AN: Thank you to RLBB, I really appreciate the kind words. To Mikaela: Thank you, there will definitely be more to come!
Jane's P.O.V.
It was the day of the party, and where was I? Sitting on my couch, looking absolutely terrified, and smoothing out non-existent wrinkles in my dress…over and over again. Billy walked out of the bathroom and laughed when he saw me.
"That nervous Janey?"
I grimaced, "Petrified."
Honestly, it wasn't the party that had me so uptight. I mean, I work for Grey! I'm used to handling these types of things. What had me worked up was the fact that Billy invited Zoe to come before the party started. I knew she didn't like me. I may be naïve but I'm not stupid. I see the way her eyes narrow when I talk to Billy, the she stomps by us and flips her perfect hair to get Billy's attention when we hug. But that isn't what bugs me the most. It's the way Billy runs after her, assures her nothing is wrong. The way he softly smiles at her frustration and sweetly promises to make it up to her. It's the way he looks at her, like how he used to look at….me? No no no no. That can't be true, can it? I open my mouth, about to ask Billy, when the doorbell rings. Ugh Zoe. I plaster on a smile and pray this night ends soon.
Billy's P.O.V.
As soon as the doorbell rings I race to the door. Throwing it open, I see a very beautiful Zoe staring back at me. "Hey troublemaker," she winks at me.
I laugh, "Hey pop quiz crusader."
She cringes, "You're never goanna let me live that down, are you?" I shake my head no and escort her inside.
"Hey Jane." Zoe says to my best friend. Was it me, or was her voice cold? Nah. This is Zoe we're talking about.
"Hi Zoe," Jane mumbles, looking down in her lap.
Her voice sounds sad, "Janey are you-" my questions cut off by Zoe as she pulls me to the side and starts talking a mile a minute. In my peripheral vision I see Jane get up and walk away.
"Where are you going Jane?" Zoe calls to her over my shoulder.
"I'm-going to work some more on the costumes, tell me when the guests arrive." She turns back and goes to her room. I hear the lock click shut.
Zoe smiles at me, but it's not a normal Zoe smile. Her eyes hold triumph, and I don't understand why.
Jane's P.O.V.
According to normal, high school standards, I would say the party was as huge success. People got wasted, brownies were eaten, people passed out, loud music was played, and all that other stuff that accompanies parties. I had gotten everyone out of the house and set to work on cleaning up the mess. Cleaning was a good thing, it usually distracted me from thinking about whatever was bothering me. This time it wasn't helping.
Flashback to the party
"You're spending every night here at Jane's and you tell me there's nothing between you two? Lulu was right!" Zoe screamed at Billy.
"It's just that she needs me right now Zoe, she's my best friend, I can't just abandon her!"
"I'm your girlfriend Billy! I should be taking priority over Jane!" her voice sounded bitter. "How do I know you haven't been sleeping with her?"
"Zoe," he took her hands, "she's just…Jane. I could never sleep with her that would be weird." Zoe seemed to believe them because the two of them disappeared soon after. I figured he took her out to eat or something.
Just thinking back on it made me want to cry, I'd always be Just Jane to him and I was slowly coming to terms that I wanted to be more. Refusing to think about it any longer, I worked even harder and soon had the house looking spotless, expect for the bedrooms. I entered Ben's room and cringed at the smell. I changed the sheets, striated up, and spayed air freshener. There, good as new. I yawned, I really needed a nap! I walked into my room…and almost died. There was Billy and Zoe, in MY bed, naked. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what happened. I fought back tears as I tip-toed into my closet and got dressed for work. I grabbed my purse and shoved anything Donovan-Decker related into my bag, no need to give Zoe something to blackmail me about. I started to walk out, don't turn around don't turn around. I never listen to my good advice. I turn around with tears in my eyes and see a regretful Billy staring back at me.
"Janey, I—" he starts to get out of bed but I hold up my hand.
"Make sure you change the sheets and lock the door on your way out," I say in what I hope to be a calm, collected manner. I shut the bedroom door softly behind me and race out the house, tears streaming down my face. It's too much to handle! I keep running when I get outside, oblivious of the rain that's pouring down, perfectly matching my mood. "Ahhh!" I fall, in typical Jane Quimby fashion, my body slamming down hard on the concrete. I stare at my broken high heeled shoe and my ankle that's twisted at an unhealthy degree. "I've been looking for an excuse to get rid of you!" I say to my heels as I grimace at my bad joke. My phone is ringing like crazy. 40 missed calls from Billy and 75 texts messages. I ignore them and shakily dial Grey's number.
"You're late Quimby!" Grey shouts into the phone.
"I'm sorry Grey," I choke back a sob, "I'm really sick and –" she must have believed me because she gave me a week and a half off then hung up. Then I called the school, pretended to be my mother, and told them I was too sick to come in next week. As I hung up the phone I saw the date and started to laugh. This was the worst birthday ever.
I'm not sure how long I sat in the rain, but after a while I carefully got up and slowly walked home. My ankle was throbbing horribly so I walked in my bare feet…I'm honestly surprised I could walk at all. Billy and Zoe were gone when I got home. I went into my bedroom and changed into shorts and a tank top, I was really hot. Was it hot in here? I collapsed onto my bed, thinking about my birthday and everyone who had forgotten. My mother had Dakota, Ben had baseball, and Billy, my best friend, had decided to put his girlfriend first for once. And I was left alone. With that thought, I slowly drifted off to sleep, thanking God that Billy had remembered to change the sheets.