Disclaimer: So... have you watched anything of season 2? Did you see a lot of Bade? No? Well, then it's more than unlikely that I own Victorious.

Glancing at his clock, Beck decided that now it was too late to go to improv class, especially because he wouldn't want to explain why he was too late. He wondered if Jade had gone to class eventually, after, well, their kiss. He smirked as he thought about it. She had kissed him. Jade West. Kissed. Him.

It didn't matter that apparently she had done it because she got the wrong idea of him, but how it had felt. Thinking about it still gave him chills and enormous amounts of butterflies were partying in his stomach. This hadn't been just a 'trophy' or whatsoever. It couldn't have been. It had felt so... intense. So real.

Deep in thought, Beck strolled down the empty hallway, when it hit him. It. A crazy thought, to be honest. That couldn't be, could it? He couldn't be in love with Jade, right? Right? He cast his mind back to the kiss, trying to figure out his feelings. But the tingling sensation it caused in his whole body spoke for itself. He gulped. But... how? How had Jade managed to completely twist him around her little finger in such a short time – without even trying? And why had he let it happen in the first place? What did Jade West have that magically attracted him so much? It was a mystery to him.

He sat down on the empty table he and the gang, how Tori liked to refer to them, always reserved at lunch, since it was almost time for it. In a few minutes, the whole school would be outside, enjoying the sunny weather of L.A. But wait – would she be there? Would she even sit at the same table with him? Or would she take Cat and make her sit on any other table from now on till forever to avoid him? (She was definitely capable of doing something like that.)

Beck didn't even notice at first, when Cat joined him as the first of their friends. "Hey," she said. "Where's Jade?"

He knitted his eyebrows. "What do you mean, 'where's Jade?' Wasn't she in class with you?"

"No, I thought she was with you after you two made up," Cat told him, now sounding slightly concerned.

Beck shook his head. "Yeah, we... we didn't really make up," he admitted. "She wouldn't listen to me and... went." He wasn't exactly lying to Cat. He was just leaving out some parts of the truth because he was afraid of her reaction to it. Knowing her, she would probably get so excited that she would tell the whole school, and he really couldn't need that. Jade was angry enough with him.

"Phooey," Cat pouted. "She's so stubborn!"

Beck chuckled a little. "Yeah, she is." Then his expression got serious again. "But I guess it's really all my fault. I messed it up."

"Don't say that," she solaced him, stroking his arm.

At the same moment, Tori, André and Robbie joined them for lunch. "Hey guys," Tori greeted, while placing her food tray on the table in front of her and sitting down. "Why weren't you in improv class, Beck?"

"I – uh – didn't feel like it," he said, avoiding eye contact. He wasn't lying, but he didn't want to to enlarge upon the reason for his absence either.

"Oh, well, OK," Tori said, sounding a little suspicious. "So, did you manage to get all your other homework done last night?"

Homework? Beck knitted his eyebrows, trying to figure out what she was talking about, when, fortunately, he remembered the excuse he had used to avoid going to the cinema with Tori after their meeting the night before.

"Oh, uh, yeah sure," he lied.

André glanced around. "Hey – where's Jade by the way? Wasn't she in my singing class this morning?"

"Yeah, I remember seeing her there," Tori said.

Beck and Cat exchanged glances, Beck motioning her to not tell them anything. Cat nodded.

"Maybe she wasn't feeling well and went home," she told them, then tried to change the subject. "I'm going to grab some food now, anyone coming with me?" She glanced at Robbie and André, who both hadn't bought their lunch yet, either.

"Yeah, sure," Robbie said, getting up and André followed.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Tori leaned closer to Beck. "So... wanna explain last night to me now?", she asked, catching him off guard.

"L-last night?"

"Yeah, I mean, what did Jade want? And why did she get all upset?"

"Oh, that..." he said, trying to sound as if it was of no importance. "No big deal, really. Just forget about it. Just some... misunderstanding."

Tori nodded, but didn't look quite convinced. Still she decided to let it drop since Beck didn't seem willing to talk about it any more.

"So, how about we go see a movie tonight then?" she asked hopefully.

Beck flinched a little at that question. He couldn't make the same mistake again. "No, sorry, I'm busy tonight," he told her, shrugging apologetically.

"Oh, OK," Tori said. At moments like this she was more than glad to be an actress so she could hide her true feelings and emotions. Like disappointment.

She wondered what Beck could possibly be hiding. Because since last night, she was certain that he was hiding something. And it had something to do with Jade. It had to. And she needed to find out soon, because whatever it was, it was interfering with her plans of making Beck hers.

The others came back to their table and Tori started eagerly chatting with André and Robbie about some upcoming play. Beck took the opportunity and leaned over to Cat, whispering, "Do you have any idea where Jade could have went? Maybe home?"

Cat shook her head. "I don't think so. She doesn't really... like her home, so she spends as little time as possible there."

"Oh, OK... so where else could she be?"

"Maybe..." Cat said, while thinking hard. "There is this old playground, I know she goes there a lot because there she's usually alone."

"Tell me where it is."

. . .

It was one of those extremely hot and sunny days in L.A. Not that that was unusual, but today Jade wished for some rain and thunder more than ever before, because that was how she felt like. She hated it when the weather didn't fit her mood (unfortunately, in L.A., it never really did) like it did in movies. She wanted storms, and hail and hell, even hurricanes, so she could feel as depressed and angry as she wanted to. Because a nice and sunny day wasn't exactly helpful with that.

She was sitting on some play equipment, that was looking like a pirate ship, at her very favorite place: an old playground not far from her house. Everything here was old and rotten and rusty, but that was exactly what she liked about this place. Because most times she came here, rotten and rusty was how her insides and life felt. Like only a slight push from falling apart. Broken. Not working anymore. Abandoned.

The brittle wood beneath her scrunched at every move she made, but she barely noticed. Absentmindedly, she drew little circles in the fine sand it was covered with, while thinking about her current life. Beck.

It enraged her that Cat was probably right. She wouldn't be caring so much about him and the things he did, if there wasn't more behind it. And she hated that fact. She didn't want to care about that self-loving idiot. Angrily, she kicked a pebble out of the wooden ship.

Her own helplessness was making her sick. Feelings were nothing one could control or influence. You couldn't make them work your way by scaring or intimidating them, like Jade could do with almost everything else. And she hated it.

Because she knew that it would only break her heart. That she was certain about. She knew his little game and she knew that even so, she still couldn't change her feelings. Not that they were terribly strong, she only cared about him a little, maybe, but the feelings being there was enough to drive her mad. She didn't want this. She didn't want to care about anything but herself, and maybe Cat. No one else.

While she was still deep in thought, her phone went off. Jade startled up at the sudden noise and without thinking or checking the number, she answered it, but regretted it only a second later.

"Hello?"

"Jade, hi!" she heard Beck's surprised voice through the phone. "Wow, I didn't think you'd pick up."

She mentally slapped herself. "Ugh, yeah, me neither."

With that she hung up on him again. "Way to go, Jade," she murmured sarcastically to herself while resting her head on the unsound wall.

Her phone went off again. She stared at it for a second, then pressed Ignore. Only a minute later it rang again, and again, she ignored the call. It went on like that for a good 10 minutes, until she finally gave in.

"What?" she spat, slamming the phone to her ear.

"Are you OK?" Beck asked in a casual tone.

"Why shouldn't I be, idiot?"

"You weren't in improv class, you ignored my calls..."

"Nothing new with the latter," she said.

"Touché," he admitted and she could tell he was grinning.

She played with her hair while talking. "Is that all?"

"No. Can we... talk?"

"We talked this morning," she said matter-of-factly.

"Nah, that was more like you talking and accusing me of things, while I didn't get the chance to say a word," he explained, still sounding a little amused.

"That's enough."

"No," he said. "I think we have a lot more talking to do."

"Why? I know your game, you got what you wanted – we're even."

He sighed. "Jade, there is no game or whatever you want to call it. I don't even know what you're talking about!"

"Bye."

"No, Jade, don't hang up on me again!"

"I don't listen to you."

"But you haven't hung up yet, have you?" he grinned.

"That's it," she said angrily, ready to push the red button, but she still heard his chuckle.

"Just come out of that ship and talk to me, OK?"

Jade spun round, glancing out of one of the portholes next to her. Beck was sitting on an old bench near the half torn off fence that was built around the playground. He smiled when he spotted her, waving a little. She backed away into the ship again, so he couldn't see her anymore, and hung up. She needed some time to think.

Why was he here? She had thought this was over and he would already be hitting on the next girl by now. So why? And more importantly – why was her heart beating so fast?

Suddenly, he was sitting down next to her on the sandy ground of the ship. Way too close for her liking, actually, but since the ship was made for kids, it was pretty small and there wasn't much space for two teenagers.

"So," he grinned. "do you come here often?"

"Quit it."

"Sorry."

She glared at him. "What the hell do you want?"

"Clarify some things?" The way he said it sounded more like a question.

"There is nothing to clarify," she said, while seeking for a possible way out of this ship. But she couldn't get out unless Beck let her – which he probably wouldn't.

"There is."

"Oh yeah? What?"

"How about, there is no game or whatsoever as a start?"

She raised and eyebrow. "OK, and I wouldn't believe that. What else?"

"Why not?"

"I saw you and Tori, duh," she said, rolling her eyes.

He threw up his hands in a gesture of desperation. "I told you, we were doing homework."

"Yeah, sure," she replied dryly.

"What do I have to do so you will believe me?"

Jade stared at him for a moment. Maybe she was wrong and he wasn't lying? No. Jade West was never wrong. But his eyes... She sighed."Fine you were doing 'homework'" - she drew little quotation marks in the air, yet didn't sound as disbelieving as before - "Now leave me alone." Maybe he would finally let go now and she could get over this whole... thing.

He smiled, relieved. "One more thing."

Jade groaned. "What?"

"Do you wanna go out with me?"

Look how fast I updated! And look how long this chapter is! :DD lol I thought about dividing this chapter into two, but I decided against it. That's why it's so long. And yes, I'll leave you hanging there :P

School starts on Monday :( That means, less time. I will try to update again before school starts but knowing me, I better don't promise anything.

s o f t.l u l l a b y: Thank you so much! And see, I updated faster :D

So... a lot of people have this story in their faves and even more on alert, but never review - so please do? :D

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