Feedback: Please, please, please write me... I hate to beg, but this is what it's come down to. I want your feedback and I want it now! Please drop me a line at pilar@chickmail.com. Thanks!
Author's Note: I realize that it has been months since I've put an installment of this story out, and I'll try my damnedest to get another out sooner than last time. But you know how damn slow I am, I just gotta write them as they come... Do you hate me?
Part Seven
Abby tugged at the hem of her skirt before walking into Capeside High, things seemed to be looking up for her and everything around her for a change. Who knew when a time like this might come around again. She smoothed her hair back and pulled open the door.
There was a bustle of student body filling the halls. The sort that usually put her on edge, but not this time-- not anymore. She felt like a woman with purpose, a woman who cared not for the bullshit of others. A woman with a boyfriend, for the first time in ages. She could barely contain herself.
She felt like whistling or skipping or--
"Hey there, beautiful." A strong arm encircled her waist and pulled her back against his firm stomach tipping her head back and lighting his lips to hers. She responded in kind, letting her tongue touch the tip of his gently and breathing into his lungs.
"Mmmm... I missed you this morning."
They had taken to meeting before school and walking together quietly, sometimes slipping between trees where he would press her back against the ridged bark and take her mouth into his. They held hands and she looked up into his hazel green eyes and melted. Whatever they had found in each other was so far unparalleled.
"My father drove. He's getting to be a real pain in the ass, y'know? But I think that my mom's finally gotten him to lift my grounding. So maybe we can actually spend some real time together..." He raised his eyebrows at her in that way that he knew taunted her. They were still locked in a loose embrace, her hip pushed between his legs, her back arched against him.
"That would be nice, Pacey..."
"Yeah... Nice..."
"Hey there, lover boy... Think you can pass that my way when you're through?" Pacey's head flew around to the offending voice. Chris Wolfe, he should have fucking known.
"Wolfe, you so truly had better not have been talking to me." Pacey felt his nostrils flare and his hands ball to fists as he met Chris' smiling face. He put himself between him and Abby and took a stern step towards him.
"Hey... lighten up, Witter. I just wanted to take your new girlfriend for a test drive. No harm intended. It's all right if you're not down to share..."
Pacey was more than livid. The blood drained from his face and he grit his teeth. Could a friggin' day go by without someone giving him grief or somehow torturing either of them. He expected it from the Andie camp, but for christ's sake, what was with everybody around here? Didn't they have their own lives to play around with? Why was Pacey and Abby even still a subject of conversation.
"You don't know when to stop, do you Chris? Please. Don't make me take another step towards you."
Chris loved a challenge, but it didn't seem as if he really wanted to pursue this one. He looked down at Abby and smirked. She looked back at him defiantly. There was no way that he was going to make her feel like this was her fault, that she owed him anything.
"Ehhh... take a Xanax or something, dude. I was just fooling around." He made a sound through his teeth and walked into class.
"You're my hero, you know that?" Abby turned Pacey back around to her and tippy-toed up to kiss him lightly. "Now, go to class before you get detention. Then, we'll never get to see each other."
Her sexy smile warmed his heart to a pre-boil. "I'll see you later, Morgan."
"Not if I see you first." She gave him a playful slap on the ass as he turned to walk down the hall.
* * * * *
He sat in class as he had everyday since he and Abby had really gotten together; daydreaming. Pacey knew that he probably looked like the biggest fool to hit the planet, but everything about her, about them, had been keeping him completely mesmerized for days. They had clicked like he had never thought he could with another person, they could talk about absolutely everything without boring each other to tears. She seemed interested by him and he with her, he could listen to her go on about a pair of shoes for hours without tuning her out. This had to be something special.
"Psst... psssst... Pace?"
He shook himself from his reverie to turn to Dawson.
"Yeah?"
"Can you cover my shift Friday night? Joey is finally willing to talk to me again, I want to rent some movies and have her over..."
"Can't do it, my man. This is the first weekend in three weeks that I'm not still grounded. I want to take Abby somewhere nice and spend some time together. All we've had time to do is sneak off for a minute or two before my father remembers I'm supposed to be home."
Dawson rolled his eyes. He still couldn't seem to fathom the idea of Pacey and Abby actually seeing each other. He had stopped being inquisitive and his anger was nowhere in sight, but Pacey knew that he still didn't really approve. But, it was none of his business and he knew that. He'd even apologized for his asinine behavior in the past.
"C'mon, Pacey... Please..."
"No can do." But Pacey remained hurt by Dawson's initial reactions. It was bad enough that anyone really associated with Andie was pissed at him, at least he could understand the hateful looks that he got from Jack. The fact that Dawson had given him so much shit, still pissed him off to no end. "Honestly, Dawson. I've got plans... Call Mr. Oleson, I'm sure that he could adjust the schedule for you. But, I just can't do it."
There really was no way that he was going to forego the evening that he was already planning for himself and Abby. A few weeks without any outside entertainment had allowed Pacey to save his paychecks and he had already made reservations at the romantic French place in town. He planned to take her there, dine her on escargot, oysters and whatever else made you horny, and then take her back to her house where her mom would be away for the weekend.
The thought made him grin evilly to himself, even though he knew in his heart that there was no way that he would ever take advantage of her. Sure, he had his lascivious plot in mind, but she would lead the way just like she always did. It didn't matter anyway, as long as he got to spend time with her. As long as he was given the chance to run his fingers over the soft skin of her cheeks and kiss her pink lips. Pacey shifted in his seat as he felt himself strain against the zipper of his jeans, willing himself down and laughing silently. He couldn't wait to tell her this one.
* * * * *
"You did not!" Abby covered her mouth and giggled uncontrollably, her face turning shades of pink Pacey had never seen before. He leaned in closer to her.
"I did," he whispered.
"Did what?" Jen Lindley sauntered to the lunch table and swung her jacket around the back of an empty chair.
"Nothing!" They laughed in unison.
"Oh, come on. You can't impress my experienced ears, I've heard it all. What did you do, Pacey?" Jen pulled out the chair and sat, tossing her book bag onto the chair beside her. "Pacey...," she urged.
Jen was the only one who had just slid into normalcy around them. Abby and she had been spending a lot of time together again, gabbing on the telephone and generally being girlfriends. It made Abby exceptionally happy to have a girlfriend to talk to, even though she still felt unnerved talking about how she felt about Pacey and where their relationship would eventually lead. But that had near nothing to do with Jen. Jen had only been supportive. And Abby had changed. She really had.
Sure, there were people who would probably still call her the demon seed of Capeside, and she still lived up to it with her acidic tongue and acerbic wit. But she'd learned how to direct herself and give the people that she actually cared about a break. That was the only way that she was going to retain any friendships, and she needed them. Girls need to hang out and bitch and moan and laugh and tell sex jokes. She'd forgotten all of that when concentrating on being Satan herself.
"Nothing, honestly..." Pacey smiled slyly at Abby and slid his hand under the table to squeeze Abby's thigh, letting his fingers linger on the folds of her skirt for just a moment longer.
"Hmmmm... whatever you say. Anyway, not to change the subject or anything, but did either of you guys hear about the party at Chris' this Friday night?"
"Ugh.. Chris." Abby made a face, remembering that morning's transgressions. "We'll pass."
"Oh, come on, it'll be fun. His parties are always good, even if he is a prick. Come, it'll be good for you guys to get out and socialize."
Pacey tilted back in his chair. "Actually, Jen. We're already going out Friday night." He laid his arm over the back of Abby's seat and tickled at her neck.
"We are?" She felt a flutter in her chest.
"Yup. I got big plans for you, darlin'. Big plans."
"I guess we have plans." Abby grinned at Jen and raised an inquisitive eyebrow.
* * * * *
Abby dug through her closet, as usual attempting to find the perfect thing to wear. Pacey had refused to clue her in on his plans only saying that he was planning on sporting a tie. That was a big move for him, so she supposed that wherever he was taking her, she should probably dress up. And now she foraged through the world of shoes on the bottom of her closet hurling things into the center of the room, the other silver mule nowhere to be found. It was as if anything that went in the closet was immediately swallowed whole.
Phew. It lay on top of a pile of old dresses that she'd never wear again all the way in the back.
Pacey would be there any minute and she still stood in front of the mirror doing her hair in nothing but a bra, panties and silver heels. She really needed to get her shit together. Then, of course, the doorbell rang. She glanced quickly at the clock on her bed table. He was fifteen minutes early. Abby lifted the sash of the window and stuck her face out, careful not to let him see anything but her head.
"I'll be right there, Pacey!" She called out into the night sky.
Pacey took a few steps back and looked up to her bedroom window. He looked so handsome in a dark grey suit, his shoes shining in the light of her porch and his hair neatly groomed. She couldn't help herself from locking her eyes on his and smiling gently as he grinned at her.
Her chosen dress lay as the only neat thing in her bedroom, flat on the edge of her bed. She kicked everything back into the bottom of her closet and pulled the frock over her head and skipped down the stairs to let him in.
"I'm not ready, you're way too early!" She giggled.
"You want me to drive around the block a few more times?" Pacey headed back towards the street and she reached out to grab him back.
"A few more times?" She said, kissing him. His arms circled her back and she rubbed her face into his cleanly shaven cheek, breathing in the musk of his aftershave. "Mmmm... cologne and everything, Pacey... I'm impressed."
"All for you, m'dear." He swung her out in a mock lindy move, or at least the best one that he could muster up at such short notice. "All for you. Now get your ass back upstairs and let's get out of here, all right? I got wining and dining to do."
"Oooo... Wining and dining. I'll hurry."
She bounded back up the stairs trying desperately not to trip over her own feet in the high, strappy heels. Last thing she needed was to go tumbling down the flight. She finished up the last of her makeup and ran the brush through her hair one more time. When she walked out to the top of the stairs, Pacey was waiting precisely where she left him, beaming up at her as she emerged.
"You look gorgeous. I meant to say that before..." She met him at the foot of the stairs. Pacey took her hand and led her out to his truck thinking to himself how lucky he was at that moment and what he could have possibly done to deserve this kind of luck.
He opened the passenger side door for her and boosted her up to the seat. "So, you want to know where we're going? Or shall I keep the surprise going?" He stepped up inside and twisted the key in the ignition, gunning the engine a few times for macho effect.
"We've made it this far, surprise me." Abby pushed at the radio buttons until something she liked came on. Why was she so nervous all of a sudden? It was as if they had never been out together before. She felt her hands trembling slightly and a fire in her chest beneath her rib cage. Pacey caught her eyes.
"What's wrong?"
"God... Nothing. Nothing at all... Everything is perfect."
"You're perfect." He reached out and stroked at her cheek, marveling at the softness of her skin. Man, he was turning into one of those lovesick puppy dogs that he usually made fun of. When did he become such a sensitive guy? He knew. He knew that it was the minute he'd first kissed her and felt the light weight of her tongue against his. She turned into his palm and kissed it, tracing his lifeline with her tongue. His legs turned to jelly.
Pulling up to Entre Nous, he cut the engine and went to open her door for her, tossing the keys to the valet and receiving his ticket. The maitre d' met them at the door.
"Good Evening. Reservations, sir?"
"Yes, please. Under Witter..."
They were escorted to their table immediately and Pacey held out the chair for her, sliding it under her legs as she sat. He really was pulling out all the stops tonight, she noticed. They waited for a moment before the waiter came to bring them their menus.
"I can't believe you did this, Pacey. You amaze me sometimes." She held her palm out for him across the table.
He took her hand in his. "You ain't seen nothin' yet, babydoll." And she really hadn't. He'd gone over his plans a million times already. Pick her up, be gallant, restaurant, bottle of fancy wine, plate of exquisite food, a drive to the beach where they could walk in the sand and let the tide wash across their feet, then back to her house to cuddle for a while and what have you. What have you being the myriad things that he had tucked away in the back of his mind. There were roses in the back of his car that she hadn't seen yet.
The waiter came and he ordered a bottle of red wine in French that he'd memorized the name of after checking out the menu online. His accent was near perfect thanks to the phonetic dictionary he'd surfed to after. Yeah, he did want to impress her, and she seemed impressed. Pacey was just glad that he hadn't gotten carded, although he had Doug's old Driver's License in his wallet just in case. Her pink cheeks glowed when their eyes met again and again. When she excused herself to go to the ladies room, he stood and watched her go.
They ate slowly, laughing over rude people-watching commentary and tasting each other's food. When the check came, he didn't flinch. Maybe the weeks of grounding had been a godsend. He took her hand and led her outside while they waited for the car. Abby reached her arms around his neck and planted a firm kiss on his mouth. He tasted her lips say thank you as the valet drove up in front of them.
"So what have you got in store for me now, Romeo?"
"I thought we'd go back to your house for a while... I just want to be alone with you, we haven't had a moment of peace in too long." Pacey hoped that he wasn't scaring her off by being too forward, but they really hadn't spent any quality time together yet. Not since the fateful day they spent catching poison ivy in the grass clearing. Too much time had already passed.
When the valet tossed Pacey the keys to the truck, he opened the door for her and boosted her into the passenger seat, reaching into the back seat and handing her the long box that he had hid on the floor.
"For you..."
Her face lit up, she felt the hot spread of her cheeks. "Pacey, you're too much. You didn't have to go through all of this to impress me. I'm already impressed."
He leaned over her and kissed her again, "I don't know any other way to show you how much I really like you, Abby, and how great it's been being with you. You came along at a time when I was starting to think that my love life would always suck, that there would never be a woman that I could trust and feel comfortable around. And you proved me wrong."
She held one of the long-stemmed roses up to her nose and breathed in its delicate scent, looking at Pacey. She really didn't know how to react when he said things like this, she was never prepared with a quick retort to the nice things. Her lips were sealed.
She knew that she felt the same, but it was so much harder for her to express herself truthfully without thinking that she was opening herself up for a backfire. Her mother and Jen would have told her to allow herself to say whatever it was that she wanted to, but channeling them in her mind really wasn't working. As it stood, what she really wanted to do was just stare into his eyes and hope that he could read her mind. He'd done a damn good job of that so far.
When he slid in beside her, she nestled up against him and tucked her head into the crook of his neck and rested it there. He started the engine and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her in tighter against him. She felt so safe in his arms.
"Pacey? What is it about us being together makes us both so nervous?"
She was right, both of them felt like they were walking on eggshells, so afraid that they would say or do something and the other would just turn and hightail it out of there all of the time. Pacey didn't know what it was exactly, maybe it was his prior failed relationships, maybe it was that he'd heard his father and brother knock him so many times that he'd started to believe that he was good for nothing. In the back of his mind, he was just really scared to lose the good feeling in his chest that he got when he was around her.
For Abby, it was another story entirely. Her mother and father both loved her very much, but it was that kind of unconditional love, the kind that she didn't really understand and bought into even less. This was different, this was something that she never thought that she would be able to find, let alone like the way it felt. Abby coveted control and when she was with Pacey, she felt like she had none what so ever, and it scared her. It scared her to think that she could ruin it just like she'd ruined everything else. Maybe the differences weren't as big as they might have thought.
"I don't know babe, but maybe it's just part of it all... I've never felt this way before."
"Me neither..." They pulled into the beach parking lot and he cut the engine.
"I thought we'd take a walk on the beach," he said pulling her close. They stared out the windshield at the low-hanging moon.
"If I didn't know better, I'd think you were a real romantic," she teased, letting herself out of the car and removing her shoes. "It's either that, or you're trying to seduce me. Are you trying to seduce me?"
"Innocent moi? I think not, little girl. You should know me better than that..." He rounded the car and grabbed her from behind tickling under her rib cage. She squirmed to get away.
"You devil, Pacey!" Abby took off through the dunes, towards the edge of the ocean. He chased close behind her, watching her hair bounce in the moonlight. When he caught up to her, he grabbed for her hand and turned her around to him. There was no one on the beach for miles, it seemed. He pulled her against his chest and brought his face down to hers.
He thought to himself that he was completely, ass-backwards falling in love with her. That was what scared him the most.
"Let's go back to my house, Pacey..." She said turning and walking off back towards the car. The air was warm and dry and the moonlight twinkled on the tides, but what she really wanted to do at that moment was be alone with him, completely alone.
To be continued...
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