“I don’t know, I just really thought...that Jim was gonna propose tonight…”

The camera was locked on her for a few more moments, maybe hoping to catch another line or two, but as Pam let her emotions catch up to her, her face crumbled and she felt a single tear trickle down her cheek. Her breath became erratic, and she felt like she was going burst.

“Excuse me. I’m…” Her hands flew up to her mouth to control her sobs and cover her face. She couldn’t finish, turning around quickly and running into the building. She ran right past Toby as he talked to the security guard, not even giving them a second glance. Seconds later, she found herself curled up into a ball in the stairwell, her cheek against the cool wall as the sobs racked through her body. Her arms hugged herself in an effort to feel the comfort and peace that she so desperately needed at that moment. It didn’t work, and her sad cries eventually melted into heavy puffs of breath every few moments.

She must have sat there, in that position for about 20 minutes before she heard the door at the top of the stairs open and a voice call out.

“Pam?”

She didn’t speak, didn’t even move, as she heard the door close again and feet slowly make their way down the steps toward her. As soon as Jim turned the corner inbetween floors, he saw her. She had her knees up to her chest, her head resting on the wall. It appeared as through her eyes were closed, so he spoke again.

“Pam.” It wasn’t a question this time. “Pam, what are you doing? I’ve been looking for your for a half hour!”

She didn’t answer, so he crouched down to where she was sitting.

“Pam, what---”

His words cut short as he moved the hair back that was in front of her face, revealing her wet cheeks and puffy eyes. A lump instantly formed in his throat and he placed his hands on either side of her face, turning it towards him, making her look at him.

Her sad eyes fluttered open, but she didn’t look at him.

“Hey.” His whisper was gentle, but firm. “What’s wrong?”

When she didn’t answer, he removed his hands from her face and placed one around her back and the other under her knees, lifting her up enough so he could sit down and pull her sideways onto his lap. She instantly melted into his embrace and let her head rest against his chest, just as it had done a hundred times before.

His hands, the hands that never ceased to make her tingle and melt every time she felt them on her, stroked, caressed, and comforted every ounce of her while they sat there in silence. Her tears had started up again, but nothing more, as she felt the comfort she was needing radiate throughout her body.

A few minutes passed before he opened his mouth to speak again.

“I won’t know what’s wrong unless you talk to me.” he whispered into her hair as he placed his hundredth kiss there. She took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. Her tears had stopped flowing, and she finally felt ready to talk to him.

“Do you love me, Jim?”

He laughed, and ran a hand slowly down her arm to intertwine their fingers. "Of course I do." He stopped laughing seconds later, as he realized she wasn’t making any effort to hold onto his hand and her body had slightly tensed up.

“Wait.” His breath stopped. “Are you serious?”

He took it as a yes when she didn’t answer.

“Pam.” He reached down and cupped her chin, moving her head away from his chest and up to look at him. Their eyes met for the first time during this, and his heart broke when he saw the sadness in her eyes. His other hand reached down and his thumbs wiped away the new tears that were trickling down her cheeks. “Pam…Love is such an understatement for the way I feel about you.” His eyes searched hers, and her sadness slowly melted away as he continued. “You’re it, Pam. You are…I…just….“ He leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead and let his lips linger there. “I wish there were even words to explain how I feel about you. I guess I'll just have to spend the rest of my life showing you.”

“Then what are you WAITING for?!” She let out an exasperated sigh as his head snapped up to look at her again. “Jim, you can’t keep doing this to me, I’m going crazy! Look at me…I’m a wreck, I can’t even stay sane anymore. Just ask me already!”

“What? Wait…is that what this is about?” He smiled when he saw the look of hope light up in her eyes. “Oh, Pam.” He sighed and moved his hands to run through her hair. “Tonight wasn’t exactly what I would classify as an ass-kicking night. At one point it was, but then…well, you know.”

“I don’t need ass-kicking, Jim. I just need…you.”

“You have me, Pam. Oh my God, you have ALL of me.” He wrapped his arms tightly around her, bringing her head down to his chest again. She shifted and wrapped her arms around his middle, breathing in his scent. “It’s going to happen, Pam, and it won’t be when you’re expecting it. I mean, come on…how many times do you get proposed to in a lifetime?”

She chuckled and turned her head up to look at him, her eyes turning serious as soon as they locked with his.

“I love you, Jim.”

He leaned down and placed his lips gently on hers, still holding onto her tightly. She sighed into his kiss, and after a few moments, both pulled back and she placed her head back on his chest. He rested his chin on the top of her head and took another deep breath.

“I love you, too.”

The sat like that, in silence, holding onto each other for what seemed like forever. Jim couldn’t feel his legs anymore and his back was aching from being pressed up against the cold, bitter wall.

“Want to go home?” he asked quietly.

“No, lets just stay like this for a little while longer.”

“Okay.” He replied.

He really didn’t mind that he was uncomfortable. He had his life sitting in his arms, and he was perfectly content to stay that way forever. He knew she wasn’t expecting it now, so he let go of her with his left arm and reached down to his pocket and wrapped his hand around the warm, black box that he’d had in his possession for the better part of a year.

He pulled the box out of his pocket and took another deep breath.