Chapter 15

"Potter… wake up, Potter…"

"What?" she opened an eye.

"It's midnight."

"So?"

"So you're at my place"

"No, really and I thought we were lying on the grass somewhere…" she closed back her eye.

"Uhm, not that I don't like you being at my place, cause I do… but… uhm… aren't you supposed to be home?"

Joey sighed but kept her eyes closed.

"No."

"You're not?"

"No. I decided you're right" she mumbled against the pillow.

"I am?"

"Yeah. Me and Dawson… we shouldn't be together"

Long silence.

"Potter…"

"Mmmm?"

"Is this because of me?"

Joey suddenly felt wide awake. What was she to say? 'I don't give a shit you love Jen I just wanna be with you'? Mmmnope, that didn't sound right. How about 'after sleeping with you there's no way I go back to sleeping with him!'. No, he had a huge ego anyway, he didn't need her compliments on bed performance. Which, by the way, was really good, she found herself smiling.

"Potter?"

"Don't flatter yourself, Pacey. Yeah, you were a deciding factor and everything but basically it goes down to me and Dawson not being right for each other."

"I just don't want you to do something you'll regret because…"

"Don't worry, Pace, I know what I'm doing. Now will you let me sleep already?"

He took her in his arms and whispered in her ear: "Can I hold you?"

"I'll think about it…" she smiled lazily. "Will you let me sleep on it? I'll come back with an answer tomorrow" she cuddled against him.

Pacey kissed her ear and laughed that laugh again: "Sure thing Potter…"

"Ok, this isn't gonna work" she suddenly got up.

He seemed confused. "What?"

"Don't laugh like that! When you laugh like that I totally wanna jump your bones!"

Pacey looked stunned but then realization struck him and he started laughing again:

"I can't help it if I've got a sexy laugh"

She couldn't believe what she had said. What was going on with her? Had she no self control left? Well, apparently not since she just climbed on top of him:

"What if I wear you out? Will you stop laughing then?" She lowered her voice seductively. There was something about Pacey that was turning her into a sex craver, and a very bold one too.

"Well, miss Josephine, that's for me to know and for you to find out" he said in a whispered tone.

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She woke up the next morning… alone… she tried to fight the feeling of disappointment. 'Is this how it's going to be? One hot one cold all the time?'… She got up and got dressed. That's when she heard him. He was singing. In the kitchen. She headed slowly towards him.

'We live in a beautiful world… yes we do yes we do… We live in a beautiful world…' (Coldplay – Don't Panic)

He had a beautiful voice, not exactly conventional, but warm. That's when she remembered he used to be in a band. Of course he had a voice, she softly laughed to herself.

He probably heard her cause he turned around. Oh, those sparkling eyes…

He was obviously in a good mood.

"Morning, Potter… Took you long enough…"

"Yeah well I would've slept even longer but I was suddenly very cold…" she smiled at him. He smiled back.

"Well, I made you breakfast, we'll eat it and then we can go back to keeping each other warm…"

"Sounds really good…"

"I'm glad you think so…"

"… but I can't. I gotta go fix this with Dawson."

He semmed bummed.

"Of course you do"

"Are you Ok with this?"

"It's not me who has to be ok with it…"

They sat down and started eating.

"Potter… where are you going to live?"

"Excuse me?"

"Where are you going to live? You can't break up with Dawson and keep on living with him…"

"Oh… I guess I hadn't thought that far ahead… I don't know… I'll move in with Jen, probably"

"Right, two newlyweds, their daughter and you packed in a two-bedroom house."

"Well, I can't afford the hotel… and it's gonna take some time till I manage to separate my stuff from Dawson's so I can afford a place of my own…"

"How about you stay with me?"

He didn't just say that. Joey stared at him in disbelief and waited for him to take that back.

"I mean, I have a spare room… it doesn't have to be about… just that you can't move in with Jack and Jen and you said you can't afford a place…"

"…right…"

"I mean, if you don't want to…"

"Pacey, you are amazing"

He didn't seem to believe her.

"Potter… we're friends… friends help each other… I'm just a normal person…"

"Will you cut the crap? I said you're amazing and I'm not taking it back." She got up and kissed him excitedly. "I'll be back in a couple of hours."

"I'll be waiting…" he smiled. And the world was beautiful indeed.

He truly was amazing… there had to be one major flaw in there… he can't be that good…!

And that's when she remembered his major flaw: he was in love with Jen.

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"Where have you been?" Dawson spat the minute she entered the house.

"I didn't want to come home" she said in an indifferent tone as she headed to the room.

"You didn't want to come home… and you didn't think of calling your concerned husband and tell him not to call the police on you?!!" he was angry. Oh well. Nervous breakdown happened. Screw it.

"Dawson, I'm getting a divorce."

"What?!"

"I'm getting a divorce"

"Why?"

"Because I just realized that we shouldn't be together."

"Joey… if this is about yesterday…"

"This is not about yesterday. This is about you never understanding how I feel and why I feel it. This is about you not encouraging me to do what I want. This is about you not even trying to get along with Jen, although you know how important she is to me…"

"She's the one picking on me!"

"Did you even try, Dawson? Did you? Cause I for one have had enough"

"That bitch!" Dawson whispered. "I knew she was gonna come between us."

"Don't you dare try and blame Jen for your lack of understanding. I gave you more than six years of my life to prove her wrong and you never did. Forgive me for finally knowing what I want."

"What do you want?"

"Not you, that's for sure!"

She had managed to pack most of her clothes. She headed for the attic.

"Don't I have a say in this?"

"No, a marriage is about two people. And if one of them is not ok with the marriage, then the marriage is already dead."

Joey took all her pencils and her drawings and headed for the door.

"You can't leave me like this!"

"I can and I will… wait for the divorce papers, they'll be here soon. And you'd better sign them."

"Aren't you even gonna tell me where you're going? So… so I can contact you…?"

"You have my cell number" she said coldly and got in the cab that was waiting for her.

The End