Part 2
Act Two
Rating- R

Type- Love Triangle. Like I said before, more Pacey and Joey, although since Joey and Dawson are together, it's a Love Triangle.

Disclaimer: Don't own D.C., never did, wish I did. "The Way We Were" is named after the movie starring Robert "Dreamboat" Redford and Barbara Striesand.

Summary- You won't get a bit of this if you haven't read "An Affair to Remember." It's been ten years since they were fifteen, and the gang has basically split. Joey and Dawson are engaged to be married, as are Pacey and Annie, Joey's old dormmate. Joey and Pacey, both reporters, go to cover a New York convention, where there is a chance meeting at their old friend Jen Lindley's apartment. Jen is now an artist, and has invited them to her big gallery opening the following week. There is awkwardness between Joey and Pacey, which we learn is a product of one night of passion in college.

The Way We Were

Jen organized her paints around her easel, which was set on the balcony of her fourth floor apartment room. Her apartment overlooked a local park. Everyday, Jen watched the same old woman walk in the park and sit on the bench for hours, never speaking to anyone. She always looked as if she were waiting for someone.

Jen formed the image in her mind and picked up the paintbrush just as the phone rang. Sighing, she set down her paintbrush and took off her apron.

Walking inside, she picked up her old phone and said, "Hello?"

"Jen!" came Dawson's familiar voice, "It's Dawson."

"Well if it isn't Dawson Leery, Mr. Big Director," Jen said, laughing, "how've you been."

"Great," Dawson said, "So, rumor has it that you've got a big gallery opening."

Jen laughed. "Did Joey tell you that?" she asked.

"No, someone at the office mentioned it," Dawson said, "I might use some of your paintings in my next film if you don't mind."

"Sure," Jen said, "I'll consider it free publicity."

"Has Joey gotten there?" Dawson asked.

"Yeah, she just visited," Jen said, "And might I add, congratulations!"

Dawson laughed. "Thanks," he said.

"Actually, Pacey was here too," Jen said, "And he's gone and gotten himself engaged to Annie. It's about time if you ask me."

"That's great" Dawson replied, "It's about time. They were meant for each other, just like me and Joey."

"I wish you could come to my opening," Jen said, "It would be great to have the gang back again."

"Wouldn't it?" Dawson said, "Well, if time permits, I'll try and make a stop, but no promises. These idiots down in editing cut half of the movie and we have to piece it back together."

"Ew," Jen said, frowning, "That's not good."

"Nope," Dawson said sadly, "Well tell Joey I said hey, and tell Pacey to call me, I haven't heard from him in forever."

"Will do," Jen said, smiling.

Jen hung up and walked back out on the balcony. Looking at the park, she noticed the woman was gone. "Oh well," she said sadly, "I didn't feel like painting anyway."

*****

Joey had just finished unpacking her things when there was a knock at the door. Thinking it was the bellman, she said, "Come in, it's unlocked."

"You really should learn to lock the door, it's dangerous in New York," said Pacey's voice.

Joey jumped. "You scared me," she said, looking at him curiously. Turning back to her things, she asked, "How are you?"

Pacey shrugged. "As well as I can be," he replied, "you?"

Joey shrugged. "Ok, I guess."

Pacey cleared his throat. "Listen," he said, "We're going to have to deal with this sooner or later."

Joey didn't face him. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said, "We have nothing to deal with."

"Joey," he said, "you know that's not true."

Joey sighed. Damn. "I know," she said, "I had hoped it would just disappear but it never did. You're right, we do have a lot to discuss. I can't just brush it off. You were my first. I hadn't even...been...there with Dawson before you."

Pacey nodded. "I guess I should apologize."

"Don't," Joey said, walking to him, "if I remember correctly, I had a big role in it too. It takes two to tango, and the same goes with...it."

Neither of them wanted to actually say what it was they did. They both knew, but neither could say it.

"Is there anyway we can be friends?" Pacey asked.

"As I recall," Joey said, "that got us into trouble before."

"Well we'll do it the right way this time," he said, "Would you like to get some coffee?"

Joey thought for a moment. It couldn't hurt. "Sure," she said.

*****

Pacey took a sip of his coffee and smiled at Joey. "See," he said, "we can be friends without any sexual tension. That was in the past. We were young and naïve."

"Mmm," Joey said, taking a sip of her coffee, "I don't think it works that way. Have you ever seen "When Harry Met Sally?"

"Yeah," Pacey said, "Meg Ryan looked cute in it."

"All I'm saying is that it's nearly impossible, if not completely, for a man and woman to be friends without there being any sexual tension," Joey said.

"Then we're going to prove it wrong," Pacey said.

"And how do we do that, jailbait?" Joey asked, looking at him like he was insane.

Pacey smiled. She hadn't called him that in years. "We're going to go to Central Park, spend an entire day together, then wake up tomorrow morning and go on with our own lives."

"Yeah," Joey mumbled, "and knowing our history, we'll wake up together."

*****

Joey and Pacey went to Central Park that afternoon and spent the day together. They took carriage rides, shared ice cream, and rode the merry-go- round together. At the end of the day, Pacey and Joey took a cab back to the hotel.

"I had a great time," Joey said, "You were right, we can still be friends."

"I'm always right," Pacey said, beaming.

Joey rolled her eyes. "Same old Pacey," she said, "you know, I thought men got wiser as they grew older, but apparently they just get self-absorbed."

Pacey groaned. "And to think I almost missed the old ice queen," he said, "don't tell me Dawson's not giving you any."

"Pervert," Joey said, glaring at him.

"Prude," Pacey countered.

They looked at each other and burst into laughter. "We haven't done that in years," Joey said.

"Yeah," Pacey said, "I miss the old bickering."

Joey noticed how cute Pacey was when he smiled. She couldn't help herself from focusing on his perfect lips.

"Goodnight, Jo," Pacey said, "You'll see, we can be friends and never worry about the sex thing again."

Joey almost groaned out loud with disappointment when he walked away without kissing her. Almost.

*****

The convention hall was filled with the media interviewing politicians and speakers after day 1 of the convention. Joey had just finished interviewing the Speaker of the House. As the hall slowly emptied, Joey began to seek out Pacey. She found him near a table in the corner, jotting some notes down on a pad.

"Hey Joey," he said, smiling at her as she walked up, "Have a fun day?"

Joey rolled her eyes. "I think Senator Peters was making eyes at me. And I'm pretty sure Representative Myers grabbed my ass."

Pacey laughed. "That's what you get when you hang around politicians."

"So why didn't you ever become one?" Joey asked mock-sweetly, "Right up your alley. And I do mean alley."

"Oooh," Pacey said, grinning, "cheap shot, straight to the heart."

"So what are you doing?" Joey asked.

"Well," Pacey said, looking at his pad, "I have to get this down to the New York Times so they can fax it to Boston. After that, I'm free."

"Great," Joey said, "because I happen to have scored tickets to tonight's performance of Les Misérables and since I'm sans date, I thought of you."

"How kind of you," Pacey said, smiling, "I'll pick you up at seven."

*****

"Come on you stupid..." Joey said, yanking on her zipper. Pacey would be here any moment and she couldn't get her dress zipped up.

There was a knock at the door, and Joey went to answer it. Pacey came in, dressed in a tuxedo. He looked very handsome, as if he had stepped off the cover of GQ.

Pacey held his breath. Joey looked beautiful. She was wearing a simple black dress, pearls, and her hair was piled on her head.

"Can you help me?" Joey asked, pointing to her zipper.

Pacey walked over and put his hands on the zipper, his fingers brushing her back. Joey felt a sensation crawl up her spine. Pacey bit his tongue as he pulled it up, trying to control himself.

"All done," he said, after the zipper was up. His fingers lingered a few moments at her back. Joey caught her breath in her throat. She waited for him to kiss her, almost anticipating it.

"Let's go," he said, turning away, fighting the urge to kiss her. Never again. He couldn't let it happen again.

*****

Joey and Pacey sat in silence as Marius, Cosette, and Eponine sang the Love Montage, one of the most famous parts of "Les Misérables."

"Ok," Joey said, whispering to Pacey, "Marius and Cosette are in love. They have been ever since they set eyes on each other. But Eponine was in love with Marius way before Cosette ever saw him, only he never noticed her. So while Marius and Cosette are singing they exchange of love, Eponine is confessing her love to the night, hoping that one day he'll notice her."

"He was never mine to lose," Eponine sang, as Marius and Cosette simultaneously sang their confessions of love, "Why regret what could not be? These are words he'll never say...not to me...not to me, not for me. His heart full of love...he will never feel this way."

Joey felt tears running down her face. She felt Eponine's pain, even if Eponine was just a character in a story.

The musical continued, with Marius and Cosette vowing to be true to each other. As Marius went to the barricades, he left poor Eponine with a letter to give to Cosette.

"He never saw her there," Joey whispered.

Eponine began the famous song "On My Own," which Joey had sung at the pageant. Only at that time, she had sung it to Dawson.

"I love him!" Eponine declared to the night sky, "I love him! I love him, but only on my own!"

*****

Pacey walked Joey to her door like he had done the night before. "That was a beautiful musical," he said.

"Yeah," Joey whispered.

"Only I didn't quite grasp the whole love triangle thing," Pacey said, "I mean, you would think Marius would have noticed that Eponine loved him."

"Not necessarily," Joey said, "sometimes men don't notice the person who is right before their eyes before it's too late. I mean, Marius didn't have a clue that Eponine loved him until she confessed it as she died."

"I still don't quite buy it," Pacey said.

"It's happened before, it'll happen again," Joey said uncomfortably, "There will be another Marius and Eponine. Marius will love Cosette, while Eponine stands in the shadows and loves him."

"And what will happen to them?" Pacey asked, looking at Joey.

Joey shrugged. "What else?" she asked, "Eponine will love him until she dies. And when she's gone, it won't matter. He'll end up with Cosette anyway."

"It doesn't have to happen that way," Pacey argued.

"It always does," Joey said, "and all because she never got the courage to say those three little words. Not that it would have made a difference."

"But what if he loved her too?" Pacey argued, "what if he and Cosette were never meant to be? Wouldn't Eponine and Marius be together?"

Joey smiled a half-smile. "I'll have to get back to you on that one. I'm still waiting to find out."

*****

The days passed on, with the convention occupying most of their time. Every night, Joey and Pacey hung out. Dawson and Annie rarely received calls, but they convinced themselves that the convention took all of their time.

Jen was preparing for her big opening, which was the following night. Invitations had been sent out. Anyone who was anyone in the art world had been invited.

Joey and Pacey went out the day before the opening to get their outfits. The convention wasn't held on Sundays, and since the opening was Monday night, they knew they had better get their outfits.

The morning and afternoon was spent at various stores across New York. They tried on suits and dresses of every designer and color. Pacey finally settled on a blue Calvin Klein suit with a silk tie. Joey settled on a Dolce and Gabbana strapless dress in sea green, old fashioned gloves which came up to just past her elbows, and a matching diamond bracelet and necklace set. The outfits had set them back a few hundred dollars, but this was Jen's big night, and they knew they had better look ok, lest she be embarrassed in front of New York.

Joey and Pacey were so tired from that night that they decided not to go out. Instead, they hung out in Pacey's hotel room, ordering room service and watching television.

Joey flipped through the listing of movies, trying to decide what to watch, while Pacey ordered the pizza. She had about given up on anything but a Jim Carrey movie, when she saw that a showing of "Love Story" was playing. 'Perfect,' Joey thought.

The food came and Joey and Pacey settled down on his bed to watch the movie. Throughout the movie, they discussed what was happening.

"See, this is a love story," Pacey said, "they belonged together and they knew it."

"It's still a sad story," Joey said.

"You know," Pacey said, "you remind me a little of Ali McGraw's character. Both smartasses."

Joey stuck her tongue out at Pacey.

The movie finished. "Wow, it's late," Pacey said, "We've got to be getting to bed soon." He stopped when he realized what he said, "I mean.." he said, fumbling for the words.

"I know what you meant," Joey said.

Pacey walked Joey to the door.

"See, I told you we could be just friends," Pacey said.

Joey took in a deep breath. She couldn't withhold it any longer. "And you were wrong," she said.

"Excuse me?" Pacey asked, confused, "but for the last few days, that's how it's been."

"You don't understand," Joey said, "we've gone through the motions of friendship, but we both know there's something deeper under it. We just haven't faced it. We've been too afraid to."

Pacey sighed. She was right. He was having a hard time controlling himself. But he had to control himself.

Joey was crying. "How can we be friends, if all I can think of is kissing you," she asked.

"Joey," he said, putting his hands on her shoulders, "we can do it. We can go back to the way we were."

Joey shook her head and cried more. "No we can't," she said, "because I love you and you love me and nothing we can say or do can change that. And I wouldn't want to."

Pacey looked at her and all of his resolve melted. He kissed her. "Joey," he said, kissing her face, trying to kiss the tears away, "I've wanted you for so long."

Joey kissed him back. "Me too," she said, "All those years...."

Pacey looked at her face. "So what do we do now?" he asked.

Joey looked at him. Not saying a word, she pulled him back inside the room and shut the door behind them.

*****

Dawson was scribbling some notes down on the flight to New York. He was going to see Jen's gallery opening and surprise Joey. Laughing to himself, he thought, 'Boy is she going to be surprised.'

"Dawson?" asked a female voice. Dawson looked up into the face of a familiar redhead. "Annie!" he said, "What are you doing here?"

Annie shrugged. "Got lonely at home. I'm going to see Pacey."

"Are you going to Jen's gallery opening?" Dawson asked, "I'm going to go see it. From the early reviews, it's supposed to be pretty amazing."

"I'll check it out," Annie said.

Dawson laughed. "Boy are Joey and Pacey going to be surprised when we show up."

If they only knew.

*****

It was early Monday morning. Joey and Pacey held each other close, listening to each other's heartbeats. It was a peaceful feeling.

Pacey looked at the top of Joey's head and rubbed it with his hand. This was the way it should be. The way it ought to be.

But Pacey knew things never turned out they way you thought they would. For now they were safe in their own world, but what about tomorrow?

"Pacey?" Joey asked, "What are you thinking about?"

Pacey sighed. "About what we are going to do when we have to leave here. What are we going to do about Dawson and Annie?"

Joey sighed. "What can we do?" she asked, "someone is going to get hurt."

"Do you love him?" Pacey asked. He half wanted to know, and half didn't.

Joey sighed. "Yes. It's so unfair. I love him and I love you."

"I know what you mean," Pacey said, "I love you so much, but I love Annie too. She's been a big part of my life for so long. How do you say goodbye to someone you love?"

They were both silent, thinking about what the consequences of their actions were going to be, and what they were going to do.

*****

Joey was in her hotel room, humming along to the radio, when there was a knock on the door. Hoping it was Pacey, she opened it.

"Surprise!" Dawson said, holding a bouquet of roses.

"Dawson!" Joey said, "What are you...How did you...hi!"

Dawson swept her up and kissed her passionately. "I couldn't bear another day without you. I've been sitting at home pining away for you."

Joey bit her lip guiltily. "Same here," she lied.

"But now we're together," Dawson said, hugging her, "and nothing can separate us."

Joey sighed. If he only knew.

*****

Joey and Dawson stepped out of the taxi in front of the gallery. They walked up to the door, where a doorman checked their names off a list.

"Joey, Dawson!" Jen said, walking over to him. Jen was wearing a simple cream dress, with a few rosebuds in her hair. She always did have her own sense of style.

"I'm so glad ya'll came," Jen said, hugging them, "Pacey and Annie are already here."

"Great," Dawson said happily, "I can't wait to go see them." Joey forced a smile. She wasn't.

Dawson kissed Joey on the cheek. "I have to go say hi to some people," he said, "business. I'll catch up with you."

Joey looked around the massive hall. Jen's artwork decorated it. Jen really did have a gift, Joey thought, as she looked at a painting that was composed of hundreds of tiny faces, each one different.

"Hey Joey," came a voice she would recognize anywhere.

"Hey Pacey," she said guiltily, "I guess you're here with Annie."

Pacey nodded. "We had to come back to the real world sooner or later," he said.

"Last night was..." Joey said.

"I know," Pacey said, "I know."

"So what do we do?" Joey asked.

"I don't know," Pacey said, "but I know one thing. I still love you."

There was a gasp. Joey and Pacey turned suddenly and came face to face with Annie. Annie's eyes were wide. She had heard the entire conversation. "No," she whispered, "please don't tell me..." Joey and Pacey looked at the floor. "Oh God," Annie said, running away.

"Hey," Dawson said, walking up, "what's with Annie?"

"I'll go find her," Joey said, walking away. Pacey smiled half-heartedly at Dawson.

Dawson shrugged. "Women, huh?"

*****

Annie was standing in the alley, smoking a cigarette nervously. Joey finally found her. "Listen, Annie..." she said.

"Don't," Annie said, not facing her, "I don't want to know your reasons. I don't want to know."

"I'm sorry," Joey said, "It's just." "DON'T!" Annie screamed, turning around and looking at Joey with large red eyes, "I heard everything. I read between the lines. God, and to think I trusted you two. My fiancé and my friend."

Joey looked at the ground.

"So you two slept together," Annie said, taking a drag on the cigarette, "was this the first time?"

Joey didn't say anything. Annie choked on her tears. "Pretend I didn't ask that," she said.

"I don't know what to say except I'm sorry," Joey said.

"Is that what you're going to tell Dawson?" Annie asked angrily, "Gee Dawson, I'm sorry, but I decided to do the horizontal tango with your best friend? Is that it Joey?"

"No, I," Joey said, crying.

"Don't worry, Joey," Annie said, "I'll tell him for you."

"Annie!" Joey cried.

Annie sighed and took another puff on the cigarette. "God, I pity you," she said, "I pity you falling for him. Falling in love is a dangerous thing. I know. I've finally gotten hurt. I've been expecting it for years, but it's always a shock when it happens."

Joey sighed and took a seat on the steps. Annie walked over and sat next to her. "So," Annie said, "I guess things have just gotten very complicated."

Joey snorted. "That's putting it mildly."

"So you love him?" Annie asked.

"Of course," Joey said.

Annie sighed. "Well at least I know it wasn't meaningless sex."

"So what are you going to do?" Joey asked.

Annie shrugged. "Well I can't pretend I don't know what happened between you two. And I can't pretend I'm not hurt. I'm going to have to stand aside, and let you and Pacey work this out. Then I'll probably leave. I can't be with him if his heart belongs to someone else."

"He loves you," Joey said, "I know he does."

"Sometimes love isn't enough," Annie said, "you'll learn that soon enough."

*****

Dawson fell asleep in the hotel room while Joey was up, pacing around. The phone rang once, and Joey picked it up.

"Joey?" came Pacey's voice.

"Yes?" Joey whispered.

"I need to see you," Pacey said, "We have to talk."

*****

To Be Continued in
"This World, Then the Fireworks"

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