I place two fingers on my lips, brows drawing together in confusion as I try to comprehend the emotions whirling in my stomach—or lack, thereof. Kissing Beck was… definitely not what I expected, mostly because I felt nothing, even now, standing inside the girl's bathroom, trying to recall the way his mouth pressed against mine during Improv class, the way I felt absolutely nothing. Odd, indeed.

I don't feel all tingly inside. I blink my eyes several times. Nothing. No emotions. No feelings. No gushing, no blushing, no overly-flustered Tori Vega.

I allow my shoulders to rise and fall in a shrug, watching my reflection on the mirror before turning on the faucet and washing my hands, the ice-cold water running briskly through my fingers, thinking about how normal kissing Beck felt, and not the good kind. It felt… boring. No sparks nor fireworks. The minute I felt his lips touch mine, it was like the solution to an illusion. That must be it. The jitters I felt when I first saw Beck—it was only an illusion. He's a "pretty boy", definitely, and I instantly fooled myself into believing he's just my type because of it. Looks like I don't like him, after all.

"You!" I feel someone rip me away from the sink and pin me against the tile wall. My vision goes blurry, and, in my panic, I let out a tiny squeak, a fearful little sound, high-pitched and vulnerable. As my sight clears, I flinch upon seeing Jade's icy, turquoise optics boring into me, making me cringe away, but she holds me strong against the wall, her long, slender fingers gripping my shoulders. "Next time, Vega, you better keep your lips to yourself!"

Her hands move to my collar, grip it as she pulls my body towards hers, and I can't help but gulp in fear, inhaling shakily.

"I'm sorry, J-Jade, I just had—had—" I take a deep, shuddering breath. "It w-won't happen again, I promise!"

"Had to what?" She didn't even let me answer before slamming me back to the wall, the action knocking the oxygen out of my lungs in a gasp. "What, just because you 'promise' automatically means you're off the hook? This isn't some sappy, corny, TV romcom, Vega. This is a horror movie, and you're my next victim."

Fear shoots through me, rushing through my veins, rising in my throat like bile and choking me—or perhaps the sensation is caused by Jade suddenly wrapping her palms around my neck. I've heard rumors that she was violent, I never really thought they were that true, until now. All of a sudden, she's wringing me, eyes burning with the rage, but just as soon as she begins, she stops, and I slip, unable to hold myself up, slumping to the floor as I struggle for breath. The gasps of air I take don't quite reach my lungs, remaining in my throat, and my insides begin to burn, begging for oxygen. I begin to wheeze, tears springing in my eyes, and I clamp my lips together, stopping myself from sobbing out loud.

"Oh, what's this now? Another show of your pathetic acting skills?" I can feel her deathly glare on me, but I ignore it, focus on trying to breathe. From the corner of my vision, I see her kneel down, lean towards me, and I try to move away. My throat constricts even further, and suddenly she's beginning to shake me, sounding more and more frantic. Panic. Worry. Suffocating. I can't breathe right, and my body begins to scream for air, yearn for it. "Hey! Vega, snap out of it!"

I feel a sharp pain on my left cheek just as a resounding crack sounded in the air. Jade had slapped me, and just as she did, my throat opened up. I part my jaws, inhale as oxygen soothed my burning throat, revitalized my entire body, sweet, sweet air. I place a hand on my cold forehead, fingers slightly threaded through my hair as I catch my breath, circles and spots dancing through my vision as my brain finally realizes that I'm breathing again. I look up, expecting to see a furious Goth just waiting to slap me a second time, but instead I see a worried teenager, anxious and ready to flee. Her eyes, those cold, turquoise eyes seem so anxious, a contrast from the fire that they held only seconds ago. I blink, and suddenly she's no longer looking at me. Instead, I find her rummaging through her backpack, which she had dropped when she rammed me straight into the wall. A second later, she pulls out a half-full water bottle. She drops it onto my lap, making it a point to keep her hands away. When I take it in my grasp, she finally settles down into a proper sitting position, legs crossed and arms on her sides.

"Thanks," I rasp, unscrewing the cap and putting my lips to the mouth of the container, only vaguely aware that Jade must've been drinking from the same bottle—and she's offering it to me, of all people. Or maybe she just feels guilty that her physical assault lead to me spiraling into a panic attack. That would explain the worry. I tip the bottle, relief washing over me as the water flows into my mouth, replenishing my body.

"Go on, Vega, finish it. It's not like I need it, anyway." I look up and see that Jade has her arms crossed. She's inspecting the ground to her left, eyes refusing to meet mine, and she appears shy, withdrawn, completely different from her harsh reputation and snarky attitude. The door swings open, revealing a girl who seems just about ready to pee in her pants, and then—"Get the fuck out of the bathroom, gank! Can't you see it's occupied?"

And just like that, the girl dashes back out into the hallways, fearing for her life. I hold back a giggle with a press of my knuckle to my lips.

;

I let out a loud sigh as I hear the door close for a second time. That's the longest I've ever stayed in a bathroom stall, I comment absently as I push out of the tight space. I quickly head over to the sink, turning on the faucet and washing my hands as I let my thoughts wander. Today has been quite interesting—first, Tori wins against Jade, and then she kisses Beck (although I'm still surprised he let her kiss him), she loses her breath (what was the word, hyper—super—ventilation—aw, phooey), and then Jade shows her an act of kindness after assaulting her. "Interesting."

Does this mean Jade has a soft side? I mean, I've known for a long time that Jade isn't that bad, but this is the first time she's actually initiated some act of kindness—to someone who kissed her boyfriend and humiliated her in front of the class, too. I half-expected her to wage war against Tori for doing things, because that's such a Jade thing to do. Jade likes revenge. She likes cutting flowers and snapping at people who try to flirt with Beck. Unicorns are real. Leprechauns are real. Is Jade's soft side real as well?

I let out a tiny giggle. It's the first time someone has ever gotten such a reaction from Jade. The last one to ever experience her kindness was Beck, and that happened way back, when they first gotten into a relationship, when Jade was genuinely infatuated with him. I'm not that stupid. I can tell that things have fallen apart, and they now just do things because they refuse to let go of what they have—or, rather, what they had.

I hook a lock of red hair behind my ear.

"Looks like Project Valentine will commence—whatever commence means," I murmur before skipping out of the bathroom, head on my new mission.

;

A/N – Alright, so, what do you guys think? A new, revised version of Pilot. Tori doesn't realize she has a crush on Jade yet—well, she can feel that she does have a crush on Jade, but she won't acknowledge it until much later. Jade's still her snarky old self with a little added swearing. And Cat? What do you think about smart-yet-still-ditzy Cat? I've always thought that Cat has an inner genius, and I'm using that thought now. Come on, I know we all think Cat's pretty good in the head. She's not dumb! She's our little thinker—and, in this story, our little Cupid, too. By the way… some of you might have noticed that I skipped some episodes—I will get to them as I go along with the revisions! These are all chronological. The perfect example for this is "The Bird Scene", which I have yet to make a chapter for, so that's coming up next! One last thing. Do you guys know the youtubers briaandchrissy/ourlesbianlove (the first one is their skit/song account, the second their daily vlog account)? Well, I have to say, Chrissy looks a lot like Tori Vega/Victoria Justice. Acts like her a little bit, too.

Anyway, tell me what you think! Reviews and comments are always well-appreciated. They spur me on and make me write more frequently. Love lots and I'll see you guys soon! xx