the cheerful, cacophonic sounds of the students eating their lunch were drowned out by her music.

Absently eating a French fry, she let her gaze drift lazily over the café. Groups of students were gathered together at each table. Most of them were grouped together by their interests. The nerds. The dancers. The musicians. The actors. The make-up artists. The writers. And then there was that eclectic group her friend Cat belonged to. They sat at one of the tables in the center, a blend of different personalities and talents. She knew who they all were, even if she hadn't managed to speak more than a sentence or two to the majority of them. Tori, the singer. Her acceptance into Hollywood Arts was apparently the stuff of legends. Jade had overheard some awed freshmen talking about it during the welcome back to school assembly on the first day of school. Then there was Cat, the performer. A tiny smile danced across her lips as she gave a small shake of her head. Somehow, the plucky, perky redhead had managed to break through her previously impenetrable armor, becoming a good friend despite Jade's rather solid intentions of remaining stoic and uninvolved with anyone at school. Robbie, the ventriloquist…who also happened to be her locker buddy, as he announced cheerfully to her on their first day of school. He'd also been the one to tell her of the tradition of students decorating their own locker. He didn't totally suck, she mused as she wrapped a strand of her hair around her finger. He had even managed to make her chuckle on a few occasions. If she was being honest with herself, she found his puppet more annoying than him. Andre, the talented musician. She didn't know much about him at all, other than he always seemed to be smiling and was really good at writing songs and performing them. And then there was…him.

Beck Oliver. The bane of her existence. Her eyebrows snapped together. Her narrowed gaze immediately collided with the one who managed to annoy the absolute hell out of her without doing much of anything. He didn't even have the grace to look embarrassed at being caught staring at her. Instead, he sent her a charming grin in acknowledgment which she, on principal, refused to return. Instead, she tossed an unpleasant scowl in return and turned her head away. Why in the hell he was always staring at her she couldn't fathom but she was getting damn tired of it. Thank goodness they only shared the one class. Her favorite class, actually. She sat in the last row, by herself and propped up against the wall. Sometimes Cat sat with her, just like she would sometimes join her for lunch, but, for the most part, she was alone. He sat in what was technically the second row, in front of her and off to her right, near the windows. But him, being the cool guy and all, couldn't just actually sit in a row like the rest of the students in the classroom. Nope; him and his friend Andre typically kept their chairs angled to the side, which meant that they could look at the front, middle, or the back of the class, with perfect ease. Much to her inner fury, he always seemed to be looking at her. She had finally stopped counting how many times he glanced her way in a class period. It was getting beyond ridiculous.

Grumbling incoherently under her breath, she wondered if he would ever realize that he was the source of inspiration for her upcoming twisted monologue. Most likely not, she reasoned with a small sniff of disdain, not exactly sure of his intelligence level. If he figured it out, maybe he would finally stop looking at her, she thought as she absently dipped a French fry in ketchup. If he didn't, well…she was sure she could think of some new way to show him her displeasure. She sent up a small prayer of thanks for the flittering, twittering horde of girls who always seemed to be swarming his locker before, during, and after school. Shortly after Sikowitz had given them their most recent assignment, one of them had called him Aladdin, causing the whole simpering entourage to coo their unanimous approval, and boom…inspiration had struck. She let out a small chuckle that bordered on evil, looking forward to the next class. More than prepared to get back at him, she finished her lunch with only her music as company in the crowded outdoor café.