Chapter 6- Betrayed
"Beck?" Tori's voice choked back, as if someone was physically strangling her. Her mind was screaming at her to bolt out the door, but she could not make her body move. It was too late anyway. Trina and Beck leaped away from each other and looked at her suddenly. Through Trina's shocked expression, Tori could see her content on her face.
For a moment, no one said anything. What Tori just saw began to sink into her heart like a thorn.
Beck and Trina were… She struggled against the fact. It almost hurt too much to finish the thought.
"Tori, aren't you supposed to be in class?" Trina asked.
Tori took a deep breath. There was no way she could even consider being decent to her sister after everything that had happened. "You're supposed to be in class!" she blew up. "Leave!"
Trina crossed her arms defiantly. "You can't tell me what to do."
Beck stepped between them. "Uh, Trina."
Trina looked at Beck again. All traces of her annoyance were gone, as if Tori suddenly vanished.
"Yeah, Beck?" she responded angelically.
"Can I catch you later? I will find you at lunch or something."
"Well sure. You know where to find me. At the cool kids' table."
Trina touched Beck's shoulder affectionately and then swept out the door. Tori was on the verge of pouncing on Trina and punching her to her heart's content. She was mature enough to stay put. She huffed angrily until Trina left, and the door was closed. Then she glowered at Beck in a way she never had before.
"Well, Beck," she snarled. "What was that?"
Beck's eyes narrowed with resentment. "What does it matter to you?"
"You know, I didn't think you were that kind of guy, but I guess you don't know someone until you see what they are doing when you aren't around. How dare you kiss Trina? How dare you do anything like this? I say no, so you instantly move on to the next desperate girl there is."
He could not believe what he was hearing. He felt very angered by Tori's words, but there was nothing he could do but wait until she was done yelling so he could retaliate with words of his own. The whole time she talked he was remembering how he felt when he was blindsided by her relationship update on The Slap. She was not worth his feelings, even if he once thought so.
"I can do whatever I want, and it has nothing to do with you," he returned, equally biting. "You talk about me doing something like this? You are the biggest hypocrite I have ever met."
"Oh really?"
"Yes, really. You could have just been honest with me. If you weren't into me, you could have just said so. You didn't have to lead me on into believing we had something when we didn't. Maybe you could have told me that instead of letting me see it on your homepage along with at least a dozen likes."
Her brown eyes softened a little. It almost seemed like desperation was in her eyes. "I didn't post that. Trina did."
"Trina has been nothing but nice to me lately. Sure, blame it all on Trina, like you always do. Whatever."
He looked away from Tori and to the ceiling, as if there was suddenly something exciting up there to look at. He knew he was trying not to fall for Tori's expression which revealed her vulnerability.
"You are unbelievable," Tori seethed. "How could you think I am lying?"
"I don't need this. I am going to the kickback with Trina. At least she wants to go with me."
He silenced her for a moment. For a moment he actually thought she was telling the truth, that she truthfully did want to go to the kickback with him. Then she came forward and said, "Well I am going to the kickback with Danny. You can come find me when you stop being so ridiculous."
"Don't count on that," he concluded their fight as Tori stormed out of the Black Box.
Beck simply stood there for a few minutes. He felt too anxious from his encounter with Trina, then Tori, to settle down. When he finally sagged down on the edge of the stage, his thoughts were clear.
Tori is officially gone. She couldn't have made it more clear how she feels about me.
Beck got another message. It was from Jade. He was quick to open it.
Did Tori find you? She ditched class trying to find you.
He started to type a response, thought about it, then erased it. He tried again.
No, she didn't. I will be back in class in a minute. I'm alright, don't worry.
Jade was normally fantastic at telling when he was lying, even over text, but she wouldn't be able to tell this time. He didn't need Tori to be happy. He never would have guessed he could end up with Trina, but he could give her a chance. She made it clear she wanted him, unlike Tori. Perhaps it could be a fun kickback with her instead.
Tori narrowed down her dress options to two outfits. She held them up in front of her and tried to imagine which one would suit her better. The dark blue dress would definitely be the best choice, but then her mind flashed back to when Beck said that next to clear, his favorite color was blue. Though it would serve him right to make him jealous, she would not do that to him. She just hoped Danny thought she would be pretty in the dark purple.
Cat walked in Tori's room from the bathroom with a comb embedded in her velvet red hair. She was already dressed and ready to go to the kickback. Tori set the dresses down insecurely, knowing what Cat was going to bring up.
"Why not you just wear the blue one?" she asked innocently.
She sighed. "Because, I don't want to wear the dress Beck would want me to wear. Then it will make my time with Danny uncomfortable."
"I'm sure Beck would want to go with you, blue dress or not," Cat announced.
Why did Cat have to bring this up now? She had a way of taking things people tried to avoid talking about and shoving them out in the open. She didn't mean to do it, she was just naïve that way. Her large eyes blinked at Tori, wanting an answer.
"There is nothing between Beck and I, Cat," she explained for about the millionth time. "All I am looking for tonight is a carefree time with Danny. We're not dating, I'm just looking for a good time."
"Okay," she murmured.
"I feel kind of bad, Cat. Going to the kickback with Danny, though."
She suddenly wished she could take back those words and shove them in her mouth again. She did not mean to make it sound like she wanted Beck. She didn't, or else she wouldn't be going with Danny in a few minutes.
"Maybe you should just talk to Beck about it," suggested Cat.
Quick, Tori, lie! You have been doing it all week, so it should be easy by now.
"I mean, I don't want to go with him…because of you. I mean, you two dated for a while and were still dating at the last kickback. That time I got jealous…It feels awkward, that's all."
Cat shrugged her shoulders brightly and smiled. "I'm fine with it, Tori. I have a new date to the kickback anyway. So yay, it's all happy!"
"You do? You never mentioned having a date, Cat. Come on, tell me."
At least now the conversation was off of her and on to a more enjoyable topic.
"Well, I am going to go with Robbie."
Tori nodded. "Okay, cool. Robbie is a nice guy to go with."
Tori never said anything, but a few members of the friend group started to suspect a relationship forming between Cat and Robbie. They always talked about it when Cat and Robbie were in the lunch line together or late arriving from Sikowitz's class. It made Tori wonder if the group had the same conversation about her and Beck whenever they were absent…
"So what dress did you pick, Tori?"
"The blue one," she decided without even thinking about it.
Cat and Tori thoroughly polished their images until they looked perfect for the kickback. Cat said that Tori looked great in the blue dress, so she forgot about Beck. If anything, wearing the dress would prove that her choices were not governed by a guy that used to be her friend. It was close to dark, and the kickback would begin soon. Both girls waited outside of Tori's house until they would split up with their dates. Robbie was coming up the road right now in his "car" and Danny would arrive to drive Tori any minute now. Both of them watched with amusement as Robbie gradually came closer at about one mile per hour.
"I hope you two have a great time," Tori said to Cat. "It should be great since Rex had other plans."
Cat gasped. "Tori! I forgot to tell you something!"
She jumped with concern. "What?"
"It's kind of important. But don't think I am loony for telling you."
"Sure, anything," she promised. She was impatient to hear this important news before Robbie reached them. It was rare for Cat to ever have anything serious to say, so when she did, Tori gave her all her attention.
"Well," she softly began. "Sometimes I have little dreams about people. They aren't nightmares or wonderful dreams; anything can happen in them. They are like little hints about what is going to happen in the future."
Tori twitched her eyebrow, but pretended she understood. "Oh yeah?"
"Yes, I'm serious!" Cat grabbed Tori's arm tightly. "Whenever I have a dream like this, it comes true. Maybe not all the way, but some of it does. And I had a dream about you. I saw you walking. It was dark outside. There was a bright flash, and then the dream ended right as it came at you. It was so terrifying."
"It's okay, Cat. I'm okay, and it was just a dream."
Cat looked down at her feet. Every trace of her usual peppiness was gone. "I hope you are right."
Visions like that were not real. Tori tried to make herself believe that, but yet she was intrigued by Cat's dream about her. Should she ask more about it? Should she convince Cat that it was nothing, in hopes that she would believe it herself?
She didn't get the chance to react. Robbie pedaled up to the sidewalk to pick up Cat. He beamed at them smugly. It was acceptable since he went from a lower class single nerd to the date of Cat Valentine. Tori did not feel happy enough to remember to congratulate them again, however. All she could think about was what Cat's dream could mean. Once Robbie and Cat cycled away, she was alone. It was dark outside. Uncertainty crept through her as if she just watched a rated R scary movie and then walked through her house at night.
A light blindsided her to her left. The dream! She let out a short scream and winced, expecting to feel the pain of an unknown force as it struck her in the side. Instead she heard the screech of rubber on pavement. She peeked her eyes open. There was Danny's gorgeous silver car with its headlights shining against her.
"Hey Tori, are you alright?" Danny called out to her.
Seeing she was frazzled, he leaped from the driver's seat and rushed over to her. He put his arms around her and straightened her up. Tori gave him a smile to assure him she was fine.
"I'm fine, Danny."
"You looked startled. Did something happen?"
Perhaps that was all Cat's dream meant. She felt secure knowing she was safe with Danny. That was how the rest of the night would be as well.
"Nothing at all. Let's go while I'm still craving hot cheese."
"As you wish, my date."