The Weston Theater had seen more visitors and traffic in the last week than any week before it was commissioned as the venue for Tori Vega's debut showcase. The last week was also the busiest Jade West had been in the theater, and she couldn't have been more in her element if she tried.

Since the day Neutronium started hauling their in-house band's equipment from the offices to the theater, Jade was filling many pages of her notebook with sketches of possible layouts and arrangements on the stage. When Tori noticed many of those notebook pages torn and wadded up in the trash, she offered Jade her tablet to avoid further paper waste, but she insisted on using her physical notebook on the grounds that she "preferred the feeling of her pencil and paper" to stay productive.

Once the equipment arrangement was complete, Tori thought Jade would finally start to settle down, but she soon found her yelling at some of Sikowitz's students up on the catwalk trying to arrange the lights properly. She was about to call out to Jade when she was suddenly blinded by a bright set of lights revolving around the stage like a disco ball.

"What up with the disco?!" Jade shouted toward the catwalk, shielding her eyes from the spotlights.

"I'm sorry!" One student fussed from behind the spotlight responsible, "I pressed the wrong thing!"

"No!" Jade shouted back, "15 years ago…you know what? Forget it! Shut it down and take five!" She angrily tossed her notebook toward the back of the stage, grabbed a chair, and spun it around so she could lean forward against the back of the chair as she sat down. Burying her face down in her arms, Jade tried to get some semblance of rest when she heard footsteps close to her and she growled without looking up to see who it was. "Go away, Tori. I'm on break now, just like you wanted."

"Well that's a surprise," the voice replying to her clearly wasn't Tori's. "According to Tori, you haven't taken a single break since you got started three days ago."

With an annoyed groan, Jade raised her head up to see her mother standing over her, arms crossed and holding the tossed notebook in her hand. "Ugh…what do you want?"

"I would think the director of this showcase ought to know when the producers would send a representative to make sure their investment is bearing fruit and not making liabilities out of their assets, don't you think, Jade?" Nora explained, but Jade simply responded with more groans.

"Blah, blah, big legal words, blah!" Jade rested her head on the chair again after her rather childish quip. "Where's Tori, anyway? She was just here."

"I sent her to get some more equipment for a sound test," Nora answered, looking down at her daughter like she was 8 instead of 18. "Which means now we have a good amount of time to talk alone." She was met with another exasperated groan from Jade, which told Nora that the time to talk was even more necessary now.

Pulling up another chair, Nora sat down properly, in contrast to Jade's otherwise slumped posture, and cleared her throat before speaking again, "I must admit; you've gotten a lot done in just the last few days since Mason gave you this job. The equipment's all here, you have just about all of Sikowitz's students setting them up, and Tori and Tara are more excited than I've ever seen them!"

"Where's the 'but'?" Jade deflected the compliments, her forehead still planted against the chair.

"But…you look like you're running yourself ragged, and don't try to deny it."

Jade sighed and straightened her posture to face Nora properly, "I mean, I can't afford to slack on this—literally! You saw how much they're gonna pay me for this if this goes well!"

"I did indeed see that," Nora nodded, but still wore a frown on her face, "But is that really the only reason you're pushing yourself so hard with this."

"I don't know, Mom, is it?" Jade said in a challenging tone, not trying to hide that there was indeed another reason.

Another time, Nora would have scolded her daughter for such a tone, but instead, she exhaled her frustration and placed a hand on Jade's shoulder. "Jade, I know I put a lot of pressure on you the other day at lunch, but I can't help being worried about your future! I'm your mother, after all. Don't you think Tori's parents are just as worried, and they're all the way across the country! I believed you when you told me you were going to work hard here, and while I didn't see that in you lately, you have the chance to prove that to me now."

Jade sighed, turning her chair around to rest against the back, "You say that now, but when the next big job or something rolls around, you'll go right back to worrying about me, right?"

Nora frowned, but nodded, "Like I said, I'm your mother. I'll never stop worrying, but that doesn't mean you should ever stop proving me wrong." The two continued to look at each other in an indecisive silence until Tori cut in between them, holding two wireless microphones.

"Hey! Sorry! I might have been interrupting something…" Tori bit her lip, looking back-and-forth between the two West women, "But I got the microphones you asked for, Ms. West! For…the sound test?"

"Yes, thank you, Tori," Nora regained her composure and took both microphones, handing one to Jade. She then pulled out her phone, scrolled to her music app, and handed the phone to Tori. "Would you mind connecting that to the sound system, dear? Jade and I can take care of the sound test; just join some of the students in the audience and let us know how we sound."

Tori held the phone for a moment, slightly confused, but looking at the song seemed to answer any questions in her mind as she promptly turned around and did as Nora asked.

Jade stared at her mother, unable to even phrase a question as Nora turned on her microphone and tapped it a few times to test it. Her mouth opened to finally ask, but then the sudden introduction of a guitar played through the speakers surrounding them. She watched Nora clear her throat and assume a comfortable posture before holding her microphone up to her mouth and singing:

It's not time to make a change
Just relax, take it easy
You're still young, that's your fault
There's so much you have to know

Find a girl, settle down,
If you want to, you can marry
Look at me, I am old, but I'm happy

Nora's eyes never left Jade as she sang the whole verse. Jade quickly recognized the lyrics of the song, but continued to stare at her mother with surprise; as if she'd never heard her mother sing—or at least, sing so seriously and professionally. In the audience, Tori maintained a straight face, but found herself fighting back a few tears as she watched Nora nod toward Jade to sing the next part of the song.

How can I try to explain?
When I do, he turns away again
It's always been the same, same old story
From the moment I could talk, I was ordered to listen
There's a way and I know that I have to go away

I know…I have to go.

Despite singing only a few lines, Jade felt her composure breaking as she saw her mother smiling, but with a sad expression in her eyes. She broke her gaze and turned to Tori with a cutting motion across her neck. Noticing right away, Tori ran up to the stage and stopped the song midway. As soon as it stopped, Jade got up, dropped her microphone on the floor, and left for the green room, covering her face with one hand.

Nora stood up as well, trading a brief glance with Tori before carefully setting her microphone down on her chair and following Jade backstage.

To Jade's relief, there was no one in the green room when she pushed the door open. She sat down in front of a vanity station, taking a long look at her face in the mirror. Tears were already falling down her cheeks, her makeup trailing down with them. She reached into her pockets for a tissue pack, to no avail, but then saw a hand offering a handkerchief to her right. She turned to see her mother standing next to her and grabbed the folded cloth out of her hand, wiping her face roughly as she exhaled through the sobs in her throat.

Nora took a seat next to her, waiting until she was done wiping her face free of tears, then pulled her daughter in for a soft, quiet hug. She wrapped her arms around Jade and felt the hug slowly being returned as Jade rested her chin on her shoulder. "Listen, dear," Nora said to her in a low, gentle tone, "I know you have it in you to be successful; more successful than your father or me. From the first time I saw you try to play our piano at home, and when you wanted to watch The Wizard of Oz instead of those cartoons the other kids liked, I could tell you knew what you wanted to do. Maybe over the years, you've lost sight of that, but I know you're finding it again here with Tori and Tara."

Jade could only answer in sobs on Nora's shoulder as those memories were resurfacing in her mind. Everyone in Hollywood Arts knew her penchant for horror and rebellion, but only her parents knew that interest stemmed from just a simple admiration for music and art at a young age.

"Neither of us could convince your father that acting, screenwriting, and directing were anything but a waste of time and money for you, and yet you were able to pass your audition to Hollywood Arts with such ease—all because you pushed yourself to show us and everyone that you had what it took to go there and learn."

Jade managed to steady her breathing, backing away to wipe her face again and sit up straight in front of her mother. "Passing that audition earned me my first semester at Hollywood Arts…but I never wondered why you kept paying the tuition every year after that."

Nora smiled, rubbing Jade's shoulder affectionately, "Jade dear, you must have thought all your begging made your father relent and indulge your wish to keep going to that school, but it was actually all me. Even after your father and I split, I made sure you could still go to Hollywood Arts, graduate, and make use of all you learned there."

"You?" Jade looked at her in disbelief, "But…why? Why spend all that money just for me?"

Nora let out a small laugh, "You haven't figured that out by now? You're my daughter, Jade, and I'll always care about you and your future; whether it's worrying about your well-being or supporting your dreams and aspirations. Darling, you have so many more opportunities than I did at your age; the chance to learn everything you want, to love whoever you want, and to live how you want. All I want…is to see you working hard for it, and that's what I hope to see here with you, Tori, and Tara."

The smile breaking on Jade's face probably looked so unlike any wicked or half-hearted smile she ever made, as she was still holding back tears and other emotions, but she didn't care as she gave her mother another tight hug. She whispered a small, "Thank you," before backing up again, her smile beaming through to Nora. "Anything else before I have to put my face back on?"

With a chuckle, Nora placed her hand on Jade's cheek, then ran her thumb over the small piercings on her nose and eyebrow, "Speaking of your face...and I know I'm about to sound like your father right now, but maybe you can at least consider taking this jewelry off?"

Nora expected Jade to automatically refuse, but she was surprised to see her glance aside for a moment before replying, "I can…think about it," before flashing a smile back at her.

A quick trio of knocks on the door cut into their moment, with Tara emerging from the hallway and realizing what she was walking in on. "Oh! I'm sorry! Tori was just wondering if y'all were okay now…"

Jade laughed along with her mother as they both nodded, "Yeah. We're fine, Short Stack. Just need to put my makeup back on, and I'll be right back."

Tara smiled, stepping back and closing the door to leave them be. Nora rubbed Jade's back with a smile as the latter reached for the makeup bag she kept in the room.

"So…" Jade cleared her throat while setting a few cosmetics on the table in front of her, "I guess my musical chops really did come from you. Do you serenade Piper like I do sometimes for Tori~?"

Nora's face immediately flushed as she retracted her hand to cover it. "J-Jade! Have some tact, will you?!"

"Okay, but you'll probably have to wait for that. I'm still working on that 'no more face piercings' request and—you know—directing my dorky girlfriend's showcase~"

With a solid huff, Nora crossed her arms, but smiled at her daughter as she nonchalantly re-applied her makeup. No matter how long it took, both West women were happy to be in each other's good graces again.