(A:N Hey, it's been a while. While life has been happening I've been watching a bit of Victorious. This has been a thought in my head for a while, and I think you'll like it. Enjoy the chapter and all of its romanticness!)
Chapter 1: First Meeting
Today Andre Harris had been called in to audition for Hollywood Arts. He had spent the past couple of weeks drumming up a song, and he knew it would be perfect. He drove himself to the audition. His grandmother still couldn't go outside without freaking out, so he had to take the car himself. He's been driving himself ever since he received his permit, and while it wasn't legal.. he was always careful.
When he arrived at the building he was amazed by the architecture and the greenery around the area. He entered the waiting room after being directed by a nice secretary lady. After opening one of the black double-doors he noticed that the room was devoid of all life, except for one brunette. He saw her sitting alone, scrolling on her phone and he arched an eyebrow.
She was very attractive, but in a dark sort of way. The girl possessed dark brown hair, eye shadow that complimented her blue eyes and pale skin. There was a blue streak running through her hair, and her lips were a delicious pink. Her outfit consisted of black and only black. Which somehow didn't surprise Andre as much as he thought it should.
'Hold up, did I just think of her lips as delicious? I must be outta my mind.' Andre thought as he approached her. She looked up from her phone, her expression impassive with a noticeable edge to it.
"Hey I hope I'm not botherin' you. But do you mind if I sit here?" Andre asked and the girl gave him a piercing stare, and something about it sent a chill down his spine. After a few moments of silence, feeling like she was going to deny his request.. she nodded. Without missing a single beat she turned back to her phone. Andre sat down on one of the black chairs next to her. He offered up a friendly smile, despite receiving a clear indication she wasn't favoring a chat.
Andre decided to be brave and stick his hand out for her to shake. She noticed the appendage and looked at him blankly.
"My name's Andre. I know you seem busy, but I was hopin' we could talk a lil more." Andre said and although the girl didn't shake his hand she did put her phone in her back pocket, leaning forward to make room to do so. She sat back and folded her arms.
"I'm Jade." She said tersely and Andre awkwardly put his hand down.
'This girl's got a chip on her shoulder for sure.' Andre frowned and Jade waited patiently for him to continue.
"So.. what are you doing for the audition?" He asked and he swore he saw some mirth come into her eyes.
"Nothing unusual. I'm just going to be presenting a little screening I directed. A very dark, creepy, gory scene." There was maliciousness in her tone and Andre gulped down involuntarily. Despite her description of it though, it did sound interesting to the musician.
"Oh, that's cool. What's it about?" Andre held Jade's full attention now, as she turned fully toward him to explain.
"It's about this kid who finds his dead mother with a pair of scissors in her gut." Andre blinked at her smile as she explained it. There was definitely something morally wrong there. Yet he decided to let it slide.
"Wow.. that's.. definitely dark, creepy, and gory." Andre laid out his sentiments as Jade kept her smile. Although Andre could admit, he was getting used to how this girl was interacting with him. But the thought of that sort of freaked him out.
'Do I want to get used to this?' Before he could answer his own question she replied to him,
"Yep, that's the point. What are you going to do?" She asked him and Andre was surprised by her interest.
"I wrote a song that I'm going to perform. Took me a couple weeks to get it perfect, but I think they'll love it." Andre explained and Jade arched an eyebrow in interest.
"You write music? You should let me hear a sample." Jade said and Andre took out his phone to do so.
"I'll play it on speaker." He told her, and she leaned toward him. Despite her earlier reservations about shaking his hand, her arm was touching his. Andre would be lying if he said the contact didn't give him some butterflies.
"A-alright. Here it is."
Leon Thomas III- Dream
It all started out so innocently
You were just another pretty face that I loved to see
But somewhere down the line
I got this feeling deep inside, that won't stop talking to me
Yeah, it won't stop talking to me
Andre looked to Jade to gauge her reaction to it so far, even though it was only the first verse. He saw her smiling as she listened to the song and Andre turned back to his phone satisfied to listen more intently too.
But lately I started to dream
About you and me
And how it would be to hold you close to me
Like it's supposed to be
But then I get this ringing in my ear
And it brings me right back to reality
Oohhh, reality yeah
Would you bat your eyes and smile
And kiss me like it was in style
And tell me you feel thе same, yeah
Or would you be surprisеd and get uncomfortable and lie
To spare my heart such a pain
What should I do
I'm falling in love with you
But lately I started to dream
About you and me
And how it would be to hold you close to me
Like it's supposed to be
But then I get this ringing in my ear
And it brings me right back to reality
Ohh, reality, yeah
Help me I think I'm falling in love with you
Help me I think I'm falling, yeah
In love with you, yeah yeah
In love with you, yeah yeah yeah
Love with you, yeah
When the song ended Jade turned her head to look up at him in amazement.
"That song was great! I'm sure they'd let you in even if you played that through your phone." Andre smiled at her reaction before stowing his phone into his pocket.
"Thank you, that means a lot. And hey, maybe they would. But I'd rather showcase what I got y'know?" Andre said and Jade nodded her acceptance.
"Either way, I highly doubt you wouldn't get accepted into the school. They would be stupid not to." Jade firmly said and Andre swore he could feel some heat in his ears.
"Th-thanks again. I'm sure we'll both get in. If your scene is anything like you described it, then they'll let you in from fear of messing with'chu alone." Andre said and Jade laughed at his words.
"That's the plan." Jade said and before they could continue their conversation the same secretary Andre met earlier opened the doors.
"Jade West, it's your turn." She looked at Jade and Jade nodded before turning to Andre.
"Well, this is it." Jade said and Andre smiled at her.
"You're gonna kill it. Or them if the scene is that scary." He whispered under his breath and she smiled at him. She was about to turn around to leave but Andre grabbed her wrist. She turned back in surprise at his boldness before he sheepishly took his hand back.
"My bad about that. You just seem pretty chill. And I'd like to get to know you more. You good if we exchanged numbers?" Andre asked and Jade thought about it for a moment before taking her phone out.
"Okay here." She pulled up her phone number for Andre to copy into his contact list. Once he did so she flicked him in the forehead, liking the way he yelped from the pain. She turned with a satisfied smirk while Andre stood dumbfounded.
'Why was that whole thing so.. hot?!' Andre rubbed at his forehead right as he sent a text to Jade.
i see how it is - Andre
(; - Jade
Andre shook his head with a smile on his face. This girl was going to be the death of him for sure. When Jade left Andre looked over the lyrics of the song he wrote and memorized like a hundred times. He held an involuntary smile on his face, thinking of the dark clothed girl in the next room. Even though things started out.. uncomfortable, Andre quickly grew to the idea of being around her.
'I should take her out somewhere..' As he entertained the thought Jade came back through the double-doors with a contented smirk on her face. Andre looked up at her, his smile still displayed.
"Well don't you look all happy." Andre teased and he noted her choice to sit right next to him once more.
"Do I? I haven't realized." She fronted and Andre's smile grew.
"Well, I'm sure your scene turned out fantastic." Andre assured and Jade smiled in agreement.
"It sure was." After a few moments Andre saw the secretary enter briefly to inform him it was his turn to audition. He turned back to Jade quickly as she gave him a quizzical look.
"Hey look, if you're free after all this.. I wouldn't mind taking you out to coffee, or lunch or something." Andre offered and Jade looked surprised at the sudden offer before cooling herself.
"Coffee sounds great. But not today. My mom and I are going to be busy." Jade vaguely explained and Andre nodded with acceptance. However that wouldn't deter him from setting up another date in the future.
"We can do it this Saturday then. You down?" He asked and Jade smiled.
"Sure, my go-to is the Jet Brew at the mall." Andre bit his lip in anticipation, he felt butterflies in his stomach. He didn't really believe she would say yes to him.
"C-cool, how about around lunch? 11 or 12?" Jade sensing his slight nervousness stood up and pinched his cheek.
"11 is fine by me. Good luck in there Andre." And while the dark clothed teen walked away, Andre couldn't help but let his eyes drift toward her backside.
'I hate seeing you go.. but damn, do I love watching you walk away.' His thoughts had him with slight giddiness as he entered the audition room.
About ten minutes after his audition, Andre would text Jade how they loved his performance, even going as far as to give him a standing ovation. Jade would then congratulate him, and they would plan their coffee hangout. Neither of them wanted to push the boundary of whether it was a date or not, despite both of them finding the other attractive.
When Jade had been on the way home she had regaled her mother about the audition. She firmly believed she was a shoe-in for Hollywood Arts, and her mother liked her confidence. However her mother being a mom, she noticed her daughter had a glow about her. Even if Jade would mask it behind a firm expression of malice or blankness.
"So, who is he hun?" Her mother asked and Jade sighed.
"No one mom.. just a friend is all." Her mother pursed her lips.
"Does this friend have a name?"
"Andre." Jade replied shortly and the West matriarch could sense her daughter's annoyance. She decided to give her some space and smiled.
"Well, I for one am glad you're making friends already." She said simply and Jade smiled involuntarily. Her mom caught the expression but didn't acknowledge it. Meanwhile Jade thought back to her meeting with Andre, and while at first she was annoyed.. she thought he was really cool. He was easygoing and he didn't mind some of her quirks despite just meeting her. She wondered how he would be when they hung out more.
Saturday came quicker than both teens thought it would. Jade had arrived early to the Jet Brew by around fifteen minutes. She wanted to grab her coffee and think in some semblance of silence while she waited for Andre to meet her. She sat down at one of the empty tables in the cafe, feeling comfort as she stared out the window in the booth. She looked at all the strangers that passed her by. They were oblivious to her thoughts. As well as her stares, simply enjoying the day they had with whomever they were with. She gave a small smile, thinking of the morning and who she was spending it with.
While Jade sat at the booth waiting for her... acquaintance, friend, date? She couldn't possibly decipher that enigma until after today. The dark clothed girl waited while unbeknownst to her, Andre held similar thoughts.
"Damn, what even is this? A hangout, a date?" Andre was rambling as he drove by himself in his grandma's car. His thoughts of what him and Jade could possibly be were making him crazy. He definitely liked her, at least from what he's seen of her so far. He felt like he was trying to rush to find a conclusion. Although what he remembered from his grandma's words before she lost her mind, she had always stressed patience.
"You know what the bible says, love is patient, love is kind. So don't jump into anythin' just because they make you happy in the moment."
Those were her words and even though Andre was young at the time, he was able to understand what she meant. His grandmother would often tell him he was wise beyond his years. Or that he had an 'old soul'. Either way, those words rang in Andre's head as he thought about his upcoming morning, with a very attractive, and very interesting girl. While he had thoughts of the girl he looked to his passenger seat. It held a bouquet of black roses and he felt some sweat drip down his forehead.
"I hope this isn't too much.." The whole thing cost $180, and Andre knew he had some money saved up from birthdays and side jobs. He really hoped that for a simple hangout this gift for her wasn't an over-extension. He breathed in deeply, and exhaled just as deeply.
"Well, it ain't a bad thing to do a good thing.." Andre muttered as he arrived at the mall. He parked his car, expertly reversing into a slot. He smiled in satisfaction at how the car was slotted before locking it with a beep. He entered the mall with the bouquet, feeling his nerves at an all time high. It didn't help that bystanders gave him open stares. Especially the couples, where the girls and women alike would tell their own boyfriends or husbands about his bouquet. At the comments he felt his palms become sweaty at the prospect of Jade's own reaction. A few scenarios flew over his head and none of them were good, except for one.
Scenario 1
Andre arrived with the bouquet and he immediately sees Jade with a visible look of disgust.
"Look baby I-"
"You shouldn't have!"
"Well, it ain't no thang..."
"No! You REALLY shouldn't have!" Jade then took the bouquet and slammed them on the ground, before stomping on them with her sneakers. Andre knelt down on the ground among the destroyed flowers in anguish.
"No baby noooooooooo!"
Scenario 2
Andre brings the the bouquet and Jade gives an eerily sweet smile, almost too sweet. Andre approached her nervously and gives her the bouquet. She takes it gracefully, before throwing it fifty yards away.
"Damn girl-" Andre was about to say before Jade started choking the life out of him.
"B-but wh-why?!" He choked out and Jade laughed maniacally.
"Because you disgust me!"
Those had been two of the many scenarios that Andre thought of as he approached the mall's Jet Brew. He swallowed some saliva as noticed the beautiful girl at the window. He wiped his free hand of the sweat on his pants, before putting the bouquet in that one, and doing the same in his other hand. Now that he was sweat free for the most part he was ready to brace himself for the approaching brunette. He witnessed a look of surprise as Jade bolted up from the booth, leaving her coffee on the table.
She fast-walked toward the anxious musician, while Andre's stomach did flips, cartwheels, and turned itself inside-out. She walked up to him and he immediately stammered.
"H-hey look I-" He handed her the flowers and she gave him a glowing smile.
"I love it." She looked up at him, her piercing blue eyes staring straight into his soul. Due to Andre's nerves he gulped down, as he almost didn't hear her correctly.
"Y-you what?" She stepped closer to him, loving the effect she had on the talented teen.
"I said, I love it." She was a little quieter as she stepped on her toes to kiss him on the cheek. Andre widened his eyes, shocked into stupefaction. Jade went to sniff the flowers and widened her eyes.
"Wait, these are actually real?" She asked, clear shock on her face. Andre visibly lightened up at her reaction to the flowers. He smiled as he sniffed them too.
"Yeah, but some of them are artificial. So that you can keep some to commemorate or something like that." Andre said and Jade's smile increased before morphing into a thoughtful frown.
"Wait how much did this cost?" She asked and Andre bit his lip in embarrassment while he looked toward the Jet Brew.
"Hey that coffee looks really good! We should get some before it gets cold huh?" Andre laughed nervously as he was about to walk off. Jade pulled him back and Andre groaned.
"Hey seriously, how much is it?" She was firm and gentle at the same time. Andre looked into her eyes and sighed.
"It might be $180..." Jade gasped and hit him in the chest.
"Shut up! No way you spent that much on this!" Jade hit him in the chest again and Andre laughed nervously. He caught her free hand and stopped the oncoming onslaught.
"Hey look.. it ain't so bad. Besides, your reaction was worth it." Andre said and Jade hummed before smiling again. She dragged his wrist to the coffee shop, back to where she was sitting at before. Andre breathed deeply, that went way better than he thought.
The two teens then spent the rest of the afternoon conversing, talking about things nonsensical, as well as thought-provoking. The more time they spent together, the more they enjoyed each other's company. Soon hours past for what felt like minutes to them. It became almost six o'clock and Jade had to get home to her mother.
"Hey, I can take you if you want." Andre offered and Jade smiled.
"You sure? I can just take the bus like I did to get here." She argued weakly and Andre shook his head.
"I'm good for it, and I'll be safe I promise." Andre insisted and Jade smiled, a hint of shyness in her expression.
"Okay fine, but I don't want you to get in trouble just for getting me home." Jade said tersely and Andre smirked.
"Don't worry, Andre's got this." He lead her to his grandma's car and opened the door for her. She smiled at the gesture, getting comfortable in the car. Jade put on her seatbelt while Andre did likewise when he entered from the other side. He looked to her and smiled.
"You ready?" Andre asked and Jade nodded, same expression on her face.
"Let's do it."
"Yes ma'am!" Andre said as he put down the handbrake before pulling the car into drive.
"Now.. where do you live again?" Andre asked and Jade rolled her eyes in amusement before telling him the directions.
After a ten minute drive with less than few complications the duo had arrived at Jade's house. The house was a two-story with a nice front yard and a garage with a driveway for parking. Andre parked closest he could to Jade's front door and smiled at the brunette. Jade turned to him and smiled back.
"Thank you for taking me, even though you didn't have to." She said and Andre smiled back at her.
"It's no problem. I wanted to, mind if I walk you to your door?" He asked and Jade nodded.
"I don't mind at all." Andre then opened up his door. He closed it as he went to Jade's side and opened up hers. She got out of the car while holding the black flowers and Andre closed the door. He made sure to make good on his request to walk her to the entrance of her home. When they reached her door she turned back to him. Andre's surprise was surmounted as Jade put the bouquet down delicately before she locked her arms behind his neck in a hug. Andre automatically held her close, putting his arms around her lower and upper back.
"I had a really great time tonight." She whispered, and Andre felt chills run down his spine. Jade pulled back a little to look at the musician, liking how nervous he appeared. She kissed him on the cheek once more and Andre could say that sparks lit up within him.
"What was that for?" He asked her and he could safely say the grin that she expressed could light up the sky above them.
"Because, I wanted to." She slowly pulled back and Andre let her go. Despite Jade not being a touchy person, she could admit she missed the contact she held with him.
"That's a pretty good reason." Andre surmised and Jade laughed.
"Damn right it is." She turned back to her door and unlocked it with one of her keys in her keychain. She opened up the door and turned back toward Andre.
"Be safe getting home, and seriously.. I had an amazing time." Jade reassured and Andre visibly relaxed at her words.
"Me too, I'll be alright." Andre said and Jade turned to close the door. Andre bit his lip hard and seized her hand. She looked surprised by the action and stood still, waiting for an explanation.
"Look, Jade I.. I don't know what this is, or what it's going to be.. But I'm the kind of guy that can't keep much inside so.. I can tell already that I like you. And I doubt that feeling is going to go away soon. So.. um, yeah." Andre admitted quickly and Jade gave him a simple smile. She squeezed his hand, and Andre found it reassuring to him.
"That's good- that's great. Yeah, but let's just take it slow. Until we're really sure okay?" Jade asked and Andre nodded. Jade squeezed his hand one more time, and let go. Andre watched her slowly close the door.
"Goodnight Andre."
"Goodnight Jade." She closed the door and Andre swore his heart's rhythm was going out of control. He walked to his car, feeling his nerves start to drive him up a wall.
'Does this mean she likes me, does this mean she might like me? Oh lord help me now..' Andre thought as he backed out of Jade's driveway. Meanwhile the dark clothed teen watched him drive away through her blinds, a similar feeling welling up in her chest.
'Wow.. guess I should tell Cat about this.' Even though the little redhead irritated her, she was still the brunette's best friend. Jade dialed Cat's contact number and called her. Before the phone could even ring Jade heard her long time friend's voice.
"Hi-iii! What's up Jade?" Jade bit her lip at the greeting, all too familiar with Cat's jolliness.
"Hey Cat, I've got some interesting news to tell you.."
When Andre returned home it was to see his grandmother relaxing on the couch. Albeit her eyes would dart around the area from time to time. Yet this was the most sedated Andre had seen her in a long time.
"Hey grandma. Whatchu up to?" Andre asked as he sat next to her.
"Just watching the news Andre! There's some crazy people out there!" His grandmother answered in a booming voice, despite their close proximity. Andre nodded, simply agreeing with his grandma. Although in his head he found the whole situation as well as her words ironic. Andre decided to watch the news with her, even if sometimes she would make an explosive comment on recent events.
He was used to the kind of commotion she caused anyways. Although Andre's eyes were drawn to the television, his thoughts were somewhere else. More specifically on someone else. He thought about her smile, her laugh, her reaction to the flowers. After that he thought back to both times she kissed his cheek. His hand immediately touched where she kissed him and felt a tightness in his chest. She already had a hold on him and she didn't even know.
"Who is she Andre?" Andre widened his eyes in shock at the question. Not so much the question, but about the way his grandmother asked it. It wasn't loud nor was it too quiet. It was just.. calm. Andre did however recognize despite his grandmother having her 'episodes' she did have moments of clarity. Just like she was displaying now. However, Andre knew the older she became.. the lesser these moments would be. Andre swallowed, feeling tears prick at his eyes from his overcoming emotions.
"Here name's Jade. She's.. she's great." His grandmother smiled at him, patting his arm with a warmth he hadn't felt in so long.
"Well Andre, whatever happens.. don't ever stop being you. And all you have to do is make sure you and her are happy. As long as you both want the same thing that is."
"The same thing?" Andre's question had his grandma laughing with delight.
"To love each other Andre. Because love is the purest thing in this world. And there's nothing purer than two people who love each other no matter the condition." She finished off and Andre bit his lip in embarrassment.
"Well grandma.. I don't know if we can call it love.. you see we just met and-"
"ANDRE THERE'S QUICKSAND IN THE CEILING!" Andre visibly frowned at his grandmother's change in condition. He sighed before touching her shoulder.
"Grandma, there's no quicksand in the ceiling.." Andre sighed once more as he had to calm his grandma down. He already missed how she was moments before, and he wished he got to continue such a heartfelt conversation with her.
But alas, some things weren't meant to be. Andre then felt his phone vibrate in his pocket, he smiled while having a faint idea on who it could be. When Andre calmed his grandmother down, he would text Jade right back. And they would stay on the phone for hours, calling and talking until the night was too old for them to continue. Andre knew then, that wherever this road lead, he wouldn't change his heart of gold. Just like his grandmother said, to never stop being who he was.
Later Andre went through his routine for bed. He continued to think about the girl he had met only days before. He smiled as he reminisced. His thoughts immediately drifted to their texts, their phone calls, and hangouts. Andre had to admit, Jade wasn't usually his type but.. she just pulled him in. He wondered if he had a similar effect on her. He hoped she thought about him like he does her, he hoped that they would explore this feeling together. Andre looked up at his ceiling as he laid in bed, closing his eyes to drift off to sleep.
Yet, sleep wouldn't come. The room was too hot all of a sudden, so he took off his covers in the pitch black of night. After he did so the night became colder, so he settled for putting both feet under the covers. The heat started to get to him again, so he put one leg out of the covers while keeping the under leg in.
'Perfect.' So he thought. However throughout the night it became even harder to sleep, he tossed, turned, and damn near flipped over just to get that unconscious bliss. However right as he was about to hit the sweet spot, he heard his phone vibrate on his night stand.
"Who could that be?" He muttered as he looked at the caller I.D.
'Jade?' Without any hesitation Andre answered the phone.
"Hey, Jade?" Andre asked as he heard a tired grumble come from the brunette.
"Hey.. sorry did I wake you? I know it's 3AM-"
"It's 3AM?!" Andre screeched silently and Jade laughed sheepishly.
"Yeah.. I didn't wake you did I?"
"No baby you didn't-"
"Oh.. I'm baby now huh?" Her voice was teasing and Andre felt his ears burn up.
"Sorry, um.. that just came out. My fault." Jade laughed and Andre smiled at the sound.
"Don't worry about it. But.. I just couldn't sleep." Jade admitted and Andre widened his eyes.
"Honestly, me neither."
"You don't have to lie to me, if I woke you you can go back to bed and-"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! I'm dead serious, I couldn't sleep either. Don't worry about it. You can call me anytime, anywhere. I promise." Andre reassured and Jade smiled behind her phone.
"Okay, good." Her voice was pleasant and Andre chuckled. Jade liked hearing him laugh. She then remembered his admission from earlier and it had caused her to think.
"So.. you couldn't sleep?" He asked her.
"Yeah. But neither could you right?" She responded quickly.
"Uh huh.. so you called me instead?"
"Maybe.."
"I like that." Andre admitted and Jade almost snorted at him.
"You're a dork." She laughed and Andre rolled his eyes.
"Am not!"
"Are too!"
"Well, you're a bigger one."
"Good one Harris."
"Whatever you say West." They both smiled at the banter as they stayed silent for a few moments.
"Thank you for answering." Her voice was soft, sweet, and everything Andre had ever dreamed of.
"It's no problem. Anything for you." Andre swore and Jade laughed.
"Okay corny."
"Haha, maybe." Andre admitted and Jade was grinning now, before she bit her lip nervously.
"Hey.. so.. um.. I just had a thought."
"Okay, give me what you're thinkin'." Andre said and Jade felt her cheeks become flush.
"Do you.. mind... um.. sleeping on the phone?" Andre's eyes widened at the question. And he must've made a sound of surprise because Jade immediately backtracked.
"You don't have to! I'm just asking because.. your presence is comforting." Jade admitted with shame and Andre smiled at her words.
"I'm down for that." Andre heard Jade exhale a breath of relief. He then heard her shift on the bed and Andre began to do that too.
"I'm going to put you on speaker."
"I'll do that too." Andre agreed and Jade smiled.
"Can you hear me?"
"Crystal clear." Andre replied.
"Okay.. good. Goodnight Andre, and thank you again."
"Goodnight Jade. And hey, there's no need to thank me." Andre waited for a response, but all he could hear was light breathing. He smiled as he lied down and closed his eyes. He already felt sleep coming for him quicker than earlier.
'She really.. is.. something else..' Andre thought as he drifted peacefully to sleep.
Both Andre and Jade got the best sleep they ever had that night. All thanks to each other.
(A:N That is the very first chapter of Andre Gets Jaded! I hope it was to your liking! Please let me know of what you think down in the reviews! You all have a happy holidays and I'll see you soon!)
