Read the note at the end. :D

Chapter IV

Tori woke up around two hours later, lacking the physical strength to open her eyes. Her face felt as if a big parade had walked over it, her muscles were cramped and her whole body was sore, but overall the only thing she was able to feel at all was the blinding headache that pinched her temples every time her heart beat in her chest. Without looking or really focusing on her surroundings she could figure out that the room in which she was — not hers, that's for sure — was submerged in a deep silence, she was lying on a soft surface, most likely on a bed, and said soft surface was rising and falling slowly, as if it was breathing.

Tori's mind shushed the pain for a second as it tried to figure out what was going on. Curiously enough, her guts were telling her to calm down, they were saying this wasn't unexpected; and Tori tried to remember what had she done at the party. Had she and Beck…? No, they couldn't have. Beck had been too distracted, Tori recalled, he had been too focused on other matters. Besides, Jade had been all over her last night. She had… Jade had been all over her last night. Jade had… she had… Jade and her had…?

Holy shit!

They had!

Jade and Tori had had sex last night!

Tori felt her eyelids start to slide open in surprise, but something stopped them. She noticed her headache wasn't really blinding, the white screen that her eyes were showing didn't come from inside. Slowly, she let a narrow line of vision open up to her and through it a white light filtered and burned her retinas, leaving a potent image printed in her eyes. A giant square of light was illuminating her face from a few yards away, around it was what seemed to be blue walls, light-blue walls. Farther than that Tori's surroundings were extremely pale and painful.

She groaned softly, rolling her head around on what she thought to be Jade. When her eyelids fell out of the light she opened them slowly, seeing only black hair and a thin strip of white skin. Her face raised slightly and she was able to see, with narrowed eyes, the window at the wall opposite from her. Through it the sunlight filtered and drew a line that went exactly over Tori's eyes. It grew from the floor and somehow crawled up the bed, and Tori fell in love with the way it enlightened Jade's pale skin, with the way her hard nipples stretched from her chest and farther into the whiteness in shadows. Jade was lying on her back, the sheets bunched up at her waist and her left hand placed on her stomach. Tori caressed Jade slowly with her cheek, not really daring to try more than that, not daring to move her hand or face.

'Shit!' came a whispered voice, which vibrated against Tori's cheek. Jade jumped out of the bed and made her way to the window. For a second Tori thought she would start to get ready to leave, but she relaxed again once she saw Jade pull the curtains closed and turn around. 'Sorry 'bout that,' she said slowly. 'Didn't know the sun would bother us so quickly.' She stood there for a second, not knowing what to do next.

'By the way we got here, I really doubt either of us would have been able to think about it at all,' Tori answered and then smirked when a crimson blush spread on Jade's cheeks. Tori directed an expectant look at Jade as her right hand patted the empty spot next to hers on the mattress. To which Jade smiled widely, jumping twice before dipping into the sheets again.

'I should get you drunk more often, Vega.'

'I'm not drunk.'

'I know.' Jade looked at her with eyes that weren't hers. 'That makes it even better,' she whispered. Not containing herself, Tori leaned forwards and kissed Jade passionately. 'Who the fuck are you?' groaned Jade throatily when they parted.

'I'm Tori,' she said; 'the girl you fucked last night. Or were you really that drunk?' Her voice was carrying a teasing tone.

'Yes, you are.'

They lay there for a while, just staring at each other in silence. Tori ran a hand in circles on Jade's stomach with a pale right arm around her own waist. Their breathings constantly rained down upon their faces mutely. Tori contemplated every detail Jade's face had to offer, from her rather small nose and plump lips to her round cheeks and studded eyebrow. To think that just the night before she had been admiring the beauty of the girl that she now shared bed with was pretty amazing. And Tori wasn't even thinking that far behind them: one week ago, if she had thought of going to a party, being with Jade was the last thing she would want to do. Now, though, she would rather be next to Jade the whole night than with either of the other guys.

What kind of wonders would a hobby like this bring to her? Not the partying and all that, nor the drinking; more like the relationship with Jade. What were even they? Were they, like, girlfriends? Surely not. What did this mean? Tori remembered Jade saying that they 'could do this', as in, they could keep doing this. Would it be a bad thing if they kept this going? What was it that Jade intended when she first started all her seducing? Did she have a plan? Tori remembered the way they danced at the party, downstairs. She remembered the way Jade rubbed hotly against her back, the way Jade's warm hands felt on her hips… Wow, the bed had witnessed only a portion of all their sexy activities, the very last portion of them.

Tori was very impressed with herself. How had she dared to do such a thing as dance with Jade the way she had? Probably the alcohol, she guessed. By herself she would have been able to carry on with such a dance, she knew, she had done it a couple times already. But with another girl? Most importantly, with Jade? Alcohol. Definitely alcohol.

It wasn't as if she hadn't felt some kind of attraction towards Jade before: she obviously had. Because of the way she had grown up, she was accustomed to feel attracted to some girls. She had always been pretty open-minded, and so had never seen any problem in liking boys and girls. Boys were hot and sexy. Girls were beautiful and sexy. And Jade was beautiful, hot and sexy all-in-one. But liking her and doing her were two very different matters. Tori had never even considered the prospect of Jade and her becoming anything more than just frenemies.

What had happened for them to end up like this? Yesterday, as always, Jade had been very hateful at school, but when they met at the party at night she had been a completely different person. Tori thought about how much they usually conveyed through their interactions. When Jade bullied Tori around their friends there was always more than just a sharp insult inside the rude words. There was always some kind of unspoken apologize. Jade's way to say 'Sorry for being so despicable, but this is just me'. And because of that Tori always ignored all the remarks that were directed at her. But when they were alone, Jade's voice lacked its natural venom. If the goth was willing — and only if she was willing — they were able to hold a normal conversation. Unfortunately, that didn't usually happen.

Their relationship, Tori realized, was based on a reciprocal exchange: Tori could stand Jade's never-ending coarseness only if, in return, she received a glimpse of the real Jade, the nice Jade. And their relationship, her mind continued to discover, obeyed Jade's rhythm. When she wanted to make an advance, she made it, and Tori just followed along, always at Jade's expense. That was the way they worked. And last night Jade had decided to make a pass on a very drunk Tori, and Tori, as usual, had let herself go. She had given permission to herself to give in to Jade's sexual advances. She had yielded to Jade's will once more. And she was very glad for it.

After sharing a very sleepy gaze for over ten minutes, Jade directed her eyes from one side to the other, inspecting the room in which they had slept. 'Getting late,' she said as her eyes settled on an alarm clock on the bedside table, and she stood up. Tori laid back on the mattress and sighed as she looked at Jade bend over around the room, in a quest for their clothes. She stretched her body lazily with a quiet moan. Even if her head was pounding as it had never pounded before, Tori was feeling pretty good. Her body was completely rested and her spirits were up already. She watched Jade's slender figure move around and couldn't help but feeling very satisfied. It had been a fantastic night, after all.

'You gonna get up or what?' Tori's smile fell slightly. Evidently, Jade's hangover was adding to her natural dislike for mornings, and was working hard to put her on a bad mood. Tori hoped Jade wouldn't ruin her morning. She was really starting to feel good. An aspirin would seal the whole deal for both of them, she was sure. 'I want to go get something to eat, Tori. Do you want to come or are you going to lay there the whole morning? 'cause you're starting to piss me off and I don't want that.' Jade was now sitting on the edge of the bed, eyeing hard at the blinking Tori. They stood up to get dressed.

Five minutes later they were lying again on the bed. Jade on top of Tori, their lips joined. Five minutes took them to get dressed with their eyes settled on the other at all times. When Jade saw Tori with her dark top and her lipsticked face she wasn't able to hold back. Last night's memories were still fresh on both and they combined the remnants of their desire in a new kiss.

They said goodbye to the room after fixing themselves in the bathroom and walked outside. The path they took was carpeted by a variety of guys and girls sitting, lying or just sprawled on the floor. A few of them were awake, shaking heads slowly and checking on the damages that the party had left. Jade and Tori walked by without paying attention, their hands were joined and their steps were reluctant at times, for their foggy memories didn't show the path they had taken when they first went by earlier. The house was in fact big: the girls turned corner after corner, went through several different doorways and crossed lots of rooms, before they finally managed to reach the already known main room, where Cat and Andre were still lying in their own bizarre ways.

'Should we…?' Jade asked Tori over her shoulder. After considering it for a second, Tori just shook her head and pulled Jade towards the front door. 'I guess you're hungry too?' Jade asked and Tori answered with a quiet giggle. 'Because, you know, we could eat something else'-Jade's voice turned lower-'besides food.' Tori frowned at the goth and their shoulders bumped together. They kept walking and left behind the big house.

'That's unfair.'

'This is not a game.'

'Not one that I'm willing to play with a hangover and an empty stomach, anyway,' Tori answered when they stopped at a red light. Jade bit her lower lip with a small smile as her thumb caressed Tori's hand tantalizingly. Fuck! Tori thought. This girls means problems.

'For later… then?'

'Whenever you want.'

Had Tori said that? Well, she seemingly had. Jade's malicious smile made that obvious. Tori's cheeks warmed a bit when she noticed the tone her voice had had. Jade just shook her head and pulled them forwards when the streetlight changed.

'You shouldn't be that dreamy,' she said.

'I'm not.' A studded eyebrow was lifted at her. 'What? I'm not! It's just… you're, well… you.'

'Now, that's clever.'

'I mean, you're Jade West…'

'As far as I know.'

'…and you're, well,'-sigh-'hot.'

Jade's incredulous face turned to her with wide eyes. 'Did you just said Jade West is hot? Shit, I must be going insane.' Tori just rolled her eyes. 'I hope you're not thinking in falling in love or something, I tried to be crystal-clear about it last night.'

'Oh, I'm not,' Tori said. 'I mean, I can't remember whatever it is that you said, but I couldn't fall in love with you.'

'Good.'

'B'sides,' Tori continued; 'you and I would make an awful couple, don't you think?'

'Not really.'

'You don't?'

'No, I don't.' They stopped at another red light and Jade looked at Tori meaningfully. 'We probably would make a nice one, you know? But I just don't think we're made for the other.'

'How you mean that?'

'Well, for starters, I'm not made for dating. And secondly, I don't think we should date. We work pretty well, and I wouldn't like risking that.' For a second Tori had to think about what Jade meant by 'work pretty well' because that would be the last definition she would give to their relationship. Jade pulled them forwards and into a small café that appeared in the corner across the street. Tori walked over to the side of the place and choose to sit in a comfortable-looking booth next to a large window as Jade went to the front of the place to ask for food.

'What did you ask?' Tori asked her friend when she let herself on the opposite seat.

'Just some coffee and eggs.'

'So, we work pretty well?' Tori frowned slightly at Jade's distracted nodding. 'And just how, Jade?'

'Well… you know. You're the only person I know that I feel really gets me now. When we're alone I just… I don't know… I can be myself around you. I mean, when I'm not being a total bitch, right?'

'I had no idea you thought that—'

'Well, I do, and I guess it's just fair for me to tell you this.' Jade shook the piece of bread that she had brought with her from the counter. 'Especially after last night…'

Tori looked at Jade for a second, replaying those words in her head. She had never thought Jade capable of saying things like that. After all, this was the girl who was always abusing her, and taking advantage of her and her situations, and it was hard to believe that said girl actually thought of her as a friend. Tori had expected Jade to just treat her the same way as she always did when she woke up. Before falling asleep she had readied herself to wake up alone or to be awakened by an angry Jade asking her where the fuck were her clothes or something. But none of that had happened. Instead, this unknown Jade was behaving surprisingly polite, nice and friendly. And Tori had to assume their relationship was really twisted, for it was crazy to be so careful around someone just because they were being nice.

A smiling waitress approached and gave Tori a mug of what seemed to be hot chocolate, placed a tall cappuccino in front of Jade and left a plate full of eggs between them, handing each a metal fork. 'Enjoy,' she whispered with a wink. Then it was that Tori realized they were holding hands at the center of the table; and that Jade had no intentions of letting go, since she gripped her fork in her left hand and leaned over the plate, ready to eat.

Tori could perceive no taste at all on the eggs. Her head had stopped pounding so hard, but it still felt foggy, sleepy. Her attention diverted from Jade to the window to the people outside, and her mouth chew on the scrambled eggs independently. She felt as if she were ready to jump in her bed and submerge in a very-needed all-day-long nap. Across from her, Jade ate silently, now looking at her, now looking out the window or around the establishment.

Tori's fork was placed on the table as she gave up on eating something. Her hand stretched to her hot mug and she gave it a careful sip, noticing immediately how good it tasted. Its sweetness washed her mouth and cleared her head slightly, opening her half-lidded eyes and providing enough energy for another couple of hours.

Jade smiled at her from across the table and Tori had to smile back. Although she was feeling awfully tired, Tori was swimming in an unknown sea of hotness that had nothing to do with the warm rays of sun that rained on both her and Jade. Her mind kept relishing on the fact that the girl in front of her had been naked and in bed with her just half an hour ago.

Sitting in a booth in a small café in a sunny Saturday morning with Jade in front of her should have been a random thing to happen to Tori; random, meaningless, and completely improbable. Improbable as it is, it was happening, and that was enough to break all the other rules, because it also was anything but meaningless. Every time Tori's eyes swept over her companion the images of the night before took a trip around her head and provided her body with excitement. Tori felt strangely conscious of Jade, of her body, of the things she could do to her and the things she had done to her; Tori felt fantastically aware of what she and Jade had done, and the implication that it could happen again was equally fantastic.

'Like it?' Tori raised her head and looked across from her at Jade, who was eyeing her with an amused smile, her fingers wrapped loosely around her own glass of cappuccino.

'You know?' Tori said, ignoring Jade's question, her pinky finger was pointing at Jade's glass, 'I always thought you were a black-coffee kind of person.'

'Oh, but I am,' Jade exclaimed, her face painted with fake indignation. 'People usually describe me as bitter and black-haired, so…' she shrugged. 'Though,' she continued; 'I do like some sweetness in what I consume.' Tori felt herself blush, but straightened her neck, not tearing her eyes from Jade's. 'You didn't answer my question,' her studded eyebrow jumped. 'You like it?'

'Yes,' Tori smiled; 'all of it.' Her eyes went around the room behind Jade and arrived later at her green eyes meaningfully. 'You knew the place?'

'At all.'

For a while they just stared at each other, making of the situation a little competition, silently challenging the other to blink or look away. Without realizing it, Tori had leaned forwards, as had Jade, so that they had to take turns sipping their drinks in order not to block their cups' path. In one occasion Tori was about to say something when she recognized her own green mug between Jade's fingers, but choose instead to take her advantage out of Jade's own beverage. She drank and lost the game when her eyes went down to look at the glass.

'Mmm. This is good!' She looked around again and smiled at Jade. 'It's hard to believe I didn't know this place… I live, like,—'

'Ten minutes from here?' Jade interrupted. 'I know.' They kept consuming the drinks, not really caring from which they were drinking, as their eyes crossed looks once again; until Jade finished the last of her cappuccino. 'Gotta get moving,' she said, standing up, her eyes on the window. 'Are you done with that?'

'Yep.' Tori's cup fell on the table, empty. She stood up and they walked out of the place, Jade's hand hastily taking Tori's.

A long silence was shared as they walked to Tori's home, barely paying attention to anything but their joined hands. Tori felt surprisingly well with the situation: as if, for her, not dating was better than dating, especially if the other half was Jade, whose temperament was famously fragile. She couldn't believe how comfortable she felt right now, walking hand-in-hand with Jade West — who just yesterday had told her stuff that was so mean she had had to block the memories — towards her very own house, knowing all that they had been doing just the night before, and conscious that it might repeat sometime in the future. More than impressed, Tori was anxious, excited.

In no time, she found her hands playing with the keys in front of the door to her house. Jade was standing next to her, also looking at her hands, Tori could feel. Their gazes touched one last time before Jade leaned forwards and slowly pressed a warm kiss to Tori's cheek. 'I guess I'll be seeing you, Tor,' she said, turning around and walking away.

'Bye…' Tori said faintly. Her eyes followed Jade for a moment. Her head bent heavily and her hands finally started to work the key into the door. A weak creaking came from the rolling mechanism when Jade's voice returned and Tori felt herself jump in surprise.

'You know,' she said; 'there's this party I was planning to go to next week, and I…' she hesitated. Tori smiled amusedly at the very noticeable blush that colored the pale cheeks on her friend's face. 'Well… I was wondering if you would like to come.'

'Where is it?'

'Half an hour from here, walking. It'll be near my house, so I was thinking you could stay over, just so you don't have to walk all the way back here.'

'Sure,' Tori shrugged. 'Where will we meet the others?'

'Actually,' Jade looked away at the street, 'we won't meet the others.'

'Oh… okay,' nodded Tori. 'Then, I guess I'll go to your place.'

'Good.' Jade's voice had gone low. 'I'll tell you later what time, is that okay?'

'Sure.'

And, with a wave of her hand, Jade walked away without looking back.

Fin.

Whew... So, that's it. Liked it?

Let me tell you, this is the longest thing I've ever finished, and I'm very happy to see some people liked it, because I really loved it—though, since I'm the writer, that's probably me trying to be self-sufficient... I loved writing it and I loved posting it and all... Thank you!

Now, I want to explain why I decided to write this story in the first place. Lately—recently, you pick up—almost every Jori fanfic there is in FF comes out being AU, futurefic, vampire, werewolf, etc. I mean... what happened? When I started reading Joris not only were them all not-so-AU, but they were mostly masterfully written. I'm not flattering myself either, don't misunderstand, everything is liked by some, right? I guess it's pretty selfish, but it would be nice if we writers attempted to go back to the tradition of transforming the show—if we're already doing it, might as well—into something nice without needing to use supernatural stuff or murdering drama. I mean, it's cool, and some I even like, if I'm being honest. Yeah... It's selfish... Sorry, it's just that I fell in love with the pairing a couple years ago and I love every good fic. And I partly understand this homogeneity of stories, because the show having been over for so long and the fics themselves having existed for so long, well... I guess ideas had to run out some time...

Well, it was nice connecting with some. Thanks again and til next time!