Title: nothing serious

Pairing: Beck/Jade; Jade/Boone

Rating: T

Warnings: Language

Author's note: The story is delving into a more serious topic, not anything of the sexual nature, more of real life problems.

"Nothing that's worthwhile is ever easy. Remember that."-Nicholas Sparks

III

She didn't notice the signs at first. She'd wanted to believe that something good could happen to her without there being a catch. But it was funny how life worked that way…giving you something great, something to care about, only to pry it from your cold hands.

It was in the way he always seemed too tired to do anything remotely strenuous…the constant headaches. His complaints of pain in his joints, whenever they held hands—a privilege Jade West rarely gave to just anyone. She saw it in his eyes…the wheels turning like clockwork.

Something was wrong with Boone. Something he wasn't telling her. It was when she confronted him, not giving him an opportunity at escape, that he finally broke down and told her the truth.

"I'm sick." He spoke up, filling the sudden void of silence in her bedroom. A room Beck hadn't stepped foot inside since their breakup. Jade's brows scrunched up in a mixture of shock and confusion.

"What do you mean sick?" She inquired voice dangerously close to losing its usual sharp edge and veering into gentle territory.

"Jade, I have…I have Leukemia." Boone breathed out, staring into her startled eyes. She hadn't expected that to come out of him. For an instant she contemplated what that meant for her…but that was too selfish a thought. All that really matter was that the guy she cared about…the first in a while…was sick and there was nothing she could do to help. She felt powerless. A swell of tears threatened to fall as she stared back at him

"Wha—Boone, why didn't you tell me?" Jade asked in the gentlest tone she could muster, one she'd reserved strictly for Beck when they'd been together. She placed a comforting arm on his shoulder.

His gaze fell to where her hand laid, a soft smile grazing his face before it disappeared before her eyes in an instant. "I know how you are about…personal stuff. I didn't think you'd want to know."

The girl scoffed, drawing her hand back and bringing it to rest on his cheek. "I want to know, Boone. I want to know everything about you. Even the things you think I wouldn't want to."

"Oh—okay."

:}{}{}{}{:

Jade cradled her cup of coffee in her hand as she entered Hollywood Arts, making a beeline to her locker, hoping to avoid any interaction that morning. It felt strange marching into school, knowing that Boone wouldn't be stopping by, as he usually did. The simple fact that he was at another doctor's appointment…the thought alone was cringe worthy. She turned the dial of her lock with her free hand, pulling the scissor-covered door and setting her coffee down inside.

The girl looted through her messenger bag, finding the photo she'd been meaning to add to the tack board inside her locker. It was of her and Boone, at his friend's at open-mike night. He had is arms wrapped around her waist, holding her to him wearing this ridiculous smile on his face for the camera. It was…cute, she'd admitted. Something that reminded her of just how good things were between them. How different he was with her than Beck.

"Jade." An all too familiar voice called out to her, breaking her train of thought.

She turned on her heel to greet the approaching boy with a thinly veiled look of indifference. "Beck. Hey."

"Where's your…friend, Bone?" He inquired, looking up and down the hall as if he were expecting the guy in question to suddenly appear.

"Boone. And he's not here." Jade informed him snippily, retrieving her coffee and taking a sip of its warm contents. "He's…busy."

"Look, Jade." Beck spoke up, seriousness etched on his face. "I've been meaning to talk to you about something…"

"Can it wait?" She inquired, spotting Vega entering the hall, headed toward her Make It Shine embellished locker. She'd been meaning to ask the girl how her date with Andre had gone.

"It really can't." He said. But his words flew on deaf ears as she closed her locker door with a bang, pushing past him toward the girl. Beck stood there stunned for a moment. He'd been ready to spill his guts to her and she'd left him standing there. Feeling like an idiot.

His eyes fell to the bottom edge of her locker, where something seemed to be poking out from. He pinched the end of it, pulling it out carefully. It was a picture, he realized, turning it over. His heart clenched at the sight. It was of Jade and Boone…and she looked happy. An overwhelming sense of loss filled him at the notion that he had not been the one to make her feel such a way. It wasn't in the small smile on her face, but in the slight twinkle in her eyes. A gleam of something he hadn't seen in them for a very long time. A kind of calmness…

Beck peered over his shoulder to where Jade and Tori stood talking. His eyes widened at the sight. After his breakup, he would have thought the girl would have cutoff ties with the Vega completely. That she would have deemed it unnecessary to hang out with anyone she'd never had a liking for before. But it seemed he was wrong yet again. He watched on as the two girls broke out into a laugh, Jade actually laughing at something the brunette had said. Maybe it was a sign of the apocalypse or something far far worse. Maybe it was a sign that she was finally moving on with her life. A life that didn't revolve around him…or the love they'd shared for each other for over two years.

Thanks for reading! Please leave a review. They make me smile.

Author's note 2: I'm not the brightest crayon in the coloring box when it comes to Leukemia but I thought it would be an interesting twist for the story. Now, if I get some facts wrong on the matter, please forgive me.