I, brande@tea-house.com, agree that "Bad Things Always Happen in Threes" can
only be posted on the DC Fan Fic Forum under the topic of Computers for the week
of August 16,1998.
Disclaimer: Okay, I admit. I've been a very bad girl. I borrowed some very
important things from some very important people. I only used them for a little
while.... And I'm going to give them back, I swear! Basically, the only things I
own about this story are my characters (Teresa, Jordan, CeCe, Tia Rosalie, etc.)
and the plot. The other stuff has to go back in the morning, so don't spill
anything on it! I want my deposit back.
Oh, also, this section has one little bad word in it. I'm not naïve enough to
believe that none of you have never heard it, much less used it, but I'm gonna
warn you anyway. (Just in case anybody's parents decide to freak.)
Bad Things Always Happen in Threes by Brande
Part 4 in the Series
Pacey woke the next morning to the feeling of something moving across his chest.
He sat up with a start, only to discover that the bug he was dreaming of was
really one of Jordan's toy cars zooming around. He got up and stumbled into the
kitchen, where he found Teresa sitting at the kitchen table, alternately working
on her laptop and sipping a cup of coffee.
She looked up as he walked in. "Hey, sleepyhead. I was wondering when you were
going to get up." She motioned to the chair next to her. "Have a seat. There's
some coffee left if you want it."
Pacey poured some coffee for himself into one of the mugs next to the machine
and sat down. He ran his fingers through his hair. "What time is it?"
Teresa looked at her watch. "Seven-thirty." When she saw Pacey's shocked
expression, she laughed. "Sorry. With a toddler in the house, it's pretty much
impossible to sleep in."
Pacey took another drink of coffee. "What are you working on?" He scooted his
chair closer so he could look over her shoulder.
Teresa turned the computer so he could see the screen better. "It's a project
for my CAD class. I have to create a 3-D solid model of this assembly." She
showed him the illustration in the book. It all looked way too complicated for
him and he told her so, adding. "What is it anyway?"
"This? It's supposed to be the components of a cellular phone. Well, once I get
finished drawing it, anyway."
Pacey studied her computer. "I like this. What's it got?"
"Pentium II processor, 5.1 gig hard drive, 36 speed CD-ROM, removable ZIP drive,
cellular modem...."
"I'm impressed. Can I take it for a test drive?"
"Sure hang on. Let me do a save real quick." She typed in a couple of commands
on the keyboard and handed the computer over. "I better go check on the little
drape ape anyway." She walked out.
Pacey immediately decided to log on. No better way to see what this baby could
do than to take it out onto the highway. The Information Highway, that is. He'd
barely managed to get online, when he was notified that there was a message
waiting.
He called to her. "Teresa, You've got a message."
"So, open it," she called back.
Pacey opened the message and his blood turned cold.
"You better come see this," he called over his shoulder.
Teresa came into the room, setting Jordan down on the floor to play, and draped
her arms around Pacey's neck. "What's so important?" He nodded at the screen and
Teresa read the message for herself.
TO: tperez@livewire.net
From: 87654@bccf.ma.gov
Hey baby,
Guess what? I've got a surprise for you.....
My parole hearing just got moved up. I should be out in a couple of days. I
can't wait to see you. We have a lot of catching up to do. It'll be just like
old times.
D.
P.S. I'm disappointed in you. Why haven't you brought Jordan by for me to see?
I'll be seeing you soon.
Teresa slumped into the chair next to Pacey. "Oh my God." She shook her head.
"This isn't happening."
Pacey put his arms around her. "It'll be okay."
She pushed away. "No. It won't. Don't you see. If he can get online and find my
e-mail address, he can find out where I live."
Pacey tried to reassure her. "He can't use Four11. Your number's not listed."
"It doesn't matter. I registered to vote when I moved here. He can use the voter
registration info. Freedom of Information Act and all that. Not to mention the
MVD records. Property records. Tax information." Teresa put her hands over her
face. "Shit. Why wasn't I more careful?"
"You didn't know he'd be able to get on-line from jail."
"I should have. He has a lot of time on his hands. I'm sure he's spent a lot of
it reading up on how to do this."
"Maybe you should call your lawyer."
Teresa read the message again. "It won't do me any good. There's no specific
threat."
"So, what are you going to do?"
Teresa thought for a moment. "Well, he said his parole hearing was coming up.
Maybe if I call my lawyer, I can make a statement to the Parole Board. Keep him
in for a little while longer." She reached over and put a disk in the disk
drive, then saved the message to the disk. "I'll take this with me. Maybe it can
be used against him."
***
(The lawyer's office. About two hours later.)
Derek King, Teresa's lawyer, slammed the phone down angrily. He turned to her.
"They said that because you had moved out of state that there was no reason to
notify you."
"That's bull, Derek and you know it!"
He interrupted her. "I know." He sighed. "I got you in. You have ten minutes to
say your piece. But the hearing is tomorrow morning. Nine o'clock. You have to
be there in person."
Teresa nodded. "I can be on the first flight."
Pacey, who so far had been just providing moral support, jumped in. "I'm going
with you."
"No, you just got here. I'll be fine."
Pacey put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm going with you," he repeated.
"Okay, we have to leave now if we're going to get there in time."
They thanked Derek and dashed out of the office. They stopped by Tia's to pick
up Pacey's bag and tell her what was going on, then went to Teresa's house
briefly for her to pack an overnight bag.
***
When they finally got into their hotel room, it was very late. Along with a
delayed flight, the hotel only had one room available. They took in without too
much complaint, since it was easier than looking for another hotel that late at
night. They both dropped their bags on the floor. Pacey sank into the room's
only armchair, while Teresa sprawled across the bed, her arm over her eyes.
Teresa heard Pacey unzipping his bag, so she uncovered her eyes and sat up. He
was kneeling on the floor in front of her. She saw the jewelry box in his hands
and she started to cry. "Are you sure you want to do this?" she asked him.
"I had planned for something more romantic, but maybe this is a better time than
any I could have picked. I wanted you from the first time I saw you. To know
you, to be around you. You told me in the beginning that you weren't looking for
a relationship, so I settled for being your friend. But ever since that night,
after the pool party, when you said you cared about me, well I think we both
knew which way things were heading, but we never said anything. We've been
content to keep sidestepping the issue. We talk, we touch occasionally, but
neither of us ever says the words. Well, I'm saying it right now. I love you,
Teresa. Nothing would make me happier than to spend the rest of my life with
you. I want you to marry me. I don't care if it's tomorrow, or ten years from
now, just say you will someday, and I'll be happy."
By the time her finished, Teresa had tears running down her face. "What about
Jordan?"
"Hey, I love the little guy like he was my own. Maybe someday, we can give him a
little brother or sister." Pacey opened the box and took out the ring. "So, is
that a yes?" he asked hopefully.
Teresa laughed and wiped the tears away from her eyes. "Yes, you crazy fool.
Yes, I will marry you." She watched as he slipped the ring onto her finger.
"It's beautiful."
"A beautiful ring for a beautiful woman," Pacey replied. Turning to the bedside
clock, he said. "It's late. We should try to get some sleep." He stood and
grabbed one of the pillows and the spare blanket off the foot of the bed.
Teresa stopped him. "What are you doing?"
"Getting ready for bed."
"Pacey, it's late. We're both exhausted and we have to get up in..." she
squinted at the clock "about 3 hours. I think we can manage to sleep in the same
bed without groping each other." Teresa picked up the phone and made a request
for a wake-up call. Then she kicked off her shoes and crawled under the blankets
without even taking her clothes off.
She held the blankets open in invitation. "Pacey, it's late. You can either be
noble and freeze to death or be human and share the bed with me." She didn't
have to ask twice. Pacey pulled his sneakers off and lay down next to her.
At first it felt awkward, Pacey tried very hard not to touch Teresa. He was
getting increasing uncomfortable. He sighed heavily as he tried to move into a
better position. "What's wrong?" she asked him.
"I can't sleep like this," he replied, flipping over onto his stomach, hugging
his pillow. "That's better."
"Good." Teresa shifted to get comfortable herself. She ended up pushing her
pillow out of the way and laying her head on Pacey's shoulder blade, draping one
arm over his back and scooting up against him. Once settled in, she was
instantly asleep. And despite the fact that Pacey suddenly needed a cold shower,
he fell asleep as well.
Write to Brande
Note: In case you don't know...
CAD - Computer Aided Drafting. It's a graphics program used by people to design
various things, like cellular phones, buildings, etc.
Four11 - Actually Four11.com . (One of those things I borrowed.) It's a website
where you can use various telephone books to find people's names and addresses.
As to what Teresa says about the Freedom of Information Act, it's pretty much
true. It's been in the news several times about inmates using public records,
like voter registration, property records, telephone books, and in some states,
the Motor Vehicle Department to get information on their victims to harass them.
Unfortunately, unless the inmate makes a specific threat, there's nothing that
can be done to stop them.
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