By the Fire - Prologue
Disclaimer: I'm a starving student, and own nothing but this computer and the books of my trade. I certainly do not own Joey, Pacey, Grams, Dawson, or anything else to do with Dawson's Creek, and am merely taking them out to play as a creative exercise.
Summary: What if Joey woke to find Pacey watching her in the firelight? P/J story starts immediately after A Weekend in the Country and goes quickly AU.
Author's Note: I only started watching Dawson's Creek this year, a result of a year off before grad school spent working from home, so this is my first D.C. fic. I adore the Joey/Pacey dynamic (I think Pacey in particular is a fantastic character), and wanted to toy with it a bit. What if Joey discovered Pacey's feelings before A.J. called her to ask her out? This first chapter is a bit short, but it seemed to stand by itself so nicely. Feedback is very much appreciated!!!
Pacey's POV
The firelight flickers, making shadows dance across Joey's face. It highlights one feature after another, each as perfect as the last. Her face has always haunted my dreams, teased around the edges of my consciousness. When we were kids, she was the girl whose pigtails I loved to pull, and while there was a brief time when we were genuinely enemies, fighting for Dawson's attention, for some time now the bickering has been a tooth and nail battle for my own sanity. At some level I've always known that if I didn't hate Joey Potter, I'd be left with no option but to love her. I tried with everything in me to keep up the biting jibes, to focus on her faults, even to push her towards Dawson. But then everything else in her life fell away, and suddenly I was the one left to pick up the pieces. What choice did I have? What could I possibly do but give everything that was in me, if anything in my power would be able to make her feel safe for even one second? How could I do anything but love her?
When Grams was talking about her husband, about sitting and watching him sleep, I couldn't help looking at Joey. I knew that I'd be happy to gaze at her forever, whether she was sleeping, laughing, smiling or frowning. So easily, so dangerously, so intoxicatingly easily, I can imagine the two of us sitting by our own fire, night after night, reading our favourite books to one another. I can imagine her eyes shining as I read Little Women, joining her past to what could be a beautiful future.
I'm not stupid, though. I am not so delusional as to imagine that this dream is actually attainable, something I could reach out and take. Pacey J. Witter could never be so lucky. I've repeatedly pointed out to Dawson that Joey is a goddess, and I've meant it every time, more than he could ever have guessed. Every day I thank whatever being guides my fate that I am allowed to have a creature like her in my life, and in the same breath I hope that I don't get struck down for daring to think that I could ever be worthy to touch her, to be with her. So I'll just sit here, content, for now at least, just to look.