Disclaimer: Don't own a thing.  

~~~!~~~ 

One in the morning, and Pam’s phone is ringing. She opens her eyes just barely and snuggles back into where she’s spooned against Jim’s chest. “Phone?”

The movement has Jim awake, but he buries his face into her curls and grunts. Pam giggles sleepily and reaches out to grab the phone lying on her nightstand, holds it to her ear and answers, “Hello?”

“Pam?” Pam is awake. She sits up and shakes Jim out of his sleep, turns on the light beside her. It’s a bad connection, and it’s two in the morning, but it’s Karen.

“Karen? Something wrong?”

“No!” Karen sounds like it’s Christmas. Jim looks at Pam with interest. “Pam! I’m sorry, I didn’t know who to call, I didn’t want to call my mom, but I needed to call somebody, and I don’t know – “

“What’s happening?”

“Pam, there’s this guy,” Pam smiles and Jim looks more and more confused. “He’s a musician, he’s so cute, he’s got that whole sensitive Iron & Wine thing going on but he knows Brandon Flowers and kind of looks like a cross between Jensen Ackles and Piz on Veronica Mars – “

Pam whistles and jerks backward to avoid Jim’s tickling fingers. “So?”

“So I met him at Virgin Records when I was looking for the Death Cab CD and then at this party that a mutual friend holds and he asked me out and we went out last night and he’s so sweet, he kissed me at my apartment door and promised to call and then – and then – Pam, he called back! Today! And took me to dinner with the Strokes!”

“Not bad,” Pam manages as she fends off Jim’s advancing fingers.

“And we just got back from the second date and he kissed me again at my apartment door and Pam, he’s a damn good kisser.”

Pam laughs again and finally smacks Jim’s hand away. “That’s so terrific! Do you have a picture of him or something like that, something so that I can see this guy? What’s his name?”

“I’ll get one soon.” Karen giggles again, and she sounds like a less shrill version of Kelly. “His name is Riley. It’s fantastic. The next time you guys come up here I want you to meet him.”

“Awesome,” Pam says. “I’m really happy for you, Karen, I mean you’ve been looking around for, oh my god, it’s been a year.”

“Yeah,” Karen says, and her voice loses a bit of its manic happiness. “But I think he’s a really good guy. I really like him, and my friend says he’s a fantastic guy and has totally had his eye on me for like six months. He’s great. Speaking of which, how’s the ring? You like it?”

“What?” Pam’s eyes grow to the size of Hummer tires and she looks at Jim. “Ring?”

Jim’s face pales. In New York City, Karen’s face turns almost the exact same color. “Oh my God. Oh my God. I’m sorry. Jim? Tell Jim I’m sorry.”

“Ring?” Pam repeats, the word sounding like Greek on her tongue. “Ring?”

Jim quietly takes the phone from Pam’s hand. “Karen? Um, can we call you back?”

“I’m so sorry Jim! I’m so sorry!”

“That’s okay. Um, we’ll call you back tomorrow, or today, or…we’ll call you back, okay?” Jim hangs up and softly puts the phone back onto the nightstand. Pam’s eyes are still on him, her chest rising and falling in her little pink cami.

“Um…” Jim reaches over and pulls a little box out of his nightstand. “I asked her to help me pick it out, ‘cause I didn’t know what to get, and she told me to get this thing…”

He gets up and walks around to her side of the bed, kneels there and Pam swears that she’s having a heart attack or something, or maybe she’s just dreaming. “This is so bad,” he mutters. “Pam, will you – “

“Yes!” She screams and jumps off the bed, tackling him. “Yes! Yes yes yes yes!”

Jim decides soon that maybe, in spite of the sand still in the corners of his eyes, the vague morning breath he knows he already has and the aching in his back, this way isn’t so bad after all.

~~~!~~~

The next morning, Jim’s got teabags under his eyes and forgot to comb his hair in the morning, but he sits at his desk and pushes calls through and chuckles when Pam walks by, gently dragging a finger over the curve of his shoulder. He’s so tired that he doesn’t notice Dwight’s eyes until it’s too late.

Dwight leans over and stares at Jim. “Fact: You look exhausted. Another fact: the box you carried in your pocket for all of yesterday is no longer there. Final fact: The finger Pam just flirted with is attached to a hand which contains another finger with a ring.”

Phyllis looks over at Pam, who is trying to stifle a very large grin as she fills a cup at the water cooler. “Are you engaged?”

Jim leans back in his chair and folds his arms, smiling at his new fiancé. “Yes, we are.”

Michael bursts out of his office with a roar. “Engaged?!!!”

Angela smiles at Pam, then goes back to glowering at Jim before anyone can notice. Kevin snickers and nods. “Oh, yes.” Kelly gasps and turns to Ryan, who is wearing a look of abject horror.

Dwight simply smiles smugly and leans back. “I knew it.”

Michael jazz-hands his way over to Jim. “JimalamaPama! Who woulda thunk it? Jim, you are now the first man in this office to make an honest woman out of…a woman.”

Stanley clears his throat. “Michael, I am married. Toby just got married again.”

“Well, I know how it is, brutha,” Michael’s head bobs side to side. “A brutha’s gotta do what a brutha’s gotta do. I know lots of black guys on the down-low. And Toby…Toby doesn’t count.”

Stanley crushes an empty water bottle in his fist. Phyllis reaches over to pat his hand.

Michael’s attention transfers back to Pam, who has made her way over to stand by Jim. “So, uh…when’s the wedding, guys? Pam, how’s your father? Do you need a wheelchair service perhaps?”

“My father plays tennis every other day, Michael.”

“Then does he need a…what’s it called, the guy who carries the rackets around…does he need a caddie? I can definitely do that.”

“That’s golf, Michael.”

Dwight takes a purple belt out of his desk drawer. “Your security will be excellent, I promise.”

“Flowers!” squeals Kelly.

“Alcohol,” whispers Meredith.

Jim turns and mutters to Pam, “Are you sure you don’t want to just elope or something? I know an excellent motel in Las Vegas.”

Pam laughs and strokes his hair. “It wouldn’t be nearly as fun as this could be.”

Jim nods and bites his lower lip, then looks back up and smiles and Pam swears that she can feel her kneecaps melting. “I don’t mind, as long as I get to marry you.”

~~~!~~~