Hidden In Plain Sight

A/N: Italics indicate text for this chapter.

Chapter Five:

Jade's POV;

School was so boring. I don't know why I decided I wanted to go back. I guess it had something to do with wanting closure. I don't know. During the day Sinjin came up to me and actually thought it was a good idea to hug me whilst shouting how much he missed me. I had to hurt him for that.. Haha. I actually kind of regret it, though. I know he was a creep and all, but he missed me and was ecstatic that I was back and all I could do was trap him to his locker by his hair. Anyway, Trina came up to me, too, but all she did was smile and welcome me back. I nodded at her and walked away. I didn't exactly like her, but whilst I was away I had a lot of time to think so I tolerate her now and it seems she tolerates me, too.

I had history with Beck and Cat and neither of them would stop talking to me so that was annoying. I had English with Tori and Beck and, unfortunately, my seat was in between the two. Then lunch was uneventful, I just ate a little salad and threw the rest away, choosing to just enjoy my fourth coffee of the day. My last two lessons were music with Tori, Cat, and Andre. That was okay because it seemed everyone had finally gotten over the fact that I was back.

Now, however, I was stuck at Tori's with her and the others, including Trina, playing cards. When school had ending, everyone had decided they wanted to hang out and "celebrate" my return. I was actually getting sick of all of the attention. Before I left, I might have enjoyed it, but now- now I hated it.

I sat at the circular table with every, staring at my own cards. I seemed to have forgotten how to play the game because I had now idea whether or not my cards were good. I must have hit my head hard when- no. I won't think of that whilst I'm with everyone else. I don't know whether I'll start crying or just zone out. Both of those seemed to be happening a lot lately.

I sighed, "I'm just gonna get a drink," I told them, standing up from my seat and going to the counter in the middle of the kitchen area. I grabbed the jug containing pink lemonade and refilled my glass with shaky hands. When the glass was half full, I had to put the glass jug down because my hands were starting to shake violently. I could feel one of the others watching me. I didn't know which one, but I assumed it was either Cat, Tori, or Beck. I breathed in heavily through my nose, then exhaled through my mouth.

Plastering a fake smile on my face, I turned around with my half full glass and returned to my seat to play cards with the few rules I remembered.

Beck's POV;

I watched Jade with curiosity. She was sat across from me, looking at her cards with complete confusion. As if she didn't know how to play at all, even though she was the best player out of all of us. She suddenly claimed she was getting a drink. An excuse to get away from the game, I realised. She really couldn't remember how to play.

I continued watching her as she poured pink lemonade into a glass. Her hands shook violently and it looked like she was about to drop the jug. As I was about to get up and confront her, she placed the jug down and leaned her hands on the counter. She took a deep breath and let it out before picking up her glass and turning around with a smile on her face.

Jade moved back to her seat and sat down, placing her glass down on the side of the table. She picked her cards back up from their face-down position on the table and looked at them. Her confusion returned and she sighed, picking up the glass and taking a tentative sip. She coughed and sat up straight in her seat. Since when did Jade care about sitting properly? She always slouched in her seat. If she wasn't slouched in a seat, then there was something wrong. It's odd how much being away for three months can change someone.

I took out my phone when everyone else was distracted by the game and opened up my contacts. I scrolled through them all until I found Jade's new contact. We had exchanged numbers in school today seeing as she had gotten a new phone whilst away. I selected the message option and typed "U don't remember how to play?" When her phone vibrated, I watched her put her cards down and take it out. She read my message and looked up at me with a raised eyebrow. "Who said that?" She replied.

"Honestly, it's obv. U look so confused when u look at ur cards."

"I know how to play, Beck."

"Sure u do."

"Okay, fine. Maybe I may have forgotten a few rules. What the hell do they mean when they say "fold"?!"

"Just tell Tori ur gonna sit this 1 out and we can all watch a movie when this game's over."

"They'll know something's up."

"No they won't. Trust me."

"Ugh fine."

She put her phone away and quickly told Tori she was done playing for now. Tori cheerfully replied with an "okay," and continued playing, making some kind of bet with Robbie. Jade got up, picking up her glass, and walked over to the main kitchen area. "You know, I think I'm gonna sit this one out, too," I said, putting my cards down and getting up from my seat.

Everyone else nodded their heads and looked at each other with some kid of knowing glance. I ignored them and walked over to Jade who was staring out of the window with a distant look. I walked closer and gently put my hand on her shoulder. She almost jumped out of her skin as she whirled around to see who had touched her, dropping and smashing the glass at the same time.

When she smashed the glass, I immediately took a step back as the pink lemonade pooled around her feet. She looked at me with wild eyes before slowly looking down at the, now broken, glass. She moved her head up to see the others looking at us both with confused and shocked expressions.

Trina stood up from her chair and walked over to us, glaring at Jade, "what the hell are you doing?!" She asked, loudly.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," Jade stuttered, looking at Trina with a terrified expression.

""Didn't mean to"? That's one of my mom's favourite glasses- they're part of a set, you clutz!"

"Trina, leave her alone. Mom will understand. Jade didn't mean to," Tori interrupted.

"Yeah, and it's my fault anyway. I startled her," I said.

"I'm sorry," Jade repeated, crouching down to pick up the glass shards.

"You'd better be. And make sure to get every last piece, idiot," Trina said as she pointed down at the glass.

"Trina, stop it. Can't you see she's already picking it up. She didn't mean to break it. It's just a stupid glass anyway," Tori told her sister. They both started arguing, one claiming it's just a glass, the other saying they weren't just glasses, that they were expensive. I vaguely noticed Jade had stopped picking up the glass and now held two separate pieces in either hand as she stared ahead, unseeing. The pink lemonade had soaked into her black stockings, but she didn't seem to care.

I quickly moved Trina back when she took a threatening step towards Tori. "Guys, stop it. Tori's right, it's just one glass. You have a bunch more, you won't miss this one," I told her. She glared at me, but backed off anyway. Hers and Tori's staring contest was broken when there was a soft sobbing from by my feet. I looked down to see Jade crying into her hands, still holding the two pieces of glass. With each sob, her shoulders shook, bringing the glass closer to her face each time.

I looked around at everyone else, seeing they had all gotten up and were now crowding around me, Trina, Tori, and Jade. I opened and closed my mouth a few times in confusion until Andre nudged me and I came to my senses. I knelt down in front of her and moved her hands away from her eyes, getting the glass away from her face being my first priority.

"I'm sorry," Jade whispered, repeating herself for the third time. "I-it was an accident, I didn't mean to break it," she went back to picking up the pieces of glass, but with each shard, her hand seemed to be wanting to grasp something bigger than mere glass. "Jade, are you okay?" I carefully asked. Stupid question, I know, but she was looking so out of it, I didn't know what else to say.

"I'm sorry, I'll clean it up," she merely said, ignoring my question.

"Jade, leave the glass for now," I ordered. She reluctantly let go of the glass she had in her hands, letting it fall to he floor, but remained facing the floor. I took both of her hands in mine and tried to get her to look at me, but she wouldn't so I let it go. "I'm sorry, I'll do better next time, I promise," she whispered, starting to pick up the glass again.

I looked at the others in shock until there was a small gasp next to me. I turned back to Jade to see she had cut her hand on the glass. She stared at it in pain, however went back to picking up the rest without complaint. I took her wrists and practically dragged her up. She let go of the glass when I made her stand up so I was thankful for that. I didn't mean to force her to stand like that, but I was just in shock because of her behaviour and she wouldn't leave the glass alone so I had to do something.

"Jade, what's wrong with you? Listen to me. Jade? Jade?" I addressed her like that until she blinked harshly and looked around at everyone stood around us, then at the glass. She yanked her wrists out of my grasp and rubbed them. It seemed I was holding them tighter than I realised. They would surely bruise- Jade bruises easily.

"Stop looking at me!" Jade yelled, making Cat squeal and run back to the cards table, followed by Robbie, Andre, and Trina. She glared at Tori until the half Latina reluctantly left to join the others. She turned back to me, "what?"

"What was that?" I asked, getting straight to the point.

"What was what?" She retorted and put her hands in her back pocket nonchalantly.

"That. With the glass and the constant apologising," I harshly whispered just in case the others were listening.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she denied.

"Fine," I relented. It was easier to just let it go because I knew there was no way Jade was going to give in so quickly. I just needed more proof before I could confront her without her denying everything.


Jade's POV;

I don't know what happened when I dropped the glass. One minute I was looking out of the window with it in my hand, the next my wrists were in Beck's grasp and he was staring at me as if I had gone and murdered his puppy in front of him. Beck helped me clean up the glass and lemonade, however, when he learned I wasn't going to say anything. Especially since I don't know anything, myself. But he didn't know that.

We were going to watch a movie now, anyway. I threw myself on one of the Vega's red couches- the closest to the door- and rested my feet on it. I waited patiently for Vega to pick a movie and glared at Beck when he moved my feet so he could sit next to me. Cat quickly occupied the space on the other side of me and rested her head on my shoulder. I didn't have the energy to yell at her or push her away. It must have been hard for Cat when I left and I felt guilty about my selfish actions.

"Hey, why don't we watch Split? It's a new horror movie, it came out, like, a couple years ago or something," Trina suggested when the other Vega scrolled past it with her remote. I immediately sat up. I hadn't watched that movie, but I'd heard what other people had said about it. I really didn't want to watch it.

"Can we watch another movie?" I asked, hoping we could. "I mean, what about Cat?" I continued when I got confused looks.

"It's okay, Jadey, I want to watch this movie," Cat told me. Damn. Since when does Cat like horror movies, anyway?

"Fine," I sighed. Vega put the movie on and went over to the other red couch, taking a seat next to Andre as the movie started playing. Looking around, no one had their eyes on me so I closed my own, trying to go to sleep as the movie played.

Five minutes passed and I still wasn't asleep. I quietly groaned and opened my eyes to see the movie. Beck now had his arm resting on the back of the couch behind me, having noticed I was going to sleep. I looked to him and he back. I raised an eyebrow, but he merely shrugged with a smile. I quickly looked away when I felt myself smiling, too.


Now a little over half an hour into the movie and Cat still had her head on my shoulder but she was asleep. Ugh, lucky. Beck still had his arm behind me so I leaned into him for comfort.

I glanced at the TV but quickly looked away, "I don't want to watch this movie," I whispered to Beck. A single tear made its way down my face but I wiped it away as quick as it appeared. "Why not? Love horror," he whispered back.

"I just... don't, okay? I think I'm going to go home," I told him.

"What? Why? It's just a movie."

"Well, I don't like it," I picked up my back and rushed out of the front door before anyone could say anything.

I ran as fast as I could down Vega's drive way and stopped when I was a few feet away. I suddenly felt like I was going to throw up so I held my stomach and covered my mouth with an, "oh god." I turned to the trash can next to me and held the sides as I emptied the contents of my stomach in it. I stood hunched over the trash can for a few more seconds after I'd stopped, just to make sure.

Positive I wasn't going to throw up again, I straightened up and took a deep breath, wiping my mouth. "I think you should come back inside," I heard. I turned around to see Beck. His expression held concern and confusion, but nonetheless he held his hand out for me to take. I hesitantly took it and allowed him to lead me back to Vega's house.

The second I stepped through the door, I was surrounded by the others. They bombarded me with questions such as; "what happened?", "why did you run off?", and "are you okay?" I just pushed my way through them and returned to my seat on Vega's couch. I guess I looked like a mess. My eyes were red from throwing up and my skin was paler than usual.

Beck sat next to me and Cat resumed her position by my side, but this time she hugged me rather than resting her head on my shoulder. I used one arm to return the hug as the other held my stomach.

"What happened, Jadey? Why are you upset?" Cat asked. I don't know why, but Kitty-Cat always seemed to know when I was upset. Whether I showed it or not, she knew. I put my hand on her head as she hugged me, some kind of maternal instinct taking over as the child-like red-head kept me close to her.

I looked at the TV screen, noting that the movie was paused. I sighed, "I may have lied to you guys," I started. They looked at each other in confusion and listened intently. "I sort of didn't stay at motels when I was away."

"Then where did you go?" Vega asked suspiciously, being the first to recover. I cast a glance at them all, and started telling the story to them of where I'd been.