The pair danced. Amongst the stars and bright lights of the reunion. Tori found it both impossible to stare directly at Jade and pull away. There was an ease in her expression that made her nervous. That smirk. It was always around when they were teenagers. She was always smirking about something. And Tori felt like she always noticed it. Noticed the way her eye crinkled slightly when she did- the raise of the brow. The sight was burned into her brain long ago. But even etched into the stone of her mind, she realized how much she had missed seeing it in person. Why did it take until just now when they were dancing together?

The easy answer was her mind was elsewhere when she was touring. When fame struck you, it struck everything with it. Everything was a blitzkrieg of light and movement and hurrying. There was no chance to break or breathe. No chance to think on how brilliant colors could look when they reflect in Jade's eyes.

Jade pulled her a little closer to move around a pair of others dancing, but didn't relinquish this new grip. Her hand stayed on Tori's waist like it had found home. The song's lyrics had long since faded- overtaken by the pleasant silence of being enthralled in this dance. It wasn't the movements. It wasn't Tori concentrating. It was just from being this close to Jade West. A face and voice she hadn't realized how much she missed. Some of it had been disguised as dread for what the other was going to say to her. There was always that dread growing up. But as they danced and Tori thought on it harder for the first time in years, she came to realize: was that even dread?

Was it all just nerves? She was nervous of what Jade thought of her. Of what all her friends thought of her. But it wasn't just negative. Beneath the constant turmoil in her heart, she had been excited. Who could deny the pack of butterflies in Tori Vega's stomach right then as anything but excitement?

"I didn't expect Ms. Famous Popstar to be able to move in a pair like this. Always saw you dancing alone," Jade spoke up, breaking the silence between them. She said it soft enough that it still felt shared just between the two of them.

"I know how to do it all thank you very much," Tori felt herself unable to stop the smile. Then the words washed over her again. "Always saw me dancing alone?"

"Yeah, in your concerts and such."

"You…were at my concerts?"

"When I could be. Caught some in livestreams. Watched videos, you know- a little bit of everything."

"O-Oh," Tori let the statement settle. If there had been no hope to stop the smile forming before, this was beyond hopeless now. "Thank you."

"Think nothing of it, Vega. We all do what we can to support our friends, you know?" Despite the slight denial, Tori clung to the hope all the same. Jade going out of her way for anything was a superb win.

"I can agree with that part. I try to catch every movie I know any of you have worked on," She nodded along with her words. The song seemed to have changed. The pace of the people around them picked back up, but Jade made no move to let go so neither did Tori.

"Yeah, see? It's how it should be. What sort of friends would we all be if we just…ignored each other?" Tori felt herself involuntary wince at the comment.

"I mean…-it's not on purpose," Tori whispered.

"What? What do you mean?"

"I don't ignore people on purpose," Her voice felt a little weaker.

"I'm not talking about you, Vega," Jade scoffed. The hand on her hip pulled her closer still. Chest to chest, there was no space between their bodies now- Jade's face filled Tori's vision. "If you're not trying to ignore someone, then that's not ignoring. Ignoring is an active sort of thing. No one can catch everything anyway."

How was this so easy to her? Where was the fury of the old Jade? Tori wasn't complaining, but she seemed to have grown so much in their time away. Tori had chalked up the more pleasant texts and exchanges in the years in between as some sort of formal, 'I'm doing this to keep the air pleasant, nothing else' sort of vibe. It was something to behold. Tori couldn't stop herself and had begun to play with the hairs on the back of Jade's neck in this position.

"Thank you," Tori finally replied.

"For what?" Cue the large eyebrow raise and the damned smirk.

"For being understanding. Of everything. I…I know I've been absent as of late," It felt raw, opening herself up on the feeling. Already her heart hammered against her chest, but now it felt like a full blacksmith's worth of struck anvils. "I feel like I missed so much."

Jade took a long look down at her. Was she going to inquire why she felt that way? Was Tori ready to be out with it? Would anyone really be? Time helped in small ways, but the wound was still fresh in comparison. She could still see the look of betrayal on Trina's face after screaming at her. She could still feel the temperature inside the tour bus all but drop after. It was not something you could just take back or do away with. Once out in the world, there was no coming back. Could Tori face Jade knowing all of that? Especially right now.

"You're okay. I think I speak for everyone pretty well when I say-" Her words, whatever they were meant to be, were cut off as a hand appeared behind Jade and gave it two taps. Her eyebrows lifted and immediately her head spun, the curtain of her dark hair spilling into Tori's view and cutting her off from seeing who it was. She pulled herself away slightly, trying to catch a glimpse, which Jade must have thought was a signal to stop dancing, as her hands left her a moment later. Tori wanted to look down at her hand, to see it empty, but the sight of the familiar face stopped her from doing so.

Beck was still as handsome as ever. He was still tall, dark hair a little bit shorter from high school, but still impossibly perfect. In fact, the air seemed to almost lift it. He was wearing a blazer, dark green with the sleeves rolled up, a black t-shirt beneath, black jeans and boots that were oh-so casually half tied. Much like so often in high school, his outfit was easy, his posture matching it. The expression on his face wasn't as intense as some more dire times together, but there was still something on his face that made the man look a little…uncomfortable.

"Hey, Tori. Jade. Can I…speak to you for a moment?" He asked, raising his hand in greeting for her and then immediately turning back to his…ex. Honestly, Tori wasn't sure what they were currently and with that thought, it felt like reality had come crashing down around her.

Tori nodded her head immediately and scampered away from them. Her face felt hot. God, of course they were still together. The two of them had been a couple for how long? How had she forgotten about Beck? And why did she care so much about it to begin with? Why did it matter if they were still together-...No. No, no, no, no. Fuck. God, was that really the root of all of this?

She had a thing for Jade.

Tori Vega had feelings for Jade West.

The movements back to where her friends and her had been were blind, almost staggered; she just wanted off the dance floor for a chance to breathe. To catch herself. One hand quickly ran through her hair and pushed it from her eyes as they turned up at the sky and she took one deep breath. Then another. She needed to relax. It was okay. People had feelings- that was perfectly natural. But Jade of all people? Why did she have to have a thing for Jade? God, if she ever found it she would be teased by the other woman non-stop. That brought a smile back to her face. Surely whenever Jade started making fun of her again would help her get over this…this crush? What did she even call it? A crush seemed a little too high school.

Tori brought her vision back down to the reunion. None of the others were immediately in sight other than Jade and Beck, who had moved mostly from the dance floor and were having some sort of intense conversation. There were a lot of hand movements from both of them and furrowed brows. Was it an argument?

"God, Beck is still hot as hell," There was suddenly a voice next to her. Familiar, but not one of her friends. Tori turned to look.

'Moe.'

"Wouldn't you agree?" She asked with a smirk, taking a sip of her drink once she did. Tori felt her brow furrow, joining in the expressions she had seen on Beck and Jade.

"I…I guess?"

"You guess. God, fame really does change people," She pulled her cup away from her mouth. "Not as hot as all of those movie stars and pop stars you were out there with all the time, huh?"

"I don't know what-"

"Come now, Vega. The paparazzi were on you all the time. The fact that they even tried to get in here I would place solely on your shoulders." Now, that seemed far-fetched. There were plenty of other famous people here.

"There's more than just-"

"Gone for how long has it been now? A year and a half? Is my math right? I'm sure the tabloids are chomping at the bit to get anything they can on you," She just kept speaking. Hell, 'Moe' wasn't even looking at her anymore. Instead, her cobalt blue painted eyes were focused forward with a smirk similar to Jade's worn on her features. But there was no excitement in Tori from seeing such an expression.

"I wonder if your friends know." Tori's heart dropped. "Even if they do, we can be sure the world at large doesn't. So much speculation in the headlines and from what I've heard, none of them have even gotten close. You and your agent- or agents, I guess, really must be putting in a lot of work. Props to the both of you. Doubt I could keep a fight like that with my sister under wraps for that long. But I guess that just makes it worse, right?" Tori wanted to scream at her to stop, she didn't want to hear it. But every part of her was frozen in sudden fear. This was like a monologue in a movie. She was right where 'Moe' wanted her.

"Every breath I breathe
Barely makes it past my teeth"

"Immediately after and that just makes it a band-aid to pull off. But now so long without a word? Makes it more suspicious. Then there's the breakdown you had. Can't be good for your image either. You know they'll speculate on more than that," 'Moe' finally turned back to her. The lights seemed unable to hit them currently and they were obscured in darkness for a moment. "I should only think it's fair- I told one of the paparazzi that got through about what went down. What you did to Trina and what you did to yourself afterwards. Gave the version of it I heard."

"'Cause these same vises occupy my mind
And I opened up the cage to find"

Tori's fingers dug into her palm and she could feel the breaking of skin. Immediately she stopped. Not even strong enough to draw her own blood, she felt the world crash down around her for the second time that night. Where was her breath? The air was thick and her skin felt hot. Rage? Embarrassment? Both. It had to be. Every bit of her wanted to obscure herself in the shadows that had overtaken the two of them and never leave. How did she learn so much? She was taunting her so confidently.

"You shouldn't be so unkind to your security guards," 'Moe' said, seeming apropos of nothing. "They'll really let some things slip to family members." Was she suddenly a fucking mind reader? Did Tori's expression betray her that much? "I'm sure by now they've told everyone they can. Did they snag some pictures here of you or are they going to recycle some old ones for the headlines?" 'Moe' tossed her cup into a nearby trash can and then stretched her arms above her head, "You have a nice night, Tori. Hope you enjoyed your obscurity for the time being," And she was gone. As quickly as she showed up.

Tori's legs began to wobble beneath her and she grabbed a nearby chair to steady herself. None of this had been a good idea. If she hadn't come, 'Moe' wouldn't have seen her, maybe wouldn't have remembered what she had been told. Maybe Tori could have lasted a little bit longer without the world knowing. A little bit longer to let the wounds of her own lacerations heal. God damn it.

Tears stung at her eyes before they began to form freely. What made her think she could be out tonight and it never come up? Surely, eventually, her friends would ask. And then they wouldn't be her friends anymore. Even if none of them had been overly kind to Trina in high school, they were adults now. And what she had said to her…about their parents, about their relationship and her relationship to everyone else. It was a blow even lower than what 'Moe' had just said. Was that why she sat and listened? It was some…strange way to torture herself? Her arms enclosed around herself as her tear ridden eyes looked up at her classmates still around, still dancing, still having a good time. They could be free of their own sins for the night, but not Tori. Not tonight.

"That the beast locked inside
Didn't want to be saved"

Through the swimming tears, she could see them. Beck and Jade talking now. Their words having calmed down. She was smiling at him and nodding along to something, his hand showed her something on his phone and she gave an expression of mild shock. Had the tabloids gotten something out that quickly? It was possible. They had done it before. She could feel her breath hitch as he gestured to it and her expression didn't change. Then she glanced past it towards her. Blinking quickly, Tori turned around and stood up with her back towards the two of them.

Her phone vibrated with a notification. Scrambling, she pulled it from her back pocket and her heart sank again at the text. It was her agent: 'News just broke. It's everywhere on Twitter right now.'

"Panic makes all of my decisions for me
No rational thought just a quick jerk of the knee"

Tori ran. Ran as fast as her feet could carry her, through the small droves of people milling about. She wasn't sure if anyone watched her as she went, she just hoped not. Soon everyone would know.

Song is: "Panic!" by The Briggs.