Disclaimer: I do not own Dawson's Creek.

AN: Since my birthday was yesterday this is a belated birthday present from me to you. This is also the next to last chapter; I wanted to give you all a heads up.

March and the beginning of April passed in a blur. One day Joey was celebrating St. Patrick's Day with Bessie and Bodie and the next it was April sixth. She had gone back to New York at the end of March because all of the planning was done and she missed Pacey. She hadn't gotten any writing done while she away because she couldn't make her hands move across the keys without his distinct ways of distracting her without meaning to.

She had woken that morning to a cryptic text from her sister. She had told her that she would be there by noon. Bessie never came to see her. As far as Joey knew Bessie had never left Massachusetts. She had texted her sister back telling her that she was more than welcome to come and that she couldn't wait to see her even though she had only seen her seven days before. Bessie had texted her back letting her know that she needed to pack a bag because they would be going on a trip.

Joey's eyebrows shot up in intrigue but she would do as Bessie asked. Her sister was known for planning wild and crazy surprises that usually ended with someone either drunk dialing their significant other or not remembering what happened the next day. She was in for a wild day and she didn't know what she thought about that.

Joey reluctantly got out of bed. Pacey sighed in his sleep as she silently opened the closet door. She pulled down her overnight bag and pulled the first things that she could grab from the dresser. She grabbed her garment bag and placed a dress in it just in case they went someplace nice. Once she was done she got dressed for the day then brought the overnight bag into the bathroom. She finished getting ready then packed her makeup bag and toiletries into the bag before placing it and her garment bag on the couch.

Pacey woke up as she poured herself a cup of coffee. He shuffled to the counter and grabbed a cup from off one of the hooks before silently pouring himself a cup of coffee. Joey leaned against the counter next to him with one arm folded over her chest as she read the paper. She knew to leave him alone until he'd had a cup of coffee. He could be a grouch if she bothered him before he was fully awake.

"Are you going somewhere? I noticed the bags on the couch," he asked after he had taken a few sips of coffee.

"Bessie texted me, I guess she planned a bachelorette party for me after all. She should be here in a couple of hours."

"Bessie is coming here? On her own freewill, no one is forcing her?"

"I can't see anyone forcing her to do anything. I think this was her idea."

"I have a few rules," he said seriously.

"Do you now?" she asked intrigued.

"Yes, I do, number one, no strippers. Number two, no table dancing. And finally, no body shots off some random frat guy's stomach."

"You're no fun," she said with a pout.

"Why would want to any of those things without me?"

"Why would you want to watch? That would be weird," she said, giving him a strange look.

"You think you're so funny. You're lucky you're cute," he said kissing her quickly.

He walked out of the room and Joey watched him. She shook her head with a small smile. She considered herself lucky to be given the chance to spend the rest of her life with him.

XXXX

Bessie knocked on Joey's door at a little after twelve. She wouldn't be Bessie if she arrived exactly on time. Joey was surprised to see Gail and Gretchen flanking her sister but it was a good surprise. She let them in and Gail and Bessie took a look around while Joey gathered a few last minute things. Gretchen hung back wanting to talk to Joey alone.

"My brother has changed so much in the last seven years. I never thought that he would grow out of his Peter Pan syndrome."

"Some guys hold onto it longer than others. For instance Dawson is just now entering the real world where he can't rely on others to work his problems out for him."

"Trust me, I know. Do you know that he has assistant wash his laundry for him?" she asked flabbergasted.

"You're kidding," Joey said with a laugh.

"Nope, it's taking me a little longer than I planned to break that habit. I mean honestly, the poor woman is planning her wedding and trying to raise her three kids, plus she has another baby on the way. She has enough to deal with; she doesn't need the added pressure of ironing Dawson's shirts for him on top of it," she said with a role of her eyes.

Joey shook her head with an amused smile. Some things would never change. She had tried to school Dawson in the art of washing laundry before they started college so that he wouldn't come home with bags of rank, unwashed laundry like some college students did to no avail.

"Back to Pacey, he is so in love with you he can't think of anything else. He may have trouble expressing his feelings but even a blind person would be able to see how much he cares about you."

"Thank you," Joey said sentimentally.

"I mean it; you have done so much for him. Someone should give you a plaque."

"It hasn't been easy. Guys like Pacey should come with a manual," she said with a nervous laugh.

"He is his father's son…Just don't tell him that I said that," she said with an evil smirk.

Bessie and Gail came back into the room and Gail came to stand next to Joey, draping an arm over her shoulders.

"This place is wonderful. I love the view of the Empire State Building from your bedroom."

"That's the main reason that I bought the apartment."

"I found some champagne in the fridge, how about we pop the cork?" Gretchen asked from the kitchen.

"None of us are driving I say let's go for it," Gail said as she turned for the kitchen.

"None of us are driving?" Joey asked, holding Bessie back.

"It is part of the surprise," she said before pulling away from Joey.

They followed Gail into the kitchen where Gretchen was pouring each of them a glass of wine. Bessie held up a hand to stop her from pouring a fourth glass.

"You don't want any?" Joey asked perplexed.

"I'm good," she said with a shake of her head.

Gretchen shrugged her shoulders as she handed Joey and Gail there flutes.

"To Jo and Pacey, may they have a long and happy marriage," Gail said, holding up her flute.

"Here, here," Gretchen said as the three of them touched glasses.

Half an hour later, Bessie said that it was time to leave. Gail made a call while they waited for the elevator. She spoke quietly then closed her phone a few seconds later. Outside, a limo waited for them. The driver opened the door for them and they all filed in. Joey took it in with wide eyes.

"I've never rode in a limo before," she said flabbergasted.

"Do you remember the 'limo' that Pacey rented for prom?"

"Ugh. That was not a good night," she said with a heavy sigh.

"I agree. My brother was not in his best form that night."

"But obviously he did something right. He not only got you to take him back but now the two of you are getting married in a few days," Gail reminded her.

Joey smiled sentimentally. Pacey had done everything right since they had gotten back together; she was the one who had faltered at the beginning. Pacey had been patient, he had been kind and he had been her shoulder to lean on. She hadn't had someone like that in her life since she had left home. She had forgotten what it was like to think about someone else's feelings. Christopher had been her equal intellectually, but being with him had made her emotionally closed off. She was starting to feel like herself again.

"Will you at least give me a hint about where we are going?"

"We are going to see someone we haven't seen in a long time," Bessie said vaguely.

Joey gave her a strange look before scoffing. There were a lot of people who could fall into the category, there father included.

"We aren't going to see Dad are we? I would rather not see him until the wedding," Joey said hesitantly.

"We are not going to see Dad," Bessie confirmed.

"Just sit back and enjoy the ride Sweetie. Everything is going to be fine," Gail reassured her.

Joey did as Gail suggested but the nagging feeling that something bad would happen refused to go away. If her sister forced her to do something that she wasn't ready for she would not be responsible for the repercussions.

XXXX

Pacey was going over the books for the restaurant when someone knocked on the door. He looked up to see Tracey, one of the hostesses standing in the hall.

"There's someone here to see you. I told him that you were busy but he insisted that I come back here to tell you that he was here. He says that he's your brother," she explained.

"Send him back," Pacey said, closing the folder.

Doug came in a few minutes later looking very GQ. His jeans fit him just right and his black sweater was just form fitting enough to show off his arms, black suede boots rounded out the outfit.

"I see that you've let Jack buy you a new wardrobe. I have to say that it's a big improvement," Pacey said with a teasing smile.

"Ha, ha," Doug said stoically.

"What do I owe the pleasure of having you coming to see me big brother?"

"Gretchen called and told me that she, Bessie, and Gail had taken Joey somewhere for a few days so I figured that I would come and see you."

"If you plan on throwing me a bachelor party, don't bother. I can listen to Mariah and Celine on my own; all I have to do is go through Jo's CD collection."

"I was going to take you out to get a drink, that's all," Doug said with a laugh.

Pacey nodded before motioning for Doug to sit down.

"Is everything ready for the wedding?"

"Yep, Jo's been running around like a mad woman for the past few days trying to confirm everything. It's not that easy since she's here and all of the venders are in Capeside."

"I can see how that would be a problem," Doug said thoughtfully.

Pacey went back to work and Doug worked on his phone quietly. He hadn't expected his brother to come to visit him but he was glad that he had. He needed his brother's advice on things. Even if he wasn't married he was in a stable relationship and he was known for giving solid advice when he actually tried.

XXXX

After three hours in the car and crossing over into Massachusetts the limo finally pulled to a stop. Bessie got out of the car first and Gail followed her. Gretchen opened the door on her and Joey side and let Joey get out first. A large log cabin stood in front of them that Joey didn't recognize. The three older women led the way up the walkway while Joey hung back, skeptically eyeing the cabin and the beat up Buick in the driveway. Bessie pulled Joey up the stairs to stand beside her before knocking on the door.

"Who lives here?" Joey asked cautiously.

Bessie ignored her and Gail put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. Someone could be heard walking slowly around inside the house. The door finally opened a minute later. The person inside only let their head be seen around the door. The house was dark, making it hard for Joey to see the person inside.

"Come inside," The person said opening the door wider.

Bessie went in first and Gail gently pushed Joey towards the door next. Joey followed the woman and Bessie into the living room wondering what was going on. The living room was brighter than the foyer and she took in the room in confusion. There were pictures of her and Bessie and even some of Alexander. Who was this person?

"Sit down Jo," Bessie encouraged her.

"You look just like me when I was your age Josephine," The woman said.

Joey's head snapped up, taking the woman in. It was like looking at an older version of her mother. She hadn't seen her grandmother since the funeral. She stared at her with wide eyes, unable to speak.

"Hello Josephine," Cora Manning said with a warm smile.

"After searching for her for years I finally found her last week," Bessie explained.

"I didn't realize that you were looking for her," Joey said, turning her attention to her sister.

"I started looking for her when you started your senior year of high school. I thought that you might want her there."

"I'm sorry that I missed so much of your life. I want to make up for that now."

"Why did you leave us? We needed you," Joey accused.

"Jo-" Bessie cautioned.

"No, Bessie, she has a right to know. Your father and I never saw eye to eye. When you're mother got sick she asked me to not come around because it would make things worse. When Gail called me to let me know that she had died I couldn't stay away. The police were already suspicious of your father and I wanted you to live with me. Bessie and Mitch Leery fought hard for you to stay with her. I figured that it would be best for everyone if I left."

"She wasn't kidding when she said that she and dad didn't get along. You wouldn't remember all of the times that she pleaded with mom to leave dad. She didn't leave because she wanted to, she was asked. I regret it to this day," Bessie said with remorse.

"I know that I can't make up for the time that we've missed but I would like to be a part of your lives again," Cora broached.

"I think that you and Bessie should have some time with her. We'll find something to do for a little while," Gail said.

"There's coffee and scones in the kitchen if you would like some."

"You used to make the most wonderful blueberry scones I have ever had."

"Lucky for you they're still warm," Cora said with a pleased smile.

"You've already found a place for the pictures that I sent you?" Bessie asked, looking towards the mantle.

"Yes, they came yesterday. Your son is precious Bessie. And I have to say that Pacey has turned out to be even more handsome than his grandfather."

"You knew Miles Witter?" Joey asked, intrigued.

"We courted when we were teenagers. I joined the army as a nurse and I met your grandfather while I was stationed in Hawaii. We married six months later."

"You were stationed in Hawaii? You were a part of Pearl Harbor?" Bessie questioned.

"Luckily no, I was stationed on Waikiki. My friends and I were recruited to go there to help with the patients and that's when I met your granddad. He was a Flyboy through and through," she said with a sentimental smile.

She told them stories of her childhood, growing up on the New England sound. Her life didn't seem anymore different than Joey's. She'd had her own dreams and goals and she had gone after them. She had made mistakes along the way and hadn't felt like she'd finally found her balance until she had gotten married to grandpa Saul who had died not long after Joey was born from the same form of Cancer that had killed her mother.

Gail and Gretchen came in and sat quietly on the other side of the room. Gail was glad that Bessie had never given up trying to find Cora. Now that the three of them were back together she hoped that nothing would pull them apart again.

Cora made up rooms for them that night, pairing Gail and Gretchen in one room and giving Bessie and Joey the room across from hers. Joey came into the room once she had finished her nightly ritual to find Bessie smearing night cream under eyes and along her cheeks. Joey grabbed her lotion from her bag before sitting on the bed.

"Thank you for bringing me here."

"I did this for the both of us. You can't know how guilty I felt for asking her to leave us alone. It's what mom would have wanted so that we could have a semi-normal relationship with dad."

"I know," Joey said quietly.

"I just hope that he doesn't freak when he sees her at the wedding this weekend," she said unsurely.

"I'm sure it will be fine. He wouldn't want to make a big scene."

"You're probably right. He's changed so much from when we were younger."

"Is there another reason why you brought me here? Do you have something else to tell Granlin that you haven't told me?"

"I wanted to wait until after the wedding, but since you asked I may as well tell you now, I'm pregnant."

"Bessie, that's amazing! How did Bodie and Alexander take it?"

"They're thrilled. I didn't think that I wanted kids before I had Alexander and then not long after I had him I told Bodie that I wanted to try for a girl. When it didn't happen within a few years I didn't think that it was meant to happen," she said with a scared laugh.

"Well, let's hope that it's a girl this time," Joey said with a smile.

"Oh God, I hope so. Please Lord, let this one be a girl, because I doubt that this will ever happen again," she begged as she looked up at the ceiling.

"How far along are you?"

"Nine weeks, I found out a couple of weeks ago."

"I really am happy for you," Joey said opening her arms.

Bessie walked into her arms and Joey rubbed her sisters back soothingly. Bessie didn't let her guard down very often but when she did the flood gates opened up and tears were sure to follow. Joey was not looking forward to the road that Bessie, Bodie, and Alexander had ahead of them. Bessie and pregnancy weren't two things that got along. Even when Bessie wasn't the one who was pregnant she made it about her. Joey loved her sister dearly, but she was glad that she wouldn't be around to live through it again.