Pilot
"Please, man, you gotta help me!" A young man begged his friend whilst holding onto his leg.
"No! HELL NO! I'm not doing it, André!" His friend yelled back at him, dragging his friend as he struggled to walk to his car.
These two young men were André Harris and Jason Riley, both being students that are currently attending the prestigious Hollywood Arts High School. It was around that time for the annual Big Showcase at Hollywood Arts, which brings us to why André is currently latched onto Jason's leg like a koala.
Jason had given André a ride to Trina Vega's house, André's assigned partner for the Showcase. Jason really didn't want to go, given that Trina has a crazy crush on him, but he did it anyway since he already finished his part of the Showcase and was just waiting on his partner to call him for rehearsal.
What he didn't expect was for André to try to get him to come inside and mingle with Trina as soon as they arrived.
"Please! We both know that Trina is a Siren inside the body of an Ogre that's really a Banshee!" André yelled, causing Jason to stop and turn to look at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Huh?" He uttered, not even going to attempt to try and make sense of what André just said.
"I don't know, man! Just please come inside! We both know that she'll be a thousand times better to deal with if you're there!" He begged.
"Listen, I--"
Before Jason could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by what sounded like a seal in the middle of giving birth.
"NYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH"
They both paused, looked at the house, back towards each other, and finally back towards the house.
"Nope." Jason said as he started walking back towards his car.
"No, wait! I'll do your homework for a week if you come inside!" André offered desperately.
Jason stopped and looked down at his friend, squinting his eyes as he thought about whether the deal was good enough to willingly spend time with Trina.
"A year." Jason countered.
"A month!" André countered his counter.
"Deal." Jason accepted blankly, shaking André off his foot before walking towards the front door of the Vega residence.
André, seeing that his friend was ready to face the music, picked himself up off the ground and dusted off his clothes before happily following along.
Little did André know that Jason was aiming for a month the whole time...
Jason stepped up to the front door, let out a sigh and begrudgingly knocked. He waited for a few moments, a shiver going up his spine when he heard the familiar clacking of heels approaching the door.
The door opens and he's met with the, sadly, familiar sight of Trina Vega.
"Come i-- JASON?!" Trina screeched as she saw the man of which she fantasizes about daily.
Before he could greet her, Trina panicked and slammed the door in his face.
"Sup..." Jason greeted the front door.
Jason looked towards André, only getting an awkward smile and two thumbs up from his friend.
He definitely should've fought for three months...
As Jason was beating himself over his poor life decisions, Trina was having a complete freak out which was unloaded on the closest person in her vicinity. Her sister, Tori.
"OH. MY. GOD. Do you know who is out there right now?!" Trina asked her sister, who was completely lost.
"The mailman?" Tori asked.
"No! It's Jason Riley!" Trina said, getting no reaction from her sister other than a raised eyebrow.
"Jason Riley?" She repeated, this time getting a shrug.
"One of the best singers in Hollywood Arts? A proctology when it comes to music? And, not to mention, a total dreamboat!" Trina listed, causing Tori to raise another eyebrow.
"He's a what now?" Tori asked, wondering what her dad's doctor had anything to do with this.
"Proctology? Y'know, the guys who are like super amazingly good at something." Trina explained to her, finding absolutely nothing wrong with what she said.
"Do you mean prodigy?" Tori asked.
"Whatever! That is so not the point right now! Didn't you hear me say that he's is right outside?! Outside our door, on our doorstep, breathing in the same oxygen?!" Trina exclaimed, trying to get her sister to see the magnitude of the situation.
Tori rolled her eyes at her sister's dramatic reaction and went to go open the door for the poor boy who got it slammed in his face a minute ago.
"Come on, Trina. It's just a--"
Tori opens the door and saw what she thought was the most handsome guy that she's ever seen in her life.
"guy..." She finished, just choosing to stare at Jason.
Funnily enough, it was the same reaction that Jason was currently having as he laid eyes on the girl who opened the door.
'Whoah...'
'Whoah...'
"Hey." Jason spoke first, giving her a charming smile.
"Hi..." Tori responded, still a little out of it.
"I'm Jason." He introduced himself, putting out his hand for a handshake.
"Vori Tega-- I mean Tori Vega! Yup, Tori Vega. That's my name. The one I was born with. Like everyone... else..." She rambled, trying to not look like an weirdo in front of the handsome guy.
"Um..." Jason hummed, his eyes pointing downward.
Tori looked down and realized that his hand was still held out in front of her. She quickly grabbed his hand and started shaking it. This went on for an uncomfortable amount of time before Jason decided to clear his throat and ask,
"Can I get my hand back now?"
"Huh? Oh!" Tori exclaimed, letting go of his hand.
They stared at each other for a moment, not really knowing where to go with this conversation before Tori was suddenly pushed off to the side.
"I'm Trina!" Said the familiar voice of a banshee as she preened herself in front of him like a peacock.
"I am aware." Jason said, giving her a strained, but polite smile.
"Are you okay?" André asked the girl who was currently laid out on the floor.
"I'm good. Happens more than you think..." She said, picking herself off the floor and dusting off her clothes.
Her answer causes Jason and André to look towards each other with confused faces, but they ultimately decide to leave that can of worms for another day.
"I'm Tori." She introduced herself, extending her hand towards André.
"André. You go to Hollywood Arts too?" He asked, shaking her hand.
"Oh, no, I'm not a performer. Just my sister." Tori answered, pointing her thumb towards Trina.
"Yep. I got the talent, and she got the strong teeth." Trina said as she draped her arm over her sister's shoulder and squished her face.
"You know, she's never had one cavity?" Trina added with a look of genuine befuddlement.
"I try not to brag about it." Said Tori, giving a little shrug.
"Oh, nice piano." André said suddenly.
Jason looked over and saw that there was a Grand Piano over to his left that he didn't notice until André brought it up. André, who couldn't help himself, walked over to the piano and started to play it.
Tori was absolutely stunned at how well André played while Trina didn't seem to be that impressed. Jason wasn't either, but that's only because he's heard and worked with André numerous times before.
As André finished the little melody he was playing, Tori sat down next to him with a big smile.
"Oh my God, you're fantastic." Tori complimented.
"He's okay." Trina said with a roll of her eyes.
All of them just ignored her comment, not really taking her seriously.
Hearing some audible sniffing, everyone turned towards André and saw that he was sniffing the air around him.
"You okay, man?" Jason asked, a little weirded out by what his friend was doing.
"What is..." André trailed off, looking towards Tori.
He grabs Tori's arm, bringing her hand up to his nose and smelling it.
"Fish mold." Tori said blankly.
André immediately let go of her arm, causing it to drop down onto the piano and play a few random keys.
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ToriVega
5 DAYS helping Trina and André rehearse.
Trina's driving me INSANE!
Tori via TwitFlash 5min. ago
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Jason@TheSlap.com: Preaching to the choir
1 min. ago
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André@TheSlap.com: I hear ya
2 min. ago
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DanWarp: Robin Rox!
3 min. ago
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HungryGirl: Cherry is a girl flavor. Lime is a boy flavor. Who agrees?!?
4 min. ago
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"So how well did you do on your project?" Jason asked Tori as she got a pitcher of lemonade out of the fridge.
"Project?" Tori asked, confused as to what project he was referring to.
"The Mold Bush?" Jason said, reminding her of the time when he first came here.
"Oh, yeah! We got a B-. Apparently we had to be a little bit more descriptive than just putting "mushy" and "smelly"." She told him, putting the pitcher on the counter and using air quotes.
Jason chuckled, causing Tori to smile a bit as she took out three green colored glasses from the cabinet and poured lemonade into each one.
'He's got a cute laugh.' Tori thought to herself as she placed a straw in each glass and handed one of them to Jason.
"Thanks." He said, gratefully accepting the glass.
"No problem." She replied.
Before they could continue the stimulating conversation they were having about Tori's Mold Bush, they were suddenly interrupted by the sound of André yelling from outside.
"Grandma, just-- No, there aren't any rabbis at at my school neither!"
Tori looked towards Jason, wondering if he knew what André was talking about. Judging by the look on his face, it seems like he does.
"Rabbis?" She asked.
"Yeah... That's his grandma. Probably better just to ask him about it." Jason said as he walked in the direction of where André voice came from.
Tori picked up the two glasses on the counter and followed him, hearing the rest of the conversation as she stepped outside.
"No, grandma, listen, there's no way you can drown at my school." André said.
Tori, not expecting that reply, laughed as she handed André his lemonade.
"Look, I gotta-- I gotta-- I got-- I'll call you later!" André exclaimed, taking the phone away from his ear and ending the call.
"Your grandmother's coming to the Big Showcase?" Tori asked, taking a sip of her lemonade.
"Yeah, it's gonna be the first time she's left the house in six years." André told her, causing her to flinch and almost choke on her drink.
"Why?" She asked.
"'Cause the woman's afraid of everything: People, umbrellas, rabbis, bikini, breakfast foods..." He started listing everything she's afraid of.
"So if she saw a rabbis in a bikini eating pancakes..." Tori said, bringing up a weird hypothetical.
"The woman would burst into flames..." André answered, causing Jason to chuckle and Tori to laugh.
"You guys, come on!" They all heard Trina call them from inside.
"Back to rehearsal." Tori told the two boys.
"Let's go." Said André.
As they all walked back into the house, Jason quickly muttered something under his breath that only Tori and André could hear.
"As-I-walk-through-the-valley-of-the-shadow-of-death..."
Tori laughed and pushed Jason's shoulder, causing him to laugh. André looks between the two friends, his eyes becoming wide as he realizes what's going on.
"So? What do you think?" Trina asked, giving them a little twirl.
She was changed into, what looked to be, what she was going to wear for the Big Showcase. A light blue and white dress that Jason thought looked pretty good on her. Although he didn't know why she was wearing it now since this was just a rehearsal.
'Maybe girls need to break in new dresses or... something.' Jason thought.
"Fabulous, right?" Trina asked, looking more in Jason's direction, but he just turned his attention to his lemonade that grew really interesting all of a sudden.
"You really need to wear that, just to rehearse?" Tori asked her as she stepped closer to her sister.
'Or maybe not...' Jason thought as he sipped on his lemonade.
Trina smiled at her "naive" little sister, stepping uncomfortably close to her.
"A performer needs to feel the part to be the part." Trina said, emphasizing her words by tapping Tori on the nose.
"I thought we talked about you not tapping my nose anymore." Tori said as she nodded her head at Trina.
Her sister waves it off playfully before saying,
"Okay, we got the comedy stuff down, so let's start with my song."
"And by "your song" I'm guessin' you mean the song that I wrote?" André asked.
"No one cares who wrote the song." Trina said, causing everyone to almost roll their eyes out of their own sockets.
"Now-- take it from "when I make it shine." Trina told him.
André does as she says and starts playing the song from that specific segment.
"When I make it SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINE!!!" Trina sang too loud and horribly off-key, causing André to stop playing the piano and Jason and Tori to wince.
She stops singing and looks toward the others.
"Well?" She asked.
"Do you have any aspirin?" André asked Tori almost immediately.
Tori uncapped a bottle of aspirin, that she seemingly prepared when no one was looking, and dumped a handful in her hand before giving it to André. She looked towards Jason, jiggling the bottle and handing his some when he eventually nodded.
"So how many times has this--"
"A lot." Tori answered, giving him a handful of aspirin.
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ToriVega
ditching school - going to Trina's BIG SHOWCASE
Tori via TwitFlash 5min. ago
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JaxieCat: More cat food please... NOW
2 min. ago
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DanWarp: hates blatant self-promotion ;)
2 min. ago
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Jason@TheSlap.com: Can't wait. See you there.
3 min. ago
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André@TheSlap.com: My grandma is hiding under her bed. Whyyyy?
3 min. ago
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"You're being ridiculous, André" Jason said as he finished tying the tie around his neck.
Jason was staring at himself in the mirror, making sure that the suit he was wearing was perfect before he headed out on stage.
"Ridiculous my butt, I know goo-goo eyes when I see them, and I saw you giving Tori the goo-goo googly eyes." André told him.
"Hold up, show me exactly how he looked at her." Said another voice, this one coming from Jason's best friend and partner in the Big Showcase, Kevin McCallister.
As Trina said, Jason was only one of the prodigies that attended Hollywood Arts. Kevin was the other. While Jason is interested in singing, dancing and song writing, Kevin is more interested in acting and choreography shown on Broadway.
No one can deny that they were both great performers, but they also couldn't deny that they both had strengths the other did not.
Jason's talent for song writing is something that no one else in Hollywood Arts could hope to match. And Kevin's ability to write and direct original plays while also choreographing the singing and dancing is nothing short of phenomenal. But Jason couldn't choreograph anything to save his life, and Kevin can't write a single lyric without it sounding as if it was made by an alcoholic 3rd grader.
These weaknesses were precisely why these two were almost always partnered together when it comes to big productions. They were simply just better together.
"He looked at her like this!" André said to Kevin as his face shifted into what he thought Jason's face looked like when he was with Tori.
Kevin looked at the face André was making a looked over towards Jason with a shocked expression.
"Oh yeah, you definitely got it bad for this girl, man." Kevin told Jason, causing him to roll his eyes.
"What the hell do you know about goo-goo eyes?!" Jason exclaimed defensively.
"He's getting defensive." Kevin said.
"So defensive." André added.
"He's got it bad." Kevin said.
"So bad." André added.
Hearing the ridiculousness that are his friends, Jason rolled his eyes and just decided to ignore them.
"Are you honestly going to tell me that you don't have a thing for Tori?" Asked André.
"I don't have a thing for Tori!" Jason yelled at him.
"So you wouldn't mind if I asked her out on a--"
Before André could get out the last word, Jason suddenly spun around and said,
"Finish that sentence and I'll strangle you with this tie."
André held up his hands in surrender, not wanting to test him. Kevin looked at Jason with a raised eyebrow and gave a little smirk.
"Don't have a thing for her, huh?" He asked like a smartass.
Jason glared at him but ultimately didn't say anything. Kevin is one of the few people who isn't intimidated by him at all.
"Kevin, Jason, you guys are up!"
They turned around and saw Lane there standing behind them.
"Ready for this?" Kevin asked his partner.
Jason didn't answer, only holding out his hand with a smirk. Kevin responded in kind before clasping their hands together, sticking out their thumb and index fingers, before pulling away and doing a explosive fist bump.
"We were born ready." Jason told him.
As they walked out on stage, they saw that the stage had been set to how Kevin wanted. Two long bar tables were positioned right by the stage with a few round tables and stools placed in specific spots. It was specifically set up to look like a bar from the 1850's.
Many people were sitting in the audience, which the duo wouldn't really care about since they've gotten used to performing in front of a large crowd, but Jason was looking for a certain someone that he knew would be here.
Scanning the audience, he found the girl he was looking for almost right in front of him, as she was sat in the second row. Seeing that he was staring, Tori waved shyly to which he responded by tipping his top hat to her.
The lights went off, signaling them to hurry up and get into position. Jason quickly walked over to the bar and pulled up a stool next to Kevin, who was already sat down.
"She's cute." Kevin teased, having saw the girl that Jason seems to be interested in.
"Shut the hell up, McCallister." Jason muttered through gritted teeth.
The lights went on and they quickly turned serious and switched into their characters.
[Greatest Showman - The Other Side]
"I wanna go after the carriage trade. Present legitimate acts, expand our appeal, go after the snobs." Jason said as he popped a peanut into his mouth.
"If only you knew how suffocating they are." Kevin muttered as he fidgeted with his glass of apple juice.
"So come join the circus. You clearly have a flair for show business." Jason said, grabbing Kevin's attention.
"Teach me how to appeal to the highbrows." Jason said.
They both took a shot of apple juice before Kevin asked,
"Are you serious?"
"Mm-hmm." Jason hummed.
"Mr. Riley, I can't just run off and join the circus." Kevin told him.
"Why not? Sounds thrilling, doesn't it?" Jason asked as he tapped the bar twice, signaling the bartender to refill their glasses.
"Let's just say that I find it much more comfortable admiring your show from afar." Kevin said.
Hearing his answer, Jason grew a smile on his face.
"Comfort, the enemy of progress." He said as he threw a peanut into the air and caught it in his mouth.
"Do you understand that just associating with you could cost me my inheritance?" Kevin pointed out as he slid over the shot in front of him over to Jason's side of the bar.
"Oh, it could cost you more than that. You'd be risking everything. But, on the other hand, well, you might just find yourself a free man." Jason said as he slid the shot back over to Kevin.
They both took a shot of apple juice and the music suddenly kicked in. As soon as both of the glasses hit the bar, Jason started to sing.
Right here, right now, I've put the offer out~
I don't wanna chase you down~
I know you see it~
Jason pointed towards Kevin's face and moving it across before putting two fingers on the bar and using them to show as if they are running.
You run with me and I can cut you free~
Out of the drudgery and walls you keep in~
This time Jason mimicked a pair of scissors before tapping the bar twice, causing the bartender to slide over a bottle of apple juice. Jason then proceeded to pour them both another shot.
So trade that typical for somethin' colorful~
And if it's crazy, live a little crazy~
Jason tossed the bottle back towards the bartender before picking his top hat off the bar and placing it back on his head.
You can play it sensible~
A king of conventional~
Or you can risk it all and see~
Jason picked up his shot turned around in his stool, now facing the audience. As soon as they both took another shot, Jason spun Kevin towards the audience and the music finally went on full steam.
Don'tchu wanna get away~
From the same old part you gotta play?~
Cause I got what you need~
So come with me and take a ride~
It'll take you to the other side~
Jason stood up from his stool and adjusted Kevin's suit before flicking a coin towards the bartender to pay for the shots. The bartender then kicks over a chair to Jason, who uses it to step onto a round table and dance atop of it.
'Cause you can do like you do or you can do like me~
Stay in the cage or you finally take the key~
Oh, damn~
Suddenly you're free to fly~
It'll take you to the other side~
The bartender slides another chair so that Jason can hop back down onto the floor. As Jason walked over to the bar, he spun Kevin back around and placed an arm on his shoulder before pouring him another shot.
Now this time it was Kevin's turn to reply.
Okay, my friend~
You wanna cut me in~
Well, I hate to tell you but it just won't happen~
So thanks, but no~
I think I'm good to go~
'Cause I quite enjoy the life you say I'm trapped in~
Kevin took Jason's arm from his shoulder and slid the shot that he poured for him back over to him. He then got up from the bar and walked over to where his coat, scarf and hat where hanging up. He put on the scarf and hat, choosing to let his jacket hang on his arm before walking back over to Jason.
Now, I admire you and that whole show you do~
You're onto somethin'~
Really, it's somethin'~
But I live among the swells~
And we don't pick up peanut shells~
I'll have to leave that up to you~
As Kevin walked towards Jason, he picked up a handful of peanut shells off the bar and squished them in his hand before dropping them on the floor. He walked passed Jason, patting him on the shoulder as he did.
The bartender quickly swept up the shells from the floor with a broom. Kevin took off his scarf and it, along with his jacket, onto the other bar that was on the opposite side of the stage.
Don'tchu know that I'm okay~
With this uptown part I get to play?~
'Cause I got what I need~
And I don't wanna take the ride~
I don't need to see the other side~
Kevin then knocked over a stool and used it to step onto the bar. He started to dance on top of the bar, causing the bartender to push away all the bottles and glasses out of the way before he stepped on them.
So go and do like you do~
I'm good to do like me~
Ain't in a cage so I don't need to take the key~
Oh, damn~
Can'tchu see I'm doin' fine?
I don't need to see the other side~
Kevin hopped off the bar onto a stool and then to the ground, heading towards the other bar where he threw his jacket and scarf. The bartender placed the shots that Jason had poured earlier in front of him and Jason quickly picked them up before following Kevin to the other bar.
Jason: Now, is this really how you'd like to spend your days?
Whiskey, misery and parties and plays~
Kevin: If I were mixed up with you~
I'd be the talk of the town~
Disgraced and disowned, another one of the clowns~
Jason: But you would finally live a little~
Finally laugh a little~
Just let me give you the freedom to dream~
And it'll wake you up~
And cure your aching~
Take your walls and start 'em breaking~
Now that's a deal that seems worth taking~
But I guess I'll leave that up to you~
They both took another shot before Kevin decided that he was going to leave. But as Jason sang his next lines, Kevin slowed down and was honestly considering the proposal that Jason was offering. A smile grew on his face before he turned around and looked towards Jason to negotiate the terms.
Kevin: Well, it's intriguing~
But to go would cost me greatly~
So what percentage of the show would I be taking?~
Jason glanced at the bartender and tapped on the bar twice, sending the him to find and place multiple shot glasses out onto the bar.
Jason: Well, fair enough~
You'd want a piece of all the action~
I'd give you seven, we could shake and make it happen~
Kevin: I wasn't born this morning~
Eighteen would be just fine~
Jason: Why not just go ahead and ask for nickels on the dime?~
Kevin: Fifteen~
Jason: I'd do eight~
Kevin: Twelve~
Jason: Maybe nine~
Kevin: Ten~
Kevin crossed his arms, signaling that he won't go any lower. They both had a stare off with Jason debating if it was worth it or not.
As they had this stare off, the bartender tapped on the bar and Jason looked over and realized that he needed to pay. He felt around his pockets but couldn't find anymore cash, so Kevin grabbed a few bills and placed it on the bar.
"Sir, it looks like you have yourself a junior partner." Kevin told Jason as he extended his hand towards him.
Jason ignored the hand, instead going to pick up two shots off the bar.
"What I have is an overcompensated apprentice." He said as he handed Kevin one of the shots.
They both down the shot at the same time before singing together harmoniously. As they switched between vocals, they each took a shot off the bar and downed it.
Both: Don'tchu wanna get away?~
To a--~
Kevin: Whole~
Jason: New~
Both: Part you're gonna play~
Kevin: 'Cause I got~
Jason: What you need~
Both: So come with me and take a ride~
To the other side~
They both picked up their hats and jackets off the bar and started to dance on the stage and slowly make their way up the stairs.
Jason: So if you do like I do~
So if you do like me~
Both: Forget the cage~
'Cause we know how to make the key~
Oh, damn~
Suddenly we're free to fly~
We're goin' to the other side~
Kevin: So if you do like I do~
Jason: To the other side~
Kevin: So if you do like me~
Jason: Goin' to the other side~
Kevin: 'Cause if you do~
Both: We're goin' to the other side~
We're goin' to the other side~
They finally reached the top of the stairs and off took their top hats, pointing them towards the audience for a final crescendo. With the song over, the audience gave them a standing ovation and an overwhelming amount of applause.
They both looked at each other before bowing towards the audience and leaving the stage. As they left the audience's view, the two boys pulled each other into a bro hug and laughed together.
"What'd I tell you, man? Born ready." Jason told him.
"Yeah, yeah. By the way, were you... singing a little better than usual?" Kevin asked curiously.
"I... sang how I usually do..." Jason answered, a little confused by what he meant.
"I could've sworn that you put more emotion into it. Almost as if you were, oh, I don't know, trying to impress someone." Kevin teasingly speculated.
"Don't..." Jason groaned.
"Maybe I should ask that girl to come to our rehearsals too. You might actually put your all into it if she was watching." Kevin said, nudging Jason in his side.
"Thin ice, McCallister. Real thin ice." Jason warned him.
Before Kevin could reply, someone called out to the both of them.
"Guys!"
They turned and saw Beck, one of their closest friends that also played the bartender when they where performing.
"You guys killed it." He said as he dapped up the both of them.
"Couldn't have done it without our continuous supply of apple juice." Kevin told him.
"Mhm. Beck Oliver. Close friend and apple juice supplier." Jason joked.
"Anytime guys. I'm gonna go--
Beck was cut off when they all suddenly heard a loud screaming and incoherent babbling coming from backstage.
"Change..." Beck said, finishing his sentence.
"I didn't understand a word that was said, but I'd recognize the sound of that screeching anywhere." Jason said as his face scrunched up.
"Wait, you mean that screeching is--"
Kevin was cut off by yet another screech, this one being louder than the first.
"Yeah, that's definitely Trina. Her voice travels through walls..." Jason groaned.
"Should we go and see what's up?" Beck asked the two.
"Yeah, we probably should." Kevin sighed.
"Or..." Jason spoke up.
"We could just... not." He added, looking on at the two.
They both looked at him with a blank stare before he sighed and walked towards the direction of the screaming.
"It was worth a shot..."
They all followed the noise, seeing a group of people surrounding Trina as she screamed out, "MAH TONG!" Which was then followed by more incoherent noises.
They pushed through the crowd, trying to see what the big deal was before finally laying eyes on Trina, who's tongue was too big to fit in her mouth.
"Holy shit!" Jason exclaimed, seeing Trina's enlarged tongue.
"What the hell happened to your tongue?!" Beck asked, getting no answer that he could understand.
"Yeah, that's on me. Probably should've expected that..." Beck muttered.
"Dude, she looks like that Pokémon. What's it called... Licka... Licka-something?" Jason said, trying to think of the answer that was on the tip of his tongue.
"Lickitung?" Sinjin said from the sidelines.
"Yeah, that!" Jason exclaimed, pointing over to Sinjin before getting hit in the back of the head by Kevin.
"Really? You're making jokes now? In front of her face?" Kevin asked as he rolled his eyes at his impolite friend.
"Would you rather me do it behind her back?" Jason asked blankly.
Kevin looked at him for a second, not really sure on how to answer that question before deciding to just not give him an answer at all.
"There she is." The group heard Lane as he pointed Trina's family over to where she is.
"Trina!" Her mom yelled out.
"What happened." Asked her dad.
"Un thins ong ith ah ung!" Trina yelled out, pointing towards her enlarged tongue.
"Oh my God, it's huge!" Tori exclaimed.
"Umbah-ee oo thumpthin!" Trina shouted.
"Does anybody know how this happened?" The school nurse asked.
She looked around at everyone surrounding the girl, but no one knew anything until Tori suddenly pointed towards Trina and shouted,
"The Chinese herb gargle!"
"Eth! Eth!" Trina said, pointing towards her sister and her nose at the same time, signaling that she was "on the nose".
"Wait, what are you talking about?" Her father asked.
"She found some website that shows you how to make a special Chinese herb gargle that's suppose to help you sing better." Tori explained.
"Well, she must have had an allergic reaction to it." The nurse said.
"Ah outh eels oooge!" Trina mumbled, looking towards her mother in panic.
"Will she be okay?" Her mother asked the nurse.
"Well, her tongue is obviously engorged and--" The nurse started to explain, but she cut herself short when she felt Trina's tongue.
"Oh, it's throbbing erratically." The nurse said, squinting her eyes and looking closer at Trina's tongue.
"Throbbing erratically?!" Tori asked.
"Ih ithz obbin awaddakwee!" Trina shouted as she grabbed her tongue and felt it throbbing erratically.
"Any way she'll be able to perform today?" Lane asked the nurse.
"Of course not." The nurse told him.
To say that Trina didn't like that answer would be an understatement.
"Eth ah an?! I thwea da od ah an!" Trina yelled, grabbing the nurse by her shoulders.
"Stop talking! Your tongue could burst!" The nurse yelled at the girl.
The nurse's sudden warning caused a large amount of the group to look at her with wide eyes. Hearing what she said, Jason, Beck and Kevin all looked at each other before taking a few precautionary steps back to avoid the possible splash zone.
Trina let out a little squeal, obviously not fond of the possibility that her tongue could pop like a balloon at any moment. Trina looked towards her parents for some type of hope that she could go on to perform, but they had no such news.
"I'm sorry, sweetie." Her mother said.
"Next year." Added her father.
Trina was extremely disappointed, but thankfully she didn't really have the time to express her disappointment before the nurse said,
"I'm gonna take her over there and massage her tongue."
"Massage ma tong?" Trina asked as the nurse took her hand and pulled her away.
Her parents followed her to wherever the nurse was taking her, but Tori stuck around backstage.
"I guess my grandma came here for nothin'" André said with a little disappointment as he crossed his arms.
"Wait-- does anyone else know Trina's part?" Lane asked.
Everyone looked around, not finding anybody that knew Trina's part until André surprisingly pointed towards Tori and said,
"Her sister does."
"Me sister?" Tori asked, pointing towards herself as she looked at André with shock.
"You sister." Jason confirmed, causing Tori to look at him with the same shocked expression.
"No, no, no, no, I just helped them rehearse. I'm not even a student here. I couldn't go onstage--" Tori turned towards Lane, trying to come up with an excuse before being dragged to the side by André.
"You know this whole thing inside and out-- the song, the choreography-- you can do this, come on." André begged.
"Uh-uh." Tori refused.
"She said she'll do it!" André shouted for everyone to hear, causing them to cheer.
"No. No, I did not say I would do it! What are you talking about--"
"Whoa, whoa, she can't go on stage wearing that." Lane said, pointing towards Tori's outfit and cutting off whatever complaint she was going to tell André.
"Excuse me." Tori said, a little offended,
"I think she looks kinda cute." Jason said with a shrug.
"Really?" Tori asked, looking at him with goo-goo eyes before suddenly realizing something and pointing towards Jason.
"Hey, Jason knows the song! He was there too! Why can't he do it?" Tori said.
"He already went up on stage. A student can only go up once every showcase. If he went twice then that would be unfair for the rest of the students in the showcase." Lane told her before pointing towards another student with a red shirt.
"Go get her something cool to wear!" He shouted, making the student run off to wardrobe.
"I am not going, okay?" Tori said.
"Bring her." Lane told André before hurriedly walking off with most of the students.
André did so, dragging Tori back towards wardrobe despite her protests.
"What just happened?" Beck asked.
"I think we just witnessed a kidnapping...?" Jason said with a raised eyebrow, although he was a little unsure on whether or not this would qualify.
Tori suddenly ran back to where they were standing and looked around the room. She saw Jason and immediately ran towards him, grabbing onto his shirt.
"Jason, please, you have--"
André suddenly came out of nowhere and grabbed Tori by her midsection, trying to drag her back. Tori, seeing that it was her only hope, wrapped her arms around Jason's neck and held onto him as if her life depended on it.
André, seeing as her couldn't drag her back, decided to just pick her up and try carrying her, but she wouldn't let go of Jason. Seeing that their friend was being dragged along with them, Beck and Kevin grabbed onto Tori's arms and forcefully pulled them off of Jason's neck.
André proceeded to carry Tori to the back while Beck and Kevin checked on their friend, who was hunched over and rubbing his neck.
"You okay?" Beck asked.
"Today has been full of surprises, but at least it's not boring..." Jason commented as he stood up straight.
A few moments went by before they saw André walking back towards them.
"Hey guys." He greeted.
"Sup. How's Tori doin'?" Jason asked, to which Kevin smirks.
"Well, she bit one of the wardrobe girls." André told them.
"Ouch..." Beck winced.
"Uh-huh. Safe to say that she really doesn't want to go up there." André said.
"Ya think?! You nearly took my head off trying to get her off me." Jason told him, still massaging the back of his neck.
"At least now you know she's clingy." André said with a shrug and lighthearted smile.
While his comment got a chuckle out of Kevin and Beck, Jason just squinted his eyes and didn't say a word.
"C'mon, you really didn't like her clinging to you like a Koala?" Kevin asked.
"Hey, I didn't say all that now." Jason replied.
They all rolled their eyes at him, even Beck, who had no idea what was going on with Jason and that girl from earlier.
"Shouldn't you be getting ready?" Beck asked André, who realized that Beck had a point.
"Yeah, I really should." Said André before sprinting towards the stage.
"This is either gonna be a nice surprise or an absolute disaster." Kevin said as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Want to go find out which it is?" Jason asked, smirking at the two boys beside him before walking towards the stage.
Kevin and Beck looked towards each other for a moment before shrugging and following after him. They stood near the stage, waiting for Tori to walk out when they felt some people come up from behind them.
"Hey, guys." Robbie greeted.
Robbie Shapiro. Typical cliché unpopular kid who just so happens to carry around a really weird puppet named, Rex.
"Sup, Robbie." Kevin said.
"You guys see Trina's sister?" He asked.
"She's hot." Rex added.
Robbie nodded in agreement with his puppet, which was pretty ignored by the group. Rex wasn't a normal-- Well, he is a normal--
They honestly had no idea what the deal was with Rex. Sometimes they think that he's a regular puppet, but the some of the things that he did didn't seem normal at all.
"Careful, some strong competition already has a head start." Beck said as he patted Jason on the shoulder.
"Seriously?! Can't you leave some for the rest of us?!" Rex exclaimed when he put two and two together.
While he was a bit over dramatic, Rex did have a point. Jason had a bit of a reputation in school for being the resident heart breaker. Always dating a girl and always breaking things off before they had a chance to be official. It was never his intention to become "that guy", he actually really hates it when he has to break a girl's heart, but he never really clicked with any of the girls he's dated in the past.
"Shut your trap, you dumbass puppet." Jason said without even looking back at him.
"Don't call him a puppet--"
""""It's an offensive term!"""" The group all said at the same time, having heard Robbie say it for the third time just today.
"Wait, what's that noise?" Kevin asked.
They all shut up and heard what sounded like high pitched squeaking.
"Let go of me! What are you doing? No, no, no, no--"
Jason looked on stage and saw Tori being physically pushed up the stairs by Lane before she tries to make a run for it backstage.
"I said let go of me, please!"
She didn't make it very far...
"No, no, please!"
Lane finally managed to push her up the stairs completely and she froze like a deer in headlights when she saw the audience. Looking around, she saw André giving her a nod while mouthing "It's okay, you got it."
She looked towards her left and saw Jason standing there, giving her a reassuring smile.
Once he saw that she wasn't going to run, André started playing the piano. Suddenly, Trina pushed her way through the group of boys and began to watch her sister from the sidelines.
"I thought your tongue was going to explode?" Kevin asked.
Trina went to answer, but Kevin just raised up a hand when he realized what he just did.
"Nevermind."
All the stage lights went off before ambient lights shone on Tori, only illuminating her for the audience.
Hear I am~
Once again~
Feelin' lost~
But now and then~
I breathe it in~
To let it go~
Tori was moving her arms around, moving them in the direction of André before motioning for him to speed up the tempo. He nodded and motioned for the others he was playing with to do the same.
And you don't know~
Where you are now~
Or what it'll come to~
If only somebody could hear~
Jason smiled as he saw Tori was becoming more confident and even starting to dance to a small degree.
When you figure out how~
You're lost in the moment~
You disappear~
Now everything was ramping up. Her confidence, her dancing, the speed of the song. Everyone was shocked by how well she was singing, especially Trina. The background dancer all came on stage, lifting Tori up and placing her at the bottom of the stairs.
You don't have to be afraid to put your dream in action~
You're never gonna fade~
You'll be the main attraction~
Not a fantasy~
Just remember me~
When it turns out right~
Cause you know that if you live in your imagination~
Tomorrow you'll be everybody's fascination~
In my victory~
Just remember~
When I make it shine~
The shy girl that first went up there was gone and was now dancing in sync with the background dancers as if this wasn't her first time on stage.
Everyone backstage was dancing along as well. Trina was dancing uncomfortably close to Jason and trying to get touchy when Jason swapped himself with Robbie as soon as she turned around.
You don't have to be afraid to put your dream in action~
You're never gonna fade~
You'll be the main attraction~
Not a fantasy~
Just remember me~
When it turns out right~
'Cause you know that if you live in your imagination~
Tomorrow you'll be everybody's fascination~
In my victory~
Just remember me~
When I make it shine~
The song ended and it was met with overwhelming applause from the audience. Tori ran down the stairs, looking over at Jason as he rushed over and gave her a hug.
It wasn't long until everyone backstage was running up and congratulating her as well, including her parents.
"Oh my God, sweetie!" Her mom yelled as she hugged her.
"That was incredible!" Yelled her dad when they did the same thing.
"Excuse me." Principle Eichner said as he pushed through the crowd to get to Tori.
"Who are you?" He asked, smiling at the girl.
"I'm Tori Vega. Who are you?" Tori answered before asking him the same question.
"This is Mr. Eichner, our principal." Lane answered her.
"You don't go to school here?" Eichner asked.
"No, I just--"
Eichner raised his hands, stopping her from speaking any further.
"Do you want to?" He asked, causing everyone to look on in shock.
"Me?" Tori asked.
"Mm-hmm." He hummed, nodding his head.
"Uh.. Well, should I?" Tori asked, looking around at everyone.
Everyone let out a resounding yes, not even arguing that she belongs here.
"But the kids who go here are all like crazy talented." She argued.
"Yeah, so are you." André pointed out.
"But what if I'm not good enough?" Tori asked, getting everyone to try and talk over each other about how good she is.
André and Jason looked at each other before walking away from the crowd. Jason stood in front of the curtain while André went over, pushed Sinjin out of the way and opened the curtains back up.
The crowd's arguing quickly dissipated after realizing that the audience could see them.
"Hey!" André yelled, getting the audience's attention.
"Hey, André!" His grandmother yelled, shrinking in her seat when she got looks from crowd.
Jason walked back and grabbed Tori by the hand, leading her out in front so that the audience could see her.
"She thinks that she's not good enough to go to school here! Make some noise if you think that that's absolutely insane!" Jason yelled out, getting a large amount of cheers and applause as a response.
Jason and André clapped along with them, causing Tori a little embarrassment as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.
"So?" Jason asked, looking at her hopefully.
Tori tried to act cool, but couldn't contain her excitement at all and yelled "Okay!" before jumping on Jason and giving him tight a hug.
Hearing that she accepted, everyone started clapping for the new student that was going to be attending Hollywood Arts.
-----------------------------------------
Tori Vega:
My 1st day at Hollywood Arts. EPIC!!!!
Mood = Freaking 😧
-----------------------------------------
Tori and Trina walked through the front doors, seeing the everyday occurrences that would usually happen in Hollywood Arts. Students walking through the hall, going through their lockers, chatting with their friends, dancing to music in the middle of stairs.
"See? It's just a high school." Trina said, trying to calm Tori down as she was freaking out during the entire drive to school.
Tori stared at her sister in disbelief as she motioned all around her, mostly towards the custom lockers and the people dancing on the stairs.
"Uh, this is not just a high school. These kids are all artsy and creative and talented, and I'm just... normal." Tori told her sister dejectedly.
"It's okay." Trina said as she put a hand on Tori's shoulder.
"There's nothing wrong with being average." She continued as if that was supposed to be comforting.
'Yup. Probably should've thought that she was going to take it there.' Tori thought as she gave her sister a thin smile and nodded her head.
"Anyway, you're not alone. I got your back." Trina reassures.
"Okay, so--"
Tori was interrupted by a random girl that had suddenly ran up to Trina.
"Trina! Eric Paulson got his hair straightened!" She told Trina.
"Shut up! Oh my God--" Trina yelled out, walking away from Tori as she talked-- as she freaked out with her friend.
"I'm alone!" Tori yelled out to her sister, but she didn't come back.
Tori let out a sigh, looking around for someone to help her find her class when she found a nice looking girl with red hair that had obviously been dyed.
"Hey, um, can you tell me--"
"Oh my God! You're Tori, right?" The girl exclaimed, interrupting whatever Tori was going to ask her.
"Uh-huh." She replied, a smile adorning her face from being recognized.
"You were so awesome in the Big Showcase." The red-headed girl complimented.
"Aw, thanks." Tori said.
"My name's Cat." The girl told her.
"Like the animal?" Tori pointed out lightheartedly.
"What's that supposed to mean?!" Cat exclaimed, apparently not taking it very well.
"Nothing, I-- I love cats." Tori said, a little shocked and confused by the sudden outburst.
"Me too, they're so cute." Cat said, switching back to her gentle persona before walking away from Tori before she could ask what she wanted to ask.
Tori's face fell as she watched her walk away, but was immediately brightened up when she heard a familiar voice call out to her.
"Hey, Pop Star."
She turned around and saw Jason walking towards her.
"Jason, hey!" She greeted, pulling him into a hug.
'Okay, I guess we hug now.' Jason thought as he returned the hug.
"I'm so glad to see you. Trina just left me here." Tori told him as she pulled away.
"Yeah, sounds like her..." Jason nodded, not surprised by that at all.
"Anyway, little lost?" Jason asked.
"That obvious?" Tori asked him, a little embarrassed.
"Everyone's like that when they first get here, don't worry about it. Let me see your schedule." He said, reaching his hand out.
Tori hands her schedule over to him like he asked and saw that a smile grew on his face when he read what was on it.
"Seems like you're with me for most of the day." He said as he handed her back her schedule.
"What do you mean?" She asked, taking it back.
"We mostly have the same classes. Only ones we don't have together are electives that you're supposed to choose when a new semester starts." He told her.
"So where are we suppose to go if we haven't chosen the electives?" She asked.
"Oh, it's just a free period where you can do whatever." He explained.
"Neat." She said simply, smiling at the fact she has two free periods.
"Don't get your hopes up, Pop Star. It's only for the first couple of weeks until you choose the electives you want. I actually suggest choosing them soon since you'll be stuck with whatever's left that people didn't want." He warned her.
"Good to know. So since you said that I'm with you for most of the day, does that mean that you know where Mr.... Sikowitz' classroom is?" She asked, looking at her schedule to see the name.
"Yeah, sure. Just let me--"
"Hey, Riley. I see you're already trying to heat up the cupcake." A familiar voice sounded off from behind him.
Jason's face turned sour as he put an arm around Tori and started walking her to their class.
"Did that--"
"Later." Jason said.
"But that puppet just--"
"Don't turn around, you'll only encourage it." Jason told her as they walked down the hall.
He led Tori to Sikowitz' classroom, swinging a left at the water fountain before stopping at the second door on the right.
"Here we are." He said, acting as if he was a medieval knight opening the door for his Lady.
Tori laughed at his ridiculousness and entered the classroom, putting her bag near one of the chairs at the front.
"Hey, Ja--"
Tori turned around, not realizing that Kevin had entered the class immediately after her, and running directly into him, causing the coffee he was holding in front of him to spill directly onto his shirt and pants.
"Ah!" Tori exclaimed.
"Oh-kay, thank God that wasn't hot." Kevin commented, not freaking out about it that much.
"Oh my gosh." Tori said, not believing that she just caused that.
"It's fine--"
"No, here-- I think it's coming out." Tori said as she tried and rub the coffee off his shirt with her sleeve.
"I don't think it is." Kevin chuckled, finding her attempt to try and fix things pretty funny.
"You okay, man?" Jason asked, coming up behind him with Beck by his side.
"Yeah, I--"
"Dude, why are you rubbing my boyfriend?" He was interrupted by a voice that he and Jason knew very well.
"Oh shit..." Kevin muttered.
Jason and Beck both winced when they heard Jade's voice. The current situation was definitely not the best time for her to walk in.
'She could not have come in at a worse time if she tried...' Kevin thought as they all turned towards the girl wearing all black, along with having blue highlights in her dark brown hair.
"I just-- I spilled coffee on--"
"Get away from him." Jade told her, not interested in any reason she could have given him.
Kevin, seeing that his girlfriend was a second away from putting Tori in the hospital, went over to her in an attempt to calm her down.
"Hey, calm down. It was just an accident." Kevin said softly, giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"She just spilled some coffee on me, that's all."
It in fact, did not calm her down.
However, before she could do anything about it, Sikowitz entered the classroom through the back door in a panic, screaming out,
"Oh my God, there's a huge fire!"
The class went into a panic filled frenzy, with Cat screaming over all of them. Jason and Kevin had both remained as calm as possible as they grabbed Tori and Jade and were about to walk out of the classroom.
"Kidding, kidding." Sikowitz yelled out, calming everyone down.
"Just wanted to get your blood pumping, which I did-- ha!" He exclaimed, emphasizing his statement with an air thrust.
"All right! Now let's get started-- rumps in chairs." He said.
Everyone proceeded to take their seats. Jason took a seat near the back with Beck, surprising Kevin and André, as they thought he would sit next to Tori. Shrugging it off, Kevin took a seat near Jade, putting his arm around her chair, and André took the seat next to Tori.
"He's our teacher?" Tori asked André.
André just gave her a nod.
"Okay, first, I'd like to introduce our new student, Tori." Sikowitz said, introducing Tori to the class.
A few students clapped, causing Tori to politely wave at them.
"And I'd like to thank Tori for her generous gift of two dollars which she handed me outside this morning. Not necessary, but much appreciated." He added, taking out the two dollars and flaunting it to the class.
"Why'd you give him two dollars?" André asked her.
"I thought he was homeless." She said to him quietly.
"Which I'd also like to point out is a better gift than what Jason and Kevin got me on their first day." Sikowitz added further, looking at the two with squinted eyes.
"In our defense, you looked like you were trying to mug us..." Kevin told him, still a little embarrassed at what they did.
"Touché." Sikowitz said, turning around to look at his board.
"What did they give him?" Tori asked André.
"They called the cops on him." He told her.
"Now, today we're going to continue our study in group improv." Sikowitz told the class.
"Tori, I assume that you're familiar with improv?" He asked.
"No." She said.
"Okay, crash course. Improv-- acting without a script, which means the actors must make up their own actions and dialogue as they perform the scene. Understood?" He asked.
Tori was about to ask a question before being cut off by Sikowitz saying,
"Excellent. Jade, you will captain the first group of the day. Choose your actors."
Jade got up from her seat and walked up to the small stage that was in the front of the class. She looked around at everyone before choosing,
"Cat, Eli, Kevin..."
She said "Kevin" a little flirtatiously.
"And Tori."
Hearing her say Tori's name made Jason facepalm as he said,
"Oh, no..."
Tori looked towards Jason a little frightened before looking at André, who motioned for her to head on up.
"Okay, let's give 'em a place." Sikowitz said.
"Home." Robbie called out.
"Home." Sikowitz repeated, putting it up on the board.
"Ooh, real creative." Rex said sarcastically.
"You be quiet." Robbie told his puppet.
The puppet did not take that too kindly, as he slapped Robbie in the face immediately after he said it. Well... Robbie was the one who moved his arm in the first place, so he sort of slapped himself.
'That dude has issues.' Jason thought as he saw the guy slap himself with his own puppet.
"And now we need a situation." Sikowitz said.
"Big news." André called out.
"André nobody wants to see big nudes." Sikowitz said, not hearing him correctly and causing everyone to turn towards him in confusion.
"News." André corrected.
"Ah, well that's different. Big news." Sikowitz exclaimed, putting it up on the board.
"Uh, why don't you go wait in the hall?" Jade told Tori as she walked a little closer to her.
"Uh, okay." Tori replied.
She walked towards the back door, opening it and stepping out into the hall until she was ready to be called in.
"Okay, at home, big news-- and action." Sikowitz said, walking behind everyone to see it all unfurl from afar.
"Hey, babe, how was work today?" Jade asked Kevin, fully in character.
"Uh... I got fired." Kevin told her.
"Oh." Jade said dejectedly.
"Again?" Eli asked in an annoying high pitched kiddy voice as he and Cat got up from the ground.
"It's okay. I have great news that'll cheer up this whole family." Jade said as she walked towards where Tori was standing.
"What is it?" Cat asked.
Tell us!" Eli exclaimed.
"I went to the animal shelter and got us... a dog." Jade revealed, grabbing Tori by the arm and pulling her to the middle of the stage.
"Goddamnit, Jade..." Jason muttered under his breath.
Tori looked at Jade with widened eyes before looking towards the rest of the class and uncomfortably saying,
"Uh, yep. I'm the new family dog... Woof."
Jason, Beck and André all sighed, feeling sorry that she had to go through this because of Jade's country-wide jealous streak.
"Sikowitz, will you please tell this amateur that dogs can't talk, and that they don't walk on two legs?" Jade said to Sikowitz at first before turning to Tori for the last part.
Jade turned back towards the teacher, seeing him focused on drinking a coconut that he got ahold of somehow.
"Sikowitz!" She yelled, finally getting his attention.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I was sucking the milk out of this coconut." He said, confusing the class.
"But it's true, Tori, if you're going to play a dog, be a dog." He added.
"Hold up, you seriously don't--"
"It's fine." Tori said to Jason before getting down on her hands and knees.
"Woof." She barked, begrudgingly accepting what was happening to her.
"And action." Said Sikowitz.
"Uh, I went to the animal shelter and got us a dog." Jade repeated in character.
Eli and Cat rushed over and crouched down near Tori, petting her hair.
"Wow!"
"Awesome!"
Cat and Eli exclaimed.
Jade also went over to Tori, leaning down and acting as if she's picking something out of her hair.
"Uh-oh, looks like this dog has bugs in her fur." She said.
"Uh, woof?" Tori barked, not happy with the fact that Jade's basically saying that she had fleas.
"Ew!"
"Gross!"
Cat and Eli yelled out in disgust.
"Oh, it's okay. I read on the internet that coffee works great for getting rid of fur bugs." Jade said as she walked over and took someone else's iced coffee from their hands.
"Wait, what?" Kevin asked.
"Jade!" André called out.
"Kevin!" Jason yelled at his friend, knocking him out of his stupor.
Before Jade could pour the coffee on Tori's head, Kevin grabbed the cup of iced coffee from her hands.
"Uh, that seems like a waste of coffee..." he said hesitantly before trying to down the cup.
Jason's face scrunched up as he knew that Kevin absolutely hated the taste of coffee.
As he was drinking, Kevin was able to down a good amount of the beverage before he mistakenly swallowed a bit of ice and started to cough uncomfortably. Alongside that, he started to spaz from the taste of the coffee.
Jade looked at her boyfriend, not at all happy that he just downed almost a full cup of coffee for this new girl, and took the cup out of his hands before dumping the rest of it's contents on her head.
Tori's mouth opened in shock when she felt the cold liquid being poured on her head before flinching at the ice being dumped out after. She stood up, looking at Jade, but couldn't find any words to say.
"What's the prob, dog?" Jade asked.
Tori had enough and ran out the class. Jade smiled looking pleased with herself before Jason stood up and ran after Tori.
Not really knowing where she went off to, Jason just ran out into the hallway hoping to stumble upon her before he heard Tori scream.
He ran to the main entrance, finding Tori on her phone.
"Hey... who you callin'?" He asked.
"Calling my mom so I can tell her I wanna go back to my old school." She told him.
"C'mon, don't do that. Why?" He asked.
"'Cause I don't like having black coffee in my hair." She exclaimed the obvious.
"I don't know, I think your hair looks pretty cute like that." Jason jokingly flirted.
Tori scoffed at the statement, a small smile adorning her face, but it still wasn't enough to convince her to stay.
"Hey, mom, I need you to--"
Jason hurriedly took her phone out of her hand and hung up on her mom.
"Gimme back my mom!" Tori exclaimed.
"Do you really want to quit? I mean, I'm sure I can find some way to keep Jade off your back." Jason said to her.
"It's not just her! It's just-- I don't fit in here with-- all this." Tori said motioning all around her.
Jason sighed and decided to try and comfort Trip by pulling her into a hug. To his surprise, she didn't pull away, instead she accepted the hug and buried her face into his chest.
"C'mon, do you really think that?" He asked.
"Mm-hmm." She hummed, nodding her head.
"I'll admit, this place isn't exactly normal--"
"Oh, ya think?" Tori said, letting out a small chuckle.
Jason chuckled, shaking his head a small bit before continuing on with what he wanted to say.
"But I know that you aren't exactly normal either, pop star. The way that you were on stage... how you sung when everyone was watching... You were perfect."
Tori's stiffened as she felt her heart jump when she heard Jason call her perfect.
"Uh, guys..." Someone said, startling the two.
They pulled away from each other and looked behind them, finding a more than usual awkward looking Robbie standing there.
"Way to ruin the moment." Rex told Robbie.
"Oh, be quiet!" Robbie exclaimed, earning himself another slap.
"Ow!"
"Anyway, Sikowitz wants you both back in class." Rex told the two.
"He asked me to tell them." Robbie exclaimed.
Jason rolled his eyes at them before saying,
"Just give us a--"
"You guys, Sikowitz really wants everybody back in class." Cat said, interrupting Jason as she walked in from around the corner.
"And you really wanted a date to the prom last year, but you didn't get one, did ya?" Rex asked insultingly.
Jason had to admit, that would usually be really funny to him, but he had more pressing matters at the moment.
"Rex!" Robbie exclaimed, surprised at the puppet's ability to roast people.
"Tell your puppet to stop being mean to me!" Cat shouted at Robbie.
"Don't call him a puppet! That's--"
"Okay." Jason groaned as he put his hand over Robbie's mouth.
"Alright listen here, Dumb and Dumber, go back to Sikowitz and tell him that we'll be there in a minute." Jason told the both of them.
"You better hurry." Cat told him as she turned around and walked back to class.
"Yeah." Rex said.
"I was gonna say yeah!" Robbie shouted as he followed behind Cat.
"Just keep it to yourself, I don't want to hear it." Rex told him.
Now that they were alone, Jason turned back towards Tori, who was looking at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Hey, I did agree with you that this school is anything but normal." He said with his hands raised.
Tori rolled her eyes, but she had a smile on her face.
"Listen, I can't tell you what you should do. I also can't say that it'll be boring without you here since we just saw that that would most definitely not be the case..." Jason said, motioning to where Robbie and Cat just walked off.
Tori lets out a laugh, seemingly in better spirits than just a few minutes ago.
"But it'll definitely be a lot better if you stayed." Jason said, giving her a smile before walking back to class.
Tori watched as he left, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as he turned the corner.
"It's true." Cat said, suddenly appearing from out of nowhere.
"It'll be better if I stayed?" Tori asked, a little confused as to why Cat would think that.
"No, that no one asked me to the prom." Cat told her before turning around and going back to class.
Tori let out a sigh, not exactly sure what she should do at this point.
-----------------------------------------
Tori Vega:
Worst day ever.
GOING HOME
Mood = Wrecked 🤕
-----------------------------------------
Tori was sitting on her couch, watching a video of herself performing in the Big Showcase with a sad expression on her face.
Trina walked up to her, taking her earphones out before sitting beside her sister. Tory turned the volume on her laptop down, looking towards her sister to see what she wanted to say.
Tina looked at Tori's laptop, letting a small smile grow on her face when she saw that it was the performance her sister gave.
"Y'know, you're actually not terrible." Trina said, getting a small laugh from Tori.
Tori didn't respond, only pressing the space bar and pausing the video.
"You're really gonna quit Hollywood Arts?" Trina asked.
"What do you think I should do?" Tori asked back.
"I think you should come back." Trina told her.
"Why?" She asked.
"So I won't be known at school as the girl with the lame little sister who quit on her first day." Trina replied, giving her sister a little push.
Tori shook her head and laughed at Trina as she got up and walked towards the stairs. Before she left however, Trina looked back and said,
"And I think you were really good in the Big Showcase." Trina said with genuine sincerity.
"Thanks, Tri." Tori thanked her.
"But I would've been amazing." Trina added before walking up the stairs.
Tori smiled and shook her head at her sister's antics before her face fell as she looked at the screen in front of her.
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Tori Vega is feeling...conflicted.
Mood = Lost 😔
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Jason walked into Sikowitz class the next day, looking for any sign of Tori before letting out a sigh when he saw that she wasn't there.
"Hey, she'll turn up." Kevin said from behind him, giving him a pat on the shoulder before taking a seat at the front.
Not holding his breath, Jason took a seat at the back like always and waited for class to start. He watched as everyone came into class except the one person he hoped would be there.
Sikowitz eventually came in saying something, most likely something ridiculous, but Jason wasn't listening to a word of it.
About twenty minutes into class, the door opened and everyone was surprised to see Tori walk in. Jason and Jade especially, obviously for different reasons.
"Tori, you're back." Sikowitz said, putting his eraser down and turning to face her.
"Have you ever thought about coming in through the window?" He asked, confusing just about everyone.
"No." Tori answered.
"Think about it." He told her.
Tori raised her eyebrows at what he said, but ultimately decided against questioning anything he said.
"Now, sit, sit." He told her.
Tori looked around, seeing an empty seat at the back right next to Jason. She smiled and gave and gave him a little wave, with Jason responding by just smiling at her.
Kevin, André and Beck all stared, smiling when they saw their friend's mood take a serious 180.
"Okay, today we're going to do some alphabetical improv. "What is alphabetical improv?" You ask. So I answer. It's when we give a letter to the first actor who speaks in the scene. If we used the letter "a" as an example, then the actor must make his first word start with the letter "a" which might go something like..." Sikowitz paused, pointing towards Beck, who immediately answered with,
"Apples are falling out of my butt."
"Lovely. Now, the next actor who speaks must start his line with the next letter in the alphabet, in this case, "b," so he might say..." Sikowitz paused again, this time putting his hands on André's shoulders who responded with,
"Bring those apples, so that we all may enjoy the fresh fruit from Beck's butt."
"Charming. Now, who wants to lead the first group?" Sikowitz asked the class as he walked towards the stage at the front.
"I do." Tori said almost immediately before standing up to walk towards the stage.
"All right, Tori. Choose your actors." Sikowitz told her.
Tori walked on stage, looking over at everyone she wants to choose.
"Okay. André, Cat, Jason..." Tori said, smiling towards Jason as he walked up.
"And Jade." Tori chose last, causing Jade to look at her with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah, you." Tori told her.
Jade didn't question it any further, getting up from her seat and joining her classmates on stage, but not before grabbing Kevin by the neck and kissing him as she walked past.
"Jade, kiss your boyfriend on your own time." Sikowitz told her.
"Oh, I will." Jade said suggestively, not taking her eyes off of her boyfriend, who himself was staring off into space.
After the unnecessary PDA, they were all ready to get started with their alphabetical improv.
"Okay, if you start your line with the wrong letter--"
Sikowitz mimics the sound of a buzzer going off.
"--You're out." He said before slamming his barefoot on the chair next to him.
"Robbie, give us a letter." He told the boy that was sitting near him.
"P"." Red shouted.
"P"." Sikowitz repeated.
"Oh, I was going to say "P"!" Robbie shouted out, but no one cared.
"Okay, the scene can be about anything you want. The first letter of the first line is "P". Tori, action." Sikowitz said.
"Please go take a shower." Tori said to Jade.
"Quit telling me what to do." Jade replied.
"Really didn't take long for this to happen now did it?" Jason asked rhetorically.
"Totally." Cat shouted, getting a buzzer from Sikowitz.
"Cat, your line had to start with an "S"." He told her.
"Oh, my life's the worst!" Cat exclaimed.
"Here's a piece of candy." Sikowitz said, pulling it out of his pocket.
"Yay, I love candy!" Cat exclaimed as she rushed over and grabbed the piece of candy from him before sitting back down in her chair.
"All right, André, letter "S" to you." Sikowitz told him.
"Uh, somethin' just bit my toe!" André exclaimed.
"Turtle. That turtle just bit his toe." Tori shouted as she pointed towards the nonexistent turtle.
"Unbelievable that you're even here." Jade said to Tori.
"Very unsurprising that you're still acting insufferable." Jason said to Jade, who looked at him with a glare.
He didn't really care as he wasn't at all intimidated by her.
"Uh..." André muttered, not finding the right word to say.
"C'mon André, "W"!" Sikowitz reminded him.
"What if the turtle bite broke my toe-bone?" André asked.
"X-rays are the only way to find out." Tori said.
"You should shut up." Jade said to Tori again.
"Zap! I just healed your toe with my magic finger." Jason said, pointing his finger at André's toe.
"Thanks!" André thanked him, getting a buzzer from Sikowitz.
"André, your line had to start with an "A". Sit down." Sikowitz told him with a voice that sounded as if he was hosting some sort of game show.
"Aw, I just got my toe-bone fixed." André said dejectedly as he walked back to his seat.
Kevin gave him a pat on the back as he sat down.
"Tori, letter "A" to you." Sikowitz told her.
"Aliens are the only people who can heal toes by finger-zapping." Tori said.
"By the way--" Jade said before blowing a raspberry in Tori's face.
"Correct, I am an alien." Jason revealed, getting a shocked expression from Tori.
"Oh, a twist." Sikowitz said, absolutely loving this turn of events.
"Don't hurt me, please..." Tori said, looking at Jason with saddened eyes.
"Even though she's extremely annoying." Jade said.
Jason couldn't hear her at all as he was too distracted looking into Tori's eyes.
"Jason, the letter "F"!" Sikowitz yelled, snapping Jason out of it.
"Fainting, because I can't breathe the earth's air..." Jason said as he fell towards the ground.
"Gosh, it fainted!" Tori exclaimed, pointing towards Jason's "unconscious" body.
"Excellent! Tori and Jade, keep going, the next letter's "H"." Sikowitz said to them.
"Hey, why don't you jump off that cliff over there?" Jade suggests.
"I think you should." Tori told her.
"Just where did you come from?" Jade asks.
"Kangaroos." Tori responded.
"Lousy animals, kangaroos. They're awkward and dirty." Jade said, kicking Jason as she walked to the other side of the stage.
"Maybe they learned from you." Tori said, pointing towards her.
The class let out a collective "Ooh", now even more invested in seeing how this catfight is going to play out.
"No one talks to me like that." Jade told her.
"Obviously someone should." Tori retorted.
"Please run in front of a bus." Jade exclaimed.
"Quite obnoxious of you to say." Tori told her.
"Really?" Jade asked.
"Sure was." Tori replied.
"Thanks!" Jade thanked.
"Up your nose, I see boogers." Tori told her.
"Very clever." Jade responded.
"Wish you'd thought of it?" Tori asked.
""X" marks the spot I'd like to punch." Jade said, pointing towards Tori's nose.
"You're-- finger smells weird." Tori said.
"Zero is what you are on a scale from one to ten." Jade told her.
"C-- C-- Cap." Jason coughed out, with Sikowitz writing it off as an ordinary cough.
Tori smiled and Jade glared down at the boy who was lying on the floor of the stage. She walked back over to the other side of the stage and kicked him again as she passed by.
"And back to the letter "A"!" Yelled Sikowitz.
"As if I care what you think." Tori said to her.
"Better watch yourself." Jade warned.
"Can't take it?" Tori asked.
"Don't push me!" Jade exclaimed, looking a little panicked.
"Eat your pants!" Tori yelled.
"You eat your pants!" Jade yelled back before realizing what she did.
"Wait!" She yelled towards Sikowitz, who buzzed her out.
"Sorry, Jade, the next letter was--"
""F"! I know!" She yelled, looking at Tori with a glare before stomping off towards her seat.
Jason, seeing as how he and Tori were the only ones left, decided to get up from the floor.
"Keep the scene going. Letter "G"!" Sikowitz said.
"Get up, alien." Tori said, helping Jason off the floor.
"Head-- feels dizzy." Jason said, acting as if he had trouble standing.
"I know what'll make you feel better." Tori said, smiling at him.
Jason raised an eyebrow, confused at to where she was going with this.
"Just what are you thinking?" He asked.
"Kiss me." Tori told him.
As soon as she said that, Kevin, Beck and André all looked at each other with widened eyes.
'This girl is bold.' Kevin thought as he watched to see what his friend would do.
"Let's go." Jason whispered, staring at Tori's lips.
It didn't take long for them to come together, finding themselves lost in the kiss as their classmates applauded them. He felt her soft lips on his and subconsciously wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him.
Tori seemed to be in the same boat, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulled him in deeper. They didn't stop until Sikowitz cleared his throat and snapped them back into reality.
"Man, I love this school..." Tori said, smiling as she stared at Jason.
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Jason Riley:
Today has been... interesting
Mood = Chill 🙃
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Jason was driving his car, a white 2010 Chevy Camaro, with Kevin tagging along in the passenger seat beside him.
"So... how was it?" Kevin asked.
"How was what?" Jason asked, playing dumb.
"You know exactly what, dipshit. The kiss with Tori." Kevin said, rolling his eyes and lightly shoving Jason's shoulder.
"A man doesn't kiss and tell." Jason told him, taking a right turn into a nice looking neighborhood.
"You two kissed in front of the whole class. You pretty much shouted instead of told." Kevin pointed out to him.
Jason sighed, thinking about an answer to give before settling on,
"It was nice."
"It was nice?" Kevin asked, raising an eyebrow at how little of an answer he got.
"Yeah... it was... I honestly can't quite describe it honestly." Jason said.
Kevin thought that was interesting, smirking to himself as he asked,
"Did you get a really weird feeling in your stomach? Like something was... I don't know... fluttering?"
Jason turned to Kevin with surprise for a split second before turning back towards the road.
"Yeah, how'd you know that?" Jason asked, pulling into Kevin's driveway.
"Because that's how it feels every time I kiss Jade. That nervous excitement that you feel in the pit of your stomach every time that you see see her in the hall... Every time that she calls..." Kevin said as he got out of his best friend's car.
"You, my friend, have finally gotten butterflies." He told him before walking towards his front door.
"Wait, what does that mean?!" Jason yelled at his friend as he took off his seatbelt and stuck his head out the window.
"It means you finally clicked!" Kevin yelled back before opening his front door and entering his house.
Jason just sat there, letting what Kevin said sink in for a second before pulling out of the driveway and driving towards his house.
He drove down the road for a few moments before pulling his car into his driveway and into the garage. Turning off his car and locking it, Jason closed the garage door and walked into his house, seeing his mom and dad in the kitchen.
"Hey, sweetie! We were just making dinner!" His mother, Elizabeth, said, smiling as she saw her son walk in.
"Want to help us out here?" His dad, Deacon, asked, his demeanor brightening up even more.
"Sure, just let me..." Jason trailed off, holding up his backpack.
His dad gave him a nod and he went upstairs to his room, throwing the bag onto his bed before heading back down to the kitchen.
"Here, think you can peel the potatoes for us?" His dad asked, handing him a peeler and a bowl of potatoes.
"Sure thing." Jason said, already peeling the skin.
"So did that girl you were talking about show up to class again?" His mother asked.
"Yeah. At first I thought that she wouldn't show up, but she came a little late." Jason told her with a smile.
Seeing her son smiling, his mother couldn't help but smile along with him.
"I'm glad that your friend decided to stay." She said, turning the on the stove.
"Yeah, me too." Jason said softly.
Elizabeth looked towards her husband, both of them having knowing looks on their face. In all the time that Jason had been dating, they have never once heard him talk about a girl, even if he was currently dating them.
But during these past few days, Jason had been talking about this girl that he had met during a rehearsal with one of his friends, which surprised them greatly. And during his Big Showcase performance, they had seen Jason hug a girl on stage and even encouraging her to join the school he attends.
It wasn't until later that night when they were driving home that Jason revealed that it was the same girl he had been talking about a few days earlier. Then yesterday, they saw him walk in the house with a blank look on his face. When they asked what happened, he said that the girl he had been talking about might be leaving the school on her first day.
To say that they were surprised would be an understatement. Jason had never been upset over a girl before, and certainly not because he didn't want one to leave. It was usually the opposite situation happening, where he couldn't wait for one to leave.
So when they heard that she was going to continue attending Hollywood Arts, they couldn't help but be happy for their son, who seemed to have finally found someone who he could have a first genuine connection with.