"Earth to Tori!"

Tori looked up from her plate, confused. She had completely forgotten she was at dinner with her family… that is, until Trina rudely interrupted her thoughts.

"Huh?"

Trina rolled her eyes. "Are you going to have your pretzel roll? Because if not, someone else might want it."

Tori looked back down at her plate. "Uh… I'm not hungry."

Trina grinned and snatched the roll from in front of Tori, then made a big show of tearing off a giant chunk of it and stuffing it in her mouth. "Mmmm," she said, speaking around her food. "'This is delicious."

Tori ignored her sister, focusing instead on her faint reflection in her glass plate. She was about to settle into her thoughts again when her mom interrupted.

"Are you okay, Tori?"

Tori didn't look up this time. "I don't know. I'm just thinking."

"What's wrong? You know, you can tell us anything."

Tori debated whether or not to confide in her family what was on her mind, and then finally decided it could do no harm. "It's about Jade."

Tori's parents exchanged a confused glance. "Who's Jade?"

Tori opened her mouth to respond, but then Trina interjected. "Jade WEST? You're upset about Jade West?"

"I'm sorry, who is this person?" Tori's mom asked, even more confused now.

"She's only the meanest person in the school! She insults everyone and could kill a plant with a single glare!" Trina proclaimed.

Tori's dad raised an eyebrow. "She's that bad, huh? Did she hurt you?"

Tori swallowed. "No…"

"What's wrong, then?" This from Tori's mom.

"She hates me."

Trina gaped at Tori. "You're upset because she hates you?! Jade hates everyone!"

Not the same way she hates me. I actually deserve it… I was a jerk to her. But Tori knew better than to argue; this conversation wasn't getting anywhere. She pushed her chair away from the table, then stood up and walked briskly to her room, ignoring the calls from the parents to come back to the dinner table.

In the quiet comfort of her room, Tori was able to focus her thoughts. She thought about her failed attempt to apologize earlier in the day. I didn't realize how mad she was at me. It seemed like it was worse than before. I guess the longer I go without apologizing, the worse it's going to get. So I can't let any more time pass. I need to apologize as soon as possible. But how? How am I supposed to do that when she refuses to look at me and just yells at me to go away when I start my apology? Tori sat pondering this question, then suddenly, an idea came to her in a sudden flash. A note! I can write a note! Then she can't interrupt me, and she'll finally see that I really am sorry for what happened. It's perfect!

Grinning with pride and excitement about her new plan, Tori pulled out a piece of paper and began to write.

Dear Jade,

Tori paused suddenly and stared at what she had written. Is that a thing people write? Is that archaic? Do kids even say that? Ugh, that sounds so stupid. No one says dear anymore. With one stroke of her eraser, Tori eliminated her first sentence and started again.

Jade,

I'm so sorry

Tori looked up again. Is that good enough? Does that sound stupid? Does it sound sincere? How do I even apologize for kissing someone's boyfriend? What kind of person does that to someone? Why should Jade even forgive me? She probably thinks I'm such a terrible person… I would think that if I were her. But that's not me! At least, not usually. I just made a really stupid mistake. Wait, maybe I should say that. Tori crossed off her second line and tried again.

I'm really really really sorry that I kissed Beck during the improv exercise.

I don't know why I did it, but it was really cruel of me, and it was a big mistake.

I didn't mean to hurt you, and I feel really bad about it.

That's pretty good, right? What else should I add?... I guess I should say why I'm apologizing?

The reason I'm telling you this is that I don't want what I did to keep hurting you.

I don't expect you to forgive me, but I hope that maybe eventually we don't have to be enemies.

Again, I'm so, so sorry.

- Tori

Done! Tori breathed out a sigh of relief and pushed her chair backwards. She stood up and paced her room a couple times, thinking about what she had written. After a few minutes, she sat down again and rewrote the note onto a new piece of paper, taking special care to write neatly. When she was done, she folded the paper up into a small square, then printed JADE in bold block letters on the front. She stuck the note into her backpack, then slowly got ready for bed.

That night, Tori had trouble sleeping. Even as she tried to relax, her mind was busy thinking up possible scenarios for how the next day would go. Maybe she'll tell me she forgives me! Maybe she'll start talking to me again! Maybe she'll read it and continue to ignore me, but stop hating me quite so much. No matter what happens, it's bound to be better than the current situation.

But just as Jade West was thinking a few neighborhoods away, there's no way to tell what tomorrow will bring.

A/N: Sorry this chapter is short; I had an insanely busy week, so I didn't have much time to write a long chapter, but I still wanted to put something out for you all. I promise next week's chapter will be longer!

In other news, this is the first chapter that's purely Tori's point of view. I hope you enjoyed it, and thank you so, so much for reading!