Rebecca woke again at 7am and Pacey rushed to quieten her before Joey woke, wanting her to get some more sleep after last nights events. He changed her and peered into Megan's room as he passed, knowing that she would already be awake. It was about this time on a weekend that he took the girls out for breakfast and a walk in the park to give Joey some free time. Dawson was awake and in the kitchen drinking coffee when he appeared with the girls.

'Morning'.

He looked like hell and Pacey felt Megan move behind him, not recognizing the man that sat before her. He placed a hand on the back of her head 'It's ok Meg, it's Uncle Dawson'.

She wasn't sure and chose to skirt past him and follow her father into the kitchen. He prepared a bottle for the baby and sat opposite Dawson at the table as he fed her, smiling down at her as she greedily gulped down the liquid. She finished the bottle quickly and he laid her against his shoulder to burp her. Dawson watched this exchange 'Your so good with them Pace'.

He grinned 'I get by'.

Dawson laughed, the first time Pacey had heard this from him in a long time 'It's good to see man'.

Megan appeared next to her father, tugging in his sleeve 'Are we going?'.

Dawson's eyebrows rose 'Where are you guys going?'.

Pacey disappeared in to the hallway for a moment, shrugging himself into his thick winter jacket as he emerged. He handed Megan her coat and motioned for the little jacket that was on the table behind Dawson, smiling his thanks when he handed it to him 'I take the girls out for a walk on Saturday morning and we have breakfast.' He finished dressing Rebecca in her coat and hat and handed her to Dawson briefly so he could strap the child carrier to his chest. Dawson handled her like a pro, used to it after the numerous occasions he had taken care of Megan since her birth. Once the harness was secure, Pacey gently lowered her into it, smiling as she began to doze off. He knew this was one of her favourite positions and always tended to use it, rather than a stroller, when he took her out. 'Do you want to come?'.

Dawson looked nervously between he and Megan. 'Are you sure?'.

Pacey looked down at Megan, already agreed to it but wanting to allow her to make the decision 'What do you think Megs?' He crouched down to the same level as her and fastened the top button of her coat. 'Shall we let Uncle Dawson come with us?'.

She withdrew the thumb from her mouth long enough to nod hesitatingly, still not entirely convinced that this was Uncle Dawson.

Dawson grabbed his coat. 'Let's go'.

'I never actually asked you what happened with Jo and the birth, did I?' Dawson questioned once they were out in the open space of the park. They were standing behind Megan as she fed some of the ducks and swans in the lake.

'You've had other things on your mind'.

He shook his head 'I just don't want to you think that I don't care.' He threw a slice of bread into the water 'Especially after those things I said last night.' he turned to face Pacey 'Joey didn't deserve that'.

Pacey shook his head 'No she didn't. She's been having a tough time of it lately Dawson'.

'What do you mean?'.

'New baby stuff.' He glanced down at Rebecca who was fast asleep in the carrier. 'Believe it or not this one isn't sleeping a regular pattern yet. Megan has been acting up because Joey has been dealing with the baby and Jo's still pretty sore because of the surgery'.

'What happened there?'.

'It happened so quickly, one minute we were walking in the zoo and the next I'm running down a corridor as Joey is wheeled into surgery.' He gently stroked the top of Rebecca's head, feeling the soft strands of hair under his fingertips 'The cord was wrapped around her neck and they had to do a c-section'.

Dawson was quiet for a moment 'But they're ok Pace'.

He nodded, smiling 'Yes, they are, thank God.' He looked up at Dawson, squinting in the morning sunlight 'But for a second there, I thought I was going to lose them both'.

'I'm sorry man'.

He took a deep breath 'I know things seem impossible right now D, but don't give up, don't give up on what you could have'.

They returned home from their walk and breakfast at 9:30 and Joey was already up. She had showered and was dressed in her comfy house sweats while she was tidying the kitchen for the first time in weeks. She had already tackled the living room and was almost done in the kitchen when she heard them chatting as they entered the house. Megan ran into the kitchen and attached herself to Joey's side. Joey bent down and picked her up, wincing slightly at the sharp pain in her stomach 'Hey baby girl.' She brushed back the hair that was falling over the girls forehead. 'Did you have a nice breakfast?'

She nodded her head vigorously 'I had waffles!'.

Joey gasped in mock excitement 'Wow, waffles, did you have maple syrup?'.

She nodded again, 'So did Uncle Dawson'.

Her gaze travelled to the entryway to the kitchen as Pacey and Dawson walked in 'did he?'.

Pacey caught her gaze across the room, grinning at her, his cheeks reddened from the cold outside. He walked up next to her, kissing her cheek as he reached around her for the pot of coffee. He filled a mug and reached around them to place it back in its holder, this time kissing the top of Megan's head as he moved.

Dawson entered further into the kitchen and stood in front of the pair of them, his eyes full of apologies 'About last night-'.

She shook her head wearily 'It's ok Dawson'.

He held up a hand 'No, it's not ok, I had no right to say what I said and I just want you to know that I'm sorry'.

'Apology accepted'.

Her attention was drawn to Rebecca as she started whining in the carrier, Joey rolled her eyes 'Hungry again?'.

Pacey nodded and gently eased the straps from the baby's shoulders, grabbing her around the waist and lifting her into his arms. Megan slid out of Joey's grasp as she saw what was about to happen and resumed the sulky stance that she had adopted in the last few weeks whenever Rebecca was getting attention. Pacey's heart lurched when he saw Joey's face, wanting to comfort her crying daughter but not wanting to upset Megan more than she was. Dawson saw the situation unfold in front of him and tried to mediate, he asked Megan to show his her newly decorated bedroom and her face brightened slightly. Once they had rounded the corner, Joey sighed and took the baby from Pacey. He followed her into the bedroom, noting the tidy rooms around him. 'Did you clean?' he asked with a smirk.

She nodded defensively, concentrating on her daughter as she whimpered on her lap, she pulled aside her sweatshirt and held the milk-swollen breast to her mouth, looking back up at him as she latched on and began to suckle 'I'm know I haven't done it in a while Pace, I've kinda had my hands full.' She knew she sounded snappish but couldn't keep it out of her voice. The baby kicked her legs as she fed, causing Joey to wince when she connected with her stomach, she reached a hand underneath the baby and lightly ran a hand over the tender area, trying to locate the area of the scar that had suddenly begun to hurt.

He stood across the room for her as she nursed the baby, for the first time feeling out of it, he loved to sit with them while she fed Rebecca but this time he felt left out 'I didn't mean it like that Jo, I just thought you were going to try to sleep in?'.

'I couldn't get back to sleep.' She glanced back down at her daughter, taking hold of one of the hands that was fisted against her breast. He nodded, turning to leave the room. 'Don't go'. He looked back at her and crossed the room to her, sitting on the bed next to her.

'I think she looks more like you than me' Joey placed a finger on her cheek. 'She's definitely got your eyes and nose'.

He stared down at his daughter as she fed. 'She does, doesn't she....poor kid'.

She rolled her eyes and met his gaze 'she's very lucky'.

She finished feeding the baby and passed her over to Pacey while she replaced her sweatshirt. She watched him as he burped her and carried her over to the bassinet, tucking her in gently. She crossed the room and wrapped her arms around him from behind 'thank you'.

He turned to her in surprise 'what for?'.

'For being you'.

He turned in the circle of her arms and kissed her gently on the forehead 'right back at you Potter'.