In class
"Cat, you don't look well" says Sikowitz as Cat throws up on queue
"I'm calling an ambulance" says Tori as she calls emergency services and heads into the hall
"maybe she's sick from all that candy, I say she's fine" says Beck being pessimistic and mean as Tori returns
"Cat come with me, an ambulance is on its way" says Tori leading Cat to the hall
"sorry about the floor" says Cat feeling very insecure
10 minutes later as Tori returns to class
"they think she could have food poisoning her parents took her to a restaurant last night to celebrate her brother's birthday and that restaurant has had a lot of food poisoning complaints, if Cat does have it the restaurant will be shut down" says Tori sitting back down
"you baby her, I swear you'd make out with her if she asked" says Jade
"that's projection Jade and I won't stand for it, just because you want Tori and Cat to date doesn't mean it will happen" says Sikowitz as he immediately sits down
"what's this week's acting assignment" asks Beck changing the subject
"a test in willpower but Cat will be part of it when she returns so keep her updated, the assignment is as follows, keep a conversation going for as long as possible without letting anyone not in this class put themselves into the conversation, if you fail to keep the conversation going you fail for the week and all who fail will join me at a theatre event on the weekend" says Sikowitz as the bell rings
"I say we keep Cat out of the loop, she thinks she's the center of attention, I think she's getting an ego" says Beck
"now now Beck, Cat's not the one with an ego even though she got a record deal and you didn't get an acting job to pay for your new fancy car, if you exclude Cat you fail the class" says Sikowitz
"I'm not doing that" says Beck
"come on guys she's the youngest, we need to give her the benefit of the doubt" says Robbie
"I bet you get wet dreams about her don't you Robbie" intimidates Beck
"that's none of your business" says Robbie
At the hospital an hour later
"well Catarina, you definitely have food poisoning" says Doctor Rebecca Vega
"great, how long should I stay home from school, I missed this weeks acting assignment anyway so it's not like I'll likely be included" says Cat
"I'd want you to stay home at least two days, this seems like a bad case" says Rebecca
"can I ask you a personal question" asks Cat
"so long as you go home after, I don't need you playing a game of fifty questions again" says Rebecca
"I like Tori, like really really like her, how do I ask her out, every time I try either she thinks I'm joking around or I end up feeling sick" says Cat
"is this why you asked for me as your doctor this time Catarina, because that's wildly out of line and she doesn't talk to me anyway" says Rebecca
"I asked for you because the doctor that was checking my vitals was checking me out and it felt creepy, you'd diagnosed me before so I was comfortable with you treating whatever I had, I genuinely forgot that you're her aunt, I only asked because I want a doctors opinion and I figured every doctor in the ER knew I ask questions about Tori and that they knew who she was" says Cat
"my advice is to go through my brother, don't ask Tori directly" says Rebecca
"why, why go around her, that doesn't seem fair to Tori" says Cat as the meds kick in
"because Tori would rather deny that side of herself than embrace it and have people make jokes about her, her uncle Johnny is the only person she still talks to about this stuff, as a psychiatrist Tori knows that if it comes from him then someone told him in confidence that she's loved and that the admission is genuine" says Rebecca
"my last therapist tried to 'turn me' straight and only failed because his receptionist wife stopped him so if I tell her uncle what I feel for Tori it will absolutely not be in person honestly if prefer if you sent the message along, I don't trust therapists anymore, not with my life that's for sure" says Cat as she leaves with the bottle of stomach meds
Tuesday at lunch
"Tori can we talk about something" asks Cat interrupting the conversation to try and get Tori's attention
"that's funny Jade but I doubt the kings will win the Stanley cup this year, ever since I started watching the games they've been losing" says Tori ignoring Cat so as to not lose and have to go to the theatre session with Sikowitz
"Robbie" asks Cat
"I don't know Tori, they did pretty well last year and almost made the playoffs, I feel good about this season" says Robbie also ignoring Cat
"ugh, I hate this, I quit" says Cat as she heads to Lane
10 minutes later
"you know Cat I think you're being a little dramatic, you don't need to drop out" says Lane
"they're ignoring me and I KNOW that Beck wants me out, ever since Jade got that whole play on Broadway thing, it's like me being THE FIRST artist hopeful at the school to get a record deal has zero meaning, I've dealt with him stirring things up and making things hard for me for long enough, either they admit I'm their fair equal or I walk away" says Cat
"I'll talk to them, take two weeks off, I'll send all assignments to your email, you won't have to worry about coming into school until then" says Lane
"see, you give me respect, why can't they, Tori ignoring me hurts the most, I have feelings for her, I wish I didn't, it would make my life so much easier but I can't control who I love Lane" says Cat
"and you're still taking your medication right" asks Lane
"that was the deal I made with the record label, I take my psych meds again and keep taking them and they'll promote me, they said talent like mine shouldn't be hidden just because I'm barely unstable, the medication makes me stable, I'm clear headed and I'm rocketing up to take the role as honor student, I'm mere weeks away already and the school year is only a month in" says Cat
"go home, I'll absolutely talk to them" says Lane
"ok" says Cat as she heads home
After school
"Sikowitz how dare you" says Lane
"what now Lane" asks Sikowitz sipping from a coconut
"your little experiment this week is pushing Cat away, they've all ignored her, you know what the school board would do if someone of her popularity chose to leave, I convinced her to continue from home while I sort this out but she's literally on the edge, she's more than ready to walk away" says Lane
"I told them they had to have her involved or they all fail, that message was clear yesterday, they all agreed" says Sikowitz
"apparently Beck has other plans, I spoke to Robbie and he said that the moment they left class yesterday Beck and Jade intimidated him and Tori into ignoring her" says Lane
"I'll deal with it, I can't afford to have Beck's ego cause us all our jobs" says Sikowitz
"thank you, Cat will be out for the next two weeks and all her teachers will be emailing her all her assignments we have until then to right the ship or we're all out of a job" says Lane, making the reality very clear
"I understand" says Sikowitz
The next day
"Beck, Jade you both lose" says Sikowitz
"after three days, how, that's not fair" says Jade
"it has come to my attention that Beck has intimidated Robbie and Tori into outright ignoring Cat, after I explicitly said she was to be involved, I will not take Beck bullying anyone lightly, especially Cat" says Sikowitz
"she attacked you last year, how can you defend her" says Beck
"her parents couldn't afford her meds because of her brothers treatment draining their joint bank account, she wasn't off meds for more than a week, I don't take what she did lightly Beck but those meds are purely preventative to prevent her from going down the same road as her brother, we all know that if she had been able to afford her meds she'd be on them all the time, the deal she made to get signed was only possible because the label saw the potential and Cat agreed to take her meds so long as she was with them, she got her first check back in July and has been taking her meds ever since" says Sikowitz
"wait so why do I get punished for something Beck did, you're acting like I had a hand in this, Cat has very much earned my respect, she gets to live her dream of making music just like I get to live by writing plays, for the first time in my life my dad actually respects me, if Beck has a hand in destroying her credibility then him and I are done, I had no idea that he'd forced Robbie and Tori to ignore Cat" says Jade feeling like she has to defend
"good because if Cat leaves it could mean Hollywood arts gets shut down" says Sikowitz
"wait what" asks Tori hoping that Sikowitz is lying
"Hollywood arts hasn't shown that it's the best performing arts school in a long time, the school board has been threatening to shut us down to stop 'bleeding cash' as they say, Cat getting signed to a major record label literally saved our jobs and your education" says Sikowitz as Tori runs out of the classroom covering her mouth
"what's up with her" asks Beck showing that he can spread the anger equally
"rumor is Cat has feelings for her, maybe all the stars lined up for Tori and she's just realizing it, that could make someone feel sick" says Robbie
"those rumors about her feelings have been floating around for years Robbie, some of them included you or Sinjin, I don't know if I'd trust them this time either" lies Sikowitz
"you really think they're wrong this time, Tori and Cat have always been close, it would make sense if Cat likes Tori" says Jade physically moving herself away from Beck
"I have a feeling that the whole first meeting where Cat acted off wasn't the first time they'd met" says Robbie
"I don't like to theorize about what my students do outside of school, it gives me freedom, besides Cat's famous now, her possibilities are no longer limited to Los Angeles, she could have anyone if she wanted" says Sikowitz
With Tori in the girls bathroom
"uncle John, you said Cat had feelings for me, she's tried to say as much before but it was always during tense situations so I never took it seriously, do you have any other details about that" asks Tori
"the girl doesn't exactly trust therapists Victoria, her last therapist tried to make her straight and that therapist was only on her case because the label wanted her to have a full time therapist, now she won't accept any therapist to hold in person sessions, when Rebecca told me I contacted Cat, she refused to explain or say anything, only saying that I had to trust Rebecca" says Johnny
"do you think I should talk to her" asks Tori leaning against the door so nobody can get in
"you know how you feel Victoria, that's the only reason I said anything, if you hadn't previously told me you thought Cat was cute and that she was 'kissable' I'd never said anything, I'd have never outed her, I'd have recommended that she look elsewhere" says Johnny
"so what do I do, she probably thinks I've had sex before, she probably doesn't think it would be special, when she was with Danny I know he was going to pressure her into it because he tried the same thing with me, I didn't realize it at the time but subconsciously I was trying to save her from pain" says Tori
"I doubt Cat cares about that Victoria, it doesn't matter, I've read Cat's profile, she's all about rewards, if the date goes well she might get you a shot at fame like she got, the label clearly saw her potential and she's skyrocketed to popularity across the world in a matter of months, she makes an above average amount of twenty thousand a day" says Johnny
"but she doesn't act like she has money and she doesn't dress like it" says Tori
"because just over half goes to meds, she also pays rent to her parents and helps her brother survive by making sure he eats and that she eats as well, she's barely scraping by financially, she had a little extra money during the summer but she poured that all into school supplies, new shirts, new dresses, new shoes and hair accessories as well as a new backpack, her parents said Cat has maybe a hundred dollars a week, that's all she has to spend and half that goes towards school lunches, people need to get it out of their heads that when you initially make it big in the music industry in America that you make a killing, any savings Cat does have would be ruined by a single hospital visit that needs more than a checkup and a prescription, I guarantee that the ambulance ride more than killed her weekly budget for a good while even if her scrappy insurance policy covered most of it, she probably won't have any spending money for a few weeks and she loves going to the mall with you" says Johnny
"so should I let her financially recover before asking her out on a date or should I go now, I can always fake an upset stomach and Lane will send me home" says Tori
"I guarantee you that if you explain to Lane that you can't wait til the end of the day to ask Cat out he'll find some excuse to send you home" says Johnny
"how do you know him so well anyways" asks Tori
"we graduated psychiatry school the same year, we were great friends, if Cat knew he graduated at the top of his class she wouldn't trust him so much" says Johnny
"why, can't he be trusted" asks Tori
"he's more trustworthy than most doctors in general, he chose to go the guidance counsellor route because he felt it was better to help the future of the country than to be a generalist therapist, most guidance counsellors don't know the first thing about having to deal with a Bipolar student like Cat, however that said if Lane acted like anything more than an average guidance councilor the people like Cat and Robbie that actually need his help would never trust him because they might think he has an ulterior motive for working with students instead of having his own practice where he could pay off his student loans in years as opposed to the decade its taken him so far and he's only about halfway there if that" says Johnny
"is there anything I should know about Cat" asks Tori
"nothing I can legally say, however if you tell her how you feel about her and go on a date I can pretty much guarantee that if you ask any question she'll answer without hesitation" says Johnny as he hangs up as his next client patient shows up
10 minutes later back on Sikowitz' classroom
"Tori won't be returning today and probably won't be back till middle of next week" says Lane
"may I ask what's wrong" asks Robbie
"she walked to my office from the girls bathroom and she just looked physically drained, she could barely stand, what exactly happened in here" says Lane, lying through his teeth
"I called out Beck and when his ego was significantly deflated from Jade recoiling from the news and breaking up with him I decided to be honest with them and tell them the truth about what would happen if Beck was successful in making Cat so uncomfortable that she drops out, I couldn't tell if she was already uncomfortable when I told them the truth or if there was an underlying reason, has there been any update on Cat's situation" says Sikowitz
"Cat is on remote learning, I managed to convince Eichner to set up an internet learning system so when students are sick they don't get behind, Cat's the first person to be on it and Tori will be on it temporarily until she gets over whatever is draining her, Eichner doesn't care what it is, he's not willing to risk his students health and Erwin, you know the rule is to keep students out of the loop on school board stuff" says Lane
"all but Beck she considers her friends Lane, I felt it was better they knew the risks of what Beck was doing, if they can keep him in line she might feel safe enough to come back, I have bills to pay, no other school will hire me, sure I broke a rule but I did it to save this school Lane" says Sikowitz getting a little upset
"is Cat ok" asks Jade
"she's struggling" says Lane as Jade, Beck, Andre and Robbie stay long past the end of class
"but she's still making a lot of money right" says Beck expecting to be told that she's not struggling financially
"sure she makes a lot of money but her meds make up half of the monthly income, then she pays rent to help her parents out financially, then she has food she buys to last her the month at home, while she did have a fair savings from the summer, she blew it all on school supplies, from clothes, to a backpack that she can wear all day if she wants without hurting her back, as a result she only has a hundred dollars a week that she can afford to spend" says Lane as Beck seems to let go of his issues with Cat for the time being
"she did look good this year and I bought a backpack like hers after seeing how much it helped her, I guess I would have thought she'd have made more, her vocal range is amazing" says Beck
"I agree, her vocal range IS amazing and if it weren't for the medication she needs to take she absolutely would be making a killing, it's at least twenty grand a day but like I said more than half of her monthly earnings go to her meds" says Lane
"I've always felt like drug companies make there meds too expensive here in America to be fair, I had thought that she has family that work in the industry that she'd get some sort of deal, I also thought she had better insurance" says Beck
"her insurance barely covers anything actually, besides that you have to fight with them for hours just to get them to actually cover the things the policy says they will cover, honestly I'm surprised they WANTED to pay for half her ambulance ride but then again she did just last month pay her copay" says Lane
"is she really that easily hurt, I'm not trying to be mean here, I'm genuinely curious, I didn't realize the things I said were hurting her that badly" says Beck
"Beck let's just put it this way, she spends as much as she does on clothes literally just so she fits in, if she thought people wouldn't make fun of her she'd be in a onesie all day everyday everywhere but the beach, she has on several occasions told me that making videos on the slap for her page is mentally exhausting because she has to get dressed 'properly' for the video then get back into comfortable clothes after and that she has on several occasions recorded several videos in a series all at the same time just so she could spend more time in clothes that make her comfortable" says Lane
"that's fair, people here tend to think that you have to be the best and I guess I'm not even immune to it, though I have to ask if you know if Tori and Cat like each other" says Beck
"I'm not allowed to say, however if they were to date would you accept them" says Lane
"yes" says Beck
"absolutely" says Robbie
"Jade" asks Lane
"honestly I'd be a little jealous but if they're happy to be together I'd accept them" says Jade
"all I'm in the know about is a possible single date and its at Tori's home, though Tori's father called it a date so it might literally just be them getting together to do stuff for their profiles, her father tends to get excited about even the slightest possibility that one of his daughters might get a date" says Lane
"wait does Tori have more than one sibling" asks Jade
"that Tori knows about no, off the record Tori has a twin sister, as does Cat" says Lane
"wait they both have twin siblings" asks Jade completely shocked
"yep, though they're both in the care of medical professionals, Selena Vega was in a crash last year, she has severe memory issues and Cally Valentine has extreme anxiety issues, both had complications at birth and neither family could afford to pay the medical costs so they were adopted by a family that could, ironically the same family, legally these days they're known as Selena and Cally Jones, they've tried to apply here a few times but were rejected because their art form for some reason didn't qualify and Eichner felt that dealing with two Vega's and a single Valentine was enough trouble for us teachers" says Lane as Sikowitz nods
"wait anxiety issues like Cat has" asks Jade
"no, anxiety issues like if you walked within five feet of her she might attack you thinking you were going to attack her and before you ask no not because she's being abused, if that were the case Selena would tell the world and cops have straight up asked them tons of times if they're being abused and they have straight up said no, that if anything THEY as in the girls are the abusers" says Lane
"is there any truth to that claim" asks Jade suddenly interested in the existence of a Tori or Cat twin and worried they're being set up
"yes, they have security cameras and each time it happened they'd attack the adults unprovoked, anyway that's all I can say on that matter" says Lane
"do they want to meet their sisters because it feels cruel to me that they wouldn't want to" says Jade
"no they don't want to but you're more than welcome to talk to them, they might be more interested in you, they're at Gateway" says Lane as he leaves
"what's he implying exactly" asks Jade, unsure if she should be offended or not
"they've been known to jump girls with bigger than average chests but they might literally fall for you" says Robbie
"and you know this how" asks Jade as they all head to a late lunch
"my aunt works there and she has to avoid showing her chest at all, she's had to resort to sweaters or they jump her" says Robbie
"so they'll try and have sex with me even if I tell them no, so it wouldn't be a good idea to ask one of them out" asks Jade
"they're a package deal, I was helping my aunt get gateways computers up to date and they overheard me talking about you, about how you'd yell at me if I touched your laptop, they went from fighting with a fellow patient to wandering over and asking about you and they wouldn't leave me alone, they keep asking my aunt if she's called you but they have been a lot less aggressive" says Robbie
"is it even possible to date mental patients" asks Beck as Jade goes to get food for them
"they're not technically there because they are unstable, their adoptive parents were forced to give them up because of how aggressive Cally and Selena are but I've by accident proven they aren't aggressive if they have motivation not to be" says Robbie
"could she date them though" asks Beck
"if she was willing to date two girls yeah and they'd have to live with her and Jade would have to put up with weekly checks by a nurse to make sure they're not hurting her, at least until they've proven they have the capacity to be nonviolent over a longer period, at the very least they want to meet her to see if Jade's willing because they definitely don't like it there, their adoptive parents said Cally and Selena got more aggressive when they were moved to Gateway" says Robbie as Jade returns to the table
"are they identical twins" asks Jade as Andre spends time with his new girlfriend
"not to medical standards no, they look similar from a distance because they have the same general body shapes and sizes and they do sound similar to Cat and Tori but not identical, you can definitely tell they're different people" says Robbie
"ok, I might go there after school today or tomorrow" says Jade
"let Gateway know ahead of time or they won't let you in, they protect their patients pretty strongly even the ones that are only there for protection" says Robbie
"fair enough" says Jade