Categories > Movies > Mean Girls > Idioteque
15
There ended up being a lot of unmentionables, like that one time Regina got sick and Janis had to bring he to the nurse. The nurse seems to have featured a lot in their recent past.
(Regina thinks afterward that it was just a testament to the remains of their friendship that Janis never brought up her shoes again. Or it could have been to do with the fact that Janis didn't want to speak to her, but she likes to think it was the former.)
********
At first she thinks it's just the sight of the frog's innards, a grotesque display for all the world to see before her, so she takes a step back to get some air before returning. There's nothing that's going to stop her from doing well on this dissection. It's going towards their Christmas grade and there's no way Regina's letting Janis Ian best her again this year in biology, sitting at the back of the room reading a book. Something to do with her protesting against cruelty to animals. Secretly, she just thinks that Janis is too chicken to get on with the deed.
(Secretly, she agreed with both.)
Unfortunately, it's not long before she's as green as the frog and the teacher orders her to go the nurse. Unwilling to disturb the other students anymore than necessary, she sends Janis with her.
(She never admitted it, but the look on Janis' face when she's forced to accompany her is what brought on the second round of nausea.)
They troop up the hall in silence and when Regina grips her stomach against the cramps Janis mentions something about her stomach rebelling because it's finally been re-acquainted with food. Regina runs for the nearest bathroom.
(Janis could always be cruel, she remembered. She generally lashed out when she was uncomfortable. Regina learned from a master.)
She doesn't actually quite make it to one of the stalls and launches herself at the nearest sink instead. She almost knocks herself out and that's even before she begins to retch noisily and painfully. She can't remember eating as much as what came up and she's a little dazed when a gentle hand lifts her hair out of the way and rubs her back gently.
(She didn't have to say a thing, there had been a sombre expression on Janis' face at that point. Quiet understanding, mixed with a little hopelessness. Regina never did understood why she did it to herself either.)
Eventually there's nothing left to come up. Janis helps her move so she's sitting on the cleanest part of the floor, back up against the wall, and turns to leave. A flash of panic rushes through Regina and she lunges blindly at Janis, grabbing her hand. Janis looks confused and Regina tries to explain.
(She tried to make her understand. Tried to make her understand herself as much as Regina.)
"I, you, can't." Her voice is a little broken, understandable from all the vomiting. Janis moves to get her a drink and Regina shakes her head. "You can't let them see me like this." She finally whispers and Janis understands. She faces the sink and steels herself, glancing back at Regina.
(This is all I owe you, my pound of flesh, her eyes said. Regina had never found it in herself to tell her that the only one who owed a debt was herself. She rarely found it in herself to admit it.)
Regina just nods her head wearily and closes her eyes, leaning her head back against the cool tiles. She can hear Janis cleaning up her mess and when she's finished she helps Regina clean herself up too. It's only when she's looking down, splashing water on her face, she sees the vomit on her shoes. "Sorry." She says quietly and neither of them are really sure what she's apologising about. Janis shrugs. "Just shoes. Feel better?" She nods because she doesn't trust her voice and just about manages to make it to the nurse on shaky legs.
(If they were younger she'd be crying. Janis had always been the stronger one.)
Janis leaves her at the door and goes back to class. Regina watches her the whole way, until she turns the corner at the end of the hall, and feels something break when she doesn't look back.
(She'd never found out that Janis spent the rest of the period listening to her own broken sobs in the very same restroom.)
Her mother comes to pick her up and she makes up something about food poisoning. She spends the evening curled up in bed, trying to forget.
The next day things are back to normal.
(Trying to forget that she'd spent her entire life trying to be Janis. She'd made a good job of forgetting, when she didn't have to see her.)
There ended up being a lot of unmentionables, like that one time Regina got sick and Janis had to bring he to the nurse. The nurse seems to have featured a lot in their recent past.
(Regina thinks afterward that it was just a testament to the remains of their friendship that Janis never brought up her shoes again. Or it could have been to do with the fact that Janis didn't want to speak to her, but she likes to think it was the former.)
********
At first she thinks it's just the sight of the frog's innards, a grotesque display for all the world to see before her, so she takes a step back to get some air before returning. There's nothing that's going to stop her from doing well on this dissection. It's going towards their Christmas grade and there's no way Regina's letting Janis Ian best her again this year in biology, sitting at the back of the room reading a book. Something to do with her protesting against cruelty to animals. Secretly, she just thinks that Janis is too chicken to get on with the deed.
(Secretly, she agreed with both.)
Unfortunately, it's not long before she's as green as the frog and the teacher orders her to go the nurse. Unwilling to disturb the other students anymore than necessary, she sends Janis with her.
(She never admitted it, but the look on Janis' face when she's forced to accompany her is what brought on the second round of nausea.)
They troop up the hall in silence and when Regina grips her stomach against the cramps Janis mentions something about her stomach rebelling because it's finally been re-acquainted with food. Regina runs for the nearest bathroom.
(Janis could always be cruel, she remembered. She generally lashed out when she was uncomfortable. Regina learned from a master.)
She doesn't actually quite make it to one of the stalls and launches herself at the nearest sink instead. She almost knocks herself out and that's even before she begins to retch noisily and painfully. She can't remember eating as much as what came up and she's a little dazed when a gentle hand lifts her hair out of the way and rubs her back gently.
(She didn't have to say a thing, there had been a sombre expression on Janis' face at that point. Quiet understanding, mixed with a little hopelessness. Regina never did understood why she did it to herself either.)
Eventually there's nothing left to come up. Janis helps her move so she's sitting on the cleanest part of the floor, back up against the wall, and turns to leave. A flash of panic rushes through Regina and she lunges blindly at Janis, grabbing her hand. Janis looks confused and Regina tries to explain.
(She tried to make her understand. Tried to make her understand herself as much as Regina.)
"I, you, can't." Her voice is a little broken, understandable from all the vomiting. Janis moves to get her a drink and Regina shakes her head. "You can't let them see me like this." She finally whispers and Janis understands. She faces the sink and steels herself, glancing back at Regina.
(This is all I owe you, my pound of flesh, her eyes said. Regina had never found it in herself to tell her that the only one who owed a debt was herself. She rarely found it in herself to admit it.)
Regina just nods her head wearily and closes her eyes, leaning her head back against the cool tiles. She can hear Janis cleaning up her mess and when she's finished she helps Regina clean herself up too. It's only when she's looking down, splashing water on her face, she sees the vomit on her shoes. "Sorry." She says quietly and neither of them are really sure what she's apologising about. Janis shrugs. "Just shoes. Feel better?" She nods because she doesn't trust her voice and just about manages to make it to the nurse on shaky legs.
(If they were younger she'd be crying. Janis had always been the stronger one.)
Janis leaves her at the door and goes back to class. Regina watches her the whole way, until she turns the corner at the end of the hall, and feels something break when she doesn't look back.
(She'd never found out that Janis spent the rest of the period listening to her own broken sobs in the very same restroom.)
Her mother comes to pick her up and she makes up something about food poisoning. She spends the evening curled up in bed, trying to forget.
The next day things are back to normal.
(Trying to forget that she'd spent her entire life trying to be Janis. She'd made a good job of forgetting, when she didn't have to see her.)
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