The Tarnished Angels
Read Interrupted Melody first or you'll have no idea what's going on.
The Tarnished Angels
"Hey, Joey," Dawson said, forcing a smile. Joey just looked up at him through frightened eyes. She had not taken into account the fact that she would inevitably have to see Dawson in school no matter how much she avoided him, which was her present dilemma. She hadn't considered much of anything when she kissed him. Joey started to see the upside to Dawson's constant overanalysis of everything. At least he knew what he was getting into before he followed his heart.
"Hey," she finally replied and turned back to her open locker.
"I haven't seen you since Saturday," Joey winced when Dawson mentioned that day. "What's up?"
"Not much," Joey said, quickly grabbing her books. It was the truth, too. She had spent the rest of her weekend holed up in her room or wandering around the docks except when it was time for her shift at the Icehouse. Since she really didn't want to tell anyone about that and how she remembered being held by and possibly kissed by Dawson and how she had cried about that and how she may have destroyed her relationship with her best friend, there was not much to tell.
"I would have bet that you would have said the ceiling," Dawson said cheerfully. Joey frowned and tried to concentrate harder on the books she was shoving back into her locker. "What's wrong?" Dawson asked. Joey rolled her eyes at the sheer stupidity of the question.
"I have to go," she mumbled and shut her locker. She started walking away.
"Wait, Joey," Dawson said following her. "C'mon. What's the matter?" Joey stopped and looked at him.
"You've got to stop living in whatever fantasy world you're living in, Dawson," Joey said sharply. "You can't just pretend to ignore what I did at the dance."
"What if I don't want to remember?" Dawson whispered. He wished that he could take that back as soon as he let it slip out. He didn't mean for Joey to hear that. Joey swallowed and turned away. She continued walking in the direction she was going while watching the floor go by. "Joey, wait. I didn't mean it like that," Dawson called after her. Joey turned back to him.
"Yes you did. Yes you did. That was a totally honest response. Am I that bad that you have to lie to yourself and pretend that I didn't kiss you? Pretend that I don't--"
"Love you," Dawson interrupted, his lip starting to tremble. "That's not why, Jo. It's not."
"Then what is it, Dawson?" she asked, putting her books down and crossing her arms. "Please tell me because I would really like to know." Joey was also on the verge of tears, but she was hiding it quite well.
"This is not the place to talk about this," Dawson said quietly, trying to avoid eye contact with Joey at all costs.
"Then where? When?" Joey sighed. "I mean, I'm sure you know just what to say. I'm sure you've already overanalyzed the situation to death."
"I didn't think about it all weekend."
"What?" Joey replied, absolutely shocked. "I would have bet that you were lying on your bed with your hands behind your head staring at the ceiling and contemplating the situation. I can't believe that you didn't give it a second thought."
"I didn't," Dawson insisted. "I was with Pacey all day yesterday and walked to school with Jen this morning. Ask either one of them." Joey pursed her lips and looked to the floor when she heard Jen's name.
"I thought Pacey was at his grandma's?" Joey said, her gaze still locked on the floor.
"He came home yesterday morning."
"Oh," Joey said flatly. She didn't want to be in this conversation anymore. She wanted to be in Dawson's arms. That didn't seem to be what this was leading up to, though. "I... um... I have to go. I'll be late to class."
"I'll walk you there, okay? I'm going that way anyway," Dawson said softly but warmly. "Meet me around 6:30pm at the docks, all right? We're still best friends, Jo."
Joey walked up to Dawson and lightly put her hand to his cheek. She smiled weakly, picked up her books, and walked past him. She turned to watch him for a moment before she walked around the corner of the hallway. "I wish I could believe that," she whispered to herself before she disappeared.
"Hey, Jo," Dawson yelled after her. "Joey, your class is the other way!" Dawson looked at where she stood with a confused expression on his face. Just because he had been with Pacey and Jen doesn't mean that his mind wasn't really with Joey. He was only lying to her, not himself. This was one time when analysis hadn't helped, though. He had no idea what to do. He shrugged off the feeling of helplessness and continued walking to his own class.
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Send some feedback! Don't be afraid to tell me that you love or hate the story and why (if there's a reason). It's just an idea I've been messing around with. Other characters will start getting involved in the next part, so don't worry if you miss Pacey or Jen already. They'll be back.