Part 3: Janice returns to school
Janice's parents hadn't said much to her about their decision about her returning to Echo Creek high, so she assumed that they didn't really care, though she was unsure if she wanted to go back or not, she convinced herself to go, hoping to have a better day. Since she had moved to a new class, she retraced her steps from the other day to find out which class she would be sent too. It seemed to be quite far away from the other class, so she figured that she wouldn't have to run into the student Marco had warned her about. That was until she ran into Marco, who was talking to a familiar looking girl.
'Is that her?' She thought to herself whilst doing her best to stay out of sight. She stood heads above everyone else, so this wasn't easy. She took a moment to look at the girl as she laughed along with Marco. Without even realizing it, she started walking towards them, she tried to stop, but she couldn't, it was like she had no control of her body. 'Hi...' she said nervously as she reached them.
'Oh hey Janice! Good to see you're back!' Marco exclaimed as both him and the girl turned to her. 'Hi!' the girl said cheerfully, her smile destroying any anxiety Janice had before. 'I didn't get to meet you before, but I'm Jackie.' She reached out her hand while retaining her welcoming smile. 'I'm... Janice, it's nice to meet you.' she squeaked as she took hold of Jackie's hand. Almost as soon as she finished speaking, another pair of girls appeared behind Marco and Jackie. She couldn't remember fully, but she knew she had seen both of them in the classroom.
'Marco did the homework, I'm sure of it. He'll help you out.' Said the girl with long blonde hair as she approached the group. 'So how 'bout it Marco? Wanna do my homework?' The other girl followed up with a wink. Marco responded by rolling his eyes. 'Give me a good reason why you couldn't do it yourself, and maybe I'll consider it.' The girl didn't respond at all. They both simultaneously took notice of Janice. 'Oh you're back!' screamed the girl with long her. 'I'm sorry about what happened the other day! I'm Star Butterfly!' She saw Star reach for her pocket, but Marco grabbed her arm before she could do whatever she was going to do. There was no doubt, this was the student who'd created the monster, and just like that, she started to feel anxious again. 'It's nice to meet all of you should probably get to class now though.' And she was off, before letting the other girl introduce herself.
'That was my fault wasn't it?' Star asked with a slight frown. 'Not at all.' Marco reassured her. 'I bet she just needs a little time to get comfortable here.' Janna decided to speak up. 'Yeah, she did seem really nervous though, how long do you like that'll take?' Although she was being sarcastic, Marco couldn't help but consider her question. She obviously wasn't used to being around people, he even found himself wondering if she had really had any actual friends before. These thoughts distracted him all through class up until lunchtime.
He decided it would be best to keep an eye out for Janice, so he could invite her to sit with him and the others. He still wasn't fully sure it was a good idea to keep her around Star, but as long as he kept an eye on her, he hoped it would be okay. It took him a surprisingly short amount of time to find Janice in the crowd, and he quickly called her over. Once she reached the table she took a seat next to Jackie.
'Hey Janice.' She said softly. 'How's your new class treating ya?' Janice took a quick glance around the table at everyone to see them looking at her, eagerly awaiting her answer, but oddly enough, this didn't make her nervous at all. 'It's been... Okay. There were no weird monsters in there atleast.' The whole table busted out laughing, and Janice decided to join in. 'Well that's great to hear!' Marco said, still mid-laugh. The conversation continued normally afterwards, though Janice mainly just sat and listened to what they were saying, so she could know these people better, and soon enough the group was off to class. Janice had to leave the group not long after exiting the cafeteria, though Star stayed with her a little longer.
'Hey Janice.' She began, in a slightly sad tone. 'I'm sorry about what happened the other day, that was my fault...I kinda feel like making it up to you, are you busy tomorrow?' Janice stopped to think for a second. She wasn't sure about spending time alone with her, but she also didn't want to say no, she could be completely wrong about her after all. 'I don't think so. I mean it is Saturday, and I think my parents have finished packing. What do you have in mind?' Stars face lit up. 'it'll be a secret...' She said in a sing-songy voice. Janice wasn't sure about this at all, but part of her was curious. She began writing down her address, and handed it to Star. 'Okay... Sure' She said, unconvincingly. 'Come by whenever, I guess.' Star let out an excited scream, which startled Janice a little. 'Alright great! I'll see you then!' And just like that, she was gone.
For the whole rest of the day, Janice was worried about what she might have gotten herself into. She knew that this girl was capable of turning people into hideous creatures, yet she still agreed to hang out with her. She found herself wondering if it would be just her and Star, or if anyone else would come along too. She hoped everyone would go, but decided not to get her hopes up. At the end of the day she ran into Marco, Jackie, and Star yet again before she was heading home. They invited her to walk with them, although she objected kindly at first since they didn't know where she lived, but they insisted.
Their first stop was a quirky home with two weird towers breaking the roof, where they dropped Star off. From their conversation, Janice assumed that Marco was somehow related to Star. After Star dissapeared into the house, Jackie immediately began to speak. 'So Janice, me and Marco were talking, and we think you could use a little girl time this weekend you know? I'd like to spend a little bit of time with you, if you don't mind.' And just like that, one of her big questions was answered, it didn't seem like Star had told these two about her plans for tomorrow, but despite this, she began getting some paper to write it her address, but Jackie stopped her before she was done. 'Oh don't worry about that, we'll just walk you home, I should be able to remember where it is. Lead the way.' Janice didn't have it in her to disagree, or tell them they didn't have to, so she walked slightly ahead and began leading them.
She hadn't actually noticed before, but Marco and Jackie were holding hands. She felt a warmth coming from her chest when she noticed and smiled just slightly. It made sense to her that the nicest people she knew at the moment were together, and she couldn't help but wonder how long they'd been together, but was too shy to ask. She listened to them laughing together as she walked ahead, occasionally being called into the conversation for an opinion, or just so she could be included. She found herself laughing quite a few times as she slowly grew more and more comfortable, and she actually found herself looking forward to hanging out with Jackie tomorrow before they finally reached her house. She almost completely forgot about her plans with Star. Marco hugged her goodbye, and Jackie followed.
'I'll come by tomorrow at three.' She said as she gave one last wave. Janice watched them both walk off, and was left hoping that Star would show up later than three. 'You know.' Marco began. 'I think this might be easier than I thought.' Jackie smiled at him. 'I think so too, I think once she gets to know people around here, she'll feel like she won't ever want to go to another town.' Marco nodded confidently. 'I agree... Hey how about you two meet me and Star somewhere tomorrow?' 'That's a great idea!' She replied enthusiastically. 'I'll call you around five and we can figure it out from there.' 'Sounds like a plan!' Marco agreed happily. Once they reached Jackie's house, they kissed each other goodbye, and Marco was on his way home, filled with excitement for the next day.