Forsaken Thy Happiness: A tale of Tori Vega
Disclaimer: I do not possess the rights of ownership over the characters or setting of Victorious, copyrights or trademarks thereof are the property of Dan Schneider and his associates. I don't write for monetary compensation nor will I accept any recompense for this. I wrote this tale using the characters for purposes of entertainment and just for fun. No offense or infringement is intended, and I have no desire to anger the powers that be.
This tale is told from a variety of perspectives but it is focuses on Tori's point of view and thoughts.
Jade nodded her head, though a frown was on her face, as she thought back to the event that nearly tore her girl away from her. "Tori, I think I will tell you what I remember, and maybe that might help you," Jade told the love of her life, while trying not to cry at the thought of revisiting that night. Jade began to recount her memory of the incident at Santa Monica:
Upon debarking from the metro rail at the Santa Monica stop, the group decided to make their way to the midpoint of the Pier, where they could sit and watch a fleet of large ships shoot fireworks from their decks. While sitting down to watch the fireworks with Tori, Jade lamented her decision to watch the hypnotic display of explosions in the air. She would rather be anywhere else, ever since she was a small dour girl, she felt a rare sense of dread, and annoyance when around fireworks. It was torture, and definitely not the good kind, to be around such loud cacophony. For Jade, it was a rare moment of empathy for how her stepmother-creature must feel, as the woman could not look at fireworks without feeling faint. Shaking her head, Jade looked at her girlfriend and said: "Tori, babe, have I ever told you that I hate fireworks?". Tori was about to answer when a rocket firework shot off course with a piercing shriek landing right on a storage bin of unused fireworks at the edge of the pier. That was the moment everything changed. A terrible accident. Even in her darkest fantasies, Jade would never have wished for what happened next.
Time seemed to slow down, Jade heard a roaring crackling boom sound as a lethally beautiful chain reaction started, multiple fireworks going off everywhere landing amidst the crowd. Robbie and Cat were whimpering, Rex was yelling at the group to "Leg it! Now!", and Trina was pulling Beck towards the pier's entrance. Jade hauled Tori up on her feet, and the two of them began to run as fast as they could.
As they passed by a series of parked cars, one or two of the more restricted(illegal) fireworks hit a pinto's engine block touching off a one-in-a billion explosion like something out of a cheesy action movie. The flaming car pinwheeled through the air towards the gang, as they ran as fast as they could. Jade and Tori were running as fast as they could when the rear end of the pinto slammed down three feet away from Tori, effectively knocking her off her feet several meters forward into the ground, the flaming pinto completed its forward motion, the front left wheel slammed into Tori's head. "NO! Tori!" Jade's voice rang out in a scream of rage and denial. Trina and Jade both ran forward to try to lift the wreck off of Tori, who was screaming in pain and terror. "Come on, pick up! Yes we need an ambulance at the Santa Monica Pier! My girlfriend's sister is trapped under a flaming car. No, this is not a prank. GET OVER HERE!" Beck was on the phone calling for emergency services, his normally laid-back and calm voice pulsating with frustration and fear.
20 minutes later the freaking ambulance finally shows up, with a police escort and the fire department to extricate Tori from the wreck. Jade had to be held back by Andre and Beck so she wouldn't get in the way of the rescue team, while Tori was pulled out from under the wrecked pinto. Trina was hugging Cat tightly, reassuring the redhead that things would be okay. Robbie and Rex, in a rare moment of courage, yelled at Jade to calm down: "Falling apart right now won't help Tori. She needs you to be strong. We'll ride in the ambulance with you and her. She will survive this".
Jade paused for a moment, and wiped some tears from her eyes. "It was my fault, you know? If I had been braver, or faster, you wouldn't have been injured. "
A/N: Next chapter will deal with the ambulance ride and Robbie's memory of that night.