Joey checked her appearance in the mirror and took a deep breath. She'd taken a quick shower and gotten dressed while her mind tried to block out the memory of her dream, but she'd only ended up even more flustered and embarrassed. How could she face Pacey after he'd heard her say his name while she dreamt?

Well, Jo, you can't hide in here forever.

She followed the sounds of people talking to the breakfast area and stopped short. "Finn!"

Pacey and Finn turned to her from their places at the table. "Good morning, sunshine." Finn smiled and got up to kiss her.

"Did you just get here? Where's everybody else?" She tucked a lock of hair behind one ear and took the nearest chair, studiously avoiding the pair of intense blue eyes that were watching her.

Finn sat beside her. "Yes, I just got here. Apparently, our so-called friends have gone ahead to the lake for some swimming."

"Well, it is almost lunchtime." She reached for a muffin and concentrated on tearing off bite-sized portions with her fingers and chewing them slowly.

Finn nodded. "I was trying to get Pacey to stay the whole weekend, since he was the one who drove you up here in the middle of the night."

Pacey chuckled, standing up. "No thanks, man. I need to get back to the city."

Joey forced herself to look at him, feeling heat spread down to her toes. "He's right, Pacey. Why don't you stay? It'll be fun."

His eyes locked with hers for one long moment before he broke the contact and shook his head. "That's okay, Potter. I'll take the rental. See you guys." He was out of the kitchen before she could speak another word.

"So, how's my girl?" Finn asked her after a few minutes of silence.

She plastered a bright smile on her face. "Fine. How was Boston?"

He laughed. "Our little family 'emergency' turned out to be my sister's engagement to a family friend. I still can't believe how overly dramatic my mother can be sometimes."

Joey nodded absently. Finn continued talking about his family while she pretended to listen, a realization finally dawning on her. It made her feel ecstatic and heartbroken at the same time, made her want to burst into tears and laugh out loud at the irony of it.

"Finn," she interrupted him, her hand reaching out to touch his, her eyes brimming with tears.

***

Joey breathlessly rushed from the elevator to their apartment, her heart beating wildly in her chest. She had no idea what she was going to say to him. She didn't know how she would react to the sight of him, didn't know how he'd react to what she wanted to say. Hell, she didn't know if this was a good idea at all. But she felt so completely and unbelievably… happy.

"Pacey?" She called as soon as she opened the door. She froze two steps into the apartment, her eyes quickly taking in everything around her. Several boxes were on the floor, filled with books, CD's, papers. Pacey's things.

He came out of his room carrying a computer monitor and stopped in surprise at the sight of her. "Joey!" His brows furrowed quizzically. "How come you're back so soon? It's only two. I thought you guys weren't gonna be back 'til tonight."

Her backpack fell to the floor as she stood there staring at him. "What are you doing?"

Pacey placed the monitor carefully on the floor beside one of the boxes. "Moving out." He straightened and looked at her, smiling a little. "I'm finally getting out of your hair, Jo. About time, right?"

She blinked at him wordlessly. "About time," she echoed weakly.

He knelt down and started sealing the boxes with tape. "I just took my stuff, left the coffee maker and the toaster, and all those other things," he rambled on, referring to appliances they had bought together.

"You found a new place pretty quickly." Joey commented.

Pacey glanced up at her. "Actually, I'm -"

A knock on the doorframe interrupted his answer. Joey turned, realizing that she'd forgotten to close it when she came in. "Hi," Anne greeted them from the doorway.

"Moving in with Anne." He finished quietly.

Joey straightened and cleared her throat, flashing a big smile at Anne. "That's great!" She stood there awkwardly for a few seconds before picking up her bag and heading for her room. "I need to do some laundry." She grabbed the basket of dirty clothes from her closet and walked out of the apartment, riding the elevator to the basement laundry room.

She mechanically sorted her clothes and stuffed them into the washing machine, then poured detergent and softener before turning it on and sitting there to stare into space. The soft humming of the machine soothed her. She felt numb, any reaction to Pacey's news shoved into the dark recesses of her brain to be dealt with later.

"Hey."

The voice startled her, making her jump a little as she turned to see who was there.

"Are you okay?" It was Pacey. He sat beside her.

She nodded. "I'm fine." She kept her gaze locked on the wall in front of her.

"What happened in Poconos? Why'd you get back so early?" His shoulder touched hers and she moved away inconspicuously, hating the electricity she felt from the contact.

Joey shook her head. She could feel him looking at her; was painfully aware that he was merely a few inches away from her. "Nothing. Got tired, that's all."

He nodded and folded his arms across his chest, following her gaze to the wall in front of them. "You are okay with this, aren't you, Jo? It's what we planned from the beginning. I mean, that one of us was going to move out."

"I know. Of course I'm okay. It's really great that you're finally moving in with Anne." She ignored the lump that was forming in her throat, making it hard for her to speak.

"I'll still help you repaint the living room." Pacey teased, bumping his shoulder playfully against hers. "You can color it baby pink now."

"I can change the locks first thing tomorrow." Joey shot back.

He laughed quietly, putting his arm around her and squeezing briefly. "I'll miss living with ya, Potter." His voice was almost a whisper.

She smiled a little. "I won't miss living with you."

Pacey stood up and chuckled. "I knew you wouldn't, Jo. I knew you wouldn't." He stopped at the door and looked over his shoulder at her. "And Jo? I'm really sorry about… that night…"

Joey closed her eyes and shook her head. "Never happened, Pace."

"How do you know? You remember it now?"

She looked at him. "I just know."

He nodded, accepting her answer, and left. "I'll see you, Jo."

"See you, Pace." Her eyes blurred with tears.