I Wish I could Fight you, but I can't

Chapter 1

Chapter One

Tori's POV

Some people might say that they live two lives. That they are two different people when put in different scenarios. That no one knows who they really are. And everyone knows that these people are just being melodramatic and attention seeking; and they're right. But I'm quite literally two different people. If you see me on TV, you'll see the name "Shelby Marx, The CFC's youngest female champion". If you see me at school, or on the slap.com; you'll see the name "Tori Vega, a 16 year old performer who attends Hollywood Arts High School". So which one am I? Trick question! I'm both, I live two lives. But you cannot, cannot!! Tell anyone about this. The only people that know the truth are my parents and my older sister Trina. And it has to stay that way. I want to live a normal teenage life! And that would be hard to do if everywhere I went, people swarmed me and asked for pictures. I already hate paparazzi and if they knew where I lived or where I went to school, all hell would break loose. Not even my friends know. Nope. Not Cat, Andre, Robbie, Jade... and Beck. This makes my life pretty insane because I'm always running and hiding things from them – the people I care about.

All these thoughts swirl through my mind on the bus ride home. I have just been at the gym, training for three hours with Juan and Gary. And however tired I am, at the mere thought of Beck, my heart beats a little faster. I can't help it, I've liked Beck ever since my first day at Hollywood Arts, when I spilled black coffee all over his white t shirt (yeah, not a great start). I got lost in his dark brown iris's, they were so kind and full of light, with little hazel flecks strewn here and there. I quickly tried to rub it off and that's when we made eye contact again. I sigh and squint my eyes hard, snapping myself out of the memory. The leather of the bus seat is cold, I pull my legs closer to me, picking at the fabric of my tights. Looking out the window, I notice that we're nearing my stop. I stretch up (which was hard given the fact I had spent three hours punching) and press the stop button with my thumb.

The bus pulls to a holt and I tap my bus card, giving the driver a smile as I step off. I adjust the strap of my bag and walk along the sidewalk. It's a quiet Sunday afternoon, the sun hangs lazily in the sky, ready to dip below as night approaches. Before I know it I reach my house and that's when I spot something. A pair of white converse high tops with lollipop's drawn in marker at the door. Cat's favourite shoes. Why is she here?! I'm still in my workout gear! I sneak around the car, stand up on the edge of the hot tub and climb up the drainpipe, peering through my bedroom window. Cat's sitting on my bed, a glass of pink lemonade in her hand, watching something on her purple pear book. I reach into the front pocket of my backpack and pull out my teal pearphone. Climbing down, I sit on the patio and call my sister who I know is home. She picks up on the third ring. "Hey baby sis, I thought you were-"

"Why didn't you warn me Cat was coming!" I quietly hiss,

"She told me that you knew she was coming over for a sleepover! Something about a science project" Trina replies defensively. I sigh and smack my forehead, remembering that Cat comes over every Sunday. "You're right, I forgot about that, sorry" I quickly apologise. "But I'm still in my gear, can you distract Cat for me while I run in and change?" I look back up to check if Cat's still there. "Torii! I'm busy painting my nails!" She whines. I sigh angrily

"Trina please!"

"Okay okay fine" Trina answers boredly. I thank her and hang up the phone. I hear Trina call out Cat's name and the redhead closes her laptop and leaves my room. Silently, I push up my window and climb inside my bedroom. As quick as I can, I throw off my active wear and pull some skinny jeans over my legs and an old "Hollywood Arts" longsleeve. I tug out my messy ponytail and brush Shelby's side bangs away. Then I stash my bag and climb back out my window. Phew! Just in time, because in a flash of red, Cat's back.

I exhale loudly as I climb back down the drainpipe. See? This is what I mean by insane. I open the front door and throw my keys on the mantle. "Hello?" I call out. "TORIIIIIII" I hear a squeal and before I know it, the tiny redheaded Cat Valentine is in my arms, nestling in for a hug. "Woah, hey there Cat" I laugh, trying to hide the pain on my face as Cat pressed against one of my bruises. She pulls away, her brown eyes full of curiosity "I've been here for aaaages! Where were you!" I swallow. Think Vega, think! "I uh, had a craving for doughnuts so I went out to Jetbrew, sorry" I lie, hoping Cat wouldn't be suspicious. But then I remember that Cat has the IQ and attention span of a puppy. Her eyes widen and she gasps. "One time, I was at Jetbrew, then my brother threw coffee on one of the baristas!" She giggles, pulling me by the wrist into the kitchen.

Trina appears atop the staircase and mouths "You owe me". I glare at her and she vanishes. "So Cat, our project?" I ask, opening the fridge and grabbing a bottle of wahoo punch. "Noooo, no work, we can do that later!" She groans. I laugh and raise an eyebrow. "Look!" She opens up her pink duffel bag and pulls out a kingsize bag of rainbow skittles. "I brought Candy!" She goes to open the bag but I put my hand on hers. "Save em for later kitten, my parents will be home with dinner in a few minutes" I say, walking up the staircase. "Kay Kay" She trails after me like a little duckling.

We go into my bedroom and I lay down on my bed, exhaling. Cat takes a sip of her pink lemonade and sits down next to me. "Soooo" she says expectantly. I raise an eyebrow. "So what" I reply, pushing myself up onto my elbows. She gnaws on her lower lip before blurting out "When are you gonna get a boyfriend!" I gasp and swat her away, lying back down. "Cat!" I scold. "Seriously!" She sighes and plays with the ends of my hair. "Toriiiiii" She says, drawing out the last letter of my name. "You haven't been on a date in ages! Why?" She asks, innocently plaiting strands of my hair into mini braids. I exhale. "I...I don't know, I guess I've just been busy and-"

"You haven't dated anyone since Ryder Daniels!" Cat argues, undoing one of the plaits. I arch my neck back to look at her. "Yeah, because that went amazingly" I snort. Cat pushes my head back down so she can keep braiding. "You just need to find a better guy, someone sweet and loyal" She says, emphasizing the last word. I put the bottle to my lips. "Like Beck!" She says loudly. I choke on my soda and sit bolt upright, coughing and spluttering. Cat looks at me panicked "Are you okay!" I wipe my mouth. "Yeah, but Beck? Really Cat!" Cat hugs my pink doughnut pillow to her chest. "Why not? He and Jade broke up a month ago, you guys like each other-

"As friends!" I quickly add, then wonder if Cat meant that or the other kind of like. "I'm just saying, sometimes friendships can grow into something more!" she finishes and I notice a slight blush growing on her cheeks. I grin slyly. "Like you and Robbie?" I tease. Cat gasps and hits me gently with the plush doughnut. Her cheeks go even redder. I laugh and hit her back with the blue doughnut. Soon enough we're having an all out war with the pillows. As we wack each other, Cat's words echo in the back of my mind "Sometimes friendships can grow into something more" .

I wish.