Joey descended the stairs after only half an hour. Walking into the kitchen, she fully expected Pacey to waiting for. Perhaps sitting naked on the table, the irresistible come hither smile on his face. She couldn't help but feel a twinge of disappointment that he wasn't there.

Sighing, she left the room, intent on finding him. If he was going to use her for sex, then damn it, she was going to use him too. Or at least...get her fill of him before he decided it was time for her to leave. Once she set her mind to it, she could be just as cold and unfeeling about everything as he was. Then, when he was back on the opposite coast, she could let herself feel everything that he was forcing her to lock up inside.

At the moment, she had enough aggression and frustration bottle up inside to make for mind blowing sex. And damn him for not being there to take care of her need. The one time she took the initiative he was no where to be found. Maybe it was just another sign that there was no hope for them.

Did she really have any hope anymore? He’d pretty much destroyed what little she clung to upstairs in the bedroom that morning. It felt a little like she was running on empty. She still felt everything…the love, the passion, the addiction to him-perhaps stronger than she ever had before-and yet, it left her hollow inside, where once upon a time those very things had filled her and given her life.

”I felt it.”

“What?”

“This morning. Your arm brushed up against me in bed and… I felt it.”

“How did it feel?”

“It made me feel alive.”

Now, he made her feel too alive. She ached under his touch, no matter how tender, how passionate. When it all came down to it, he made her feel alive and that alone left her empty, because he wouldn’t allow her to live for him. Any hope that she could persuade him to love her back had been thrown out the window.

She walked down the hall to his bedroom and pushed the door open. A quick glance around the room proved he wasn’t there. She turned to leave, and caught her reflection in the mirror above the dresser. Walking over, she stared hard at her reflection, she wondered how she could still look so much the same and feel so very different than she had just a week ago.

Glancing down, she noticed a worn Bible sitting on the dresser top. Since when had Pacey become religious? She fingered the worn leather cover, trying to picture him reading it. The image almost made her laugh. He’d probably just found it on one of his searches and left it there. She noticed a piece of paper just barely sticking up from one end.

Curiosity won out and she flipped the book open, after all, she was there to search, even if it was in Pacey’s room. She unfolded the piece of paper and felt her heart skip a beat at the perfectly scripted words across the top.

“Birth Certificate.” Quickly she scanned over the document until she reached the bottom. “Sophia Susan Johannson.”

“Potter?” Pacey’s deep voice called her name as he climbed the stairs, he appeared at the doorway to see her standing at the dresser, the document in hand. She didn’t even look at him, “Joey, I-“

“You had it all along?” She asked, her voice cracking.

“No, I, uh, found it Tuesday.” He watched her nervously.

She turned on him, her face contorted in anger. “You didn’t tell me! You had it all along…and you never told me!”

He took a step back, “I-I was trying to protect you.”

“Protect me?!” She advanced on him. “You thought you could protect me from this!! Then tell me, Pacey. Who was going to protect me from you?”

“I know how much your mother meant to you…I didn’t think this was something you’d want to know,” He tried to defend himself.

“News flash, Pacey. I already knew!”

“I didn’t mean-“ he blinked. “You what?”

“I already knew.” She said, slightly more calmly. “Mom told me just before she died that she wasn’t my biological mother, but that I was her daughter in heart.” She glanced down at the paper, “She just never told me who my real mother was.”

He frowned, “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Would it have mattered?”

“Well, I wouldn’t have tried to hide the truth from you.”

“You shouldn’t have in the first place!” She narrowed her eyes, “I can’t believe you’d do this, Pacey. If nothing else, I always thought you were honest!”

“I was trying to protect you. I didn’t want you to get hurt.”

“Yeah, well it didn’t work.” She folded her arms across her chest. “The fact that my very married Aunt is really my mother causes much less damage than you lying to me.”

“She’s your aunt?” He purposely ignored the second part of that statement, not wanting to focus on the gravity of his mistake.

“Aunt Sophia. My mom’s sister. I met her twice, I think. She’s a politician. As far as I can remember, she and my mom have hated each other.” She glanced down cynically at the paper. “I guess now I know why.”

“Joey…”

“Don’t, Pacey.” She scowled at him, her brown eyes dark with hurt and anger. “Whatever it is you want to say, just don’t.”

He reached for her, "Please, Joey. I'm sorry."

"Don't!" She stepped away from him. "Don't touch me. I thought after everything I could at least trust you. But I can't even do that." She waved the paper, a forced smile on her face. "Looks like I found what I came for." She pushed passed him to the door. "I guess I'll be going now."

He caught her elbow and pulled her to a stop. "But I didn't ask you to leave."

She looked first to his hand on her arm, then up at his face her eyes cold. "It's different now. Before I didn't want to leave." She jerked her arm from his grip and turned her back on him as she left. "Now I do."

He watched her walk away, it wasn't until she reached the bottom of the stairs that he said anything more. "I got a call from my agent." He called.

She turned to look up at him, angered when she saw a cell phone in his hand. He'd had a phone the entire time. "So?"

"I need to be back in California tomorrow to sign a re-written contract. And they moved filming up to Friday."

"I guess I have good timing then," she said her face schooled to indifference. Part of her had hoped he follow after her and ask for forgiveness, they'd have at least gotten a few more days together.

"I want you to come with me."