Another story, look at that. Well, all I really have to say is hope you enjoy this chapter, I'm not sure why exactly I'm having trouble starting this story, and hopefully it won't start off like my last draft.

I don't own Victorious...

:)

Tori POV-

I tap my pencil feverishly as I let out an exasperated breath, closing my eyes softly. I couldn't believe that I was actually going to the Gorilla Club. Unlike the façade I put up yesterday, I knew full well what was in there, though I didn't want to go. Why would I? To see the benefit in my acting? Possibly. To prove to everyone that I can be a risk taker? Closer. Or was it to prove to her that I could very well do the things in there?

My head nods slowly as I stare blankly at the test in front of me. Twenty seven questions and yet I had forgotten all of them. Wait, I did know that one. My pencil scratches along the surface as I write my answer before frowning once again.

Aren't there more to risks though? I don't know why I'm questioning this during a history test but still. Risks aren't just throwing yourself out their to see if you can dodge heavy balls for rings, ride a mechanical bull or even fight a gorilla, which I debated several times if it was an actual one or just a guy on steroids under a mask and fur. I hope it's the second one, I really don't think it wise to take part in animal cruelty as a cop's daughter.

But, as I fill in more questions with my plastic and graphite, shouldn't risks have that same adrenaline rush but more. To the point you would lose it all but gain everything if you stepped out. The Gorilla Club, from what I know, only tests your mind and body, but what about the grip on your emotions and mind?

My breath halts for a second as my pencil drops to the floor, hitting the ground with an otherwise quiet thud if the class wasn't dead silent. It rolls further away, the plastic still scraping the ground until it halts. It lays, waiting for a helpful hand to pick it up and hand it over quietly.

But of course, the freaking mechanical pencil happened to be at Jade's feet. I raise an eyebrow as she glances at me with a calm glare before she grasps the pencil leisurely. Her eyes pierce mine once again, though I know it's an equal match; she has the thing I need for this test which is my ticket to an 'A'. This may or may not be the only class I have a 'B-' in, or just a 'B' in general.

While I stare her down, my eyes flickering to the pencil which almost waves at me mockingly as her fingers play with it absentmindedly, I feel mine soften. There's no proper explanation for it, but her eyes are just hers. I'm never going to meet another person with her eyes. The ocean of glinting green and blue is fogged and rimmed by grey; completely unique to her.

They playfully switch down to the object in her hands before they glide up. Her lips curl as the pencils soars through the air for a foot before I quickly catch it in my palm, immediately reverting it back to it's writing posture.

"Girls?" a deep mellow voice snatches our attention, "I better not be seeing the same exact answers from you two."

"No, just Vega holding onto her pencil like her last driver's test." Ouch, well that kind of hurt- Hey! It wasn't my fault I didn't see the old lady, she was crossing when my light was green! "And besides," she sneers through her low chortle, "Why would I be cheating off of wrong answers?"

Shaking my head, I dove back to my test, abandoning the Gorilla Club momentarily while I triple-check my answers. Midway through one answer though, I sigh as my eyes flicker at the clock above, watching as the smallest hand ticked by ever so slowly.

Today was going to be a long day and yet, I knew I was going to flip out once ten o'clock comes and I still have an assignment due tomorrow.

Jade POV-

I still hear her pencil scratching against the paper even though it was hours ago. My fork plays aimlessly with my salad as a glare at it, wishing it would just burn until I remember that I'm actually hungry. As a few flakes go into my mouth, my gaze is drawn to Cat's story about her brother getting kicked out of a store because he got too excited over spoons.

However, as the perky redhead fills in all the 'necessary' details, I catch Tori's eyes on mine, appearing to switch at the same time. I drop mine, however, and back to my own food which looks pathetic as it wilts miserably.

Every lunch time, it seems, that my eyes lock with Vega's and each time it is either longer or shorter in length. There are times when I just drown into the plain eyes, tracing over the lines that give it subtle detail. I hate to admit it but I find them fascinating. How plain dull eyes could have so much to them is bizarre.

But then there are the times when I can't hold onto it for long, when my conscious is wide awake and constantly watchful. I have to remember, the eyes are windows, not for people to look in the soul but for people to look from the soul. Or whatever shit you're into. Point is, people still curiously look inside, and she has a knack for looking in.

Because that's what Tori Vega does, looks in with a coy smile and gives a hand for help. Help that I don't need. But it's there, always lingering. While I don't take it often, or at all really, I make sure it is still there, just so I can observe and see who she really is.

How someone so boring and so damn prissy can be so fucking interesting is beyond me. How she could just waltz in and expect everyone to be on her side is beyond me. How she could step into the picture and not fade away but only become more define is beyond me.

How I can find myself every fucking day thinking about this girl is beyond-me.

"Jade?"

"What?" I snarl, glaring at Vega who only looks back calmly.

"Is the gorilla a real gorilla or-"

"Or what?" I ask curiously as I chew on more leaves. God damn it, I got a wilted one.

"A man on steroids wearing a gorilla costume..." she murmurs quietly.

A groan slinks out from my throat as my head tilts back, eyes closing as I whisper harshly, "Fuck me in the ass with a damn-"

"Jade! That's dirty," Cat whimpers, eyes wide as mine sends a cold stare.

"Aww... Is someone on their period?" Rex chuckles. In response my arm snatches the ventriloquist's companion and chuck it away, sending Robbie calling for Rex. If I could tell you the hammering waves my groin is sending me I would, and you would leave the room deaf.

"Why?" I smirk devilishly, "You scared of the big bad monkey?"

"N-No," yeah, try to deny it, "I'm just wondering..."

"Uh, huh. Prissy," I mutter under my breath.

"I am not prissy!" she hisses before her attention is alerted by the schools screaming bell. "Time to head to Sikowitz' anyway." And so, after a few minutes of dodging the rampaging halls (which included ducking under a tuba) and slamming locker doors, all six of us sit in our usual seats in Sikowitz.

Reading the scratchy handwriting on the board, I groan once remembering the week project we have to do.

Tori POV-

Every. Single. Time.

How come every time there is a project, I have to work with Jade? And to make it better, in my eyes, it's all out of class. Just- why? Whatever, it's not like this will actually change our relationship much, right? Never has before anyway. As I shut my locker close, feeling extra weight on my shoulders, I just want this to be an easy 'A' and we'll get on with our lives which would involve interacting anyway. I just, not hope but... hope.

My head shakes, like it made any sense of what I just said. Or thought.

"Jade," I mutter, rolling my eyes as I realize I didn't call for her loud enough. "Jade! Hey- wait," I snap, following her to her locker. "Jade..."

"What?" she growls in a bored tone. Great start Jade, great start.

"So what are we going to do for the project?" I ask, ignoring the locker that was almost shoved in my face. Man, can she be even more of a gank? Really.

"We write a script based on our theme -which is failing- and we act it out," Jade murmurs bluntly, hands running through her raven hair, a strand of dark blue along with the lock as she searches through her locker.

"You know what I mean."

"Yeah, I know. What about it?" her locker slams shut, one of the blades wobbling. "Damn scissors, I knew from the very-" she mutters under her breath as she yanks it out, "start-" and it is then dug further in, "you'd be the bitch. Never buy Ikea scissors, seriously."

"What's wrong with them?"

"That!" she spat as she shifted her bag on her right shoulder.

"Okay... So when are we going to meet up then? It's due next Monday so we have, uh, five days not including today."

"Uh, huh," Jade agreed as her eyes flickered between me and the scissors. "Can't tonight, I have stuff to do."

"Like what?" I ask, possibly having a free night excluding two assignments.

"Well my dad is out of town for work, as always, and my mother is somewhere and probably not coming back 'till the day before my dad does," Jade explains, her voice tainted with a fermenting bitterness, "And my brother and I are watching the Scissoring."

"Really?" I turn my head to the side, vaguely remembering the small inputs about her brother, "How old is he?"

"Do you not know?" she murmurs curiously.

"Haven't gotten many details, no," I shrug my shoulders.

"Well he's nearly fifteen, just a few more weeks."

"Wouldn't he be a freshman then here?" I ask, mentally processing the ages of the freshmen this year.

"Yeah," she nods slightly, her voice dropping all of its normal flare, "He would be everywhere... If he could."

"Oh," I whisper, my eyes meeting her green, I'll just call them green, ones until they drop from mine to her feet. "I'm sorry, I didn't-"

"It's fine," came a low hiss, "Just- I'll meet you tomorrow right after school. Your house, 3:40."

"Okay," I nod, feeling her walls build back to place. My gaze follows her out the door, turning the corner as Andre strode over.

"Ready chica?" he mutters, his eyes following Jade as well.

"Sure," I snap out of my haze, following Andre to his car. Trina, who is my ride, fell sick on Saturday. Today is suppose to be the last sick day, which is both a good and bad thing. Good because I can get a ride with her. Bad because I can get a ride with her.

As the engine hummed to life, the radio pumping out tunes that were died down, Andre grins as the car rolls out of the parking lot. I stare out the window, not saying a word as the conversations in the car have dried out yesterday and this morning. Even if I was to make conversation, I doubt he would listen. His chocolate brown eyes were glazed with something I really didn't want to ask about.

Within minutes we're back at my place, or I am at least since he had to speed off back to his house with his grandma yelling about a rabid dog loose in her closet. Fumbling with the keys, I push open the door and step in before it shut, Trina jerking off the couch, the remote momentarily flying in the air. In a flash, I catch a glimpse of Rocky's face in the ring before Celebrities Underwater was switched on.

"Hey Tori," she smiles shyly, "You have my homework?"

"Yes," I mutter, hearing my voice from a distance.

"Damn it, I was hoping you'd forgotten," she curses before I gave her the binder and stalked up stairs, distinctively hearing Rocky's voice again. It wasn't uncommon for my family to discuss out loud then realize I was nearby, diving the conversation to a halt. And when I say uncommon, I didn't mean daily, although it happens every once and awhile.

I cringe as I creak over the loose floorboard next to my bedroom door, hating whenever I hit the exact spot. My door opens and I immediately stumbling in, shutting the door with a sigh. My bag dropping, my eyes automatically flicker over to a box shoved in the corner underneath my desk, the shadows bathing it well. I feel a tingle in my balling right hand as I flex it.

My head shakes, taking me over to my bed where I land with a 'flumph'. As I pull out my phone, toying with the buttons, I let out a small chuckle as the surrounding bedsheets are now a pale grey, bathed with the illuminating light. Next to my grey bed where purple painted walls, and against the walls were the desk to the corner, the box, nightstand, a standing mirror and then a small book case.

"Tori? You home?" my mother shrills.

"Yeah?"

"Do your homework!" she calls out, knowing my habits too well. I roll my eyes before sitting down at my desk smugly, pulling up my bag. After a few moments of shuffling, scratches against my paper filled the room's noise until a few hours later.

Jade POV-

My car rolls over the gravel, crunching as I get out and slam the door. I step inside the manor, knowing that its outside looks are not what they seem. It seems like the grey house, lonely and yet it always has someone in it. "Jared!" I yell at the top of my voice as the front door shut behind me.

A head pops from the corner and he gives me a wide grin. He slinks towards me, giving me half a hug before trotting off somewhere else. For the time being, I go back to my room, groaning as I flop on my bed. Within minutes, as expected, I see my little brother in the doorway.

He's a runt, not all that tall, barely scraping my height while his ribs move with his breathing and it's quite obvious when they move. His long, naturally brown hair is dyed black, like mine, and he has one lone streak of red. Jared's hands move in a rhythmic motion as he stares at me with his brilliant, electric blue eyes.

"What?" I mutter, "Tell me we're watching the scissoring!" I add in a hiss. He shakes his head and his hands move, this time forming different letters. "What do you mean we're not even watching a horror movie?"

His hands form, "I have a better idea."

"Right, what is it?"

"We play the game I bought," he motions with a sly grin.

"Did you go out to town earlier today?" I raise an eyebrow.

"Yeah. What else am I suppose to do? I can just sit here and do my lessons all day; my tutor's sick."

"I know your tutor's sick," I roll my eyes, "Just-what did you buy?" I push myself off the bed, curious of the small DVD box he held. I form a sly grin as I realize it's a shooting game, a shooting game that I can beat my brother at any day.

"Play?"

"Looks interesting," I murmur, "But what the hell is the title? Deadman's Play, really? Couldn't come up with a better one?"

"Ah, I don't think so... Made me laugh a bit when I saw it..."

"Alright," I breathe, come on, let's go over and play." He smirks gleefully as I brush past him, still clutching the game, and we both pad our way quietly down the stares and into my den. Jared gazes around, brushing his hair from his eyes as he sees the collection of butterflies on the wall that he had always found absolutely fascinating.

He tugs at my shirt before his hands move quickly before running swiftly up the stairs without making a sound. "Gonna get some food."

As he does so, I turn on my TV and PlayStation, before the disc is loaded into the system. A few minutes later, some plastic ruffles just at the top of the steps, indicating Jared's arrival with a bag of chips, some Dr. Peppers, and then beef jerky. God is he obsessed with beef jerky.

"Thanks," I mutter before opening a can with a slice of metal, the soda sizzling as I drink it. He does the same, watching as the game contents load before his hands move again.

"So... Is Beck going to come over sometime?" he asks with a bitter look in his eyes.

"I don't think so," I answer grimly, "You just want to try and dye his hair again don't you?" My eyes roll, head shaking as I see his vigorous nods.

"You two going to split?" he cautiously signs. I nod slowly, me gaze dropping before I see him ask another question out of the corner of my eye. "But there's someone else isn't there?"

My eyebrows knit together as my eyes flicker towards his, fighting a blaring battle I know I can't win. His eyes, like Tori's, know how to look inside far too easily for my liking. "And what makes you say that?"

"Your eyes still glimmer," he shrugs, his head turning at the screen. "Now enough talk, let's play!"

"But I'm the one always doing the talking!" I grin dryly.

"That line is over used..."

"I know it is," I mumble, "But it's the only one that works."

-0-

I hear my brother's buttons mash as I stare blankly at the screen, a small smile hinting as I see two characters fighting to the death. One of them, death, is just everywhere while mine, a little small dwarf with a mask and scissors, stands around, lazily firing flames at Jared. After a few minutes, death is seen drowning in flames while I smirk at my brother, who let out a low, cracked hiss. "Beat you."

"Yeah, but now it's twelve to fifteen," he signs with a victorious smirk.

"Twelve to fourteen, remember," I bitterly remind, "My controller died the second round."

"Still beating you," he shrugs.

My phone vibrates on the couch and I groan, pulling it in my grasp. It's Beck.

Beck: Want to come over 2morrow night?

Jade: Don't you have the Gorilla Club to go to with Vega?

I punch in lividly.

Beck: Sure. Are you still jealous, really?

Jade: I can't anyway. My brother's tutor's sick.

Beck: Can't you just, you know, sneak out and you'll be back once we're done.

Jade: No.

I feel the phone vibrate again although I'm already switching it off. However, I grab my pear-phone to check the time. "Oh God, it's 10:17. We got to go to bed," I mutter.

"One more round?" Jared pouts.

"No," I shake my head, "We got to go to bed." And so, a few minutes later, we're up the stairs, PlayStation switched off, and in the bathroom. We both look lazily at ourselves, some bags under our eyes as we foam at the mouth before water rinses it out. Jared slinks out the door first, heading to his room, closing his door with no sound.

As I spit the last of the mint paste out of my mouth, I lumber over to my room, pulling my shirt over my head before growling at my phone which vibrated against the bed sheets. I snatch it from my bed before I hear a soft knock on my door, "Yeah?"

Jared stands at the frame, his hands moving slowly as he yawns. "Good night."

"God be with you so the bed bugs don't eat your face off," I smirk, laughing slightly as he rolls his eyes, grinning as well.

"Pancakes tomorrow?"

"French toast?" He looks up at the ceiling for a moment before nodding, giving a thumbs up. He closes the door swiftly, leaving me in the moonlit bathed room in a comfortable silence. That's what this house always is whenever I'm not talking. It's dead silent. This grey Victorian manor seems to force everything to remain as quiet as the grave, even the inhabitants stuck in here for days on end, 24/7 except for the few days of the week like today when he 'sneaks' out.

I groan as I rib my pants off, which ended up being a battle in the near darkness. My body lands softly on the cool sheets as my eyes scan around the room. Desk, bookshelf, wardrobe, nightstands, I began to not care. Tugging the sheets to my shoulders, I close my eyes softly before opening them again as my phone vibrated once more.

My hands fumble around the sheets and I open up my messages after a few clicks. I roll my eyes as I read what I had forgotten to read a few minutes prior.

Beck: Oh come on.

Beck: Jade?

Beck: Are you there?

The phone dims until it is completely off and I set it down on the nightstand to the right. I never respond as I fell asleep, seeing only black in my dreams tonight.

Okay, so what do you think? I mean I'll continue anyway but just want to know. Anyway, I think I got past the writer's block and I'm kind of glad I had it. It looks a lot better than what it was before; lot more 'meat' as detail.

Hope you enjoyed! :)