As the bell rang, signaling the end of Sikowitz's class, Tori remained sitting in the chair claimed by Jade, with the back of the chair on the floor. Earlier, before class had started, the goth had been annoyed with Tori for sitting in that chair. When the singer refused to vacate the seat, Jade slowly pushed the chair backwards and placed it on the floor, so that the singer would be facing the ceiling.

Tori had taken it stride, commenting "This is fun!" and "Look at that cool ceiling!" She was relieved that Jade hadn't just kicked her off the chair or thrown the chair down. Instead, the goth had taken great care to rotate the chair slowly, and as a result, Tori was in fact touched by her thoughtfulness, even though her nemesis was still messing with her.

The girl had decided to remain facing the ceiling for the entire class, which Sikowitz had noticed but not protested after Jade explained it was her punishment for sitting in Jade's chair. The singer didn't mind it too much, since she didn't have to worry about paying attention or going up to the stage. In fact, by the end of the class, Tori was a bit tired and so had decided to close and rest her eyes for a bit.

A few minutes after class had let out, everyone except Tori and Jade had left the room, including Sikowitz, who preferred to let the two girls work this out on their own. Since it was the last class of the day, Tori wanted to keep resting for a bit before finally getting up, as she had gotten relatively comfortable in her seat, despite some soreness in her back, and knew it would be awkward to get up from her weird position.

Jade considered walking out as well, but she decided to check up on Tori to see why she hadn't gotten up yet. The goth stood with her feet close to the singer's head and leaned down with her hands on her knees. She asked in an insistent tone, "Hey Vega, why are you still here?"

Jade's voice caused Tori to open her eyes, and she turned towards it to be greeted by the sight of the girl's combat boots. Tori then looked up until her eyes reached Jade' face, at which point she realized that the other girl had asked her a question.

Tori was still feeling brave after openly defying her nemesis and accepting the resulting mild punishment, so she gave Jade a playful smile before answering, "Oh, I was just resting my eyes a bit. I have to say, Jade, this is a very comfortable chair, so thanks for letting me stay in it!"

The goth was a bit annoyed at Tori for sassing her, so she tried to think of a way to continue tormenting the smirking girl at her feet. She had thought that Tori would eventually right herself and the chair soon after class started, but instead she had steadfastly remained as Jade had left her. Jade could not let Tori win their little game.

Jade then lifted her foot and gently kicked Tori's shoulder with her boot, asking her with a mocking smirk, "I know my chair is great, but do you really like being on the ground this much?"

Tori was relieved that the other girl was still in a playful mood instead of an angry one. The singer gave the girl above her a teasing grin before countering, "I don't mind being on the ground as long as I get a good view!" Her tone bordered on flirty, as she allowed her eyes to travel from Jade's feet to her face.

The goth was a bit taken aback by Tori's response. Jade had made a couple of flirtatious comments to the girl in the past, generally in an attempt to mess with her, but this was the first time that Tori had done the same to her. Nevertheless, despite her surprise, Jade was up to the challenge. She gave the girl a genuine smile and countered in an alluring tone, "Oh really? Well, Tori, if you want to get a better view, you might want to get up!"

Although somewhat used to Jade making such comments, Tori could not help but blush a little at the girl's tone. Although her back was a bit sore and though she did want to get up, the singer figured that when she stood up, Jade would soon exit the classroom and leave her alone. Tori wanted to play her game with the goth a bit longer, so instead of taking the girl's advice, she instead responded, "Great idea, Jade! Would you mind helping me get up, since you were the one who placed me down here?"

Jade immediately smirked, having expected the singer to ask for her help. The goth wasn't entirely opposed to helping the girl up, but she wanted to have a little fun and make her work for it. She thus stared down into Tori's brown eyes and ordered her, in a somewhat seductive voice, "Beg me!" Jade's smirk widened as she watched the girl's eyes widen in reaction.

Tori experienced a weird feeling upon hearing Jade's command, and her face reddened a bit further. However, the singer had heard that line from the girl above her before, so she was not entirely unprepared. That time, Tori had responded by begging in an annoyed, whiny tone, but this time would be different. She looked up into Jade's teal eyes with her best impression of puppy dog eyes, clasped her hands together above her sternum, and smiled sweetly at the goth, begging, "Jade, could you pleeease help me get up off this overturned chair?"

The goth was a bit unprepared for Tori to simply comply with her order without complaint. Deciding that Tori's response was sufficient, Jade continued smirking down at the girl and mockingly praised her, "Good girl!" She then walked around to stand in front of the chair, facing Tori's legs, which were still up in the air against the seat of the chair. She placed her hands under the girl's legs, between her knees and the tops of her brown boots, and gently lifted them slightly off the edge of the seat.

Tori realized what Jade was going to do, so she kept her arms by her sides, gripping the chair for support, and allowed Jade to rotate her body. The singer gradually sat up as the other girl slowly turned her legs to the right side of the back of the chair.

Once Jade was done turning Tori, the singer was sitting up on the back of the chair, using her hands for support, and her knees were bent over the edge of the chair, still held in Jade's hands. As Jade released the girl's legs and stood back up to her full height, leaving Tori sitting upright on the back of the chair, Tori smirked up at her and teasingly asked, "So, was my begging good enough for you?"

At that moment, Jade found Tori very cute and felt the urge to reward her. The goth gave her a small smile, leaned back down, and patted Tori's head a few times as she conceded, "It was all right." Her eyes then traveled over Tori's still sitting form, and she continued by asking, "So, can you get up the rest of the way, or do you still need my help?" Jade had secretly enjoyed moving the singer's body, and she hoped that Tori would request her aid again.

Tori greatly enjoyed being praised by the goth, even if the other girl did so in a somewhat patronizing manner. Even when Jade was friendly to her, she always teased and mocked her, so it was pretty rare and special for Tori to hear compliments from the goth. As the standing girl had sort of offered to continue helping her up, Tori answered Jade's question with a playful smile, "Well, since you so kindly offered, Jade, I would love some more help getting up!"

Jade crossed her arms and gazed down at the seated girl, contemplating her request. She responded, "Hmm, I don't know Tori, I already helped you more than I usually do, and even you should be able to stand up on your own without someone else's help. Besides, if I do help you again, what's in it for me?"

The singer rested her hands on her knees and looked up at Jade. She thought a bit about what to offer, but instead decided to reply in a flirty tone, "How about you tell me what you want, and I'll see if I can give it to you?"

The goth rolled her eyes, placed her hands on her hips, and gave Tori a mocking smirk, instantly responding, "That's no fun, Vega! Make me an offer I can't refuse!" Jade couldn't really think of anything to request at that moment, and she was eager to hear what the singer would offer her.

Tori gave Jade a wide grin as she thought of the perfect thing to offer. The singer looked up and replied, "All right, Jade. If you help me stand up, I'll give you a hug!" She wasn't sure if Jade would accept, but Tori hoped she would. She had really enjoyed the two times Jade had hugged her in the past, even if for one of those times, Jade had squeezed her way too tight on purpose and made them fall onto the ground.

Jade's face reddened a bit at Tori's enthusiastic suggestion. Although she hated to admit it, the goth also enjoyed hugging Tori. The singer's hugs had always been warm and comforting, even when the two girls hadn't had the closest relationship. Jade decided to accept Tori's offer, though with a cheeky response, "All right, but only because I want to!"

The singer grinned at Jade's admission that she wanted to hug her. Tori held out her hand, but Jade decided to grab her wrist instead of her hand. The singer grabbed Jade's wrist and used her free hand to push herself up, and soon Tori was standing up in front of Jade. The singer's back remained sore, but Tori was grateful for the opportunity to finally stretch her legs.

On her way up, Tori's hand managed to slip into Jade's, so the two girls were now facing each other while holding hands. Tori gave the goth's hand a quick squeeze before letting go. Now that both of the singer's hands were free, she gleefully held out her arms and told Jade, "Come on, give Tori a squeeze!" while playfully wiggling her hips.

Jade rolled her eyes at the other girl's antics, but smiled and acquiesced, extending her arms and wrapping Tori in an embrace. The singer immediately began rubbing circles into her back, an action that Jade found very pleasant and soothing.

Tori was feeling bold, so she rested her chin on Jade's shoulder and turned to whisper in her ear, "I knew it! You do like my hugs!"

Jade blushed a bit at the girl's teasing, but snarkly whispered back, "Careful Vega, remember what happened the last time you made me hug you?"

The singer giggled at the memory, then smirked and pointed out, still whispering, "You know, Jade, this time Beck isn't here, Sikowitz isn't here, nobody else is here! It's just me and you, so you don't need to pretend that you're not enjoying this!" Tori continued rubbing her hands up and down the goth's back.

The goth sighed, knowing that the other girl was right but not wanting to admit it. She awkwardly patted Tori's back before starting to rub circles as well. The singer immediately felt the tension in her back fading, and she closed her eyes, nuzzling into Jade's neck.

Jade blushed at the other girl's closeness. Taking her cue from the singer, the goth relaxed in Tori's arms and finally relented, admitting out loud, "All right Tori, you win. I don't entirely hate hugging you."

Tori chuckled at Jade's stubbornness and cooed out loud, "Aww, see, that wasn't so hard, was it?" The goth didn't reply, and the girls remained hugging for a while longer. As they finally pulled apart, Tori gently grabbed both of Jade's arms, gave her a wide smile, and told her, "Now that you've admitted you love my hugs, if you ever want a one, I'll be there for you!"

Jade was touched by the girl's offer, but she attempted to keep up some semblance of her facade, replying, "I'll keep that in mind, but don't hold your breath, Tori!"

The singer's smile didn't falter. On the contrary, she laughed, now finding the goth's protestations amusing, and replied, "Okay, well if you do, you know where to find me!"

Tori felt that she'd made a major breakthrough with Jade, who was now finally treating her as a close friend, like she'd always wanted to be. Tori released Jade's arms, picked up her bag from the ground, and righted the fallen chair. Turning to face the goth again, the singer waved and said, "Well Jade, this was really fun! I'll see you tomorrow."

Jade awkwardly waved back and replied, "See ya!" before watching Tori leave the classroom. Almost immediately afterward, the goth picked up her back and finally left the classroom as well.

As she reflected on the events of the past fifteen minutes or so, Jade wondered just when she had developed such a soft spot for Tori. Maybe it was after their play date, when they had awkwardly complimented each other and then sung a wonderful duet together? Or perhaps it was after Tori had refused to kiss Beck, her ex-boyfriend, even though Jade had taken her spot at the Platinum Music Awards?

In any case, Jade found herself not opposed to becoming closer friends with Tori. Or maybe, given the singer's obvious eagerness to be close and affectionate with her, something more.