Well I am sorry if this is late, yesterday was one of those days...the ones that lacked inspiration. Anyway I hope y'all like this chapter...finals week is here and I must study so I just want to let y'all know that the chapters may not be updated as quickly as they usually are but hey summer is upon us so do not fret.

I don't own Victorious.

In His Shadow

Chapter 13- Like the Air He Needs to Live

Tori and Jack had been working on their script for a couple of hours now and while they had gotten a majority of it done they still weren't finished. Tori set aside her computer making the decision that it was time for a break, Jack didn't complain. They eased into a light conversation about the upcoming weekend and their final two performances of Snow White.

"So how have you been?" Jack asked as she handed him a bottle of pink lemonade.

"I've been good." Tori said sitting back down in front of her computer. She smiled at the background, a picture of Beck kissing her cheek, she was wearing her glasses and her eyes were closed but she was smiling widely. "I really just want this week to be over."

"Then you get to see your boyfriend." Jack said. Tori arched her eyebrows at him, he shrugged and said, "You have that goofy smile on your face that suggests you're thinking of him."

"Yeah well you try going to the movies with Andre and Jade." Tori said remembering how her friends had invited her to the movies with them, they spent more than half the movie making out with Tori right there beside them. "Talk about awkward, I wound up moving clear across the theater. Some old guy took my popcorn while his friend hit on me. It was creepy."

"Did you move again?" Jack asked.

"I left the theater and spent the remainder of my time in the arcade waiting for Jade and Andre." Tori sighed.

"What else did you do this week?"

"Well Robbie, Rex, Cat, and I went to Nozu for dinner the other night. Cat and I had to perform a duet and Robbie had to chop squid so we could cover our dinner since Robbie forgot his wallet again and Cat and I didn't have enough money to cover the entire meal. Jade, Cat, and I attempted to have a normal sleepover, a lot of things were thrown and we had to go down to the police station to pick up Cat's brother. Yesterday I watched Trina put random condiments on her face again, it was amusing watching her spaz out every time the doorbell rang." Tori said as she logged onto The Slap and looked over Beck's latest gallery. "Tonight's really the most normal night of the week."

"Tonight is one of the quietest nights of the week." Jack laughed. Tori arched her eyebrows at him, "Aside from my older brother and his frat brother, that never leave our house, I have two younger sisters and a younger brother plus a dog. My house gets pretty loud."

"I am so sorry." Tori said closing her computer unable to take looking at anymore photos of Beck and his fans or of him and Isabelle. "I thought Trina was bad but that just sounds awful."

"Noise canceling headphones are the best thing that was ever invented." Jack laughed. Just then Trina started to sing loudly and off-key. They both winced and covered their ears. "You should invest in a pair."

"I'm used to it." Tori said loudly. Trina got louder, her thought seemed to be that the louder you were the better you sounded, she was wrong. "I think I will invest in a pair."

Minutes later they heard sirens blaring and were surprised when the police, Tori's dad included, stormed into the house. They had gotten a call from one of the neighbors saying that it sounded like someone was being murdered next door. Tori explained to them that no one was being killed at their house Trina was just singing. Just to make sure they burst into Trina's room and when they came back down they told Tori's dad to never let Trina sing or dance ever again, they almost lost a man.

"What did your sister do?" Jack asked.

"I don't know." Tori said as they watched the police officers leave the house. "So much for this being the most normal nights of the week."

Tori Vega: Today the LA police department almost lost a good man...thanks to Trina's singing and dancing. Feeling: Apologetic :|

Trina Vega: A police officer fainted at the sight of me...he knows a true talented beauty when he see's one. Feeling: Goddess-like ;)

Jack Lucas: Nothing like the police kicking down the door to get those creative juices flowing, thank you LAPD. Feeling: Appreciative :D

Andre Harris: Never having dinner with Robbie again, dude forgot his wallet. Feeling: Shrimpy :[

Jade West: Some kid destroyed my brother's 1st place science fair project so my brother got even by destroying the kid's not so good 2nd place project with some scissors. Feeling: Proud :)

Robbie Shapiro: I don't like the way Andre is holding the cleaver and looking at me. Jade's rubbing off on him. Feeling: Deadman-like :O

Cat Valentine: Dyed my brother's hair red, now we're matchers. Feeling: Twin-like :]

Beck Oliver: Never hanging out with Tyler again. Feeling: Irked :/

Beck threw himself onto his plush bed and groaned into the pillow. Hanging out with Tyler had ended with Beck being mauled by tons of girls. They'd run their hands through his hair and down his arms, the more he pushed them away the more they latched onto him. He didn't want to tell Tori because although the face she made when she was jealous was adorable he didn't want her to feel like she was losing him to the Hollywood lifestyle. He also didn't want to keep it from Tori because he wanted a relationship built on trust. He rolled onto his side and reached for his PearPad, he had decided to tell Tori but when he wasn't so irked. He logged onto The Slap and decided to check out some of his friend's new galleries.

There weren't that many new ones but there were some that didn't help how he felt. He knew he was being irrational and feeling more than a little jealous but he really couldn't help it when it came to Tori. There were two new pictures of her and Jack, one of them was in the Black Box Theatre and the other was in her house. The one at her house was of them sitting on the couch making goofy faces at the camera it was captioned, "Us trying to get creative before the cops stormed into my house." The one in the Black Box was captioned, "Tori and Jack goof off during rehearsal, if Sikowitz paid enough attention he'd know that that's not how the dance is supposed to go," it was a picture of Jack dipping Tori.

His phone vibrated just as he was stating to figure out why he felt jealous while he was dating Tori and not while he had been dating Jade.

Vicky: Hey r u up?

Beck: Yeah. What's up?

Vicky: Nothing really, can't sleep.

Beck: U still having nightmares?

Vicky: Yeah. I can't wait for u to come back, I miss u.

Beck: I miss u too.

Vicky: What time do u get back on Sunday?

Beck: Noon-ish

Vicky: Lets go on a lunch date then.

Beck: Okay

Vicky: Get your disguise ready haha

Beck: Tired of pizza and Chinese I see.

Vicky: I really really like u Beck and I just want to go out with u.

Beck: I really really like you too Tori and don't worry we're not going to stay in on Sunday.

He understood why he was jealous, Tori was a nice, talented, beautiful girl and he could see why guys like Tyler were attracted to her. There was that and the fact that even though they were dating they rarely spent time with each other, it was the lack of time with her that led him to be jealous of everybody who spent time with her because he knew that there'd come a point where Tori wouldn't be able to handle his new found fame and he'd lose her. He really didn't think he could hate his publicist more than he already did but when she had made the suggestion that he and Isabelle pretend to date after the movie premiered he found himself almost firing her, but who else would represent him a nobody actor. He knew that this was going to drive Tori away from him.

"Why is this so hard?" he groaned. "Why can't I just love Tori and have a happy blissful relationship with her?"

Tori sat in Beck's living room with his dad watching the baseball game, they were both very into the game and didn't notice when the front door opened. Beck laughed at the sight of his dad and Tori jumping off of the couch to high-five each other when the team scored four home runs winning the game. His mom cleared her throat and how they heard it over their cheers was beyond him but they did.

"Hey son." Beck's dad said walking over to him and clapping a hand on his shoulder. "She's definitely a keeper, got to have someone to watch baseball with."

"Come on dear lets give them a moment alone." Beck's mom said leading her husband into the kitchen.

As soon as his parents were out of the room Tori jumped on top of him wrapping her arms and legs around him and pushing him back against the door. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed like she was the very air he needed to live. It was quite a heated kiss and he didn't know how far it would have gone had his father not come in to remind them that he was too young to be a grandpa. Tori stayed in his embrace and dug her face into his chest out of embarrassment, he chuckled and kissed the top of her head.

He realized something while he was gone...he was in love with Tori Vega.

She realized something while he was gone...she was in love with Beck Oliver.

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