Hello again!
Here is the first chapter of my new story about how Beck and Jade possibly could've gotten to know each other. I think it will go into five chapters and I will be able to upload once a week.
I hope you'll like it - have fun reading.

"Is it true?"

Jade looks up from her bag, being in the process of checking if she has everything necessary for her homework, to see Cat bouncing up and down next to her.

"What?" she asks harshly. She never likes someone just coming up to her and talking about something as if she has to know about what. Cat does that surprisingly often and Jade hates it.

"Everyone says you passed the Bird Scene," Cat says.

Jade can't help but smile. She quickly forms it into a smirk however. "I have."

She knows that a lot of other freshmen have already tried and haven't passed yet. She hasn't understood why until Sikowitz has explained to her the whole deal about the Bird Scene – after she has told him she wouldn't do it again because he has said he liked it and wasn't able to say how else she should do it.

Now, she has been the first to pass that stupid challenge and yes, she is proud of herself for that. Especially because she gathers that it doesn't happen very often that anyone passes on their first try.

"That's amazing. Congrats!" Cat says and wants to go in for a hug but Jade pushes her away. She may have finally given up and accepted Cat's friendship but she definitely isn't ready to hug her any time just like that. Though, she will come to appreciate Cat even more over the next few days as others in their year approach her and ask her for help with the Bird Scene while Cat never once asks about how to pass it.

She finally closes her locker and it's in that moment that someone approaches them, an older boy who smiles at her: "Hello. I'm Thomas. You're Jade West, right?"

She just looks at him darkly. She doesn't know what he wants from her. She doesn't like smalltalk. She hasn't noticed him before and doesn't feel like getting to know him now.

Cat answers happily though: "Yes, she is."

He only shortly looks at her, then back at Jade in a way as if he's checking her out. "My friend Sonia saw you do the Bird Scene. She has helped me write my play which I'm having auditions for at the moment. I have a special type in my mind for the female lead and Sonia has told me you could fit that type. From what I see that could be true. And as you have passed the Bird Scee, you can audition. I would really like you to come audition for my play."

Jade hasn't expected that at all. Is someone actually really inviting her to audition for their play? Although she's a freshman?

She forces herself not to smile, not to get excited about it while Cat claps happy in a way as if she has been asked.

"Which play is this?" she asks.

She has already looked through the list of plays and musicals for this semester, all the ones the school itself does, the teachers, and all of those the students already plan to do. She has a handful she wants to audition for because they sound interesting enough. She doesn't just want to be in any play if she doesn't have to.

The older boy smiles. "Poisonous Revenge. It's about a young woman who meets a young man and they appear to fall in love with each other but as it turns out both were born into old rival families and her father has raised the woman to revenge her mother who has been killed by the boy's father. As revenge she is supposed to make him trust her and then slowly poison him. In the end they are in love though and both die. That's the short storyline. Are you interested?"

She wouldn't have needed the summary at all. That's one of the plays she has wanted to audition for anyway. But she has read that the play-write – Thomas obviously – is a senior and she has asked herself if he would really be open-minded enough to even consider a freshman for the lead or any other important role. Not to mention that she would have guessed the auditions are more of a formality for most of the students as most probably already have casted their friends in their minds, especially for the main roles.

"Of course," she now answers honestly.

He nods. "Great. I hold some more auditions for the leads tomorrow at lunch break in the Blackbox Theater. I would love to see you there."

He pulls a flyer out of his bag and gives it to her. It's a flyer to advertise the auditions for his play. From the dates it seems he has already had auditions today. Apparently, he hasn't been successful.

Then, he leaves them and Cat promptly hugs Jade again. "That's amazing!"

Jade doesn't push her away this time as a wide smile spreads over her face.

.

.

Thomas and his two friends applaud her after her audition and Thomas says she definitely gets to be the female lead. She can barely believe it. She has pretty much just started to attend Hollywood Arts and already is the lead in a play.

Now, they just have to find the perfect counterpart for her.

He considers two guys and they all meet up the next day but it just doesn't work. Thomas says he will hold another round of auditions next week.

She always is there at the auditions as well and does the meeting scene with everybody who comes in but Thomas is never satisfied and Jade gets frustrated. She also thinks it doesn't work with anybody though barely anybody who comes in is a bad actor. Quite the opposite. And she knows she's supposed to be good enough to fake chemistry with everybody, to make it work with everyone but as it seems she isn't good enough yet.

A week later, after every other role has been casted but they still miss the male lead, Thomas pulls her aside.

"Jade, I'm sorry but I don't know what to do. You're definitely my Lindsay. You completely embody what I have had in mind when I wrote that play. But it just doesn't work with any of the guys. I don't know. You kind of... overshadow them or drown them out or something. I thought about changing some of the roles, like having Tony play Sam" – Tony is one of Thomas' friend and he plays the role of Lindsay's father. He and Jade do work very good together in those roles. – "but while you work great together as daughter and father, I also think he would get lost next to you as Sam. So maybe, I have to let another girl play the role and only have you be the understudy, just in case. I can't have my perfect female lead if there's noone I can put next to that for the male lead."

Jade swallows and feels like kicking something. It's not her fault that they can't keep up with her! Why does she have to give up her role?

Though she knows she still has to learn to work together with everyone, to hold back in one way or another if needed. She can't do it yet and she also doesn't understand why she really has to.

"We will have some more auditions on Monday," Thomas goes on when she doesn't say anything. "But then we really have to start rehearsing. It's only a month left now. So, either someone will come and work with you or you have to give up the role. I'm really sorry."

"Whatever," she answers because she can't say anything else, then she leaves. Oh, how she hates everything!

.

.

She's late on Monday for the auditions but she also doesn't really care. If she gets downgraded to understudy, it's not necessary to always be there, right?

"Jade, perfect timing," Thomas says though when he sees her and waves her closer. "I have someone I want you to read the meeting scene with. You probably know each other. He's a freshman as well and has just passed the Bird Scene on Friday."

Jade already sees him. Beck Oliver. Oh, and she does know him. They have several classes together.

Beck is so good-looking that even some senior girls flirt with him in the halls and apparently want to date him. Furthermore, he is so nice and polite that it sickens Jade.

He's that sort of perfect guy which unsettles Jade because nobody is perfect and usually, if someone appears to be, there's always something they are hiding. There's always something deeply wrong with them. Like that guy who's two years older than her and with whom she has gone on two dates last year until he has shown that he didn't get the meaning of the word no. Luckily, she has been strong enough to overpower him and leave his house before anything too bad happened.

Which unsettles her even more about Beck is the fact that she's attracted to him as well, that she feels curious about him. She doesn't like that sometimes their eyes meet and once, she has quickly looked away like every other teenage girl, almost blushing. Since then, she has just raised her eyebrows whenever their eyes have met – which does happen a lot. She doesn't know what his problem is.

And now he is here and possibly her last chance to keep this role. Fantastic.

Thomas introduces them, then sits down and tells them to do the meeting scene.

Jade doesn't even bother to get her script of the play out. She already knows the meeting scene by heart.

Beck has the script in his hand, of course also only has gotten it a few minutes ago, and smiles at her as they move to the front.

Jade puts her bag down but keeps the coffee in her hand. She hasn't done the scene with props yet but maybe it works better, maybe that will make this Beck guy more convincing in one way or another. She also gets a few papers out of her bag. Funnily enough, Beck also promptly grabs some papers out of his own bag and also has the necessary props because of it.

She realizes her phone is still in her bag when they already start but she can also pretend about that like she always did before. So she looks in her own hand as if the phone was in it while she starts walking, the papers under the arm which hand also holds the coffee cup. Beck starts running at the same time from the other side of the stage and they bump into each other as planned.

Jade lets her papers and her coffee cup fall which is almost empty anyway and Beck drops everything except his script as well.

"I'm so sorry," Jade instantly says her line, looking to the mess on the ground while they both go on their knees to pick it up again.

"No, no," Beck says. "It's my fault."

And as (cheesily) scripted, they both grab the same paper and look up into each other's eyes. Jade hates this cliché moment but it's all good in the end as it turns out her character has planned the exact meeting in this chliché way.

So, of course, she also smiles first and Beck instantly smiles back. That is also scripted but somehow it makes Jade's heart pound faster and for a moment she wants to look away again but she just can't. She blushes and hopes badly that noone notices and if they do that they assume she is just that good of an actress to make herself blush for the character.

"Hi," Beck then says as Sam.

"Hi," Jade gives back and sounds too breathless and almost forgets her line after that's so easy: "My name is Lindsay."

She extends her hand and Beck finally looks in his script again, then to her hand, before he takes it.

"Hello," he says the line without having to look into the script again. "Sam. I'm really sorry about this."

They let go of each other's hands and Beck makes a gesture over the mess.

Jade shakes her head. "Don't worry." She takes the coffee cup in her hand and uses a coy smile when she looks back up to Beck – who returns the look in that way as if his character is just falling in love. "Though you made me spill my coffee."

Now, he looks down to his script once more while they finally stand up, both with all their papers in their arms again, she also with her coffee cup.

Then, he suggests as Sam: "I could buy you a new one."

And Lindsay knows he doesn't have much time, has studied his whole calender for months, and therefore says: "I'd love that though I have to get to a meeting now. Maybe, we can meet up later though?"

"Absolutely," Beck answers as Sam and it sounds so happy and elated that Jade wants to be Lindsay for a second there.

"How about we meet in two hours in the coffee shop across the street?"

"I will be there," he promises and she smiles before she passes by him. She practically feels him looking after her like he is supposed to, when Thomas already starts clapping and his friends and the rest of the cast who have come to watch the auditions join in.

Jade turns to look to Thomas who stands up with total excitement in his face: "That's what I was looking for! That's the chemistry I needed for the play to work. You two get the roles."

"Thank you," Beck says and Jade looks to him to see a bright smile on his face that makes him look ridiculously more attractive.

Thomas nods and steps on the stage to, looks at the two of them but also at everyone else who is here and involved in the play: "I've scored the Theater every Wednesday and Thursday after school starting right this Wednesday. We have less than a month to get ready. Everyone should learn their lines until the week after next at the latest. And I need you two" – now he is just speaking to Beck and Jade – "here for every rehearsal. And you really need to put everything into this. It's a very important grade for me. You think you can handle that?"

Both of them nod and then they are free to go.

Jade grabs her bag and thinks about where she might find Cat to tell her that she really has the role while she leaves. She instantly notices Beck following her.

"What?" she asks, stopping in her tracks and turning to him.

He also stops but with a smile. "I just think it's amazing, don't you? The lead roles in a senior's play as freshmen."

Does he really want to do smalltalk now? No, she won't do that with this guy.

She just raises her eyebrows and then leaves him standing there.

.

.

Beck looks after her. Jade West really is something different.

She isn't like other girls. Everybody probably has noticed that the very first second she has walked through the doors of Hollywood Arts. Beck has noticed and has tried saying hi but she has ignored him.

Beck on the other hand can't help watching her. Sometimes, it feels a little creepy but he loves watching her walk through the halls or being bored in class.

And funnily enough, every now and then their eyes meet which means that Jade does look at him too, doesn't it? Though she never looks happy when their eyes meet – nor embarrassed or anything. She usually just raises her eyebrows which is even more interesting.

Yes, Beck wants to get to know this girl who is so different and special. Her passing the Bird Scene on the first try makes her even more interesting.

As soon as he has passed (on his second try), he has known he wanted to audition for Poisonous Revenge. He has heard that Jade (who people talk about now because of her passing the Bird Scene on her first try as the only freshman this year) is the female lead in that play – and that they're still looking for the male lead. He has also read what the play's about and it sounds pretty interesting and he definitely could see himself as Sam, even likes the role very much.

So, of course he tries out for it and feels elated now to have gotten the role. It is amazing to have gotten a lead role so early in his run at Hollywood Arts. He's sure that's unusual.

But he hasn't just gotten this great role out of this – he will also get to spend some time with Jade. And he's excited to see how that goes.