Chapter Text
“So you got the invitation?” Tori asked, putting a cup of coffee on the table in front of Jade before taking a seat next to her in a coffee shop in West Hollywood.
“No, I just thought it would be fun to catch up on a random Tuesday in the middle of planning for sweeps week.” Jade rolled her eyes. “Not like it’s the busiest time of the year for me or anything.”
“Okay, you’re the head writer on Edge of Twilight, it’s the most popular show on The CW and it won three People Choice Awards last year. You’re allowed to take a break.” Tori reached into her purse and pulled out a card, putting it on the table. “So are you going?”
Jade sighed looking at the white card with script writing: Join us as we celebrate the wedding of Hailey Jones and Beck Oliver. “I don’t think it’s normal for the ex-girlfriend to go to the wedding. I don’t even know why I’m invited.”
“Maybe because you two were together for over five years and you’re important to him. It’s not like the break up was messy, it was just the distance thing. No one blames you, if he didn't move to New York..."
“Stop talking,” Jade said with a groan, shoving the card towards Tori. “It doesn’t mean I want to watch him marry someone else.”
Tori frowned then her eyes went wide. “Oh my god, are you still in love with him? Jade! Are you serious?”
“No, shut up. I’m not in love with him.”
“Well, don’t you want to see him happy?”
Jade sighed softly. “Of course. But he wasn’t supposed to be happy with someone else until after I’m happy with someone else.”
Tori smirked. “You’re the one who refuses to date.”
Jade looked at Tori, sighing softly as she thought about why she really didn’t date. Because the woman sitting next to her had been consuming her thoughts… she shook her head, pushing her feelings back once again. Just as she’d been doing for years. She let out a breath, taking sip of her coffee. “At least I didn’t almost marry Sinjin,” she said with a shrug.
“I did not almost…” Tori started then she groaned. “That was a misunderstanding.”
Jade chuckled, earning a shove by Tori.
“At least I learned my lesson about Peach Schnapps.”
“Well, everyone knows Schnapps is disgusting. You just made a series of bad decisions that night.”
Tori nodded, the foggy memory of the night after finals in their dorm at UCLA returning. “Speaking of bad decisions, you should go to Beck’s wedding. Maybe you could get closure.”
“I don’t need closure.”
“Okay, then what’s the worst that can happen?”
Jade shook her head. “You don’t get it, all of your exes suck.”
“They don’t all…” she paused to think about her ex-boyfriends for a moment. “Okay, yeah. Damn, that’s depressing. Maybe I should’ve married Sinjin.”
“No. No one should marry Sinjin. Maybe you should stop dating guys,” Jade muttered, looking down as she bit her lip.
“Yeah, maybe,” Tori mused, causing Jade to raise her eyebrows. “Maybe you have the right idea. I should just throw myself into work and not have a life.”
“I have a life,” Jade rebutted. “It revolves around my cat, but I have a life.”
Tori laughed, shaking her head as she looked at the invitation. “I have an idea. Since we’re both completely pathetic…”
“Speak for yourself.”
“You have a cat Instagram, you dress Archie up like a sailor. Not that his sailor costume isn’t adorable.”
Jade nodded. “Fair. What’s your idea?”
“What if we go to Beck’s wedding together?” Tori asked as Jade took a sip of her coffee, causing her to choke. “Not like… a date or anything like that,” Tori added quickly. “You know, we can kinda go as each other’s plus one. I know how much you hate New York…”
“There’s people everywhere,” she muttered. “They don’t have In-N-Out.”
“I know, I know. So we can go together, split a hotel…”
“Yeah, cause there’s no way we can afford our own rooms.”
Tori cleared her throat. “Well, being a back up singer doesn’t pay as well as it used to…”
Jade laughed humorlessly. “Oh, okay. I get it. You want to go to the wedding but can’t afford a trip to New York.”
“It’s not that I can’t afford it but I really like having electricity. It’s been a rough couple months.”
Jade leaned forward. “How bad is it?”
Tori waved her hand dismissively. “I’ll bounce back after Sadie Monroe gets out of rehab. So what do you think?”
Jade rolled her eyes, looking away from Tori as she pouted, her brown eyes large and pleading. She’d always been easily swayed by those eyes. “Fine. But I’m not gonna like it.”
Tori smiled. “You wouldn’t be you if you did.”