Chapter Four
Shades of Blue

"Wait, wait, wait," Roxy said, amazingly lucid for once. "I'm confused, why'd you tell him no?"
"I don't know, I panicked! And I know Dirk is going to ask Jake in some ostentatious fashion, and they'll end up going together, and I'll just be third-wheeling along the whole time because I haven't been able to make any other friends," Jane said, a note of bitterness in her voice.
"Hang on," Roxy muttered, shutting off the volume on her phone. "Gotta give Janey 100 percent BFFsies attention!"
"Thanks for listening, Rox. I just… don't really want to go to the dance with them if they're going to be, like, a date. But I also don't want to miss my last Homecoming dance!"
"Jane," Roxy said, suddenly getting excited. "Jaaaaaneeeee! What if… what if I went with you? Not like, as a date or nothin' obvi, but just for funsies? I haven't gotten to see any of you guys bein' up at the college."
"Is that… is that an option?"
"Yeah! I can't get a ticket cause technically I'm not a high school student, but you can get me a guest pass. Then I get to hang out with all my besties and enjoy the dance and you don't have to go alone!"
Jane paused, thinking it over for a moment, then slowly nodded. "Yeah… yeah, I can do that!" Roxy excitedly threw her fist up in the air.
"Yeah! Hey Rosie!" she called into the other room, where Rose was sitting with John. "I'm goin' to Homecoming!"

"Great," Rose muttered as her sister giggled in the other room.
"What, you don't want Roxy to go?" John asked. He wasn't sure why Rose had such a disdain for her sister. Roxy seemed fun to be around.
"It's not that I don't want Roxy to go, it's that she can get a bit… excessive in environments like that." Rose said. "And she's practically an adult, and entitled to do what she likes in college, but I was hoping her habits wouldn't have an effect on my Homecoming dance." John nodded slowly, starting to understand what Rose was talking about.
"Well I'm sure it will be fun anyway!" John cheered. He was genuinely looking forward to going to the dance with Rose; they'd been friends for years. John and Rose met in middle school band, where John played the piano and Rose played violin. John was sure Jade would've joined Jazz Band on bass if she'd gone to school with them.
"At any rate, I was planning on going dress shopping with Jade this weekend," Rose said. "And now I suppose Roxy will want to come with me, and probably bring Jane along. We may as well make it a full group outing. You and Dave haven't gotten your dress shirts yet, have you?"
"Uh…" John muttered. "I don't know about Dave, but I haven't."
"Knowing Dave, he probably hasn't either. Can you do me a favor and message Jade? My phone died."
"Yeah, sure thing."

ectoBiologist [EB] began pestering gardenGnostic [GG]

EB: hi jade!
GG: oh, hey john!
GG: what's up?
EB: oh, rose wanted me to ask something
EB: she said you guys were supposed to go shopping for homecoming dresses together
GG: oh yeah!
GG: i'm glad you mentioned it
GG: i forgot!
EB: oh well, now jane is gonna bring roxy, like get her a guest ticket and stuff
EB: and rose suggested that we all just go to the mall together since dave and i don't have our dress shirts yet either
GG: that sounds fun!
GG: oh, by the way has feferi talked to you at all?
EB: no, why?
GG: oh, she wanted to know if we would want to join everyone at her place for pictures
GG: dave said he doesn't really care
GG: cause he's lame :P
EB: hang on, let me ask rose

"Hey Rose, Feferi is getting everyone together for pictures before Homecoming. It sounds like Jade and Dave are in."
"Are you asking me if I would like to join everyone?"
"I guess."
"Yes, that sounds fun," Rose gave a small smile, and John grinned at her, then at his phone as he answered Jade.

EB: yeah, rose said she's cool with that
EB: and i think it sounds fun!
GG: okay cool!
GG: i'll tell fef you're coming
GG: and see all you guys on saturday!

gardenGnostic [GG] has ceased pestering ectoBiologist [EB]

True to what they had arranged, John, Rose, Dave, Jade, Roxy and Jane all went to the mall that weekend. Jane was feeling a bit nervous about shopping, as she usually did, especially with Roxy. Roxy was lean and muscular and tall, everything Jane wasn't. She couldn't help but feel self-conscious sometimes around Roxy. Her love of baking did not help with how Jane felt about her body, but some things were just not worth sacrificing, and cake was one of those things, in Jane's opinion. She tried not to fret over it too much in the dress shop, not wanting to take too long, mostly for the boys' sake. John wouldn't show it, but he wasn't one for shopping. And if Roxy's words about her cousin were to be believed, Dave would remain stoic as well, but he certainly didn't want to be there. Jane noticed Rose giving Dave a look, a cross between a smirk and a glare, and the corner of Dave's mouth wither ever so slightly into a frown. She, Roxy, Rose, and Jade all picked out a few dresses to try on. Jane wasn't entirely sure what she was looking for, other than something in a light blue color, and of course Roxy insisted on seeing everything Jane tried on. It was the 5th or so dress that Jane showed Roxy that absolutely astounded the girl.
"Janey, it's that one. You… you HAFTA get that one," Roxy said, grinning widely. Jane looked down at herself, doing a bit of a twirl as she investigated the way the dress turned.
"Oh? It's a bit short, isn't it?"
"Janeyyyyy, please! 1- There are gonna be loads of dresses shorter and more hip-hugging than that. 2- You're hot as fuck, stop worrying about your bod and love yourself and 3- YOU LOOK AMAZING. Pleaaaaase, get this dress. For me?"
Jane furrowed her brow, taking a few paces closer to the hallway mirror. She supposed it was flattering, and simple. A sky-blue A-line dress with beading at the waistline and a cutout in the back. She glanced back at Roxy, who had her hands clasped together in a begging gesture, smiling as wide as she possibly could at Jane's selection. "Oh, alright, Roxy, I'll get this one."
"YES! Rosie! Come see Jane's dress!" After a moment, Rose stepped out of her own fitting room, glancing at Jane.
"Oh, that suits you, Jane," Rose said. Jane smiled.
"Yours suits you, too," she answered, gesturing to Rose's current selection. It was a deep purple, almost like red wine, and a high neckline, almost like a halter top, with a bit of mesh on front until it came down into a sweetheart neckline, and a beaded bodice.
"Oh, I'm glad you think so. I think I've decided on this one. Roxy, have you chosen yet?" Rose said, her voice bordering on impatient. Roxy wordlessly darted back into her fitting room, and emerged once more impressively quickly in a different dress.
"Okay, okay, so technically this isn't a dress," Roxy explained as Rose and Jane looked on, "but it's my favorite so far." Roxy was wearing what a salesperson would call a two-piece dress, but it looked more like someone had just cut the midriff out. It looked great on Roxy, in a bright pink, which was certainly her color, but it was far from conventional. Still, Jane smiled at her friend.
"If that's your favorite, Rox, then you should get it."
"I just knew you would say something like that!" Roxy said before returning to the fitting room to get into her street clothes. Jane followed suit, and when she came back out, Jade was showing Rose her dress. It was a deep black dress with a green trim that matched Jade's eyes, the entire thing coated in sparkles. It looked as though the galaxy had been sewn into the fabric.
"They call it the 3AM dress!" Jade said excitedly.

John and Dave waited patiently while the girls all tried on a variety of dresses and babbled about what each of them wanted. John had the slightest idea that Dave was feeling embarrassed, though he wasn't sure why.
"Dave, are you okay?" he asked. Dave took a moment to respond, his shades making any reaction indiscernable.
"Yeah, I'm fine…" Dave sighed. The boys both glanced over at the girls, who were all looking at Jade as she twirled in a dress that sparkled like the evening sky. John glanced back at Dave, then grinned, starting to understand what was happening.
Once the dresses were paid for, they left the shop and headed up to the department store for the boys to get their dress shirts.
"Rose… do you want me to match your dress?" John asked.
"What?"
"Isn't that… a thing you're supposed to go? Match with the person you're going with?"
Rose smiled a light smile, notably different than her typical smirk. "John, I appreciate your being so considerate, but I know for a fact you'd prefer a blue shirt to a purple one. It sounds as though we'll be going in a large group, anyway, so I'd rather you wear what you like than accommodate me."
"Oh… um, okay, if you say so," John said before joining Dave near the dress shirts. Dave was holding up a red one to himself. John raised an eyebrow.
"What?" Dave asked surreptitiously, looking towards John.
"Nothing, I just thought you might go for a green one," John answered, waggling his eyebrows a bit. Dave looked from John to the shirt he was still holding, then back to John, then over to Jade, where she was standing with the rest of the girls, back to John again.
"You think I… OH," Dave said. John grinned at his friend. Dave was uncharacteristically bumbling over his words a little bit. "I see… you thought I had a thing for Harley."
"Uh… you don't?"
"No… I mean, Jade's cute and all, and we get along, but… I never thought of her that way," Dave said. John could tell there was something Dave wasn't telling him, though he couldn't be sure what it was. Dave looked a little uncomfortable, so John decided not press it any further. By the end of the day, everyone had a suitable outfit for Homecoming. Dave got his red dress shirt and a white tie, Rose commenting that only Dave would go for something as garish as a white tie, and John chose a dark blue shirt with a classic black tie, feeling satisfied with his choices.

The next week went by relatively quickly, and before anyone was prepared, it was the night of Homecoming. Jane practically locked John out of the shared bathroom most of the evening, but John tried not to hold it against her. It was clear she was very nervous about everything, and John took a chance to slip into the bathroom and mildly de-fluff his hair when Jane flitted away momentarily. John wasn't sure how the evening was going to go, but he wanted to at least look good. For… for no one in particular, he told himself, though he knew that wasn't quite true. He did want a chance to dance with Vriska. He still wasn't sure what drew him to her, but there was something there, he was sure of it.
Jane had her own plans with Roxy, Dirk, and Jake, so her dad took her over to Roxy's while John's dad took him to Feferi's, picking up Rose, Dave, and Jade on the way. They arrived a bit later than the rest of their friends, unfortunately, but John kept his usual chipper smile. He walked through Feferi's back door, everyone else tailing behind him, and immediately spotted Vriska. She turned as she heard the door open, though she'd been walking the other way.
"Hi, John," she called.
"Hey Vriska!" he answered, making his way towards her. Rose followed, approaching Kanaya, and Dave hovered around Karkat and Terezi for most of the pictures. Jade, on the other hand, was sociable and flitted around from person to person, smiling alongside each one of them, until, of course, she got into a conversation with Karkat, who just never seemed to smile.

Jane tried to fake her cheer through the picture session, but there was still a sting in her heart from when she messed up with Jake. Jake, of course, had no clue, because that was just how Jake was. She saw how close he stood with Dirk, but only let her distress be visible when Dirk kissed the top of Jake's head. Dammit! Dammit, she cried internally, but she dared not say anything at risk of ruining the evening for the rest of her friends. Roxy seemed to tune into Jane's distress and remained at her side for the rest of the evening.

Jane and John said hello to each other again once they all arrived at the dance, Rose and Dave both choosing not to say anything to their respective siblings. Jade shot a wave from across the room at Jake, and then each group found a table to store their stuff. John, Rose, Dave, and Jade sat near Karkat's friends, who took up another two tables. Once they'd arrived, John felt a bit more on edge. Vriska was lively, dancing with Terezi and Eridan and even Equius a bit, as John waited for an opportune moment to cut in. Rose was with Kanaya, Dave was once again harassing Karkat and Terezi, and Jade had stepped outside for the moment. John sighed, finally peeling his butt from the chair and approaching Vriska.
"Hey, Vris… wanna dance?" he asked, doing his best impression of Dave as he attempted to stay calm and collected. Vriska turned towards him, glancing up and down at John. He was the slightest bit shorter than her normally, and she was wearing heels. If she was intimidating before, she was even more so now. After a moment, she cracked a smile.
"Christ, John, I thought you'd never ask," she said, taking his hand. John let out a laugh as Vriska pulled him in, and she joined in with her own cackle.

Jane finally managed to shake off her own inhibitions and anxiety and hit the dance floor with Roxy, but of course anxiety levels spiked right back up when Roxy pulled Jane out to the parking lot next to her car, where Jane stood nervously as Roxy popped open the trunk.
"I brought a surprise, Janey," Roxy sang, coming around from the back of the car. Jane jumped a bit, glancing over at her friend, who was playfully holding out a bottle of vodka and waggling it at her.
"Wha- Roxy!" Jane scolded. Roxy only answered with a bout of laughter. "Where did you even get that, Roxy? We're 17, for crying out loud."
"Some dude in my computer programming class bought it for me. Dude was trying to flirt, I told him what my favorite was and he bought it for me. 'Course I told him I wasn't interested, but made sure to take the shit first!"
"I… I'm not going to tell you what to do with your life, Rox, but I certainly am not going to partake," Jane muttered making her way back inside. She sank into her chair next to Dirk.
"Where's Roxy?" he asked.
"Outside, indulging in her usual habits. Where's Jake?"
"He's still out dancing. But…I'm not quite as social as he," Dirk muttered. Both looked about equally upset. "Hey," Dirk started again, "there's no hard feelings about how things worked out, are there?"
"Hmm? Oh. No, Dirk, I could never blame you for that. I messed up, trying to tell Jake about things. I'm trying to get through it. The last thing I would want to do is let all our friendships disintegrate over… some hurt feelings."
"Good. I'm glad."
They drew silent again, and then it was Jane's turn to break it. "Do you ever worry about Roxy?"
"Of course I do. I wish she'd quit drinking."
"Me too."
"She may be my cousin, but she's stubborn as fuck and doesn't listen to me. That being said, Roxy probably has her shit together more than any of the rest of us, and at the end of the day, I trust her to follow her instincts about what's right."
"I guess so."
"She's the one who's been keeping shit together. As far as the friendship dynamic goes."
"Dirk?"
"Mm?"
"You could have graduated early too. Why didn't you?"
"Like I said, I'm not as sociable as Jake, or Roxy. Roxy thrives on attention… affection. She has no issue talking to new people and making friends. If I went, she'd be the only person I know, the only person I talked to. I'll go at my own pace. Plus, I didn't really want her dragging me off to parties all the time." Dirk finally cracked a smile.
Jane laughed a bit. "I suppose that's fair," she said, still smiling.

John and Jane were both still feeling happy when they got home, though there was still most of the school year to get through. Jane was hoping things would be okay by the time she graduated, while John was hoping he'd survive his first crush.