Peter and Wendy Chapter 5: The Wedding, a dawson's creek fanfic

June 2010
Capeside, Massachusetts

Dawson, Jack, and Mike Potter were sitting around Doug and Jack's house, while Doug was fixing Pacey's bowtie. Mike seemed more nervous than anyone else. Dawson was the one who broke the silence.

"All right, Mike, out with it."

"I don't know, I probably shouldn't be saying this, but it's my daughter's wedding day, and to hell with it."

Pacey didn't like where this was going, but he was determined not to let anything ruin the day.

"Sir, I'm going to spend the rest of my life trying to make your daughter happy. It's the only thing that matters to me. It's the only thing that's ever mattered to me."

"Sir? I should be calling you two sir. You boys, both of you, have done more to make my daughter happy than I ever could. You're a great kid, Pacey, it's just -"

"- you thought it would be Dawson standing next to her today?"

"Is that such a horrible thing to say?"

"No, I suppose it's not. For my most of my life, I thought the same thing."

"Mike, Pacey makes Joey happy in a way I never could. She deserves to be happy. We're the three most important men in her life, and I think we can all agree that that's the one thing we want more than anything else."

"You always know the right thing to say, son."

"Do you think I would have agreed to walk her down the aisle if I wasn't absolutely certain she was making the right choice?"

"Come with me, Dawson."

Mike led Dawson to the bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Is this about me walking her down the aisle? I'd hate to think I was intruding, but she said you were okay with it."

"No, it's not that at all. She was never mine to give away. She was never anyone's to give away if we're being honest, but if someone has to do it, it should be you."

"Thanks, Mike. That means a lot to me."

"Look at you, I'm the failure dad, the ex-con, and what I say means something to you."

"None of that matters. All that matters is how much Joey loves you."

"And I still don't know what I did to deserve that." Mike wiped a tear from his eye. Dawson sat down on the bed next to him and put his arm around the shoulder.

"You're her dad, that's enough. It will always be enough for her."

"Dawson, do you really believe this whole soulmates thing?"

"More than I've ever believed anything in my life."

"So, do you think Lilly is waiting up there for me?"

"Absolutely. And Jen and her grandparents are waiting for Jack, and my dad is waiting for my mom. Eventually we'll all get a chance to right the wrongs we made in this world."

"And what wrongs will you have to right when you see Joey again?"

"More than you could ever know."

It seemed as if half of Capeside was sitting in this field. The wedding of the 2001 Capeside High Class Couple was the biggest the thing to happen in this small town in years. The only people standing were the minister up front and Todd, who was filming the ceremony with more passion and artistic integrity than he had given any of his professional projects in decades. He wouldn't have dreamed of taking money for this honor.

Pacey was the first to walk down the aisle. He was followed by Jack and Doug. Harley, Bessie, and Audrey walked down next. Then came Alexander with the rings and Lillian spreading petals. The crowd cooed as they did so.

Everyone stood up as Wagner's Bridal Chorus started playing. Dawson and Joey walked down the aisle arm-in-arm. Dawson was immaculately dressed in his tuxedo, but all eyes were on Joey. She was wearing a stunning Versace white dress that subtly highlighted the few curves she did have. If there had ever been a more beautiful bride, no one in the crowd had seen one. When they got to the front, Dawson lifted her veil and kissed her on the cheek before taking his place beside Pacey, who clapped him on the shoulder. Pacey made no attempt to hide the tears welling up in his eyes.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here tonight to join this man and this woman in holy matrimony. Pacey and Joey will now read the vows that they have written."

Pacey reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. He looked at it and looked at Joey and looked back at the paper. He then ripped up the paper and dropped it to floor. Joey looked mortified and a hushed silence fell over the crowd. Dawson looked worried.

"I wrote some nice things on that paper, all the proper things you're supposed to say at a moment like this, but how can I put my feelings for you into some scripted speech. Joey, half the time I'm around you, I can't even think straight. The other half the time, all I think about is what little things I can do to make you happy. I don't know what I must have done in some past life to deserve someone as amazing as you in this life. The one thing I do know, Jo, is that I am going to spend all my remaining time on this earth to keep doing everything in my power I can to make you happy."

Joey was still wiping tears out of her eyes when the minister asked her to read her vows. Audrey handed her a tissue along with a sheet of paper. She dried her eyes and Audrey took back the tissue.

"I need to read from the sheet because, if I don't, I won't be able to say anything at all. For so much of my life, I was afraid of the big world out there, but, more than that, I was afraid of standing still, of not moving forward. Pacey, it took you to make me realize that I needed to stop running away from my problems and start running towards my life. You were never afraid to move forward. Your passion, your zeal for life, it made me feel alive, it showed me a whole part of life that I was missing. And, now, as we prepare to embark on this new adventure together, I don't know what else you'll teach me about life, but I'm excited to find out."

Audrey wiped a tear from her eye as she took back the speech from Joey. The minister continued.

"Do you, Pacey, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to live together in holy matrimony, to love her, to honor her, to comfort her, and to keep her in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, for as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

"Do you, Joey, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to live together in holy matrimony, to love her, to honor her, to comfort her, and to keep her in sickness and in health, forsaking all others, for as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

"Now, Pacey, repeat after me."

"I, Pacey."

"Take thee Joey."

"To be my lawfully wedded wife."

"To have and to hold from this day forward."

"For better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness, in health."

"To love and to cherish, 'til death do us part."

The minister ran Joey through the same set of words, and then they exchanged rings.

"By virtue of the authority vested in me under the laws of the State of Massachusetts, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Pacey embraced Joey in a passionate kiss, as the crowd loudly applauded.

The crowd was now gathered at the reception, seated at various tables. The bridal party was seated together at a long table in the front, facing the crowd. Pacey clanged his glass, and crowd, chanted.

"Speech! Speech! Speech!"

Dawson stood up and hesitated a bit.

"Ten years ago, Joey and I were going through some rough times. We had just said that we loved each other for the first time, but we needed space, or at least I did. I had hoped that maybe if we took some space, we could rebuild what we once had with cooler heads. I did what I thought was best and asked Pacey to take care of her, while I sorted things out. I just didn't want her to be alone. I wanted to make sure someone was looking out for her. It was the kind of favor you can only ask your best friend.

"Joey was understandably furious when she learned of this arrangement, but, then something happened that none of us expected. They fell in love. I accused them of betraying my trust, but now I know, they both loved me so much that they were just afraid of hurting me. How can you hate someone for loving you that much? So, Pacey, I'm asking you to do it again. Take care of her for me."

The crowd applauded again, and Joey wiped more tears out of her eyes. Pacey stood up and hugged Dawson tightly. Tears were in his eyes, and he whispered into Dawson's ear.

"Til death do us part. Then she's all yours, pal."

Dawson patted Pacey on the back, and they sat down. Audrey was the next one to stand up.

"This is so unfair. I have to follow an Oscar-winning writer."

The crowd laughed.

"You all know about Dawson and Joey's history. There have been popular movies and even a TV series made about it. What most of you don't know, though, is that Pacey and I had our own history. Joey was my roommate in college, and she was this skittish little girl, who only cared about her academic career, while I had a string of boys coming in and out of the dorm room, much to her chagrin. I'd like to think that I changed her, that I opened her eyes, taught her to embrace new experiences, but the truth is, she changed me far more than I changed her.

"When Pacey and I first kissed, I was scared to death that Joey would find out and that it would be the end of our friendship. We were all working on a movie for Dawson, and I had a nervous breakdown when Joey came on set. I locked myself in the bathroom. Joey dragged Pacey down there to confront me. She knew. What was I going to do? I berated Pacey for telling her, but he hadn't. That's the thing about Joey, she's so smart and intuitive, she just knew that this was the only thing it could be about. She told us that she loved both of us and that she'd rather we each be with people as amazing as each other than with some random person whose name we forgot the next day. I'll say the same thing now she said to me that day. I'd rather you two be with people as amazing as each other than with anyone else in the world. I love you guys so much."

Audrey broke down in tears as she set back down, and Joey gently stroked her back as the audience applauded. The DJ then called Joey and Pacey to the dance floor for their first dance as husband and wife. After a few minutes, their respective father and mother walked up to cut in. Dawson and Audrey then got up and danced together, followed by Doug and Bessie. Jack escorted a nervous Harley onto the dance floor as other couples joined the bridal party in dancing.

You must remember this
A kiss is just a kiss
A sigh is just a sigh
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by.

Joey walked over to Dawson, who seemed lost in his own thoughts. He had a look on his face that was neither that of joy nor sorrow. It was one of nostalgia. Joey empathized with him. He didn't even notice her approaching.

"Dance with me once, Sam, for old times' sake."

Dawson laughed at her attempt at humor.

"I thought you were Sam."

She returned the laugh as they started dancing.

"I used to be."

It's still the same old story
A fight for love and glory
A case of do or die
The world will always welcome lovers
As time goes by.

Dawson was walking around the reception area. He saw Professor Wilder surrounded by a gaggle of college-aged girls and went up to introduce himself.

"Professor Wilder, I don't believe we've ever properly met. Dawson Leery."

"It's bad enough that Joey still calls me Professor. You never took a class with me or even went to my school. You can call me David. You and I share quite the history, don't we?"

"Oh, right, we shared a moment of jealousy at that movie screening."

"I've known about you longer than that."

Dawson was confused.

"The very first assignment Joey did for me, it was about you, about your kiss before leaving for college, and I told her -"

"- that it ends at the very moment it should begin."

"So you do know."

"I didn't know about the story, actually, but I know that's why Joey wanted to start Peter and Wendy with Wendy leaving Neverland."

"Well, there you go."

The girls were muttering to themselves.

"Joey got to write a story for Professor Wilder about kissing someone?"

"Ugh, she's so lucky."

Dawson and Professor Wilder looked at each other with mischievous grins.

"David, should we tell them?"

"I suppose the statute of limitations has run out on that particular indiscretion."

"That's not all! She kissed him. Twice!"

"She reminded me to live, and then she saved my life."

The girls were clearly jealous, all of them hoping for the same fate. One of them had a moment of revelation.

"Hold on. David, was Joey the inspiration for your book The Girl from the Creek?"

"She was, and I'm sure you all know Dawson here is the executive producer of The Creek."

"Oh my God, we watch that every Wednesday. We never miss an episode."

"All my friends think it's a better love story than Twilight."

"I'm not exactly sure that's a high bar," Dawson laughed.

"So, tell me, how does it end? Does she wind up with Colby or Petey? Most of my friends are Pam shippers, but I'm a die-hard Cam shipper." She looked at Dawson seductively.

"I actually don't know. I'm stepping down from the day-to-day writing next season. I'll still be executive producer for one more season, but I'll be entirely off the project once they start the college years."

"Oh, so they are going to do the college years? That never works. It never has the same magic."

"Oh, shut up, like you're not going to watch it anyway."

"No, you shut up."

"Dawson, can you do the face? The face from the meme!"

Dawson looked at Professor Wilder confusedly, who shrugged his shoulders.

"Meme?"

"You know, the Colby crying meme." She took out her smartphone, searched 'colby crying meme,' and showed the resulting images to Dawson, who was simultaneously bemused and perturbed.

"You know, I never actually made that face. It wasn't even in the script. The actor who played Colby just did it to add to the dramatic tension." He looked at the screen again and the associated captions. "I know that the face lends itself to easy humor, but it's still a painful memory for me."

"You still love her, don't you?"

"Always."

"She's your Lily!"

"Who's Lily?

"Lily Potter."

"What does Joey's mom have to do with this?"

"Nooooo. Wait, Joey's mom was Lily Potter?"

"Yeah, who are you talking about."

Professor Wilder cleared the confusion.

"I'm thinking Dawson hasn't read any of the Harry Potter books."

"No, I've watched the movies, but I didn't read the books."

"Ohhhh, we won't spoil it for you then."

"Spoil what?"

"We can't tell you."

"It's fine. I just watch them because I appreciate the cinematic production. You can tell me."

"Okay, so, you know Snape, right?"

"Yeah."

"His whole thing, he's been in love with Lily this whole time. Everything he does for Dumbledore, for Harry, it's all because he's been in love with Lily."

"I'm not sure being compared to Snape is a good thing."

"No, it is. It's romantic. He risks his whole life and gives up everything because of his feelings for Lily. When Dumbledore tells Snape that Voldemort needs to kill Harry before he can be killed himself, Snape is furious, and Dumbledore asks Snape if he's finally come to care for Harry. Snape casts a Patronus, and it's a doe, Lily's doe, and Dumbledore is surprised that his Patronus still takes that form, after all this time, and Snape says, 'Always.'"

Professor Wilder interjected.

"That's a pretty simplistic explanation." The girls were about to argue with him, but they realized this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to hear a former literature professor, a bestselling author, analyze their favorite book series. "He's a classically gray character, neither good nor evil. He does many good things, and his love for Lily is romantic, but it doesn't absolve him of the way he treats Harry and Hermione while they're in Hogwarts. Remember what Sirius said? The world isn't split into good people and Death Eaters. At his heart, Snape is -"

At that moment, Dawson saw a flash of blonde hair out of the corner of his eye. Professor Wilder was agog, and the girls had looks ranging from jealousy to hatred. Dawson turned his head to see what the commotion was about. When he saw who it was, he stood up.

"Aunt Gwen!"

"How about giving your old aunt a dance?"

"Old? You're not even forty yet."

"I will be sooner than I'd care to admit."

They walked away, and Professor Wilder turned to the girls.

"That's not a bad idea. Which one of you lovely ladies is going to dance with me?"

A chorus of "Me me me" sounded.

"Okay, which of you is going to dance with me first?"

The girl who seemed to be their leader started to stand up, but it was another voice that spoke up.

"I think that should be me." Professor Wilder turned to see Joey standing beside him. "Besides, I don't think your wife would like this little situation while she's at home taking care of the kid."

The girls looked at each other in disappointment and scattered away.

"Why did you lie? You know I'm not married and certainly that I don't have a kid."

"I didn't lie. I invented characters. That's what us writers do." She smiled at him with her tongue sticking out between her teeth. He roared his head back laughing.

"I suppose I had that one coming. It took you almost ten years to get me back for that. Don't ever change, Joey Potter. Or should I call you Joey Witter now?"

"I'm keeping my own name."

Professor Hetson sat down beside them.

"Hey David. Been a while."

"Greg, as chipper as ever, I see."

"I just don't know what she sees in him."

"Who?"

"Harley."

Joey followed his gaze and saw Harley engrossed in conversation with Eddie, who was all smiles as she played with her hair in a very Joey-like fashion.

"Probably the same thing I saw in him."

"That's what I'm afraid of. Why can't she be with someone like, I don't know, someone like Dawson."

"Dating Dawson isn't what it's cracked up to be. It's boring."

"Yeah, but it's safe."

"Exactly. It doesn't make you feel alive."

"Ugh."

Professor Hetson stood up and walked away, even more perturbed than he was when he sat down. Joey and Professor Wilder shared another laugh.

"So, tell me, Joey Potter, is this the end of your story, or the beginning?"

Dawson and Aunt Gwen stepped onto the dance floor.

"I'm sorry I took you away from all those pretty girls. I'm sure you could have had a lovely night with one of them."

"Don't be silly, Aunt Gwen. Besides, you're prettier than any of them. Heck, you're the prettiest woman here."

"I thought Joey would get that honor."

"That always goes without saying. Will you settle for second prettiest?"

"You're sweet, honey, but I don't think you're going to be so lovey-dovey with me once I say what I have to say. I owe you an apology. And an explanation."

"How's that?"

"Dawson, this is all my fault."

"What is?"

"Joey and Pacey, this wedding, everything, it's all my fault."

"What are you talking about?"

"Remember when you brought all your friends to my house for spring break like ten years ago?"

"Yes."

"Well, I caught Joey and Pacey kissing. I told her she needed to tell you. Of course she never did. I should have just told you myself."

"What difference would that have made? It would have had the same result."

"Because that's not the whole of it. I gave her a piece of advice that changed her whole outlook on life. I told her that whenever you have to choose between someone who makes you feel safe and comfortable and someone who makes you feel alive, always choose the person who makes you feel alive."

"What am I missing here?"

"Oh, Dawson, baby, you were the safe and comfortable option. Pacey was the one who made her feel alive. I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have said anything, but, you know me, I just say what's on my mind."

"Don't be ridiculous. Joey and I were passionate about each other. When we were dating, we couldn't keep our tongues out of each other mouths. The first time we slept together, we had sex three times in less than 12 hours."

"And how did that feel?"

"It felt great, like we finally found the place we belonged, like we should have been doing it all along."

"And compare that to how you felt when you slept with that actress."

Dawson knew where she was going with this, it was too painful to admit that she was right, but to contradict her would have been lying.

"Now I'm going to give you some sage advice. It's the least I can do."

"Okay…"

"Stop trying to replace Joey. Maybe you could find someone who is similar enough to Joey that she makes you happy. Maybe you could be happy enough together. That's not what you want. You need to find someone who is everything that Joey isn't. That's the only way you can truly be happy because you will never be over Joey."

He was trying to formulate a response when she broke away from him, and he felt a slight tingle on his lips as he realized she had lightly pecked him there.

"Cheer up, Dawson. You need to stop daydreaming and start living."

Before he could wonder why she did that, she stepped aside.

"Looks like someone else would like to dance with you."

He turned around to see another gorgeous blonde waiting for him. It took him a minute to recognize her.

"Andie!"

"Wasn't that your aunt?"

"Yeah." He turned around, but she was nowhere to be found.

"Does she always kiss you like that?"

"Not always. I don't really question much of what she does. You know her, she's a free spirit."

"Still, that's a little weird. I would never kiss Jack on the lips."

"Andie, we haven't seen each other in a decade, and this is what you want to talk about, the appropriateness of my aunt's affections?"

"No, of course not. Ohhh, Dawson, I've missed you. Let's just dance."

They started to dance.

"So, what have you been up to?"

"I just finished med school."

"Oh, that's great, I always knew you'd do great things."

"Yeah, I just had a silly thought."

"What is it?"

"No, never mind."

Dawson laughed nervously.

"Tell me."

"Ohhh, fine! I was just thinking, our whole little social circle back from Capeside, everyone dated each other or at least tried to sleep together other once. Except for you and me."

"And you're wondering if we missed out on something?"

"No! Kinda? Maybe. I don't know. I mean, only if you are."

"You're just like Joey used to be, scared of your own shadow sometimes."

Andie smiled at him, pleased to be compared to her.

"You know, Dawson, there was a time I thought about asking you out, but then the whole thing with Joey and Pacey happened, and the moment passed. Besides, it would have been a little hypocritical at that point. And then there was Will. After that, the timing was never right."

"What about now? Is the timing right now?"

"You tell me."

Dawson kissed her. Her lips were soft and warm, but it was like taking a sip of coffee that had been sitting out too long.

Andie pulled away in shock.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm sorry, I guess I misread the situation."

"No, don't apologize, Dawson. I liked it. I just wasn't expecting it."

"Yeah, it was nice."

"Nice. Just what every girl wants to hear when a boy kisses her for the first time."

"Sorry."

"Why do you keep apologizing?"

"Because we're not right for each other, Andie. It would never work."

"It could work. How will we know if we don't try it?"

Dawson looked at the front table, towards Joey and Pacey.

"Because we'd just be settling for each other."

Andie followed his gaze.

"You never forget your first love."

At that moment, Jack walked up and inserted himself between them, putting one arm on each of their shoulders.

"Joey wasn't his first love, though."

"Who was?"

"Dance with me, sis, and I'll tell you."

Dawson walked away. He knew who Jack meant, but he wasn't sure he was right about it.

Joey walked up to where Eddie and Harley were sitting, entirely entranced with one another.

"God, she reminds me so much of you at that age, Joey."

As if to prove the point, Harley smiled at Eddie with her tongue between her teeth.

She debated whether or not to tell them how unhealthy this little interaction was, but she decided to keep quiet. It wasn't like her own relationship with Eddie had exactly been healthy, and she regretted nothing about it.

Dawson returned to the front table and sat down next to Pacey.

"I kissed Andie."

"I know, I saw."

"I wanted to make sure you knew."

"I know what you're doing. You can drop this little noble act."

"What act?"

"You're reminding me how I screwed up by not telling you I kissed Joey that first time."

"It's not an act. It still hurts."

"Dawson, I just married Joey. You walked her down the damn aisle. You can kiss as many of my exes as you want. Marry one of them for all I care. And between you and me, you could do a lot worse than Andie McPhee. Doesn't she remind you of Joey?"

"That's the problem."

"I see. Well, for the love of God, can you please dance with my sister. She's been waiting all night for you to ask her."

Dawson saw Gretchen standing a bit away, nervously looking at the table. He leaned his hand on Pacey's shoulder as stood up and walked towards Gretchen.

"Gretchen. Would you like to dance with me?"

"I thought you'd never ask."

"It's been a long night."

"The night is still young."

They walked back to the dance floor and after dancing in silence and exchanging pleasantries, Gretchen asked the big question.

"Do you know why we broke up?"

"Yeah, because I wasn't over Joey."

"Over her? What does that even mean? You're still not over her. How could you ever be over such a big part of your life?"

"I don't get it. Why did we break up then?"

"Because it bothered you that you weren't over her. Because you were determined to use me to prove to yourself that you were over her. You needed to process those feelings before you could be in a healthy relationship."

"So, what? You're saying I can be in love with Joey and still be happy with someone else?"

"Of course you can, silly. Your feelings for Joey are what drive you. They're what give you strength, purpose. They're part of what define you as person. Your entire career, it's fueled by your feelings for her."

"I'm confused."

"You're only confused because you let yourself be confused. It's just another personality trait, like your passion for film, or your charm, or your kindheartedness. Or your handsomeness. Stop fighting them, and you'll learn to be happy."

"I am happy now, though."

"You're happy with your career. Who was the last girl you dated? Like, actually dated in a monogamous relationship."

Dawson didn't want to answer that question. It was probably Natasha ten years ago, and that wasn't even strictly monogamous.

"It's been a while."

"Exactly."

"So, it doesn't bother you if I'm still in love with Joey?"

"Not as long as it doesn't bother you."

Oh, I could hide 'neath the wings
Of the bluebird as she sings

She held him closer, and he kissed her. His lips burned as they kissed. It was like sipping soup straight off the stove. She kissed him back passionately, and his entirely body felt as if it was on fire. They were both completely flushed as they broke away.

The six o'clock alarm would never ring
But it rings, and I rise

"I'm not Joey, and don't try to turn me into her, Dawson."

"I know, but you're everything that she isn't, and thank God for that."

Wipe the sleep out of my eyes
My shavin' razor's cold and it stings.

"I just wish we didn't miss out on all this time we could have had together."

"I guess I needed this long to sort it all out, but we're still young."

Cheer up, sleepy Jean
Oh, what can it mean

Joey watched as this scene unfolded. She smiled at them, but Dawson didn't notice. For first time in almost a decade, he didn't have eyes for her.

To a daydream believer
And a homecoming queen.

She looked around the room and saw Andie sitting with Professor Hetson, talking a mile a minute while he listened with bated breath. She saw Eddie and Harley lightly kissing each other. She saw Aunt Gwen leading Professor Wilder away so they could be alone together somewhere. She saw Audrey stroking Todd's arm as he put down the camera and sat down with her. She saw Jack and Doug, proudly displaying their relationship for all of Capeside to see.

Cheer up, sleepy Jean
Oh, what can it mean

She looked for her sister and saw her engrossed in conversation with Gale and her husband, Bodie sitting down to join them having completed their catering duties. Not far away, Alexander and Lillian were sitting alone, as inseparable as she and Dawson had been at that age.

To a daydream believer
And a homecoming queen.

She turned to Pacey, who was lovingly staring at his princess, his queen. She grabbed his hand, and they looked back over the scene together, at the old connections burning strong and at the new ones being kindled, some that could last a lifetime, others that would only last for the night. For the first time in 12 years, their lives were entirely free of drama.