𝐂𝐚𝐭, 𝐌𝐲 𝓥𝓪𝓵𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓮

XIV

It had been almost two hours since I had dealt with Tori and the sun was still shining on the bright blue ocean. I was currently chasing Cat through the water, laughing and splashing. "Hey, let's play chicken!" Andre called out from where he had tackled Robbie and might've been drowning the poor dude. 

Cat squealed, clapping her hands excitedly. "Yay! I call Beck!" she exclaimed, gripping my arm. I chuckled, patting her head. 

"I get Andre, then," Jade looked over at my friend, who just grinned in return. "Robbie, you're the ref," Jade glared at Robbie, who just swallowed nervously and went to stand in between the pairs. 

"Okay Cat, can you get onto my shoulders?" I knelt onto the sand for Cat and she hopped right on top of my back, climbing into my shoulders easily. I wasn't surprised at how light she was, but I was surprised at how tightly she gripped my head to keep from falling off. 

I looked over to see Jade and Andre already standing near Robbie, with Andre tickling Jade's feet as she almost fell off of him. I chuckled, jogging over to where everyone was standing. "Okay, ready, set, go!" Robbie shouted and I laughed when Jade released a battle cry that had a few people staring as she grabbed Cat's arm and tugged her forward. I kept my feet firmly planted in the sand and gripped Cat's legs tightly so she wouldn't fall. 

Cat giggled, trying to push Jade backward off of Andre, to no avail. "You're going down!" Andre shouted as Jade shoved Cat, almost making her topple right off of my back. Thankfully, I held onto her legs firmly enough that she had time to regain her position.  

"Think again!" I shouted back as Cat grabbed Jade's arm and pulled it toward her. Jade shrieked, toppling forward and right into the water. Andre immediately helped her up, gripping her waist while she regained her composure. 

"Cat and Beck are the winners!" Robbie announced before running for his life as Jade shot him a death glare. 

"We won!" Cat exclaimed, jumping up and down. "We did it!" she giggled and I ruffled her hair, grinning. 

"You did a great job," I told her and she smiled before walking over to where Jade and Andre were standing. "Did I hurt you, Jadey?" she asked, looking genuinely concerned that she might've pulled Jade's arm off of her body. 

Jade smiled, ruffling Cat's hair. "I'm okay, Kit-Cat," she grinned when Cat smiled at the good news, walking back over to me. 

I noticed how she still had a small limp when she walked and it made my heart ache for her. Danny still hadn't been given what he deserved for hurting Cat, but when I asked her if she wanted to go to the police, she refused to do it. Instead, Cat called Danny and told him that they would go to the police if he didn't leave town and never bother Cat again. He obliged and that was the last time I'd heard from him. Hopefully, it would always be the last. 

"Beck?" I heard a voice behind me and turned to see Jade standing there with her arms crossed and a frown on her face. "Can I talk to you?" I frowned, nodding, and followed her away from our group. What would she need to talk to me about? "That day that I broke up with you," Jade started, staring at her feet, "I've regretted it every day since. Because-because I still love you. I never stopped." My palms started to sweat. Oh, God. "And-and I was hoping that you might-that you might take me back. That you might feel the same way." Jade drew in a long breath. "Would you give me a second chance?" 

I just stared at her. I'm in love with someone else. But maybe I'm not. Maybe I was just trying to get over Jade, so I started thinking I was in love with Cat. Maybe I can get over her. Cat doesn't feel the same way. If she did, she would've said something. Right? So I looked down at Jade. "Yes." 

Jade's face broke into a wide smile and she wrapped her arms around my neck, pressing her lips to mine. I closed my eyes, thinking about what I just did. I got back together with Jade because I still love her. You're such a load of crap. Fine. I got back together with Jade to get over Cat. That's not fair to Jade. But I truly think that I still love Jade. At least a part of me does. So maybe I'm not such a bad person. Right? 

What I didn't see was Andre, watching us with his fists clenched, and Cat, watching us with glossy eyes and her mouth pressed into a thin line. 

What I didn't see was Andre, opening his arms and Cat running into them, wiping her tears. Andre knew that crying would be considered an overreaction in this scenario, but he also knew that Cat was incredibly fragile at times and tears were quick to flow. The pair walked up to the RV and sat together on the floor, simply mulling over what they'd seen. 

What I didn't see was Robbie, grinning like a madman and racing after Andre and Cat into the RV. He sat as close to Cat as he could, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and stroking her hair. 

What I didn't see was Cat, teary and fragile, grip Robbie's cheeks and press their lips together while Andre stared at the opposite wall, lost in his own thoughts.