     
The Red Sox vc. the Yankees
by Dannie and Rinny 
Joey had managed to avoid Pacey so far that day, three days after their 'break up', much to her relief. Her eyes focused on the lowering sun, an early sign that the day was ending and
they would soon have to finish. She grabbed another nail and banged it into
the wall with more strength then necessary. Nothing better than hitting
something with a hammer to let one's aggression out.
"See Andie, you're getting the hang of it," he said as he handed her a few
more nails. Her smile widened at this praise. He pretended he didn't notice
and made his way into the house for a soda. They'd all been working non-stop
all day long. There were only a few people still hanging around.
Joey smiled at the sight of Dawson with a hammer and nails working at
another corner of the room. Dawson turned, feeling her eyes on him. "What's
so funny?" he asked, offering her a smile.
Joey laughed. "Nothing, I'm just remembering a similar encounter you've had
with a hammer and nails."
Dawson pretended to be offended. "Hey, I did a good job on that fence." Joey
just nodded, deciding to bite her tongue and headed back to work. "I saw
that," Dawson said.
Joey shrugged. "Saw what?"
"That smile."
"What smile, Dawson?" she said, trying to hide her grin.
"That one. The one you're trying to hide."
She laughed. "I'm going to get a soda, want one?"
He shook his head. "Nah."
She shrugged and walked off. "And don't think I didn't see through your
pathetic attempt to change the subject." She heard Dawson's voice call out.
Joey laughed.
Pacey contemplated whether he wanted a Mountain Dew or a Coke. He remembered
something Joey had told him about Yellow 5 killing sperm, he smiled at that
and reached for the Coke. He popped it open and guzzled the soda down. His
Adams-apple bobbing provocatively up and down.
Joey froze upon spotting Pacey in the kitchen, so much for the avoidance
act. She debated internally on whether she should enter or not, before
deciding on the former. She confidently strode into the room and went over
to the fridge. Perhaps, if she acted as if she didn't see him, he'd get the
hint.
As soon as he saw her, he followed her with his eyes. Waiting for her to say
something. He was a little surprised, as she looked right through him.
Joey felt his eyes on her as she grabbed a Coke. She turned around and
popped it open. She tilted her head back and took a long drink of the cold
soda.
Pacey watched her reverently, a drip of the drink escaped from the corner of
her mouth. He had to restrain himself from wiping it away. Their eyes met
and he became hypnotized by their dark brown pools. Her sheer presence made
his skin tingle.
Jack chose that moment to come in. He opened the refrigerator, grabbed a Mt.
Dew and left, paying no attention to his two friends. It was enough to bring
the two out of paralysis though. "So... what? Are we not allowed to speak to
each other now?"
Joey shrugged, not replying.
"I see." He turned to leave. However, a thought occurred to him. "Don't you
think it'll appear a little off, when all of a sudden we stop talking to
each other? We've been attached at the hip since November."
"So how about those Yankees?" Joey asked, attempting to appease him. She
took another sip of her soda.
"You know I'm more of a Red Sox fan, Joey," he said dryly.
"All the more reason for me to be a Yankee fan," she replied.
Pacey's brow wrinkled at her icy words. "And the Ice Queen reigns again," he
muttered, taking a sip from his second can of Coke.
Joey shrugged and hopped off the counter. "There. We spoke. Happy now?
"If happy means miserable then sure, I'm ecstatic!" he said, sarcasm etched
in his voice. He noticed Dawson through the window. "You better hurry back
to Movie-Boy, Jo. Without your ever-watchful supervision he may nail his
shirt to the wall again."
"Same to you, we wouldn't want Andie to hurt herself or anything," Joey
countered.
"You've never liked Andie have you? Why is that?"
Joey eyed him strangely. "I have no idea what you're talking about..."
"No, really. All the under the breath derogatory comments, blond jokes...You
hate her, why?"
She frowned. "I don't hate, Andie. You're reaching."
"PACEY! I need you!" Andie's whiny voice carried inside. Joey eyed him
smugly.
"I'll be right there, Andie," he said sweetness dripping from his voice.
Joey winced slightly. "Run along," she said, motioning him with her hands.
Just then, Dawson's voice rang through the house. "Hey, Jo, I changed my
mind, can you bring me a soda?" Joey frowned.
"Always at Dawson's beck and call aren't you, Jo?"
Joey narrowed her eyes at him. "I am not. Besides if I were you, I wouldn't
be talking, Mr. Andie McPhee," Joey countered.
"She's here to help you out Joey. She's learning how to wield a hammer to
save your ass! The least you could do is be a little grateful."
"No, Pacey, you're wrong. She's hear to see your ass, she learned to wield
hammer so she could be near you and whatever jaded her reasons may be, I did
thank her. So you, Mr. Witter, better get your facts straight before
accusing me!" Joey yelled, angrily.
"And you're reasons for wanting Dawson around are so pure," he taunted,
"he's your safety, you're fall back. Huh? At least Andie isn't afraid of her
emotions, unlike someone I could name who dumped a potential relationship
less than 24 hours after ONE kiss."
Joey's felt herself become agitated, her blood boiling, she eyed Pacey with
distaste and disgust. "Stop being so damn selfish, Pacey."
"Selfish? Me?" he asked wide-eyed with hurt. She nodded. "You know, you're
right, Ms. Potter. I have been selfish. I mean, far be it for me to want to
have a relationship with the object of my affection, let alone have a
civilized conversation with her. In addition, hope that she'd lower herself
from her Holier-than-though pedestal. It's unthinkable! I mean, how could I
be so self-seeking."
That's it she'd had it with him, if that's what he wanted so be it. "Oh,
yeah?" she countered. She angrily grabbed his hand. "C'mon." She dragged him
to the backroom where Dawson was working. "C'mon, let's tell him now," she
said angrily.
She worked her way over to Dawson. She tapped Dawson on the shoulder; he
turned back startled to see her. He eyed her strangely. "Jo? Pacey?" He
looked down at their interlocking hands. "What's going on?" He looked back
up at them, puzzled.
"Well, Dawson, Pacey and I," she paused, "We sort of have something going
here and I just wanted to inform you that we're now an item." Joey's voice
was full of anger, and with that, she pulled Pacey to her and kissed him,
before running out of the room and leaving him with Dawson.
Dawson started laughing. "That was a good one. Joey almost had me there." He
turned back to his work.
Pacey swallowed nervously and managed to nod his head slightly. "I-I'm not
quite sure what got into her." His heart was palpitating heavily and he was
short of breath, but he managed to appear together. He grasped a few screws
from the bag next to Dawson. "So, D...." he paused, trying to figure out how
to word his next sentence. "The idea of me and Jo really is laughable." He
meant it as a statement, but it came out as a question.
His friend grinned. "Totally, I mean, Joey can't stand you."
"Ya have to admit she's warmed up to me a little...we can actually hold
conversations without barbed insults these days. Moreover she just kissed
me, remember? A year ago, she wouldn't touch me with a ten-foot pole. I
think we're finally friends now." Pacey waited patiently to here Dawson's
response to this.
He thought about it. "True, but still...Joey attracted...to you. It's just
too weird for words."
The adrenalin from his fight and then kiss with Joey had yet to subside, and
Pacey could feel heated anger beginning to flow through his veins again.
"What exactly is it about me that's so repulsive Dawson? What, the hair? My
utter lack of self-discipline? My realistic view of life? The fact that I'd
rather do something than analyze it to death?" Bitterness crept into his
voice. "What is it about me that makes Joey to good for me? Huh? Or is it
just simply that I'm not you?"
Dawson eyed Pacey strangely. He was pretty worked up over a
hypothetical situation. "Well, let's say Joey were attracted to you, and she
actually entertained the idea of going out with you. I admit, that at first,
I'd be angry. If Joey were about to embark on some new romantic endeavor,
and if it's with you all the better. At least I know she'd be in good
hands," he paused, "Keep in mind this is hypothetical," Dawson added
quickly, not sure how okay he would be with the situation.
"How would it be any different if it weren't hypothetical, Dawson?"
He shrugged, looking away, "If it weren't, I might be forced to kill you."
He laughed. "Besides, you guys wouldn't do that."
"Right, cause she loves you... and I love... Andie," he said lightly.
"I'm not so sure about that anymore..."
Pacey perked up. "You're not sure she loves you, or..." he trailed off.
Dawson nodded. "At least not in the same way and it's the same for me. It's
just that right now, we just know." He shook his head. "You know what I
mean."
"I'm afraid I don't, Daws. Nevertheless, try to explain, anything to help me
better understand that woman. How did you put up with her for so long?" He
asked good-naturedly.
Dawson laughed. "C'mon, Joey is not that bad." He turned serious. "I just
want her friendship now more then anything." Dawson saw Andie out of the
corner of his eye. "What about you and Andie?"
"God, Dawson. I don't know," he bemoaned to his friend. "I want to be her
friend and help her in any way I can. But relationship wise, like I told
her, I won't ever forget what she did."
"Do you love her?"
"Love is such a broad term. I love my mom, I love my friends, I love my dog,
and I love Doritos. Can you rephrase the question?"
He chuckled. "It's simple, Pace, 'cause when you love someone, you don't let
anything stand in your way, not even another guy. Love is to much of a
valuable and precious gift, so if you find it, don't ever let it go, because
you never know when it'll happen again." He paused and motioned to Andie who
was sitting by herself. "Talk to her."
Pacey looked to where Andie sat on the dock, overlooking the creek. Maybe
once he figured things out with her, he'd be able to clear things up with
Joey. He shoved his hands in his pocket, and lumbered over to her. "Hey
Andie."
Andie perked up at the sound of Pacey's voice. "Hey, Pacey." She smiled
genuinely at him.
"I want to thank you for all the time you're putting in here. Helping out
and all."
Andie shrugged. "I really don't mind. It's fun."
They sat in silence for a moment. "Andie, I was talking to Dawson and he's
kind of got me thinking. We never really cleared the air between us after
the breakup. We've been through a lot together, good times and bad. I don't
want to forsake all of that." He looked at her to see her reaction. She had
shifted her eyes away, but didn't say anything, and so he continued. "So,
um... where exactly do we stand with one another?"
Andie shrugged and hugged her knees to her chest. "I don't know, Pacey." She
laughed slightly. "It's funny, you know, I remember when I first met you. I
hated you, I seriously did." She smiled softly to herself.
"How could you hate my charming smile?" She shot him a dirty look.
"It's okay McPhee, I hated you too. You were such a spoiled brat," he said
fondly.
"You were an obnoxious jerk," she smiled.
"You were an overly hyper overachiever." He teased back
"You were ultimately determined to be a slacker."
"And you changed me..." Pacey said with a small smile. "... I've never
really thanked you for taking me under your wing."
Andie shook her head in disagreement. "You changed me," she said softly.
"And how exactly did I do that?" Pacey asked surprised. 'The best I did for
her was drive her to an insane asylum,' he thought to himself.
She laughed faintly. "You made me realize that there was more to life then
work and school, and despite my, let's say, quirkiness I was actually a
worthwhile person."
"You were always a worthwhile person. I, for the life of me, will never
understand why you girls have such low self-esteem."
Andie smiled. "It's for a whole bunch of reasons, the carbon copy models,
more then likely, suffering from anorexia. The stereo types of if you're too
smart you might scare a guy off," she paused. "I could never understand
where your low self-esteem came from."
He sighed. "A million places, I wouldn't know where to begin."
"You're a great person, Pacey. I don't know why you believe that you're not.
I was wrong before, there's nothing about you that needed changing. You're
perfect just the way you are." She grinned slightly, wondering where all
these things were coming from.
"Thanks, McPhee. You don't have any idea on how much I needed to hear that
right now."
Andie shrugged, secretly elated to hear him calling her by her last name. It
brought back memories, good ones. It brought her back to a time when things
had been simpler between them and before she went away to Mayfield. She
shrugged. "I just wish I had told you that sooner."
Pacey caught her gaze out of the corner of his eye and gave her a
sincere smile. "There's absolutely nothing I would change about the time we
were together Andie. Nothing... except for, maybe, the ending."
She felt her pulse start to race as she noticed their proximity. "Um...Yeah,
me too." She stumbled out, having no clue of what he had just said.
"That's why I came out here, I want to discuss our relationship." His voice
became serious, but he was relieved that Andie seemed to be prepared to
discuss things maturely.
Andie nodded. Relationship? They no longer had any relationship and that was
fine with her, unless..."O-Okay.�
"I really hope you feel the way I do, Andie. We have this connection... I
don't want to lose that."
Joey wandered aimlessly back to her house, wondering what had happened
between Pacey and Dawson. She silently cursed herself for acting so
impetuously. It was starting to get dark now and she shivered involuntarily.
In her haste, she had forgotten her jacket, another brilliant move.
Sitting close together at the end of Joey's dock, Andie bit her lower lip
apprehensively. This was it, the decisive moment. She leisurely pressed her
lips against his, her hand instinctively reaching up to touch his cheek. She
felt his warm skin under her fingertips, enjoying the slightly scratchy feel
of it.
It shocked Pacey more than anything. In retrospect, he should have known his
words would have been misinterpreted. The instant that her lips touched his
he thought of Joey. He compared Andie's kiss to hers. He noted there was
passion between him and Joey. The kiss with Andie was empty of chemistry.
They were just lips touching lips. During all this analyzation, he never
remembered to pull away.
Joey paused, before walking the rest of the way down her dock. She had been
planning to row over to Dawson's and explain to him what had occurred
earlier. She stopped, when she noticed to familiar figures sitting on her
dock, kissing.
Andie.
Pacey.
Andie and Pacey.
Andie and Pacey sitting on her dock.
Andie and Pacey sitting on her dock and kissing.
Kissing.
From the looks of it, they weren't planning to stop anytime soon. Therefore,
this was it. The moment of truth. She had been right all along. He wasn't
worth it. She wanted to cry or scream, do something. Something, which could
express the anger and betrayal that she felt, but nothing. She opened her
mouth, but only a cross between a cry and a choke were able to find its way
pass her lips. She turned and ran. Ran, as fast her legs could carry her.
She wasn't going to stay; she didn't want to see it. All that came to mind
was the irony of the situation. That the same place where her and Pacey's
budding friendship slash relationship had started was the same place it had
ended. Her dock.
Pacey heard Joey's pounding steps as she ran away. He immediately tore
himself from Andie's grasp. He jumped up in time to see her running down the
driveway away from the house as if the hounds of hell were chasing her. He
knew he couldn't go after her... what would he tell her. Andie was looking
up at him, beseeching him to say something. "Th- that was a mistake Andie"
She looked down, unable to mask the hurt in her eyes. "Can you just leave?"
she asked quietly. "Why prolong this moment of unabashed awkwardness any
longer? The complete feeling of idiocy I now feel because I led myself to
believe that we could actually try again, the grand delusions I've been
masquerading all afternoon," she sighed, "go away, Pacey. I don't think it's
possible for me to feel anymore like a fool, except now that I'm babbling
like a complete and utter moron. I wish I had some venomous comment where I
could counteract my actions as being anything but some lame attempt at
getting you back, but I don't." She spoke bitterly and continued to stare
out over the creek.
"I d- didn't mean to... We- we're not... I can't expl-...This was..." For
the life of him, he wasn't able to put together a complete sentence. He ran
his hands through his hair in frustration. "God, I'm sorry Andie."
"Not as sorry as I am."
He sighed. His life was becoming one colossal mess. "Call me when you're
ready to talk, Andie," he said, his voice low. He walked down the dock,
leaving her sitting there. He wasn't sure where he would go. He didn't think
he could face Dawson now. He had no clue where Joey ran off. Even if he did,
he wouldn't go there. He had no explanation to give her. He let his feet
carry him along and let his mind wander.
Joey slowed down when she approached the familiar shack, the silhouette of
the boat visible in the moonlight. It was a living testament to True Love.
She scoffed at the idea, true love her ass. It didn't exist and it never
would. She wanted to destroy it, some sort of vandalism, something that
would hurt its silent mockery of her, but she didn't. She stood watching it
for a while, a standing to memorial to what could have been instead of what
was. With a resounding sigh, she turned and walked away. If that's the way
he wanted it, so be it.
He should have known his traveling would bring him here. He stood 5 yards
away from it.
His boat.
Their boat.
He cursed aloud to himself. He'd screwed up again. Nothing he could say
could fix things between him and Joey now. Kind of like the boat. It'd been
through a hurricane, and hadn't survived. He thought he'd be able to fix it,
with her help... but now... True Love was doomed to forever be a testimonial
that true love was bullshit. Just as he would be the living breathing
epitome of it.
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