Metamorphosis

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A/N:

Chapter 31 (Catalyst of Change)

"I thought this would be a good place to celebrate your birthday, Linds." Trina bit into a garlic breadstick and watched her best friend cut into her steak. They were at a restaurant outside of the forest that Jason showed her. Lindsay wasn't too keen on having her birthday celebrated, and Travis had already done something with her the day before, but Trina insisted on spending some time with her best friend.

"I appreciate it." Lindsay leaned back and brought a piece of meat towards her lips. "May 16th, and it feels good to spend it with someone." Trina grinned as her friend bit down on the meat. "Hard to believe, and you know something? It's almost been a month since we've been with our boyfriends."

"Has it been a month already? I couldn't tell." She let out a chipper laugh, then set her breadstick down. "I can't believe it's been over a month since I last saw my family." She was starting to miss them, but she was dealing with it. After all, she wasn't going back for three more months. "I wonder what they'd think of Jason."

Lindsay raised an eyebrow and bent her wrist at her chin. "Girl are you kidding? They'll love him. I still have to tell my father I've got a boyfriend; you've already told your family about Jason."

"Only a little." If her gushing letter to Tori didn't let them know she had a lover, she didn't know what would. "I'm not looking forward to Tori's friends ever meeting him, though."

"Why not?"

"They don't exactly respect us that well." If she had to guess; Jade would probably be the one calling her a liar and telling her there wasn't a chance someone like Jason could ever love 'someone like her'. Beck might agree with Jade, for all she knew. Robbie and Andre might say something derogatory or try and convince Jason he could do better.

Then there was Cat. Trina couldn't say how the redhead would react, since there was something a bit different about her than the others.

Lindsay dipped her breadstick into the marinara sauce before her. Her shoulders rose and her eyes flickered over to Trina. "What if they change?" She felt the urge to laugh and stifled the urge as quickly as it came.

"Them? Lindsay, they're a bunch of self-loving pricks that can't see the reality of their world through those rose colored glasses they have on." She bit down on the end of her bread and yanked it from her teeth. Her eyebrows swept down and collided in the center. "They do nothing but insult and talk without thinking, If there's anything good in them, I haven't seen much."

"I don't know. I remember Tori well, and if she sees something in them, I don't know if I'd count them out just yet." She smiled, impressed with Lindsay's optimism. While she did have a point, she couldn't be sure just yet.

"Tori isn't the same girl you remember, either. We've both gone through a lot, both of us are much different than we were back then."

"Yet…" Lindsay shrugged and leaned back slowly in her chair. Trina watched as her lips curved up slightly. "You're still just as good a friend to me as you were back then. You and Tori both still seem like you'd do anything for your friends if you believed there was something left, and maybe Tori hasn't given up on them just yet. That's a good thing, isn't it?"

"Maybe. It could also be foolishly hoping for something that isn't going to happen." She picked up her silverware and peered down at her meal. "Still, you're right. We'll just have to wait and see. Tori might have more faith in them than I do."

Even Jason was wary of them. She told him a little more about them and he wasn't fond of some of the criminal acts the group committed. He was even more surprised to hear that Tori managed to convince her family not to press charges on the group and to give them all yet another chance.

"So Trina. When you go back home, are you still planning to live with your family?"

"Depends on whether or not they want me out, I guess."

She intended to live on campus when she went to college, the housing fees were pricy but they would be worth it if life at home was too toxic or stressful. Now that she decided the University of California was where she would be going, she did have to figure out her housing arrangements.

"Jason's been given internet access from Dr. Wyatt, so the two of us are going to go over registration for the fall." She crossed her right leg over her left and moved a bite of her meal towards her lips, pausing for a second. "I had planned to foot the college fees on my own, but now I'll have to see if Dad is actually going to try and be a father or if I still have to pay my own way."

"How would you do that?"

"I've done a few odd jobs around the neighborhood over the years, saving up for college." Those jobs consisted primarily of babysitting, working at the food truck that went around to the various schools, and even mowing lawns. It was hard work, and she kept much of it from her family-though it was questionable whether or not they were truly blind to the fact that she'd been earning an income. "I'm sure my father knows. After all, he's had to pay taxes every year…I'm just surprised he's said nothing."

"Maybe he appreciates that you're earning some income for yourself?"

"Maybe." She had enough saved up that she could pay the fees for the first semester of college. "If my family does help out, I won't have to take out student loans." She pushed the bite into her lips and chewed slowly, processing her thoughts.

After a few seconds, she swallowed and lowered her fork. "Honestly, Tori's more optimistic than I am about things. Whether it's her friends, mom and dad…you name it, she believes more than I do."

"Does she believe in you?" She paused and let her gaze drift up to Lindsay. Lindsay leaned forward, locking her gaze with hers and flashing a subtle smirk. "Does she believe things will work out for you? That you'll find someone who cares about you, and that you'll be happy?" Her heart pulsed in her chest.

Trina cleared her throat and shrugged. "Maybe." Of course Tori did; it was practically all her sister talked about wanting for Trina. "She holds out hope about a lot of things, even where I'm concerned. What's your point?"

"Oh nothing." Lindsay's smirk increased and the girl stabbed at the food. "She's right, isn't she?" The girl's gaze sharpened and her smirk increased. Trina flinched and cleared away the knot that was forming in her throat. "After all, your best friend is back in your life…You've found a man that knows how to treat you right, and you're finally starting to discover who you are-where you belong. If you ask me, I'd say Tori's right to hold out hope. She sees in others what they don't see."

"You're calling my sister insightful? Intuitive?" Tori was smart, Trina could credit her with that. At the same time, Lindsay was right on a bit of what she was saying; Tori had always been one to look for what was in a person's heart. "She cares about people. She's compassionate. That might make her a pushover from time to time, and she's let her friends walk all over her, so…"

"Give it time. Let's see what happens when you go home. If they're all still the same as they were-if everything's still the same…well, maybe I can talk my dad into letting us room together?" Her heart skipped a note and her lips spread into a wide grin. "That way if you have to leave your home, you can avoid residency costs at the campus."

"That's not a bad idea, but you assume there's something there that would change the way things are."

"Your sister. Tori's a catalyst in her own right. Maybe she's let her friends walk over her, and from the sound of it, I think she has…but I wouldn't count that girl out just yet." Lindsay swept her hair back and raised up her eyebrows. "The two of you are sisters, after all. Somewhere in her is the ability to stand up for herself and to do what's right. I'm willing to bet she'd try and work on things."

"Yeah, maybe, if her friends don't laugh her into a corner for trying." Trina took another bite and pointed her fork towards Lindsay, bouncing it gently in the air. "She asked me a while back. Do I think mom and dad are going to stay together? She's holding out hope they won't divorce…but they're on the way to getting a divorce, and I'll be surprised if they don't."

"Have you heard anything about that, yet?"

"No. They would have told me in a letter if it was happening, but still…"

"Didn't one letter from Tori state they were working on their relationship?" Lindsay's statement gave her pause. She thought on it for a moment, then released her breath with a quick exhale.

"Yes. Even my father told me he wanted to spend more time with me when I got home."

"Why do you think that is? What was there to change the way they were?"

Her lips fell into a straight line and her eyebrows flattened above her eyes. "Shit. Tori." She brought her hand up to her forehead with a sigh and her eyelids sank over her eyes. "Tori said she talked to them, that she was trying to fix things."

"As I said." Lindsay's smirk widened more that Trina was sure it'd fly off the girl's face if it stretched any further. "Don't count your sister out just yet." Faith could work wonders, but where Trina didn't see much of this progress, she couldn't have the same faith. "Anyway, thanks for this Trina. I'm glad we could get a moment out of camp."

"Hey." She folded her forearms on the table and leaned forward, smirking wide at her friend. "Being the girlfriend of the camp's chief counselor has it's perks. May as well take advantage of them once in a while." She winked and Lindsay started to laugh.

"Oh Trina, you're bad."

They finished eating and returned to camp an hour later, eager to spend some more time together when Jason wound up coming down to let Trina know he needed to speak with her. She followed him in silence, watching nervously as he led her into his office.

"Is everything okay?" She asked while closing the door behind her. Jason turned his head and nodded, then pointed towards the phone.

"Everything's fine, I just wanted to let you know I got a phone call from someone." She pursed her lips and walked over to his desk. Her fingers brushed the side of the phone and she looked up to watch Jason approach the computer given by Dr. Wyatt. "Your dad called."

She did a double take and her mouth fell open. It took a full minute for her to process what Jason said, and even still she didn't understand. "What?" He sat in his office chair, leaned back and put his hands behind his head.

"He wanted to know who I was. He told me to treat you right and not to do anything to hurt you." It seemed so sudden and unexpected. There was never any thought in her mind that her father would attempt to reach out to Jason. "He cares a lot about you and is very protective of you. I'm glad to have spoken with him."

Trina pulled her hand up to her chest and shook her head. "My dad? Called you? Why?"

"I think he was trying to reach you, but you were spending time with Lindsay." She was almost certain that somehow this was Tori's doing, but whatever it was she was doing, Trina didn't mind.

She let out a grunt and slid her fingers away from the edge of the desk. "It's nice to know my dad's thinking about me at least. I hope he didn't say anything to frighten you, I know he doesn't have the easiest temperament when it comes to the men Tori and I date."

Jason raised an eyebrow and pulled his hands away from his head. "He wasn't thrilled that he didn't know me, but he didn't come off in a harsh manner. He told me he wanted to meet me when we return to California."

"What did you say?"

"I said okay. Should I not have?"

"No, that's good." The way it sounded, her father approved of Jason. Or at least he was approving of this relationship taking place outside his control. She sat in Jason's lap and slid her arms around his neck. Her gaze softened and moved into his, and she arched her body out as his strong arms wrapped around her waist.

"You alright?"

"I'm glad my father seems to approve."

"Of course. You're always going to be his little girl, no matter what. That's what he said. I am to treat you as his little princess." Jason chuckled once and groomed her hair with a slow caress.

She kissed his neck and buried her face into the bend of his throat. "It goes without saying." A deep inhale entered into her lips and she closed her eyes, humming as his hand moved to her upper back. "My father thinks he's a king. If I'm his princess, that makes you my prince charming?" A coy smile spread across her face and Jason smiled back while rolling his eyes.

"You, only you can call me that." He kissed the tip of her nose and leaned forward. As her body moved backwards, hanging in the air with only his arms holding her in place, she threw her head back and laughed with excitement. "I'm happy to be your prince."

Her eyes flew open and the blood rushed to her cheeks. "Jason." She glanced at his computer and took a slow, deep breath. "Maybe we should check out the college stuff? Or, we could just cuddle up together for a while."

"We've got another three months to cuddle, spend time together, and of course three months until you want to start your classes." He swung her back into his lap and looked into her eyes with a soft smile. "I have a professor in mind that would make a good advisor for you to talk to, but I know a bunch of the professors there, so…"

"How many more days until they're out of the office for the summer?"

"Another week or two, I'd say."

"Then." She laced her fingers together on the back of his neck and leaned her chest forward, brushing into him. Her lips turned up and she was amused to see him closing his eyes and breathing in as though her breath were like a gentle breeze against his face.

"You're making it hard to resist you." She swayed her hips in his, humming playfully as he started to groan. "We should get some work done."

"Well my prince. We have a little time for fun."

"As you wish." He started to stand, lifting her into the air. She let out a surprised shout and felt herself being set upon his desk. His lips were on hers in a moment and her eyelids crashed down as a moan clung to her throat.

She leaned her head to the right and pulled her hair from her neck as his teeth brushed against her skin. Shivers ran down her body, leaving a trail of tiny bumps behind each jolt. Her breath hitched as Jason sucked the skin between his teeth.

He pulled away and her hand slid down to her neck. "That hickey better not be too visible, or else Lindsay's going to kill you." She dropped her hands to the desk, sliding them back with her body. Her chest heaved and her breath caught in her throat as Jason swung his left arm around her waist and cupped his right hand over her left cheek.

Jason teased her lips with his, brushing against hers just briefly before pulling away and causing her to lunge forward. Trina's head fell back and she pushed her breasts towards him, moaning as his lips caressed her collarbone.

Her thoughts traveled briefly to what Lindsay had said before, and perhaps she was right in that Tori was good to have faith. She was happier in Jason's arms, stronger too, and more confident.

Now adding that her father apparently was looking after her, perhaps something more was happening back home. She couldn't wait to find out, and she couldn't wait for Jason to be right there by her side.

That was then. For now, all that mattered was being in the arms of this man. In this moment, she would let her mind travel back to him and only him. "God," she groaned while lying flat against the bare portion of the desk. Jason was bending over her, his arms on either side of her and his enchanting smirk drawing her gaze. "What have you done, Jason?"

"What do you mean?"

"I…was a scared, insecure, ugly girl when I came here. You've changed me. Like Tori's stupid butterfly thing."

Jason leaned down, kissing the tip of her nose. "You've always been beautiful. I didn't do anything,, you've always had the confidence in you. It's been up to you to let out."

"Tori's the reason for whatever change is going on back home. For me? Here? I can't think I had anything to do with where I'm at." He paused and she furrowed her brow. "Fuck it, I don't want to think about that anymore. Just kiss me. Wherever this goes, let it."

He moved closer, lowering his voice to a soft whisper. "I love you, Trina."

Her heart swelled and tears hugged the corners of her eyes. "I love you."

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