Hi, everyone! Yes, here's already the next chapter. I just was kind of overwhelmed that I haven't just gotten so much feedback on the first chapter, but on the second one now too (as usually and naturally, the first and last chapter get the most reviews in my experience). So, I thought I'll be quick with this one now. I hope I'll get the next one done for the weekend, so that I possibly can get back to my normal rythm of once a week for the last two chapters.
Thank you so much to alicheriee, the two unnamed guests (to the first one: happy you liked Beck skipping the small talk :D - and who doesn't love Sinatra? ;) I assumed Cat and Jade would definitely love him as well, so they could find some common ground), H4ppyHippie (hope you will keep liking the way I write it and the way Jade and Beck interact :3) and Thenextcompanion99 (yes, it sadly will only be six chapters, but I hope I can also get the story wrapped up nicely within those chapters).I think that's all that needed to be said. I wish everyone a great read!
Beck has an afternoon class on Wednesday with Jade, but doesn't get around to talk to her.
After school, he only shortly goes home, tells his parents he will be at Tori's like they have permitted him, then he drives over to his girlfriend's house.
They do have a good evening together with Andre, and the song he and Tori sing is awesome. And Andre actually leaves shortly before Beck has to get home, and he decides to stay just a little longer to still have time alone with Tori which he enjoys very much.
Of course, his parents aren't happy with him coming back home after curfew and he gets grounded for the next week.
His parents are pretty much the one annoying thing in his life. Yes, he loves them, but they are way too strict. He is sixteen now and they still watch his every step, always want to know where he is and who's with him and have very strict times for him. He hates it.
And for some reason, as he lies in bed that night and has that thought, he suddenly also thinks about Jade who has said he has a picture perfect life. Well... The strictness of his parents certainly doesn't make a broken home, but it's also not like everything is running smoothly in his life.
So, he decides to tell Jade about it after she has talked about some of those things going bad in her life.
When she comes into school, he already stands at her locker with coffees for both of them in his hands. He hands her the one with the two sugars in it without a greeting and she takes a sip and seems satisfied, as she opens her locker.
"I found one thing in my life that also sucks," he then tells her.
She promptly cocks an eyebrows, looking at him amused. "Really?"
"Yeah," he answers, watching the small smile on her lips. "My parents are watching me like crazy. I always have to tell them where I go with whom and how long I plan to stay and they have to approve first."
"Really?" Jade asks again, now unbelievingly.
He nods. "Yeah. They are super strict. That's going on my nerves."
"I'm getting annoyed just hearing you talk about it," Jade says, which makes Beck smile.
He confesses something that otherwise only Tori knows: "I even thought about moving into my dad's RV to be slightly away from them. You know, to also be able to comepletely leave for a weekend or something, and to just not live under there roof anymore, wall to wall. But... well..."
He shrugs and Jade draws her eyebrows together. "Why didn't you do it?"
He shrugs again. He doesn't really know. He has considered it but it hadn't seemed like the smartest idea as he could've imagined the relationship to his parents getting really bad because of it. He had then talked to Tori about it who had told him it would be dumb for him to move into some RV. He hadn't done it in the end.
"I would do that if my mother would be like that," Jade now carelessly says. "Maybe, that would show them that it just doesn't work like that anymore, that you are old enough to make your own decisions."
The thing is, he believes her. He believes that she would actually do it, that she wouldn't even hesitate.
"You're right," he says.
She smirks: "Get used to it. I always am."
And by now, she has gotten the book out of her locker that she apparently needs, now closes the locker and walks away from him, leaving him with a smile.
.
.
He shares a class with her again this morning, but they sit far away from each other and Tori talks to him before and after the lesson anyway, as they also share that class. They share most of them this morning and therefore, go to lunch together.
Beck and Tori have just sat down when Jade joins them silently. Andre and Robbie follow them not too long after while Tori luckily hasn't tried talking to Jade again though Beck knows she only could've done bare seconds more in silence. Tori isn't one to just be able to not talk for some time. And of course she also could've talked to Beck but that's not what she would've done, Beck is sure.
He's glad that Andre and Robbie are now there.
Andre also directly turns to Jade though: "Hey, we wanted to ask you... you were so fast out of the room just now, but Robbie and I wondered if you would like to do that assignment with the both of us."
"No," Jade immediately says decisevly.
"Why not?" Andre asks confused.
Jade answers: "Because I'm doing it alone." Well, that's not really a reason.
Rex now suggests: "You could also do it with me."
Jade looks up with a glare. "I would eat my own eyes before I would do that."
Okay, whoa. "No need to be rude," Rex says easily while Robbie actually looks scared because of that answer. But Jade hasn't said something along those lines to working with Robbie and Andre. Just to working with Rex, who is a puppet and whom Robbie lets act quite awful a lot of times.
Now, Tori has to cut in though, scolding: "That's really awful to say."
"Has anyone asked you?" Jade gives back and Tori looks offended once more: "It's just... You're sitting at our table, you know..."
Jade raises her eyebrows as she interrupts: "Do you own it? Is your name attached somewhere?"
Tori opens her mouth, but is obviously at a loss of words. Beck sees Andre and Robbie sharing a look. Beck himself wants to cut in but he isn't sure, what to do. He has never had anyone rile Tori up like this and even when she isn't as angry at someone, he's never really able to calm her down or to stop her. That's just not in his power.
Luckily, Cat now interrupts them, sitting down and saying: "Hiiii!"
"Hey, Cat," Andre quickly greets back and Robbie directly asks after Cat's last class and they do manage to get Tori onto another topic while Jade gets back to her food silently.
.
.
When Beck arrives at Jade's locker on Friday, it's changed. It isn't blank anymore but plastered with quite a few scissors, two of them even having been stuck into it.
As he hands Jade her coffee this morning, which she again accepts with the two sugars, he directly asks: "So, what is this about?"
He has never seen a locker like that - and barely sees anyone decorating theirs within the first week. She must have done it yesterday afternoon as he's sure he has passed her locker right after lunch to go to class and hasn't noticed anything.
"I love scissors," she says, shrugging, as she opens her locker.
"Why?" he asks interested.
"Why not?" she replies and then: "What's your locker about?"
He makes a gesture to the lockers across the hall where his is located. "It's transparent." She follows his gesture with her gaze, has to lean to the side, but then seems to see it. He explains: "I'm not having any secrets, neither has my locker."
Jade's eyes jump back to him. "Everyone has secrets."
He shrugs. "I don't."
She narrows her eyes at him. Obviously she doesn't believe him. Well, as he truly doesn't have any secrets, he easily is able to look back at her openely.
Only after a while, her gaze wanders over his shoulder and she dryly says: "Your girlfriend is staring at us."
He turns around and he finds Tori standing at her own locker. He quickly checks his watch. Okay, he isn't too late. They only definitely meet up before their first class on Monday and on Friday as they share their first class then. They have long agreed on a time, at which they meet at her locker every Monday and every Friday. It's still two minutes before that time but he guesses, if Tori is waiting for him (and she is staring at them), he can also go over to her now.
"Well, I think I should go then. I wish you a great day. See you at lunch."
"Sure," she just answers before she looks back into her locker, taking a sip out of her coffee cup.
He walks through the hall to Tori and they share a short kiss as a greeting, before Tori tentatively asks: "Were you talking to Jade?"
"Yeah," he answers because he obviously was.
"Why?" she asks and he shrugs. Why do you talk to anyone?
He gets that Tori doesn't like Jade, because she deems her rude and everything, but Beck doesn't feel the same, finds it rather amusing instead, and he definitely doesn't want to argue about that.
So, he just says: "But I'm here now."
Tori tilts her head and there is a hint of insecurity. "Usually, you're here early and wait for me." He knows that she doesn't expect him to wait for her but that she likes it nonetheless that he's always at her locker first.
And sure enough: Usually, he waits there for her as soon as he arrives in school in the mornings which is always quite early. He's bored at home anyway, which is why he gets to school early. And then he's bored here in school and the only thing there is to do is to wait for his girlfriend. He sometimes gets around to talk to one of his friends while he waits for Tori but that's pretty much all the excitement he gets. Though he sometimes wishes, Tori would also want to meet up before class on the other days of the week. At least, he gets to talk to his girlfriend on Mondays and Fridays while Tori has other stuff on her mind on the other days, always has to talk to other people. While he stands bored at his own locker or already sits in his own first class, waiting for something to happen.
So, naturally, he waits for her on Mondays and Fridays as soon as he can because it's something. And of course because he knows it makes her happy and he loves making her happy.
"I'm sorry," he now says, taking her hands in his, which she lets happen. But there's nothing more to say and gently, he suggests: "Let's get to class, okay?"
"Yeah," she answers and he kisses her cheek before they get going.
.
.
At lunch today, Cat, Tori, Robbie and Jade are already sitting at the table when Beck and Andre arrive. Beck is glad to see Jade again - and to already see her sitting there. Before, she has always only joined them after Back sat down, and Beck got the impression that she also only waited exactly for that.
Now, she's already sitting there but of course not even greets him when he says 'hi' to the group.
They start talking, Andre, Tori, Robbie and Cat mainly and for some reason, they start talking about The Flintstones and Andre starts singing the theme songs with the others joining in happily.
Beck only hums the melody as he watches his friends smiling.
It's when they still laugh afterwards, that Jade speaks up, having raised her eyebrows: "So, you are friends because you are all weird."
It's a statement, not a question, and it comes out of nowhere. Though Beck totally gets why she's saying that. Yes, his friends are weird. Not just right now. Cat is obviously very weird, as is Robbie with Rex. Andre also gets way overexcited with music which also is impressive and stuff, but nonetheless weird as well. And Tori can be weird, too, does get overly friendly, sometimes acts in a facade she herself deems true though it's not. Beck loves her but it is weird sometimes.
"How am I weird?" he asks though.
Jade looks to him, shrugs, and says with a smirk: "You're dating her." She nods into Tori's direction next to him.
And he almost smiles. He knows by the look in Jade's eyes that she also deems him weird because of other things, but this is how she is. She says stuff like that. And he has to say that it amuses him. He knows it's not nice for Tori but it's a harmless joke.
Tori now cuts in though: "Hey! Why are you sitting with us anyway if you think we're weird and you obviously don't like us?"
Beck hasn't gotten the impression that Jade doesn't like them. She does talk to him. She does do the singing project with Cat.
Jade's gaze wanders over to Tori and she spits out: "Because your boyfriend is bribing me with coffee. But whatever. I'm leaving now."
She stands up, grabs her stuff, done with her food anyway, and tells Beck: "Our deal is fulfilled anyway."
And she leaves.
Beck looks after her for a few seonds, then to Tori who returns his look accusingly.
"What is she talking about?" she asks.
He fleetingly looks to his friends, who also look back questioningly, and he slowly answers: "Well... I told her she should eat lunch with us her first week in exchange for coffee."
Tori crosses her arms in front of her and Beck says: "Come on. I was trying to make her feel welcomed."
That's what Tori initially wanted to do anyway. She wanted to befriend Jade.
"Really?" she now asks though, not believing him at all. As if he could have had other motives than wanting the new girl to feel welcomed at their school.
And well... he has had other motives. Jade seems interesting and he's bored and he has wanted to get to know her. But it's nothing bad.
Suddenly, he understands that Tori doesn't only dislike Jade because she's rude and their characters just don't match. She also dislikes her because she feels that Beck doesn't. And... Is she afraid that Beck could fall for Jade? Is she jealous?
She has never been jealous before though he has tried to provoke it every now and then. Of course, he loves how much she trusts him. It's great that she's never sceptical when he's doing any kind of project with a girl in their year. But sometimes, he would've liked some sort of reaction out of her in any form. Just a sign that she wants him for her alone, that he only belongs to her.
Without a doubt, he doesn't belong to anyone. But sometimes, he thinks he would feel good if his girlfriend would feel like that. Tori usually doesn't. This is the first time, she's ever jealous.
But it's also not like he gets all that jealous, to be honest. It's probably also how good relationships are supposed to feel like. There should be so much trust that noone would ever need to be jealous - and Tori and he usually never are. They never feel... possessive or alike about the other one.
The thing is though... Sometimes, he thinks he's actually someone who should feel like that. Like he's someone that does feel possessive if he really loves someone - and that also enjoys the other person to feel like that.
But he does love Tori, without all of that. Though, it makes him feel a little happy to now see her jealousy.
Still. He just needs to see this glint. He doesn't actually want her to feel bad.
So, he takes her hands in his, but she draws back as he says: "You don't have to worry about anything."
"Who says I do?" she asks.
Well... Her face says so. And her drawing back. He glances into the direction of his friends and it's not like Tori and he ever fight in front of them or anything. Not that they otherwise fight all that much. They do have a harmonic relationship.
But that's why he now also doesn't tell her that she's obviously jealous, instead: "I won't bribe her anymore. I really just wanted her to feel welcomed. And I think she does. But whatever. Where were we?"
He turns to Andre and knows his best friend will have this. He does. Quickly, he gets back to talking about childhood series and as they leave after lunch, Tori lets Beck kiss her again.
