Pacey grinned at her glare, shrugging as he gestured toward the front seat. "The boy was determined to go. What am I supposed to do? It's his birthday."

"So why are we going to someone else's party?"

"Because, Potter, his party consists of him, you, me and his parents going out for pizza and then going back to his house to watch a movie. And, I don't know about you, but that's the biggest recipe for boring I've ever seen."

"Thanks, Pacey."

"No problem, Mitch." He waved at the rear-view mirror then turned back to face Joey. "So just suck it up, Potter. Besides, it's not like you're going to do anything like actively participate or anything. You're going to slink off to the corner with Dawson and comment on how stupid and asinine and unintellectual all the rest of the party-goers are, feeling superior while I'm out there having a good time."

"Feeling up girls who wouldn't otherwise give you the time of day?"

"Yeah," he grinned even wider. "Pretty much." He leaned closer, his voice dropping to a whisper. "Why? You jealous?"

"As if."

"Or maybe you're just worried that the real reason Dawson wants to crash this shindig is because he's got a serious hard-on for Julia Freeman and he's all about getting into the spin the bottle ring and poor, little Joey Potter's going to be stuck off to the side all by her lonesome."

"I loathe you."

"You just hate that I'm right." He folded his arms over his chest and sat back in his seat, his smile conveying the very shit-eatingest of attitudes. "And I am right, Potter."

"Just because you think with your dick doesn't mean that Dawson does too." Mitch slammed on the breaks, the car jerking to a stop. Joey blushed to the roots of her hair, bowing her head to avoid Dawson's father's eyes. She bit her lip and looked up at him through the waterfall of her hair. "Sorry."

"No. No problem." He waved out his window to the honking cars behind him. "Just maybe…" he glanced at Dawson who was staring straight ahead, no expression whatsoever on his face. "We could keep the comments about that kind of thing to a minimum."

"Sorry." She turned her head and glared at Pacey, her hand shooting out to punch him in the arm. He cried out a quick "Hey!" then faced her, rubbing the injured spot. "You jackass."

"It's not my fault you don't know how to keep your voice down, Potter."

"You did it on purpose."

"I didn't bring up Dawson's dick, sweetheart, that was all you." He smirked hard. "Of course, if you were doing that, you probably wouldn't have to worry about Julia, would you?"

"You're disgusting."

"Maybe so, Potter." He leaned even closer and dropped his voice to a rough whisper. "But I bet you anything you're on the sidelines tonight all by yourself."

"Yeah? Well, I'll have you know, Pacey Witter, that if I had any desire to find myself locked in a closet with some idiot who doesn't know his ass from a hole in the ground, I'd be more than willing to take that bet."

"I'm beginning to wonder if you know your own ass from a hole in the ground, Joey." He chuckled softly. "He's going to be mooning over some other girl. He's going to be trying to spin that bottle just right so that he gets to kiss her. And you want to know what he's going to do if it lands on you?"

She turned her head away from his, her arms tightening across her chest. Pacey leaned in even closer, his breath stirring her hair. "He's going to give you some perfunctory kiss just to get it over with."

"And what will you be doing?" she snapped as she turned back to him.

"The same thing I do whenever you're humiliated, Potter. Having the time of my life."

Joey scrunched down lower in her seat, sipping the cup of punch she'd grabbed right after walking down into the basement of Julia's house. The room was fairly dark, lit only by strands of twinkle lights, except beside the CD player where a few kids passed around a flashlight in an attempt to find a song that didn't suck. So far they were failing miserably.

"Okay, everyone," Julia's voice carried across the room in the sudden silence as one of the audio/visual geeks killed the sound. "My parents, lovely creatures that they are, have just informed me that they're headed down the street to play cards with our neighbors. So, as long as the noise level stays down, which I have a few ideas to make sure that happens, we're on our own."

A quick cheer went up before the music started again, the sound switching from upbeat pop to something that was no doubt make-out music from the decade previous. Joey rolled her eyes and took another drink, unable to keep her glance from drifting over to the bar that lined the wall. Pacey was leaning against it, his feet crossed at the ankles, talking to some brunette. She was shorter than him, not that that was odd, her dark skin denoting her most likely Asian heritage. Her long hair fell down her back as she tilted her head back to laugh, her eyes staying on his, making sure he was amused as well.

Shaking her head as he reached out, scooping a lock of hair behind the girl's ear, Joey turned her attention to Dawson. He was on the opposite side of the room, lost in the huddle of guys surrounding Julia and her horde of wannabes. Joey watched as he took her empty glass from her, getting to his feet and weaving through the pack of guys to refill it. They swarmed into the space he'd vacated, but he looked more dazed than concerned about working his way back to the inner circle.

Joey propelled herself to her feet and headed for the bar. Dawson was just about to join Pacey as she slipped up behind them. "Hey, D."

"Pace." He grabbed the ladle from the punchbowl and dipped it beneath the surface. "How's it going?"

"Good. This is Lara. She's an exchange student. Doesn't speak much English."

"You guys are a perfect match then."

Pacey made a face as he turned to Joey. "Joey, this is Lara."

"Yeah, do you understand the word pervert? Or asshole?"

Lara looked up at Pacey with deep brown eyes, tilting her head in confusion. "She means that I'm quite a catch and you're lucky to have me."

"No," Joey smirked, "I mean I'm his girlfriend and if you lay a finger on him, I'm going to dump the punch bowl over your head and then beat you to death with the ladle." She laced her arm through Pacey's. "You understand that much English?"

"You're dating this bitch?" Lara snapped. "Figures. All the cute ones are taken." She slammed her cup down on the bar and stalked off. Pacey turned slowly toward Joey, his expression dangerous as he freed his hand from her grip.

"Don't you have the wrong person in your clutches, Joey?" He put his hand on her shoulder and pushed her in Dawson's direction. "Go ruin his life."

"But you're so much fun." She clung to his hand, refusing to let him go. He shoved her again and she stumbled into Dawson, causing his full cup of punch to spill all down the front of the bar.

"What's the matter with you, Joey?"

"Sorry." She backed up a step, shrugging defensively. "It was an accident."

"Yeah." He shook his head and poured another cup, turning back toward Julia without looking at her.

Joey stood there for a long moment before shaking her own head to clear it. She could still feel Pacey behind her and dreaded the look on his face. "I'm going to have some more punch."

"Careful there, Potter. Don't go getting wild on us or anything."

"I can handle myself, Pacey. Thank you very much."

He shrugged as she picked up the ladle and poured herself a full glass, downing it in one long drink. As she shuddered, coughing, he bit back his grin. "They spiked it."

"Thanks for the tip." She sneered. "But I knew that."

"Right."

"I wanted spiked punch. After all, a little alcohol will alter my reality and, with you in it, that's one thing my reality needs." She poured another glass and, knowing he was still watching her, took another healthy swig. "See ya 'round the party, Pacey."

He shook his head and laughed, watching her as she made her way through the crowd. He could almost hear the coin drop when the first wave of the drink hit her, watched her reach out and grab the shoulder of the nearest person. Unfortunately for her it was Lara. Stifling his laugh, Pacey followed her, disengaging the two as Lara stood up, her eyes flashing.

"Sorry. Sorry." He pulled Joey behind him and out of the other girl's reach. "We broke up, she's still not over me. It's…it's bad."

"Yeah. And you're pathetic." Lara smirked. "And," she glanced down at the guy on the floor next to her, "so replaceable."

"Thanks. Good to know." He pushed Joey in front of him and led her to the corner where she'd been sitting. "Jesus, Potter. How is it you manage to ruin my night without even trying?"

"What makes you think I wasn't trying?" She bounced on the cushion as she finished her drink, little drops of the red liquid staining her blue tank top. Pacey watched one of them fall, trying to ignore the fact that it landed on her breast, on the slight protrusion of her nipple which, thanks to about a gallon of ice swimming in the punch bowl, was nice and hard. "This is good. Can I have some more?"

"No."

She took his glass from his hand and downed it. "What are they doing?"

He looked over his shoulder at the group gathered around Julia and her friends. "The time honored tradition of pre-teen parties everywhere." He sat on the arm of her chair. "Spin the bottle."

"How very John Hughes."

"I don't think he ever did that one."

"You know he just didn't have the opportunity before his creative genius ran out and he started making crap like Baby's Day Out."

"Ferris Bueller for the daycare set."

Joey giggled and stood up, stumbling slightly as she encountered his legs dangling near hers. "Let's go play."

"You want to play spin the bottle?"

"Sure. Why not?" She pulled on the hem of her tank top, the collar dipping dangerously low. "I've got breasts…sort of. Boys'll wanna kiss me."

Pacey swallowed as she started toward the gathered crowd, grabbing her hand as Julia and one of the guys stood up. "It's not just kissing, Potter."

"Yes it is. Just because I'm something of a prude," she picked up an abandoned glass and emptied the contents, "doesn't mean that I don't know how to play."

Pacey pointed over her shoulder, nearly laughing as her eyes traveled along his arm to the door quickly closing behind Julia and the guy. "Where are they going?"

"Seven minutes in heaven, Jo. They're making out for seven minutes in that closet, seeing how far they can get before someone gets slapped or gets off."

"Oh." She paused, her brow wrinkling. Suddenly her eyes widened. "Oh."

"Yeah, oh. So let's you and me just have a nice seat on this couch away from the rest of the party and we'll talk about politics or religion or something a hell of a lot safer than the possibility of you getting stuck in a closet with some unsuspecting, horny guy."

"You make it sound bad."

"I make it sound like a homicide in the making and, as much as I might despise you most of the time, Potter, I'd hate for you to get sent up the river for murder."

"I could be in one of those women in prison movies."

"You'd have to become a lesbian."

"Oooh. Hmmm." She chewed the inside of her lip then nodded her head. "I could do that."

"And I'd love to see you try, but," he grabbed her arm as she started for the circle again, "that's not going to happen."

"You don't think I'd be a good lesbian?"

"I think you'd be an excellent lesbian as soon as you got over your intrinsic jealousy and hatred of all other women and, as I mentioned moments ago, I'd love to watch the progression of your sexuality; however, I don't think that Julia's party is the place to start experimenting."

"I might kiss a boy," she whispered.

"You might," he agreed. "And the boy might kiss you back and," he realized she'd started moving again and grabbed her arm, "you might knee him in the groin and then he'd be writhing in pain and that would be an unsatisfactory ending to the party."

"I might like it."

Pacey stopped as if the thought had never occurred to him. "You might."

Joey freed her arm and darted the last few feet to the circle, squeezing in between two guys, neither of whom seemed to mind as she wiggled her short covered ass against their thighs. Rubbing his face with his hands, Pacey headed toward the circle, stopping just as he was about to sit down at the angry glare on Lara's face.

"Sorry."

"Yeah," she smirked. "Might want to sit somewhere else."

He stepped back walked around, sinking down onto the floor as Julia and the guy walked back into the room, the group laughing at their rumpled clothes. The guy blushed and sat back in his seat, spinning the bottle without looking at Julia.

"Whee!" Pacey's head shot up at Joey's cry, nearly groaning. She was going to decapitate the poor boy and he wasn't sure which head would roll first. "You get to go in the closet!" She slapped the shoulder of one of the guys sitting next to her. "It must be such a relief for you not to have to find a reason to disappear with another guy!"

"Uh…" the guy blushed and grabbed the bottle. "Dude, we're not gay."

"Oh," she nodded, her lips pursed in unconvinced agreement. "Right."

He spun and landed on a girl, hurrying after her to the closet. Joey took over his seat, scooting closer to the guy on the other side of him, her eyes widening as she realized it was Dawson.

"Hey!"

He flushed, barely nodding at her. "Hey."

"I didn't take you for a spin the bottle kind of guy, Dawson." She leaned over his lap, poking Pacey who was a few people down, in the thigh. "Dawson's playing."

Dawson glanced at Pacey, his stare accusatory. "She had some punch."

"Some?" Dawson smirked.

"I'm not her fucking chaperone, Dawson."

"Obviously not." He grabbed Joey's arms and sat her back up, turning his attention back to the opposite side of the circle and doing his best to ignore her. She glanced at him, noticing his drink between his legs as he sat Indian style and grabbed it, downing the contents in one quick swallow. "Joey!"

"Yummy!" She grinned then licked the rim of the glass, letting her tongue slide down the sides into the cup itself. "It's so good."

"You're drunk."

"No." She shook her head, affecting a serious look. "I'm just a wee bit tipsy. Hee. Wee." She giggled, perking up as the closet door opened and the couple walked out. "Oooh! Next!"

The girl spun the bottle, using her free hand to finish buttoning her blouse. Her spin landed on Julia and she laughed. "So, what do you say, Jules?"

Julia laughed as well, leaning across the circle to kiss her friend on the cheek. "You know I'm all about sharing the love." She sat back, grabbing the bottle as she did. Looking around the circle, she caught Dawson's eye then gave the bottle a quick spin.

Dawson looked down, his hands running anxiously over his thighs as the bottle slowed. He blew out a frustrated breath as it passed him, his eyes widening as he realized where it landed.

"Well, Pacey Witter." Julia got to her feet and held out her hand. "C'mon, narc-boy. Let's go do something nasty."

"Well, you'll be there, Jules, won't be much choice, will there?" He gave her a fake smile and followed her, glancing back over his shoulder as she pulled the door shut behind them.

"Where'd Pacey go?" Joey asked Dawson.

"In the closet."

"Why?"

"He's making out with Julia."

"Oooh." She nodded then shook her head. "I thought you liked her."

"Shut up, Joey."

"Right. Dawson, Pacey would never go after a girl you liked." She nodded sagely. "I'm sure it's all a mistake." She paused again, her brow furrowing. "What are they doing in there?"

"Making out," Dawson snapped.

"Oh." Joey closed her eyes, enjoying the warm buzz of the booze drifting lazily through her system. Dawson seemed tense beside her, the muscles of his leg bunched together. "You're uptight."

"Shut. Up. Joey."

"Right." She kept her eyes closed, nodding in time to the music. Julia was pretty. Pacey was in there with pretty Julia. He was touching her. Poor girl. Touching her with his long, tapered fingers, his big hands. When had she noticed he had big hands? She was probably pinned up against the wall and his leg was beneath her. Pacey's muscles weren't bunched together like he had a stick up his ass. Pacey's muscles were long and smooth and hard beneath his skin. His tan, soft skin. She sighed softly. Julia was probably touching him. Her smile faded into a frown and she opened her eyes then glanced down at her watch. "How long have they been in there?" When Dawson didn't answer her, she looked at the guy on her other side. "How long have they been in there?"

"C'mon, Julia!" One of the girls was laughing as she knocked on the door. "It's been over seven minutes. Tell Witter to put it back in his pants and come and spin the bottle. Maybe he can get off with the next girl."

The door opened and Pacey stepped out, his expression cocky. "I like to take my time, Chloe." He touched the tip of her nose with his finger. "Do it right."

"Like you know how to do it, Witter." She grabbed Julia's hand as she walked out of the closet. "You okay, Jules?"

Julia nodded, leaning in to her friend, her voice low, but still loud enough to carry across the room. "I wanna spin him again."

Pacey's grin barely touched Joey as he sank into his seat. She looked at him, noticing the dark mark just above his collar. She was about to say something when Dawson clamped a hand over her mouth. "Don't embarrass any of us more than you already have, okay?"

She nodded as Pacey spun, her eyes following the moving bottle as it continued to whirl, finally landing on her. "Oh shit."

Dawson removed his hand, his glare scorching as it touched Pacey. He ignored Dawson and got to his feet, holding a hand out to Joey. There were a few catcalls as they walked to the closet, most of them warning him to wear armor over his balls, following them until the door was closed.

"Go."

Pacey glanced at the floor as the time started, shifting uncomfortably as Joey stared up at him. "You've got a hickey."

"Yeah." He rubbed the spot with his fingertips. "Jules likes to bite."

"Did it feel good?"

He shrugged and looked over her shoulder at the wall. "Maybe you'll spin Dawson next and end up in here with him. You'd like that, huh?"

"You want to know a secret, Pacey?" She leaned into him, her breath sweet with punch. He bent his head, closing his eyes as he inhaled her.

"What's that, Potter?"

"I'm drunk."

He chuckled, the sound reverberating in the small room. "Joey, that's not a secret."

"You wanna know another one?"

"Sure."

She stood on tiptoe, pressing her lips to his. She swallowed his shocked gasp as she slid her tongue in his mouth, her arms circling his neck. He wrapped his hands around her waist and lifted her, walking forward a few steps to pin her to the closet wall. Joey moaned quietly and wrapped her legs around his waist, her shorts riding further up her thighs.

"Jesus," he breathed as he thrust forward on instinct, the heat between her legs bathing his cock through the thin khaki of his shorts. Joey buried her fingers in his hair, tugging on the short strands as she continued kissing him, her mouth moving along his jaw, her tongue tracing the path she was burning on his skin.

"One minute."

Pacey pulled back, forcing himself to lower her to the ground. Joey was panting for breath, her eyes wide with surprise. "What just happened?"

His hand hovered over her cheek then he pulled it away, not allowing himself to touch her. "I don't…"

"Time's up!"

Pacey and Joey both flushed as the dim lights of the party filtered through the open door. Pacey's gaze shot to Dawson who stood on the outer rim of the circle, his eyes trained on them as they walked through the door. Pacey looked away and headed for the basement stairs. Shoving his hands in the pockets of his shorts, he took the stairs two at a time, ignoring the jibes from the rest of the crowd.

"Joey?"

Joey looked at Dawson, her gaze conflicted despite the glassy sheen of drunkenness. "Not now, Dawson."

"Joey."

She was about to respond when Julia called out Dawson's name. "Come on! Come and spin."

Dawson glanced over his shoulder then back at Joey. She held his gaze, her own defiant and challenging.

"Come on, Dawson." Julia's voice seemed to be the only sound in the room, filling the growing distance between them. "Spin the bottle."

He turned and Joey bolted for the stairs, tripping over them in her haste. She caught herself before she fell, hanging on to the banister until she was back on solid ground. Pacey was standing by the far wall, most of him hidden behind the massive walnut bar. He unscrewed the top from one of the bottles and took a huge, quick gulp, shuddering as it burned its way down his throat.

"What's the matter?" She asked lightly, her voice shimmering with nervous tension. "You afraid I gave you cooties?"

"We're not five, Joey." He took another swig from the bottle, barely suppressing the urge to gag. "The punch was just too sweet for me."

"I didn't see you drink any."

He looked at her pointedly then took another drink. "I got a taste."

She laughed and shook her head, sliding her hand along the bar, putting distance between them. "It was just a game, Pacey."

He nodded, his blue eyes narrowed as he watched her. "Tell me somethin', Jo. Would you be saying that if it had been Dawson in that closet?"

"I don't think Dawson would have kissed you."

"With you," he walked toward her, reaching over the bar to grab her wrist, holding her captive. "If he'd been in there with you, would it have been just a game."

"Why?" She pulled her hand away from his, her eyes flashing. "Are you jealous?"

"Of Dawson?" Pacey laughed. "Because of you?"

"Screw you."

"Trust me, Jo, I've got nothing to be jealous of."

"Yeah? I suppose you're going to tell me that what I felt in there was just my imagination? That you weren't excited?"

"Oh, I was excited," he nodded, his expression dangerous. "After all, I'd just been felt up by a gorgeous older woman. All blonde and curvy." He leaned into her, practically purring as the words fell from his lips. "You think you've got anything on Jules, Jo, and you're seriously delusional." He cocked his head to the side and nodded toward the top of the basement stairs. Joey turned her head just enough to see Dawson come up into the room, his face flushed, his clothes disheveled and his eyes darting nervously around the room. "Especially since it seems maybe Jules has got everything all over your guy."

"He's not my guy," she bit out.

Pacey smirked and screwed the cap back on the bottle, tucking it under his arm as he headed for the door. "That much, Joey Potter, is obvious."

"You heading home, Pacey?"

He saluted Dawson. "You know it, D." He held up the bottle. "I got what I came for. So now I'll leave you and Joey to enjoy your birthday in true, hormonal glory."

"I think the game's over."

Pacey smirked and let out a soft breath of laughter. "Well then, in that case, I guess you're going to have to fight off Joey's drunken advances during the first reel of ET."

"Good riddance."

He turned his piercing gaze to Joey and held her eyes with his own for a long, tense moment. "Careful now, Jo. You've had quite a bit to drink." He licked his lips, his gaze hot with memory. "Don't go doing something you might regret."

"Too late for that, Pacey. I've already wasted too much of my evening on you." She looked at Dawson. "You ready to go?"

Dawson's gaze shifted between them until he shrugged. "You sure you don't want to come back to the house, Pace?"

He nodded and shook the bottle. "I've got much better company right here."

"Figures you'd prefer an inanimate object," Joey smirked. "Getting tired of your hand?"

"Nah," he drawled, grinning slyly. "Just didn't get enough satisfaction from yours."

Dawson's forehead wrinkled as Pacey turned and left the house. Turning to Joey he crossed his arms over his chest. "What did he mean?"

"Let's just go."

"No. What exactly happened in that closet?"

Refusing to meet his gaze, Joey shook her head. "Nothing, Dawson." She finally looked up as he stepped closer, her eyes challenging him to doubt her. "Nothing at all."

2/19/03