Dr.Strangelove, part 4
Dr. Strangelove
(Or, how I stopped worrying and learned to love to be a teenager)
Part Four in the Series
by Annabel

CAPESIDE HIGH SCHOOL

Joey was sitting outside reading as Dawson exited the school. He didn't notice her until she looked up at him as he walked by. He stopped and they both stared awkwardly at each other.

"Hi," he finally said.

"Hi, how are you?" she asked.

"I'm fine, um, I was just heading home."

"Ok, see you around."

He turned and walked away. She sighed and went back to her reading. Dawson didn't get very far though. He walked back to her, obviously a little stressed.

"Joey?"

She looked up, surprised by his return.

"Joey, I really wish I could talk to you, that we could talk to each other, but for some reason I don't know what to say."

"I wish we could be more comfortable around each other too. I just don't want it to be misinterpreted."

"I know, and you know, I would like to guarantee that it wouldn't be. I think I'm ready to work on our friendship again. I want that more than anything. I know things are going to be different. They are different. I am trying to step out of the habitual patterns of thought and behavior that have ruled my life thus far."

"Well, you obviously haven't lost your habitual patterns of speech," she joked.

He smiled and relaxed a little. "You actually are instrumental in these changes, Jo. I've realized that I need to 'find myself' too, so to speak.. I need to mature. Open myself to some new experiences. I've just been so locked in to how I saw my future. I've discovered that if life for some reason doesn't work out the way I want it to then I am going to be…well, let's just say that I don't want to find that out."

"That's great, Dawson. I hope that works out for you. I just hope that doesn't mean that you won't have time for old friends."

"I'll always have time for you, Joey." He looked at her as if he wanted to say so much more but didn't dare.

"So…" Joey tried to change the subject. "Have you started working on your movie yet?"

"Actually, no. I've decided to hold off indefinitely."

"How come?"

"It's just not the right time. Someday, though." The metaphor was not lost on Joey and she acknowledged it with a half-smile. "Besides," he continued. "I'll have more time for other things. Get involved with some extra-curricular activities. Meet new people. Tend to the sick and wounded. Try my hand at Tae Bo. Maybe get a tattoo. And Pacey wants to go see Riverdance. The options are endless."

They both laughed.

"You're going to have to fill me in on all your new adventures."

"I will, Jo. I promise. Right now I have to head home though. Mom decided that the kitchen would look a lot better in wallpaper. I'm not sure why she wants to do it herself, or how she thinks I can help. I don't know a thing about wallpaper."

"Well, then here's your first adventure."

"Yeah, maybe I can take pictures and submit them with a story to National Geographic."

"Or Martha Stewart."

He smiled at her. "I'll see you around, Joey."

"Yeah, I'll see you around."

Dawson turned and walked away. Joey watched him go. It had felt so good to talk to him again. Too bad he had to go. Hopefully they were on their way to being better friends. And who knows, maybe someday… Best not to think that way. Dawson was right. Life had a way of not going the way you thought it should.

SCREENPLAY VIDEO STORE

The following day, Dawson was busy straightening up movies. He looked up as the bell on the door announced someone's entrance. Andie walked in hesitantly, carrying a video.

"Hey, Andie."

"Hi." She looked toward the back of the store nervously.

"You can relax. Pacey's not here."

"Oh."

"Did you want to talk to him?"

"No, I just wanted to drop off this movie. It was really good. Highly recommend it. Great acting." She handed it over to him. She turned to leave but then turned back. "How's he doing?"

He continued straightening the movies. "He's doing all right. How are you doing?"

"I'm doing all right too. Yep. Things are just peachy."

"You don't sound too convincing."

"I don't? Well, I'm not exactly used to the post-breakup protocol. I don't regret the decision I made. I just hate feeling the way I do."

"Maybe you should talk to him."

She shook her head. "It's not that simple."

Dawson stopped working and stared at the shelves in front of him.

"Yeah, I know. Nothing seems to be simple anymore. Ya know, Joey and I just started talking to each other again."

"That's good. So, you guys are past the first big stage then?"

"I guess so." He sighed and ran his hands through his hair. "I just need to find a way of not thinking about her constantly."

"How?"

"I don't know." He finally looked over at her.

"Maybe you need to go out on a date."

"Yeah, right."

"Seriously, I could fix you up."

"I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why not?" He opened his mouth to say something but couldn't think up a decent reply. "Maybe spending an evening in someone else's company will help your perspective a little. Oh hey, my psychiatrist has a daughter about our age. I met her once only briefly, but she seemed pretty nice. I could at least ask. What have you got to lose?" Wanting to get out of the conversation, Dawson walked to the back of the store. Andie followed. "She doesn't even go to our high school so if it doesn't work out you don't ever have to see her again."

He turned to her from behind the counter. "Andie, I know you want to help. I just don't think I'm ready for that yet."

"Ok, Dawson. Just remember, the offer stands."

"I appreciate that. Now, what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Well, I believe in reciprocity. So, what do you want? Do you want to talk? Do you want a movie? Or, do you want me to fix you up with some handsome, swashbuckling adolescent?"

"Oh God, no," she stated, then looked at him slyly. "Wait, are there really 'swashbuckling' adolescents around here that I don't know about?"

Dawson shrugged. "If you look in the right places."

"No thanks. I think I'll just rent another movie. What would you suggest for my present state of affliction?"

"Allow me," he said and disappeared into the back. He returned and handed her a movie.

"Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory? I love this movie."

"It's no Spielburg but it is a great movie, despite the unfortunate nickname I acquired. It always makes me feel better anyway."

"Cool. How much do I owe you?"

"It's on the house. The least I could do."

"Thanks, Dawson. I owe you."

"Forget about it. Just knowing that I've made one person happy is all the reward I'll ever need," he stated, sounding like a public service announcement.

Andie chuckled. "What a beautiful sentiment. Too bad I don't believe it.." She turned to leave. "I'm going to find a way to help you. As God as my witness," she declared dramatically, "you'll never go hungry again."

With that, she left. Dawson smiled, shaking his head.

DAWSON'S ROOM

Dawson was sitting on his bed watching television when Pacey walked in.

"Hey, man," greeted Pacey.

"Hey, Pace. What's up?"

"Usual. The sky, Ally McBeal's skirts, the Dow." Pacey sat at Dawson's desk, "So, what have you been up to?"

"Not much. I worked today." He turned off the tv. "Andie came in to drop off a movie."

That sparked Pacey's attention. "Oh?"

"She asked about you."

"What did she say?"

"She wanted to know how you were doing."

Pacey shrugged. "I'm doing fine."

"That's what I told her. I still think that maybe you two should at least talk to each other."

"I…I just can't. My feelings are too confused. Besides, look who's talking. Have you talked to Joey at all?"

"Actually, I have, just the other day. It was nice."

"Well, that's good. Are you guys going to try to mend things and get back together?"

"No, we're still where we were. Only we're talking now."

"I see."

"Yeah." Dawson slid himself to the edge of his bed. "Actually, I've been thinking about dating again. Maybe. I don't know. I guess I'll see what happens."

"If that's what it takes to get you out of this funk, I say go for it, man. Find a nice girl, take her to dinner, kiss her, do whatever, forget about Joey." Dawson looked sharply at him. "Or not. Look, do what you feel is best. I know you won't forget Joey, but ya know, maybe there's somebody else out there for you. It can't hurt to look." Pacey stood up and began pacing the room. "Ok, now I'm going to stop talking before you realize that all of this applies to me too. I know it does and I'm working on it. Lord knows I am." He stopped and leaned his back against the closet door. "I just feel so lost."

"Let me ask you this, if Andie wanted you back right now, what would you do?"

Pacey slid to the floor. "I don't know. I really don't."

"You realize that you didn't automatically say you'd get back together with her."

"Yeah, so?"

"Well, you may feel lost but you definitely seem to be going in some direction."

"I guess," said Pacey. They both sat quietly pondering for a minute.

"Maybe we should both start dating," said Dawson.

"I'm flattered, but frankly, Dawson, you're not my type," Pacey joked.

"Even after all we've been through?" Dawson chided, raising his voice a few octaves.

"Please, Dawson, let's not make a scene."

"But, honey…"

Pacey laughed. "Maybe I should be going."

"But, sweetie…"

Pacey stood up. "Now I know I should get going." He started to leave.

"Darling…"

"Find that date, Dawson," Pacey trailed off, walking out of the room.

"Lambkins?"

CAPESIDE HIGH SCHOOL HALLWAY

Andie was opening her locker as Dawson walked up to her.

"Hey, Andie."

"Oh, hey, Dawson. How's it going?"

"Fine," he replied, then lowered his voice. "Um, I've been thinking about your offer. Ya know, of fixing me up with someone. Anyway, I was thinking that maybe I am ready for it after all."

"Are you sure about this?"

"Um, yeah," he hesitated.

"Great, because I've kind of already started the ball rolling," she said sheepishly. "I talked to my psychiatrist's daughter even and she says she's interested. I hope you're not mad at me."

"Uh, no. No, that's fine. I trust your judgment."

"Oh, this is so great. I'll give you her phone number. I've got it here somewhere." She rummaged around in her locker while talking a mile a minute. "She is so nice. And cute too. This is not one of those 'she's got a great personality' types of girls. I mean, she's got a great personality too. At least, from what I could tell. I'm just saying…"

"Andie, slow down. Why don't you start off by telling me her name."

Andie found the piece of paper with the phone number on it and handed it to him.

"Well, you're not going to believe this. Her name is Jen."

"That figures."

"Come on, Dawson. You can have a great time. Don't let her name get in the way of that."

At that moment, Abby just happened to turn the corner and saw them both in an obviously private discussion. She decided to mill about and see what juicy tidbits she could glean from their conversation.

"You're right. I'll call Jen tonight and see if she'd like to go out this weekend."

Abby's eyebrows raised with delight.

"And if things don't turn out the way you want them, don't feel you have to keep dating her just because she's my psychiatrist's daughter." Abby's eyebrows fell in disappointment. "If it doesn't work out, it doesn't work out."

"Ok, well, thanks Andie." He smiled. "I really appreciate it."

"No problem."

"I've got to get to class. I'll see you later."

"Yeah, keep me posted."

He walked away. "I will."

Abby stood quietly processing her newly found insight into Dawson Leery's love life. While it wasn't as juicy as she had first thought, she recognized the potential conflict of the situation if the information for some reason, oh I don't know, happened to be misinterpreted by the right person. She grinned mischievously and headed down the hallway.

CAPESIDE HIGH SCHOOL LIBRARY

Joey walked down an aisle of books in search of a particular title. Abby waltzed by the row but, upon seeing Joey, doubled back. She acted as if she was looking for a book as well.

Joey pulled the book she was looking for off the shelf as Abby nonchalantly edged closer.

"Oh, hey, Joey."

"Abby," Joey mumbled in response.

"You're looking well today."

Joey took the bait. "Is there a reason for me to be otherwise?" she asked.

"No, no reason. I was just making an observation."

Immediately realizing there was an ulterior motive for their interlude, Joey turned to her.

"You can drop the act, Abby. This is obviously not a social visit. You're dying to tell me some inane piece of gossip that undoubtedly has no foundation of truth to it whatsoever. Why don't you stop wasting my time and just tell me so then we can both get on with our lives."

"Fine," Abby said innocently. "I was just surprised that you were doing so well given the fact that your ex-boyfriend Dawson Leery is not only dating again, but the girl in question is none other than Jen Lindley."

Joey shook her head in disgust. "You're pathetic, Abby. You'll stop at nothing to create even the most benign scandal. Dawson is not dating Jen, and even if he was, that's his prerogative. He can see who he wants."

"That's very mature of you, Joey. I know I would have a problem with it if I so much as saw him talking with her. After all, he did go out with her before you. It would seem to suggest that the relationship he had with you made him realize what a good thing he had with Jen. You…well, you were just the corrective lenses he needed to see what he had all along."

Joey was determined not to let Abby get to her.

"I guess that's the difference between us, Abby. I can recognize a really bad metaphor and you…well, you're just a bitch."

Uh oh. Abby had gotten to Joey. Joey turned and hastily retreated. Abby grinned wickedly. Her plan seemed to be working. She just had one small errand to run.

CAPESIDE HIGH SCHOOL HALLWAY

Abby's comments had irritated Joey but she had convinced herself that she was unmoved by the suggestion that Dawson and Jen were dating. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to get the thought out of her head. She decided the best way to deal with it was to just ask Dawson outright. She headed for his locker.

DAWSON'S LOCKER

Dawson was writing something in his binder when Jen walked up to him.

"Hey, Dawson."

"Jen, I haven't seen you in a while. How are you doing?"

"Just fine. You're right. We haven't seen each other in a while which is why I was a little surprised to get your note."

"What note?"

"This one." She handed him a piece of paper that said, "Jen, long time no see. We should get together some time soon. Come find me. Dawson."

Puzzled, Dawson said, "I didn't write this."

Jen looked at it again. "Who would've written it?"

"I can only think of one person."

Jen looked up at him in agreement. "Abby."

CAPESIDE HIGH SCHOOL HALLWAY

Deep in thought, Joey almost ran into Andie.

"Oh, hi, Joey. Are you ok? You look upset."

Joey shook her head and smiled a little. "Hi, Andie. I'm ok. I'm just distracted."

"Well, I wish I could stay and talk but I've got to find Ms. Cassidy before she leaves for the day." Andie walked past but Joey stopped her.

"Um, Andie. I hear that Dawson is dating again and I…"

"Did Dawson tell you about Jen?" Andie answered a little too quickly, looking confused, as did Joey.

"No, I just happened to hear about it."

Andie suddenly felt very uncomfortable with the topic of discussion. She didn't want to cause problems. She had only wanted to help Dawson out but had forgotten about how Joey might react. It was time for her to remove herself from the situation altogether.

"Joey, I really think you need to talk to Dawson about this. I've really got to go."

She walked hurriedly down the hallway. Joey stood frustrated, watching her go.

DAWSON'S LOCKER

"Why would Abby write this?" asked Jen.

"You got me. Although, she's never needed much of a reason to cause trouble."

Dawson started packing up to head home. Jen scanned the hallway.

"Well, I don't see her. It makes no sense to me."

"I for one am not going to hang around to find out. I've got better things to do." He slung his bag over his shoulder. "Although…I will concede that she does have a point."

Jen stared at him in disbelief. "About what?"

"The fact that we haven't seen each other in a while. Would you like to walk home with me? We could catch up."

"I'd like that, Dawson." She smiled. "I've missed you."

He returned the smile. "I've missed you too."

"As a friend of course," she added.

"Of course," he replied. "So, my dear friend, shall we?" He offered his hand gallantly.

"We shall." She clasped his hand in her own.

As fate would have it, Joey walked up just in time to see the two walking hand-in-hand down the hall away from her. Her mouth dropped and she blinked in surprise. They were laughing. They were holding hands and laughing. When did this happen? And why was she learning about it through Abby? Pacey had to have known something about it. Pacey. She needed to talk to Pacey.

She took off in a huff.

Meanwhile, Abby had been stealthily hidden off to the side and witnessed the entire scene. Her plan had been a long shot but had somehow come off even bigger than she imagined. She knew it wouldn't last. The truth would come out soon enough. But, the look on Joey's face for that brief moment would give her a lifetime of satisfaction. How deliciously evil of her.

PACEY'S HOUSE

Very agitated, Joey paced quickly around the room.

"Did you know about this?" asked Joey.

"He may have mentioned starting to date again, but I know he didn't mention that Jen was the person he was referring to." She continued her harried circuit around his living room. "Besides, I thought you said you were over him."

"I was," she sighed. "Or at least I thought I was."

Finally, she sat down at the end of the couch and put her head in her hands.

"God, what is wrong with me?"

Pacey sat down next to her.

"There's nothing wrong with you. It's natural to feel this way when you see your ex with someone else."

"I'm not sure it's natural to feel this violent because I don't think I would feel like this if it were someone else, but it's Jen."

She got up again and began another circuit.

"I feel, I feel….like I need to throw something."

Pacey grabbed her arms and stopped her. "You need to calm down."

"I can't calm down."

"Fine, then why don't you take it out on me."

"No."

"It's ok. I can take it."

"Let me go." She struggled to get away from him but he was too strong.

"No."

"Pacey, you better let me go or…"

"Or what?"

Joey tried to wrench her arms from his grasp but he held fast. She turned her body into his to try to gain some leverage. He countered her but didn't account for exactly how upset she was and she was able to release one of her arms. She reached with her free arm and grabbed for whatever she could get a hold of which turned out to be his shirt. Having learned a thing or two from watching the hockey games that Pacey had on from time to time, she began to pull his shirt over his head like any good hockey player would who wanted to make it difficult for their opponent to retaliate or gain the upper hand. Upon realizing what she was doing, Pacey chuckled and regained a hold of her arm. They remained this way in somewhat of a standoff, Joey still clutching his shirt and Pacey with his shirt covering most of his head. Realizing the futility of the situation, they both relaxed and started to laugh, still holding on to each other.

Exhausted, Joey decided she'd had enough and pulled Pacey's shirt down off of his head. His hair was a mess.

"You feel better now?" He inquired.

She attempted to straighten up his hair. He actually looked kind of cute with it messed up. She saw the depth reflected in his eyes and suddenly came to the realization of how good it felt to be touching someone, to just be near someone again. Her hand strayed down the side of his face. He stopped laughing and noticed her serious expression. Before she knew what she was doing, she leaned into him.

Joey's lips just centimeters from his own, Pacey froze, unprepared for what was to come. Before he could say anything, she kissed him softly. Probably more from his lack of reaction than anything, Joey pulled away.

She looked at him, but he was too shocked to respond.

"I…I'm…...I'm gonna go."

She raced past him and out the door. Pacey stood frozen to the spot.