"Do you think she can hear us? Maybe we should tell her a story!"
"She's not in a coma, Cat, she's sleeping." Beck's voice calmly replied, and suddenly I realized the talking around me was not a dream.
"You don't know that," Cat said, her intentions entirely sincere and misinformed, "they look totally the same." Her voice sounded worried, on the verge of tears, and the last thing I wanted to hear was more crying.
"I'm not in a coma," I muttered groggily. My eyes opened slowly, and once again I failed to instantly adjust to the light, blinking awkwardly until I made out the faces of Beck, Cat, Andre, and Robbie peering over me. I glanced to my left, wondering if my mom had allowed the four of them to hang out in my room, then remembered I'd sent the older woman home earlier after realizing she'd been depriving herself of sleep.
"Tori!" Cat exclaimed excitedly, grinning down at me and grabbing my hand. "You're okay! We were so worried about you guys. I wanted to come see you last night, but Beck said we should wait until things settled down. Anyway, everyone at school-"
"Cat," Andre cut her off, chuckling softly, "take a breath." He looked at me apologetically.
"Kay kay!" Cat replied cutely, then breathed in dramatically.
"How are you feeling?" Robbie asked, fidgeting nervously without the security of Rex on his arm. He offered me a small smile, and realizing they must have felt sorry for me, I quickly sat up to appear as unharmed as I was.
"Good!" I chirped, probably too excitedly. Beck looked down at me knowingly, but I pretended not to notice his skepticism. "Just a bump on the head," I affirmed casually, then shrugged as if the whole thing was no big deal. "It's totally dumb that I'm even still here."
"Yeah, well, better safe than sorry, right?" Beck smiled, rubbing the back of his neck. Cat was still grinning at me, and Robbie looked like he didn't know what to do with himself. I was appreciative of their kindness; I knew I was lucky to have such caring friends, but I hated the attention they were giving me-knowing they felt sorry for me-and I looked over at Jade's sleeping form, feeling totally undeserving of their pity. The four other teens followed my line of sight, and if I would've taken my eyes of the raven-haired girl, I'm sure I would've seen the shocked looks on their faces.
"Jade!" Cat exclaimed, bouncing over to the other girl.
"Cat," I spoke, "let her sleep." I was shocked by the sudden protectiveness I felt for the dark haired girl, but I knew she needed her rest. "She's way worse off than I am. She needs her sleep."
"Oh." Cat frowned solemnly. I didn't mean to snap at her, and I hated seeing the red-haired girl be anything but her bubbly self. They all looked at me strangely, and I immediately felt silly for saying anything at all. It wasn't as if Jade and I had a close relationship, or any really relationship at all, and my friends were very familiar with our frequent quarrels.
"Sorry," I smiled weakly, "she's just been in a lot of pain when she's awake."
"What's wrong with her?" Robbie asked, rubbing his elbow and blinking awkwardly. He looked back over at Jade, stopping for a moment to inspect the bandage on her arm.
"Broken ribs. Four of them." Andre frowned and shook his head, Beck grimaced appropriately, and Cat gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. "Everything else is pretty minor. But the doctor says she'll fully recover as long as she gives her all in rehab."
"They have rehab just for being a mean?" Cat asked innocently, and the room flooded with warm chuckles.
"I think Tori meant rehab for her injuries," Robbie said, but he did so without talking down to the redhead or trying to make her feel stupid. We all loved Cat and accepted her for who she was, and trying to change her would be pointless. "If she has broken ribs, it's going to be hard for her to move around for a while." Cat let out a simple 'oh' and the lanky boy smiled at me, one eye winking through his thick-rimmed glasses.
They stayed for an hour or so-asking me details about the crash and then promptly trying to take my mind off of it-and joked around, telling me the latest of Sikowit's antics, how Trina had worn black to school and was using my accident to get attention, and mostly just let me know they cared. Once I'd gotten more comfortable and started to feel like just another one in the group, and not the subject of their pity, I loosened up, joking along them and letting my guilt go for a moment. When Andre announced that he had to get home-something about taking his grandma to get her ointment-the four talented teens hugged me goodbye, giving one last glance in Jade's direction as they exited.
I awoke a few hours later, unaware that I had even fallen asleep, by the noise of a middle-aged woman bringing me a tray of food. The cold mashed potatoes and green jello looked less than appealing, and the lady giggled, assuring me that Sunday's meals would be much better. I set the tray to the side of my bed and turned on the small television in the corner of the room, surfing through the channels over and over, then sighed in frustrated, throwing the remote at the end of the bed. I was bored. Insanely bored. I had texted my family after my friends had left, letting them know they didn't need to come back up to the hospital tonight, but I was starting to wish I'd welcomed their visit.
A small murmur snapped me out of my boredom, and I looked over at Jade to see her tossing her head in her sleep. She'd barely been awake at all that day, only slipping out of unconsciousness briefly before screaming for more Morphine. I was certain the doctor and nurses were frightened of her, because they always promptly complied with her demands. Jade let out another groan, and I quickly found myself sliding out of bed, grabbing onto my IV cart, and lethargically stumbling over to her bedside. I gently sat myself down on the chair next to her, letting out a grunt of my own. I watched her intently: the way the lips were parted, the way her chest would gently rise and fall with each breath, how her eyes would scrunch up with each pained moan she let out in her sleep, and I reached over to put my hand over hers. It was a strange feeling, knowing if it were any other circumstance, I wouldn't dare attempt to even get too close to Jade without her permission, but I kept my hand on hers anyway. Jade and I had always had a strained relationship; she'd resented me from the moment I walked into Hollywood Arts and, consequently, had given me a hard time every second since. But deep down I knew Jade didn't truly hate me. There were too many instances that told me otherwise, like when she came to me, heartbroken, after she'd broken up with Beck, and when she attempted to help me clean up a staged food fight after she'd gotten me in trouble. And of course, with my forgiving nature and innate ability to see the good in everyone, I didn't hate Jade either. Not even close. I admired her a lot, actually, because she was ridiculously talented and even more so confident, and I often wished I could be equally honest and assertive.
Jade stirred again, this time letting out a string of indecipherable sounds, then slowly opened her eyes in the same fashion I had just a bit earlier. She blinked, then looked at me, down at my hand on hers, then up at my face again.
"Vega?" Her voice sounded pained, and she let out a millionth groan. I just smiled softly. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"
And my hand shot off her and down at my side, cheeks red and warm, mumbling a half-hearted apology. "I was just bored," I said honestly. "You were making a lot of noise in your sleep, and...," I paused, shrugging, "I don't know. I felt bad."
"Hah!" Jade scoffed loudly. "You feel bad, Tori?" Her voice was angry, suddenly wide awake, and her blue eyes squinted intimidatingly at me. "It's your fucking fault that I'm even here right now!"
The wave of emotions that hit me at that moment, intensely rollercoaster-esque, left a knot in my throat and an ache in my chest. Anger, disbelief, fury, swiftly followed by a sinking realization, self-contempt, and unequivocal guilt. It was my fault. I had begged Jade to give me a ride. She said no, and I continued to bother her about it. I could've walked the twelve miles. I would've, if it meant she wouldn't have ended up there, in the hospital bed, bruised and broken. I knew it was irrefutably indirectly my fault, and though I wasn't that man in the red truck distracted by a text message, my actions had caused a delay in Jade's trip home. My actions had led her to the site of the crash at that specific time. Eyes stinging with tears, I forced myself to look away from the angry girl laying next to me. I attempted to choke out an apology, but all that came out was a pitiful squeak, a weightless product of the pain in the pit of my stomach, and blinked out a tear as I used my my IV stand to hoist myself up.
"Tori," Jade sighed solemnly, and when I turned back to her, wiping at my cheeks, her infuriated grimace morphed into a concerned frown.
"I'm so sorry, Jade." I sobbed, then sucked in a deep breath of air to keep myself from breaking down. Jade sighed again and shook her again.
"No, Tori," she said, still looking at me worriedly, "it's...," she hesitated. "I'm sorry." Her eyebrows furrowed and she pursed her lips. "It's not your fault. It happened. Shit happens sometimes." She reached out her hand, and as I took it I finally broke down, surprised by her change of heart and overwhelmed by my own guilt.
"Vega, stop. Come on," she pleaded, "stop crying."
"But," I gasped, "it is my fault." I tried to catch my breath awkwardly in between spitting out each word. "I made you give me a ride." Gasp. "I...it's my fault you didn't see the car." Gasp.
"It was a freak accident. That asshole was texting and ran a red light. That's not your fault," Jade assured me, squeezing my hand. Her kindness was uncharacteristic, but I guessed even Jade West had her weak spots. I guessed hysterical teenage girls were one of hers. I wiped at my tears again with the back of my other hand, the hand not being lightly stroked by the thumb of the raven-haired girl, and I nodded unconvincingly.
"I'm still sorry," I managed to get out, taking a deep breath and finally calming myself down.
"It's okay," Jade said sincerely. "Come on, better me than you," she teased. "At least I can take it. You'd probably be whining for a decade." She gave my hand another squeeze to let me know she was joking, and I looked up at her and offered a weak smile. "Plus, I look like a bad bitch with this black eye."
"Oh, totally," I said sarcastically, using my arm to wipe my nose. Her eyes narrowed at me, letting go of my hand, and if she hadn't just been comforting me, I would've been certain she was about to tell me off.
"Whatever," she said flippantly, throwing an arm over her eyes. "Where's the damn nurse? I want my meds."
"Aren't you tired of sleeping?" I asked, more for me than her. I knew I was tired of watching her sleep. Even this bizarre interaction with her was better than laying awake, staring at the ceiling. Or her.
She moved her hands to her head, annoyed and exasperated, then tangled her fingers through her hair. "I'm in fucking pain, Tori," she said, emphasizing my name condescendingly. "Why are you even still here? You're completely fine."
I stood, annoyed, and began to walk back towards my own bed. "Don't worry, you'll be glad to know I'll be out of your hair tomorrow. And you can be all alone, just like you like it."
"Whatever," Jade repeated, but there was a hint of sadness in the way she said it. The ache in my chest came knocking again, realizing her mom had yet to return to visit the injured girl, and that she would be totally alone when I left. "I'm the best company I could ask for anyway."
"Oh yeah, I'm sure there's just a universe of smiles up there," I said, pointing my finger at her forehead. "Must be why you want to sleep so much."
"It's better than waking up to your fucking puppy dog eyes staring down at me," Jade spat, glaring at me from across the room.
"I could think of worse things for you to look at!" I threw my hands up in the air dramatically, for a moment forgetting that I was still connected to the IV. Jade laughed at me.
"You're so ridiculous," she groaned. "You haven't showered in days." Embarrassed and frustrated, I let out an 'ugh!'
"You," I exclaimed, point at her once again, "are so full of it."
Jade raised an eyebrow at me and smirked, clearly amused that she was pushing my buttons. Amused that she was getting under my skin. "Full of what, Tori?" she dared. It was stupid that I even fell for it, but I was so fed up with Jade treating me like a walking punchline that I fell write into her trap.
"Shit!" The word spilled out of me awkwardly, and in hindsight I might even admit hilariously, but I immediately cringed at my own ridiculousness.
"Shit!" Jade mimicked, exaggerating my voice in the thick, southern accent she used to impersonate me.
"I don't sound like that!" I cried out, which Jade quickly mimicked in the same voice. "You know, you're just really mean sometimes," I declared angrily, and then attempted to glare at the other girl so she knew I meant it. Jade just stared back at me, smirking, but I continued to keep my stern face, stressing my lack of amusement and forbidding her from doing it again. The morbid girl continued to smirk back at me, the corners of her lips slowly raising in into a full blown smile. And then,
"You know, you're just really mean sometimes!" Her laughter engulfed the room like light in the darkness, the giggles escaping her body without permission, unable to deny the absurd impersonation the appreciation it deserved. And as the laughter bellowed out of her, filling the air around me, I watched as she held her ribs and was charmed by how drastically different Jade looked with a smile painted on her face, finding the corners of my own lips growing into a grin and allowing laughter to escape my small form.
We spent the next twenty or so minutes laying in our respective beds, laughing until one of us would settle down, only to erupt once again at the sound of the other's chuckle, before we finally faced each other as we retired to lay on our sides, letting out a mutual, satisfied sigh, and offering each other a peaceful smile.
/
Hey everyone! Just for the record, I really appreciate any and all feedback that you've been giving me. I have this whole story pretty much planned out, but I'm the kind of person who gets discouraged or loses interest easily, so knowing others are really enjoying this will definitely help keep me going. Anyway, a few people have commented on keeping the girls in character/taking my time with the progression of their relationship, and realism is definitely something I strive for. I don't think that, characteristically speaking Jade and Tori would be the type to jump into something with each other, and I hope to portray a believable path into romance.
Enjoy!