Tori holds her phone, reading and re-reading the message several times, unsure of how to answer. "Can we talk?" it said. Three simple words that would otherwise be insignificant if they weren't coming from Andre. Her mind is sent on a whirl as she over thinks of the multiple directions their conversation can go in. It has been close to two weeks since his wedding and their unfortunate falling out, if that was even what it was.
She turns her head and focuses on the sleeping form next to her. His hair lays messily over his face, scattered over the pillow, and his tanned arms pokes out from under the covers. She watches as his body rises and falls with each breath he takes. The corners of her mouth curl up as and is is mesmerized by him and how serene he looks. Having spent nearly every day with Beck since the incident with Andre, she's nearly forgotten the reason Andre is mad at her.
Reluctantly, Tori pulls the covers off her body and gets out of bed, so as to not disturb Beck. As she walks towards the door, the wooden floor creaks beneath her feet and she turns to make sure he is still asleep. Once outside the bedroom, Tori walks down the few steps to the first level and heads towards the living room. She plops down on the couch and slowly types "S-u-r-e" in reply to Andre's message. Less than two minutes later, her phone screen lights up and her heart stops. "Incoming call: Andre Harris" it reads. It rings once, twice...a third time. Tori takes a deep breath and answers.
"Hi" she answers, her voice quivering, betraying her need to sound as normal as possible.
"Hello" Andre answers. His voice, unlike hers, sounds collected and as casual as ever. If she didn't know any better, she would think everything between them is fine. Unfortunately for her, she does know better. Having known Andre for nearly a decade, she knows that conflicts involving him are not so easily resolved. There is usually a period of "non-speak" as he refers to them followed by a conversation that isn't always the most pleasant. Figuring that their non-speak period is over, Tori prepares herself for anything he might say to her.
"How are you?" he asks.
"I'm alright. How was the honeymoon?" she replies.
"It was great. Tropical weather, nice beaches, amazing food...the works" he answers.
Despite her nerves, Tori smiles at the choppiness of his answers and knows that he is in fact just as nervous as she is.
"I'm glad you and Rachel enjoyed yourselves" she says.
"Look Tori, I didn't call for us to make small talk. I've been thinking a lot about what happened the day of the wedding and I want to apologize for turning on you the way I did. Things should have gone down differently, but you know I get a little crazy after a few drinks" he says, a nervous laugh following his speech.
"Andre..." Tori starts but pauses for a moment. She can laugh along with Andre and put the entire situation behind them or she can try and get to the bottom of what actually happened that made him so upset at her. Surely it wasn't just the fact that he had one too many shots. She's seen him drunk before and he's never acted as cruel as he did the day of his wedding.
As if he sensed her uncertainty, Andre started again before she could continue. "I understand that you're still upset about what I said to you, but I want you to know that I don't think you're stupid. I was just frustrated with the situation. As your best friend, it's hard to see you get hurt by someone so many times and then give them another opportunity to do it again."
"Andre," Tori starts again, "I understand why you would be frustrated. Trust me, sometimes I ask myself why I keep going back. I know you can't always support the decisions I make, but it would mean so much to me if you just trust that I know what I'm doing. You know I value your opinion more than any one else's and I always take what you say into consideration. I don't know what happened between you and Beck and since neither one of you will tell me, I have to go with what I feel and I really do think I'm doing the right thing Andre."
"So you're getting back together with him?" Andre asks.
"We're taking things slow right now" Tori says, having quickly decided that it's best not to tell him that she's in Beck's house now.
Andre sighs loudly and Tori knows that he's not completely happy with her decision to forgive Beck. "I know you want me to be happy about it Tor, but I'm not" he replies.
Tori nods her head and sits straight on the couch. "I know" she answers as she folds her legs under her.
"I just don't trust him to not hurt you" Andre continues, causing Tori to smile at his over- protectiveness. "I know" she says once again.
"I guess I have to accept your decision and follow your lead on this one. But as your best friend, I want you to know that if he hurts you again, in any way, I will kill him." Tori laughs and feels herself take a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.
Taking his last comment as a good sign that he is no longer upset with her, Tori asks, "Are we okay then?" She holds her breathe in anticipation of his answer.
"Yeah, I think we're fine" he quickly inputs and for the first time in two weeks, they are both at ease.
"Great, now tell me more about the honeymoon" she inquires and for the next half hour, he indulges her in stories about how he spent his first week as a married man.
Once her conversation with Andre ended, Tori remained on the couch and thought about the events that have taken place within the last two weeks. Not only are her best friends married now, she's also acknowledge her desire to fix her relationship with Beck. Now that she's managed to make amends with Andre, the guilt she's been feeling about being with Beck is no longer there. She wonders if things will be easier now. With her friendships now in order, she can focus on continuing to take things slowly with Beck and begin trusting him again. She can also keep going on auditions, land a role and establish her career as an actress.
After a few more minutes, Tori grabs her phone and starts her way back to the bedroom. On her way there, she takes the time to look at the picture frames she passes. So many of them are pictures of her and Beck together. There are pictures of them in high school, with her family on Christmas morning and her 23rd birthday party among others. Each frame holds a special memory for her that makes her hopeful for their future together, makes her want to fight for it even more.
Tori slowly gets up from the couch and drags herself towards the bedroom. Once she turns the knob, she slowly tip toes across the creaky floor, trying to avoid making any noise that might awake Beck. However, every step seems to get louder than the next and she internally groans.
"I thought you left" she hears the voice coming from the bed and just as she turns, the light of Beck's lamp comes on. Once her eyes are focused on him, she tilts her head slightly to the side.
"Why would you think that?" she asks curiously.
Beck rubs his eye in an effort to adjust them to the brightness in the room. After a few short seconds of silence, he reaches towards his bedside table to get his phone. Tori watches as he grabs a hold of the device and presses a button. The light on the small screen further illuminate his features and she waits patiently for his reply.
"It's almost three in the morning. When I didn't see you in bed I just assumed you decided to go back home."
For an unexplainable reason, a smirk grows on her face and she starts walking towards the bed to reclaim her empty side. She pulls the cover back a bit and lays down, scooting over close to his upright body, her arms draping across his bare waist.
"Did you panic a bit?" she asks playfully. Beck rolls his eyes and turns his head which causes her to laugh and pull his body closer to her.
"You did didn't you?" she pries on, wanting to hear him admit it.
"I didn't panic" he says and turns back to face her. As convincing as he tried to sound, his smile gave the truth away and she knows that, even for a second, his heart stopped at her absence.
Tori props up on the bed and kisses his cheek. "I wouldn't just leave" she assures him, "but it's nice that you would care if I did."
Beck grabs a hold of her hands and brings them up to his lips. Slowly, he kisses her knuckles and intertwines their fingers together. "I don't want to lose you Tor. I've made a lot of mistakes before and I was stupid, but spending all this time with you recently...I know how lucky I am that you're giving me this chance. I'm not going to mess up again, I promise" he says, his eyes focused solely on hers.
Tori looks down from his eyes to their hands. Her heart jumps slightly and she immediately feels a calm she hasn't felt in a long time. Being able to share an intimate moment with Beck makes her happy and she forgets about all the horrible things that happened during their relationship, even if just for a moment. "I believe you" she says.
Beck nods his head, grateful that she trusts him enough with her heart to accept his promise. He leans in and places a quick kiss on her lips and then her forehead. "I love you Tori" he says.
Taken aback, Tori stares at him, mouth agape. This is the first time he has said those words since their break up and for some reason she hadn't anticipated him saying them anytime soon. Of course she knew that they still loved each other, hell even after everything he's put her through she couldn't deny that her feelings for him hadn't changed. However, actually verbalizing her feelings went against the "taking it slow" policy they decided to take.
"You don't have to say it back" he quickly added which makes her laugh because it's such a cliché.
"Let's just go back to bed" she replies before kissing him once more. Beck returns the smile and both sink further back into bed, slowly drifting off.