Sleeping Arrangements

June 3, 2006

The harsh buzzer of his alarm clock was the last thing that Jim wanted to hear at 8:00 on a Saturday morning. His hand reached out and switched it off. "I’m buying a clock radio for my new place and this thing is going in the garbage," he decided, wondering if it was really necessary to get up this early. It had seemed like a good idea last night to set the alarm, knowing how difficult it was to get going on a Saturday. And he and Pam did have a lot to do today. But, there were so many more enjoyable things to be doing on a Saturday morning. He rolled over and put his arm around Pam, who stirred slightly in her sleep, but didn’t wake up. Just the sight of her sleeping face on his pillow, in the very room where most of his fantasies had taken place over the years was almost too much to process, this early in the morning and on this little sleep.

He had gotten into Scranton last night at about 8 PM. Pam had been waiting for him here at his old house. She had found the key under the fake rock where he had so cleverly hidden it, since his roommate Mark was away for the weekend. When Jim walked in the door after his long drive and found Pam there waiting for him, he felt as though he were coming home at last from a long road trip.

Unfortunately, Jim’s old house wasn’t going to be his home much longer. He had just signed a one-year lease on a one-bedroom apartment in Stamford, and he was pretty much moving this weekend. He had rented a U-haul and his friend, Dan had agreed to help with the heavy lifting. But Dan wasn’t due until tomorrow. Today was packing.

But last night had just been fun. He and Pam had gone to Chili’s for old time’s sake. Since Pam was banned for life, they had considered providing Pam with fake glasses and a mustache, but finally decided just to challenge the ban, and walk in boldly. Anti-climactically, nobody confronted them, or even seemed to notice or care that the notorious "Second Drink Beesly" was in the house. Over their Awesome Blossoms and margaritas they caught up on office gossip. Laughing, they dissected all of the current office romances, from the mysterious (Kelly and Ryan) to the bizarre (Angela and Dwight) and tried to figure out exactly where Michael had gone wrong with Jan and right with Carol, the realtor.

Finally, after an hour or so of gazing into each other’s eyes, and playing footsie under the table, they really needed to not be in public anymore, so they went back to Jim’s house and went right to bed.

Jim smiled, remembering last night. God...making love to Pam was just the best. She knew when to laugh, and when to be serious, when to be playful and when to be intense. They just meshed perfectly that way. And it had felt so good to be back in his own room, in his own bed, after weeks of hotels. Even though the bed was kind of small and the mattress was old, he still had slept well.

Jim stretched and contemplated getting up. Pam was still out, no point in waking her. And he was starving. Quietly, Jim got up and pulled on his jeans, and went downstairs to scout out the breakfast situation. Mark was away, camping in the Poconos with his girlfriend, and hadn’t left much behind in the way of food. Left to his own devices, Mark was the kind of guy who would have a refrigerator full of nothing but beer and condiments, which was pretty much the present situation. Jim had at least done some rudimentary cooking when he had lived here. Last night would have been a good time to have stocked the refrigerator, but he really hadn’t been thinking about practicalities like that, in his hurry to get Pam into bed. Jim looked around. Nothing. Not even coffee or a tea bag. He would have to make a breakfast run.

Jim tiptoed back into the bedroom and got his shirt and shoes. In the bathroom he brushed his teeth but didn’t bother shaving. He left Pam a note on the kitchen counter. "Dear Pam, Just went out to get us some breakfast. Be back soon. Love and kisses, Jim" and went out as quietly as he could. It was chilly and rainy out, so he grabbed an ugly gray hooded sweatshirt from the hall closet. It was actually Mark’s, but he wasn’t there to object.

Jim decided that he was too hungry to deal with going to the supermarket, buying food, coming home and cooking it. So, Dunkin Donuts it was. Besides Pam loved donuts, but hardly ever ate them, since they weren’t exactly the healthiest food, so let her have a little guilty pleasure this morning. He pulled into the parking lot of the little storefront Dunkin’ Donuts, and went inside. Oh wonderful, apparently the entire population of Scranton, Pennsylvania had also decided on donuts for breakfast this morning. There was a line, and Jim got to the end of it, trying to read the overhead menu and decide what combo to buy, and wondering if Pam would prefer tea or coffee this morning.

"Jim?" a cool voice from behind him, took him by surprise; it was a voice he hadn’t heard in five months. He turned around.

"Katie." According to the Murphy’s law of running into exes, she was looking very pretty, while he, of course, looked like the Unibomber. "Uh, hi." He and Katie hadn’t exactly parted under the best of terms, a fact about which he still felt guilty. Feeling extremely awkward, he ventured, "How are you?"

"Fine. I heard you moved."

"Uh, yeah. I’m in the process, actually. I got a promotion and transfer to Stamford. Connecticut. What are you doing? Still selling purses?"

"No. I’m working in Meg’s boutique now. It’s here in this shopping center."

"Oh. Good. I guess. Is that better?"

"Well, it’s a lot more steady."

"Good."

"Yeah."

The line was moving glacially. Jim cleared his throat, "Uh, Katie? I’m glad I ran into you, actually. I owe you an apology."

"Oh?"

"Maybe we could get off this line, and I’ll buy you a cup of coffee, next door."

She looked skeptical, but said, "Okay."

They left Dunkin Donuts and went two doors down to the Sunshine Luncheonette where they sat down at a small booth. He ordered coffee for himself and Katie. "Listen, I really have to get back, but just order what you want for breakfast. It’s on me."

Katie snorted, "Boy, you really do have a guilty conscience." When the waitress came by, she ordered a number 3 special, "so what’s this about an apology?"

"I’m sorry, Katie. I just treated you really badly that night on the booze cruise, and I’m not usually like that, and it’s been bothering me."

She shrugged, "I survived."

"Of course. I mean, I didn’t mean to imply that I, uh, broke your heart or anything like that…"

"Well, you didn’t." she snapped, her eyes suspiciously bright.

"Good. I was just going through a bad time right then, and I behaved pretty selfishly. And I’m really sorry. That’s all I really wanted to say."

"Well, thank you. I guess."

Katie’s breakfast still hadn’t arrived. Jim shifted nervously, wanting to get the hell out of there.

"Uh, so what else is happening?"

"You’ve been out of town, right?"

"Yeah. For a few weeks."

"Did you hear that Pam dumped Roy?"

Oh perfect. "Yeah. Yeah, I heard. Though I’m not sure that dumped is…"

Katie snorted, "Can you imagine? Three weeks before the wedding! It was totally embarrassing. Roy can hardly show his face around town. Oh, and she kicked him out of his own apartment, too. He’s back living with his parents! I mean, I know you two worked together, but really, what a bitch!"

"Katie?" Jim said coldly, "I’m seeing Pam, now. I guess whoever’s been giving you your information missed that little piece of trivia."

"What? You and Pam? Oh….I see. Well, that explains a lot."

"Look, Katie. I am really sorry. About everything. It was a bad situation, all around. And people got hurt. I know. I’m not happy about that. But I’ve really got to go now. Here...this is for your breakfast, when it comes." He put a five-dollar bill on the counter.

Katie shoved it back at him, "Keep it! I can pay for my own breakfast, thank you very much!" She turned to look out the window so that her back was to him, and Jim put the bill down for his coffee and went out into the pouring rain, back to Dunkin Donuts, where the line was even longer than before. Well, that went really well, he thought bitterly to himself.

Pam opened her eyes and rolled over. No Jim. She stretched her cramped arms and legs, able to move freely for the first time all night. This bed was awful! First of all, it was only a double, and secondly, the mattress sagged in the middle, dumping her and Jim into a kind of trough in the middle of the bed. That had been fun for about twenty minutes, but then it got really old, really fast. She and Roy had shared a queen-sized bed, and even so, Pam had gotten used to occupying only one third of it, since Roy was a big guy. Jim was big too, but in a different way, all arms and legs. It was like sleeping with a giraffe. An amorous giraffe. Pam smiled ..well at least that part of it was great...it was only the actual sleeping that was hell. Pam knew from experience that it took practice to learn to sleep with another person. At least the hotel in New York had had a decent sized bed. Tonight they had better go to her place. Jim didn’t want to go there...the apartment she had shared with Roy…but tough. A girl needed her beauty sleep. So, suck it, Halpert!

The worst part was that Jim had slept like a baby all night, looking happy and peaceful, all the while she was tossing and turning and contemplating murder. It had started to rain during the night and the room had become chilly and unbearably humid, since Jim hadn’t installed his window air conditioner, and they had opened both windows last night to try and catch a little breeze. She had finally fallen asleep what seemed like minutes ago. She looked blearily at the clock. 8:15. Where was Jim? Pam was starving. She hoped that Jim was downstairs making breakfast. She listened for noises in the kitchen, but heard nothing. A very quiet breakfast, apparently.

Pam got up and dug through her overnight bag, for fresh underwear, shorts and a tee shirt. The bathroom was empty, but she saw signs of recent male habitation. She studied her birth control pill dispenser. According to this, she should be getting her period…a week from today. Okay. She took her pill. At least that was one thing she didn’t have to worry about.

Once dressed, Pam went downstairs to find the kitchen. The place looked like Old Mother Hubbard’s cupboard. Not so much as a cookie or a tea bag. What did Jim’s roommate live on, anyway? She knew that Jim liked to cook, a little, at least. He had once made her a grilled cheese sandwich. Which would taste really good right now, she thought. On the counter, she found Jim’s note, so at least there was hope of breakfast in the future. In the refrigerator, Pam found a lone can of Coke in amongst the beer. Yay…caffeine and sugar, two of the major breakfast food groups. Pam took the can of Coke into the living room, and for the lack of anything better to do, she turned on the TV.

It wasn’t until an hour later that Jim finally came back, looking like a drowned rat, and carrying a damp bag from Dunkin Donuts. "You’re up! God...it’s awful out there, " he said as he put the bag on the coffee table, and took off the drenched hoodie, and draped it over a chair to dry. His jeans were damp and he kicked off his muddy sneakers.

"I’ve been up for an hour. Where have you been? Did you go to the Dunkin Donuts in Stamford?"

Jim chuckled, uncomfortably "No. The one down on Belmont, but there was a line. I got you tea, and some donuts. I also got a couple of sodas for later." He took the bottles of Pepsi out of the bag and brought them into the kitchen. Pam opened the box of donuts and bit into one. Chocolate with sprinkles. Her favorite. She drank some tea, and felt a little better.

"What are you watching?" Jim came back and sat down with his coffee.

"The ‘set it and forget it’ rotisserie. It looks great, but I wonder…can you cook a foot in it? They don’t say."

"Listen, Pam…"

"Jim…" Pam burst out, "tonight we have to stay at my place, okay?"

"Why?"

"Your bed is terrible. It was like sleeping in a ditch. How long have you had that thing?"

"It’s my old bed from home. So…junior high? High school? I forget. I did order a brand new bed for my apartment in Stamford. Queen sized. It’s being delivered Monday."

"That’s not going to do us much good tonight."

"I know. But I really don’t want to go to your place. It just makes me…uncomfortable."

"Why? Because of Roy? Well, heaven forbid, you should be uncomfortable. What about me? I mean, I didn’t say anything about all the girls who probably shared that monstrosity upstairs with you."

"What? All what girls? First of all, Pam, I don’t bring girls here, and second of all, exactly what kind of a...a Todd Packer do you think I am? In the last few years, there’s only been…"

"I don’t want to know." Pam interrupted.

"Like hell, you don’t."

He was right, Pam thought, bitterly. She did want to know. She had done a lot of speculating, over the past three years about Jim’s love life outside the office. But he didn’t talk about it. Mostly, she had talked about Roy, and he had listened. So she had no idea, except about Katie, and that only because it had happened right under her nose. Still, a good looking guy like Jim...it was a bit hard to believe that he had been a monk, as much as she would have liked to believe that.

"Well. It’s really none of my business."

Jim shook his head, " No. That’s not true. Nowadays you do need to know this stuff. In fact," he said, his voice hurt," if you really thought that I’d been sleeping around, maybe you should have been a little more careful. I mean, the pill is great, but it’s not exactly protection."

Oh wonderful, thought Pam. What the hell is the matter with me this morning? " No. I didn’t think that. Honestly. I don’t know why I even said it. I’m sorry. The only girl I know about is Katie."

"Okay. Well, in the interests of full disclosure…I was seeing a girl named Donna when you first started at Dunder Mifflin. For almost a year. We were even talking about moving in together. But it didn’t work out."

"What happened?"

Jim shrugged, "I met you."

"Oh."

"And then there was Katie. Oh…and I had exactly one date with Brenda Watkins, from corporate. But believe me...that went nowhere fast."

"Brenda? That blonde woman from the Booze Cruise?"

"Yeah."

"Why her?"

"Temporary insanity? It turned out that she was five years older than I was, which didn’t really matter, but she also had no personality. "

Pam chuckled which turned into a yawn, "Was that the date you were going on the day that all the kids came to work?"

"Oh no. That was some blind date my sister fixed me up with...I forgot about that one. Sorry. Not a big success. But Janice meant well."

"Well, I appreciate you telling me all of that, even if I prefer not to think about it. So what’s the agenda for today? Tote that barge, lift that bale?"

"Uh, Pam? "

"Do you want this last jelly donut?"

"Take it. Uh, Pam? Speaking of Katie…"

"Huh? Were we?" Not Katie. Pam did not want to talk about Katie. Katie had stung. And knowing that it was silly and illogical to feel that way, hadn’t made it sting any less.

"I ran into her this morning. At Dunkin Donuts. On line. Remember I told you there was a line? She works in that shopping center now. At some boutique. No more purses."

"You ran into Katie? Oh." Okay Pam, she lectured herself. Just play it cool. This is ancient history, here. Five whole months ago.

"Yeah. It was weird. Awkward. You know."

"Not really. Because you used to go out?"

"Well, yeah. And we broke up, uh after the booze cruise."

"I know. You told me. You said it was a mutual thing." Which, Pam suspected, was not quite the truth. And she also suspected that the breakup had taken place on the cruise, itself, since at one point she had seen Katie sitting alone, looking miserable, while Jim was nowhere to be seen.

"Yeah." Jim got up and started gathering the garbage from the table. "Well, I may have exaggerated the part about it being mutual."

"I wondered about that. She seemed really into you on the ship that night. Even asked my advice on how to get you to propose."

"What? You’re kidding." Jim sank down onto the sofa, "Oh…man. I am such a jerk No wonder she…well, at least I tried to apologize."

Pam was having trouble picturing this scene. "On line at Dunkin Donuts? That must have been fascinating for everybody."

"No...at the luncheonette. I bought her breakfast, or rather I would have bought her breakfast if she…"

"What? You had breakfast with Katie?" Against her better judgement, Pam felt her voice starting to rise, " How did standing in line at Dunkin Donuts getting breakfast for me, turn into breakfast at a luncheonette with your ex-girlfriend?"

"Pam. It was no big deal. I wanted to talk to her...some place a little more private than on line at a donut shop. I felt bad about dumping her the way that I did, and just wanted to apologize. That’s all. I didn’t eat breakfast with her."

Stop it, Pam, her inner voice hectored, do not be angry. You have no right. Just cool it. "No. It’s fine. I understand." Pam got up and grabbed the donut bag and brought it into the kitchen and stuffed it into the trash. She came back out, a brittle smile on her face, "So where are those boxes?"

"Boxes?"

"Boxes. For packing. You know...what we are supposed to be doing today. Those boxes."

Jim shook his head, and said quietly, "Pam. Don’t do this."

"Don’t do what?"

"What you’re doing. Acting like you’re not angry, when you really are."

"I’m not angry. You have the right to have breakfast with anybody that you want to."

"I didn’t have breakfast with her. I just now had breakfast with you."

"Well then, there’s no problem. C’mon. If we don’t get started, we are never going to get finished."

Jim sighed, and trudged out to the u-haul to get the boxes he had brought from the Stamford warehouse. It had stopped raining, but the skies were leaden, and it looked like it could pour again any minute. He felt like crawling into one of the boxes and just sealing it up and disappearing. He hated the sick feeling he got in the pit of his stomach on the rare occasions when Pam was angry with him.

When he got the boxes into the living room, Pam wasn’t there. She was probably already upstairs. Jim carried the boxes upstairs with some difficulty, as they were very awkward.

Pam was in the bedroom, energetically stripping the bed, throwing the sheets on the floor with the blankets and pillows, "You had better wash these before you pack them," she said coolly.

Jim put the boxes down, "I’m not going to pack them. They won’t fit on a Queen sized bed. And I want all new stuff. These are really old. Maybe you can help me shop. I’m not much of a decorator."

"If you’re going to throw them out, we need some big garbage bags. What about the pillows?"

"Pam, stop this."

"Stop what?"

"If you’re going to be mad at me, be mad at me. Don’t pretend that everything is hunky dory. I’d rather have you yell at me, than just give me the cold shoulder."

"I have no reason to be mad at you. You talked to an old girl friend. It’s not a crime."

"Pam, I’ve known you for three years. Do you think I can’t tell when you’re mad? "

"Jim, I’m not mad at you. Honestly. I’m mad at myself….for being mad at you, okay? I know it’s silly, but Katie just...gets my back up. Can I tell you something?"

"Anything."

"I hated it when you were dating her. I hated it when she called the office, or showed up for lunch, or when I thought about the two of you together."

Jim had to laugh, "Poor baby. I can’t imagine what you must have been going through."

"Why do you say it like that?" Pam sat down suddenly on the bed, "Oh."

Jim sat down next to her, and put his arm around her shoulder. "Three years, Pam. Three years of you and Roy. Why do you think I went out with Katie in the first place? Roy acted like a jerk about Katie that day, do you remember? And he really hurt your feelings and you left. And I thought, maybe, just maybe, you were going to realize that he wasn’t the guy for you. But, the next thing I knew he was sweet talking you out of being mad, and the two of you are making up right behind me, like I was a piece of furniture or something. So I got up and went into the conference room and asked Katie out. And I knew it was wrong to ask her out under false pretenses like that. But I really hoped that she could help me get over you." Jim shook his head, "But I was never honest with her. I never told her that I was in love with somebody else, and that she was never going to be able to compete in a million years."

"Oh, Jim." Pam took Jim’s free hand in both of hers and played with it while he spoke.

"Then, that night on the booze cruise, when Roy set the date for your wedding, and you were so happy and excited, I couldn’t take it any more. Katie and I were never going to have what you and Roy had…seemed to have. So I broke it off with her. Right there and then. No explanation, no discussion."

"That doesn’t sound like you."

"It wasn’t my proudest moment. I never even spoke to her again until this morning. But I’ve felt bad about it. That’s why, when I ran into her by chance, I thought I should say something before I moved away, and probably never saw her again." Jim thought a moment, and suddenly flopped back on the bed, "Oh crap!"

"What is it?" Pam leaned down over Jim’s worried face.

"Have you spoken to Roy, lately?"

Pam thought. "Well, I saw him briefly Thursday after work. We passed each other in the parking lot. He didn’t say much, just grunted. He’s stopped glaring at me, though. Which is a good thing. Why?"

"Does he know about us?"

"I haven’t told him, though I guess I should. I’m not looking forward to it. I mean, he’s finally stopped glaring at me."

"I think he knows now."

"How?"

"Katie. I told her, and I think she’s been talking to him. I don’t know how, or if they’re going out or what. But she knew all the details of your breakup, only they sounded a lot like she got them from Roy."

"Huh."

"How do you feel about that?"

"Roy and Katie? Weird. Of course, they do have a lot in common, with that whole football player, cheerleader thing. I don’t know. " Pam felt her eyes well up with tears, "It certainly didn’t take him long to get over me."

"Pam, sweetheart. I don’t even know if it’s true. It’s just a guess on my part. And if he gets over you in anything less than a lifetime, then he’s just a jerk, who didn’t know what he had in the first place." Jim put his arms around her and stroked her hair.

"I guess I am really no person to talk. Still, Roy was such a major part of my life for so long. It still feels weird that he’s not around."

"And I’m not exactly around either. Though I really wish I could be. I love you, Pam."

"I love you too." Pam smiled mischievously, and whacked Jim on the butt." Hey, lazy! You call this packing? C’mon get up!"

"Okay, slave driver. Back to work." Jim and Pam untangled themselves and got up. They looked around the room and then at each other and sighed. Jim asked, "Is it lunch time yet?"

"You know Jim, I’ve got this weird stuff in my kitchen. I think it’s called food. If we get this job done, I’ll cook you dinner, okay? You really ought to know if I can cook before you make any sort of commitment, here."

"You’re right. Can you bake a cherry pie?"

"No, but I do make good brownies."

"I know. I have sampled said brownies. Okay, you take the desk and I’ll tackle these bookshelves."

They got to work.

June 4, 2006

Jim opened his eyes and looked around the unfamiliar room. It was a pretty bedroom, decorated in shade of blue. Pam liked simplicity, Jim knew, and Roy wouldn’t have wanted anything too feminine. Still, she had put little touches in the room that he knew were her own. Like the watercolors on the walls. Most she had bought, he knew, but a couple were hers. Painted while she was at school. She was really talented, Jim thought. It hadn’t been bad at all, sleeping here last night. While Roy’s presence was everywhere else in the small apartment, in this room at least, he was nowhere to be seen. This room was all Pam.

Jim looked over Pam’s shoulder at the clock radio on her night table. 7:05. He had a sudden impulse. If he got dressed right away…he had packed some decent pants, and a nice shirt…he could meet his mother at St.Mary’s for 8 AM Mass. She was always so pleased to see him when he did that, and never said a word to him about the 50 or so other Sundays a year that he didn’t. Still, he didn’t think Pam would want to go, being a lapsed Episcopalian and all, and he didn’t really want to leave her alone again, which hadn’t worked out all that well yesterday. Plus, he hadn’t been to confession since…well, high school, so Monsignor Murphy always looked at him like he was a lost sheep.

At that moment, Pam rolled over towards him, waking up, and he took her in his arms, loving the feel of her naked body against his. Hmmm…tough choice. Get up and go to mass, or do something about this beautiful naked woman in his arms. Sorry Mom. But, thank you, God.

At about 9:00 they finally got up, and Jim offered to make breakfast, while Pam was in the shower. He was fairly proficient at bread based cuisine, so he decided to make French toast. Today he and Pam were meeting Dan and Ted, his brother in law, over at his house where they would help him pack the mini U-haul truck he had rented. Dan had agreed to drive back with him to help him at the other end, which was terrific of him. Dan had no problem staying over tonight in Stamford, since his Law school final exams were over, and he would be graduating soon. But Jim would owe him big time, nevertheless.

Last night Pam had cooked him dinner, which was really fun, with a vase of flowers and candles on the little table in the dining alcove. She had made spaghetti and meatballs, with salad and Italian bread. It wasn’t gourmet cooking. The meatballs were from Sam’s Club, the sauce from a jar, and the salad from a bag, but it was the first home cooked meal Jim had eaten in weeks and he loved it. Afterwards, they rented a couple of movies and watched them on the giant TV that Roy had bought for watching sports. He would be taking it, of course, when he got his own place, but for right now, it was pretty nice. Pam and Roy had matching recliners, in nubby brown fabric; Pam’s with a reading light, and a side table piled with books and sketchpads. But, by unspoken agreement, Pam and Jim avoided these and snuggled together on the sofa. Pam said that Roy would be taking both recliners. They were comfortable, she said, but really ugly, and she wanted attractive chairs with ottomans.

That night, when they went to bed, they were both conscious of the fact that this would be their last night together for at least three weeks, probably closer to four. Jim wouldn’t be back from Australia until June 23rd, and needed some time to get his new apartment into shape, before Pam could even come visit. Thankfully, in July, Pam’s internship would start, and New York was not far from Stamford at all. He could get through the weeks, if he knew that he could look forward to seeing her on the weekends. And thank God for E-mail.

Jim put the finished French toast on a cookie sheet and put it in the oven to keep warm. He knew, by now, that it took Pam a really long time to dry her hair. He smiled to himself thinking that yesterday the two of them had looked like total slobs all day, and hadn’t thought anything of it. But today "the guys" were coming over, and suddenly she wanted to fix her hair and put on a little makeup. It was such a feminine reaction, and Jim loved it. It was so great having a woman in his life again.

Jim was setting the table when the doorbell rang. He had already brought in the Sunday paper, and as far as he knew they weren’t expecting anybody. One unpleasant possibility crossed his mind, so it was with some trepidation that he looked through the peephole in the door. Sure enough, it was Roy. Well, thank goodness, he had gotten dressed before making breakfast. He felt vulnerable enough as it was. He opened the door, and Roy pushed his way into the apartment. He didn’t seem at all surprised to see Jim there at 9:30 on a Sunday morning. He did, however, seem thoroughly pissed. "I see you’re still lookin’ after my girl for me, huh Halpert?"

"I guess you’re always going to regret saying that to me that night, aren’t you Roy? "

Jim regretted that remark almost immediately, as Roy shoved him with some force into the living room and said menacingly, "I thought you were leaving town!"

"I did. I moved to Connecticut. I’m just here today to finish moving out of my house. However, I think we have a misunderstanding here. I am leaving town, but I am not leaving Pam. I told you back in the warehouse, how I felt about her. We’re together now. I know you’re pissed, and I don’t blame you. But, what are you going to do…hit me?"

Roy hit him. Socked him in the jaw, to be specific. Jim’s head recoiled back, but he stood his ground. "Wow!" he exclaimed, his hand to his jaw, tasting blood from his cut lower lip, "I must admit, I did not expect that. So…did that help? I hope so, because I do not want to fight you, man. But I will. You’ll probably win…but I’m sure I can inflict some damage."

"Roy!" Pam came running into the living room and taking in the situation, "Oh my God...did you hit him? What, are you totally insane?"

"Sorry, Pam." Roy rubbed his sore knuckles, looking rather shamefaced. " I didn’t mean to. I’ve been trying to be mature about this whole thing. You know that. But he asked me if I was going to hit him, and it suddenly seemed like a real good idea."

"Are you going to leave now?" Jim asked, hoping that would seem like an equally good idea.

"What are you doing here, Roy?" Pam asked. "How did you know Jim would be here? Did Katie tell you?"

"Katie?"

Jim looked at Roy. One didn’t need to be Dwight Schrute to recognize guilt when one saw it." You know…Katie. My ex-girlfriend."

"Yeah…she told me Halpert was back in town, and probably with you. We just went out once or twice...there’s nothing going on, Pam."

"Roy. It’s okay. We’re not engaged anymore. You’re free to do what you want. And I’m sure Jim feels the same way about Katie, right?"

"Oh…absolutely. Listen, Roy. We were just going to have breakfast. Want some French toast? I made it myself."

Roy laughed. "No thanks. But you’re a piece of work, Halpert. I do feel better after hitting you, though."

"Well, good. Always pleased to oblige. Now, excuse me...I’m going to go put some ice on my lip."

"Goodbye, Roy." Pam said deliberately and opened the front door.

"Bye Pam. I’m sorry…really." Roy left.

Pam came into the kitchen, "Are you all right? Let me see your lip."

"I’m fine. I’ve had much worse playing basketball, believe me. I’m really glad I didn’t have to fight him, though. I hate to fight before breakfast. Thanks for bringing up Katie...I think that’s what saved the day."

"Well, you were right about the Katie-Roy connection."

"But one thing puzzles me," Jim said as he put the French toast on the table with the butter and the syrup. "Katie seemed surprised when I told her about us. So I guess Roy never mentioned me in his tale of woe. Did he really think I was just going to go away?"

After breakfast, Jim and Pam went back to Jim’s house to wait for Dan and Ted to show up. Dan was Jim’s former college roommate, and currently going to law School at Yale, so Jim didn’t see that much of him during the year. Ted was married to Jim’s sister, Janice. Pam had met him at the Memorial Day barbecue at Jim’s parents’ house. He was a Doctor, so his free time was precious, and Jim was grateful that he was willing to spare a little of it today.

Jim’s current roommate Mark, was a good guy, Jim said, but he somehow always managed to be absent whenever there was any work to be done. He and Jim had negotiated about what pieces of furniture Jim could take with him to Stamford, and gone off for the weekend, trusting that Jim wouldn’t clean him out. It was tempting, Jim admitted to Pam, to imagine Mark coming home to an empty house, stripped to the bare walls, but Jim was happy with what little furniture he was taking. The rest he would buy new.

Around noon. Dan showed up. He was a good-looking guy, a little shorter than Jim, with dark hair and glasses. He greeted Jim with a hug and told Pam, "Haven’t seen this guy since the big Valentine’s Day massacre and poker game." He gave Pam an appraising look and said, "I am so glad to meet you. Jim talks about you all the time." To Jim he said, "Got any beer?" and "What the hell happened to your lip?"

"The lip is a long story and we have work to do. There’s beer in the fridge and pizza on order. But pace yourself…we have a two and a half hour drive this afternoon."

When Ted arrived he brought his son, Davie with him. Davie was four. "He kept pestering me to bring him, and Janice could use a little rest. He can run around in the yard."

"I’ll watch him, " Pam offered, "To tell you the truth, I’d rather do that than move heavy furniture."

"So would I," Ted laughed, "but thanks." To Jim he said, in his best McCoy from Star Trek voice, "Dammit Jim, I’m a Doctor not a moving man!"

The five of them had a terrific afternoon. Jim, Dan and Ted made short work out of carrying out Jim’s desk and bookshelves, his computer and television set, along with a bureau and a big ugly armchair. Jim also took custody of the kitchen table and chairs, since he had bought them when he first moved in. The bed, he left for a future tenant to throw out. He also left Mark his fussy toaster, just in case Mark ever found himself in possession of a loaf of bread.

Davie was perfectly content to follow Pam around, and she took him on a tour of the house, up and down stairs, peeking out of all of the windows and looking in the mirrors. Jim was right…after his initial shyness, he seemed to really like her, and crawled into her lap, whenever she sat down.

When the pizza arrived, they broke for lunch, and then put Davie down for a nap and played a few hands of poker, which Jim mostly won, to nobody’s surprise. Pam was astounded. When Roy and his friends got together, they had totally ignored her, as though she were invisible. She had gotten so used to it, that it amazed her when Jim, Dan, and Ted actually included her in the conversation. They teased Jim thoroughly about Australia and his new job, and Jim and Pam told funny stories about the Scranton branch, with Jim doing the appropriate imitations. Dan and his girlfriend had just seen the DaVinci Code, while Jim and Pam had seen the X-Men, so they discussed the relative merits of both. Ted said that Janice was dragging him to see The Break Up because she had a thing for Vince Vaughn, but he didn’t mind as long as he could see Jennifer Anniston.

But eventually, the van was loaded and it was time for Jim and Dan to leave. They wanted to get to Stamford in time to reverse the process at Jim’s new apartment before it was too late.

Davie gave Pam a big hug before Ted helped him into his car seat. Ted invited Pam over the next time they had a cookout, probably in a week or two. He knew that the next few weeks were going to be lonely for her, and Janice had expressed an interest in to getting to know Pam better. He gave Pam a hug and got into his car.

Dan was going to follow Jim in the U-Haul. He told Pam again how happy he was to meet her, and kissed her cheek before getting into his car. That left Jim and Pam, who walked around the side of the house for a little privacy.

"I can’t believe I’m really leaving Scranton. It doesn’t seem real, somehow."

"Well, I think you’re still allowed to come back now and then. And your parents are here and your whole family."

"And you."

"Yeah. Your friends are really nice. A whole afternoon and they didn’t talk about sports once!"

Jim laughed, "Oh we talk about sports, believe me…but they do have other interests too. They’re both a lot smarter than I am."

"Jim! They are not! But listen, you’d better go. I don’t want you falling asleep on the road again. Can you kiss me with that lip of yours?"

"I’m damned well going to try."

They kissed goodbye, even though it hurt, and Pam walked Jim back to the truck. Reluctantly, he got in and she kissed him again, and he started up the truck and pulled out of the driveway, Dan’s car following behind.

Pam stood a moment watching them until they were out of sight, then got back into her own car to head back to her lonely apartment. Tomorrow it would be back to work at Dunder Mifflin, where a new salesman would be sitting at Jim’s desk. With tears running down her face, Pam pulled out of the driveway, and headed down the road.