Disclaimer: This year sucks so far, so probably won't be owning it anytime soon...

A/N: I have been writing like insane the past 2 days. Unfortunately that doesn't mean that it finished chapters, although the first chapter of 'Grim' is written and will be posted probably this weekend. I should be done writing this by then, if I get enough inspiration to write it. Rant is being written at the moment of posting this, since I'm multi-tasking. Who knows, might be updating that tonight as well. Doubt it but still.

Enjoy.

Chapter 15

"You're such a sap."

"I am not!"

I'm lying in Vega's bed with her head on my chest and my arm around her waist. Her hand is playing with the hem of my shirt, and I'm drawing circles on the skin between her shirt and her pajama bottoms. Some cheesy romance movie is playing on her TV, and I hate to say it… "If you're not a sap, why are you crying?"

She lies!

"I'm not a damn sap. I just hate that no one's died yet. I mean, seriously, is there any romance movie that's got at least one death in it? Does everyone have to be so damn happy and lovey dovey or something?"

She grins and pokes my stomach. "You're still crying. It means you're not as cold as you try to be." I roll my eyes. I tried to be tough around her, but come on…the girl's got me weaker than I should be. I want to say it's ridiculous, but for her I'll let it slide. She kisses my neck. "You're a sap," she says in a singsong voice, and I roll my eyes.

"You'll find no such sap here, Vega. You're sadly mistaken and I think you should have your brain checked." She feigns hurt and I laugh, kissing her. "I'm far from romantic, and I laugh at those who are. Seriously, you don't need that stuff for a relationship."

And…I've lost her. Vega's kisses are gentle, but her hands are another story. And I'm pretty sure she was aiming to be a vampire with that bite she just left on my neck. Her mouth finds mine and I'm determined not to zone out on her now, especially now that her hands are wandering. There goes my shirt…I try to pull Tori's off, but she slaps my hands away. Okay, we're going to do this her way.

Her mouth moves, leaving kisses and nibbles that send chills down my spine, and this time there's no interruption. Trina and the parent Vegas were out of town again and wouldn't return until tomorrow night. Tori nips my collarbone and stares at me pointedly. Come on, I didn't even zone out that much.

She kisses me, as if to tell me that I need to pay attention, and I swear I'm trying to. There has to be something wrong with me if I can't even focus on my girlfriend while she's doing…things to me. And right now is definitely not a time to zone out, not when her hand is…Where'd my jeans go?

BREAK

I wake up early the next morning, Tori half-laying on me with her arms around my waist. I kiss the top of her head and glance at the alarm clock next to the bed. It's only six, and there's no way I'm going anywhere right now, except maybe downstairs to make some coffee and maybe some breakfast. But how do I do this without waking up the girl who's so close to me right now she might as well be attached?

Vega mutters something in her sleep and her grip on me tightens, and I can't breathe. It's like she can read my mind or something and she knows I want to get out of bed. I think I would actually be in a world of trouble if she knew what I was thinking sometimes. But then again, maybe she wouldn't get mad at me when I zone out, right? Nah, that's horrible logic. I shouldn't be zoning out on my girlfriend at all, but I can't help it sometimes. Hell, I could probably stare at her all day, she's beautiful…Wait. No, I'm not a sap. I refuse to use words like that.

But she is.

I wonder if it's possible to destroy one's subconscious. Make it impossible for people to zone out…Which I'm doing right now. Damn it. I'm supposed to be trying to find a way out of this bed and out of the arms of a sleeping Vega who thinks I'm going to disappear or something.

My cell phone rings and I almost jump out of my skin. Vega mutters something and reaches for the device. The only thing that catches my eye before she throws it is Beck's name flashing on the screen and she rolls away from me. I glance at her naked back before sighing and sliding out of bed. I hurry through getting dressed and pick up my phone, dialing Beck as I slip from the room. "Why are you calling me at six in the morning?"

"Andre showed up this morning, Jade. He looked like he'd been in a fight, but he refused to go to the hospital. I didn't know what else to do, but I was hoping you or Tori knew what was up with him." Andre was in a fight? It wouldn't surprise me, not after the nightmares I've been having. There's a pause. "Are you still at Tori's?"

"Neither of us has heard from him or seen him for days. You know he would never talk to me, even if he had to, Beck. And yes, I'm still at Vega's. I was enjoying a very nice dream that you so rudely interrupted."

He chuckles. "Yeah, I'm sorry about calling so early." Like hell he is. "Did you and Tori have a good night?" There's a hint of amusement in his voice and I know he suspects Vega and I finally managed to not be interrupted. I growl and he laughs. "I'm just messing with you, Jade. I know it's none of my business." He's serious again. "Okay, look, I'm going to go find Andre and take him to the hospital. I'll let you and Tori know what happens."

I hang up abruptly, but he's used to it. I glance through the doorway at the sleeping Vega and smile at the memory of last night before heading down to the kitchen. Remembering that the rest of the family isn't home, I turn the stereo on, which begins to play an upbeat tune that I haven't heard in years.

My smile fades as I remember the last time I heard this song. It had been in a restaurant that my father had taken my mother and me for my eighth birthday, and my mother had sung the song to me. I think back to the funeral, to that damned ring on my father's finger. He had gotten it when I was so young that I can't remember where or when, but the green stone…It was me. He actually did care enough about me, that at one point he bought a ring with a jade stone. And seeing it on his finger while he lay there dead…I don't think he deserves it.

I turn on the coffee maker and lean against the counter, staring at the piano in the living room. I don't remember ever hearing or seeing Vega play it, only Andre. As if on cue, the beautiful half-Latina girl comes down the stairs, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes and yawning. She's so cute…ugh, why do I keep saying that? Once she reaches the edge of the kitchen, she finally looks at me and smiles, wrapping her arms around my waist. "Why are you up so early?"

"Beck called and said that Andre showed up, looking as though he'd been in a fight. He asked if we knew anything that was going on with him and I told him neither of us did. So he's going to try and find him and take him to the hospital."

She nods and kisses me before crossing the kitchen to the fridge. "What do you want for breakfast?" Apparently she's unfazed by the Andre situation. Or she's not fully awake and doesn't comprehend what I just said.

Either way, I'm not going to let it bother breakfast.