Disclaimer: I lay no claim on Dawson's Creek or any of its characters.
A/N: This is going to be a transition chapter that will set up the action for the next one.. Enjoy!
Chapter 2
When Jack awoke with Doug beside him in their own bed in their own house, he smiled. He was so happy that their fight was behind them and they were together. Unfortunately, that happiness was short-lived when he remembered what day it was.
He stretched and got up. "Jack, are you okay?" Doug asked when he felt his boyfriend get up.
"I'm going for a run. When I get back I'll take a shower. If Amy wakes up before then she'll need her bottle." Jack told him, evading the original question because he was anything but okay but he could never admit that. He pulled on his running shorts and a t-shirt and left.
The tears flowed freely down Jack's face as he ran along the beach not far from the house. He had no idea how he would get through the day. How was he supposed to say goodbye to his best friend, his soul mate?
A half-hour later he returned home and found Amy in her high chair banging on the tray with a spoon while watching Doug cook breakfast.
Doug heard the door close and knew it was Jack coming back in. Without turning away from the stove where he was making eggs and sausage, he said, "Did you have a good run?"
"Yeah," Jack answered. He wiped the last few remains of tears from his eyes. "I'm going to jump through the shower. I'll be back in ten minutes." He kissed Amy's forehead and left without waiting for a reply.
After breakfast, Jack and Doug got Amy ready and headed to the B&B. The plan was for everyone to meet there and go to the cemetery together. Since Jack and Doug were naturally the first ones there, they went with Grams into the living room to wait for everyone else.
The elderly woman immediately took control of Amy. She was so used to spending every waking moment with her great-granddaughter that the new arrangement was almost unbearable. However, she knew it was best for everyone if Amy didn't get used to being with Grams all the time. She knew her time on Earth was almost up and she would soon join Jen in the Lord's home. Meanwhile, she would spend as much time as she could with the youngest member of her family, storing away memories to share with Jen when they met again.
Joey, Jack and Doug watched Grams and Amy together in silence. They had no idea what to say to each other as they waited for the rest of the gang to show up. They all felt the pain and dread of the day that lie ahead but didn't know how to express it. They just wanted it to be over as quickly as possible.
Soon Dawson showed up, followed by Pacey and Andie. The somber group split into three cars and headed to the cemetery to pay their last respects to their dear friend.
At 11:30, the Capeside Cemetery was rapidly filling up with people coming to pay their respects to Jen and her family. The group of friends had already greeted numerous high school and college friends and classmates, including Kristy Livingstone, Henry Parker, Drue Valentine, Charlie Todd, Tobey Barret and David Martin, almost all of which had flown in from all over the country.
It seemed like there wouldn't be enough room for everyone to gather around the gravesite. The fifty chairs that had been provided by the funeral home for those who couldn't stand for a long time as well as the closest family members were full and people had begun to congregate around and behind them.
Finally, at noon the stream of cars had slowed to a trickle and after the last few stragglers had joined the group, the memorial began. Because of Grams' strong religious beliefs and Jen's strong nonreligious beliefs, a pastor would be present but he would not lead the entire service. It was a very informal gathering in which everyone who wanted to speak was permitted to.
Everyone spoke very highly of Jen, saying that even if their memories of her weren't always perfect, they at least learned from her in one way or another. After nearly two hours, everyone who wanted to had spoken. The crowd began to disperse and as the final farewells were said, they each left a single daisy, Jen's favorite flower, on the casket.
When only the five friends plus Grams and Doug were left, the funeral directors lowered Jen's body into the ground. Only Joey and Andie cried freely; everyone else kept a strong front while breaking down privately inside.
As the last shovelfuls of dirt were tossed on the grave, Grams walked away with Amy and Doug told everyone he would see to it that they got home safely. No one moved or uttered a word. They were oblivious to any sounds around them. They could only stare at the fresh dirt at their feet. Doug left them to their thoughts and turned to leave.
A few minutes after the friends could no longer hear Doug's car, they turned to leave. They finally felt strong enough to walk away but soon realized they were not alone. There was one car left besides theirs and a lone man got out at this point and headed toward them. At first they had no idea who he was but has he got closer, recognition flickered across their faces. As he came to stop in front of them, they all looked to Jack to see how he was handling the presence of this man. His face was hardened, his jaw set and there was fire in his eyes.
"Hey," the man greeted.
No one knew what to say, except for Jack. He greeted him with one word for all of them. "CJ."
TBC
A/N: Can't you just feel the tension building? What's going to happen between Jack and CJ? You'll find out in the next chapter and I'll post it as soon as I have some feedback so if you want to know what happens next, please leave me some comments!
