Not Everyone Makes It in America

Chapter 1

"Jade it's time to take your medicine, wouldn't want you to miss out on those!" The nurse said as she leaned over beside Jade. Not shifting her gaze from the television Jade took the two plastic cups from the nurse. She slowly took a sip of the water and then swallowed her pills, chasing them with another gulp of water. Almost systematically she handed the two cups back to the nurse. Jade never saying a word to or making eye contact with her. With an almost feeling of sadness in her eyes the nurse walked away.

It's shame really, the way Jade was. Her eyes never left the tv when she's in the rec area. She just sits in the same chair clutching onto the remote everyday, never speaking a word or looking at something else. The closest thing to human contact anybody gets with Jade is the wicked smile that sometimes curls onto her lips after she takes her meds. She's not spoken a word to anybody since she arrived at the institution.

Everybody knew what she was capable of though, and from what the staff heard from her remaining "Family", Jade had not been acting how they claimed she did. It'd been 3 years since she was put in the institution, and not once had she lashed out in a psychotic episode or screamed at another patient. For a matter of fact, she'd never even acknowledged the people around her.

All she did was focus on that damned TV. That's all she was doing now. Everybody just assumes that she's zoned out, but to be completely honest Jade is quite content with what she is always watching on the television. It kept her craziness at bay, or that's how she liked to justify it.

Her father always told her she was crazy, and she believed him. Of course, that's why she had somebody murder him. Which is really the reason she's in here. Jade knows now though; this is where she really belongs. These thoughts tore her apart piece by piece, and she focused back on the TV screen.

Leave it to one of the people she hated to calm her down. Of course she wasn't referring to any family members, as the only family she has now is her "little miss perfect" half sister Laura. No, she would never allow the likes of Laura to calm her down, but her old high school enemy Tori Vega.

As the she cycled through all the music channels on the television Jade was bound to find one of Tori's songs playing. She is an international pop star after all. Once Jade finally found Tori's song playing on one of the channels she could finally form a coherent thought. One that had kept crossing her mind every day she was in here. "I need to see Tori again." Jade shook her head, trying to regain focus on the television. It just wasn't a feeling she could shake, she really did need to see Tori again.

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Coming off of the stage Tori was welcomed by her usual crew of friends cheering her on: Trina, Andre, Cat, and Robbie. It had been the last show of her tour tonight and oh were they going to celebrate.

"Go Tori!" Andre cheered as Tori walked towards them.

"Yeah! To Tori!" Robbie added in, with everybody's approval as well.

"Thank you guys so much, you're so wonderful I could never ask for anybody more. You guys, you're my support." Tori said graciously. The thing was, Tori could think of somebody more she could ask for. Jade West. After graduation she just kind of skipped town, supposedly ready to prove that she could make it in the world. Everybody thought she would stay in Hollywood, but apparently she was done associating with the people around her. Including her friends and family.

In high school Jade and Tori never really got along. Jade was always rude and bitter towards her, and Tori had a pretty short fuse when it came to tolerating Jade too. That didn't stop the fact that Tori missed her though. She'd like to think that by the end of high school they were almost friends.

Tori's thoughts were cut short by a high pitched voice exclaiming "Let's all go to a nice restaurant to celebrate!" The voice had belonged to Cat Valentine-Shapiro. Everybody nodded in agreement.

"First let me change and then we'll all go out to eat! We'll all meet at The Willow?" Tori suggested. Everybody nodded and began to walk off as a group, leaving tori to her own thoughts. She tried to shake her thoughts of Jade as she walked to her dressing room but she just couldn't.

For the first while out of high school Tori thought she was blessed that she never had to see Jade again. That wasn't the case now. Tori really missed Jade, and she only wished she knew where to find her. It wasn't like Tori could just search her name and find all the things Jade aspired to be on there. No, Jade apparently never became any of those things. Not a writer, an actress, a director, a producer, or even a singer. It was like she vanished into thin air once she left.

It left Tori with the same troubling thought every time. No matter how much they hated each other in high school. However this time Tori voiced her thought aloud; it was barely a whisper, but it was said. "I need to see Jade again."