"JANE!" Her voice was hoarse from crying out and she was out of breath. Her throat stung from the effort. Daria gripped on the sides of the sink, afraid to look in the mirror. Everything was rocking and floating around even though she knew she was standing still. How was this happening? Was her cold seriously that bad that it was causing this? Breathing hard through her teeth, Daria ran her hands down her face, pulling on her eyes in frustration. Her vision found its way to the mirror- WERE HER EYES COMING OUT?!

"WHA-!?" Daria leapt back, hitting the towel rack and yowling as it struck her in the small of her back. At this point, Mack had gone quiet. Good. He was learning. Now perhaps she could think clearly and try and-

A few hard knocks almost sent Daria into orbit.

"Wuh-?!"

"What's going on in there?" A dopey voice Daria did not recognise called in.

"If the tiles could kindly stop talking, that would-!" Wait what was she saying?!

"Are you having sex in there?"

"Who would even-NO!" Her heart was going like a hummingbird, there was no way she was going back out there! But she could not just rot in here forever! So, what could she do!? Maybe if she opened that window and got some fresh air that might-

The window?

…

Mack muscled his way through the dense crowd that seemed to have accumulated at the bathroom door in the half-minute he had been gone. Jodie and Jane tailed him as he shoved his way in.

"What is going on?" He barked at the jocks whose ears were glued to the wall.

"Hey Mack you were listening for a while, whose doing it in there?" one asked as the others laughed. Jane and Jodie exchanged a confused glance.

"Doing it-? Outta the way!" Mack growled, clearly uninterested in this party-centric idiocracy. He knocked the door.

"Daria! It's me, are you alright?" he called into the door. He gestured his head towards the door, inviting Jane up. Jodie gave Jane a little pat on the shoulder in encouragement. Glancing around, the artist looked around before approaching the door, giving it a small knock with her knuckle.

"Um… Hey." She had to speak loudly over the music, "Daria? It's me."

No response.

"Look I dunno what's going on, but… I wanna help you! Open the door!" Jane had to mediate her tone. She wanted to spill out everything she had been thinking for the last year to this chunk of wood but… not in front of these people. She had an image.

Again, nothing. Jane pressed her ear to the door. There was no sign of life behind it. Her eyes widened and her already racing heart accelerated.

"Daria!" She pounded the door hard, almost rattling it with the force. "HEY!" Once again, nothing. She turned back to the pair, a newfound fear in her eyes. Why was she not responding?!

"Jodie? Mack?"

Hearing the alarm in Jane's voice, Jodie reached into her pocket and pulled out a small purse. Pulling out a coin, she tried to jimmy the lock open as Jane tried to get a response. What was going on? If Jodie had been right then… Surely not!

"I can't- I almost got it but," Jodie swore under her breath, surprising Jane, "It's stuck!" Mack rolled his shoulders.

"Okay I got this, stand back!" Jane and Jodie did as he commanded as Mack, with the etched determination of a bull on his face planted himself and kicked the door hard, causing it to swing open and slamming against the wall. It earned a collective "ooooh" from the crowd and dumbfounded expressions on Jane and Jodie's faces.

"Woah Mack-daddy!" Kevin cried excitedly, "That was SICK!"

"Dad was a volunteer firefighter." Mack explained as he nursed his foot. The trio tumbled through to find…

"…Is this some kind of joke?!" Jane spat, turning a furious eye to Jodie, who could only stare in shock at the empty bathroom!

"I don't understand she was here, I- Mack you saw her run in here right?!"

"Yes! What the fu-?!"

"Hah… okay." Jane stood up, venom laced through her calm voice, "I see what it is. Great laugh guys. Great lark. Really slapped me on the knee."

"Joke? Jane I swear-!"

"You'd thought it'd be funny to pull me in here and make me think my friend was going to hurt herself so you could see the look on my face."

"That's not what-!"

"I don't care!" Jane threw her hands up, "You got your laugh and I've lost ten years of my life thanks to that near heart attack, everybody wins! Enjoy your damn night!" She began to muscle her way through the gobsmacked crowd to the door.

"Jane!" Jodie cried out but the artist was quickly swallowed by the sea of people.

"And open a damn window! It reeks of grass in here! That would explain a lot!" was all Jodie heard before she lost Jane completely. This was so confusing… She felt Mack put a hand on her shoulder.

"Jodie, you okay?" he asked her kindly, though he was clearly just as puzzled.

"I don't understand how did she… wait a second. Grass?" Jodie's eyes widened. "JANE!"

…

"Stupid, damning bastards!" Jane hissed through her teeth as she dug into her pocket for her car keys. Who was stupider here? Them pulling that prank or her for falling for it? Either way, she was fed up! She was just going to sleep in her car and wait until those idiots dispersed into the night so she could finally get home.

"I should have at least taken some soda, Goddamn-"

"Dammit! Dammit! DAMMIT!"

Jane paused as she could have sworn she heard a familiar voice further up the road. At the end of this long snake of cars, somebody was trying to get into their own but was clearly having some trouble. Frowning, Jane narrowed her eyes for a better look.

"Stop! Moving! Dammit!" Daria growled, trying hard to unlock the car, but the door seemed to move wherever it wanted and kept avoiding it, all while her heart kept pounding against her ribcage. She had to get home! Wait no, then Helen and Jake would freak out and that would cause another fight where Jake will storm off and he will not come back this time- DAMN IT MORGENDORFFER!

"…Daria?" The spectacled girl almost leapt into a nearby tree at the sudden voice. She turned to see Jane standing there.