The sound of a thunderstorm woke Jade up in the middle of the night. A big clap of thunder jarred her out of a dream, and when she opened her eyes her room lit up magnificently. Large bolts of lightning cracked the sky and shined brilliantly, lighting up everything in viewing distance. Jade leaned her head back on the pillow, but it was no use. She was awake and the dream she was enjoying had flittered away. The remote was on the bed next to her so she grabbed it and turned the TV on, hoping that maybe some late-night talk show or something would put her back to sleep.
After two episodes of I Love Lucy she was still wide awake. It was only four thirty, way too early to start getting ready. Rain pounded her window, creating a soft humming sound, but even that wasn't enough to lull her back to slumber. A quick check of her phone told Jade that she wasn't alone. Beck had updated his Slap profile saying the sound of the rain on his tin can of an RV was too loud for him to sleep, and he was just lying there watching TV same as her. She exited the browser and dialed Beck's number.
"Hey."
"Can't sleep?"
"Nah, thunder woke me up and I couldn't fall back."
"Same. What are you doin'?"
"Same as you, watching TV."
"Cool."
They sat there for a minute not saying anything, just watching TV and holding their phones to their ears.
"What are you watching?" Beck asked lazily.
"I Love Lucy. You?"
"Mythbusters."
"That one guy bugs me."
"I know." Beck laughed a little.
"I don't know, I guess I'm gonna get up and head to the stand or something for a little while, keep Jenae company until school starts."
"In the rain?"
"I have an umbrella, and there's a roof on the building."
"Okay. Be careful, people drive like idiots in bad weather."
"Thanks dad."
"I'll see you later."
"Kay, bye."
Jade hung up and got out of bed. It was still dark so the glow of the TV cast an eerie blueish white on everything. She dressed in a blue turtleneck with a black skirt and black leggings before heading into the bathroom. On the way out she grabbed her usual things as well as a large umbrella. Her parents were still sleeping so she went out the side door quietly, trying not to disturb them.
Jenae had just arrived at the stand before Jade got there, and they walked inside together. They shook out their umbrellas and set them against the wall in the bathroom.
"What are you doing here?" Jenae asked in a surprised tone.
"Couldn't sleep. The storm woke me up and then I was just awake."
"Ah. Came to hang out for a bit and keep me company?" She smiled brightly.
"Yep, until I have to leave for school."
"Not many kids want to work at all, much less hang out at their job with their boss when they aren't even on the clock."
"Well most people have crappy jobs and crappy bosses. I'm lucky."
They smiled at each other and started setting up for the day. Jenae started the coffee while Jade got out all the baskets that lay on the counter. She positioned them accordingly and made sure all the labels were straight.
"Hey Jade you wanna do me a favor and go across the street to that store, pick up some pastries?"
"Sure. What/how many do you need?"
"Just grab a couple of each. There's a display when you walk in to the right."
"Okay."
"Here's some cash, just bring back the receipt and change."
"Sure thing. Be right back."
Jade grabbed her umbrella out of the bathroom and opened it, heading out into the rain again. She crossed at the crosswalk and entered the store. There was a large but gentle looking man sitting behind the counter reading a book. He smiled at Jade when she came in, looking up only briefly before returning to his story. Jade found a box under the display and grabbed a couple of each type. Cream filled, iced, plain. The man at the counter put his book away when she approached the counter, standing up to greet her.
"How are we doin' this morning?"
"Good, you?"
"Hangin' in there."
"Four twenty-four please."
He had a southern accent, and Jade assumed he wasn't originally from the area. Texas, maybe. She handed the man a ten-dollar bill.
"Out of ten." He counted the money to himself and handed it to Jade. "Here's five and seventy-six cents."
"Thanks." Jade smiled politely and grabbed her box. Normally she wouldn't be half that polite, especially that early in the morning. But this was a kind of business relationship, and she didn't want any kind of bad blood between the store and the coffee stand. "Can I have my receipt?"
"Sure. Here ya go, darlin'."
"Thanks. Have a good one."
"Always do."
Jade ran back across the street and set the box on the counter on the right end, her left. Jenae had a thing that the first customers of the day that bought at least two coffees got a free pastry, and according to her it was usually the same people. Jade sat back and got the Mancala board out, setting up for a game or two before the rush started. They got through a game and a half before the line started building up, and she put it away so she could pitch in.
"You don't have to help hon, you're not on the clock."
"I know, it's not a big deal to me. I'm not doing anything anyway. And I promise I won't sue you if I somehow mangle myself back here."
Jenae laughed and smiled softly. "You're a good kid. You'll make a hell of a career woman someday."
"Thanks."
A couple hours went by and Jade headed out, planning to go home and grab something to eat and get her stuff before heading in to school. Jenae thanked her for the help and returned to the counter. The walk back was a little better since the rain had let up and the wind was gone. When she got back Mr. West was just heading out the side door to his car.
"Where've you been?"
"Couldn't sleep, went in to work for a few hours."
His face was priceless. "Okay then. I'm heading in early, have a good day."
"You too."
Jade ate a quick bowl of cereal and put her bowl in the sink. Deciding it wouldn't make sense to hang around a quiet house she went into school early, arriving about thirty minutes before the bell. No one else was there yet so she resorted to wandering the halls aimlessly. The last time she had done this it didn't go so well. Times had changed, though, and Jade felt like she had grown a lot as a person, and Tori was to thank for that. Her other friends were too to an extent, being accepting about the whole situation and continuing on like nothing had changed. Jade was happy about that.
When coming back to the entrance she ran into Beck first. He looked like his normal self, shiny-eyed and glossy-haired. Jade knew better, though. He smiled at her when he came in and she walked up to him, glad to finally see someone she knew.
"How was the rest of your morning?" Jade asked.
"Was okay. Yours?"
"Good. Hung out at the stand, had a good time."
"Good."
Beck situated his locker and Jade watched, leaning up against the wall. Kids started flooding in around them and she figured it was about time to get ready for class, heading to her own locker. A couple guys came through the hallway, one of them strumming an acoustic guitar as they both sang. They walked casually and played, almost as if to give a little bit of a real-life soundtrack for everyone. Jade tapped her foot to the beat and finished up, closing her locker. Tori appeared as she was walking towards the adjacent hallway, wearing a long white shirt that hugged her hips with a shorter red top over it, with light colored skinny jeans and some white and blue low tops. Jade scanned her over and smiled wickedly, appreciating her beauty and raw sex appeal.
Tori found a place to park and hopped out of the car. She yawned greedily, sucking in a deep breath of crisp air to wake herself up. The storm wasn't as bad in her area so she wasn't woken up by it. Two guys stood in front of the doors talking and Tori politely asked them to move, and they did, but not without generous glances at her figure. She kept her eyes down and walked inside quickly, almost running into Jade.
"Hey Tor. You look amazing today."
"Thanks" she replied, not making eye contact.
"What's the matter?"
"Nothing. Just boys being boys."
"Did they say something to you?" Jade was irritated.
"No, just looking. It's okay though, I don't mind them being jealous of you." She winked softly and brought Jade into a hug.
Jade squeezed her hard. "Well I have my scissors just in case."
"I don't think that's necessary." Tori pecked Jade on the lips and headed for class.
Andre was in his usual spot, kicked back with his eyes closed. Tori instantly remembered her dream when she saw him, making her feel a little anxious. She sat down and put her bag down by her feet. Andre peeked out of one eye at the noise and smiled.
"Hey hey."
"Hi." Tori said a little weakly.
"What's up girl?" Andre opened his eyes and sat up straight.
"Do you..." She paused and took a deep breath. "Do you feel like I'm ignoring you?"
"When?" Andre asked, confused.
"Now. Before. Anytime."
"No, why do you ask?"
"Well I had a really weird dream yesterday that you and Beck were mad at me and Jade for spending all of our time together and ignoring you guys."
"Jade and Beck just went to the movies together last night."
"I know, but I guess I feel guilty about the group not hanging out as much. Or maybe we do and I'm just making things up in my head."
"I'd say the latter. Relax, you're fine. Everyone's cool with you guys being together and it hasn't caused any problems. There's a little readjusting anytime one of us starts seeing someone, so it's no big deal."
She felt much better hearing that. "Thanks Andre, I needed that. Speaking of which, who are you taking to Prom?"
Andre's face turned a little sour. "That girl from the Karaoke Dokie that I've been hanging out with bailed at the last minute. She texted me this morning and said she had to go somewhere with her parents."
"I'm sorry, that sucks."
"Yeah. Well, maybe since Jade can't go either, we could go together? As friends."
Tori smiled at the offer, knowing her best friend would always be there to try to bring her up. "I dunno, I mean I went dress shopping with Jade and tried stuff on together. It was a pretty intimate thing now that I think about it, we'd never done anything like that together before. I guess I just had my heart set on this idea of me and Jade dancing together. I wouldn't want to go with you and be a drag."
"It's cool, I understand." He smiled warmly to reassure her. "We should hang out then, watch a movie at your place."
"Sure, that sounds like fun. Is everyone else going to the dance?"
"Yeah. Beck got asked by about twenty different girls, so he finally picked one and said yes. Robbie asked Cat and surprisingly she said yes too."
"Aww, that's so sweet!" They both smiled and went silent as the teacher came in to start the class.
At lunch everyone had gone in on a full pizza from The Grub Truck, sharing it in a circle of chairs. Robbie argued with Rex about how costly his feet whitening sessions were becoming, until he finally told Rex to mind his own business and that he would spend his money on whatever he wanted. Beck was watching Cat go through images on her PearPad of her Prom dress, nodding appreciatively at the elegant design. She showed Andre gave the thumbs up, to which she beamed and bounced happily in her seat.
Tori looked at everyone and couldn't help but smile. Not very long ago she was brand new and didn't know anyone, scared to death of making new friends and trying to fit in in a school full of such talented kids. Now she had an entire group of the best friends anyone could ask for. Not to mention Jade, who went from hating her and ridiculing her every chance she got to sitting next to her holding hands at that very moment.
"You guys want to hang out after school? The whole group."
"I do!" Cat yelled, smiling hugely.
There was a smattering of 'sure's and 'okay's.
"We can hang out at my house" Cat offered. "My dad just got a new pool table in the game area."
"I got first game!" Beck called out, pointing at Andre.
"You know it" Andre replied, fist-bumping him.
The bell rang and everyone returned to class. Tori and Jade sat through Screenwriting and texted each other back and forth.
Did I tell you you look really good today? -J
You did, but it doesn't hurt hearing it more than once. -T
I kinda want to take you to Walt's office right now. -J
Jade! Don't you dare rev me up in the middle of school. -T
Why not, babe? Vroom vroom. ;) -J
Tori balled up a tiny piece of paper and threw it at Jade's shoulder. She looked back with a huge smile, winking at Tori for real. The rest of class went by without a hitch and they headed to Sikowitz' room again. Their eccentric yet favorite teacher was sitting cross-legged on the floor against the wall, apparently snoozing. Everyone walked in and sat in their seats, quietly watching him. He made no movement for several minutes, and one of the kids in the front row leaned forward to check if he was breathing. Sikowitz lurched forward and scared the kid who promptly screamed and ran clear out of the room. Sikowitz burst out into laughter and jumped up and down with glee.
"You see children, that is how you scare someone."
"Okay" Beck said, "but what does that have to do with today's lesson?"
"Nothing at all. I just like to have fun sometimes."
The group smiled and shook their heads slightly. Class passed by quickly as did Study Hall, and when the bell rang everyone met up in the entryway.
"We'll all meet at my place?" Cat asked, looking hopeful.
"Sure thing, little red." Andre said, ruffling her hair a bit.
"Yay!" Cat turned and ran out the front door without another word.
The back room that connected to the pool area was full of game stuff. A couple pinball machines, a hunting game and a pool table, along with a wet bar and a big flatscreen TV with a media center and game consoles. The walls were a pale blue and the floors were a light-colored hardwood with a soft gloss finish. The south wall that led to the pool was mostly all glass, and the ceiling had a few skylights in it. The room felt very open and airy, and it was really comfortable.
The boys set up a game of billiards and Cat wandered off to find her PearPod dock. She returned a few minutes later and started some music low in the background. Jade stood behind Tori with her arms wrapped around her waist, chin rested on her shoulder. Tori leaned back into her head tilted to the side, arms over top of Jade's. She clasped their fingers together and Jade smiled, pulling Tori's waist back into pelvis a little. They swayed to the music and watched the boys play. Andre was winning by a few shots but it wasn't really competitive.
Cat and Robbie hovered by a pinball machine, the latter watching as the former played, jumping up and down with giggles. Tori headed over to an oversized chair by the TV, sitting down and patting her lap. Jade sat and leaned against her, nuzzling into her neck. The group laughed and talked for a while, switching up games and getting drinks from the bar. It had old style root beer and cream soda, as well as typical stuff like Dr. Pepper and Sprite. Jade looked out the window and then turned her head to Cat.
"Is the hot tub set up?"
"Yeah."
"I wanna go in. Tori?"
"Uh, sure. If Cat's suits will fit us."
"We all are pretty close waist wise."
"Well, not all of us are close bust wise."
Andre and Beck both let out low chuckles until Jade yelled "can it!"
"My mom probably has one that would fit you. I'll go look."
Cat came back about five minutes later with three suits. She handed one to Tori and one to Jade, turning to head into the bathroom and change. The boys racked up another game and Robbie and Rex headed to the couch and switched on the Xbox 360.
"Kaykay, whoever's next can change."
"Hey Cat, where's your brother?" Robbie asked.
"He hasn't been home for a while, so I don't know."
"Doesn't that bother you?"
"My parents told me he's okay and not to worry so I don't."
Everyone looked at each other and exchanged an inaudible understanding. Cat went outside with a towel wrapped around her shoulder and took the cover off the hot tub, setting it aside. The control panel had a bunch of small knobs and sliders on it, and Cat knew exactly which ones to hit. Almost instantly the water was bubbling furiously. She checked the clock on the wall and went back inside. "It'll take about five minutes for the water to warm up."
They stood and watched the billiards game as each went in to the bathroom to change. Once everyone was ready, they headed and dipped into the water quickly to get out of the cold air. A few shrieks of 'it's hot!' and everyone was comfortable, sitting in front of the jets. Tori had her arms stretched out over the back with her eyes closed. Jade was submerged all the way to her chin, and Cat laid back with her eyes closed. Jade's eyes glared with an evil intent and she reached over under the water, softly rubbing the inside of Tori's thigh.
Tori sucked in a sharp breath but tried not to make it obvious. Jade smirked, eyes off in the distance of the view in Cat's backyard. She rubbed one spot for a minute and moved her hand higher up, getting closer and closer. Tori adjusted in her seat and stared at Jade out of her peripheral vision, wondering how far she would go. Right at the inside crease of where Tori's leg met her pelvis, Jade rested her hand, squeezing her fingers tight around Tori's thigh. She didn't move any further, but the look on Tori's face was priceless. Jade decided to stop torturing her and brought her arm back in, much to the simultaneous relief and dismay of Tori.
"Jade, your phone is going off." Beck had opened the sliding door and stuck his head out to give the notice.
"I better go see what's up in case it's Jenae."
Jade got out and toweled off her bottom half, wrapping it around her and heading inside. She grabbed her phone and checked the message.
"You in trouble?" Beck asked, grimacing when Andre sunk two shots in a row.
"I gotta make a phone call."
Jade went through the other door into the front entrance area of the house to make her call. Tori and Cat were still in the hot tub, soaking in the heat.
"So you and Robbie, huh?" Tori asked, smiling a bit.
"Yeah. I mean he's a sweet guy, so I figured it can't hurt. He's really nice and I didn't have a date, so I didn't see any reason to say no."
"That's great, Cat,"
Jade appeared a few minutes later and stepped back in, sighing thankfully for the warmth.
"Anything exciting?"
"Nope. Just my cousin updating me on their vacation plans."
"Cool. I hope you get to spend a lot of time with her when she's here."
"Me too."
A half hour went by and the girls got out, heeding the warning of not being in too long. They redressed one by one and sat down by the TV where Andre and Robbie were playing Madden. Cat's dad was a big football fan. According to her he had Raiders season tickets every year for one of the VIP boxes. The boys finished their game and everyone decided it was time to eat. Cat skipped out of the room and appeared a few minutes later, saying her dad would get pizza.
"I told him to get two meat lovers and two with just cheese. Is that okay?"
"Sounds good to me." Andre said.
"Kaykay."
They watched TV until the pizza came, setting it up on the bar so everyone could help themselves. Each nodded their appreciation at the gooey deliciousness, eating as much as they could. When everyone was stuffed and happy, the decision to break up and head home was mutual. They each took turns saying their goodbyes and hugging, thanking Cat for the hospitality. The boys all left and Tori and Jade stayed behind to help pick everything up. Cat consolidated the pizza that was left into one box and put the others outside by the trash can. Tori wrapped up the gaming controllers while Jade racked the pool balls and put the sticks back on rack. Afterward they too said goodbye to Cat and headed out to the driveway.
"I'm gonna head to my house and see how my mom is. She's been acting sort of funny lately and I've been a little worried about her."
"Everything okay?" Jade asked, looking genuinely concerned.
"I'm not sure. I hope so."
"Well after you see her send me a text and let me know so I'm not worrying."
"You're too good for me, you know that?" Tori leaned against Jade and they fall against her car.
Jade hugged back and smiled. "You have no idea how opposite that statement is."
They kissed a few times, lingering on the last one. Jade got in and waved as she backed out, and Tori headed home as well.
Everyone was home when Tori pulled into the driveway. She walked in through the front door and face first into a one-sided shouting match between her mom and sister.
"Come on mom, this is ridiculous."
"I'm sorry Trina, I don't have the money for that."
"This is my senior Prom. All of my friends are going, and you're going to deny me this."
"I'm not doing it on purpose, Trina. I promise." Mrs. Vega was very soft spoken, and her words had an edge of hurt to them.
"You have a job. It's not like dad was making all the money. Plus he's still giving you some isn't he? How can there not be money?"
"It's not that simple baby. All I can say is that it's just not there, and I'm sorry."
The tone in her voice broke Tori's heart, and the way her sister was acting made her hot with rage. Trina scoffed and stood there with a disgusted look on her face, texting away on her phone.
"If you want things so badly Trina, get a job and pay for them yourself."
Trina looked up from her phone slowly. "No one was talking to you, brat. Butt out."
"Just leave Trina. It's way more tolerable around here when you're gone."
"Fine. Bye." Trina finished her text and grabbed her purse, slamming the door behind her.
"What is her issue?" Tori asked, still fuming.
"Her friends are all going to Long Beach after the dance and getting hotel rooms, then going on a limo ride through the city."
"That's extravagant, if she wants things like that she should pay for them herself. That's not your job."
"I know sweetie, it's okay."
"No it's not. She's a spoiled brat and she has no right to treat you that way, especially with everything going on."
"Well that's why I have you. You've got your head on straight and you're more mature than probably anyone in the whole family."
"It's just I know how hard this is for me, so it's gotta be exponentially harder for you and I can't even imagine."
Mrs. Vega smiled strongly at Tori. "At least I know I raised one right."
Tori laughed and hugged her mom. "I ate at Cat's house, have you eaten?"
"No, I'm not really hungry. I had lunch at work."
"I'm gonna head upstairs and wind down a bit. I'll be in my room if you need anything."
"Okay dear."
Tori walked up the stairs slowly, examining her hands. They were sort of chapped from the wind when she was in the hot tub, so she ducked into her mom's room to grab the medicated lotion off of her bedside table. There was a shoebox on the bed and some papers around it. Tori rubbed some lotion into her hands and arms, glancing over at the contents. There were a few handwritten letters and some old photos she noticed were of her mom and dad when they were younger. She walked over and looked a little more closely. Some little odds and ends littered the bottom of the box.
A stamp, a small plastic bag with a coin in it and a conversation heart that had faint remnants of the words 'I love you' on it. Tori ringed her hands out to dry the lotion and picked up one of the big pieces of paper next to the box. There was a legal stamping at the top and the page was full of small type. It wasn't really clear what the paper was for until her eyes landed on the header of the paper which read "Divorce Record Report."
Tori was devastated. She scanned the paper and found both of her parents' names signed at the bottom, along with a line that declared the divorce final on the day both signatures appeared on the bottom. Her whole world came crashing down. Her dad had been gone for a couple of weeks, but she always assumed they would work it out in time. But this, this showed that it was really over. A love that had lasted over twenty years and produced two children, gone. She set the paper back where it was and ran into her room, shutting the door behind her.
The feeling of loss and sadness overwhelmed all of her senses and she began to cry. All of the happenings of late started to make sense. Her mom being up in her room all the time. Staying home from work, baking all those treats to keep herself busy. Her dad coming over for dinner and conveniently ducking out before she got home from work. Saying that their jobs crossed paths and that's how he knew she wouldn't be home. The sadness turned into anger at them for keeping it from her. She knew it wasn't entirely rational, as her parents relationship was their own business and how they handled it wasn't up to their teenage daughter, but she was stung that they kept the severity hidden for so long. If she would have known about it sooner it probably wouldn't have come as such a shock.
Tori wanted to run downstairs and hug her mom. Scream at her. Tell her she loved her. But she couldn't. Mrs. Vega hadn't brought up the subject when she was down there, which obviously meant she wasn't ready to talk about it yet, and Tori would respect that wish. She also thought back to what had happened with Trina. How she was yelling, and how her mom just responded calmly and apologized. Tori felt like her heart couldn't take anymore. Tears spilled over and over until her shirt was soaked.
Not knowing how to deal with it she laid in bed and hugged her pillows, desperate for a sense of completeness. She felt like there was a glaring hole in her life now that wasn't there before. Even though her dad wasn't living at the house they were still technically a family. Not anymore. The feeling of loss was overwhelming, like the spot her family image had in her heart was peeled off and torn down the middle, then stuck back on. It was raw and it hurt. A burning sensation rose from her chest and into her mouth, like the feeling of too much hot sauce. She swallowed and tried to bite it back but it wasn't working. The thought of what Jade had said at Cat's house rose to the front of her mind and she grabbed her phone, dialing the number instead of texting since her eyes were blurry. It rang three times and then Jade answered.
"Hey."
"I need you."
"Are you okay?"
"No." She sobbed into the phone.
"I'll be there as fast as I can, I promise."
Tori dropped the phone onto her bed without saying anything else or even ending the call. She gripped her pillow tight and curled up into a ball, waiting for Jade to get there.
Jade headed towards a familiar location with a smile, hoping to find a familiar face. She passed the boardwalk and looked over brightly, remembering the beginnings of something beautiful. Her eyes drifted back to the road as she passed the boardwalk and her cousin's house, traveling steadily until she reached the corner store she had stopped at a couple weeks back. Pulling in, she smiled instantly, eyeing her mark. She parked and got out, walking over to the familiar man she'd dealt with before.
"Well if it isn't miss milky skin back again." The man smiled and turned to stand square to Jade.
"You guys are back at it I see?"
"Always. What can I do for you today, miss? Another one of them bottles for ya?"
The other men that were usually with him smiled and talked behind their hands again, most likely saying something about how she must want the guy because she's back again. She watched them talk and make faces while the man was in the store, shivering a bit at the wind. At last he came back out and handed her a brown bag with a bottle in it, and some change.
"Thanks. I don't even know your name."
"Most people call me Baba."
"Hmm. Well baba black sheep."
"If I didn't know any better, I would say that was a racist remark."
Jade laughed softly. "Well Baba, thanks again for your assistance."
"You're welcome...?"
"Jade."
"Jade. Your name fits you."
"So I've been told. Well you can rest assured I'll be fine. I'm sure you didn't even actually watch the news last time I was here to see if I made it home alright."
"You bet your ass I did. I don't need no dead kids on my conscience."
"Then why do you keep helping me in the first place?"
"Well it's like you said. I had fun as a youngin' and someone had to help me."
"Payin' it forward."
"That's what's up."
"Well thanks again. I'm sure I'll see you again sometime." Jade smiled and turned back for her car.
Baba laughed. "Ya'll come back now, ya hear?" His southern accent made the group break out into riotous laughter and Jade couldn't help but laugh herself.
There really wasn't much left to do so Jade was headed to the coffee stand. She parked on the side of the road and walked up to the window, smiling when Jenae noticed her.
"Hey kid."
"Hey yourself."
"Coffee?"
"Sure."
Jenae grabbed a cup and made the order as usual. Jade got out two one dollar bills and when Jenae waved her off, she reached over the counter and pressed the cash out button on the register, sliding the money in and shutting the drawer.
"I'll write it in on the order slip tomorrow."
"You're a peach. What's up?"
"Not much. I hung out with my girlfriend and some friends earlier, ate pizza, went in the hot tub. Now I'm here."
"Not bad. Some Mancala perhaps?" Jenae waved her arms like a showroom model at the board.
"Sure."
Jade walked around and in through the side door, grabbing the spare chair and sliding it over to the table. The first game was hers, but the next two games were Jenae's. They were gonna go for a tie when Jade's phone rang. She shot up out of her chair at the sound of Tori's voice, then slammed the phone back in her pocket and headed for the door.
"I'm sorry I gotta go, my girlfriend is in trouble."
"Well good luck!" Jenae yelled as the side door slammed.
Jade drove as fast as she dared to Tori's house, watching for cops like a hawk. She pulled in the driveway and slammed the car into gear, leaving her keys in the ignition and not checking to make sure the door shut all the way. A couple quick knocks on the door and Mrs. Vega answered, alarmed at the look on Jade's face.
"Is Tori okay?"
"Yeah she's fine, what's the matter?"
"She called me and said I needed to come over."
"Oh. She's up in her room, you can head up."
"Thank you."
She ran up the stairs two at a time until she reached Tori's room, knocking softly before entering. Tori was laying on her bed, still in her clothes from the day. The lights were off and her bag was lazily thrown onto the floor. Jade shut the door behind her and walked over to the bed, climbing up gently as to not disturb her. She shook Tori's arm carefully and whispered to her.
"Tori? I'm here."
"Jade?"
"Yeah it's me. What's going on?"
Tori sniffled and rolled over, curling up against Jade's body. Jade wrapped her arms around and held her tight, confused but going with it. Tori sobbed into her chest, her whole body shaking.
"Tori?"
"My parents are getting a divorce."
Jade closed her eyes slowly. "Oh babe I'm so sorry."
"I don't know what to do."
"I don't think there's much you can do. They're adults and they have to do what's right for them."
"Yeah. It just sucks."
"I know. At least they're making progress. My parents still argue daily and probably don't even sleep in the same bed anymore. I know this is hard on you, but I'm here."
"I knew I could count on you to come if I called."
"What else am I gonna do?" She smiled into Tori's hair, inhaling the strawberry scent deeply.
"I love you."
"I love you too."
"Will you stay with me until I fall asleep? I don't think I could handle it if you left right now."
Jade got up quickly and pulled the blankets down from under Tori, lifting them up and over. She crawled back in to her spot and covered them up, snuggling in. "I'm not going anywhere."
Tori fell asleep about forty-five minutes later. They didn't talk, Jade just let her get it all out and she eventually cried herself to sleep. She knew Tori would have a headache in the morning, so she made a mental note to get up and grab some water from downstairs and set out a couple Aleve on her bedside table. For now, she was exactly where she wanted and needed to be. It always seemed to Jade like the tables should be turned. She was the emotionally crippled one with the crazy parents and drama at home. Tori was the shining star of Hollywood Arts. This situation just further proved what everyone learned as they grew up; Not everything is quite as it seems.