~ Saturday, October 24th - 9:48 AM ~

Tori Vega was about to leave her house to attend the grand opening of a new clothing store down the street from where she lived.

As she grabbed her phone and clutch bag, something on her dresser stopped her in her tracks.

It was a picture of her and André from the night they partied at Kenan Thompson's house.

Picking up the frame and taking a closer look at it, she chuckled.

I won't ever forget that night.

As she focused her gaze on André, her memories of the past week began to flood her mind.

You see, for Tori, André was more than just her best friend.

Much more.

He was one of the first friendly faces she met when she first attended Hollywood Arts.

He's always been a shoulder for her to cry on and was always there to cheer her on whenever she was at her best.

But even greater than that… he was the guy she had grown feelings for.

Time after time, she wanted to just admit everything to him and hoped that they were reciprocated.

However, she would always chicken out at the last minute.

Sometimes it would be because someone would interrupt them, but mainly it was her fear of ruining a friendship that she treasured.

So why mess all of that up over some teenage crush, right?

Why even bother? I already have a great friendship with him. I should be thankful for that and just leave it as it is.

Ha! That was easier said than done.

As soon as Tori heard that André had a huge crush on Jade, she felt like the absolute cruelest practical joke was being played on her.

Unfortunately, this joke wouldn't end with her joining in the laughter.

Of all the girls for him to fall for… it just had to be her.

Admittedly, Tori actually felt somewhat jealous of Jade.

It's honestly not fair. She's already with a great guy!

Placing the frame back on the dresser, Tori left her room and made her way downstairs.

She grew tired of these depressing thoughts and saw it best to hurry on to the store's grand opening.

But as she rushed to open the front door, Tori bumped into...

Oof!

"André!" Tori exclaimed as the two of them got up off the floor, "I'm so sorry."

"Nah, it's cool." André replied, brushing himself off, "Guess you're in an awful hurry."

"Uh, yeah. I'm actually on my way to Shopaholics. They're opening up around 10 o'clock, so I'm on my way there now." explained Tori, as she walked out onto the porch with him.

"Ah, cool… cool," said André, as he slowly started feeling awkward being there.

He was only there to talk about his crush on his best friend's frenemy.

What's so awkward about that?

"So, w-what are you doing here?" Tori asked, feeling somewhat anxious about being late.

"Oh! Well, I was just in the neighborhood and I had thought I should swing by for a visit."

The look on Tori's face told him that she didn't believe a word he said.

"Are you sure about that?"

"No, truth is…" he began.

Tori knew what was coming.

Andre would tell her that he was still in love with Jade and that he couldn't stop thinking about her.

Let's see if she's correct.

"...I'm in love with you."

Wait… WHAT?!

Tori just stood there.

Completely astounded, she couldn't believe what she was hearing.

"Andre, I don't understand-" Tori began, before being cut off by André walking past her.

Entering the den and turning around to face her, André looked as if he was collecting his thoughts, "I'm helplessly in love with you."

Guess her ears weren't fooling her after all.

Wanting to get to the bottom of this, Tori asked, "Okay, so you say… but what about Jade?"

Chuckling softly, André replied, "I realized that I was merely misplacing my feelings for you onto her. Jade's beautiful singing was only a reminder of the connection that you and I have with our music."

"I guess that's a possibility, but this still doesn't make any sense."

André sighed and began walking toward Tori.

The look in his eyes made her feel as if he was longing to do something.

As he stood there in front of her, he gently grazed his fingers across her cheek.

Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!

"Ever since our duet last night, I just felt something deeper for you. Something that I'm now ready to act on."

Eagerly curious to see where he was going with this, Tori asked, "And what do you plan on doing?"

Moving around her, André walked over to the front door and closed it.

Clunk!

The distinctive sound of the door being locked caused Tori to tense up.

The room became so quiet that all she could hear was the pounding of her heartbeat and the sound of André walking around her.

Once again standing in front of her, André gently brushed Tori's hair out of the way and then slowly moved his lips towards hers.

The kiss they shared was gentle and sweet, yet tinged with an overwhelming sense of fulfillment.

"Wow…" she sighed, as the two stopped for a while to catch their breaths.

"Now do you believe me?" André asked, with his hand caressing her chin.

"Y-yeah, definitely." Tori smiled, as they once again started kissing.

As their kisses grew fervently, André slowly began to unbutton Tori's blouse.

The sounds of them both breathing heavily filled the room.

They knew where things were going, but would rather let it continue to be a surprise.

Grabbing a hold of her bare waist, he turned his attention to her neck.

Each kiss from his soft, warm lips sent shivers down her spine.

Overwhelmed by the sensation, Tori dropped her phone and clutch bag onto the floor.

The store can wait.

With the intensity between the two growing steadily, André picked Tori up and carried her over to the couch.

Taking a moment to help take off his shirt, Tori marveled at André's muscles as he slowly got on top of her.

A few minutes into their make-out sess, Tori remembered something crucial.

"Wait, wait."

"What is it?"

"I forgot that my mom is still sleeping upstairs."

"Well, I guess we have to work quickly." André grinned.

Whoa...

As they started back kissing, André began to unbutton her jeans.

Moving his hand back up her waist, he gently traced his fingers around her belly button.

"Ooh!" Tori moaned, as André turned his attention back to her neck.

Afterward, he brought up his hand and licked his fingers.

Wait, is he…

Slowly shoving his hand down into her jeans, André immediately found his way to her sweet spot.

"Mmh." Tori gasped, as she bit her lip to keep from getting too loud.

The buildup began to drive her insane, but it was just too good to resist.

"Don't stop." she squeaked, as she tensed up more and more until…

"Tori? Tori! Are you alright?"

André looked concerned, as Tori was just leaning against the door frame and staring at him absentmindedly.

"Tori!" André shouted again, this time clapping his hands loudly.

The girl finally woke up.

As she looked around, she had come to a crushing conclusion.

It was all a dream.

Bummer.

From what André could see, Tori was blushing bright red.

"Uh, are you alright?" he asked again.

"Y-yeah, I'm good. I just have… I have to get going, that's all." Tori said hurriedly, closing and locking the door behind her and then walking past André.

Not easily swayed, André could tell that there was something wrong with his friend, "Wait up. Seriously, tell me what's wrong."

But Tori couldn't hold it in anymore, she had to ask André if he was still thinking about Jade, but not in a way that it revealed her feelings for him.

She especially felt too embarrassed to do so after that dream.

"Be honest with me. Are you still thinking about her?"

…

There was nothing but dead silence between the two.

André knew the answer.

Tori knew the answer as well, and it was killing her.

"Tori…"

That was all she needed to hear.

She received her answer.

Not wanting to stay around any longer, Tori quickly reminded him of her plans.

"Look, I really have to go, okay? I'll try to come up with some way to help you later," she said, rushing down the walkway and slowly disappearing down the street.

Sighing heavily, André seriously wanted to kick himself.

Great job, André. Great job.

A great poet once said, "Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all."

They obviously underestimated teen love.

Of all the people whom André could talk to, Tori was his number one confidant.

Yet here he was sorely missing her advice.

Poor boy… focused on a love he knew was impossible, but ignorant of the one that's in front of him.

Feeling more depressed than ever, André decided to head back home, get in his car, and go for a drive around the city.

Occasionally stopping at various locations, he desperately needed to clear his mind.

After wandering aimlessly for hours, he wound up at the beach.

~ 3:25 PM ~

André gazed out at the majestic blue waves that nipped at the beachgoers' feet.

The wind blew gently as the sunlight cast down upon him gave him the perfect balance of warm and cool.

Normally, he would have enjoyed such a day… but his heart just wouldn't let him.

Is this just infatuation?

He knew this girl for about three years, give or take a few months.

In all of that time, he never found anything "interesting" about Jade to have him this hooked.

At least none that he could remember at this moment…

But André wasn't in any way saying that he thought she was unattractive back then and gorgeous now.

No, no, no.

What he meant was that Jade never seemed like his kind of girl.

The main thing that André disliked about Jade was that she was unnecessarily rude and petty at times.

There was also her intimidation factor, especially when she looked deep into your eyes.

However, this simply wasn't the case when she was showing him that cute hand trick.

The look in her eyes was something else entirely.

The longer he thought about it the more he felt like he'd seen this side of her before, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

All André remembered was that instead of feeling intimidated, he felt...

"Fuzzy," he said to himself.

"Fuzzy? What's fuzzy?" asked a familiar voice.

It was none other than Mr. Sikowitz, standing under a tree.

Getting up from the bench, André replied, "Nothing, it's nothing."

Not feeling in the mood to talk with his eccentric teacher, Andre started walking back to his car.

Unfortunately, Sikowitz didn't take the hint.

"Coconuts themselves are fuzzy. They contain delicious milk, taste great in candy bars, and they hurt like hell when you drop one on your bare feet. But the reason why I love them so much is that they give me profound clarity; and sometimes, when the time calls for it, they help me focus."

Once again, André was faced with a deafening silence.

Like with Cat, he really shouldn't have been fazed by this. However, being in the slump he's currently in has nullified his tolerance for oddities.

"What exactly are you getting at?"

Sikowitz simply reached into his bag and pulled out a coconut.

"Here, have one," he said, handing the coconut to André.

"What's this for?" André asked, holding the furry fruit in his hands.

"What's what for?"

"This coconut."

"Oh, that? I just love taking long walks on the beach and handing out coconuts to random people."

"Okay, why?"

"Because it's Sunday, of course."

"But it's Saturday."

Taking a sip from the coconut he was already holding, Sikowitz replied, "For you, maybe."

As he walked past André, he handed a coconut to a random kid.

Sikowitz. He was indeed one strange fellow.

Looking down at the coconut he held, André began thinking.

Hmm… maybe, just maybe.

As he got into his car, André could see Sikowitz being chased by some officers.

"Good luck to ya, Sikowitz. Good luck to ya."

~ 4:40 PM ~

Once he'd got home, André took a screwdriver out of the kitchen drawer and punctured a hole in the coconut.

This had to be one of the craziest things that he was about to do… well, maybe second craziest.

After all, he was supposedly in love with Jade.

Pouring the milk into a glass, André slowly began to drink it.

Eh. Not bad, I guess.

As he gradually finished drinking, he took in a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"Focus," he told himself.

André then slowly blocked all outside interference that clouded his mind.

Family.

Friends.

Teachers.

Strangers.

All were blocked until all that was left was him and Jade.

They both stood there in the void of his own making.

Okay, here goes nothing.

Walking over to her, André gazed deeply into Jade's eyes.

Focus on that night in the studio. Those feelings. My thoughts. Why did I become so fixated at that moment?

Without warning, the Dream Jade reacted by chuckling softly.

Holy shit!

Backing up a bit, André saw what it was that he was looking for.

That soft, yet warm smile that caressed her lips.

The sound of sincere innocence from her laugh.

And finally, that look of genuine care that stared back at him from her cyan-colored eyes.

André gradually felt the same fuzziness build throughout his body.

He'd finally found his answer.

Snapping out of his focused state, André came to a realization.

"There's no doubt about it… I'm in love with Jade."

Leaning back against the kitchen counter, André took a look up at the clock on the wall.

It was 4:48 and he could see from the window next to it that the once bright sky dimmed slightly.

André knew that there was only one person that he had to go to.

As much as he feared doing so, it was the only option he had left.

"I have to speak to Jade. Face to face."