A/N: Thanks for the reviews, everyone! Pinkflutterby, this isn't AU; I want it to fit perfectly with the finale, but I realize that there are a few inconsistent details that I'll have to apologetically ask you guys to overlook. (And I'm not going to point them out here because maybe you won't even notice, lol!) Kel, you're the best...your reviews make me smile every time, so a special thanks to you! Britgirl2003, Jeanie, Sadi, and Anne918, thank you SO much for reviewing; I agree that there's a severe lack of Jen fics out there, and I'm doing my part to remedy that. I hope the rest of this story doesn't disappoint! Sam...wow. You and I are on the same wavelength! That's really weird about your David Marshall, especially when you factor in our recent similar storylines. I picked the name out of the blue, too! Maybe we're long-lost twins... ;) Okay everyone, please keep reviewing, and enjoy the next installment...
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Jen came downstairs after her shower, feeling refreshed and less queasy than she had all day, which was a blessing in itself. She found Jack in the kitchen, talking on the phone. He smiled when he saw her and held his hand up, turning his back toward her and lowering his voice confidentially.
"Yeah, okay, we'll be there. This is perfect timing. Can you believe something's actually working in our favor?" He laughed. "Sure, thanks a lot, man. See you later." He clicked the phone off and set it on the counter.
"Care to share?" Jen asked, nodding toward the receiver.
"Nope, not yet. You'll find out soon enough."
"Jack, you know I hate surprises. They're entirely too unpredictable for my taste."
"But this is a good one."
"I see—good like the time you set me up with Drue Valentine for senior prom?"
"Hey, that was retribution. You set me up with Tobey."
"That's so not the same thing, Jack! I was trying to do you a favor."
"So was I. Come on, Drue wasn't that bad."
Jen smiled and shook her head. "Yeah, he was a regular Prince Charming, that one. He did sort of save my life that night, I'll give him that. I was a wreck." She laughed a little at that. "I guess it's true what they say; some things never change."
"None of that," Jack scolded. "You've never been a wreck, Jen. You were just..." He trailed off, searching for the right descriptor.
Jen raised an eyebrow at him, amused. "Emotionally challenged?"
He considered. "Something like that. But weren't we all?"
"Touché." She opened his refrigerator and helped herself to a bottle of water. "Now, how long before I have to be prepared for this ungodly surprise you have in store?"
Jack checked his watch. "You've got a few hours to spare. Why?"
"Because I sort of want to look around town for a while. See what's changed since last time I was here. On the way in, it looked like time had gotten stuck in the late '90s as far as growth and innovation."
"Capeside? Surely you must be kidding. Capeside is cutting edge, baby."
"Right. So I'm free to roam?"
"Absolutely, roam at your own risk. I've got a few things to take care of here; do you mind doing your tour solo?"
"In fact, I insist." She grabbed her keys off the counter, patted Jack affectionately on the arm, and walked out of the house and into the hot summer day.
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She parked across the street from Grams' house. Grams' former house, she corrected herself automatically. Even after all this time, it was still weird to think that someone else lived there now. Summer people, no less. Thinking about the house standing empty all winter long, bitter Massachusetts winds blowing against it for months on end, made her feel hollow and lonely.
The new owners had painted it since she had seen it last; the wood was now the color of sand, accented by deep blue shutters. She would have to tell Grams about that when she returned to New York; she would be happy to hear they were keeping the place up. It didn't look half bad, Jen thought. For some inexplicable reason, that thought hurt.
On impulse, she got out of the car and walked across the street, strolling slowly and reflectively between her old home and the Leery house, which, she noted with some relief, hadn't changed a bit. Joey's ladder was gone, of course, but that had disappeared some time ago. Of course it had.
The creek sparkled brilliantly in the afternoon sunshine. Jen wandered down to the pier and stood at the end of it, remembering clearly the day she had stepped out of a cab and into what would be her new life, her turning point, the punctuation mark that indelibly separated New York Jen from Capeside Jen. She smiled, thinking back to her first glimpse of a sweetly naïve Dawson Leery, the unchanged, endearingly obnoxious Pacey Witter, and a very young, very defensive, very unconsciously beautiful Joey Potter. What a road those kids had ahead of them. They had no idea. They didn't even realize that they were kids.
Jen was surprised to realize that a tear was making its way slowly down her cheek. Laughing at her nostalgia, she wiped it away. "Pregnancy hormones," she said to herself. "They're a bitch."
"So I've heard."
Jen let out a short, startled scream and spun around. Regaining her composure just as quickly as it had left her, she smiled coolly at the tall blond man who stood at the head of the dock, grinning from ear to ear as he watched her, his arms folded across his chest.
"Well, Dawson Leery, as I live and breathe," she said in her trademark playful, sardonic tone.
"Could this be THE Jennifer Lindley? You're legendary around these parts, you know."
She laughed. "Good, my years of teenage recklessness paid off, then..." The two of them met in the center of the pier and threw their arms around each other. "It's so good to see you," she said seriously. Then, after a pause, "It's so unexpected to see you! Wait a minute...what are you doing here, anyway? Don't tell me you're bored with Hollywood already." She pulled out of his embrace and looked up at him curiously.
"No, nothing like that," he assured her. "I've still got stories to tell and movies to make."
"And history to rewrite," Jen asked teasingly. "Love your show, by the way."
"Thanks, that makes one of you. Jack takes very vocal issue with the casting of his counterpart. Anyway, I'm using some vacation time."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "Willingly?"
"Are you kidding? I was coerced." He grinned. "Anyway, I understand you have some pretty big news...?"
Jen's hands went to her middle. "I guess that's one of the dangers of talking to yourself. Or did you already know? Were you Jack's mystery guy on the phone?"
Dawson shook his head. "No, there was a mystery guy?" He laughed. "Maybe he's finally tired of Deputy Doug's shadow routine and found himself another love interest."
"It's Sheriff Doug now, or hadn't you heard? And I don't think so. Our Jackers is head over heels for Pacey's big brother."
"Weird, huh? I never would have thought those two would end up together...Anyway, back to your news. Congratulations, Jen. Are you okay?"
Ah, the question of the hour. She took a deep breath before answering. "Well, aside from being pretty much scared to death and fairly certain that this poor little one has been sentenced to a lifetime of therapy because her nutcase of a mother had no clue when it came to child-rearing, I'm fine." She smiled, hoping that she sounded convincingly lighthearted. And hoping against hope that he wouldn't ask...
"How about David?"
Jen flinched as if he had tried to hit her, then recovered just as quickly and pasted an almost-believable smile on her face. "He's fine," she said, skirting what she knew Dawson had meant by his question. "So, are you going to invite me into the Leery house for a trip down memory lane, or what?"
Dawson held out his arm, and she took it. "Of course. My mom will be so happy to see you again."
They started up the grassy hill toward the Leerys' back porch. Jen glanced over her shoulder at the creek once more and could almost see them as they had been that day, the ghosts of kids who had somehow grown up overnight: a beautiful, tomboyish brunette who kept stealing glances at the blond- haired, blue-eyed boy next to her, another boy with laughter in his eyes who looked somehow at home in his sea-monster costume. And a girl with tousled blond curls wearing a short summer dress that fluttered in the breeze, a girl who had been so recently and so badly hurt that it would take her years just to understand how deep the wound went and how far across her life it had spread.
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Jen came downstairs after her shower, feeling refreshed and less queasy than she had all day, which was a blessing in itself. She found Jack in the kitchen, talking on the phone. He smiled when he saw her and held his hand up, turning his back toward her and lowering his voice confidentially.
"Yeah, okay, we'll be there. This is perfect timing. Can you believe something's actually working in our favor?" He laughed. "Sure, thanks a lot, man. See you later." He clicked the phone off and set it on the counter.
"Care to share?" Jen asked, nodding toward the receiver.
"Nope, not yet. You'll find out soon enough."
"Jack, you know I hate surprises. They're entirely too unpredictable for my taste."
"But this is a good one."
"I see—good like the time you set me up with Drue Valentine for senior prom?"
"Hey, that was retribution. You set me up with Tobey."
"That's so not the same thing, Jack! I was trying to do you a favor."
"So was I. Come on, Drue wasn't that bad."
Jen smiled and shook her head. "Yeah, he was a regular Prince Charming, that one. He did sort of save my life that night, I'll give him that. I was a wreck." She laughed a little at that. "I guess it's true what they say; some things never change."
"None of that," Jack scolded. "You've never been a wreck, Jen. You were just..." He trailed off, searching for the right descriptor.
Jen raised an eyebrow at him, amused. "Emotionally challenged?"
He considered. "Something like that. But weren't we all?"
"Touché." She opened his refrigerator and helped herself to a bottle of water. "Now, how long before I have to be prepared for this ungodly surprise you have in store?"
Jack checked his watch. "You've got a few hours to spare. Why?"
"Because I sort of want to look around town for a while. See what's changed since last time I was here. On the way in, it looked like time had gotten stuck in the late '90s as far as growth and innovation."
"Capeside? Surely you must be kidding. Capeside is cutting edge, baby."
"Right. So I'm free to roam?"
"Absolutely, roam at your own risk. I've got a few things to take care of here; do you mind doing your tour solo?"
"In fact, I insist." She grabbed her keys off the counter, patted Jack affectionately on the arm, and walked out of the house and into the hot summer day.
------------------------------------------
She parked across the street from Grams' house. Grams' former house, she corrected herself automatically. Even after all this time, it was still weird to think that someone else lived there now. Summer people, no less. Thinking about the house standing empty all winter long, bitter Massachusetts winds blowing against it for months on end, made her feel hollow and lonely.
The new owners had painted it since she had seen it last; the wood was now the color of sand, accented by deep blue shutters. She would have to tell Grams about that when she returned to New York; she would be happy to hear they were keeping the place up. It didn't look half bad, Jen thought. For some inexplicable reason, that thought hurt.
On impulse, she got out of the car and walked across the street, strolling slowly and reflectively between her old home and the Leery house, which, she noted with some relief, hadn't changed a bit. Joey's ladder was gone, of course, but that had disappeared some time ago. Of course it had.
The creek sparkled brilliantly in the afternoon sunshine. Jen wandered down to the pier and stood at the end of it, remembering clearly the day she had stepped out of a cab and into what would be her new life, her turning point, the punctuation mark that indelibly separated New York Jen from Capeside Jen. She smiled, thinking back to her first glimpse of a sweetly naïve Dawson Leery, the unchanged, endearingly obnoxious Pacey Witter, and a very young, very defensive, very unconsciously beautiful Joey Potter. What a road those kids had ahead of them. They had no idea. They didn't even realize that they were kids.
Jen was surprised to realize that a tear was making its way slowly down her cheek. Laughing at her nostalgia, she wiped it away. "Pregnancy hormones," she said to herself. "They're a bitch."
"So I've heard."
Jen let out a short, startled scream and spun around. Regaining her composure just as quickly as it had left her, she smiled coolly at the tall blond man who stood at the head of the dock, grinning from ear to ear as he watched her, his arms folded across his chest.
"Well, Dawson Leery, as I live and breathe," she said in her trademark playful, sardonic tone.
"Could this be THE Jennifer Lindley? You're legendary around these parts, you know."
She laughed. "Good, my years of teenage recklessness paid off, then..." The two of them met in the center of the pier and threw their arms around each other. "It's so good to see you," she said seriously. Then, after a pause, "It's so unexpected to see you! Wait a minute...what are you doing here, anyway? Don't tell me you're bored with Hollywood already." She pulled out of his embrace and looked up at him curiously.
"No, nothing like that," he assured her. "I've still got stories to tell and movies to make."
"And history to rewrite," Jen asked teasingly. "Love your show, by the way."
"Thanks, that makes one of you. Jack takes very vocal issue with the casting of his counterpart. Anyway, I'm using some vacation time."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "Willingly?"
"Are you kidding? I was coerced." He grinned. "Anyway, I understand you have some pretty big news...?"
Jen's hands went to her middle. "I guess that's one of the dangers of talking to yourself. Or did you already know? Were you Jack's mystery guy on the phone?"
Dawson shook his head. "No, there was a mystery guy?" He laughed. "Maybe he's finally tired of Deputy Doug's shadow routine and found himself another love interest."
"It's Sheriff Doug now, or hadn't you heard? And I don't think so. Our Jackers is head over heels for Pacey's big brother."
"Weird, huh? I never would have thought those two would end up together...Anyway, back to your news. Congratulations, Jen. Are you okay?"
Ah, the question of the hour. She took a deep breath before answering. "Well, aside from being pretty much scared to death and fairly certain that this poor little one has been sentenced to a lifetime of therapy because her nutcase of a mother had no clue when it came to child-rearing, I'm fine." She smiled, hoping that she sounded convincingly lighthearted. And hoping against hope that he wouldn't ask...
"How about David?"
Jen flinched as if he had tried to hit her, then recovered just as quickly and pasted an almost-believable smile on her face. "He's fine," she said, skirting what she knew Dawson had meant by his question. "So, are you going to invite me into the Leery house for a trip down memory lane, or what?"
Dawson held out his arm, and she took it. "Of course. My mom will be so happy to see you again."
They started up the grassy hill toward the Leerys' back porch. Jen glanced over her shoulder at the creek once more and could almost see them as they had been that day, the ghosts of kids who had somehow grown up overnight: a beautiful, tomboyish brunette who kept stealing glances at the blond- haired, blue-eyed boy next to her, another boy with laughter in his eyes who looked somehow at home in his sea-monster costume. And a girl with tousled blond curls wearing a short summer dress that fluttered in the breeze, a girl who had been so recently and so badly hurt that it would take her years just to understand how deep the wound went and how far across her life it had spread.
