All I have to really say is I hope you enjoy, it's a bit shorter.

:)

Tori's Perspective-

I groan awake, my fist slamming against the alarm that had been going off for the past five minutes. My eyes blink open as I roll over, staring right at the fan. Perhaps I should get out of bed, though my tired limbs say otherwise. I glance at the sprawled papers all over my bed, not exactly caring if one or two are crumpled. Mr. Freeman wouldn't mind all that much if I kind of reshaped them anyway. Though I push myself out of bed, not minding the notes that I should've taken during class yesterday but, instead, did it last night. It wasn't hard; I've seen the movie twice. Well, now three times...or four if you count yesterday in class.

My legs drag myself out of my bedroom, Trina still in her room. Shaking my head, I know that I'll have to actually listen to more of her singing in the morning seeing as I'm usually a deep sleeper and sleep through her showers. Not today obviously but...whatever, it's not like she'll try and sing opera. I hope so anyway.

'Perhaps she would be better with it. She sounds like a cracked opera singer anyway,' streams through my thoughts in wonder. I briefly shrug, pushing myself into the bathroom. In all honesty, I never got why she went into singing. I mean, the only reason why she got in was because Sikowitz practically got high anyway...but it wouldn't explain how she remained. No, I know why she stayed and, honestly, it's quite the shock that she hadn't caught up onto it. Well, maybe not.

I strip down, the water running as I glancing at the mirror in thought.

Trina has always been a bit narcissistic and, well, whenever she's around a lot of people it kind of brings more of it out. That- that might really stick with her for the rest of her life though...no helping it. But, I will say, she's not all that bad at writing herself. I mean, it isn't like Jade's but I wouldn't really say it's worse. Just a different style. Now, I remember she took a class - Trina I mean - in painting and I think she's still in it as an elective. She's really good at it, I mean really good at it. But, of course, what's glamorous about a piece of art hanging behind celebrities at classy parties or museums?

I shake my head. 'Lost opportunities,' my thoughts conclude and I can't help but agree.

The water's warm from what my hand can tell, allowing me to step in with a heavy breath. I just stand in the water, lathering my hair with soap as I glare at the floor. 'What can Jade do other than write?' I wondered. I can imagine a lot, actually. I mean, she's really good at writing - as said - and acting, and directing...well, not the kindest but she's really efficient and productive when directing anyway. Maybe something physical, though she kind of trips a lot over her feet. I chuckle softly, vaguely recalling the several times she's snapped at people with her cheeks flushed once tripping into them.

I think that's the real reason why she has everybody not walk near her sometimes. It's not to intimidate - though that's how she gets it - but to just, I don't know, allow her to not trip as much. She still does but she always pulls it off smoothly.

Anyway, I just wonder...there's really not a lot I know about Jade, even if we got close at some points.

'You could talk to her and get closer,' my thoughts whisper in my right ear.

'Beck wouldn't like that, now would he?' the voice murmurs, waking from its slumber, 'Just imagine talking to your boyfriend's ex.'

I pause, the towel in my hands halting from its groom of long, brunette hair. 'That kind of sounds hypocritical...' I side with my internal thoughts on this one. Before there could be any retort snapped, knocks pound against the door, my hands snatching a towel to cover myself with. I wrap it around myself, draping the other one for my hair on my shoulder before opening the door.

"Can I go in now?" Trina growls, her eyes checking her phone briefly for the time.

"Uh, yeah...why weren't you in the shower before me?" I furrow my brows, allowing her to pass with my clothes in my hands. Her mouth gaps open, her eyes darting around for an answer as her cheeks blush furiously. "Oh god," I grimace, "Don't answer."

"It wasn't anything bad!" she rushes, my strides already right at my bedroom door.

"Really? I don't think-"

"It's a natural activity!" she snaps, slamming the door.

Along the hall my parent's bedroom door opens, my dad slugging out with his hair jutting out randomly, eyes slightly open. "What was that about?" he mumbles groggily, glancing down at me as he scratches the back of his boxers.

"Oh nothing," I smirk, distinctly hearing the bathroom door click open, Trina eavesdropping. Seizing my chance, I chuckle mischievously, "Just her masturbating in her room instead of the shower."

As the whites of my dad's eyes bulged from his head - already sending me to a fit of laughter - Trina hurls herself into the wall in front of the bathroom frantically, whirling around with a fire in her eyes. "If I have to drive you to school today, I WILL DO SO AFTER DRIVING YOU THROUGH A WALL!" she snarls, my dad stepping out of the situation with his hands raised. I snort a laugh, walking into my room. It's a nice feeling to forget all of your troubles in the world...but now I know that Trina will be trying to get back at me. Oh well, it's not too bad.

I stroll into my closet, randomly picking out clothes as my thoughts come back to me, all on Jade. I shake my head, reminding myself that I'm with beck; or rather the voice on my left shoulder does. As I stride out of my room, wearing a grey jacket, purple shirt, dark grey jeans and black converse, I hear Trina growl behind me, ushering me down the stairs. We get around the kitchen, my sister sending me several glares before staring down at her bowl of milk as she had eaten the cereal quickly.

"Do you masturbate too?" she finally asks in a dark tone, eyes flicking up at me to intimidate. Of course, it doesn't as I have grown accustomed to Jade's piercing eyes. I raise a brow, trying to remember the last time I had actually done so. I shake my head, not exactly remembering. "We'll see about that," she smirks, a plan forming in her head.

"What are you going to do, try and catch me?" I retort, folding my arms.

"...maybe..."

'Oh god.'

-(:)-

Once ready, I push the door open, walking out of the restroom, my mind still buzzing. I gaze around a bit, my legs guiding me towards the double doors that lead to the Asphalt Café. "Tori!" I turn to my name, finding Andre giving a small grin, walking over. "Hey, have you seen my friend Dennis? He's been gone for a little while. I mean, he's probably hiding out so that he can actually eat his food... Marcus just won't get his hands off of them," he explains, eyes darting around for any sight of his friend.

"Uh," I furrow my brows, shaking my head softly, "I don't believe I met him."

He frowns subtly, taking a small step back, eyes gliding over my clothes. "You don't?"

"...no," I cross my arms, confused.

"Huh, well he's Marcus' boyfriend," the musician describes, ringing a soft bell in my skull.

"Oh, I think I have seen him a bit, yeah," I nod.

He grins excitedly, "Really? Where?"

"No. Not- not today," I growl quietly, the voice on my shoulder nagging me to go back to Beck.

He clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth, staggering a few steps back to look over the corner of the hall for Dennis. Glancing back at me, he quickly asks, "Are you okay?"

"Yes," I snap, "Why?"

"Well...you seem," he grimaces, once again flicking over my clothes, "not normal."

I halt my breathing momentarily, staring at him as if he grew two heads. "'Not normal?' Describe normal to me," I spit hotly as Andre scrambles over his words to make the statement sound better. I cringe, shaking my head before glancing back at him apologetically. "No, no you're right...I'm sorry, that, that wasn't normal."

"Are you okay?" he asks, concerned as I step back, "Do you want to go out for lunch sometime and talk about it?"

With the word 'yes' at the tip of my tongue, the voice on my left shoulder rasps, 'Beck is your priority. Not him.'

"No, it's fine," I mutter mechanically before my thoughts could even comply. "I just, I'll sort it out if I get more sleep."

"Yeah," the musician nods, "About that. Robbie said something about you not doin' your work yesterday. Is that true? Did you do that over night?" My head bobs softly as a gesture, my body not trusting my jaws at the moment with the sprawl between the string of whispers on my shoulders. "You weren't listening to what the two were saying, right-"

"Shut it," I snarl, my hand immediately slapping over my mouth as his eyes widen. "I'm fine, I'm fine," I weakly mutter, cutting across his question, "I mean, not right now but- I'll get, I'll get better once I get home. It's just been a really rough- really shitty week." Andre gawks at me, not expecting the foul language to escape my lips; as I said before, I don't do if often. "I just- fuck," I growl, rubbing my forehead, "I can't- leave me alone, please."

He nods hesitantly at my weak finish, murmuring a final, "I'll text you later..." before strolling away with a lot on his mind. I turn at my heels, my legs making a few long strides towards the door, my palm on the handle. I stare at it with a bitter gaze, biting my lip uncertainly.

'What are you doing? He's waiting for you,' the voice asks, though whispers fill the right ear, completely blocking out anything of what the other says.

'Go find her. She could be wondering around the halls...' they suggest, bringing my hand from the handle, 'You need to apologize, it'll help you.'

I find myself in a completely different hall once I have full control of my steps, the buzzing in my mind ceasing. I'm still determined to find her, mind you, the quiet hum of wonder in my right ear filling me as I search the corners. Nothing comes from the left.

As I let the seconds slip pass, I feel the weight that had been lifted gradually throughout the day sink right back. My shoulders ache as guilt ebbs away at my chest, Beck backing away further in my subconscious. I need to find her, I need to find Jade. For several minutes - as I assume - I wonder around the halls, my eyes darting around curiously.

"Dennis! Dennis, you cannot be still be eating those damn chips!" comes a yell that echoes throughout the walls. I grin gingerly; I've heard that before. I stride around the corner, staggering back abruptly as she did the same. She stands, stock still, her face growing weary. "What- uh...what do you want," she mumbles quietly, her sharp gaze faltering.

"To- to talk a bit," I mumble, leaning against the wall uncertainly. She nods slowly, waiting for me to start with her eyes dropping to the ground. "I just, I wanted to apologize for, for smacking you. I didn't mean to do it, at all."

The halls grow quiet, the words sinking in as she digests them. "It's fine," she croaks. Her gaze blinks up to mine, eyes darting between dark ones curiously. "Do you...eh, do you want to walk around for a bit?" I give a small grin, nodding slowly as she stuffs her hands in her pocket, my steps following. I ignore the whispers in my left ear, the right guiding me along with Jade. "So I've seen your dad around the school a bit," she mutters casually.

"Yeah. He's been looking to get a post here at school for a long while now. Started talking about it last year," I reply gingerly. We remain quiet for a bit, only our steps padding through the hall. A pen would drop and turn our attention, though it wouldn't break the quiet, peaceful silence between us.

"So...how good of a father is he?" Jade asks, cutting through my haze.

I turn towards her, her gaze to the ground. "He's really understanding," I start softly, the girl beside me nodding in - what looks to be - agreement. "And just, well, my dad. He doesn't really have a motherly touch but he's fun to be around. Once he brought me to fish and I ended up in the water after he accidentally tipped the boat. He was so excited to see a huge fish in the water forgetting I was a small, little seven year old- I'm sorry," my cheeks warm as pale eyes shift towards me coolly, "I didn't mean to ramble."

"It's fine," her lips ghosts a soft smirk, "My dad doesn't do the same is all...I mean, he's there but he's not, I guess." We halt, finding ourselves by the vending machines. I glance at my locker, the words shining in my eyes as Jade's reflects into hers. She breathes out calmly, snatching my attention. Her fists balls in thought, my hand suddenly jerking to reach out to it.

'What are you doing?' the voice in my left ear accuses quietly. 'Do you really want to comfort her? Why? You're not still thinking about being with her, are you?'

'Don't listen to it, you can comfort her for a moment...' my thoughts salvage guilt.

'No. She'll only stab you in the back...she has too many pairs of scissors after all,' the voice continues, 'But, with Beck, you can see right through him along with his locker. You heard him; he's an open book, easy to read.'

'While Jade may be a story in the Brother's Grimm, Beck is Romeo and Juliet,' my thoughts warn poetically.

Why can't they shut it? What am I saying? They're in my head, I need to quit this. I glance over towards Beck's locker, seeing right into the walls. Meanwhile, Jade's is protected against the very same blades that are her own, unable to see anything within it. God, why does everything have to be so confusing? Why can't I just accepted the fact that I'm with Beck, god dammit? Why can't I just have a thought that has nothing to do with anything and just gets my mind off of everything in my life?

'How do fish mate? How do snakes mate?' a lone thought intervenes.

Okay then...I- uh, never mind. I don't want to know that. I purse my lips as I stare at the ground, my hand slinking into my pocket.

"V-Vega?" comes a nervous voice besides me.

"Hmm?" I hum, pale eyes flicking towards mine.

She bites the inside of her cheek, the words not spilling out as she wants to. "Do you...do you want to-"

"Tori? Where did you go? Lunch is almost over," Beck's voice snaps us both from the conversation. My chest constricts, a stream of rushed emotions coming at me at once. I abruptly push myself away from Jade, her stature becoming tense, eyes watching me with guilt and regret flooding them.

'I'm sorry,' pulses through my thoughts, though it never came out as her eyes harden, glancing towards the stairs.

'You should be ashamed...you aren't with her, Beck wanted you and now you got him walking around the school like a lost puppy Tori,' the voice hounds. I-I didn't mean to do that. I just wanted to apologize to Jade and then, well, she...

She didn't lift my worries away, no. But it was almost like she brought me up, enabling me to hold them with ease. I forgot about them, for a few minutes, until I started remembering that I shouldn't be with her. I can't, I shouldn't. I'm with Beck and that's that, right?

'Exactly, he will treat you better. I mean, look at the way he's looking at you now.' My eyes meet dark brown, his lips forming a soft grin. I barely hear steps echo through the hall towards Sikowitz, Beck taking my hand. 'See? He's great. Don't worry about Jade, she'll be fine. She has Andre and the other friends she met.'

I don't know anymore. I still hold his hand but, well, it is soft and he's done nothing wrong. Jade has done stuff and yet...

'She's hurting you and you've barely talked, Tori,' the voice on my left shoulder reasons, 'See all of this pain? Beck can make it better, he can make you feel good. See? Don't you see the nice sandwich he remembered you loved? He saved it for you and didn't eat it.' I take it in my hands, my mind buzzing erratically with my fuming thoughts. I ignore them, the voice grinning ear to ear - if it has lips anyway. It's not wrong after all...I mean, this is a good sandwich. 'There you go, good girl. See? Beck is happy with you? You can't break up with him, he'll be miserable...'

'But Jade...what about her?' my thoughts whine, my eyes darting to Andre who talks to a brunette. Dennis, I'm assuming.

'Relax, those two are cool. She's happy with them, barely hangs out with anybody else,' the voice murmurs.

With a blank stare, I mechanically munch on my sandwich, not speaking. My body only acts on its human instinct to eat, not wanting anything said because, well, it's so confusing. I don't know what to do.

'But you'll choose correctly,' the voice hums.

-(:)-

I fold my arms, my eyes wondering around the parking lot as Trina continues to speak to her friend on the side of the car. I don't listen to their conversation, finding no interest. Instead, I just watch as cars roll off the school's property, going home. My attention flickers to her as she steps into her vehicle, a black Honda, I think. I can't tell from here but...well, I should remember. Perhaps it's a Ford.

She buckles herself in, though her expression is unreadable; once again, she's too far. Her car, though, doesn't start. She merely stares at the steering wheel before her hands cover her forehead, head dipping down as she leans forward. Her head rests on the wheel, unmoving.

Trina slides in beside me, snapping from my gaze. What was I doing? I can't be staring at her across the parking lot...where's Beck? My brow furrows, my mind still a tornado tearing through everything, my conscious not making sense of it all. All I know is the closer I get to her, the more my heart hurts. Why? Why do I just hurt more if my thoughts fight so consistently that I need to. With Beck, I don't get hurt, he just protects me...and cares for me. I don't get hurt with him, I just get my work done and I'm fine with the world. He thanked me for the coffee this morning, holding the door for me and walking me to my classroom.

And so the cycle began... Every day I would be fine, laughing casually with the few who came up to me during class, talking about the classwork. Nothing really changed there. However, the voice on my left shoulder would constantly give me advice, guiding me to give Beck whatever he would like to have - coffee, soda, whatever it was - just to ensure my loyalty. And I would follow through, not finding his gentle smile harmful or intimidating. However, despite the right's protests, the voice would bring my gaze down whenever I heard black, combat boots march across a hallway, keeping my distance. I couldn't afford to have another moment of tranquility before all the weight set on my shoulders, adding a few more pounds.

I'm only a twig, after all, and I swear if I am going to have more weight heaved on my shoulders, I'll snap.

Summary of reader's and me during conversation between Tori and Jade:

Reader: Don't you dare...

Me: *Glances at large, red button labeled 'So Close but Nope'*

Reader: I swear if you touch it...

Me: *Reaches over to button*

Reader: Don't you dare do it! We've been waiting for too-

Me *Interrupts readers and smacks button*

Reader: WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU SYD?

Me: *Giggles as I skip away like a fairy*

Okay, that might not be the real thing but, man, that was fun to write and imagine.

Hope you enjoyed, and I'ma take a nap.

:)