IMPORTANT: inspired by Khays old fiction "the best revenge." Honestly my favourite fic in the world. Go check it out. This is part 1 of 2 chapters. If you want an update….

REMEMBER TO REVIEW :)

Jade quietly growls as she looks over at the usual table their group sits at in the Asphalt Café. Beck was already seated, Tori on one side and Andre on the other. Robbie was perched opposite him and seemed to be preoccupied with Rex. Cat hadn't arrived yet, which might explain why there didn't appear to be much communication going on.

It had been just over four months since Jade and Beck had broken up, and still, their little friendship circle seemed to be struggling to re-adjust to a normal state of interaction. Jade felt partially responsible. She still refused to address Beck no matter how civil he tried to behave. She found that avoiding him tended to be the easiest option for everyone, and thankfully she managed to keep herself quite busy. Who would've thought that Jade West would become so involved with student life at Hollywood Arts? Still, she had to admit that immersing herself in creativity brought a certain level of therapeutic calmness into her life. Not to mention that it had been an interesting experience to realise that talent was not limited to her one group of companions. In fact, most students, especially in the higher years, all seemed to have ample skills.

Jade was beginning to feel like her old self again. Confident, yet still eager to grasp and learn from any worthy opportunity presented to her. The excitement she had once experienced when she first started at this school was rekindling within her, and as awesome as that was, it would have been so much better if she could just get over that one hindrance. Beck.

Jade was just contemplating whether she should sneak off, find Cat, and go out for lunch somewhere else when Tori glanced up from her salad and caught sight of Jade watching them.

Tori looked like she was about to call out, then thought better of it and quickly stood up muttering, "bathroom" as she briskly walked over to where Jade stood, half concealed by a pillar in the under-croft.

Jade was thankful for Tori's surprising amount of tact. The last thing she wanted was for every eye to fall on her. If Cat had seen her, she surely would have begun yelling and waving. The thought alone made Jade cringe.

"Hey, Jade." Tori smiled gently, speaking quietly as she approached.

"Yeah. Hey." She drawled. "What do you want?"

Tori's smile faltered slightly, but bravely she continued, "I was just thinking, if you'd be more comfortable we could go to Nozu's for lunch today by ourselves! Say we're working on a project or something."

Jade had been making an effort (well… more of an effort than usual) to be less vicious towards Vega, especially since the whole Platinum Music Awards debacle. Tori's loyalty had finally convinced Jade to ease off with her aggression and actually accept Tori's offer of friendship. However, her optimistic, go-lucky personality was so sweet that it made Jade's teeth hurt, and she found that small doses were more than enough.

"Yeah, let's not do that. I'm fine." Jade sighed. "Come on." She called over her shoulder as she strutted to their table.

Beck immediately looked up as she approached.

"Hey." He greeted, trying to be friendly. Though he wouldn't admit it, Beck missed Jade interacting with him more than anything. He was even beginning to realise that he longed for Jade's witty banter and sarcastic comments directed towards him. Anything was better than her current exhibition of utter indifference towards him. Even if they were no longer dating, Beck was determined to try and re-establish a friendship between them at least.

"Nope." Was Jade's flat response as she slid between Robbie and Tori.

Atomically, Beck's smile dropped to a frown as he resumed picking at his food.

"Hey Jade, I've been meaning to ask you, can you help with my next magic video for theSlap?" Robbie asked eagerly once Jade was seated.

"Yeah, this dork needs all the help he can get," Rex attested in his arms.

Beck glanced up to read Jade's expression. Her lips were tightly pursed and Beck was sure she'd refuse, which was why he nearly dropped his fork when Jade replied,

"I guess so. But I'm busy for the next two weeks. You'll have to wait."

"You're awesome." Robbie gushed.

"Duh." Jade snipped.

Beck couldn't help the chortle that escaped his lips. Andre looked up coyly and sniggered into his drink.

"Oh my gosh, look Jade. Cute guys at 10 o'clock." Tori suddenly squealed, interrupting Jade who had just turned to quip at Beck.

Two seniors, the epitome of what one might call "hot" were swaggering over in their direction. It was like a scene out of a movie. Every head turned to stare at the handsome pair. It was quite uncommon for anyone from the older years to be seen in the Asphalt Café, especially popular upperclassmen.

One boy, clad in a black leather jacket and tight black jeans though it was summer was scanning the area. He had a glistening eyebrow piercing that matched Jade's, and though he was slightly shorter than Beck, it was clear that he was well built with thick biceps and a jawline that could cut glass. His thick black hair was sleeked back, and he looked like he belonged in a rock band. His companion was slightly taller but just as sturdy. He had shaggy blonde hair and tan skinned. He looked like he could have just appeared off the beach, and unlike his scowling companion, he wore a wide, excited smile. His own eyes scanned the tables till they fell on the one that Tori and her friends were seated at. Happily, he nudged his friend and pointed in their direction. Immediately they started approaching.

"Looks like we've got company." Andre mused.

"They probably want Tori for a song or something." Stated Robbie as he watched the pair approach.

Tori blushed but it was clear that she was thrilled as she eagerly sat up straight. Jade rolled her eyes at the scene and leaned down to pick up her food.

It was at that moment the guy in the leather jacket slammed his hands down on their table and leant forward so that he was only an inch away from Jade West's face. His companion, slightly more respectful but still entirely obvious, seated himself down opposite Jade without invitation and eyed her up and down.

Jade was completely caught off guard as her eyes widened in surprise. Quickly though, she switched from shock to defiance in a matter of seconds. Never being one to back down from a challenge, Jade glared back at the boys without a word.

The one leaning close to her finally sat back and turned to his friend.

"Well shit. You're right. She's the one."

"$20, pay up." His friend laughed gleefully.

"Umm, excuse me. Sorry to be rude, but who-" Tori began to say, but was interrupted by the blonde-haired boy who loudly declared,

"Jade West… I need your body."

The reactions were instantons.

"How dare you?" Tori gasped.

"Hey guys, not cool." Squeaked Robbie.

"Yo, back off." Affirmed Andre.

"Excuse me, who the hell do you think you are?" yelled Beck, perhaps the most outraged.

Jade simply raised an eyebrow.

"Purely for artistic purposes. I'm Ruben by the way."

"And I… do not care," Jade smirked with a roll of her eyes. "Later losers."

She made to get up to leave when the boy called Ruben turned to his friend, "Jason, bring out the bribes."

The senior, supposedly called Jason stared piercingly at Jade. His eyes were a striking green, complementing his dark hair and outfit.

"Listen, West. We need you to hear us out." Jason drawled. Though he spoke in a calm tone, his voice still commanded a sense of authority.

"Let's see… would you be willing to give us your time in exchange for these gifts." Ruben babbled, a lot more energetically.

Eagerly he pulled out a bag filled to the brim with various goodies. Proudly, he laid out a large coffee, a chocolate and strawberry doughnut, a pair of sharp scissors, a magazine with a pretty model on the front, a black leather bound sketch pad, and a small jar in which what looked like a large cyst was contained.

Jade's eyes glinted with desire as she reached for the scissors first before uttering,

"Fine. You have 40 seconds."

"Great." Jason shrugged. "Ruben here, for as much of a loser and a pain in the ass as he is, happens to be a close acquaintance of mine."

"You can say 'friend' you know." Ruben pouted.

Tori lightly laughed as she winked at Jade. Jade looked disgusted at this action which she vented by piercing the scissors into the model's eyes on the magazine cover. Tori gulped and shuffled closer to Beck, who was raptly watching the exchange in confusion.

"And it just so happens that after six years of this Kid helping me out, he now requires some assistance from me and another model for his college portfolio application."

"And your body is perfection." Gushed Ruben, intervening.

"So you need Jade to model?" gasped Tori. Beck was still looking mutinous as he shook his head in bafflement.

"Yes." Jason growled at her stupidity, his eyes not leaving Jade's. "So, what do you say, West? Will you help?"

"Pity. You would have had more luck if you were asking just for sex." Jade smirked.

Instantly Robbie choked on the sip of water he had just taken. Tori gasped loudly, and Beck's ears turned a sudden red. Only Andre laughed but quickly hid it behind a cough.

With that, Jade strutted off feeling oddly content for the first time in a long while.

"Damn. Did we come on too strong?" Ruben asked, turning to face Jason without acknowledging the rest of the group seated around him. He seemed rather disappointed, but grinned happily when he pointed at the empty table. Jade had taken all of their bribes with her.

"No. Don't worry. That little Red Head who's always hanging around her might be of some assistance. We can go talk to her next, see if she can convince West to help."

"Just hold up a second." Beck finally intervened. "Who even are you guys?"

Robbie and Tori looked concerned, Beck had never raised his voice around them before, and it was clear that the usually cool and collected Beck was extremely put off but the abnormality of the scene that had just occurred.

"You're Beck Oliver, right?" Jason quizzed, looking over at Beck with bored eyes.

"Well, yeah." Beck replied bashfully. He didn't realise that his reputation had gotten him noticed even by the seniors at Hollywood Arts.

"Ha. You're the idiot who let West go. Moron." Jason laughed tauntingly, and with those words turned back to Ruben.

Beck's mouth dropped open, his momentary bubble of egotism bursting like a balloon.

"She sure is something special." Mused Ruben, grinning as a dazed expression took over his face. "Remember when she sang that duet with Maxx? Damn, she was incredible."

"Sorry, when did this happen?" Tori asked perplexed. Her eyes were still as wide as saucers as she tried to comprehend the situation at hand. She wasn't used to being ignored either, but her curiosity was getting the better of her as she listened to the boys speak about Jade.

"Oh, just after the Platinum music awards. While everyone was caught up celebrating some Vega chick, Maxx needed to find a partner for our music class, and let me tell you, I don't the entire senior male population has ever fallen in love so fast with a chick before." Ruben explained breezily, smiling in Tori's direction.

At these words, the entire tables' jaws dropped.

"And hence started the Jade Quest." Remarked Jason with a coy smirk.

"The-the what?" Gaped Tori.

"The Jade Quest." Repeated Jason. "Turns out that West chick can literally do anything."

"She can sing, dance, act, write, direct, paint." Ruben counted on his fingers

"Not to mention she's smoking hot." Jason interjected, causing both Robbie and Beck to splutter.

"And dear Lord, when the male population found out she was single…" Ruben trailed off, once again starring wistfully up into the sky.

"Too bad most guys who dared asked her out ended up with black eyes and shredded textbooks." Jason smirked.

"Wait… Most?" Beck asked, trying to keep his tone light but his eyes flickered in concern.

Ignoring him, Jason continued, "But still, every so often someone manages to present her with a song or script that she can't turn down, and then once again, we get to be astounded by the perfection that is Jade West. I wish she accepted Helen's offer to bump her up to our year."

"WHAT?" The entire table yelled.

"Well, she's really smart." Ruben pointed out.

"She is?" Tori asked, turning to face Andre who also looked bewildered by this piece of information.

"It's true," Robbie admitted. "She's the only person who consistently tops the class."

"Not everyone needs to flaunt their talent. I hear that Sikowtiz has an obsession with that Vega girl, so Jade hardly gets cast in his plays. What a waste of talent." uttered Jason.

Tori blushed deeply and Andre frowned.

Defensively, he rebuked, "Hey, watch it now. Tori over here is that "Vega girl" you keep referring to."

"Oh hey, no hate." Ruben assured, flashing her another bright smile, "We know you're really talented. Jade, however, is just something else."

"Yep." Jason agreed. "Which is why no one can work out why this idiot dumped her." Jason snickered, gesturing at Beck.

Beck spluttered soundlessly, his mouth opening and closing as he tried to think of a response.

"Well, see you around. We've got a red head to catch." Called Ruben, and as quickly as they had appeared, they both left again, leaving the table in baffled silence.

"What just happened." Tori gasped.

Beck looked like he was thinking the exact same thing.

Turns out Cat is not a difficult person to find. Jason and Ruben managed to track her down in record time. They were told to follow the sound of loud, high pitch laughter, and sure enough, they ended up in front of a very pink locker where a hysterical Cat stood in front of.

"Caterina Valentine. Enchanté." Ruben boomed, grasping Cat's hand and kissing it repeatedly.

Cat was in a fit of giggles.

"Hi there." She squealed, twirling a strand of her hair around her finger. "I'm Cat!"

"We know." Jason assured her. "I'm Jason Norved, and this is Ruben Peters." He stated, jabbing a thumb in Ruben's direction.

"Hi, Jason. Hi, Ruben" Cat chorused. "Hey Jasey, you look like my friend Jade." Cat beamed, playing with Jason's jacket.

"Funny you should mention her…" Ruben began slowly.

"Nooo." Cat rebuked, cutting him off, "Jade doesn't like when I call her funny."

"What? No, listen Kid." Jason intervened, perplexed. "Could you help us out? We need Jade to help us with a project and were thinking that you might be able to convince her."

"So… you want me to do a mission? Like a superhero." Cat queried, a dazed, happy expression lighting up her face.

"Whatever you want, Kiddo." Jason sighed, shaking his head in a bemused fashion. It completely alluded him as to how Jade West could possibly be friends with this ditzy, giggly girl.

"Hehe, I like you, Jason. You remind me of Jade." Cat chirped. "Do you have a tattoo too?"

"Um, yes." He admitted, looking at Ruben who was watching the exchange in wonder, completely marveled by the sheer craziness that was Cat Valentine.

"Ooohhh I want to see!" Gushed Cat, pushing his sleeve up his arm. "Oh wow, that's a big skull." She gasped, tracing the outline of an elaborately designed and detailed tat.

Just as Ruben opened his mouth to make a comment, a loud voice from behind the trio suddenly boomed,

"Oy, you better not be harassing Cat."

Turning around, Ruben and Jason were met with the sight of silver scissors being snapped dangerously close to their faces as Jade West glared at the pair.

"It's okay, Jade." Cat giggled, "I like these two. Jason showed me his tattoo." Cat continued, pulling Jason's arm to show Jade.

Jade looked down and felt her eyes widen in appreciation.

"Not too bad." She muttered, observing the design. "Who drew it?" She muttered.

"I did." Beamed Ruben, "it was a present to my dear ol' friend Jason here."

Jason shrugged and looked down at Jade. She was about a foot shorter than him, "He's good, West. And believe me, I don't give out compliments freely. You'll regret not working with him."

Jade looked up at Jason sceptically. "Jason Norved, right? You got suspended last term for destroying the cheerleaders' lockers?" she quizzed, a thin smile threatening to break across her face.

"Yep. Not only were they pink, those ditzes were beginning to add lace detail to the design. My locker is in that corridor. My eyes do not deserve to be assaulted by that garbage."

"HEY. I like pink." Cried Cat. Ruben patted her head sympathetically.

"I heard the only reason they didn't expel you was because you're a fricken talented actor and screenplay writer." She continued.

"Pretty much." Jason shrugged confidently.

"And he's a good model. Well, at least for me he is. His body is a great canvas to work on, and the pair of you are like a couple of sublime Greek Gods. Listen, Jade, I need to submit a good portfolio. I have a scholarship riding on this. I will literally do anything if you agree to help." Ruben begged.

"Anything? Even dispose of a certain ex-lover of mine?" Jade muttered sourly.

Cat gasped and grabbed Jade's hand, "She doesn't mean that." She cried.

Jason laughed, "Would be my pleasure, West." He breathed, leaning in close, "You were way too good for him anyway."

"That is too true." Jade sighed, pushing Jason away. "Alright, Ruben, you've got yourself a model."

The loud squeal that erupted from Ruben's lips was enough to make both Jade and Jason wince.

"You are the best, group hug." He screamed, and he grabbed Jade and Jason in a tight grasp, ignoring Jade's furious screams of,

"NO!"

"I want to join in!" resounded Cat, and happily Ruben scooped her up too.

Jade and Jason were furiously yelling so loudly that it was enough to draw the attention of the entire corridor. It was also at precisely the moment Beck stepped into the hallway only to witness Jade toppling down onto Jason who had finally managed to break free from Ruben's firm grasp, only to fall the ground with Jade on top of him. Beck was about to race over and give her a hand up, when a sight so rare and alarming made him freeze up in shock. A small smile had appeared on Jade's face as she straddled Jason who was now groaning as he rubbed the back of his head. Cat and Ruben were still laughing hysterically as Ruben swooped down and raised Jade to her feet while Cat offered a helping hand to Jason. Still giggling and muttering, the four of them left together, completely unaware of the ruckus they had caused. The silence of the corridor was only broken when some girl called out,

"Wow, that freaky goth couple looks hot together."

Beck clenched his teeth as he strode away, trying to block out the sounds of numerous people calling out in agreement.

Later that afternoon, the gang found themselves scattered out aimlessly at Tori Vega's house. Andre had been playing notes on the Vegas' piano, following no particular tune. Tori was spread out on the couch, sighing miserably to herself every few minutes. Robbie was engrossed with his pear pad, and Beck simply sat at the dining table, the scene of Jade straddling another man replaying clearly in his mind.

Tori let out another loud sigh from the couch, distracting Beck from the terrible mental image as he looked towards her.

"Yes, Tori?" Beck finally asked through semi gritted teeth.

If Tori noticed the frustration in Beck's voice, she made no comment but instead wailed, "I just can't believe how popular Jade is. I mean, I thought everyone was terrified of her. How come she has all the hot guys chasing after her?"

"People always like what they can't have." Robbie offered, glancing up from his screen. Beck frowned deeply at his words.

Beck was an excellent actor, at least that was what he'd always been told. Hence, after his break up with Jade people were surprised to see how easily Beck seemed to readjust to single life. No one suspected that he missed Jade. Well, Andre seemed to shoot him knowing looks every time Beck would casually ask where Jade was at lunch or after school when the gang was hanging out without her, but besides that, people thought Beck was well and truly over his ex. How little they knew.

Beck had been an internal mess without Jade. So many times, he would see something obscure or hear something funny and automatically reach for his phone to message her. On the rare occurrence that they ended up seated next to each other in class, Beck felt himself subconsciously move to sling an arm around her shoulder or play with a strand of her hair. There had even been one particularly embarrassing incident when he had caught Jade screaming at Cat for spilling a milkshake on Jade's boots, when he had pulled her tightly to his chest and whispered, "Easy there, babe, I mean Jade. I said Jade."

Just as Beck was cringing at this particular memory, Robbie suddenly called,

"Whoa, look what that Ruben kid just posted."

It was apparent that Robbie had been stalking Ruben's slap page, probably trying to work out who exactly this senior was. Every eye fell to the video at the top of Ruben's page, however, where a large title read; "HOLLYWOOD ARTS HOTTEST COUPLE."

"Maybe we shouldn't watch this. Ignorance is bliss." Muttered Andre, who had left the piano to see what all the commotion was about. Andre's nervousness was enough provocation for Beck who ignored Tori's protest as he immediately touched the play button.

The screen opened with a motorbike pulling into a driveway with two black clad individuals seated confidently on top of it. There was a guy at the front wearing only a short sleeve tank and a female who had her arms wrapped around the man's waist seated behind him.

First, the buff man slides off the bike. Beck notices the large skull tattoo on his bicep and cringes. Mystery man then slips off his helmet and causally flings it on the seat behind him, revealing the smirking face of Jason Norved. Beck scorns in jealously at Jason's flawless hair (how come Beck always seemed to get helmet hair after riding a bike?), but he feels slightly better when he notices Robbie self-consciously running his own fingers through his curly mane.

Jason then slips on a pair of dark glasses before slinging an arm around the black-clad girl who had just gotten off the bike. The lady's curves were extremely definable through her ripped tights and extremely tight fitting low V-neck black top. She was wearing an oversized leather jacket that assumedly belonged to Jason, and as she removed her helmet too, both Andre and Beck's moth simultaneously dropped open in shock.

It was Jade West, but there was something notably different about her.

Perhaps it was the air of confidence that oozed off her as the couple strutted up the front driveway into what was presumably Ruben's house.

"That better not be a camera, Peters." Threatened the distinct voice of Jade.

"You guys are fricken hot." Muttered Ruben from behind the camera. "Damn you look good together."

"Don't be creepy, Ruben" Scolded Jason, but as he held the door open for Jade to enter before him, he shot a quick wink towards the camera.

With that, the screen turned black as the video came to an end.

Once again Tori let out a loud sigh, "Always the hot guys." She mumbled angrily.

Please remember to review, especially if you're favouriting/following this story. Really makes my day.