It was a beautiful, sunny June day. Fifteen-year-old Pam Beesley nervously adjusted the straps on her blue bikini top as she peered at herself in the mirror of her bedroom.

  “Pam, that suit looks great on you! I wish I had your body” her friend Michelle said looking down at her still flat chest and thin girlish figure.

  Pam, the more timid of the two girls had already started to develop a woman’s curves. The bikini top’s triangle strips of cloth did little to conceal her large, full breasts. Her tiny waist dipped in alluringly from her chest, then rounded out in a gentle swell to her hips and buttocks.

  It was a figure that Michelle would have proudly flaunted at Scranton High School’s “Goodbye Seniors, Hello Freshman” picnic at Lake Walenpaupak.

  Pam, however, just wanted to cover up and hide. She didn’t like to be the center of attention. It embarrassed her.

 “Just wait until all the hot senior guys get a load of you!” Michelle squealed.

 “I think I’ll just wear my shorts and t-shirt over this,” Pam replied, already desperate to cover up, even in front of her long-time friend.

  “Why? No one will notice you dressed like that!” Michelle pouted.

  “I know. That’s the idea,” Pam said to her friend as she tugged her white t-shirt over her head.

  “C’mon Pam, are you gonna sit on the side-lines all day today? You promised me you’d go with me to the picnic. I want to meet some new people! High school boys, Pam! Don’t you want to get to know the people you’ll be in high school with in September?”

  “I guess,” Pam said unenthusiastically. “You know I get nervous around new people, Michelle. I just don’t like talking to strangers.”

  “I know, but you promised! Hey, I have a great idea!” Michelle said clapping her hands together.

  Pam groaned and rolled her eyes. Michelle’s great ideas were usually crazy, far-fetched things that Pam would never consider doing. Deep down though, Pam loved her friend. Things were certainly never boring when she was around. And there was something exciting about letting Michelle coax her into doing fun things she would never try on her own.

  They’d been friends ever since Pam was seven years old. That was the year a new girl, Michelle, had moved in two doors down from her. Michelle was also seven, and had the same Strawberry Shortcake bike that Pam had. That was all it had taken for a fast friendship to form.

  Now, eight years later, Michelle was staring at her, in a black bikini that clung to her thin frame, with that mischievous gleam in her eye. Pam knew that look all too well. She was both excited and terrified by whatever idea Michelle had cooking in that nimble brain of hers.

  “No seriously, it’s a really great idea,” Michelle repeated for emphasis, seeing the hesitant look on Pam’s face.

  “Alright, I’ll bite. What’s your idea?” Pam asked.

  “Well, we won’t know many people there today. Most of the Scranton High School students come from Lackawanna Middle School or St. Regis Prep, right?”

  “Yeah, I guess. Why?”

  “Well our little middle school had, what thirty people graduate?”

  “Twenty-nine” Pam corrected.

  “Right!” Michelle said. “I like those odds….”

  “What do you mean?” Pam asked warily.

  “What I mean is, since hardly anyone there will know us, we can be whoever we want to be!”

  “Huh?” Pam asked.

  “Well, just for today, you can be, I don’t know… Lauren,” Michelle said.

  “Who’s Lauren?” Pam asked, thoroughly confused.

  “You can be, silly! It’s a made up person. And, I can be Niki…or whatever. Get it?”

  “Not really,” Pam said, pondering her friend’s words.

   “Just for today, let’s pretend to be someone else. This way, if we do or say something stupid, we’ll have a clean slate for September when school starts.”

  “That’s dumb, Michelle,” Pam said, frowning at her friend’s idea. Still, she had to admit, it sounded kind of fun.

  “It’s not dumb. Think about it. There will be hundred of kids there today. Some will be Scranton students, some will be new freshmen coming from different middle schools, some will be alumni, and some will be from other high schools just there for the party. If we pretend to be someone else, who’s going to remember come fall?”

  “I don’t know,” Pam said, her stance wavering. She took a deep breath while she chewed on the inside of her lip. It did sound interesting. Pretending to be someone different for a day…Michelle could definitely do it, but could she pull it off?

  “What’s the worse that could happen?” Michelle demanded, sensing that her friend was wavering. “If you meet someone, tell them your name is Lauren. Then come fall, if you ever see them again and they say, ‘Hey Lauren!’ All you have to say is, ‘Sorry, I’m not Lauren. I’m Pam.’ You know what they’ll say? ‘Wow, you look just like this chick Lauren.’ And that will be that!”

  “You make it sound so easy.”

  “That’s because it is,” Michelle said slowly emphasizing every word, as she teased the sides of her long hair into a silver clip.

  “Well, what do we do if we see someone we know?” Pam asked smugly, thinking she had foiled Michelle’s little plan.

  “Well, that could get tricky,” she admitted, smoothing the sides of her hair into place with her fingers. “Best bet is to probably just look away, like you didn’t hear them. Or better yet, smile and wave at them. Then, just walk away, like you have to go to the bathroom or something.”

  “I don’t know….” Pam said fearfully, pursing her small pink lips.

  “Come on! You know this will work. I want to be Niki today! It won’t work unless you’re Lauren.”

  Pam hesitated. It really would be fun, pretending to be someone else for the day. Maybe Lauren could be more outgoing than Pam was. She had often wished she was more adventurous and daring, like her friend Michelle. Maybe this could be her chance to try. No one would have to know, she thought.

  “Alright, I’ll try it,” She agreed quickly, before she changed her mind.

  “Yipee!” Michelle exclaimed, grabbing Pam for a quick hug.

  Pam pulled back and grabbed her by her shoulders. “But listen to me, if this doesn’t work; we’re out of there quick, ok?”

  “You got it, Lauren,” Michelle said, sing-songing the name “Lauren”. Then, she grabbed the hem of Pam’s t-shirt and pulled it up past her chest. “Lose the t-shirt Pam. Lauren doesn’t want to look too stuffy at the lake today!”

  Pam glared at her friend as she pulled her t-shirt back down. Michelle laughed. This was probably going to be a disaster.

Chapter 2 - Budding Emotions

Forty-five minutes later, Pam’s mom pulled up in front of Lake Walenpaupack. Both girls peered out the car window at the large crowd of kids gathered along the shore.

 Pam blew out her breath. How on earth was she going to do this? Michelle looked over at Pam and noticed the look on Pam’s face. She squeezed Pam’s hand reassuringly.  “Thanks for the ride Mrs. Beesley!” Michelle said, jumping out of the car with Pam’s hand still held securely in hers.

  “You’re welcome.”

   Pam leaned in and wordlessly gave her mom a kiss goodbye.

  “Bye honey, have fun. I’ll be back to pick you up at four,” Mrs. Beesley said, and she watched the girls walk away and get swallowed up by the large crowd.

  Just past the parking lot was the entrance to the picnic area. Dozens of brown picnic tables, now teeming with people were set up in rows. At the end of each row was a small barbecue grill. Charcoal-smelling smoke wafted through the crowd, mixing with the smell of hot dogs, suntan oil, and cigarettes.

  A large yellow banner was tacked up in the trees over the cluster of tables, reading “Goodbye Seniors! Hello, Freshmen!” Directly below the sign, leaning against the tree  was a large boom box radio blaring DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince song, “Summertime”. Everyone seemed to be talking or laughing.

  Directly behind the picnic area was what looked like a small carnival. Vendors were selling t-shirts and food. There was a dunk tank, a booth selling snow cones, and a ring toss game.

  Various clubs from Scranton High School also had booths set up. Shading her eyes with her hand, Pam could see banners for S.A.D.D, the Scranton HS marching band, and the local Kiwanis club.

  To the right was the lake. Grainy white sand surrounded the edge of the water and stretched for about 100 feet before being covered by pine needles. Today it seemed as if every square inch of that sand was covered in towels or blankets, and those towels and blankets were equally covered by rowdy teenagers.

  Pam fought her natural urge to retreat from the chaos. She stayed glued to Michelle’s side as they weaved through the crowds. Michelle all but danced through the throngs of people, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

  Looking over the crowd, Pam scanned the scenery, blue water, white sand, green trees, and blue sky. It looked like an artist’s palette, she thought. Lost in her train of thought, Pam bumped smack into to a tall boy holding a soda, causing the soda to spill onto the blanket in front of them.

 “Oh. I’m so sorry!” she said clasping her hand over her mouth in embarrassment.

  “What the fuck?!” yelled a boy sitting on the blanket as he jumped up to brush the liquid off his lap.

  “Hey man, chill.” The tall boy said in a smooth voice, as he looked at Pam “It was an accident.”

  Pam looked at the tall boy standing in front of her. He was smiling at her. Her heart beat faster, whether from embarrassment or not, she didn’t know. Thoroughly flustered, she tore her eyes away from his. Instead she looked down and shifted her focus to the boy with the wet lap.

  “I’m really sorry.”

  Michelle jumped in, more to check out the cute boys than out of concern for Pam. “Yes, Lauren, how clumsy of you!” she said, her eyes widening at Pam. Michelle shifted her gaze from the tall boy to the wet boy and then back to Pam again.

Pam knew that look. That look said Michelle was interested in talking to these guys. Game on.

  Michelle turned on the charm as she indicated to Pam. “This very clumsy friend of mine is Lauren.”

  With flashing brown eyes, she turned her amorous focus to the wet-lap-boy and delicately extended her hand. “My name is Niki. What’s yours?” she almost purred it.

  “Ryan Howard,” the wet-lap-boy said as he wolfishly raked his eyes over both girls, his gaze seeming to settle on Pam’s chest. Uncomfortable with his leering stare, Pam looked away.

  Without skipping a beat, Ryan shifted his full attention to Michelle. She, in turn, returned his gaze with a full smile. There was no doubt that they were both interested.

  Turning back to the tall boy, Pam took a deep breath and shyly extended her hand. “I’m Lauren,” she said. The name sat awkwardly in her mouth.

  “I’m Jim,” he said taking her hand in his. His hand felt big, warm and smooth as it covered hers.

  “Do you go to Scranton High School?” Jim asked.

  “Not yet.” Pam said. “I’ll be a freshman in September. How about you? Do you go to Scranton High?”

  “No. I’m here with some friends from my baseball team. I go to Lancaster High School”

  “Oh,” Pam said quietly. She felt unsure, tongue-tied around this boy with his kind eyes and big smile. “Do you like your school?”

  “Um, yeah sure. It’s ok, I guess. You know, school’s school, right?” Jim said, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his dark blue bathing suit shorts. He seemed nervous too, which somehow made Pam feel better about the butterflies that were fluttering in her stomach.

  “Yeah,” Pam agreed, giving him a wide smile.

  Jim smiled back. She felt her heart beat a little faster, and it made her giggle. This feeling of attraction was so new to her; she didn’t quite know how to react to it.

  “What?” Jim asked with smiling eyes, giggling a little himself, although he had no clue what they were laughing at.
  “Nothing,” Pam said as her giggles died out. Looking at Jim, she could feel the heat of his stare. She recognized the look as attraction and part of her welcomed it. The other part was terrified. Her happy smile faded, and she unconsciously bit her lip as their eyes remained locked in an intense gaze. 

  Jim too seemed unsure, but she was the first to look away.

  “Hey, I was just going to go check out all the tables and booths set up over there”, Jim said, clearing his throat as he motioned towards the carnival area.

  Pam looked down, but Jim continued on.

  “Cause I heard that the Scranton High School marching band makes a to-die-for cherry snow cone. Come with me?” he asked his face hopeful.

  “I don’t know,” Pam replied, shifting her gaze over to Michelle who was laughing loudly at something that Ryan had said.

  “I know, I know. You’re thinking I could be an axe murderer or something, right?” Jim said smiling at Pam.

  Then he tapped his chin pretending to brainstorm an idea. “I got it!” he said, as he leaned over to whisper in Pam’s ear.

  “Let’s ask your friend Niki over there, and her new friend Ryan, to come with us. That way, if I do decide to murder you with an axe or something, there will be witnesses.”

  Pam felt his warm breath as it whispered across her ear. It sent shivers down her spine, and made her skin tingle. She held her breath and let it course through her. All thoughts cleared from her head as she focused her energy on this new feeling.

  If I turn my head just a little, she thought, I could feel his lips on my skin.

  Jim pulled back, grinning madly at his own joke. But his expression faded as he saw the budding passion in her eyes. Without thinking, he shifted his body closer to her and put his hand on her arm. Pam could feel herself leaning towards him.

  “Hey you two,” Ryan interrupted, grasping each of them on the shoulder with his hands. “Niki and I are going over to the booths. Want to come?”

  “Um, yeah sure,” Jim said, looking over at Ryan. “Sounds good.”

  “Yeah, that sounds good,” Pam echoed quietly, shaken by her reaction to Jim.

“Well, let’s go then!” Michelle said laughing, and she tried to sprint ahead of the group. In three steps, Ryan caught her around the waist and pulled her back towards him. The two of them were laughing and touching as they moved towards the booths. No one would guess that they had met only ten minutes ago.

  As if he read her thoughts, Jim said, “Those two really seem to be hitting it off, huh?”

  “Yeah, Niki can be very friendly. How about your friend Ryan?” Pam asked him. “He seems nice.”

  “Oh, he’s not my friend,” Jim answered. “I only just met him myself. He knows a couple of the guys on my baseball team. I think he said he goes to Lake Harmony High School.”

  “Oh,” Pam said. “I thought you two were buddies.”

  “No. He’s kind of obnoxious don’t you think?”

  Pam laughed. “Yeah I do. But Niki seems to like him.”

  Up ahead, Ryan and Michelle were holding hands, and walking almost hip to hip. Every few steps, he would try to pull her toward him and kiss her on the cheek or the lips. She was pretending to resist, but not doing such a good job at it, from what Pam could tell.

  “Sure seems that way,” Jim said just as they stepped in front of the marching band’s snow cone booth.

  A big guy, wearing a Police concert shirt, stepped up to wait on them. He was tall, and heavy, his sandy blond hair was already thinning on top. There is no way this guy is in high school, Pam thought as she looked him over.

  Jim reached into his pocket and pulled out some wadded up bills. “Hey man, how’s it going?”

  “Good,” the big man said slowly. “How about you?”

  “Great, great,” Jim replied absently. “Two cherry snow cones please.”

  “You want extra cherry flavoring on that for fifty cents more? The money we raise goes towards new band uniforms.”

  Jim looked at Pam. She smiled and shrugged, trying to imagine this giant of a man in a geeky high school band uniform.

  “You in the band, man?” Jim asked him, eerily picking up Pam’s thread of thought.

  “No, no. I’m a Scranton High School band alumni. I just help out the band director, and he lets me use some of the equipment for my own band.”

  “Oh,” Pam said in mock awe. “You’re in a band?” Then she smiled sweetly at Jim, who raised his eyebrows and shook his head at her in amazement.

  It was rare that someone picked up so quickly on Jim’s sense of humor so quickly. Most of the girls he knew just stared blankly at him when he was joking around. Some even looked at him in disgust, when he made his snide little comments. Lauren just seemed to get it. “Yes,” the big guy replied, oblivious to Pam’s mocking tone. “We’re called Scrantonicity.”

  Jim pointed to the big guy’s t-shirt. “Oh! Scrantonicity,” he said slowly, and shot a knowing look to Pam. “Like the Police, Syncronicity?”

  Pam bit her lip to keep from laughing.

  “Yeah,” the big guy continued in his monotone voice. “We’re getting really good. You two should come by and see us. We practice in the music room at the high school every Sunday, if there’s not a band tournament scheduled for that day.”

  “Yeah man, we’ll do that. Thanks,” Jim said, as he leaned in to reach for the snow cones. “What did you say your name was man?”

  “Kevin,” the big guy replied with a slow smile, as he handed Jim his change.

  “Alright Kevin. Hey, maybe we’ll see you in the music room some Sunday.”

  “Cool.”

Chapter 3

“Ok, that was just mean,” Pam said giggling once they were out of Kevin’s earshot.

  “I have no idea what you mean Lauren,” Jim said smiling. “I have every intention of checking out his band. In fact, I’m sure that they totally rock!” Then, for emphasis, he mocked a little air guitar, almost dropping his snow cone on the sand.

  Pam covered her mouth and laughed. She was having such a good time. Pretending to be someone else must agree with me, she thought wryly.

  Then on impulse, she grabbed Jim’s free hand and pulled him toward her, planting a gentle kiss on his cheek. Up close, he smelled like sun screen and sweat, but warm, sexy, and definitely male. It filled her, made her dizzy, and she lingered a little with the kiss. Taking a step back, she touched her tongue to her lips, tasting the salt of his skin.

  Jim felt her light kiss feather across his cheek. Her lips felt hot and smooth on his face, and it sent a shock wave of heat straight down into his stomach.

  Jesus, she’s beautiful, he thought looking down at her. He gripped her hand tightly, rubbing his thumb across her palm.

  “What did I do to deserve that?” he asked her, his eyes dark with desire. “Tell me quickly, so I can do it again.”

  Pam smiled, and gripped his hand back. She liked how her hand felt in his. “That’s for the snow cone.”

  “Hmm,” He said. “Let me get this straight. If I buy you stuff, you kiss me? Wow! That’s a pretty great trade if you ask me.”

  Pam pulled her hand away and playfully punched at his arm. “Are you insinuating that I’m for sale?” she asked in mock horror, clutching her palm to her chest.

  Before he could answer, Michelle and Ryan came up behind them. Ryan was gripping her waist and leaning over her shoulder as he stood behind her. She was smiling, and she leaned back into him.

  “Hey Lauren,” Ryan said. “Settle an argument, will ya? Does Niki have a tattoo? Because she told me she does, but she won’t show it to me. Which I think is completely unfair of her.”

  Michelle giggled and put her finger over her lips. In effect, telling Pam to be quiet. Pam took the hint and just shrugged her shoulders sweetly at Ryan.

  The fact was if Michelle had a tattoo her parents would skin her alive but Pam played along anyway. “I don’t know, Ryan. That’s classified information, and I don’t believe you have been given clearance.”

  “See?” Michelle said turning her head towards Ryan. “I told you she wouldn’t rat me out.”

  “Well,” he said. “I’ll just have to figure out a way to convince you.” Leaning in close, he kissed Michelle on the lips.

  Pam and Jim exchanged uncomfortable looks. Michelle was definitely getting in too deep this time, she thought as she watched her friend eagerly return Ryan’s kiss. But am I getting in too deep? 

  Grabbing Michelle’s hand, she pulled her away from Ryan. “Sorry, I need to talk to Niki,” she said as she tugged her friend out of their ear shot 

“What are you doing?” Pam hissed.

  “What do you mean? I’m having fun. Ryan is hot and I like him,” Michelle said, haughtily tossing her hair over her shoulder.

  “Well, that’s obvious,” Pam said crossing her arms across her chest. “Don’t you think you’re moving a little too fast? You just met the guy, and you two are all over each other already. He doesn’t even know your real name.”

  “Ha!” Michelle said. “Look who’s talking! Have you told Jim your real name yet? Is that what you were whispering when I saw you kiss him? Don’t go acting all innocent on me.”

  Embarrassed, and not willing to back down, Pam spit out at her, “Well, you look like a slut.” As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Pam wished she could snatch them back.

  Michelle’s eyes went wide with shock. Then her eyelids narrowed in fury, and she clenched her hands at her side. She shot back, “That’s fucked up Pam, even for you!”

  “You’re right,” Pam said hurriedly, hating herself for saying something so mean to her friend. “I’m sorry.”

  But Michelle ignored her, turned away, and stomped back to the guys. Pam watched her say something to Ryan and they both looked back at her. Then she saw Ryan say something to Jim, and he and Michelle walked off together, leaving Jim standing there.

  Jim walked over towards her. He was looking down, with his hands stuffed firmly in his pockets again.

  “You ok?’ he asked hesitantly.

  “Yeah, I guess,” Pam replied with a catch in her voice, tracing a line in the sand with her toe.  “Sorry about that. Quite a scene, huh?”

  Jim smiled and put his hand on her shoulder. “No worries. Come on. Let’s go check out some of the other booths.”

  Pam hesitated. Maybe she should just tell Jim the truth, call her mom and get the hell out of there. What a mess she had made! The afternoon had started out so great, but now she just felt like an ass.

  Sensing her uncertainty, Jim grabbed her hand again and steered her towards the ring toss game. “Niki will be alright. Let her cool off a little, then we’ll go find them, and you guys can talk, ok?”

  Pam looked up at him. He hadn’t even asked what had happened. Maybe it was obvious, but she was still grateful he hadn’t pressed for details. She didn’t think she could manage a plausible lie at the moment.

  “Come on now, let’s go toss some rings! It’ll cheer you up,” he said hopefully.

  “Ok,” Pam replied quietly, and gave his hand a little squeeze. “Thanks.” He smiled down at her, and her heart gave a little lurch.

   Standing in the line waiting for their turn, they continued on with their sarcastic banter. People watching at this event turned out to be all the fuel they needed. Oddities seemed to just happen across their path today, and what fun would that be if they didn’t comment on it? The stifled giggles between them were quickly escalating until finally the guy in front of them said something.

  “Do you mind?” the bespeckled boy asked them.

  “Mind what?” Jim replied smirking. Pam, trying to suppress a laugh, turned her head away.

  “I’m trying to concentrate. This isn’t a joke you know,” the boy said seriously.

  With effort, Jim put on his best serious face. Pam looking at him with awe, stifled her giggles.

  “No, no, it’s not. You’re right. Sorry man,” Jim said with a straight expression. “If you don’t mind me asking, what are you concentrating on?”

  The odd boy smirked at him. “The ring toss game. It’s not a game of chance you know. It takes skill and concentration to master it. Fortunately, I have both of those qualities.”

  Pam bit her lip to keep from laughing. This kid was unbelievable. He was dressed in an outfit that her grandfather would probably consider outdated. His thick black rimmed glasses were a direct contrast to his pasty, moon-shaped face. Still, if Jim could hold it together and talk to this guy, so could she…

  Pam cleared her throat. “If you don’t mind me asking, how does a person gain such skill in ring toss?” She smiled sweetly at the boy.

  He shifted his gaze towards Pam, and pushed his glasses up further on the bridge of his nose. His expression remained grim. “Every summer, my cousin Mose and I make it our business to attend all the local events. Lucky for us, most of these events have the ring toss game. “

  Then he flashed her a maniacal little smile. “You can’t expect to be good at something unless you make it your business to practice now can you?”

  Pam stammered, “Oh no, no. I guess you can’t.” Then she looked over at Jim, her eyes wide, trying to hold it together.

  Jim shrugged, and looked from the boy to Pam. “Makes sense to me. How about you, Lauren? Does it make sense to you too?”

  Pam looked down to keep from laughing. “Yeah, that’s probably right”, she managed to blurt out.

  The odd boy turned back around while Pam and Jim mocked him silently behind his back. Then Jim reached out and touched his shoulder. “Well, good luck buddy. We’ll be rooting for you.”

  The boy turned back, eyes blazing. “My name is not buddy. My name is Dwight Schrute, and I don’t need luck. I have skill, and that is infinitely better.”

  “Right man, I forgot. Sorry.” Jim said, tears of laughter burning in his eyes. Then, he caught Pam’s expression and just lost it. The two of them were almost doubled over trying to control their mirth.

  Dwight just shook his head and turned back. “Idiots,” he murmured.

Chapter 4 – Taking Root

After watching odd-boy Dwight play a very successful game of ring toss, it was now Jim’s turn.

 “Well,” he said as he exhaled a long breath. “Now, I’m nervous. Having you next to me, it’s so hard to concentrate on my ring toss game. I doubt I will be bringing my A-game today.”

  “Oh sure,” Pam countered, grinning up at him. “Blame it on me.”

  Jim only shrugged, and leaned in to whisper to her again. “Maybe you’ll be a good luck charm.”

  Pam closed her eyes and felt the pull of his nearness. With all their joking around, and then the horrible argument with Michelle, she had almost thought she had imagined the intense attraction between them.

  Jim looked at her and could see the uncertainty in her eyes. He pursed his lips as she looked away. He knew she was upset about her friend Niki, but he felt there was something else bothering her. Maybe I am annoying her, he thought.

  He knew she had relaxed when he was making jokes. Her beautiful face split into a wide grin and her eyes danced with laughter. It made him feel strong, but when she looked up at him with those gorgeous eyes she made him feel weak.

  And to think, he said, chuckling to himself, I wasn’t even going to come today. Looking for a wing-man, his friend had begged him. “Come on, Halpert. There will be tons of hot chicks there.”

  Jim’s eyes raked over Pam. He had definitely found himself a hot chick. And, she’s hanging out with me, he thought smugly.

  It just wasn’t his luck to meet cool pretty girls like Lauren. Those types of girls usually went for the meat-head guys, the jerks. Guys like him never really had a shot.

  She’s out of your league Halpert, but she’s here now, isn’t she? he thought, and feeling a little possessive grabbed Pam’s hand.

    Jim signaled to the short, pretty blond student handing out the rings. “Hi, how many rings do you have to land to win that?” he smiled and pointed to a large purple stuffed cat pinned, amongst many other bright stuffed animals, to a post.

  The blond did not smile back. Her hair, neat as a pin, was pulled back in a severe pony-tail. She was wearing a light blue S.A.D.D. t-shirt with a name tag that read: Volunteer - Angela. Rolling her eyes, she pointed to a small sign tacked up behind her.

  “The rules are clearly posted here,” she said barely concealing her disgust.

  Pam glanced at Jim, the look she gave him clearly said I’ve got this one.  She jumped in. “Sorry, my friend Jim here has some trouble seeing. I’m here today to help guide him around. I’ll just read that for you, Jim,” Pam said slowly and loudly, as if Jim not only had trouble seeing, but was slow too. Nice! Jim pretended to strain his eyes towards the sign.

  The blond’s expression did not change with this new information, and she continued to glare at the couple. Obviously, pity was not an emotion she felt comfortable with. Fumbling in his pocket, Jim pulled out a few dollars and handed it to Pam.

  Pam looked the money over and said loudly to Jim, “Good, Jim. That’s a $5 bill.”

  Then, she smiled sweetly at Angela and handed her the bill. “He’ll just play $5 please.” Angela wordlessly took the money and handed Jim the rings.

  Pam continued in her loud voice. “Ok, Jim, the milk jugs are all in rows. Just aim towards 2 o’clock and you’ll do fine.” Jim squinted hard and pretended to aim in the opposite direction.

  “No, no, Jim,” Pam said, gently guiding his hand in the right direction. “Throw that way.”

  Jim nodded, squinted again for Angela’s benefit, and started tossing the rings. The first two weren’t even close. The next three landed their mark. Pam clapped her hands in genuine excitement as Jim grinned down at her.

  “Does he win anything?” Pam asked Angela.

  “Three rings win you a stuffed animal,” Angela said her face a dour mask.

  “Awesome!” Jim said, and then turned towards Pam. “Which one do you want?” he asked.

  Before Pam could answer, Angela cut in. “Not those stuffed animals. They’re only for people who land all 5 rings.”

   Leaning down below the counter, she emerged with a large cardboard box filled with much smaller stuffed animals. “You may choose on of these,” she said smugly.

  Pam dug her hand into the box and pulled out a small pink pig. Showing it to Jim, she pulled it in close to her chest, leaned down and gave it a loving kiss.

  Making a noise of disgust, Angela roughly pulled the box from the counter and shoved it back into place. Standing on her tippy-toes to look over them, she called out to the person behind them, “Next!”

  Pam felt a gentle hand on her shoulder. She turned around and saw a large woman in her thirties with short curly hair, and a kind, round face. A cloud of floral perfume surrounded her.

  “Do you need any help with your friend, Miss?” The woman said motioning shyly towards Jim. How sad! This person obviously thought Jim really did have a problem.

  “Oh, no” Pam said, feeling a little guilty. “But thank you so much anyway. It’s so nice to know that there are still kind, compassionate people left in this world.” Then she shot a haughty look in Angela’s direction. Angela snorted and pursed her lips together.

  “You’re so kind to ask, but we’ll be just fine. Thanks again, uh….?”

  “Phyllis,” she said.

  Then she turned toward Jim and spoke loudly. “Good luck to you, young man.” Wordlessly, Jim shook her hand. Then, he and Pam walked away, leaving kindly Phyllis to her ring toss game.

  “Well, that was weird,” Jim said quietly to Pam, his eyebrows knotted in confusion.

  “I know” Pam replied. She felt so guilty! That poor woman thought Jim was disabled! They had meant to be funny and tick off that obnoxious girl working the ring toss, but it had all turned out wrong. She had been lying so much today, that her head was starting to ache.

  She felt like things were spiraling out of control. And where was Michelle? Pam’s eyes nervously scanned the large crowd for any sign of her.

  “Jim, I think we should find Michelle and Ryan now, ok?”

  “Who?” Jim asked.

  “Oh, I um…” Pam stammered, “I mean, we should try and find Niki and Ryan now. Jesus, what am I saying? Pam cast a nervous sideways glance at Jim. He didn’t seem phased by her screw up. He was busy scanning the crowd for her friend. For her, she thought. Now she was feeling a little sick to her stomach.

  “Okay, Lauren,” he replied. Hearing the fake name, Pam winced.

  “The last time we saw them, they were heading off in that direction,” Jim said, pointing towards the picnic area. Together, they walked over.

  Jim had his hands stuffed in his pockets again. --he wasn’t attempting to hold her hand. Her fingers itched to slide into his again. Unconsciously, she flexed her hand, trying to shake off the feeling.

  She didn’t know why, but somehow the spell they had been weaving together all day felt broken. Maybe it wasn’t real to begin with, she thought. Why should it be? Everything else today has been a lie.

  Feeling miserable now, she gripped her stuffed pig a little tighter. The fake fur felt rough and the stuffing below it crinkled like Styrofoam when she squeezed it. Who cares? she thought sadly. I love it anyway.

  Glancing over at Jim, she took a deep breath and felt her chest expand. I love the stupid little cheap pig because he got it for me.

  Jim felt her eyes on him and looked over at her. “What?” he asked, feeling a little miserable himself. He was stupid, so stupid! Things were going so well. She was just so warm, so funny, so damn beautiful.

  While they walked to the picnic tables, his mind raced through the possible reasons she might be pissed at him. He had been joking around all day. It could have been any number of stupid things he said that pissed her off.

   He looked up at her with big sad eyes.

  “I just wanted to say, thanks for the pig. I love it,” Pam said in a soft voice.

  Jim scanned her face, trying to read her expression. “You’re welcome”, he replied hesitantly, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

  Taking a deep breath, he steered the conversation in another direction. “Listen, Lauren, this crowd is nuts. We’ll never find them if we’re just wandering around. Why don’t you wait here and check the crowd? I’ll take a walk through and see if I can find them, ok? I’ll come back and get you when I find them.”

  “Ok, sure,” Pam said, biting her lip. She sat down on the bench of the nearest wooden picnic table. There were no empty ones, so she found herself in front of a half full table with an Indian family and their three daughters.

  “Mind if I sit for a minute? I’m waiting for a friend,” She asked the mother. She felt stupid intruding.

  The woman motioned for her to sit. She smiled at her, but it was tight-lipped. The three girls looked upset. Pam guessed the mother’s expression had nothing to do with her intrusion at their table. She must be mad at her kids, she thought absently, and looked away to scan the crowd for Michelle.

  “Who are you waiting for?” one of the girls, who looked about ten or eleven, asked Pam in a sweet little voice. Pam looked over at her and opened her mouth to answer. Before she could, the girl continued on.

  “Is it a boy? Is he cute? How old are you?” Pam just stared at her. Once started, the barrage of questions just kept coming. Pam didn’t know which one to answer first. But it didn’t seem to matter. The girl didn’t seem to need an answer. “I like your top. Where did you get it? Do you have a boyfriend?”

  Her father immediately snapped at her, “Kelly, don’t be rude! That’s none of your business!”

  “But Dad, I was only asking her a question!” the girl Kelly whined.

  More like twenty questions, Pam thought and glanced sheepishly over at the mother. She was still wearing her same tight-lipped smile. And her eyes looked pained. Pam felt bad for her.

  “No really, that’s ok. She can ask me a question. I don’t mind,” Pam said glancing at Kelly. The young girl beamed at her.

  But before the girl could get her next set of questions out, Pam spotted Ryan, holding a Coke, and moving through the crowd.

  “I’m sorry,” she stammered. “I see my friend. I’ve got to grab him. Bye!” And she jumped up to catch up with Ryan.

Worming her way through people, she yelled, “Hey, Ryan!”

  He turned around, shading his eyes to see who was calling him. When he saw her, his face lit up. “Hey,” he said, his eyes raking over her body and settling on her chest. What an ass! She thought.

  Irritated by how he was staring at her breasts, Pam snapped, “Where’s Niki?”

  “Niki?” he asked casually. “She split.”

  “What do you mean, she split?” Pam asked, cocking her head to the side, her forehead furrowing in anger.

  “I mean, she’s not with me anymore. She decided to move on. She split.” He casually took a big gulp of his soda.

  “What happened?” Pam demanded.

  “Nothing, she got tired of me I guess. Last I saw, she was over at the beach chatting up some other guys.”

  Pam gaped at him. Was he kidding? she wondered. But then she knew Michelle pretty well. It could be true. She started craning to look over at the beach area for her friend. Swinging back around, she saw that Jim wasn’t back at the picnic tables yet.

  Ryan grabbed her hand. “Hey listen, do you want to sit over on the beach with me? I’ve got some rum to go with this Coke in my cooler,” he said, his voice sounded slick.

  Recoiling from his touch, Pam snatched her hand away. “No thanks,” she said and headed off towards the beach area.

  Looking at her watch, Pam saw it was 3:25. Damn! She thought. Her mom was coming for them at four. What would she do if she couldn’t find Michelle by then?

   Feeling frantic, but trying to stay calm, she worked her way through the multitude of towels laid out across the beach hoping to find her friend.

  Casting a nervous glance back at the picnic area, she could no longer see the table she was sitting at. She hoped Jim wasn’t there waiting for her. But if she didn’t keep looking, she might not find Michelle before her Mom came to pick them up. Not really sure of what to do, she kept walking along the beach.

  And then suddenly, there was Michelle. She was sitting on a blanket with three other people, wearing a large Scranton High School Football t-shirt over her bathing suit top, and drinking out of a red plastic cup. The t-shirt hung on her small frame. It obviously belonged to one of the guys she was sitting with.“Hey Niki,” Pam said as she looked down at her friend.

  “Hey Pam!” Michelle said shading her eyes too look up at her. “Where have you been?” she asked in a sing-song voice, jumping up to give Pam a hug.

  “Oh yeah, and I did away with all the Niki and Lauren stuff. It got boring, and I kept forgetting my own stupid name,” Michelle whispered loudly in her ear as she swayed unsteadily on her feet.

  “Everyone!” Michelle began, addressing the group. “This is my friend Pam!”

  She put her arm around Pam’s shoulder. “Pam, this is everyone!” Then, she burst into giggles, and sat back down next to a shirtless boy.

  Obviously, the fight they had earlier was forgotten in her haze of booze, Pam thought as she watched her friend grinning at her. One less thing to worry about…

  Another boy, big, and tall stood up. He was wearing a Scranton High School football jersey. “Hey Pam” he said, his voice low and pleasant. He was blond, built and good looking. He smiled at her with perfect white teeth.

   “I’m Roy.”

  Then he motioned to the rest of the group. “This guy here is Joe. And that loser over there is Mike. The lovely lady next to him is his girlfriend Rachel.”

  The group managed an unenthusiastic hello, and continued on with their conversations. Roy turned to face her.

  “So, Michelle tells me you’re starting Scranton High this fall?”

  Pam nodded.

  “Cool,” Roy said. “It’s a fun school, you’ll love it. I’m a junior this year. Hey, you want a drink?”

  Pam shook her head no, and looked nervously back towards the picnic area.

  “So Pam, Joe here is having a keg party tomorrow night. His parents are on vacation in the Bahamas. Michelle said the two of you might want to come. I hope you do because we need some beautiful women there.”

  She turned to face Roy, prepared to dismiss him like she did Ryan’s leering advances earlier. But when she met his eyes, they looked soft and vulnerable. He seemed unsure and nervous. She noticed the muscle in his jaw was twitching. He actually had his hands stuffed in his pockets! Despite herself, Pam smiled up at him.

  Then suddenly she remembered. Jim!

  Looking at her watch, she saw it was 3:48. Glancing once again at Roy, she stammered out an apology. “Sorry, my mom’s coming to pick us up at four, and I have to meet up with someone before we go. Thanks for the party invite.”

  And with that, she grabbed Michelle’s hand and pulled her up to leave. Michelle tried to protest, but was in no condition to argue. Instead she waved goodbye to the group. “Bye guys! See you tomorrow night!”

  Pam dragged her back towards the picnic area. Her eyes scanned the tables looking for Jim. She looked over her shoulder at Michelle.

  “How did you end up with those guys?” she asked her as they weaved through the crowd.

  “That guy Ryan is an asshole!” Michelle said. A few people turned to look at them at Michelle’s outburst. Pam just kept them walking.

  “What happened?” She asked her.

  “After you were so mean to me, he kept trying to pull me away from the picnic so he could grope me. And I got to thinking-- maybe this guy does think I’m a slut? So, I told him to fuck off!” Michelle grinned.

  “I went looking for you and Joe asked me to sit with him and his friends and have a little drink. So, I did! Aren’t they hot? And, it looks like Roy likes you! I don’t think he’s as cute as Joe, but did you get a look at his muscles?”

  Michelle was almost running now to keep up with Pam’s pace. “He wasn’t talking to any other girls until you came by!” she said in a lilting voice.

  “That’s nice,” Pam said absently. Then she spotted Jim sitting at the now empty picnic table. He was holding her stuffed pig. Shit! She must have dropped it when she took off to catch Ryan.

  “Looks like you found her,” Jim said looking up at her. He looked hurt. Pam felt a little knife twist in her chest.

  “I’m so sorry, Jim,” Pam began, and then motioned towards Michelle. “Ignore her, she’s drunk.”

  “Yeah!” Michelle yelled, pointing her finger at Jim. “And your friend Ryan is an asshole!”

  “They’re not friends,” Pam countered, but Michelle wasn’t listening.

  “I waited for you. Really I did, but then Ryan walked by and I ran to catch up to him. He told me that Michelle was on the beach. I thought I could find her and get back before you. I’m sorry you had to wait.”

  “S’ok,” Jim said, and stood up. “Well, now that you’ve found your friend, I’ll just be going.”

  “Bye!” Michelle waved rudely.

  Jim left the pig on the table and started walking away, but Pam caught up to him.

  Jim looked down at her, and saw the hurt in her eyes. Maybe I’m reading this wrong, he thought. Maybe she’s not blowing me off. Is that possible? His lips curved into a slow smile. His heart light, he reached out to link her fingers with his.

  Pam responded with a wide grin. Her heart was pounding in her chest. It was as it was before. His hand big and smooth closed over hers making her skin tingle and her pulse race. She held her breath.

  “So Lauren, I was wondering what are you doing tom…?”

  “Hey,” Roy interrupted them. “Sorry man,” he said looking dismissively at Jim.

  Jim dropped Pam’s hand before she could grasp for him.

  Roy turned towards Pam and handed her a crumpled up piece of paper. “I almost forgot to give you the address to the party tomorrow. My phone number is in there too. Call me,” he said, leaning in intimately towards Pam.

  Pam, flustered in how to handle this situation, looked over helplessly at Jim.

  Jim looked down and took a step away from her. Well, he thought. I guess I am getting the brush off. His inner voice taunted him. She was out of your league anyway, Halpert.

  Michelle butted in. “We’ll be there, Roy!”

  Jim wordlessly gave Pam a little half-wave, stuffed his hands into his pockets, turned, and walked back towards the beach. Panicked, Pam reached out to grab for Jim as he was walking away.

   “Jim”

  He turned to face her, his lips set in an angry line.

  “Don’t. Just don’t Lauren. I get it,” he said his voice low and gritty as he looked down at the ground.

 “Please Jim, this really isn’t what it seems, I swear.”

  Jim looked up at her, his expression grim. “No, it’s fine really. We just met, right?”

  “No, it’s not fine! It’s not-- it’s not like that, ok?” Pam said a little too loudly.

   “-- I guess I just misinterpreted things today.”

  “No, you didn’t misinterpret anything,” she said shaking her head forcefully.

   His eyes looked pained. His expression held doubt.

  “Well could you please explain it to me then? I’m a little confused as to what exactly is going on here. I feel like an idiot.” he said quietly.

  “No, no! You’re not an idiot. It’s me, it’s just—it’s me, ok?”

  “Lauren, I really need you to tell me what is going on here,” he said, his eyes holding her gaze.

  She began, “I’m sorry Jim—

  Just then, Michelle grabbed her hand. “Your Mom’s here! Let’s go.”

  Jim stared at her, waiting for her to continue, but after an uncomfortable amount of time she didn’t. So, he blew out his breath, gathered up his pride, and said, “Goodbye Lauren”.

  She watched him walk away.

  Go after him! her thoughts screamed.

  But her feet remained stubbornly rooted to the spot.

  Along the way, she spotted her pink pig sitting all alone on the picnic table where Jim had left it. Reaching her hand out, she snatched it as they walked by.

  Turning back, she scanned the beach for one last look at him, but she couldn’t find him in the crowd. So, she reluctantly made her way out.

  Pam’s mom was all smiles as the girls jumped into the back seat. Michelle smacked her gum loudly.

  “So girls, how was the picnic?” Mom asked eagerly.

  “It was awesome, Mrs. Beesley! Pam and I even met some cute boys-- football players from Scranton High School!” Michelle gushed.

  “Really?” Mrs. Beesley asked, looking in the rear view mirror at her daughter. “Were they nice boys, Pam?”

  “Yes Mom, they were.” Pam said. And while Michelle continued to ramble on, Pam turned to look out the window. Pink stuffed pig on her lap, she absently ran her fingers over the hand where Jim had touched her, as the lake slowly faded from view.

  Pam was engaged to her long time boyfriend, Roy. Her time with Jim at the lake was a long faded memory. In many ways, it was almost like a dream.

    But every June, the town gears up for the annual Scranton High School picnic at the lake. Roy can usually be counted on to chime in, “Remember, babe? That’s where we met?”

  “Yeah,” she always said, “I do”. Yeah, I remember…

  Today was Pam’s first day at work for the local paper company that Roy worked at, Dunder Mifflin. She was nervous as she got ready. She wants to look just right for her new job. “Pam, we gotta go!” Roy calls out from the doorway of their apartment.

  “Ok”, she yelled back. “Just a minute!”

   Now, where are those beige heels? she thinks as she rummages through her closet. Coming up empty, she reaches into a box still unopened from when she moved in with Roy a year ago, labeled, “Dress Shoes & Purses”. We need to go out more, she thinks as she opens it with her nails and absently digs through the box.

  Right on top of the pile is an ugly pair of satin coral pumps. Pam crinkles her nose at them as she takes them out of the box.  They’re from her friend Michelle’s wedding eight months ago. Michelle, who now lives in Virginia with her military husband Brian. Pam had been her maid-of-honor. Michelle looked beautiful as she walked down the aisle. No one would even guess that she was five months pregnant, she mused. I should call her…

  Jackpot! She thinks as she finds the errant beige pumps.

  Lifting the shoes out of the box her fingers brush against something rough and crinkly. What the heck is that? She thinks, as she peers in.

  Her eyes fall on a pink stuffed pig nested on the bottom of the box. Smiling, Pam picks it up, and rubbed its fur.

  “Pam, lets go!” she can hear Roy bellow from the doorway.

  Glancing at her watch, she sees it is now 7:40. Shit! Can’t be late on the first day, she chastises herself. Putting the pig gently back in the box, she puts on her shoes and heads out the door.

  Right on time, Roy walks her into the office for her first day. Her new boss Michael is there to greet her, smiling from ear to ear, chattering like a magpie. He shows her the desk where she’ll be working, as Roy walks out the door waving goodbye to her.

  “And this is the desk where you’ll be working as our receptionist.” Michael said. “You know reception-ing and such…”

  Pam bites her lip to keep from laughing. Her thoughts are already wandering. Did he just say reception-ing? she thinks. Oh boy…

  “Oh, and this is someone from our crack sales team,” he said, and Pam looked up to see a man standing at her new desk.

  Their eyes lock, and Pam’s mind instantly flashes to the pink pig she found just this morning. She suddenly feels a little dizzy.

  Jim!

  Her heart starts to beat faster and she can feel her face turning red. His hair is a little darker, and he’s filled out more, but it’s him.

  “Hi, I’m Pam,” she said, and offers him her hand.

  Jim reaches out and grasps her. He’s smiling at her, but his brow is furrowed and his eyes look clouded with confusion.

  “Um, have we met?” he asked her tentatively as their fingers mesh together.

  Michael butts in. “Hey yo, Jimbo! Lay off the merchandise,.” he said in a goofy voice. “She’s engaged man, to one of our own, Roy in the warehouse.”

  Jim pulls his hand away. His brows are raised, and he offers her a weak smile. “Well Pam, it’s nice to meet you. Welcome to Dunder Mifflin.”

  Maybe it’s for the best. It was so long ago, a lifetime really. She looked down and noticed that her fingers are absently stroking over the hand he touched, which feels all tingly and hot. Embarrassed, she dropped her hands to her lap, as more employees filed up to meet her.

    Stumbling into her apartment, Jim is walking in backwards as he kisses her. His face is flushed, and his eyes are dark with passion as he strains to touch and kiss her seemingly everywhere at once.

  Pam takes a ragged breath against his neck, inhaling his scent. He smells like soap, and when she pressed her lips to him, she can taste the salt of his skin. It was like it had been before, all those years ago; warm, sexy, male. Her heart thrills at the memory.

  She had never told Jim about that day at the lake. She kept it a secret all the years they worked and laughed together.

  But that was then, she thought as she led him into her bedroom for the first time.

  She pushed him down on the bed.

  Jim heard a crinkling sound.

  Reaching behind his back, he carefully pulled out the surprise lodged behind his shoulder blade that Pam had waiting for him on the bed.

  He looked down at the pink pig and up at Pam with a puzzled expression on his face. Pam leaned in and grasped both his hands in hers.

  Will you remember? she wondered, staring into his eyes.

  Jim said nothing, as he placed the pig on the pillow next to his head. Then, grasping her around her back, he rocked her over until she was pinned under him.

  Hiding her disappointment, she gave into the pleasure that his touch could so easily bring.

  Then, she felt him chuckling against her neck. Lifting his head to stare down at her, she could see the laughter sparkling in his eyes.

  “Well, well, well, Lauren,” he said slowly as he breathed seductively in her ear, sending shivers down her spine. “You’ve got some explaining to do.”

  Groaning, Pam pulled him down to her.

 “Later,” she said, as she crushed her mouth to his.

  One month later, Jim proposed, by tying a diamond ring onto the pigs tail.

  Now it sits on the mantle over the bed they share.

The End J