43I wake to something licking my face and the smell of something foul. When I open my eyes, a dog looks back at me with big eyes. And it's no small dog either. If I was standing it would at least come up to my waist. The thing's tongue is hanging out and it waits patiently for me to get out of the water. Er, I think that's what it's doing anyway. My head starts pounding and memories from last night flood towards me and I can't stop them. I rub my temples.
I vandalized a house, got drunk, and I think I made out with someone at some point. Then the cops showed up and everyone ran. I ended up here in a…pond? That's really weird. Half of my body is still submerged in the water while the other half rests uncomfortably on land. My phone is probably done for. I sigh as I drag the rest of me out of the water.
The dog immediately goes to my side and starts nuzzling me as I gather my thoughts. I am completely lost, without a working phone, and my clothes are soaking wet. And…and this dog…I don't even know where it came from. AND GOD DANG IT, IT NEEDS TO STOP TRYING TO PUT ITS FACE UP MY SHIRT.
In complete anger I shove the dog away. "No!" I yell at it. The dog whimpers and squeals as it gets down low. It puts its paws over its ears and I instantly feel bad.
"Hey," I say as soft as my voice allows, "I didn't mean to hurt you. I'm sorry," I apologize and the words feel foreign on my tongue, "Listen, I'm scared. You trying to sneak a peak isn't helping."
I'd never admit that I was scared out of my wits to anyone. But this furry animal brought me some sense of security, I don't know how to describe it. And the fact that it couldn't really respond was a bonus. So for a few minutes I just sit there talking to it. It calms me down and eventually I coax it out of its defensive stance and I notice something on its side. Some fur seems to have been…burned off almost. It created a shape that looked almost like a handprint. My hand. In curiosity, I reach out to touch the dog but it snarls at me. That snarl quickly turns into a squeal and then a whimper as it runs away from me, not listening to me telling it to come back.
I push myself off the ground and stumble. My legs feel incredibly sore and my tongue feels dry in my mouth. I walk towards where the dog ran. I continue to walk for what seems like hours. All I see is green and I can't find that stupid dog and I want to know why there was a handprint and where I am and why I feel so tired. What is happening right now? Am I going crazy? I think I'm going crazy. So crazy that I see a familiar green woman with a crown on her head waving at me.
I don't know who she is but I smile and wave back, which is unlike me. I ask her where I am but it sounds more of a whisper so I yell the question. She doesn't answer, which I find incredibly rude. I huff and storm towards her. Who does she think she is being all smiles and waves and then ignoring me the second I speak to her? Screw her for being extremely tall, too!
I'm about to give her a huge piece of my mind when my face meets something hard. I fall flat on my butt. I curse very loudly to let the green lady know that I'm unhappy. I'm about to look up at her again when something catches my eye—a hot guy standing next to his car is staring at me with his mouth open and a coffee cup with the green lady on it rests in his hands. I look from the coffee cup to the woman on the roof and back to the coffee cup before I realise I just ran into the wall of a coffee shop. All with a hot guy watching. This is sure to add to my list of 'Times Jade Was Being A Freak To The Public'.
I stand up and try to brush everything off coolly.
"And scene." I say awkwardly. Hot guy cocks an eyebrow and shakes his head, sends me a smile, and hops in his sports car. I rush into the coffee shop because I really need a drink now.
Everyone in the shop looks at me curiously because I'm still soaking wet, but after I glare at half of them and give the cashier a half-dry twenty-dollar bill everyone goes back to their business. I notice that my hands are redder than usual when doing so. This makes my eyebrows furrow because my skin has never been this shade—I can't even tan.
It's a long walk back to my car and my shoes squish uncomfortably with every step I take but I make it back home without breaking down completely. I'm exhausted.
I don't even bother to change clothes before I go to sleep.
I wake up at an odd hour for someone who could be sleeping in due to their suspension (which is ten o'clock if any of you want to know). Groaning, I roll over onto my back and try to rid the sleep from my eyes. A burning feeling snakes its way into my brain and I hiss ripping my own hands away from me. They're a bright red like they were yesterday, but this time they seem to be glowing. My eyes grow wide. I'm fully awake now, all of my attention devoted to my hands. I rush to the restroom and cold water from the sink does nothing but make it worse. My hands start steaming.
I say every curse in the book within a stream of jumbled words and wave my hands frantically—anything to get the red and steam to go away.
But first you need to calm down, a voice in the back of my head whispers to me, remember that video you saw a few years ago? They said that people in critical situations always make terribly decisions because they're too busy worrying and freaking themselves out. Think calm thoughts.
I take a few deep breaths and nothing works. A rush of panic runs through me and my hands seem to glow brighter. I have to squint. I'm pretty sure I look how Beck looks when he gets a bad grade on something he thought he did great on. Oh, Beck! Beck calms me down when I'm mad or something bad has happened.
I close my eyes, take deep breathes and try again.
I think of Beck and his perfect hair and smile. I think of how strong his arms are and his little baby abs. I imagine him holding me and telling me he loves me. I imagine him laughing at something stupid Robbie says and him being there for me when my parents split. I imagine Beck being Beck.
And when I open my eyes, I find that it worked. My hands are a light pink now. I smile faintly. Thanks, Beck.
I don't want to worry myself any more about the hand situation and I figure that since I'm already up I may clean myself. I probably just got an insanely bad sunburn (that glows, really Jade?) yesterday anyway. It's nothing to worry about, I convince myself. I pull out my toothbrush and toothpaste. However, when I go to only squeeze a little of the blue substance onto my toothbrush, about half of it flies out of the tube and onto my mirror. I gape at it. My mouth flies open. I'm stuck between screaming in frustration and crying.
I wet a towel and scrub my mirror down. Even when all of it's gone I continue to do it because if I don't I know I'll start freaking out about my hands again and I don't know if thinking about Beck will calm me down this time. I don't know what's going on with my body. I don't know anything.
Something in me snaps. I throw the towel down on the floor and in a moment of anger I kick the wall. I can't take this! I can't take not understanding what's happening with me and why it's happening. My back reaches the pale blue walls of my bathroom and I slowly slide down.
It starts when I slowly start to shake. Then, my eyes water and I try to fight back as many tears as I can. I bite my lip until a metallic taste fills my mouth. I let out a shaky breath. That's all it takes for me to start crying. A low wailing sound was all that came with it at first but soon I was flat out bawling and screaming into my own arms. I don't know how long I stayed like that, just crying there with my dad a few rooms over. I'm sure he could hear me but he didn't come in to ask what was wrong. He didn't even wake me up last night to ask me where I had been. He doesn't care. He never has.
A jerk runs through my body as I let loose a wail of agony but there are no more tears left. I've run myself clean. I wipe at my eyes to rid them of residue until I see stars. I get up and turn the sink back on and luckily my hands don't start steaming again when I use them to splash water on my face. Slowly but surely my breath becomes normal.
When I walk back into my room my phone buzzes. Well, my other phone—emergency use. And since my phone did get wet and I had no other way of communication I had no choice but to use this one.
I pick it up and see I have two text messages. One from Beck and one from Tori. My heart starts beating rapidly in my chest when I see her name at the end of the text. Though maybe it's because I distinctly remember not ever giving her this phone number. I didn't even give her my last one! She tied Cat to the stairs and forced it out of her. I don't want to know what she did to anyone to achieve this number.
Are you busy today?—Tori.
I skipped from hers to Beck's.
hey babe missed u at school. i can't believe it's only wednesday things have been slow and boring without you haha. can't wait for u to come back so i can hug and kiss u again.
p.s when u come back can u wear that one band t-shirt? the one with the guys in the suits it looks hot on u. love ya babe! text me soon :) –Beck
I really had nothing to do today but I wouldn't let Vega of all people be the source of my entertainment. So I typed in a 'yes' and was right about to hit send when my stomach grumbled. I looked down at my stomach and it grumbled again.
I shrugged and tossed my phone on the bed. Vega could wait.
Of course I have terrible timing, however, and bump into my dad in the hallway. He wears a crisp suit with gel in his neatly parted hair and a frown seems to be forever placed on his face. He straightens any crease I made by knocking into him and acknowledges me with a small nod. When he walks away I'm hoping he has an early appointment and is leaving but he takes a turn into the kitchen.
Silently we both fix separate foods—he sticks with a protein concoction of some sort and I make myself eggs and bacon. I am about to be on my merry way when he stops me.
"You know the rules, Jade, no eating in the bedrooms. Sit." He points to the chair across from him. My jaw clenches but I don't protest. I slowly sit down and pick up my fork. He's never cared where I eat before so I must have done something to make him start enforcing rules around here though I don't know what.
"How have you been?" He asks awkwardly and avoids looking me in the eyes.
"Fine," I shove eggs into my mouth and take a bite of bacon. I've never had elegance at the table. But it's mostly so that I can see my father squirm much like he's doing now.
"Are you still dating," He takes a moment to swallow his drink before almost spitting out the name, "Benson?"
"His name is Beck." I hiss. I practically inhale my eggs to stop from saying more and insulting my dad. My father sits up straighter and purses his lips.
"I still don't like the boy. He needs a haircut and a nice suit. I believe he is a bad influence on you Jade, and I think you know that too. He introduced you to hardcore metal for Pete's sake. He convinced you to get those tattoos! You'll never get jobs with those!" He says, eyes cold and emotionless, "And don't even say that you're going to be a singer because you know that I won't allow it. Did you know that they say in five years people in the creative arts will make seventeen thousand or less a year. Do you want that kind of payment, Jade? You'll never make it anyway—"
A ring fills the room and my father taps a button on his Bluetooth answering it. He collects his briefcase and leaves without saying goodbye. I'm left to eat my bacon in peace, thank the gods. It doesn't taste as good as it did five minutes ago though. It leaves a bitter taste on my tongue so I throw it out.
With every step back to my room the angrier and angrier I get and by the time I reach my phone I'm pissed. I feel like ripping things down from my walls and throwing glass out the window. I feel like kicking the elderly and squirting children with ketchup.
On the bed, my phone buzzes again.
Anyone home?—Tori, it reads. Before I know it I'm deleting my old and typing a new message.
I'm coming over to your house in ten minutes.
I don't wait for her reply as I get ready. I carefully squeeze out the toothpaste this time and go without disaster. I start writing a new song while in the shower which I make note to write down later. It's only when I pick out clothes do I feel something wrong in my gut. I can't find what's causing me to feel bad until I see the material in my hands—a pretty blouse and skinny jeans that aren't the colour black, the clothes I wore on a date with Beck last weekend. He told me I looked nice, kissed my forehead took me to watch a car be smashed by a truck. I shake my head and put the clothes back, picking out things more worn looking.
I don't want to look nice for Vega. I don't need to.
"Your dad said what?" Vega's eyebrows pop up after I rant to her about my father. "Jade that's totally not true! You'd definitely make it in the music industry. You'd get billions of cash."
"I don't understand why he has to be such a rude person all the time. I'm his daughter for crying out loud, you know? I dress fine, my grades are up, and I have one of the nicest boyfriends in the world and he acts like I'm the reincarnated version of Satan." I fold my arms. "And Vega, I know I'll make it big one day. I don't need your confirmation or support."
If I had looked away I would have missed the look of hurt that had drawn itself on her features. Instead I had a first row glimpse at it. I feel a little bad, which is weird because I've never felt bad about saying anything mean to the girl, and try to brush the feeling off. It doesn't work and for awhile we're in an uncomfortable silence. I grab my elbow and swing back and forth on the balls of my feet and I find something on her carpet that looks interesting and keep my eyes there.
"Sorry," I blurt out suddenly, the word still sounds strange, "I didn't mean that. Well, I did when I said it but now I feel bad about it." More words slip. "Th-thank you for saying what you did. It means a lot." I stutter which is unlike me. When she beams at me with those pearly white teeth I'm torn between punching her in the mouth and smiling back at her. Ah, the feelings Vega gives me.
"It's okay." Vega runs a hand through her hair. She looks around the room as if it held the answer to a question she wouldn't let me solve. "What do you wanna do?"
"Who said I ever wanted to do anything with you?" I sneer, the mean words rolling off my tongue automatically without giving me a chance to stop them. "That was rude. Sorry." Tori places a hand on her hip and cocks her eyebrow.
"Two sorry's in one day? Is Jade West feeling okay?" To make her point she rushes towards me and puts her hand on my forehead, feigning worry and growing her brown eyes big like the dog from yesterday. Suddenly, images of me burning her like I did the dog flash through my mind and I wince. I push her hands away from me roughly and send her a warning glare. Vega takes the hint and backs up a few steps.
"So anyway, we can play Wii or we could go to the park. There's this once ice cream place a few streets over—Cat keeps recommending it but I've never gone there with anyone. Oh, oh! We can both play the piano. I've had this idea for a song stuck in my head since Monday but Andre has been busy so maybe you could—"
"Boring!" I exclaim throwing my hands up. "Do you have anything cool around here? Horror films? Silent movies? Dead people?"
She crouches down next to the movie cabinet under the TV and pulls out a drawer. I tap my foot impatiently as Tori searches through the rows of movies.
"Uhh, we have one. We could get through it in about four hours, it's pretty long." Vega says nervously, handing me the case. "But Jade, this is Rated R and it sounds super scary and Mom and Dad wouldn't even let me see it and I'm pretty tolerant with scary movies so maybe we shouldn't—"
"It's perfect!" I exclaim, cutting her rambling short by snatching it out of her hand and popping it in the DVD player. It was about a group of teens who were doing a project on a supposedly haunted mansion but took a detour from the tour guide and went into the forbidden part, where the supposed 'Midnight Cutter' killed everyone he came in contact with.
"But Jade I—"
"Just go get some sodas and popcorn." I interrupt. She whines as she enters the kitchen and I yell at her to grow up. When Tori enters again the movie is about five minutes in and I don't bother explaining a thing to her. The Latina places herself on the opposite end of the red couch as me but as the movie progresses and more people lose limbs and get shot or stabbed she gets closer.
On screen a boy is running away from the killer who is chasing him with a chainsaw. Tori grips my leather jacket sleeve and buries her face in my shoulder. It should annoy me and I should want to get her off of me like I did earlier, but it feels comforting so I stay quiet about it.
They're finally down to the final two and the killer has one trapped and dangling by one foot. The other is hidden behind a box of explosives watching and waiting for a chance to strike the killer and help their friend.
The killer starts up the chainsaw and starts sawing at the person's arm and their screams fill the room while fake blood splatters the screen blocking my view. Tori squeezes me tighter and suddenly her warm breath is on my neck coming out in short pants which don't sound very…innocent. Hearing her breathe like that starts a change in my breathing to and I have to force myself to slow down so she wouldn't notice. My body decides that this is a great time to notice that the hand gripping my sleeve for dear life is insanely close to my boob.
To try and distract the feeling I grab a bunch of popcorn and stuff it in my mouth. Vega takes a moment to look up from her hiding place to see the second person come out to kill the murderer only to be attacked. She hides herself again and this time her lips are dangerously close to my neck. I swallow uncomfortably. I try to keep my breathing under control but find it incredibly hard because the only person who has been this physically close to me in years is Beck.
"Is it over? No more blood?" She asks quietly with a slight whimper. I look up at the screen again only to see that the Midnight Cutter's face is fading into black and the credits have started rolling. Tori made me miss the ending. Damn.
"It's over." I state simply. Vega peels herself away from me and a blush is barely seen on her face but it's still there. She stretches as she stands and her shirt rides up. Not that I was staring or anything.
"I'm gonna go pee. Throw the sodas away, yeah?" Vega says before rushing off. I see her look around the corner hesitantly before she disappears. I chuckle. She's so scared.
I gather the sodas and the empty popcorn bowl. I put the bowl in the sink and attempt to throw the cans in the trash. The keyword in that sentence was attempt because I missed both shots terribly. One rebounded and rolled to the other side of the kitchen which I dreaded getting because let's face it: I'm lazy. Sometimes I wish I could just pick stuff up with my mind like they do in the movies. That would be really cool because then I could pick up the people I don't like and throw them across the country. If my mind was that strong of course. Anyway. Erhm.
I put the one closet to the trash in the can. The one on the other side of the room still looked unappealing but it looked…closer than what it used to be. Did it roll over here?
A naive thought crossed my mind. The…the Midnight Cutter couldn't be in here. They were fictional. Just fictional, I convinced myself.
But man I really wished that soda can was closer and—WHOA. Did it just move? I grab the table behind me for support. Oh my gosh, that soda can just moved when I wished it would. My mind flashes back to this morning and yesterday when my hands were red. I look at them now and they're pale, so nothing's happening there.
I think again about moving the can and keep my eyes on it. Once again, it starts rolling towards the trash can.
"No way," I breathe, finally walking towards it to pick it up. I place it in the trash. My eyebrows furrow.
Holy baby doll parts. I can move things with my head.
My hands twist themselves in my hair and tug, a nervous habit that I picked up from Cat. I start pacing back and forth trying to figure everything out. None of this was happening before I got suspended. Something happened the night I was drunk to make me feel this way. Did I take drugs? Was it something to do with the beer?
I'm still pacing when Tori walks back into the room, her eyes still wide and scared. They calm slightly when they see I'm still here and none of my body parts are gone.
"You okay?" The youngest Vega asks as she walks toward me, "Did the movie scare you?" And I can tell she enjoys the thought of the movie scaring me because her lips are pulled back into a smile that's far too wide and must hurt her cheeks.
"Not as much as it scared you, Vega," I point out with a sickly smile to match her own, "I'm Tori Vega and I'm super tolerant of horror movies. I love them so much." I imitate her, my worries temporarily forgotten in the midst of teasing her.
She glares at me but it quickly turns into a pout.
"I don't talk like that!" Vega exclaims. I keep my smile as I brush past Tori and start making my way up the stairs. I'm almost to the second flight before she finally asks, "Where are you going Jade?"
"Sleeping in your bed. I highly doubt after tonight you'll be able to get sleep without mother figure West watching over you." I respond even though it's obviously me that wouldn't be able to sleep tonight without anyone there for me. I don't want to let her know that I'm as scared as she is, even if it may be for a completely different reason.
I wish I'd stayed to see her reaction though. That's always the best part.
I'm not sure if I really want Jade to be dating Beck. Thanks for reading. A review would be lovely, thanks. I love responses.
Also, let's pretend that Jade's phone in the water wouldn't electrocute her. This chapter is more like a filler than anything else but everything is still being set up.
I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed last chapter too. That gave me a lot of inspiration. You all rock!