posterity

Exactly. At that point she already knew she no longer had romantic feelings for him. She loved him in an innocent and childlike way because of their history while she loved Pacey in an adult way; sexually, emotionally, and physically. However she knew he felt romantic feelings for her and she probably felt bad for him. She knew he wasn't what she wanted and trying to break that to him would be difficult.

Dawson's speech to Joey in True Love is so badly delivered that JVDB should have been told to re-act the scene. When Dawson starts to try when he tells Joey he should have made her go to Paris, the deliver is cringeworthy. Followed by "I wanted you to stay here with me..." Another very badly delivered line. I think the crying was so overtly bad we overlook the other equally terrible things wrong with that acting and scene.

The only good acting in that scene was when he says her being with Pacey is a colossal mistake and all roads will lead back to him. JVDB was very good at selling a selfish and self-absorbed Dawson. I truly bought that Dawson thought that more than I bought Dawson being vulnerable about letting Joey go just because of the quality of acting in both parts of the scene.