Beck feels like garbage the next morning, which he was expecting, really. But he loads into his car anyway, headshots and résumés checked and double checked, and drives off. He's singing along to his audition playlist, comprised mostly of classic rock, and is trying his best to only focus on the road in front of him for the next two hours.

He's in the middle of crooning along to "Sultans of Swing", about halfway between Santa Barbara and LA according to his phone, when smoke begins to billow from the hood of his car. "Come on," he groans once he pulls off the highway, slamming his hands down on the steering wheel. He seethes in his seat for another twenty minutes before a tow truck comes to get him to the nearest town and assess the damage.

"It'll be about an hour," the shop owner tells him, "And we'll call ya' with the diagnostics 'n' stuff."

'No point in bein' mad about things you can't control,' he hears Andre preach in his head. Beck decides to listen to his seemingly always wise friend and just sighs, shakes the man's hand, and mutters, "Thanks."

The tow truck driver offers to give him a ride to one of his favorite spots in town to wait out the hour ("Or longer, y'know. Dude takes a while,"). Beck pays him with almost all the cash he has on him and thanks him for the ride. He's suddenly standing in front of a hole-in-the-wall cafe in the middle of some small, scenic town somewhere between Santa Barbara and Los Angeles, and he can't help but feel like this is only the kind of thing he's ever seen directed by someone else.

It's nicer than he thinks it'll be when he heads inside, but he's quickly jolted to a stop when he realizes there's a massive crowd spanning the width and almost the length of the space. He hears the guitar first, then the voice - the most passionate voice he's ever heard, he thinks - and he's just as captivated by the girl with the jet black hair as everyone else is. The trance is seemingly broken when she finishes her song and announces she's taking a break, and he rushes to beat the moving crowd to the counter. "Hi, um, whatever the biggest size coffee you have, I'll take. Black, three sugars." He pauses, then adds, "Please." The girl's name tag reads "Cat" in bubble letters, clearly reflective of her personality as she bounces around behind the counter fixing the drink for him.

"Here you go!" she squeaks, placing the cup into his hand and ringing him up.

He smiles at her, unable to feel any kind of melancholic self-pity for the turn his day had taken and pays the $2.68 for the coffee."Thanks, Cat." It's only when he looks up that he realizes the singer is standing next to him. "Uh, h-hi," he murmurs, a complete 180 from his typical approach to women.

She eyes him deliberately, then smirks at the way his gaze falls to avoid hers. She doesn't respond, but she asks Cat for a cup of water, who in turn asks the other girl, Tori, to get it for her. He hangs around close enough to listen without seeming suspicious and finds out her name is Jade, and she likes room temperature bottled water in a cup with a straw. It's not much to go on (hell, he knows it's basically nothing to go on), but he becomes determined to properly meet her.

Beck musters up the courage he hadn't realized he'd lost and makes his way up to the front of the cafe to where Jade is leaning up against the mic stand and insulting the guitar player. "Hi... again," he shrugs, a hand in his pocket.

She quirks an eyebrow, intrigued but not ready to show it. "Didn't you already embarrass yourself enough at the counter?" She has to bite back a smirk and almost fails.

He chuckles softly, then shakes his head. "Apparently not."

She eyes him once more. "Robbie, leave."

Robbie looks up at the two of them, his eyes flicking to Beck for backup. "But I - I didn't even do anything! I wasn't-"

"Now." She whips her head around to glare at him, but he's already scrambling to his feet to make his escape. She looks back to the man in front of her, clearly expecting something else. "So?" she asks, her tone a bit impatient.

"Uh, I... I wanted to tell you you have an amazing voice." He rolls his eyes at himself inwardly before the statement even finishes.

"I know," she smirks, crossing her arms over her chest. "Was that all?"

"Well, I..." He's surprised how quickly he finds himself out of his usual element. He decides to stick his hand out and smile. "I wanted you to know that I'm Beck."

"Like the singer?" She arches an eyebrow.

"Yes," he sighs, his hand still out for her to take, "Like the singer."

She eyes him once more before deciding to politely extend her own hand. "Jade."

"Like the rock?"

She smiles this time, even letting her teeth show a bit, to which he reciprocates the same way. "Exactly like that." They let their hands drop, and it's comfortably quiet between them for just a second before she says, "So... it's just Beck?"

Robbie scurries over to Cat and Tori, frantically gesturing behind him at the scene unfolding.

"What is it, Robbie?" The unnecessary and clearly misguided and misinformed worry in Cat's voice causes the other two to stare at her.

"Cat," Tori says slowly, then points over her shoulder to where Jade and Black Coffee, Three Sugars are talking,and apparently hitting it off. "Oh, my God, was that a smile?"

"I know," Robbie answers, eyes wide. "Is this some residual effect from... you know? Like, I know major head trauma can cause a complete personality change. I read one time about a guy who got impaled in the head and woke up completely fine but was like a totally different person!"

Cat's horrified look explains more than Tori can say. "I think she's just... flirting." The trio watches their friend for another moment, sharing the same shocked expression when she laughs a genuine, real life, not at the expense of another's well being laugh. "Holy-"

"I know."

"What? What do we know?" Cat pouts up at the two.

"Holy shit, Cat."

"...What?"

"No, that's - never mind." Tori simply shakes her head and returns her attention to Jade and Tall, Dark Roast, and Handsome to try and at least make an educated guess as to what it is they're saying that has Jade laughing.

She comes over to them a bit later, after No Milk takes a seat once again. They scramble to make themselves look busy, but her eyeroll and hasty, "Cut the crap," end that attempt quickly. "Birthday stuff not happening tonight," Jade announces, "Not on my end, anyway. Which means you'll have to suffer through getting the cake all on your own."

Robbie gapes, Cat gasps, and Tori... tries her best not to look relieved or amused. "But... It's Tori's bir-"

"No!" Tori exclaim quicker than she can filter herself. The three look at her, sharing the same inquisitive look. "I mean... Jade... doesn't have to stay here if she doesn't want to. Birthdays happen all the time, it's not a big deal!"

"Right... Whatever, weirdo." Jade turns her attention to Cat, who seems to be the only one really broken up about this turn of events. "I'm going on a date with Beck." She points over her shoulder at him and shrugs. "You'll be okay. It's just cake. We can get cake at literally any point in time."

Tori isn't sure if Cat is actually upset about not following the same routine they have every night for six months, but she smiles at Jade. "Have fun tonight, you deserve it!"

"And you think you know what I deserve, eh, Vega?"

"Wha-no, I just-how did you manage to find something offensive in that?"

Jade glares, which is answer enough for Tori's question. She instead turns her attention to Robbie. "Hey, Four Eyes. We have things to do. Stop canoodling or whatever and let's go."

"I hate it when you call me that," he grumbles.

"Funny, I don't recall asking," she answers, then turns on her heel to return to the stage.

Tori and Cat's eyes are on either Jade or Black Coffee Guy (Beck, Tori reminds herself consistently) or both throughout the rest of the day. Tori catches Jade's little glances at him during her songs, and Cat notices that he has a hint of a smile on his face that just never seems to go away whenever he looks at her. "This," Tori whispers to her friend, "Isn't good."

The three wave Jade off once they've closed up for the day, and Beck can't help but chuckle. "They're protective of you."

"I know," she groans, "It's the worst." She pulls out her keys and stands facing him. "You asked me out," she says, dropping them into his hand, "You take me where we're going."

"Fair," he nods. She's surprised at the lack of a fight or complaint - pleasantly, though, and she slides into the passenger seat. "We're going to the auto shop."

"Auto shop?" she repeats, incredulous.

"Yep. My car's ready."

They get his car, drive separately back to the cafe, then drive off to dinner in his so that he can go straight home after their date. It's been a long time since either of them have felt such a strong connection with another person. He keeps her laughing and she keeps him guessing, and it's nothing like they've ever really experienced before.

"We'll have to wrap this up early," he says before they've ordered dessert. "My drive home's two hours long and I don't really want to be stuck on the highway in the middle of nighttime traffic."

She hums, letting her eyes fall to her glass which seems far less suspicious than them falling to the floor. She remembers from their earlier conversation that he's from Santa Barbara, so she knows he isn't just trying to sneak off. He can see she seems disappointed, so he clears his throat. "Hey, what if I came back tomorrow? I'll pick you up, we can go to the beach or something. Spend the day or whatever."

"Hm." Jade ponders this suggestion for a moment, pretending to weigh the options in her head. "Fine. But if you stand me up or something, I'll have someone castrate you in your sleep," she smiles.

He can't stop himself from smiling back when she does. "...You know someone who can do that?"