#d'sc

okay actually no, the scene itself was beautiful, i loved it, but i hate the way it happened. like, they're fighting literally the entire episode and theres this awful tension between them, and i just really hate that it happened on the trip where it was expected to happen. the whole episode (and the episode before it tbh) it just felt like joey was being pressured. like the whole trip was setup to be about sex, and she never once seemed even remotely comfortable with the idea, and there was this looming pressure that we as the audience could feel, like "so, are you gonna do it? you know everyones doing it. pacey wants to do it. everyone expects you to do it." and even though in the end she did want to have sex with him, and the scene itself + the one where pacey turns down that one chick is really sweet, it just ultimately felt kind of untimely to me. i wish it had happened more naturally, without all this "will she/wont she" stuff leading up to it.

like there were almost no positive moments between them in the episode and i just didnt like that. the whole thing just gave me bad vibes. like it wasnt even a buildup of "im ready but im just scared to take the final leap" tension leading to her decision, it was just bad tension. like, the whole world is pressuring you to do something youre not ready to do yet bad. and while i do believe that she did ultimately actually want to have sex with him, i hate that the timing of her decision felt rushed because everyone expected her to do it.

i also hated that pacey seemed impatient? the whole time i was waiting for him to, just once, genuinely reassure joey that it was okay that she wasnt ready, but instead it was a lot of half-assed "whenever youre ready, but uh sooner would be better than later😬" (and he was borderlining nice-guy territory with the "look at me, look at me, i waited a whole 8 months to have sex because im such a good understanding boyfriend" as if he deserved a medal for keeping it in his pants🙄) like i know its realistic for a teenage boy to want sex, but pacey isnt meant to be a realistic teenage boy, hes this fictional fantasy of "the perfect boyfriend" and thats why so many people love him, because watching him be so understanding and sweet gives us hope that maybe, just maybe there are good guys out there. idk maybe its my asexuality talking but i hate the whole narrative that sex is the be-all end-all of every relationship.

personally think it would have been way better if joey and pacey had an actual conversation (that didnt end up in some weird passive aggressive bitch fight about dawson) where joey explained that yes, she loves pacey, but she just isnt ready yet, and pacey reassured her that its okay, that he loves her, and though he does want to have sex with her, he wants to wait until joey is ready and it feels right. then they go on to cuddle, sleep, whatever, and dont end up having sex on the trip, and thats what makes joey joey realize that she really is ready, and then the exact same scene happens, but after they get back.