The Bird Scene

Jason woke up to his Pear Phone's alarm, still tired from the lack of sleep he's been having these past few days. The kiss that he and Tori shared, along with the words that Kevin had spoken to him, ran throughout his head like a song stuck on repeat.

He rises out of bed, stretching out in every direction before grabbing his phone off his nightstand. Turning it on, he sent a text "Good morning" to a contact named "Pop Star".

Almost as soon as he sent it, his phone started to ring and vibrate. Smiling, he picked up the phone and greeted the reason for his lack of sleep.

"Y'know that you could've just texted me back, right?" He asked, not at all minding the fact that she didn't.

"Yeah, but I need to get ready and I kinda need my hands for that." Tori responded.

"Pretty sure you still need your hands for a phone call. One of them at least." Jason said.

"Nope. That's what necks are for." Tori pointed out.

Jason could almost visualize the little smile on her face when she said that.

"Touché." He said.

He heard some clattering noises and came to the conclusion that she must've been putting on makeup.

"But you probably should've waited a few more minutes until I was out of the shower. Now I have to hang up on you." He told her.

"You still haven't showered?" She asked, a tiny bit of shock coming through.

"I literally just woke up." He told her as he grabbed a few clothes from his closet.

Jason stepped out of his room and into the hall, heading towards the bathroom.

"I'm gonna hop in the shower real quick, I'll call you back in like ten minutes." He said as he walked inside the bathroom and shut the door.

"Okay." She replied.

Jason hung up and started removing the clothes he went to sleep in, a black t-shirt and boxers, before stepping inside the shower and turning the water on. He didn't bother waiting for it to get warm, as he was so used to taking cold showers that it basically didn't effect him anymore.

As he felt the cold water wash over him, he thought about the past few days. How he and Tori had basically been texting and calling each other nonstop since the day they kissed.

It honestly surprised him just how long he would spend time on the phone with her, as time seemed to fly by whenever they were talking to each other. Just yesterday, he called her around noon and they both stayed up until midnight just talking.

"We're not even dating..." Jason said as he shook his head and let out a small chuckle.

He quickly bathed himself before stepping out of the shower and drying himself off with a tower that was on the rack. Putting on the clothes he took with him, a white T-shirt, underwear, black jeans and socks, Jason walked out of the bathroom and called Tori.

"Wow, you actually called me in ten minutes." Tori said as soon as she answered.

"Said I would." Jason told her as he walked back in his room and grabbed a pair of white high tops from his closet.

"Yeah, but that's not what people actually mean. They say that they'll be ready in ten minutes, but they actually mean an hour." She explained, causing Jason to reel back in confusion.

"What in the f-- The hell kinda backwards logic are you usin'?" Jason asked, holding the phone with his neck as he put on his sneakers.

"That's how everyone of my friends operate." Tori told him.

"Are these friends of yours perhaps a part of the female gender?" Jason asked, tying his laces.

"Mayhaps..." She said quietly.

"Listen, most dudes barely take an hour, if that, to get ready." He told her, grabbing his backpack and a black jacket from his closet before walking out of his room.

"Really? How long does it take you then?" She asked.

"I already am." He said as he walked down the stairs.

His parents, who were already in the kitchen, looked at their son as he walked in and smiled at the scene. This was the fifth time in a row that they had seen him on the phone with his mystery girl in the morning.

"Already?! That wasn't even twenty minutes!" Tori said, in shock at how little time he had gotten ready for school.

"That's the beauty of not having to put on makeup. It really allows you to do things that you like. Like sleep in for an extra hour." He said, getting a nod from his father.

His mother just smiled and rolled her eyes at the two men in her life.

Jason, as he ended his statement, mouthed a "good morning" to both his parents, getting the same from them.

"Wow, that actually sounds worth the trade off..." Tori said, almost sounding as if she's considering it.

"Go ahead. It's not like you need make up anyway." Jason told her.

Elizabeth damn near swooned when she heard that, slapping her husband on the arm as her mouth hung open. Deacon could only wonder what this girl was like to make his son so... enraptured. Which was short lived when he let out a verbal "ow" at his wife's repeated slapping of his arm.

Jason, hearing the sounds of Elizabeth slapping Deacon, turned to see what was happening only to see his parents focusing on the eggs that were suddenly on the counter.

"What happened?" Tori asked, wondering why Jason had suddenly stopped talking.

"Just some minor domestic abuse. Don't worry about it." Jason said, causing Tori to raise an eyebrow, but ultimately shrug it off as a joke.

His mother, having stopped abusing her poor husband, mouthed "breakfast?" towards Jason, holding up the carton of eggs. Jason responded with a shake of his head, not really having enough time to eat.

His mother then mouthed "smoothie" before pointing towards the fridge. Jason's eyes widened a bit before he went to the fridge and grabbed a yellow smoothie that was waiting for him.

Not waiting for even a second, Jason quickly took a sip and went to Nirvana. It was pretty much a known fact that his mother makes the best smoothies in the western hemisphere.

As he was in another plane of existence, Jason was suddenly pulled back to reality by Tori saying something that he didn't exactly hear.

"What?" Jason asked, a little muffled from his mouth still having a bit of smoothie.

"I said that-- Are you eating something right now?" Tori asked, wondering why he sounded so muffled.

"Smoothie." He replied simply before taking another sip.

"Where'd you get-- Wait, what flavor?" Tori asking the real questions.

"Banana?" Jason replied, a little unsure.

He looked towards his mother and she nodded, confirming that it was indeed a banana smoothie.

"Banana." He repeated, this time more confidently.

"Ooh, now I want a smoothie!" Tori whined cutely.

"Sorry, Pop Star, maybe next time." Jason teased.

Before Tori could reply, Jason got a text message from Kevin saying that he'll be ready in ten minutes.

"Hey, I'm gonna go pick up Kevin. I'll see you at school, yeah?" Jason told Tori as he grabbed his car keys off the hook in the kitchen.

"Yeah sure." Tori replied.

"A'ight, later." Jason said before hanging up.

As he was putting his phone in his pocket, Jason had noticed that his parents were staring at him with smiles on their faces.

"What?"

"Oh, nothing. It's just nice seeing you be all smiley in the morning." His mother told him.

"Pfft, I'm not smiley..." Jason said unconvincingly.

"Jay, you've had a permanent smile on your face since last week. You have it on your face right now!" His father said, pointing towards his son's face.

Jason tried turning his grin upside down, which failed miserably when it would just return to his face almost instantly. Looking towards his parents, he saw them smiling at him with knowing looks.

"Whatever! I am leaving!" Jason exclaimed, walking towards the garage before suddenly turning around and pointing towards his parents.

"And I am not smiley!" He told them before walking into the garage.

Elizabeth and Deacon look at each other, chuckling at Jason's theatrical exit.

"I really want to meet this girl." Elizabeth said to her husband as she walked over to the living room and took a seat on the couch.

"I'm sure he'll bring her around eventually, but until then..." Deacon trailed off, taking a seat next to his wife and wrapping an arm around her.

Elizabeth laughed at her husbands antics before leaning onto his shoulder.

-----------------------------------------

Jason Riley:

I am NOT smiley!

Mood = Not Smiley 😶

-----------------------------------------

In the McCallister household, Kevin had just shut off the water to his shower and was now blindly reaching for a towel that he couldn't seem to find.

"Here." A voice said to him.

His hand finally felt the towel and he took it from whoever handed it to him.

"Thanks." He thanked the disembodied voice before realizing that he's supposed to be alone.

"What the--?!"

Kevin lost his footing and fell down to the floor of his shower. Suddenly he was met by the face of his girlfriend looking down at him.

"Jade?!" Kevin exclaimed, wondering why she was in his bathroom.

"You alright?" Jade asked blankly.

"What are you--"

Before he could ask what was on his mind, Kevin realized that he was still naked. He covered himself up with the towel that he had in his hand, which caused Jade to roll her eyes.

"Oh, please. It's not like I haven't seen before." She said.

"What are you doing in my bathroom?" Kevin asked, getting up from the floor and ignoring the last thing she said.

"I want to take Salsa Dancing." She told him.

Kevin waited a moment for her to continue, but she said nothing else and just stared at him with a blank expression.

"That's it?!" He exclaimed.

"Pretty much." She said, not seeing the problem.

"You didn't think to just text me?!" He asked.

"I did." She replied.

He, once again, waited for her to continue, but she never did. Rolling his eyes at his girlfriend, he wrapped the towel around his waist and stepped out of the shower.

"I'm going to go on a limb and assume that you'll be riding with me and Jason?" He asked as he walked out of the bathroom.

"Do you not want me to?" She asked accusingly.

"When did I say that?" He asked, letting out a sigh.

They both walked into his room, Jade sitting on Kevin's bed as soon as they did. Kevin walked into his closet to get dressed while continuing the conversation.

"It just seems that you aren't exactly excited at the fact that I'm joining." Jade told him.

"I'm not excited at the fact that you and Jason are going to be together in a confined space." Kevin pointed out.

"Is he still mad about that?" She asked, not really seeing why Jason wouldn't just let it go.

"He finally found a girl that he actually likes, and during her first day you decide to dump a cup of coffee on her head. Not only that, but she also almost quit Hollywood Arts because of it. So yeah, safe to say that he's still pissed." Kevin explained, stepping out of his closet fully clothed.

"What does it matter? He's just gonna date her and then throw her away once he gets bored. It's what he does." She said as she looked Kevin's outfit.

"I don't think that's what's gonna happen this time." He said, grabbing his backpack and putting it on his back.

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked, an eyebrow raised at her boyfriend.

Before Kevin could answer, they heard the sound of a car honking its horn outside.

"C'mon, before he decides to leave us." He said, walking out of his room and down the stairs to the living room.

Considering that the lights were still off, he had to wonder how Jade got into his house without his parents waking up.

"How did you get inside anyway?" He asked.

"Climbed in through the window." She answered.

"I'm on the second floor..." He said with a confused look.

"I know."

-----------------------------------------

Kevin McCallister:

Does anyone know where I can buy locks for my window?

Mood = Mildly Concerned 😐

-----------------------------------------

"C'mon, the trailer wasn't THAT bad." Kevin said as he got out of his friend's car.

"I didn't think it was bad. I thought that it was absolute dogshit." Jason corrected him as he did the same.

Kevin wrapped his arm around Jade as she stepped out and they all started walking towards the school.

"Yeah, the trailer was lame." Jade added in her thoughts, surprisingly agreeing with Jason.

"Okay, what was so bad about it?" Kevin asked.

"The whole "will they, won't they" thing is so infuriating. It's pretty much the basis of every chick flick known to man." Jason told Kevin before taking a sip of his smoothie.

"So pretty much how it is with you and Tori?" Kevin replied.

The mention of Tori caused Jason to suddenly spit out his smoothie before coughing uncontrollably. Kevin walked over and starting patting him on the back, stopping once Jason's coughing fit was under control.

"The hell are you bringing her up out of nowhere for?" Jason asked, wiping his face.

"Well, one, she's obviously as into you as you're into her, but you still haven't asked out for some reason. And two, she just got out of that car over there." Kevin listed before pointing towards the other side of the parking lot with his thumb.

Looking to where he was pointing, Jason saw Tori struggling to hold up a number of textbooks as she walked behind Trina, who was increasingly getting further and further away.

"Shit, hold this." Jason said to Kevin, pushing his smoothie into his hands.

"Later, Romeo." Kevin teased.

Jason groaned, but ultimately let Kevin have that one as Tori looked like she was about to fall over if someone didn't step in. Which is exactly what happened when she lost her balance.

Tori closed her eyes and braced herself to hit the pavement, but was pleasantly surprised to find herself not in any pain. Once she had opened her eyes, she saw that she was actually wrapped in Jason's arms.

"Just dropping by?" Jason asked jokingly.

Tori, upon hearing the bad pun, let out a groan.

"Really?" She asked, throwing her head back in exasperation.

Jason laughed at her reaction which caused Tori to smile and let out a small chuckle.

"Thanks for the save." She said as she stood up on her own two feet.

"Don't mention it. I see that all your books finally came." Jason said as he motioned to the pile of textbooks on the ground.

"Mm-hmm..." Tori hummed before looking at the boy beside her with her classic puppy eyes.

Jason rolled his eyes at her blatant attempt to get him to help her before bending down and picking up all of of her books from the floor.

"Alright! Enough with the eyes!" He exclaimed, causing her to chuckle and return to her normal smiling face.

"Okay, but seriously, are you okay with carrying all that? I can carry some if you want." She said, looking at him with a worried expression.

"I'm good. This isn't really all that heavy." He told her as he started to walk towards the school.

"Alright... so where's Kevin? I thought you guys were coming together?" She asked, looking around.

"I... honestly don't know where he went." Jason told her, not seeing Kevin anywhere in the parking lot.

"Eh, he'll show up eventually." He added with a shrug.

They walked through the front doors, finding a whole crowd of people standing over by a corner.

"What's happening over there?" Tori asked.

"It's probably the new play roster." Jason told her.

"Ooh, André wanted me to try out for the lead in his play." She said, looking towards the crowd with excitement.

"Hold these for just a second?" Jason said, handing Tori's books out towards her when she reached out.

Jason pushed through the crowd, not really caring who was in the way, and grabbed one of the new play rosters that had all the new plays that students could audition for.

He walked back to Tori, grabbing all of her books out of her arms before handing her the new play roster.

"Here." He said as he handed it to her.

"Thanks." She said, giving him a grateful smile.

"So is it on there?" He asked.

"Uh... Yup, number four." She told him.

"Well, good luck with that." He told her.

"You don't want to try out for anything?" She asked, flipping around the play roster to show Jason what was on it.

"Nah. I don't exactly do the whole "extra curricular" thing. If I don't need it to pass, I'm not doing it." He told her.

They both started walking towards Tori's locker, seeing both Kevin and Jade about to walk by. Kevin smirked at Jason, placing his smoothie on top of everything he was holding as he passed by.

Tori opened her locker before facing Jason, raising an eyebrow at the smoothie that suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"Where--"

"I gave it to Kevin to hold on to when I saw you strugglin' in the parking lot." Jason explained as he put Tori's books in her locker.

"Well, well, well, the great playboy reduced to a busboy. Oh, how the mighty have fallen." They heard the familiar voice of Rex from behind them.

Turning around, Jason and Tori saw André, Robbie and Rex standing behind them.

"Playboy?" Tori asked.

"It's nothing." Jason told her.

"Nothing?! You were a god! You had a different gir--"

Jason suddenly grabbed Rex by his head and slammed it into the locker beside him before throwing him on the ground.

"Like I said, it's nothing. You gonna put your bag in?" Jason asked as he turned towards Tori, really wanting to change the subject.

Tori raised an eyebrow at his sudden strange reaction, but shrugged it off as she put her bag in her locker, thinking that it was just him getting tired of Rex.

Rex let out a groan and Robbie quickly went to pick him up. When he did, everyone saw that Rex had a big piece of chewed up gum stuck to his forehead.

"You did kinda deserve that." Robbie told Rex, getting a slap in return.

"Ow!"

"Get the gum off my forehead." Rex told Robbie.

Robbie did what the puppet said, pealing off the chewed up piece of gum off it's forehead.

"All right, my locker is filled. I feel complete." Tori said as she closed her locker.

"Whoa, whoa, not yet." André said, causing Tori some confusion.

"What?" She asked.

"You gotta customize it." He told her.

"Everyone at Hollywood Arts has to customize their locker." Robbie explained.

"Oh. Well, what'd you do for yours?" Tori asked Robbie.

"I made a mosaic using all of the baby bottle nipples from my childhood." He told her, getting confused reactions from everyone.

"They remind me of a happier time!" He defended.

Moving on from that weirdness, Tori looked towards André and asked,

"Yours?"

"Check it out." André said, motioning for everyone to follow him.

"Follow those dreads." Said Rex.

Following André around the corner, they saw him present his locker, which was designed to be a keyboard. André placed his hands on his locker and started to play a funky tune, which caused more than a few students to start dancing.

"Hey, André, Robbie!" Lane suddenly called out to them.

Hearing him, André stopped playing his locker and they both looked towards Lane to see what he wanted.

"That squirrel's back in my office again." He told them.

"Lane, why do you keep leaving your windows open?" Jason asked, having to deal with that same squirrel before until he decided to leave Lane to deal with it himself.

"Leaving them open leaves me closer to nature." Lane told him.

Jason raised an eyebrow at him, not believing any of the crap that came out his mouth.

"The air conditioning is broken again." Lane admitted with a sigh

"I'll get the net." André said.

"I'll get the nuts." Added Robbie.

They both walked off with Lane, getting a raised eyebrow from Tori. She turned around, leaving the weirdness to itself, and looked at her locker.

"I don't know what to do with my locker." Tori said, looking dejected.

Before Jason could say anything, Sinjin came up behind them and asked,

"Want to see my locker?"

Tori turned around to look at who it was behind her, but Jason didn't need to turn around to know who it was.

"Three... two..."

Sinjin ran away as soon as Jason started to count down. Tori looked at Jason with a confused look before asking,

"What happens if you get to one?"

"Don't know, he's never let me get that far." He said with a smirk.

-----------------------------------------

"Betsy! Betsy!" Jade called out dramatically.

Inside Sikowitz' classroom, everyone watched as Jade and Cat performed on the small stage. Jade's character was currently trying to convince Cat's character to eat their pet pig, a giant stuffed pig that Sikowitz had laying around for some reason being used as a prop.

"That animal's delicious flesh can keep us all alive for another week." Jade said, placing her hand upon the pig.

Cat snatched the pig away from Jade's hand. Not wanting her filthy pork eating fingers anywhere near her precious pet.

"I don't wanna be alive without Poncy!" Cat exclaimed.

"This pig was everything to me that my daddy never was, and I'll be dinged danged--"

Cat was suddenly cut off by Sikowitz throwing a ball that hit her directly in the face. Cat screamed and fell over, causing everyone to flinch back in shock.

Well... almost everyone.

"Hahahahaha!"

Jason was laughing his off.

"Sikowitz?!" Exclaimed Jade.

"What?" He asked, not seeing the problem,

"You hit me in the face with a ball!" Cat said, suddenly standing up beside Jade.

"Oh, come on, a truly great actor can stay in the scene no matter what's happening around her." He said, flailing his arms around for dramatic effect.

"But it really hurt!" She told him.

"Can I do it next time?" Jason asked, still laughing at the situation.

Sikowitz let out a sigh as the bell rang.

"Oh, lunch, yay!" Cat exclaimed, rushing off towards her bag.

"Learn your lines! I want everyone off book tomorrow!" Sikowitz told the class as they left.

"If he wants us off book, wouldn't it be better if we didn't learn our lines?" Jason asked, looking towards Beck.

"Jason, extra credit for your creativity!" Sikowitz shouted out suddenly.

Jason looked back for a moment before shrugging his shoulders and turning towards Tori, who was waiting for him by the door.

"You paying this time or me?" He asked.

"You paid last time, so-- AAH!"

Tori suddenly screamed when the same ball from before nearly hit her in the face. It missed by a few inches, knocking down a plastic container labeled "syllabus".

Tori looked towards Sikowitz, the obvious perpetrator, and asked,

"What was that for? I'm not acting right now."

"We need to chat." He told her.

"And "Tori, could I see you?" wouldn't have worked?" She asked.

"Good luck with that." Jason said, patting Tori on the shoulder before walking out of the room with Kevin.

"Have fun." "Protect your face."

André and Beck said to Tori before following after them.

Tori let out a sigh and fixed her hair as she walked towards Sikowitz.

"What's up?" She asked.

"I hear you signed up to audition for a play, "Moonlight Magic?" He asked.

Tori nodded her head, saying, "Uh-huh. André wrote the music for it, and he wants me to play the lead."

"You should." Sikowitz said.

"Yeah?" She asked excitedly.

"But you can't." He added.

"Huh?" She asked blankly.

"Not until you pass "The Bird Scene." He told her, walking away and grabbing a yellow and orange book from his podium before walking back and presenting it to Tori.

"The Bird Scene?" She asked.

"Here at Hollywood Arts, every student must successfully complete "The Bird Scene" before they can audition for any and all school productions." Sikowitz explained to her, handing her the book,

"Hey, Sikowitz, I forgot to ask you a question about the homework. Do we ha-- AAH!!!"

A ball flew right past Cat's head, smacking into the wall behind her, which causes her to scream and run away.

Tori looked at Sikowitz with a raised eyebrow, wondering why he threw the ball this time.

"We'll never know her question." He said, smiling at Tori before turning around and walking away.

-----------------------------------------

Tori Vega:

must learn "the bird scene"

-- p.s. my teacher throws balls at people :O

Mood = Thinky 🤔

-----------------------------------------

Outside, Jason, Kevin, André, Beck and Robbie had all paid for lunch and were all sitting together at a table.

"Hey, you know where I could buy a pair of ballet slippers?" André asked, looking towards everyone.

Robbie and Rex looked at each other confused.

"No, I don't. But I know where you can get yourself a pretty skirt and some lip gloss." Beck told him.

Everyone at the table, even André, had a laugh at what Beck said.

"Heh, heh, heh. That was a good one, Beck. Lip gloss." Rex repeated, Robbie lifting up one of his hands for a high five.

Beck just stared at the puppet, not humoring it at all. Robbie eventually put Rex's arm down, with Rex looking at Robbie like he didn't understand why Beck didn't give him a high five.

"Why do you need ballet slippers?" Kevin asked André, trying to get rid of the awkward atmosphere.

"'Cause I signed up for ballet." Answered André.

"Whoa, whoa, isn't that kind of... girlie?" Robbie asked.

"Yep. Just one big room full of girls... and me. You guys picking up what I'm putting down?" André asked the table.

"I am."

"Mm-hmm."

"Solid plan."

"Yeah! Pretty smooth."

Beck, Jason, Kevin and Rex all sounded off, understanding where André was going.

Robbie on the other hand...

"I don't understand."

"A lot of girls... Who dance... All in one room..." Beck tried explaining it to him slowly, but Robbie still wasn't getting it,

"One guy in a room full of girls, dipshit, do the math!" Jason stated bluntly.

"Ah, ha ha!" Robbie exclaimed, finally having it click.

"Would you mind if maybe I signed up, too?" Robbie asked André.

"Nah, go for it." André told him, not minding it at all.

"How about you guys?" André asked the other guys at the table.

"Can't. We signed up for break dancing." Jason told him, motioning between himself and Beck before popping a fry in his mouth.

"Break dancing? I didn't know that was a class." Robbie said.

"What would it matter? You'd probably break yourself before you even start dancing." Rex insulted him.

André shook his head before turning towards Kevin and asking,

"What about you?"

"Nah, Jade and I already signed up for salsa dancing." Kevin told him.

"I can't eat salsa." Robbie suddenly spoke up.

"Why? 'Cause it hurts your stomach and gives you nightmares." André asked with a smirk.

"No." Robbie said.

"Yes." Rex interjected.

"Maybe."

"HA!"

-----------------------------------------

Tori Vega:

Doin' The Bird Scene today. Nervous but READY.

Mood = Psyched 😳

-----------------------------------------

It was the next day and everyone was back in Sikowitz' classroom having just finished a performance.

"Ready? Drive-by acting exercise." Sikowitz said suddenly, grabbing everyone's attention.

"You're all angry Englishman. Go!" He said before running to the middle of the room and watching it all unfold.

"I insist you tell me who sat on me crumpet!" Robbie exclaimed with a horrible English accent.

"My grandmummy went to the loo while I snogged the Prime Minister." Jade shouted next, in an equally horrible accent.

"This flock of whip-poor-wills is bothering my trousers." Said André.

'The hell are whip-poor-wills?' Jason thought before shrugging it off for later.

"Good heavens, there's a dead cockroach in my brassier!" Cat exclaimed.

"Blimey." Rex shouted.

"Wanker." Jason quickly followed up.

"Well, I told you not to put plum sauce on me banger!" Beck said, pointing to one of the other students.

"Kevin, amazing job as always!" Sikowitz complimented, getting a confused shrug from the boy who did absolutely nothing the entire time.

The classroom just devolved into arguing and bad British accents until Sikowitz stood on stage and yelled,

"All right, all right! Very good! Quiet down!"

Everyone settled down and went back into their seats, with Jason suddenly seeing Tori sitting right beside him.

'When did she get here?' He thought, not seeing her when she stepped inside during all the arguing.

"Now that we're all loosely and/or goosey, the time has come for our newest student to tackle..."

He paused, stomping his feet on the ground to act as a drum roll. This causes the whole class to stomp their feet along with him.

"The Bird Scene! Huh?" He exclaimed, getting some applause from the other students.

He walked off the stage, going towards the back of the class, and Tori takes his place at the front.

"Tori, the stage is yours, though you can't take it home." He said, giving her the spotlight.

"Um, can I ask you a quick question before I start?" Tori asked.

Jade let out a loud groan for no reason other to annoy Tori. Tori looked at Jade with annoyance for a moment before looking back at Sikowitz.

"So--"

"Just do your best. Action!" He shouted.

"Okay!" Tori exclaimed, placing the book she got from him yesterday on the floor.

"It was 1934 when my husband left me." She started in a southern accent.

"Alone. Living on the prairie was a dreary existence. No telephone, no radio. Only a large, majestic bird with whom I shared my feelings. One day when I was feeling low, I said to him, "Oh, bird, you can fly. You can soar miles from this lonely place, yet you stay. Why?" And apparently, my question rang true, for that afternoon, the bird left. And so went my spirit."

Tori acted out the scene word for word, no mistakes at all. At the end, she lowered her head, signaling the end of her performance.

"How was that?" She asked, now speaking in her normal voice, as she glanced up and looked towards Sikowitz.

"What do you mean?" He asked back.

Tori was a little confused by the question, but she clarified anyway.

"Did I do the scene right?"

"Oh! No, not at all." He said, getting up from his chair and walking towards the stage.

"Okay. Then what did I do wro--"

"You'll have to perform the scene again tomorrow and get it right, or else you can't be in André's play or any other." He told her, grabbing her book off the ground and giving it back to her before pushing her off the stage and towards her seat.

"But can you tell me what I did wrong?" She asked, confused as to how she failed.

"No, I can't." He said simply.

"I don't get any feedback?" She asked.

"That is correct."

"But--"

"Drive-by acting exercise. You're all terrified dolphins. Go!" He exclaimed.

Everyone, except Jason, immediately got up out of their seats and started jumping up and down while making dolphin noises.

"Live the fear! Live the fear!" Sikowitz said, looking between all his students.

"Jason! Where's your fear?" He asked as he saw Jason sitting down.

"My little dolphin heart gave out and I died of a heart attack?" He answered, unsure if that would be enough to convince him.

"Good Ghandi! That's brilliant! Keep up that outside the box thinking!" Sikowitz praised him.

A smirk grew on Jason's face as he kicked back and relaxed while everyone was jumping up and down like a group of rabbits. Meanwhile, a sad Tori was trying to figure out where she went wrong with her performance.

-----------------------------------------

Tori Vega:

The Bird Scene... WHAT DID I DO WRONG?!? :(

Mood = Confused 🫤

-----------------------------------------

Having just gotten out of class, most of the group were chatting in the hallway as they were all heading to their next class. As they were chatting, they didn't notice Tori trying to grab their attention.

"Oh, come on!" She exclaimed, grabbing everyone's attention.

"How am I supposed to do the scene right if no one will tell me what I did wrong? I thought you guys were my friends." She said dejectedly.

Kevin and Jason both looked at each other, wanting to help her, but they knew that they couldn't say anything.

"I'm not your friend." Jade pointed out, grabbing Kevin by the arm and pulling him towards the vending machines behind them.

"I was hoping we could be more than friends. Hmm? Hmm?" Rex said suggestively, getting his head bashed into the locker by Jason.

"OW!"

"Ugh, it's so gross how he's always hitting on every girl." Cat said.

"I never hit on you." Rex told her bluntly,

"What's that supposed to mean?!" She exclaimed.

"You guys... My problem?" Tori interjected before they could continue.

"Number one rule of "The Bird Scene":..." Beck started.

"No one's allowed to help you." Kevin finished, walking back to the group after getting Jade a drink.

"No one." Rex added.

Tori let out a sigh, sad that not even her friends are willing to help her out with this problem she's having.

"So this is what you did with your locker?" Jade asked, pointing at Tori's locker.

Looking at it, they saw that Tori just put a dry erase board on the face of it and wrote "Tori's Locker" on it with a black marker.

"Yeah. See, it's a dry erase board with a bunch of colorful pens in a convenient cup. So whoever wants to, can write or draw whatever they want." Tori explained.

"But you're supposed to decorate it yourself." Beck pointed out.

"It's a Hollywood Arts tradition." Cat added.

"Well, what's wrong with letting other people be expressive on my locker?" Tori asked, turning towards Robbie and Cat.

As Tori was turned around, Jade took the opportunity to grab a red marker and write something on the dry erase board with it.

"Well, when you said "other people" I think that you forgot that also includes Jade." Jason said, pointing towards her locker.

Turning around, Tori saw that Jade had written "STUPID" in the middle of Tori's Locker, now making it read as "Tori's STUPID Locker".

"Yeah? Yeah, well my locker's smarter than your locker!" Tori shouted at Jade as she walked away with Kevin.

"How can a locker be--"

"I don't know!" Tori exclaimed, knowing that her comeback didn't make any sense.

She turned around, taking the dry erase board off her locker before saying,

"Oh, come on. Somebody tell me how to do "The Bird Scene" or I'm gonna cry."

"Can't" Cat said, walking away.

"Sorry." Beck added before following her lead.

"And don't be so whiny." Rex told her.

"Yeah, man up." Robbie added, resulting in Jason scoffing at him.

"I know yo ass ain't talkin'." He said, getting a offended look from Robbie.

However, before Robbie could refute, André came around the corner and said,

"Time for our first ballet class."

"Ooh, ballet!" Robbie exclaimed.

He then proceeded to excitedly follow after André, jumping up with one of his legs in the air as if he was a ballerina.

Tori slumped back onto her locker, a sad look on her face. Jason, upon seeing the look on her, let out a sigh before saying,

"Can't help you with "The Bird Scene", but you want me to show you my locker? Maybe you'll get some inspiration or something, I don't know."

Tori didn't say anything at first, only choosing to look at him. Raising an arm, Jason beckoned her over like a child.

"C'mon..." He said.

Tori let out a sigh before walking over and placing herself under his arm, much to his surprise.

'Not exactly what I expected to happen, but I'll take it.' Jason thought as he wrapped his left arm around Tori's shoulders and led her to his locker, which was only a few steps away.

Once seeing it, Tori saw that there was a painting of a skull wearing headphones sitting in a grey background. She also saw that there was a mark over the left eye socket of the skull.

"A skull?" She asked.

"This was the cover of the first album that I ever released." Jason explained to her.

"You released an album?" Tori asked, very surprised that Jason had already made that much progress in his career.

"Mm-hmm. Me and my sister." He said.

"I didn't know you have a sister." She said, not remembering him mentioning a sister at all during the time they talked.

"Yeah..."

Jason was silent for a moment, worrying Tori a small bit before saying,

"I don't like to talk about her much."

"Oh... Well, if you don't like talking about her, then why did you put this up?" She asked.

"Just a reminder." He answered.

"A reminder of what?" She asked, very curious as to what he meant.

He chuckled a bit before saying,

"Sorry, Pop Star, maybe someday I'll tell you that story."

Jason unwrapped his arm from around her, leaving to go to his next class. Meanwhile Tori just stood there, staring at him as he walked away.

'I really want to do that again...' She thought as she walked off towards her next class.

-----------------------------------------

André and Robbie walked through the halls and stopped once they were in front of the door to their ballet class. They were both wearing white shirts and really tight black tights.

"I didn't know I'd feel so awkward wearing tights." Robbie said with an uncomfortable expression on his face.

"These things squeeze me in a bad way." Rex added.

"Yeah, you won't be complaining when we're surrounded by lady ballerinas." André told them both as he tucked his phone into the waist band of his tights.

When he was done, they both walked into ballet class, finding the room to be filled with guys instead of girls. The guys in the room were almost as disappointed seeing them walk in as André, Robbie and Rex were at seeing them.

"Aw, man, it's a dude ranch!" Rex exclaimed.

-----------------------------------------

Tori Vega:

So ready for The Bird Scene this time. Gonna KILL IT.

Mood = Determined 😡

-----------------------------------------

The next day, Jason, Kevin and Beck walked into Sikowitz' classroom, seeing Tori standing by her chair and preparing herself to perform The Bird Scene for the second time.

"Someone looks ready." Jason said.

"Oh, I'm way past ready. Sikowitz wants "The Bird Scene?" I'm gonna give him "The Bird Scene." I got props, I got a backdrop, and just to kiss up a little, I even got Sikowitz two large coconuts." Tori said, bending down and grabbing two coconuts out of her bag.

"Those are good ones." Beck said, nodding his head and pointing at the two coconuts that Tori was holding before walking to his seat.

Tori shrugged and put the coconuts back in her bag.

"What's the deal with Sikowitz and coconuts?" Asked Robbie.

"He says the milk gives him visions." Jade told him before walking to her seat along with Kevin, who she used as a pillow.

Jason and Tori looked at each other, giving a little shrug before sitting in their seats when they heard the bell ring. As soon as it did, Sikowitz had entered the room.

"All right. Rehear--"

Sikowitz had stumbled over nothing, causing more than a few students some confusion when he quickly stepped onto the stage as if there was something there.

"We have much to do today. But first..."

He tossed him bag off to the side.

"Tori, "The Bird Scene."

Tori stood up, ready to get her performance underway.

"I'm ready. And before I begin, I'd like you to have these two large coconuts." She said, grabbing the coconuts and handing them to Sikowitz.

"Wonderful... You know, their milk gives me visions." He told her, causing a smile to grow on Jade's face.

Seeing his girlfriend so happy with herself, Kevin gave her head a kiss, which made her snuggle into him even more than she was already.

"I heard." Tori nodded before grabbing a pair of glasses from her bag and walking towards the stage.

"Very good. Everyone, pay attention. Tori?" He called out, wanting to see if she was ready.

"One second." She replied.

Tori went towards the back of the stage, reaching up and untying a knot that was holding up her back drop of a small prairie.

"Ooh, a back drop!" Sikowitz exclaimed, finding this interesting as he grabbed a coconut from the shelf.

"And... I am... ready." Tori said, putting on the pair of glasses that she had prepared.

'She looks cute with glasses on.' Jason thought.

"Delightful! Action!" Sikowitz shouted, taking a sip from his coconut.

"It was 1934 when my husband left me." Tori said, using the same southern accent that she had used before.

"Alone. Living on the prairie was a dreary existence. No telephone, no radio, only..."

Tori had slowly walked over to the side of the stage as she was talking, reaching a line that she started to turn. A stuffed white, blue, and yellow parrot lowered into view, raising a few eyebrows.

Tori quickly shuffled over to the parrot, her hands acting as a perch.

"A large, majestic bird with whom I shared my feelings." She said with a smile.

Jason shook his head at the sight, but a smile was on his face all the same. Same could be said for everyone else, except for Jade who only rolled her eyes.

"One day when I was feeling low, I said to him, "Oh, bird, you can fly. You can soar miles from this lonely place, yet you stay. Why?" And apparently, my question rang true, for that afternoon, the bird left."

Tori took out a pair of scissors from her pocket and quickly snipped the string that was holding up the stuffed bird before chucking it out the open window beside her.

"And so went my spirit." Tori ended, putting her head down.

'Well that was one way to do it.' Jason thought, still smiling at the fact that she just chucked the parrot out the window.

"So? Was that good?" Tori asked.

"Exactly what are you asking me?" Sikowitz asked, looking for clarification again.

Tori's face dropped a bit for a second before she asked, "You know, did you like what I did with the scene?"

"Sure." He replied.

"So did I get it right?" She asked excitedly.

Jason, Kevin and Beck all grimaced when she asked the question, meanwhile Jade smiled.

"So close..." Jason muttered, low enough to where no one else heard.

"Oh, no. You failed. Again." Sikowitz told her.

Tori stuck her arms out, absolutely flabbergasted at the fact that she failed the scene again.

"What? Why? I did everything--"

"Hey! Watch where you throw your props!" The landscaper exclaimed, interrupting Tori as he came to the window with the stuffed parrot that Tori had threw out a moment ago.

He tossed the bird at Tori, making her duck to the ground to avoid getting hit. She got up and looked towards the stuffed parrot, wondering what she could've done differently.

-----------------------------------------

In the hall, Cat was on her way to next class before she stopped on the stairs to text someone. Seeing that this was her moment, Tori came out of the shadows and walks up to the unsuspecting air head.

"Cat!" Tori greeted her with a smile.

"Hey!" Cat greeted her back with the same enthusiasm.

"You have to try something." Tori said, grabbing a pair of handcuffs from her bag.

"Handcuffs?" Cat asked.

"Uh-huh, put 'em on one wrist." She told her, opening one of the cuffs for Cat to put her wrist in.

"Okay." Cat agreed, not finding anything weird about this request.

Tori proceeded to close the cuff on her wrist, not noticing the two boys that were looking on from a distance.

"I feel like we should be stopping this..." Kevin voiced his thoughts to Jason.

"Shhhhhh... Let it play..." Jason replied, wanting to see where this goes.

"Good, and now we lock the other part around here." Tori explained to Cat as she locked the other cuff around the hand rail.

"Fun!" Cat exclaimed, still not finding anything wrong with this.

"Okay, now try these." Tori said, taking out a red, yellow and black box of candy from the front pocket of her bag.

Ooh, candy!" Cat exclaimed, happily putting out her hand.

"Wait, aren't those--"

"Let. It. Plaaay." Jason interrupted his friend, not caring about his worries at the moment.

Tori shook the box in Cat's hand, causing a piece of "candy" to fall into her palm.

Cat immediately popped it into her mouth saying, "Mmm, these are so..."

Cat paused, letting the taste build up in her mouth before suddenly shouting, "SO HOT!"

Cat spit it out of her mouth almost instantly and started to fan her face with the hand that wasn't handcuffed to the railing.

"What are these?!" She asked.

"Choo-choo peppers." Tori told her as she grabbed a bottle of water from her bag.

"Choo-ch-- Ah! They're burning my mouth!" Cat shouted.

"I know. You want some water?" Tori offered, showing Cat the bottle.

"YES!"

Cat tried lunging for the bottle, but was held back by her cuffed arm. Tori stepped back, avoiding Cat's attempt to try and grab the water before saying,

"Tell me the secret of "The Bird Scene."

"I can't! And I need water!" Cat pleaded as she reached for the bottle.

Tori tried to stay strong, but ultimately wasn't strong enough to continue her torture.

"Oh! Fine!" Tori said, stomping her foot on the ground before handing Cat the bottle of water.

Cat grabbed the bottle, instantly downing its contents as Tori ran down the stairs towards her locker.

"Welp, that was a waste. Let's go." Jason said, turning to walk away.

"Aren't we going to help her?" Kevin asked, pointing over towards Cat, who was still handcuffed to the railing.

Jason turned around, walking backwards as he looked over at Cat. He thought about it for a moment before turning back around and saying,

"Nah."

Kevin stammered for a moment, looking between Jason and Cat before deciding to try and catch up to Jason. As he was catching up, he had passed Beck in the hallway and dapped him up before continuing on his way.

Beck, seeing the Cat handcuffed to the railing, decided to ignore the sight and walk towards Tori, who was currently shoving her books into her locker angrily.

"Watcha doin'?" Beck asked.

"Angrily shoving my books into my locker, can't you tell?" Tori asked, slamming her locker door for emphasis.

"Have you figured out how you're gonna decorate it yet?" He asked, seeing that it was still largely undecorated except for a lone pink stripe going across it.

"Yes, look, I put a stripe on it. Did you see the stripe?" She asked.

"I see the stripe." He replied, nodding his head.

Tori sighed and slumped against her locker.

"Well, I don't know what to do." She told him.

"Why don't you do something, you know, creative and deep?" He suggested.

"What'd you do for yours?" She asked.

"Come on." Beck said, motioning for her to follow.

He led her around the corner, pointing her her to stand across from him. She did so, and Beck moved to the side, showing her his locker. Upon seeing it, Tori noticed that the door was see through.

"Clear?" She asked.

"Transparent." He corrected before adding, "I've got no secrets and neither does my locker."

"But... Aw, that is creative and deep." Tori admitted.

"Yeah." Beck said.

"So, anyway... About "The Bird Scene." Tori brought up, causing Beck to smile at her attempt.

"Later." He said, ruffling her hair before walking away.

Tori let out a sigh as she watched him leave and the bell rang out. Trina suddenly came running down the stairs, causing Cat to try and call out to her for help.

"Hey, Trina, can you help me? I'm--"

"Sorry, gotta get to lunch before they run out of paninis!" Trina told her as she ran off, not really interested in what she wanted.

-----------------------------------------

André and Robbie were standing in the middle of the group of guys who had all signed up for ballet hoping to pick up girls, unhappy with their current situation.

"Man, this is humiliating." Rex said.

"Agreed. I can't believe you got us into this." Robbie said towards André.

The ballet teacher, Madame Makee, had walked into the room, giving André an idea.

"Let's get out of this." He said, motioning towards the teacher.

André and Robbie both walked over to her, hoping they could drop the class without any problems.

"Madame Makee?" André called out.

"Oui?" She asked, her voice having a clear French accent.

"We're gonna have to drop this class." He told her.

"If you drop this class then it goes on your permanent record as a zero." She told them.

"Oh, come on, you can't give us a "zeh-ro." André said, mimicking how she had said the word "zero".

"Why do you want to drop this class?" She asked.

"Look around, woman. We're surrounded by dudes in tights. It's just gross." Rex told her bluntly the reason they wanted to quit.

Before Madame Makee could say anything, the door opened and a girl in a ballet uniform walked into the class.

"Hey, sorry I'm late." The girl apologized to the teacher for her tardiness.

"Girl!" Robbie shouted out suddenly at the sight of her.

Every guy suddenly rushed the girl, causing her to scream out in terror as all the guys tried to introduce themselves to her at once.

-----------------------------------------

Tori Vega:

Just thought of a way to find out WHAT'S UP with The Bird Scene...

Mood = Sneaky 🥷🏼

-----------------------------------------

Finding her target, Tori jogged up to Jason as he was putting his books inside his locker.

"Hey, Jace..." Tori greeted.

Jason stiffened up a bit before turning around and looking at Tori with a raider eyebrow.

"Jace?" He asked, wondering where that came from.

"Yeah, you know, a nickname. You don't mind me giving you a nickname, right?" She asked, stepping closer to him.

"I... don't." He said, looking at her with curiosity.

"Y'know... I never got to ask. How was your first break dancing class?" She asked, slowly caressing his cheek.

"It... It was, uh... Fine? Left me a little sore I suppose." He replied.

While this wasn't nearly the first time that a girl has tried hitting on him, it was the first time that Tori had done so.

And he had to admit...

He was very much enjoying it.

"Aw, that's too bad... Y'know what has me a little sore lately?" She asked, her other hand moving up to his other cheek.

"Jumping jacks?" Jason guessed, knowing what the answer probably was, but he wanted her to say it.

"Mm-mm. It's this whole "Bird Scene" thing." She said, shaking her head as she stopped caressing his cheeks and proceeded to wrapped her arms around his neck.

The really close proximity between them had caused a few of the students to look over at the two.

"Really now?" Jason asked, trying really hard to control himself.

"Mm-hmm, you'll help me, won't you?" She asked, using those puppy eyes that she knows Jason is weak to.

"So, let's say that I fall for this little seduction thing that you're trying to pull..." Jason wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her right up against him. "What's in it for me?"

Tori's brown eyes met with Jason's green, their faces slowly inch towards each other's as they felt this strong magnetism between them. Tori closed her eyes, waiting for the feeling of his lips on hers.

"Ow!"

Tori stepped back, one of her hands covering her forehead.

"Did you just flick me?!" She exclaimed.

"Nice try, Pop Star. Seriously, A for goddamn effort, but I'm not that easy." Jason told her with a smirk.

"Oh, come one! Can't you just help me a little bit? Even just a tiny hint?!" She pleaded with him.

Jason sighed, thinking about whether or not a hint would be against the rules, but he realized that he was never one for following the rules in the first place, so he decided to give her a hint anyway.

"Believe in your own choices." He told her before walking off.

"Wait, what does that mean?!" She shouted out to him, but he didn't respond.

-----------------------------------------

In ballet, André and Robbie were talking to the only girl in their class when Madame Makee had just entered the room.

"All right, class." She greeted them with enthusiasm.

"All right." The boys said, almost monotone.

Madame Makee placed her bag on the floor before walking in front of everyone.

"Which dancers would like to show me the routine we were working on last time?" She asked.

"We would." André said, suddenly volunteering him and Robbie to go first.

"What?!" Robbie exclaimed.

"We got this, man." André said, trying to calm him down.

"You're a maniac!" Robbie replied.

"André, Robbie, to the front." Said Madame Makee, giving them the floor.

Letting out a sigh, Robbie quickly place Rex down on a chair at the other side of the room.

"Don't talk to anyone till I get back." He told the puppet before walking back next to André.

"From the top!" Exclaimed Madame Makee.

André and Robbie got into position, holding each others hand whilst their bodies faced away from each other.

"Begin!"

Classic music starts to play and André and Robbie start to perform the routine that they had practiced yesterday. As they were performing, both André and Robbie were nodding towards the only girl in the class, who was surprisingly not put off to their blatant attempts to try and impress her.

André and Robbie both started to slap each other's hands for some reason, Robbie exclaiming "Too hard!" before they placed their hands together and started to run in a circle.

Backing away from each other, they both posed on opposite sides of the room before running towards the other. They both jumped in the air at the same time, mistakenly kicking each other in the balls whilst airborne.

Every guy in the room let out an audible groan, each and everyone of them knowing exactly how that feels.

Madame Makee immediately turned off the music, looking at the two boys as they laid on the floor in agony.

"Let's take a five minute break." She said.

"Please make it ten." Robbie requested in a strained voice.

"Twenty." André corrected, his voice having the same tone.

-----------------------------------------

Tori Vega:

Ahhh! About to try The Bird Scene AGAIN -- WISH ME LUCK!

Mood = Fierce 😎

-----------------------------------------

Jason and Beck both walked into Sikowitz' class the next day, see a big curtain having over the small stage at the front of the class.

"Do I wanna know?" Jason asked Kevin, who was standing beside Jade.

"I don't even know." Kevin said, shrugging his shoulders.

Just then, André and Robbie came limping into class, saying "ow" each time they took a step.

"What the hell is going on today?" Jason asked no one in particular.

"Happy birthday!" Sikowitz yelled as he walked into class.

Having enough, Jason just sat down and waited for Sikowitz to start teaching.

"Who's birthday is it?" Cat asked.

"Somebody's, somewhere." Sikowitz replied, walking towards the front of the class.

"That's so true." Cat said as she sat down.

"Where is Tori?" Sikowitz asked, looking around but not finding her anywhere.

"Here." Said Tori, suddenly popping her head out from behind the curtain.

Sikowitz flailed around, startled at her appearance from behind him.

"Oh! Ha ha! You brought curtains." He said once he settled down.

"Let's do this." Tori said with determination as she went back behind the curtain.

"Very good. Ladies and gentlemen, once again, "The Bird Scene," starring Tori..." Sikowitz trailed off, not remembering her name.

"Vega" Tori said, quickly popping out from behind the curtain before going back.

"Vega!" Sikowitz finished, sitting down and drinking from a coconut.

The curtains opened and everyone saw a bunch of props on stage that made it seem as if it was really an old timey prairie. Tori was also wearing a costume that was era appropriate for the scene.

Tori pressed a button on a remote and a speaker started to play old prairie music.

"It was 1934 when my husband left me." Tori said, getting into her southern character once again.

"Alone. Living on the prairie was a dreary existence. No telephone, no radio, only a large, majestic bird with whom I shared my feelings."

Tori whistled and a cockatoo suddenly flew into the classroom from the open window, perching itself on one of the props.

"What the hell..." Jason muttered, tilting his head a little.

"You guys see the bird, too, right?" Sikowitz asked, leaning forward near Jason and Beck.

"Yeah." Beck answered.

"Uh-huh..." Jason hummed with a nod.

"Fantastic." Sikowitz said, leaning back in his chair and taking a sip from his coconut.

"One day, when I was feeling low, I said to him, "Oh, bird, you can fly. You can soar miles from this lonely place, yet you stay. Why?"

Tori paused and motioned her head towards the window. The bird took its cue and flew back outside.

"And apparently my question rang true, for that afternoon my bird left, and so went my spirit."

Tori lowered her head, ending her performance yet again.

"That... was impressive." Sikowitz said as he stood up.

Tori smile and asked, "So did I get it right?"

"Nope." He said almost immediately.

Jade smiled at Tori's failure while Jason just let out a sigh.

"But... But I just-- I-I... I did too get it right!" Tori exclaimed.

This grabbed everyone's attention, as this might be the time she might finally pass the scene.

"Tori, listen--"

"I'm not trying to be disrespectful. But do you know how hard I worked on this scene?! I made this costume. I downloaded special prairie music. I even trained that crazy cockatoo to fly in and out of that window on command!" She yelled out.

The cockatoo flew back in through the window, squawking as it landed.

"NOT NOW!" Tori shouted, causing the bird to fly back out of the window.

"Look, I know you're a great acting teacher and everything, but I don't care what you say. The scene I just did was good, and I'm proud of it no matter what anybody thinks." She told him, finally not caring about what he thought of her performance.

Jason smiled, as did everyone else in the class before they all started to applaud her for her performance.

"What?" Tori asked.

"You just passed "The Bird Scene!" Sikowitz exclaimed.

Everyone started to cheer for Tori, causing her much confusion.

"But you said--"

"Tori, the whole point of "The Bird Scene" is to teach a performer, like yourself, to believe in your own choices, no matter what others think." Sikowitz explained to her.

Hearing what he said, Tori looked towards Jason, smiling as she remembered what he said to her in the hall.

"We are artists, and a true artist does not define success based on "oh, hee, hee" approval from others." He said, moving his arms around randomly. "A true artist need only please himself..."

"Or herself." He motioned to Tori.

"Or itself." He motioned to Rex.

"You don't know what I got!" Rex exclaimed.

That causes confused looks around the class, but fortunately no one asked anything about it.

"So, all three times I did the scene--"

"were delightful. It was only wrong when you asked if it was right. Hmm?" He said.

Tori smiled, finally getting the point of "The Bird Scene."

"Drive-by acting exercise! You're all elderly people walking barefoot on broken glass. Go!" Sikowitz yelled suddenly.

Everyone got up from their seats, acting exactly as Sikowitz described. Sikowitz offered an arm to Tori and she wrapped hers around his, walking off the stage and acting as if they were old and in pain.

The entire class was groaning in pain, hunched over and acting as if they were the elderly.

Well... except for one.

"Jason!" Sikowitz called out.

"Heart attack!" He yelled back.

"Fantastic!"

-----------------------------------------

Tori Vega:

FINALLY... I... am... VICTORIOUS!!!

Mood = Pumped 😁

-----------------------------------------

"You guys ready?" Tori asked.

Jason, Kevin, Jade, Beck, Robbie, Cat and Trina were all waiting in front of Tori's locker, wanting to see the design that she wanted to show off.

Most let off sounds of agreement, while Jade didn't really care.

Tori closed her locker, showing the design on the front. It was a design of a city at night with multiple stars that had the words "Make it shine".

"Make what shine?" Trina asked.

"It's the song that she sang at the showcase." Jason told them, remembering that day fondly.

Everyone let off sounds of recognition, now realizing why she put it on her locker.

"Yeah! 'Cause, you know, that's what got me here in the first place." Tori explained.

"I don't like it." Jade said, not surprising anyone.

"Maybe the words should be bigger." Cat suggested, everyone seemingly agreeing with her sentiment.

"Ah-ah. Ah-ah-ah-ah. I believe in my own choice, and I don't need approval from others." She said, shutting them down.

"Ah, the young female has learned the ways of "The Bird Scene." Beck said.

"I still think it's dull." Jade said.

"Yeah? Well, then maybe I should make it shine." Tori said, pressing a button that was near the bottom of the locker.

The windows of the buildings, along with the stars and letters, all lit up with LED lights, impressing most of the group.

"Okay, are we going to eat or what?" Jade asked, still not caring.

"Oh, yay, food." Cat said, going towards the cafeteria whilst being followed by everyone else.

"You comin'?" Jason asked Tori, facing her as he slowly walked backwards.

"Sure." Tori nodded and following alongside him.

Turning around, Jason walked towards the doors that led outside, but was surprised when he felt something wrap around his arm.

Looking over, he saw that Tori had snaked her arm around him, linking their fingers together as she held his hand.

Smiling, he gripped onto her hand and walked outside with her on his arm, not realizing that what they just did caught the attention of the students that were standing in the hall.