Seasons 4-6

• Season 4
  • 4.1 Coming Home- Dawson has to talk to Joey for the first time since she left with Pacey & everything is very tense- Jen: Look she's doing the official wait for Dawson to come over thing. Dawson: Mmm... it looks to me more like the official wait in vain for Dawson to come over thing. Jen: (Sighs) One more joke like that, and I am really gonna know how hard this is for you. Dawson: It's not hard. Jen: (Disbelievingly) Come on. Dawson: It's not. It's not easy, but it's not hard. Jen: Well whatever it is, why don't you just go get it over with? Dawson: I'll do it, but it's just a highly predictable moment. I'm gonna walk over there, Joey and I are gonna engage in some semi-casual conversation until the awkwardness overwhelms us both, and then we're just gonna part, each of us surprised at how surprisingly painless the whole encounter surprisingly was. Jen: Well then surprise me, and go on over there. The Dawson/Joey Theme #2 plays while they talk about how good the other one looks/ how their summer was brief but good and then Dawson walks away and leans back against a wall with this stricken look on his face (his expression really does show how painful it was for him to talk to her); Joey apologizes to Dawson-Joey: Dawson uhh... I'm very sorry. I'm sorry for everything that happened last year and... for doing what I had to do. I... I know how difficult it was and probably still must be. Dawson: (Sighs) It wasn't easy. Thinking about the two of you together every day, every night... Joey: (Laughs nervously) Actually the only person who hasn't dared ask the big question. Dawson: Well I'm the only person the answer could potentially kill- She tells him the answer wouldn't kill him (She hasn't slept with Pacey) and he looks super relieved; she tries to give Dawson a brick from Hemingway's home in the Keys to found their friendship on, but he says he's not sure if he even wants the friendship they had back; Joey and Pacey fight because he says she left the boat a long time before they got off because she was thinking only of Dawson as usual; she goes to find him and he's on the boat again that night after she leaves Dawson; Joey: Pacey... I wanted to see Dawson tonight, not because for 4 months of my life he was my boyfriend, because for the better part of my life he was my friend. And as my friend, I hurt him deeply, and living with that fact has caused me no small amount of guilt over the past 3 months. So, yes, I have been preoccupied, and it has made my mind wonder, but... my heart? That's a fixed point. 3 months riding the open waters couldn't shake it, I'll be damned if I let your insecurities shake it. My heart never left this boat. It's never left you. As far as I can see it's not going to anytime soon. Then they go read The Little Mermaid together and it's kind of beautiful (but not actually angsty-oh well)
  • 4.2 Failing Down- Pacey should have taken summer school instead of going off sailing and he's in danger of failing; Pacey: I'm scared, Jo. I screwed up. I'm not doing very well in school, and you need to help me. Joey: That's all you had to say, Pacey. Whatever it takes... we'll fix it. Everything is gonna be okay.Pacey: How can you be so sure? Joey: Because I'm not going anywhere without you
  • 4.3 The Two Gentleman of Capeside- Jen and Pacey get trapped out in a storm on True Love and talk about regrets-Jen: There's nothing you would want to change? Nothing?Pacey: No. There's nothing I want to change because it's life's little twists and turns and bumps and bruises that make you who you are. So why regret that? Jen: Alright, well, I have a regret. I regret that I've never been in love; Later Pacey admits he does have regrets-Pacey: I regret the way that things are between me and Dawson right now.Jen: Have you ever thought about saying something?Pacey: What difference would it make to say something? It doesn't change any of our situations. Jen: Well, it might just feel good to say; Joey is working with Dawson on a project that was assigned after they made a scene in class- Joey: After ten years of friendship, what's done is done?Dawson: No, after the greatest betrayal of my life, what's done is done. Joey: Dawson, I was a part of that betrayal. Dawson: Yes, but you apologized for it. You already showed some remorse for what happened. Pacey could care less. Which is fine. It's just not the kind of person I'm going to race out and be friends with again. And it's time for everyone to just accept that reality and move on with their lives. Dawson is the only one who knows where Pacey went to take shelter so he wants to go after him by himself- Joey: Look, I can't worry about the both of you! Pacey won't leave his boat because it has so much sentimental value since he had the best experience of his life with Joey on it, and Dawson gets him off it just before it capsizes-(To Pacey) Dawson: People care more about you than you care about this damn boat! Joey talks to Pacey later and tells him he has to remember he's thinking for two now when dealing with life and death mattes-(About Dawson)Joey: You knew he was going to come for you, didn't you?Pacey: What makes you say that? Joey: Cause you know him just as well as he knows you. It's the nature of best friends. Pacey goes to talk to Dawson at the end of the episode- Pacey: You and I both know that what you did yesterday...Dawson: ...is exactly what you would have done.Pacey: Maybe, maybe not. Dawson: Trust me. You would have done exactly the same thing. Pacey: Look, I know that things between you and I are pretty much beyond repair right now. And, I wouldn't presume to be able to solve everything with a conversation 'cause that's just not the way it works. But, I've been wanting to tell you that I'm sorry Dawson. I'm really sorry for the way everything went down this spring. For my part in it, for the pain that it must have caused you. And... (Sigh) I'm really sorry that I ruined our friendship, because I miss it, badly. And, uh, however far off it may be, I do look forward to the day when you and I might be friends again... so until then. Dawson: Until then. (Unfortunately their friendship is never really repaired in the rest of the series)
  • 4.4 Future Tense- Joey finds out she's fourth in the class and that she may not be able to get scholarship money for the Ivy League schools she wants to go to/ worries that Pacey won't be able to get the grades to get into any college; Joey brings her college worries to the party and proceeds to get drunk. She attempts to join a strip poker game in progress that Pacey had been a part of but Pacey picks her up and carries her out of the party; it upsets Dawson more to see them fight; Pacey is carrying Joey but then he wants her to walk; Joey: I wanna be with you, Pacey. I wanna stay and be with you. Pacey: (Sighs) Well if you wanna be with me then staying here would be a really stupid idea, considering I don't plan to be here... I plan to be wherever you are.
  • 4.6 Great Xpectations- At the end of the ep Joey and Dawson have a beautiful moment-Joey: You know, Dawson... I think about it sometimes and wherever we go next, it's hard to imagine life without you.Dawson: You did pretty well for three months. Joey: I think you know what I mean. Dawson: Yeah. Yeah, I do. Since Andie stole Ecstasy from Jen that Drue gave to Jen and it interacted poorly with Xanax (she wanted to finally feel happy because she got into Harvard and she still felt nothing) and it almost killed her, this marks the downfall of the relationship between Jack and Jen-Jack: You gave my sister drugs, Jen! It should be YOU in this ambulance!
  • 4.7 You Had Me at Goodbye- Joey needs a peer rec from the person who knows her best. Joey is torn between who to ask – Dawson or Pacey. She finally asks Dawson and Pacey gets upset. Joey tells him that 10 years from now he will be that guy that knows her best; though Dawson was there at every moment in her past, Pacey is her future; Dawson decides that he’s not the right person to write the rec and Joey too is upset, but later she tells him he's the only one who knows she has a favor face; Grams tells Jen she's never been more disappointed in anyone in her life; Jack won't talk to Jen still- (To Jack) Jen: When you're close to somebody and they do something unexplained or out of character, you don't just abandon them. You of all people should understand. It's killing me what you're doing. You may not ever do what I did, but what you're doing right now, I can tell you I would never do to anybody. Especially you. Andie is leaving to go to Italy because she needs to relax and they all have a farewell dinner though Andie lets Dawson and Pacey think they're only coming to see her and tries to get them all in the same room-Andie: Pacey, Joey, Dawson. You guys are so lucky. Do you have any idea how rare it is to have friends that you've known your entire life? So please don't underestimate that. Because in the end you always go back to the people that were there in the beginning. And in the beginning, there was the three of you
  • 4.9 Kiss Kiss Bang Bang- Dawson wants to make a movie about Mr. Brooks whose boat he stole in ep 4.3 (About his best friend falling in love with his girlfriend) Mr. Brooks: Do you have any idea what that's like?Dawson: I would imagine that it would be terrible. Mr. Brooks: Yeah, made me hate directing. Everybody and everything. The day we wrapped, I caught another train. For Capeside, Mass. and I never looked back. Started a new life. Started a better life- Mr. Brooks is old and alone now though; Joey has an important meeting with the dean at Worthington (which is filmed at Duke later) and Pacey comes with her and interacts better with the people; the dean comes out and finds Joey crying- Joey: I know that I don't fit in...Mr. Kublick: Joey, you didn't blow it. Your academic record stands on it's own. You're a stunningly bright young lady and no one is grading you on your social skills. Be that as it may, you couldn't ask for a better character witness than that boyfriend of yours. Seriously. He just talked the dean's ear off all about you. How you changed him. How you helped him. How he couldn't imagine a better life than one with you by his side. It's a rare gift to have someone say such things about you.
  • 4.10 Self Reliance- Pacey is worried that Joey is upset about seeing Dawson kiss Gretchen- Pacey: Please, tell me the truth. Because it's certainly not about you and me. I haven't screwed up for at least a day or two. Joey: No, you haven't. You never do. You are the perfect boyfriend. You win the perfect boyfriend contest. You beat Dawson. Is that what you want to hear, Pacey?; Pacey: What do you see when you see the future?Joey: Us. Me and you, Pace. We grew up together. You see, Dawson and I, we didn't grow up. We are in that house, in Dawson's bedroom, eternally having the same argument over and over again, in this endless cycle that goes on and on. And... I can't stop it. Because whenever I'm around him, I become 15. Pacey: Well, if that's the problem, and believe me, this isn't easy for me to say, but... you have to talk to Dawson. And then would you please call me?- It is a recurring theme that Pacey gets concerned about Joey's relationship with Dawson in relation to theirs- Dawson tells Gretchen how much he really likes her after talking to Joey about kissing Gretchen at the Christmas party and Dawson gave her a beautiful black and white picture of her and Pacey standing by the Christmas tree- Dawson: Why ruin a perfectly good friendship?Joey: Things don't always have to work that way. Look at us. Look at all that's happened. And we're friends. If we weren't, you wouldn't have... you wouldn't have given me this (Her early Christmas present) And I wouldn't be sitting here, telling you to do what your heart tells you to do. Truth is, Gretchen would be very lucky to have someone like you (her eyes tear up at the end of the speech).Dawson goes to see Gretchen at the tree lighting- (To Gretchen) Dawson: I like you. And... that kiss meant more to me than just 'happy holidays'. And every thing I said the other day was a lie. Well, not a lie because I think I meant it at the time. But I was basically just trying to fool myself because I didn't want to screw up our friendship. I was going to let that fear stop me, but I don't want to, and I'm not going to. Because I don't want to learn that lesson at 17 or anytime for that matter. And you can tell me that you're too old, you can tell me that I'm too young, and you can tell me that I'm not over Joey, but nothing that you say is going to change the fact that I said it. And I'm really glad that I said it, because you're worth risking everything for
  • 4.11 The Tao of Dawson- Dawson tells Pacey about his feelings for Gretchen, but Pacey says sisters are off-limits; he takes it back later; Pacey gets upset with Gretchen for telling Dawson about her miscarriage when they were barely friends, but she says she didn't want him to think less of her as his older sister; Dawson leaves a letter he wrote to Gretchen when he was 12 on her door and she comes and kisses him when she decides to stop being stupid about him being young (Dawson's voice is not sexy though in voiceover) Dawson: (In his letter to Gretchen) Dear Gretchen, I really enjoyed talking to you in your room today. Try not to be nervous about starting high school. I know you're going to find people that understand you. There's something that I didn't get a chance to tell you. There's someone truly special in my life that I can't stop thinking about. She's unlike anyone I've ever met. Smart and funny and beautiful and just knowing that she's in my life has given me this constant fluttering that keeps me awake at night. When I think about who I can talk to about this, who will understand, the only person that comes to mind is you. And that's a problem because you are the one that I feel this way about. I think about you constantly, every little thing you do. The Elvis Costello sticker you put on your spiral notebook, the way your bangs have grown out every day now for 6 months until Monday when you were finally able to put it all in a ponytail. Today when you invited me to stay and talk to you after Pacey left, it occurred to me that you must think of me too. If I tried to tell anyone else, they would say that you and I are impossible, that our lives are too different, that we could never be right for each other. But we understand each other and we care about each other and years from now I believe that we still will. Your friend forever, love, Dawson
  • 4.12 The Te of Pacey- Joey tries to throw a birthday party for Pacey, but he thinks there's a birthday curse on him, and he has bad news that comes out when his family is being rude to him as usual; they are telling stories about Pacey, but none of them are good, then Pacey tells everyone what he found out about college- Pacey: You know what, dad? You and your wallet can breathe easy because I don't think I can go to College, even if I wanted to because I found out today that the only school I thought would take me, my fallback school, rejected me. So I'm not going to college. So I guess at the end of the day, you guys are right. I'm going to end up exactly where you thought I would. A complete and utter failure. Dawson becomes upset when he feels that Gretchen doesn't want anyone to know about their relationship and postpones their first real date to go to the party. He thinks she's embarrassed that he's so young but later she kisses him to reassure him
  • 4.13 Hopeless- Joey tells Pacey she's scared to have sex with him, and he says he's terrified too, but he thinks they are ready now that they are in love; he says he was too scared to sleep with her when they were first on the boat together, but he thinks they are there now; they say they can be scared together
  • 4.14 A Winter's Tale- Joey and Pacey are having fights about sex and Pacey continues to be insecure that she can't let go of the idea that she wanted Dawson to be her first; Pacey: Look Jo, I refuse to feel guilty about this because the fact of the matter is it's not a bad thing when you want to sleep with someone when you love them as much as I love you.Joey: But there is something wrong with not wanting to. Pacey: No, no. I just wish I knew what that something was. I mean, I know that you're scared. I get it. You tell me that you want to be scared together but then you won't tell me what you're scared of. And I think you know exactly what it is. You're just too afraid to say his name; Pacey: Do you want to know what I'm scared of? 'Cause I'm not scared of whether or not we sleep together, if... if and when you and I decide to do that, it will be right. What I am scared of is that little piece of your heart that will always belong to Dawson Leery. OK, I'm scared of that piece of your heart that always envisioned your first time being with him. I'm scared of that part of you that just doesn't want it to be me. That's what I'm scared of. Joey keeps telling him he's wrong; Later Joey decides she does want to sleep with Pacey- Joey: Pacey, this is about how you carried my bag off the bus yesterday. This is about how when we go to the movies and you go and you buy popcorn you always make sure you bring back a napkin so I don't wipe all the grease on my jeans. And this is about how just last week when we were at miniature golf, you took all of the shots first so I would know the correct path. Pacey: That was just...Joey: You taught me how to drive. And last year at prom, you knew that the bracelet I was wearing was my mom's. You kissed me first, sweetheart. The second time you counted to ten before doing it again just in case I wanted to stop you. You bought me a wall. Pacey: I didn't buy it so much as I...Joey: We were alone on a boat for three months and you understood without a word why I wasn't ready. Do you have to ask now why I am? Pace... I'm gonna count to ten, and then I'm going to start kissing you. If you don't want me to... then you're just gonna have to stop me. (Pause) Ten, my love. (This little speech is reminiscent of the scene from Stolen Kisses when Pacey counts to 10 before kissing her); Jack and Jen get drunk and almost sleep together- Jack: (To Jen) I'm scared that I'm gonna end up alone. I'm scared that I'm always gonna be someone's friend, or brother, or confidant but never quite... someone's everything. Mostly I'm scared that I'm never gonna meet a guy that I love as much as I love you. Jen: I'm sorry, Jack. You're drunk. You're drunk and lonely... and... gay. And as good as this seems right now and it does seem really, really good... it won't when the feelings pass. Mr. Brooks is dying and Dawson has to decide whether or not to take him off life support because he signed a form so he could pick up meds for him; Mr. Brooks friend (who married the love of Mr. Brook's life a long time ago mirroring the D/J/P triangle) comes to the hospital because his friend wrote to him and they reconcile their friendship in the last moments- Mr. Brooks' friend: In a situation like this, son... all that's required is a little faith. Dawson: I don't have that. I don't even know what that is. Mr. Brooks' friend: Faith is believing in something when common sense tells you not to: Miracle on 34th Street. Arthur always believed that the best answers for life's questions could be found in the movies. Crazy idea, huh?
  • 4.15 Four Stories- Pacey and Joey are having problems the morning after because he doesn't really know if she enjoyed sleeping with him and she said it was nice, making him paranoid-Pacey: You haven't touched me all morning. Here I was thinking that sex brought people closer together.Joey: (Walks out); Joey says she's worried if she measured up to the other women he had slept with; She tells him at one point he brushed the hair away from her face and it was so sweet and she felt safe- Joey: Years from now when I look back, I'm really not going to remember the clumsy positioning or the morning after awkwardness or whether or not the experience itself meant the text book definition of great sex. I'll remember how sweet you were. How you took me to this brand new place. Pace, I'm glad I had sex. And I'm really glad that I had sex with you- They have to talk about Dawson again- (Talking about Dawson) Pacey: I do want to be able to have sex with my girlfriend whom I adore, without having to worry about the soap operatic repercussions of him finding out. Let me ask you one question, Jo. What would you say to him? You know, if he were here right now and he asked you, what would you tell him? Joey: I would have to tell him the truth. Joey runs into Dawson later and they hang out, but he supposedly can tell there's something different about her (I don't believe in this crap- no one can tell when people lose their virginity by looking at them) Dawson: Jo, you're not a bad friend. I don't get to say it much anymore, but... you're my best friend. You always were. No matter where you are, no matter where your life may take you, and no matter who you're with...Joey: You'll always have a piece of my heart.Dawson: Something like that.Joey: Yeah. Doesn't have to be a huge piece. Dawson: No, no, no, no. Not a huge piece. Just enough. You know, tiny piece. Dawson asks if she and Pacey have slept together now- Joey: A couple of years ago, if you would have asked me who the first person I was going to have sex with was, I would have answered unequivocally: Dawson Leery, that's who. The possibility of sleeping with anyone else hadn't even occurred to me. Especially not Pacey. Dawson: So what are you saying, Jo? Joey: No. I have not slept with Pacey.- and the girl lies and Dawson sighs in relief again- he doesn't seem to think he will have fully lost the girl until she's slept with someone else; Jen goes to therapy and tells her therapist off but he leaves her with final thoughts that make her want to come back- (About Jen) Tom: I'd say that the smart, sarcastic exterior masks a scared, lonely young woman who's relationship with her parents have scarred her in ways she hasn't even begun to process. She has a hard time trusting people, men, especially. And who can blame her? When parental ties are severed early on like that, it can send a young person searching for love and acceptance in a variety of destructive ways, which may explain your relationships with drugs, alcohol and a best friend who's sexuality prevents him from ever fully returning your affections; Dawson gets depressed about Mr. Brooks because only 5 people are at the funeral and 3 of them barely knew him (only he and Grams were friends of Mr. Brooks)
  • 4.16 Mind Games- Dawson and Gretchen are thinking about having sex, but Gretchen gets upset with Joey for lying to Dawson-Dawson: Part of me was still clinging to the insane notion that Joey and I were destined to lose our virginity together. Gretchen: Well, I guess it's not all that insane. She was your first serious girlfriend. Dawson: Yeah, but now I kinda wish they just did it on the boat. You know, or they'd do it now and get it over with. Just put the final nail in the coffin of Dawson and Joey. Gretchen: How do you know they haven't? Dawson:She told me.- Gretchen tells Pacey she lied-Gretchen: Joey lied to Dawson. I don't know why, I don't know what it meant. But he asked her flat out whether you guys were sleeping together and she lied. And that's the truth, Pacey. Gretchen yells at Joey- Gretchen: You lied to Dawson about you and Pacey having sex. Joey: I made a decision, a very private decision about my life and I really don't want the whole world to know about that.Gretchen: You really don't want Dawson to know about that.Joey: It's the same thing. Gretchen: No it's not, Joey. I don't want to be an ogre here, but lying to Dawson isn't going to solve anything. It's not fair to him and it's not fair to somebody who's trying to have a relationship with him. Joey: Meaning you.
  • 4.17 Admissions- Joey can't get enough financial aid for Worthington because the B&B made a profit in the past year; they want her to pay $15,000 a year; Dawson wants to give her money Mr. Brooks left to him to go to college, so then she feels really guilty about lying to him about sleeping with Pacey because she thinks he's still putting her on a pedestal in his mind; she tells him the truth but he still wants her to have the money- Dawson: What you felt the other night at the movie theater, that something was finally right between us... I felt that, too. And nothing will ever change that... not going to school on different coasts. Not meeting people who we're meant to love forever... nothing. And I want you to have this (Hands her an envelope with a check in it). Joey: But, Dawson...Dawson: I don't know how I feel about you sleeping with Pacey. I don't know how I'll feel tomorrow or next week or next year for that matter, but I'm absolutely certain that giving you this is the right thing to do. Because I'm certain about us... and what we mean to each other. And I think you are, too.; Pacey and Joey start to get concerned about the fact that she is going to a great college and he can't get into any college Pacey: It's not that I don't want you to be able to go off and realize your dreams, Joey, because I do. But for the first time, I just... I felt like it wasn't me that was holding you back from it. Joey: Pacey, you've never held me back. You have to stop thinking like that. Pacey: You know what? I could stop thinking like that if you'd just promise me one thing, that if the day ever comes, and it may come much sooner than either one of us thinks, but if that day ever comes where you did feel like I was holding you back... promise me that you'd cut me loose, yeah? Joey: Pacey...Pacey: Promise me that. Joey: I won't promise you that. You're asking me to promise to let you go. I can't do that.
  • 4.18 Eastern Standard Time- Jen confronts her father in New York about her last memory of him (After confessing to her father she witnessed him having sex with a teenager) Jen: You knew, didn't you? Oh, god, all this time. My life got uglier and messier, and then you sent me away. You... you made me feel ashamed. You... you punished me for all these things that were beyond my control. You saw me standing in the doorway. Ohh! And you never said anything. I wasn't...Mr. Lindley: I didn't...Jen: No. 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. Good-bye, daddy. Pacey gets depressed about his future and drinks with Drue; Doug is called to come pick him up-(Picking Pacey up who has been reported drunk and disorderly) Doug: You're not satisfied with being a moron and failure. You gotta add drunk to your list of credentials?Pacey: (Gets angry and attacks Doug) What? This is it for me! (Doug tries to hold him off) This is my whole life right here! This is all I get; Dawson and Gretchen seem like they're going to sleep together, but then they don't- Dawson: I still have my distortions and my delusions. I still think that everything should be perfect, and that Joey and I should have slept together for the first time. What I realized is that I gotta let go. You know, it's time. And there's so much ahead of me. I mean, there's college, there's... there's this new baby... and there's you.Gretchen: So what are you saying? Dawson: I'm in love with you, and I no longer remember what we're waiting for. Gretchen: Neither do I; Gretchen: I want to make love to you so much. So much. And I really believe that that was why we came here, but it's not. I guess just as much as I want you and I love you, we're not gonna do this. Dawson: Why not? Gretchen: Because when we go there, it's not gonna be because you have something to prove to yourself. It's gonna be because we love each other, and because we're prepared to show each other what that really means
  • 4.19 Late- Gretchen and Dawson aren't having sex because she's scared to get to close to him when he's leaving for USC Film School in the fall and Joey talks to him about it- (To Dawson) Joey: I want you to know something. Sex doesn't necessarily bring people closer together. It's just a magnifying glass. I mean, if there's a problem, it gets bigger. And if there's closeness... you get closer. As far as you and Gretchen are concerned, I mean... you guys are probably a lot closer than a lot of people who are having sex.- she has a pregnancy scare but doesn't tell Pacey and Pacey doesn't tell her he got arrested for public drunkenness
  • 4.20 Promicide- Pacey has been feeling angry at Joey/guilty for feeling angry; he tries to give her a beautiful prom night, but he gets a bad limo, and forgets to freeze her corsage so it wilts/things generally go wrong; everything comes to a head after Pacey sees Joey and Dawson dancing happily together and he fights with her on the dance floor- Pacey: You know what I actually realized when I saw the two of you dancing there together? That is the happiest I have seen you all night. I mean, I think it's actually the happiest I've seen you in weeks. You want to know what's worse than that? I don't care. I saw the two of you dancing together, and I just don't care. I'm not angry. I'm not jealous. I'm not upset. I'm really not much of anything You want me to take off the happy mask? Then happy mask is off. So, now answer me this one question Joey, why are you with me? Why are you with me? Cause I don't know why I'm still with you. I used to know, but now I don't anymore. What I do know, I feel like I'm Josephine Potter's little charity project. I feel like I'm the designated loser...Joey: This isn't about me...Pacey: No, it is about you. It's about you and how you make me feel when I'm with you! I feel like I'm stupid, I'm worthless, I'm never right! You know what I realize? It's not my fault! When I'm with you it's "poor Pacey, he didn't get into college," or "stupid Pacey forgot the limo, he ripped my dress, he messed up the corsage.Joey: I told you I don't care about any of that. Pacey: But I want you to care! I don't want you to accept it like it's supposed to be. We are not trapped on this boat. You and I are trapped in this relationship! I can't take it anymore Joey. When I'm with you, I feel like I'm nothing. That's why I flinch when you touch me. That's why I never touch you, why I never think about it. Because when I do, it just reminds me that I'm not good enough. Joey: You done? Pacey: No, I'm just getting started. Joey: Well, you can stop right now. You can go to hell! Dawson runs after Joey, and comforts her and she says none of it is true; Pacey approaches Joey when she's sitting alone, crying- Pacey: You know... last year... I felt like I could give you something that no one else could give you. I could give you that wall to paint your mural on. I could take you away on a sailboat for a summer. I could even give you that night in the ski lodge. But I don't feel like I have anything left to give you now, Jo. I guess I'm spent. I've become a man who hates himself so much he can't even look at his own reflection in the mirror, and I wish that I could tell you that being with you doesn't make that worse, but it does... because the more that you love me in spite of that, the angrier that I get at you... and the more that I stop loving you back.Joey: How long have you felt this way?Pacey: I don't know, but I know it's not right; Pacey: You've spent your entire life trying to get out of Capeside, Joey, because you felt like you deserved better. Well, I am Capeside. That's why I didn't get out and you did, and you do deserve better. You deserve better than this place, and you deserve better than me. Joey: You break my heart into a thousand pieces, and you say it's because I deserve better? Just... leave me alone. Gretchen breaks up with Dawson because she's decided she's past all this high school stuff and he's still literally and figuratively chasing after Joey;; Jack goes to prom with Tobey but he tells him he only likes him as a friend; Jack looks like he's really attracted to Toby when he first sees him in his tux and he apologizes then kisses him (Yay Tobey!)- Jack: I don't blame you. Look, Tobey, I'm sorry about earlier... what I said. What I didn't say. The feelings that I've been having for you are so much more than platonic, and they took me by surprise, and I was afraid.
  • 4.21 Separation Anxiety- Joey thinks Dean Kubelik will offer Pacey a place at Worthington just because he likes him and maybe it will be a sign they should be together- Pacey: Um, well... Kubelik wants me to work on his boat this summer. That's what the offer was about. It didn't have anything to do with going to Worthington. Joey: Let's go. Pacey: Uh, you know what? I think I'll go. But I think that you should stay here, Jo. I've been watching you in there. You've been... gliding from conversation to conversation with complete confidence and ease this time. I don't know if you remember the last Worthington party that you and I attended together, but... you were kind of a jumble of nerves. I guess I was kind of hoping that... you would need for me to be your savior again tonight. But... that's no longer the case. You don't need that now. Everything's different. I think that they're better this way. The only thing that remains the same is you're still the most beautiful girl in the room; Joey: (Sighs) Hey, Pace... I'm really sorry about dragging you to that party last night, and... bringing back all of those bad feelings. Pacey: (Clears throat) It's not your fault, Jo. None of this is your fault. You're not the reason that we broke up. Joey: But I thought that you said... Pacey: I know what I said. And I know how I said it, and it makes me sick to my stomach every time I think about it. Blaming you for my insecurities and... then making you feel guilty for all the things that you've accomplished, when you should feel nothing but proud. And I'm so proud of you. Dawson tries to go away with Gretchen but they are officially broken up now when Gretchen doesn't even tell him she should go away alone (Dawson reads Gretchen's note in his yearbook) Gretchen: "Dear Dawson... I've been thinking about what to say to you since I left your house yesterday. I thought about waiting for you to come to my door, saying this face to face, but I knew it would be too hard. I realize that, as much as I need to move on, you need to stay here. Your whole life is about to change in a way that will never be the same. You're opening a new chapter, and you have to give a proper good-bye to the old one. You don't want to miss these moments, even the sad ones, because you'll never get them back. So enjoy this time. Let it wash over you so that your memories of it are strong. Besides, I don't need to spend a month in a car to fall in love with you. I already am in love with you, even more than you know. So good-bye, Dawson Leery. Thank you for changing my life and opening my heart again. You'll never know how much it meant to me. Have a bitchin' summer. Love, Gretchen."
  • 4.22 The Graduate- Pacey freaks out during his English final and exits dramatically, but Mr. Kasdan lets him take the test; Joey tries to help him, but he won't let her; Pacey: No, no, no, no. I was agreeing with you. I mean, I got it, right? It was about me being stupid? How I'm some lame, know-nothing student who's just slowing down everyone around me? You know what really kills me about you people? I show up to class with a broken pencil, ok? Now, you assume that that means that I don't care, when the reality of the matter is, I've been busting my ass in your class for the last 5 months, just to keep my head above water, so that I could graduate from this place! So, if you ask me, you're the one who doesn't care. None of the teachers here care! I mean, for the honor students, you're willing to bend over backwards, but for me, a student who could actually use that help, you can't wait to get rid of me! Mr. Kasdan: All right, that's enough! Look, I have tolerated this outburst of yours because I know you need to pass this test, but you are this close to throwing away an opportunity, young man! Pacey: You know, maybe you are right. I must be an idiot, because I cannot for the life of me figure out why I try so damn hard for you. I mean, I don't know why I bother at all. (Grabs his stuff and walks out).Pacey: You did hear everything that I had to say in class today, didn't you? Mr. Kasdan: Oh, I did. You're not an idiot or a punch line. You are why I teach. Those honor students that turn your stomach... they don't need me. They're gonna forget me as soon as they walk out the door. But you...Pacey: I have a funny feeling I'm gonna be telling this story for years to come Pacey: Joey. I don't think there is a "we" anymore. Joey: Look... look, Pace, I know it's over. I just want to be your friend. I want to help you. Pacey: You want to know what the truth is, Jo? I still love you, and I probably will love you for a very long time. But I can't just be your buddy. 'Cause, as much as I enjoy the concept of being just friends, in reality, it's a bizarre form of torture, and I'm just not willing to participate in it. So, right now, what I want to do is just move on and get over you, and the only way for me to do that is to not be around you anymore.Joey: And you can't see any time in the future when you and I could be friends? Pacey: I don't want to think about the future. Joey: I guess I should go. Pacey: Look, Jo, I know that... I know coming over here couldn't have been easy for you. Joey: Nothing seems easy anymore; at the graduation party they talk again Pacey: I was thinking about tomorrow. Joey: What about this tomorrowland? Does it look even remotely bright? Pacey: It certainly didn't when it held the prospect of never seeing you again. Joey: How is that any different from the here and now? Pacey: I think I... I should probably go off and live my own life for a little while. That certainly doesn't mean that this is how I want it to end between us. So hypothetically speaking... if I were lucky enough one day to find myself owning a sailboat again, and I were to ask the woman that I love to go sailing with me... would she?Joey: You wouldn't have to ask, Pace; Joey's having trouble writing her graduation speech(Joey asks Dawson to read the letter that her mom left her for her graduation). Dawson: (Reads out loud) "My darling Joey, I know if you're reading these words it means you've graduated from high school. Congratulations, sweetheart. You didn't have a lot, growing up. You even have been shortchanged one mother. Still, I want you to be proud of your family. If our strife has caused you pain, remember, it also makes you strong. Bessie is strong, and I'm sure she's taking good care of you. Of all the things my illness has robbed me of, I count the greatest of them watching you grow up. You're barely 13 now, still a young girl. And so, I'm left to imagine the woman you've become. Strikingly beautiful, I'm sure, and equally unaware of it. Quick witted and strong willed. Possessing the deep, soulful eyes of an artist, and a shy smile that regularly betrays the tough facade you do your best to keep up. If any of this sounds remarkably on the nose, it's because it's the girl you always were, Joey. And it's the woman you'll always be. Whatever you decide to do with your life, I know your future will be luminous. Wherever you decide to go when you leave, remember your days in Capeside fondly, and keep close those who shared your childhood. They will always love you in a way no one else can. And they will always be with you. Just as I love you and will always be with you. Love, mom." The letter inspires her speech
  • 4.23 Coda- Pacey calls Dawson from a plane- Pacey: I just... I realized that you're the only person in Capeside that I actually regret not saying good-bye to, because, you know, for a long time there, Dawson, being your best friend was all I really cared about in my life. I just wanted you to hear from me that despite everything that's happened between us and the miles that may be between us right now, you know, I still think about the way things were.Dawson: Back when we were just a couple dorks wondering if and when a girl would ever look our way? Pacey: Ha, ha, well, speak for yourself, huh? Dawson: (Laughs) Yeah, Pace, I'm... I'm really glad you called, because the worst thing about not saying good-bye was I didn't get a chance to tell you something I wanted so badly to tell you. Pacey: What's that? Dawson: I'm proud of you, Pacey. Pacey: Thanks, Dawson. Dawson: Good luck out there. Pacey: Yeah, you too; Dawson has to leave early for film school- Joey: (Tears running down her cheeks) Do you believe in magic? I never used to. I mean, how could I? 13, your mom dies. You hope against hope for... for magic, something to make it all better. It never comes, and, you know, you look to your father who's unable to overcome all of his tragic flaws. Well, no abracadabra there. And then there's Pacey. Well... any magic that was there, that ran out, didn't it? But, uh, then there's you. There's proof that someone out there is thinking of me... my friend who was with me always. It's pure magic. I guess this is pretty much just a long-winded way of saying that, um... I'm gonna miss you, Dawson. Dawson: I'm gonna miss you too, Joey.Joey: My best friend in the whole world is leaving tomorrow, and a big part of me wants him to stay... so I hope you don't hate me. Dawson: I could never hate you, Joey... and not for lack of trying, either. Joey: These past couple of years, it's been one big soap opera. I wouldn't take it back. I wouldn't... take any of it back, but... I'm glad that it's over. 'Cause I like the way things are now. My life being the cruel joke that it is, now that things are so nice... you're leaving. Dawson: Jo... if I thought for one second it was the right thing to do, I would stay, but it's time to go. It's time for me to get out of this room, and it's time for you to discover who you are without us. This chapter's over, Jo. I can feel it. They say good-bye but it's anti-climatic and they come back together in his room- Joey: So what was yours, by the way? Dawson: What was my what?Joey: Your all time most life altering moment?Dawson: For all I know, it could be this one right now... saying good-bye to you.(There is a pause as they look into each other's tearful eyes. Then they begin kissing, and the camera pulls to the outside of the room and we see their silhouettes kissing each other through the curtains of Dawson's bedroom)
  • Best of Season 4 P/J
• Season 5
  • 5.1 The Bostonians- Audrey tells Joey she's afraid to have fun and find people she likes because if she does she may have to let go of the past; they bond over how hard it was for them to leave the boys they loved when they were young; Joey is drunk and calls Dawson- (Leaving a message on Dawson's cell) Joey: Dawson, I think it's time that I let you go. And it's really hard for me to do because I know that there's a part of me that's gonna be in love with you for the rest of my life. But this whole running in place and daydreaming is just not healthy for either of us. So this is me cutting the cord, this is me doing what I should have done three months ago. Say goodbye, Dawson
  • 5.2 The Lost Weekend- Dawson spends all weekend with Joey before hearing her message and getting upset with her, but Joey is too busy trying to drop Professor Wilder's class then writing a paper about her relationship for him to spend time with Dawson to talk about it so she has to chase him down at the airport; at the airport Dawson decides to move to Boston and leave LA (To Joey)Dawson: We're gonna, we're gonna move on, we're going to grow up, and four years from now we are going to wake up, and we are going to be complete strangers to each other. The only thing that I know for sure, it that I don't want that to happen. Do you?Dawson: Maybe that is the ending we are supposed to have. Maybe every other attraction that we feel each other is just, fear of moving on, fear of growing up.Joey: Is that what you really think? Dawson: I don't know, but I do know that if I get on this plane, I am never going to find out.
  • 5.4 The Long Goodbye- Dawson thinks his dad was disappointed in him when he died- (To Joey)Dawson: Do you have any idea how much it sucks to know that my father was disappointed in me the day he died? And he was right. I was acting crazy like a spoiled brat, and if I'd listened to him, he would've been driving me to the airport instead of driving to his death; Pacey takes Dawson to the place where Mitch died and tells him it wasn't his fault; the answering machine picks up with Mitch's voice and Dawson rips it out of the wall; Dawson breaks down in the parking lot after the man in the store tells him how proud his father was when he talked to him the night he died; Joey feels helpless and Audrey hugs her when she gets back- Audrey: How's Dawson doing? Joey: I wouldn't know. Didn't want anything to do with me. I thought I'd be able to help him. I thought I would be this incredible resource 'cause I've been there, you know? He didn't want anything from me. He didn't even just wanna sit there in silence. He wanted me out of his sight.
  • 5.6 High Anxiety- Dawson has been having anxiety attacks and gets drunk with Jack and his frat to relax; he tells Joey he should have called her when she appears; he takes out his phone and calls her. Joey laughs. He rambles about how he should have called into her voicemail. Then he apologizes for the drunken message, but says it's okay because she left him one. He says that if she hadn't left him that message, he would probably still be in LA... and that his father would probably still be alive. Joey looks stricken and Dawson looks shocked that he said it. At the end Dawson tells Joey that when he came back from LA, he was lost in a daydream... a dream of kissing her. He wanted so much to get back to a place where they could give it another try. Then Mitch died, and it went away. He was living in a dream and he doesn't know how to get back there, if he ever will. Joey kisses him and tells him that she'll dream enough for the both of them. They hug. As his train is called, he looks at her and his eyes are filled with sadness and he turns and leaves.
  • 5.10 Appetite for Destruction- Dawson slept with Jen and he's trying to talk about how he was led to that decision; Audrey kept throwing food on herself at dinner so she could get Joey away from the table, but Joey doesn't seem horribly messed up about it- Dawson: Joey, it hurts to be around you... I see you even from across the room and it brings up a thousand memories. Not just of us, but of my entire life before. It's like I'm frozen in this place I can't bare to be. I care about you so much. As long as I can remember, everything's always come back to you and no matter what was happening between us even the thought of you was at least a constant comfort, but I can't go back. It just hurts
  • 5.22 The Abby- Dawson goes to the cemetery for the first time to visit Mitch. He tells him about his film and the summer and culminates in telling him that he wants to be with Joey; that he loves her. He stops himself from breaking down and leaves.
  • 5.23 Swan Song- Joey and Pacey go to the airport to talk to Dawson and Audrey before they go to LA; Joey buys a ticket to Paris to get to the gate to stop Dawson and Audrey from leaving. Pacey pages Audrey over the intercom and when she hangs up on him he professes his love to her over the loud speaker for the whole airport to hear. She meets him and they make up, choosing to drive to LA together. Joey finds Dawson just as he is boarding the plane. She tells him that she pushed him away because she is scared. But she needs to get used to the fact that Dawson is a part of her life because he makes it better. Then she tells him that she knows what last finale's kiss meant and kisses him again. He asks her to go with him and she tells him she can't. That's his dream. And he needs to go do it. As he gets ready to leave, she promises everything will work out. When he asks how she knows, she says that she knows because she loves him too. He goes to board, smiling at Joey one last time.
• Season 6
  • 6.2 The Song Remains the Same (2) After Dawson and Joey sleep together she finds out he was with an actress named Natasha- Joey: Dawson, you have a girlfriend! How is that not a big deal? Dawson: Had a girlfriend, Joey. And, look, I'm willing to admit that the timing on this is far from perfect, but I'm sick of waiting for this so-called perfect timing that's obviously never gonna happen for us. Joey: Oh, yeah, right. You know, it's... better to just get it over with and move on, you know? "Slept with Joey. Just... cross that off my list of things to do." Dawson: You know that's not how I think. Joey: How do I know that, Dawson? I haven't talked to you all summer. Apparently you've changed so much that you're willing...Dawson: You really think I'd wanna sleep with you and not want it to mean more, Joey? You think I've been waiting all these years for us to have one night together and then go our separate ways? Joey: Oh, I'm sorry you got sick of waiting, Dawson. I'm sorry that I wanted our first time to mean something more than just...Dawson: It does mean more, Joey! It... I mean, it... it means everything to me. I... I don't know what it means to you. Joey: Oh, you're saying that I wanted this to happen? Dawson: No, 'cause that would involve you actually knowing what you want, which we both know is not likely to happen anytime this decade. Joey: Oh, great, you know? Use something when I was a child! Dawson: You're still a child, Joey. You're still the same scared little girl who...Joey: Who what? Who what, Dawson? Who broke your heart? God! Is the statute of limitations ever gonna end on that one? Ever?! Dawson, I'm sorry I don't have the same dreams I had when I was 15 years old, and I'm sorry that I moved on faster than you did, but you know what? Maybe not everything that happens to you is my fault! And maybe just because I want more from my life than...Dawson: More than what? More than us? You don't know, do you? You've never known. The entire time I've known you, all you've wanted to do is escape. From me, from Capeside. I mean, you say that I'm the dreamer. I'm the one who doesn't wanna live in the real world. Well, I'm doing it, Joey. Right now. I'm living in the real world. It's you who wants the fantasy. Joey: I want the fantasy? Dawson: Yes. Joey: Who lit the candles? Who bought the champagne? Dawson: Who dumped who 4 years ago? Joey, I know what I want. I've always known what I want. Before we destroy whatever chance we might actually have at having a relationship, I'm asking you, please, stop and think about this. Is this really what you want? Is this... really the way that you want things to end between us?; Joey cries on her bed while It's Not plays (a song about being stuck and being unable to change)
  • 6.4 Instant Karma! D/J have an awkward moment on the set of the movie; Joey: Maybe it's the only way that we could finally stand on our own. You know, to... hurt each other so much that we have no choice but to let go. Maybe otherwise we never would. Dawson: Yeah. Maybe. Natasha gets Dawson fired from the set for breaking up with her, but gets it back after she sees Joey delivering the food; Natasha: Because... I saw you out there talking to her. I saw your face when you were watching her leave, and I realized that... she hurt you way more than you ever hurt me. But you still hurt me. A lot. Dawson: I know. Joey kisses Eddie but he gets mad at her- Eddie: (To Joey) I don't mind you kissing me if it's because you want to kiss me, not for revenge or to help you forget someone else. Whatever happened between you guys, you're gonna have to deal with it. Yourself. Just... just you. Audrey and Pacey fight but she asks him to come inside and hold her after she got wasted at a party/CJ (played by Jensen Ackles!) saved her from a bad situation with a frat guy who wanted to take advantage of her
  • 6.10 Merry Mayhem- Audrey brings everybody out at dinner when she's on drugs; she says Pacey couldn't have a real relationship since Joey broke up with him and D/J never dealt with the fact that they slept together; then she takes Pacey's car and wrecks it in the Leery's living room; , Dawson and Joey meet on the dock. They talk about where they are. Joey says she spends a lot of time pretending that they never meant anything to one another. Dawson says he deserves that. She doesn't agree - and besides it never works. She says that it's easy to hate him because he's out there - and if she ever needed him he'd be there. He concurs. So why do they keep hurting each other? Dawson offers that they aren't hurting each other right now. Joey says that she just wants to stand there with the one person who may be able to help her figure out how everything got to where they are. They can go back to hating each other in the morning. Dawson puts his arm around her. He leans over and whispers: I don't really hate you, you know? Joey smiles at him and whispers back: I don't hate you either
  • 6.15 Castaways- Pacey and Joey get locked in K-Mart; he talks about how they should pretend neither one of them has sex lives; he kisses her after she shaves the ugly beard off his face- Joey: So... is this... some sort of... recent new development in your life?Pacey: Wanting to kiss you? No. It's sort of always there... like... white noise, or... the secret service or the threat of nuclear war, for that matter. Just somethin' you get used to; she tells him she'll think about being with him
  • 6.18 Love Bites- Eddie comes back after leaving Joey randomly for months; Joey chaperones Harley's dance with Pacey; Finally, at the end of the evening Joey tells Pacey that she can't be with him; it doesn't feel right. Blindsided, Pacey tries to reassure her that they could work because he could love her again. She stops him and tells him that Eddie's back. He walks away, but returns later to offer her the dance that he owed her from their prom, though it ends awkwardly and sadly (they dance to Just Another by Pete Yorn). Joey takes a cab to Eddie's. He is hesitant when he opens the door, but in the end they are left kissing on the front steps.
  • 6.24 ...Must Come to an End (2) Series Finale Part 2 (pictured Joey and Pacey dancing at Gale's wedding)- 5 years later Dawson and Joey decide they will always love each other but shouldn't be involved romantically- Dawson: This writer has decided it doesn't matter how it ends. Because fiction is fiction. For the first time in a long time, my life is real. It doesn't matter who ends up with who. In some unearthly way, it's always gonna be you and me. Joey: Always. Dawson: What we have goes beyond friendship, beyond lovers. It's forever. Joey: Yes it is. I love you, Dawson. Dawson: I love you too, Joey. Joey has figured out she has always loved Pacey and he's the one for her but Pacey wants her to be happy and tries to tell her he'll let her go- Joey: You know, for the record, I... I don't wanna be let off the hook. 'Cause everything in my life that I've done has led me here, right now and the last thing I want, need or deserve is to be let off somebody's hook. Pacey: Please don't miss my point here...Joey: And don't miss mine. Pacey, I love you, you know that and it's very real. It's so real that it's kept me moving, mostly running from it, never ready for it... and I love Dawson, he's my soul mate, he's tied to my childhood and it's a love that is pure and eternally innocent. I can't be let of the hook cause I just might get the notion that it's ok to keep running. Pacey: So then what exactly are you saying here? (It's so obvious Pacey- she's clearly choosing you!); Pacey and Joey are sitting together watching Dawson's show at the end of the ep in NY; Pacey's crying, Joey makes fun of him, and then they call Dawson and talk to him in CA; Jen talks to Jack in her final scene about how she wants him to have her daughter Amy since he's the godfather and luckily he and Doug work out their relationship problems; they talk about their connection to each other- Jen: I know. I mean from the second that I stepped out of that cab onto the creek I was the instigator, you know, the girl who caused problems and rocked the creek and upset the delicate emotional balance of Capeside and I don't want Amy to be that person. I want her to belong, I feel like I never really did. Jack: Jen. You belong... you belong to me. Don't you get it? You're my soulmate. Amy's gonna know love, everyday of her life she is gonna know how much her mother loved her. I'm gonna see to that. Ok. Jen makes a video message for her daughter to watch when she's gone; Jen: Hi Amy, it's mom. Well, by the time you see this, I won't be here anymore, and I know how much that sucks, for both of us. So seeing as how I won't be around to thoroughly annoy you, I thought I would give you a little list of the things that I wish for you. Well, there's the obvious. An education. Family. Friends. And a life that is full of the unexpected. Be sure to make mistakes. Make a lot of them, because there's no better way to learn and to grow, all right? And, um, I want you to spend a lot of time at the ocean, because the ocean forces you to dream, and I insist that you, my girl, be a dreamer. God. I've never really believed in God. In fact, I've spent a lot of time and energy trying to disprove that god exists. But I hope that you are able to believe in God, because the thing that I've come to realize, sweetheart... is that it just doesn't matter if God exists or not. The important thing is for you to believe in something, because I promise you that that belief will keep you warm at night, and I want you to feel safe always. And then there's love. I want you to love to the tips of your fingers, and when you find that love, wherever you find it, whoever you choose, don't run away from it. But you don't have to chase after it either. You just be patient, and it'll come to you, I promise, and when you least expect it, like you, like spending the best year of my life with the sweetest and the smartest and the most beautiful baby girl in the world. You don't be afraid, sweetheart. And remember, to love is to live. (I can't believe they killed off Jen with some random heart condition!)
  • Best of Season 6 P/J
  • Series Finale Pacey/Joey/Jen/Jack/Dawson
  • Series Finale P/J