It’s the final day of the summer holidays and tomorrow begins our senior year. Joey, Pacey and I lie on my bed watching a Spielberg film, as usual, when I decide to let them in on my new theory.

As always, I’m connecting life to film in a blatant attempt to understand both. I always find it fascinating that while life can seem so complicated and often meaningless, film can have the opposite affect, and more often than not, it is actually life being depicted on film. I believe, that every one of life’s problems has an answer somewhere on film, and today I’m going to prove that to my two best friends, Pacey and Joey-or Larry and Curly, as I’ll show them in a moment.

“So what is this theory of yours Dawson?” Joey asks me, less than enthusiastically.

“Still living in Snow Falling on Cedars?” Pacey adds mockingly.

“No, no…this one, it’s more of an analogy than a theory.” I tell them.

“Expound.” Joey says.

“Take the three of us…then take the three stooges, the memorable ones, Curly, Moe and Larry.”

“And?” Joey raises her eyebrows, impatient as always.

“And look at the similarities! They have the jokester; the serious, ambitious one and the one that always seems to be caught up in the other two’s schemes. They are us, we are them!”

“Are you crazy Dawson?” Pacey exclaims.

“Hardly.” I laugh. “I’m merely stating a physiological fact, that we are like the reincarnates of the three stooges.”

“You’re aware that they were completely fictional characters, right?” Joey asks. I give her a knowing look.

“You know I’m right Joey, that’s why you’re so quick to dispute it.”

“Whatever.” She sighs, turning back to watch the film, Pacey follows her queue as I try to explain my theory more in depth.

I can’t believe this is it. This is our senior year. After all those years of working for this, I can’t believe it’s finally here. While I’m elated at my newfound superiority, I’m also a little disappointed. I mean this is not where I thought I’d be at the final year of high school. I’m lying here on Dawson’s bed with my two best friends in the world, just as we did as we entered Junior High. Tomorrow we’ll be seniors and you know what? Nothing’s changed! This town is so utterly boring! 17 years of my life has been spent here and the only conflict, has been entirely self inflicted-excepting of course mum’s death and Dad’s little run in with prison! Things should have changed. For example, my social life and standing. I’m still the too tall girl from the wrong side of the creek with her film making sidekick and wise cracking nemesis. It’s been 17 years and I’m still Larry. While Curly laughs at Dawson’s analogy in the wings, I’m comforted by the small fact that someone knows I’m insulted by this comparison, even if it is Pacey. I mean for god’s sake, when will Dawson open his eyes and realise I’m a girl? More over, unless Moe was a closeted homosexual and incest was awry, this basically shoots me down, once and for all.

Why must he compare life to film? He’s forever creating a script in his mind for his world to follow and when somehow it disappoints him, he chooses another. Last week it was Snow Falling on Cedars when the Jewish girl he asked out had to turn him down because of her culture and this week? This week he’s comparing himself and his two best friends to possibly the stupidest, ugliest creatures on film!

It’s so typical for Dawson to peg me as Curly, not that I’m complaining of course. I mean, hell, Joey should be more upset than I am, knowing Dawson just thinks of her as one of the guys…still! I can’t help but laugh. But seriously, I like to think of myself as more of the Hun Solo type…not Curly! I honestly don’t even know why I should be bothered by this, I mean it’s just one of Dawson’s pathetic attempts at rationalising his life, once again, and the only way he can do that is by connecting life to film in his mind. I guess I’m just tired of being compared to every film’s loser sidekick. I’ll give you some examples: Robin, from Batman; George from Seignfeld; Josh Hartnett’s character in Pearl Harbour and Jimmy Olsen from Superman. Dawson has had me cast in all of these sidekick roles to his hero, and more! And when he doesn’t, he casts me as the villain, always jokingly though, of course. But when will I get a starring role, eh?

“So guys, it’s a new year, what do you say? One for all?” Dawson smiles pleased with the way he’s using film to imitate life as opposed to the other way around.

“All for one.” Joey adds. I discreetly pick up a pillow from Dawson’s bed.

“Every man for himself!” I exclaim, hitting Joey in the head with the pillow. She and Dawson both look at each other and nod, within seconds I’m being attacked by two stooges with pillows.