Sorry for the delay, guys but I'm sick with the flu, and drugs and voices in my head are really confusing. Maybe slow with an update, as again cough medicine is not a steady muse.

The Unseen Obstacle CH.27

I Disclaim

The weeks leading up till the trip was quiet, but that probably had more to do with the loss of Andie and Dawson. Andie decided to take her chance at early graduation was and now getting settled in New Haven for the spring term at Yale. The latter otherwise referred to in the group as 'Tool' was now trying to live out some version of 'Taps' at the Knox Military Academy located in Boston, where they were told he was settling in, not that they cared.

So hours before they were set to leave for their trip Joey and Jen found themselves at Capeside Mall when no other agenda then as get some as Jen put it 'smokin' gear'.

As they stood in the Gap Joey asked the question that had plagued her for the fifth time that day. "Why are we here?"

"To get …"

"Yes you keep saying 'smokin' gear', but you've yet to state a purpose for said gear."

"Since when do new clothes need a purpose, they just are." Jen said philosophically.

"Look Plato, you're Dad make send you an allowance every month, but I actually have to send my Dad money in prison to pay for protection, so when I buy clothes they have a purpose. "

Rolling her eyes, Jen picked up a burgundy v-top sweater and held to Joey's neck. "How bout to please your man."

Deciding it was too dark for the brunette she tossed it back." Good enough purpose?"

"What man?"

"Pacey."

"Why would I buy clothes to please Pacey, and even if by some small chance I did do something like that, why I would I do that on trip with you guys and Grams."

It was the AND that got to Jen, it said it all, there was a small part of Joey that did want to impress Pacey, not that she really had to Pacey would spend the weekend worshiping her if she showed up in dirty sweats. It was a shame that Joey didn't get that too, but what mattered now was that Jen addressed the AND.

"Joey, can I ask you something?"

"Sure." She was flipping through a rack of sweaters and stopped on a blue sweater that was the same shade of Pacey's eyes, or was it Doug's, she shook her head, it was really getting confusing dealing those guys, annoyed that she once again put Pacey in the same place as Doug, she stopped looking at the 'Witter Blue' sweater and decided she liked green.

"Aren't you getting into this at all?"

"What's this?"

"This fake relationship with Pacey, all day every day, the looks you share, holding hands, the touches doesn't any of that get to you."

Joey stopped looked ahead, yes it did get her, but she really wasn't too sure why it was." Honestly." At Jen nod she sighed." Yes it does, but it's too strange to actually delve into, you know, I mean this is Pacey Witter, even if I was willing to forget the years that we spent yelling at each other, you'd have to factor Doug to the mix, and then you'd have to question if I'm really attracted to Pacey or am I just attracted to the similarities between him and Doug, and even if okay I could separate the two clearly in my mind, you question whether this is real or rebound, in other words , it does but the litany of questions it brings up makes it too difficult to comprehend at this point."

"Joey did you ever consider, just letting it happen?" The brunette turned to her and raised an eyebrow." I mean really forget about all the complications it brings you and just think about Pacey, cute Pacey, sexy Pacey, who would do ANYTHING for you."Jen threw an arm around her friend and dropped her voice, and whispered." And I hear that his ANYTHING is the stuff teenage girl's dream of."

Joey pushed Jens arm away." I'll thank you not to discuss Pacey that way; you make him sound like a piece of meat,"

"He is, from his own my mouth Grade A Prime Hunk."

"Jen you're forgetting that I've gone the reckless route before and it was with another member of the Witter family, next thing you know I'll be trying to pick up the Sheriff."

"Maybe it a medical, you know like an allergy, except instead of sneezing or swelling up, you're attracted to males with Witter DNA."

"It doesn't matter Jen, Pacey is my friend, and I'm not going to chance that by trying for something more, I did that with Dawson, and see what happened there, and I've tried the just giving into to temptation, note my relationships to Jack and Doug, face it I suck at this, so if you don't mind I think I'll just keep my FRIEND Pacey, and not let destructive thoughts ruin something else."

"Joey…"

"No Jen, I can't screw this up, Pacey is all I have left, and I will not jeopardize that for anything." Joey looked outside the store, and motioned to the food court." I'm going to get a soda; I'll be outside when you're ready."

Jen watched Joey leave and stomped her foot, she hated 'Stubborn Joey', she was impossible to control or persuade, she had to be manipulated. Taking out her cell phone she dialed Jack's phone number, and waited till he picked up." This is not going to work change of plans; we need to start playing dirty."

Forty minutes later

Joey jumped into Pacey's car, and gave him a withering look." Jennifer Lindley is dead meat." He just laughed at her." I'm serious I understand having to leave in a hurry, but Pacey I was in the food court, I said I was waiting for her, and she goes and ditches me."

"She said Grams needed her." Joey slouched in her chair, and he patted her knee." Well don't worry they've already left for the cabin, Jackers gave me direction, I swung by the B&B and picked up your bag, along with receiving several threats from your older sister, so unless there's anything else we'll be on our way, then you can take the hour drive to cool down, and I'm sure when we get there Lindley will be your best friend again."

"You're my best friend, but you're right in an hour or two I may tolerate her again." She just wouldn't trust her anytime soon; Jen was getting too excited about the idea of her and Pacey, and she might think its good idea to interfere which seems harmless you're in the middle of the fallout. "So never mind Lindley, how are things Pacey?"

"What?" He gave her a strange sideway glances at the question." What do you mean things, things are how they always."

"There has to be more then that, I heard about the Harbor masters letter." Pacey shrugged and it made her smile, it was so like Pacey to do that, his work with Buddy on the boat, and his work around the pier helping put other sailors and boat owners had caught the eye of the harbor master and he along with the principal and Mitch Leery acting his guidance counselor had all given Pacey letters of recommendation toward a special program at Boston College. It figures Pacey didn't want to talk about it; he was so use to people highlighting his failures that he never mentioned his successes. "That's great news Pacey; I hear BC has one of the best nautical engineering programs in the Nation, you go and you end up building sailboats."

"Well it's not Full Ride to Stanford, but it okay." He said tightly, not looking at her but clenching his hands around the steering wheel.

"Bessie told you about that." Joey asked as she sucked in a breath.

"Yeah it was on her list when I got your stuff, along with 'don't have sex with my sister', and 'hurt her and I hurt you', but my question is why didn't you tell me?"

" Cause I'm not accepting it yet, maybe not at all, I have a list of other schools that I'm waiting to here from , I didn't tell you cause it's just an last minute option, when I said I wanted out of Capeside I never really wanted half way across the world away." She saw his jaw clench and explained." It wasn't about you specifically I just wanted to decide on my future before I told people about it, the only reason Bessie found out was cause the letter dropped out of my bag and she found it first."

"So you're just waiting for other school to you makes a decision?"

"Yeah, I mean I just turned my portfolio into Boston School of Arts, I still have applications into Worthington, Harvard, some smaller Art schools, it's a big decision, an I don't want to just to pick the first cause I know I have it."

"This isn't about Doug?" Pacey said as he gave her a quick look." Cause he's not going to appreciate you giving up Stanford for him."

"You know Pacey for you to think that I'd work so hard for so long to just give up any guy, much less one that dumped me in an email, makes me wonder how well you know me."

"You were going to do it before Dawson."

" NEVER, I had always been prepared to have a long distance relationship with Dawson, seeing as his dreams take place on the West Coast, my destination is still unnamed, but I was never going to go somewhere just for him, and I'd never stay somewhere just for some guy, certainly not Doug."

"Then what's really going on Jo, because I'm still not buying this story you're telling me."

" Fine if you must know I'm scared, and I wanted to stay close to you guys, Jack, Jen, my family, and you doofus, that's why I'm waiting for the other schools, I don't want to fall on my face and be thousand of miles from home."

She gave a bitter laugh." Isn't it funny that after years of trying to get away, I'm afraid to leave, but I am Pacey, and it doesn't matter about Doug or anyone else this is just about me."

Pacey nodded." Okay, but you won't fail."

"Yeah I figured you'd say something like that, now can we drop this and pick up the pace on this road trip."

"I'd like to Potter, but if you hadn't' noticed the snow is picking up, I think we're about to get a blizzard, and it it's all right with you, I'd rather survive the drive to the cabin." "So why don't you just take a nap or something, and I'll wake you when we get there."

"Joey, wake up." Pacey shook her shoulder." Come on Potter wakey wakey."

"Hmm, are we there?" Joey said as she woke slowly, and looked around but Saw nothing but white." Where's the cabin?

"Probably no more then fifteen miles from here, but we can't make it cause of the blizzard, so we hole up here till it clears."

Joey sat up and looked around, again not seeing anything but white." And where is here?"

"I don't know exactly, but I know we can't keep driving in this, so when I saw the barn, I pulled over."

Joey turned and followed his hand, and cringed, a weekend with Jack, Jen, and Grams she could handle, an undisclosed amount of time with Pacey in abandoned barn that was going to test her willpower. "Heaven help me."