Ambiance

AU

Chapter Three

Filming the next day is incredibly awkward, much to Jade's dismay. The hatred is still tangible between Jade and Beck, and between their characters, but the prospect of their romance still looms forebodingly in the future.

At lunch, Jade and Beck are forced to eat at a table together, which is all the more awkward. Thankfully, Andre is there to break up the stormy silence.

"Hey, guys!" he crows, his face lit up. "You were both really good today, though it got a little boring watching you do the same thing over and over again."

"Yeah, well, it was even more boring doing it over and over again." Beck groans.

"Agreed." Jade frowns into her balsamic vinaigrette salad. "Though it was hardly my fault that Beck doesn't know how to properly use facial expressions." She scowls at her salad. "Van Cleef! Bring me the croutons, please."

"Do you always do that?" Beck stares at her as if she's insane.

Looking up from her salad, Jade asks briskly, "Do what?"

"Demand things from other people. It's rude." He raises an eyebrow at her. "You could at least say please."

"As if." Jade rolls her eyes in response.

Andre clears his throat, looking like he's trying to tell them to shut up already. "So, um, how are you guys liking the set and all?"

"The set's nice, so long as nothing falls on me and kills me. Then again, if anything falls on Beck, that wouldn't be so bad..." The edges of her mouth curve up into a smile. "Come to think of it, I might like the set more if something fell on Beck."

"Rude." Beck stabs at his steak and glares at Jade. "Really, Jade, we're going to have to be working together for a while, can't you at least try to make it tolerable?"

"Can't you just try not to be an idiot all of the time?" Her eyes darken as she glares at Beck and stabs at her salad.

"I like pickles!" Andre exclaims, trying to ease the tension. Of course, it doesn't work. Jade's still filled with rage toward her unbecoming co-star. Standing up, she holds her head high and pulls the lid off of her iced coffee. With a small half-smirk, she dumps the drink on top of Beck's head.

Her co-star sits there for a moment, the drink dripping off of his head and into his eyes. His mouth is open in surprise, like he honestly hadn't thought she'd do it – of course she'd do it, what wouldn't she do – and his hair clings to his face, wet, like a little puppy dog. He actually looks an awful lot like a little puppy dog.

Then, at last, he reacts. He grabs both of her wrists, violently pulling her closer to him, which admittedly makes her heart pound a bit faster, probably because she's scared that he'll murder her. Or something.

"Look, Jade." His voice is steady, but seething with rage. "That was too far. You've gone too far. I am not dealing with this. I shouldn't have to." He releases one of her wrists, but keeps a steady grip on the other. "You're coming with me."

"What if I don't want to?" If both of her arms were free, she'd cross her arms across her chest, but since she doesn't really have that option, she just glares at him defiantly.

His eyes soften just a bit, but he still uses a hard voice as he says, "Sometimes you've got to do things you don't want to. Working with you, for example."

"Idiot." She walks with him anyway as he pulls her off and tries to pretend that his skin doesn't feel nice against hers, that his warmth doesn't send a strange sensation down her spine.

Yeah, sometimes it's nice being an actress.

–

He keeps holding onto her wrist as they walk. Not because he thinks she'll escape, because he doesn't – she's hardly an animal, and she knows that what she did was going too far. No, he holds onto her wrist because he doesn't particularly want to let go.

Yes, this is probably a bad thing, he determines, but she's not jerking away like he'd supposed she would, and she probably thinks that he is simply holding on to keep her in line. As long as she thinks that, no harm can come from it.

"Where are you taking me?" she demands angrily after they've been walking for a bit.

"You'll see." He narrows his eyes, releasing her wrist at last but glaring at her as a warning. "Just follow me, and don't run off."

"I'm not a child, Beckett. I wasn't planning on it."

He ignores the fact that she's using his real name and continues walking until they finally get to the main trailer. Before he walks in, he shakes his head, splattering coffee all over Jade's face.

"Ugh!" Jade wipes at her face dramatically. "You imbecile! Now my face is covered in coffee."

"Yeah, well, my head's covered in it, so I guess we're even." He grins at her before pushing open the door. He greets the director with a smile. "Director Lane."

"Beckett! What happened to you?" The man's eyes widen as he takes in Beck's soaking wet hair and face.

Rolling his eyes, Beck motions to Jade. "She dumped coffee on my head."

Jade rolls her eyes. "Don't be so dramatic. It wasn't even a full cup."

Director Lane, however, just makes a disapproving noise and motions for the two of them to sit down. The two teenagers quickly oblige, though Beck is sure to keep himself as far from Jade as possible.

"Look, guys," Director Lane says slowly, "I don't know if you've realized this, but the two of you are working together on a romance movie. That requires cooperation and at least some sort of peace. We cannot – and I repeat, cannot – have you two fighting all the time. You know I think you're both brilliant actors, but if you're going to be like this the whole shoot then we can easily start the movie over with new actors."

Looking over, Beck realizes hat the look of terror on Jade's face is nearly the same as the look of terror on his own face. Biting his lip, he says to Lane, "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize to me." He motions to Jade, ostensibly to get him to apologize to her.

With a sigh, Beck tells her, "I'm sorry for antagonizing you and... what do you call it... being an idiot or whatever."

"I'm sorry for dumping coffee on your head and being a jerk," Jade deadpans. "I'll try to keep my beverages away from your head next time."

The room is quiet for a moment before both Beck and Jade burst into uncontrollable giggles. (Looking over, Beck decides that Jade is a lot less scary when she's smiling.)

"Well, looks like my work here is done." Lane raises an eyebrow. "I do hope that these petty arguments will stop from now on, though."

"Most assuredly." Jade stands up, all traces of laughter and euphoria wiped completely off of her face. "I have to go now," she says, though it probably could have been anything, because she mumbled it so quickly he couldn't really make it out. "Bye." Then she flees quickly out the door.

"Is she always like that?" Beck asks, despite his attempts to hold it in. "I mean, as soon as we start getting along, as soon as she starts to have fun, she leaves. I don't get her!"

"Yeah, well, neither do I," Director Lane assures him. "She's a tough girl, but she has a good heart. Sometimes I think she's only like she is because she's trying to keep herself from getting hurt. .;"

"Somehow, I doubt that." Beck's tone is cold and judgmental. With a half-smile, he heads toward the door. "I should probably be off now too. Have to get all of this coffee out of my hair so it looks just as gorgeous for shooting tomorrow. Bye!"

As he heads back to his trailer to pick up his stuff before they're bussed back to the hotel, he thinks. She has a good heart. There is absolutely no way that Jade West, the Ice Queen, the girl he has hated since Day 1 has a good heart. It's just not possible. She's evil, freakish, and a complete jerk to anyone and everyone.

Impossible, he reminds himself.

It's scary how plausible her secret nice side is starting to seem.

It's also sad that he's so determined to see the good in everyone, including Jade West.

–

The next few days of shooting pass uneventfully, save for a few minor accidents and more than a little bit of unresolved awkwardness. Beck and Jade don't fight any more, at least, but they don't speak aside from small, petty conversations and, of course, when they're shooting together. Sometimes Jade thinks that she'd rather have their inherent hatred back than have no interaction at all. (Then she pushes that thought away, because no, she doesn't miss Beck Oliver, not in the least. He's simply a playboy, an idiotic dunderhead that she tolerates on a daily basis, not someone whose presence she enjoys.)

She talks to Andre more than anyone, but a lot of times during their conversations Andre will stop and look at her, just stare at her, and his eyes are filled with pity. It makes her feel uncomfortable.

One day, when she's utterly and completely bored, she calls Cat. "I'm bored."

"That's not good! Where's Beck?" Cat asks, naivety evident in her tone. Honestly, why would Jade be with Beck? Cat should know by now that Jade doesn't like Beck, not in the least.

"I don't know, nor do I care. I've told you before that I don't like Beck Oliver. Please respect that." She tries not to note the way her voice (and perhaps her opinion of him) isn't as solid as she would like.

"Why not?" Cat's voice sounds sad. "I thought you guys would be BFFs by now."

"Yeah? Well, you thought wrong." That's a bit harsh, she decides. Cat's a bit like a cute little kitten; no one wants to hurt her feelings because it just feels wrong and makes you feel like a horrible person. "Look, Cat, I know you're just thinking of what's best for me but I really cannot bring myself to like him."

"You're not trying hard enough," Cat protests. "I think he likes you. Maybe if you just gave him a chance..."

"I don't want to like Beck Oliver!" she hisses, and there she has it. The truth is out. She's starting to like him, he's starting to grow on him, but it's not supposed to work that way because she hates him, right?

"You... why?" Cat's voice breaks a little. "Jadey, he's a nice guy! And I know how you want a boyfriend. I mean, I know you think Xavier's nice, but he's just not your type... I know your type. And I think Beck is!"

"He is not." Jade's voice is low now. She doesn't feel the urge to continue the conversation any longer, so she deliberately presses the end button and listens to the sound of silence in her ear.

I do not like Beck Oliver or even tolerate his presence. He's an idiot.

She tries to make herself believe it.

–

Beck isn't having a particularly wonderful day, so when Andre walks into the trailer, he considers pulling a Jade and yelling at him to go away. But then again, Beck's not Jade, not in the least, so he just sits up and smiles. "Hey, dude. What are you doing here?"

"Look, I need to talk to you," Andre says apologetically, spreading out his arms. "I know that you and Jade aren't the best of friends, but seriously, dude, you don't have to go so far as to stop talking to her completely."

"That's the only way for us not to fight." One. Two. Three. He counts down silently, hoping that it'll help him to push away the anger. Four. Five. Six.

"I don't believe that." Andre grins over at him. "You know, if you'd give her a chance... you two have a lot more in common than you'd like to think."

I don't want to talk about Jade. Jade is a brat. She dumped coffee on my head. "I don't know about that," Beck explains, shaking his head. "I'm not a brat."

"Hey, now. She's really an okay girl when you get past the harshness and all of that. I think she's just.. confused," Andre supplies, sitting down on Beck's bed. "And I really, honestly don't believe that you two 'hate each other' as much as you claim to. I think that you're both stubborn and you're determined not to like each other. It's all an act. You're both just really good actors."

For some reason, he doubts that Jade is that good an actress, but he doesn't protest. Instead, he asks the question that has been plaguing his mind for quite a while now. "Do you think that Jade has a good heart?"

Andre seems to think about it for a moment. His eyebrows crease in thought. "Yeah, man, I'm pretty sure she does. Under all those fronts she tries to put up... I think she really does care about a few people. And I know that if she does care for you, you ain't gonna need any insurance. She's got that covered."

Beck nods. No. What has she ever done for you? She's tried to ruin your life, cut up your clothes; heck, she's gone so far as to dump coffee on your head. You have no reason to think that she has a 'soft side' underneath all of that meanness.

Instead of something about how much he dislikes her, though, what comes out is "So, where do you think she'd be right now?"

No, bad Beck. He's not actually going to find her, is he? That'd be one of the stupidest decisions in his life so far, and honestly, he has made a lot of stupid decisions.

"I think she'd be..." He trails off, tapping her chin. "In her trailer, I guess. That's where she normally is, at least. Are you going to find her? Because you should, dude. It'd be a gesture of goodwill or whatever you call it. Either way, it will be nice to have you talking again, cause it's gotten slightly boring without your constant arguing." Andre laughs.

Beck has to laugh too. "Yeah. It really has."

Despite his mind's constant pleading for him not to go, he ends up shrugging on a jacket and walking out into the pouring rain, just to go see her, the bane of his existence, the girl who is intent on making his life as bad as she can. The selfish girl, the beautiful girl, the determined girl... he makes himself stop there. This is no time for him to be going soft on Jade West, of all people.

Maybe Jade's right, he thinks as he walks through the rain. Maybe he really is an idiot.

Frowning, he raps on the door nonetheless.

–

When Jade heard the rapping, she thought at first that it had to be a serial killer or maybe the director. Perhaps it could be Andre, though she highly doubts that Andre would walk through the rain just to come see her. It is a possibility, she supposes. When she pulls open the door, though, it is none of those.

Beck Oliver is standing in front of her, looking, once again, like a little lost puppy with his wet hair and big eyes. Tentatively, he smiles. "Hey."

"What do you want?" she demands, crossing her arms in front of her chest. She doesn't invite him to come in, because it really was his decision to come to her trailer in the rain. Besides, he's already wet, he might as well get as thoroughly soaked as possible, just to show him what a stupid decision he is making.

"You." He coughs, obviously realizing how very awkward that sounds. "I mean, to talk to you."

"Yeah, well, talk." She rolls her eyes.

"No. Just. Come outside, will you? We'll go for a walk." He looks so very hopeful that Jade imagines rejecting him will be much like rejecting Cat. It'll be like stepping on a little lost puppy.

Sighing, she hisses, "No. I am not going for a walk in the rain, you idiot."

He looks hurt, so she rolls her eyes. Finally, he speaks again. "Come on, Jade. Do you want to spend the rest of filming not so much as speaking to each other?"

"Yes." She blinks, trying to convey that this is not something she's thought about, when really it's something she thinks about a lot. Maybe more than a lot.

He is finally starting to look uncomfortable with the situation. At last, he just shakes his head and grabs her hand. "Come on."

"I am not going outside." She probably sounds – and looks – like an insolent little child, but really, she couldn't care less. She does not want to go for a walk in the rain (something that a couple would do) with Beck Oliver. She reminds herself that he is the boy that broke her friend's heart, the playboy, the 'Casanova', and she hates him. He said he didn't break her heart. Lies.

"Yes, you are." It seems Beck has discovered her weak point – the only way to get her to comply is to continually command her, unless you're an authority figure, then you should probably say the opposite. She struggles in his grip, but finally rolls her eyes.

"Fine. I'll go."

"Knew it." He grins at her. "Grab a jacket. It's rather wet out here."

"Really? I hadn't noticed. Thank you for that riveting announcement!" With a small groan, she tugs on a jacket and follows Beck into the pouring rain.

"This is one of the stupidest things I've ever done," she informs him coldly. "If I catch a cold, you'll be in so much trouble."

"I'm okay with that." His confidence is one of the things about him that she secretly admires, so she has to hide her smile. Secretly, she reminds herself. Not that she'd ever let him know about it. His ego would blow up to the size of the Empire State Building.

"I figured you would be." Her tone is still cold, which makes her happy. "See, this is why you are strange. You want to get in trouble, which is very stupid."

"No. I just... I don't know, it doesn't bother me. Mom says I'm a rebel." He flips his hair out of his eyes with a grin. "You know, I wasn't even supposed to become an actor in the first place. My parents think that it's a waste of time and that 'I'm not bringing in enough money.' Though really, I'm an A-list actor. I'm not sure how I can get much more money." He gives a small, bitter laugh.

Jade knows exactly how he feels. She's only been told since, oh, what, the beginning of her life that acting's a waste of time and it can only end badly for her. Nonetheless, she really doesn't want to talk about her strained relationship with her father, nor does she want to talk about her overprotective mom and how she had to run away from both of them in order to become a successful actress.

She doesn't want to talk about how she'd been paid zero attention growing up. Well, unless she did something bad, because then they were all up in her business, asking what made her do this. Couldn't they see? Didn't they get it?

"Jade?" Beck's curious voice snaps her out of her reverie.

"Yeah. I guess I just know how you feel." Her voice is flat, emotionless, but it puts a stupid smile on Beck's face anyway.

"Oh, what have we here?" he exclaims, staring at her with those stupid puppy-dog eyes. "Is this the infamous Jade West attempting empathy?"

"Shut up," she murmurs, shoving her hands forcibly into her coat pockets and hoping he'll take a hint. One thing she's noticed in her eighteen years, though, is that boys are incredibly bad at taking hints.

"And for me! Her least favorite person in the world," he continues, not giving her a break at all. "The boy whose clothes she cut up."

"I still have those scissors, you know," she remarks darkly. "If you want, I'd be happy to shred up the rest of your clothes. Just let me know by continuing to tease me and talking about things I so obviously don't want to talk about."

"Fine," Beck says, but the smile doesn't leave his face. "You're shivering."

"Well, yes!" Jade exclaims, giving him one of those oh really stares. "This is a thin, cloth jacket and I'm soaking wet. Obviously I'm not going to be that warm. Really, for an idiot, you're especially dense. It's sickening."

"Do you want my jacket?" He offers, tugging at the sleeve of his jacket.

She closes her eyes. No. She doesn't want his jacket. She doesn't want to be out here with him as the rain pours down around them. In fact, she has a feeling that her makeup is running. But for whatever reason, she finds herself muttering "Yes."

The scratchy fabric feels rough against her skin, but at least she stops shivering. Frowning, she glances over at Beck, who looks completely comfortable in his plaid shirt and jeans. She rolls her eyes again. The jacket has a strange smell, she notices with a frown. It's not a bad smell, not by any means, just an unfamiliar smell. Something that doesn't smell like anything she's smelt before.

Glancing over, she realizes that this is what Beck smells like. It's strange. Everything is strange.

With a half-frown, Beck clears his throat. "So I was thinking," he says warmly. "Would you want to – I don't know, try to be friends? I mean, you're not as bad as I thought you were." He gives a small, awkward laugh.

Friends. With Beck Oliver. No. She hates him; she despises him with every inch of her being. Or does she? Her mind is racing out of control, and she doesn't like it, not at all.

With a frown, she takes off, her legs driving her all the way back to her trailer. All she can think of is Beck and how he could possibly want to be friends with her when all she's been to him is mean. Perhaps it's a revenge plan, she decides, some twisted way of ruining her. But no, she's not going to fall for it. She is much more clever than he could ever hope to be.

No way is she falling for some idiot's revenge plan.

Except, she realizes as she pulls his coat tighter around her shoulders, she kind of already has fallen into his stupid plan.

She fishes around in her drawer until she finds her phone. Quickly, she presses the second contact on her list. "Johnson," she says, shivering. "I'm going to need a make-up touchup."

"Have you been out in the rain?" Johnson questions, sounding a bit concerned.

"Yes, I've been out in the rain," she answers. Before he can respond to that, she adds quickly, "No, don't ask. It's complicated and I really do not want to talk about it. Send someone over immediately. Some warm soup would be nice as well." Remembering what Beck had said about it being rude to order people, she adds hastily, "Please."

The last thing she hears before Johnson hangs up is "I think that Beck kid is a good influence on her."

–

A/N:

Wow, that was a lot of Jade. Don't worry; we'll have a lot more Beck next chapter. I hope you guys enjoyed it anyway and don't think it's moving too fast. (Cause really they're not even friends yet, lol.)

Thanks so much for your reviews! I may not reply to all of them, but let me just tell you that I appreciate them and all of you so, so much. The review count went down a bit this chapter, so just reiterating – reviews mean faster updates and more motivation on my part ;D Please don't fave/alert without reviewing! If you can add it to your favorites, surely you have a word or two to say about it?