Plain Jane (Preview)

Chapter 8

Standing there in her room was almost like waiting for poison to set in. Jane's body was paralyzed, and all she could do was look at the blank, generic screen with the landscape of a hill. Is it watching me? Can they see me? Is this some sort of test? Jane pondered while unable to free herself from her own mind. Her feet attempted to walk to the computer, each step heavier than the last until she finally reached the desk. Jane placed a hand on the upper half of the laptop before slowly starting to close it, but that's when a sudden bloop sound came out of the speakers. It was a notification, and it caused Jane's heart to beat faster.

She knew her computer was clean of any individuals who may have found a way in. Although she worried that this was them sending her a warning about closing the laptop. It was the first time in a long time that Jane actually felt scared about her safety. Tilting the screen back up and keeping only one eye looking at it until it was back at a ninety-degree angle and had everything on display. At that moment, Jane breathed a sigh of relief. The notification was sent by her mother and was the complete briefing about everything that was going to happen. The big thing that stood out was a single line.

You'll be working in teams of two from now on.

Jane didn't like the thought of having a teammate, especially with her lone-wolf personality. Yet, she wasn't one to argue and quickly skimmed the rest of it before deleting it from her computer. Performing another factory reset afterward to destroy any evidence and double-checking that everything was still clean. It was. Jane then reached over for some tape that she used to wrap her hands for when she went boxing. Then placed a piece over the laptop's webcam as a safety precaution in case anyone was watching on the other side.

When all was said and done, Jane stripped off her musty-smelling clothes and threw on something simple. A tank top and some sweatpants were what she settled on before joining the girls in the common room. However, before Jane could even get there, Sarah came running, wrapped her arms around Jane's waist, and hugged her tightly. It was a confusing moment for Jane since she didn't think Sarah would ever do something like this, especially after the night they had and how they flirted with each other. Yet Jane's feelings when Sarah held her close left her unable to stop her cheeks from getting warm. Instinctively Jane hugged her back, but it didn't last long as Sarah quickly pulled away.

"Why would you do something like that? You could have gotten hurt." The words that left Sarah's mouth were shaky, and Jane again couldn't help but feel guilty for her actions.

"I'm sorry, Sarah, it's just...I don't know. I was stupid. It won't happen again." Jane replied, giving Sarah the answer she knew her best friend wanted. Unfortunately, Jane's words were tearing her apart inside, wishing she could tell Sarah who she actually was.

"Good, because, like I said, I'm not looking for a new roommate. Now Jenna and I were talking about taking a late-night swim. Are you in?" Sarah asked as the subject changed to something Jane felt might actually be good for her.

"Sure, I think that would be really beneficial for my mental state. I wish I knew sooner, though, so that I didn't have to go and get changed again." Jane joked before returning to her room and putting on her swimsuit.

At the same time, Sarah didn't say anything. She only looked at Jane with a playful smile, then turned away to join Jenna at the table. With Jane back in her room, she dug through the drawers for the one-piece she had bought a while back for when she intended on swimming laps for exercises.

***

After a few minutes of removing and putting on clothes, Jane was fully dressed in her bathing suit, throwing the leather jacket on over her top half, and a pair of jean shorts covered the bottom. Fully dressed once more, she regrouped with the others in the shared space of the dorm room, guessing that they were waiting on her. Sarah held onto their towels while Jane locked the door after everyone else was out. The good thing about this was the likelihood of anyone being at the pool this late at night was slim. It was still overcast outside, and the party was only getting started downstairs while the pool was on the highest floor of the dormitory, and a no alcohol allowed zone.