“Pacey, you are not fooling me with that. You have nothing in your hand -you just want to freak me out!” Six year old Joey Potter told the boy who was standing before her, fist clenched, as if he was about to drop something on her lap.
She was sitting cross-legged on the grass in her front yard, waiting for her Mom to come home so she could take Joey and Pacey to pick up their friend, Dawson and take them all to the Rialto to watch a movie.
“How can you be so sure?” Pacey asked deviously as he lowered the hand over her head, as if to drop whatever insect onto her hair, which was up in pigtails.
“Because, dipstick, you are too much of a girl to be holding any form of creepy-crawlies.” She told him, shading her eyes from the sun with her hand as she looked up at him.
The boy seemed to give in, and sat next to her, un-clenching his fist, proving her right. “So, do you know what we are gonna see?”
“Do I ever? - That’s Dawson’s thing, he chooses and doesn’t tell us what we’re gonna be watching until we buy tickets!”
They sat in silence for a while, Joey noticed a small spider clinging onto a piece of grass at the side of her. She hid her smile as she scooped in up.
“Oh, Pacey...” She began in a whiny voice as she pulled herself to her feet.
“Um?” He looked up at Joey, who was now looming over him.
In a flash Joey had thrust her fist towards him and opened it, letting the spider fall down onto him.
Pacey yelped in shock as he scrambled to his feat.
Joey fell back down onto the grass laughing.
“Oh, so you like laughing do you?” Pacey asked, and he bent down and began tickling her, making her laugh even more.
He kept tickling her, until she managed to get to her feet and fun off, with him in hot pursuit.
He caught up with her round the back of the house, and jumped to the ground, pulling her down with him.
They were both laughing now, until they heard a cough coming from Joey’s older sister who was leaning on the back wall of the house, a boy was with her.
“Jo, go play someplace else OK? Me and Matt are talking.” Fifteen year old Bessie Potter told her sister irritably.
Joey looked at Pacey as they got to their feet, when their eyes met they burst into laughter knowing all too well that Bessie and the boy had not been talking.
Bessie looked at them fury burning in her eyes as the two walked away trying to stifle their giggles. “Just wait until your my age, Josephine Potter, I’ll recruit all the kids in town to interrupt you when you’re ... talking privately with your friends!”
Pacey followed Joey around the side of the house, neither saw that a car had appeared on the drive-way, and Joey’s Mom watching them from the porch as they came round the front.
Mrs Potter was about to call them over so they could drive over to Dawson’s, but stopped and smiled instead as she watched her daughter attempt to pull down Pacey’s shorts.
She watched as the little brown haired boy pushed Joey away from him to stop her, and then reach out to pull up Joey’s skirt.
Joey shrieked and managed to escape his hands with a sudden movement.
Joey went for Pacey’s shorts again in a sudden mysterious moment, and he ran off through the longer grass by the creek with Joey in chase.
They disappeared from Mrs Potter’s view as they dashed behind a bush, but she grinned at the sound of their shouts and laughter.
Mrs Potter let her eyes linger on the sunlit creek for a moment, before she headed towards the bush.
Behind it, Pacey and Joey seemed to be having a tickle-fight, they were rolling about on the ground laughing and tickling each other for a while before they noticed Joey’s Mom watching them.
“Hey, Mom!” Joey said as she jumped up and gave her mother a hug.
“Hi princess, hello Pacey. How was your day? Are you guys ready to go?” Mrs Potter asked the two, smiling warmly at them both.
“Today was boring, Pace was dropped off by his dad ‘bout twenty minutes ago and we’ve been ready since!” Joey told her mom excitedly, already leading the way to the car.
“What about you, Pacey? Have you had a good day?”
“It was OK. All my family was out except me and my older sister, and she was in her room with her boyfriend all day, so I could do whatever I wanted!”
Mrs Potter gave a weak smile as she got in the door. “That must’ve been fun.” She said, wondering how Pacey could think spending time alone was better than being with his family.
Pacey told Joey and her Mom about all the things he did that day as they drove to Dawson’s, when they arrived, Mrs Potter sent Joey up to ring the bell and get Dawson.
“Pacey?” Mrs Potter asked as Joey ran up to the Leery’s front door.
Pacey looked up.
“How would you like to come over and play with Joey everyday for the rest of the summer? - I would be able to pick you up in the morning and take you there before work.”
“Really, Mrs Potter? - You wouldn’t mind?”
“Not at all, Pacey. Maybe you can stop Joey telling me her day has been boring when I ask her everyday! But, I would get the OK from your parents first, alright?”
Pacey nodded enthusiastically as Joey opened the car door and jumped in. “Mrs Leery said Dawson can’t come - he’s got flu. He won’t be able to come out or have visitors for at least a week!” She said solemnly.
“Oh, dear. Well, I’m sure you two can have some fun on your own.” Mrs Potter told them as she drove off heading for the Rialto.
When they arrived, after much squabbling from Pacey and Joey, they finally agreed on what they should watch.
Mrs Potter went and brought their tickets.
“Now, Joey, do you have a quater or so?” She asked her daughter.
Joey fumbled in her pockets. “Four! In case the phone swallows the first few!”
“Good. Now, phone me to come pick you up when the movies over, OK?” Mrs Potter said, looking at the two.
“Mom, we’ve been doing this for the past five Thursdays! We know how everything’s planned by now!” Joey told her mother, crossing her arms.
Mrs Potter smiled, and leaned down to kiss her daughter’s cheek, after she did so she went for Pacey, as she had done the past five weeks, and Pacey did as he had done the past five weeks, and dodged away from her.
Mrs Potter laughed. “See you guys later. Enjoy the movie.”
“Bye, Mrs Potter!” Pacey called after her.
“See ya, Mom! - By the way, Bessie’s kissing a boy at the back of the house.”
Mrs Potter raised an eyebrow as she walked away.
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“Pacey! Would you not pull my pigtails!” Joey hissed to Pacey, who was sitting behind her in the movie theatre on purpose SO he could pull her pigtails.
Pacey stopped for about ten minutes to watch the movie, but then started to throw popcorn at Joey’s head.
Suddenly, Joey turned round in her seat and dumped all her popcorn over him before going back to the movie.
Pacey just sat in shock, he didn’t expect that at all.
He grabbed a handful of popcorn, leaned forward and stuffed it down the back of Joey’s shirt.
That got her attention, she whirled round and glared at him, while shaking her T-shirt and letting all the popcorn fall out.
She got up and moved back to Pacey’s row and sat beside him. “What the hell was that!” She whispered angrily.
Pacey grinned. “Hey, you’re the one who dumped your popcorn all over me!”
“Only ‘cause you were throwing yours at me and pulling my hair!”
“Sssshhh!” A boy behind them leaned forward in his chair. “Would you two keep it down! You’re really beginning to annoy me!”
The boy sat back and looked at the girl he was obviously there with. “Kids!” He mumbled to her.
Pacey looked at Joey and Joey looked at Pacey, they both grabbed a handful of popcorn out of Pacey’s pot and pelted the boy with it.
The boy stood up, and looked very mad, so Joey grabbed Pacey’s hand and they both ran out of there as fast as they could, dodging popcorn the boy threw at them in anger.
They stopped when they were outside the screening room. After they re-covered from laughing, Pacey suggested they phone Joey’s Mom to pick them up.
“She’ll know something happened, we’ve only been here half-an-hour!” Joey exclaimed, not wanting her mother to know she just threw popcorn at a complete stranger.
“So what do we do now then? - And before you suggest it, I’m not going back in there, that guy looked ready to kill us!” Pacey pointed out.
“Don’t worry, I’m with you! I wouldn’t go back in there if you paid me!” Joey wondered towards the pay-phones that were situated to the right of the movie theatre. “How many quater’s you got? - We can make prank phone calls.”
Pacey dug into his pockets. “I have five, you?”
“Four, but we gotta save one so I can call my Mom later.”
“So we can make eight pranks! - I know, lets do Dawson one!”
“We can’t, his Mom’d answer and ask who wanted him! Besides, she probably would say he can’t come to the phone ‘cause he has flu.”
“Okay, - how about we ring my house, my parents are going out for dinner tonight, so my sisters and Dougie would be the only ones home!” Pacey said eagerly.
“They’d recognise your voice!”
“But, not yours!” Pacey said, winking at her.
Joey grinned. And pulled him into the phone box with her. “What’s your number?” She asked, picking up the receiver.
Pacey punched the number in for her.
“Hello?” Came a voice after a few rings, Joey mouthed ‘Doug’ to Pacey.
“Hi.” Joey said in a deep voice.
Pacey clapped a hand over his mouth to stop himself laughing.
“Can I help you?” Doug asked her.
“Yeah, I need to speak to Sheriff Witter. Is that possible?”
“No, he’s not here right now. Can I take a message?”
“Yeah, tell him when I saw him come into a restaruant I’m now in just a little while ago, his zipper was undone, oh, and this thing was hanging out.” Joey said casually in her deep voice.
Pacey sank to the floor, trying hard not to laugh, and wondering how Joey was sounding so calm, and had a straight face.
“Oh, OK.” Doug said. “Who is this, exactly?”
“I. P. Freely.” Joey said.
“I. P. Freely?” Doug questioned, not getting it the way Joey said it.
“Y’know, you really shouldn’t!” Joey said deeply before hanging up and joining Pacey on the floor.
“My go now!” Pacey said unhooking the phone when they calmed down.
They entertained themselves like this for another half an hour, but when they finished up with their last quater, they walked leisurely back over to the entrance.
They mucked about for a bit longer until there was nothing else they could do, then, they rung Joey’s mom, and she came to pick them up.
Joey walked Pacey to the door so she get Pacey’s dad’s answer to see if it was alright if Pacey came round to hers everyday until summer was over.
As Joey and Pacey made their way up to the Witter’s front door, so did Mr and Mrs Witter, obviously just arriving home after their evening out.
Before his parents could get inside, Pacey asked them about Mrs Potter’s idea, they agreed and went to the door.
Joey silently waved bye to Pacey, who did the same, and she skipped down the steps heading to the car where her Mom was waiting for her.
She heard Mr Witter open the door, then she sucked back a smile as she heard Doug’s voice.
“Dad, some weirdo phoned and said your zipper was undone and said they were called I. P. Freely!” Doug whined.
Joey glanced back over her shoulder, Pacey turned around also and winked, grining at her.
She grinned back, and then ran to tell her Mom that she’d be picking up Pacey every morning before work.
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The summer went on, and Joey and Pacey had a great week together, swimming in the creek, watching videos, annoying Bessie.
They bonded a lot, and Dawson, even after he was better, couldn’t come over to join in their fun. As his parents didn’t want him rowing across the creek on his own and they couldn’t give him a lift because they were both busy.
At the start it had always been Dawson, Pacey and Joey, the three musketeers, but now, Pacey and Joey were getting closer, and Dawson was all alone at home.
Over the summer the two became best friends, despite their arguments, which they both knew was just friendly banter. They somehow forgot about Dawson.
“Promise me something, Pace?” Joey asked mid-afternoon one day after watching ET on video.
“What?”
“That no matter what happens in the future, no matter if we fall out and never speak to each other again, or hurt each other really badly. No matter what, we’ll look back and remember we’re best friends?”
“I promise. But, I don’t really need too! - We’ll be best friends forever! ... You promise too, right?”
Joey nodded. “I promise, Pace.”
But their promises were broken a week later, after Bessie took them to the cinema.....
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“Now you two remember, I don’t want to see you until the movies finished!” Bessie told them before she walked off to meet the guy Joey and Pacey had caught her kissing before.
“I don’t know why Bessie bothers going to the movies with boys, she doesn’t watch ‘em!” Joey whispered to Pacey as Bessie greeted the boy with a quick kiss.
Pacey shrugged, and they went to get popcorn.
“Ugh! I just had a horrible thought!” Pacey said, his face scrunched up as they sat down in the movie theatre, right away from where Bessie was with her boyfriend.
“What?”
“School, tomorrow! - TOMORROW, can you believe it? Summer’s over!” Pacey said with disgust.
Suddenly, Joey gasped. “Pace, that boy that’s coming over, who’s looking directly at us,... isn’t he the one we threw popcorn at before?”
Pacey looked over, and saw the boy who Joey was talking about, and as she said, he WAS looking directly at them, and he looked as furious as he did last time they saw him.
Pacey turned to Joey. “You wanna run for it, or deny everything?”
Joey looked from Pacey to the boy who was getting closer.
She looked back at Pacey, who had just returned himself from looking at the guy. “Run!” They confirmed together and scrambled out of their seats.
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They sat on the wall outside, where Bessie said she’d meet them when the film was over.
“Well, we have, like, an hour or so to waste. What you wanna do?” Joey asked him.
“Got any spare quater’s?” Pacey asked her, fumbling around in his pockets.
Joey shook her head. “No, spent all my money on this.” She held out the popcorn to show him, and popped a few in her mouth. “You?”
Pacey shook his head. “No calls to Dougie today.” He said sadly. He looked at Joey for her reaction.
She was looking at something behind him. “Ugh! - That is so disgusting!”
Pacey glanced over his shoulder and found that Joey was looking at a couple kissing furiously, he, like his best friend, watched intrigued.
He turned back to her. “How can they do that?!” He asked incredulously.
Joey shrugged. “Well, they must like it, right? - They wouldn’t do it otherwise.”
Pacey looked back at the couple. “Wonder what it feels like.” He thought out loud.
Joey nodded behind him. “Me too. Bessie’s always doing it, so it can’t be all bad.”
Pacey turned back to her, inspiration struck him. “Hey, you wanna try it?”
Joey raised her eyebrows. “You serious?”
Pacey nodded. “.. Only to see what it’s like, though!”
Joey shrugged, and put her popcorn down next to her. “Well, OK.”
Slowly, and cautiously, they moved closer.
Neither knew how to go about it, so there was a few awkward moments as they tilted their heads to find the right position.
It was a quick, sloppy kiss. But, that didn’t mean they didn’t enjoy it, because they both did. It wasn’t so much the wet slushy kiss they liked, but the feeling of righteousness that came with it as their lips touched.
Of course, when they pulled away, neither wanted to admit they liked it, so they both pretended to make a face.
“No offence, Jo. But, that was... it was ...”
“It was ugh!” Joey finished for him. “No offence to you either!”
“I’m sure we’ll like it when we get older!” Pacey joked. “I mean, I didn’t like peas a couple of years ago, and I like ‘em now! - Tastes change, I guess!”
Joey nodded, but couldn’t let go of the feeling they had just shared, maybe they WERE too young for this now, but, she wanted another shot at it in a few years, mostly because she got the feeling that being with others didn’t always feel as good as what she had with Pacey a moment ago.
“Promise me, Pace. When we are older, we’ll try that again?” She requested quietly.
Pacey nodded. “I promise, that when I get older, I’ll kiss you.”
Joey smiled. “And I promise, when I get older, I’ll kiss you back.”
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The next day, at school, was when both their promises they made over the summer seemed to fade away.
Because, when Joey came up to Pacey and Dawson, who were talking in the hallway, Pacey quickly said hi to her and dashed off, leaving her with Dawson.
From then on, that summer faded quickly in their minds, promises well and truly forgotten.
Pacey and Joey drifted apart, and found themselves talking to Dawson more than each other.
They argued more intensely, mostly because they both wanted Dawson to themselves and not have to share him with a person who they began to dislike more and more.
The three musketeers had gone from all three of them, to Pacey and Joey for a short while and then to Dawson and both of them, but, separately, for the next nine years.