Title: Chances Are

Author: hjmugillecuty

Pairing: Pacey/Joey

Spoilers: All episodes, all seasons

Rating: K+

Disclaimer: The characters and locations in this story do not belong to me, they belong to their original creators and copyright owners, and I make no profit.

Author's Note: This is a sequel to a story I posted a long time ago called "Now What?

Thank you so much for the reviews I've already received. I really appreciate them.

The women spent the day wandering around Capeside. They stopped at the florist, making sure that all the floral arrangements would be in place the next day. They had a quiet lunch at the Icehouse. Pacey's waiters made sure that they enjoyed the best table and service. Audrey and Andie were very impressed with Pacey's restaurant and grinned at the quiet pride with which Joey heard their compliments. Andie and Joey showed Audrey all the important places from their high school years: Screen Play Video, the Ruins, the McPhees' old house, and the high school. They considered taking the boat over to Witch Island but finally decided against it. They returned to the B & B around 4:15 so they could start getting ready.

Because the wedding would be relatively small, so would the rehearsal. It was the reception that worried Joey. Most of the town had been invited and judging by the way people had greeted her in town, all were planning to attend. It was strange for Joey, considering her and Pacey's checkered pasts in Capeside. It was a sign of how much respect Pacey now commanded in Capeside, and, in her mind, to a lesser extent the respect she had garnered. People remembered their pasts, but Capeside seemed proud of how its two native children had turned out and was willing to forget history.

Joey thought about this as she finished dressing for the rehearsal. Her reverie was interrupted by a sharp knock on the door. She checked to make sure she was presentable. "Come in!"

The door cracked open and a blond tousled head poked through the space. "Joey?"

"Dawson!" Joey jumped up to greet her friend. They hugged quickly. "How was your flight?"

"Good, but long. Not to mention late. Pacey, Doug and Jack had to wait an hour at the airport for me."

"Have you seen your mom yet?"

"Yes. I dropped my stuff off at home first." He paused and gave her an appraising look. "Joey, you look fantastic."

She smiled shyly. "Really?"

"Yeah. Pacey's very lucky. He knows it too, which is good."

"Honestly Dawson, I'm the lucky one."

"Actually, I think you're both lucky. After everything, you realized that you truly belong together. And this time nothing can get in your way." They sat down together on the bed.

Joey laughed. "You're right. We won't let anything get in our way. We're both so determined to be happy, together. Jen…" her voice caught a little, "…Jen taught us that." She looked up to see tears in Dawson's eyes.

"Sorry." He whispered. "I still miss her."

"I know."

"She's watching us today, you know. I never really believed that there was anything after death until Jen, because sometimes I can feel her eyes on me."

"Me too. Jack's convinced that she's keeping her eye on Amy." Joey shook off the melancholy. "So, did you bring this Melanie with you?"

Dawson chuckled, "Yes, she's going to film the wedding for you. That's my gift."

"Some things never change." Joey hugged Dawson as there was a light knock on the door.

"Aunt Joey?" Alex's voice could be heard from the hallway. "We're ready."

The rehearsal happened quickly. Everyone walked through their steps with experience from a number of other weddings. The wedding party adjourned to the Icehouse where they were joined by Pacey's mother, his sisters and their husbands and children, Dawson's girlfriend Melanie, Gail and her husband, and other select friends.

The dinner was filled with stories of Pacey and Joey's relationship, childhood memories, and numerous college experiences. For the first time Andie and Audrey learned about the K-Mart and Joey's one day as Pacey's assistant. Stories about butterflies, walls and sailing were told and retold for hours. Amy fell asleep in Jack's arms and Lily in Gail's as Alex fought to stay awake, wanting to hear the tales that involved him. So Joey told him about how she and Pacey used to baby- sit and how the best way to get him to sleep was to have Pacey perform 'The English Patient'.

Alex listened excitedly but after a while he grew thoughtful.

"Aunt Joey," He finally asked, "how long have you been in love with Uncle Pacey?"

Pacey heard the question and looked at her with raised eyebrows.

"A long time, Alex." She answered.

"But when did you know you loved him?"

"When he bought me a wall." Pacey smiled and kissed her knuckles.

"Technically, it was rented." Pacey added.

"When was that?" Alex asked again.

"Junior year of high school." Joey replied.

"That was a long time ago." Alex mused. "Why did you wait so long to get married?"

Pacey squeezed Joey's hand as she answered, "Because we weren't ready then. We had to experience life apart before we could be together."

"But we were always still friends."

"So, you knew that one day…" Alex began.

"We always hoped." Pacey interrupted. "Until last year we didn't know."

"Okay." Alex drifted away to sit next to Bessie where he fell asleep.

The dinner began to break up then. Joey was among the last to leave because Pacey was closing up the restaurant. She saw Dawson and Melanie climbing into Gail's car and remembered an envelope Pacey had slipped into her pocket.

"Dawson!" She called. "You got a minute?"

"Sure! I'll be right back," he told Melanie before hurrying to Joey's side. "What is it, Jo?"

She slapped the envelope into his hand.

"What's this?" He opened it to find a check for $1500. "Joey?"

"It's the last of it. The last of Mr. Brooks' money." She grinned. "I promised I'd pay you back."

"Joey, you don't have …"

"Yes, I do. Besides, maybe you can fund someone else's education."

"Okay." Dawson nodded slowly. "Maybe Amy's."

"Yeah."

Bessie called from the pickup. "Joey, you need to get over here if you're getting to bed before midnight."

Joey laughed. "Night Dawson."

"Night Joey and thanks."