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�Joey! Honey! I�m home.� Pacey called as he entered their apartment the delicious aroma of dinner wafting to his nose. Instead of Joey greeting him a familiar blonde figure appeared. �Hey Pacey!� �D-man, good to see you.� Pacey smiled at his old friend. �Likewise. Thanks for putting me up despite the short notice.� �Not a problem.� �Yeah. I figure it�ll be just like old times. The three musketeers reunited. I�ve really missed you guys.� Dawson declared. �So where�s Joey?� �In the kitchen cooking our dinner. Should I be scared?� �Oh be scared. Very scared.� Pacey informed Dawson. �I heard that Pace!� Joey shouted from the kitchen. Both men chuckled and talked trivialities for a while until Pacey excused himself see if Joey needed any help in the kitchen. Dawson stayed in the living room at the insistence of Pacey, seeing as he was the guest. Upon entering the kitchen Pacey watched as his wife scooped spoonfuls of rice onto three plates while checking on the lemongrass chicken and the mixed vegetables. �Need any help Mrs Witter?� �Oh I think I�m perfectly fine, Mr Witter.� �Nothing I could possible aid you in? Maybe a little kiss?� Pacey offered. Joey paused in between her cooking to ponder Pacey�s proposition before grabbing her husband by the tie and pulling him towards her. �A little kiss might help.� Joey said. Pacey grinned before lowering his head so his lips met Joey�s. Gently he sucked on Joey�s lower lip relishing the feel of her mouth against his. She opened her mouth just a little allowing Pacey�s tongue entrance as her arms wrapped around his neck. He pulled her closer to him and deepened the kiss. �Ahem.� Coughed a red-faced Dawson. �Dawson.� Joey exclaimed and blushed as she pulled back. �I was wondering if I could get a drink.� Dawson asked. �Pace, the bottle of wine and the glasses are over there.� Joey instructed. �Go entertain our guest. Dinner will be out soon.� �Come on D, you heard the woman, let�s get out of here.� Pacey said as he led Dawson out of the kitchen and towards the small dining table. Dinner was a quiet affair. They chattered about work and relived memories. Afterwards Pacey washed the dishes while Joey and Dawson dried. Later they sat down for coffee with Pacey excusing himself to take a quick shower.
As the drops of warm water fell down on Pacey�s body he felt the grime and dirt of work wash away. Today had been interesting to say the least. Pacey wasn�t quite sure how to figure out Mr Oliver. Mr Oliver�s story had been a sad one, one that Pacey could easily sympathize with given his and Joey�s own history. It would add new light to the case, if true, by further implicating Mr Oliver in the deaths of his wife and children. Pacey also had to admit that Mr Oliver�s story had brought back memories of the past, memories of the three musketeers and soulmates. He had felt this wave of, not envy or doubt or even insecurity, just remembrance. After all years of being Joey�s best friend and then later her lover and now husband had left no doubt in Pacey�s mind that Joey loved him and would never cheat on him and yet it had been weird to see Dawson Leery again. Neither Pacey nor Joey had deliberately shut Dawson out of their lives and to some extent, in their hearts, Dawson would always be their best friend but they were not as close as they once had been and contact had been sporadic although they were all making an effort. It was difficult though, trying to recapture the former glory of past friendships. Shaking his head Pacey returned his thoughts to Mr Oliver. There was just something about the man, something inexplicable but it was there. As Pacey analyzed and re-analyzed his conversation with Mr Oliver he had the distinct impression that he had been played. Grabbing a towel and casually drying himself Pacey mulled over that thought.
When Pacey emerged from the bathroom he entered the living room to see Dawson and Joey engaged in deep conversation. �So what are you two talking about, heads together in such hushed tones?� Pacey asked jokingly. Joey bit her lip and shot Dawson a furtive lip before getting up. �I�m going to wash the cups.� Pacey watched Joey leave for the kitchen before sitting down on the couch. �Okay D, what�s going on?� Dawson fidgeted uncomfortably in his seat. �Fiona filed for divorce last week.� �Dawson�� Pacey sympathized. �She says she doesn�t know if she loves me anymore. She says she doesn�t know if she ever loved me. �I don�t know what to say.� Pacey said awkwardly. �Well, yeah, neither do I.� Dawson replied bitterly. �Just out of the blue she files for divorce. I mean sure we had been having a few fights but nothing this serious. And now she says she doesn�t know if she ever loved me. My life is a mess.� �Dawson�� �It is Pacey. It�s a complete mess. When I was fifteen I thought by this age I would be Hollywood�s youngest and most acclaimed director. I dreamed that Steven Speilberg would be my mentor. And I thought Joey and I would be happily married in a mansion in LA with three perfect children. I envisioned that you would be living nearby and would always be around to help me through a crisis and get me into crazy escapades. Not a single one of my dreams came true. Except for the fact that I live in LA. You know what�s even worse? They weren�t even dreams. They were beliefs. I truly believed that was my future. Of course we all know how wrong I was.� �Dawson, nothing ever turns out the way we expected it to.� �Yeah but for you, your life is perfect. You have the perfect wife, the perfect job, the perfect apartment.� �Nothing is ever quite that perfect D. I admit I�m deliriously happy. But it didn�t magically fall into my lap. And it doesn�t magically stay. And my life isn�t the perfect life. You should know better than anyone how far from perfect my life has been.� �Okay so things weren�t so great in the past for you but now they�re perfect.� �No they�re not D. In a perfect life I�d see my childhood best friend every day or we�d at least talk on the phone every day. In a perfect life I would have been there for you on the day you found out about Fiona filing for divorce. In a perfect life you wouldn�t have to go through this at all.� �I�ve missed our friendship Pacey.� �So have I.� �We both have.� Joey added as she sat down next to Pacey. Dawson smiled wearily at the two. �Thanks. For everything. I�m, uh, a little tired at the moment so I think I�m going to get some sleep.� �You know where the guest room is?� Pacey asked. �Yeah, Joey showed me earlier onwards. I�ll see you guys in the morning.� With that Dawson Leery headed off to bed. �Poor Dawson.� Joey said. �Yeah. I wish we could do more for him.� Pacey replied. Joey sighed as Pacey hugged her and kissed her on the forehead. She turned her head sideways to look at her husband in the eyes. �I love you, you know that.� �I love you too.� They sat on the couch for a while hugging and kissing. Finally Pacey glanced at the clock on the wall. �It�s getting late Jo, we should probably head off to bed ourselves.� Taking her by the hand, Pacey led Joey to their bedroom. They both crawled into bed, Pacey on the left side and Joey on the right before they moved in closer so that they were both sharing the middle. In the Witter household, Pacey and Joey lay snuggled together in bed sharing their warmth and love while Dawson lay on the guest bed staring at his wedding ring. |
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