Jane is in her twenties and lives with her mother, currently on the search for a job in Boston. When she was young, she contracted Polio, resulting in a brace that she now wears on one leg and constant social stigma, making it more difficult to find a job and integrate into society. That is, until she finds a position as a typist at a pathology lab, which she faces no inhibitions doing because it requires only her hands, which type at a very fast speed. Once hired, she is introduced to Marsha, the young, conventionally attractive woman who is the secretary of Doctor Wiles, the main doctor in the lab. Jane's peer, Miss Lupowitz, is an older woman who has worked in the lab for twenty years, before Dr. Wiles even began. Jane works hard to please her superiors, in her mind thinking of them as Only People: those who everyone admires and everyone wants to be. Some people she considers Grays, who have nothing wrong with them, but aren't as desirable as Only People. On the bottom of the hierarchy are Janes, who have everything the matter with them and just have to work hard to cruise through life. Quickly, Jane's speed is noted in the lab, with Marsha befriending her and Dr. Wiles complimenting her, which makes Jane feel important and almost like an Only Person. On the other hand, the lab has been having trouble with slackers in every department, and in Jane's department, that slacker is Miss Lupowitz, who constantly has problems with her typewriter and dictaphone. Marsha complains about her to Jane during their lunches, and soon, Dr. Wiles comes to comment on her lack of production as well. At first, Jane switches roles with her, since the work she was chronically behind on was time-sensitive, but eventually, Dr. Wiles asked her to resign. Jane then takes her position wholly, and that night, excitedly tells her mother of her new acquisition.