Jen stepped out of her bedroom feeling remarkably refreshed. After hanging up the phone with Joey, she had taken a shower and couldn't help but feel a bit on edge by the other girl's words. She wondered if Joey knew something, she didn't after hearing all those cryptic statements. She decided not to worry about it and walked over to her spacious living room one of the first things that had attracted her to the house in the first place. Gram's house had sold quickly, and she'd been forced to move almost at the That and the fact that if she stepped through the sliding glass doors she'd be right on the beach.

She picked up the cordless phone and wandered walked over to the doors sliding one open as she dialed Pacey's number. She stepped out and the smell of the salt air immediately assaulted her senses along with a cool breeze that ruffled her hair. She wrapped an arm over her stomach and gazed out at the ocean before pressing the end button. Her hand fell limply to her side and she inhaled a sharp breath wondering where the hell Pacey was.

Head hanging, his hands stuffed into his pockets, Pacey walked along the waters edge. He still wore the same rumpled clothes as the day before, and the same scowl he'd worn when leaving the bar the night before. He'd spent the entire night walking around Capeside, thinking ceaselessly about Joey. He tried to work through his feelings for her, her lies, and her impending wedding without success. He felt worn out and old. Older than his 28 years should allow.

He looked up hearing someone call after their dog and found himself just a few yards from the beach house Jen was renting for the summer. A small smile spread over his face as he thought of Jen. As he neared, he made out the silhouette of her standing on the porch. A light breeze ruffled her hair as she stared out over the ocean. For a moment, he was struck by her beauty...and then by the guilt of leaving her waiting all night.

He swallowed and quickened his pace, walking determinedly towards her. She deserved a hell of an explanation.

Jen sighed and turned to go back inside but stopped when she recognized someone walking toward her. Her breath caught in her throat, Pacey. She stood still unsure of how to react. Their relationship was hard enough to define was she supposed to be happy that he was okay or angry that he even didn't think to call. She quelled the part of her that just wanted to run to him, hold him, touch him, and kiss him senseless. She needed to be angry at least for a little while.

"I'm sorry, Jen." He paused a few feet away from the porch. "I can explain everything if you'll let me." He smiled thinly at her.

Jen nodded and folded her arms in front of her chest. "This better be good."

"We should probably go inside," he said softly gesturing to the door. "I don't suppose you have any coffee, do you?"

She sighed and dropped her hands to her side motioning to the door. "Come in. I'll make some."

"Thanks, Jen." He sighed following her to the door."

She shrugged it off and walked over to the kitchen. She pulled out two mugs and started the coffeemaker. She turned to face him, her face blank.

"Ok... you want the long, detailed version or the short one?"

Jen pulled out one of the chairs from the table and sat down. "Let's start with the long, detailed version. Saves me from asking questions later."

"Okay," He sat down across from her with a sigh. "So, I took Jo dress shopping. About 15 minutes into that she had a break down about marrying Dawson. I told her that if she didn't want to, she didn't have to. So she called him, and left a message on his machine calling off the wedding."

Jen sat back in her seat remembering Joey's phone call. "Okay, continue."

"Right, so we left the boutique and just drove off aimlessly, she wasn't quite ready to face Bessie yet. We ended up at the beach and hung around their for a while, talking. She got mad at me, I think, so I drove her back to the B&B where we found Dawson waiting."

She raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"He kinda ignored her, and dragged me to a bar with him. After making lewd comments about the women there, he casually informed me that he's been cheating on Joey because she wont put out." He said through clenched teeth, feeling the anger rise in him again.

Jen's eyes widened in disbelief surprised that Dawson would do that to Joey.

"And, it turns out, they never slept together back in high school either." He said bitterly. "I swore to him that Joey wouldn't marry him after she found out about his escapades, and even if she did, I wouldn't be there to witness it." He paused, "That was before I punched him. I left, and I've been walking around town ever since." He paused again, looking Jen in the eyes. "I'm sorry I didn't call. I know I should have."

She let out a deep breath. "Wow. I can't believe it."

"I couldn't either," he sighed. "What am I going to do, Jen?" He rose and poured himself a cup of coffee. "I can't let her marry him."

Jen winced and shrugged. "I don't think there's anything you can do. Dawson's just convinced Joey to move the wedding up to two weeks from now. I was just about to head over and help her buy a dress."

"He what?!" Pacey turned around in shock.

She nodded. "Yeah. Two weeks from now Joey's planning on becoming Mrs. Dawson Leery."

"Well, obviously she doesn't know about his extracurricular activities."

"Obviously, too bad we can't do anything about it."

"You mean, your willing to let your friend marry that bastard?" He asked in disbelief, eyeing his girlfriend in surprise.

She sighed. "I don't want her to marry him but it's her choice Pacey. She just has to figure it out for herself."

"Yeah, like he'd tell her about it." He took a long gulp of his coffee. "We have to tell her, Jen."

Jen stared at him incredulous. "No way. I'm staying out of this one. We tell her and she'll hate us. Not to mention the fact that she probably won't even believe us."

"So, you'd damn her to a marriage to someone who doesn't love her without even a second thought?"

"There's no easy answer here. You can tell her she won't believe you and marry him anyway. It's better to let her just find out for herself."

"How is that better?! She'll end up miserable for God knows how long. He's kept this a secret for how long now, Jen? Five years? And she still hasn't found out. How long after their married before she finds out? Ten? Twenty? Never?"

Jen sighed. "Fine. If you want to tell her. Tell her but don't say I didn't warn you when it all blows up in your face." She stood up. "Now I have to go help Joey buy a dress because I am not going to hurt her with this."

"The only one who's hurting her is Dawson, I'm protecting her." He said, determination in his eyes.

Jen frowned. "You're not going to win here, Pacey. Joey's going to hate you and want nothing to do with you."

"So be it, I don't care if she hates me. I don't care if *he* hates me. I don't care if you hate me! As long as she doesn't marry him." He said with conviction.

She ran a hand through her hair tiredly. "Look, I just don't want to see you get hurt. I know how much Joey means to you."

"Do you?" He asked softly.

She nodded. "Yes."

"Then you'd understand that her happiness means more to me than my friendship with her. She can hate me with everything she has, and still live a happy life. But if she marries him she'll be throwing away any chance at ever being truly happy."

Jen smiled weakly ignoring her own hurt. "Joey's very lucky to have you in her life," she said honestly. "I still have to go and meet her though. I'll let you be the one to break the news to her."

He nodded, "Yeah, okay. Will I see you tonight, Lindley?"

She shook her head absentmindedly. "Yeah, sure."

"Are you okay?" He asked suddenly, looking up at her.

Jen nodded snapped out of her thoughts. "Yeah, I'm fine. I guess I'll see you later then." She smiled and shut the door behind her.

"This isn't going to be like last time, is it?" Jen called over her shoulder towards the dressing room Joey was in. She ran her fingers along the lace of the dress she was holding, she sighed heavily, suddenly doubting that she'd ever get around to walking down the isle herself. Pacey certainly wasn't about to propose.

Joey smiled feeling giddy as she eyed her reflection. The dress was perfect, smooth organza silk, that pooled around her ankles, nice simple cut, and it was sleeveless which would be wonderful with the warm weather lately. "Actually, Jen. I think this is it." She pulled back the curtain and stepped out of the dressing room. "What do you think?"

A slow smile spread across her features as she took in the vision of Joey in pure white. "Perfection, Joey." She said softly. "You look amazing." She said, a touch of awe in her voice.

Joey grinned and did a quick spin. "I know. I love it. I think this is definitely the one!"

"Yeah, it is." Jen agreed. "That dress was made for you." She smiled as she pictured Joey walking up the isle towards Dawson. Too bad he won't even care, she thought bitterly. "Are you sure about this?"

Joey glanced away from the full-length mirror hanging on one of the walls. "Of course I am. Everything's going to go perfectly. I have the perfect dress now, the perfect groom waiting for me at the alter..." She smiled. "Now we just need to get your dress."

Jen smiled thinly. "Are you really sure? I mean, Pacey finally came home last night, and I had a talk with him." She eyed Joey carefully, "He said you'd called it off, and now you're rushing to marry him as soon as possible... what happened?"

Joey frowned and walked back over to the dressing room. "Yesterday, was just a misunderstanding. Dawson convinced me to move it up. It wasn't anything but a case of cold feet and now everything's right back on track."

"What makes you so sure it was cold feet? I mean, maybe you were following instinct." Jen said, leaning against the wall outside the dressing room.

Joey poked her head out of the curtain. "Jen, it was cold feet. I just exaggerated some facts in my mind that's all," she rationalized. She disappeared back into the room.

"Ok, Jo. Can you humor me here? Just for a few moments?" She slowly paced in front of the dressing room.

Joey sighed, pulling her sweater over her head and made a face behind the curtain. "Fine. State your mind."

"This is just for my own reference here, but how did you know he was the one?" She asked softly, stopping just in front of the dressing room Joey was in.

Joey froze trying to remember the exact moment she knew. She finished pulling on her pants and ran a hand through her hair. "Um, it was...Oh, I don't know how to describe it. It's just some innate sense. I just know. I probably always knew...Besides this was going to happen eventually. Everyone always said it."

"You're marrying him because everyone says you should?" Jen repeated in disbelief.

Joey shook her head adamantly while slipping on her sneakers. "N-No, of course not. I'm marrying him because I love him and I care about him a lot."

"Fine, but when did you know he was the one you were meant to be in love with all your life?" She asked.

Joey felt her heart stop for a moment and faltered a bit. She bit the inside of her cheek. "It's hard to pinpoint an exact moment," she lied. "But what's with all the questions Jen?" she questioned as an excuse to shift the focus off her.

The question caught her off guard and it was her turn to falter, why did she want to know so badly? "I... I want to be sure you're making the right decision." She shrugged, "That, and I guess I want to know what it feels like, so I'll know when I feel it."

Joey released a sigh of relief and leaned against the wall of the dressing room. "Jen you'll know. No one's going to have to tell you. You'll just know and it's a wonderful feeling. You had never experienced so much joy and pain at the same time. Every feeling, every emotion, is just amplified times a hundred." Joey slid against the wall down to the floor lost in thought. "You're floating on air and it's no some big show like the movies. It's not when he does something incredibly romantic, it's not when he sweeps you off your feet. It's so incredibly simple. It's just him holding your hand or cracking a joke to make you feel better, it's just him being there, a smile." She smiled softly. "That's when you'll know."

Jen smiled softly as she listened to Joey's description. Joey'd basically described exactly what she felt for Pacey. "Um, Jo... how do you know if he feels the same?"

Joey wiped at her eyes and stood up. "That's the bad part, Jen. You don't."

She sighed and looked down at her hands as she waited for Joey to emerge from the dressing room. "I think I do." She said glumly.

Joey frowned feeling bad from her friend. She came out of the dressing room. "You know we don't have to get your dress now. We can get something to eat...Talk if you want."

She sighed heavily. "Yeah, that sounds good. I'm not really in the shopping mood anymore."

Joey gave a weak smile. "Great, it'll be my treat."

"Look at us, Jo." Jen declared twenty minutes later in a small restaurant in the heart of town. "I mean seriously. We're nearing thirty, and out of all six of us, you and Dawson are the only ones actually serious."

Joey smiled brushing a strand of brown hair out of her eyes. "It's not that big of deal. I'm sure you'll find someone absolutely perfect for you." Joey paused and mocked thought. "Hmm...how about that cute one in a suit two tables down? Beautiful green eyes, nice dark hair...He has potential."

Jen followed her line of sight, "To stuffy looking. I don't want to start from scratch, Joey. That's partly why I got involved with Pacey, I'm already attracted to him. I know who he is, his insecurities, his likes, his dislikes, and his personality quirks. And I love-" She cut herself off, "those things." She amended.

Joey paused and folded the napkin on her lap thoughtfully. "But maybe you shouldn't rush into these things just because you know Pacey, maybe you should start anew."

"We're not rushing... believe me, we're going a lost slower than I'd like. I wanted to share an apartment this summer. It was his idea for us to get separate places."

Joey raised her glass of ice tea to her lips and took a tentative sip. "It sounds like a good idea. I mean, Pacey's not exactly reliable when it comes to relationships and I'd hate to see you get hurt."

"What about you, Jo. Dawson isn't exactly husband material if you know what I mean."

Joey shifted in her seat uncomfortably and rubbed at her wrist. "Dawson's fine."

"No...he's not, Joey. He's never home, he's working constantly, he can't give you an orgasm... and that's just the beginning." She averted her gaze, thinking about what Pacey had told her about Dawson's cheating ways.

Joey felt herself become defensive. "You don't know what you're talking about Jen."

"Yeah, I do," She replied. "I know you think you love him-but he's not good for you."

Joey tightened her grip on her fork. "Dawson is perfect for me. He loves me."

"No, he doesn't. Love isn't leaving you to plan your wedding alone. Love isn't living at the office. And love *certainly* isn't ch-" she cut herself off. It wasn't her place. "He doesn't love you, Joey."

Joey felt her eyes water at Jen's words. "You're just jealous," she spat.

Jen shook her head sadly, "Maybe I am a little jealous over the fact that you're getting married. But never because of who you're marrying. Dawson is going to make your life miserable, Joey. And I don't want that for you. Neither does Pacey."

Joey inhaled a sharp calming breath. "Dawson loves me. We're going to be happy together."

Jen sighed, "Well, at least if I have to be miserable, I'm not going to be the only one." She muttered and took a bite of her chicken salad.

Joey frowned hating that Jen was making her second guess herself. "Besides Jen, I wouldn't be so quick to judge Dawson considering Pacey's history."

"What history, Joey?!" Jen burst out, glaring angrily at her friend. "He's never gotten over you!"

Joey's mouth fell open in surprise and she gasped. "That's not true! I don't see why you feel the need to blame me for your insecurities!"

"That's not true? He's never dated anyone seriously ever since you told him you slept with Dawson! And I'm not blaming you... I'm telling you not to come down on Pacey because Dawson's not the Prince Charming you want him to be."

Joey scoffed. "I don't think so. If that were true explain Pacey's marriage! That's right Pacey was married and he had a child and the minute things got bad he left his wife! So don't you dare talk about Dawson!"

Jen drew back in shock, her mouth falling open. "He was married?!" The words were whispered. "He has a kid?"

Joey glanced around their surroundings awkwardly and leaned forward. "Yes, he was married and he had a kid." She sat back in her seat feeling terrible about what she just did. "He had a daughter Jen, but she died," Joey finished quietly.

Jen felt tears sting her eyes, "He never told me." She looked down at her food, "three months together and he never told me."

Joey's face fell and she placed a reassuring hand on top of Jen's. "I don't think it's something he feels comfortable talking about. I'm sure he was going to tell you Jen," she said helpfully.

"When? Before or after he broke up with me, because that's inevitably what he's gonna do." She mumbled, pushing her plate away from her, suddenly feeling nauseous.

Joey sighed feeling helpless. "He's not going to break up with you. I'm sure he's not."

"Don't lie for him, Joey."

Joey fell back into her seat. "I don't know what to tell you, Jen. Maybe you're just better off without him. Dawson's already told me he's cheated on you."

"He has not." Jen denied, the idea of it was laughable. "Who would he cheat with?"

Joey frowned. "Well, yesterday when Dawson went out with him, he ditched Dawson for some girl and left Dawson waiting for him without even telling him he was leaving."

Jen rolled her eyes, "Joey, how long have you known Pacey?"

Joey shrugged. "Way too long."

"And in that time, how many women has he slept with that didn't mean something to him?"

Joey balked. "I don't know, Jen. I don't keep count."

Jen's eyes narrowed. "Ok, than I'll help you. I know you weren't close to him after Grad, but I was. Shall we start with High School?" She smiled thinly. "Well, first there was Tamara, you remember her right? He saved her from going to jail and completely ruining her teaching career? Then, there was Andie. Even you can't find a way of saying he felt anything less than love for her. Then there was you, and I know you two never slept together. If you recall... there was never anyone after you." She sat back in her seat slightly, "I knew of a grand total of one relationship in college, Joey. He introduced me to her, serious or not, he cared about Teresa. She wasn't a one night stand." Her voice grew strained, "And then there was three years I lost contact with him, I guess that's where the wife I never heard about comes in." A frown crossed her features. "But you and I both know, he wouldn't have married someone for sex. After that, there was just me." She smirked at Joey. "So let's count shall we? In high school there was Tamara and Andie, college; Teresa and his wife, and then me. That makes five. Five women he's slept with, five women he's cared about." She shook her head, "He's not cheating on me."

Joey drew her lips into a tight line. "Believe what you want to."

"Joey, you know him inside and out," Jen said softly, "You always have. In ways that I've always been jealous of. Even when you hadn't seen or spoken to each other for years, you still know him. Ask yourself, would he really be capable of it? You already know the answer, even if you wont say it out loud."

Joey glanced down at her lip and fiddled with her napkin. "Okay, maybe Dawson misconstrued something last night," she conceded."

Jen tried to smile, but their argument had left her drained. Especially the knowledge that Pacey had hidden a huge part of his life from her. She'd thought they'd had the potential to turn into something lasting, something real.

Joey returned to her meal disturbed at Jen's words. They fell into an awkward silence finishing the meal in silence. She smiled inwardly at Dawson's words. He was right, everyone in Capeside was just trying to keep them apart. She'd rather believe the lies than admit the truth. It hurt too much otherwise.

Please...I know you're out there...I know you're reading...please, send us a line of feedback and brighten our days. [email protected] and [email protected].