A Tale of Two Guys

I don’t own these Characters, or make any money off of them. I wish I did. Anyway, I merely toy with them for my own amusement. Enjoy.

Jim

He hadn’t meant to kiss her. When Jim looked up from the bar where he was waiting for his gin and tonic, and saw Pam slip up the stairs to the main office, his only thought was to go after her and somehow try to repair the damage he had done to their friendship. He would tell her not to worry, that he would be transferring out of Scranton before the week was up, and she wouldn’t have to give a second thought to messing up her wedding, or anything like that. It all sounded very noble and self-sacrificing as he walked up the stairs.

Jim was surprised to hear Pam’s voice as he opened the door to the main office, and walked into the darkened room. The place looked very eerie at night, lit only by the computer monitors with their glowing blue Dunder Mifflin Screensavers. Over at the workspace he shared with Dwight, he saw Pam leaning against his desk, apparently talking on the telephone. His phone. Could she have called Roy? Would she have called Roy? Her huddled demeanor told him no. If she were reporting him to Roy, she would be angry, not upset, like she obviously was. It was probably her Mom. Pam and her Mother were very close, despite some differences of opinion about wedding plans. He didn’t want to lurk and eavesdrop, though he would have given anything to have heard that conversation, so he walked towards her purposefully, as she said, "Yes, I think I am."

She looked up and saw him, "I’ve got to go now," she whispered into the phone, "….I will." She hung up the phone and stood up. Jim walked up to her, wanting to see her face in the semi-darkness. She stood her ground, not backing away until his face was within inches of hers. Jim saw that she was trembling. He felt a surge of hope, knowing that his words must have reached her.

Nobility and self-sacrifice really didn’t stand a chance, this close to her. "Listen, Jim.." she said, but Jim didn’t want to hear any more speeches about friendship right now.

Gently, so as not to frighten her, he reached out and drew her to him and kissed her. Her lips were so soft, just as he had imagined they would be all these long months. Incredibly, Pam didn’t pull away but moved in closer, her hands reaching up to caress his hair, kissing him back. Thank goodness there weren’t any cameras up here.

After a long moment, Jim felt Pam pull away. It was only fitting, since she was the one in conflict. Jim had never had any doubts where Pam was concerned. He had known that she was the one, almost from the first moment he had laid eyes on her, on her very first day at Dunder Mifflin. But Pam had been engaged to Roy even then, and now it was only weeks before her wedding. Where did they go from here?

"I’m sorry…" they both started simultaneously. They stared at each other, at a loss for what to say. Under ordinary circumstances, this would be a Jinx, one of the elaborate games they played to relieve the boredom of working at Dunder Mifflin. The buying of Cokes would be involved and the rules were very specific. But these were hardly ordinary circumstances.

Pam looked down and Jim saw that she was trying to hide a smile. Relief coursed through him, and he smiled back. Some of the tension in the room dissipated, briefly, but it returned as Pam’s expression became grave again.

"What are we going to do, Jim?" she whispered.

"That’s not my decision to make, Pam. I’ve told you how I feel and what I want. The rest is up to you."

After a moment of silence Pam said, "You remember Kevin’s weird band? Scrantonicity?"

Jim looked confused at the non-sequiter, "Yeah?"

"Well, apparently Roy booked them. For the wedding."

Oh. "Really."

"Kevin just told me downstairs, all excited."

Jim sighed, "No comment, Pam. I’m not going to make this decision for you. You’re a big girl. Decide what you want and go for it, is all I can say. If it’s me, great. If not, well…I was offered the regional sales manager job in Stamford, so at least I won’t be hanging around here telling you that you made a mistake."

Pam looked stunned at this news, "So that’s why you went to New York last week."

"Yep. I had a meeting with Jan. Well, look; we’d better get downstairs. Do you need a ride home?"

"No. Angela said she would take me, " She paused, " Are you going to take the job?"

He nodded, hardly believing it himself, "I just told Jan, a couple of minutes ago, on her way out the door. They’re really kind of desperate so, as a matter of fact, I start there on Monday. That’s what I came up here to tell you. Listen, Pam…I’m not trying to put pressure on you. I hope you understand, I just couldn’t stay here if you married Roy."

She nodded, "And you couldn’t be at my wedding either. So…Australia."

Jim chuckled ruefully, "Yeah. Australia. Maybe just a little overkill, in the escape department." Jim started towards the door leading back down to the warehouse.

Pam quickly caught up with him and grabbed his arm, "Wait." She shook her head in bewilderment "Jim, tell me…am I really, really stupid?"

Jim stopped and looked Pam in the eyes, "Stupid? No. Not at all. Why would you even say that?"

"Because…because I missed all of this, and it’s so obvious to me now. Even your ratting me out to Toby makes perfect sense now. Why didn’t I see it before?"

Jim shrugged. "You didn’t want to. It’s not your fault. You had everything all set. Your whole life. I would have been…am…just a disruption. So you ignored it, and when you looked at me, you saw what you wanted to see. A friend. It’s just that from my desk I had a different view."

Pam shook her head. "I’ve got to think about all of this, Jim. It’s all too much for me right now."

"I know." Unexpectedly, his face lit up with a big grin, "Hey, I’m surprised I got this far, believe me. Now, c’mon, Beasly, let’s get out of here. You can’t keep Angela waiting. You know what she’s like. You go down now. I’ll follow in a few minutes." He ushered her out the door, "See ya tomorrow."

Angela was indeed looking impatiently for Pam when she appeared downstairs. "What were you doing upstairs?" she asked suspiciously.

"I had to make a phone call, where it was quiet. Where did we put our coats? Do you remember?" She asked, pulling Angela towards the coat check so that she wouldn’t notice Jim coming downstairs and heading for the exit.

He was whistling.

A Tale of Two Guys

Chapter 2

Roy

"If you don’t know me by now, you will never, never, never know me…" Simply Red crooned, on Rock 107, waking Roy from a deep sleep. The clock radio was over on Pam’s side and she was the one who usually turned it off, and made sure he got up on time every morning. However, this morning, when he turned over, Pam wasn’t there. Roy slid over to punch the snooze button, noticing that her side of the bed was cold and still tucked in, wondering where Pam was, and trying to remember through his haze of sleep, what time she had gotten in last night from that stupid Casino party.

There was no sound of the shower running or even the drip of the leaky showerhead, which usually lasted after Pam’s shower until he got up and turned the knob tighter than she could. Suddenly awake, he realized that he never had heard Pam come in last night. Worried, he jumped out of bed, and still in his tee shirt and boxer shorts, went looking through their small apartment for some sign of her.

It didn’t take him long to find her, in the kitchen, sitting hunched over at the tiny table. Her back was to him, but she was apparently still wearing her purple dress from last night and a sweater, which she clutched about her as though she were cold.

Roy wasn’t exactly quiet when he walked, but when he called her name, "Pam," she jumped as though he had snuck up on her.

"Roy," she said, sounding flustered, "Is it time to get up already?"

He came around the table and saw that Pam was nursing a cup of coffee. He was shocked at how pale she looked, her eyes red and swollen, and the little mascara she wore, smeared around her eyes. A pile of crumpled tissues surrounded the coffee cup.

"My God, Pam…what happened to you? Were you in an accident? When did you get home?"

"No, no..nothing like that. I’m fine. Angela drove me home. I got home at about 11:30. You were sound asleep…I didn’t want to wake you."

Roy looked confused.. "You could have woken me. I wouldn’t care, you know that. I might even have liked it…you know.." he said with a smirk, but Pam just stared at him. "What’s the matter? You look like you’ve been cryin’. Are you sick?" He had a sudden frightening thought, "Hey..you’re not..you know.."

"No." Pam said flatly, "NO. Definitely not."

Roy looked relieved, "Hey good. I mean, not that we don’t want to have kids and all, but it’s better to wait until after the wedding. My Mom would have a fit if everybody was busy counting on their fingers.."

"Roy, " Pam said miserably, " I have to talk to you. Come sit down. Would you like some coffee? I just made a new pot."

Roy sat down, puzzled, and watched Pam as she got up and poured a cup of coffee for him and some more for herself. She was acting so weird this morning, not like her usual self at all. Yet, last night she had been in such a good mood. He hadn’t even tried to drag her away from the Casino Night, even though he was bored with it after an hour, because she was having so much fun.

"Did something happen last night? Did somebody put the moves on you? That sicko…Dwight? I wouldn’t put anything past him." Roy didn’t trust any of those idiots upstairs…the only decent guy up there was Halpert.

"Roy. Please, just listen, okay?"

Roy sat back in his chair and folded his arms. But Pam didn’t say anything. After about thirty seconds he turned and looked at the clock on the microwave," Hey Pam, listen, it’s after seven thirty already. Neither of us are exactly ready for work, here. And the whole warehouse has to be cleaned up by noon today, or Darryl’s gonna have a fit. Can we talk about whatever this is later?" He got up and headed towards the bedroom.

"Jim kissed me." Pam said.

"What!?" Roy stomped back into the kitchen, furious, "Halpert? That son of a bitch! I’ll knock his block off!"

Pam was frightened, "Wait, Roy...it wasn’t like that. And don’t you touch him! It wasn’t like that! Just calm down."

Startled by Pam’s vehemence, Roy stopped and stared at her, "So what was it like, then?" he said quietly.

"He told me that he loves me. Wait, Roy…just listen to me for once! He’s leaving Scranton. Transferring to the branch in Stamford. Connecticut. It was just a goodbye kiss. That’s all. It was nothing. But..I..I just thought you should know."

"Damn right I should know! When’s he leaving?"

"Right away. He starts Monday. Today will be his last day, uh, here in Scranton."

"Well, then I guess I won’t have to kill him...Pam I’m kidding, don’t look at me like that! Look, I’m not crazy about the idea of some guy being in love with my fiancée, but if he’s leaving town, and nothing’s changed with us, well, then I’m not about to go medieval on his ass, Okay? And nothing’s changed with us, right?" he looked down at Pam, who was looking down twisting her ring.

"Pam? Pam!" Pam looked up, her expression, unreadable. "What did you say to him?"

"I..I told him I c-couldn’t. He said he just wanted me to know."

"Know what? Pam...did he tell you crap about me? Because that thing with the waitress at Chili’s, that was totally a joke, you know that."

Pam shook her head, " I know, Roy. No. he didn’t say anything about you at all. Neither of us did."

Suddenly Roy sank down into the chair opposite her and put his face in his hands.

"Roy…what is it?"

Roy looked up at Pam, his face devastated, "So you didn’t mention me at all? Like, for instance, ‘I’m in love with Roy and we’re getting married on June 10th, so take your transfer and get out of my life?’ Nothing like that?"

Pam shook her head, "I didn’t know what to say."

"Why not, Pam? Why didn’t you? It seems real simple to me. And, if all this meant nothing to you, why were you sitting here all night staring at the wall? I don’t understand."

"I was just trying to figure things out."

"Pam. What the hell is there to figure out? We’re getting married in three weeks. The invitations are out. We’ve got a pile of response cards. Oh…and I hired a band last night! Kevin’s band, Scrantonicity! They’re really good!"

Pam burst into tears.

Roy jumped up and went over to Pam and put his arms around her, "Oh Jeez, Pam, don’t cry. You know I hate it when you cry. Look...I know I haven’t been pulling my weight with this wedding thing. But I got the band, anything else you need me to do, just let me know, okay?"

Pam wiped her eyes with the driest tissue she could find on the table, "I can’t marry you, Roy."

"What?"

"I’m really sorry, but I just can’t. I’ve been sitting here all night thinking, and I just can’t make it work out for us."

Roy stood up. "Are you in love with Halpert?"

Pam looked down, "I-I don’t know."

Roy pounded the table with his fist. "Christ, Pam! How can you tell me this? We’ve been together for ten years! Look… I know I don’t tell you that I love you all the time, but you know I do. And I thought that you loved me."

"I do, Roy. I always will. But I can’t marry you. Not when I have all these doubts. It wouldn’t be fair to either of us."

She stood up and stretched, the purple dress crumpled. "God. We have to get ready for work. We’re going to be late, as it is. We can settle this over the weekend and I have to find a place to live. Maybe Stacy will let me move back in for a while. "

Roy’s shoulders slumped, "What about Halpert? You going to go running off to Stamford or wherever the fuck he’s going?"

Pam smiled, sadly. "No, Roy. I’m not. Believe it or not, this really isn’t about him. He just got me thinking that’s all. Something I haven’t been doing too much of lately. Actually, I’m thinking of taking that Internship in New York. Remember, the one Jan told me about? "

"Is that what this is all about? ‘Cause I didn’t want you taking that goddamn internship?"

"It’s part of it. I just want to be able to go after my dreams, is all. I’m just not ready to settle down and be a wife right now. I want to be more than that."

Roy sighed. "Okay, Pam. Why don’t you go and take your shower first? I just want to sit here and have my coffee. You had all night to think about this. I have to do some thinking, myself."

Pam disappeared into the bedroom. Roy slumped into the chair Pam had vacated and sat staring at the wall, the cup of coffee untouched at his hand.

A Tale of Two Guys

Chapter 3

Jim

When the alarm clock went off with its annoying buzz, Jim was already awake, though his hand shot out automatically and hit the snooze button, out of long habit. It was nice to have that extra ten minutes to remember last night, and try to figure out exactly why he was so damn happy this morning. Surprisingly, he had slept really well, for the first time in what felt like years. It was as though a great weight had been lifted from his soul. Finally, after all these months, he had acted, told Pam how he felt. Kissed her. The thought of the kiss, propelled him out of bed, before the snooze alarm even went off, and he found himself singing in the shower, silly songs, forever warped by Michael. "Hold me closer, Tiny Dancer…you have won a tiny Dundee, " he sang, making faces at his lousy singing voice. It didn’t matter...American Idol wasn’t his dream. Pam was his dream, and last night he had moved to make his dream come true.

He took extra effort with his hair. Not that it mattered: his hair always did its own thing regardless. He shaved carefully, and picked out his favorite shirt, a light blue one that Pam had once said she liked. As he tied his tie, he noticed his navy blue sweater, on the chair, where he had tossed it last night. He picked it up and looked around, half expecting to see cameramen recording this for posterity. He was alone, however, and so he sniffed the sweater, feeling just a little weird. Yes. It smelled like her. She didn’t wear a lot of perfume, or makeup either, but still he could sense her. It was stupid; probably his imagination, but he didn’t care.

In the kitchen, he scarfed down an enormous bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios, with two pieces of toast and a cup of coffee. When he put his dishes in the sink he saw that it was only 7:45. He would be ridiculously early. But he did have to talk to Michael and Toby..tell them about the transfer, if they didn’t know already. He had only hastily agreed to it last night after Pam had pretty much shot him down.

But, once faced with the prospect of actually leaving for work, Jim’s good mood evaporated and a knot of apprehension began to form in his stomach. He was sorry now that he had eaten so much breakfast. Yes, the kiss had been wonderful; awe inspiring, in fact, but in reality, nothing was settled. The jury was still very much out. Pam was thinking things over, which was a good thing, (right?) Jim told himself as he got into his car. She hadn’t rejected him out right. And today was his last day at Dunder Mifflin, Scranton. That was huge, too. What the hell had he been thinking of, making all of these life-changing decisions in one night?

When he had met with Jan in New York last week she had told him that the Stamford branch was in trouble. They had only had 4 percent growth last year, which put them right behind good old Scranton. Then, to make matters worse, the Regional Sales Manager had suffered a serious heart attack, which put him out of action for at least a few months if not permanently. Because Jim would be moving between branches, Corporate had waived the two-week notice he would ordinarily have been required to give. They needed him there ASAP. The Branch manager, Josh Porter, was, according to Jan, a really good guy, with almost no interest in show business. So working there would probably be a much more serious proposition than goofing around in Scranton had been. In fact, it felt suspiciously like a career, something Jim had, up till now, avoided like the plague. Still, maybe it was time...he wasn’t a kid anymore...hell, he was almost thirty. If he was planning to get married one day (Pam!) the promotion and more money would be a very good thing. And, if nothing else, it would look good on his resume in case his dream job ever did come along.

Jim pulled into the Dunder Mifflin parking lot, a good fifteen minutes early. Damn…Phil, Steve and Berta were already there...Jim knew their cars. That meant today was a filming day. Of course. Like sharks sensing blood in the water, the documentary crew always seemed to show up when they sensed a little drama in the making. Of course the camera crew had been at Casino Night, but Jim seriously hoped that Phil hadn’t been lurking in the bushes when he had talked to Pam.

Roy's truck wasn’t there yet. God. Roy. What a really rotten thing to do, moving in on a guy’s fiancée like that. Jim didn’t like Roy much, and thought he was wrong for Pam, but still there was that whole guy code, and he had violated it. He wondered if Roy was planning to punch him out. Jim wasn’t exactly a fighter, and Roy was bigger than he was, not taller, but bulkier, with more muscle. But if it came to that, he guessed he could hold his own in a fair fight. Maybe. Well, he’d just have to face the consequences...Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time, he thought to himself as he walked into the office.

The place was pretty empty. The camera guys were setting up in their preferred spots. Michael was in his office on the telephone. People would be drifting in any time now. There was Toby, and of course, Angela, right on time, looking a bit tired. Dwight strolled in and nodded formally to Angela, causing Jim to wonder once again if there was something going on between them. But surely Pam would have told him if she had found out anything juicy. For one moment, Jim wished that last night had never happened. That everybody would come in, same as always, that he would tease Dwight and laugh at Michael and flirt with Pam, same as always. That nothing would have changed. But he looked at his desk and his telephone, appearing so ordinary in the daylight, and remembering once again, the kiss, he knew that nothing would ever be the same.

He had an e-mail. From Jan. He knew that Pam didn’t have a personal computer at home. Roy didn’t want one. As Pam once quoted to Jim, he didn’t "see the point of sitting around all night googling shit." And Pam got to use the Internet at work, so really why spend all that money?

Jan had E-mailed him some forms to fill out, and told him that she was calling Michael and Toby, and explaining about the transfer, so there should be no problems at his end. And she was looking forward to hearing from him when he got settled in Stamford, etc. Poor Jan, she had been really upset last night. Imagine driving two hours to hang out with Michael! And then he shows up with another date. Stuff like that probably wouldn’t happen with his new boss. Kind of a shame, actually. Michael was at least entertaining. How on earth would he cope with the boredom of selling paper without Michael and Dwight to mock, or Pam to revive him?

Pam was late. Everybody else was here, and people were congregating in the break room, getting coffee, laughing about last night, congratulating Creed on winning the big prize of the evening. Downstairs, Jim knew the warehouse was probably a mess, and the guys had their work cut out for them. Was Roy there yet? Maybe Pam was sick or they had had a horrible fight. Several frightening scenarios flashed though Jim’s mind, suggested by the various crime shows he watched regularly. He didn’t seriously think that Roy was the murderer type, but then again how did he really know? Should he call Pam? Would that make things worse?

Or, maybe she hadn’t told him anything. Maybe last night had meant nothing at all to Pam, and she and Roy had just overslept or were stopping off on the way to work to order their wedding cake. Jim felt sick to his stomach, his happy anticipation from earlier having curdled into dread. Where was she? What, if anything, had she decided? Was the wedding still on? Was Roy greasing up his chain saw?

"Hey Jimerino, "Jim jumped a foot, but it was only Michael, with Dwight, as always, lurking close behind." Jan tells me that you’re leaving our happy home. Well, I just want you to know that I fully understand. Birds gotta swim, fish gotta, uh, fly...well actually it’s the other way around, but you know what I mean. Time to leave the nest. Soar with the eagles. March with the penguins! We’ll be sorry to see you go.."

"Not me!" Dwight interrupted; his eyes alight with manic glee.

"…But there will be a party in your honor this afternoon. Partay!"

"Uh...thanks, Michael. That’s really nice of you." Michael went back to his office.

"I’m taking all your accounts!" Dwight hissed, joyously.

"I don’t know, Dwight," Jim said, shaking his head at Dwight, sadly, "You may be sorry you let this job get away. Jan told me, "he lowered his voice to a whisper, "that the position of Regional Sales Manager actually comes with a special Sales Manager Hat...that I get to wear when rallying my troops."

"It does not!" Dwight hissed jealously, "Does it?"

"I’ll send you a picture, "promised Jim, remembering the antique pith helmet in his Grandmother’s attic. There was really no reason to stop teasing Dwight, even if he was going to be in a different state, Jim decided.

Pam finally came in about a half an hour later, looking pale and flustered, and not at all happy. She started bustling around her desk, sorting messages that had come in over the answering machine. Jim tried, but couldn’t see her hands, and she wouldn’t meet his eyes, just got to work at her computer.

A few minutes later, he saw the e-mail notice pop up on his computer screen. From Pam. Thank God.

"Jim," he read,

"Is today weird, or what? I called off my wedding this morning. I can’t even think about the mess this is going to cause with my family, and Roy’s family, not to mention all the phone calls I have to make. And Roy is pretty upset as you can imagine. I don’t think he’s going to beat you up or anything, but you might want to stay out of his way. I told him it wasn’t your fault, that the breakup wasn’t really about you. I was thinking all last night about a lot of things. About that internship in NYC, and how I’m really not ready to settle down right now. There are things I want to do with my life, things I haven’t let myself think about. Just like I never let myself think about you.

I don’t know what to do or how to act. And the damn cameras are here, too. Every time I look up Phil is focusing on me. He knows something is up, I can just tell. Maybe you should come over and get some jellybeans or something, so they’ll think it’s all normal. Oh, I forgot to bring any this morning, and the bowl is empty. So much for that brilliant plan.

Is it really your last day? I can’t believe it. How far away is Stamford, anyway? Map Quest says 2 ½ hours. But only 58 minutes from New York. Is this a promotion? Are you really going to be a manager? I hope that you’ve studied Michael enough, so that you can imitate his special managerial style. Damn! Damn! Damn! I’ve got to talk to you! Meet me in the breakroom at 10.

Pam"

Jim looked up. Pam was looking at him expectantly. Jim nodded, and smiled back. He felt a tremendous sense of relief at her note. No, it wasn’t a declaration of love, but the wedding was off! And there was hope. And she wanted to talk to him. So, it was all good. But first, there was something he had to do. He looked up at the clock, 9:30. Plenty of time to meet Pam at 10:00, if he survived.

A Tale of Two Guys

Chapter 4

Roy and Jim

Roy and the foreman, Darryl, pushed the huge roulette wheel over to the loading dock where the poker table and craps table were waiting for the rental company to come pick them up, sometime around noon, they said. The warehouse was a mess. Not quite as bad as the time that Michael had decided to have that stupid meeting down here, and had acted like a one man wrecking crew, but pretty bad. That was fine by Roy. Hard work was what he needed to keep him from having to think. He’d already been thinking so much this morning that he had a headache.

"Hey, what’s eatin’ you, man? You haven’t said word one all morning." Darryl stood up and rolled up the sleeves of his uniform.

"Nothing’, Got a headache." said Roy, not wanting to talk about it, even to his best friend.

"You didn’t drink much last night. In fact, you cut out early...you go out somewhere after?"

"Nah. Just home. Maybe I’m coming down with something. Hey...did you happen to see Pam after I left, last night?" he said, trying to sound casual. "What time did she leave?"

"Well, " Darryl thought about it, "I don’t remember seeing her at the party after you left, but I did see her get in the car with that uptight blonde chick the same time I was getting in my car, about 11:15. Why? You think she was up to something?" Darryl liked Pam well enough, but tended to be suspicious of women in general.

"Nah. Everything’s cool, " he lied. That was stupid. Darryl was in his wedding party. But every time he thought of Pam’s engagement ring laying in that little round dish on the dresser, where she left it this morning, his throat closed up and he wanted to punch something. Or someone. Let Pam tell everybody the big news. That the wedding was off, and that he had been thrown over for some pencil pushing, white collar paper salesman with a stupid haircut and a goofy smile.

He looked up, and was shocked to see the paper salesman in question coming down the stairs from the office. Roy could hardly believe his eyes. He stood there, arms folded, fist clenched, and waited for him to come downstairs.

Jim had managed to sneak out of the office without the cameraman following him downstairs, which was the last thing he needed. Sure it would probably be Must See TV when Roy cleaned his clock for him, but he would much rather do this in private. And maybe, just maybe, Roy would be less likely to deck him if he weren’t on camera. He saw Roy waiting for him at the foot of the stairs, looking coldly furious. The other warehouse guys were starting to turn around as though sensing the tension in the air. Well, it was officially too late to turn around and run, which every cell in Jim’s body was screaming at him to do.

Halpert came down the stairs, looking somewhat like a scared rabbit, but he still came, and Roy was impressed, in spite of himself.

"You sure have balls. I’ll say that for you, Halpert."

"Roy. Hey...Listen…I-I need to talk to you, man." He noticed the crowd of Roy’s friends beginning to gather. Well, maybe four guys weren’t exactly a crowd, but these were big guys. And one big woman. "In private?"

"What are you doin’ down here, Halpert? And where’s your pet cameraman?" sneered Darryl. He had no idea what was going down, but if there was going to be a conflict, he wanted to come in on Roy’s side right from the get go.

While it was good that Darryl and the others had his back, Roy didn’t want to talk about Pam in front of them. He gestured towards the loading dock, "Outside!" And signaled Darryl to keep the others inside.

Jim had no choice but to follow him out the big doors to the side yard, where they had all hung out the day of the fire. Well, outside was good. Wouldn’t want to get blood all over the warehouse floor. Roy glared at him.

"I like the way you look after my fiancée for me, Halpert! Nice job!"

Jim resisted the impulse to say that Pam could look after herself, trying not to be confrontational. "Listen, man. I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you, or upset Pam. I just want to explain to you, face to face, what happened. Seems only fair."

"Are you gonna explain why I shouldn’t bash your face in?"

Jim shook his head; "You don’t want to do that. You like working here, right? Why jeopardize it over me? I’m gonna be out of here after today, anyhow. I just want to tell you what happened, okay?"

"My wedding is off. You wanna explain that?"

Jim sighed, "Listen, Roy. I’ve been in love with Pam since the first day I met her. She was already engaged to you, so I never said anything. Never did anything. I just want to make that clear. That there’s been nothing going on behind your back. And Pam...she never did anything to lead me on or anything. It wasn’t like that. I just couldn’t help feeling the way I felt, you know? But last night, I decided to take a new job in Stamford. So I told Pam how I felt. And I kissed her, and that’s pretty much it. You can blame me as much as you want, but none of this is her fault."

Roy stared at him, nonplussed. How do you hate a guy who just comes up to you and lays it all on the line like that?

"But I’m not going to pretend that I’m sorry that Pam called off the wedding, " Jim continued, afraid that he was getting on to very thin ice, here, "You’re a nice guy, Roy, but Pam wants more out of life, then she would get married to you. I’m sorry, Roy, but I think she deserves to have what she wants."

"And that would be you? Is that what she wants? You?" Roy shook his head, incredulously, "I don’t believe it. I don’t care what she says!"

Jim felt a surge of hope at Roy’s words, but tried not to show it, " I don’t know if she wants me or not. I wish she did, but I just don’t know. Maybe someday. After she’s had a chance to dream a little. Meantime, I’m leaving. And I’ve got to get back upstairs. Goodbye Roy." Jim turned and walked back into the building, leaving Roy standing outside, in the May sunshine.

A minute later Darryl came out and Roy finally told him what had happened this morning, and that there wasn’t going to be a wedding. Darryl patted him on the back, sympathetically, and they went back inside to finish cleaning up the warehouse.

A Tale of Two Guys

Chapter 5

Jim

When Jim got back upstairs, the camera crew had Pam sitting in the "hot seat" in front of the partition to the break room, doing what they called a "talking head." Steve, the director, waved Jim away, since nobody got to listen in on their mini interviews. Pam didn’t look happy, and at one point held up her left hand, so she was probably talking about her called off wedding.

Since Pam was tied up, Jim decided to clean out his desk. It was a good time for it, since Dwight was away at the moment, talking to Michael. He got a box from the storage closet, and started emptying out his drawers. Aside from the photos on his desk, and his coffee mug, and a few trinkets, most of what he had was junk, either to be thrown out or left for the next lucky tenant. And he or she would be lucky, Jim thought, as this was the best seat in the house. Well, except for the proximity to Dwight, of course. He remembered the day that he had spent sitting way in the back, next to Kelly and away from Pam. He remembered how badly he had missed her that day..and God...he had only been across the room. After today he would be in a different state! He slumped down into his chair, suddenly so overcome with homesickness, that he could barely stand it. How could he leave?

"Hey Jim," it was Berta, the AD, "Steve want you to come over and say a few words about leaving and your promotion...you know the drill."

"Sure, why not." he glanced over at Pam who was back at her desk. She wasn’t looking in his direction, but Jim suspected that she was crying. He really wanted to talk to her, but didn’t know how he was going to manage it. He headed over to the camera crew, hoping that he could get through what would probably be his final interview without bursting into tears, or something equally embarrassing. As it was, he was sure that the entire viewing public was going to see him as a total loser when the documentary finally aired.

It wasn’t until lunchtime that Jim got to actually speak to Pam. After his "talking head," he had to finish packing up his desk. Jan had called, and he had to fill out enough paperwork to choke a horse. Then there was his computer...saving stuff that he wanted to keep onto disks and erasing the rest. Finally, he was able to get away, bringing his final Pennsylvania ham and cheese sandwich into the break room.

Pam was already there, pouring boiling water onto a Cup O’ Noodles from the vending machine. "I forgot my lunch today. So I’m having the Kevin special." She said, with a somewhat watery smile.

"Are you only having one? Or would you like me to get you 68 more?" Jim asked, with a smile. He decided to keep things light and as normal as possible. He couldn’t trust his emotions, which were all over the map today.

"One is more than enough, " she said stirring the yellowish noodles, "How does Kevin eat this stuff?"

"Here." He handed her his sandwich, "Let’s trade. I’m all about the Cup O’ Noodles." He studied the label..."Yep. Monosodium glutamate...my favorite ingredient. Well, after Xanthum gum, that is."

"I have a pack of Xanthum gum back at my desk. For later." She took a bite of the sandwich.

"So, how are you doing?" Jim twirled his noodles with his fork, trying to eat them without slurping, which was a losing cause.

"I’ve been better. But, I’m coping, so far. Anyway, it’s official, " she held up her ring less hand, " Everybody knows now. You should have heard Michael. He practically cried. I think he had already written his speech."

"You were going to have Michael make a speech at your wedding?"

"God, no. But I doubt that would have stopped him."

"Well, then it’s just as well, you cancelled."

"Yeah."

"Here, I think this might be yours, "Jim reached into his pocket and took out a thin silver bangle bracelet with a tiny turquoise heart dangling from it, and put it on the table.

"My favorite bracelet! I lost that months ago. Where did you find it?"

Jim smiled sheepishly, "You left it in the breakroom. I’ve, uh, had it in my desk drawer. I meant to return it to you a long time ago, but I guess I never got around to it."

"Thanks. For returning it, that is. Not for stealing it in the first place."

"Well, at least I’m an honest stalker."

Pam smiled, and then leaned forward, eyes gleaming with mischief; "There’s a secret I’ve been keeping from you. I have to tell you."

"What?"

"Dwight and Angela are totally doing it."

"Oh my God. Are you sure? "

"I have documentary proof. It’s been going on for about six months now. I thought that you would want to know."

"Absolutely! Even though I am getting a really bad visual right now. By the way, I’m leaving you Dwight. It’s going to be up to you to carry on with the pranks and constant mocking."

"But you were always the mastermind. I was just your humble assistant. I could never come up with anything like the nickels in the phone, thing."

"Well, then we are just going to have to keep in touch."

"I guess we will."

"Are you going to be all right, Pam? I feel like I’m deserting you."

"My friend Stacey...I shared an apartment with her before I moved in with Roy...she says I can move back, until I find a place of my own. I spoke to my Mom, and set all those wheels in motion. It’s weird. I almost think she was relieved. But anyway, I can manage, Jim. "

Jim reached across the table and took Pam’s hand. She motioned her head towards the camera, but he just shrugged. "I don’t care, Pam. Do you?"

She shook her head, and they sat like that until everybody came into the breakroom for the farewell party.

Finally, it was 5:00 and time to go home. The party had been excruciating as he had predicted. Fortunately, Michael was partied out from the night before, and hadn’t worked up any new material, but that still didn’t keep him from being extremely maudlin. One thing that Jim felt good about was that people really seemed genuinely sorry to see him go, not counting Dwight, of course. He had expected Kelly to cry and carry on, which she did, but was pleasantly surprised by the affectionate hugs from Phyllis and Meredith. Even Angela gave him a restrained peck on the cheek, prompting a jealous glare from Dwight. Kevin looked extremely mournful, but Jim couldn’t tell if it was because he was leaving or because Scrantonicity wasn’t going to be playing at Pam’s wedding. Creed shook his hand and pronounced him a great guy. Of course, Creed also called him "Tim," so it was hard to gauge his sincerity. Stanley said that it was great working with him, in spite of his terrible imitations. Toby wished him luck in his new position and told him that there would always be a place for him in Scranton if things didn’t work out in Connecticut. Jim traded E-mail addresses with Ryan and asked him to please let him know if Roy was giving Pam a hard time. Ryan said, "You love her, don’t you." And Jim could only nod.

Even the documentary crew shook Jim’s hand and said it had been fun working with him. Berta said, "Just wait until you see the documentary. You are going to be such a sex symbol, you’re going to be fighting women off with a stick!" which was so absurd that it gave Jim his only real laugh of the day.

The only person that Jim didn’t say goodbye to was Pam. She stood by his side through the entire party, but they didn’t really speak to each other. It was much easier that way.

Since it was Friday, everybody was very eager to get away for the weekend. By 5:05, the place was nearly deserted. Only Pam was still at her desk. Finally, Jim grabbed his box of personal items and made his way towards the elevator. Pam came running up beside him. "Hey, " she said.

"Hey, yourself. How are you getting home? Do you have your car?"

"Yeah. I thought it would be best. The warehouse guys left early today after cleaning up after Casino night. Roy’s still not happy, but he seems to be dealing with things better than I thought he would. He told me you went down there today. You didn’t have to do that. But thanks." The elevator door opened and Jim and Pam stepped inside. The door slid closed.

"I’m not going to say goodbye to you, " Jim said hoarsely, "This isn’t goodbye."

Pam handed him a green Post It note, "Here’s Stacey’s number. Call me when you get to Stamford. It’s going to be a crazy weekend, but I’ll get the message."

"They’re putting me up at the Hampton Inn for a week while I find a place to live. I’ll call you from there."

"Oooh, Hampton Inn. Big Shot."

"I love you."

"Oh Jim, I’m going to miss you so much."

The elevator had reached the parking level, and the doors opened. There was nothing to do, but leave the elevator. Jim looked around. The parking lot was empty. No cameramen, no Roy. He put down the box he was carrying and held out his arms. Without hesitation, Pam went and put her arms around him, and kissed him and he kissed her, trying, in those few precious moments to memorize her, the way she felt in his arms, the taste and smell of her for the long lonely weeks or even months until he would see her again. And he would see her again, that he knew.

It wasn’t until the following Monday, that Jim unpacked the cardboard box at his new desk, in his new Office, (not workspace-eat your heart out, Dwight) and found the Dunder Mifflin envelope containing the silver bracelet, and a hand drawn picture of a very sad receptionist sitting at a desk, with the caption, "I think I love you, too."

The end