Clash

Tuesday and Wednesday passed badly. Much to Beck's disappointment Jade had decided to give up on psychological warfare and go after Tori in a more direct fashion. She tried with sabotaged home works, with hacking Tori's Slap page and filling it with pictures of dead clowns, sabotaging her microphone in music class and she even tried the trick with the bush-daisies. Andre had told him about the stunt Jade had tried to pull in order to get the lead role in Sikowitz's play. So when he saw the flower bouquet left by Tori's locker he knew something was amiss. He took the dangerous flowers and disposed of them. Tori took the change in tactics by Jade relatively well.

"I'm sure she will eventually work through her loss and get back to normal. She is just grieving, violently, over your break up." Tori said after finding her Biology textbook painted in black, every single page of it. Beck was not so sure of it. He was proven right when on Thursday Tori opened her locker to find her Cuddle-Me-Cathy doll not only decapitated, but covered with red dye in a way that made it look like blood was flowing from her severed neck. Tori whimpered, took the mutilated doll in her hands and turned to Beck.

"What kind of person does that?" She asked incredulously, clutching the decapitated doll to her chest. Her eyes began to shine with tears of sorrow and hurt. "I've had this doll since I was five years old. I've managed to protect her from Trina for eleven years. Now look at her." She sadly dropped the hand gripping the doll.

"I'm sorry Tori." Beck reached to her and pulled her in his arms. He lovingly rested her head on his shoulder and gently began to caress her silky hair. After a few moments Tori lifted her head, hastily wiped away a lonely tear and got out of his embrace.

"No, she will be sorry." Her eyes, still shiny with tears began to get that peculiar glint of a really angry person. "It's time to end this thing once and for all." She turned away and purposely strode towards The Asphalt Café. It was near lunch, so Jade was probably already there. Tori's long slender legs carried her so fast that Beck had to hurry his steps to keep up with her. Tori found Jade sitting alone on a table and soon stood before her. She put the doll's corpse in front of the pale brunette and looked her firmly in the eyes.

"You did this didn't you?" Tori and Jade looked at each other for a few seconds, none of them willing to avert her gaze and yield to the other. Finally Jade lowered her eyes and looked the doll.

"It looks like something I would do, doesn't it?" She said with a satisfied smirk. Beck stood by Tori's side, ready to interfere if thing got out of hand.

"Do you know that I've had this doll since I was five? That she was my confidant when I was a child. That this doll is my most treasured childhood treasure." The anger and indignation in her voice could not be clearer. Beck put reassuringly his hand on Tori's back.

"So I've made the right choice then." Jade got up and now both girls were staring each other across the table. She spared a glance in Beck's direction, as if challenging him to interfere. He didn't say anything because he knew these two had to finally vent their grievances.

"What exactly did you hope to achieve with this?" Tori's voice got a little calmer. She was trying to understand the girl standing before her. Beside her Beck relaxed a little.

"To make you feel a tiny fraction of the loss I felt when you stole Beck from me. To make you understand, for a second, the pain when someone takes away the thing that you treasure most in the world. You started this Vega." Bitterness and accusation laced Jade's reply. She again glanced to him, but his expression remained calm.

"I started this? You hated me from the moment you met me. I hadn't done anything to you and you already hated me." Tori incredulously replied. She couldn't believe that the other girl thought that Tori had begun this conflict.

"Nothing you say? From the moment you came in this school you have been taking stuff away from me. Things I have worked hard to get." Students began gathering around attracted by the argument.

"What things? What have I taken away from you? What possible reason could you have to hate me from day one?" Tori exasperatedly asked.

"Are you really that blind and self-involved that you don't know?" Jade retorted with anger. "I'll tell you then. All of us had to go through difficult audition to get here, you filled for your talentless sister for one measly song and you get your acceptance on a platter. You have no idea how theatre works and yet you get lead roles that should have gone to someone more deserving." Beck felt Tori tense with his palm resting on her back. He knew that this was one of her insecurities. She still didn't quite believe that she belonged here.

"Like you?" She replied, hiding the hurt of the last comment behind a skeptical smile.

"Yes, like me. I have worked too hard to become the best in Hollywood Arts, to be over shadowed by some lucky upstart who doesn't know anything about the arts." Beck heard the gathered students murmur. Jade would have continued but Tori interrupted her.

"Has it come to your mind that it isn't about you? There are thousands of people out, as talented as you, there that you will have to compete against. How are you going to do it if even competing with me drives you crazy? You have grown too used to being the biggest fish in the pond, but there is a whole ocean out there and you will have to get used to losing some of the battles without falling to pieces." Beck nodded a little, it was a good point. He sometimes worried that after being the top dog in Hollywood Arts he might not cut it in the real world.

"So I have to thank you for it?" Jade's incredulous exclamation got back his attention. "Maybe I should also thank you for stealing my friends? Thank you for making them like you more than me. Thank you for making even Cat, the only girl in this school that I can stand, go around looking at me with sad eyes asking why I have to be so mean to you." There was more bitterness then anger in Jade's voice.

"We could have been friends Jade. But every time that I tried to reach out to you, you pushed me away. I didn't steal your friends. All I did was make a few new ones in a new school. We could have been all friends, but you insisted on making them choose. Well they decided that nice is better than mean. You could still change that, just stop your vendetta and come back." Tori's voice was calm, tired, almost pleading for the other girl to come to her senses. Beck lowered his hand from her back and took her hand in his.

"Back, so I'll get to see you and Beck making out in front of me. Did you forget your biggest crime Vega? You stole my boyfriend, my love, the most important thing I've ever had." Jade's noticed his hand holding Tori's and her blue eyes again flashed with anger. "Don't tell me you didn't steal him. Ever since you came here you have tried to get your hands on my Beck. I have to admit you were very sly. When your first direct attempt didn't succeed, you became 'friends' with him. That way you got your hooks in him and slowly pulled him away from me. I'll never forgive this." Beck caught her stare and calmly returned it. He had made his choice.

"I did not steal Beck! It is true that I liked him from the start but I never tried anything to seduce him away from you. I tried everything to become friends with you two. I even helped you get him back after you broke up with him. It is not my fault that he fell in love with me. I tried everything to hide my feelings for him out of respect for your relationship. But as much as I am sorry for the pain that this causes you, I will not deny my feelings now that I know they are returned. There is nothing you can do to make me go away." Beck smiled and gently squeezed her hand. Jade grabbed her bag and forced her way through the small crowd around them, leaving Tori and Beck behind. Tori sighed and leaned on him. He lightly kissed her temple. She had done what she could; now the ball was in Jade's corner.

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