Dawson sipped his Dos Equis beer and watched Joey in astonishment. She looked amazing. She was looking at him, biting her lip flirtatiously and laughing. He'd never seen her come out of her shell this way.

"Wow, you really got all dressed up for me," he commented, grinning. Joey's eyes widened slightly and she opened her mouth as if to reply. I made it too obvious, she thought to herself in disappointment and embarrassment.

"Pshh," she said dismissively. "Don't flatter yourself," she answered, hoping it sounded cool and calm enough to hide her self-consciousness. Dawson laughed.

"Okay," he said. "Well, you look good." Joey gave a small, humble smile, her eyes darting upwards to meet his. "So, what do you think of LaFonda?" he asked, practically shouting to be heard over the crowd of drunk, cheering patrons.

"I love it," Joey told him. She raised her margarita glass. "Here's to us," she said. "Dawson and Joey." Dawson clinked his beer bottle against her glass and took a sip. Joey looked at him, blushing. She excused herself to go to the restroom and Dawson signaled the waiter, ordering another round of drinks. When Joey returned to the table, she had a mischevious look on her face.

"What's going on?" Dawson asked. "You're up to something."

"And now, please welcome Joey and Dawson, performing one of my personal favorites, 'Daydream Believer!!!'" The karaoke DJ shouted into the microphone. Dawson stared at Joey, startled.

"You signed us up for karaoke?!" She looked back at him and raised an eyebrow as if taunting him. "No," he said emphatically, chuckling. "This is not happening." Joey grabbed his hand and tried to pull him toward the stage.

"Come onnn," she pleaded. "It's a tradition!" Dawson scoffed.

"At Aunt Gwen's house!" he countered. "Joey, this is a bar, filled with people who will probably be going to school with me next week. Potential for mortification is about a 9.8 on a scale of 1-10. It's completely different." Joey poked out her bottom lip and Dawson gave in.

"Fine," he said. "But you owe me!" He took a shot of tequila and followed Joey onto the stage. The other people in the restaurant clapped and cheered. A man in the front row whistled and shouted,

"Damn! That bitch is fine!" Dawson's nostrils flared as he shot the guy an angry glance, but when he looked at Joey she was grinning from ear to ear, enjoying the attention. It made Dawson feel weird to watch all of the guys in restaurant looking at Joey this way. The music started and Joey started to move back and forth, taking Dawson's hand as she began to sing. Dawson reluctantly joined in. As he performed with Joey, looking at the way she smiled at him, he remembered the last time they had performed the song together. It had been at Aunt Gwen's house, right before Joey dumped him for Pacey. He felt his face grow hot with embarrassment and anger from the hurtful memory and forced himself to stay positive. When they finished their performance, Joey gazed into his eyes, smiling widely.

"Thanks, Dawson," she whispered. Then, she kissed him softly on the lips. Dawson drew back, surprised, before cupping her face gently in his hand and kissing her back. The other customers at LaFonda cheered and whistled. Joey broke it off, her face flushed, and gave a small curtsy to the crowd, giggling as she made her way back to their table.

"I can't believe you convinced me to do that," Dawson told her. Joey leaned back in her chair and dipped a chip lazily into her margarita, popping it into her mouth and smiling. Dawson wrinkled his nose in disgust. "That's gross," he remarked. Joey looked offended.

"It is not! For your information, it happens to be delicious. Try it!"

"No, thanks. I think I'll stick to things that were actually meant to be eaten as dips." Joey rolled her eyes.

"Boring. Suit yourself." Dawson finished off his beer and caught her eye.

"Jo, what was that, on the stage?" he asked. "You kissed me." Joey blushed and looked down.

"Dawson, I…" she started to fidget and play with her hair, something she always did when she was nervous. "It was just a heat of the moment thing," she said quickly.

"Okay," Dawson responded. "Well, it's getting late." He took a $50 bill out of his wallet and dropped it on the table. "Are you ready?" Joey looked disappointed but quickly forced a smile.

"Yeah. Well, this was fun!" she said enthusiastically. Dawson nodded in agreement.

"We'll have to do it again sometime."

"Definitely."

As soon as they got back to the apartment, Dawson pulled out his binder of DVDs. "I'm about to watch Office Space," he told her. "Want to join me?" Joey smiled, raising an eyebrow in bewilderment.

"Office Space? That's an interesting choice," she remarked, letting her hair out of the ponytail and sauntering into his room.

"I'm in the mood for something different," he told her. Joey joined him on the bed as the movie started to play, shooting nervous glances in his direction.

"Is everything okay?" he asked.

"I don't know," she said. Dawson looked concerned. "What I said earlier wasn't exactly true. When I kissed you, it wasn't just some spontaneous action," Joey continued. She looked at him hopefully.

"Joey…" he said. Joey pressed her lips into his, kissing him passionately.

"Dawson, I think that I'm in love with you," she admitted.