New Girl ~Jade West~

3

On Tuesday, I was not looking forward to going to school. I forced myself to go anyway, and when I arrived in the parking lot, I had barely gotten out of my car and closed the door before someone pushed me back against the door, kissing me deeply. After a few seconds, I came to my senses and tried to push Lexi away from me, but she was able to resist me. With a grunt, I used all of my strength to shove her off of me. "Aw, come on, baby! What's got you in such a bad mood?" She asked innocently. "You know exactly why I'm in a bad mood. Oh, and I'm not your 'baby'," I said spitefully. "I can give you so much more than your ex. Plus, you have to admit, I look so much better than she does," she said. "It'll be a cold day in hell before I tell you that you look better than my ex," I spat, storming off without another word.

"Hi Jade," a familiar voice said. "Hi Cat," I said flatly. "Lexi's been annoying you already, hasn't she?" She asked. "That has got to be the understatement of the year. I had barely gotten out of my car and closed the door before she kissed me, and then, and then, she had the audacity to ask me why I was in a bad mood," I said. "Oh, come here," Cat said, pulling me into a hug. I laid my head on her chest, listening to the beat of her heart, and something about what was happening seemed oddly familiar. When I realized what that something was, I began to whimper, trying to push the thought to the back of my mind. "What do you need, Jade?" Cat asked, her voice soft and soothing in my ear. "I... what I need is something that I'll probably never have again," I said, hoping that she would understand what I meant. "Maybe all she needs is a bit of time to make her realize just how much she needs you," Cat said. "What am I supposed to do in the meantime?" I asked. "Maybe you need someone else to keep your mind off her for a bit," she said, and I found myself agreeing with her. "Yeah. Maybe that's what I need right now," I said, then I came to a realization. "But I'm not that close to anybody else," I said. "Are you sure about that?" She asked, and I could only think of one person that I was very close to. "Yes, but it would be a bad idea," I said. "Just try it. It might work out for you," she said, and I gained enough confidence to actually do what she was suggesting.

When I got outside at lunchtime, the only other person outside happened to be the very person that I wanted to talk to. "Hey Trina. Can I talk to you for a bit, since it's just us?" I asked her. "Ah! Oh, sorry Jade, I didn't know you were there. Sure, we can talk for a bit," she said, patting the spot beside her, and I sat down next to her. "Listen, about what happened in Sikowitz's class yesterday -" I began. "You don't have to explain yourself to me. What Lexi did to you was pretty sick. I'm on your side. When I got home yesterday, I tried to get my sister to see some sense, but she just kept going on about how she thought that you hated Lexi, and how heartbroken she was when she saw what Lexi had posted," she said. "Cat suggested that I give her some time to realize how much she needs me. She also suggested that I need someone else to take my mind off of her," I said. "Look, I think that she already knows how much she needs you, and I know that she wants you back. I heard her crying last night, and she kept repeating that she wants you back. I went to her room to help calm her down, and just as she fell asleep, I promised her that I would get you back for her. Can you come over after school?" She asked. "Sure," I told her.

After school, I followed Trina to her house, and she explained that Tori usually got home about ten minutes after her, and she invited me to watch TV with her while we waited for Tori. Right on time, ten minutes after we arrived, I heard another car pull into the driveway, and Trina told me to hide around the corner of a nearby wall. I peeked out, trying to catch a glimpse of Tori's beauty. "Tori, can you sit down and close your eyes?" Trina asked her sister. "Okay, I guess so," she replied sitting down on the couch. Moments later, Trina appeared in front of me. "Okay, what I want you to do is go over to Tori and kiss her," she whispered, and I nodded to show that I understood. I made my way to the couch and sat down next to Tori, trying to keep myself from fidgeting. "Don't open your eyes until I say you can, Tori," Trina said. "Why are we doing this?" She said. "Will you please just do what I ask?" Trina asked her. "Fine," Tori replied simply, and I could practically feel how tense her body was, even though I wasn't touching her. Trina gave me a barely noticable nod, and I leaned in and kissed Tori, putting one hand on the back of her head and the other on her waist. Almost immediately, she relaxed her body, soon kissing me back.

When Trina told Tori she could open her eyes, she opened her eyes and met my eyes. "J-J-Jade...?" She asked, her eyes wide in disbelief. "It's me, boo. I'm right here," I said, and she simply sat there staring at me. Then, without warning, she launched herself at me and enveloped me in a warm embrace. "I'm so sorry, babygirl. I wish I had never sent you that stupid text message. I should have known that it was just a ploy by Lexi to get me to leave you, and -" she said, and I stopped her by giving her another kiss. "Don't finish that thought, boo. We both messed up, and look at us. We made it through, and our relationship is stronger than ever," I told her with a smile. "Yeah, exactly. I'm so lucky to have you," she said. "And I you, boo," I replied. She lightly kissed my forehead, and I responded by lightly kissing her forehead. "I wish you didn't have to deal with Lexi. I wish I could go to Hollywood Arts with you," she said. "There's going to be a showcase in the spring. You should enter it," I said. "Nah, I'm probably nothing compared to the people who go to Hollywood Arts," she said. "Remember when you sang me a song for my birthday last year?" I asked. "Yeah," she said. "You're more talented than anyone that I've met at Hollywood Arts so far," I said.

The next day, I managed to avoid Lexi by arriving early and sneaking inside by crawling through the window of Sikowitz's classroom and getting my stuff from my locker. I was sitting at my desk when the other students started coming in, with Cat sitting to my left and a familiar girl on my right. "Kiley?" I asked. "Jade?" She asked me back. "It's been a long time since I last saw you!" I said, glad to see my old best friend from elementary and middle school. We shared a hug and got caught up with what we'd been up to since we last spoke while we waited for Sikowitz to arrive. As it turned out, she was supposed to start at Hollywood Arts the same day as me, but she was sick, and she only just got over it. When Sikowitz arrived, he told us a strange story about getting a coconut on his way to work before starting the lesson, which was about safely performing stunts.

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Well, I figured I would put in a reference to the show by mentioning the Spring Showcase where Tori got a place at Hollywood Arts. Until next time!