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Story Notes:
I was so disturbed by the plausibility of this speculation that I had to write it down- because nothing I write ever comes true. Thanks to my beta, belsum, who hasn't seen the ending yet (so don't blame her if you find errors).
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.

 

Do Us Part

The whole thing was a fiasco. Ryan’s friend Craig was really handsome, and really, really vile. Even Kelly was appalled at the way the guy was staring down Pam’s dress, making lewd comments, and monopolizing the conversation with self-aggrandizing stories. It had started when he was leering at her leg in church during the ceremony and had gotten worse from there. I’m on a date with Todd Packer, Jr., Pam thought despairingly.

Fortunately, Craig had an appetite for food as well as for "the ladies"- he paid more attention to the hors d'oeuvres and the dinner buffet than to Pam for the first hour of the reception. She couldn’t help but notice that he was also partaking liberally from the open bar.

Pam also couldn’t help but notice Jim. She saw him in a suit almost every day, but there was something so attractive, so tall and upright and perfect, about the way he carried himself in the church. He’d smiled at her when she caught his eye, but his expression had gone carefully neutral when he noticed the strange (handsome, not visibly vile) man beside her. Pam supposed it was the same expression she, herself, had assumed when she had noticed Karen, exotically lovely in dark purple, clinging to Jim’s arm.

They were now sitting two tables over, sitting with Michael and Jan and a couple Pam didn’t recognize. Craig made an especially obnoxious remark about a young woman’s "hoots" just as Karen leaned over to caress Jim’s hair. When Craig got up to re-visit the bar, Pam asked him to bring her a drink, too. Something strong.

Craig returned, smiling greedily. He clearly thought his luck was changing as Pam thanked him and took a long sip of her drink (Jack Daniel’s and Coke). She drank it down as she watched the newly crowned Mrs. Vance Refrigeration and her groom dance their first dance as husband and wife. The song ended, and other couples joined them on the dance floor. Pam cringed against her empty glass as Karen led a slightly grimacing Jim out to dance. Noticing the cringe (surprisingly enough, as he had noticed nothing about her besides her shapely figure all evening), Craig fetched another drink.

By the time she drained her second glass, Pam—a lightweight when it came to alcohol—was ready to dance. She was not going to sit there and let him think…let her think…let anyone think…she’d show them that their good time wasn’t bothering her. She had a date. A handsome one, actually. She let Craig lead her onto the dance floor.

It was not a good idea. In her tipsy fury, Pam had forgotten that Craig was, in fact, vile. Craig’s idea of "dancing" was to press himself against her and bounce, while groping her with both hands. "Stop it," she hissed, but he didn’t hear or didn’t care. She tried to push gently but firmly to disentangle herself from his arms, but he seemed oblivious to her. At least, she thought so, until he whispered, lips actually brushing her ear, "You wanna go back to my place now, or should we keep dancing?"

Pam was tipsy, but not drunk. She did not want to cause a scene at Phyllis’ wedding. She also wasn’t so desperate to prove her happiness (to Jim or Karen or anyone) that she was willing to put up with this. She was starting to panic a bit, trying to strategize a way out of the situation, when help arrived.

"Can I cut in?" the familiar voice asked, calmly but with authority. Pam looked up gratefully into the eyes, the smile, the face she knew so well. Warmth and affection flooded her as she smiled up at her champion. Roy.

"Get bent, dude," Craig started, but Roy moved forward with menace. Pam thought Roy might hit her date, but her obvious distress had apparently inspired Roy to chivalry. His big hand pushed Craig away, and he gently took Pam’s arm.

"I think you should go sit down, dude," he said, and turned his back on Craig. Leading Pam to the other side of the dance area, he asked her softly, "Are you OK?"

She nodded. "Thank you," she answered quietly. Now that she was safe, she was horribly embarrassed. Roy didn’t seem to notice. He was staring at her with a mixture of intensity and shyness that she never remembered seeing before.

"Do you want to dance? I mean, we don’t have to…" he trailed off, breaking eye contact with her. Gratitude, pity, and an overwhelming need to feel valued washed over her, and she put her arms around his neck and began to sway.

Roy had lost weight since the last time she was in his arms. The difference helped her feel like she was doing something new, not backsliding, not regressing. The look in his eyes was different, too, but she didn’t entirely trust it. It was too hungry, and she rested her head on his chest so that she wouldn’t have to see it.

It was the wrong time to turn her head. In her line of sight, Craig sat chatting drunkenly to Ryan, who was ignoring him with the air of a man with much practice. Just beyond him, Jim and Karen were sitting at their table, heads tilted intimately toward each other in deep conversation.

Pam pulled her eyes away and lifted her face up toward Roy. Maybe things were different enough. "What is it, Pam?" he asked.

***

Jim stood amidst the laughing, cheering crowd, dazedly holding the lacy white and blue garter he’d caught solely by reflex. His eyes scanned the crowd while he flashed an insincere smile at the newlyweds. Karen beamed at him from the side of the room, pretending that they hadn’t been quietly sniping at each other all evening for being "distant" and "clingy," respectively. Ryan, Kelly, and Ryan’s friend were gathering their things to leave. Pam was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Roy.

 

 

 

 

 


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