𝕯𝖊𝖆𝖉 𝕸𝖊𝖒𝖔𝖗𝖎𝖊𝖘

Chapter Four

"Joey, I need your opinion." Janet emerged from the closet, wielding two different dresses.

Joey looked over, confused, "What's the occasion?"

He never saw Janet wear a dress, neither has the rest of the band. Dirty sneakers, baggy t-shirts, and ripped jeans were more of her thing.

"I'm going out on a date!" she smiled brightly.

On the inside, however, Janet felt terrible. Though Corey and Janet agreed months ago to end it, Janet came up with the idea to see if Joey showed any interest in her. After all, subconscious reactions don't lie. But, Janet was second-guessing herself.

"Oh," His tone changed, "Who's the lucky guy?"

Janet forced herself to be giddy, "Jim of course!" and began to gush, "He's so handsome and sweet,"

Joey did nothing.

"And he's just so tall!"

His fists instinctively tightened, his nose flared, "The black dress."

Janet was surprised by his sudden choice but smiled internally at his reaction. It got under his skin.

She smiled, "Thank you, Joey!" and planted a kiss on his cheek.

Her little peck threw him off. Janet rushed to the safety of the bathroom to calm her embarrassment.

🥁🥁🥁

"Ok, Peachy! I'm ready!" Janet smiled, walking into the living room.

Jim stood to his feet and offered her his arm, "Shall we?"

"Can you guys move, I'm missing my show!" Joey crossed his arms, glaring at the two.

Though Jim laughed it off and pulled Janet along, Janet didn't. When the two got settled in the car, she began to weep.

Joey waited till the car was gone, and spoke up, "What the fuck is going on?"

"About what?" Corey questioned back.

"Janet and Jim! She doesn't like him like that."

Shawn laughed, "How do you know? You hardly ever talk to her."

"I--" Joey tried defending himself, but Shawn was right. He barely knew a thing about Janet.

"Exactly," Shawn sighed.

Corey spoke up, "Jim only agreed to go on a date with Janet to get her out of the house. Tomorrow is Janet's birthday, but we also go back on tour again." He finished lacing up his shoes, "We're going to the store to get stuff for it, we'll tell you all about her."

🥁🥁🥁

At the store, they stopped by the candy aisle while they waited on the birthday cake.

"Sugar, Janet loves anything and everything with sugar," Corey informed him, "But, her favorite type of candy is sour." He grabbed a pack of Sour Punch candy.

Sid put fudge-strapped cookies in the cart, "These are her favorite cookies."

They followed Shawn to the Arts and Craft aisle. "She never shuts up about needing a new journal," commented Shawn.

Craig snuck up behind them, carrying a new pack of blue headphones. Mick and Chris came back with Tool and Korn t-shirts, "Those are her favorite bands." Corey said, nudging Joey to keep his attention.

"Here we are," Corey smiled, they stopped by a stand of stuffed animals, "She loves these! But, which one do you think she'd like?"

Joey pointed at a stuffed dog.

"Haven't you been paying any attention?" sighed Craig. Sid giggled in the background.

Joey began to work up a sweat, "Um," he looked back in the cart. The majority of the items were blue.

Shawn gave him a hint, "It's the most basic of stuffed animal types."

Joey dug around in the pile and found a soft powder blue stuffed bear, with a pastel bow tied around its neck, and a heart patch on its stomach to match. He held it up, "What about this?"

"Perfect," Corey patted his back, "Now, let's get decorations and her birthday cake!"

Joey stopped them, "Don't forget a card."

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Jim and Janet didn't get home till late that night. Everyone else was fast asleep.

The two waved each other goodnight and quietly went their separate ways.

Janet crept into her and Joey's room, tiptoeing to the bathroom. The door was a nuisance to shut, so she left it open by a slim crack.

Joey shifted in his sleep at the peeking light irritating his eyes. He paused in his annoyance. Janet had stepped out of the shower and dried off with a towel quickly. He knew it was wrong to look, but he couldn't help himself. She'd probably do the same to him if she liked him back. All he could see was bits and pieces of her backside as she moved about in the bathroom. His face grew hot, and his breathing picked up as she put on her underwear and nightgown.

'No, take it back off,' Joey became frustrated as his pajama pants grew constrictive.

Joey rolled over suddenly as Janet turned off the light. She tiptoed to her bed and crawled under the covers, careful not to make the bed frame creak.

Joey returned to his position on his back and looked over to see her facing the wall. His imagination ran wild as his pants grew tighter.

Eventually, Joey grew fatigued and finally fell asleep hours later. His dream didn't help his situation.