Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

I. Four calling salesmen 

Angela, Oscar, Pam, and Phyllis, the Party Planning Commitee, sat around the conference table, staring at Michael. "OK, everyone! I have a great idea for this year's Christmas party! Ready?"  When no one responded, Michael continued blithely on, as usual. "We should do a 'Twelve Days of Christmas' theme!" Oscar, Pam, and Phyllis groaned in unison, but Angela remained strangely quiet, not protesting at all about the complexity of the task or the lack of proper time or funding. Pam watched, concerned, as Angela wrote a few words on her notepad and silently left the room. 

Pam frowned at the camera. "I think something's wrong with Angela. She's acting miserable in a totally different way than normal."  

As Pam crossed from the conference room back to the reception area, she passed Jim, who was clearly just coming in from the cold. "Hey, you. How was your sales call?" she asked, lightly touching his arm. As much as they tried to be discreet, these small moments of contact were the best parts of Pam's work day, and she couldn't stop herself.  

Jim smiled. "Well, they didn't buy anything, but I think it went well anyway. Forging relationships for the future or something." He shrugged out of his coat, flinging it over the back of his chair as he followed Pam to her desk. "What were you up to in there?" He tilted his head toward the conference room. 

"Christmas party. Can you think of an appetizer that has something to do with eleven Lords a-leaping?"  

Jim grimaced. "Huh. I'll have to get back to you.” 

"You do that." Pam's phone rang, so he headed back to his desk, grinning as Pam intoned, "Dunder Mifflin, this is Pam." 

Jim smiled. "I wasn't exactly on a sales call. I was buying Pam's Christmas present." He paused. "Oh, no. I'm not showing you before I show her. You'll have to be surprised." 

Back in Accounting, Kevin was regarding Angela with surprise. Not once had she commented on his garishly bright Christmas tie, which he had worn just to annoy her. Instead, Angela sat at her desk, staring blankly at her open ledger. She was so still for so long that finally he felt compelled to say something. "Hey, Angela. Are you all right?" he asked.  

"No," she answered shortly. "But thank you for asking." Without meeting his gaze, she got up walked away. She found her escape route blocked, however, by a miniature traffic jam just in front of the reception desk.

Phyllis was putting her coat on, on her way out to meet a client, while asking Pam if she thought devilled eggs would be good enough for "geese a-laying." At that same moment, both Andy and Dwight were returning from their own sales calls.

 "No, I did not sing to them. My superior sales abilities make such displays unnecessary," Dwight was saying scornfully to Andy as Angela rounded the corner. As soon as Dwight saw her, however, his posture and his expression changed from scornful to submissive. Angela pretended not to notice, just as she pretended not to notice Pam watching the scene with avid interest.  

"Hello, Dwight. Hello, Andy." Angela said formally. "Andy, I trust you had a successful sales call?" She continued on her way to the break room. Andy trailed behind her, boasting of how his excellent rendition of "Why do fools fall in love?" had secured a sale. Dwight stared after them, suddenly looking very lost just steps away from his own desk. He clearly hadn't noticed the pained expression on Angela's face- but Pam had. 

Pam had no time to ponder the meaning of Angela's misery, however, because at that moment the door swung open yet again. "Hey, Darryl," Pam said mildly. Although they still got along well, Pam could never forget that Darryl was one of Roy's best friends. She was therefore surprised when, instead of nodding and continuing back to Kelly's desk, Darryl stopped and leaned against the reception counter. 

"Hey, Pam. I was hoping you had a moment to help me out," he said. 

Pam was confused. "OK?" 

Darryl grinned, showing his dimples to their best advantage. "I need your advice on a Christmas present for Kelly." 

"Oh. Yeah, OK." Pam was surprised that Darryl, usually so smooth, needed help. 

"Excellent. See, I know my girl likes the finer things, so I think some jewelry will be good. But, also, I don't want to cross any imaginary line she has drawn in her head about, you know, what something 'means.'" Darryl straightened up and pulled a piece of paper from his pocket. “I saw these and thought they might be just right."

He pushed a carefully clipped portion of a newspaper ad across the desk. The pair of earrings each featured a small ruby, suspended in a circle of gold. They were stylish, looked expensive, and yet somehow managed to not look overly romantic.   

"They're perfect," Pam said truthfully. "I think she'll love them."

 "Ah, see, now, I'm trying to avoid the "L" word, Pam," Darryl said with a wink. "But I thank you. Hey, Merry Christmas." Darryl turned, threw a nod in Jim's direction, and proceeded back out through the doors.

Pam shook her head wonderingly. How much difference a year could make. Kelly was now with Darryl, Angela was with Andy, and Jim...Jim was with her. She couldn't stop herself from smiling.

The smile was ill-timed, however; right at that moment, a shrill voice screeched in her ear. "What are you smiling at, and what were you doing talking to my boyfriend?" Kelly demanded.

II. Three French breads 

Pam sighed and immediately decided that the truth was the easiest option. “He wanted a woman’s opinion on your Christmas present, Kelly.” 

“And he asked you?” Kelly’s voice and expression conveyed her skepticism. Jim, overhearing, threw an annoyed grimace at the camera, while Pam suppressed another sigh.  

“I think you’re going to lo…like it a lot,” she said. 

Kelly’s demeanor changed instantly. Smiling and clasping her hands, she said, “Oh, Pam, really? Oh, you have to tell me. What is it? Tell me, tell me.” Pam smilingly shook her head, but Kelly persisted. “Please, Pam. Pleeeeeeease. Tell me, tell me, come on, please. Please please please please, tell me, please Pam, please.”

Jim looked up, about to intervene, when Angela came back through the area. “Excuse me, Pam. If you are done with your…,” she paused and gave Kelly a look, “…personal conversation, I think we need to talk about the Christmas party. Can you join me in the conference room?”  

Kelly rolled her eyes at the camera. “Angela thinks she’s better than me. Well, we’ll just see what her loser boyfriend gets her for Christmas. Wait, who is she dating now? It is still Andy, right? Yeah, Darryl’s definitely better than Andy.”  

Angela looked haggard, and Pam thought there was something unusual about her request. Why would she ask only Pam, instead of convening the whole committee? Curious and still concerned, Pam agreed immediately. “Sorry, Kelly,” she said cheerily, and followed Angela to the conference room. 

As soon as they had both entered, Angela closed the door and the blinds. Once comfortable that she was mostly obscured from the camera, Angela began. “First, I apologize for lying, Pam. I don’t actually want to discuss Michael’s ridiculous party.”  

“Oh. That’s OK. Is everything all right?” Pam’s voice was carefully neutral. 

“No. Not really.” Angela paused. “This is…really humiliating. However, I know that you’re not morally in a position to judge me, so I thought I could safely discuss it with you.”

 “OK.” Pam answered flatly. 

Angela continued, a tremor in her voice betraying how near she was to tears. “Listen, I don’t have anyone else to talk to, all right?” 

Pam’s tone softened. “All right. What is it? Are you sick?” Angela really hadn’t been looking well, and she’d seemed drained for days. 

“I’m not sick…I mean, yes, I don’t feel well…can you please not interrupt?” 

“Sorry.” 

“It’s just that…the person I was seeing before Andy, he and I…we gave in to our sinful lusts.” 

“Oh! Well, Angela, that’s nothing to…” 

Angela continued over Pam’s interruption. “And now, I think…I think I may be carrying his child.” 

There was silence for a long moment.  

“Wow,” Pam finally breathed. “Oh, Angela. I- “ she broke off abruptly. “Angela, did you turn your microphone off?” she asked. 

“Oh, my God,” Angela wailed. Angela threw open the conference room and dashed out, tossing her microphone to the floor. It landed with a pop and a squeal. 

“Angela, wait!” Pam ran out behind her. She glanced around the office. Andy, Jim, and Dwight were all in Michael’s office with the door closed. Phyllis was still at her sales call. Stanley hadn’t even glanced up, but he was sitting at his desk. 

Yanking her own microphone pack off, Pam made a decision. “Stanley, I need to go after Angela. Can you please tell Jim that’s where I’ve gone?” Stanley looked up. Pam rarely spoke so quickly or in such an urgent tone. He nodded and turned back to his computer screen. “Thanks,” Pam said over her shoulder as she moved toward her desk.  

She set the phone lines to automatic voice mail and grabbed her coat and purse. Pausing, she grabbed the coat off the back of Jim’s chair and ran toward the steps, the cameraman close on her heels. She stopped at the doorway to the stairwell. “No,” she said. “Not now, not this.” Her face was set, her eyes fierce. The cameraman turned and went back into the office. 

Just then, Michael’s door opened. Andy emerged, looking dejected. Jim patted him on the back, grinning at the camera. “Sorry, big guy. Dwight wins this round.” 

Dwight followed, looking smug. “That’s right. I have single-handedly created new life for this office.” 

Dwight sat up straight, proud to address the cameras. “Michael liked my idea for an employee incentive program much more than Andy’s. Even Jim, despite his ignorance, recognized its inherent superiority. It will certainly increase efficiency, which will definitely impress…anyone who likes efficiency.” 

The three salesmen settled into their chairs. “Hey, Jim,” Stanley drawled. “Pam said to tell you she was going to lunch with Angela.” Jim turned toward reception. He’d noticed that she wasn’t there when he came out of Michael’s office, of course, but it hadn’t occurred to him that Pam had actually left the building. He raised an eyebrow. He was surprised more than concerned, but it was definitely odd.  

A few minutes had passed when Kevin ambled up to Jim’s desk. “Hey, Jim. Have you seen Pam or Angela?” he asked. 

“No. Apparently they’re at lunch,” Jim answered. 

"Oh, OK. I was going to tell them that I’d sign up for the third day of Christmas. I figure they’re going to ask for volunteers, and that one’s the easiest.” Kevin looked very pleased with himself. 

“The easiest? You think?” Jim was intrigued and amused, as he often was when dealing with Kevin and his unique thought patterns. 

“Well, yeah. I mean, who wants to figure out what they mean by four calling birds when the third day is 'three French breads'? Buy three of those long skinny things and you're done.” He looked suddenly wary. “Don’t steal my idea, though. I’m calling the third day.”

 “You got it, Kev,” Jim said amiably, although he did raise his eyebrows at the camera as the big guy walked away. Out of habit, he glanced over at the tall reception desk to share the laugh with Pam. Remembering that she was out, he sank back into his chair with a rueful smile.  

As Jim felt the back of his chair, a look of concern washed over his features. He sat straight up, and turned around to look at the back of his chair. “Oh no,” he said quietly. “Dwight, did you move my coat?” he said tightly. 

“Of course not,” was Dwight’s answer. “I, unlike you, do not resort to meaningless and ineffective pranks to try to establish my dominance.”  

“OK. Um, Andy? Have you seen my coat?” Andy covered the mouthpiece of his phone. “That’s a big ol’ negatory, Big Tuna,” Andy replied, then resumed his phone call.

Jim sprang up, pacing around the office. He looked carefully at the floor near the coat rack. He looked back into the conference room, and even stuck his head into Michael’s office. Panic was evident on his face. Finally, he went into the small room that the documentary crew used for individual interviews. 

Jim’s face and body language were unusually tense. “Seriously, do you guys know what happened to my coat? Pam’s Christmas present was in the pocket. I can’t…I can’t lose it. Please?”

III. Two turtle bowls

Jim walked purposefully out of the interview room and back to his desk. He picked up his phone and dialed quickly.

"Hey, I was just about to call you," Pam said when she picked up.

"Hey. Did, um, did you give Angela my coat?" Jim asked.

"What? No. Angela is like half your size- she'd drown in your coat. I gave Angela my coat. I've got your coat on. Is that a problem?" Pam sounded vaguely annoyed.

"No, it's fine," he said hastily, giving a brief thumbs-up to the camera. "No, I just...I just didn't know where it was, and I think I left...um, my wallet in the pocket."

Pam made a sound like a stifled giggle. "Actually, no, your wallet is in your back pants pocket," she said.

"What? How do you know that?"

"Well, because I occasionally check out your butt when you walk by, Halpert," she said, laughing. Jim laughed, too, and tried to turn his face away from the camera. He was blushing, and he knew it.

"Wow," he said. "That's...good to know, Pam. Hey, where are you, anyway?"

"I'm about to pull into the parking lot. I'll be right up. I'll tell you about it when I get upstairs." Pam's voice had gotten serious again. Jim raised his eyebrows, but didn't press the issue. He agreed, said good-bye, and hung up. When he looked up, he noticed Dwight staring at him strangely.

"Why did Pam give Angela your coat?" he asked suspiciously.

"She didn't. Don't be ridiculous. My coat is much too big for Angela. Pam gave Angela her own coat," Jim answered matter-of-factly. He picked up his phone and pretended to ignore Dwight's baffled and still-suspicious expression. In fact, Jim was as confused as Dwight, but he would never let Dwight know it.

Pam arrived just a few minutes later, Jim's coat dwarfing her small frame. The harsh winter weather had left her hair disheveled and her skin rosy, a look she would have tried to fix immediately, but which Jim found adorable.

Jim rose, and met Pam at her desk. "Can I take your coat, madam?" he said with faux formality.

Pam regarded him carefully. "You seem awfully concerned about this coat. I think I'll hold on to it for a while." She smiled at his nonplussed look, and draped the coat carefully over the back of her own office chair. "Come on, I need to talk to you right now anyway," she said in a more serious tone. She led the way to the lunchrooom. Jim hesitated a moment, looking back at his coat, and then followed after her. He figured the coat (and the gift tucked in the inside pocket) were just as safe now as they had been when he'd left them on the back of his own chair earlier.

When he entered the lunchroom, Jim found Pam talking to Oscar and Phyllis, who had returned from her customer visits just moments before. "Angela is under the weather, and is going to be out the rest of the day," Pam was saying. "I think the three of us should go ahead and brainstorm a list of things that sort-of go with the "12 days" theme and get people signed up." Phyllis nodded, not taking her eyes off of the coffee machine. Oscar nodded.

"Great. Can we meet in about an hour to go over the list?" Pam said. The other two agreed and left the room.

With a weary sigh, Pam sat down at the small table.

"Spill it, Beesly. What's up?" Jim was suddenly concerned. Pam looked very worried, and it finally dawned on him that it was very strange for her to disappear with Angela and them come back without her.

Pam sighed. "Angela is...well, she's in trouble, but she made me promise not to tell you." Pam's expression of worry deepened. "The thing is, I think I need your help."

"Whatever you need, Pam, but...what do you mean, she made you promise not to tell me?"

"I mean, I said, 'Can I tell Jim?' and she said, 'Absolutely not.' I'm sorry. Will you still help me?" Pam's eyes were pleading, and Jim knew at that moment that he'd throw himself off the building, with or without a bouncy castle to catch him, if she asked him to with that expression.

"OK."

"OK. Thank you. I just need you to get Dwight to go to Angela's house. She needs to talk to him, but she refuses to call him and she won't let me say anything to him either. But if you tell him to go, without knowing why, then I haven't broken my word to Angela about you or about Dwight."

Jim popped an eyebrow. "That's...sort of convoluted, Pam."

"I know, but...please? If anyone can think of a way to get him there, it's you. Please? Use your powers for good, for once?"

Jim laughed out loud. "Fine. I'll think of something." The look of gratitude on Pam's face was more thanks than Jim would ever have needed. Not to mention that Pam was absolutely right. Getting Dwight over to Angela's house should be fairly easy, and moreover would give him something entertaining to do for at least part of the afternoon.

Pam and Jim left the lunchroom, only to be nearly knocked over by Kelly, who was stalking toward the elevator. Her cellphone was pressed to her ear, and she clearly didn't see anything in her path. "I'm coming down there...Yes, I am...Yes, I am..." She stopped short, her eyes widening. Turning abruptly, she started back toward the annex. "Fine, then give me a hint! Just a hint! Please! Pleeeeeease."

Pam continued on to the reception desk, while Jim sat down next to Dwight. He noticed Pam arranging the coat behind her, but with an effort he chose not to worry about it. His first priority was to get Dwight to Angela's house. He thought for a while, absent-mindedly working on entering purchase orders. Andy was humming to himself in his typically annoying way, causing Jim to notice him for the first time that afternoon. It gave him an idea, and he looked up a few things on the intra-office calendar. After a while, Jim smiled conspiratorially at the camera. He got up and casually walked over to Pam's desk.

"Hey."

"Hi." Pam smiled hopefully.

"OK, Andy has an appointment in 20 minutes with the school board. As soon as he leaves, I need you to transfer a call to me. From my landlord. You know the drill?"

Pam nodded. They'd perfected the art of the "fake incoming call" years ago, when they realized that Dwight was just aware enough of his surroundings to notice if Jim got a call directly to his extension that was supposedly from someone he didn't know. Pam would dial the main Dunder Mifflin number with her cell phone under her desk, so that her desk phone would actually ring. She'd then answer the call and transfer it to Jim. Knowing that he could trust Pam fully as his accomplice, Jim grinned, grabbed a Christmas mint from her candy dish, and headed back to his own desk to wait for the call. Eventually, Andy left for his customer meeting. Jim and Dwight both sat in silence, although only Dwight was really focused on his expense reports.

"Dunder Mifflin, this is Pam." It had begun. "Jim? Yes, I'll transfer you." Jim's desk phone rang. "Jim, it's your landlord, Pete," she said in a bored tone of voice. Jim fought a smile as he looked up at her. She'd slipped his coat back over her shoulders instead of her normal cardigan.

"Hey, Pete, how are you?" Jim spoke to the dial tone. He imagined the words in his head that "Pete" (his actual landlord was Mrs. Kent) would be saying, so he would be sure to leave enough time between his phrases. "An evacuation? Oh, wow." Another pause. "So, I won't be able to look it up online or anything? How will I know a safe distance?" He waited, frowning. "OK, that's OK, I have a place to go outside the area, and I don't have any pets, so... Oh, yeah. Thanks for letting me know. Is everyone OK?" He paused again. "Good, that's great. Where are you calling from, then?" A few beats. "Oh, gotcha. Yeah, cell phones are great, especially when the landlines are down. Well, take care, Pete. I'll see you around the building when it is safe again. Yeah, you, too. Bye." He hung up and looked over at Pam.

"What's the matter?" she asked, as if on cue.

"It's unbelievable. I guess a chemical truck hit a power station in our neighborhood. Electricity and phone service is out for a couple of blocks, and they are evacuating a couple of square miles in the area because of the chemical leak. Pete was calling to make sure I knew about it, and that I didn't have any pets that I'd be tempted to go back for- they're making everyone stay away until they clear it up. Here's the thing, though-" Jim lowered his voice. "It was a government truck, so they're not letting the media report about it. They're just going door to door evacuating people. If you're someone who, say, doesn't open the door for strangers, you might not even know about it. And if your the kind of person who would refuse to evacuate because you think God will save you or because you refuse to leave your pets, the chemicals could be lethal. I assume it's OK if I hang out at your place for the evening?"

"Oh, sure," said Pam. "Wow, that's pretty scary. I'm so glad you're at work and not at home today," she continued. Both of them were aware that Dwight was overhearing every word of this conversation. His eyes were wide, his brow furrowed. With a tiny frown of her own, Pam set Jim up for the finishing touch. "How big of an area were they evacuating, anyway? We don't live that far apart."

"Pete said it didn't go too far in that direction. The evacuation is only as far as the high school."

Dwight jumped up from his desk, grabbed his coat, and ran out the door without a word.

After staring for a moment after Dwight, Pam turned to Jim with a radiant smile. He got up and leaned on the edge of her desk. "So, I got him to go over there. And you know he won't give up until she lets him in. Can you tell me the big secret now?"

Pam's smile didn't diminish a bit. "Nope," she said cheerfully.

"Fine. But can I at least have my coat back?" he asked.

"Nope." She shrugged into the too-big shoulders of the coat and pulled it closer around her. "I'm chilly," she said. She might not have really been cold, but she was beautifully, frustratingly obstinate. Jim shook his head in smiling defeat and went back to his desk.

Pam smiled at the camera. Her silent amusement was interrupted by Creed, coming to her desk. "Hi. Patricia says you need to borrow two of my turtle bowls," he said.

"Excuse me?"

"She said you need two turtle bowls. I make them in my ceramics class. I'll bring them in tomorrow if you write me a note to remember." Pam had no idea what Creed was talking about, not that this was unusual.

"Pam? Pam!" It was Phyllis, trying to get her attention. "I figured we could fill the turtle-shaped bowls with Dove bar miniatures. 'Turtle doves'?" Pam laughed out loud. On a piece of memo paper, she printed BRING TURTLE BOWLS (2) FOR WORK and handed it to Creed.

IV. And a monkey in a beet tree

The clock finally rested at 5:00pm, and Pam came and perched herself on the edge of Jim's desk. "About ready to go?" she asked. "I'm heading out. I have to stop and buy some supplies to make drums, pears, and birds."

Jim smiled. "No word from Angela or Dwight?" Pam shook her head, a frown creasing her forehead. No one was looking, so Jim leaned forward and lightly kissed the crease. "Don't worry, I'm sure it's all working out. You did everything you could. Now, about this 'evacuation'..." Pam smiled again. "I will definitely help you with the drums tomorrow night, but tonight I really do have to go over to Mom's to help her move that stuff. Is that OK?"

"Oh! I totally forgot that was tonight. Of course, it's OK. Tell your Mom 'hi' for me." Pam slid off the desk and started back to her own area. "Oh, by the way, I'm keeping your coat," she grinned.

Jim threw a look of panic at the camera, which of course Pam noticed. "What?" he asked, in his best fake-casual voice.

"Well, I gave Angela my coat, and it's really cold outside. And you wouldn't want me to be cold while I was running my errands, now, would you?" The light in her eyes was pure devilment, and despite his well-founded reluctance he found himself wanting to give in.

"Pam," he said weakly, running a hand through his hair.

Pam started laughing. "Look," she said quietly. "I know there's a box in the pocket. If I give you the coat now, I really will freeze. If I give you the coat now so you can give it back to me without the box in it...you'll have to take the box out and I'll see it. Doesn't it make the most sense for me to keep the coat, and just not look at the box, and give both of them back to you later?" She smiled at his skeptical expression. "I'm not Kelly. I can wait."

He was beaten. Her logic was solid, her eyes were dancing, and her lips were about two inches away from his. "Fine," he breathed, and then she was kissing him softly. She pulled away, and for the thousandth time he was amazed to see that she was as moved by their kisses as he was himself.

She broke into a triumphant smile. "Thanks!" she chirped, and she walked over, grabbed her purse and his coat, and walked out of the office with a wave.

The next two days leading up to the Christmas party were relatively normal, at least by Dunder Mifflin standards. Pam passed time drawing swans on ice packs, while Jim quietly went about his work and kept a close eye on both Dwight and Andy. Dwight had returned to work on Wednesday morning unusually subdued. He never even said a word to Jim about the by-now obviously false chemical spill. Andy, too, was strangely quiet. He looked thoughtful and sort of sad, and Jim suspected that his blossoming romance with Angela might be over. Pam refused to discuss it with Jim, however, claiming that she knew too much about the situation to say anything without giving anything away.

This mystery was not nearly as engrossing as the game he was playing with Pam over his coat, however. She simply refused to give it back. She wore it to work on Wednesday, and smilingly put it back on and wore it home without a word. When he arrived at her apartment Wednesday night to help with party crafts, she was wrapped up in the coat...and only the coat. On Thursday, she wore it to work again, leaving it on all day and even teasing him by pretending to reach into the pocket containing the small box. It was maddening, delightful, and perfectly Pam.

Finally, Friday arrived. Jim was already at his desk when Pam struggled in, draped in the ridiculously over-large coat and carrying a big cardboard box of candy-filled "drums". Jim hopped up to help her carry everything into the conference room. "Good morning!" she said cheerily. "Angela called me this morning. She's coming in for the party. I told her we had it all taken care of, but I'm not sure she trusts me."

"Are you sure she's OK?" Jim asked. He still didn't know what Angela's issue was, but he did know that it was quite out of character for her to be gone like this.

Pam nodded, but not confidently. "I think so. She sounded more like herself, at least." Jim let it go, and helped Pam to affix lovely drawings of birds to the speakers that they'd set up the afternoon before.

They had just finished putting the drums on the table when Michael walked in. "Pam! 'O little town of BethlePam!' Merry Christmas! Hello, Jim!" Michael, like most elementary school children, could hardly contain himself as Christmas drew nearer. With an indulgant grin at the camera, Jim returned the greeting. Michael continued to ramble, "This looks great! This is going to be the best party ever! I've invited Jan, and when she found out about that, Phyllis made me let her invite Bob Vance." Michael rolled his eyes good-naturedly at the camera. "But I don't think anyone else is coming, except employees, since no one else has anyone to bring."

"Stanely's married, Michael," Pam pointed out.

"Oh, right. Oh, well," Michael's face had fallen for a second, but his smile returned. Jim wondered if Michael had started eating Christmas cookies for breakfast. "OK, keep up the good work!" Even a two-minute conversation with Michael was exhausting. Wordlessly, Jim and Pam agreed on a break, and both left the conference room.

"Pam!" Phyllis was just arriving. "I've got the cookies and the Dove bars, and Creed gave me his bowls yesterday. I called Meredith this morning to remind her to bring the eggs, Oscar is bringing the stuff for the punch, and we'll order the pizza in a couple of hours, once they open. Is that everything?"

The morning passed smoothly enough. Dwight had a sales call scheduled for the morning, so it was no surprise that he didn't arrive punctually at 9:00 as usual. Still, something about his absence nagged at Pam, and she fought the urge to call and check on him, or on Angela, all morning.

Around noon, Michael burst out of his office. "OK, everyone! As you know, the office is closed Monday and Tuesday for Christmas, that greatest of holidays dedicated to seeing how much stuff you can get. In honor of the celebration of Santa and Rudolph and Baby Jesus, I think the party should start now! The pizza is coming in half an hour, yes?" Pam nodded. "But let's start now! Come on- stop all that work! Let's par-tay!"

With a general murmur of assent, the employees of Dunder Mifflin got up and started filing toward the conference room (except for Stanley, who waited until they were all in the conference room, put on his coat, and left). Everyone was pretty impressed with the way that the abbreviated Party Planning Committee had managed to fulfill the theme, all things considered, although it clearly bothered Kevin that the five gold rings hadn't made an appearance yet. In the general hubub, not even Jim noticed Pam slip out of the room and come back in with his coat in her arms.

"Hey" she said quietly behind him, when there was a lull in his conversation with Toby. He turned.

"Hey, yourself. Whatcha got there?" he said, grinning. Pam smiled.

"Well," she said, "You've been such a good sport, that I thought I should actually give this back to you. I brought another coat to wear home, and Angela should be back here with mine this afternoon anyway. And I swear I haven't peeked." She held the coat out to him.

"You sure you want to give it back?" he asked. He leaned forward to make sure no one else could hear. "You looked very good in it on Wednesday night." Pam blushed but didn't break his gaze. Nodding, she put the coat in his hand.

Jim and Pam usually did try to avoid public displays of affection at work, but as often happened, Jim couldn't help himself. He leaned down and pressed his lips to Pam's gently. The soft kiss was broken, however, by an ear-splitting shriek.

"OH MY GOD, THEY GOT MARRIED!" Jerking his head up, Jim could see Kelly pointing accusingly at Dwight and Angela, who had apparently just entered the room. The cameramen both lunged toward the couple. The one immediately managed to get a shot of Angela and Dwight's hands, both sporting plain gold bands.

The other cameraman, however, tripped on the cord that was plugging in the old-fashioned, bird-festooned speakers. He fell hard against Pam, who lost her balance. She reached instinctively toward Jim, but only managed to grab the coat, which she took with her as she went sprawling onto the floor. The cameraman apologized, helped her up, and then returned to pursuing Angela and Dwight, who were now facing the entire staff and both cameras as though they were facing a firing squad.

After checking that Pam seemed unhurt, Jim too turned his attention to his coworkers. Jim noticed that Angela was very pale, but otherwise the two of them looked pretty content, if embarrassed. Dwight finally spoke up. "Yes, Kelly is correct. Angela has consented to become my wife. We've just come from the courthouse. It was a private ceremony. We will be having a small reception in a few weeks, and some of you may be invited."

Nearly everyone rushed forward, talking excitedly, to gossip or to congratulate the newlywed couple. Jim, shocked himself, saw Andy slink out of the room quietly, and he turned to Pam to ask if she thought someone should go check on him. With one look at her, though, any thought of Andy was dashed from his mind. She was pale, and had a stunned expression on her face. "Are you OK?" Jim asked. "Did you hit your head?" He remembered Dwight's concussion, and was already planning his route to take her to the hospital when she looked up at him and held out her hand.

"My head's fine. This...this fell out of the pocket when I fell down," she said. She was holding the small jewelry box that had been hidden in his coat pocket all week. In the fall, it had popped open to expose a small gold ring, crowned with a diamond and two tiny rubies.

"Oh, no. Oh, not here. Pam..." Jim felt sick. He'd come up with a million wonderful, romantic plans for giving her this ring. He had wanted it to be special and dramatic and perfect- not part of the normal Christmas lunacy in the office, overshadowed by the marriage of Dwight and Angela, of all people.

"I had no idea," Pam said softly. "I thought it was probably jewelry, because of the small box, but I didn't think...not yet." She wasn't meeting his eyes, just staring down at the open box in her hand. Jim took her arm gently and steered her out of the conference room toward his desk.

"Is it too soon, Pam? We can wait. You don't even have to answer right away," he said seriously, once things were quiet.

Pam finally looked up. Her eyes were brimming with tears, but she was smiling. It was the most amazing smile he'd ever seen. It was full of love and trust and hope, and Jim suddenly realized that he could do or be anything in the world, if he could make someone like Pam smile like that. "Answer what?" she said. "You haven't asked me anything." Her voice was giddy.

"Dammit, Pam, I didn't want it to be like this," Jim sighed. He took her hand and looked into her eyes. The love shining there made him sure of her answer, and he started to feel giddy himself. "But if you insist...Pam Beesly, I love you and I think we've waited long enough to be together. I want you to be my wife. Will you marry me?"

Pam laughed shakily. "Yes!" she said in an emotional squeak. "Yes, yes, yes!" She threw her arms around his neck for a moment, then pulled back and handed him the box that she was still holding tightly. "Now, put this on me!"

His hands shaking with emotion, Jim slipped the ring onto Pam's finger. It was a perfect fit. "You seriously didn't suspect anything?" he asked.

Pam shook her head, wiping away tears with her right hand while staring at her now-adorned left hand. "No! I thought it was earrings!"

"Earrings? Really?" Jim tilted his head in amusement.

"Yeah. Darryl got Kelly some really, really pretty earrings and I figured you'd seen the same sale!"

"OOOOH, what KIND of EARRINGS?" Kelly's voice pierced the room again.

"Gold rings, Kelly," Pam answered. As Kelly clapped happily and ran off to call Darryl, Pam threw herself into Jim's arms for their first kiss as an engaged couple.

In the conference room behind them, Phyllis had apparently tired of birdsongs and put on Christmas carols.