Warning: This section deals (indirectly) with a topic that some people may have
a hard time with. Stand warned.
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 Swimming Pools for the week
of July 19th, 1998.
Bad Things Always Happen in Threes by Brande
Part II or "That's One Way to Ruin a Party"
"What's going on?" Dawson asked.
"I don't know. She's going back to Boston to see him." Pacey flopped back on the
bed.
"You think they'll get back together?"
"I hope not."
"And, right now, you don't want to go home."
"Gee, does it show?" Pacey said sarcastically.
Dawson got up. "I'll be right back." He returned with his sleeping bag, which he
tossed to Pacey. "I don't want to wake Mom and Dad, so you'll have to take the
floor in here."
Pacey rolled the sleeping bag out. "Don't worry about it. It's better than
home."
***
Three Weeks Later...
Pacey was in front of his locker, when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned
to see who it was.
"CeCe? I thought you'd be in Boston with Teresa."
CeCe ran her fingers through her cropped, brown hair. "I was. We just got back
today." She turned and leaned against the wall, crossing her arms.
"Is everything okay? She didn't get back together with that guy David, did
she?"
"No, thank God." CeCe reached into her jeans pocket and pulled out a key. She
handed it to Pacey. "I have to go back this afternoon, I can't miss any more
classes. Things didn't go very well in Boston. Can you go by and talk to her?
Make sure she's okay?"
"I don't know.... She told me she didn't want to see me anymore."
CeCe reached out and closed Pacey's hand around the key. "Go see her. Use the
key. I don't think she'll answer the door, but she needs to talk to somebody."
She walked away.
Pacey was still shocked that CeCe would come looking for him when Dawson walked
up behind him. "Who was that?"
"Teresa's sister, CeCe." He stood in the hallway, looking at the key.
"Do you think she's single?"
Pacey looked up at his friend and started to laugh. "You and CeCe. Never
happen," he called over his shoulder on his way to class.
***
After work, Pacey walked to Teresa's house. He rang the doorbell, but no one
answered. Using the key CeCe had given him, he let himself in. He checked the
whole house and finally found Teresa sitting in the backyard, watching the sun
set. Quietly, he walked up and sat down next to her.
"Hey," he said softly.
Teresa turned to face him. She'd been crying. "Hey yourself."
Pacey brushed the tears off her cheek with his thumb. "That bad?"
She started to speak, but ended up crying again. Pacey pulled her close and she
sobbed on his shoulder. After she cried herself to exhaustion, she felt calm
enough to talk. It was late when they looked up and realized how long they had
talked. Pacey knew he had to go home, but dreaded what would happen when he got
there. Finally, near midnight, they said goodnight and Pacey started home.
It was nearly one when Teresa heard the doorbell. She grabbed her robe and went
downstairs to open the door. Pacey looked up from the ground outside.
"My dad finally kicked me out. I didn't know where else to go."
He sounded so lost, and hurt. Teresa put her arm around him and guided him into
the house. "Come inside. It's late."
***
The next morning, Teresa knocked on the door to the spare bedroom. After waiting
a moment, she opened it and let herself in. "Hey," she said quietly.
Pacey looked up from tying his shoe. "Hey yourself." Teresa sat down on the bed.
"I was thinking, Pacey. If you're going to be here for a while, you might want
more of your stuff than what you brought with you." She gestured to where
Pacey's clothes sat on a chair. He had grabbed maybe two days' worth. "I figured
if you weren't working today, I could take you over to your house to pick up
some things."
"I don't think that's a good idea..."
Teresa put her hand on Pacey's shoulder. "I think people will begin to talk if
you keep wearing the same three things over and over again."
Pacey agreed to go and Teresa drove them both to school. At three, they climbed
back into her car and drove over to the Witter house. Pacey let them in and they
went upstairs to his room. Pacey turned to her with a look of disbelief. It was
completely stripped. Even the closet was empty.
Teresa was about to speak when Pacey's brother, Doug, walked down the hall in
front of Pacey's room and saw them standing there. "Who let you in?" he asked,
smirking.
"Stick it, Doug. What happened to my stuff?" Pacey demanded.
Doug snorted. "I don't know.... Try the garage." He turned and left. They went
down to the garage and opened the door. Right in front, there were several
stacks of boxes labeled "Pacey". Quickly, they grabbed what they could stuff
into Teresa's car and left.
"I guess that's it, then," Pacey said sadly as they drove toward Teresa's house.
"So what, Pacey? You didn't need the aggravation. Maybe you're better off
without them."
"I better find an apartment then."
"What? My place not good enough for you?" Teresa teased.
"I didn't want to put you out..."
She put one hand on Pacey's knee. "You aren't. The house is too big for me
anyway. I could use the company." She put her hand back on the steering wheel.
"Y'know what? You need some cheering up. I propose a "Freedom Party" at my...
sorry, OUR house. You can invite anybody you want."
"I don't really feel in the mood for a party right now."
"That's the best time! Grab my phone out of my purse and start inviting people
right now. Today's Thursday, right? Tell them to come over Saturday about noon.
We can kick back by the pool, listen to some music, throw some burgers on the
barbecue. It'll be great."
***
On Saturday, Teresa got up early to set everything up. When Jen, who was the
last to arrive, showed up, the party was in full swing. Dawson and Joey were
having a water fight in the pool. Pacey was lying on a lounge chair and
listening to the stereo while Teresa finished slicing tomatoes for the burgers.
"Everybody's in the backyard," she told Jen as she opened the front door. "Just
drop your bag in the living room and go on back. I'll be there in a minute."
Teresa wiped her hands off on a towel and grabbed a tray full of sodas before
heading outside.
The fivesome was having a good time, splashing and laughing, when Jen looked up.
She nudged Pacey, who was next to her in the pool. "Huh?" He looked up to see
his father standing near the gate, watching them. He immediately launched
himself out of the pool and grabbed a towel.
Teresa, who was busy trying to defend herself from the double-team soaking she
was getting from Dawson and Joey, saw Pacey heading across the backyard. She
gestured for them to stop and got out of the pool, grabbing her towel off a
nearby chair as she tried to catch up with Pacey.
"Dad, what are you doing here?"
Mr. Witter stiffened as his son approached. "I wanted to see what kind of people
you were getting yourself involved with." He looked at Teresa coldly as she
wrapped her towel around herself. "I suppose you're the one putting all these
ideas in my son's head."
"I'm Teresa. What can I do for you?"
"I did some checking up on you... I wanted to let my son know what kind of
person he was seeing." He turned to Pacey. "She's not as wonderful as you
think..."
"Pacey already knows everything about me," she retorted. "But since you've
decided to ruin a perfectly good party and make me look like a complete bitch,
I'll save you the trouble." She turned to look at Pacey's friends behind her.
They were silent, unsure how to handle what looked like a volatile situation.
"Yeah, it's true. I've had my share of problems." Mr. Witter snorted, but Teresa
continued. "My mom died in a car accident when I was four. Dad died of stomach
cancer when I was 14. And I'm sure Mr. Witter would want me to mention David."
She paused for a moment. "David was my boyfriend for two years. When I met him,
everyone told me how perfect he was. Rich, cute, charming. He's in jail right
now for assault and battery."
"See, I got tired of being his punching bag. Even after I told him I was
pregnant, he still beat the crap out of me." She pulled her hair aside to reveal
a long, thin scar that ran along her hairline to her jaw. "He got mad at a
Christmas party and threw a beer bottle at me. It hit the wall behind me, and I
got cut by one of the pieces. Took them 25 stitches to close it up." She dropped
her hair back. "Then he punched me so hard in the face that he broke my
cheekbone. I fell and hit my head on the floor and blacked out. When I woke up
in the emergency room, the police told me they had to drag him away off me
because he was kicking me in the ribs. He ended up breaking two of them and
cracking three others. I was five months pregnant and I was scared. I didn't
know what he would do next. They asked me if I wanted to press charges, so I
did."
"I spent the rest of my pregnancy flat on my back in bed because the doctors
told me I could hemorrhage and lose the baby. Maybe even die. When my son Jordan
was two days old, David was sentenced to ten years in County. When he walked
past me on his way out of court, he told I would be dead soon. Somehow, I
believe him. So, I sent my son to live with my aunt in Arizona and I moved here
to Capeside. I figured that his friends would have a harder time finding me
here. I have to imagine they're looking... it's not like them to just forget
that I was the one that got their buddy put away."
Everyone was silent, including Mr. Witter. She turned to face him again. He
seemed very satisfied with himself. "Is that what you wanted? You wanted
everyone to think less of me because of my past? Well, I've mentioned all the
bad stuff. So why don't I mention the stuff I've done to change my life. Since I
started high school, I went from a D plus average to straight A's. I'm a peer
counselor for Alateen and I speak at teen shelters and shelters for abused
women. In my spare time, I was a literacy volunteer at one of the libraries in
Boston. Last year, I had myself emancipated. I also manage to maintain this
house, which I bought with part of my inheritance, and I'm planning on going to
visit my son during Christmas vacation. Personally, I think I've become a pretty
good person and I work damn hard at it."
She stepped closer to Pacey's father. "And I resent the fact that you showed up
here and tried to embarrass your son in front of his friends. Who in the hell do
you think you are, anyway?"
"I'm Pacey's father."
"That's right. But you're not his dad. You know why? A father is a biological
connection. You're a father. David is a father. Hell, the guys at the local
sperm bank are fathers. But being a dad is a spiritual, loving bond between a
man and his children. It's deeper than blood. Pacey will be a dad someday. So
will my son if I have my way about it. You will never be Pacey's dad." She
turned her back on him and walked away.
"Who are you to judge my relationship with my son?"
Teresa spun on her heel. "I'm the one who understands him. I'm the one who
treats him with respect. I'm the one who's interested in what he thinks and what
he feels. I listen to what he has to say. I *care*, which is more than I can say
about you. So, I suggest you leave my house. You weren't invited to this party."
Mr. Witter turned bright red and stormed off. Teresa looked at Pacey and his
friends, and embarrassed, ran into the house. Pacey started after her, but
Dawson held him back.
"Give her a minute, Pace."
"Let go. I have to be sure she's okay." Dawson dropped his hand and Pacey bolted
through the sliding glass door and up the stairs.
"Well, that was a fun way to spend the afternoon," Joey said softly.
"Lay off, Jo." Dawson slumped onto one of the chairs.
Jen moved to sit nearby. "I think what she did was really brave. I mean, she
didn't know how we'd treat her after all that. And she stood up for Pacey in
front of his dad."
"We never have. That's for sure." Dawson replied. He looked at Joey, who looked
away, guiltily.
"We should go," Joey said as she grabbed her towel. "They'll probably want to be
alone."
Dawson and Jen agreed, and he suggested that he should go upstairs and let them
know. He was only gone for a few minutes, when he came back downstairs.
Jen looked up. "Did you tell them?"
Dawson shook his head. "They were having a really intense conversation upstairs.
I didn't want to interrupt. We should leave a note or something." He found a pad
and pen in the kitchen and scribbled out a quick note, which they left on the
counter before they let themselves out.
Again, comments can be addressed to: brande@tea-house.com. If you flame
though.... Well, you may end up with a little something in your in-box.
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