After Jade's Big Break
By John O'Connor

Disclaimer: "Victorious" and its characters are the property of Schneider's Bakery and
Nickelodeon. This story is for entertainment purposes only and no money exchanged hands. No
copyright infringement is intended. The original characters, situations, and story are the property
of the author. No profit is intended or wanted for this story.
	



Tori's stomach was full of butterflies.  She rested her hand on her flat, satin-covered belly, trying
to will the little flutterers to settle down.

Trina looked her sister up and down.  "Y'know, I'm jealous.  I was supposed to wear Grandma's
dress when I got married.  But, little sis, you look fantastic!"

The nervous brunette glanced at the full-length mirror and nodded her thanks. She was wearing
a traditional white wedding dress - the same dress her grandmother wore in 1947 for her
wedding.  Tori fiddled with the two strands of loose brown curls framing her face.  The rest of her
long, brown hair was pinned up.

With the bridal veil in her hand, Holly stepped behind her daughter.  "I wore this when I married
your father but you look so beautiful in it, it's like this dress was made for you all those years
ago."

As Holly finished adjusting the veil, there was a knock at the door and a deep voice called out,
"Everybody decent?"

David Vega came in and froze, staring at his little girl.  "My god, Tori.  You're…beautiful!"

"Thanks, Daddy," Tori said in a tight voice.

He paused and stepped up to her.  "I know you're an adult now but, to me, you'll always be that
little girl who ran to me when she skinned her knee when she fell off her trike or brought me her
dolly with the missing arm, asking me to fix her."  He sniffed and gazed at his daughter with
loving eyes.  "But you're not a little girl any more.  You're a beautiful, talented woman.  And I am
so proud of you!"

"Daddy…" Tori said in a little voice as she hugged her father.  "I'll always be your little girl."

After several long seconds, David pulled back and held Tori's shoulders, saying, "C'mon, let's get
you married."

Tori heard the traditional wedding music begin.  In minutes she was going to be married to her
soul mate, Jade West.

She took her father's arm as he led her down the aisle towards the altar.  Once there, he kissed
her briefly then kissed Jade on the cheek, "Take care of her."

Jade smiled her agreement.

Knowing his daughter was in good, loving hands, David walked back to sit with her mother,
across the aisle from Jade's parents and Cat's roomie, Sam Puckett.

"Dearly beloved…" The priest began the traditional ceremony and Tori gripped Jade's hand
tightly as the man droned on.

Finally, the momentous question was asked and Jade replied, "I do, with all my heart."

Tori's throat was constricted and dry but she managed to say, "I do.  Of course I do."

Then came the rings. Tori frowned as she watched Trina fighting to get it off her finger before
handing the gold band to her sister. Cat had much less trouble as she handed the matching band
to Jade.

Jade's vow came first, "Victoria Vega, when I met you, I saw a rival and a potential enemy. But
you never ceased being nice and sweet to me. I was often infuriated but, deep inside, I knew the
real reason that I could never voice. The real reason I was so mean to you for those years at
Hollywood Arts. It was because I was falling in love with you. That love has only grown and filled
me. I pledge my heart and my soul to you for the rest of time."

Jade slipped the ring on Tori's finger and kissed it.

Then came Tori's turn, "Jadelyn West, there were times when I was about to give up on you only
to have you do something nice that proved to me you were capable of love and tenderness. You
were a challenge and a worthy one. When I realized I was in love with you, that only made it
more important to me. Now, all that time and effort spent has been proven to me how much I
need you in my life. Without you, I am only half of what I want to be.  You are my other half.
With you I am complete and whole. And, more importantly, loved.  I pledge my heart and soul to
you as well. For all eternity."

As the priest said the final words, Tori kissed Jade, sharing her love and joy before their friends
and family as the crowd cheered and applauded.

~~~~~

Friday morning.

Tori woke up with a smile on her face.  The smile widened when she saw her girlfriend by her
side, still asleep.  Jade was on her side and her mouth was slightly open, a tiny string of drool
dampening the pillow.

She kissed Jade on her temple and the Goth grumbled and turned her head on the pillow.  "I
love you too, Jade West."

The upbeat teen got out of bed and headed to her bathroom to get ready for school

Arriving at Hollywood Arts, she still had a bounce to her step.   Friday was usually a more active
day socially than the rest of the week.  Special friends making or confirming dates; regular
friends planning to get together for shopping or a show or just to hang out.  And, walking through
the tables of the Asphalt Café, Tori found herself caught up in it all.

Cat trotted up to her, with Robbie following like a puppy, "Hey Tori!  How's Jade?"

"Good.  She's actually a lot better.  She'll be back Monday.  Hi Robbie."

"YAY!" Cat squeezed Tori in a hug that would put a boa constrictor to shame.

"Cat…" Tori laughed as she pried the redhead off her.  She waved to Beck and Andre as she
saw them crossing the parking lot heading towards them.

"Why are you so happy?" Cat asked.

"I had a wonderful dream!  Jade and I were…"  Tori shook her head.  She really didn't want to
share the dream just yet.

"One time my brother had a dream and…"

Tori never heard the rest of Cat's odd little anecdote as she saw…

"SINJIN!"

"Uh, hey Tori," Sinjin Van Cleef greeted his schoolmate hesitantly.  He had managed to avoid
Tori all week, even to skipping a shared class.  Now he was stuck.  "I…  You know, I'm really
sorry about…  It's just that I was trying to…"

"Sinjin! Shut! UP!"  Tori got up in his face and continued, "You will not speak to Jade or I again
this year.  At all!"

"Wh-what about in class?"

Tori's eyes flashed and she grabbed the boy's shirt in her fists, "I told you…  Oh, alright, if we
have to talk in class or for productions, okay.  But do not approach me or Jade.  At all!  Got it?"

Sinjin started to open his mouth when Tori growled at him.  He went with a nod instead.

"And no stalking my house!!!" she added.

She released her grip on his shirt and started to push the odd young man away from her.  Then
she stopped and grabbed his arm tightly before he could flee.

"One more thing.  That monstrosity you call a scooter?  I never want to see it again!  And, a not-
so friendly warning, if Jade sees it, you find yourself intimately familiar with it.  Like Robbie and
his Matchbox car.  Get me?"

Sinjin whimpered and pulled away, running through the Asphalt Café into the school.  Tori
brushed her hands melodramatically then turned to see her friends staring at her.

"A little harsh, don't you think?" Beck asked.

"Yeah, chica.  It was an accident."  Andre shook his head.

"Mean," was Cat's sole response.

"Hey Mama!  That was some hot chiz…"

Tori grabbed the puppet and heaved him up onto the deck over the café.  Robbie keened as he
ran up to retrieve Rex.

"Really mean," Cat said.

"Yeah, well…"  Tori shook her head.  "Look, Jade will be back Monday.  If she sees Sinjin or
Sinjin tries to talk to her, she'll crack his skull with her cast.   And that's if she's in a good mood…
If I scare him off, she might be able to get through the day without hurting anyone."

"So, sort of preventative maintenance," Beck said.

"Yeah…"

"There's something else," Beck stated with a knowing smile.

"Tori had a dream!" Cat announced.

"No…  That's not it.  Something with Jade…"

"Huh?  How'd you…"

"I have Jadar.  Comes from being involved with her myself for a few years."  Beck smiled
knowingly, "Don't worry, you'll get it soon enough.  So spill.  What did she do?"

With a grimace, Tori said, "Well, I had to shave her…"

Andre leered at her, "Oh?  Like Brazilian?"

Tori shot him a venomous look.  "No!  Her pits.  Well, her right pit."

Tori didn't want to mention when she tried to shave Jade further down her body.  It didn't go well.
She smiled to herself.  Actually it went very well but there was no shaving or trimming involved…

~~~

Sinjin wasn't seen by any of the gang all day, except when they were at lunch.  He was at a table
as far from them as he could get.  The few classes he shared with any of them, he managed to
sit quietly in the back, trying not to bring too much attention to himself.

Tori was satisfied and hoped her lady love would be as well.  She'd work on defusing Jade's
temper, which was bound to grow over the weekend as Monday neared.

~~~~~

Arriving home, Tori came in breezily with a loud, "Hi Jade!"

"VEGA!"

Surprised by the anger already in Jade's voice, she replied, "Ye-ah?"

"Do you believe this jerk?"

"I talked to him earlier and..."

"You talked to him?  What, are you a…Belieber too?"  Jade practically growled the fan
nickname.

"Huh?  What are you talking about?"

"That pinhead, Justin Bieber!  Promise me Vega, when you hit it big, you'll think before you
speak."

"Uh, I'll try.  What did he do?"

"Well, other than pissing all over his fans by being two hours late for a concert…?  This time he
toured Anne Frank's house in Amsterdam."

"Anne Frank?" Tori asked.  "The girl who the Nazis captured?"

Jade, who played Anne in a production her freshman year at HA, nodded, "Yeah, after hiding out
with her family in an attic for nearly two years, she was captured by the Germans and died at
Bergen-Belsen."

"I read her diary and saw the movie.  It was horrible what happened to her.  So what does that
have to do with Bieber?"

"Y'know, for a girl going to a show business prep school, you're woefully under-informed."

"Ja-ade…" Tori whined.

"No whining!"

"Then tell me!"

"You remember that she loved celebrities, especially American celebrities?" Jade asked.

"Uh, yeah.  Her escape from being stuck in that attic."

"Well, Zippy the Pinhead said he hoped she would be a Belieber if she was still alive!"

"WHAT?!?" Tori shrieked.  "What a stupid fucking thing to say!  That dweeby little internet
sensation has no fucking clue!"

"Whoa, Nellie!" Jade said, a small smile on her face.  "Don't worry.  He's being lambasted in the
press."

"Still…  Well…  I'll enjoy his 'death' on CSI reruns even more now…"

Jade held up her good hand and Tori took it.  She pulled her girlfriend down and started to
soothe her.  "Take it easy.  You'll pop a vessel or something…"

Tori snickered.  "Yeah, I guess I got too upset.  He's only a post-pubescent doofus."

Jade nodded.  "So what was that about that curly-headed idiot, Sinjin?"

Tori explained the confrontation that morning and Jade smiled proudly.  "You have learned well,
my padawan."

"Star Wars?  Really, Jade?" Tori laughed.

Shrugging, Jade explained, "There was like a mini-marathon this week on Spike TV.  And there's
not a lot on during the day unless you like the talking heads on the news channels or 'classic' TV
- who decided Cannon was a classic show? - or Spongebob…"

~~~~~

Monday morning and Jade was returning to school after a week off due to the broken wrist and
the surgery to mend the fractured radius.

While she was happy to return to school, the Goth was pissed.  She couldn't drive her car, which
David had driven back to the Vega house after Jade's accident.  The cop in David would not
allow her to drive since the car had a manual transmission and Jade would have to release the
wheel to shift gears.  "You cannot control the car with your left hand.  At best, you'd be weaving
back and forth on the road."

"Humph!" Jade pouted.  "Vega, you need to get your license!"

"I will.  Once they say I can try again."

So, Monday morning, Tori had to again suffer riding with her sister.  To compound that issue,
Jade was forced to ride along.

Being magnanimous, and wanting her girl to get a taste of riding in a car with Trina, Tori sat in
the back seat.  "It'll be easier for you to get in and out of the front seat with your cast."

Before they were even out of the driveway, Trina started to screech.  What she called singing.

 "NO!" Jade shouted.  Unfortunately, Trina was too loud and either didn't hear or ignored Jade,
her caterwauling continuing unabated.

While the noise was an assault on her ears, Tori had to admit it was a little bit of fun to see her
girl being tortured too.  Then Jade's right hand slipped into her sling.  Tori leaned forward and
gently squeezed Jade's shoulder even as she yelled, "TRINA!!!"

"What?  I'm doing my vocal exercises!"

"Yeah, but maybe you shouldn't overdo it.  You have the audition tomorrow night.  Don't want to
overwork your vocal cords."

Trina smiled her typical self-satisfied smile as she nodded, "Yeah, you're right.  My muiscal
treasure should be protected.  I can't deprive my future fans…"

"Musical treas…" Jade cut off her snarky comment when Tori's had squeezed even harder.

A couple of minutes later, they pulled into the school's parking lot.  Jade jumped out as if scalded
by the bucket seat.  Trina got out more casually, trying, and failing, to look suave.

When Tori was out of the back seat, her sister was already heading into the school, waving at
classmates who could care less.  Then Jade grabbed her in one-handed death grip, her right
hand a vice around Tori's left arm.

In a very low voice, Jade said, "You will get your license.  Soon.  Very soon.  If I have to put up
with much more of that…shrieking harpy, you'll become an only child…"

~~~~~

When they arrived, Trina disappeared for which Jade was eternally grateful.  The young couple
came into the main hall, Tori carrying Jade's books which Tori was sure was adorably cute but
Jade saw as a weakness.  They saw their friends near Andre's locker and Tori waved to them.

The gang gathered around Jade and Tori.  Except Rex and Robbie.  Rex 'looked' at Tori and
said, "Keep me away from that psychopath…"

Everyone asked about her arm and how she was feeling and Jade accepted it.  And, thanks to
Tori, Cat restrained her hug to something Jade could handle with a broken arm.

Then, the dreaded moment arrived - Sinjin walked in the front door.  He squeaked in terror on
seeing Jade and started to dash upstairs.

"FREEZE!"

Sinjin suddenly became a statue.

"Come down here." Jade said.

He slowly descended back to the main hall, looking at his feet the entire time.

"Now, Sinjin Van Cleef, what do you have to say for yourself?"

He mumbled something into his chest.  Jade pulled a pair of scissors from her sling and, using
the handles, lifted Sinjin's chin.

"What?  I didn't quite make that out?"

"I'msorryIhityouwithmyscooter.It'llneverhappenagain."

Looking at Tori, Jade asked, "Is that good enough?"

"Works for me," Tori said with an evil smile.

"Okay, Sinjin.  But steer clear of me for a long, long time…"

Sinjin, who looked like he'd be happier in the path of a lava flow, nodded quickly.

"Good.  Go."

He sprinted upstairs and wasn't seen by Jade or Tori for several days.

Cat changed the conversation as she was almost as uncomfortable as Sinjin.  "So, Jade, didja
see Oz, The Great and Powerful?"

"No."  Jade' voice showed how bored she already was of the nascent conversation.

"It was really good.  All about how the wizard came to Oz and met the witches and the flying
monkey and…"

"I know the plot Cat." Jade interrupted.

"Well…  Theodora reminded me of you.  You're kind of like a reverse Wicked Witch."

"What?!?"  Tori's hand on her shoulder calmed Jade and she simply pinched her nose as she
waited for her friend to explain - before she killed her.

"Well, you know, at the end she's all green and evil.  But she's still kinda pretty.  But before her
sister makes her evil, she's beautiful.  You know?"

"This because of that April Fool's dream Vega had?"

"Heh-heh, yeah.  Kinda.  You went the opposite way.  From evil and mean to beautiful and more
fun to be with."

"You mean I wasn't beautiful and fun to be with before?" Jade asked, her voice rising.

"No, you were.  But sometimes you were kinda…mean and stuff."

Tori leaned close to Jade and whispered her name, knowing just the effect her breath across
Jade's ear had on the Goth.  With her free hand, she waved Cat away.

Beck took her hand and said, "C'mon, let's find you some bibble."

"BIBBLE!" Cat yelled and went happily with Beck.

"Jade, are you okay?  I mean, first Sinjin then Cat and her witch…"

Jade looked up at Tori and smiled with a twinkle in her eye, "I'm so glad to be back.  That was
fun!"


The End

  (c) John O'Conner

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