Daria's Weekend in the Country
This story is set between chapters 3 and 4 of my Alternate Season 3 of Dawson's Creek. If you haven't already done so, I strongly recommend reading the first three chapters before reading this.
"Daria, phone call" Helen yelled "I think he said his name was Casey"
"Hi Pacey" Daria said
"Hey Morgendorffer. Listen, I really need you to give me a hand with something. Well, its not for me, its for Joey and I know how close you two are and I'm sure you'd do anything to help her out"
"Go on..." Daria said with equal parts curiosity and scepticism
"So, I know you were going to a concert in Capeside this weekend, but I was wondering if you could do something else instead"
"What?" Daria sensed she was about to get annoyed
"Well, Joey's family are starting a B&B and we need some guests to try it out on, so…."
"You want me to be a guinea pig?" Daria actually didn't mind the idea, she just didn't want Pacey to know that
"Well, that's not how I would put it, but essentially, yes"
"Okay, fine. I'm in" She said reluctantly. Actually she wanted to see Joey again. She was the one person in the world besides Jane she felt understood her.
In the Tank, Trent and Jessie were up front, Daria and Jane were sitting on the back seats and the other two members of Mystik Spiral were sitting on the floor. Which Daria didn't think was unsafe in the slightest. And she was also sure that the Police probably wouldn't mind it either if they got pulled over.
"Hey guys, I'm not going to be able to see you play. I've been invited on a side quest in Capeside" Daria explained
"Rescuing a princess?" Jane quipped
"Nothing so exciting. I'm a beta guest for a family owned hotel, or something"
"Daria, you're not going sentimental on me?"
"Of course not, perish the thought" Daria said, slightly annoyed
"Do you have the address?" Trent asked, thinking pragmatically for once
"Yeah" Daria said, handing him a piece of paper with the address and a map scrawled on it
"Cool, this shouldn't add too much time to our trip, right?"
"No, its the same town. And it's not a very big town" Daria said realising that none of them had been there before, unless…
"Have you guys been to this festival before?" Daria asked
"We were going to play there two years ago, but we had to pull out at the last minute" Jessie said
"How come?" Daria asked
silence
"They don't like to talk about it" Jane explained
"Well, I guess that answers that" Daria said, realising an answer wouldn't be forthcoming
"You did what?" Joey asked angrily
"I invited noted travel critic Fred Frike, to stay for the weekend" Pacey said matter-of-factually
"But we're not ready. You don't show a rough cut of a movie at a test screening, you don't serve a half cooked meal to a food critic, and you don't show a half finished B&B to a New York Times travel critic. He's going to eviscerate us"
"So there's a few kinks to work out. When Disneyland first opened, none of the rides worked and look how that worked out" Dawson offered, referencing one of his favourite movies
"We'll be fine" Pacey tried to reassure her
"We don't even have any guests" Joey said, now in full blown panic mode
"That's where you're wrong. If we step behind door number one, we'll see..." He began, stepping inside and encouraging the two of them to join him
"A divorced father, looking to reconnect with his son" Pacey said pointing to Mitch, and gently pushing Dawson towards him
"A retiree and empty nester, looking for a quiet getaway" He said pointing to Grams
"And finally, a teen couple, running away from…
something" he said pointing to Andie and then going over to her
"So you see, everything is in hand" Pacey said, placing his arms around Andie and looking at Joey
"I like my OJ fresh squeezed" Mitch said
"I'll need an 8am wake up call" Andie said
"Okay, but when this thing blows up, and it will, I'll know who to blame" Joey said ominously
"Don't be so pessimistic" Bessie said, adding "I'm sure everything will be fine"
"Wait, wasn't there supposed to be one more guest?" Dawson asked
"Yes and I suspect she'll be getting her any moment now" Pacey said
As Dawson, Pacey and Joey went back outside, they saw a large, black van that looked like it was barely drive-able. Daria emerged from the van.
"Thanks for the ride. See you tomorrow" She said
"Hey Daria. Its great to see you again and all, but you couldn't have picked a worse time for a visit" Joey said
"But I was invited" She said with faux innocence
"And meet our final beta tester" Pacey said, grinning
"So, this is the famed Potter B&B. It looks an awful lot like a family home" Daria said, sneakily
"Well, that's because it is our home as well, just with a couple of new rooms added" Joey said defensively, and went inside
"What's going on with her?" Daria asked
"She's just a little stressed out because her family has sunk everything into this project and if it fails..." Pacey began
"So, no pressure then" Daria said
And the three of them went back in the house
"And what's your role in all this, Witter?" Daria inquired
"I'm basically just trying to keep things together" He said. Daria looked at Dawson and then back to Pacey. It was clear to her that more was going on here, but she wasn't going to find it out just yet.
As they entered, Daria entered last, which meant when the doorbell rang, she answered it.
"Yes, can I help you?" She asked in her monotone
"I should hope so. Fred Frike, of Bed and Breakfast Quarterly. Is now a bad time?"
"Joey, he's here!" Daria called into the next room
Joey emerged, panic written all over her face. Bessie was on the phone and couldn't really help.
"Mr Frike, welcome to the Potter B&B. I hope you enjoy your stay"
Pacey then pulled Daria and Dawson into the next room
"Mr Frike's room isn't ready yet and the bathroom is leaking" He said quietly
"Okay, Dawson and I will get the room ready and you can fix the bathroom, while Joey stalls for time" Daria said, thinking quickly
Daria then emerged back into the makeshift lobby and whispered for Joey to stall him
"Why is Pacey doing all this?" Daria asked as she and Dawson made the bed. She instantly regretted asking
"Because, he cares" Dawson replied
"I thought they didn't get along"
"They didn't used to, but I asked..."
"Asked what?"
"I asked Pacey to look out for Joey, because I..."
"I think I understand" Daria replied
At that point, Joey and Fred Frike entered the room.
"Just let me know if there's anything I can do to help you enjoy your stay" Joey said
"You already said that, three times" Fred Frike said, slightly annoyed
Dawson and Daria chose this moment to make a discrete exit
Daria was sitting out the front, reading. Pacey seemed to have everything under control. For the moment.
Dawson and his father were sitting on the dock having a conversation and it was getting a little heated. Something about a party and house damage. Eventually Mitch walked back toward where Daria was.
"I don't think we've officially met. I'm Mitch Leery" he said extending his hand
"Daria..."
"Morgendorffer. I know. Your parents stayed at my place during your last trip to Capeside."
"Small world, huh?" Daria replied
"I also arranged the tow truck for their car. Turned out it was just that the starter was overheated"
"So we spent the night here for nothing" Daria said with faux annoyance
"Well, not nothing. I hear you had quite the adventure" he said, placing his hand gently on her shoulder, before walking back inside. Dawson then walked up to her. He looked annoyed.
"Is everything a joke to you?" he said angrily
"Excuse me?"
"Joey's little stunt at that party. It has your fingerprints all over it"
"I honestly have no idea..."
"Her throwing herself at me. That was clearly your idea, wasn't it?"
And then it clicked into place
"That was entirely Joey's idea. I may have 'encouraged' her, but she knew that I wasn't serious. If I'm guilty of anything its not trying to talk her out of it"
"They why didn't you?" he demanded
"Because Joey's a big girl and can make her own choices. You really need to remember that." Daria said, almost indignantly
Dawson stormed off.
Why is everything so dramatic with these kids? Daria thought to herself and got back to her book.
It was starting to get dark and Daria heard some noises coming from inside that didn't fill her with confidence. It didn't sound like the place was falling apart. More that it was just having teething problems.
Pacey stormed out and started aggressively chopping firewood.
"Did the firewood do something to annoy you?" Daria said
"Pacey fix this, Pacey clean that, Pacey this whole thing is falling apart and its all your fault. Pacey why did you even suggest this dumb idea? Our family is going to lose everything and its all your fault. Hey Morgendorffer" he said, switching gears abprutly
"So, its not the firewood then?"
"As much as I'd like to trade witty banter with you, now is really not the time" Pacey said, clearly upset
"What's going on?" Daria asked, and instantly regretted it
silence
"Why are you doing all this?"
"Do you know about the Midas touch? Well I have the opposite. Everything I touch turns to crap"
"Pacey, shut up and stop feeling sorry for yourself! You have clearly put a lot of effort into this place and I'm sure it'll pay off. And I'm sure Joey appreciates..." she trailed off
Pacey's expression changed from annoyance to discomfort
"That's it, isn't it? You like Joey?"
"Do you want to keep your voice down?" Pacey said angrily, but softly
"Because of Andie?"
"Among other reasons."
"You know what, this is absolutely none of my business" Daria said matter-of-factly and strolled back inside. Pacey seemed to accept that as a sign she wouldn't say anything.
Daria noticed it was getting dark, so she walked back into the house and noticed Andie.
"Daria, can I talk to you for a moment?" Andie said
"About what?" She said sceptically
"I need your advice on something"
"Are you sure that's wise?" she asked
"I mean you're always so brutally honest and I kinda need that right now"
"Alright, go ahead..." Daria was somewhat annoyed that she had once again become an agony aunt, but there was clearly no way out of this
Andie looked around to make sure that no one was around and then leaned towards Daria and spoke in a low voice
"When I was in the mental hospital during the summer, I met someone another patient."
Daria rolled her eyes, clearly seeing where this was going
"And we, um, got close. And once, but only once, we had sex"
"And..." Daria wasn't sure what she was supposed to do with this information. Frankly she didn't care.
"Should I tell Pacey?"
"Don't know. Don't care. Don't want to be part of your little soap opera" and was about to walk off.
Andie looked like she was about to cry
"Wait, Andie"
"Tell him. Or don't tell him. I can't decide that for you, but I'll tell you this. Make a choice and stick to it. If you tell him, do it ASAP. If not, don't tell him, ever. Either way, make a decision and stick to it. That's my advice"
"Thanks Daria" she said almost hugging her, but then remembering that she didn't like to be hugged.
Dawson, Pacey and Mitch were trying to build a fire. Upon entering the room, Daria considered helping them, but then saw the old women (someone's grandmother, but she couldn't remember who) had the situation in hand.
Mitch had commented on how good it smelled and that got them talking about how smell is the most powerful sense for recall. Daria knew this, but at the same time, she felt left out of the conversation.
Mitch mentioned fish guts, having worked in a fishery, Dawson a fancy chemical name used in film development (because of course), Pacey mentioned snow, his first memory and Andie mentioned new cars, which her dad would rent when they went on holidays. The old woman (that everyone kept calling Grams) mentioned mothballs.
Then it was Joey's turn to speak.
"Mom's cooking. I remember I would wake up every Sunday morning to the smell of fresh cooking. And we would talk about school, and boys, and we'd take the pancake batter and pour it into tiny moulds shaped like pine trees and animals. My Mom always loved to cook and take care of everyone. She always told me not to worry, because eventually she was going to make enough money and she was going to open up her very own Bed and Breakfast. She obviously didn't get the chance to see that dream happen, so I thought I would give it a shot. So, thank you everyone for coming and helping us. You're the best fake guests a girl could ask for. But really, you can all go home now."
Joey went to leave, but saw Fred Frike standing in the doorway
"I'm sorry we aren't up to your usual standards, but I'm pretty sure my mom would have approved" Joey said, emotionally, and slinked away to her room. Daria silently stood up and followed Joey.
"Your room is cool. Not as cool as mine, but still pretty cool" Daria remarked
"What are you doing here Daria?"
"Pacey invited me"
"I mean in my room"
"I felt left out of that conversation. I've had adenoids for as long as I can remember. My sense of smell is pretty weak."
"Around the time my mom passed away, I also got adenoids"
"See, I knew we were alike" Daria said, smiling devilishly
After a moment, she added "If that Frike snob doesn't like this place, that's his loss. I'll write a glowing post about it on my blog"
"You have a blog?" Joey asked
"Not yet, but I've been meaning to start one" Daria replied
Joey smiled at that
Joey awakened to hear music and other sounds coming from the Kitchen. She entered to see that Dawson, Pacey, Andie and Daria were preparing breakfast and all but Daria were dancing to the song Dancing in the Street (the original version by Martha and the Vandellas). Daria's movements were more subtle, minimal, and even robotic, yet she seemed to be in perfect sync with the others as she poured various drinks. Meanwhile, Dawson was on washing up duty, Pacey was serving up the pancakes and Andie was setting up the table and moving food onto it, where everyone else was waiting. The four of them sat at the table and they started eating. Joey joined them, still half asleep, wondering if this was a dream.
"Well this has been a delightful experience" Fred Frike announced
"What this place lacks in, facilities, it more than makes up for in character" he added
"What am I missing here?" Joey asked
"What do you mean?" Bessie asked
"Your cooking isn't this good" Joey said sneakily, and Daria shot her a glance of approval
"Actually, I cooked" It was Pacey that spoke and Joey was shocked
"I didn't know you cooked"
"Well, I had a great teacher. Would you care to meet him?" And Pacey pointed towards the kitchen
An African American man in his mid twenties emerged from the kitchen, fry-pan in one hand, spatula in the other, tea towel draped over his shoulder.
"Who wants seconds?" he said
Daria was confused
"Who is this guy?" she whispered to Pacey
"Bodie, Bessie's partner and Alexander's father. He's spent the past year working on cruise ships, sending money home" Pacey whispered back
"Ah, the infamous black boyfriend Joey mentioned" Daria replied
Just then, a loud car horn sounded outside the front. Daria realised that this was her ride.
Dawson, Pacey, Joey and Andie followed Daria out the front. Daria realised that she was going to miss them. Well, some of them. And she was somewhat curious to see what would happen to these kids and their soap opera next. But this was not her life.
The door slid open and Jen and Jack emerged from the van and a hand (which Daria recognised as Jane's) beckoned her.
As Jen and Daria walked past one another and exchanged a dramatic glance.
"How was the concert?" Joey asked
"It was great, I got to see the Dave Matthews Band" Jen said
"Damn. I love that band. I wish I could have gone" Joey replied
"Don't worry. They'll be playing in Boston next week and I can get you tickets if you want" Jen said confidently
"Really?" Joey asked
She wasn't in the mood to be toyed with, not after the night she'd just had.
"How was the concert?" Daria asked
"Pretty good. I got to see the Dave Matthews band" Jane replied. Daria gave a blank stare. She had no idea who they were.
"How was your set?" Daria asked Trent
"About what I expected" Trent replied "How was the Hostel, or whatever?"
"About what I expected" Daria lied