Synopsis of Eastern Standard Time
Written by Tamara Jaron
Dawson and Gretchen are playing a board game in Dawson's bedroom. Seeing that Dawson's distracted, Gretchen asks him what's on his mind. He admits he's thinking about Joey. Tomorrow is senior ditch day and she and Jen are heading to New York so that Jen can check out schools.
Gretchen tells him a story about her senior ditch day. She and a bunch of friends just hopped in a car and headed to Virginia for no good reason. As soon as they got there, they turned around and came back. Dawson says he's never done anything like that. It's apparent he feels like he's missed out. Suddenly he grabs Gretchen and drags her downstairs. He wants to go have a driving adventure. Gretchen is hesitant, but Dawson is excited. He thinks it's exactly what they need. They head out the door into the unknown with a sense of urgency.
Jen is back at her therapists. He points out that she is being very quiet, and she apologizes. He wants to know what's on her mind. She begins to talk about a Lou Reed/Cowboy Junkies song called "Sweet Jane" that she's had stuck in her head. She starts to daydream, and we are taken back in time to a flashback of her ditch day experience.
Grand Central Terminal, in all it's glory. Joey and Jen have just arrived and Joey is already warning Jen about the list of sights that she has to see before leaving. Jen has an appointment with an admissions officer at the University of New York, so Joey is planning to hit the attractions and then meet up with Jen for dinner. Their train home is at 11pm. This is Joey's first time to the city, and she is in awe of imposing size.
Meanwhile, back in Capeside, a very studious Pacey is preparing for a class exam. Drue discovers him and they share stories about why they are the only two seniors ditching ditch day. Pacey explains that he can't afford to miss a day of school, and Drue admits that his mother forced him to attend after a warning from the administration. Pacey doesn't really want to be bothered by Drue, but Drue has a proposition for Pacey. He suggests that they ditch afternoon classes and go have some fun. Pacey is not tempted by his offer and explains that he has to study for another test tomorrow. Drue acquiesces, and as he departs he brings up Joey, wondering what she's up to while Pacey rots in school.
Joey is getting the Jen Lindley tour of NYC. Jen takes her to one of her old haunts, where they run in an old friend. Jen asks what her old gang has been up to and Joey shares the news that Jen may be coming back to New York soon. Her friend is happy to hear it, but Jen does not share his happiness. She is still having doubts about the city.
Back to Pacey. It's quiz time, but by the look on his face, you'd think it was the inquisition. He is not a happy camper. The teacher makes a crack about this being the first quiz of the rest of his life, and Pacey just looks at him as though his life were coming to an end.
Dawson and Gretchen are also having an unlucky day. They've encountered a flat tire on their driving adventure.
All Dawson can say is, "Well, this happened."
"That's it?" asks Gretchen. "That's all you have to say? After six hours on the road. This happened? Aren't you supposed to have a spare?"
"Supposed to, yeah. Have? No."
Oh boy, what are they going to do now? Gretchen has a good attitude about the whole thing. She feels like they've finally found their adventure. She suggests trying to hitchhike, but Dawson doesn't like the idea. Instead, he suggests they walk to the nearest town, about six miles, for help.
Back in Capeside, Pacey's day has gone from bad to worse. He is unable to finish the quiz on time and is forced to hand it in incomplete. Doesn't he ever get any breaks?
Jen and Joey are wondering around in the East Village. When Joey questions Jen about her meeting at the University of New York, she discovers that Jen made it up. She doesn't have a meeting. The real reason for her trip to New York is to have the chance to work out her issues with her father. Jen suggests that Joey go and enjoy the city while she deals with her father. They say goodbye and Joey gets about twenty feet before she changes her mind and decides to tag along with Jen. She can tell that she needs a friend, and she has the feeling that she won't see Jen again if she lets her go alone.
Dawson and Gretchen make it to the nearest town -- a sleepy little Maine fishing village. Thankfully, there is one garage in the town. They find a man who can help them fix their tire on one condition, Dawson has to help him fix his truck, otherwise they'll have no way of driving back to Dawson's car. While the boys work on the car, Gretchen goes in search of food.
Joey and Jen head straight to the offices of Jen's father. As they step off the elevator, Joey stops Jen and warns her that she better slow down and think about what she's going to say to her father, because she'll only get one chance. Jen agrees.
In the Capeside high cafeteria, Pacey overhears some students talking about how they aced the quiz. He then notices Drue at a nearby table. They catch each other's eyes, and Pacey silently agrees to take him up on his offer of ditching the rest of the day.
Back in Manhattan, Jen and Joey have gone to the ladies room to take a moment.
Noticing how upset Jen is, Joey asks "Jen, what happened to you?"
"I used to hate Capeside," says Jen, trying to keep her composure. "When I was a little girl, like twelve, god I just hated it. And I know it sounds ludicrous now, but it was because of my grams. I was totally petrified of her, so whenever my mom would want us to go visit, I just completely didn't want to go. And there was this one time, and it was a Friday, and we were supposed to go up for the weekend, just me and my mom, because my dad had all this work to do. And I just complained and fought with her in the cab all the way to the train station. And we get to the platform, and for some reason, I still don't know why, she just turned to me and said 'Jen, you don't want to go? Fine, stay at home and be with your father.' And I just remember being shocked that I'd won. That instead of going to Capeside, I got to spend the whole weekend with my dad. I really loved my dad, but..."
She gets cut off as someone enters the bathroom.
Gretchen finds a diner that is out of just about everything except a mysterious beef sandwich. She orders two sandwiches and two drinks.
A secretary lets Mr. Lindley know that Jen has come to visit. When she enters his office, he grabs her and embraces her. He is very happy to see her. She introduces him to Joey and he inquires why they've come to New York. Joey tells him that Jen got accepted to the University of New York.
Her father is ecstatic. He insists that they celebrate and cancels all his afternoon appointments so that they can go out for dinner. Jen is reluctant to go out, and Joey is not quite sure what to make of the whole situation.
The fun has just begun for Drue and Pacey. They've arrived at a very seedy bar. Pacey warns that they must be cautious, but Drue doesn't need his help -- he seems to know everyone there by name. Let the games begin. Drue gives Pacey a very unconvincing fake ID and explains that all he has to do is show it, for formality's sake. Drue orders three rounds of tequila and slips the waitress a hundred so that she'll start a tab.
"Do you know why I brought you here Pacey?" asks Drue.
"Because you didn't want to drink alone," offers Pacey.
"Well, yeah. But there's more. The bar that we're sitting in right now, the big A saloon, lies in the shadow of your local community college, which, as I understand it, is becoming an increasingly likely alternative for you."
"You know, man. When I was in school the other day, I just couldn't help feeling the place getting a little lonely."
"Everybody's gone, it's ditch day," says Drue.
"I know," says Pacey. He then rethinks what he's doing. "I don't think I'm ready to have this conversation yet. With anybody, and especially not with you." He grabs the salt and sprinkles some on his wrist.
"That's fine. Hey I just thought that you should see this place. But hey, despite the stigma of failure and loss, you're surrounded by good people, smart people, people of substance."
They grab their shots and toast to the future.
Gretchen and Dawson are finally heading back to their car with the spare tire. On the way, Gretchen has the bright idea to ask how much the tire is going to cost. Dawson interrupts, saying it's not polite to ask the question, but the mechanic interrupts him saying it'll cost sixty bucks for the tire. And another twenty bucks for the ride. Turns out they don't have that kind of money.
The mechanic pulls over and lets them out on the side of the road. Dawson tries to reason with him, to at least get a ride all the way back to the car, but he's a stubborn old man and is not prone to generosity.
Once again they are stranded, but their senses of humor are intact.
Jen is uncharacteristically quiet during lunch with her father. He must be in PR, because he has that polished way of dealing with people -- from the waiter, to Joey, to his own daughter. Joey decides to strike up a conversation about college, and Jen's father asks Joey where she's headed for school. When she tells him Boston, he delivers a rousing speech about the greatness of New York. Jen is not really paying attention as her father compares his relationship with New York to a romance. Joey is her usual wide-eyed self, but Jen just becomes more and more withdrawn.
Dawson is trying to come up with a new plan. In fact, Gretchen is withholding his beef sandwich until he thinks of what they can do next. His first great idea? To walk back to town and have his parents wire them money. Gretchen points out that the little podunk town is unlikely to have an all-night Western Union. Dawson goes back to thinking.
Pacey and Drue are sufficiently soused and winning big at cards. The owner of the bar comes to talk to them, to quiz them actually. It appears he doubts their veracity, and their tab has run out. Pacey gets up to confront the owner, and for a moment it seems as though he's about to start a fight. Then he and Drue burst out into drunken laughter and the disaster is averted.
Jen's father is called away from their celebratory dinner. He's got to go back to work even though he claimed that work was unimportant given the great news about Jen and college. He's off in a flash, but not before leaving Jen some money so that she can take Joey out on the town. As he's walking away he begins shaking the hands of other restaurant patrons. Almost as an afterthought, he tells Jen he loves her and tells her to have a safe trip home. He treats her just like one of his clients.
Jen takes Joey on the roof of a building for a bird's eye view of the city. Joey is amazed and thankful to Jen. Jen thanks Joey for coming with her to see her father. After hanging out for a little while, Joey asks Jen to continue the story she was telling in the bathroom earlier.
"What happened after your mom left you on the platform at Grand Central Station?" she asks.
"I spent that weekend wandering around the city, walking by myself."
"Where did you sleep?" asks Joey.
"The first night I slept in the parking lot of this office building that I always used to pass on my way to school. The next night, I fell asleep in the VIP room of this club called Purgatory. And the last night, I slept in the dorm room of this guy that I met at a bar."
"And why didn't you go home to be with your father?"
"I did," says Jen. The truth is about to come out, and it frightens Jen. She tells Joey that she has to go. Joey is still concerned that she'll never see Jen again. She reminds Jen that the train is leaving at 11pm, and asks her to try to make it. They part ways.
Dawson and Gretchen have finally figured out a plan. They have built a fire on the beach and are enjoying each other's company. Gretchen is thoroughly impressed with Dawson's fire building skills. They begin to make out and after a few kisses, Gretchen pushes him away.
"First you gotta tell me, what's going on with you?"
"Okay," says Dawson. "Today is a perfect example. It's a perfect example of how our visions for our lives conflict with the realities. I still have my distortions and my dillusions. I still think that everything should be perfect, and that Joey and I should have slept together for the first time. What I realize, is that I gotta let go. It's time. There's so much ahead of me -- there's college, there's this new baby, and there's you."
"What are you saying?" asks Gretchen.
"I'm in love with you. And I no longer remember what we're waiting for."
"Neither do I," she says. They start to kiss.
Jen goes to her father's house. She finds him asleep in a chair by the fire. He wakes up and sees her looking around.
"Jennifer?" he says.
"I took a cab here," she says.
"What?"
"And all the way I had these visions of coming in an announcing that I wasn't going to Capeside."
"What are you talking about?"
"Then you'd smile, and we'd go for a walk."
"Jennifer, it's really late," he says, taking a sip of brandy.
"And I came up the stairs, I unlocked the door, and I put my bag down and I didn't hear anything so I thought maybe you weren't there."
"I was just resting, I'm awake now." He sits up, not realizing that Jen is talking about the past.
"And then I heard something, I heard a voice, a whimper -- very far away. And then I heard it again. And this time I recognized it and I knew that it was Annie."
"Who?"
"Annie Sawyer. She lived in the apartment downstairs with her parents. And she was probably the age that I am right now. She was my favorite person in the whole world."
"And she was in our apartment?"
"You were having sex with her," says Jen, becoming visibly upset. "But you were careless. You left your bedroom door open, and I could see in from the hallway, I could see through the opening, it was..."
"Jennifer," he interrupts, "you need some help. Have you talked to anyone about this?"
"I backed out the hall and I went down the stairs, and I slipped out the front door and disappeared onto fifth avenue in a big crowd. It was after that that things started to get really bad, didn't they?"
"You have imagined in great detail, something that never actually happened a long time ago."
"Dad, who are you?"
"I'm your father."
"You knew, didn't you? Oh god, all this time. My life got uglier and messier and you sent me away. You made me feel ashamed, you punished me for all these things that were beyond my control. You saw me standing in the doorway, and you never said anything."
"I wasn't, I didn't..."
"No," says Jen. "I don't need a confession from you. That's not why I came here. I don't need you to apologize to me for all the pain that you've caused me, and I don't have to forgive you. All I have to do is forgive myself for these things that I can't change."
Her father tries to speak, but nothing comes out.
"Goodbye daddy," she says.
Pacey and Drue have been arrested on a drunk and disorderly charge. Pacey's brother shows up at the scene to escort Pacey home. He motions to Pacey to get out of the back of the squad car, while Drue is bent over puking.
"So what are you going to do Doug, arrest me?" asks a cocky Pacey.
"I should," he says. "More I'm just curious."
"About what?"
"You're not satisfied with being a moron and failure, you gotta add drunk to your list of credentials?"
"What?" Pacey blows up at Doug. "This is it for me," he screams, grabbing Doug's coat collar, "This is my whole life right here. This is all I get."
Doug tries to calm him down. "Pacey," he says.
"Get off of me," yells Pacey, pushing Doug away. Drue watched the scene and seemed to feel for Pacey's situation. Doug doesn't know what to make of Pacey's outburst.
Dawson and Gretchen are now horizontal on the beach. As they continue to make out, Gretchen tells Dawson that they're not going to have sex. She explains that when they finally do it, it's going to be because they love each other and not because he has to prove something to himself.
A montage of scenes as the Cowboy Junkies' "Sweet Jane" plays in the background: Drue and Pacey ride home in the back of Doug's police cruiser. Joey waits anxiously at Grand Central Station for Jen. Jen is crying in the back of a taxi. Dawson is asleep by the fire while Gretchen sits awake crying. Pacey arrives at home and finds his homework waiting for him. Joey is still waiting for Jen. Jen is looking for Joey. They find each other and share a hug before boarding the train.
The flashback is over and we're back with Jen's therapist.
"So it was good," she says. "I needed to go back, and I did. And now I'm done. I got what I needed."
"You know you're not done," he says. "Not even close, we've only just opened this door. We're only just starting to make sense."
"No, I'm finished."
"Jen..."
"Tom, I get it. I do and I appreciate it and I'm really glad that we could do this. But, I don't have anything else to say."
And that's it. She gets up and leaves his office, saying goodbye with a smile. He waves.
Back to episode info